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Scientific queen-rearing by Gilbert M. Doolittle

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Transcriber's and Editors preface.

Another classic queen rearing text. I hope you enjoy it.

If you find any typographical errors or you wish to make comments please send them to:

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With the compliments of The Author.

SCIENTIFIC

QUEEN-REARING

AS

PRACTICALLY APPLIED;

BEING

A Method by which the Best of Queen-Bees

are Reared in Perfect Accord with

Nature's Ways.

G. M. DOOLITTLE,

FOR THE AMATEUR AND VETERAN

IN BEEKEEPING.

CHICAGO, ILLS.:

THOMAS G. NEWMAN & SON,

1889.

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THIS BOOK

AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

Mr. Elisha Gallup,

MY TEACHER IN BEE-KEEPING,

FROM WHOM I LEARNED MY FIRST LESSONS IN QUEEN-REARING, AND WHO TRUTHFULLY CLAIMED, THAT AROUND THE QUEEN CENTERED ALL THERE WAS IN APICULTURE.

PREFACE

For many years I have been urged to write a book on beekeeping, and almost scolded because I did not do so. My excuse for not doing so has been, that there were many exhaustive treatises on this subject already before the public, written by Messrs. Langstroth, Quinby, King, Cook, Root and others-hence there was no reason for thrusting more books upon the world, which had nothing for their subject-matter but the general outlines of bee-keeping.

To be sure, there are two little books in pamphlet form bearing my name, viz.: "The Hive I Use," and "Rearing Queens," which have been published, but these are only a compilation from articles which I have written for the different bee-papers.

As all bee-keepers of to-day are aware, I have given all of my best thoughts, on the subject which the desired book would cover, free to the world through our many bee-papers, so, had I complied with the request made, the matter in the book would have been mainly that which I had written before; and owing to this self-same cause, the reader will perhaps find some fault with the present work.

Finally, the urgent requests of my friends for a book became so numerous, that I decided to hold back from the public, a part of my experiments and research, along the line of Queen-Rearing, (as in this branch of our pursuit I have taken more interest, and gave to it more thought and study, than to all else pertaining to apiculture), and when that research and the experiments were completed, give all which I had dug out regarding Queen-Rearing, to the public, in book form. The culmination of this decision is now before you, and the reader can decide whether I have made a mistake, or not, in the undertaking.

Although I have given to the book the title of "Scientific Queen-Rearing," there is much in it that is not scientific, as the reader will soon discover, and some lofty minds may pass it by in disdain on this account.

It is not a manual, giving in terse, sharp periods, the greatest amount of accurate information in the briefest space. My style, I fear, is often like my bee-yard, which in looks is irregular, while it attempts something useful. I never could be pinned down to systematic work. I always did like to work at the bees near a gooseberry-bush, full of ripe, luscious fruit, or under a harvest apple-tree, where an occasional rest could be enjoyed, eating the apples which lay so temptingly about. Do we not all need an occasional relaxation from the severer duties of life? If so, the rearing of Queens for our own apiary, gives us a change from the all-important struggle for honey, whereby we can get money.

In brief, it is my sincere conviction, that something to relieve the monotony of every-day life is good for humanity, and it is my wish to diffuse this belief as widely as possible.

I frankly admit that the following pages are very much the same in character, as if I had taken the reader by the arm, from time to time, and strolled about the Apiary and Shop in the time of Queen-Rearing, and chatted in a familiar way on the topics suggested as we passed along.

At the outset, I shall undoubtedly be met by those inevitable "Yankee questions" - Does Queen-Rearing pay? Would it not pay me better to stick to honey-production, and buy the few queens which I need, as often as is required?

I might answer, does it pay to kiss your wife? to look at anything beautiful? to like a golden Italian Queen? to eat apples or gooseberries? or anything else agreeable to our nature? is the gain in health, strength, and happiness, which this form of recreation secures, to be judged by the dollar-and-cent stand-point of the world?

Can the pleasure which comes to one while looking at a beautiful Queen and her bees, which have been brought up to a high stand-point by their owner, be bought? Is the flavor of the honey that you have produced, or the keen enjoyment that you have had in producing it, to be had in the market?

In nothing more than in Queen-Rearing, can we see the handiwork of Him who designed that we should be climbing up to the Celestial City, rather than groveling here with a "muck-rake" in our hands (as in "Pilgrim's Progress"), trying to rake in the pennies, to the neglect of that which is higher and more noble. There is something in working for better Queens which is elevating, and will lead one out of self, if we will only study it along the many lines of improvement which it suggests. I do not believe that all of life should be spent in looking after the "almighty dollar;" nor do I think that our first parents bustled out every morning, with the expression seen on so many beekeepers' faces, which seem to say, "Time is Money" The question, it seems to me, in regard to our pursuit in life, should not be altogether, "How much money is there in it?" but, "Shall we enjoy a little bit of Paradise this side of Jordan. However, being aware, of the general indifference to Paradise on either side of Jordan, I will state that I have made Queen-Rearing pay in dollars and cents, having secured on an average about $500 per year therefrom, for the past five years; and that all may do as well, I proceed at once to describe the ground over which I have traveled, and tell how it is done.

Before doing so, however, I wish to say that all along the way I have picked up a little here and there, so that most of the credit for that which is valuable in this book (if there is any value in it), belongs to some one else besides Doolittle. It has been picked up in such little bits, that I hardly know to whom I should give credit, so I will simply say, that the most of the suggestions which I have received, have come through the bee-periodicals, and quite largely from the reports which they have given of different thoughts dropped at many bee-conventions.

G. M. DOOLITTLE.

Borodino, N. Y.

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CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.

When I was about seven years old, my father procured some bees by taking them of a neighbor on shares. I remember, almost as if it were yesterday, how animated I was, as he and the neighbor of whom he took the bees, came near the house with the hive suspended on a pole between them, by means of a sheet tied at the four corners. The hive was deposited on a bench a few rods from the back-door of the house, one cold morning in early April, where it was thought that it would be a good place for them to take up their abode for the future.

My curiosity about these bees hardly knew any bounds, and although that day was cold and dreary, I was often out by the hive to see if I could not catch a glimpse of some of the inmates. The first warm day on which they took a general flight, my delight was great, to see them "cut up their antics" about the hive, as I termed it; and when the first pollen appeared, or when they began to go into the hive with "yellow legs," (as father always would speak of the gathering of pollen, even in the later days of his life), I was near the hive, an interested spectator.

As the days passed by, I became all anxiety about their swarming, and many were the questions which I plied father with, in regard to how this was done. In answer to some of these questions, he told me that the Queen led out the swarm, undoubtedly getting this impression from seeing the young Queens of after-swarms out on the alighting-board with the first bees, when a second or third swarm issued. On the mention of the Queen, I wanted to know all about her, but it was very little that father could tell me, except that he often saw her with the swarm. As only box-hives were in use in this locality, it was no wonder that he knew so little regarding this all-important personage of the hive, as now viewed from the present stand-point of our profession.

My anxiety for swarming-time to come was so great that it seemed that it never would arrive, and when it did come, the impression which it made upon my mind was so lasting, that, as I write, I can almost see those bees whirling and cutting circles in the air, seemingly thrice as large and active as is a swarm, in my later years.

After they had clustered, were cut down, and brought to the empty hive, my anxiety to see the Queen became paramount to all other interests which this exciting time presented; and when, as the last half of the swarm was going in, she was seen, although only a brown German Queen, I thought her very majestic in appearance, and the sight well worth all the hunting we had done to find her.

Time passed on, and in a few years the apiary had grown so that swarming was quite frequent, and had somewhat lost its novelty; yet there has been no time in my life but what it has had very much of interest to me.

During one swarming season, a third swarm issued, and in alighting it separated into three parts, so that none of the little clusters had more than a quart of bees, while one had scarcely more than a tea-cupful. Father was about to put all of the three clusters into one hive, but I finally persuaded him to let me put the little one into a small box that I had, and see what I could do with them. In getting them into the box, I saw three Queens go in, which excited my curiosity very much. I remember of planning how such swarms, which had many Queens, might be multiplied to great numbers; but to say that any idea of Queen-Rearing entered my head at this time, would savor of imagination.

The little colony built three pieces of comb a little larger than the hand, but soon after cold weather came, the bees died, as father had said they would, when he let me try the experiment. In a year or two more, that dreaded disease- foul brood-appeared in the apiary, and as father knew nothing about how to control it, all the bees were soon gone.

Years went by, with little or no interest on my part regarding bees, except as a runaway swarm passed over my head while at work in the field, or as I and some of the neighboring boys robbed bumble-bees' nests; till at 17 years of age, in time of sugar-making, a bee-tree was found, by hearing the roaring of bees on their cleansing flight, as I was going to visit a neighbor's sugar-bush, not far away. The next warm day I went out looking for bees, and, before noon, I found another bee-tree. These trees were left until fall, when they were cut, but in falling they so scattered the bees and comb, that with the little knowledge I then had, I thought that I could not save them.

Twenty years ago I cut one of my feet so badly that I was confined to the house nearly all winter, and as reading was my chief amusement, it so chanced that I picked up "King's Bee-Keepers' Text-Book," which I had purchased the year I found the bee-trees, because the advertisement about it said that it told "how to hunt bees." As soon as I began to read this book, I contracted what is known as the "bee-fever," which took so strong a hold of me that I was not satisfied till I had borrowed and read Langstroth's book, and purchased Quinby's work, besides subscribing for the "American Bee Journal."

In the spring I purchased 2 colonies of bees, from which originated my present apiary. This was in the spring of 1869, and as that was a very poor season, I secured only one swarm from the 2 colonies, and very little experience along any line of the pursuit, except that of buying sugar and feeding up these 3 colonies for winter.

The next June I went to see a man who kept some Italian bees (the first I had ever seen), who lived about four miles from me. When I arrived, I found him at work at Queen-Rearing, so I was all interest at once. He showed me all that he knew of Queen-Rearing, during my frequent calls on him that summer, and the next spring I went into partnership with him in the Queen-business, he rearing the Queens, and I doing the selling-doing this by taking the Queens around to the bee-keepers who lived within 10 or 15 miles of us, and introduced them into the apiaries of those who would buy. I remained in partnership with him during the next year, and, as a whole, I made it profitable, for I not only got some cash out of it, but at the end of that time I had a full knowledge of the old plans of Queen-Rearing. During this time I had partially Italianized my own apiary, so the next year I started out on "my own hook" in the Queen-business, although not doing much at it in the way of selling to outside parties, till some years later.

