THOUSAND ANSWERS _'1,1 



get a few queens this summer, so if there are anv with spliced 

 tongues, that is the kind I am after. 



A. There can be no sort of question that there is a decided 

 difference in the length of bees' tongues. Able men on both sides 

 of the ocean have settled it by actual measurement, and at least 

 some of them have no possible interest in giving anything but the 

 truth, unless they are bribed outright to lie— a thing that, for one, 

 I cannot believe. But don't make the mistake of thinking that 

 the bee with the longest tongue must necessarily be the best bee. 

 Other things being equal, the bee with the longest tongue is the 

 best bee. But other things are by no means always equal. The 

 bees that still store the most honey are the best bees, whether 

 their tongues are long or short. But when you succeed in get- 

 ting the best storers, it is just possible that they may excel in 

 tongue length. 



Top-bars. — Q. What width of top-bars do you prefer, I's <^^r 

 1 l-lo? Is there any practical difference? I expect to make a 

 number of hives, and want to get them right. 



A. I am using IJs inches with good results. 



Q. Do you believe that a half-inch thick brood-frame top-bar 

 will tend to prevent the bees building burr-comb on such frames, 

 as well as the three-quarter inch top-bar? W'liich kind do you 

 use? 



A. I do not believe that the one-half inch will prevent burr- 

 combs quite as well as the three-quarter. Mine are seven-eighths. 



Trade Marks. — Q. How can 3. trade mark be obtained for la- 

 beling honey when working up a trade? 



A. A trade mark is registered by the Government at W'ash- 

 ington, D. C, in order to be able to protect it in case of infringe- 

 ment or copying For the details to be followed in securing such 

 registry, better consult a good lawyer. 



Transferring From Box-Hives. — Q. ^^'hen is the right time to 

 transfer bees from box-hives to modern hives, and how? 



A. Wait until the bees swarm (in your locality they are likely 

 to swarm in Mayl, then hive the swarm in an up-to-date hive and 

 set it on the old stand, setting the old hive close beside it. A week 

 later move the old hive to the opposite side of the swarm, and 

 then two weeks later still, or three weeks from the time of 

 swarming, when all the worker-brood will be hatched out, break 

 up the old hive and add its bees to the swarm. Then you can 

 melt up the old combs. 



