496 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 



We are sorry that we can not reproduce in 

 the cut the skillful work of our good friend's 

 wife, as shown in the weaving of the horse- 

 hair. The meshes are (juite large, but just 

 small enough to exclude bees. It presents 

 little if any obstruction to the eyesight, 

 though a comparison between this and the 

 Brussels netting which we use shows but lit- 

 tle difference. No doubt the horsehair will 

 be more lasting. To some, the latter por- 

 tion of Mr. Stachelhausen's letter may savor 

 somewhat of a free advertisement. i3ut, no 

 matter. Any one who can show such skill 

 in such work deserves a notice. 



THE BEE VEIL AND HAT I I'UEFEIl. 



Some time ago I described to you the bee 

 hat and veil which I prefer. I did not then, 

 however, give an illustration of the hat and 

 veil, and 1 do so now. 



BEE VEIL AND HAT RECOMMENDED BY ERNEST AND 

 THE HELPERS IN THE APIARY. 



Whenever I work in the apiary I can not 

 endure to wear a coat and vest. With these 

 articles of clothing removed, there is no 

 place to tuck the veil, unless, forsooth, 

 down the neck, and that is not the best 

 place in the world either. Myself or one of 

 the boys, I don't remember which, soon 

 found that, by pulling the corners of the 

 veil under the suspenders until the front 

 and back were drawn tightly to the shirt, 

 not a bee could enter, and the wearer could 

 enjoy perfect security ; and, besides, it was 

 much cooler and pleasanter than to have it 

 tucked in a wad under the coat collar. It is 

 also quickly removed and quickly put on. 



For the benefit of some of our new sub- 

 scribers, perhaps 1 might say that the hat is 

 made entirely of cloth, with the exception 

 of a steel hoop which holds the brim out. 

 The upper portion of the hat is of a light 

 drab color, while the under side is of a dark 

 green, making it easy and pleasant upon the 

 eyes. It is so made that it is adjustable to 

 any head, and can be folded so as to go in 

 the pocket. It is so light that its weight is 

 imperceptible, and the broad brim keeps 

 the veil away from the neck. It clings firm- 

 ly to the head, and the cool breezes of sum- 

 mer (when there are any) can pass through 

 the porous material. The wearer is not 

 only protected from the glaring rays of the 

 sun, but he experiences a delightful coolness 

 about the head when a little breeze circu- 

 lates. ^ . 



Perhaps I should say, that, at certain 

 times during the season, when no breeze is 

 circulating at all, the crown of this hat af- 



fords hardly sufficient protection. But this 

 objection can be removed almost entirely by 

 putthig in the crown a few large leaves of 

 plantain. 



Of course, 1 prefer the head-wear shown 

 in the last engraving. I haven't tried the 

 other t\\ o in the apiary but I faucy they 

 would be too warm. I can imagine that 

 great drops of sweat would run down my 

 face and neck so as to feel decidedly uncom- 

 fort^able. I like to have the air circulate 

 clear around my head, face, and neck. But 

 no doubt Mrs. Axtell and;Mr..Stachelhausen 

 for equal reasons in point of comfort would 

 prefer their own head-wear. 



is it wise to dispense avith a bee- 

 veil entirely undek all circum- 

 stances? about a man who 

 won't avear a veil. 



Is it necessary to receive many stings 

 upon the face? Perhaps you may be aw^are 

 (in consequence of foul brood in our apiary 

 last season) that we get our bees, for filling 

 pound orders, from Neighbor II., who has a 

 number of out-apiaries, located three or four 

 and in some cases eight or ten miles away. 

 One day I accompanied him to one of these 

 apiaries Not knowing just the kind of 

 bees we should have to deal with, 1 decided 

 to take a veil along, and I was not sorry 

 that I did. Neighbor H. refused to take 

 along any face protection whatever. I con- 

 cluded not to put my veil on unless obliged 

 to. We got along very well until we com- 

 menced to put the bees into pound cages. 

 The day being a little raw and cold, the bees 

 did not regard our intrusion with favor. 

 They began to try to frighten us, and then 

 to sting. At this juncture I put on the veil, 

 and then, in my security, said, " Now, don't 

 you wish you had a veil onV 



'' No, sir'e; I tvouldnt bother with any such 

 thing on my head."- 



The last part of liis sentence was jerked 

 out somewhat more emphatic, as he drew 

 forth from one of his eyelids a sting; an- 

 other from his lip, and another from the 

 back of his neck. The italicized words in 

 the sentence quoted shows the point of ut- 

 terance when the stings were received. Mr. 

 Harrington received something like twelve 

 or fifteen stings. I got along with one or 

 two. In shaking bees off from the frames 

 on cold raw days (and you know that orders 

 have got to be rilled), it incites them to 

 stinging. It is under these circumstances 

 that I prefer to wear a veil. / think that 

 every bee-keeper should get along with as 

 few stings as possible. The drug apis mel- 

 Ufica, administered in homeopathic doses, 

 may do very well; but when it is forced hypo- 

 dermicallyby bees, in big doses, the ett'ectof 

 so much poison in the system, it seems to 

 me, may not be beneficial. 



1 have labored with Neighl)or II. on the 

 folly of sucli a course, but to no avail. This 

 morning his face showed the effect of the 

 hard stinging yesterday. How different peo- 

 ple are! I presume there are a good many 

 Neighbor II. "s as to the matter of stings. 

 There is also a large number of prominent 

 bee-keepers who will never be seen in the 