After losing nearly, or quite, one-half of my Queens, one spring, owing to their poorness in quality, I began to study up plans for the rearing of better ones, which study I have kept up till the present time. Into this branch of our pursuit I have put all the thought and energy at my command, as well as to apply the accumulated thoughts of others, as, expressed in our bee-papers, till I think that I can truly say there is much in the following chapters never before given to the public.

CHAPTER II. IMPORTANCE OF GOOD QUEENS.

Upon no other one thing does the honey part of the apiary depend so much, as it does upon the Queen. Give me a good Queen-one which can be brought up to the highest production of eggs, just when we want them-and I will show you a honey crop, if the flowers do not fail to secrete nectar; but with a poor Queen-one that you must coax for eggs, to little or no purpose, at the right time-the flowers often bloom in vain, even when the honey-secretion is the greatest,

I have had in my apiary, at different times, Queens that with all the coaxing which I could bring to bear on them during the forepart of the season, would not lay any more eggs previous to the honey harvest than were needed to keep the spring strength of the colony good, so that when the yield of honey was at its heighth, there would not be one-fourth the number of bees to gather it, that there should be. When the yield of honey came, then these Queens would begin breeding, so as to get plenty of bees in the hive just as the harvest closed, only to eat up the little honey that the few laborers there were in the harvest had gathered. The more Queens of this sort a bee-keeper has, the worse he is off. This is a peculiarity of the Syrian races of bees, but many poorly-reared Queens act in the same way, no matter to what race they belong.

Then, again, I have had queens which would not be coaxed to till more than three or four Gallup frames with brood at any season of the year; so that at no time were there laborers enough in the hive to make a respectable showing, no matter how much honey there was in the field. Others would appear very prolific for a short time, but just when I wanted them the most, and when I supposed that all was going well, an examination would show that they had died of old age, even when they might not be more than six to twelve months old. This would cause a break in the production of bees, at a time when every day of such production would count many pounds of honey in the honey harvest.

From the above it will be seen, that in no one thing in bee-keeping does quality count for as much as it does with the Queen or mother-bee. Of course, if we are to only count our colonies, then a poor Queen is better than none; and there are other times when she is such, as in holding a colony together till we can get a better one; but I repeat, that an apiary with all poor Queens, is worse than no bees at all. When we come to fully realize the great achievements which can be obtained with a really good Queen- one that will give us from 3,000 to 4,000 workers every day for a month previous to the honey harvest, we, as apiarists of America, will put forth more energy along this line of our pursuit than we ever yet have done.

Look at that colony you had one spring, which gave you 100, 200, 400, 600, or even 1,000 pounds of honey (one or two reports of nearly a thousand pounds of honey from a single colony have been given in the past, while the reports of those giving from 400 to 600 are numerous), and see why it did so well, while the average of your whole apiary did not come up to one-half that amount. Why did that colony do so well? Simply because it had a large working-force of the right age, and at the right time, to take advantage of the honey-flow when it came. And how came it to have such a force at the right time? Because the Queen was a good one, doing her part just when she should, and not at some other time. Why did the others fail of doing the same thing? Either because they did not have good Queens, or because the owner failed to have the Queens do their duty, when they should have been doing it.

" But," says one, "Can I get all colonies to do as well each year, as my best colonies do?" I will answer that by asking, what is there to hinder? If all are in the same condition as the successful one, would they not do equally well? Most assuredly they would. So then we see that the trouble lies in not having the colonies all equal with the one which did so well. The reason that all are not in the same condition, devolves primarily upon the Queen; and secondly upon the strength in which the colonies come through the winter. Of late, I have inclined to the opinion that on the Queen rests, to quite an extent at least, much of the cause of our wintering troubles. One thing is certain, if we cannot have all colonies exactly alike, we can approximate very nearly to it-much nearer than many imagine, if we work for that object, along the line of bringing the Queens to as nearly perfection as possible, and cease the breeding of cheap Queens-that class which "do not cost the apiarist anything."

If there is anything in which I take some little pride, it is that since I began to breed my Queens for good quality, and for that only, this variation of yield of honey from different colonies has grown less and less, till, at the present time, the average yield of honey from each colony in the apiary is very nearly alike, while fifteen years ago some colonies would give 75 per cent more honey than would others.

What a few of our best Queen-breeders can do, all can do, if. they will only put the same interest into their work along this line; and one of the objects of this book is to tell those who desire, how they can, by careful attention to the rules laid down herein, become breeders of the best of Queens, as such are of great importance to the amateur as well as the specialist.

Basswood or Linden.

CHAPTER III. NATURE'S WAY OF REARING QUEENS.

The Creator of all things looked over His work after He had finished it, so we are told, and pronounced it "GOOD;" hence we could reasonable expect that at that time all things created by Him were of the highest type of perfection. He now told all animated nature to "multiply and replenish the earth." For this reason, we find a disposition in our bees to swarm, and although during the last century men have tried with great persistency to breed this disposition out, or make a hive which would accomplish the same thing, yet so far that disposition stands defiant toward all of these unnatural schemes, and just as some individual is ready to cry "Eureka," out comes a swarm, and all of our plans lay prostrate in the dust.

Many have been the reasons given, to account for bees swarming, such as the hatred of an old Queen toward the rival inmate of a queen-cell, which the bees had succeeded in getting, in spite of her frowns and anger; the hive being too small to hold the accumulated thousands of workers, insufficient ventilation, etc.; yet in my opinion none of these things ever caused a swarm to issue, in and of themselves, for everything in nature is held obedient to the command of Him who controls the Universe. And I rejoice that this is so; for I firmly believe that better results can be obtained where bees swarm, than would be the case if we could breed out the swarming trait.

A new swarm goes to work, with an energy never possessed by the bees at any other time (unless it is by the parent colony) immediately after its young Queen gets to laying. This swarming trait also produces Queens of the highest type of perfection, not being equalled by any except those reared under one other of Nature's conditions, which will be spoken of at length in the next chapter. Many have been the claims made, that Queens reared by different methods, are just as good as those reared under the swarming impulse; but I have yet to hear it claimed that Queens so reared are any better than are those reared where the swarm issued under the conditions which Nature designed that they should.

I am met here, by the claim that many colonies of Italian bees swarm, without any preparations for swarming being made, by way of providing queen-cells before the swarm issues, as is usually the case; and that Queens reared under such circumstances, where there are but few bees in the hive to feed, nurse, and keep the royal occupants of the cells warm, certainly cannot be as good as those reared under the superior planning of the skilled apiarist.

I freely admit that Queens reared by some of the plans of "artificial" Queen-Rearing, may excel such Queens, but I claim that the first-named conditions are not such as Nature originally designed that they should be. I do not believe that an isolated colony (as all colonies are isolated, except by the intervention of man) ever cast a swarm under such conditions. It is the compacting of colonies together in large apiaries, which bring about such results, thereby causing what is termed "the swarming-fever"-where swarms issue under the most unfavorable circumstances imaginable, sometimes even swarming without a Queen, thus leaving the parent colony broodless, and without means from which to provide themselves with a Queen. After careful watching in my own apiary for years, and closely questioning other parties, I have yet to find where the first swarm of the season, from any apiary, has ever issued previous to the sealing of the first Queen-cell.

But, says one, "You are always crying Nature! Nature!! Don't you know that man's intelligence, by opposing Nature's laws at the right time, can get ahead of her ways, and thus secure better results?" No; I did not know any such thing; nor do I believe it. It is only as the intelligence of man moves along harmoniously with the laws of Nature, that any improvement can be expected. Is not this true?

Suppose I cut one of my fingers quite badly; and when it stops bleeding I wonder what I am to do with it, to have it get well as quickly as possible. While I am thus wondering, along comes a man of superior (?) intelligence, and he says: "I see you have cut your finger. I am glad I happened along, just at this time, for I have a salve which will heal up that wound at once, and by your using it, your finger will be as well as ever in a few days. This salve of mine has the greatest healing-properties of any salve known." Reader, do you believe that the salve has any healing quality, or that my finger will ever be as perfect as before? I do not. All that any salve can claim as doing, is to assist Nature to make the best of a bad job, for it is Nature that does the healing, not the salve. Would I not have been better off, had I not cut the finger?

Again, some day during the month of June, I chance to run against the body of a choice apple-tree, with the hub of my wagon-wheel; and in doing so I knock a patch of bark off the tree, as large as my hand. Along comes a man familiar with grafting, and applies some grafting-wax, saying: " This will heal over the place, and make it as good as ever." Do you believe it? Will not the tree always show a scar? In the knocking off of that bark, the apple-tree received a shock, or something which was contrary to its nature, and as soon as the first effect was over, every power that was in the tree was brought to bear on this place to remedy the damage, and it was only wherein the wax kept off the warring elements which would work against the repairing of the damage, that the wax did any good. Just so with anything that goes against Nature's laws. The first thing to be done, is to get rid of the antagonizing force, and as soon as that is done, Nature tries to get back to the spot where she was before, as nearly as possible, and as quickly as she can.

Let a man take a drink of whisky, and in a little while you will see him cutting up all manner of antics (that otherwise he would not have thought of doing), when you call him "drunk." What is the matter? He has taken something into his system that is not moving harmoniously with Nature, and Nature is trying to "kick" out this antagonizing force. If so much antagonizing force (whisky) has been taken, that Nature has to kick vigorously to expel it, the man is kicked over, for the time being; but after this force has been expelled, Nature begins the work of healing, and the man "rights" up again, but never gets back to where he was before.

Now apply this to the bees: Along comes the antagonizing force-the apiarist-who is going to rear Queens intelligently (unnaturally), and kills the mother of the colony. What is the result? The whole colony acts for the first few hours very much as did the man after having drank the whisky. What is the trouble? Why, Nature is "kicking," that is all. After becoming reconciled to fate, the bees, through Nature's law, go to work to repair the damage done, and, as in all of the other cases, she does this as quickly as possible, even where only eggs are given from which to rear a Queen. Under these conditions, antagonizing forces come in, and I do not believe that the "wound" can be made as good as ever, any more than they could in the three illustrations which I have used. Queens partially deficient in some points will be the result.

Some claim that this last is a natural condition for a colony of bees to be placed in, but I take exception to any such claim; for there are very few colonies that ever find themselves in such a condition, without the interference of man. During all of the ages, up to within about a century past, how different the method whereby Queens were produced, which have stood the test of thousands of years.

Let us look at Nature's plan for a moment or two, so as to see how it does compare with the above work of many of our apiarists. We find that Queen-Rearing and swarming are only done during a period when both honey and pollen are being gathered from the fields. When this condition of things prevails, the bees are getting strong in numbers, and soon embryo queen-cells are started, in which the Queen lays the eggs which are to produce the royal occupants.

