THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW, 



287 



first, and so on. These hives Imd fast bot- 

 toms, these bottoms were not stuck to the 

 stands, and even away back liftcen years 

 ago, or more, I had seen, adopted and advo- 

 cated the use of thiu lumber for hives, so 

 the hives didn't weigh as much as their con- 

 tents. 



I thinlv the above a good way to put away 

 bees. Disturbance causes bees to consume 

 bee liread. That is yet the cause of bee 

 diarrluea, and I suppose it always will be. 

 I will leave the rest to be said by other 

 writers on this topic. I hope to meet you at 

 the Northwestern Convention, at the Com- 

 mercial Hotel, on the lilth of this month. I 

 look for one of the best meetings of the kind 

 ever held in America. 



DowAfiiAc, Mich., Nov. ?,, ISDl. 



Having Things Too Handy.— Putting a Rim 



Under the Hives. — Put the Bees in 



Early but Don't Shut Them 



In when Carrying Them. 



B. T.\YL()H. 



^^N one respect, at least, I am in a good 

 ^n condition to comply with your reciucst 

 for an article on "Carrying bees into 

 the cellar". Myself and son of seventeen 

 years have, since yesterday noon, carried 

 nearly 200 colonies and placed them in nice 

 winter quarters, and we can now report " All 

 quiet on the Potomac." With us there is no 

 romance about placing our bees in the cellar. 

 We just take right hold of them with naked 

 hands and carry them right in. The bee 

 yard is located conveniently near the winter- 

 ing cellar, and one person just walks to the 

 rear of a hive previously prepared, picks it 

 up with a hand under each side of the bottom 

 board, raises it up to his Ijreast, and then 

 walks straight to the cellar and places it in 

 position. I have tried several of the labor 

 savers but have found none that I would use. 

 As a rule we carry our bees into the cellar 

 without waking them up at all. And to do 

 this there must be no jars or jolts. We have 

 a nice spring wheelbarrow, but its use would 

 only increase the work of getting the bees 

 properly placed. I believe in having things 

 handy, but don't want them too convenient. 

 I once lived by a neighbor who had a rope 

 suspended from the ceiling directly over the 

 cook stove with a loop in the lower end into 

 which lie would put his feet on a cold day, 

 and thus he sat in his easy chair from morn- 

 ing till night, while his wife chopped wood 



and kept up a good lire. Of course, his 

 house was cold; and he, like Dr. Miller, did 

 not paint his bee hives. This man was not 

 lazy, of course not, and 1 do not suppose Dr. 

 Miller is, but they both had handy things, 

 the one for warming his feet, the other for 

 carrying his bees into the cellar. 



I had resolved to put the bees in this time 

 without the l)ottom l)oards, but after trying 

 a few, which we got into position without 

 difficulty so far as disturbing the bees was 

 concerned, I found it would greatly increase 

 the work both in setting in and taking out, 

 and I never cultivate any new " fads " unless 

 there seems to be some show of raising a 

 paying crop, and as I had, in the old way, 

 succeeded in wintering my bees with more 

 than average results, I concluded to try the 

 "old way" once more. The old way con- 

 sists of having a shallow rim \}.2 inches wide 

 and size of the hive placed between the hive 

 and bottom board. This rim has an entrance 

 three-eighths the entire width of the hive, 

 directly on the bottom board, both in front 

 and rear, is left open on both sides all winter, 

 and I believe it secures all the advantage of 

 removed bottom boards at far less cost, as 

 the cellar will hold nearly double the number 

 of hives, as in this way we place the hives in 

 piles on top of each other, and the piles only 

 four inches apart. It keeps mice and rats 

 out, which is an important item with some. 

 In weight our hives were in that puzzling 

 condition of "which and t'other" that 

 leaves us in that doubtful condition of mind 

 that we are unable to either laugh or cry. 



A few years ago we not only laid strix^s of 

 lath against the entrances of our hives but 

 nailed them there lest the bees get out and 

 we be destroyed: but for several years back 

 we have used a wet cloth in place of wood, 

 and gave it great praise. This year we con- 

 cluded to try them without closing the en- 

 trances at all, and we succeeded in getting 

 our bees into quarters with less disturbance 

 than ever before. Thus our cherished ideas, 

 like ruined temples, strews the pathway of 

 experiment and progress, I wonder how 

 many of our idols are to fall. After all my 

 skill with the best fixtures, I find I cannot get 

 a large yield of honey unless the ilowers 

 yield nectar properly, and in good years I 

 find that even the heathen round-about with 

 any kind of hive can get so much as to 

 nearly ruin the markets. Yes, friend H., I 

 guess plenty of honey is of first importance 

 in getting big crops of surplus. 



