THE AMERICA_N BEE JOURNAL. 



199 



and give better satisfaction to retailer 

 and consumer. 



AVliat :ui unsightly object a crate of 

 leaking honey is ! It is much more 

 convenient to retail sections of honey 

 by the piece, than to take time to 

 weigli each one, and tliey are sold 

 largely in that way. When separators 

 are not used, the sections vary so much 

 in weight it cannot be done. Then 

 the smooth, sy metrical snowy blocks 

 of semi-transparent honey, which 

 fairly make the mouth water, look far 

 more attractive than the irregular, 

 warty, bulged or hollowing ones, and 

 meet a more ready sale. Alany a time 

 have visitors in my honey room pointed 

 to these blocks in a pile of less even 

 sections, and exclaimed, " What a nice 

 one that is !" I think I have never 

 had .50 sections which could not be 

 crated for shipment, but I can crate 

 the separatored ones twice as fast as 

 those not separatored. 



The leading honey dealer of Chicago 

 told me he would far rather sell separa- 

 tored honey. Buyers are constantly 

 becoming more discriminating, and I 

 predict that soon separatored honey 

 will sell quicker, even if it does not 

 bring more money — quite an item in 

 cur overstocked markets. Even here 

 in the West, where the market does 

 not call for glassed sections, time will 

 tell that it pays to use separators. 



I use a section case, and practice a 

 system similar to Bro. Heddon's well- 

 known and deservedly popular one. 

 Have used the Ileddon case largely 

 with individual tin separators for 

 each section. This necessitates much 

 labor and expense, but I should cer- 

 tainly follow that plan if there were 

 no better one. I will not use wide 

 frames. They are an abomination. 

 Last year I used about 1.50 cases simi- 

 lar to the Heddon case, but in which 

 the partitions are omitted and the sec- 

 tions held in place by narrow band- 

 iron supporters across the bottom of 

 the case. This case allows the use of 

 separators, separators of wood 1-10 

 inch thick were used to give entire 

 satisfaction in these cases. I prefer 

 them to tin. The same separators 

 tacked to wide frames I do not like. 



In the modified Heddon case they 

 are fastened to nothing permanently, 

 and when not in use are piled up out 

 of the way, and no warping or split- 

 ting occurs, though they are pared 

 from basswood logs in a berry box 

 factory. Not being tacked to a frame, 



gropolis is easily scraped from them. 

 lees seemed no more inclined to at- 

 tach comb to them than to tin separa- 

 tors. Indeed, I have been annoyed 

 more by bees building into and attach- 

 ing combs to the sides of adjoining 

 narrow sections where no separators 

 were used. I carefully set all hives 

 with a level, too. (No cases or sep- 

 arators for sale.) 



I have found the chief advantage of 

 separators in my method of using 

 surplus section cases. They are tiered 

 up in the usual way until %io%ot 

 the sections in the upper case are 

 finished. Then the case is quickly 

 and easily cleared of bees and carried 

 to the honey house. Here, away from 

 robbers and angry bees, the case can 

 be manipulated when convenient. The 



unfinished sections, being straight 

 and regular, are easily placed in cases 

 and returned to the" bees. By this 

 plan combs are seldom soiled by re- 

 maining too long with the bees, and 

 fewer cases are in the hive at a time, 

 thus concentrating the work of the 

 bees and encoiunnizing the heat of the 

 hive. By this plan, too, more sections 

 are finished, and fewer unfinished ones 

 are left at the close of the season. I 

 find that usually where cases are 

 tiered up more than two high, work 

 goes on very slowly above that point. 

 Especially is this true during the cool 

 nights of late simimer. More time is 

 usually required to get the last half 

 dozen sections in a case finished, than 

 all the others. 



"Where separators are not used, it is 

 a vexatious, tedious task to return the 

 unfinished sections to the bees. If 

 they are not perfectly matched, trouble 

 ensues. Those where the combs come 

 but a trifle too close, are bridged to- 

 gether, and cannot be separated with- 

 out causing leakage. It but a trifle 

 too far apart, and the adjoining combs 

 are capped, new work is commenced 

 on top of the capping, making un- 

 sightly sections. 



With me the use of separators avoids 

 more of the annoyances and petty 

 vexations of our calling than any 

 other improvement in bee-keeping. 

 I would willingly, if necessary, lose .5 

 per cent, of each honey crop rather 

 than dispense with them. 



