Another empty hive will also be required for the process, which is commenced by turning the hive which contains the bees upside down. Over this is placed the empty one--which should be of the same size--and the edge nearest the end of the longest comb is fixed on the lower hive by means of a knitting needle thrust through both edges. The opposite edges of the hives should be left about six inches apart, being secured in that position by means of driving irons or strong pieces of hazel sharpened and stuck into the edge of both hives at a different angle from that of the knitting needle at the back. It is advisable, too, to fix a tea-cloth or a piece of similar material, so as to prevent the bees from running up the outside of the top hive. The actual process of driving consists in tapping the sides of the lower hive to which the combs are fixed, simultaneously with the hands. If the bees are slow to run the taps may be given at shorter intervals, while if they run freely the tapping may be lighter and slower. As a rule the bees will fill themselves with food before leaving the combs and it may be necessary to use the smoker to dislodge the stragglers; in this case only very slight blasts should be administered. =Transporting Bees.=--When hives are sent any distance care must be taken that ventilation is afforded _above as well as below_ the bees. The reason for this is obvious; there must be a way for the escape of hot air which rises to the top of the hive. This can be secured by placing coarse linen cheese cloth or a sheet of perforated zinc under a thin porous quilt. All loose parts of a bar-frame hive should be made thoroughly secure before the hive is dispatched. Skep hives should be packed bottom upwards in a crate. Swarms and driven bees should be sent away as soon as possible after swarming and driving are completed, for, as we already have pointed out, bees can only carry sufficient food to meet one day's requirements. It should be an accepted rule, therefore, that when a hive is received from a distance the bees should be fed immediately. When bees are moved about regularly from one district to another it is advisable that the hive should be fitted with a short alighting board and thus take up less space in the conveyance. CHAPTER VIII =Feeding= IN an erratic climate, such as that of Great Britain, bee-keeping includes among its duties that of bee-feeding at certain periods of the year, if profit is to accrue. It must be remembered that shortage of food when the bees are active means an inroad on their stores and a suspension of brood-rearing operations.