FEEDING BEES. 
SI 
in this manner. Should such colonies barely escape death, 
they will Deglect to develop the eggs laid by the queen, until 
the honey begins to appear again, and before they can be 
built up strong in bees, the best honey season will be over, 
and they will have no surplus honey ; nor will they have 
bees to spare for a swarm ; and in case the honey season 
proves a bad one they may have but little honey stored for 
the coming winter. 
What is the remedy for such weak, starving colonies!' 
They should be housed where they can keep themselves and 
their brood warm until the weather admits of their flying. 
While the bees are in their winter quarters, if they are 
scarce of honey, they should be fed on sugar candy (white is 
the best), placed between the combs, in the cluster of bees: 
they will remain quietly clustered on it, eating as they need, 
and save their honey without being excited, as they inva- 
riably are when fed any liquid sweet.* If the bees are in a 
box hive, keen it inverted and place the sticks of candy, one, 
two or three pounds, between the ends of the combs where 
the bees will collect on it. I will now describe the mode of 
feeding these when set on their summer stand. 
FEED BOX. 
Make as many feed boxes as there arc colonies to feed. 
Take a board one-half inch thick, ten or twelve inches long, 
aud five or six inches wide ; nail all around this strips one 
and a half or two inches wide, thus making a feed-box one ov 
one and a half inches deep. Melt some rosin and beeswax to- 
gether, taking equal quantities of each, and pour it around 
in the corners of the box to make it honey-tight. Into this 
box pour the liquid food, and spread a few shavings or cut 
straw over the surface of it to keep the bees from miring. 
If the colony is weak and the combs built only part way 
down, the feed box might be inserted under the combs and 
something placed beneath it to raise it up against them where 
the bees might have the most easy access to it; but if the 
* I have made a cheep ettlclo of candy by dissolving a good article of sugar, then 
adding a teasp .onful of cream of tartar to twenty- five pounds of sugar, ovaporalo the 
water by boiling until it shows, by cooling in Water that it 18 brittle. Ihcn pour it 
into shallow pans slightly grea-ed. Wliou partially (poled cut it lulo slips, or when 
cold break it to suit. It might be scented, it desirod, with mint. It could be thirl 
tied with egga. 
