102 THE BLESSED BEES. 



were started in abundance. Six days after the 

 combs were put in, I found thirty-two cells in one 

 hive and thirty-nine in the other— a larger number 

 than in the spring. Perhaps they started more be- 

 cause the weather was warmer, the honey coming in 

 faster, and the hives stronger in bees. As soon as 

 the clover harvest was done, I took twenty hives and 

 divided them up into eighty three-frame nuclei. Of 

 course there were the twenty queens from these di- 

 vided hives. These were left in their old hives, but 

 each had only three frames of brood. There were 

 still fifteen of the old hives, full of frames of brood. 

 From each of these I took five frames of hatching 

 brood, then moved the other seven frames apart 

 and alternated with them five empty frames, so as 

 to fill the hive. Then the seventy-five frames taken 

 from the fifteen hives were given to the twenty 

 nuclei having queens, making four frames to give to 

 each of fifteen, and three each to the other five. 

 Then of course fifteen of these had seven frames 

 each, and the other five six frames each. Now I 

 moved the frames in these twenty nuclei apart, and 

 alternated empty frames with them until the hives 

 were full. Then to the whole thirty-five so prepared I 

 gave an abundant feed. As the combs were nearly 

 full of brood, the bees had no place to store this 

 food, and hence were urged to begin new combs in 

 the empty frames. Thus I had the whole thirty- 



