GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



square. Any bees that we don't jar off the 

 door soon find tlieir way into and out of 

 the bee escape at tlie top. 



THE WINDOW-SCREEN. 



Our window-screen is made as follows : 

 Two pieces for the sides extend from 

 the window-sill to within 11/2 inches of the 

 top, and these are held together with the 

 three crosspieees, %xiy2 inches. The wii'e 

 cloth is tacked on the inside of the frame. 

 To make an exit at the top we nail some 

 pieces % by % by 41/2 inches long to the 

 top crosspiece, nailing them 3 inches apart. 

 The lower end of these pieces should be 

 even with the lower edge of the crosspiece. 

 Next lay some % by 3-inch pieces in be- 

 tween the upright pieces. Tlien lay on a 

 strip of wire cloth 4 inches wide; next lay 

 a % piece over each one already on, and 

 nail fast, the wire cloth being between the 

 pieces. Owing to the fact that the frame 

 of the screen is iy2 inches below the top of 

 (he window, it leaves a space for the bees 

 to pass out between the cleats nailed to the 

 outside of the frame. It will be noticed 

 that this window is close up under tlie 

 eaves; see Fig. 6. For several years we had 

 a window, the top of whicli was 20 inches 

 lower than this one. The frame to the 

 shorter window screen was made of pieces 

 Ys in. square. The side pieces extended 8 

 inches above the opening, and the top cross- 

 piece was nailed on the outside of the side 



Fig. 8. — Closer view of the tray, showing the board 



across the top, with holes for the projection 



Oi f]J? top-bars to rest in. 



Fig. 9. — The box complete. 



pieces. Tliis gave a bee exit % by the 

 width of the window ; and with such good 

 light and a large exit any bee that found 

 itself on the inside would work out in a 

 short time. Much to my surprise, the bees 

 never found their way in here when inclin- 

 ed to rob. Our present exit being nearer 

 the eaves, and consequently darker, is much 

 slower to work the bees out. It is an ad- 

 vantage to have all the light possible abqve 

 an escape of this kind. 



UNCAPPING-BOX. 



First make a box 6 inches high at the 

 sides, and with the bottom slanting toward 

 the center. Ours was made 15 inches wide 

 and 24 inches long. This box should be 

 lined with galvanized iron, and have a hon- 

 ey-gate in one end, Fig. 7. Next make a 

 box 12 inches deep. Have it rabbeted 7-16 

 inch square at the lower outside edge, so it 

 will rest down in the tin-lined box. It 

 should have some %x% cleats nailed on the 

 lower inside edge. Then make a loose-fit- 

 ting frame to rest on these cleats, and cov- 

 er the frame with Vs-inch galvanized wire 

 cloth. Tliis frame should have a center 

 piece to prevent sagging. See Fig. 8. 



Next get a piece about 5 inches wide, 

 and as long as the box is wide. Halve this 

 at eacli end so it will fit in the box snug. 

 Make holes through it to receive the end 

 of the top-bar to prevent slipping while 

 using the knife. See Fig. 8, 



