PRESERVING HONEY COMBS. 
105 
behunted out and destroyed. The large mother wasps appear 
singly early in the spring to start their nests, and each, if not 
prevented, is destined to be the parent of a little swarm. They 
often harass the bees, and should have no quarter. At the ap- 
proach of winter, the mice may seek a nesting place in the warm 
hive. If there are holes large enough to admit them, they 
should be contracted or covered with wire-cloth. 
TO PRESERVE HONEY COMBS FROM THE MOTH-WORM. 
As long as honey combs remain under the protecting care of 
the bees, they are secure, but if removed from the hive in the 
heat of summer, the eggs of the moth already upon them will 
hatch, unless prevented, and finally destroy them. How the 
eggs get there, is a question. One theory is, that they are 
deposited by the miller upon the bottom-board and about the en- 
trance, and occasionally adhering to the feet or legs of the bees, 
are thus carried among the combs. The other is, that the miller 
is allowed at times to visit every part of the hive. One thing 
is certain. If in summer, we drive out all the bees and close 
the hive to exclude the miller, hundreds of worms will be de- 
veloped, in from one to three weeks, acording to the tempera- 
ture. The same is sometimes true of honey in the surplus boxes, 
though in a lesser degree. "When removed early in the season, 
if to be kept in the boxes, it should be noticed frequently, and 
if small lines of a fine white powder are seen upon any of the 
combs, expose them to the fumes of brimstone. To do this, 
prepare a match by dipping the end of a cotton rag into melted 
