THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



239 



apiary ?" and then proceed in a concise 

 manner to enumerate many of the principal 

 advantages, which I will not try to improve 

 npon, but would like to corroborate your 

 statements by adding my testimony thereto. 

 And further, in case of cool nights during 

 the honey harvest bees will not be so much 

 disposed to withdraw from the supers to the 

 brood nest, not being so iiuickly affected by 

 the night air as those out of doors, 



" A covert from the burning heat, 

 A shelter from the cold." 



About a year ago I constructed a small 

 house apiary, an outline description of 

 which is given in the last February Review, 

 page forty-one, and now with one year's ex- 

 perience in the use of it, I am well pleased 

 with the results both for winter and summer 

 use, and am more than ever in favor of 

 house apiaries. 



Seymoub, Wis., Aug. .5, 1891. 



House Apiaries, and What I Have Been 

 Thinking of Them. 



K. C. AIKIN. 



fHAVE no experience to record in regard 

 to bee houses. During the past year or 

 more I have been thinking over the 

 problem, and hoped some day to experiment. 

 Here are some of my thoughts: 



Build a honey house, bee house and shop 

 in combination. Have the shop on the north 

 side. Have the honey room in the center, 

 leaving a hall or passage-way about six feet 

 wide all around the south, east and west. 

 Make shelves to place bees on, so as to fly 

 out on the three sides last mentioned. Make 

 the walls of the house decidedly good and 

 warm. A warm house in winter is cool in 

 summer. If the bees are to remain perma- 

 nently in the house — not removed to out 

 apiaries — make permanent chambers against 

 the wall, and hang frames parallel to the 

 wall, the house wall being one side of the 

 liive, and each division between chambers 

 of one piece only. Mak^ inside hive wall 

 movable like a follower. Thus, except the 

 brood frames and surplus fixtures, the hive 

 is composed of but two pieces, viz.: One 

 end and one side, the shelf forming the bot- 

 tom, the house wall the other side. This 

 plan would leave but one board between 

 each colony and its neighbor. Above, have 

 windows all around to give plenty of light 

 and ventilation when needed. 



I have thought, when colonies became 

 strong, a hole might be so arranged between 



chambers, with excluding zinc, that the 

 stronger colonies might pass through and so 

 intermingle and even up. Thus, the colonies 

 occupying one side of the house might prac- 

 tically become one colony and do grand 

 work in the supers. 



Now, for winter, just have a heating ar- 

 rangement and keep up the temperature in 

 this bee room on the outside, and the honey 

 house would be snug and warm in the center. 

 The whole house might be kept warm with 

 but little expense above the heating of shop 

 for work. I believe better work could be 

 done in the house than outside in hives. At 

 nights, shut the door to keep up an even 

 heat. No deserting of supers, or check in 

 brood rearing; no stoppage of work for 

 winds, rain or robbers. And don't you see 

 it would be so easy to contract, expand, and 

 feed at will? 



I used bee escapes some last year, mostly 

 of the Dibbern pattern, but not his latest. 

 Twenty-four hours will usually clear a super; 

 sometimes twelve hours will. Did not try 

 them on extracting combs. Have not used 

 any this season yet, but will when the flow 

 ceases and robbing time comes. So far I 

 smoke and brush, and can get ten to twelve 

 cwt. off per day. I think, however, it would 

 be speedier and better to use escapes, leaving 

 them on from twenty-four to forty-eight 

 hours. Twenty-four hours would no doubt 

 be sufficient with a good escape. 



Ft. Collins, Colo., Aug. 6, 1891. 



Bee-Keepers' Review. 



published monthly. 



W. Z. H^JTCHir^SOfl, Hd. & Ppop. 



Teems : — $1.00 a year in advance. Two copies, 

 $1.90 ; three for $2.70 ; five for $4.00 ; ten, or more, 

 70 cents each, ^f The Review is stopped at 

 the expiration of the time paid for. 



FLINT, MICHIGAN, SEP. 10. 1891. 



The Amebioan Beb Keepeb has bonght 

 the Bee World. This makes the third peri- 

 odical that has been absorbed by this enter- 

 prising journal. 



Maekied, Sept. ir), at Bangor, N. Y., Mr. 

 Augustin E. Manum and Miss Hattie C. 

 Barnum. The Review wishes them happi- 

 ness and prosperity. 



