Feb. 15, 1912 



117 



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A Form for Holding a Shallow Frame when Putting 

 in Foundation. 



I have made and used for the last few years a 

 contrivance to assist me in putting the Joundation 

 in shallow extractlng-frames. 



To make one, take a piece o( board 1 x 4 x 19 In. 

 for a base. Nail flrraly to it. In the center, a board 





'■'i'"V/''i;v,"in,. 



i|'i',','!Ml,. 



1 X o5-4 inches, and 1654 long. This should not be as 

 wide as the frame by about /s inch. Half an inch 

 from the base nail a ->^-in. piece 2 in. wide. 16/4 long, 

 for a guide. The frame will then just slide under 

 it. Next make a button an inch wide and 2 long, 

 just as you would to fasten a door, and screw it on 

 top of the upright In the center, as shown in the il- 

 lustration. 



To use the device, slide the frame under the 

 guide against the upright, and turn the button so 

 that it will be held firmly. The foundation will 

 drop naturally into the groove, straight and true. 

 It will not warp, nor lean to one side. Fasten it 

 with hot wax in the ordinary way. 



Morgan, Texas. T. J. Ford. 



[For full sheets we can see that this form would 

 be quite a convenience. The illustration shows 

 only a starter.— Ed.] 



tins a spare top-bar should be used to fill up the tin 

 to get the tin nailed just right. The tins may be 

 bent at a greater or less angle to accommodate the 

 frame-tops scant or full thickness. 



T use these frame.s hung in the hives with Ji x % 

 rabbets, just as brood-frames are used. The top- 

 bars can be put on or taken off very quickly when 

 once the knack is learned. 



Three tins nailed on one 

 side of the top-bar of an 

 ordinary brood-frame hold 

 the nucleus-frames very 

 nicely; but as these top- 

 bars are thicker, different- 

 sized tins are required. 

 They must project A inch 

 below. 



It seems to me the above 

 arrangement is the best 

 also for reversible frames. 

 They could be used in or- 

 dinary hives, reversed 

 with little trouble, and 

 used anywhere. Four to 

 each frame, % or 1 inch 

 wide, would, perhaps, be about right— Fig. 6. 

 Port Orange, Fla., Jan. 9. J. B. Case. 



Cold Weather for California. 



Owing to the early frosts which killed all the late 

 bloom, my bees did not go into the winter in very 

 good order. I had to double up some and to feed 

 others to pull them through. We of the northern 

 part of the State have had very little rain, but a 

 great deal of cold weather for this country. It was 

 down to 14 above zero — the coldest for a great many 

 years. .Ian. 1 we had a five- 

 inch snow followed by warm 

 rains with the thermometer 

 from :54 to 70. The 



Why Not Breed Bees with Longer Tongues? 



I note In the short time I have been interested in 

 bees that a long-tongued bee would be of Incalcula- 

 ble benefit to the bee-keeper. Now, we know that 

 Burbank has done wonders In creating new kinds 

 of fruits, flowers, etc. These fruits and flowers, as 

 I understand it. are something the world has never 

 known before, and yet they are produced by under- 

 standing the laws of nature with regard to inter- 

 breeding and ci'ossing. 



Perhaps by selection for a number of years one 

 might be able to get something bordering on a 

 long-tongued bee, and then, again, he might not: 

 and at the same time the new species might at any 

 time revert and have shorter tongues than the 

 original stock. 



Pittsburg, Pa., Jan. 24. Arthur Cramer. 



[.Something like ten years ago we experimented 

 along this line considerably. We found the dlffi- 

 cultN, however, lay right here: We could not con- 

 trol the male parentage of the queen. If that were 

 possible we might practice inbreeding. 



There were several queen-breeders in the couri- 



ran? 



I-")) 



bees are now i.lan. 

 bringing in pollen from al- 

 der, which will start brood- 

 rearing that will be of great 

 value in building up for the 

 main harvest, which will 

 come here in April and May. 

 E. S. Bartell. 

 Cottonwood, Cal. 



Case's 



and 



Nucleus-frame 

 Top-bar. 



Fig. 1 shows m.v nucleus- 

 frame, -o'v x8 inches, made 

 of ft. X H stuff. Fig. 2 shows 

 a top-bar 7 inches long, of i';: 

 X % stuff, and manner of 

 adjusting the same. After 

 the to|)-bar is in position 1 

 turn it to the right. Fig. 3, 

 until it is parallel with the 

 top of the frame, and the 

 tins hold it firmly. Fig. 4. 

 The holder Is made of very heavy tin, Vs wide. The 

 ends are bent Tf. Inch from the ends, and are fs inch 

 apart— just right to hold two i^r. pieces tia>it togeth- 

 er. The tins are nailed on the edge of the top-bar, 

 l]4 in. from each end. The end of the tin on top of 

 the top-bar is bent at right angles— the bottom end 

 not ciulte so much, but so it slips under the top of 

 the frame easily. The end that rests on top of the 

 top-bar holds the tin firmly. When nailing on the 



try who tried to lengthen out the tongue-reach of 

 the bees: but we found that we had to depend al- 

 most entirely on "sports." We had one queen 

 whose bees gave a tongue-reach of .2:? of an Inch, 

 while the average of black bees runs only .16 to .17 

 of an inch. 



Later, efforts were made to construct a cage 30 ft. 

 high and 30 ft. square In which the drones and the 

 queens might meet in the air; but this did not 



