1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



263 



ments to trap them is impractical. After a 

 while a few of the clustered bees come down on 

 the escape- board. They are not meddlesome, 

 nor will they fight. These are the bees to set 

 up a line of fanners, as soon as they discover 

 the route to the brood-chamber, which rapidly 

 augments in numbers. 



Many times I have held the Porter escapes in 

 my hands and wished they (Porters) had only 

 done enough " ax-griuding " to explain the 

 disposition of the bees toward every part of the 

 implement. I would furnish the "' stone " glad- 

 ly. It was the failure in them to do this which 

 caused me to do so much experimenting and 

 philosophizing, and I produced the Stampede 

 to illustrate the necessity of a wider exit; the 

 going-toward-the- light, and other principles. 

 I believe that the going-toward-the-light is one 

 of the best principles in an escape, if we find 

 out how to apply it. If we do not know how 

 to apply it, it may be the worst. I do not think 

 it can be employed in the Stampede or Porter 

 as conveniently as In an escape that is surely to 

 arrive within one or two years hence. I believe 

 the perfect escape will possess a trap, but not a 

 channel. When the bees progress a distance in 

 a horizontal direction, turn an angle, and pro- 

 ceed onward to reach the brood-chamber, ener- 

 gy is wasted, the same as draft is wasted by 

 an elbow in the pipe to the stove. I do not 

 think escapes can be compared accurately by 

 adjusting several In a board. It is the opera- 

 tion of the bees more than of the escapes. 



1 challenge any one to produce one line of 

 theory from my articles which can not be 

 demonstrated as actual fact, beyond a reason- 

 able doubt. 



Florence, Cal. 



[Yes, I hope our inventors will not be too 

 backward on this "ax-grinding" act. If they 

 go too far I'll try to shut 'em oft'.— Ed.] 



THE PART THAT LOCALITY PLAYS IN DECID- 

 ING UPON THE BEST SIZE FOR 

 THE BROOD-CHAMBER. 



Btl J. K. Crane. 



It is not often that I " take my pen in hand " 

 to write to any of the bee-journals; so that, 

 while I miss saying a good many things I should 

 like to say, I am at least left to judge more dis- 

 interestedly in regard to what others write, be- 

 cause I have not committed myself to many of 

 the views advanced. 



As I look back over the years, there seems to 

 be something of fashion in bee-keeping as in 

 other things. Only a few years ago, revolving 

 hives and frames were the fashion, though we 

 hear but little of them now. Farther back, 

 large brood-chambers were strongly advocated; 

 and, later, smaller ones have been considered 

 best; and now, again, like the sleeves of a fash- 

 ionably dressed woman, the tendency is to en- 

 largement. Meanwhile Dr. Miller sits serenely 



on the fence, the most sensible man in the 

 crowd. 



I do not now remember any good reason for 

 the adoption of a large brood-chamber, unless 

 it has been that bees do better in them. And 

 so small hives were adopted because they were 

 thought to be more profitable than large ones. 

 It has surprised me that so little proof, by act- 

 ual experiment, has been offered. Surely here 

 is a nut for the " Experiment Station" to crack. 

 And yet I doubt whether, if it were conclusive- 

 ly proved that large hives were better than 

 small ones in a given apiary, it would follow 

 that they would be better in some other apiary 

 five miles away. Here in my home apiary I 

 use, mostly, hives with seven or eight Lang- 

 stroth frames. Some years ago I brought in 

 six or seven hives with large brood-chambers— 

 ten or more combs. As the combs were crooked 

 and irregular I let them remain for several 

 years as they were unless it was to remove the 

 surplus drone comb and substitute worker comb 

 instead. And now I think I can say that I re- 

 ceived twice the profit, on an average, from ray 

 colonies in small brood-chambers that I did 

 from those in large brood-chambers. 



More than this, within a few years a neighbor 

 has put out an apiary near me. He worked for 

 me two seasons, and knew very well how t6 

 care for bees before that; but he has kept his 

 own stock in large brood- chambers, while I 

 have kept mine in small. I told him recently 

 that I thought he had not received one-half the 

 profit to the hive that I had, and he was quite 

 ready to agree with me. 



Now, does not all this prove quite conclusive- 

 ly that a small brood-chamber is better than a 

 large one? It certainly looks so. But, hold on 

 a little. I have several out-apiaries. One of 

 them, six miles away, I have for several years 

 kept mostly on seven or eight Langstroth 

 frames. Close by it my brother's wife has a 

 small apiary in large brood -chambers, with ten 

 or eleven Langstroth combs to the hive. She 

 does not believe in feeding— says that, if bees 

 can not get their own living, they may die. So 

 she did not feed at all the past season, while I 

 had to feed quite heavily both spring and fall, 

 and her yard averaged more marketable sur- 

 plus honey to the hive than mine, and I think 

 twice the profit with one-half the care. Hurrah 

 for the large brood-chamber I 



Now, here is experiment and positive proof to 

 ray raind that both are best and that neither is 

 best. But what raakes the difference? What 

 are the principles that underlie the subject 

 that raake a large or small brood-chamber 

 more valuable in a given location than the 

 other size? All were wintered alike out of 

 doors, all were on the same size of frame; and, 

 so far as I know, the bees were equally good 

 workers. 



I believe we have not far to look for an an- 

 swer. In my home yard the bees have an al- 



