2 6 
FOLLOWING THE BEE LINE 
But personally, I have never felt so sure about 
the foolishness of this old practice. In fact, though 
the bees may not hear the sound (since it seems 
doubtful that they possess powers of hearing) I be¬ 
lieve that they feel the vibrations and are drawn 
toward them. 
All beekeepers know the effect on bees of jarring 
or pounding on their hive, and how, if one is driving 
them from one place to another, the bees tend to 
move toward the object on which one is pounding. 
. . . So why might they not feel vibrations when 
in the air, and be attracted toward the source? 
At any rate, the “cottage beekeepers,” as we may 
call them, practiced this method of capturing 
swarms and were seemingly satisfied with their 
success. 
Straw hives have not been in use in America for 
many years, except by a few who loved their pic¬ 
torial effect, but bees have been kept in plain, un¬ 
painted boxes in much the same manner. 
The greatest discovery, both for its practical and 
scientific value to beekeepers and bee students, was 
the movable frame hive. This hive is made much 
like a box with a detachable cover, but in the in¬ 
terior on opposite sides are two rims from which 
hang eight or ten wooden frames. In these the bees 
