372 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CUJ^TURE. 



May 



through No. 4, and fasten. Now draw the wire 

 tight from 4 to 3, back to '' and 1, at each staple 

 pulling the wire up or down to fasten it and keep it 

 tense. 



Now take the other end of the wire and run it 

 over the wire at No. 5, and to No. 3 staple; draw 

 until the wire has the angle shown in cut. Give 

 the wire a little pull up or down, to fasten; then 

 pass to No. 3, thence under the wire at No. 6, and 

 back to staple No. 1, and fasten. You now have a 

 frame whose whole weight is held by the end in- 

 stead of top bars, which does away with all sagging 

 top-bars. With foundation cut the exact size of in- 

 side of frames, fastened well on these wires, there 

 has never been with me an iota of sag. In fasten- 

 ing I use melted beeswax with brush to tack the 

 foundation edges to the frame, that it might be 

 exactly in the center, top, bottom, and ends, when 

 done. This way has given me several thousand 

 frames of comb, as even and true as so many 

 boards, and I have yet to see the first top-bar sag. 

 I have tried the same thing with the rajular thick- 

 ness of L. or S. frame, and found them too light; 

 but % thick, all the way round, is just right. 



Arcade, N. Y. B. D. Keeney. 



Our friend's letter came some time ago. 

 When 1 first read it I did not think much of 

 the plan ; but when I examined it a little 

 more closely, I became convinced that it 

 was a good thing — yes, the best method of 

 wiring that has ever been proposed, in my 

 humble judgment ; and this opinion is shar- 

 ed by the others of the establishment — A. I. 

 Root included. The frame is very securely 

 and thoroughly wired, and yet without the 

 least particle of bowing of top or bottom 

 bars, or even end-bars. The whole thing is 

 held by four staples, or, preferably, hooked 

 nails. The plan is exceedingly ingenious ; 

 and whether friend K. was the first to sug- 

 gest it or not, he deserves the thanks of 

 bee-keepers for demonstrating its ] 'ractica- 

 bility, and for calling our attention to the 

 matter. The great point of superiority in 

 this method of wiring is, that the strain 

 comes at the four corners— points at which 

 there is the greatest strength in the frame. 

 The weight is taken entirely off the top -bar. 

 Theoretically there can be no sagging, be- 

 cause the points of the wires, -"i and 6, are 

 so firmly braced in such a position in the 

 comb that the center is securely supported, 

 and, as far as practice is concerned, ob- 

 serve that Mr. K. says that his method has 

 given him " several thousand combs, as 

 even and true as so many boards." " And," 

 he adds further, " I have yet to see the first 

 top-bar sag." This is remarkable, as he 

 uses them only f inch thick. Besides this 

 it combines the advantages of the horizon- 

 tal and perpendicular wiring. Unlike the 

 plain horizontal wiring it can not bow out, 

 as has been spoken of by some of our cor- 

 respondents ; and, unlike the perpendicular 

 wires, it does not pull down the top-bar. 

 Mr. K. says that his little boy can wire at 

 the rate of 40 an hour. With the perpen- 

 dicular plan we have been using, our ex- 

 perts think they do very well if they get 25 

 an hour. If our friend will excuse me, I 

 want to make what I deem an improvement 

 on his plan. Instead of using staples, 

 which are liable to pull out, as I have found 



by experience, use U-inch wire nails driven 

 through from the outside. They will then 

 project inside an inch. With round-nose 

 pliers form a hook on the end. It will be 

 evident that it will be much more rapid to 

 wire on hooks than to thread through staples. 

 Our friend has to retrace his wiring at one 

 end of the frame. To avoid all retracing, 

 and to make all wiring sustain the founda- 

 tion, and to overcome the inconvenience of 

 one long wire kinking, use two wires, both 

 of which will be very nearly the same 

 length. Commence wiring at i,then pass 

 to 2, 3, and 4 successively. At the latter 

 point, fasten ; start with the other wire 

 from point 3 ; pass over wire 5, hooks 4 and 

 1, thence under the wire at 6, and back 

 again to 2, and fasten. I have tried friend 

 K.'s plan and the one just outlined, and find 

 that I can not only wire a great deal faster, 

 but a great deal neater and better, and at 

 the same time avoid all retracing. My nails 

 stick out far enough so that the perpendic- 

 ular wires on the side help support the foun- 

 dation against the end -bar. With such a 

 frame we have two perpendiculars and 

 eight diagonals. We avoid the bowing or 

 sagging of any of the bars, and can dispense, 

 best of all, with that naughty folded tin bar. 

 It is not even necessary to have the frames 

 pierced. The plan can be applied to any 

 frame, with thin or thick top-bars, or double 

 top-bars. There may be some objections to 

 the plan, which I have not yet seen. Within 

 the next few days we shall test it thoroughly 

 in our apiary. If you do not see the advan- 

 tage of this method of wiring, take four 

 li-inch wire nails, and wire in the man- 

 ner I have described above. If you do not 

 feel enthusiastic over it after looking at the 

 nice work, and the rigidity, I shall miss my 

 guess. Ernp:st. 



In addition to what Ernest has said, I 

 want to call more special attention to the 

 perpendicular wires parallel with the end- 

 bars. When we first commenced wiring 

 frames we had a space of perhaps 2 inches 

 between the last up-and-down wire and the 

 end-bar. Very soon they told us there must 

 be an up-and-down wire within half an inch 

 of the end-bar of the frame, or else the 

 sheets of wax would swing around, away 

 from the wood. With the H-inch wire nails 

 it is an easy matter to make these up-and- 

 down wires just i inch from the end-bar. 



THE BEAN-^WEEVIL. 



A SERIOUS DANGER THAT THREATENS BEANGROW- 

 ERS AND BEAN-CONSUMERS. 



I HAVE a letter from C. F. Parker, Chattanooga, 

 Tenn., in which he incloses beans infested with the 

 bean-weevil— Bro7ic?ii(S obsvletvs. He requests me 

 to describe the life-history of this beetle, in Glean- 

 ings; to state where the eggs are laid, and to give, 

 if possible, some cure for the evil. Mr. P. remarks 

 that lima— in fact, all kinds of btans- are subject to 

 attack. 



This little beetle is hardly more than 3 mm. (,'5 

 inch) long, and has a beak, hence the name weevil. 

 All weevils have a more or less prominent snout. 

 The back looks yellowish gray, from the hairs that 



