ISO 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Apuil 



I am stubborn, but I really do not like the 

 idea of having the bottom-bar nailed on as 

 in your sample. If the frames in the upper 

 story should ever get waxed fast to those in 

 the 'lower, as they often do, there is great 

 Clanger of the bottom-bar pulling off and 

 tearing the comb in two. I know very well 

 that fdn. can be put in the wired frames 

 with the Given press, for friend Given and I 

 have corresponded in regard to the matter, 

 and he has mailed me a sample like yours, 

 only yours is a great improvement over the 

 one he sent. Still, neither of them had the 

 fdn. clear up to the wood, as we have it in 

 those we put up in the old way. You know 

 my principal point last month was this. 

 Well, what is the reason you do not have the 

 fdn. come clear up to the wood on all sidesV 

 I know that the bees, of themselves, are dis- 

 posed to leave a vacancy at both sides and 

 bottom between the comb and the wood; 

 but this vacancy is just what I don't want. 

 The recent agitation of the matter of hav- 

 ing reversible combs is, principally, that it 

 will make the bees build the combs close up 

 to the bottom-bar, exactly as they do the 

 top-bar, and having the fdn. fastened to the 

 wood all round will do this, usually, without 

 any reversing. Well, the wires in the frame 

 you sent were not drawn tight, nor even 

 straight ; yet three of them were broken, and 

 one wire Avas broken in two places. The 

 fdn. was also broken along the wires, in one 

 or two places. Now, for all this I presume 

 it would work very well to hang it right in 

 the hive just as it came ; and I think very 

 likely it was much owing to the cold weather 

 when it came through the mails. The great 

 point is, we want a machine that will till 

 frames rapidly, and put the fdn. in. In such 

 a substantial manner that the frames can be 

 shipped anywhere, either in winter or sum- 

 mer, without breaking out. Vve can do this 

 with the sheets put in by hand, as we have 

 pretty well demonstrated this winter ; still, 

 for the present I think it better to ship 

 frames of fdn. in moderate weather. Now 

 will some one please report in regard to re- 

 ceiving frames of fdn. put in on the Given 

 machine, shipped long distancesV I have 

 been for some time waiting to receive such 

 reports. 



Just one more point : The fdn. made on 

 the Given machine is much more brittle to 

 handle than that made with rolls. The same 

 is the case with that made on the rubber 

 plates ; in fact, one is very much disposed to 

 get out of patience in trying to handle or cut 

 either, after handling the rolled fdn. I can 

 cut up rolled fdn. with the shears without 

 any trouble, when I want to send out sam- 

 ples ; but if I try to clip off a piece of the 

 Given, at the same time and in the same 

 room, it breaks all into little bits and falls 

 through my fingers. Of course, warming it 

 more Avould make it do better ; but I think 

 it is best to consider all these points. No 

 doubt but that this same quality makes it 

 easier for the bees to work, for they do not 

 often have wax break to pieces on their 

 "hands." They are too old for that. 



Now, after all this complaint I want a 

 Given ))ress at once, and I have sent the or- 

 der to friend Given to-day. If you, friend 



Good, can help to work out the problem, I 

 will gladly pay all expenses ; in fact, I will 

 pay your expenses out here to help us work 

 it, any w^ay. Mayhap we can teach you 

 something else that will do you " good," at 

 the same time. I mail you both to-day one 

 of our wired frames just as I would have 

 them ; and bear in mind, I want a press that 

 will make a sheet of fdn. just as large as it 

 can be squeezed into the frame. It can be 

 put into the frame before the corners are put 

 on, if it can not be done any other way, but 

 I should very much rather have the fdn. put 

 in after the frame is all made as usual. If 

 there should be a small corner left off at 

 each corner of the frame, it w^ould not mat- 

 ter very much. One great point in favor of 

 the Given press is, tliat it does away with 

 all trimming, and there are no scraps of wax 

 to gather up and be lying around. The trim- 

 ming is the great drawback to all plaster 

 and rubber-plate machines. The rubber 

 machines cost $8.00 ; the new improved 

 rolls, SoO.OO ; the Given press, §45.00. The 

 above are all for the L. frame. As some of 

 our new readers may not know what we 

 mean by the Given press, of which so much 

 has been said of late, we give the picture of 

 it again. 



THE GIVEN rOUNDATION PRESS. 



In the first place, we make sheets of plain 

 w^a,x, just the size to fill our frame. The 

 plan of doing this rapidly is by means of a 

 board of I bass wood, made just the size you 

 wish, and immersed all over in the wax, 

 while held by a wire bail. This makes two 

 sheets, just right without any trimming. The 

 wired frame is now laid in the press as 

 shown, and a single sheet placed on the 

 wires, in the frame, The pressure makes 



