THE REARING OF QUEEN BEES. 15 
in an incubating cage of zinc (see tigs. 4 and 5). This gives the advan- 
tage of starting the cells under the most favorable conditions for their 
acceptance, and at the sunr time make- it unnecessary to have bo many 
queenless colonies in an apiary, which is obviously not economical. 
METHOD OF STARTING CELLs. 
In starting cells it is desirable that the bar be placed at a level of 
about 3 inches from the top of the frames when standard-sized frames 
are used, since this puts the cells in the middle of the brood chamber 
where the heat is most uniform. This can be done by the method 
illustrated in figures 1 and 2. After cells are once started they may be 
kept at almost any level of the hive so long as they are fed and kept 
warm; and as many as three bars may be fastened in one frame where 
there are plenty of bees to cover all of them. It is possible to put 
three such frames of started cells in one story of a colony, but at least 
one frame of comb should be between each two cell frames, -<> that there 
may not be too large an opening in the hive. In this way a strong 
colony will readily complete and care for more than a hundred cells. 
DIFFERENCE T\ RAGES. 
Here, again, racial characteristics play a large part. Italians do not 
a< readily accept and complete large numbers of quern cells as do 
either Cyprians or Carniolans. In yards in which Italian queen- are 
reared, it nay therefore be desirable to keep colonies of Cyprians or 
Carniolans. It need scarcely be said that in such cases drone traps 
should be used. No fear need be entertained by the queen breeder 
that races producing large numbers of queens necessarily produce 
poor ones. Anyone familiar with the proliricness of the queens of 
these races could not hold such an idea. There is no evidence that 
under these circumstances the larva? are less well fed: indeed in such 
colonies, as in those with fewer queens to care for. the larva- alw ay- 
leave some royal jelly in the cells when they enter the pupal stage, 
during which, of course, no food is eaten. 
SWA km box. 
Since the greatest difficulty witli this part of queen rearing is in 
getting the cells started, it is fortunate that we have a method by 
which the matter may be made more certain. It is desirable to get 
bees into the condition in which they will start large numbers oi cells; 
this can be done by the use of what is known as the " swarm box." We 
know that when bees are in too cramped quarters they acquire the 
swarming impulse, and that under this influence they begin to rear 
queens; hence if we confine bees in a hive or box the same condition 
is brought about, but ir a much shorter time. Whether the condition 
