30 



GLJEAKINGS tN BEE CULTURE. 



JAiJ. 



dim 0WN Jiinnwi' 



CONDUCTED BY ERNEST B. BOOT. 



SUITABL,E DRESS FOR AVORK7NG AMONG THE 

 BEES. 



Conveniences for the Apiary — Continued. 



to work among the bees to the best ad- 

 vantage dining hot weather. I deem 

 it highly essential that the apiarist 

 pay Hue attention to the matter of 

 dress. He should be so attired that 

 he can work with comfort as ^\ell as conven- 

 ience, burning hot though the sun may be. 

 His clothing should be rather cheap, and not 

 easily injui ed by honey dripping. 



Coiistitutionsare so widely different that 

 what will be applicable to one will not be 

 to another. Some will be easily affected by 

 the sun's heat, others from piofuse sweat- 

 ing. In the face of these ciicumstances I 

 am not sure that I can recommend a dress 

 suitable for all. But I fancy that many of 

 my readers are constituted like myself. 



I once thouglit I w^as not adapted to sum- 

 mer work out in the ai>iary. The sun's heat 

 completely " played me out."" as I was wont 

 to express it. But 1 wore no underwear. In 

 fact, I was attiied in about the same dress 

 that Dr. Miller says he wears ; * namely, 

 " One straw hat and veil, one cotton shirt, 

 one pair of cotton overalls, one pair of cot- 

 ton socks, and one pair of shoes. "" He fur- 

 ther states, that about noon he sponges him- 

 self off and puts on dry clothing in place of 

 that which is wet with sweat. The latter 

 is put out to dry, to be used the next day. 



Unlike Dr. Millei', 1 never could sweat 

 enough to keep sufficiently moist to counter- 

 act the burning rays of the sun. The single 

 thickness of cotton cloth of one shirt was not 

 enough to ])revent my back from blistering. 

 The heat on such occasions, wdien I was at- 

 tired thus, seemed unbearable, and I had a 

 burning desire to get to some cool shady 

 nook. Not only this, but the sun's rays 

 made me feel dizzy at times, and a sort of 

 sickness, which I thought savored of sun- 

 stroke, came over me. 



The next summer, in addition to the cot- 

 ton shirt. I wore an undershirt - the latter 

 not heavy, part cotton and part woolen. I 

 was aware of the fact that many wear their 

 underwear the year round, claiming that it 

 protects them, not only from cold, but from 

 extremes of heat. I* likewise noticed, in 

 works on health and hygiene, that under- 

 wear is recommended, ihlluenced by this, I 

 decided that, at the a])i»roach of warm w^ea- 

 ther, I would not cast aside my underwear 

 as usual. The following summer in the api- 

 ary attested the wisdom of this decision, and 

 I nevermore experienced any incoiivenience 

 when working in the hottestsun. The wool- 

 en not only proved a great protection, but 

 stojjped the si)eedy eva])()ration of perspira- 

 tion — what little I do have. The moist 

 woolen, for me, has a delightful coolness 

 whi(ii is indeed refreshing. I have gone di- 

 rectly from the hot sun in the aviary to the 

 office. The latter place seemed oppressive- 

 ly hot, w hile in tlie open air I felt very com- 



* A Year Among- the Bees, p. 64. 



fortable. Mind you, it was right the re- 

 verse wiien I formerly worked among the 

 bees with but one thickness of cotton cloth 

 over my back. 



My experience may be a little singular ; 

 but, fellow-apiarists, if you are troubled 

 much by the heat of the "sun, try light un- 

 derwear the coming summer. l' feel sure 

 that some of you will find it a decided ad- 

 vantage, w^hile others may be so constituted 

 as to i)refer the dress recommended by Dr. 

 Miller. 1 don't know, but it seems to me a 

 light underwear for our friend the doctor 

 might prevent such in'ofuse sweating ; but 

 it may be that experience has taught iiim to 

 the contrary. 



A SUITABLE HAT KOR THE APIARY. 



Reasoning from the foregoing, my readers 

 might naturally suppose that I would rec- 

 ommend a heavy hat. Not so. I prefer a 

 light hat — the lighter in weight the better. 

 That you may get a 1 letter idea of the one I 

 prefer. I will ask the reader to turn back to 

 the cut on page 1001, last issue. The ac- 

 companying engraving shows the same hat, 

 but not so closely. Tlie covering is cloth, and 

 of a light drab color. The brim is lield out 

 in position by a light steel hoop. The crowm 

 on the inside is so made tliat it will fit any 

 head. This is accomplished by means of a 

 light rubber band sewn into the cloth crowii. 

 The lower side of the Inim is covered with 

 green cloth. When it is on the head, one is 

 scarcely aware that he has any head-cover- 

 ing, so "very light and easy is it^. The broad 

 brim, with" the green on the under side, has 

 a softening eff'ect on the eyes, and com- 

 pletely shades them iroui the glare of the 

 summer sun. When the latter is very hot I 

 pull a couple of large plantain-leaves, or, 

 better still, a large grapevine-leaf, and place 

 it in the top of the hat. 



'"Why isn't a broad-brim palm - leaf or 

 straw liat as good ? " you ask. In the first 

 place, they ai'e much heavier, and warp into 

 shapes that are outlandish, to say the least, 

 after a little iise. The average farmer will 

 go about with a thing on his head that looks 

 more savage than civilized. Again, in a hot 

 burning- sun I can not bear to have a hat 

 pinch tightly aroiuid my head — it gives me 

 the headache. The cloth one I have just 

 described is entirely free from this latter 

 ol)jection, and, on the contrary, is so con- 

 structed as to give a comparativelv free cir- 

 culation of air about the forehead. I have 

 used this style of hat four or five summers, 

 and therefore take jileasure in recommend- 

 it. In a future number I will tell how 

 well this hat is adapted for holding a veil. 



Before leaving this subject of hats, I wish 

 to s.iy that I think. u]H)n inquiry, they can 

 l)e purchased in their season at most of the 

 clothing-stores. They retail at 25 cts. each. 

 In the "meantime wewill see what we can 

 do in the way of furnishing them for next 

 season's use, should there be a call for them. 



STRAAV CUFFS TO PROTECT THE W^RISTS 

 FROM STINGS, AND Tf) PREVENT SOIL- 

 ING} THE SHIHT-SLEEVES. 



My readers will please take a look at the 

 cut on p. 1001, last issue, as well as the one 

 opposite, for a view of the cuffs. You ob- 



