842 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Nov. 1. 



HISTORY OF THE HOT-PLATE FOUNDATION- 

 FASTENER. 



BY ARTHUR C. MII<I,ER. 



The idea of fastening comb foundation in 

 sections by means of a heated piece of metal 

 was not original with me ; and if my memory 

 serves me rightly it was tried and mentioned 

 by several writers prior to 1887. In that year 

 I tried the plan by making the machine illus- 

 trated here ; but it was an accident, coupled 



THE ORIGINAL HOT - PLATE FOUNDATION- 

 EASTENER, AS MADE AND USED BY AR- 

 THUR C. MILLER, PROVIDENCE, R. I. 



with my desire to know the " reason why," 

 that led me to the discovery of the principle 

 which makes the hot-plate method successful. 

 This iron plate was rough on the front edge, 

 and pushed the section from its place. I bent 

 the plate so it would not touch the section, 

 and then it failed to work either well or uni- 

 formly. Bent down so that it rubbed against 

 the section for a short distance, it worked ; 

 bent up, it would not- — but why ? The secret 

 was in the plate so heating that part of the 

 section against which the melted edge of the 

 foundation came, that the latter had a chance 

 to incorporate itself with the fiber of the 

 wood before the wax chilled. 

 Providence, R. I., Oct. 17. 



[I had always supposed that our friend Ar- 

 thur C. Miller was the originator of the hot- 

 plate nrethod of fastening foundation in sec- 

 tions, but he modestly disclaims the honor. 



It was L. C. Root, author of " Quinby's New 

 Bee-keeping," who, having visited Mr. Miller, 

 gave the idea first to the public some ten 

 years ago ; but after having fully tried it I 

 became convinced that the hot plate slid- 

 ing in a groove would, by reason of wax ac- 

 cumulations, stick in said groove, thus de- 

 stroying its usefulness. Indeed, it did slick a 

 good many times, and caused us no little trou- 

 ble ; but the work, when done, was so greatly 

 superior to that performed by any other meth- 

 od then in vogue that I became thoroughly- 

 satisfied the principle was right, and that it 

 needed only a modification to make it practi- 

 cal. I fussed with a good many styles of ma- 

 chines, and finally gave to our Mr. Warner a 

 plan that was later developed into what we 

 now call the Daisy foundation-fastener. By 

 comparing the general plan of this with the 

 original machine shown above (which was 

 first used by Mr. Miller), oiie will see they are 

 quite similar. It would seem, then, that Mr. 

 Miller's original foundation-fastener was much 

 more perfect than his later improved device. 

 —Ed.] 





MARKETING HONEY. 



A knock on the door, and upon opening it I 

 find a man from the city of Auburn, who an- 

 nounces his name, takes a chair, and informs 

 me that his principal errand is to talk over the 

 matter of marketing honey. We have an 

 hour's conversation after about this style, as 

 nearly as I can remember : 



"I have produced more comb honey this 

 year than our family can consume, and I wish 

 to know how best to market it." 



" The marketing of honey is an important 

 question, for a person may succeed in produc- 

 ing a good article of honey, and so put it up 

 and force it upon the market, that it will not 

 bring the prodiicer as much as a third or fourth 

 class article would an apiarist who has an eye 

 to this important item, ' marketing honey.' " 



" It doesn't seem possible that such can be 

 the case." 



" I know it seems hardly possible ; but, as I 

 hinted, a good price for honey depends much 

 upon the state in which it reaches the market. ' ' 



" Undoubtedly honey would be broken by 

 rough handling ; but I can put mine in a wag- 

 on, and deliver it in perfect order at our gro- 

 cer's." 



" No doubt you could do so, for many will 

 take their honey to market in bulk, piling the 

 sections into a spring wagon in a haphazard 

 way, and, driving to the nearest town or cit}-, 

 offer it to the first grocer they come to." 



" Well, is not this the proper thing to do ? " 



" Hardly ; for, as the grocer looks at it, he 

 is quite liable to soliloquize thus : ' This hon- 

 ey is in poor shape for me to sell ; and if I 

 put it in attractive shape by crating it, it will 



