NOVKMBKR. lO-'il 



I. 



(' r 1. T I' i; !•: 



FROM THE FIELD OF EXPERIENCE 



space at the edges, ami the colonies showed 

 no evidence of distress or overheating. 

 Telescope lids «o boiled need no tin, as tlio 

 coating is waterproof and can be cheaply 

 renewed. 



It is time that the fraternity wake up to 

 the fact, that it is only by a careful study 

 of economy, with improved results, that we 

 can overcome the ruinous handicap of fall 

 ing prices of our ])roduct, with constantly 

 high costs of e\eiytliing tliat we use :niii 

 buy. 



The purpose of this article will be achiev- 

 ed if there results some practical study, by 

 paint chemists, of comi)ounds into wliicli 

 (boiling hot iterhaps) hive parts may be 

 dipjied, coating them in a few seconds inside 

 and out with a light-colored, i^enetrating, 

 juotective film, superior in weather-resist- 

 ing powers, and perhaps cheapness, to any 

 paint now known. Certainly such a com- 

 pound can be devised, if the necessary tal- 

 ent can be enlisted, and the times are surely 

 ripe for its development. 



Meridian, Idaho. E. F. Atwater. 



=>s^QP 



DEFEATING THE ANTS 



A Unique Scheme Devised by Two Enthusiastic 

 Backlotters 



R. B. Calkins of Oakland, Cal., one of the 

 head men in the office of the Western Union 

 in San Francisco, and secretary of the local 

 bee society, is an enthusiastic beekeeper. In 

 deed, both he and his wife have the bei 



Ki-. l.--ni.- tiilkiiis aiil pro..i Mi\.-Mai,u n ihlV.-rs 

 friirn no other hive-.stand except that near earh of 

 its four rorners it has 20-peniiy spikes driven in 

 ahoni half their length, and eaiij;ed to fit snugly to 

 the inside rim of the reversihle holtom-hoard on each 

 side. Around the projeetine portion of the spikes 

 ii> wound feltine which is afterward soaked in axle 

 crease. On top of these four nails is carefully 

 adjusted a colony of bees as shown in Fi?. 2. Foi- 

 ohvious reasons the alii^htinii: hoard connects with 

 the hive stand and not with bottom-board of hive. 



fever, and have it strong. It is hard to say 

 which one suffers from it or enjoys it the 

 more. Of course, they attemled the winter 

 course in beekeeping at Davis, Cal; and so 

 much interested was Mr. Calkins that he 

 took down the whole course of lectures in 

 shorthand, and afterward advertised them. 



Fig. 2. — A colony of bees resting on four 20-penny 

 nails driven half-way down into the hive-stand As 

 explained in Fi?. 1, these nails are surrounded with 

 felting whicli is dipped in axle grease, which does 

 not evai)orute .so readily as creosote, altho the latter 

 would be satisfactory. .\nts are real pest.s in 

 Hoikeley. The colonies thus protected are free 

 friiiii any furilicr visitation- of their old friends the 

 enemy. 



neatly transcribed' in typewriter, )in the 

 columns of this journal. See his advertise- 

 ment on i)age 41;! for the July issue, 1919. 



In com]iany with Cary \V. Hartinan of 

 Oakland, Cal., who, with ]Mr. Calkins, or- 

 ganized the Alameiia ('ounty Beekeepers ' So- 

 city, 1 called at the home of the Calkinses, 

 and while I failed to find them on the first 

 trip I got them on the second. It was a real 

 insjiiriition to meet them. Verily they 

 seemed to have found the fountain of eter- 

 nal youth. Mrs. Calkins seems to be the 

 main beeman, because her husband is tied 

 up with his Western Union business. 



They have i pretty little apiary loctited 

 among the eucalypti in the rear of their 

 liome yard; and as one takes a glance thru 

 the hives he can not fail to note that some- 

 body is bestowing on them loving care, and 



