THE HONEY-BEE IN NEW ZEALAND. 
25 
one hand, mouth or bottom upwards, beneath the swarm, 
enclosing as many of the hanging bees as the situation, 
will allow ; with the other hand shake the bough from 
which they hang, and on the great mass tumbling into 
the hive, carry it away half-a-dozen yards, set it upright 
on the bottom board or a white sheet previously spiead 
on the grass, raise the edge of the hive a few inches 
from the ground with a bit of wood or stone, and then 
cover it with some branches to keep off the rays of the 
sun. If the queen is inside they will all gradually enter 
the hive ; but if not, and the queen is still outside,, you 
will find the bees leaving the hive, and clustering either 
on the same branch or near it; if such should be the 
case, you must j ust repeat the operation. 
In swarming, the bees are led by the old queen, the 
young one remains in the hive and ascends the throne, a 
second swarm is led by this one, and another younger 
one, of course, takes her place. . ... 
In England a swarm will remain about twenty minutes 
to half an hour on the first branch or bush or whatever 
they fix upon, and if not hived will then take to flight a 
second time, and are invariably lost to the owner; but 
in New Zealand, this is not the case, although .' r. 
Cotton was not aware of it, for the swarm will sometimes 
remain twelve hours on the first branch or bush, and 
even longer, and begin to build comb. 
Mr. Cotton thus describes his plan of hiving a swarm. 
He says, in New Zealand: —A September swarm does not 
differ so very much in value from a February one ; tor 
the swarming season ranges between these two mont is. 
I have known a swarm of the latter month support itse 
very well through the winter, and in the following spring 
become a most productive hive. Still, as I said before, 
a young bee master had better get a stock early m.t e 
season, and then he will have a whole row before it is 
over. 
Swarming is an act of colonization on the part of the 
bees. They fulfil thereby that part of the instinct 
implanted in them by their Maker, which leads them to 
spread themselves far and wide over the sur ace o e 
earth ; so that if a single swarm of bees nad been 
