1894 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



935 



EXTRACTING IN NOVEMBER. 



ADVANTAGES OF A REVERSING MACHINE. 



By. S. E. Miller. 



As it happened this year, we had very little 

 extracted honey, as all strong colonies were 

 run for comb, and the weak ones gathered 

 little more than enough to keep them in stores; 

 so autumn found us with no extracted honey 

 on hand. However, some colonies filled their 

 upper stories pretty well with autumn-flower 

 honey, and this, owing to pressure of work, re- 

 mained on the hives until Nov. 23d (some is on 

 yet). On that day I took off four supers; and 

 as the day was warm I tried to extract some, as 

 we had an order from our best customer for two 

 or three gallons; but it was too cold, and would 

 not work. I therefore took the supers into 

 father's kitchen, as his house is nearer the 

 apiary than ours, and placed them beside the 

 cook-stove. The following day, just after 

 noon, I commenced extracting, and succeeded 

 in getting most of it out with the Cowan Rapid. 

 I would place the combs in the basket; turn 

 rather fast until about half was thrown out, 

 then reverse and turn at about the same speed, 

 until about half was out of the other side of 

 the combs; then increase the speed till it hum- 

 med like a buzz-saw, then reversed again, and 

 threw the rest out of the other side. lYi this 

 way I succeeded in getting the combs pretty 

 clean, though, of course, notas in warm summer 

 weather. With a non-reversible extractor it 

 would have been almost impossible to accom- 

 plish the work— at least, without a great deal 

 of extra work, taking out and putting back the 

 combs, and perhaps breaking many. Of course, 

 it is not often necessary to extract in Novem- 

 ber; but if circumstances should be such as to 

 make it necessary, the Cowan will do the work 

 if the combs are warmed, as explained above. 

 I have never had any experience with any 

 other reversible extractor; in fact. I have never 

 seen anything more than a cut of them; but 

 if 1 may judge from appearances, 



THE COWAX RAPID LEAVES NOTHING MORE TO 

 BE DESIRED, 



and I believe that, with the multitude of bee- 

 keepers, it will give greater satisfaction than 

 any of the self -reversing or automatic ma- 

 chines. We have had our Cowan for two sea- 

 ons; but, owing to running mainly for comb 

 honey, and poor seasons, I have had little use 

 for the extractor; but in what little I have 

 used it I find that one will soon learn the trick 

 of reversing without entirely stopping the ma- 

 chine; and, considering that the crank of auto- 

 matic reversing machines must be reversed in 

 order to reverse the combs, I am inclined to 

 think the Cowan the most rapid of any ma- 

 chine of the same number of combs capacity. 

 Of course, this is mainly theory with me; but 

 can any one prove by actual test that an auto- 



matic machine will extract any more honey in 

 a given time? The Cowan is built for busi- 

 ness, and is not likely to break down, as I think 

 I gave it a very thorough test, as spoken of 

 above. I should certainly have beep afraid to 

 run at such speed the Novice we used to own 

 as I run the Cowan. 

 Bluffton, Mo. 



[The foregoing may seem like an "advertis- 

 ing puff," but it came unsolicited. If the re- 

 versing machines have substantial advantages 

 over the non-reversing, they should be set forth 

 in the reading-columns. I can not understand 

 why any one should argue for the old non -re- 

 versing extractors. They are to the reversing 

 machines what the old muzzle-loading firearms 

 are to the breech-loading guns. And yet some 

 prefer the old style, and think them better, and 

 so the case is with extractors. I may remark, 

 inadvertently, that I have been out hunting of 

 late, under the doctor's orders, and I think I 

 know something about guns as well as extract- 

 ors. Say — outdoor air is the best tonic in the 

 world.— Ed.] 



^ I — ^ 



RAMBLE 122. 



AT SAN LUIS OBISPO AND OTHER PLACES. 



By Ramhkr. 



San Luis Obispo (Saint Louis the Bishop), or 

 San Luis, as it is called for short, is something 

 of a city for this portion of the Pacific coast. 

 Its population is about 3000. It was founded by 

 the early Spanish padres, and a mission was 

 planted here. It is in a good state of preserva- 

 tion, and, having been modernized, its ancient 

 appearance has in a measure disappeared. The 

 chief industry of the town seemed to be the sa- 

 loon business, one bearing the name of " Blazing 

 Stump." From an outside observation, and the 

 sounds of music and shouting heard v/ithin, the 

 stump was blazing fiercely. San Luis has here- 

 tofore held commercial intercourse with the 

 outside world through Port Harford and the 

 coast steamship lines; but the city now expects 

 a boom in all of its interests from the fact'that 

 the Pacific Coast Railroad has penetrated the 

 surrounding mountains, putting the city with- 

 in a few hours of San Francisco, and the prog- 

 ress of the road south will put it in close con- 

 nection with Los Angeles, the other metropolis 

 of California. 



When in Ventura, Mr. Mendleson, having in 

 mind my desire to learn of the honey resources 

 of San Luis Co., referred me to a Mr. Butcher. 

 Said Butcher was Mr. M.'s agent for the sale of 

 honey. I accordingly hunted up the gentleman, 

 and found him to be a butcher only in name. 

 By nature he was a hardware merchant; and at 

 certain seasons of the year, when Mr. Mendle- 

 son had honey to ship to him, he made a lawful 

 mix of the sweets in a trading way, with his 

 ice-cream freezers, saws, and hammers. I soon 

 discovered that Mr. Butcher was not heavily 

 charged with information in relation to the 

 honey production in Saint Louis the Bishop's 

 Co. In fact, come to reflect soberly upon the 



