176 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



I think it is Gleanings that sa3's the 

 only good reports of the Funics come 

 from those who have them for sale — Bro. 

 Hutchinson remarked about the same. 

 Of course these same remarks apply as 

 well to dealers in all sorts of bee supplies. 

 It strikes me that there must be a big set 

 of liars in the bee business froui Jake 

 Tirapeto A. I. Root. Do you wish to be 

 so understood, Bro. Root? 



I am inclined to think that there are a 

 good many dealers in sujjplies who can 

 and do tell the truth about their goods. 



M. E. Hastings descril)es a patent 

 feeder in a recent issue of the Review. 

 Some ten years ago the Api described a 

 feeder which had all the advantages of 

 the Hastings and there was no patent on 

 it either. The feeder in question was 

 made of tin and so arranged that the bees 

 took the food from the under side and 

 could do so even in the coldest weather. 



HOW TO KEEP WAGON TIRES TIGHT. 



Wagon tires get loose in very dry, hot 

 weather from two causes, the chief of 

 which is the shrinkage of the wood of 

 felloes. It is a poor plan to wet the fel- 

 loes and thus swell the wood, for it will 

 very soon dry out and leave the tires as 

 loose as ever. If, however, the wood 

 be soaked in boiling linseed oil it will be 

 swelled and tiie tires tightened as perma- 

 nently as though cut or upset by a l)lack- 

 smith. A writer in the Ohio Farmer g\\&% 

 the following instructions for doing this : 

 "Make a trough a litde wider and a little 

 deeper than the felloes of the wheel. 

 Heat linseed oil to the boiling point, 

 and at this temperature pour in the 

 trough. Have everything so arranged 

 that you can immediately turn the wheel 

 slowly through this boiling oil. Two or 

 three revolutions are sufficient. Tlien 

 take the next wheel. One heating is 

 sutficient for four wheels, if the work is 

 rapidly done. Better, however, add a 

 little boiling oil after the second wheel 

 is soaked. Have sufficient oil in the 

 trough to cover the felloes. After the 



wheels are all attended to the oil may be 

 poured into a vessel and kept till the 

 next occasion. The skeptic of course 

 says it will do no good. The oil can- 

 not contract the tire. It is immaterial 

 whether the oil contracts the tire or ex- 

 pands the wood. We do know that 

 it makes a perfect job. On one occa- 

 sion it so firmly tightened the tire that 

 the spokes began to bend. This process 

 of tightening the tires is far preferable 

 to that of the blacksmith. 'I'he wheel 

 retains its original shape better. If 

 wagon wheels are so treated once a year 

 they are able to endure the hot and dry 

 season. The whole cost will be a few 

 cents' worth of oil to the wheel and a 

 few minutes' work." — Exchange. 



"How to prevent covers from warp- 

 ing" is the subject of an article in Re- 

 view. I can tell you in a few words just 

 how it is done — keep them covered 

 with good white lead and oil, give them 

 a fresh coat each year, and my word for 

 it, there will be no warping, cracking or 

 leakine. 



Ill the articles on the smoker question 

 that have appean cl of late in ihe Bei^-kcep- 

 per's Ih'vicw, tiie Biiiiiham .seems to have 

 carried otf tlie palm, says Gleanings. 



Of course the Bingham smoker car- 

 ried off the palm. They are the smok- 

 er. Don't waste your money by sending 

 to that man in Indiana for one of those 

 cheap and worthless cold blast smokers. 

 By the way, I wish I could get my cash 

 for running that cold blast smoker and 

 tin can feeder advertisuient one whole 

 year. Be careful to whom you send 

 money. "A word to the wise," etc. 



There is a feeder being sold under the 

 name of "Hastings feeder." Don't 

 touch it. It is not half as good as a tin 

 pan or glass jar, described in September 

 Api, and the price you would have to 

 pay for that patent feeder would pur- 

 chase a dozen tin pan or glass jars. 

 I would also like my pay for advertising 

 that Hastings feeder. 



