1901 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



243 



be new, or comparatively so, as old combs 

 have a tendency to stain the sections above. 

 The honey to be fed should be thinned by 

 water to about the consistency of raw nectar. 

 The hotter the weather, the better ; and if 

 there is ever a time when separators are need* 

 ed it is in feeding back, because at such time 

 bees are more liable to bulge the combs than 

 when the honey comes from natural sources. 

 Mr. Hutchinson's estimate is that, under the 

 right conditions, and with the proper amount 

 of experience, one will get back two-thirds of 

 the honey fed before it is diluted. There are 

 times when one might possibly get as much 

 as 90 per cent ; but I have seen reports from 

 those who have lost as much as 50 per cent. 

 Where all this excess of honey went to can 

 not be definitely determined ; but probably a 

 large portion of it was consumed by the bees, 

 and another portion was converted into wax. 

 As a general rule, the average person had bet- 

 ter let feeding back alone unless there is no 

 demand for extracted honey, and a good de- 

 mand for «omb honey. There are times when 

 it pays, and pays well ; but as a rule, but little 

 is gained. — Ed.] 



PUTTING FOUNDATION INTO SECTIONS ON A 

 CURVE. 



I use the 35^x5 section with top and bottom 

 starters put m wiih a hot plate arrangement. 

 To counteract the propensity of the long and 

 narrow top starter to swing and fall out I give 

 it a slight curve as I drop it from the hot plate 

 on to the outstretched flat section; This stif- 

 fens it and enables it to support its own weight 

 without becoming detached, even if Ijingon 

 its side. This may be an old story to you. 

 It would probably occur to everybody who 

 puts in starters with a hot plate, but I have 

 never seen it mentioned, and it is quite a help 

 to me. G. Collier. 



Warsaw, N. Y., Jan. 24. 



[I should hardly suppose that the plan you 

 propose would be praciicable, for the simple 

 reason that the combs would be inclined to 

 follow the curve of the foundation itself, one 

 side being slightly concave and the other a 

 little convex. I think if you were to try the 

 plan on a larger scale you would find it ob- 

 jectionable. — Ed.] 



A SCHEME FOR MAKING DOUBLE-POCKET 

 HONEY-EXTRACTORS. 



Having just read W. A. H. Gilstrap's arti- 

 cle, p. 48, Jan. 15, with what you say in the 

 footnote in regard to improvement in con- 

 struction of extractors, I wish to add a word. 

 As I have used a four-frame Cowan extractor 

 for the past three years, I can say that an 

 eight-sided hoop for the baskets would be a 

 great improvement, especially in the West, 

 where we have so much thick honey. My 

 comb-baskets have had to be overhauled and 

 resoldered several times each season, and 

 make me no end of trouble. 



I conceived an idea for the construction of 

 a comb-basket last summer. 1 don't know 

 whether it's new or not. It is original with 

 me at least; i. e., to make a basket double, 



holding two combs face .to face, operated by 

 a sheet of tin, so that, when the extractor is 

 turned, the contents of one side of each comb 

 are thrown against the tin partition instead of 

 the extractor side. Get up two baskets side 

 by side, with, say, an inch space between the 

 two faces, and then set up a piece of tin be- 

 tween the two faces, and you will see the 

 idea, I think. 



By this plan a four-frame extractor would 

 need to be but little larger than a two-frame 

 as now made. The four frame, as now made, 

 is too heavy for one man to handle, and is 

 hard to start and stop. L. B. BelL. 



Camp Verde, A. T. 



[The scheme of making double - pocket 

 honey-extractors has been carried into gener- 

 al practice by the Goold, Shapley & Muir Co., 

 of Brantford, Canada, for a number of years. 

 It can be adapted to extractors of the Cowan 

 type ; in fact, we have an order on hand now 

 for an extractor of that kind. — Ed.] 



GILSTKAP'S TANK ; ITS OBJECT FURTHER 

 EXPLAINED. 



Air. Root : — Your footnote on page 49 call, 

 for an explanation. My honey is not white. 

 It ranges from saffron color to quite dark. 



The principal object of a tank here, decided- 

 ly, is to give those "minute particles of wax " 

 time to rise before being canned, for rise they 

 will in spite of you. If the honey is put into 

 cans before this scum (small pieces of wax) 

 rises, the dealers refuse to buy the honey — 

 that's all. W. A. H. Gilstrap. 



Grayson, Cal., Jan. 29. 



combs crosswise or parallel WITH THE 

 ENTRANCE. 



Why should the brood frames run from 

 front to rear ? I have tried in two colonies, 

 each half of the hive. The result wa?, they 

 removed the brood-nest to the rear of both 

 colonies at the same time. Even the queen- 

 cups were found where the comb ran sidewise 

 in the rear of the colonies. My boxes are 14 

 X22, 9>4 deep inside ; frames 8X13. 1 have 

 half an inch below the brood-frames. That 

 should give room enough to carry the dead 

 bees out. It think it is a good point for bee- 

 keepers, on account of the cold wind that 

 strikes the bottom-board, and goes up directly 

 between the brood - frames, and chills the 

 brood. Will you please mention this in 

 Gleanings? Where can 1 find the royal jel- 

 ly to put into the queen-cups? My bees are 

 Italians. H. F. MeesE. 



Rock Island, 111., Feb. 25. 



[This question , whether brood-frames should 

 run at right angles to the entrance, or whether 

 the edges shall point toward it, is one that 

 was discussed years ago. It was the general 

 consensus of opinion then that while, theo- 

 retically, there might be an advantage in hav- 

 ing the combs crosswise of the entrance, yet, 

 practically, colonies on frames running in the 

 opposite direction did just as well, year in and 

 year out. So far as the position of brood is 



