360 



THF BEE-KEEPERS' REViujW. 



greatly interfere? with close inspection. As 

 yet I have been unable to fully detect the 

 bee in her work of cell building. However, 

 I do not believe that much if any excavating* 

 is done. Possibly some scraping is done 

 where the cells are attached to the top and 

 ends of the frames. But there we find the 

 work much heavier, which is a necessity in 

 attachment cells. When compulsory, some 

 excavating is done. We have an illustration 

 in comb foundation ; but the vvork is far 

 from being complete, as is evident to all who 

 have eaten comb honey in which the founda- 

 tion has been heavy or poor. Building thick 

 walls and reducing them to a proper thick- 

 ness by scraping or excavating would tend 

 to weaken the structure. It is contrary to 

 correct mechanical principles of working ; 

 in fact, it would be performing a two-fold 

 operation, and showing inferior skill to that 

 of wasps and hornets. 



ItWith cell walls 1 180th of an inch in thick- 

 ness, what guide, either instinctively or 

 otherwise, has the bee to maintain such a 

 delicate and uniform thickness, which shall 

 be thoroughly cohesive, if dependent upon 

 the excavating process. The mandibles of 

 the bee are so beautifully shaped and adapted 

 to the work of welding wax particles to the 

 cell walls, also for measuring an exact 

 thickness, that in absence of positive evi- 

 dence, I am inclined to accept the teachings 

 by analogy in the workings of wasps and 

 hornets. 



New comb in its whiteness and beauty is 

 the admiration of all, but to the thoughtful, 

 intelligent student in bee culture, as in 

 other departments of nature's teachings, 

 comes a revtlation of beauty and wonder 

 which far transcends our highest concep- 

 tions. How is this beautiful structure fram- 

 ed in the uniformity of its measurements, 

 both as to the depth of cells, and the angles 

 of their base ; also their diameters, differ- 

 ing in drone and worker cells ? 



We know that birds build their nests in 

 conformity to their size, being guided by 

 instinct in arranging the materials. But 

 here we encounter a difficulty — the same 

 sized bees construct cells which are different 

 in their respective diameters ; and which 

 are not in conformity to their size. Were 

 the cells alike in diameter we might be able 

 to account for it by the size of the bee and 

 her functionary parts employed in its con- 

 struction. Whatever may be her method 

 of obtaining correct results, we know that 



as the bird in building her nest instinctively 

 arranges the twigs with a mechanical skill, 

 so the bee is certainly guided by a similar 

 instinct. 



The same question naturally arises in 

 reference to the distance between the ranges 

 of comb, and by what rule they build them 

 parallel with each other. Where no guides 

 are furnished, we find the combs averaging 

 about 1^2 inches from center to center. 

 The distance is somewhat variable, 

 as is also the size of cells. But some 

 one may ask, what is the practical value of 

 such knowledge ? There is much in modern 

 bee culture thoroughly practical, which to 

 our forefathers would have been only an 

 addition to their store of knowledge. I re- 

 fer to our comprehension of the laws in ref- 

 erence to breeding, by which queen rearing 

 has assumed such extensive proportions. 

 So also the microscope which at first was 

 but a novelty for the curious observer, has 

 been improved, and is now a recognized 

 means of discovering disease germs, not 

 only in the human family, but also in the 

 bee world. 



.Jaokson, Mich. Dec. 12, 1896. 



M' 



Winter Work. 



WILDER GKAHAME. 



OT long ago I was taught a wholesome 

 lesson by a master carpenter that will, 

 1 1' ink, bear repeating in these columns. He 

 was a man noted for his rapid as well as 

 thorough work and I only secured his ser- 

 vices by offering him the highest wages. 

 Imagine my disgust on going out to the shop 

 some time after he began work to find noth- 

 ing done and my crack workman stepping 

 about, square in hand, but really doing little 

 or nothing. 



A few hours later I went out again and 

 found my man at work but was still disap- 

 pointed. Instead of the rapid motions I had 

 anticipated every move was slow, deliberate, 

 — anything but what I had pictured of the 

 swift workman. 



Day after day this continued and I was 

 more than once inclined to be dissatisfied. 

 But it was not long until I noticed that the 

 work itself was progressing finely and the 

 job was done a full week before I had in- 

 tended. Now for the lesson. 



