28o 



THE BEE KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



taking that step. Perhaps we have taken 

 it. Next must come discussion, suggest- 

 ions and plans. \,ei us have them in 

 abundance. The Review will welcome 

 them with open arms. 



CLIPPING A QUEEN'S WING. 



How to Hold her Against the Comb and 

 Not Hurt her. 



Well do I remember the first queen 

 that I tried to clip. She came by mail, 

 and was the first Italian queen that I ever 

 saw. If I remember rightly, she came 

 from A.I. Root. I let her out on a win- 

 dow, and then tried to clip her, but she 

 wouldn't stand still one instant. I follow- 

 ed along after her with a little pair of 

 scissors, and tried to move my hand in 

 exactly the same speed as she was mak- 

 ing, and at the same time to lift one of 

 her wings and clip it. I followed up this 

 plan until I became actually nervous. I 

 found myself actually trembling and ex- 

 claiming "Why wont she .'itand still?" 

 "Whv won't she stand still ?" Finally, I 

 caught her by the wings, with the thumb 

 and fore finger of the right hand, then 

 took her by the thorax with the thumb 

 and two fingers of the left hand, and held 

 her "V)y main strength," while I released 

 the wings and clipped one of them with 

 the scis.sors. That's about the way I have 

 been holding queens to clip them ever 

 since. That every one don't know how 

 to hold and clip a queen is shown by the 

 fact that I often have requests to "clip 

 the queen before I send it." To those 

 who have had no experience, some meth- 

 od of holding the queen, without being 

 obliged to catch her, would prove a great 

 convenience. Gleanings for June i, il- 

 lustrates and describes a simple yet most 

 effectual device lor this purpcjse. It is 

 the invention of Mr R. D Willis of Mont- 

 rose, Colo. He writes as follows:— 



I inclose one of my inventions to hold 

 queens while clipping their wings. When 

 the queen is found, just pre^s this rubber 



band down on her back. Hold her fast, 

 an'' you can trim her wings as you wish, 

 with a pair of scissors I used one of these 

 instruments on ^oo queens last year, and 

 did not lose one. 



The editor of Gleaning comments as 

 follows:— 



This I regard as an exceedingly simple 

 and practical device. It consists of a 

 piece of broken section cut in the shape 

 of a fork, as shown. A small rubber 

 band is stretched moderately across the 

 the two prongs, being secured at either 

 end in the manner illustrated. Some 

 care should be excercised in getting a 

 rubber band light enough, and then draw- 

 ing said band to such a point of tension 

 that it will hold the queen down nicely 

 on the comb. To determine whether that 

 point is reached, trv the device, after it is 

 made, on a few of the worker-bees. If 

 you can succeed 

 in holding any 

 one of t h e se 

 down, then you 

 can with reason- 

 able safety try it 

 on a queen. 

 Whil e she is 

 standing still on 

 a comb, receiv- 

 ing the attention 

 of her admirers, 

 clap it down 

 across her back. 

 She will wiggle 

 and squirm; but 

 if the rubber 

 band is adjusted 

 to the right point 

 it will hold her 

 firml}' without 

 doing any dam- 

 age. Now. then, 

 deliberately pick 

 out one of the large wings, pass it between 

 the points of the scissors, and clip. Lift 

 the little tool, and all is over. 



I have tested personally this little de- 

 vice, and I consider it all right. While, 

 perhaps, the veterans would not use it, as 

 they have become accustomed to the old 

 way of picking the queen up, yet I am 

 not sure but they might do so to advan- 

 tage, for it is pretty sure in its action. 



Some enterprising supp!\ -manufacturer 

 might make them; but anv bee keeper 

 can whittle one out in three minutes. I 

 wi.sh some of our subscribers would try it 

 so that I may determine whether it is of 

 sufficient value to put in our ABC cook; 

 for, be it said, a new edition is now un- 

 der way. 



