"Should the evening prove chilly, a whiff of smoke * " may be administered to both ; but this is generally " considered quite unnecessary, as it is a well established " fact that no Bee leaves with a swarm till it has filled " its honey-bag, the lower now ascends with a most " confiding hum, evidently firm believers in the old " Scotch proverb,'Plenty frecns when ye hae oht.'
* " The morning light reveals usually nothing but the " surplus Queen dead on the floor board. The lowest box " is then removed, and the entrance of the second again " opened. Should any Bees be clustering in the lowest, " the removal can be postponed till the middle of the day, " when the Workers will be more abroad. " The object of removing the third box, is to restrict " the room, so that the combined swarms may all the " sooner complete comb building, and, packing to the " glass, be thankful to press up into the super which has " been placed thereon, fitted with guide comb. " munication between stock and super is afforded by " drawing the outer slide only on either side. Should " the weather be favourable, and honey abound, it is at " once taken to ; if not, it is better to run in the slides " again, and wait for a day or two; then, under more " favourable circumstances, make a fresh trial, as it is " a curious fact that Bees often will swarm rather than " accept a super open to them, which they have " previously rejected. Supposing, which is generally the " case, the Bees have taken possession, in a very few days " white comb appears at the windows; then, and not till " then, the third breeding-box is placed as a nadir under- "neath all, its slides withdrawn and pegged as at the " union, and the doorway of the central box closed once " more. " The colony may now be said to be fairly under * "weigh, and should favourable honey gathering weather "continue, a second honey-box may be placed on the "first, and all the slides of the first super withdrawn. "To induce the Bees all the more readily to take to the "supers, I have found it a considerable advantage to "run a strip of gummed paper round the juncture of the "stock with the super, as well as with it and succeeding "ones. Should it be taken to, or if honey be plentiful, "a second slide on either side of the top box may be " withdrawn at first, either partially or wholly. This is "a nice operation, dependent on the flow of honey; and "the Bee-master must exercise his own discretion, so as, "if possible, to prevent the inevations of her majesty into "the super. The plan of admitting only the honey "gatherers of the end ombs to the supers, to the exclu- "sion of the Queen, the Nurses, and the pollen collectors "of the centre, is a most ingenious, original, and, indeed, "one of the most valuable features of the Stewarton "system. A third and other supers may still be called "for, and the additional super accommodation afforded, "always uppermost; and, in exceptional cases, even "additional breeding space, by nadiring at the bottom, "may be requisite, although a strong colony was lately "wrought with but 18 inches breeding space, while "filling seven honey-boxes, or supers, in various stages "of progress. To get Bees to take to supers at first, and "to work in them steadily through the vicissitudes of "temperature, it is indispensable that they be well "wrapped up with some warm woolen stuff. I generally "employ old erumb cloths for this purpose, four plies "thick; and need I add that the Stewarton hive being "formed of wood but 5-8ths of an inch thick, it is, of "course, requisite, and must have the protection of a * "Bee-house or shed from the direct rays of the sun; or, "better still, an outer octagon case, with a nicely bevelled "roof, and an ornamental vase on top, forms a most "picturesque adjunct of the apiary or garden. "So soon as the lowest super is seen sealed at the "windows, the attachments between it and the stock and "second super, severed with a thin wire, it had better "be removed, the next lowest taking its place, and so on, "till the end of the season. When all are removed, and "slides reintroduced, then, as cold weather sets in, and "the lowest breeding-box vacated, it, too, is better taken "away, the slides replaced, the mouth wrapped carefully "up with paper to exclude moth and dust, and suspended "in any cool dry garnet till required the next season." The Cari Stewaraton Hive.--This hive, designed by Mr. C. W. Smith, is a modification, and, in some respects, an improvement on the original "Stewaraton," and is in my opinion by far the handsomest hive made, especially when worked in straw, as shown in the wooden; it then becomes quite an ornament to the lawn or garden. It is manufactured by James Lee, of Bagshot, Berkshire. Combined in it are many of the advantages of the best bar-frame hives, as well as those of the far