1900 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



■25 



we nail 1X12 boards flush with the ends of 

 the cross-pieces. The three pieces of 1X3 

 that cross the bed are sawed out even with the 

 inside edge of the plank. This forms a shelf 

 on which we set cans, supers, etc. This is 

 very handy. We then use five uprights on 

 each side, and some at each end. These are 

 54 inches high, and at the top are raftered to- 

 gether with pieces cut thus : 

 On the inside of these up- 

 rights, at the top, is a run- 

 ner of IXt), also runners of 

 1X0 on the outside at the bottom. The re- 

 maining space is covered over with wire cloth 

 tacked on the outside. This forms a natural 

 bee-escape all arouud at the top. We leave a 

 door in the back end, of proper width, swung 

 on spring hinges. The root is simply 10-oz. 

 duck, heavily coated with thick white lead. 

 The explanation of the construction will be 

 better understood by a study of the engraving. 

 Now for business. 



In the front right-hand corner, on the shelf 

 we spoke of, we place a Cowan extractor, 

 which makes it high enough so that we can 

 set a five gallon open-top can under the faucet. 

 We use a strainer made of 2x3 wood as a 

 frame, and with a wire-cloth bottom to strain 

 honey. 



In the left-hand corner, opposite the extract- 

 or, we have a gal vxanized iron tank that will 

 hold 600 pounds. Over the top of the tank 

 we spread cheese-cloth to strain the honey 

 again. This will remove the finest particles of 

 foreign matter. To protect the cloth we have 

 constructed wire netting by having a rod of 

 iron bent in a circle, and welded just large 

 enough to drop inside the tank. We have 

 short pieces of rod iron cut and bent around 

 the rod, and also bent at top, to catch on the 

 top of the tank. This lets the frame down 

 about 8 inches from top of the tank. To this 

 we fasten the netting, and on top spread the 

 cloth. Near the bottom of the tank we have 

 a two-inch pipe long enough to reach on the 

 outside of the house end of the pipe, having 

 a valve. Under the valve we place a box, on 

 the box a platform scale ; on the scales a hon- 

 ey-can, and proceed to draw off and weigh up 

 as we go. We use a cart to carry our supers 

 of honey, etc., from the apiary to the house. 

 We have two solid boards with an edge on 

 them, a little larger than the hives, to set the 

 supers on and to catch the drip. We used a 

 Dadant uncapping-can in the center of the 

 house. The frames are taken from the supers, 

 uncapped, and passed to another box or frame 

 to catch the drip. The frames go to the ex- 

 tractor, then back to the bodies, and are then 

 returned to the hives. We take this extract- 

 ing - nouse anywhere with extracting-oufit, 

 camping-outfit, honey-cans, etc., with two 

 horses. 



On the seat is Mr. O. P. Hyde and his 

 youngest son, Emmett ; on wheels is, nearest 

 the wagon, his eldest son, Mr. H. H. Hyde ; 

 the other is Wm. Cravens, an assistant. 



HOME APIARY OF O. P. HYDE & SON. 



This is a partial view. Only part of the 45 

 full colonies and 200 nuclei is shown. This is 



where their golden Italian queens are reared. 

 This is where Victoria and a good many other 

 costly queens are kept. This apiary, as well 

 as two other queen-yards, is under the imme- 

 diate supervision of that practical queen-breed- 

 er, H. H. Hyde. Near the middle of the api- 

 ary Mr. H. H. Hyde will be seen manipulating 

 the colony containing his famous breeder Vic- 

 toria, without veil or smoke. Mr. R. B. 

 Leahy, of Higginsville, Mo., stands near him 

 at his left. Siill further to the left are two 

 little girls. There are also several other visit- 

 ing bee keepers in the picture. In the back- 

 ground are the supply house, extracting-house, 

 barns, etc. 

 Hutto, Texas. 



[Our artist has retouched the sides of the 

 extracting-house in the picture in such a way 

 that it does not correspond in one respect 

 with the description. I refer to the bee-es- 

 cape. — Ed.] 



BELGIAN HARES. 



The Construction of their Hutches; their Food; 

 their Diseases, etc ; Continued from Last Issue. 



BY PROF. A. J. COOK. 



The rabbitry, or place for the animals, need 

 not be expensive. In the Eastern States, 

 where the cold of winter is extreme, it will 

 be necessary to protect against such inclement 

 weather. In California little more than a roof 

 is needed, though it must always be arranged 

 so that the animals will be protected from the 

 rain. The hutches, as their special pens are 

 called, must also be kept dry. In construct- 

 ing the rabbitry, arrangements must especially 

 be made for most perfect ventilation. The 

 very active life of a rabbit would imply good 

 lungs and great necessity of good air. It is 

 found that, if ventilation is not looked to, the 

 lungs soon show a mottled appearance which 

 surely indicates a disease. In California the 

 sides of the rabbitry may well be omitted, ex- 

 cept that arrangements must be made to pro- 

 tect against the driving storms. To secure 

 this last, the side walls might project down 

 for a distance, which also aids in protecting 

 against the trying rays of the sun. Again, I 

 wish to emphasize the importance of perfect 

 ventilation. The air must always be perfect- 

 ly fresh, and yet the animals must be protect- 

 ed against drafts. The hutches should be at 

 least two feet wide, and from ten to twenty 

 feet long. These should be surrounded by 

 wire netting, and, if covered with screens of 

 the same, the animals will be safe against the 

 incursions of cats and dogs. Wire netting 

 should also cover the floor, which should al- 

 ways be of earth. As we have seen, the Bel- 

 gian hare is a rabbit, and so likes to dig. It 

 is thus well that the females can get at the 

 earth, and the wire gauze makes escape impos- 

 sible. Some breeders cover the gauze with 

 two or three inches of earth. It is well that 

 the side walls of the runs should be five or six 

 feet high, with a good hinge door in front. 

 If the door does not reach to within one foot 

 of the ground, which space is occupied by a 



