66 
BEE-CULTURE. 
supply them with a queen-cell, as recommended elsewhere, 
which would now be of great advantage to do. While this 
operation is going on, an empty hive should be set on the stand 
of the old hive (this is called the decoy hive), to catch the 
bees that return from foraging. Now set the decoy hive to 
one side, and set the hive with the new swarm in its place on 
the stand of the old hive ; then set the old hivo away a rod 
or more ; shake the bees out of the decoy hive in front of the 
new hive, and they will enter it, and you are done. If you 
do not succeed in getting the queen in the new hive, you will 
know it in a few minutes by the bees coming out and mani- 
festing much anxiety. If you have not got her, you will have 
to drive again until you find her. As soon as they commence 
running up, I tilt the hive to one side and watch for her among 
them. The old hive will seem deserted for a few days, but 
the great number of bees hatching every day will soon replen- 
ish it. A good swarm of bees thus driven will weigh about 
five or six pounds. 
ANOTHER PLAN. 
If a hive cannot afford a swarm itself, it is a good plan to 
make one from two, thus : Drive all the bees out of one hive, 
call it No, 1; remove another strong one, which we will call 
No. 2, a rod or more from its stand. Now take No. 1, which 
has no bees, and set it where No. 2 stood, and two-thirds of 
the bees from No. 2 will enter it and rear a queen ; but it is 
better to give them one. All hives that have to rear queens, 
whether they have given a swarm naturally or otherwise, 
should be ejjamined at the time the new queen should have 
brood, and see if all is right. [See Loss of Queens.] But 
artificial swarms can be made much more conveniently by 
using movable comb hives. Open the hive from which you 
wish to take a swarm ; look over the combs until you find the 
queen ; lift out the comb with the queen and bees adhering ; 
place this in the centre of the new hive on the stand of the 
old one, and set the old one away a rod or more. Three-fourths 
of the bees will leave and enter the new hive. If you have 
an empty comb in a frame to put in the old hive, in place of 
the one taken out, it would be a great advantage ; if not, set 
all the combs in the hive together, so as to receive an empty 
frame at the outside : if you can now supply them with a queen 