Bangor, Mich. 



ror tbe American Bee JoumaL 



Single-Walled vs. Cha£f Hives. 



G. SI. ALVES. 



Mr. Heddon makes some remarks in 

 a recent number, that set forth a cor- 

 rect theory. Bee-keepers frequently 

 make the mistake of assuming the 

 habitations of bees as analogous to 

 their own, viz : that walls for bees, as 

 well as those for man, should be at all 

 times as non-conducting as possible. 

 Now a little reflection will show that 

 the same conditions do not obtain in 

 both cases. A man's bodily heat has 

 no appreciable effect on the tempera- 

 ture of his room, whereas with bees, 

 the heat of their hive is generated by 

 their bodies. 



In our dwellings the walls should be 

 good non conductors at at all times, 

 for the reason that " what will keep 

 out the cold, will also keep out the 

 heat." The walls of hives should be 

 good non conductors in cold weather 

 certainly, but in very warm weather a 

 hive, provided it is shaded, with con- 

 ducting walls, would be more com- 

 fortable to the bees, for the reason 

 that the accumulated and excessive 

 heat generated within, could pass off 

 more readily into the atmosphere. 



In this respect, bee hives are not 

 analogous to our dwellings, but to our 

 clothing; i. e., to be comfortable should 

 be fair conductors in summer, and 

 non-conductors in winter. 



The soundness of this theory is self- 

 evident, and should teach us to make 

 our hives of rather thin walls, which 

 should be well-shaded in the heat of 



the summer, and if suffered to remain 

 out-of-doors all the year, should be 

 protected by an outer covering in win- 

 ter. This plan would seem also to 

 be agreeable to cheapness of con- 

 struction, and facility of handling in 

 the working season. 



It would hence seem that the use 

 of chaff hives should be avoided. 



Henderson, Ky. 



For tlie American Bee Journal 



Tiffin, 0., Convention. 



In response to the call a number of 

 the bee-keepers met March 15, and 

 organized by calling Mr. Wm. C. 

 Hamilton to the chair, and Mr. J. T. 

 Martin to act as Secretary. 



The first question discussed was : 

 " Shall we have a county bee-keepers' 

 association y" 



Several spoke of the necessity and 

 benefits that would be derived from 

 an association, holding meetings every 

 three months, or oftener if thought 

 best, when the motion was carried 

 unanimously. 



On motion, the chairman appointed 

 Messrs. J. T. Martin, Marcus Holtz, 

 and Michael Bower a committee to 

 draft a constitution and by-laws and 

 report the same in the afternoon. 



The merits of different forms of 

 hives, sections and frames were dis- 

 cussed, when the meeting adjourned 

 till 1 p. m. 



At 1 o'clock the chairman called the 

 meeting to order, and called for the 

 report of the committee on constitu- 

 tion and by-laws. 



J. T. Martin read the report, which 

 was received and the committee dis- 

 charged. The report was taken up, 

 discussed, portions re-read, and with 

 a few slight changes was adopted. 



Eighteen then signed the constitu- 

 tion, representing 260 colonies of bees. 



The election of officers followed, re- 

 sulting in the election of E. J. C. 

 Troxel as President; J. L. Fisher, 

 Vice-President; J. T. Martin, Secre- 

 tary ; Wm. C. Hamilton, Treasurer, 

 and M. Holtz, J. L. Fisher, and J. T. 

 Martin as executive committee. 



The topic, " Early spring treat- 

 ment," was discussed, different views 

 being advanced as to how bees should 

 be managed in the spring. 



Quite an interesting discussion fol- 

 lowed on the qualities of the different 

 breeds of bees. 



Mr. Feasel gave his experience with 

 Italians, Cyprians, Albinos and Holy 

 Land bees. 



In connection with the different 

 varieties of bees, the merits of honev 

 producing plants were discussed with 

 much interest. 



Marcus Holtz exhibited a couple of 

 his make of hives, having established 

 a factory near the city. 



Mr. Hamilton placed on the table a 

 glass jar of beautiful extracted honey. 



Mr. II. H. Overmyer sentin a dozen 

 jars of very nice extracted honey; 

 being unable to be present himself, on 

 account of a death in his family. 



The meeting adjourned till the 

 third Saturday of April, at which 

 time a much larger attendance and a 

 more interesting meeting is antici- 

 pated. J. T. Martin, Sec. 



