THE AMERICAN APTCULTURIST. 



37 



CHIPS AND SHAVINGS. 



INTlClilCSTING NOTKS OF PUACIICAL VALUK. 

 CONDUCTia) 1!Y E. L. I'KATr. 



Rambler gave us another article last 

 month, to which we can say amen. 



Father Root is acting as "ballast" to 

 Gleanings. He thinks Ernest too pro- 

 gressive. 



Should think that cloth would make 

 a good roof for bee-hives if laid in paint, 

 tacked on and painted again. 



If all the journals are going into the 

 "cream" business, where are they going 

 to get their milk to skim? Would a 

 skim-milk bee-paper pay? 



Life is too short to wade through the 

 long strung-out articles of the old style 

 writers. There is no need of using 

 every word in the dictionary to make a 

 point clear. 



"Do it now" is a good motto for the 

 beekeeper, especially in such matters 

 as ordering supplies, preparing for a 

 harvest, attending to the wants of needy 

 colonies, etc. 



That man Smith of VVellesley Hills is 

 indeed "in it." To make proper an- 

 swer to his brief well-put question re- 

 quires considerable thought. I confess 

 I am not prepared to touch it as yet. 



Should think it would be a poor idea 

 for the Beekeepers' Union to ado])t a 

 trade mark, lietter force the adulter- 

 ation bill and get government stamps, 

 as the farmers did for the Oleo. men. 



Mr. O. R. Coe is a man of consider- 

 able courage. He proposes moving a 

 carload of bees this winter from Wind- 

 ham, N. Y., to the Alfelfa field of Col. 

 Hope ; he will send on full reports of 

 the scheme. 



H. R. Boardman has a wax extractor 

 which is provided with ventilators and 

 can be used as a honey evaporator. 

 It is made large enough to take in eight 

 or ten frames of honey at one time. 

 The whole thing is supported on iron 

 rockers for ease in turning to the sun. 



Of course an unpainted hive is more 

 absorbent and, perhaps, better for the 

 bees ; but what of the looks ? The 

 outside case solves this problem. An 

 unpainted hive covered with a thin out- 

 side case is all that could be desired. 

 The outside case should be well painted 

 with white lead. 



Tliore is a secret pleasure in hearing 

 ourselves praised ; but on such occasions 

 a Avortliy mind Avill rather I'esolve U> mer- 

 it the praise, than to be putted uj) w^ith it. 

 — A B. J. 



The above remark is typical of the 

 editor of The American Bee Journal. 

 It shows a spirit few men possess. 



"It is no use to try to l<eep bees pure, 

 if you liave liybrids or black bees in your 

 vicinity, or anywhere within tliree miles 

 of your apiary." — J. M. Young 



W^ant to know if it isn't. I guess a 

 way could be found if we read up and 

 keep posted. What is the matter with 

 a trap for this purpose. By using the 

 trap we may even select the drones to 

 mate with the queens ; even if there are 

 a dozen races in the same yard. 



E. A. Baldwin, of West Upton, Mass., 

 has sent ns liis "Automatic Foundation- 

 Holdinjj; Frame " The top bar has a slit 

 iji it, and tlie bottom bar has a groove. 

 The foundation is intended to be slid 

 down througii the top-bur, and rest in the 

 slit of the bottom-bar. — A. B. J. 



The above arrangement is about the 

 same as recommended by the Apr, with 

 the exception of the slit in the bottom- 

 bar which we have found to be imprac- 

 ticable. 



The testimony of all apiarists has been 

 against anytliing less than \ inch for the 

 wails of the hive ; but licre aviU be a ciiance 

 for somebody to test the matter. — Ghan- 

 ings. 



The matter has been tested and 

 found better than seven-eighths. We 

 have said for a long time that seven- 

 eighth inch hives were on their last legs, 

 and that the thin hive with a thin out- 

 side case would supersede the clumsy 

 I inch hive. Thin hives have been 

 used in the Bay State apiary the past 

 seven years. The walls of the inside and 

 outside hives are but 2 of an inch thick. 



