230 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Apr. 15, 



Mr. Rhodes — What I mean is, some honey granulated and 

 soiae did not, when kept a year in ordinary conditions. 



Mr«. Booth — I have kept comb honey over four years 

 without granulating. But in the same case was some that 

 was granulated solid. 



Mr. Adams — I don't like to cook my comb honey. 



PREVENTION OF SWAEJIINQ IN WORKING FOR COMB HONEY. 



H. Rauchfuss then exhibited a device used for that pur- 

 pose. Some time before the flow, two hives are set next each 

 other, and the device applied so as to cover both entrances. 

 One of these hives contains the colony to be operated upon, 

 and the other is empty, containing nothing but frames and 

 starters. The effect of the device is to make one entrance 

 common to both hives. The returning bees fly into an aper- 

 ture, about one inch high and eight inches broad, and from 

 this could go into either hive at will, were it not for a tongue, 

 which, being pivoted at the rear of the device just between 

 the two hives, determines into which hive the bees shall enter, 

 by being turned one way or the other. Before the flow, the 

 •tongue is turned so as to cover up the passage into the empty 

 hive, and the bees became accustomed to entering their own 

 hive through the device. When the flow begins, the comb on 

 which the queen is, is found and placed in the empty hive, on 

 the side next to the hive In which the bees are, and the tongue 

 of the device is turned so as to cover up the passage into 

 the full hive, except that It leaves room for one or two bees at 

 a time to got out. At the same time a super is put on the 

 empty hive. There they find their queen, and commence 

 work, building comb above and below at exactly the same 

 time. Apparently the new state of things just suits them. 

 After three or four days, or after the queen has commenced 

 to lay in the new combs, the old comb Is returned to the old 

 hive. The principle is, to prevent swarming by forming an 

 artificial swarm out of the whole colony, and part of this work 

 is done automatically. They will not swarm for three weeks. 

 At the end of that time, if the flow continues, the operation 

 may be repeated. This device was made before the Langdon 

 device was, and has been on trial since 1893, being at first 

 used like the Langdon device, to which it proved superior. In 

 1895 it was used as above described, and was a perfect suc- 

 cess in every way. With It comb honey was produced in an 

 out-apiary which was not seen for Intervals of 11 to 12 days. 

 It is not patented. 



Mr. Dudley was askt to explain a device ho had with him, 

 for automatically preventing the escape of a queen with a 

 swarm— but which lets her out and In at other times. It may 

 be roughly described as a little box, about 2}.^ inches square, 

 and as long as the width of the hive. It Is applied to the en- 

 trance. Cleats under each end raise it a bee-space above the 

 alighting-board, and a cleat running lengthwise under the 

 rear of the box stops entrance directly into the hive. The 

 bees pass in and out of the hive, through the box, about the 

 middle of the bottom. Tne bottom of the box is beveled at the 

 rear, so as to afi'ord a passage into the hive when the box is 

 shoved tight against the front of the hive. Under ordinary 

 circumstances, both workers and queen pass in and out of the 

 hive in this way without any zinc to bother them. The front 

 of the box is composed of a piece of queen-excluding zinc, 

 hung so as to swing a little. When the colony swarms, there 

 are too many bees wanting to come out at once to pass through 

 the slit, and so most of the mass presses against the zinc In 

 front. This pressure operates a catch, which lets a piece of 

 T-tin drop, which closes the slit the whole length. The work- 

 ers eventually pass out through the zinc; but the queen, 

 being generally with the last half of the swarm, is imprisoned, 

 and the swarm returns after an Interval. When the bee- 

 keeper makes his tour of inspection, he sees by the position 

 of the projecting end of the T-tin that that colony has 

 swarmed. He can then do as he pleases with it. This device 

 has been used with success on a few colonies. It is not pat- 

 ented. 



COMBS V.S. EXTRACTED HONEY FOR PROFIT. 



H. Rauchfuss— There is a valuable article on that subject 

 by our President, Mr. Aikin, which covers the whole field, In 

 the Jan. 14 issue of the American Bee Journal. It is the best 

 article I ever road on that subject. 



HOW TO KEEP THE MOTH OUT OF EXTRACTING COMBS— HOW TO 



KEEP THE MOTH FROM IJISTURBING UKES AGAIN — WILL 



SULPHURED COMBS BE ACCEPTABLE TO THE BEES ? 



