1120 



GLEANINGS IN BEP: CULTURE. 



8Ei'T. I 



am informed by sellers) that they are get- 

 ting that very thing — something for nothing 

 — when they bny a 4X5 section, because 

 they actually see more of their goods. It 

 seems to bee-keepers a foolish idea: but to 

 the stoi'e-keeper it is a stern reality, that 

 his 4X5 sections are cleaned out before his 

 . 4^ square begin to sell. One man told me 

 * that, if there was a section made that showed 

 5XH or so, and weighed only 14 oz., it would 

 be preferred by the generality of people. 

 Very few people in the city or in large vil- 

 lages know much about the weight of a 

 section of honey. Of course, there arc peo- 

 ple who do, but they are few and far be- 

 tween. If a section 'looks large it is all they 

 ask, and, strange as it may seem, a good 

 many people think they are being cheated 

 to pay a few cents more for a full pound of 

 chunk honey than to buy a section contain- 

 ing sometimes one or two ounces less than 

 a pound. To me it shows lack of care in 

 providing; but in a city, so few housekeep- 

 ers know the kind or weight of any thing 

 that is served on their tables that it is hard, 

 so far as they are concerned, to reach or 

 convince them. 



Of co-urse, the store-keeper wants what 

 sells best; the wholesaler wants what sells 

 best, and the bee-keeper wants to produce 

 what sells best in his market. 



At a recent bee meeting held in Worcester, 

 Mass., by the Worcester County Bee-keep- 

 ers' Association, there were two sections of 

 honey that wei-e examined by quite a few 

 people, one a 4^X4^, the other a 4X5. Al- 

 most to a man (also woman) the 4X5 was 

 pronounced heavier; but actual weight show- 

 little if any difference. This is, of course, 

 only one example; but it goes to prove what 

 we "are all aiming at — " please the public and 

 your fortune is made." 



West Medford, Mass. 



[If very few, as you say (and I think you 

 are right), know the weight of a section, 

 much less associate the idea of a pound with 

 a box of honey, then there is and can lie no 

 deception. If an oblong package is more 

 popular than a square one, furnish what is 

 called for.— Ed.] 



very smooth, and extends the length of the 

 block except ^ inch at each end. The slot 

 should be made with a small circular saw. 



Take a piece of window glass. 6X1, and 

 put the crowning side next the block, and 

 tie it tightly with linen thread arouiid the 

 glass and block at each end past the slot in 



MEASURING BEES' TONGUES. 



A Simple and Automatic Device for that 

 Purpose. 



BY F. A. POWEKS. 



I have an instrument for measuring the 

 length of bees' tongues which is a success, 

 as it is comparatively accurate and takes 

 but little time to use it. The idea is ongmal 

 with me, but I do not know whether the 

 principle has been used before or not. 



I take a piece of fine-grained wood, about 

 6 inches long, 1 inch wide, I inch thick at 

 one end, and | at the other end, and make 

 a saw-kerf through it, through the thin way 

 of the block. The saw-kerf is ^g inch wide. 



the block. But before tying on the glass 

 measure very accurately the thickness of the 

 block near the thin end, and make a mark 

 across the bloi^k just where it is ^%% inch 

 thick, also make a mark across it near the 

 thick end where it is ^^jj inch thick; now 

 divide the space between these marks into 10 

 equal spaces, making marks across the block 

 with the point of a knife. Number the 

 marks with a lead-pencil from 35 to 35, then 

 tie the glass on over the marks and figures 

 as described. Now put it in a vessel with 

 some beeswax and set it on the stove and 

 melt the wax, and let it soak into the wood 

 15 minutes or so. After you have drained 

 the wax out of the gi'oove, scrape the remain- 

 ing wax out of it with a stick and it is ready 

 for use. 



To use it, fill the groove with honey; place 

 it on the Hight-boartl of a hive whose bees' 

 tongues you wish to measure (there should 

 be Init little or no honey coming in at the 

 time). The bees will eat the honey out of 

 the groove as far as they c^an reach, in half 

 an hour or so. You can then take the instru- 

 ment, and, by looking at the glass side, you 

 can see how far the bees have licked the hon- 

 ey otT the glass, and the mark at this joint 

 will indicate the length of the tongue in lOOths 

 of an inch. 



Of course, the bee's jaws will go into the 

 groove some distance, I think about ^-J^ inch; 

 but you can get the relative length of the 

 tongues, which is good enough for practical 

 purposes. F. A. Powers. 



Parma, Idaho. 



[A device for measuring bees' tongues that 

 was quite similar to this was illustrated a 

 couple of years ago. — Ed.] 



BUILDING COMBS UPWARD. 



Did you people ever have or hear of a 

 swarm of bees starting to build combs from 

 the bottom upV They did not stand up very 

 well. A neighbor has such a colony. 



Apollo, Pa. H. R. Richards. 



[Yes, bees will sometimes do this, but 

 when they can get a good point of attach- 

 ment overhead they prefer it. — Ed.] 



