rHE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW, 



345 



Honey, however, with its many flavors can- 

 not in all cases be so closely imitated and 

 people who eat honey only occasionally are 

 not educated to distinguish the various fla- 

 vors and never will be for even bee-keepers 

 themselves are often nonplussed over the 

 many flavors of their products. About all 

 the adulterator has to do in the case of honey 

 is to produce a sweet with the body and color 

 of honey and label it orange or clover honey 

 as his fancy may dictate. If the bee blushes 

 at this audacity, it, like the obscure rose, 

 blushes unseen, and while its sweetness is 

 wasted, not on the air, but in a sea of glu- 

 cose. 



The bee-keeper, however, has one heroic 

 remedy that will enable him to get almost if 

 not quite clear of the adulterator, and that 

 remedy lies in the exclusive production of 

 comb honey. 



Although I am not ready to change from 

 extracted to comb honey or ready to feed my 

 extracted to produce comb honey, I still 

 recognize the above fact that instead of 

 flavor for a standard quality, as we find in 

 maple products, the houey comb is the 

 standard for our product, and I am aware 

 that upon this point volumes might be writ- 

 ten to the profit of the bee-keeper. 



Bloomington, Calif. Nov. 8, 1893. 



Bee Spaces, Top Bars, Honey Boards and 

 the Preventiou of Brace and Burr Combs. 



lAMES HEDDON. 



TTlBOUT sixteen 

 xi years ago, 

 when I had fol- 

 lowed uur chosen 

 persuit eight o r 

 nine years, I be- 

 gan making ex- 

 tended experi- 

 ments based upon 

 the possibility of 

 so constructing a 

 hive that I could 

 manipulate it 

 about as readily after bees had occupied it 

 several seasons as when it left the shop ready 

 for its first swarm. 



At that time I wondered if it were pvssiblf 

 to so construct a hive that we could remove 

 and re-adjust the frames and surplus recep- 



tacles at will, with nearly the same readiness 

 after having been several years occupied by 

 bees, as when it had been occupied but a 

 single day. To this end I knew it was neces- 

 sary to do away with propolis and brace- 

 combs. With that end in view, I constructed 

 metal rests, after the style introduced by 

 Mr. Otis, twenty years ago, and introduced 

 grease and all kinds of top-bars, together 

 with several kinds of honey-boards until I 

 discovered two things ; first, that I could do 

 away with but a portion of the annoyances 

 above referred to, and second, what con- 

 struction was best to most completely ac- 

 complish that end. 



The first thing I discovered was that the 

 measurement of a correct " bee-space," had 

 nothing to do with the requirements of the 

 bee regarding room for its passage, but 

 rather was that space in which the worker 

 would be least likely to attach propolis or 

 comb. I also found that this space differed 

 according to where and how it was located. 

 I found that the best space to leave above 

 the top-bars of the frames was ,5-16, and be- 

 tween the top-bars, was % to %, according 

 to the depth of the top-bar. I experimented 

 with top bars of different depths spaced 

 apart from 34 to % of an inch, these depths 

 varying from % to ;§ of an inch. I tried 

 these widths and thicknesses in different 

 combinations, and now have in my apiaries 

 a goodly number of old frames still contain- 

 ing comb and bees with top-bars of the above 

 dimensions, in standard Langstroth hives of 

 my own modification. At that time I used 

 to transfer brood-combs from box hives into 

 my Langstroth hives and when so doing 

 nearly al ays used a frame containing a top- 

 bar 's deep and 'g wide, square. I believe 

 in ^5 as the best width for top-bars of sus- 

 pended frames. 



Right here I consider it appropriate to di- 

 gress long enough to say a few words con- 

 cerning that long abused "Honey-board." 

 I presume your younger readers do not know 

 that among the few of us who used honey- 

 boards, I was left almost alone in their de- 

 fense and advocacy ten or twelve years ago. 

 Those who considered themselves and were 

 considered by many as "leading lights " in 

 the dark halls of apiculture, at that time, 

 stoutly opposed the now cherished honey- 

 board ; but is it not true, Mr. Editor, that 

 all who have adopted and used honey-boards 

 containing a " bee-space," and the "' break- 

 joint " principle, which I invented and intro- 



