ALEXANDER'S WRITINGS ON PRACTICAL BEE CULTURE 81 



for honey or pollen; and when extractlng-combs were put on top a 

 very large surplus was easily obtained. This fact alone was enough to 

 encourage us in testing this method still further. Then another result 

 from our experiments, so far as we have gone, is that we have never 

 had a colony with two or more laying queens show any desire to 

 swarm. 



This is something we can not understand, as we expected these 

 strong full colonies to be the first to swarm. In order to see if we 

 could force one full colony last summer to swarm, we put 14 good laying 

 queens Into it at one time, and in about two weeks we examined it 

 and found the 14 queens we had put in two weeks before, and their 

 own queen all in harmony together, with nearly every cell in their 

 combs containing brood; then during the rest of the season we used 

 this colony as a queen-nursery. Sometimes we would take three or 

 four queens from it to use in other colonies, and occasionally we put in 

 five or six at a time, and none were ever balled or stung. In fact, 

 there was no queen injured in any way in that hive during the season. 

 I have seen three or tour on the same side of a comb crawling among 

 the bees, and whenever they would touch each other they would start 

 quick In an opposite direction. 



VIKGINS EECALCITEANT. 



Now, don't think that you can handle virgin queens In this way, 

 for you can not. They will sting each other or a laying queen as soon 

 as they come together. There is not much you can do with virgin 

 queens until they are fertilized and commence laying; then their de- 

 sire to sting other queens is all gone. I have often kept two or three 

 laying queens under a common drinking-glass on the work-bench for a 

 number of days without their trying to sting each other. 



The worst feature to overcome in giving our colonies two or more 

 laying queens is in knowing how to introduce them safely. 



Last summer my son Frank discovered the most practical method 

 of introducing queens that I have ever heard of — a method whereby 

 over 90 per cent are safely introduced and laying within 18 hours from 

 the time the parent queen was removed. He wants to test this method 

 still further another season before giving it to the readers of Glean- 

 ings; then if it still works as well as it has with us in the past there 

 will be no trouble in giving our colonies as many laying queens as we 

 may desire. If so. It will be another advance made in modern bee- 

 keeping. 



I can already see several advantages in keeping two or more queens 

 In one colony. First, in requeening we would have to remove only the 

 oldest queen. Next, our hives would be kept very full of brood, which 

 would give us strong colonies, and there would be no more complaint 

 about our bees storing too much honey in the brood-nest. Then, for 

 some unaccountable reason, it does seem to prevent the desire to swarm; 

 and with colonies that contain nearly twice the usual working force 



