258 



UTILITARIAN ZOOLOGY 



of burning sulphur as a preliminary to taking their honey. All 

 this is altered in the movable-comb or " frame" hives (fig. 1188). 

 These are square wooden boxes, which open at the top, and 

 contain a number of wooden frames for holding the combs, and 

 easily taken out at pleasure for the purposes of the bee-keeper. 

 They render it easy to regulate the bees, including the swarming, 

 in almost any required way. The reigning queen, for example, 

 can be deposed, and replaced by a more fertile successor, or one 

 of more desirable race. 



The honey-extractor is a simple device for rapidly rotating 



combs so that the 

 honey flies out 

 by centrifugal 

 force, and this is 

 a vast improve- 

 ment on the old 

 method of crush- 

 ing and straining. 

 As Cowan very 

 justly remarks: 

 " When we bear 

 in mind that bees 

 consume about 20 

 pounds of honey 



Fig. 1188. Cowan Hive in Longitudinal Section. A, Body-box; B, floor-board; 

 C, strengthening piece; D, entrance gallery; E, entrance porch; F, outer case; 

 G, protective plinths; H, roof of entrance gallery; i, sliding door at entrance; 

 K, roof; L, roof-catch; M, alighting board; N, stand; o, rack with three sections, 

 below which is seen a frame' of comb. 



in Order tO 

 HllCP O11P DOT! Fid 

 Q wax WC Can 



realize the advan- 

 tages of a machine which enables us to give them empty comb, 

 and thus save them the labour of comb-building". 



To supply comb-foundation is the next best thing to giving 

 empty combs. This consists of thin plates of wax, which have 

 been passed between suitably-embossed rollers, so that the 

 " foundations " of the cells are laid, and there are also projecting 

 ridges of wax, furnishing enough material for the completion 

 of the cells, save that required to cover them. Foundation is 

 made with either small cells suitable for worker-brood (or storage), 

 or with larger cells adapted for drone-brood. It is possible, by 

 supplying one or other kind as desired, to regulate within certain 

 limits the number of workers and drones produced in the hive. 



