isse 



GLEANINGS In ^EE CtJLTURE. 



779 



a little for being inicliiiiitiible. I suppose 

 you mean that you will not believe a queen 

 ever made a noise wliile in tlie cell until it 

 is clearly proven to be a fact. I do not know 

 that I am just now prepared to give posi- 

 tive proof ; but am abundantly satisfied that 

 queens do produce the '' zeep, zeep,'' while 

 in the cell. The squealing may be another 

 matter. I have never watched closely 

 enough to decide on that point. I think 

 I have heard thein utter their peculiar 

 note when tlie capping is loose, so they can 

 push their heads out and draw them back 

 again ; and if so, I do not see why they may 

 not do it before the cell is opened at all. I 

 believe most cells would afford the queen 

 room enough to move lier wings in the way 

 you mention, and I have supposed this was 

 the way they did it. In fact, I do not know 

 tluit bees have any other method of uttering 

 their different calls. Worker-bees, you know, 

 express their feelings by the hum of their 

 wings and while on thewing. 



THE POSSIBILITIES OF FRAMES. 



THE IJirOHTANCE OF SPACING THEM JUST THE 

 HIGHT DISTANCE APAHT. 



/ / Fin^^ invention and introduction of frames 

 ^ (f|§) formed an era in bee-keeping-." Many 

 ll^ times lias this sentence been written and 

 '^ read; but how many of its writers and 

 readers fully comprehend all it implies? 

 If the boos themselves, and their convenience 

 alone, were considered, it would be found that 

 frames are a disadvantage rather than an advan- 

 tage. It is to the pi-ogressivo bee-keeper alone that 

 they are of any value; and to him, that value is in- 

 comparable. Frames were originated for the pur- 

 pose of giving- greater control of the bees, and of 

 allowing- greater freedom in manipulating for ex- 

 amination and observation. If their value ended 

 with this, I question whether the gain would pay 

 for the actual loss to the producer of honey, occa- 

 sioned by their use; or whether the discoveries 

 made through their aid would overbalance the actu- 

 al destruction brought about in the hands of the in- 

 experienced by too frequent examination, and the 

 passion aroused to increase by division till such di- 

 vision ruins their apiaries. But, thanks to the Rev. 

 L. L. Langstroth, his invention of hanging- movable 

 frames has been the means in the past of doing 

 more than any other thing to put the occupation of 

 apiculture on, a sound and solid basis, and will in 

 the future be the means of giving us full, thorough, 

 and complete control, not only of the bees and hive 

 as a colony, but of causing or preventing increase 

 by allowing or preventing- swarming; and also, by 

 the aid of sections and the extractor, of guiding the 

 production of honey in such form and shape as maj- 

 be most desirable or advisable. 



It is a wclliinderstood matter, that the frame hive 

 is a compromise between the natural habits of the 

 bee and the desire of man to control its operations 

 to his best advantage; and for the furthering- of 

 this compromise, the only thought /(a.s been to pro- 

 duce a frame of such form and size as would pro- 

 duce the best yield of honey, and at the same time 

 prove the safest as a winter habitation. To this 

 end discussions have been fre(i\ient— as to the rela- 

 tive value of deep and shallow frames. These dis- 



cussions have at times been warm, and, perhaps as 

 much as aHy other, have aroused the ire of the vari- 

 ous disputants. All of these disputants have, in 

 their desire to prove their particular points, seemed 

 to lose sight of the most important feature of the 

 case, and have been satisfied in fighting o\er a 

 shadow; namely, an extra inch, more or less, in 

 length or depth. The point they have lost sight of 

 is the space to be allowed between the frames; a 

 mutual agreement seeming to have been arrived at, 

 that ahdut VA inches, or from l^s to I'a, is olxiut 

 right. 



In this discussion another element has at times 

 been a source of contention; namely, as to whether 

 frames should be fixed or not; and closed - end 

 frames have been used and advised, among which 

 are the Quinby and the Hofi'man. One of the chief 

 opponents of closed-end frames, or, in fact, of any 

 frame that is not absolutely movable laterally as 

 well as otherwise, is the editor of Gi.eaninos. The 

 position he has taken in this matter is, to my mind, 

 correct, but he has not gone quite far enough. To 

 judge of the future possibilities of frames, we must 

 take into consideration the use that is to be made of 

 them, and work them in accordance with such use. 

 Probably the best results will be attained by using 

 the bi-ood chamber for brood alone, or at least by 

 doing as the bees do— devoting- the center of the 

 brood- chamber to brood, if we use a hive-bodj" 

 large enough for both brood and stores. It matters 

 little what size or form of frame is used, so far as 

 the brood-chamber itself is concerned. It is only 

 when we desire to have our surplus deposited in 

 sections that any question arises; and each one will 

 adopt such size and fom of frame as suits himself. 

 The real question is. How can wo get the greatest 

 yield of honey in the most desirable form, in the 

 most economical manner, and at the same time 

 bring al)Out the greatest possible increase the most 

 desirably? My answer is. By using care and judg- 

 ment in spacing our frames. There is no difficulty 

 in getting, by the use of foundation, all combs luiilt 

 true, and, if we space such frames at just the right 

 distance apart, there is no difficulty in having such 

 combs built as fiat as a board. Bees will, under no 

 circumstances, seal up brood in cells more than 

 seven-sixteenths of an inch deep. What I mean is, 

 that if deeper cells aie given them the.y will cut 

 them down to that depth l)efore they will seal up 

 brood in them. This l)eing the case, the production 

 of brood is in our own hands; and if we can control 

 the production of brood, swarming is practically 

 within our control. It is not a matter of hives at 

 all. Invention and ingenuity may be taxed to the 

 utmost in producing this, that, or the other style: 

 none of them will be more acceptable to the bees 

 than a hollow log, and none of them will be fully 

 controllable that do not allow of spacing frames as 

 closely together or as far apart as it may be chosen 

 so to do. 



To the i)rejudiced mind, the idea I am endeavor- 

 ing to inculcate nmy be deemed "all bosh;" but the 

 thinking mind, who is investigating solely to find 

 the best ways and means, will see that we can ac- 

 complish the greatest amount of good only by work- 

 ing in harmony with nature. Many of our humble 

 servants of (he lower orders can be trained against 

 their imtural instincts, but th(i honey-bee can not. 

 We can guide or lead it to a certain extent, but we 

 can't dri\'e it an inch. If it has any i)cculiarities, 

 we can take ad\antage of them; but we must be 



