238 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



A New Hiving Apparatus. 



Being something new, perliaps it will be 

 interesting to some to give a description of 

 it in the Journal. 



Quite a number of enquirers say, " Wliy 

 don't you describe it in the Journal ?" 

 Some of tlie best bee-keepers are testing it 

 this season, and you will hear from them in 

 due time. What 1 offer i)i my circular is 

 in good faith. 1 do not expect that any one 

 has tested it before this season but myself. 

 It was patented on May Stli. 



DEsCRirTioN. — First, a casing which 

 hangs on pivots, resting on a frame; in fact 

 the casing constitutes the queen yard, run 

 back so as to niake a platform for two hives 

 to rest upon. The hive containing the bees 

 about to swarm is placed on this platform 

 behind the pivots; the empty one before 

 (that is, where one hive sets behind the 

 other). 1 am manufacturing some where 

 the hives set side by side in this case; two- 

 thirds of the hives are behind the pivots. 

 An inclined step comes up into the empty 

 hive through which the bees enter; a raised 

 strip is placed between the two hives, in 

 which is a door; a wire is fastened to this 

 door which runs down through the casing 

 and is fastened to the frame below. When 

 the hives are placed side by side, the raised 

 piece runs tiom front to rear, and visa 

 versa. I get up these two forms to accomo- 

 date the different kinds of hives. Under 

 the hive containing the bees is a hole lined 

 with tin. The best plan to make this open- 

 ing is to put a mica door in it, so arranged 

 that bees can pass out but not return. But 

 if the tin will answer it is less expense and 

 trouble to make. In front of the queen 

 yard is an extension of some kind upon 

 which to place weights to balance the hives. 

 Where the hives are side by side, a spring is 

 necessary at the back, under the casing, 

 fastened to the frame. 



Operation.— When the hives are put up 

 close against the raised strip (where the 

 entrances do not tit, corresponding ones 

 must be made in the hives) the bees work 

 through this strip (in which is the door as 

 before stated) into the empty hive, down 

 the inclined step and out of the queen yard. 

 The weights must be so arranged that the 

 back part is the heaviest by a tew pounds; 

 if this part becomes lighter, the casnig tips 

 up to the front, the door is closed and the 

 queen stays in the yard. When the bees 

 return they will enter the same entrance in- 

 to the new hive, where they will cluster 

 and go to work. , „ , , 



But how, if the bees are not all out when 

 the casing tips, will they pass out through 

 the tin tube or mica door (as the case may 

 be) ? In case the hives are placed side by 

 side, the spring under the back part pre- 

 vents the casing from tipping back when 

 the bees return; but in the other case it is 

 not necessary, because the empty hive is in 

 front of the pivots. It might be possible 

 that in some cases the bees in returning 

 would so crowd in the casing that some, and 

 possibly the queen, would get up through 

 the tin tube. If any such cases are report- 

 ed I will dispense with the tube and use 

 only the mica door. The queen will get out 

 of the yard; I saw her crawl out. Put a 

 little sewing-machine oil on cotton and rub 

 the underside of the glass (perhaps tin 

 will do as well if oiled), and no aueeu will 



ever get out, if properly clipped. I clip one 

 wing only, and about half off. 



I have shipped a few with two steps, so 

 arranged that when the casing tips, the step 

 to the hive where the bees swarmefl out of 

 is raised; but in this case the bees must 

 pass up another step, and in addition a 

 bearer must be used, so I prefer the one de- 

 scribed above. Will some one that has re- 

 ceived one of the latter please report ? 



New Berlin, Pa. R. B. Oldt. 



P. S.— Since writing the above, I have 

 used tin with success. Let the strips be 2X 

 or 3 in. wide. What is over 2 in. bend at 

 right angles. Let this extend inward, if 

 oiled. No queen will ever be able to get 

 around this bended edge. R. B. O. 



I * 9 * < 



For ttie American Bee .Tournal, 



Sending Bees by Mail. 



1 am sorry that the subject of sending 

 queens by mail has been stirred up again. 

 Those wlio will examine the back numbers 

 of the Journal will tind that I have been 

 through the mill once. The whole ti-ouble 

 was brought about in the first place by some 

 unexperienced person putting new honey 

 comb in the cages instead of using a sponge 

 to hold the food during transit. Of course 

 it would run out and daub the mail. I don't 

 know whether the same official runs the 

 bee part of the mail now who did several 

 years ago, but this dignitary threatened if 

 he was troubled again with bee matters to 

 make an effort to have them excluded from 

 the mails. I don't think that the P.M. 

 General understood much about it, and 

 cared less. There certainly can be no ob- 

 jection to sending them in the mails as they 

 are now put up. They will not daub the 

 mails any more than so many newspapers- 

 It is useless for any one man to undertake 

 to do anything about it unless he be a Con- 

 gressman, and he cannot do much unless 

 he be in accord with the administration. 

 Apply to the men who represent our dis- 

 tricts in Congi'ess. Make such a howl as 

 will make them glad to revoke the order. 

 Go to work with a will and tight and some- 

 thing can be accomplished. 



We had a dog law here in our State that 

 did not amount to anything. I made an ef- 

 fort to have a more stringent one enacted; 

 and did not work in vain. We now have a 

 much more stingent one, but not just what 

 we need. 



By the way friend Newman, lest some of 

 your readers might consider me slightly in- 

 sane on the dog question, I will explain 

 why I sent that short article on dogs, a few 

 months since. 



One year ago on the 30th of May last, I 

 lost a little 12-year old daughter by liydro- 

 phobia. She was bitten by what is called a 

 white spitz dog, belonging to a neighbor, 3 

 months previous to her death. The dog 

 was not rabid at the time it inflicted the 

 wound. 1 killed it within 12 hours after it 

 bit my child. Now, as friend Newman 

 says, I am after the dogs, and intend to use 

 all honorable and legal means for their ex- 

 termination. 



Many thanks to friend R. Miller for his 

 recipe for the bite of a mad dog. 1 think I 

 have seen that befoi'e. I intend to send it 

 to the papers and have it circulated as 

 much as possible. Thirteen persons have 



