390 



Queen Introducing Cage. 



As the season has arrived when intro- 

 ducing queens is a somewhat hazardous 

 undertaking, and as many may wish to 

 supersede old or faulty ones, or intro- 

 duce expensive, tested Italians, with a 

 view to cheaply Italianize the apiary in 

 the spring, we give an engraving of a 

 cheap and infallibly safe introducing 

 cage, which was suggested to us by Mr. 

 Wm. Mapes, of Battle Creek, Mich., 

 last spring, and which we have given a 

 pretty thorough trial. 



To make the cage, take four strips of 

 wood about 4 inches long and % of an 

 inch square ; mortise both ends of one 

 piece half way, and one end each of two 

 others, so as to form a 3-sided frame ; 

 on this tack fine wire cloth, and through 

 each side-piece drive two % or 1 inch 



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finishing brads, letting the ends pro- 

 ject ; drive two brads through the fourth 

 or loose strip. Now, take from the 

 brood chamber a frame of comb con- 

 taining sealed brood, remove the queen 

 from it, if there, then shake the old 

 bees in front of the hive, and place 

 your introducing cage on the comb, 

 over sealed brood and a few cells of 

 uncapped honey, letting the projecting 

 nails run through the comb so as to 

 hold the c*age firmly and closely on the 

 surface of the comb ; then let your new 

 queen and accompanying bees run from 

 the shipping cage under the wire cloth, 

 and quickly close by placing the fourth 

 strip on the comb at the open end of the 

 cage. Replace the frame in the hive, 

 and the work is done. As the young 

 bees emerge from the cells, they of 

 course affiliate with the queen confined 



with them, and the newly emptied cells 

 afford room for depositing eggs. At 

 the end of two or three days she can be 

 released by removing the end strip and 

 all danger from " balling " is obviated. 

 Should the weather be unfavorable for 

 opening the hive, no harm will result 

 from leaving her confined for a week. 

 With this arrangement for introducing,, 

 we think the old queen might be left in 

 the hive for a couple or three days, or 

 until the new queen is released, thereby 

 avoiding any depletion in strength of 

 the colony, which is important, unless- 

 the colony be very strong. As this is 

 an inexpensive cage, the whole cost not 

 exceeding one or two cents, and but a 

 few minutes time and little skill to- 

 make, we feel assured it will save many 

 valuable queens and much disappoint- 

 ment, by making it public. 



Iowa City, Iowa, Aug. 15, 1879. 

 T. G. Newman, Esq., Prest. North 

 American Bee-Keepers' Society :— In 

 compliance with your courteous invita- 

 tion, I will read an essay at the National 

 Convention in Chicago, in October ; 

 subject, " Increasing the Demand for 

 Honey." Hoping the Convention may 

 be in all respects a success, 



I am truly yours, O. Cltjte. 



[We are pleased to add the above, 

 from so able a pen, to the valuable list 

 of essays heretofore indicated. There 

 is no doubt the Convention will be a 

 success — a great success — for the valu- 

 able essays already provided will make 

 it successful, even though it should 

 embrace no other feature ; and the 

 bee-keeper will lose much who allows 

 mistaken economy to keep him away. 

 —Ed.] 



igiP The Bingham smoker was not in 

 competition at the various Honey and 

 Bee Shows of England, but we took 

 some of them for Mr. Bingham, as well 

 as some of the Bingham & Hethington 

 honey knifes, and exhibited them, and 

 they were universally acknowledged to 

 be the best things known to those who 

 saw them. So much are they admired 

 that some exact copies of the smokers- 

 are being made in England now. 



