1904. THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



W^IRING FRAMES, ETC. 



11[ 



By Robert H. Smith. 



IN THE January number of your 

 valuable magazine, Mr. Jameson 

 tells of a very attractive manner 

 of wiring brood frames. I bave been 

 picturing to myself how nice it would 

 be to stand in the shade of one of the 

 grand old maples back of the house 

 swarthed in a fur coat, with the balmy 

 March breeze gently slipping icicles up 

 and down my spines and the thermom- 

 eter registering zero or below. So 

 much for nonsense, now for business. 

 Mr. .Jameson's plan is indeed an ad- 

 mirable one, I should think for a M^arm 

 climate like California, or for New 

 York either, if the brood-frames are 

 wired during the warm months: but 

 nearly every bee-keeper likes to get 

 his hives ready during the winter 



SMITH'S WIRING DEVICE. 



when the work in the "yard" isn't 

 crowding him. I think my plan will 

 ap])eal to such as these. 



I have a small table-like contrivance 

 the exact size of the inside of a brood- 

 frame. At each end there is a cleat 

 nailed which lets the frame slip down 

 just half way. My frames are staple 

 spaced and for the Hoffman frames 

 these end cleats would have to be cut 

 away to allow for the projections om 

 end bars. 



Underneath this table-top construct 

 a box large enough to hold your spool 

 of wire when lying on its side. Now 

 hold your table in front of you with 

 the box at the right hand end and near 

 the corner drill a small hole. A slide 

 floor can be arranged for the door if 

 you like to keep the wire from falling 

 out. However, mine has never bother- 

 ed me in this way. When you are 

 ready to wire, slip your spool into the 

 box so as to unwind from the top side. 



thread the wire through the small hole 

 ■before mentioned, and go ahead. 



I wire my frames in the regular 

 manner and drive both tacks to hold 

 the wire after the frame has been laid 

 on the contrivance that 1 have de- 

 scribed, the frame being laid on with 

 the top-bar from me and the tacks 

 driven in the right hand end-bar in 

 every case. 



Have a system and you will be sur- 

 prised how much faster you will get 

 along than to go at yoiir work hap haz- 

 ard. Folding paper trays for section 

 cases is another slow job. Try having 

 a board cut slightly smaller than the 

 inside of your shipping cases, fold the 

 paper on this and fasten them with 

 sealing wax or something similar.They 

 can be folded up during the winter and 

 packed away and will all reaay for the 

 fruit bloom honey that I hope you will 

 get. 



Brasher Iron Works, N. Y., March 

 G, 1004. 



CYPRIANS AND OTHER RACES. 



A Reply to Dr. Blanton. 

 By Arthur C. Miller. 



FROM i^r. Blanton's article in the 

 Bee-Keeper for May, x infer that 

 he had a particularly vicious 

 strain of Cyprians. On the other hand 

 I have what may perhaps be consid- 

 ered a particularly tractable strain. 

 From observation of the race I believe 

 it is more variable in temper than 

 any other race except the "blacks." 

 In all parts of their worK the race 

 shows great uniformity, variation 

 seeming to lie almost wholly in tem- 

 per. The queens are remarkably pro- 

 lific, the workers are excellent honey 

 gatherers, rapid and uniform comb 

 builders and protect their home from 

 robbers in a very gratifying way. Pure 

 Cypriiiiis do not n^ake attractive comb 

 honey, but for producers of large quan- 

 tities they can not be excelled. If the 

 race should be bred with the same care 

 and selection that has been given t© 

 the Italian, I believe it would excel 

 anything we now have. Perhaps it 

 might be necessary to introduce the 

 blood of some race wnich capptd the 

 cells whiter in order to improve them 

 in that respect, just as ha,s been done 

 with the Italians to improve their lay- 

 ing and color. Such admixture is »een 



