February, 1917 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



117 



^ FROM THE FIELD OF EXPERIENCE 



believe that most of them know the real 

 reason. It isn't for the papers, and cer- 

 tainly not for the awful question-box, but 

 for the human contact with beekeepers — 

 and they are a mighty nice lot of people. 

 After the sessions it's the hardest thing to 

 pry Rob loose from any little group that 

 happens to form, and last night he stayed 

 up and talked to the apiarist from the col- 

 lege until half jiast one. Poor Mr. Apiarist! 

 I'm not pitj'ing Rob for I'm sure it was his 

 fault. The beemen hang around that dingy 

 room or the hotel lobby, swapping bee 

 stories until the lights are turned out. Rob 

 says the convention has been a success this 

 3'ear, for the usual bore with a new hive 

 did not come, and the man who has kept 

 bees a few months but knows more about 

 beekeeping than all the rest put together 

 has been kept in the background. Rob is 

 quite elated that they didn't make a new 

 constitution this year, for he says that is the 

 beekeeper's favorite indoor sport. 



I'mj glad I came for I have met lots of 

 men that I've known by name for a long 

 time. Tonight Ave leave for home. Good- 

 by. Mary. 



Trouble, Trouble, Toil and Trouble 



As I was busy today nailing up three 

 hundred metal-spaced frames, the thought 

 came to me that if the manufacturers under- 

 stood only to a small degree the difficulties 

 to the beginner of properly nailing together 

 the hive and its various parts when they 

 are shipped in the flat they would take 

 some measures to advise us as to the best 

 and easiest ways of doing it. 



The coming season will be my fourth with 

 the bees; and I might say that, until my 

 original two hives of bees arrived at my 

 nearest station, I had seen the interior of a 

 hive only once, and had never handled or 

 seen bees kept for honey with the above ex- 

 ception. How well do I yet remember go- 

 ing to the station to bring home my first two 

 colonies ! There were my bees out on the 

 platform with quite a number flying around 

 the hives, and appearing to come from a 

 hole in the wire netting of one of them. 

 The express agent informed me that they 

 were inside at first ; but, owing to the bees 

 getting out too freely for his comfort, he 

 had placed them where I found them. What 

 to do was the problem I had to solve, as 

 naturally I did not relish being stung at 

 the outset of my beekeeping career. A 

 happy thought struck me ; and, hastening to 



a nearby department store, I procured two 

 yards of cheese-cloth, and, armed with 

 gloves, veil, and smoker (which I had for- 

 tunately brought along) proceeded to place 

 the cloth entirely over and around the leak- 

 ing hive and tied it securely in place. After 

 that it was comparatively easy sailing, alt ho 

 there were a few bees flying around; but 

 doubtless they were more frightened than I 

 was, but I did not know it then. 



More difficulties, were in front of me. I 

 had ordered two extra two-story hives in 

 the flat; and when I unpacked the box and 

 endeavored to put the various parts of hive, 

 cover, bottom-board, and frames together I 

 found I was up against a veritable Chinese 

 puzzle. After considerable sorting the 

 various parts for hive body, covers, bottoms, 

 frames, etc., were assembled, altho even then 

 and for a year or two afterward there were 

 a few pieces I could not identify, and it was 

 a long time afterward before I discovered 

 they Avere intended to sui^port the galvanized 

 iron roof. Then there were long thick nails 

 and short thick nails and small thin nails. 

 Where was I to use the different sizes of 

 nails'? how many nails should be used for 

 the different parts? Then there were holes 

 in the side bars of the frames; but what 

 was the i^roper way to do the wiring? and 

 how were the wires to be made tight ? Re- 

 member I had nothing to guide me but the 

 A B C of Bee Culture and one of the bee 

 journals. The trouble with any of the 

 helps of this nature that I had was that 

 none of them were elementary enough to 

 help such a greenhorn as I. In spite of 

 my handicaps I finally completed the task 

 in a fairly creditable manner, but I have 

 since seen where I could have done a better 

 and quicker job. 



My difficulties were pretty well over, I 

 hoped, along these lines, until I commenced 

 getting my supi:»lies ready for the coming 

 season's work. I have just unpacked a 

 shipment, and included in my order wei'e 

 some chaff division-boards, which I had 

 never used before, but had ordered this 

 year to protect some pound packages of 

 bees I had coming. Among the packages 

 was a roll of what I took to be first-aid 

 cotton bandages; and it was some time be- 

 fore it occurred to me that they were a part 

 of the division-boards, and longer yet be- 

 fore what I think is the right way of at- 

 taching them came to me; and then it was 

 thru remembering something I had read 

 some time back in one of the journals. How 

 a sheer beginner would ever begin to put 



