24 
HIVES. 
and allow the bees to go into the other apartment for 
honey, they 'fust starve. 
The cost of construction is another objection to this 
hive, as the labor bestowed on one is more than would 
finish two, that would be much better. 
ADVANTAGES OF THE CHANGEABLE IIIVE CONSIDERED. 
The value of changeable hives is based upon the fol- 
lowing principle : — Each young bee when it first 
hatches from the egg, is neither more nor less than a 
worm ; when it receives the necessary food, the bees 
seal it over ; it will then spin a cocoon, or line its cell 
with a coating of silk, less in thickness than the thin- 
nest paper : this remains after the bee leaves it. It is 
evident, therefore, that after a few hundreds have been 
reared in a cell, and each one has left its cocoon, that 
such cell must be somewhat diminished, although the 
thickness of a dozen cocoons could not be measured , 
and this old cell needs removing, that the bees may 
replace it with a new one. But how shall it be done ? 
This is a feat for the display of ingenuity. A common 
man might go about it in a very sensible, simple man- 
ner, might possibly turn the hive over, and cut out the 
old'combs when necessary, without knowing perhaps 
that the patent-vender could sell a receipt to do the 
thing scientifically , the benefit of which would be many 
times on the principle of a surgeon cutting oil your 
head, to get a good chance to tie a small artery accord- 
ing to system ; or would show you a roundabout way 
of half a dozen miles to accomplish what the same num- 
ber of rods would do. Had we not ocular demonstra- 
