192 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



[Feb. 



effect : in autumn and winter bees may be said not 

 to grow older, though advancing months in age. 

 Last fall I received an Egyptian queen from Mr. 

 A. Gray, and being anxious to see her progeny, 

 I commenced stimulating and got three cards 

 filled with brood. When that brood hatched 

 out, or soon after, the Italian bees were all used 

 np or dead with old age and labor. Whereas if 

 they had been left to themselves they would 

 have lived until their places had been supplied 

 with young bees in the spring. In two cases I 

 have changed black bees all to Italians in Sep- 

 tember and October, simply by stimulating to 

 rear brood then, and it is a well known fact that 

 if left to themselves at that season there would 

 have been any quantity of blacks remaining the 

 following Muy, and but very few Italians in the 

 fall. 



By the way, we were to test the working 

 qtialities of these Egyptians. So far I prefer 

 the Italians, but their fighting qualities are ex- 

 cellent. E. Gallup. 



Orchard, Iowa. 



[Vol- tlie American Bee Journal ] 



The Proposed Improved Hive. 



Mr. Editor : — On page 120 of the American 

 Bee Journal for November last, Mr. Condit gives 

 us an article on "Improved Bee Hives," in which 

 he says that a hive which costs five dollars is too 

 expensive for a majority of beekeepers ; and one 

 which costs but a single dollar, if so made that 

 it is not easily manipulated, &c., is too cheap for 

 any beekeeper. 



Thus far I agree with Mr. C. He then says 

 2,000 cubic inches is believed by the most suc- 

 cessful apiarians to be capacity sufiicient for a 

 large colony, for breeding purposes and storing- 

 winter supplies. He goes on to describe his 

 cheap hive of thirteen frames, the dimensions of 

 which are 19| inches from front to rear, 151 

 inches deep, and 12f inches from side to side, 

 which makes a hive of over 3700 cubic inches. 



Why does he want to go so far astray from the 

 most successful apiarians, making his cheap hive 

 almost double the proper capacity? 



Now I beg the privilege of diftering with Mr. 

 C. about this shaped hive being easily manipu- 

 lated. Any beekeeper who has ever handled 

 frames knows that it is difficult to lift out a 

 frame from a full stock when the frames are 

 fifteen inches or more deep. But when the 

 frames are closi^. fitting at the top, and 15| inches 

 by 19^, it is indeed a formidable undertaking to 

 remove them. 



I am not partial to a side-opening hive ; but 

 with such sized frames as Mr. C. describes, and 

 close-fitting at that, I think we should want a 

 "side-opener." 



I have used the movable frames for fifteen 

 years, and find the Langstroth hive, with frame 

 ten inches deep, just the thing for this section. 

 And if I were in Tennessee, or still further South, 

 I would prefer them still more shallow. My 

 experience is that the bees winter in them fully 

 as well, if not better, than in deeper hives. 



When we remember that Mr. C. writes from 



Tennessee, where the bees can fly out, more or 

 less, every week in the year, I cannot see why he 

 objects to the Langstroth or other shallow hive, 

 unless he has an axe to grind (even if it be only 

 a twenty-five cent one}. 



I am confident that the Langstroth hive, with 

 its large amount of surplus honey room, is just 

 the thing for the South ; and it does not cost 

 "/«« dollars" either. 



Let us take another peep into Mr. C.'s hive, 

 and see if there are not other objections to it, 

 with all its "cheapness." In the first place, it 

 is too large (37ii0 cubic inches ) ; but we will 

 admit he can control the size with his division 

 board. So, too, can we with the Langstroth 

 hive, the Triumph hive, or almost any of the 

 patent frame hives, or non-patented ones either. 

 They all use the division board to contract the 

 size of hive, to suit smaller swarms, or for queen 

 raising. 



Mr. C. says his bees work out at each end of 

 his hive, or crosswise of the frames. Now, when 

 Ave stand by the hive to open it or take out the 

 frames, the most convenient place to stand is at 

 the side of the frames. This, in this case, would 

 be the front of his hive, which would be a gi;eat 

 annoyance to the Avorking bees when returning 

 heavily laden from the fields. 



He says, to secure the largest amount of 

 honey we must use the Extractor. Well, his 

 frames are close fitting, consequently are one and 

 a half inches wide, and the combs are usually 

 about seven-eighths of an inch thick. So that 

 when he puts them in the Extractor, the wide 

 frame will hold the comb off from the supporting 

 wire ; when the machine is put in motion the 

 comb will break out, and he will have a "sweet" 

 job to fasten them in again. 



Then, he has a cros.^ bar' in the center of his 

 frames, which is ^ objectionable, as that is the 

 place where we want brood and not wood ; and 

 to leave out his cross bar, his frame is too large 

 and deep to handle or extract, and as the combs 

 are usually not fastened at bottom, they would 

 break down. 



How does Mr. C. propose to ventilate his mam- 

 moth hive ? When full of bees, in warm weather, 

 there would be heat enough in it to almost roast 

 a sirloin of beef. His frames are close fitting at 

 top, so that no heated air can escape ; and there 

 is no cooling dead air space between the top of 

 the frames and the top lid. I should hate to be 

 one of his bees, to be roasted alive. 



Mr. C. Avinds up by saying he will give a full 

 and complete written description of his hive ; 

 but all correspondents must send stamp and 

 money enough to pay for stationery, &c. We 

 suppose he means about twenty-fice cents for 

 DEbCRiPTioN. Cheap enough ! Seventy-five per 

 cent, below Oallup. 



We have no "axe" to grind, but write simply 

 to show that Mr. C. is mistaken in a good hive 

 for Kentucky, Tennessee, and more Southern 

 States. 



With the best of feeling towards Mr. Condit 

 and all other beekeepers, I am. 



Very respectfully, 



H. Nesbit. 



Cynthiana, Ey., Dec. 10, 1871. 



