and its Economic Management. 45 



unborn are destroyed, as I have reason to believe, by the 

 workers tearing open the side of the cells and there 

 stinging their helpless victims, or tearing them out piece- 

 meal. 



Young: Queens Piping. 



This peculiar sound will always be heard during a day 

 or so before the issue of the second swarm. The sound 

 appears to be an answering call or challenge from one 

 young queen to another, and strange though it may seem, 

 if the colony is still populous, -several of these young^ 

 queens may be running about the combs at the same 

 time without harming each other. But that is not all, 

 this sound or call has a magnetic influence over the 

 workers, who appear spell-bound, themselves being held 

 motionless and flattened on the combs, in imitation of the 

 queen's own action and attitude, while piping. This I 

 have repeatedly noticed while holding the comb in my 

 hand. 



Within seven days after the issue of the first swarm there 

 are no more uncapped larvae, and therefore no more feeding 

 required from the nurse bees 'until the last remaining 

 queen is laying, a period of about twelve days, so that if 

 excessive swarming is not indulged in, stores continue to 

 accumulate while there is a reduced force to gather it. It 

 is well that this is so, as the young queen is generally so 

 very prolific that unless the workers can get in advance of 

 her requirements at the start, they are liable to reach 

 winter with no stores on hand. 



I have here shown in a general way the natural condi- 

 tion of a swarm during one year of its existence, but under 

 modern management the state of things will be much 

 altered ; at the same time I hope the foregoing will enable , 

 the uninitiated reader the better to understand and follow 

 such methods as will hereafter be described. 



