another period, for which I offer my
reasons, supposing, of course, that the reader is conscious of a
freeman's privilege, that is, to adopt whatever method he thinks
proper, on this, as on any other point.

ANOTHER TIME PREFERRED.

There is but one period from February till October, when prosperous
stocks are free from young brood in the combs. If combs are taken out
when occupied, there must be a loss of all the young bees they contain;
which may be avoided. The old queen leaves with the first swarm; all
the eggs she leaves in the worker-cells will be matured in about
twenty-one days, consequently this is the time to clear out the old
combs with the least waste. A few drones will be found in the cells,
that would require a few days more to hatch, but these are of no
account. Also a few very young larvae and some eggs may be sometimes
found, the product of the young queen; these few must be wasted, but as
the bees have expended no labor upon them as yet, it is better to
sacrifice these than the greater number left by her mother, which have
consumed their portion of food; the bees have sealed them up, and now
only require the necessary time to mature, to make a valuable addition
to the stock.

SHOULD NOT BE DELAYED.

Should this operation be put off for a time much longer than three
weeks, the young queen will so fill the combs again as to make it a
serious loss. Therefore, I wish to urge strongly attention to this
point at the proper season. If you think it unimportant to mark the
date of your first swarms for the purposes mentioned in another place,
it will be found very convenient here, for those that need pruning.

It is also recommended by some, to take only a part, say one-third or
half, in a season; thereby taking two or three years to renew the
combs. This is advisable only when the family is very small. As this
space made by pruning cannot be filled without wax and labor, our
surplus honey will be proportionate to its extent. Now suppose we take
out half the old combs, and get half a yield of box honey this year,
and the same next, or make a full operation of it and get none this
year, and a full one next. What is the difference? There is none in
point of honey, but some in trouble, and that is in favor of a full
operation at once. We have to go through with about the same trouble to
get one-third or half as to take the whole.

OBJECTION TO PRUNING.

The objection to this mode of renewing combs