62 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



Eeb. 



these notches is, that the projecting: arms to sup- 

 port the frame may be made equal in length on each 

 Bide, without stopping to measure it, The buttons 

 marked B, one in place and the other turned up, are 

 to hold the end-bars in place while nailing, and are 

 fastened to the board with one screw. 



I used to nail my frames together without any 

 such help; but since I have used this I find I can 

 nail them twice as fast; and another advantage is, 

 that they are perfectly square, and are notffinding, 

 as they frequently used to be. It took me about 

 twenty minutes to make the " concern," and I saved 

 more than that time on the first hundred frames I 

 put together. E. Hunt. 



Sheridan, Mich., Jan. 8, 18S3. 



HOIVIE-MADE BINDIDRS FOR GLEANINGS 

 OR OTHER JOURNALS. 



ANOTHER PLAN SUGGESTED BY ONE OF OUR BEE 

 FRIENDS. 



SN last Jan. No. I read a description of how to pre- 

 serve Gleanings, by T. J. Cook. The illustra- 

 tion shows how 1 preserve all my periodicals. 

 A, A, are leather straps, two inches shorter than the 

 papers I wish to bind, and one inch wide. Punch 3 

 holes at equal distances In the strap, large enough to 

 pass a shoe-string throusfh; punch corresponding 

 holes of same size through each number of the pa- 

 per, Dec. No. first, next Nov., etc., until January is 

 2/ 



on top; then place one strap on top, the other at the 

 bottom, then run the shoe-lace (a stout one) as indi- 

 cated above. No. 3; draw them tight, then tie them 

 at B, and the work is done. If care is taken to have 

 each hole correspond with the succeeding one in the 

 several numbers, you will have a pretty neat job of 

 it that you need not be ashamed of. I got the idea 

 some years ago from the PottZtry World, for 1 love 

 bees and thorough-bred poultry. 



John W. Sturwold. 



Haymond, Ind., Jan. 10, 1883. 



Thanks, friend S. Perhaps I am mis- 

 taken, but it has seemed to me that leather 

 would be rather too yielding, to draw the 

 numbers up strong and tight. Would not 

 stiff pasteboard under leather be better? 

 And while I think of it, why not have a 



Easteboard cover for each side? ^ye all 

 ave had experience with books with paper 

 covers, and know how easily they get torn 

 and "dog's-eared." I have been thinking 

 of late, several times, that I almost never 



wanted to see another paper-covered book of 

 any kind that waS of any value. For a 

 while we were out of paper ABC books, 

 and, to avoid delays, sent cloth, and asked 

 the difference, if satisfactory. Almost every 

 one expressed himself pleased to pay the 

 ditference and have a nice strong covered 

 book. Well, we have a few times tried 

 sending paper-covered books when we were 

 out of the cloth. Whew! you ought to 

 have seen how the brethren scolded. We 

 had to have the most of them sent back. 

 Well, to go back to the home-made binder, 

 if you have some sheets of pasteboard cut 

 nicely square, you can cover them with 

 some nice colored paper, blue or green, for 

 instance, and then paste a white sheet on 

 the inside, and the front cover to Glean- 

 ings on the outside, then use the binding 

 arrangement above, and you have a book 

 that your grandchildren can pull down from 

 the shelf to look at the pictures, and note 

 the progress in bee culture, years hence, if 

 you choose. One of our girls binds our 

 Postal Guides in a similar way, and they 

 make very pretty-looking books. Our en- 

 graver has made a funny blunder and got 

 the binder on the front edge instead of the 

 hack. 



Or Department for duties lobe attended to 

 tliis iuontIi> 



SUGGESTIONS FOR FEBRUARY. 



'ITH many of us the bees are likely to 

 have a fly this month, where kept 

 out of doors. Where kept in doors, 

 I would not disturb them, unless things are 

 in a very bad state indeed. Darkness, and 

 plenty of good pure air, will usually keep 

 them quiet, although some folks do contend 

 they should have water. If giving them wa- 

 ter keeps them quiet, perhaps it will be well 

 to give it to them quietly. Go slow in 

 adopting new ways of doing. I think I 

 would rather have bees kept in the cellar un- 

 til natural pollen comes, if they are not suf- 

 fering with dysentery, or are too warm and 

 uneasy. Bees out of doors may be handled 

 whenever it is warm enough for them to fly, 

 but I would not handle them imless it is 

 warm enough. If they are properly protect- 

 ed and ventilated, and good food is all 

 around them, they can fly when they get 

 ready, or not fly, as they choose ; and I do 

 not know what need there is of disturbing 

 them, unless it is to see that the entrances 

 are not choked with dead bees. If the en- 

 trance to the chafE hive is left open all win- 

 ter, as I think it should be, there will be lit- 

 tle danger of its getting stopped up ; but if 

 any hive should not fly when the rest do, it 

 might be well to take a peep into the en- 

 trance. If the severe weather has killed off 

 any colonies, either fasten the hive up se- 

 curely, or put the combs in a tight honey- 

 house, where no bees can get started robbing 

 on them. Bobbing, started in the early 

 spring and winter, is a very bad thing, and 

 be sure you have none of it. 



