254 AUSTRALASIAN 
have come from, dust the suspected bees with flour as they 
leave, and watch the other hives to see which they enter with 
their loads. A sure sign that robbing has been going on in a 
hive is the appearance of small pieces of wax—cappings of 
cells—scattered about near the entrance. 
PRECAUTIONS TO BE OBSERVED. 
More can be done in the way of precaution to guard against — 
the starting of robbing than to put a stop to it when once 
started. A very slight cause may give rise to the first attempts ; 
and if the bees once get infected with the desire, it may mate- 
rially affect the prosperity of the apiary for the time being. 
No honey, pieces of comb, or sweets of any sort should be 
left lying about where the bees can get at them. No hives 
should be opened more than is absolutely necessary when rob- 
bers are about. If much manipulation should be necessary at 
such times, a bee-tent, such as described below, should be used 
to enclose the hive to be operated on. Robbing is likely to 
occur both in autumn and spring, but the first four or five 
weeks after the close of the honey season I have always found 
to be the worst in that respect. Entrances should be contracted 
at this time, to give the bees a better opportunity to defend 
them ; and if all the colonies are kept strong, there will be 
less danger of any of them being attacked. 
BEE TENTS. 
A most useful appliance is a small tent (Fig. 117), which can 
be placed over a hive when necessary. The artist has made the 
tent in the engraving rather large in proportion to the hive 
inside. It may be made of a light framework of wood, covered 
with mosquito netting, and should be large enough to cover 
the hive and an empty one beside it, or the super when taken 
off, and to give the manipulator room to work comfortably. 
It should ke made to fold when not required for use, so that 
it may be stowed away conveniently. It will answer for trans- 
ferring combs under its shelter, manipulating bees in at the 
close of the season, and in other ways for keeping off the 
attacks of robbers. 
HOW TO STOP ROBBING. 
_T have adopted the following methods to stop or check rob. 
bing, when it has taken place. I take a watering-pot, fitted 
