52 AN EASY METHOD 



CHAPTER IX. 



ON MULTIPLYING COLONIES TO ANY DESIRABLE EXTENT, WITHOUT THEIR 

 SWAEMING. ' 



The large drawer, No. 1, should always be used for this 

 purpose. Insert slides, as in Chapter VI., and remove the 

 drawer containing bees and brood-comb ; place the same in 

 the chamber of an empty hive ; stop the entrances of both 

 the ,new and old hives, taking care to give them air, as in 

 Chapter IV. Give clean water daily, three or four days. 

 Now let the bees in both hives have their liberty. 



REMARKS. 



This operation is both practicable and easy, and is of prime 

 importance to all cultivators who wish to avoid the necessity 

 of hiving them when they swarm ; and yet it will not pr&- 

 vent swarming, except in that part of the divided colony 

 which contains the queen at the time of their separation. 

 The other part being compelled to make another queen, (and 

 they generally make two or more,) may swarm to avoid 

 their conflict, as explained in Chapter II. The hive con- 

 taining the old queen may swlarm for want of room ; but 

 at any rate, in performing the" operation, it has saved the 

 trouble of hiving one swarm, and prevented all danger of 

 their flight to the woods. 



Multiplying colonies by this rule is a perfectly safe method 

 of managing bees, when the seasons were favorable, and not 

 otherwise. 



