480 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Oct. 



ing the notch wide enough to admit the uniform di- 

 ameter of an 8d. nail. 



Take a hard-wood block 2x^i in., and 2M in. longer 

 than the distance between the outside wires ia your 

 frame, and, after making it to correspond with the 

 wires in your frame (center of frame at center of 

 block), cut a groove at each mark just right to re- 

 ceive half of the shank of an awl, letting the point 

 project square from the edge of the block about Hi 

 in. The obtuse angle of the shank is let into the 

 wood. Now take a block the same size as the 

 other, but 3 in. shorter, and groove it so that, 

 when the blocks are placed center to center and 

 face to face, and securely bolted or screwed to- 

 gether, the awls will be held quite firmly in 

 place. Before finally putting them together, how- 

 ever, drive a piece of nail into each of the 

 grooves in the longer block, I'^tting them project 

 just enough to fit the notches in the shanks, already 

 spoken of. Now fix the blocks firmly together with 

 the awls in place, and we have the " head-block." 



Now take two pieces of board, T in. wide and 6 in. 

 long, and cut a groove iU in- wide and ?^ in. deep, 

 and M in. from the edge) along the shorter edge of 

 each. These standards are to be firmly nailed (with 

 grooves to the front and facing each other) to the 

 bottom-board, which should project 2 or 3 inches in 

 front of them. This bottom-board is 2 or 2V2 ft. long, 

 and wide enough so that, when the standards arc 

 nailed on, the ends of the head-block will just slip 

 into the grooA'CS. Before nailing the standards on, 

 cut a notch in the lower front corner of each, I'i in. 

 high, and reaching back across the groove, and bore 

 a iio-in. hole 5 in. from the bottom, and 51 2 in. from 

 the front side. The frames are to be slipped over 

 the bottom -board, the top-bars coming into the 

 notches in the standards. Set a I'/j-in. screw into 

 the back side of each notch; slip on a frame, and ad- 

 just the screws so that the awls shall be over the 

 center of the top-bar. Take a 2-inch gtrip, slightly 

 thicker than your top-bars, and fasten it to the bot- 

 tom-board just back of the frame when on, and fas- 

 ten a strip (lU in. thick) over this, and projecting 

 over the top-bar. The awls work through this strip, 

 which serves to prevent the frames from rising 

 when the head-block is raised. There must be a 

 clear space of 'a in. between strips and standards. 



Take a board about 16 in. long and I'/i in. narrower 

 than the distance between the standards, and nail a 

 9i-in. strip on each edge of it, letting them project 

 Z% in. beyond the end of the board. Nail a narrow 

 strip about % in. thick across one side of this board, 

 6 in. from the ends of the projecting strips, for a 

 fulcrum, and, placing it on the bottom-board so that 

 the points project ?i in. under the head-block, nail a 

 thin strip across the bottom-board on each side of 

 the fulcrum, to keep it in place. Finally, take a 

 board about 3 feet long, and wide enough to fill the 

 space between the standards; bore a %-m. hole, 2 or 

 3 in. deep, in each edge, 10 in. from the back end; 

 nail a small rounded strip across the under side 5 

 inches in front of the holes, and work down the front 

 end for a handle. This lever is coupled to the stand- 

 ards by slipping pieces of ;'« iron rod, or bolts with 

 the nuts off, through the holes in the standards and 

 into the holes in the lever. 



Now for business: Screw the bottom-board to a 

 work-bench so that the front end projects from the 

 edge. Slip on a frame with the left hand, and de- 

 press the lever smartly with the right, thus sending 

 the awls right through the top-bar, and raising the 



back end of the lower lever. The levers being wide 

 and stiff, raise and lower the ends of the head-block 

 alike. Knots in top and bottom bars should be 

 avoided. The machine should be adjusted by blocks 

 or screw-heads so that the frames slip on just right, 

 and the awls descend just far enough. If preferred, 

 the holes maybe punched before the frames are put 

 together. 



My machine cost only 35 cents, and about two 

 hours' work one morning; and before noon it saved 

 me two or three days' work over the old way. At 

 first I did not notch the awls, depending on the grip 

 of the blocks to hold them; but the first time the 

 head-block was raised, two or three awls stuck fast 

 in the top-bar. 1 then notched them, as I have di- 

 rected, and have punched about 1.500 frames without 

 any trouble. F. B. Chapman. 



Scipioville, N. Y., Sept. U. 1881. 



Your ability to devise ways and means for 

 nialiing tools cheaply is considerable, friend 

 C; but I fear most of our friends Avill find 

 it a pretty good day's work to make such a 

 machine, even if the materials do not cost 

 more than you say. We first pierced our 

 bars with a similar machine, to be worked 

 by foot power, but we broke so many awls 

 we afterward made a gang of drills to do the 

 work. We did not draw the temper, as you 

 suggest, and I think likely this would make 

 quite a difference. With the gang of drills 

 we can pierce several bars at once, and hard 

 or knotty places make no difference. 



^^ igi ^ 



RASPBERRIES FOR BEES. 



f MAILED you this morning a few clusters of 

 blossoms from a seedling raspberry that we 

 — ■ have. For bee-keepers it far surpasses the 

 Cuthbert, as it gives two crops each year. If very 

 dry, the last crop is not very large, but is of excel- 

 lent flavor, and, no matter how dry, the bushes are 

 loaded twice each year with clusters of blossoms 

 that will keep the bees busy. We are now in the 

 most protracted drought we ever experienced, yet 

 our bees are working away on them as merrily as 

 though it were June. You will see by clusters sent 

 you how bushes are loaded, and I did not pick out 

 the largest by any means, but took them just as 

 they came. The berry will not average quite as 

 large as the Cuthbert; drops from the bunch easier, 

 and is so soft as to be unfit for a market berry, but 

 for home use can not be surpassed, with us at least; 

 and as you get two crops per year, I think it will 

 pay better, especially for those who want them for 

 pasturage for bees, than any other berry we know 

 of. We have not the time nor inclination to intro- 

 duce the berry and make money out of it, so I will 

 make this offer: If you or any of your subscribers 

 want any of the plants to try, I will send you some 

 at but little above what it will cost for postage, moss, 

 and oiled paper. Postage on a good strong plant 

 will not vary much from 15 jC. Now, do you think it 

 will be too much to ask 2c each by mail, postpaid, or 

 100 by express for $1.00? If you do, I will try to fur- 

 nish for a little less. F. L. Wright. 



Plainfield, Mich. 



The samples sent seem very full of blos- 

 soms, and fruit in different stages ; and it 

 would almost seem as if it were June to 

 look at them. I have often heard of ever- 

 bearing raspberries, but had the impression 



