ARTIKICIAI, 8WARMIN0. 
15j 
by diviiling the old hive, the quoeiiless ]);ii't hus thousands 
of cells lilled with brood and eggs, and yoiit g bees will be 
hatching lor at least three weeks; by this time, the young 
(j\ieeti will ordinarily be laying eggs, so that there will bo 
an interval of not more than three weeks, during which 
tlie colony will receive no accessions. I>ut when a new 
swai-m is tbrmed, in the way above described, not an egg 
will bo laid for nearly three weeks, and not a bee hatched 
for nearly si.v. During all this time, the colony will 
rapidly decrease ;* and by the time the progeny of the 
young (pieeii begins to mature, the new hive will have so 
few bees, that it would seldom be of any value, even if 
its combs were of the best construction. 
After thoroughly testing this last plan of artificial 
swarming, I have found that it has not the least jiractical 
value; and as this is the method which Apiarians have 
usually tried, it is not str.angc that hitherto, they have 
almost unanimously condemned artificial swarming. 
Another method of artificial swarming has been zeal¬ 
ously advocated, which, seeming to recjuire the smallest 
amount of labor or skill, would be everywhere practiced, 
if it could only be made elfectual. A number of hives are 
to bo connected by holes, so as to allow the bees to travel 
from .any one to all the others. The bees, on this plan, are 
to colonize themseloes, and it is asserted that in due time, 
edffo with workor-colls, for the accommodation of tho young qtioon. So uniformly 
do bees witli an unhatchod queen biillil coarso, or drone-comb, that often a 
gianiii'i at tho combs of a now colony, will show either that It Is queonless, or tliat, 
liiiving been so, it has Just reared u now queen. It is not necessary that a queen 
•houlil liavo commenced laying eggs to Induce her colony to build workor-colU; I 
have known a Htnmg awann with a virgin queen, almost to 1111 their hive with 
beautiful worker-coml), Ifeforo a single egg was deposited in the cells. 
♦ Every ol)servin'; bee-keeper must liave noticed Imw rapidly even a large 
swarm diminishes in number, for the tlrst throe weeks after It has been hlvo<L 
bo great is the m-irtallLy of bee.s <liirlng the height of the working-season, that 
ofteu, in than that time, It docs not conluin one half original number. 
