140 A Modern Bee- Farm 



have no hesitation in asserting that more often the cause is to be 

 found in the queen herself. For instance, I very frequently take 

 a laying queen from one hive in the middle of the day, and 

 carrying her alone, insert her in another stock, without waiting to 

 see if she is accepted, whatever be the condition of such colony, 

 and I do not remember one being missing when the hive happened 

 to be examined. The reason is apparent ; there you have a queen 

 in the highest state of fecundity, and her condition is respected 

 and immediately recognised by the bees. Take a queen that has 

 been confined with a handful of bees for a few days, and the 

 chances are she may or may not be accepted under like treatment ; 

 while under the disturbance caused by caging the bees would be 

 inclined to reject some of those first mentioned. The queen that 

 has been confined for many days will be the most difficult to insert, 

 as she will be to the bees little more than an unfertile queen, and 

 they are prepared to reject her accordingly, unless proper precau- 

 tions are taken, such as placing her upon a comb of hatching brood 

 only, in a small hive with hot water tins to keep up the tempera- 

 ture to about 90 degs., or else the combined "fasting" and 

 "confined nucleus" methods. When inserted by caging the 

 queen will sometimes become so irritated that she herself attacks the 

 bees ; and at other times the disturbance so frightens her that the 

 bees follow and attack her ; and if a queen once begins to run, 

 even though the bees were at first favourably disposed towards 

 her, she is lost, as she thus makes herself appear to be chased, 

 which is soon the case in reality. 



Much more could be added ; but I think I have shown more 

 than enough to convince the reader that the caging system is not 

 to be compared with some plans of Direct Introduction, which 

 provide that a queen may be inserted into any colony, whatever 

 belts condition, and almost as it were, without the bees being 

 aware of the advent of a new sovereign. 



