56 



.'When working hives for extracting, the greatest care should 

 taken to avoid doing anything vphich m 

 123. Precautions conduce to robbing (141) ; empty frair 

 against robbing when should not be returned to the super un 

 Extracting. after the bees have ceased flying. Fram 



of comb, whether containing full or emp 

 combs, should never be left about uncovered, but should 

 kept covered in the frame-box or some other suitable place. 



XV.— EXTEAGTING. 



This operation should be performed in a room at a distan 



from the apiary ; the door and windows 



124. Extracting, the room should be closed, or other mea 



should be taken to prevent the ingress 



bees. There should be a fire in the room to keep the extraci 



warm if the temperature is cool. The honey should be extract 



from the frames as soon as possible after their removal frc 



the hive ; if they are cooled, the honey will thicken, renderi: 



■its extraction difficult, and increasing the liability of breaki 



combs. The following articles should be in readiness in t 



extracting room : — The extractor (49), ripener (50), strait 



(51), two uncapping-knives (52), or one uncapping-kn: 



and one table knife which should be kept in a jug of 1: 



water, a wooden table, one or two large earthenware or er 



melled iron dishes, and a tin or galvanised iron or wooden pail 



about IJ to 2^ gallons capacity, with a wooden lath laid acr( 



its mouth and tied to the handle lugs on each side. If the t 



tractor has not been used before, or has not been thorougl 



cleaned out since use, scald and rinse it out with two or thi 



gallons of boiling water to clean and heat it ; in any case 



must be rinsed out with hot water to heat it. Take a frame ( 



of the frame-box, and hold it by one shoulder in the left hai 



resting the opposite lower corner on a dish, and with the kn 



in the right hand, cut upwards from the bottom with a sa 



ing motion, thus paring off the cappings, which after a lit 



practice can be cut off in sheets quite dry. When two fran 



have been uncapped, place them ends up in the extrac 



cages, and turn the handle so as to revolve the cages, slo\ 



at first, but increasing the speed until it is just sufficient 



cause the honey to be flung out of the cells ; after revolving - 



extractor for one minute, most of the honey will have b( 



removed from the outer side of the combs ; the frames sho 



then be reversed in the cages, and the operation repeated 



clear the other side, revolving the cages a little faster tl 



before, until the combs are quite clear. If on lifting 



frames they are found to contain honey in the side f 



extracted, they should be again reversed in the cages, wh 



should then be revolved more rapidly than at first, until- all 



honey has been extracted. The reason for not completing 



extraction of the first side in one operation, is to avoid the i 



sibility of the comb being broken by being too rapidly revol 



