THE AUSTRALIAN BEEKEEPERS’ JOURNAL. 
137 
old bees away. I was loth to cut her wing, 
for it not only mars their beauty, but is often 
the cause of their being lost or killed at 
swarming time. This queen has since turned 
out to be the finest I have ever seen. This 
difficulty of introduction arises, I fancy, 
through the strong unpleasant odour caused 
by bees being-locked up so long and by the 
bees that have died on the voyage; for after 
being accepted once they can be as readily 
reintroduced as the native queens. The 
wonderful quietness of the Ligurian bees 
whilst being handled, their prolificness and 
great honey-gathering qualities are so well 
known that they need no comment from me, 
and, in my opinion, well repay the apiarist for 
the trouble and expense of obtaining them.” 
Several members related their successes and 
failures in importing queen bees from Italy. 
The failures were often caused through 
mistakes when introducing the queens after 
arrival. 
Mr. F. A. Joyner called attention to an 
article on foul brood in the Australian Bee 
Journal, commenting in most favorable terms 
upon the South Australian Foul Brood Act. 
Mr. C. A. Dickins said he had been very 
successful in introducing queens. His practice 
was to introduce the queens on the frames in 
round-top cages, keeping for two days, and 
then releasing her. If the bees would not 
then accept her, he smoked with vine leaves, 
which he found to be nearly as strong as 
tobacco. He had an imported queen which 
would persist in laying only on one frame, 
although he shifted it from place to place in 
the hive. She would lay as many eggs in 
one cell. — Garden and Field 1th Feb, Adelaide. 
♦ 
VICTORIAN BEEKEEPERS’ ASSOCIA- 
TION. 
A meeting of this Association was held at the 
rooms of the Public Service Association, 
Melbourne Athenaeum, on 16tli January, at 
8 o’clock, Mr. Ellery, President, in the 
chair. There was a small attendance of 
members, and apologies were received from 
several who were absent in the country. 
The Hon. Secretary, Mr. J. H. Kitchen, was 
also absent, in New Zealand 
It was proposed and carried that the Chair- 
man lie requested to see the Executive Com- 
mission of Centennial Exhibition, to endeavor 
to have a reservation of space to allow a 
combined exhibit to be made of Apiarian pro- 
ducts and appliances from various colonies, 
instead of having them scattered about in 
various parts of the Exhibition. 
The Secretary was also instructed to write 
to all kindred Associations and large Apiarists, 
asking their co-operations to secure one com- 
bined exhibit. 
After a pleasant and profitable hour spent 
in discussing various matters of mutual 
interest, the meeting closed at 10 o’clock. 
©rtoinal Contributions. 
INTRODUCING QUEENS. 
With the introduction of the different races 
of bees, especially the Italians, queen-intro- 
ducing became a necessity, and is now in use 
all over the world. We know of different 
methods by which a fair success is gained, but 
by each method there is some risk, and a 
queen will be lost now and then by the best 
known method of introducing. 1 have intro- 
duced thousands of queens, and have tried all 
the different methods known, and for this 
reason, do I say that there is some loss, even 
by the best known method. The weather, the 
honey-crop, the time in the season and the 
time in the day, the strength of the hive, the 
age of the bees, the position of the hive, the 
honey in stock, brood, comb, &c. — all this is 
of influence and consequence in introducing. 
By carefully considering all these circum- 
stances, we are guided to more and more 
perfect conclusions. 
Our reasons for introducing are several. 
A colony of bees may have lost its own queen; 
or a queen is getting too old, or she is not up 
to the standard for laying in the breeding 
season ; or a new race of bees, or fresh blood, 
is to be established. It is due to this latter 
circumstance that introducing is required to 
so great extent. Happily, the bees’ nature 
has been studied thoroughly, in consequence 
of which, ways and means are open by which 
the desired design is obtained. We may 
introduce : — 
1st. Brood; eggs laid for workers, and 
young larva; not over three days old. 
2nd. Queen-cells eight to ten days old. 
3rd. Virgin queens. 
4th. Fertilised queens. 
In order to introduce brood, from which 
queen-cells shall be started, and one or more 
young queens raised, it is absolutely neces- 
sary that the hive, which has to rear these 
cells, should have no queen and no young 
brood less than six days old. To attain this, a 
queen is removed from one hive, and six days 
after all started queen-cells are destroyed ; 
while at the same time a comb, or a small 
piece of comb with eggs and young larvse, is 
given to them from the hive from which the 
young queens should be reared. The bees 
soon perceive the loss or destruction of their 
queen-cells, and they begin fresh ones from 
the brood just given. After five or six days 
it is ascertained how many queen-cells may be 
to spare, as this hive requires one only, and 
accordingly to the number of spare cells, as 
many other colonies are made queenless at 
once by removing their queens. On the ninth 
or tenth day from the time when the brood 
was given, all other queen-cells are cut out 
but one, and one is inserted in about the 
centre of the brood nest of each of the queen- 
less colonies. From two to six days hence the 
