> Immediately after receiving my 75 queens, I set them atop two of my
 > strongest hives, directly on the top bars of the upper hive body, and
 > covered them with a shallow tray (not a full super).  Within a day or
 > two all the attendant bees in the queen cages were dead, but all the
 > queens were alive and flourishing.

I've observed this too, and it is typical -- as far as I can recall.

Moreover, this is not necessarily a bad thing, since it is said by some that
having attendants in cages will affect the sucessful introduction of queens.

I have also observed queens helping themselves to candy in the cages,
something many say they cannot/will not do.

allen