THE HONEY-BEE IN NEW ZEALAND. 67 
annuus (the sunflower), and on the bees, and he has proved 
conclusively that it gets upon the bee fiom the plant, and 
not upon the plant from the bee. 
In the matter of bee books we have copied largely 
from Mr. Cotton and the “ Times’ Bee Master.” The 
quotations will easily be distinguished, as we have 
allowed the authors to speak in the first person. What 
we have aimed at throughout, is to give practical in¬ 
structions in the several operations connected wfith bee 
management. In some instances the operation is 
described more than once, but it will be found that the 
description is different, the process not being altogether 
the same, although either will effect the same purpose. 
There is just one little matter not given in any book 
we have examined, and that matter we may call the 
profit and loss of bee keeping. Thus we will suppose 
you have got your swarm at the proper season, that you 
have put it all right in your garden in the place specially 
prepared for it. You very naturally congratulate your¬ 
self that (according to this and all other bee books) at 
the proper season for taking honey—-you cannot of course 
be bothered with supers, bell-glasses, side boxes, or 
anything of that sort, you merely want, say, 30 or 40 
pounds of honey from each hive. Well, the proper 
season comes and you proceed in your own way to take 
the honey; you lift the hive or box, and what do you 
find—plenty of bees and plenty of combs, you find royal 
cells, worker cells, drone cells, and honey cells—all empty 
or nearly so. The bees have made the cells and filled 
them with brood and honey, swarms have gone off, each 
one taking a large quantity of honey with them till the 
parent or stock hive, as it is how, got weak in stores and 
workers, and you find the drones masters of the situation. 
Bees to be profitable must be attended to ; thus a fort¬ 
night or three weeks after getting your swarm (the state 
of the weather will very much alter the dates for the 
several operations), you must take the extra honey by 
super, bell-glass, or side box, or you must enlarge the 
hive and prevent swarming, or you will miss the profit 
and find the loss. 
