34 
BEES AND BEE-KEEPING. 
clustered there that we may walk away with them, 
and hive as before. 
Bees sometimes gather around the main stem of a 
tree where many branches are given off, and where 
dislodgment by shaking is impossible. The skep 
may, in some cases, be pushed in, and fixed over 
them, and they driven towards it by smoke. At the 
same time, they may be coaxed by a piece of comb 
containing brood, or store, fastened firmly within the 
skep. In such cases I have succeeded better, as I 
think, when the floor board has been added, so as to 
leave a very wide entrance. In one instance in my 
experience, the bees passed in so slowly that not 
until nearly noon of the succeeding day could the 
skep be removed. Brushing with a goose wing, 
which many recommend, 1 have never found useful ; 
agitating a weed, such as a dock head, amongst them, 
much more quickly makes them travel upwards : but 
it is impossible to give specific rules for every case ; 
much must rest with the ingenuity of the operator. 
Should the swarm be intended to stand near to the 
position in which it was hived, it should be removed 
thither as soon as the main body have taken up their 
quarters, for two reasons ; First, After swarming, bees 
carefully mark their new location, and those taking a 
flight before the hive is placed on its stand are in 
danger of being lost, by returning to the wrong spot ; 
Second, There is abundant evidence that bees, at least 
occasionally, send out scouts to hunt out a suitable 
domicile, and, should these return from a successful 
trip, they will, in all likelihood, conduct our swarm to 
the nesting-place of their choosing ; and is it not 
