496 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



will do; but the double boilers are best and 

 safest. 



Across the middle of the wax-dish wedge 

 a stick (piece of a bottom-bar) to wipe the 

 brush on. It is belter than wiping across 

 the edge of the dish, as no wax runs down 

 the outside. 



If single instead of double dishes are used, 

 great care must be taken not to burn the 

 brushes. Put a piece of wire cloth in the 

 bottom of each wax-dish. A square i^iece 

 with the corners folded under will hold the 

 brushes from the i^an bottom. Also, always 

 remove the brushes from the wax before it 

 cools. If you do not at the start, you will 

 later. 



Into one dish is put jjure wax. This is 

 for the large brush. Into the other is put 

 three parts wax and one part rosin. This is 

 for the small brush, and is used to attach 

 the foundation to the frame. 



The outfit is placed as follows : On the 

 bench directly in front of me is the board 

 with a two-burner gas " flat " or heater (an 

 oil-stove with two burners will do as well). 

 Over each of the burners is a dish of wax. 

 A lower temperature is needed for the rosin- 

 wax than for the other. The soldering-iron 

 is placed so that it projects over part of one 

 of the flames. The foundation is piled on 

 the bench convenient to one hand, and 

 frames are convenient to the other. On the 

 floor close at hand are a few hive-bodies to 

 hang the filled frames in. 



A sheet of foundation, togetlier with the 

 sheet of pai3er under it, is laid on the board, 

 paper side down. The wired frame is laid 

 over all; the foundation is jiushed close 

 against the top-bar and one end-bar. And 

 right here you will learn the value of sc|ua]e 

 frames and square foundation. Then the 

 small brush with rosin-wax is drawn along 

 the top-bar and foundation, and down each 

 end-bar. Then the " iron " is drawn along 

 the wires, bedding and securely fastening 

 them. Then the large brush is wiped aero>s 

 the stick in the dish to remove any excess of 

 wax, and the foundation painted with it. 



The frame is nov,' turned over, the paper 

 peeled off, that surface of the foundatio)i 

 painted, and the rosin-wax drawn along the 

 top-bar and down the end-bars — all very 

 simple and very rapid. I can pick up the 

 frame and foundation, fasten it with rosin- 

 wax on both sides (but not " paint " sur- 

 face), bed the wires, and remove it from 

 the board in thirty seconds. Try that stunt 

 with the groove-and-wedge plan and spur 

 imbedder, and see where you come out. 



But if you try this system without some 

 knowledge of the principles involved, you 

 will have much labor and trouble before you 



succeed. Every part of the work is modified 

 by some other part or condition. If the 

 room is cool you can work more rapidly 

 than if it is warm, and at the same time you 

 need a warmer iron and warmer wax. The 

 thinner the foundation, the more careful 

 you must be about the heat of iron and wax, 

 and also of " touch " and speed. All of 

 which suggests a difficult and troublesome 

 process, but such is not the case. Once you 

 have learned the temperature at which the 

 wax and iron work best at the ordinary 

 temperature of the room, you have only to 

 raise or lower it slightly to meet changes in 

 that factor. 



If the rosin-wax is too hot, it will melt 

 the edge of the foundation and run down 

 through. It would stick the frame, founda- 

 tion, and board together were it not for the 

 space made by the two brass-headed uphol- 

 stery nails referred to earlier. A little wax 

 will flow to the under surface of the foun- 

 dation any way, so the space is essential. 

 If the rosin-wax is too cool it does not flow 

 from the brush readily, does not fasten the 

 foundation easily, and calls for too many 

 strokes of the brush. Also, it does not spread 

 on the frame in a thin nice stripe as it 

 should. 



The rosin-wax will fasten the foundation 

 securely, Avhile plain wax will not; and, 

 furthermore, and most important, the bees 

 can no more resist the attraction of those 

 rosin-wax stripes than the small boy can 

 resist the lure of the proverbial jam-pot. 

 No sooner do the bees begin to gather on 

 the frame and foundation than they begin 

 to draw out the walls of the cells next to 

 the wood, and the result is a joy to the 

 beekeeper. 



In "painting" the foundation if the wax 

 is too hot it softens the walls, does not leave 

 enough without a second stroke of the brush, 

 and a second stroke on the softened founda- 

 tion makes a mess — that is to say, it flattens 

 it to almost a smooth sheet, resulting later 

 in drone-cells in spots. If the wax is too 

 cold the brush drags, a needless amount of 

 wax is used, and the foundation is not prop- 

 erly re-enforced. The ideal coating gives a 

 thickened rim to most of the cells, much as 

 the bees keep them when building natural 

 comb. This very materially strengfhens the 

 foundation and lessens stretching. I often 

 illustrate the condition by likening it to 

 putting a rigid cast-iron coating on a tough 

 wrought-iron base. Never mind if some cells 

 get a thin cover or capping of wax; or if 

 the wax fills a few cells you may trust the 

 bees to fix every thing as it should be. A 

 very heavy coating of wax may be applied, 

 and the bees will use it all, but there is no 



