296 THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



but what he has brought up some vahiable thoughts and that the article just con- 

 cluded is worth a good deal to the bee-keepers. 



I have had a number of complimentary letters from the subscribers concerning 

 what Mr. Howe has written. We shall hope to read more from his pen in the 

 future.] 



Capping Melters — Bottom Boards — Stone Cellars. 



E. T. BAINARD. 



^^^ O the extracted honey producer nothing" has l)een more 

 4^^ awkward than to have his honey house littered with tub or 

 barrel draining cappings, all exposed to dust and the ever 

 keen robber bee. The capping melter is certainly a welcome 

 machine as it is, even though the honey that goes through it is of 

 poorer grade. Buckwheat or other darker honeys may not be in- 

 jured, but our lighter grades of clover are injured in color. 



I don't think the heat alone is the cause, but it is the slumgum 

 or, possibly, the hot wax that discolors the honey, especially when 

 compelled to separate in a gravity separator. The- current through 

 this separator is downward in the direction of the How of honey 

 and the heavier particles of dirt found on the bottom of a cake of 

 wax could be drawn down and through the separator with the tiow 

 of honey. At any rate, the honey after candying had a dirty scum 

 on top, showing that honey, like warm milk, will take tip impurities 

 while cooling. 



The capping melter we used the past season was made with 

 two 16-inch round boilers, one inside of the other and water space 

 between, but the melting surface is far too small, and the outlet on 

 one side insufficient for the rapid escape of the melted product, as 

 the partly melted mass of cappings moves towards the outlet and 

 blocking it, even though no screen is used. In my estimation a 

 capping melter shotild contain a large numl)cr of water tubes, 

 similar to a steam radiator or a water cooler on an automobile, and 

 the honey to escape from several openings near the bottom and 

 to cool at once in small vessels. 



ANOTHER BOTTOM BOARD. 



In the February Reniew, Mr. Lee Beatipre describes a bottom 

 board that I have used for years, but I am discarding it for a better 

 one, for two reasons : I prefer a bottom board Avithout any front 

 projection that is just the same size as the hive; rtrst, easier to 

 move bees with and, second, better for wintering. The dead bees 

 drop away quicker. The main board for the bottom is n>4 inches 

 wide by 18^2 inches on the under side and lT,?s inches on the top 



