1388 



GLEANINGS IK BEE CULTURE. 



775 



possible that it may again slumber, and 

 slumber never to be resurrected again ; but 

 before it does I should like to satisfy myself 

 whether the idea is practical)le or impractic- 

 able. Now, there may be some of our read- 

 ers who, after reading this, may say, "I 

 worked out this same idea years ago and 

 discarded it/' If there besncli aoneorones 

 among our subscribers, will they please tell 

 us all they know about it? If there is a 

 good thing in our reach, we do not want to 

 throw it awav until we know it is good for 

 nothing. It is the i)n)vince of a bee-journal 

 to develop and test these ideas. 



Since the foregoing was written, a private 

 letter came to hand irom Dr. Miller. From 

 it I extract tlie following, as it contains the 

 account of a practical experiment, and con- 

 firms the theoretical workings of the new 

 extractor. I hope others will try the doctor's 

 experiment, and report on it. The extract is 

 as follows : 



My Dear Ernest:— I put on my overalls this morn- 

 ing, and tied a frame in the extractor with three 

 strings, the bottom-bar tied to the spindle, the 

 frame perpendicular. The morning is cool, the 

 frame has been in the house for days, and was per- 

 haps one-third full of honey, which I suppose was 

 pretty thick, as it was put in the comb by bees that 

 were cleaning up combs that had been extracted. 

 Yes, it's quite thick, tor I've just gone and stuck 

 my finger in some that stands on the perpendicular 

 surface of tin where it was thrown about an hour 

 ago. I gave by actual count the number of turns 

 usually made in extracting one side, and tried to 

 give the usual rate of speed. With no little interest 

 I took out the frame to examine. The first thing- 

 was a feeling of surprise at the execution done— de- 

 light as well. Not only was the part near the top-bar 

 cleaned out as well as in ordinary extracting, but 

 for some distance toward the bottom-bar, and some 

 was extracted to within— on close examination I can 

 distinguish a distinct line where the cells between 

 that and the bottom-bar have the honey left in them 

 undisturbed. This line is just 3 inches from the 

 spindle, or about S'A from the center of motion. 

 Just so far as a single experiment proves any thing-, 

 it makes me think that the point I made in theory 

 is still stronger in practice; that is, that a tumbler 

 or a cell revolving- in the new position will be more 

 readily emptied than in the old i)Osition in an ordi- 

 nary extractor; and I think more than ever, that 

 there was some mistake about your needing- a high- 

 er rate of speed to extract the cells (it the same 

 distance from the spindle. 



AN INGENIOUS METHOD FOR "WEIGH- 

 ING UEE-LOADS, ETC. 



SOME INTERESTING RESULTS AS TO THE WEIGHT 



OP A'ARIOUS SEEDS, AND THE NUMBER TO 



THE POUND. 



§EVERAL years ago I noticed a description in 

 Gleanings of a scale for weighing bee-loads, 

 by E. E. Hasty. I have made one on a diflier- 

 ent plan that T think is pretty good, so I 

 thought I would write to Gleanings about it. 

 It is a floating scale, and consists of a cork with 

 an upright straw in the top, and a weight at the 

 bottom and a platform at the top of the straw. 

 To make it, get a cork about two inches long and 



from one-half to one inch in diameter. Kit a Hat 

 pieceof lead to the bottom of the cork, just large 

 enough to sink it, iind fasten it on with a wire nail. 

 Fit a straight, even-sized straw about eight inches 

 long into the top of the cork, using a very small 

 straw for small weights and a larger one for larger 

 weights. Now dip the cork, lead, and the base of 

 the straw in melted beeswax, to prevent water 

 from soaking into any opening. With a rule and 

 pen and ink, mark inch and eighth-inch divisions 

 upon one side of the straw. The inch marks may 

 be made longer than the others, or they may be 

 made with red ink to be mcn-e easily distinguished. 

 Having done this, varnish the straw to prevent the 

 ink from washing off. Get a piece of thick paper, 

 about au inch square, for a platform, and stick a 

 wire nail or a pin through the center, 1o rest in the 

 top of the straw. Set the scale into a two-quart 

 glass fruitjar, full of water; and if it sinks, pare 

 off enough of the lead so the top of the cork will 

 float about half an inch below the surface of the 

 water. If you get too much pared off the first time, 

 stick a small wire nail into the cork and try again. 

 When you have got the scale to float properly, it is 

 ready for use. 



Now for the weights. A piece 

 of Gleanings cover one inch 

 square weighs one grain, and a 

 piece four by six inches weighs 

 one pennyweight. Lay a grain 

 or a pennyweight on the plat- 

 form, and see how far it sinks. 

 If a pennyweight sinks six inch- 

 es, each fourth of an inch would 

 be one grain; and an object that 

 would cause the scale to sink 

 one and one-half inches would 

 weigh six grains, or one-fourth 

 pennyweight. If a grain causes 

 it to sink five inches, each eighth 

 of an inch would be one-fortieth 

 _ of a grain. An eighth on my 

 i^' smaller scale is equal to one- 

 a scale for thirty-seventh of a grain. I 

 WEIGHING bees, have weighed quite a number 

 ETC. of things, and will give some of 



the results. Alsike clover-seed required 330 seeds 

 to weigh one grain. At that rate a bushel would 

 contain 134 millions of seeds; and to sow one acre 

 so that there would be a seed to every square inch 

 would require two and three-fourths pounds. I 

 think the sample 1 weighed was not as well-flUed 

 seed as the average, and would probably reduce 

 the average number per bushel to 100 million. A 

 grain of white clover contains 2.50 seeds, and timo- 

 thy contains 335 seeds to the grain. Our Grand 

 Rapids lettuce-seed has just matured, and I find 

 that a grain contains 55 seeds. A pound with care- 

 ful management ought, then, to make about 385 

 thousand i)lants. I have also weighed some melon- 

 seeds. Muskmelonseeds average three-fifths of a 

 grain, and an ounce would contain 730 seeds. Wa- 

 termelon-seeds weigh 15 grains, or 335 to the ounce. 

 An advantage this scale has over Mr. Hasty's 

 balance scale is, that this is much more sensitive to 

 a small weight, and the weight is found in less time. 

 Dauwjn M. Anuhews. 

 Farina, 111., Aug. 20, 1888. 



Why, friend A., you have not only got a 

 very sensitive scale, but you have succeeded 

 in making a splendid hydrometer at an al- 



