1910 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



267 



the honey is passed through the strainer at 

 a much slower rate than is practical, I would 

 not consider it safe to depend upon gravita- 

 tion alone, for even water will carry along 

 its course particles which, by the law of 

 gravitation alone, should sink to the bottom 

 or rise to the top; and a thick substance liek 

 honey has a much greater tendency to car- 

 ry with it such particles. 



The coarse wire strainer has four sides, 9 

 inches in width by 24 inches high. This is 

 as coarse as will answer the purpose. The 

 cheese-cloth strainer also has four sides 18 

 inches in width by 24 inches high. If the 

 space under the baskets of an extractor is of 

 a less depth than the straining-can, the en- 

 tire surface of the strainer can be secured by 

 lowering the bottom of the strainer below 

 the bottom of the extractor. 



[f the weather is cold, or if the honey has 

 l)een allowed to cool in the combs, the ra- 

 j)idity of the straining can be hastened by 

 means of an oil-stove underneath; but the 

 above system strains the honey under the 

 best possible conditions without artificial 

 heat, and I have rarely found the heat 

 necessary. 



The strainers can be removed from the 

 can, as they are secured to the bottom by 

 means of corner posts and cotter pins. The 

 cheese-cloth is passed under the wire-cloth 

 form upon which it is stretched. There is a 

 valve by means of which the openings A 

 and F can be closed at will. The valves are 

 constructed in a manner similar to ordina- 

 ry screw-cap honey-gates, and are operated 

 by means of handles extending up to the 

 top of the can. 



Brantford, Ontario, Canada. 



WIRE QUEEN-EXCLUDERS IN ENGLAND. 

 BY JOSEPH TINSLEY. 



I am sending particulars of some novel 

 inventions by a bee-keeper in this part of 

 the country — a i)articular friend of mine, 

 Mr. Arthur H. Wilkes. I will first mention 



THE FREE-WAY QUEEN-EXCLUDER. 



This excellent appliance is made from 

 special hard-drawn round wire that will not 

 rust, and is much in advance of the zinc 

 one. The inventor claims the following 

 points; and from my own personal experi- 

 ence I can endorse his opinions: 



Twelve hundred bees can pass through at 

 one time in a ten-frame hive, J^-inch top- 

 bars, as against SOO with the zinc excluder. 



It presents a smooth rounded surface to 

 the bee, instead of a knife-edge. 



It will will not buckle, and there are no 

 flat surfaces to be sealed down. 



The five ribbed strips, xs ii^- wide, rest on 

 the top- bars of the frames, from end to end. 



The bees pass through with scarcely any 

 hindrance at all, which is invaluable tin 

 queen-excluders. It checks swarming to a 

 great extent. 



PATENT 

 QUEEN AND DRONE RIDDLES. 



These are very useful in driving or shak- 

 ing bees from their combs. They can be 

 put to many useful i)urposes in the apiarj-. 

 It allows workers to pass through, leaving 

 the queen and drones to be disposed of as de- 

 sired. 

 « \7^ > 



PATENT 

 FRAME-DIVIDER. 



