THE APIARY. 
369 
are always at command in the autumn. The later 
condemned bees by their aid may receive a ready- 
furnished home, and so be converted into wintering 
stocks at once; or they may be utilised in strengthen- 
ing stocks not otherwise populous enough to safely 
hold on till spring shall once more greet us : they must 
be added with the precautions given under “ Uniting.” 
Taking condemned bees is excellent practice, and 
small difficulties often have to be surmounted which 
greatly instruct the bee-keeper, while he can afford 
to experiment, as the loss involved in failure is incon- 
siderable. The troubles arising from robbing and 
hghting necessitate care and expedition, and so have 
latterly led many bee-keepers to adopt a plan named 
by Mr. Lyon “bumping,” instead of ordinary driving, 
which, in cool weather, is a comparatively sluggish 
process. In cases in which the combs are to be 
removed, it has long been the practice with myself, 
and I should suppose with many others, to abandon 
the thudding when bees have driven badly, and break 
or cut and break out the combs, sweeping off the 
bees. Mr. Lyon* goes further, by making no attempt 
at driving, his initial step being a loosening of the 
contents of the skep by a bump or blow. He recom- 
mends that the operation should be preceded by 
providing some large vessel to receive the removed 
combs, and a sack, or its equivalent, to cover them 
from robbers; then, with a little smoke, to save the 
operator from attack, the skeps should be so plugged 
with grass thrust in lengthways that the bees are 
prevented passing, while not deprived of air. After 
* British Bee Journal, Vol. xiv., page 314. 
VoL. II. 2 B 
