512 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 15 



attach to this a long strip of cheese-cloth with 

 pockets across it. Now actuate the roller ; 

 the breadth of cheese-cloth rolls down, the 

 pockets have the openings downward, and 

 gather in all the slumgum, and the latter is 

 all wound up on the roller under the water. 

 You see it strains and compresses it all at once. 

 Remove the clear wax, and then the roller 

 with its load of refuse can be removed. You 

 see it can be put into a common wash-boiler, 

 and need cost not over one dollar. Oh ! I'll 

 show you and Ferris which shank of a razor- 

 back hog has the most fat on' t." 



"Well, Rambler, your plan looks reasona- 

 ble. Go ahead with it, and success to you ; 

 but I must be going. I have a thousand acres 

 of land to sell this week. I'll be around 

 again in a few days. So long." 



A week /a/'^r.—" Hello, Rambler! Well, 

 I'm around again ; how is that razor " — 



" So I observe, Mr. McCubbin. Did you 

 sell that thousand acres of real estate? " 



" I did not ; but, see here. I am interested 

 in wax-extractors just now. How did your 

 new-fangled roller-me-jig work?" 



" Sit down here, Mr. McCubbin, and I will 

 unfold to you a story of bright hopes, of dis- 

 appointment, and of conversion. Well, sir, I 

 tried that roller-up plan, and somehow the 

 pressure was not strong enough to eliminate 

 all of the wax, and it appeared in little gran- 

 ules all through the mass. It is possible that 

 the thing might work after a few improve- 

 ments to increase the pressure ; but I have 

 not the tools for making the thing as I want 

 it. I therefore fell to considering your charge 

 of prejudice ; and if I had any I cast it aside 

 and resolved to try the Ferris extractor. I 

 set it going properly on the stove, got a Mc- 

 Clure's Magazine and the Examiner to help 

 while away the time, for I expected a whole 

 day's job at rendering a sack of old combs 

 and scrapings. Just as I had gotten the fire 

 to going nicely Mr. Wescott came along and 

 we talked a while about his mowing the alfal- 

 fa near the apiary. I started back to the stove, 

 and was a little surprised to see something 

 trickling from the spout of the extractor. 

 ' Nothing but water,' said I ; but a closer view 

 revealed quite a little wax with it, and it was 

 running on to the floor. Well, I hustled around 

 to get a dish, and by that time quite a re- 

 spectable stream was running. Then I had a 

 curiosity to see the inside of the extractor. 

 The removal of the cover let into my face a 

 great rush of steam, and I was really surpris- 

 ed to find the baskets nearly empty. I filled 

 them again, and crowded down some hard 

 lumps ; and, though I had to poke my nose 

 into the extractor several times just to see how 

 it was working, those lumps melted away in a 

 perfectly satisfactory manner. I looked at 

 the big letters 'FERRIS' stamped on the 

 front of the machine, and gracefully took off 

 my hat to Mr. Ferris, inventor of the first 

 satisfactory steam wax-extractor. I soon had 

 occasion to melt and recake quite an amount 

 of wax, and I put in some quite large chunks 

 just to clog it if possible ; but it was no use ; 

 it seemed as if something was ' chawing ' it 

 down at the bottom. Yes, sir ; I will indorse 



the Ferris ; and his later machines, with the 

 pressure principle, must be near perfection." 



" Well, Rambler, I am pleased to know that 

 you are liberal enough to throw aside your 

 prejudice and indorse a good thing when you 

 try it. But, see here — what are those wooden 

 boxes for ? " 



"Those are for molding wax. The usual 

 plan, you know, is to mold in an old five-gal- 

 lon can ; but such vessels are as small at the 

 top as at the bottom, and often the can has to 

 suffer before the cake of wax can be removed. 

 Now, my idea of the matter is that every well- 

 regulated apiarist should have three or four 

 square tin dishes made with the tops about an 

 inch larger than the bottoms, and large enough 

 to hold 20 or 25 lbs. of wax. Not having such 

 vessels, and not having even old rusty tin 

 cans, I made these wooden boxes. They hold 

 20 lbs. of wax ; and I want to know, Mr. Mc- 

 Cubbin, if you can make a wooden box, that 

 will hold water or melted wax, with a saw 

 and hammer." 



"Well, no. Rambler. I am not much of a 

 mechanic. I think you must have some kink 

 about the way you do it. Or, say — I might 

 possibly make such a box if you will allow 

 me to nail it up with a harrow-tooth." 



" Well, I can tell you how to do the same 

 trick, harrow-tooth or not. Get your boards 

 the proper size for the box you want. These 

 three boxes are made of ^-inch boards, 12 

 inches square at the top, 9 inches deep, and 

 Yz inch smaller at the bottom. When you get 

 the pieces of boards ready to nail up, put some 

 beeswax into a shallow tin dish — an old bake- 

 tin will do. Next get some strips of heavy 

 woolen cloth ; cut them from an old pair of 

 pants, before nailing up the sides of the box. 

 Cut the woolen strips one inch wide, and a lit- 

 tle longer than the depth of the box. Let 

 your wax get boiling hot ; thoroughly saturate 

 a strip of cloth, and quickly lay it on the joint 

 to be nailed, and quickly nail the other piece 

 right down upon it. So continue for all four 

 corners ; then put the bottom on in the same 

 way. Those strips of cloth saturated with 

 boiling wax, nailed firmly into every j^ int^ 

 fill up all of the pores and inequalities ; and 

 if the boards have been gotten out with rea- 

 sonable care your box will not leak. But, to 

 be doubly sure, after the box is nailed up and 

 the edges all trimmed down smooth, another 

 set of waxed cloths can be nailed down with 

 cleats over the cracks." 



" That seems to be a nice way to do it. Ram- 

 bler ; and your cakes of wax all look so nice 

 and yellow ; free from those discolorations 

 that are sure to come from old tin dishes. 

 But does not the wax stick to the wood? " 



" It did not in the case of these 12 cakes ; 

 but I had to exercise some care toward the 

 last caking. No, wood is not so good as tin ; 

 but this way to make boxes is worth knowing. 

 You can make a nice tray for developing pho- 

 tographs, by this method ; or by lining the 

 tray with a piece of flannel saturated in bees- 

 wax ; or you can make a very good and ser- 

 viceable bachelor's wash tub. Here is a photo 

 of our waxworks for the season. The Ferris 

 has the post of honor in the center. In front 



