A YEAR AMONG THE BEES. 
flying at once, but I have never had any difficulty in this 
direction. The evening before, I open all cellar doors and 
windows, and although the bees may roar for some time, 
usually they will be very quiet next morning. I generally 
stay in the cellar and help lift the hives off the pile. The 
entrances are left open just as they were all winter, the hives 
are carried quietly and set upon the farthest stands first, to 
avoid passing by them afterward. The covers are at once 
put on, and generally it will be some little time before they 
start to flying. Their remaining so quiet is partially the re- 
sult of their being handled carefully, but is mainly due, I 
think, to the thorough airing they have had in the cellar. 
Before each hive leaves the cellar, I make sure there are 
live bees in it by placing my ear to it, or lifting one end of 
the quilt. If any are dead, they are piled up to one side in 
the cellar. The stands of the home apiary are all filled, and 
the remaining hives are piled three high on a couple of sticks 
of firewood, not far from the cellar door. This is done so as 
to occupy little room, and necessitate their being carried a 
shorter distance when being put on the wagon to be hauled 
to the out apiary. No attention whatever is paid to numbers 
of hives on carrying out. Entrances are nearly closed after 
the first flight. 
NUMBERING HIVES. 
Numbers for hives are made in this way : Pieces of tin 4 
by 2,% inches have a small hole punched in each one, near the 
edge, about midway of one of the longer sides. With 14-inch 
wire nails, nail them on the top of a wooden hive-cover 01 - 
other plane surface. Then give them a couple of coats of 
white paint, and, when dry, put the numbers on them, from 
1 upward, with black paint. There is room to make figures 
large enough to be seen distinctly at quite a distance. I 
fasten these tin-tags on the front of the hive, by pushing a )4 
or %-inch wire nail through the hole into the hive, with a cold- 
chisel. This does not disturb the bees as driving with a ham- 
