IMPROVED COTTAGE HIVE. 71 



used only for depositing the honey first put into them; 

 hence the name " virgin honey." These glasses have a 

 very pretty appearance, and, when nicely filled, are very 

 convenient for home use or for making presents. The 

 lower hive is the receptacle for the bees ; when a swarm 

 is placed in this hive, they immediately proceed to fill it 

 with combs, in which to store honey for themselves, and 

 for cells to breed in. This hive remains undisturbed. 



The best mode of tenanting a hive of this description 

 is by placing an early and strong swarm in it, which 

 may be generally procured of a neighbouring bee- 

 keeper ; if from a distance, considerable care is necessary 

 to admit plenty of air ; the shaking attendant upon 

 carriage irritates the bees so much, that, if not well venti- 

 lated, there is danger of the swarm being stifled, and 

 the finer the swarm, the greater the danger. For the 

 purpose of ventilation, remove the slides and substitute 

 perforated zinc, wrapping the liive up in a coarse cloth 

 of open texture (dispensing with the floor-board during 

 transit when the distance is great) . 



It is necessary only to send the lower or stock hive to 

 the party furnishing the swarm, taking the precaution to 

 fix the slides at top with tacks, as the hive has to be in- 

 verted to receive the bees. They are shaken into it in 

 the usual manner, * as they cluster around the branch of 

 the tree or shrub on which they may have chosen to 



* Sometimes swarms alight on trunks of trees or on walls, 

 where it may be difficult to shake or brush them off. In the 

 Journal of Horticulture, Mr. Woodbury mentions an instance of 



