1884 



GLEAJ^INGS m BEE CULTURE. 



801 



nut lumber can be had at all times and places, and Is 

 much thenicest of any thing: for sections. Of course, 

 it is some harder to work, but that is a small matter. 

 This season I shall have my sections made, six to 

 till a Lanpstroth frame, and made of walnut. What 

 say you, Mr. Root? Will you make them? I will 

 also make my crates of walnut or cedar; that is, the 

 strips on the front sides where the glass is; topsand 

 bottoms of clear pine. The effect is very pretty. 

 Try it, and see if I am not right about it. One other 

 thing: I shall this season use for starters in sec- 

 lions only very narrow strips of thin foundation. 



FDN. NOT DHAWN OCT BY THE BICES. 



For me, full-size starters of foundation won't do. 

 We have been usiner some honey on the table of late, 

 where full-size starters were used, and the honey 

 was stored in the best of the season, and the bees 

 added wax enough to it to make the combs, and left 

 the foundation in the middle of the combs just as I 

 gave it to them, and we scrape the honey off and 

 use it and Iny the foundation away to cut up for 

 small starters another season. Talk about economy, 

 who can do more than that — use the same founda- 

 tion over again? No patent. I should like to hear 

 from others on the subject of usingwalnut seclions. 

 Eminence, Ky., Feb. ;!, 18St. W. T. Stkwart. 



Friend S., your suggestion may be a good 

 one, but blackwalnut is the most expensive 

 kind known here. It is worth, in fact, from 

 -50 to 60 dollars per 1000, whereas basswood 

 is worth only 18. We should have to charge 

 for blackwalnut sections from 10 to 15 dol- 

 lars per 1000. In regard to your fdn. in the 

 sections, it seems to me it was not made as 

 thin as it should be ; and I shall still think 

 so, even if you did purchase it of us We 

 are doing better now, however, and I do not 

 believe the starters we send out now will 

 leave any noticeable lishbone, even if the 

 bees should get lazy and forget to do their 

 part. 



CHAFF HIVES 



Arranged for Reversing Coiiiiuou Siispoinl- 

 ed Frames. 



THE WAY FKIEND BLACK DOES IT. 



'Ipi^'^'^^ ROOT:— I think I have a good thing in 

 JSfJ- the manner of reversing common suspended 

 ' frames, and must share it with my bee-keep- 

 ing friends. 1 have made and used chaff hives dur- 

 ing the last two or thi-ee years, wnich are so arrang- 

 ed that the frames in the second story hang parallel 

 with those below. This is accomplished by making 

 the second story one inch longer than the lower one, 

 and hanging movable blocks in one end. I send you 

 one of the blocks. Among the advantages of this 

 arrangement are: 



1. The frames are all of the same size. 



2. Any part of the brood-chamber can bo renched 

 by removing three or four frames from above. 



3. Side storing can be practiced with great facil- 

 ity. 



4. The combs can be reversed in the second story, 

 and the blocks which support one end of the frames 

 serve as spacing-boards. 



!). Wide frames filled with sections can be re- 

 versed in the second story. Some bee-keepers re- 

 move the sections from the wide frames when part- 

 ly finished, and replace them upside down, that the 

 comb may be attached to all aides of the sectione. 



By my arrangement, eight sections are reversed in 

 less time than one by the old method. 



We must have some method of reversing our 

 frames at pleasure; but let us not change our 

 frame one particle, in order to do so. If a change is 

 necessary, let it be made in the hive, and not tho 

 frame. I have no less than seven different styles of 

 hives, but use the Simplicity frame in all of them. 



You made a mistake in ray name when you wrote 

 the editorial referring to dronc-triips. My name is 

 not J. D. Black, but— G. D. Black. 



Brandon, Iowa. April 12, 1884. 



Friend JMack sends us a movable block 

 with his letter. It is like the spacing-board 

 shown in our price list, on one side, while tiie 

 other side is rabbeted out,and has a tin rabbet 

 let in which comes just right to support the 

 frames in the upper story. When 1 planned 

 the chaff hive this was considered ; but I so 

 much disliked loose blocks about a hive that 

 I did not adopt it. Since friend 13. proposes 

 to make it answer also for setting frames 

 upside down, it may be well to consider it 

 again. Of course, it would contract the space 

 of the upper story somewliat. We presume 

 that any who wish to try this arrangement 

 will have no difficulty in making the blocks 

 of the proper size to make their chaff hives 

 hold frames running parallel with the lower 

 ones. Friend B. has his chaff hives so made 

 that movable blocks are needed at only one 

 end of the frames. Very likely this will 

 answer; but it seems to me it would be a 

 little awkward. 



FRIFND STANLEY'S AUTOMATIC HON- 

 EV-EXTKACTOlt. 



SOMETniKG FURTHER IN REGARD TO THE IMPLE- 

 MENT. 



^■Jp RIEND ROOT:— We have just received Glean- 

 ffl '' INOS for April 15; and as you take the liberty 

 ' (which is entirely just and right) of criticising 

 the Automatic honey - extractor, we should like to 

 make a brief explanation regarding your points of 

 criticism. 



1. You speak of the great size and weight of the 

 machine. We make two sizes of can, the diameters 

 being 20 and 30 inches, the 26-inch can being for the 

 L. frame, or atiy frame not more than 9'/^ in. deep. 

 The 30-inch can will take any frame up to 12 inches 

 deep by £0 long. Now, will any practical bee-keeper 

 say that a can of either of the above sizes, with the 

 crank at the side, is not better than a can 18 to 22 

 inches in diameter, with the crank at top? As re- 

 gards the weight, we will say that the extractor for 

 4 L. frames will weifih complete about 45 lbs., while 

 the large size will weigh about 60 lbs. We do. It is 

 true, use a much heavier gear than is used in any 

 other extractor that I know of, and that is one of 

 the best things about our machines. As the crank 

 is long, and the inside work Is all put up by a first- 

 class machinist, and all the shafting is cold rolled, 

 made exactly to our order, the machine is as easily 

 operated as any of the cheaper extractors, and the 

 size and weight of the machine will hold it still so 

 that one heavy c«mb put opposite to one light one 

 will not set the thing to dancing around the room, as 

 is often the case with the light machines. 



2. The expense of the Automatic is no more than 

 would be charged for other makes of extractors, if 

 the same material wore to be used, with none of the 



