92 FOURTH ANNUAL REPORT 



of the "St. Joe" hive and put into the Wisconsin, and made 

 a very good hive ! [Laughter.] 



Mr. Fluegge — I would like to ask these gentlemen what 

 the slatting arrangement in their super is. If they got that 

 from Mr. Abbott he didn't lose much. [Laughter.] I have 

 several of them and I always took an axe to them to get 

 the honey out. They may have improved them now. I hope 

 they have. When I was a beginner I had six of them and 

 the slats had no end-blocks ; they fitted into a rabbet at the 

 bottom of the super, and in order to get them out — one rabbet 

 was a little deeper than the other — I had to lift them up a 

 little ways and shove them over probably a quarter of an 

 inch, and the other end would come out. 



Mr. Wilcox — I have tried the Wisconsin hive somewhat. 

 I bought one or two some years ago for trial and I found 

 some disadvantages. The question calls for advantages. 



Pres. York — We don't want to know the disadvantages — 

 just the advantages! 



Mr. Wilcox — One thing I disliked was that the end-bars 

 of the brood-frames struck right out. 



Mr. Root — That is the Langstroth-Simplicity. 



Mr. Wilcox — I think it was listed as the Wisconsin hive. 

 I might specify another peculiarity of it which was that the 

 frames were anywhere from one quarter to three-eights of 

 an inch shorter than the regular Langstroth or what would 

 be the old frame Langstroth length and that was an odd 

 feature of it because it didn't correspond with any other 

 frames in the neighborhood. Another feature of it was that 

 described by the last gentleman about the supers. The slats 

 in the bottom of the super didn't trouble me very much but 

 I didn't exactly like them. I may be mistaken. I don't know, 

 but I have always called it the Wisconsin hive. I think it 

 was. 



Mr. Whitney — I want to back up what Mr. Wilcox 

 said about what he supposed to be the Wisconsin hive. You 

 know last winter didn't treat some of us very well, and we 

 lost a good many bees. I wanted some last spring to build 

 up my apiary, and I went out and bought four or five col- 

 onies. They happened to be in a queer sort of hive; the 

 frames were a little shorter than the Langstroth ; I couldn't 

 use them in the Langstroth hive when I came to make a 

 transfer ; and they had supers on that had that rabbet arrange- 

 ment that the gentleman here- speaks about. I thought it 

 was a Chinese puzzle. I couldn't use it at all. Now, I 

 don't know whether that is the Wisconsin hive or not, but 

 as they describe it I should conclude it might be. It had a 

 portico. 



Mr. Abbott — I want these gentlemen to get a clear idea 

 about these hives, and it is a matter of some interest. While 

 I represent the firm making the Wisconsin hive, I think an 

 explanation is due them at least. They have made what was 

 called the Langstroth-Simplicity hive which is, I admit, prac- 

 tically worthless. They have discussed taking it off the mar- 

 ket for a long time. It has a shorter frame, and a groove 



