THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



149 



to piovcnt M'arping. The •weiithcr-proof part 

 was the claim of a correspoiidcut of the Bee 



JOUHNAI,. 



Sixthly, D. ]\I. "W. finds something: that may 

 be patt'iitt'd. I'nt liow is lie to know? As lie 

 gets no information from the jiatcntce. lie had 

 better refer to the Patent Ofiice Report for 18G;5. 



Seventh!}', Entrance rei;;nlator complicated 

 and not Avorth much. This idea must have been 

 derived from the engravinii;s of it, as it is no 

 more complicated than the blocks, and is at least 

 as useful. J. II. Smith. 



Fkemont Centre, III., Dec. 14, 1867. 



P. S. — Is false reasoning or a misstatement of 

 facts by a person interested in a patent, any 

 worse than by one not so interested? 



J. n. S. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Deep langstroth Hives for Wintering 

 Bees in the Open Air. 



Mr. Editor: — In the December number of 

 the Bee Journal, Mr. L. C. Francis asks, 

 "What is the best height for the movable comb 

 hive when the bees are wintered in doors?" At 

 some other time, I hope to reply to this question; 

 but will now offer some suggestions 'which maj'' 

 serve to determine more satisfactorily the height 

 of frame best adapted to wintering bees-in the 

 open air. 



The interior dimensions of the Langstroth 

 hive, as used in our apiary, are eighteen and one- 

 eighth inches from front to rear, fourteen and 

 one eighth Trom side to side, and ten inches deep. 

 In a previous number, you have referred to the 

 mistake made by many, in supposing that the 

 Langstroth hive is nccesf>arily a shallow hive. 

 Thos? who think that a deep hive would be bet- 

 ter for wintering bees in the open air, may easilj^ 

 make such a hive on the Langstroth principle, 

 and yet secure abundance of room for the storage 

 of surplus honey; more even than is given in the 

 ordinary construction of this hive. 



Let the inside dimensions be twelve inclics 

 from front to rear, fourteen and one-eightli from 

 side to side, and fifteen inclics deep: we now 

 liave the same cubic contents as before. Extend 

 the sides so as to make a back portico of the 

 same size with the front one, make the roof of 

 both front and back porticoes on the same level 

 with the honey -board, so that they form an ex- 

 tension of the same. 



The back portico needs no bottom, and when 

 the ventilator is oi)cn will be a cool, sheltered 

 j)lace for bees to cluster in very hot weather. 

 Let tlie cover of the surplus honey boxes extend 

 over both i)orticoes; if made about eleven inches 

 deep, two tiers of boxes may be used on the 

 plan first suggested by Mr. Quinbj'. You now 

 have storage room for over one hundred pounds 

 of surplus honey, and by removing boxes as 

 soon as filled, for as much more as may be 

 needed by the strongest stocks in the best sea- 

 sons and locations. We shall try a few such 

 hives in our apiary the coming season, and in 

 order to test sooner their relative value for se- 

 curing furplua honey, wc shall cutout the .comb 



from some of our hives of the present pattern, 

 and fit them into the deeper frames, which by 

 turning them sideways, can be done with very 

 little trouble or waste. 



If a number of practical apiarians using our 

 hive will make a few of these deeper hives, re- 

 liable reports may be given at the close of the 

 next season, as to their conii)arative yield of 

 surplus honey; and by another winter, their re- 

 lative value tor wintering bees in the open air 

 may be tested. L. L. Langstroth. 



Oxford, Butler Co., O., December, 1807. 



[For the American Bee Journal. ] 



Various Matters. 



Mr. Editor:-— I see many practical hints in 

 the Bke Journal for the management of bees, 

 and I hope to sec many more. 



One of the most important points is the surest 

 way of getting straight combs in the movable 

 frames. Mr. Tomliusou, in the August number, 

 has liit upon tha right plan. I think it will not 

 fail, unless the season is unfavorable for gath- 

 ering honey, or the swarm is too small to fill 

 the hive. It takes but little trimming to ac- 

 complisli all that is desired. If there are any 

 crooked combs I make them all as straight as 

 possible in the spring, when there is little or no 

 honey in them. 



I do not allow my artificial swarms to build 

 any combs in the frames until thej' have a fer- 

 tile queen, as they are apt to build too much 

 drone comb. I make the new swarms as strong 

 as po^isihle, and expect them to store a large 

 amount of honey in the boxes. In making these 

 new swarms, I fill the hive M'iththe best'scaled 

 brood I can spare from my strongest swarms, 

 and usually take but one or two frames trom 

 each hive. I then put the new hive on the 

 stand where an old one stood, moving the old 

 one to the right or left a little more than the 

 width of the hive. If too many bees leave the 

 old hive, change places with the hives, or put 

 the old swarm nearer the old stand and the new 

 one as much away. I think it better to make 

 the new swarms in the early part of the da}-, 

 and only on such days as the bees work well, 

 avoiding all cold and wet weather. I keep all 

 swarms as strong as possible, and onl}' make 

 new- swarms to guard against natural sw-arm- 

 ing. I do not see my bees at all on week days 

 from 8 o'clock A. M. to o P. M. 



It takes but little time to manage my bees in 

 this way, and I am convinced that I get more 

 houfy than I should do if I allowed natural 

 swarming. This year I shall try to give all my 

 new swarms a sealed queen cell, or a j'ouu'g 

 queen, when I nuike them. 1 have not yet had 

 a swarm w ith a young queen make any prepa- 

 ration for swarming. 



Bees should have room in proportion to the 

 strength of the sw^arm. A smad swarm in a 

 large hive will not increase as fast as they will 

 in a hive that 1 hey can warm and fill. For this 

 reason, when I take more than three frames 

 from a hive at a time, I put in a division board 

 so as to confine their labors to a smaller space, 

 and give more room as soon as I think they re- 



