=The Honey.=--One very important fact to remember is that no combs should be removed from the hive until the cells have been sealed by the bees. When the nectar is gathered and deposited in the cells it contains a certain proportion of water which must be evaporated before the honey is ready to be sealed. The bees know precisely when the moment for sealing has arrived, so that to secure the honey in good condition it is necessary to await this final operation. The rule cannot be--and is not--observed by bee-keepers who are short of supers, for they are often obliged to remove one from the hive, take the contents, and return it to the hive fitted with new frames. This method of working is unsatisfactory from every point of view. Not only are the bees disturbed unnecessarily, but the flavour of the honey is not so good if taken too soon from the hive. Moreover, it is an accepted rule that honey should be extracted from the combs as soon as possible after it is taken from the hive, and if a bee-keeper is to be continually interrupting his normal work to remove and extract honey, he is giving himself far more trouble than is necessary if he is properly equipped. It is, therefore, far better to leave the honey in the hive until the end of the honey-flow and deal with it as a whole. CHAPTER X =How to Secure the Harvest of the Hive=--(_Cont._) =Extracting Honey.=--The use of an extractor is a necessity to the bee-keeper who is working for profit, for chief among its advantages is that the honey can be separated from the combs without breaking them. _Uncapping._--When uncapping the cells, care should be taken to collect all the cappings in a tray or basket as they are removed, and they should be melted down as soon as possible after the extracting is completed. _Working the Extractor._--The side of the comb which contains most honey should be dealt with first, and in placing the frame in the extractor it should be seen that the bottom bar faces the direction in which the spindle revolves. The cells of the comb are usually built on an angle, and the honey will be thrown out of them quicker in this way than if they were placed to catch the air. Great care is needed when extracting honey from new combs, for they are exceedingly brittle. It is generally advisable, therefore, to turn the handle very slowly at first, and, unless it runs very freely, not to extract all the honey from a comb at the first operation. By partially emptying the one side and then reversing the comb the pressure on it is relieved gradually and the risk of breakage avoided. When the greater part of the honey has been extracted, the speed of the revolutions of the cages can be increased without any danger to the combs. All honey should be extracted from the combs as soon as possible after they are taken from the hive, for it will run more freely then than after it has been allowed to stand and thicken, while its flavour will be better retained.