180 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Those Diamond Frames once more. 



Mr Editor :— Pardon me for this second talk 

 to Mr. Conklin and Ms Bennington colony of 

 bee-keepers. ^ ,, ^^.„ 



First, a little biography. I, M. Miller, am 

 fifty-six years old, a cabinet-maker by trade and 

 M'orked at it and joiuering forty years. I have 

 kept bees twenty years ; have Langstroth on tlie 

 "Hive and Honey Bee," Quinby's "Mysteries 

 of Bee-keeping," and have read all the volumes 

 of the American Bee Journal except the first 

 I have invented five different hives and tested 



them. . , T 11 



Now Mr. Couklin, do you think I can level a 

 bee-hive as well as a doctor ? Keep cool, and I 

 will add a little to what I have already said on 

 page 99 of vol. 5, in the way of levelling and the 

 mode of hanging a frame angling. I claim a 

 right to talk about them, as I am the first inven- 

 tor. If I understand you, on page 187, vol. 4, 

 'and page 139, vol. 5, American Bee Journal, 

 you convey the idea that all that is required to 

 obtain straight combs in the Diamond hive is to 

 level the hive, put in a swarm of bees, and let 

 them have their own way in building ;, and the 

 frames being hung angling so afi"ects the bees as to 

 secure combs built straight every time. And your 

 Bennington colony sustain your statement. Cer- 

 tainly at first view, your statement seems to be 

 a strong one. We will examine the case further. 

 A defendant's witness sometimes is brought into 

 court and sworn to tell the truth in the case. He 

 tells the truth, indeed, but only part of it, and 

 makes a case for the defendant. The plaintifi s 

 counsel cross-examine him, and now he tells the 

 whole truth and makes a clearer case for the 

 plaintiff. The last truth, spoiled the first. I be- 

 lieve this case of straight combs in angling frames 

 is a parallel one. There is a second truth some- 

 where, although I may not be able to secure a 

 revelation of it from you or your witnesses. I 

 am confident you and they can reveal if you or 

 they choose. Now, sir, my five years' experience 

 of anglino; frames, as previously stated, and Mr. 

 Price'^s of I know not how long, (see American 

 Bee Journal, vol. 5, page 140, J) is the reverse 

 of yours and the Bennington cohmy of one year. 

 Why, sir, if it were true that the bees would al- 

 ways' make straight combs in those frames, and 

 no exceptions, I would have had a patent lor 

 them years ago, and your patent would be_ no- 

 where. Did you take your hive to the Michigan 

 Bee-keepers' Convention last September ? I see 

 you were there. Admitting you and your Ben- 

 nington witnesses state the truth, your hive 

 should take the premium at every bee-keepers' 

 convention or fair, and no exceptions, if you had 

 it there How is it that Thomas's hive got it on 

 that occasion ? Please turn to vol. 3, page 28, of 

 the Bee Journal, and J. H. Thomas's answ^er 

 to Querist's question, and learn the reason why 

 bees will not make straight combs in your angling 

 frames, without constraint. Tlie top bars oi 

 Thomas's, Gallup's, Quinby's and Alley's hives 

 are about twelve inches long, and they do not 

 always get straight combs without interchanging 

 guide-combs or partitions. Your two combined 



ui-)per bars are six inches longer on a straight, 

 horizontal line than theirs; and by following the 

 inclination of the two upper bars, they are as 

 lon<T again, and therefore present twice as many , 

 points as theirs for the bees to commence build- 

 in "• combs, consequently they will start combs m \ 

 twice as many places in the same frame, and 

 build twice as many crooked combs in yours as 

 in theirs. Colony of Bennington, is it not a tact 

 that you all have secured all straight combs in 

 those two hundred or more hives last year, (for 

 vou say hundreds,) by interchanging guide- 

 combs and partition boards? I have sometimes 

 secured straight combs thus in those frames, but 

 it is no credit to the hive ; it costs more than it 

 is worth. If not secured thus, I do not see your 

 secret humbug. It may be because you reside in 

 the vicinity of the Professor. You may be 

 tainted with Flandcrism ! Gentlemen, I will tell 

 you how I found out the Professor's huinbug, a 

 number of years ago, at the Ohio State Fair at 

 Cleveland. I first saw the Professor on the fair 

 o-rounds, mounted on an auction stand, selling 

 bee-charm. He had an old, porous plush cap on 

 his head ; the cap covered with a swarm of bees, 

 and the bees persisting in sticking to the old 

 plush, although there were on the stand boxes 

 full of bee-cliarm, the bees paid no attention to 

 the charm in the boxes or the bottles, as these 

 passed to the pockets of his .customers. Now, 

 why should a little charm on the old plush cap 

 have such an eff"ect on the bees, wlule piles of it 

 lying around had no effect on them whatever ? 1 

 was bound to find out the mystery, if I could, i 

 looked on until the Professor sold out his whole 

 stock and e-athered up his traps to start tor tlie 

 hive I then started for Flanders and kept close 

 to his heels, so that we both arrived at the hive 

 at the same time. Off came the old plush cap 

 and bees, and into the hive he shook the latter. 

 He then stuck his hand into the cap, pulled out a 

 paper partition, turned the cap over, and shook 

 out the queen ; and I found where his humbug 

 was hidden ! Now, gentlemen, I may not hud' 

 out as easily where your humbug is hidden, but 

 it is concealed somewhere. It is not the peculiar 

 mode of hanging those frames that secures 

 straio-ht combs always and without exception. 

 But that they secure the reverse, as a rule, is not 

 guess-work with me. It is experience ot which 

 I aftirm. , „ 



To ichomsoever it may concern: ihe mode oi 

 ham-ing rectangular combs angling, I believe to 

 have become public property six or seven years 

 aoo and free to all to use. But I consider them 

 worthless things, for the reason that theie are 

 many better hives. It may be of interest to some 

 to have further proof that I have made, used and 

 sold to others to use, the rectangular frame hung 

 an<^ling in bee-hives; and the tune when tliey 

 were made and used. I refer such to the Rev. 

 H B Hosford, C. W. Farrar, merchant, A. 

 Ellsworth, farmer, William Wright, farmer, O. 

 Porter, joiner, all of Hudson, Summit county, 

 Ohio • T. Cclbourn, of Akron, Ohio, and b. L- 

 Brown, of Tama City, Iowa. These have or 

 had them in use. Verily, verily, how uncertain 

 a patent bee-hive speculation is ! 

 Peninsula, Ohio. M. Miller. 