Some claim that it is not fully settled that the Queen deposits the egg in the queen-cells at the time of natural swarming; but my assistant once saw her do it, and so have others, while the position of the eggs in the cells prove it, even had no one ever witnessed her in the act. Others claim that the Queen lays the eggs in worker-cells, along the margin of the comb, when the bees build queen-cells over them. Any one familiar with the inside of a bee-hive, should know that such reasoning is fallacious, for the embryo queen-cells are often formed many days before eggs are found in them, as thousands of bee-keepers can testify.

These eggs remain in this form for about three days, when they hatch into little larvae which the bees now begin to feed. Some claim that royal jelly is placed around these eggs before they hatch, but if this is true, it is something that I have never seen, although I have watched this matter very closely for years. Neither do I find that the little larvae are fed much more plentifully, during the first 36 hours of their existence, than are larvae which are in worker-cells; but when of about this age, the bees begin to feed them so liberally on royal food, that they actually float in it during the rest of their growth; this supply often being so great that there is left a lump as large as a pea, of partially dried food, after the Queens emerge from their cells, while all of their operations are conducted leisurely, for the bees are in no haste for a Queen, as their mother is still with them in the hive. There is no hurrying up to replace a loss, thereby using old larvae, or scantily feeding the same, as is done when Nature is antagonized; but all is done by a system reaching perfection. If a cold, bad time comes on now, they do not hesitate to tear down the cells, and wait for a favorable time to come again for them to "multiply and replenish the earth."

All of this shows us that the bees are only obeying the laws which govern the economy of the hive, instead of a force outside of that economy, which compels them to make good a loss that man has brought about. It seems to me that we can always consider it safe to go according to the teachings learned by a close observation of our "pets," and unsafe to go contrary to the rules and laws which govern them. At least this is the belief which I have always had, and along this line has been my study, while trying to find out the best plans whereby Queens of the highest type could be reared. I have never succeeded in rearing Queens which pleased me every time, till I commenced to work in harmony with Nature's plans. When I learned so to work, I found that ray Queens were improving all the while, and to-day I am well satisfied that I have made a great improvement in my stock, beyond where it was ten years ago.

CHAPTER IV. ANOTHER OF NATURE'S WAYS.

Besides what is known as the "swarming-plan," the bees have another way of rearing the best of Queens, which, together with the former, are the only plans by which Queens are reared, except where the bees are forced to do so by some abnormality of the colony. My experience goes to prove that where such abnormality exists, Queens which are then reared do not come up to that high standard that they do where reared as Nature designed they should be. However, there are very few Queens reared, except when the colony is in a normal condition, only as the colony is interfered with by man; so that we find the usual plans adopted by nearly all Queen-Rearers of the past, going in the direction of these few exceptions, rather than along the line which Nature designed.

While rearing Queens by the "forcing process" (at times when they could not be reared by natural swarming), I came across a colony in early spring, which had, as far as I could see, a good Queen, yet on the combs there were two very nice queen-cells under way, with little larvae floating in an abundance of royal jelly. As queen-cells which were formed in my Queen-Rearing colonies, when worked by the "forcing process," were not supplied in this fashion with royal jelly, I decided to keep watch of this colony, and see if I could not learn something.

In due course of time these cells were sealed, when, to all outside appearances, they were just as perfect as I had ever seen in natural swarming; while the cells which I was compelling the bees to build by taking their Queens away from them, did not so appear. One of the cells I transferred to a nucleus, just before it was ready to hatch, while the other was left where it was, to see what would become of the matter. The Queens hatching from both cells, proved to be every bit as good as any Queens I ever reared in the heighth of the honey harvest, by natural swarming, even although it was by dint of coaxing that I could get Queens reared at all by the "forcing" plans, as adopted fifteen years ago; while none of the "forced" Queens would compare with these two in beauty, vigor or length of life.

Soon after the young Queen which was left in the old hive commenced laying, the old mother began to decline, and, in the course of a week or two, was gone; yet had I not opened this hive for a month, at this time, I would never have known that a change had taken place as regards the Queen, from the appearance of the brood which was in the hive.

Right here let me say, that from all of my experience with bees, I am led to conclude that 999 Queens out of every 1,000 reared, where man does not interfere with the bees, are reared by one of these two plans; yet there are those persons among our number, who claim that they are along the line of Nature; or rearing Queens by a still better plan than these two, where they take away the Queen from a colony at any time they think best, and compel the bees to rear others, often when it would be the last thing the colony would wish to do. Gentlemen, your position is not a consistent one, nor is it one that you would adopt along any other line except Queen-Rearing; and I hope that this Book will open your eyes, so that in the future you will try to be in accord with the wants of the bees, and thus be rearing Queens of superior quality, instead of those which cannot be other than inferior.

To return: After I had this experience with the colony that had "two Queens in a hive," (which was a surprise to so many fifteen years ago, when it was thought that no colony ever tolerated but one laying queen at a time), I began to watch for a like circumstance to occur, which happened about a year from that time. In the latter case, as soon as I found the cells, they were sealed over, and not knowing just when they would hatch, I at once cut them out and gave them to nuclei. In a few days I looked in the hive again, when I found more cells started, which were again cut off and given to nuclei, just before it was time for them to hatch. In this way I kept the bees from their desired object for some two months, or until I saw that the old Queen was not going to live much longer, when I left one of the cells, which they had under headway, to mature. By this plan I got about sixty as line Queens as I ever reared, and laid the foundation for my present plan of securing Queens, which is about to be given in this book.

As time passed on, I was always on the lookout for such cases of building Queen-cells, with the old Queen present in the hive, where there was no desire to swarm, and in this way I have secured hundreds of splendid Queens with which to stock my own apiary, and to send to those who wished Queens of the best grade. If there is any difference between Queens reared by this last of Nature's ways, and those reared by natural swarming, that difference is in favor of Queens reared to replace the old mother, when she shall get past being of use to the colony; so that I have no hesitation in pronouncing Queens thus reared, of the highest grade which it is possible for the intelligence of man, combined with the natural instinct of the bees, to produce.

Having decided that Queens thus reared were superior to any other, the thing next to be done, was to get some plan that the bees would accept, whereby Queens could be so reared just when and where the apiarist desired. To accomplish this, I have studied hard and worked faithfully, putting into it all of my best thought for some six years past, till I have perfected a plan whereby I rear Queens by Nature's best method, in the same hive with a laying Queen, and that, too, just when and where I wish to have them reared, having Queens in a single colony in all stages of development, from the just-hatched larvae to virgin Queens and those just commencing to lay. All about how to do it will be told in this book, but before doing so, I wish to take the readers over some of the ground which I have traveled, so that they can see some of the steps taken; for in thus seeing, perhaps some new thoughts may be suggested to them, which will lead in other directions from what is here given, which, when followed out by some other person than myself, may be of great help to the bee-fraternity.

White Clover.

CHAPTER V. OLD METHODS OF REARING QUEENS.

My first experiments at Queen-Rearing were tried in 1870. During the month of July, a second swarm issued having two Queens, and as I saw them on the alighting-board of the hive, the thought came to me that here was a chance to save a nice Queen, which, when she got to laying, could be used to replace an old one that I had in the apiary. According to this thought, I detached the alighting-board, as soon as I saw one of the Queens go in, and took the board with all the adhering bees, to another hive, in which I put an empty comb, hiving the little lot of bees and Queen in it.

At night I read up on Queen-Rearing (as far as I could with the books which I then had), from which I found that the way to rear Queen§ was, to place little colonies in small or nucleus hives, they having frames from four to six inches square. As I wished to do things as they should be done, I went to work the next morning, and constructed a little hive that held three frames about five by six inches. Into these frames I fitted comb, then I went to the hive containing the little swarm, and shook them out of it into this small hive. In due course of time, the Queen commenced to lay, and was used as I had designed.

I now began to look up what I was next to do with the little colony, and found all that was necessary was, to leave them alone, when they would start two or three queen-cells, which would be well taken care of, and make just as good Queens, where but a small nucleus was used, as would a larger number of cells in a full colony. Queen-Rearing now looked very simple and easy to me, so I left the nucleus to mainly care for itself for the next five days. From time to time, as I looked into the little hive (for I was so anxious about the matter, that I could not keep away from it) I expected to find queen-cells started, but every time I opened the little box, not a cell could be found.

The fifth day after I took the Queen away, a bee-keeper came along, who was considered quite a Queen-breeder in those days, and to him I told the story of my trial at Queen-rearing. He asked to see the little colony, and when I showed it to him, he quietly cut a hole in one of the combs where the smallest larvae were to be found, saying, that "now they would start some cells," which they did. He also said that, "while the most of the Queens then reared were reared in just such little nucleus-hives, yet he believed that it was better to rear them in full colonies, as he thought Queens thus reared were better fed, and that the warmth of a full colony was conducive to a better development of the royal occupants of cells built, hence we secured more prolific and longer-lived Queens."

In due time one of the cells hatched in the nucleus, and the Queen was so small, and so poor, that I decided if I must have such inferior Queens as that, I would let the bees do their own Queen-Rearing, as I had done in the past.

When the next season came, I found myself again longing to "dabble" in Queen-Rearing, so at it I went, although I never again tried the nuclei boxes in doing so; for when I came to look into the matter more thoroughly, I was convinced that the best nucleus that I could possibly have, was one or two frames in an ordinary hive. In this way all work done by the nucleus was readily available for the use of any colony, after I was through with the nucleus.

In trying this the next time, I simply took the Queen away from the colony I wished to breed from, at a time when there was plenty of honey and pollen in the fields, for by this time some were opposing the plan of rearing Queens in nucleus boxes, and also claiming that the only proper time for rearing Queens was when plenty of honey and pollen were to be had by the bees, as it was natural for the bees to rear Queens only at such times. I succeeded in getting a fine lot of cells from which some extra-nice Queens were obtained-as I then considered them.

This caused the Queen-Rearing "fever" to run high, which, together with my procuring some Italians, caused me to work at it many times during the summer, although I determined not to spoil my prospects of a crop of honey, by using too many colonies in the business. Although using Italian bees for Queen-Rearing, (as it was then claimed that black nurses would contaminate the young Queens) yet, during this summer, I succeeded in getting as high as 157 queen-cells built on one comb, while the usual number built by one colony would be only from three to twenty, on all of the combs in a hive. If I could have had the Syrian bees at that time, the number of cells might not have been so much of a wonderment to me. I thought this a great achievement, and something well worth being proud of, so I told my neighbors about it, and gave it to some of the bee-papers also.

