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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



Feb. 1 



A paper winter case showing the folds of newspaper 

 next to the hive. 



hives. While they are, of course, far better 

 than no protection whatever, it is doubtful 

 whether, in our locality, it pays to fuss with 

 any thing of this sort; for the loss in bees, 

 and the greater consumption of stores, will 

 more than make up for the cost of better 

 protection. 



During the last year or two we have been 

 trying a combination of wooden winter case 

 and the paper case. The subjoined illustra- 

 tions will show how some of our hives are 

 prepared. The inner cover is sealed down 

 by the bees. Over the hive are placed sev- 

 eral folds of newspaper; over this a large 

 square of heavy wrapping paper, when the 

 sides and ends are neatly folded down and 

 tacked. An ordinary chaff cushion is plac- 

 ed on top, and over the whole is put a wood- 

 en winter case that neatly fits over. In the 

 illustrations you will notice how the entrance 

 has been reduced, and the further fact that 

 an Alexander feeder is left on over winter. 



We do not anticipate that this combination 

 of wood and paper case will be as economi- 

 cal of stores and of bees as the regulation 

 double-walled hive. Then why do we fuss 

 with any arrangement of this kind? Simply 

 that we may do a little experimenting for 

 the readers of Gleanings. If they have any 

 merit at all they may be useful in milder ch- 

 mates than we have here. 



CARPENTRY FOR BEE-KEEPERS. 



Sharpening a Saw. 



BY F. DUNDAS TODD. 



Here is part of a letter that got me into 

 this trouble. When I had read as far as the 

 middle of it I thought of that joke we used 

 to rattle off as school-children: "Of all the 



saws I ever saw saw, this saw is the worst to 

 saw I ever saw," or words to that effect. 



There is one feature pertaining to carpentry regard- 

 ing which a great lack of knowledge exists, and that is 

 saw-sharpening. Can you not give us a chapter on 

 this kind of work? The average farm-saw requires 

 from 50 to 100 pounds weight on it to cause it to 

 " chaw " through a soft-pine board. It is in the inter- 

 est of the average boy that I want to see an article on 

 how to file a saw. 



One of my old business friends has a say- 

 ing, "When the other fellow puts it up to 

 me I always go him one better," and here it 

 was squarely up to me. I have a perfect 

 mania for very sharp tools, and for years I 

 have taken care of all of them excepting the 

 saws; and these, as soon as the keen edge 

 was worn olf, ordinarily by the boys trying 

 to cut through a nail or two, I used to take to 

 an expert. In a general kind of way I fan- 

 cied all other users of saws did the same 

 thing, even farmers. But I see I have been 

 mistaken. Now that I come to think of it, I 

 can not recall ever having seen a really 

 sharp saw in a friend's house excepting one, 

 and, strange to say, the owner of it was a 

 bank official who sharpened it himself; but 

 I can recall many blunt ones. Now that the 

 problem was up to me I decided to learn how 

 to sharpen a saw, even if it took a week, and 

 included the destruction of one of Disston's 

 best. Well, it took just one day to make me 

 wise; and the best proof is that I have sub- 

 mitted to the critical examination of an old- 

 time carpenter a rip, crosscut, and hacksaw, 

 all of which have been under my file, and 

 he pronounces them well done; but he cau- 

 tiously added, "Not perfect, remember." 

 Being fresh from the work I feel I am in fine 

 shape to tell how it was done, perhaps bet- 

 ter than the expert, for he just forgets some 

 little trifling point that means so much to the 

 novice. 



My correspondent wants especially to 

 know how to treat a saw that has been filed 

 out of order. Honestly, I did not expect to 

 be able to handle this problem with credit; 

 but my first attempt, just because of the 

 want of information regarding a trivial point, 

 resulted in a saw very badly filed out of or- 

 der: and for the best part of two hours I 

 worked hard on what was really a ticklish 

 job in dentistry, for that saw needed a new 

 set of teeth. It got them, and I am rather 

 proud of the job. 



For sharpening an ordinary handsaw one 

 needs four tools — triangular file of tapering 

 shape; flat file; a saw-set, and a saw-clamp; 

 My correspondent speaks of different sizes 

 of triangular files, evidently being of the 

 opinion that the various sizes will give dif- 

 ferent angles,but this is not so; for, no mat- 

 ter what the size of the tool, if we break.it 

 straight across, the surface will be an equi- 

 lateral triangle; and any one who has stud- 

 ied geometry knows that, in such a triangle, 

 each angle is of the value of 60°. — 



The flat file is to be used for jointing — that 

 is, making the teeth all of one height. 



The set is used for bending the teeth side- 

 wise alternately, so that the cut made by the 

 teeth will be slightly wider than the blade, 

 thus permitting the blade to work freely. 



