78 



THE AMERICA N APIC UL TURIS T. 



than double the honey from the ItaUans, 

 and had to feed them less m the fall 

 for winter stores. It would be as sensible 

 to claim tJie box-hives or log-gums were 

 superior to the frame hives as to claim 

 that black bees are better than Italians. 



As for giving the blacks more smoke 

 when handling, my experience is that it 

 causes them to stampede clear out of 

 the hive, and that I do not like when I 

 am hunting for a queen. 



Most beekeepers have the Italians, 

 and know them to be superior. 



Mr. L. C. Root, in "Quinby's New 

 Beekeeping," says that a queen can 

 now be bought for $2 that in 1S60 

 would have cost ^2D — the price Mr. 

 Quinby paid for his first queen. If 

 the investment paid then, it surely must 

 now. 



Qooperstown, N. Y. 



PATENTS. 



The following was clipped from the 

 catalogue of Oliver Foster, Mount Ver- 

 non : 



"Woe nnto liim that nsetli Ms neigh- 

 bors service witliont wages, and giveth 

 him not for his work." — Jek. 22 : 13. 



The services of the inventor are often 

 not appreciated by those whom he most 

 benefits. His midniglit tussles with dark 

 problems that will not let him go cause 

 mental and physical exhaustion such as is 

 unknown to oth'^r industries. 



All civilized governments and reasona- 

 ble individuals recognize the fact that a 

 valuable invention, when completed, is the 

 property of the first inventor ; that he has 

 a right to the hard-earned product of his 

 toil, and that those who make use of his 

 invention are under obligations to him. 

 A patent enables him to demand payment 

 of wliat they ow'e him ; but their moral 

 obliuations are the same, whether he has 

 a patent or not, unless he Avillingly gives 

 away his invention ; and every honest man 

 is more than Avillihg to pay for what he 

 gets, without being compelled to do so. 



I wish Bro. Root would copy the above 

 and comment thereon. Bro. R. does 

 not believe very much in patents, and 

 his comments on the above would be 

 hailed with interest by all those ac-' 

 quainted with his views. 



POINTERS FOR BEGINNERS. 



THE HIVE. 



—Get the best. 



— By all means try the eight-frame 

 hives. 



— If you think the Hoffman frames 

 will suit you, try them. 



— Double- wall hives are certainly su- 

 perior to those having but a single wall. 



— The standard Langstroth style has 

 given good satisfaction. It has a brood- 

 chamber i8| inches long, 14^ inches 

 wide and 10 inches deep. Ten frames. 



— Use the best lumber in the construc- 

 tion of hives. It pays in the end. 

 Good lumber unpainted will stand the 

 weather longer than poor lumber with 

 several coats of paint. 



— Covers to hives should have roofs 

 pitched to shed the water at the sides, or 

 at the back end ; then, when it rains or 

 snow melts in winter, the water will not 

 wet the alighting-board. 



— Use nothing but white lead and 

 pure linseed oil for paint. Hives so 

 painted do not heat up even if not pro- 

 tected from the sun. They are always 

 cool and comfortable during the hot 

 days of July^nd August. 



— Have all hives of a uniform size ; 

 then if desirable to tier up it is easily 

 and quickly done. The brood-chambers 

 need not be made of thick boards. 

 Have the ends one inch thick so a rab- 

 bet can.be sawed and the end of the 

 frames protected without nailing a piece 

 to end of hive to cover them. The 

 brood-chamber should be made of thin 

 boards ; say | boards split. 



— Use one-piece sections ; they are 

 the best by all odds and always purchase 

 the best quality every time. 



— A machine has just been invented 

 for gluing and putting sections together 

 as fast as a boy can pick them up. 



