180 
LETTERS FROM ALABAMA. 
bees from coming out, which they had already 
begun to do in some numbers, alarmed, doubtless, 
by the downfall of their house. 
While he was doing this, the other was gather- 
ing green leaves from the chestnuts, oaks, and 
hickories, which he cleverly rolled up into a solid 
cylinder. This, when large enough, was thrust 
into the entrance of the hive to stop it up, while 
they opened it in another place to extract the 
combs. The next proceeding was to discover the 
situation of the comb, which could only be ascer- 
tained by repeated trials, cutting into the trunk in 
different places. Aware that the hive was above 
the entrance, they first cut a notch on the opposite 
side from the orifice, and about two feet above it ; 
but as soon as the axe had penetrated the hollow, 
the bees began to hum and cluster to the light, 
whereby the men knew that they had not reached 
the top of the nest. Preventing, therefore, the 
egress of the imprisoned bees at this opening, by 
holding the smoking cotton there, until it could be 
closed by another stopper of rolled leaves, they 
made a new trial about two feet higher. Here, 
however, the bees were as thick as before ; so, 
having closed this also in the same manner, they 
made a third cut still higher, and at length dis- 
covered that they had reached above the top of 
the nest. 
One of them now blew the smoke into this 
orifice, while the other having fixed the “ gum,” 
and supported it by props over the original en- 
trance, drew out the stopper of leaves, in order 
that the bees, being driven out by the smoke blown 
in at the other end, might take refuge from the 
annoyance in the new hive, and thus render the 
