FRAMES, TO MANIPULATE. 211 FRAMES, TO MANIPULATE. 



palm in order that sufficient 

 pressiue may be exerted to 

 shove the other or straight end 

 between the two hive parts. 



Either end of the tool may be 

 used for separating Hoffman 

 frames, or, in fact, any style of 

 frame that one happens to use; 

 but our men prefer the hook 

 end. This is inserted between 

 the frames to be separated,' as 

 shown in Fig. 2, when a side 



Fig. 3. — A not lie I- 

 method of using 

 a hive-tool when 

 prying- tlie f i ames 

 apart. 



twist of the 

 wrist will exert 

 considerable 

 leverage, forc- 

 ing apart the 

 frames very 

 gently. But 

 there are some 

 who prefer to 

 use the straight 

 end of the tool in the manner shown in i ig. 

 3; but the method given Fig. 2 exerts more 

 of a leverage, and, at the same time, is less 

 liable to crush bees. 



FiG. ~.— A side twist ul the tool affords u 



strong leverage hy which the frames are 



separated easily, and without jar. 



Fig. 4 shows how the tool may be used 

 for crowding all the frames over to one 

 side in one block, as it were; or ore 

 can, if he prefers, use the plan shown 

 in Fig. 2; but it will generally be found 

 that the one shown in Fig. 4 is more 

 convenient. In Fig. 5 the curved end 

 is used to good advantage in lifting the 

 division-board out of the hive. See 

 also, iu this connection, Fig. 9. 



Fi(i. 5.— How the liook end is useful in fishing out 

 frames and division-boards. 



Fkj. t.— The proper way to piy all I he I'lanus over 

 at one operation. 



Some prefer a hive-tool having a narroAved 

 end like a screwdriver; but the continuous 

 use of a tool like this abrases the edges of 

 the hives so that, after a time, it leaves 

 bruise marks and cracks, inviting winds and 

 storms, and robbers when they are i)rowling 

 about. For separating two hives heavy with 

 honey there is nothing better than a wide 

 thin blade made of good spring steel, tem- 

 pered just hard enough to have the resillient 

 qiuilities of a buggy-spring. 



HOW TO AVOKK OVER THE HIVES. 



Many yard men prefer to work with a sort 

 of stool and hive box combined; others wish 

 to have nothing to lug around excej.t the 

 bee-smoker and the hive-tool. As most hives 

 are placed on or near the groiuid, one must 

 either sit down on some object or kneel in 



