698 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sei't. 1. 



paper article should be cut in two in the middle, 

 and the first half thrown into the waste-basket, 

 the last half published, so I will make a line 

 here where you can divide this. 



In the first place, the follower, or division- 

 board, is too thin and frail. I like something a 

 little more substantial, that will hold a good 

 stout nail; and those cleats at the ends can be 

 nailed on in two or three ways, so as to destroy 

 their usefulness by closing the bee-space at the 

 ends so that they are soon fixed. 



Then I don't like the end-bar -of the " swing- 

 ing" frame. It is '• too thin;" and the slit at 

 the top to admit the comb-guide makes it al- 

 most impossible to nail firmly this end-bar to 

 the top-bar to maintain the frame a perfect 

 rectangle. Just go out into the shop where 

 those heaps of frames are. Ei'nest. and nail a 

 few and tell us how you would do it. We don't 

 use the comb-guide, as we like full sheets of 

 foundation in wired frames. 



Another thing. Are you sure that % inch is 

 the proper and necessary thickness for the top- 

 bars of frames? Isn't the main idea in having 

 thick top-bars to keep the fi-ames from sagging? 

 and won't % inch do it? Is Dr. Miller doubtful 

 that "^ inch will prevent sagging, or does he 

 doubt for other reasons? I like the wide top- 

 bars. I have, at home, about 1500 frames with 

 top-bars a plump inch in width, and like them. 

 I have the more appreciated their value since I 

 have handled frames this summer with %-wide 

 top-bars spaced IW inches that had to be cut 

 from the adjoining frames with a jack-knife 

 before they could be removed. 



Again, were I buying one hundred or one 

 thousand of these hives for my own use I should 

 prefer to pay 10 or 15 cts. per hive more, and 

 have the tops and bottoms made of the clearest 

 and best pine obtainable. Nearly every one of 

 the covers we have here has warped so that a 

 bee could pass beneath them. 



Now, if I have found fault with the hive it is 

 because I like it. I believe the ideal hive will 

 be obtained by a slow process of evolution rath- 

 er than by brilliant invention. The first great 

 step was taken by father Langstroth; and, as 

 has been the case with all other great inven- 

 tions, when once the first principle was discov- 

 ered, the remainder of its progress has been 

 step by step. 



I am thankful that we have such large deal- 

 ers in bee-supplies as Lewis, Falconer, and 

 Root, each one of whom is willing to sacrifice 

 present gain for the ultimate benefit of the pur- 

 suit, realizing that their lasting prosperity de- 

 pends on the success of bei' culture as a perma- 

 nent source of livelihood. On the enterprise 

 and conservatism of these and otliei' large firms 

 depends the responsibility for the future prog- 

 ress of apiculture to a large extent. 



J. H. Larrabee. 



Ag'l College, Mich., Aug. lit. 



[Thanks. Such sort of criticisms we invite. 

 The division-board has becMi made heavier 

 since those we sent you; and the drawings that 

 will accompany the new hive will show how to 

 nail them so that there can be no mistake. We 

 have no complaint of the end-bar of the loose 

 frame— or, as you call it, a swinging frame. I 

 know, after they are nailed together, or. rather, 

 in the nailing, there is a tendency to depart 

 from the rectangular: but many bee-keepers 

 have a sort of nailing-form that holds the 

 frame securely while being nailed. I do not 

 quite see why the slot for the comb-guide in the 

 end-bar weakens the frame. — No, I am not sure 

 that X is the necessary thickness; but I know 

 it is sufficient, and prevents all sagging, and at 

 the same time does prevent burr-combs. Top- 

 bars for loose frames we do not dai'e to make 



shallower, although we have done so on the 

 Hoffman. I have observed, however, some of 

 our top-bai'S % inch thick and one inch wide 

 have already begun to sag perceptibly. But 

 our top-bars % inch thick are as triie as a 

 straight-edge, although they have been in use 

 for over two years. I do not wonder that you 

 do not like top-bars % inch wide. I hope you 

 will get Prof. Cook and the rest of them to 

 adopt a wider and thicker bar.— In regard to 

 lumber in the hives, we endeavor to put in 

 nothing but sound knots, with as much clear 

 lumber as we can get in ordinary lumber we 

 use for hives. Lumber perfectly fi'ee from 

 knots is just as liable to warp and twist as that 

 which is not. A few years ago we offered to 

 furnish Simplicity hives at a slight additional 

 cost, made of perfectly clear lumber; but there 

 were so few calls, that it did not pay us to keep 

 the notice in the price list. We take it that 

 bee-keepers generally are satisfied with bee- 

 hive lumbei', even though it is knotty, providing 

 said knots are sound. It is possible, in the hur- 

 ry of our season, that you have gotten some 

 extra poor covers and bottoms, and we should 

 be glad to send you better ones. Ours do not 

 behave in the way you speak of. They are all 

 bee-tight — every one of them. There are a few 

 that show a little tendency to wind. The tend- 

 ency is slight, however. I believe you are right. 

 Large supply-dealers are, as a rule, quite will- 

 ing to sacrifice present gain for the ultimate 

 good of their patrons. When the thick-top-bar 

 rage, as well'as fixed distances, came up. we 

 were obliged to modify some expensive ma- 

 chinery — or, at least, in some cases, put in other 

 pieces. All of this sacrificed present gain, but 

 we believe it will result in ultimate good.] 



TESTING THE DIFFEKENT BEE-ESCAPES. 



THE PORTER COMES OITT AHEAD. 



Believing, as I do, that the bee-escape and 

 queen-excluder are bound to make quite a rev- 

 olution in the production of comb honey, I 

 thought perhaps an article on that subject 

 might be acceptable. 



First, I will give my mode of constructing a 

 simple and cheap bee-escape which can be 

 made by any one who has the tools at hand. 

 It is constructed on the double-cone system, 

 and therefore is nothing new, I suppose, but 

 may be somewhat easier to construct than some 

 others. The one I shall describe is for the Sim- 

 plicity hive, for taking off exti'acting-supers. 

 First." I make a rim the same as foi- a covei'. In 

 fact, it is a cover, only I use Jo-inch lumber for 

 the top. and bore one to five one-inch holes 

 through it. I think one or two as good as more. 

 I now take my former for making Doolittle 

 queen-cell protectors, and make a lot of cones, 

 and bend the corners out at right angles to the 

 perpendicular of the cone. Di-oj) one through 

 the hole from above, and fasten the corners 

 with small tacks. Turn the cover over and 

 place another cone over this one, tacking the 

 corners to the under side of the cone. This 

 leaves the apexes of the cones }i inch apart, 

 and room for bees to pass between the two 

 cones; thus, if the bees enter the first cone they 

 are apt to miss the inside one. Those who are 

 not familiar with the Doolittle cell-protector 

 can refer to the A B C or back numbers of 

 Gi-EANiNGs to see how they are constructed. 



The first one I made for trial. I put five dou- 

 ble cones in the board; afterward I made a 

 number with three double cones — one double 

 cone, and one with one single cone. The cir- 

 cumstances under which they were tested 



