1895. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



147 



as the end cleats extend above the cover boards. If slanted 

 in this way and not kept vpell painted, it will catch water in 

 the crack formed at the union of the cover cleat and the top 

 boards, and will soon rot out. I see, since writing the above 

 that Dr. Miller claims that this cover will not warp , " for two 

 pieces will seldom if ever agree to twist together." No, but 

 they do not need to do this in order to get the cover out of 

 shape — one will go one way and one the other way, and the 

 mischief is done. 



About as good an arrangement as can be made for a cover 

 is a rim about two inches wide, made to fit any part of the 

 hive, and having two boards for a top cover, with a strip of 

 bent zinc fitted in saw-kerfs, to cover the crack. Of course 

 such top-boards should be cut out of well-seasoned lumber, 

 and they should be nailed on properly and kept well painted. 

 If any of these precautions are neglected, they will cause 

 trouble. I have had them in use for years and none of them 

 have ever given me any trouble when made out of well-seasoned 

 lumber and properly nailed. Many times they are not driven 

 up properly before they are nailed, and then there is sure to 

 be a bad crack soon. 



It would seem that I had offered enough objections to this 

 dovetailed hive, but I have one more which is not quite so 

 serious. I do not like the surplus arrangement. 



I REFER TO THE SECTION-HOLDERS. 



I tried these several years before the above hive was made 

 and decided I did not want them. They were made by the 

 Falconer Mfg. Co. I very much prefer the pattern slat which 

 rests on a flange made inside of the super, with boards at the 

 end. If I used them without separators, they were always 

 getting out of shape. As I do not believe it pays to go to the 

 expense of using separators, I long since discarded the sec- 

 tion-holder. They are very good with separators. 



THE BOTTOM-BOARD, 



of this hive, is all right, as I do not see how a man who 

 handles a large number of colonies of bees can get along with 

 a bottom-board nailed fast to the hive. It is very convenient 

 to have it so it can be removed when desired, and it can be 

 fastened so securely and with so little expense by the use of 

 the Van Deusen clamp, or simple hooks, that I am led to 

 wonder why any other kind but a loose bottom is made. No, 

 not that it is made, for the factories make what the people 

 want, but I am greatly surprised that anyone who has a desire 

 to have things convenient should want anything but a loose 

 bottom-board. 



As to HOW MANY STORIES HIGH 



a hive should be, it depends entirely, in my opinion upon the 

 strength of the colony and the length of the honey-flow. No 

 one should think of beginning the season with less than four 



supers for each strong colony. If the honey-flow lasts any 

 great length of time, it will be better to have six, or even 

 more. I am persuaded that during a good honey-flow it is 

 about as easy to get six supers filled, if properly manipulated, 

 as It would be to get two filled, if there is only one super used 

 at a time, and each is left on until entirely filled. Here is 

 where I believe in large hives— large in the upper story; the 

 larger the better, provided the bees go up and occupy them, 

 if there is ever a time when the saying, " Give the bees room 

 according to their strength" is true, it is during a rapid 

 honey-flow. Of course, it requires the exercise of some Judg- 

 ment to know when to commence enlarging the hive, and how 

 last to enlarge it ; but, in my opinion, it will win every time. 

 If properly managed. 



The super which has the least number of loose parts 

 about It, and one which will give the bees access to every part 

 of It direct from the hive, suits me the best. The bees should 

 have the same direct communication with the outside row of 



sections that they have with any other, if one expects them to 

 finish up the outside sections properly. 



As I do not advocate the use of separators, I prefer the 



SECTIONS OPEN ON POUR SIDES, 



as explained by Mr. Oliver Poster in his book on "Comb 

 Honey." (See illustration below.) 



This gives a connected passage through every part of the 

 super. The bees can conserve the heat better where sections 

 are so arranged. They will enter the super more readily and 

 will fill out the sections on all sides in better shape. By using 

 full sheets of foundation which come within % inch of the 

 section on each side and at the bottom, there will rarely be 

 any sections bulged so they cannot be crated all right with a 

 little care. Those which are bulged, if any, can be sold at 

 home, and I am sure the loss and bother will not be as great 

 as the cost of separators. Such sections require a little more 

 care in cleaning, but not enough to add materially to the cost 

 of the honey. 



I also prefer a super that fits down over the body at least 

 at the sides by means of a shallow rabbet or a bevel. Such a 

 super is not so apt to be left out of place, rests on the hive 

 more snugly, and does not leave a crack. I say again, I could 

 never think of tolerating a square Joint, and I feel sure the 

 time will come when the majority of those who have bees will 

 agree with me ; for, as I said before, our ideas about things 

 operate very much as fads in fashion do. They come and go. 



St. Joseph, Mo. 

 (To be continued.) 



How I Managed to Get a Good Crop of Honey 

 When Others About Failed. 



BY C. H. STORDOCK. 



It may look singular to any person reading the report 

 of the Northern Illinois convention on page 53, that I should 

 get a fair crop of honey, and those near me report almost a 

 failure. But after I have explained the matter, I do not think 

 it will look so strange. 



In the first place, I think I have a good location, being 

 just across the Illinois and Wisconsin line, in the Sugar River 

 valley. My honey was gathered from basswood and heart's- 

 ease. White clover was almost a total failure. So all I can 

 tell about how I did it, is that I think I have good bees, a good 

 location, and attended to my business when I ought to. I 

 gave the bees all the room they required. I use the 10-frame 

 Langstroth or Simplicity hive, with two extracting-supers to 

 each hive : my honey was all extracted. 



Another point is to have the colonies strong when the 

 honey season begins. The way I do is this : When my bees 

 begin to swarm, I proceed in this manner: As soon as the 

 swarm is all out, I set the old hive back two or three feet, 

 put a hive filled with foundation or combs on the old stand, 

 and as soon as the swarm is in the new (I clip my queens), if 

 it is a strong one, I open the old hive, shake or brush off the 

 bees, and let them enter the new hive. If the swarm is a 

 small one I leave the combs four or five days (by first moving 

 the old hive to one side and a little back of the new one), 

 before shaking the bees off, then cut the queen-cells off and 

 give the combs of brood to the weakest colony in the yard, by 

 first removing all the combs that have no brood, and so on till 

 my colonies are all strong. By this plan a weak colony will 

 have 10 combs of brood, and will be a strong one. 



When my colonies are all strong enough, and more swarms 

 issue, instead of giving the brood to other colonies, I leave the 

 old hive near the old stand from five to seven days, then carry 

 it to a new stand, a la Heddon. 



I generally unite two such colonies by placing one on top 

 of the other, with a queen-excluder between ; in such a colony 

 I rear two queens — one in the lower and one in the upper 

 story. 



In managing bees in this way a person will not get much 

 increase, but honey, and not a large number of colonies is 

 what I am working for. 



My honey crop for 1893 was 15,340 pounds from 92 

 colonies. Durand, 111. 



North American Bee-Keepers' Association. 



BY E. 8. LOVESY. 



What can be done, if anything, to increase the usefulness 

 of the North American Bee-Keeper's Association to the bee- 

 industry, and its benefits to the members? I heartily endorse 



