:i!)4 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



May 



presented itself. I suppose nearly all of your read- 

 ers know that 1 invented the bee-space and break- 

 joint arrangements in honey-boards nearly ten 

 years ag-o; and now that it is evident that both of 

 these arrangements are not only very valuable, but 

 well nigh indispensable, the reason that the claim- 

 crs of others' inventions are not trying to claim 

 these features must be because I published them 

 so long ago, and at a time when they had not yet 

 learned the value of honey-boards, but were clam- 

 oriiigagainst their use, and advising placing the sec- 

 tions flatly upon the brood-frames. Well, now, up 

 came the (luestion of a queen-cxeluding honey- 

 I oard, flr.st urged by Bro. D. A. Jones if I am not in 

 crroi- (if 1 am, please correct me), and we at once 

 pot to work to make the best honey-boards embrac- 

 ing that feature. As T considered either the break- 

 joint or bee-space features worth much more than 

 the one of queen-excluding, I set about to make 

 my honey-board queen-excluding. I tried placing 

 the slats so closely together as to admit workers 

 and exclude queens, but 1 soon found that wood 

 could not be depended upon; and, woi'se than all, 

 when the slats were placed ,^,, apart, instead of %, 

 the bees plugged the narrow spaces full of brace- 

 corab. Mr. W. Z. Hutchinson, who was the first to 

 try the same thing, like myself was compelled to 

 give it up. Another experiment was to tack zinc 

 strips, containing a row of queen-excluding open- 

 ings over the spaces between the slats of my hon- 

 ey-board, and this worked perfectly. It made the 

 board strong, and kept an even upper surface. 

 Then came the thought of grooving the edges of 

 the slats, and sliding strips of zinc into the grooves, 

 as the honey-board was nailed up, which was quick- 

 er done, and made a neater and far more attractive 

 job; and C. E. Boyer, W. Z. H., Dr. Tinker, and my- 

 self, all thought of this simple device, without the 

 aid of each other; but as Dr. T. was the first to 

 publish it to the world, no one opposed this priori- 

 ty, nor should they; and on page 303 of this journal 

 for 1886, he fully described and gave it to the pub- 

 lie, and therefore has precluded himself from get- 

 ting any valid patent upon that feature, as intimat- 

 ed in a recent number of the C. B. J. 



Uncle Samuel takes freely, but never gives back 

 any thing. He is opposed to that, en masse. The 

 honey-board made on the Tinker plan is not so 

 strong as when the zinc is tacked on the upper sur- 

 face of the slats, nor is it so sure to prevent all 

 brace-combs from being built between the honey- 

 board and the surplus receiitacles, because the zinc 

 is 's of an inch further away than the general sur- 

 face of the honey-board which is just the right dis- 

 tance— ?8 scant. But for all that, it is the popular 

 way to make the combined honey-board, and no 

 doubt will be so made, for the trade at least. 



Now for Question No. .'jti. The best queen-exclud- 

 ing honey-board that has yet been devised can be 

 made with the full sheet of zinc, and I think at a 

 proportionately less cost, when made in large 

 quantities. No. fie mentions "transverse stiH'ening- 

 slats," but seems to forget that these slats will take 

 up room in the bee-spaces, and so add greatly to 

 the chances for propolizing and crushing bees, as 

 to be objectionable. But here we have it. Cut a 

 sheet of zinc just the size the honey-board is to be; 

 tack around its outer edge a piece of poplar (white- 

 wood), ^i by % scant, to form the bee-space. This 

 can also be formed with strips of tin, soldered on, 

 previously bent in the shape here given. 



Either one will be good, and the wood is I I 



cheapest and handiest to some manu- 

 facturers. Previous to putting on the | 

 rim, the sheet zinc should be perforated in such 

 manner that one or two rows of openings will come 

 directly over the top-bars of the frames below, 

 and only imperforated zinc will come over the spaces 

 between the top-bars below; thus we have embodied 

 the break -joint and bee-space functions, and now 

 to the most knotty problem of all, the stififeners. 

 Cut two strips of tin, which arc each as long as the 

 hotiey-board, and ^4 inch wide, and fold them this 

 shape, A. which is a ■;'« triangle, tin on two sides. 

 Now solder these strips on to the under side of the 

 honey-board, and in such a position that their 

 points will come directly between two top-bars, and 

 thus you see they can pinch no bees nor induce 

 propolizing, and yet they are full size and full 

 strength, and will keep the honey-board as straight, 

 and, in fact, it will be much stronger than the com- 

 bined wood and metal. "But," says one, "sup- 

 pose the laterally movable frames below should 

 not be in regular position at all times; would not 

 your tin V touch a frame and make trouble?" 

 Seldom, I think; but with my new hive the positions 

 must always be such that perfect harmony of ar- 

 rangements shall exist at all times. This device 

 will not be patented, for I have all I care for in my 

 claim on the honey-board in combination with the 

 main features of my new hive. 



I wish to say, before closing, that we have as 

 much propolis stored here as in any i)lace 1 ever 

 saw. I find that nearly all bee-keepers make the 

 error of thinking that f/ieir location is worst of all 

 for propolis. James Heodon. 



Apr. 33, 1888. 



Since the above came to hand we have re- 

 ceived the following : 



Friend Root:— Day before yesterday I got to 

 thinking about the honey-board I wrote to you 

 about, and particularly about the formation of the 

 rim, which forms the bee-space and strengthens 

 the whole construction, and I conceived the idea 

 of turning up scant 5 on all sides, and soldering at 

 the corners, which would greatly facilitate and 

 cheapen construction, and make a stronger and 

 better board ; and in order to have the supers ad- 

 just nicely on so narrow a surface, luake the thing 

 14 inch narrower and shorter than the hive, so that 

 the edges of the honey-board will retreat from the 

 extreme edge of the hive, jus( 'a on all four sides. 

 This thin edge will facilitate in quickly adjusting 

 the supers without crushing bees. 



One more point: If you can set the dies as you 

 choose, set them so that the zinc between the two 

 rows of perforations will be unhi half as wide as 

 usually left. You see, 1 want the two rows of open- 

 ings closer together. The reason is, I wish to keep 

 the outside of the openings from coming quite so 

 near over the spaces between the frames below. 

 This is no vital point; but if convenient, why not 

 have it just right? James Heddon. 



Dowaglac, Mich., Apr. 36, 1888. 



I would say to our readers, that tlie article 

 above was siiggested by one of the queslions 

 sent out periodically to our corps of contril)- 

 utors. Mr. Ileddon, being one of this num- 

 ber, thought best to answer it more fully. 

 The question to wliich he refers has not yet 

 appeared in the C^uesl ion-Box, but it will 

 very soon. In order that our readers may 