Mr. McLaIn — I have sulphured combs a good many times, 

 and never had any trouble about the combs being acceptable 

 to the bees. I don't think there is any, unless the sulphur Is 

 very strong. 



Vice-Pres. Porter — Mr. Alkln has a large number of combs 



exposed In his honey-house, with no sign of moths. He uses 

 broad end-bars, so that the combs do not touch each other. 

 This year I stored my combs close together, and reared a 

 great many moths. I piled them so as to leave intervals be- 

 tween, in a 12x12 plastered room, set four sulphur candles 

 going, and killed all the moths. Those sulphur candles are 

 the best thing out. Sulphured combs are acceptable to the 

 bees. 



F. Rauchfuss — Do you mean that closed-end frames are 

 exempt from the moth ? 



Vice-Pres. Porter — I only know of that one illustration. 



P. Rauchfuss — Our closed-end frames are not much more 

 exempt from the moth than the others. 



Vice-Pres. Porter — Are there two species of moth, one 

 eating wax and the other pollen ? 



P. Rauchfuss — The only species I have seen here feeds on 

 pollen only, and destroys comb to get to it. But Eastern 

 writers say they feed on wax in section honey also. 



Mr. Rhodes — My experience is that the moths here are 

 the same as the moths in Indiana. I judge that we have a 

 moth which destroys combs the same as In Indiana. 



WHICH 18 THE PROPER WAY' TO LIQUEFY EXTRACTED HONEY ? 



Vice-Pres. Porter — The safest way is to place the vessel 

 in boiling water. But this requires a great deal of caution in 

 liquefying large quantities. In liquefying honey in glass, on 

 a small scale, I now use an asbestos mat. The glass Is set on 

 the mat on the back of the stove, next the stove-pipe, and 

 turned occasionally. When a large can is liquefied in boiling 

 water, the outside melts first and gets too hot, while the in- 

 side Is cold. A good way is first to set the can on its side over 

 the stove, tilting it so as not to come in close contact, and 

 thus melt one side enough to make a channel of melted honey 

 from the bottom to the top, repeating the process with the 

 other sides, and then setting on an asbestos mat next the 

 stove-pipe. Never set the bottom of the can on the stove. I 

 have burst a good many cans by melting the bottom of the 

 honey first. The top cannot move, and acts like a cork. 



Mr. Rhodes — How about liquefying by sunshine ? 



Mr. Rauchfuss — In summer, it can be done in the open 

 air, by setting the vessel in a sheltered place. 



Vice-Pres. Porter — I have liquefied a good deal that way. 

 but don't leave a vessel too long in the sun-extractor. The 

 honey will turn dark. The trouble with the sun-extractor for 

 liquefying is, the summer is not the right time to attend to 

 that work. In my experience a sun-extractor cannot be used 

 after the first of September. 



Resolutions by Mr. Booth, thanking the Board of Horti- 

 culture, Mrs. Shute and ex Gov. Routt for the free use of the 

 room and courtesies extended, and city press for notice taken 

 in reporting the proceedings, were adopted. 



The Association adjourned subject to the call of the Ex- 

 ecutive Committee. Frank Rauchfuss, Sec. 



CONDUCTED BY 

 DR. O. O. MII^T^ER, M^RJSA'GO, ZLI.. 



[Questions may be mailed to the Bee Journal, or to Dr. Miller direot.l 



Affected by Bee-Slings— Cleaning Propoii§ OfTtlio 

 llantls. 



1. I have kept bees for 10 years, and I have always hand- 

 led them without gloves; they have stung me on my hands so 

 I have got my whole system poisoned. I have never taken 

 any notice of bee-stings before, but now when a bee stings me 

 on one of uiy fingers it is like electricity— it goes through my 

 whole body, and my face swells up as if I had the erysipelas. 

 I Itch all over all the time. What can be done for mo ? 



2. I saw in the Bee Journal sometime since (but I can't 

 find it now) a remedy to wash propolis off the hands. Surely 

 you can tell me of something that will wash It off, for I have 

 found no soap that will do it. G. S., Utah. 



Answers. — 1. Yours Is a very unusual case, and I don't 

 know that I can suggest anything to help. Evidently there 



i 



