148 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



Progressive Bee Culture. 



BY <'. J. ROBINSON. 

 i Concluded from September Number.) 



Mr. Laugstroth recorded in the 

 Country Gentleman. (See A. B. J., 

 June, 1861.) "When I applied for 

 the patent 1 was not aware that mova- 

 ble comb hives had ever been used, 

 except those with movable bars, and 

 the sectional frames of Huber. Very 

 earlv in my Apiarian studies I con- 

 structed a hive on the plan (if the 

 celebrated Huber." Does it appear 

 that Mr. L. conceived the idea of sur- 

 rounding each comb with a frame of 

 wood? Let us see. Further on I 

 quote from Mr. Laugstroth 's same 

 record. "Since my application for 

 the patent I have ascertained that 

 prior to my invention, other movable 

 frames besides those of Huber, were 

 in use in Europe." In the first 

 edition of Rev. Mr. Langstroth's work, 

 published in 1853, he says: "'If Huber 

 had only contrived a plan for suspeud- 

 ing his frames instead of folding them 

 together like the leaves of a book, I 

 believe that the cause of Apiarian 

 Science would have been 50 years in 

 advance of what it now is." This 

 avowal makes it an indisputable fact 

 that Mr. Langstroth's invention was 

 only that of suspending sectional comb 

 frames, inside of the outer case, but 

 in this Major Munu is entitled to 

 priority . 



Mr. Langstroth's patent, first issue, 

 covered the suspending of comb 

 frames in the case and so arranged 

 that bees might pass between the 

 frame bars. So far as I am able to 

 learn, Mr. L. was the first who con- 

 ceived the idea of lifting comb frames 

 perpendicularly out of the hives. 



It is said that Melisus, king of 

 Crete was the first who invented and 

 taught the use of the bee hives. I well 

 remember the instance of the Crete 

 king Otto presenting a Crete remova- 

 ble comb frame hive to Mr. Colvin of 

 of Baltimore. Cretes used the frame 

 hive on the storified plan, three or 

 more stories of frames, which instead 

 of being let down into the outer case 

 are put in from one side. The Crete 

 section frames are shallow, and when 

 two or more sections are used for a 

 hive it is the same practically as the 

 Simplicity. The Cretes argue that 

 hives opening from the top allow the 

 animal heat, the air rarified by bees, 

 to escape to the injury or peril of the 

 brood. Many bee-keepers in Europe 

 argue the same. In the light of the 

 history as recorded authoritivelv, it 

 appears that if ever any one man is 

 entitled to be honorably mentioned as 

 bei ig the "father" of progressive bee 

 culture it is our lamented Moses 

 Quinby. I am aware that it is not 

 generally understood wherein Mr. 

 Quinby overshadowed Mr. Langstroth 

 as bearing on the progress of the bee 

 interest. Ere Mr. Langstroth appear- 

 ed upon the stage as a writer on the 

 subject in 1853, Mr. Quinby had by 

 precept and example rendered bee- 

 keeping a business to some extent. 

 Mr. Quinby produced large quantities- 

 of honey for market prior to the ad- 

 vent of the modern frame hive. It 

 was Moses Quinby who produced and 

 forwarded the first invoice of honey 

 sent to the New York market ; the first 

 ■who showed that honey as a market- 

 able product of America. In this 

 Mr. Quinby preceeded Mr. Langstroth. 

 Mr. Quinby through his brother was- 



