BEE MANUAL. 213 



placing the hive containing the brood and caged queen in its 

 place, and shaking the bees from a couple of frames down near 

 the entrance, to secure some young bees with the old ones that 

 will return from the removed hive ; the queen can be released 

 in twenty-four hours. 



We have now, by removing the queen, forced the colony to 

 turn its attention to raising others, and by depriving it of its 

 own eggs and larvae, have compelled it to raise queens from 

 those supplied to it. We have also, by taking away all its 

 uncapped brood, lessened its labours, and thereby obliged it in 

 a manner to give more heed to the matter in hand. 



It is often stated that better queens, as a rule, are developed 

 under the swarming impulse than can be raised by the forcing 

 process. The reason given is that the larvae from which queens 

 are to be reared, when the bees are preparing to swarm, receive 

 the attention of the nurse bees, with this object in view, from 

 the time of hatching, and are abundantly supplied with the 

 " royal jelly" — so much so, indeed, as to apparently have more 

 than they can consume, some usually being found in the bottoms 

 of the cells after the queens have emerged. This surplus jelly 

 being found in a cell is considered a good sign that a strong, 

 healthy queen has developed from it. I have no doubt that 

 this is all correct ; but if these conditions can be brought about 

 by the forcing process, there appears to be no good reason for 

 supposing that the queens raised in that way will not be just as 

 good ; and by the method I am describing this can be effected, 

 as I have proved time after time. The main considerations are 

 to develop the queens in strong colonies, and to let the nurse 

 bees have as little to do as possible, that their whole attention 

 may be devoted to rearing the queens from the selected eggs or 

 larvae we have supplied them with. The larva of a worker bee 

 several days old can be transformed into a queen, but all breed- 

 ers agree that such queens are of little use. 



In less than twenty-four hours after the eggs have been 

 given to the colony, several queen cells will be started 

 over them. Some colonies will build more than others, but I 

 think we may reckon the average at about fifteen with Italian 

 bees, though I have had as many as thirty-five in a frame. 

 There will be more built when honey is plentiful ; and if little 

 or none is being gathered, the bees should be fed while cell- 

 building is going on. Twelve cells are considered enough for 



