SWAKMTNG AND DIVING. 
125 
The Apiarian who desires by natural swarming to mul- 
tiply his colonies as rapidly as possible, will find full 
directions in the sequel, for building up all after-swarms, 
however small, so as to make vigorous stocks. 
It will be remembered, that both the parent-stock from 
which the swarm issues, and all the colonies, except the 
first, have a young queen. These queens never leave the 
hive for impregnation, until they are established as heads 
of independent families. They generally go out for this 
purpose, early in the afternoon of the first pleasant day, 
after being thus acknowledged, at which time, the drones 
are flying most numerously. On leaving their hive, they 
fly with their heads turned towards it, often entering 
and departing several times, before they finally soar into 
the air. Such precautions on the part of a young queen 
are highly necessary, that she may not, on her return, 
lose her life, by attempting, through mistake, to enter a 
strange hive. More queens are thus lost than in any 
other way. 
When a young queen leaves for impregnation, the bees, 
on missing her, are often filled with such alarm that they 
rush from the hive, as if intending to swarm. Their agita- 
tion is soon quieted, if she returns in safety. 
The drone perishes in the act of impregnating the 
queen. Although, when cut into two pieces, each piece 
will retain its vitality for a long time, I accidentally ascer- 
tained, in the Summer of 1852, that if his abdomen is 
gently pressed, and sometimes if several are closely held 
in the warm hand, the male organ will often be perma- 
nently extruded, with a motion very like the popping of 
roasted pop-corn ; and the insect, with a shiver, will curl up 
and die, as quickly as if blasted with the lightning’s stroke. 
This singular provision is unquestionably intended to give 
additional security to the queen, when she leaves her hive to 
