GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



17 



is an 8-frame glass hive, with T super; also glass, 

 with glass over the top of the super. This hive 

 rests on a pivot, as do all the others that have bees 

 in them, so that they are easily turned around for 

 examinaiion. This large hive attracted a great 

 (leal of attention, as it was all glass except the cor- 

 ner posts and a small strip at top and bottom. We 

 had a feeder in the super, and kept the bees at 

 work. You can see on the side of the super, where 

 they built the comb to the glass after we took the 

 hive into the pavilion. Back of the hive you will 

 recognize the Given press. Hanging to the upper 

 curtain is a queen-nursery, frame of foundation, 

 drone-trap, strips of perforated zinc from Dr. Tin- 

 ker; also some zinc honey-boards from A. 1. Koot. 

 A number of cases of honey show just back of the 

 bee-books and smokers. To the left of where 1 

 stand is a glass case of bees— an L. frame of bees 

 and queen is the lower part, with five queens in the 

 upper part. The small case in front of me contains 

 the queen that took the prize. You can see the 

 ribbon on top of the case. The object that appears 

 to be between my wife and me is a wire cage of 

 honey. At the right of Ed is a ten-pound case of 

 honey, which has also a ribbon on it, $10 premium 

 for 10 pounds of honey. The sign at the lower 

 right-hand corner is on the side of one of our six- 

 frame Perfection extractors. The white pyramid 

 at the corner does not belong to my exhibit. It is 

 a pyramid of sacks of flour, about 14 feet square at 

 the bottom, and about 20 feet high. The frame in 

 the foreground is the property of Mr. Bliss. It is a 

 tine frame of foundation. 



The Agricultural Association offered in premiums 

 to bee-ketpers about $100, 61 of which was awarded 

 to your humble correspondent. The following is 

 the list: 



Best swarm of bees, Mercer & Son, Ventura; first 

 premium, $fi. 



Second best swarm of bees, C. N. Wilson, Los An- 

 geles; premium, $3 



Best queen-bee, Mercer & Sou, Ventura; first pre- 

 mium, $3 



Second bestqueeu-bee, C. N. Wilson, Los Angeles; 

 premium, $1.5u. 



Best 10 pounds comb honey, Mercer & Son, Ven- 

 tura; tlrst premium, $10. 



Best 10 pounds extracted honey, C. N. Wilson, 

 Los Angeles; premium, $10. 



Best 10 pounds beeswax, C. N. Wilson, Los Ange- 

 les; premium, $.5. 



Best and largest display of honey, both comb and 

 extracted, Mercer & Son, Ventura; premium, di- 

 ploma, and $1.5. 



Best made hive and section boxes, C. N. Wilson, 

 Los Angeles; diploma, and $10. 



Best comb foundation, W. W. Bliss, Duarte; pre- 

 mium, diploma, and $5. 



Best comb-foundation machine, Mercer & Son, 

 \'entura; diploma. 



Best comb extractor. Mercer & Son, diploma. 



Best tank, Mercer & Son, diploma. 



Best display of agricultural implements, Mercer 

 & Son, diploma. 



Best miniature apiary in operation, Mercer & Son; 

 premium, $;^. 



The Los Angeles Tinux says our bee show was the 

 center of attraction in the great pavilion. It is 

 really surprising to see how little some people 

 know about bees. Several ladies asked my wife 

 what kind of bugs we had in those glass cases. 

 Others would ask what kind of wood that was, 

 meaning the larger pit ces of beeswax. We had on 

 e.vhibition one of your Dovetailed hives, also our 

 common L. hive with T supers, that is in general 

 use in Ventura Co , but somehow the committee 

 saw fit to give the premium to a sort of revised edi- 

 tion of the old Harbison hive and section — a hive 



and section that is at least ten years behind the 

 times. L. E. Mebcek. 



San Buena Ventura, Cal., Oct. 13, 1889. 



Well done, friend M. The picture of 

 yourself and wife and son makes me feel as 

 if I were back again in your beautiful coun- 

 try. The arrangement will be helpful to 

 others getting up similar exhibits. Friend 

 Bliss has got so far in the background that 

 1 should hardly recognize him unless some- 

 body were to tell me whom to look for. So 

 the story about manufactured comb honey 

 is current away off in California as well as 

 about here. 



THE PBEVENTION OF BRACE-COMBS. 



POSITIVE TESTIMONY AS TO THE VALUE OF THICK 

 TOP-BARS, FROM SEVERAL SOURCES. 



Since Dr. Miller's initial article appeared 

 on the subject as above, on page 889, Nov. 

 15, already several communications have 

 come in. While at the International Con- 

 vention in Brantford, I met our genial 

 friend J. B. Hall, of Woodstock, Ontario. 

 He is that bright Canuck referred to by Dr. 

 Miller, and who, I believe, tirst suggested 

 the value of thick top-bars. I asked Mr. 

 Hall if he would write us an article on the 

 subject. Said he, straightening up to his 

 full height, and in his Scotch accent, " I 

 wouldn't write an article for twenty dollars ; 

 but 1 will answer here all the questions you 

 may ask." 



It seems that he uses a long Quinby 

 frame that is longer than the regular Quin- 

 by. With such a large frame, a top-bar 

 with ordinary thickness would hardly be 

 strong enough to hold the weight of honey, 

 and so he had them made 5 inch thick. 

 Quite accidentally they were an inch wide. 

 After they had been used he noticed that 

 there were no brace-combs built above them. 

 He did not know why this was so, unless it 

 was because of the extra thickness of the 

 top-bar. When lie made his top-bars thicker 

 (not for doing away with brace-combs, but 

 for strengthening the frame), little did he 

 realize that he was quite accidentally blun- 

 dering on to a most valuable (as it seems to 

 me) discovery. 



Now, then, we will let the rest talk. The 

 first is from the pen of Mr. W. S. Adams, 

 who writes in this practical style : 



COMPARATIVE EXPERIMENTS WITH THICK AND 

 THIN TOP-BARS, WITH THE RESULT IN FA- 

 VOR OF THE THICK BARS EA'ERY TIME. 



Mr. Ro(>t:—¥or the information of Dr. Miller, and 

 others interested in the thickness of top bars as a 

 preventive of burr-combs, I would say that a series 

 of experiments during the two last years with me 

 proves their feasibility. I give this j ear's experi- 

 ments. I work entirely for comb honey, and use 

 the Simplicity frame, and contract to seven frames 

 during the honey-tlow. In experiment No. 1, one 

 hive contained 4 regulation frames, and 3 with toj)- 

 bars one inch thick, with a narrow honey-board 

 over the regulation frames to bring them flush with 

 the others. In experiment No. 2 I alternated thick 

 and thin top-bars, eight frames to the hive, tliin 

 top-bars double, having a % block at each end, with 

 a ^-inch strip tacked on to bring them all Hush. In 

 experiment No. 3, four hives were selected, with 7 



