262 FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 



is to set the hive, with the six brood immediately in place of 

 the fourth hive, setting the fourth hive in a new place. The 

 returning field-bees will populate the new hive. Ten days or 

 two weeks later the performance may be repeated if the season 

 is prosperous, and this may be repeated a number of times. 

 Of course empty combs or foundation will take the place of 

 the two frames of brood drawn from each hive. An advant- 

 age of this plan is that it makes a strong colony at once, and 

 thei'e is no danger of Ijeing caught with a number of weaklings 



Fig. 92— Miller Cage No. 2. 



on a sudden cessation of the harvest. Each new colony formed 

 will in its turn soon be able to take its part in the game to 

 start still others. 



SHAKING BEES OFF COMBS. 



In this last plan, since the frames of brood are taken 

 without bees, there is a good deal to be done in the way of 

 cleaning bees off the combs. While it does not matter if a few 

 bees should be left on the combs, it does matter greatly that 

 care lie taken to make sure that the queen is not among the 

 bees taken. So it is well to hrvsh the combs tolerably clean, 

 and then one can easily see whether the queen is present. 



