[Footnote 7: It is well to confine the bees when a large number of robbers are inside--a larger number if possible than the swarm itself, for, being confined a few days, they will make that hive their home, and aid in defending its stores against other robbers with as much energy as the bees of the original swarm.] When you put in the two frames with brood, if you find but little honey in the hive--not enough to last the bees a month or more--put in one frame containing honey. Put on the feeder and carry the hive to a dark and quiet room, and fill the feeder with _pure, soft water_. Let the bees remain in this room four days; then about one hour before sunset, set them on the old stand, giving them their liberty, with the entrances to the hive contracted--the lower entrance closed entirely, and the upper one half closed. Intelligent bee keepers will readily understand why this plan should prove a success:--First, the bees that hatch from the brood comb given the weak stock, will be a great encouragement to the few bees in the hive; and in a _very few days_ they will aid in defending the hive against the attacks of robbers. Again--removing the hive from the stand seems to disorganize the robbers, for after they have visited the stand for several days, and find no plunder, they will give up the search in that direction. Before taking the trouble to remove a hive as here directed, care should be taken to be _certain_ that the bees are being robbed. You can be sure whether it is your own bees or others that are robbing, by sprinkling them with flour as they come from the hive which you suspect is being robbed, and watching your other hives, to see if those you have marked enter them, being very careful that you are not deceived by the dust from some species of blossoms, which adheres to the body of the bee, and might be mistaken for the flour. Bees when plundering a stock will often keep at their work until dark, some of them being unable to find their hive by reason of the darkness. Honest workers are not found abroad at that time, and, by the way, this is a very good test of robbing. In concluding this chapter, I advise again: _Know the condition of your stocks at all times._ If any have too few bees, contract the entrances in accordance with that number of bees to pass. Preventative is much better than cure in this case. CHAPTER X. PROFITS OF BEE KEEPING. TWENTY-FIVE years ago, and even at the present time, by the ordinary methods of bee keeping, if a profit of five dollars from one hive of bees in one season was gained it was considered "good luck." You know there is no system in the ordinary methods of bee keeping. It is either "good luck" or "bad luck;"--all "luck" and "chance," anyway.