ILLINOIS STATE BEE-KEEPERS' ASSOCIATION 



43 



tight hive bodies and moth balls be- 

 tween combs. 



20. In melting old combs I use soft 

 water in large copper boiler. When 

 melted, the wax and slumgum is pressed 

 with Hatch Root press and wax is 

 drawn into five gallon tin cans to cool. 

 Some hot water below wax in can 

 with top of can removed. Cooled wax 

 easily removed. 



21. All honey well graded. Net 

 weight marked on each package. Ev- 

 ery new customer gets free a Honey 

 Cook Book. I keep list of customers 

 and at close of harvest notify cus- 

 tomers, with prices. By this system I 

 never had enough for demand. 



22. Last but not least: It is a plea- 

 sure to me now to produce extracted 

 honey. Several out apiaries. A bee- 

 house over bee cellar at each apiary. 

 All hives and supplies for same remain 

 in the apiary. During extracting days 

 we need but few hands. Extract all 

 honey in a day from 75 to 85 colonies. 

 Home with the honey for supper. An- 

 other apiary next day. The escape 

 boards being placed day before ex- 

 tracting, so that the bees are out of 

 the supers on arrival and in few 

 moments after arrival the wheelbarrow 

 with two hive bodies of 10 L frames 

 well sealed arrives in the beehouse by 

 side of boy uncapping combs. These 

 are exchanged for two hive bodies of 

 extracted combs to exchange in apiary 

 for more full ones. The one steam 

 knife uncaps easily all combs while 

 one six (6) frame extractor does the 

 rest. Open faucet on extractor so the 

 honey while warm from the hives runs 

 through tin tube in floor to strainer 

 and storage tank below. No more 

 watching faucets or honey spills — no 

 use for honey pump. 



At close of day one boy quickly draws 

 strained honey into ten (10) gallon 

 milk cans to be loaded in wagon for 

 home. I also have a tin trough under 

 cappings which conducts that honey 

 in the same tanks below. 



Many of my "SHORT CUTS" are 



just as helpful to you, Brother. Try 



them. _, J. t , 



Yours truly, 



N. E. FRANCE. 



Pres. Baxter — The paper is open for 

 discussion. 



Mr. Kildow — I wish that Mr. France 

 were here to give us this talk per- 

 sonally. I heard him at the Rockford 



meeting this fall; he could bring out 

 so much if he could be here himself. 



Mr. Moore — One thing, on the sec- 

 ond point here — "Young Italian 

 Queens." I think too many of us are 

 inclined to run along the easy way 

 and let the bees attend to the super- 

 seding. I think if we will all practice 

 re-queening and not let a queen over 

 two years old in our apiaries, we would 

 get more honey. 



That is one point in the treatment of 

 foul brood — the re-queening; in this 

 way we can keep down foul brood. I 

 believe if we would do this we would 

 get better results. 



Then there is another point: Mr. 

 France states that "Hives in the sun- 

 shine with shade board cover during 

 hot weather will produce more bees 

 and surplus honey and less cross bees." 



I have found in my apiary work 

 that so many of the smaller bee-keep- 

 ers think they should give their bees 

 as much shade as possible, and many 

 have them under a dense shade, under 

 a big apple ti"ee, so that they will get 

 as little sunshine as possible; they 

 seem to be afraid the combs will melt 

 down if placed in the sunsHine. 



I have had my bees in both places. 

 I set my bees right out in the sun 

 away from any shade whatever; if the 

 sun is too hot, put shade boards on, 

 give them plenty of ventilation. I want 

 them to get the full benefit of the 

 morning sun, and the late afternoon 

 sun. 



Mr. Turner — How do you manage for 

 yourself — Do you have an umbrella? 



Mr. Moore^ — I can stand it. 



Mr. Kildow — I don't know how many 

 bees Mr. Moore has; if he had a yard 

 the same size as mine he would guard 

 shy of the sun business. 



I have kept my bees in and out of 

 the sun and cannot see any difference 

 in them; those in the thick shade make 

 as much honey for me; I want a little 

 bit of shade. I don't want to work with 

 a hive with the mercury at 110. I want 

 partial shade; I do not want dense 

 shade or blazing sunshine. 



Pres. Baxter — Had we not better take 

 up these subjects, one by one? This 

 shade business has come up — Has any 

 one else anything to' say in regard to 

 having shade or sunshine for bees? 



Mr. Coppin — I prefer shade for the 

 bees as well as for myself. 



Pres. Baxter — How much of it? 



