812 



GLEANINGS IN BfiE CULTURE. 



Dec. 



horse when attacked by bees. In all cases that 

 have come under my notice, the attack has been 

 about the head; and the first impulse of the horse 

 always seemed to be to get to some place where he 

 could rub his head. Latterly, when trouble occurs 

 I spring to the horse's head and commence rubbing 

 it all over with both hands and arms, and he seems 

 satisfied with that, without showing any desire to 

 run. I do not know whether other horses would 

 act just the same in all cases, but it might be worth 

 while to try. 



Of first importance is the matter of fastening the 

 bees in the hive. If you have never had any experi- 

 ence in the matter, you will be surprised to find 

 how difficult it is to shut up a number of hives so 

 that no single bee shall be able to get out, on a 

 journey. There must be no half-way work about 

 it; you must be absolutely certain that every spot 

 is tight— bottom, top, and sides. In hot weather, as 

 when moving to get the benefit of a buckwheat 

 field, abundant ventilation must be pi-ovided. For 

 this purpose I have replaced the cover of the hive 

 with a frame 3 or 4 inches deep, the entire top of 

 which is of wire cloth. The quilt is entirely re- 

 moved, and the entrance closed with wire cloth, 

 and in this way I have safely taken them in the 

 middle of a hot day. Generally, however, I haul 

 them in spring and fall (to the out apiary and back 

 again), when not so much ventilation is needed. 

 No ventilation is given, except through the en- 

 trance of the hive. The bees are confined to the 

 hive by a stopper made thus: A strip of wood one 

 Inch wide, i^a inch thick, and as long as the entrance 

 of the hive is wide; a strip cf wire cloth about 2^2 

 inches wide, and as long as the stick already de- 

 scribed. Fold the wire cloth double, making a 

 double strip l^i inches wide, and as long as the 

 stick. Nail the wire cloth on the flat side of the 

 stick, letting the folded side of the wire cloth pro- 

 ject li inch. The double-pointed tacks lately fig- 

 ured in Gleanings are very nice for this purpose. 

 Place the stopper over the entrance, and drive into 

 the stick an inch or two from each end a I'/o-inch 

 wire nail, leaving y^ inch or more of the nail pro- 

 jecting, so that it may be easilj' withdrawn with a 

 claw-hammer. After these have been used some 

 time, the nail-holes become so large that it is nec- 

 essary to bend each nail after driving, in order to 

 hold the stopper tight up to the hive. 



To make the top of the hive doubly secure, I use 

 a square of cotton cloth 6 or 8 inches larger each 

 way than the top of the hive. Spread this cloth 

 over the top of the hive, letting it project on each 

 side, then put on the cover. If there is no wind 

 this makes all secure; but if windy, the cover must 

 be fastened on by means of pieces of leather or 

 cotton cloth 3 or 3 inches long. Drive a large tack 

 through one end of the leather into the body of the 

 hive, and another tack through the other end into 

 the cover. Let the cover be thus fastened at two 

 opposite sides or corners. As the covers of my 

 hives rest on cleats, I find it quicker to tie them 

 on with stout twine, running the twine under each 

 end cleat, and crossing it in the form (.f an X on 

 top. I never fasten the frames in the hive in any 

 way, but I never clean the propolis out of the hives 

 in the spring till after hauling. I once had some 

 combs break down when hauling in buckwheat 

 harvest. They were new, not wired, filled with 

 brood in the lower part, the upper cells empty, and 

 not drawn out. With wired or old combs 1 have no 



fear. If I were shipping on the cars, I think I 

 would fasten the frames in the hive. 



I had always supposed it necessary to have a bed 

 of hay, or a spring wagon, to save combs breaking 

 down, until Mr. Von Dorn, of Omaha, told me he 

 used a haj'-rack on a common wagon, without hay 

 or springs, and 1 have since carried them safely 

 the same way. Simply nail nai-row strips across 

 the rack, and put little blocks at the proper places, 

 so that each hive will be kept in its own place. A 

 common hay-rack will hold about 20 ten-frame 

 Langstroth hives. As I keep only one horse I usu- 

 ally haul my bees on a one-horse wagon, having a 

 light rack made to set over the wagon-box. In this 

 I can haul 11 hives at a lo d— 3 in the box, and 8 on 

 the rack. 



To provide against accident it is well to have 

 hammer, nails, and lighted smoker on the way. 

 Over any rough piece of road I drive very carefully ; 

 but on nice, smooth road, I sometimes strike a trot. 



I like to unstop the hives as soon as they are un- 

 loaded. It is most easily done by using a little 

 smoke, although by moving very slowly it can be 

 done without. C. C. Miller, 179—340. 



Marengo, 111., Nov. 23, 1885. 



Friend M., although it may be that you 

 have phinned to tell it at some other time, 

 1 have been very curious all through your 

 article to know liow you succeeded in '' cart- 

 ing" your bees around. Did it pay, and 

 have yoti made " a great big lot of money " 

 with "your bees this year, the way you have 

 bii-en doing lately? Yon speak of drawing 

 eleven hives at a load. I suppose that you 

 know that, if you used Simplicity hives with 

 a sheet of wire cloth over both top and bot- 

 tom, you could take almost twice as many 

 as wilh the style of hives having cleats and 

 projections and porticos, and caps to slip 

 over, etc. We have a wagon that was made 

 expressly to hold a certain number of Sim- 

 plicity hives ; and, put up in the way in 

 which I mention, they are so light that even 

 one horse will draw a great many safely. 

 The Simplicity hive is so simple that there 

 is not much danger of bees getting out, with 

 a wire-cloth frame over both top and bottom. 

 AVe make these wire-cloth frames by secure- 

 ly fastening the wire cloth on just such 

 strips as we put under the cover. In fact, 

 we throw out all imperfect strips in making 

 hives. This gives us a great surplus of 

 these pieces of wood. Why, we have had 

 so many that we have sometimes burned 

 them up, even though they were just as 

 good as any for holding wire" cloth.— We no- 

 tice that you have increased from 179 to o40, 

 and we are glad and tliankful for this little 

 piece of news. But, tell us about the honey 

 and— MONEY. 



OUR OWN APIARY. 



0-DAY is Thanksgiving, and the snow is from 

 J," lour tQ five inches deep. Many of the hives 

 j>^ are banked up with snow. Some of the emp- 

 ty Simplicity hives are almost covered; for, 

 as a general thing, we leave our summer 

 hives out the year round, and then they are all 

 ready for next season. 



