FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 179 



treated in advance how would I know which were the non- 

 swarmers from which to choose my breeding stock? Their care- 

 ful record must be kept. 



EMPTY FRAMES USED. 



Some time later a little change was made so as to make the 

 queen better satisfied with her new quarters. Instead of put- 

 ting foundation under the excluder, a brood-frame is put there, 

 at one side. It is preferably one with v,ery little brood in it, the 

 object being merely to hold the queen in the hive, but not to 



Tui. 62 — Lillle Worh-lahle. 



encourage her to do much in the way of laying. As a further 

 discouragement to laying and comb-building no other comb is 

 put in the hive, nor even the least starter of foundation. Two 

 or three other frames entirely empty are placed beside the 

 brood-comb. No dummy is needed. You might expect that the 

 bees very promptly fill with comb one or more of these empty 

 frames. They don't. At the end of- a ^¥eek or ten days you 

 may find one frame half filled, with a very little comb in the 

 second ; perhaps only a little comb in the one frame. 



As to the rest, of course the proceeding is just the same as 

 when foundation was used. 



