1902 THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER I55 



HIVE ENTRANCES. get a habit of using this ventilator for 



an entrance, so that, when it is finally 



But On. Is Needed for Each Colony, and Why f^o^ed the bees which haye been accus- 



tomed to use this as an entrance to the 



This Is True. hjve, go out at the regular entrance, 



(G. M. Doolittle). '^"^ return to the old place only to 



find it closed, thus causing a great 

 T THE bee-keepers' in- commotion and loss, as they know of 

 stitutt held at Auburn. "*^ ^^^l'^^ P'ace of getting into their 

 N. Y., last winter I "'^"''S' havmg so marked on their first 

 heard 'one or two bee- ^^S^^^- ^"^' '^^°''st of all, unless the 

 keepers telling about ''^^f entrance is closed during cool 

 the several entrances "'^V^s. it makes the hive so cool by the 

 they had to their bee ^""^'^ °^ ^'^ thus caused, that the bees 

 hives; one who had for ^'''""°^ '^^''^ t° advantage at comb 

 years kept bees in box-hives arguing building or evaporating nectar, 

 that an entrance was necessary on all ^^ ^° ^" entrance into or near the 

 four sides, so that the frame hive could surplus apartment, anyone arguing that 

 be something on the plan of the old s"'^^ is a necessity shows a lack of a 

 box-hive set upon blocks so the wind thorough knowledge ot the inside work- 

 could pass under the hive from' all di- '"^^ of the hive. And also such en- 

 rections during the summer to give am- trances retard work on cool nights in 

 pie ventilation. And he was just as t^e same way, or even worse, than does 

 sure that an entrance was needed for a rear entrance, as spoken of above, and 

 the supers as that his hives needed en- should never to tolerated for this rea- 

 trances on all four sides, "for," said he, s°"' ^^ ^°^ "^ other, 

 "some way must be provided for the When I first began bee-keeping I used 

 bees to go directly into the sections an entrance just under the supers to 

 with their loads of honey." my hives, and after a little while began 



He was so positive in this matter plugging them up, and found that those 

 that I saw there was little use in try- plugged did much better in surplus than 

 ing to make him believe otherwise, so those open, which resulted in the plug- 

 I simply said, "I think you are mis- ging of all, in hives already made," and 

 taken." But now comes a person, who in making no more such entrances in 

 says he takes the American Bee-Keep- new hives. But why did I say above, 

 er, with these questions, "How many that such an entrance showed the lack 

 entrances should be allowed when mak- of a thorough knowledge of the inside 

 ing bee-hives? I am told that, besides workings of the hive? Because the bees 

 the front or main entrance at the bot- which gather the nectar from the fields 

 tom of the hive, an entrance should be are not the ones which deposit it in 

 made at the rear also for ventilation, the cells, as I have several times proven 

 to be opened during hot weather, and by taking away a queen of one variety 

 one near the top of the hive to be open of bees and introducing a queen of an- 

 at all times wh»n the bees are storing other variety. For instance, I once 

 surplus honey, so they need not have took away the queen of a black colony 

 to travel so far to carry honey from the in June, and noted the time the last 

 entrance to the top of a second or black bee emerged from its cell, and 

 third story hive. What is your opinion also when the first Italian bee came 

 in the matter? Please tell us in the forth from its cell. As young bees do 

 American Bee-Keeper." This brings not gather nectar till they are sixteen 

 afresh to my mind what I heard at days old, where the colony is in a nor- 

 Auburn, and so I think it might be well mal condition, on the fifteenth day after 

 to say a few words in the matter. the first Italians emerged from their 



Regarding the ventilation matter, I cells none were seen going in and out 

 much prefer to make the entrance large at the entrance but black bees, while 

 enough to give all the needed ventila- an examination of the surplus apart- 

 tion in times of extreme heat, and have ment, in which the bees were briskly at 

 it so arranged that it can be easily con- work building comb and depositing 

 tracted to meet the requirements of the honey, showed scarcely a black bee 

 smallest colony when desired. My rea- there, but all were Italian. And this is 

 sons for so preferring are that, the bees only one instance among many which 



