combs--cut them large, so that they will squeeze into the frames; and to be more secure, wind some of the tape round to keep them in position until made fast by the bees. After a few days, these fastenings may be removed. Care should be taken that the combs occupy the same position in the frames as in the hive from which they were extracted. Having thus prepared the hive, the bees may be let into it. It may be as well to keep them confined a few hours, giving them water at the top, until they make the combs secure; the new hive will then be less likely to offer an attraction to bees from other hives who, if feloniously inclined, might come to rob. This transfer should be made when the weather is such that the bees can fly about; when not warm enough, it should be done in a room at a temperature of about 70 degrees. An expert apiarian could perform the operation in less than three quarters of an hour, and with little loss. A week or so after a swarm has left the old stock is perhaps the very best time for such a removal. Should the operation be performed in the open air, the bees from surrounding hives will be sure to come in great numbers to obtain a share of the honey necessarily exposed, for they delight in plunder. In order, therefore, to avoid annoyance to the operator, and the excitement which is certain to be induced in surrounding hives, it is better to conduct the dissection in some building with closed doors. In some instances a routing of this kind has a beneficial effect; old stocks of hives that have previously appeared to be dwindling, are often aroused to activity by their removal into a fresh domicile. WEIGHING HIVES, &c. One of the most effectual modes of ascertaining the condition of a hive is by weighing it. Such knowledge is most important at the close of the gathering season, in order that the bee-keeper may determine whether he ought to give his bees artificial food to enable them to live through the dreary winter. A knowledge of the numerical strength of the colony is also useful, in enabling the bee-keeper to decide which hives will be benefited by being joined together, which may be done on the plan explained in the articles on "Fumigation" and "Driving." A hive can very easily be weighed, if a Salter's Spring Balance be suspended near the apiary. The hive, having a strap or cord passed under and over it, and crossing at right angles on the top, may be hooked on to the balance, so that the weight will be indicated on the dial. The weight of the hive should be marked on it when empty, so that the exact amount of its contents may at any time be ascertained. A colony of bees at Michaelmas ought to weigh from 20 to 24 pounds, that is, exclusive of the hive; if falling short of that weight, the hive should be made up to it by the artificial means before recommended.