All went on "swimingly" till the spring of 1873, when, without any cause, as far as I could see, one-half of all the Queens that I had in the apiary died, leaving the apiary in poor condition for the honey season, which caused me to meditate a little on what could be the reason of such a wholesale death of my beautiful Queens. A careful looking into the matter revealed that of all the Queens that had died, two-thirds were those which had been reared the previous season, while not one had died from those that had been reared by natural swarming.

What seems strange to me now, in looking back over the past, is, that all of these Queens died so suddenly and the bees made no effort at superseding them. They all had brood in abundance for the time of year, and the first I knew that all was not right, was when I would find them dead at the entrances of the hives. After this I began to try other plans of Queen-Rearing, none of which pleased me any better than the one I had been using.

About this time there came a general dissatisfaction with most of the plans, then termed "artificial Queen-Rearing," and the reason given for Queens so reared not living any longer, or doing any better, was that such Queens were not reared from the egg for a Queen, but were fed worker-food for a time, and queen-food afterward, thus producing a bee that was part worker and part Queen; hence it could not be as good as a bee that was a perfect Queen in all her parts.

Then came the following process, which I often see given at the present time, as one by which prolific and long-lived Queens can be obtained:

Take a frame of new comb, and put it in the colony having the breeding Queen, leave it there till you see the first little larva hatched, when it is to be taken out, the bees shaken off, and then placed in an empty hive that is to be put on a stand of a populous colony, after moving the colony away. This is to be done in the middle of the day, when plenty of bees are flying. After trying this method of procedure a few times, I came to the conclusion that it was one of the very poorest ever given to the public, for the Queens so reared were very nearly, if not quite, as inferior as were those reared in the little nucleus boxes.

And how could it well be otherwise? for by such a plan only field-bees were obtained as nurses, while Nature designed young bees to do this work. While in early spring old bees do nurse brood, by their being brought up gradually to it, yet in this case, bees that had gone out in search of honey, with no idea of ever again being called upon to nurse brood, and with a good mother in the hive when they left, were suddenly confronted with starving larvae from which they must rear a Queen at once, while chyme or royal jelly was the most remote thing which their stomachs contained. This is one of the many plans which go almost in direct opposition to Nature's laws, and one that I claim should never be used, if we wish to have our bees improving, instead of retrograding.

I might give many other ways by which good Queens are said to be reared, which are as inconsistent with the best quality in Queens, as darkness is when compared with daylight; but I forbear. I have only gone over this ground of the past, to show how Queens used to be reared, and how some bee-keepers still rear them, so that those who read the methods, soon to be given, may compare them with those formerly used, and see how we have been advancing along this line of our pursuit. I wish to say to any reader of this book, who is still practicing any of the old, poor plans: Don't do it any longer; for you must know, it seems to me, that only inferior stock can result from the longer continuation of such practice.

Honey Locust Tree

CHAPTER VI. LATER METHODS OF REARING QUEENS.

After testing all of the then known plans, as given in the previous chapter, and becoming disgusted with them, I turned my attention toward natural swarming, as a means by which to rear Queens in the future. Looking toward the end of getting as many Queens from this source as possible, I began stimulating my best Queen-Rearing colonies early in the spring, by some of the many methods given to accomplish this work, so as to get them to swarm early, and then by hiving the new swarms from these colonies, on frames of brood, kept them swarming till late in the season, so that, as a rule, I could get, in this way, all of the Queens that I wished to use in my own apiary.

If, at any time, I was likely to fail of this, I would take a piece of comb containing little larvae, from my best Queen, and after shaving off the cells down to one-eighth of an inch of the septum of the cell, with a thin, sharp knife, so that I could see the larvae plainly, I would go to a hive having an inferior Queen, that was preparing to swarm, and after removing the larvae from the queen-cells that. they had under way, I would by means of a goose-quill tooth-pick, having its point broad and curved, [Fig. 1, see page 36], lift the little larvae from the piece of comb I brought, and put them down in the royal jelly which the larvae from the inferior Queen was enjoying only a few moments before. Some take a frame (brood, bees and all) from the hive having their best Queen, and, when ready, lift the larvae from the bottom of full-depth cells, but it bothers me to see to do this. Where it can be done, it saves cutting and otherwise injuring the combs, while the bees protect the larvae from being chilled, should the day be cool. The cells thus operated upon were marked, by pushing 1 ½ inch wire-nails through the comb near them, so that if the bees constructed other cells, I would not be deceived.

Fig. 1.-Tooth-Pick for Transferring Larvae.

In this work I often found partly-built queen-cells with nothing in them, or perhaps some would contain eggs, which, when I found them, I would take out, substituting the larvae in their places. As a rule, I would be successful with these, as well as with those that were put into the cells that contained royal jelly, but now-and-then a case would occur when only those placed in royal jelly would be used.

Right here I wish to say, that only the best of tested Queens should be used as Queen-mothers-Queens known to possess all the desirable requisites that make a good Queen; and, as we must often cut the combs, to get the little larvae for transferring, it is better to have the poorest combs in the hives with these Queens, so as not to spoil the good combs in the apiary; or, if preferred, we can keep these best Queens in a very small colony, so that the bees will fill the holes made in the combs when taking out brood, by building in worker-comb, as such small colonies always will do, if fed sufficient for this purpose. By thus working I obtained good Queens, although it required much work, and probably I should never have worked out other plans, had it not been that at about this time I began to have calls for Queens, from abroad.

This placed me in a position where I must have some other process of Queen-Rearing, or refuse to take orders for Queens. As I wished to please all who desired some of my Queens, I began experimenting, and soon brought out the following method, which I will give at length, as I have to still rear some Queens by it early in the spring, and late in the fall, when there are not enough bees in the hive, or when they are too inactive to use the new plan to be given in the next chapter. However, I use wax-cups (having royal jelly placed in them), as described later on, instead of embryo queen-cells, as will be spoken of here.

In changing larvae from worker-cells to queen-cells, as given above, the thought occurred to me, that if the bees would take the larva when put into a perfectly dry queen-cell, on the combs of a colony preparing to swarm, they ought to do the same when placed in a like condition in a queenless colony.

Previous to this, I had often changed larvae in queen-cells started in a queenless colony, taking out those that the bees were nursing, and substituting others from my best Queen, where the bees had plenty of royal jelly in the cells, and secured good Queens by this plan, which is now used by very many of our best Queen-breeders. Good Queens are reared in this way, but the point about it that I do not like is, that the number of cells which will be started is very uncertain, while they are scattered about in different parts of the hive; and worse than all, the combs have to be badly mutilated in cutting out the cells, or else much time spent at the queen-nursery, watching for the Queens to hatch; for if this is not done, many of them will be destroyed.

But, how should I get the embryo queen-cells, in which to put the little larvae? was the first thought which confronted me. I remember that away back in some of the bee-papers, some one had proposed making queen-cells to order, on a stick, for a penny a piece, and why could I not so make them? It would do no harm to try, I thought; therefore I made a stick, so that it would just fit inside of a queen-cell, from which a Queen had hatched, and by warming a piece of wax in my hand, I could mould it around the stick, so as to make a very presentable queen-cup. While doing this, some one happened along, who wished to see some of my Queens, so I went out in the apiary to show them. In doing this, I noticed some queen-cups [see Fig. 2] which had been just started by the bees, and it was not long before I saw where the embryo queen-cells could be procured in plenty, if I saved all I came across in my manipulations with the bees. When I returned to the shop, I had about a dozen of these cups, that I had clipped off the combs, while showing my friend the Queens, which, with the 5 or 6 artificial cells that I had made, gave me plenty for a trial.

Fig. 2.-Embryo Queen-Cup or Queen-Cell.

To fasten these to the combs, I melted some wax in a little dish, over a lamp, when, by Dipping the base of the queen-cups in the wax, and immediately placing the cup on the comb, it was a fixture. So as not to spoil a good comb, I took an old one, such an one as had been damaged by mice, or one that had many drone-cells in it; and to have the cells built in the centre of the comb, as I wished them, a piece was cut out as large as a man's hand, at the desired place. I now turned the comb bottom side up, and fastened as many queen-cups as I wished queen-cells built, along the now under side of the hole that I had cut, and, after having transferred a little larva into each cup, the comb was returned to its former position. [See Fig. 3.]

After taking the queen and all of the brood away from a populous colony, I substituted this prepared frame for the queen and brood. Upon looking the next day, to see what the result was, I found that the bees had destroyed all the larvae but one, and that was in one of the cups that I had taken out of a colony.

Before I forget it, I will here say, that in all of my efforts at this time, to get the bees to use any of the cells that were made from beeswax, I made an entire failure; for, out of hundreds tried, not a larva could I get accepted, even when I gave a colony none other, save cups thus made. However, later on I learned how to make the bees use them, as will soon be given. Not being willing to keep a colony queen-less for one queen-cell, I gave back their brood and Queen; then I sat down to study out the reason why I had made a failure.

Fig.3-Comb with Queen-Cups.

The result of this study convinced me that no colony would immediately go to rearing Queens after the old Queen had been taken away from them. At the expiration of three days from the time the Queen is taken away from a colony, the bees usually have numerous queen-cells under way, but rarely before; while, in the above case, I had expected the bees to start them at once.

I now went to another populous colony and took its Queen away, together with one comb, when a division-board feeder was placed where the comb was taken out. At night I fed the colony a little warm syrup (as they were not getting much honey at the, time), and continued this nightly-feeding for eight days.

Three days after taking the Queen out, I went to the hive and took all of the brood away, but left the other combs having honey and food, arranging them close up to the feeder, leaving a place between the two central combs, for the prepared frame to be inserted. The hive was now closed, when the bees were shaken off the combs of brood, and the brood given to a colony which could care for it.

Fig. 4.-The Division-Board Feeder.

On these combs were numerous queen-cells, which showed that the bees were secreting or producing an abundance of royal jelly. As I wished this jelly to accumulate in-the stomachs of the nurse-bees, I took the brood away from them this time, before I put the little larvae into the queen-cups. In this way a colony will be prepared to rear as good Queens as can possibly be reared, when no Queen is present in the hive while the cells are being built, and is ahead of any other way that I ever tried, where the Queen is to be taken away.

