178 
TIIE HIVE AND IIONEY-BEE. 
With the movable-comb hives, the death of the bees 
may be prevented, and all the feeble colonies made strong 
and powerful ; but only by abandoning the idea of obtain- 
ing a single pound of surplus honey. From the parent- 
stock, and first swarm, combs containing maturing brood 
must be taken to strengthen the weak swarms, and instead 
of being able to store their combs with honey, they will 
be constantly tasked in replacing those taken away, so 
that when the honey-harvest closes, they must be fed to 
save them from starving. 
Any one intelligent enough to keep bees, can, from 
these remarks, understand exactly why colonies cannot be 
rapidly multiplied, in ordinary seasons, and yet be made to 
yield large supplies of surplus honey. Even the doubling 
of stocks will often be too rapid an increase for the 
greatest yield of spare honey. 
I would strongly dissuade any but the most experienced 
Apiarians, from attempting, at the furthest, to do more 
than treble their stocks in one year. Another book Would 
be needed, to furnish directions for rapid multiplication, 
sufficiently full and explicit for the inexperienced; and 
even then, most -who should undertake it, would be 
sure, at first, to fail. With ten strong stocks of bees, in 
movable-comb hives, in one propitious season, I could so 
increase them, in a favorable location, as to have, on the 
approach of Winter, one hundred good colonies ; but I 
should expect to purchase hundreds of pounds of honey, 
devoting nearly all my time to their management, and 
bringing to the work the experience of many years, and 
the judgment acquired by numerous lamentable failures.* 
* In one season, being called from home after my colonies had been greatly mul- 
tiplied, the honey-harvest was suddenly cut short by a drought, and I found, on 
iny return, that most of my stocks wore ruined. The bees, not having been 
f ed, had {one Into the groceries, and porished by hundreds of thousands. 
