When the bees are released they may be somewhat excited, not being wholly reconciled to loss of their queen. To pacify them place a caged queen at the entrance for a few hours, then they will quickly quiet down and the queen can be taken away and all will go on as though nothing had happened to the colony. The bees are left 24 hours to build cell-cups, and then another thing must be done if first-class queens are to be reared. Now the colony to which the eggs are given will commence to build from 40 to 60 cell-cups, or would rear from 40 to 60 queens if none of the cell-cups were removed. But such a thing should never be permitted, as not one queen out of all those reared would be of any good. Should the colony commence to build 60 cell-cups, the proper thing to do would be to divide that number of cells equally among three strong colonies of bees. Well, you say, how can this be done? If at this time bees are gathering honey from the fields and in a high state of success, the cell-cups can be placed above a colony of bees as has been and is now practiced by many breeders of queen-bees. I want it understood, however, that I do not so advise anyone, as by the method to follow this very much better queens are reared. Yet if bees are in a swarming mood, pretty good queens are reared over the brood-nest. I shall advise all not to rear queens by above method excepting at swarming time, as under no other conditions can good queens be reared by such a system when any kind of a queen is in the hive the bees occupy. Of course, if a colony is about to supersede its queen, fairly good queens are reared while a queen is in the colony. Only a few of the queens reared under the supersedence process are first-class. Bees do not seem to work with that interest when superseding an old queen as they do when absolutely queenless, or are about to cast a swarm. THE THEORY OF USING YOUNG BEES IN QUEEN-REARING I have given three methods of preparing bees for cell-building. The final result is the same in all cases. The only difference being in the manner of doing the work of preparing the bees. Now, how many of my readers understand the correct theory of taking all the bees of a colony for such work rather than only a part of it? Let me describe. Old bees will not and cannot rear good queens; they will commence cell-cups and complete queen-cells, but no strong queens will come from them. Why is this so? Simply because old bees have passed from the stage of nurses to the sphere of honey and pollen-gatherers, or out-door workers. Old bees cannot prepare the proper food for nursing either worker or queen-bee larvae. What are considered old bees in this connection are those that have been made queenless and kept so from three days to a week; such bees are of no value as cell-builders, as after being queenless thirty-six hours they seem to lose their enthusiasm and interest in the work.