January, 1913. 



American Hee Joornal 



rearing and the building up of colo- 

 nies. 



The following letter is in line for 

 just such information : 



"Dear Sir: — Please let me know 

 through either of the three bee journals 

 of the United States, what success you 

 have had with your Scholl s/ia/loiv ex- 

 tracting and brood frames as regards 

 bur and bf'ace combs. Are you troubled 

 any with these, especially with your 

 frames with top-bars, -'4-inch wide and 

 >^-inch thick ? How do you overcome 

 this difficulty ? Please give us an arti- 

 cle on bur and brace combs in dii'isible 

 brood-chamber hives: also in deep /ih'es, 

 as this is a great trouble where one 

 has to change fratncs from one hive to 

 another. Do you think a thick top-bar, 

 '4 or % inch, will overcome this trou- 

 ble ? Do you find these bur and brace 

 combs in frames only '4 or ^s inch 

 thick by ^i or % inch wide ? 



" I wish you would have all your divis- 

 ible brood-chamber articles in pamph- 

 let form like Doolittle'sbook, ' A Year's 

 Work in an Out-Apiary.'" 



Wm. p. Fritz. 



Canastota, N. Y., Nov. 25. 



What is the cause of bur combs ? A 

 crowded condition of the hive, or, in 

 other words, a lack of room. How- 

 ever, they are also constructed during 

 the time of scant nectar supply, when 

 the flow is not sufficient for good super 



work. Another cause may be improper 

 spacing of the frames, either too wide 

 or too close spaces, which the bees fill 

 up with combs. My experience has 

 taught me that the most accurately- 

 made hives give the best satisfaction in 

 the matter of bur combs and ease of 

 handling. 



Remembering, as a first precaution, 

 that a crowded condition results in the 

 most bur combs, we must try to prevent 

 such a condition. By paying close at- 

 tention to the colonies, providing the 

 necessary amount of room, and keep- 

 ing the bees busy and contented, the 

 trouble may be obviated to a great ex- 

 tent. 



Another thing that should receive 

 more attention is proper "spring 

 cleaning " of the hives. At this time 

 the frames should be scraped clean of 

 the small bur and brace combs that 

 may have been started. This provides 

 nice, clean frames for each manipula- 

 tion throughout the busy season, and 

 prevents the bees adding to and en- 

 larging those that had already been 

 begun. With a properly constructed 

 hive-scraping tool this work is not 

 difficult, when it is done before the 

 colonies have become populous in the 

 very early spring. At this time, too, 

 the combs are light in honey, and brit- 

 tle. They are sticky, and harder to 

 clean off later. 



We have not had any trouble with 

 the ^-inch thick by ^s-inch wide top- 

 bars of our shallow frames, with the 

 proper manipulations of the colonies 

 as suggested. Far more trouble have 

 we had with the thinner, flat, wide, top- 

 bar shallow frames. The most trouble 

 is given by the old style all-wood 

 frames with very thin 'j -inch thick 

 and 5i-inch wide top-bars. Thick top- 

 bars f4-inch thick and 1% inches wide 

 are to be recommended for deep 

 frames, but these are too thick and 

 heavy, as well as too expensive for 

 sh'illow frames. The Ji-inch thick 

 top-bar, %-inch wide Hoffman self- 

 spacing frame, otherwise known as the 

 Scholl shallow frame, has given us the 

 best all-around satisfaction. 



We believe most emphatically in 

 providing as much free communication 

 between the various stories of the hive 

 as can probably be obtained by cutting 

 down the width of the top-bars, but 

 being careful not to go to the other 

 extreme of getting them too narrow or 

 too thin. This ensures better super 

 work, and a consequent larger yield of 

 surplus honey. 



Having been asked by dozens of bee- 

 keeping friends for information, in 

 pamphlet form or in book form, on the 

 subject of divisible brood-chamber 

 hives, I have already made the begin- 

 ning of such a work, which will come 

 out some time this year. 



Send 



"Buying Cheap Goods to Save Money is Like Stopping tlie Clocl( to Save Time 



It Pays to Buy LEWIS BEEWARE — Always tlie Same — Always Standard o. b. 



for Annual Catalog; which will tell 



who is your neare.st Distributer. 



liewls Company, Watertown, Wis. 



Bee-Keeping 



In Dixie-^ 



Conducted by J. J. Wilder. Cordele. Ga. 



Danger from Bees 



This is the best time of the season to 

 move bees from one location to an- 

 other. Bees, if not properly packed 

 and handled, are very dangerous, yet 

 some people are very careless with 

 them, or around them, and each season 

 has its victims from the stings of bees. 



A beggar went to the back-door of 

 one of our Dixie bee-keepers the past 

 season and asked for a lunch. While it 

 was prepared he removed the cover of 

 a near-by hive of bees and was stung 

 to death before he could get away. D. 

 B. Badgeley, a wealthy farmer near 

 Parkersburg, W. Va., was stung to 

 death by a swarm of bees last June. 



Mrs. R. W. Herlong, of Fort White, 

 Fla., had a mare and colt stung to death 

 the past season, and several members 

 of the family barely escaped death at 

 the same time. The colt and mare 

 were grazing in the apiary, and in some 

 way upset a colony. The bees attacked 

 them, and in their effort to escape they 

 upset 5 more colonies. Not only were 

 the horses stung to death, but the furi- 

 ous bees took possession of the entire 

 town until night. It was stated the 

 next morning that there were a half 



bushel of dead bees on the ground 

 around the animals. 



One man who had to take refuge be- 

 tween the corn and fodder in a crib 

 near by, said that he could hear the 

 rats running through the corn below 

 him squealing from the effects of stings. 



That tragedy will never be forgotten 

 by the people of the town. If bees can- 

 not be securely prepared for moving 

 by some one who has had experience, 

 they should by all means be moved at 

 night. I have had much experience 

 moving bees, and on several occasion^, 

 in spite of my care, I have had narrow 

 escapes from accidents. 



Timely Suggestions 



The bees have now begun their win- 

 ter sleep, and seemingly their quarters 

 are as destitute of living objects as 

 cemeteries. It makes me lonesome to 

 visit their quarters, where only a few 

 weeks ago there was so much activity. 

 But only a few weeks more and we will 

 witness the same. 



While we rest as they do, we should 

 formulate plans, get familiar with other 

 bee-keepers' methods, make large de- 



posits in our bank of bee-keeping 

 knowledge, so that during the busy 

 season next year we may draw heavily 

 from it. Do all the necessary moving 

 of bees, and the establishing of outer 

 apiaries, building of honey-houses, 

 work-shops, etc. Then, too, make a 

 list of the bee-supplies needed for next 

 season, and get tfiem in readiness. It 

 will lighten the rush which is sure to 

 come later. 



Happy New Year 



As it is customary to offer New 

 Year's greetings, I now fall in line and 

 wish a happy and prosperous New Year 

 to every bee-keeper in Dixie, as well as 

 to our other readers. If I could say 

 the word or do the thing that would 

 cause the mantle of prosperity to fall 

 on every one, I would do it, but it is 

 beyond my grasp, dear reader. How- 

 ever, it is within your reach, and it is 

 just whether you will try or not. The 

 old adage is true, " Where there is a 

 will there is a way." We need men in 

 our business who have a fixed will to 

 do things and succeed. 



Back to Florida 



It is now the first of December, and 

 I am getting ready to go to Broden- 

 town, Fla., for the winter, where I hope 

 to catch up with my hunting and fish- 

 ing, so that when I return next spring 

 I will be ready for the busy season. 

 This season has been my busiest one, 

 and I have had no vacation. I am not 

 mentally nor physically broken down, 