It will be seen that an hour before they were feeding thousands of worker-larvae besides the queen-larvae, when, all at once, they are obliged to hold the accumulating chyme, and feel a great anxiety for a Queen, as will be shown by their running all over the hive, flying in the air, and otherwise telling of their distressed condition, when you come with the prepared frame to put it in the hive. By now supplying them with from 12 to 15 little larvae, all cradled in queen-cells, upon which they may bestow all the provisions and caresses that they were bestowing before on a whole colony, it could hardly result otherwise than in producing as good Queens as could be produced by any plan not exactly in accord with Nature's ways.

On placing the frame in the hive, on this my second trial, I had great confidence of success, while the next day on opening the hive I was assured of it, by seeing all of the queen-cells accepted, except those that I had made of beeswax. These accepted cells were completed in due time, and from them I obtained Queens which were as good mothers as any I had ever had up to this time, outside of Queens reared by natural swarming. I now used this plan for many years, and if properly done, it never fails of giving fairly good Queens. At all times when honey is not coming in abundantly, feeding is resorted to, and when the mercury is lower than 85° in the shade, all operations with the larvae are done in a room of that degree of temperature, or a little higher.

But I think that I hear some one ask, "How old a larva do you use? and, how about the occupant of a cell being fed royal food, from the time it is hatched from the egg?" I have conducted many experiments to see how old a larva may be, before being placed in the royal cell, and yet have it produce a good Queen. Some who advocate that Queens should be reared from the egg, claim that, in natural swarming, royal jelly is deposited around the egg before it hatches, so that the little larva literally swims in jelly from that time till after the cell is sealed up; and also that where an egg or little larva is selected, from which to rear a Queen in a queenless colony, adjoining cells are torn down, so as to make room for a large amount of royal jelly at the start.

I have carefully watched, time and time again, to find out if an egg laid in a queen-cell was treated any differently for the first four days (after it was deposited in such cell by a Queen), than an egg laid in a worker-cell, and as yet I have failed to find any difference; so if any bee-keepers have seen what is described above, they have seen something that I have never been able to discover.

I also find, that where a colony is made queenless, the little larva is floated out with royal jelly, till near the end of the cell, when a queen-cell is built out and downward over the comb, rather than that the bees tear away cells, as described; especially is this the case with old combs.

At this time of hatching, the nurse-bees begin to feed the little larvae; but, so far as I am able to judge, the larva in a worker-cell is surrounded by three times the food it can use, for the first 36 hours of its existence. Somewhere from this, to the time the larva are three days old, the bees begin to stint them as to food, so that the organs are not developed as they would be if fed abundantly during the rest of their larval period.

I also claim that the food fed to all larvae, up to the time they are 36 hours old, is exactly the same, whether the larvae are designated for drones, Queens, or workers; and that the difference comes by the queen-larva being fed large quantities of this food, all of its larval life, while the others are fed sparingly later on, or else a different kind of food given after they are 36 hours old. Some experiments which I have conducted point in this direction, but, as yet I have not completed them fully enough to warrant the giving of them here.

If the above is correct (and I firmly believe that it is) it will be seen that the larva in a worker-cell has all of its wants supplied for the first day-and-a-half, and is developing towards a Queen just as fast, prior to this, in a worker-cell, as it possibly could in a queen-cell, surrounded by ten times the food that it can consume.

Hundreds of experiments in using larvae from three hours old, up to those of 36 hours, prove that Queens from the former are in no way superior to those from the latter, while the bees always choose the latter, where the power of choice is left to them. As all of my plans of rearing Queens require the changing of small larvae, I have dwelt thus largely upon this very important point, so that the reader might know just where I stand in this matter. Years of success in producing the best of Queens, together with the result of many experiments, conducted by some of our best Queen-breeders, go to prove that I am correct in the above conclusion.

A little practice will enable any one to know about how old the larvae are, by glancing at them in the bottom of the cells. Bear in mind that a larva but thirty-six hours old is a small affair, as the rapid growth is made at the latter end of its life; and if you think that there is any chance of a mistake on your part, in not knowing larva of that age, or younger, you should put a frame in a hive and watch for eggs, then watch for the eggs to hatch into larvae, when, by looking in-the cells from twenty-four to thirty-six hours afterward, you will know to a certainty, just how such as you should use will look. If you have been as correct as to the age of larvae used, as you should be, all of the Queens will hatch from the prepared cells, in from eleven-and-a-half to twelve days from the time the frame was given to the queenless colony. An expert can judge so closely that he can figure the time of hatching to within three or four hours.

In taking care of these cells, I generally do it on the afternoon of the tenth day, if it is pleasant; for if deferred till the eleventh day it necessitates taking care of them on that day, no matter what the weather may be.

As soon as the cells are taken from the hive, I go to the colony which had the brood given them (when it was taken from this colony in preparing it for Queen-Rearing), and take three frames well filled with brood, on one of which is the Queen, and place them back in the now queenless and broodless hive, being particular to see, in putting the frames of brood in the hive, that the Queen is on the center comb, so that the bees which go with her will surround and protect her, till all the bees become thoroughly mixed.

If it is early spring, I shake the bees in front of their own hive, from off the combs which do not have the Queen on, so as to keep this colony as strong as possible; for in three days from this time, this colony is to go through the same course that the other did, in rearing more Queens.

At the end of three days, all of the brood that was left, is to be carried to the hive which now has the Queen, so it will be seen that no colony will lose over thirteen days of time, by this process of Queen-Rearing, before it is back in nearly as good condition as ever. If we wish to save still more time to this colony, some colony can be kept purposely to care for the cells by keeping it queenless and giving brood occasionally to keep up the population. Into this colony the frames of queen-cells can be placed as soon as sealed, thus keeping none of the Queen-Rearing colonies Queenless for more than eight days.

Some tell us that a queenless colony will rear four or five lots of queen-cells before the young bees get too old to rear perfect Queens; but I say, do not rear but one lot of cells from any colony, at one time, if you wish to have good Queens.

The reason is obvious, why a second lot of cells will not be as good, if you will take pains to read over what was said about getting the colony in condition to rear good Queens. It would be nearly as bad as causing all old or field bees to rear Queens, for the nurses have now been six days without anything that should cause them to prepare chyme, hence they have none in their stomachs to feed the little larvae, so they must go to work to produce more before they can do this work. By the time they could give them chyme, the larvae would receive a check from which they would never recover, even if they could be fed as much and as good food afterward, which is unreasonable to suppose.

Since I adopted the above method, what is known as the "Alley plan of Queen-Rearing" has been given to the public; but after a thorough trial, I fail to find any point wherein it is superior to the one given above, while in some few points I consider it inferior.

However, good Queens can be reared by the Alley process-very much better ones than those reared by any of the old plans that were used by most of the Queen-breeders before he gave his to the world. For this reason, Mr. Alley should have a prominent place assigned him, among the ranks of those who have done much to advance the cause of apiculture during the Nineteenth Century.

Tulip or Poplar.

CHAPTER VII. THE NEW WAY OF REARING QUEENS.

While rearing Queens, as given in the last chapter, I became anxious for some plan by which I could get Queens reared by natural swarming, so that the cells would be all on one comb, and in a shape to care for as easily as were those which were built from the queen-cups that I gave to queenless colonies. For years I had practiced taking the larvae out of queen-cells, which the bees had under way, and substituting larvae from my best Queen, by the transposition process; but in all of these cases I had to take up with the cells where the bees had built them, besides, in many instances, after going over all of the combs in a hive I would find only three or four cells, so I had to do a great deal of work without receiving much benefit from it; while in cutting off these cells, I was obliged to mutilate many of my very best combs. This did not please me, so I set about seeing what could be done by way of having cells built where I desired them.

To this end, I prepared cells the same as I had done in giving them to queenless colonies, after which I placed the frame in a hive where the colony was preparing to swarm. I then waited two days, when I opened the hive, hoping that the bees had taken the larvae which I had given; but in this I was disappointed, for every one of them had been removed, while, much to my surprise, I found that every cell but two, contained an egg deposited therein by the Queen. In this I had gained a point, even if it was not just what I had been looking for.

I now watched these cells, to see what would become of them, and found that they were treated the same as others are-the colony swarming on the sealing of the first cell. As these cells were brought to perfection, I was not long in comprehending that in this I had a plan that would give me the cells all on one comb, the same being reared by natural swarming, and by it I could secure at least twice the number that I had ever been able to obtain before. By getting the colonies, having the best Queens, to swarm early, and keeping them at it as late in the season as possible, I could rear fully four times as many splendid Queens by this process as before, besides having the cells in such shape that every one of them could be saved with very little trouble.

In this way I kept on until I found that I could not find sufficient embryo queen-cells to keep up with my now-increasing calls for Queens, hence I must manage in some way to increase the supply of these, or else go back to the old way of Queen-Rearing for a part of my supply. The latter I very much disliked to do, which led me to go over the ground of making cells again, as I had formerly done.

While thinking of this matter, it came to me--why not dip the cells, the same as my mother used to dip candles? This thought so waked me up, that I wondered at myself for not thinking of it before, and immediately I had some wax in a small dish, over a lamp, to melt. While this was melting, I hunted up the old stick that I used in forming the cells at my first trial, which was nothing more than a tooth out of a common hand hay-rake. This tooth was now fitted to a queen-cup, as perfectly as I could do it with knife and sand-paper, while a mark was made around the tooth where the open end of the cell should come, so that I could know just how deep I wanted it to go in the wax, to give me the desired depth of cell.

By this time the wax had melted. I then got a dish of cold water, and after dipping the end of the stick in the water (up to where it was marked, or a little deeper), and giving it a quick jerk, to throw off the water not needed, it was quickly lowered into the wax up to the mark, and as quickly lifted out, twirling it around and around in my fingers, so as to cause the wax to be equally distributed over the wood. I now had a film of wax over the stick, so frail that it could not be handled, but in it I saw the commencement of a queen-cell, which would, I was sure, be a boon to my fellow bee-keepers, for the wax much resembled the very outer edge of a queen-cup built on new comb.

I then dipped it again, not allowing it to go as deep within one-sixteenth of an inch as before, and in twirling the stick after taking it out, the end having the wax on was held lower than the other, so that the lower end, or the base, would be the thickest, as the wax would flow toward the lowest point. As soon as the wax on the cell was cool enough to set, it was again dipped, not allowing it to go as deep in the wax as it did the previous time, by about a thirty-second of an inch, when it was cooled as before. In this way I dipped it from six to eight times, when I had a queen-cup that pleased me, as the outer edge was thinner than the bees made theirs, while the base was so thick that it would stand much more rough usage than would cells built by the bees. I now held it in the water, twirling it so that it would cool quickly, and, when cold, it was very easily taken off of the stick or form, by twisting it a little. It could then be fastened to a comb, by dipping in melted wax, the same as I did with one of the cups.

