AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



425 



Xlic 'W^asp and the Bcc. 



A wasp met a bee that was buzzing by, 



And he said, " Little cousin, can you tell me 



why 

 You are loved so much better by people 



than I ?" 



" My back shines as bright and as yellow as 



gold, 

 And my shape is most elegant, too, to behold, 

 Yet nobody likes me for that, I am told," 



" Ah, cousin," the bee said, " 'tis all very true ; 

 But if I had half as much mischief to do 

 Indeed, they would iove me no better than 

 you." 



—Observer. 



dueries ajid Replies. 



Wiiltli M TMclness of Top-Bars, 



Query 786. — What width and thick- 

 ness of top-bar is preferable for brood- 

 frames ? — Penn. 



I prefer an inch. — M.. Mahin. 



I use %x% inches. — J. M. Hambaugh. 



I prefer them %xl}4 inches.— Mes, L. 

 Hakeison. 



Not less than 1 inch wide and % 

 thick. — C. C. Miller. 



I do not know. I use them as light as 

 possible. — R. L. Taylor. 



I use top-bars 1 inch wide and 5/16 

 thick, and desire no change. — G. M. 



DOOLITTLE. 



I use IxH inch thick, and like them 

 very much. My top and bottom-bars are 

 alike and invertible. — C. H. Dlbbern. 



One inch wide and % to }i inch thick, 

 according to the length of the top-bar, 

 and the weight it must bear. — G. L. 

 Tinker. 



We use % inch width and ^ thick, but 

 a wide top-bar is very good. A 13^ top- 

 bar will almost do away with burr- 

 combs. — Dadant &. Sox. 



It depends on the size and depth of 

 the frame. The full size Langstroth, 

 l}i wide by 1 inch deep will make a top- 

 bar that will not sag. — Eugene Secor. 



I would like to have the top-bars of 

 my standard size frames about X inch 

 thick and 1 inch wide. As I now have 

 them they are %x%, and many of them 



have sagged, and therefore do not 

 "space " as accurately as I could wish. 

 — G. W. Demaree. 



I prefer a top-bar % thick and % 

 inches wide, if an open top-bar ; but if 

 closed-end top-bar, 1}4 inches wide. I 

 also recommend the triangular comb- 

 guide. — J. P. H. Brown. 



This is a mooted question. With my 

 experience I should say % wide, and 

 thick enough never to sag. Then I 

 should use slatted queen-excluding 

 honey-board. — A. J. Cook. 



As a rule, % wide, and as for thick- 

 ness or depth, that depends upon the 

 style of hive and frame. For the Lang- 

 stroth frame, I prefer % to %, exclusive 

 of any guide, if any modern guide should 

 be used. — James Heddon. 



With the exception of a few % of an 

 inch square, used for two seasons as an 

 experiment, I have used those that were 

 either % ov ]4 an inch thick. If I did 

 not use a wbod-ziuc queen-excluding 

 honey-board between brood-nest and 

 super, I believe that (with my limited 

 experience) I should try the thick top- 

 bars and no honey-bog-rd. — A. B. Mason. 



I prefer 3^ inch to % inch thick, and 

 % inch wide. I find the above thick- 

 ness gives ample strength for the ordi- 

 nary Langstroth frame. A longer frame 

 might need to be a little thicker, though 

 I think not. I have found % inch thick, 

 wired and braced Langstroth frames 

 amply thick in my own hives. — J. E. 

 Pond. 



The thin top-bar "craze" held sway 

 for a long time, but now it may safely 

 be said to have passed away. Nearly all 

 apiarists now agree that thick top-bars 

 are essential. Our preference has always 

 been for the V-shaped top-bar, % of an 

 inch wide, and 1 inch deep, because it 

 never sags, and is very convenient and 

 substantial. Now, the "craze" is re- 

 versed, and thick top-bars are demanded. 

 Those in the dovetailed hive are 1 inch 

 wide and % of an inch deep, exclusive 

 of comb-guide.— The Editor. 



Xlie NortliY^estern Convention 

 will be held in Chicago on Nov. 19. Let 

 every bee-keeper in the Northwest make 

 arrangements to visit the metropolis on 

 that date, and attend the bee-keepers' 

 love-feast. It will be held at the Com- 

 mercial Hotel. See oflScial notice on 

 page 440. 



