1-i-i FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 



WETTING SECTIONS. 



The well-known Hubbard section-press is used for 

 putting the sections together. If the sections are fresh 

 from the manufacturer and as good as they ought to be, 

 they can be put together at once without any preparation. 

 If they have been held over from the previous year they 

 may be so dry that too many of them will break in fold- 

 ing. The joints of these are wet in a somewhat wholesale 

 manner. If they are crated in such a way as to be favor- 

 able for it, the whole crate of 500 are wet before being 

 taken from the original package, one side of the crate 

 being removed so as to expose the edges of the sections. 

 If the crate is not of the right kind for this, then the sec- 

 tions are taken from the crate and put in the proper posi- 

 tion in an empty crate lying on one side with the top and 

 one end removed. Of course the sections do not lie flat, 

 but on their edges, the grooves of each tier corresponding 

 with the grooves of the other tiers, so that a small stream 

 of water poured into the grooves at the top will readily 

 find its way clear through to the bottom. If necessary 

 the sections must be wedged together, so there will be no 

 room for water to get between them only at the grooves. 



A pint funnel is specially prepared for the work. A 

 wooden plug is pushed in from above, projecting below 

 two inches or less. The lower end of the plug is whit- 

 tled to a point, and either by means of a bad fit or by 

 means of a little channel cut in one side of the plug, there 

 is just leak enough so that when the funnel is filled there 

 will be a continuous fine stream of water running from 

 the point of the plug. Holding the funnel in one hand 

 I pour into it boiling water from a tea-kettle held in the 

 other hand, at the same time holding the funnel so that 

 the stream from the point of the plug shall be directed 

 into the grooves, moving the funnel along just fast 

 enough so that the water shall be* sure to go clear through 

 to the bottom. Cold water will not work well. 



A plan I like better is to have a vessel of hot water 

 somewhat elevated, with a small rubber tube running 