I had now solved the mystery of queen-cell making, and to make them quickly, I made more sticks, so that as soon as the wax had set on each, they could be laid on the table to cool, by placing them on a block [Fig. 5] having little notches in it.

Fig. 5.-Some of the Paraphernalia Used by a Queen-Breeder.

[EXPLANATION OF THE ABOVE ENGRAVING:-Beginning at the right hand side, we have 1st, a mailing-cage used in shipping Queens; 2nd, the three forming-sticks, laid on the notched-block while the wax is cooling; 3rd, the dish for cold water; 4th, the lamp having the dish of wax on top; 5th, a wire-cloth cage used' in introducing Queens; 6th, (near the front edge of the table) the ear-spoon used in scooping up the royal jelly; 7th, the stick used to place royal jelly in the queen-cup; 8th, a queen-cell protector, showing a hatched cell in the same, with the stopper in place; 9th, (at the back side of the table) a stick having wax queen-cups attached, showing their position on the stick.]

In this way I could be dipping right along, while the wax on several sticks was cooling. I finally found that three were as many as I needed, for if the thin film first formed became too cold before it was dipped again, it did not work so well in taking the cells off.

Later on I dipped the stick deeper in the wax than at first, as I found that the bees would not reject so many of the cells when this was done. I find by measuring, that I now dip the sticks in the wax nine-sixteenths of an inch the first time (measuring from the extreme point), and dipping less and less each time, as before stated, so as to get the base of the cell very thick, which I consider a great advantage. A convenient way to get the right depth, is to raise one side of the lamp a little [Fig. 5, page 50], so that the wax will be deeper in one end of the dish, than at the other. Dip in the deep end first, having the wax deep enough in this end so that it will come to the right point on the stick when the end strikes the bottom, and keep going toward the shallow end, as you proceed.

By holding the stick, when lifted from the wax, at different angles while twirling it, the cell can be made heavy at any desired point. To keep the wax at the right depth, add a little occasionally, putting it in that part of the dish immediately over the lamp, so that it will melt quickly. To secure the best results, keep the wax just above the melting point, for, if too hot, it requires many more dippings to get the same thickness of cell, besides bothering in other ways.

The question now before me was, would the bees accept of these cups the same as they did the natural cups that I clipped off the combs? I feared not; and in this I was right, as the first trial proved. This was a disappointment to me, although I had thought it might be so.

While studying over the matter, it came to me one night as I lay awake-why not put some royal jelly into these cups, the same as there was in the cells that I had always been successful with, when transferring larvae in the swarming season? This seemed so reasonable that I could hardly wait for the middle of the day to come, when I could try it. At 10 o'clock the next day, I had a dozen cells prepared, each having some royal jelly in it; then larvae were placed in the royal jelly, the same as I always did, when using the transposition process in swarming-hives. In this way the larvae had an abundance of queen-food, even though the workers did not feed them in from two or three hours to half a day, which was quite a step in advance of setting them in embryo queen-cups, with only the food that I could take up with the tooth-pick, as previously stated.

To get the royal jelly in the cups, I dipped a little of it out of a queen-cell that I took from a colony building cells, taking one that was nearly ready to seal, as such had the most jelly in it. After the large queen-larva was thrown out, the whole jelly was stirred up in the cell, so as to get all of one thickness, for that in the bottom of the cell will be found much thicker than that about the larva.

When thus mixed, the jelly was taken up with the ear-spoon on a pair of tweezers [Fig. 5, page 50], which was then transferred to the hollowed-out end of a little stick, by drawing the bowl of the ear-spoon over the end of the stick, until about one-eighth inch in diameter of the jelly was standing on the end of it. The end of the stick having the royal jelly on it, was then lowered into the bottom of the wax-cup, when it was twirled a little so as to make the jelly stay on the bottom of the cell, the same as it does when the bees place it there.

The amount of jelly used for each cup, was about the size of a "BB" shot, when on the end of the stick, before lowering into the cup, or one-eighth inch in diameter, as stated before. To get the first jelly of the season, a colony must be made queenless; but after this, it is secured by taking one or two of the prepared cells at any time before they are sealed up.

Having the frame in readiness, it was given to a colony that was preparing to swarm, and left for two days. When I opened the hive this time, and drew out the prepared frame, you can imagine my pleasure, at seeing 12 as nice queen-cells under headway as I ever saw, all looking like so many queen-cells built out of new comb-they were so light colored. In three days more, these 12 cells were capped, and, in due time, 12 as splendid Queens as I ever saw, hatched from them. There was now no need of searching combs for embryo queen-cells, for I had something very much better, and something which would stand more rough usage than the other cups ever would endure.

My next idea was to have all of my queen-cells built on a stick, or piece of frame-stuff, the same as I had read about; so when I again made some, instead of taking the cup off the form, I only loosened it enough so that it would slip off the stick easily, when it was again dipped in the wax and immediately placed on a mark on the piece of frame-stuff, which mark I had designated as a place for a cell [Fig. 6]. In an instant the cup had adhered to the frame-stuff, when the forming-stick was withdrawn. This cell was placed near one edge of the stick, which was one inch wide, one-fourth of an inch thick, and long enough to crowd between the side-bars of one of my frames. The cell was also placed near the centre of this stick, as to its length, but close to one side of it, as to width.

The next cell or cup was placed one and one-half inches to the right of the first, while the third was placed the same distance to the left, and so on until six were on the stick, I then put the next on the opposite side from the other six, and half way between them, so that when I had six more cups on, or 12 in all, the cells alternated with each other, which gave more room to each cell when occupying a given space, than would have been given, had I placed each along the centre of the stick [Fig. 5, page 50].

To get the designated places for cells, set the dividers the distance apart that you desire the cells, and after having put one of the points where you desire to have the first cell, "walk" them along until you make the number of point-marks that you want cells, and, in dipping, set a wax-cup over each point-mark.

Having the cells thus fixed, helped in several ways, as it gave the bees a better chance to cluster among them in building, while it gave me a better chance to manipulate the cells in transferring the royal jelly and larvae to them, taking them off, etc., and especially in getting them off the stick; for, when fixed in this way, all I had to do was to push gently on the outside of the base of the cell with my thumb, then off it came, without any danger of injuring it in any way.

Fig. 6.-Affixing the Wax-Cups to the Stick on which they are to be built.

After dipping cells for some time, the forming-sticks will get so coated with wax that the water will stand in drops, instead of flowing freely over them, thus causing the cups to stick so as to spoil them in taking off. When this is the case, the stick is dipped in the water, and immediately placed between the second and third fingers of the left hand, close up to the hand, and twirled around once or twice, which causes the water to spread out over the stick; when it is dipped in the wax, and will work again as well as ever. When working continuously I am able to make from 150 to 200 cups in an hour, so it will be seen that but little time is required to make all that will be needed in any Queen-Rearing establishment.

I now had easy sailing all along the line, for all I had to do was to prepare the frame with these wax-cups, put in the royal jelly, which was now very easily done by laying the stick of cells bottom-side up on a table [Fig. 5, page 50] or chair before me, while the royal jelly was being dished into each; and before removing from the table, transfer the larvae taken from the hive, having my best breeding Queen, into each cell. When all was ready, this stick of prepared cells was crowded between the side-bars to a frame of comb, which had been previously cut so that the cells would come in the center of the comb, while the ends of the stick slipped through a slot cut in the comb for them.

Fig. 7.-Frame Showing how the Stick of Queen-Cups is Fitted into It, and How the Cells look after being Built from the Cups. The Illustration is less than one-fourth Size, as the Frame Used is for the Gallup Hive, which is 11 ¼ x 11 ¼ Inches.

I keep several old combs, say 10 or 12, for this purpose, which are used as often as cells are needed. This is a great convenience, and saves destroying or mutilating a valuable comb every time we wish cells built.

By doing the whole in a warm room, I was independent of the weather, for in carrying the frame to the hive, I wrapped it in a warm flannel cloth, when it was at all cool outside. In this way I was sure to get a large proportion of the cells completed, whether used in a colony preparing to swarm, or in a colony which I had fixed for Queen-Rearing.

Before carrying to the hive, a slight shaving was taken from the top-bar of the frame, and the date placed on it, so I could know just when these cells would hatch. If the figures on it read 7-20, I knew that the cells were prepared July 20, and should be cared for on the 30th of that month. I now wrote in a small book kept for this purpose, 7-20 placed in hive 40 (if that happened to be the hive they were placed in), so that by looking at this book at any time, I knew where each frame of cells was, and when put there. If cells were started with larvae from any but my best Queen, the name of the Queen was also placed on the frame and in the book, so that I knew just what I was about at all times. By looking in this book, I knew just when and where I should go to get these cells, so that none were destroyed by the Queens hatching before I expected.

In getting larvae for Queen-Rearing, when very cool, I placed the piece of brood under my clothing near my body, as soon as cut from the comb, and kept it there while carrying it to the room, so that there was do danger of chilling the larvae; or, if handier, as was sometimes the case, I placed it in a box having a heated iron in it, as will be explained farther along. A small room especially adapted for the handling of cells, brood, etc., which can be kept warm in cool weather, is almost a necessity to the man who makes a business of Queen-Rearing. When only a few Queens are reared, the family kitchen can be used, as there is almost always a fire there-providing the "better half" is willing.

After working successfully along this line, with both colonies and those made queenless for Queen-Rearing purposes, I chanced one day to find a colony which was about to supersede its Queen, and gave evidence of being one of those colonies which might have two Queens in a hive. I was not long in deciding to try my process of cell-building in this colony, so I at once destroyed the queen-cells which the bees had started, having royal jelly in them, using the royal jelly to put in the wax-cups I had prepared for them. I soon had the frame of prepared cells in the colony, when I waited rather impatiently for the next two days, till I could see what the developments would be.

At the end of two days, I went to the hive, and upon lifting out the frame I found that eleven out of the twelve cups prepared, had been accepted, and were now on the way to completion, as perfect queen-cells. Two days before the cells were ready to hatch, I had them photographed, and I have given the reader a fairly good picture of them, [Fig. 7, page 56], which also represents these cells as built in an upper story over a queen-excluding honey-board, as about to be described.

To say that I was delighted with this success, would hardly express it; I was almost happy in thinking that I could now get queen-cells of the best type, and by the quantity, as long as I could keep that old Queen alive at the head of the colony, for it was an exceedingly strong one.

