1889 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



027 



while below it is divided into three rooms. On the 

 east is the work-shop, fitted with desk, work-bench- 

 es, and tool-racks; with doors opening into the apia- 

 ry, and driveway with a stairway leading- to the left. 

 Next is the sorting-room, which receives through 

 an outer door the clamps of honey. Here they are 

 emptied, and the sections scraped, which are then 

 stored in the west room, which is 16 feet square, 

 and plastered. This has not been room enough to 

 store the large crops, and much had to be left in 

 store at the out-yards until room could be made. 

 The small crop of last season had been shipped; 

 but piles of clamps containing partly finished or 

 empty combs occupied much of the room. When 

 unloading, they back up to the door, quickly un- 

 hitch the horses, and get them under cover, and 

 unload, if possible, before the bees in the home 

 apiary realize their opportunity. 



We noticed the hands were on the alert, and lost- 

 no time in getting the horses out of the way. The 

 harnesses were made especially for quick work, 

 snaps being used whenever practicable. The im- 

 portance of this has been learned from experience. 

 At Mr. Manum's farm, just out of Bristol, where he 

 had planned to build a new home and move his 

 home apiary, he has built a new honey-house and 

 work-shop, 30 x 48 feet, two stories high, with a cel- 

 lar basement. The sorting and storage rooms are 

 to be very large, and each has a wide outer door 

 opening into a shed, into which a team may be 

 driven, horses and all, the doors closed, and honey 

 loaded or unloaded at leisure, without fear of rob- 

 ber bees. 



On the farm is another patch of Chapman honey- 

 plants. Altogether he has about a quarter of an 

 acre. He says the bees work on it all the time it is 

 in bloom, and are wild over it; but whether it is 

 best to plant it largely by the acre for honey alone, 

 he is not sure. The plants are quite ornamental, 

 four or five feet in height, and were then covered 

 with round balls going to seed. He also had sever- 

 al patches of Japanese buckwheat, which promised 

 much better than the ordinary kind. 



Mr. Manum is interested in gardening and poul- 

 try, and he has a hen-house 65 feet long, 16 feet 

 wide, and 1% stories high, in which were Wyan- 

 dottes, Plymouth Rocks, and common fowls. The 

 house was conveniently arranged ; and in the yards, 

 by means of tubs and connecting troughs, he had 

 arranged his summer watering-fixtures so that, by 

 simply pumping a barreliul in the new building, 

 each yard was supplied. This disposition to sys- 

 tematize work and invent labor-saving devices, is 

 also seen in the hive-fixtures used in the manage- 

 ment of the apiaries. 



In 1877 Mr. Manum was engaged in the harness 

 business, but was looking for another, on account 

 of failing health. Mr. Smith, now of the Arm of 

 Drake & Smith, persuaded him that winter to read 

 "Quinby'8 Mysteries of Bee-Keeping," which he 

 lent him. He read and became interested, and that 

 spring he bought two colonies; and by increase 

 and purchase he had 30 colonies in the fall. A year 

 or two after, he heard of Mr. Crane, whom he visit- 

 ed and found ready to give ideas which were of 

 help. He tried the American hive and many oth- 

 ers; changed and experimented, until by improving 

 and combining he settled upon the hive and fix- 

 tures he now uses. He commenced with the 5-lb. 

 b*ox, with glass in one end; then on recommenda- 

 tion of Mr. Crane he tried that with glass on four 



sides. Later, they together worked out many sec- 

 tions, crates, and other hive improvements. 



The first section he used held about 4 lbs. They 

 were made of pine, and nailed; later he used them 

 holding I Vt, Hi, 2 lbs., and 1 lb. ; and now he has dis- 

 carded all but the 1-lb. box. He has tested the 

 half-pound, and believes bees store honey in them 

 just as well, but does not care to use them, as there 

 are so many more pieces to handle, and make too 

 much work. 



We believe Mr. Manum was the first to make a 

 white-poplar dovetailed section. His expenses the 

 last three years have been quite heavy, with a very 

 slight amount for the other side of the account, 

 and affairs have looked somewhat blue; but he 

 feels confident the coming season will be a good 

 one. He f ed, the past season, for winter stores, 28 

 barrels of sugar. 



While there we visited the factory of Drake & 

 Smith, who manufacture, as well as their celebrat- 

 ed white-poplar sections, a fine line of small-sized 

 locked-corner boxes, having a sliding cover. They 

 are also of poplar, and are turned out very white, 

 smooth, and perfect. We saw the various machine- 

 ry used, and were especially interested in that used 

 for gluing and putting together the boxes. This 

 firm also manufacture all kinds of hives and fix- 

 tures. Their foreman, Charles McGee, was one of 

 Manum's hands in the apiary, and now owns 170 

 colonies, which he keeps in two yards, and leaves 

 the shop to care for them during the swarming and 

 honey season. His crop the past season was 1500 

 lbs. of comb honey. 



Another firm in Bristol, Prime & Gove, also make 

 very fine white-poplar sections, as well as hives. 



We also visited the apiary of Mr. Edwin A. Has- 

 seltine, on a farm near Bristol. He had 75 colonies, 

 and his crop last season was about 500 lbs. He runs 

 the Bristol outer case. 



After a visit both enjoyable and profitable, we 

 left the home of those who had done so much to 

 make it pleasant for us, and, by the kindness of 

 Fred Manum, were driven to Middlebury to see Mr. 

 Crane. Fred, a single young man of about 25, is the 

 only son. He manages an apiary during the sea- 

 son, and helps his lather at other times; but we 

 suspect he cares more for horses than for bees. We 

 were surprised to see the load of outer cases and 

 hive stands which he managed to pack and pile up 

 together on the double wagon, when they were 

 moving. We did not ask the privilege of riding 

 with him on the load. 



Mr. Manum has since met with a great affliction 

 in the loss of his wife, whose helpful sympathy and 

 kind spirit made his home a home indeed. The 

 news of her death, coming when we were expecting 

 and hoping for good news, gave us pain, and roused 

 our fullest sympathy for the husband and son. We 

 shall always remember her kindness. 



Pawtucket, R. I. Samuel Cushman. 



To he CO>>ti)UK<l. 



Thanks, friend Cushrnan. As we have 

 been following Mr. Manum very closely in 

 his writings, your visit is of more than ordi- 

 nary interest, because it details some things 

 in regard to our good friend Manum and 

 his work which he himself with rare modes- 

 ty omits to say of himself. We feel as if we 

 wanted to enjoy the privilege that you have 

 had, of visiting this energetic Vermonter ; 

 and we trust that this hope may be realized 



