1899 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



135 



cot sure the editor has any great strength of ar- 

 gument when he says, "When you add one 

 frame at a time to your big colonies, do you 

 'not thereby make a great amount of labor? " 

 For with the big hive Mr. Dadant can, if he so 

 chooses, give all the room at once, just as it 

 can be given with the small hive. That is, he 

 can give the full quota of frames at the start, 

 thus making really fess work than if he had 

 to add a second story. 



I think that, when a second story is given 

 below, the bees can and do increase the size of 

 their brood-nest just as gradually as if large 

 frames were added at the side one by one, 

 with the exception that they hesitate a little 

 to make the first start across a bottom-bar, a 

 top-bar, and space between. Remember that 

 the bees don't make their first start in the 

 lower story by filling one comb from top to 

 bottom; but as soon as a little start is made at 

 the upper part of one frame a start is made at 

 the tops of its neighbors at either side, the 

 bees preserving the spherical form of the 

 brood-nest until the lower story is pretty well 

 occupied. 



In the saving of heat at a time when it is 

 very important to save it, it seems to me the 

 two stories of smaller hives have the advan- 

 tage. Granted that you can add one frame at 

 a time with the larger hive, closing up each 

 time with the dummy, the same thing is done 

 automatically with the two-story, requiring no 

 labor on your part. When a second story is 

 given below, no extra task is thrown upon the 

 bees to keep warm any space they do not oc- 

 cupy. Isn't the upper story just as warm 

 standing on an empty lower story as standing 

 on a bottom-board ? Isn't it a little warmer ? 

 for when standing on the bottom-board the 

 wind has a more direct chance at the bees. As 

 they move gradually downward they warm up 

 the space just as fast as they need it, and no 

 faster. 



" But if you are aiming to raise comb hon- 

 ey," says Mr. Dadant, "as the queen goes 

 downward, as a matter of course the bees will 

 fill the space above them with honey as the 

 brood hatches, and the result will be from 

 twenty to an indefinite number of pounds 

 placed in these combs before the sections are 

 touched." That's a strong point in favor of 

 the single-story, if it's correct. I'll try to 

 show twice that it isn't correct. When the 

 time comes to put on supers (and that's just a 

 little before any surplus is stored) I take away 

 the lower story, leaving eight frames of brood, 

 but no " twenty to an indefinite number of 

 pounds placed in these combs before the sec- 

 tions are touched." It's possible I might do 

 better to leave more room, but I'm not sure 

 of it, and I haven't made a big success of 

 leaving two stories through the harvest. I 

 think it's clear that Mr. Dadant's statement is 

 not correct as applied to my practice. That's 

 once. 



Now as to the practice of those who allow 

 the two stories to remain. I've had queens 

 that would keep 14 Langstroth frames filled 

 with brood. Friend Dadant, don't you see 

 that, for such queens, your 10-frame Quinbys 

 are too small ? Why not come over on my 



side and advocate larger hives ? But I'll not 

 insist on that, for such queens are probably 

 exceptional. Of course, the lower story can 

 be closed down to any size desired ; but even 

 if the whole sixteen frames are used I think it 

 may be shown that Mr. Dadant has overesti- 

 mated the case a little. There is some confu- 

 sion in the matter of comparing frames. The 

 editor counts 10 Ouinby frames as equivalent 

 in comb surface to 12 Langstroths. In Da- 

 dant's Langstroth 9 Ouinby frames are count- 

 ed equal to 12 Langstroths, which is nearer 

 the mark. Thick top-bars have made a little 

 difference in the capacity of the Langstroth. 

 I have just measured one of my frames, and 

 it has a comb surface of 144 ^ inches. The 

 Ouinby has a comb surface of 189 inches. 

 That makes 10 Ouinby frames contain a little 

 more than 13 Langstroth frames. If 10 Quin- 

 by frames are right, then 16 Langstroth are 

 less than 3 frames out of the way. I think 

 that, instead of that being too much by 

 " twenty to an indefinite number of pounds," 

 it would be only from an indefinite number of 

 pounds up to twenty. 



Mr. Dadant says he has a larger super sur- 

 face. True, and that's a good thing. But it 

 makes the supers heavier to handle, and that's 

 a bad thing. And when it comes to counting 

 up the number of unfinished sections at the 

 close of the season, the advantage is on the 

 side of the smaller super. 



As I said in the beginning, I'm afraid the 

 larger frames in the single story are a little 

 better than the smaller frames in two stories; 

 but if I can possibly help it I'm not going to 

 believe they're enough better to balance the 

 great advantage of having the lighter hives to 

 handle. 



Marengo, 111., Dec. 8, 1898. 



[I agree with the doctor, because all our 

 hives are eight-frame, and because that is the 

 way I want to believe. But, joking aside, the 

 eight frames are much handier than the one 

 big hive. — Ed.] 



RAMBLE 161. 



Bicycling in the Mountains. 

 BY RAMBLER. 



From any point of view in Northern Califor- 

 nia it is found to be a strictly mountainous 

 country. Scott Valley is merely a small space 

 upon the margins of Scott River where the 

 land is fertile and could be tilled, while sur- 

 rounding this valley on all sides there is noth- 

 ing but mountains. 



Whoever has passed over the northern route 

 of travel will remember how the line of rail- 

 road is hedged in by mountains, and how few 

 the tillable places are ; so from Scott Valley 

 west to the ocean, a distance of sixty miles, it 

 is mountain peak and canyon, a wild and 

 silent country. 



The KlamalhRiver drains all of this coun- 

 try, and its course through the mountains is 

 marked by gorges of sublime magnitude. 

 About thirty miles west from Scott Valley we 