Upon leaving this colony, I went to another strong one, and removed its Queen, so that I might have a place where I could put these cells as soon as they were sealed, for safe keeping, till they were old enough to give to nuclei; for my object was to keep this colony rearing Queens constantly, as long as the mother lived. As soon as the cells were sealed, they were removed and placed in the queenless colony, and another prepared frame given to them.

This last frame was accepted the same as the other, and, if my memory serves me rightly, this colony completed eleven sets of cells, before the old Queen gave out entirely. At any rate, they reared so many that I saw the plan was a complete success, for all of these Queens were of the highest possible type, as to color, size and fertility; while the amount of royal jelly put in each cell was simply enormous, so much so that one cell taken from the frame would have jelly enough to start the twelve cups on a prepared frame at any time; while large quantities were left in the bottom of each cell, after the Queens had hatched out.

Before going farther, I must digress a little. In January, 1883, I met Mr. D. A. Jones, of Canada, at the "North Eastern" bee-convention, which was held that year at Syracuse, N. Y.; and in a private talk, regarding how to best secure the greatest yield of comb honey, he told me that he had found that he could get the most honey by having it built in the brood-chamber of the hive, fixing things so as to have the sections surrounded with brood, as it were.

To briefly describe the plan, as I now remember, it was as follows: When the honey season arrived, the brood-chamber was divided into three parts, the central one having five combs in it, which were to be enclosed with perforated-zinc, or, what we now term, queen-excluding division-boards. These five frames were to contain, as far as possible, only hatching brood, so that the Queen might have room to lay, as the brood hatched out. On either side of this small brood-chamber, sections were to be placed, by hanging in wide frames filled with them to the amount which it was thought that the colony required; while beyond these wide frames of sections, the remainder of the frames of brood, taken out when reducing the brood-chamber, were to be placed, having an equal number on each side.

In ten days, the hive was to be opened, and the Queen hunted, and, when found, the frame she was on was to be put outside, when the remaining four frames were put over to take the place of those outside of the sections, while those outside were to be placed in the brood-chamber, and the frame having the Queen on it returned. By treating the colony in this way every ten days, the Queen furnished as much brood as she otherwise would, while the sections were kept in the middle of the hive (so to speak) all of the while, which caused the bees to work assiduously to fill up this vacant space in the brood-nest, thus giving more honey than could be obtained in any other way.

This looked so reasonable to me, that I accepted it at once; but with the usual caution which I have always thought best to use, where trying something new, I made only two hives to be worked on this plan the following season. Without going into the details farther, suffice it to say that on account of pollen in the sections, and some other difficulties, the plan did not succeed with me as I had expected, so it was given up.

Fig. 8.-Queen-Excluding Division-Board.

There was one thing that I learned, however, which started me on the road to a new discovery along the line of Queen-Rearing; which was, that in every case, where unsealed brood was placed outside of the sections, the bees would start from one to three queen-cells, and unless I cut them off, the Queens hatching from them would supersede the old one, or else a swarm would be the result, when the combs having the cells on, were placed back with the Queen again. This I did not like, as it was too much bother to look over the combs carefully, every ten days, in addition to the other work, when a change of combs was to be made.

One of the colonies so tried, had one of my best Queens in it, and when I came to cutting off the cells, I was not slow to see that they might be made to form no small part in my Queen-Rearing business. However, the cutting of nice combs to get these cells stood in the way of my desiring to get all of my Queens in that way, and besides, all the Queens so reared did not please me, for the colony was often so spread out with sections between the brood, that the necessary heat to get good Queens was not always present.

I now began using the queen-excluding metal [Fig. 8, page 60], between the upper and lower stories of the few hives that I worked for extracted honey, and in one or two cases, brood from the lower story was placed in the upper one, over the queen-excluding honey-board. Again I had queen-cells built as in the former case, which were cared for as well as any I had ever seen, although, as a rule, but two or three would be built on one lot of brood.

In thinking the matter over one night, while I was awake, doing some planning for the future, it came to me that these cells were built under precisely the same conditions, that the cells were when the bees were thinking of superseding their Queens, at which time I was enabled to get the best of queen-cells built. To be sure, the Queen below was a good one, but as she could not get above, the brood that the bees had there did not increase any, so they concluded that they must have a better Queen in this part of the hive; hence they went to work to produce one.

One thing that I had always noticed was, that where the bees had their own way in the matter, where cells were built to supersede a Queen while she was still in the hive, they never started more than three or four cells, while one or two were more often built than otherwise. That the bees only built about the same number in these cases of brood above a queen-excluding honey-board; and, also, that I have never known a swarm to issue, simply from having queen-cells in such an upper story, when none were below, shows that they consider the conditions the same as in case of supersedure.

Having become satisfied that I was right on this point, the next step was to see if the plan which had proved so successful with the colony about to supersede its Queen, would work above the queen-excluding honey-board; and if it would, I would be a step farther in advance than I had ever been before; for in it I saw something of great value to the bee-keeping fraternity in the future.

A frame of queen-cups were now prepared as before, and to make sure of success, if such a thing were possible, I raisedd two frames of brood (mostly in the larval form) above, so as to get as large a force of nurse-bees about the prepared cells as possible, to properly feed the queen-larvae. The prepared frame was placed between the two having brood in them. In two days I examined this frame, and found that my conclusions were right, for every cup had grown to a half-built queen-cell, while the little larvae were floating in a quantity of royal jelly, that more than half filled the cell. These were finished in due time, and from them hatched Queens which were every whit as good as any I had ever seen.

I now had things brought to where I was master of the situation, so that I could rear the best of Queens, just when and just where I wanted them, and that, too, with a laying Queen in the hive at all times, so there would be no loss in honey-production, to any apiarist, while rearing Queens; and the beauty of it all was, that these cells were all on a stick, so that they could be made use of without injuring any of my good combs, or in any way endangering any of the occupants of the cells.

Not knowing to what extent this plan could be carried, and yet secure good Queens, I went slowly at first, not giving any one colony a second prepared frame, till after the first had been removed and more brood placed above. As I leave the cells where they are built, till they are nearly ready to hatch, or for ten days, this, took five colonies to give me a lot of queen-cells every other day, as I desired them, during the heighth of the season.

The next season, wishing to see how much there was in the plan, I put in a prepared frame as soon as the first cells were sealed, and then another as soon as these were sealed, and so on indefinitely. As far as I could see, the last lot of cells were as good as the first, although, as a rule, I did not get quite as many accepted. It was a rare thing that the bees finished less than nine out of twelve prepared cells during the first season, while the bees would frequently build and properly care for the whole twelve. In crowding them so fast, they would sometimes give me only five or six, yet, as a rule, they would average about eight, so that I really gained nothing by thus crowding things.

For this reason, I now kept along the line of work followed the first season, till the past summer, when, to see what might be accomplished, preparatory to writing this book, I gave a prepared frame to a colony every two days, and, while they did not complete as many cells on each frame as formerly, when I gave them less often, yet some cells would be built on every frame.

In this way, I had in one colony having a laying Queen below, queen-cells in all stages of progress, from those just ready to hatch, down to larvae that the bees had just commenced to feed, by adding to the royal jelly which I had placed in the cups; and, besides this, I had Queens kept in nurseries in different parts of the upper story. I also had in this same upper story, Queens just hatched, and some just commencing to lay, by having a part of the upper hive formed into nuclei, by using perforated-metal division-boards, as will be explained farther on. It will be seen that there is scarcely any limit to what can be accomplished by this method of Queen-Rearing, and queen-fertilizing.

However, as a rule, I think that a little better Queens can be reared by the way I worked the plan the first season, for the cells are better supplied with queen-food, where unsealed brood is placed in the upper story every ten days-enough better, in my opinion, to pay for the extra work.

Again, I would not put over twelve wax-cups on a stick, for if more are used, the young Queens are not fed quite as well. In my experiments I have used as high as twenty-four cups, and had every one accepted and finished; but unless the colony was an extremely populous one, I did not get quite as good Queens as when only twelve were used.

To show what may be accomplished by this method, I will say, that in the honey harvest I have prepared sticks having from four to eight cups on them, the sticks being made of the right length to crowd into any section of the hive that I was using, so as to keep it from falling down, when the section was placed between two others, in which the bees were at work over a queen-excluding honey-board; when upon going to the hive at the end of ten days, I would find as nice queen-cells, nearly ready to hatch, as any one needs to see.

I have also had Queens fertilized and kept till they were laying, one in each section of the hive, yet this plan of producing Queens in sections, is not to be recommended, as it spoils the section from being first-class for honey, ever afterward.

By way of caution, I wish to say, that if a Queen is by any means allowed to hatch in the same apartment where the cells are, these cells will at once be destroyed. If the bees with such a Queen, are shaken off the combs, so as to get her out of the way of more cells being built, and the bees are allowed to enter the hive below, with this Queen (as would be natural for any apiarist to do), this young Queen will destroy the one below, no matter how prolific or how valuable a Queen you may have there. This queer procedure, I bring to bear on all Queens that I wish to supersede, as will be explained farther on.

Another thing: In the fall (or in this locality after August 15th), when the bees begin to be inactive, or cease brood-rearing to any great extent, the warmth generated in the upper story will not be great enough to produce good Queens, and as the season draws toward a close, no queen-cells will be completed, unless we feed sufficiently to arouse the whole colony into activity, and keep them thus all the time while the cells are being built. At such times I have had cells that usually mature in eleven-and-one-half days, to be from sixteen to twenty days before hatching; while the Queens would be almost black, from the same brood which produced very yellow Queens during June, July, and the first half of August. In all parts of the country where fall flowers abound, I presume just as good Queens will be reared in September by this plan, as at any time; but as we have no fall flowers here, I cannot be positive on this point.

At any time when the bees work the cells very slowly, I know no better plan than that which was given in the last chapter, only I use the wax cells, prepared with royal jelly, as given before. Then in early spring, before the colonies are strong enough to go into the upper stories, we must use that way also, for there are not enough bees in any hive to use the above method, which I believe to be the best of all. However, much can be done by way of getting a colony strong, by giving sealed brood, so this last process can be used much earlier in the season, than otherwise would be the case.

In this chapter, I think that I have given something of great value to the fraternity; and if it shall lead to the universal rearing of a better class of Queens, than have formerly been reared, I shall be well paid for all my efforts in this direction.

Borage.

CHAPTER VIII. GETTING THE BEES OFF THE CELLS.

