74 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



keepers asking questions. I will try and 

 answer some of these questions at once. 

 There is a limit to the amount of work 

 that a man can do. I hire the necessary 

 help to do practically all the work. I 

 direct the work, look after the tools; keep 

 the men supplied with the right sizes of 

 nails, and examine every hive for leaks. 

 Various sizes of screen and tacks are 

 ready for emergency. I work four men 

 on two rows of hives. They start at the 

 same point. Each pair will try to do as 

 much as the other. A fifth man does all 

 the odd jobs, as directed. 



PREPARING BEES FOR SHIPMENT. 



1 use a screen frame 16 x 20 inches on 

 top and bottom. This screen frame has 

 a If-inch-space under the bottom, and 

 over the top edge of the hive. It allows 

 the bees a lot of space to cluster. They 

 will cluster mostly underneath the combs. 

 The two stories are nailed together with 

 -four pieces of lath. The screen frames 

 are nailed on and under with four, ten- 

 penny nails. When the frames are not 

 of the Hoffman pattern, or spaced nine- 

 to-the-body, then thin strips, 16 inches 

 long, are nailed with '2-inch nails to each 

 frame. 



Strips one inch square, and eight feet 

 four inches long, are used to place be- 

 tween the hives in the car. (Stock car 

 is warm enough.) Six hives are placed 

 on the first tier. Two strips are nailed 

 on, with a six-penny nail driven at each 

 end through the screen frame, The 

 second, and following tiers, contain only 

 -five hives each; equally spaced apart. 

 This secures splendid ventilation to all 

 hives. I use the regular ten-frame Dove- 

 tailed hive. Nine hives can be placed 

 end for end in each half of the car, and 

 leave a little more than door space to 

 hold the other accessories. Now, if the 

 lower tier contains six hives, then the 

 car will accomodate 288 hives, two- 

 stories high. By placing two strips over 

 the third tier, two more tiers of hive 

 bodies, or boxes, with 60-pound cans, may 

 be placed in the car. The empties should 

 be on top. They shade the bees. This 



keeps them more quiet. As the hot 

 air always rises it keeps the bees cooler 

 at the bottom. 



Before moving anything to the car, I 

 know exactly how many hives and 

 packages I want to move. I figure out 

 how high I must load. I finish loading 

 each tier as I go along. If there are 

 any hives of a different pattern, or size, 

 I load them from the other end. 



When all the bees and empties are 

 loaded, I proceed to brace both ends. 

 Take two six-inch planks, the exact length 

 of the width of the inside of the car. Place 

 one piece against the first and second tiers. 

 Nail with twelve-penny nails through the 

 side of the car into the ends. Then rein- 

 force the brace by nailing a piece 1 x 4 

 inches, two feet long, tight against it. 

 Don't save nails. Place the second strip 

 so as to hold the lower edge of the upper 

 tier of bees in the same manner. Barri- 

 cade the other end the same way. Now 

 fit a plank tight from center of lower 

 brace to the center of the other lower 

 brace. Toe-nail well. Counterbrace the 

 two upper braces in the same manner. 

 If the hives have been well packed, 

 nothing short of a wreck will injure the 

 bees. Fresh combs, not wired, spaced 

 wide, with much honey in, may break 

 down. A few in each hive do litttle 

 damage. When packed in this manner, 

 in a stock car, no watering is needed. 



The bees were shipped to Illinois in a 

 stock car. Then again to Louisiana. In 

 Illinois the bottom screens were used as 

 a bottom during the honey flow. The 

 screen was partly pried down at one end. 

 The entrance was spaced with a clam 

 shell. 



1 had a great many inner covers 

 sawed, while in Louisiana last spring, 

 from cypress. They are 16 x 20 inches, 

 in two pieces. They are used as com- 

 bination cover or bottom. A rim has 

 been nailed on one side. When placed 

 with this side down it is used as a cover. 

 On the other side only the two sides and 

 one end have a rim. This side is used 

 as a bottom. All the extra ones are 



