rm THE HrSTORY OF BEES. 
- And whenever you fee them gathering together in lit- 
tle clufters upon the hive, or ftool, you may infer they 
are'preparing and even ready for a dance; and may ex- 
pect them to rife prefently. 
Get your hives in readinefs, and of different dimenfi- 
ons, that you may the better fuit them to the fwarms. 
To over-hive them will be a great difadvantagé. If un- » 
der-hived the prejudice is the lefs, andvit is eafy to give 
them enlargement. 
Arrhive holding three pecks, or two dipebit and an half, 
will bea fit fize for an early {warm of eight or ten thou- 
fand Bees. An’ hive of lefs meafure will be large e+ 
nough for thofe that come later in the year, and in lefs 
numbers. 
. It may perhaps be of fome fervice here to acquaint 
the reader with an experiment I made in Ofoder 1743. 
when putting the Bees of a {mall and late {warm, into 
an empty hive, and afterwards upon a table, I took a 
particular account of their meafure, weight, and num- 
ber; in meafure a quart, in weight: one pound and a 
quarter, in numbertwo thoufand. I firft imprifoned the 
Queen, and having a perfon at hand to affift me in the 
operation, particularly in counting them over, which 
took up the greateft part of the time, we had gone thro’ 
the whole trial, and perfectly finifhed it, before the leaft 
fign of life could be feen in one fingle Bee. But ina 
few minutes more, fome figns of life began to appear, 
firft in their moving legs, and then in other parts ; upon 
which I put them into another ftock, where they are ftill 
in- being. 
From 