It would hardly seem that a chapter should be devoted to this subject, but from what I know of others doing along this line, and what I used to do myself, I am satisfied that many Queens are materially injured before they are out of the cells, and many more are killed outright. We frequently see in print, the instruction given, when handling frames after the bees have swarmed and before the queen-cells have hatched, that to get the bees off the combs, the "frames should be shaken," or "the bees shaken off in the usual way." Many write, asking why their queen-cells do not hatch, or why so many Queens hatch with crippled wings, or having a dent in one side of the abdomen. When answering such an enquiry, and asking for more particulars, these almost always reveal that they have shaken the frame having the cells on, to get the bees off.

One man came a long distance for some brood from my best Queen, from which to rear some Queens to cross with his stock; and after securing some 50 or 60 splendid cells from this brood, by the transposition process, he came after more brood, telling me that out of the whole lot, only three Queens hatched, and only one of those being perfect. Upon asking him how he got the bees off the frames having the queen-cells on them, he said he shook them off the same as he always did. It does not seem that any one would be so thoughtless, yet there are hundreds who do not stop to think of these little things.

I wish to emphasize the words, never shake the bees off a frame having queen-cells on it, nor in any way suddenly jar it! for queen-cells are much more liable to injury while on the frame, than they are when taken from where they were built. The reason for this lies in the fact that when the comb is moved, there is a heavier body than in a single cell; hence the heavy body takes more force to move it than does the lighter one, which is apt to give it an accelerated speed, and when suddenly brought to a stop, it causes a concussion much greater than the operator dreams of; while this concussion sets the Queen pupa to tumbling around in its cell, to a very damaging extent, and one nearly, if not quite as great, as would come to it had the tree in its forest home, as provided by Nature, been suddenly blown over by some thunder-gust. Under such circumstances, no one would expect queen-cells to hatch. Care should always be used in handling cells, but especially before they are removed from the combs or frames. My way of doing this is as follows:

Having lifted the frame with the cells on it, from the hive, it is carefully put down near the entrance, letting it rest on the bottom-bar, so that it will occupy the same position that . it did in the hive. To thus fix it without killing the bees, which may be on the under side of the bottom-bar, I lower it so that it will touch the short grass which grows about the sides of the hive, and then, by drawing the frame endwise toward the entrance, the bees are all brushed off on the grass, so that none are left where they would be killed. This is the way I always do, when putting the frame on the ground for any purpose.

Having the frame near the entrance, and leaning up against the hive, I smoke the bees thoroughly, so as to cause them to fill themselves with honey, and while they are doing this, I arrange the interior of the hive, when it is closed. I then smoke the bees some more, and if they seem inclined to leave the comb and run into the hive, I keep smoking them until all have run in; but if they are loth to leave the comb, which they usually are, I take hold of the frame and raise it a foot or so above the entrance, when, with one of the soft bee-brushes, now used by most beekeepers, or with the feather end of a quill from a turkey's wing, the bees are brushed off, brushing about the cells very carefully.

Fig. 9.- "Yucca" Bee-Brush.

If the bees have filled themselves with honey, they are rolled off the comb with the brush very easily, and seldom offer to sting; but if you undertake to brush them, when the frame is first lifted from the hive, you will find that they will stick to the comb and cells "like tigers," while their fury will be scarcely less than would be shown by the tiger herself, if pushed around while being robbed of her cubs.

Where frames of queen-cells are obliged to be handled on a cool day, or in a rain-storm, it is sometimes best to take them, bees and all, into the warmed room where the work is done with cells. When there, remove the cells as quickly as possible, allowing the bees to remain on the comb, which they will generally do if we do not smoke them very much while removing the frame from the hive. Upon reaching the room, they will begin to fill themselves, and if spry, we can remove the cells while they are filling, and carry them back to the hive without losing any.

Once having the cells in the warm room, we need be in no hurry, for if the room is of the right temperature (from 85° to 95°), the inmates of the cells are advancing toward maturity just as fast as they would be in the hive.

Cleome in Bloom.

CHAPTER IX. WHAT TO DO WITH THE QUEEN-CELLS.

Having the queen-cells all built, and being nearly ready to hatch, with the bees all off from them, the next thing we want to know, is what to do with them.

There are three ways generally employed in using them, the one used most being to give the cells to nuclei or queen-less colonies; next, putting the frame having the cells on, in a lamp-nursery, leaving them there, and taking out the Queens as fast as they hatch; and, lastly, putting each cell in a separate cage having food in it; while the cages are so arranged, that from 12 to 24 of them will just go inside of a frame, filling it solid the same as a comb would; when the frame of cages is placed in the center of a full colony of bees, where it is left till the Queens hatch, when they are to be disposed of as is thought best.

The last is called a queen-nursery, and has the advantage over the lamp-nursery, in the fact that no watching is required to keep the Queens from killing one another, should several hatch during the night, or when the apiarist was at other duties. As I wish to say something about each method, I will speak of them in the order named above.

As a chapter will soon be given on forming nuclei, all that I shall say in this, will be in regard to how it is best to get the cells into these nuclei, or into a full colony, if you wish to put them there. Bear in mind, that if you wish to be sure that the cells are not torn down, you must wait about giving them to any colony, whether weak or strong, from twenty-four to forty-eight hours after their laying Queen has been taken away; or, in other words, the colony must be queenless for that many hours, before it is time to take the cells from the colony where they were built.

Some claim that an unprotected queen-cell can be given to a colony, at the time a laying Queen is taken from the same; but all of my experience goes to prove that where this is done, nine out of every ten cells, thus given, will be destroyed. I am not alone in this, for many prominent apiarists write me that they can do no better. However, I will say, that it may be that I do not have my colonies small enough, for a colony so small that there is not over 200 bees in it, will accept of a Queen or a queen-cell much more readily than will a colony of 20,000 workers.

In giving queen-cells to colonies, if the weather is warm enough so that there is no danger of chilling the cells, or say when the mercury is at 75° or above, I take the frame of cells in my hand, and go to the nuclei with it (unless there is danger of robbing, from scarcity of honey in the fields), and put the frame of cells down next to the hive containing the nucleus or colony, the same as it was placed at the entrance of the hive in getting the bees off, so as to be sure that the cells are not injured in any way.

I then open the hive, and, having selected the spot on the comb where I wish to put the cell, I place my thumb on the base of one of the queen-cells and gently bear down, when it cleaves off the bar of wood to which it was fastened, as easily as need be. Now, instead of cutting the combs and fitting the cells into them, the way we always used to do, all I have to do is to place the cell against the side of the comb where I wish it to stay, and gently push against the base of the cell, when it sinks into the comb far enough to make it a fixture. After this comb is lowered into the hive, and the, next comb brought up to it, this next comb touches the cell on the opposite side, so that it cannot fall out, even if the bees do not stick it fast, which they are almost sure to do, even if the other comb does not touch it.

Here is another advantage that these cells have over those entirely made by the bees, in that the wax is so thick at the base of the cell, that it is impossible to dent them with any reasonable handling; also this mode of putting on the comb keeps the nice worker-combs from being injured, as was the case with the old process, given in nearly all of our bee-literature.

If robber bees are so that they will follow around, trying to get at the frame of honey with the queen-cells, the same is taken to the shop, or other room where I work, when the cells are taken off the bar of wood, in the same way as described before, and placed in a little basket that I have for the purpose, as fast as they are removed.

Why I use a basket in preference to anything else, is because in warm weather this lets the air around the cells, it being of open-work, so that when the sun strikes on them there is not nearly the danger of over-heating that there otherwise would be. In a tin dish, when left in the sun, it takes only a moment or two to spoil the inmates of the cells by over-heating, while on hot days I have to be careful, even with the basket. Upon going to the apiary, the cells are now taken from the basket and used as before.

If the weather is very warm, or the colony to which the cell is given, is a strong one, I do not take out a frame when inserting the cell, but simply spread the top-bars apart a little, and crowd the cell lightly between them so that it will stay. This works equally well, if we are sure that the colony is strong enough to cluster around it, so as to keep it warm; but in all cool weather the other is the safest plan; as in the first case I always put the base of the cell just above the brood, so that the point comes down on the brood, which insures the bees caring for it, as surely as they care for the brood.

If the weather is cooler than 75° in the shade, I heat one of the largest weights to my scales (any iron will do) so warm that I can just hold it in my hands, when it is dropped into a wooden box of sufficient size to let it slip into it, and over the weight is placed several thicknesses of felt, cut to fit the box. The cells are now placed on the felt, when a cover for the cells, made by sewing two or three pieces of the same felt together, and having a little handle attached, is placed over them. The cells are now protected from the cold, so that I can go right on with my work, regardless of the weather.

When I go to a hive, all I have to do, is to lift the felt cover by the handle, take out the cell and put back the cover. If you have more cells than you think the iron will keep up the necessary heat for, all you have to do is to leave the rest in the warm room until you can return and heat the iron again.

An oil-stove is very handy to keep this room warm, or to heat the iron or anything else with, and has the advantage in allowing you to control the temperature of the room perfectly, by turning the wicks up or down. However, any stove, or any room having one window in it, will answer all purposes, for any one who has not things fitted for this special work.

What I have to say about the lamp-nursery will be brief; for, to tell it just as it is, I have very little use for it, and none whatever in the way it is generally used. I do not like to be obliged to watch as closely as is necessary to keep the Queens from killing one another while hatching; besides, the gain when used in this way, is very little if any, where the cells can be left in the colony building them, until they are nearly ready to hatch, as is the case with the plan of cell-building which has been given. By the old ways, where the colony was kept nearly, or quite idle, from the time the cells were sealed till they were ready to hatch, the time saved to the colony by taking them to the lamp-nursery as soon as sealed, undoubtedly paid; but where the work of the colony is going on just the same, whether there are cells in the hive or not, the case is different.

The only time when I use it, is early in the spring or late in the fall, when I have to get the cells built in queenless colonies, and then I only use it in connection with the queen-nursery, which does away with all watching, or sitting up at night to see to the Queens.

Were it not for the traffic in Virgin Queens, which is now growing, and bids fair to assume gigantic proportions, and the few times when we have more queen-cells ready to mature than we have just at that time small colonies to take them, there would be little more use for the queen-nursery than for the lamp-nursery.

For these reasons, however, I think that the use of the queen-nursery pays well; for it allows us to sort the Virgin Queens in sending them off, so we need send only the best; while it many times enables us to save a nice lot of Queens, which we would otherwise lose.

In using it, I put it in the upper story of any colony having a queen-excluder between it and the lower story; often putting it in the same apartment where the bees are rearing Queens, as it makes no difference to the bees as regards cell-building, the work going on just the same if there are 50 Virgin Queens caged in the same apartment. At first I feared that cell-building would stop, or the cells already built would be destroyed, but after testing the matter, I find that Queens thus caged have no influence along these