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tlR. MILLER^S 
A. A swarm-box being lighter than a hive, instead of carrying 
the hive to where a swarm is, the box may be taken there, and 
when the swarm is in the box it can be carried to the hive, laid 
upon its side with the open part of the box toward the entrance 
of the hive, so the bees can run from the box into the hive. If 
they are too slow about it they can be dumped on the ground in 
front of the hive by jarring the box on the ground. 
Q. What are the best noticeable signs just before swarming? 
A. The most reliable sign that bees meditate swarming is the 
finding of a number of queen-cells in the hive.. You may, how- 
ever, judge a little from outside appearances, if you find a colony 
ceasing work and loafing when other colonies keep on at work; 
and when bees return from the field laden with pollen and join the 
outside cluster without going inside to unload. 
Q. Last spring I bought a colony of bees and was very anx- 
ious to have them swarm. The first swarm issued July 13. July 
20 the mother colony swarmed again. This swarm covered six 
frames. On July 24 the third swarm issued from the parent 
colony. A week later I opened the parent colony and found that 
the bees had done nothing in the super. The body of the hive 
was full of honey, and I found three queen-cells. Two of these 
I destroyed. The cap of the third seemed loose, and soon the 
queen crawled out, at least I thought she was the queen, though 
she looked like any other bee. Do you suppose I have left the 
colony queenless? 
Swarm No. 1 has made lots of honey, while the other two 
swarms and the parent colony have made nothing. Had I better 
unite these, and how, or would it be better to give them frames of 
honey from the other hive? Should I get new queens for the two 
latter swarms and for the original colony? Should I go over the 
combs every ten days and cut out queen-cells? 
A. There is nothing unusual in the program your bees have 
followed. The mother colony having sent out three swarms, has 
not bees enough left to do anything in the super, and all the bees 
are crowded into the brood-chamber. Neither are the second and 
third swarms strong enough to do much, the first swarm being 
the only one strong enough to do super work. When a colony pre- 
pares for swarming, it starts quite a number of queen-cells, and 
you found what were left after the last swarm issued. It is not 
likely that your cutting out those last cells made any difference 
about swarming, for it is a rare thing for the fourth swarm to 
issue. You may or may not have made the colony queenless by 
cutting out the cells. You say the bee that came out of the 
