I shall, in another place, give the best remedies for the relief of a
sting. As soon as the bees have quietly clustered around their queen,
preparation should be made to hive them without any unnecessary delay.
The headlong haste of some Apiarians, which, by throwing them into a
profuse perspiration, renders them very liable to be stung, is
altogether unnecessary. The very fact that the bees have clustered,
after leaving the parent stock, is almost equivalent to a certainty that
they will not leave, for at least one or two hours. All convenient
despatch should be used, however, lest other colonies issue before the
first one is hived, and attempt to add themselves, as they frequently
do, to the first swarm. The proper course to be pursued, in such a case,
will be subsequently explained. If my hives are used, the entrance on
the whole front must be opened, so that the bees may have every chance
to enter as rapidly as possible; and a sheet must be fastened to the
alighting-board, to keep the bees from being separated from each other
or soiled by dirt, for a bee thoroughly covered with dust or dirt, is
almost sure to perish. Unless the bees cluster at a considerable
distance from the place where they are intended to be permanently
stationed, the new hive which receives them may stand on the Protector
in its proper place, with the sheet tacked or pinned to the
alighting-board, and spread out over the mound in front of the entrance.
If the common hives are used, they must generally be carried to the
swarm, and propped up on the sheet, so as to give the bees a free
admission. When the bees alight where they can be easily reached from
the ground, the limb on which they have clustered, should, with one
hand, be shaken, so that they may gently fall into a basket held under
them, by the other. If the basket is sufficiently open to admit the air
freely, and not so open as to allow the bees to get through the sides,
it will answer all the better. The bees should now be carried very
slowly to their new home, and be gently shaken, or poured out, on the
sheet, in front of it. If they seem at all reluctant to enter, take up a
few of them in a large spoon, (a cup will answer equally well,) and
shake them close to the entrance. As they go in, they will fan with
their wings, and raise a peculiar note, which communicates the joyful
news that they have found a home, to the rest of their companions; and
in a short time, the whole swarm will enter, and they are thus safely
hived, without injury to a single bee. When bees are once shaken down on
the sheet, the great mass of them are very unwilling to take wing again;
for they are loaded with honey, and like heavily armed troops, they
desire to march slowly and sedately to the place of encampment. If the
sheet hangs in folds, or is not stretched out, so as to present an
uninterrupted surface, they are often greatly confused, and take a long
time to find the entrance to the hive. If it is desired to have them
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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