iiiv^p:s, evolution or. 



253 



IITVES, EVOLUTION OF. 



idea of handling one comb at a time, and by 

 this means to get a far better coiicei»tion of 

 what was going on inside tlie hive, lluber 

 extended this idea by his improvement, Fig. 

 1, which came very near to the lianging 

 movable frame invented Ijy Langstrotii six- 

 ty years later. 



To Iluber belongs the credit of inventing 

 liives with movaljle frames*, and it was by 



Examining the illustrations of Huber's 

 hive makes evident he had a clear idea of 

 what was required in a hive for practical 

 purposes. Fig. S shows how he increased 

 his apiary by artilicial means. In this case 

 he divided a strong colony by slipping a 

 board between the frames, thereby splitting 

 it in two. Ilis plan of providing a part of 

 each frame for surphis honey is excellent. 



FIG. 2. — HUBEK's leaf hive, 1789.— from CHEsniKE. 



the use of these that he was able to make 

 the discoveries in apiculture which so aston- 

 ished and delighted the scientific world. 

 Huber invented these hives about 1789, or 

 perhaps a little earlier. Fig. 2. It has been 

 contended by some writers that Ruber's hive 

 was not practical; but some of the most 



It is very evident from this that TTuber in- 

 vented some of the principal features of our 

 movable -comb hives. The Ileddon and 

 Bingham hives are on the Huber plan. 



About 1819 Mr. Robert Kerr, of Stevvait 

 Town, Scotland, invented a bar liive of con- 

 siderable merit, shown in Fig. 4. This hive 



-UUBEK HIVE, SHOWING HOW HE AKTIFICIALLV IXCKEAiSED THE XUMBEK OF HIS COLONIES. 

 E, E, E, ARE ENTRANCE-HOLES. — FROM CHESHIRE. 



practical beekeepers the world has yet pro- 

 duced used modified Huber hives, notably 

 Quinby and Iletherington, bee-keepers of 

 New York State, whose names are revered 

 by American bee keepers. 



* This honor is usually ascribed to Langstroth, for, 

 indeed, he was the first one to invent an all-round 

 practical hive and frame — a frame that providPd a 

 bee-space all around it : but. strictly speakintf, he did 

 not invent the first movable frame. 



was used very successfully, and is still, 

 but with movable frames instead of mere 

 bars. It was still further improved by IIo- 

 watson, also of Scotland, about 182-5. The 

 Stewarton hive looks outside not un- 

 like our modern improved dovetailed Lang- 

 stroth hives. Here we liave the tiering 

 principle clearly coniitrehended ; and had 

 this author and inventor grasped the idea 



