THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



143 



matter of course with propolis. It is sucli 

 a comfort to pnll olt' the covers of hives 

 having; the^f i'nnues in! Tlie beelieeper 

 wlio has tried the two Rinds of frames 

 in hives side bj^ side, the old burr comb 

 frame and the uon-bnrr comb, we are 

 sure will declare thrit he will never, 

 ni'vrr go back to the narrow top bars." — 

 Gleanings. 



It was several years after the Api in- 

 formed the beekeeping public that a 

 thick and wide top bar was the proper 

 thing to prevent burr combs before it 

 was adopted by anyone. Don't forget 

 that the thick top-bar had its origin 

 in the Bay State apiary. 



The beekeeping editors are all now 

 on pretty good terms Avith one another. 

 If there is one of them holding- a "grudge" 

 against another member of the fraternity, 

 I'll tell him how to i^et his revenge, if 

 he must have it. Let him keep perfectly 

 still about it, but go quietly to work 

 and so improve his own journal that it 

 will "run out" the other fellow. 



How many bee-papers have you 

 squelched in that way Bro. H.? A num- 

 ber have died within a year, but I did 

 not think they were killed by you. 



Henry Alley deserves credit for sticking 

 to automatic swarraers all these years, 

 when the most of the rest of us regarded 

 them as not practical.. They may not 

 prove to be practical, even yet; but the 

 evidence in our yard points that way 

 strongly. — Gleanings, Aug. 1. 



Yes, Alley stuck to a thing he knew 

 would prove a success. I well knew 

 that a self-hiving device would surely 

 prove practical. The only reason it was 

 not sooner perfected was the fact that 

 I had few or no swarms issued in my 

 apiary. 



Alley has stuck to a good many things, 

 and for many years, that some people 

 were slow to adopt. When once tested, 

 they were foimd to be as I had claimed. 



Among the things that are now being 

 adopted by many leading beekeepers 

 are the thick, and wide top bars for 

 brood frames. The first frames of this 

 style were devised and used by me in 

 the Bay State Apiary. 



More than twenty years ago I patent- 



ed a hive having a movable outside, or 

 winter case. I soon found that a case 

 made of \ boards was unnecessary and 

 boards half that thickness would answer 

 even better than thick ones. 



Now one of the largest supply deal- 

 ers in the country is advertising "Our 

 thin walled hive" for winter. Do they 

 call it the Alley hive? They "do not. 

 Nevertheless, it is our style all the same. 



Editou Alley says he tried my plan of 

 r using queen-cells in a lower story, hav- 

 ing queen above and quilt between. He 

 failed, and now he wants some one to re- 

 port success so as to save my credit. Don't 

 worry about my credit, Henry. It's good 

 for what flour and bacon I'll need for a 

 year, and may be I'll get a crop next year. 

 Dr. Miller. 



No doubt you can get all the corn 

 and bacon you need, friend Miller. But 

 can you rear those fine queen cells by 

 the method you gave in Gleanings'^ is 

 the question. You can do more than 

 any one else if you can. When I first 

 read that way of having queen cells built 

 I was alive with enthusiasm. Bro. Pratt 

 was here when I prepared the first hive. 

 "Well," he said,"you won't get any cells." 

 "Get out," says I. Dr. Miller says the 

 thing can be done and what the Dr. says 

 is law, or rather was with me till I tried 

 the plan and failed. After that I lost 

 confidence in the man who writes stray 

 straws for Gleanings. Why, I had as. 

 much confidence in what the Dr. said 

 as the little boy did in what his mother 

 said. The little fellow was telling his 

 companions what he- could do; one of 

 the boys rather doubted him. "Well," 

 said the same boy, "I know it can be 

 done as my mother said so, and when 

 my mother says so it's so if it aint so." 



I begin to think it is'nt so as 

 I didn't find it so. Now Dr., don't 

 get mad and throw more corn and bacon 

 around. Keep the stuff till colder weath- 

 er. 



Perhaps some may ask why I print only 

 unfavorable accounts of the Punic bees. 

 It is because 1 see no other, except those 



