310 Value of Foundation. 
equal to the desired width of the strips of comb foundation 
to be cut. 
For cutting smaller sheets for the sections the same 
device may be used. I saw Mr. Jones cut these as fast as 
a boy would cut circular wads for his shot-gun, by use of 
a sort of modified cake cutter (Fig. 123). 
USE OF FOUNDATION. 
Unless to force the bees into sections, when, as we have 
seen, it is better to hive swarms on empty frames, with 
mere starters, we better always use foundation in brood 
frames. It is astonishing to see how rapidly the bees will 
Fic. 122. 
extend the cells, and how readily the queen will stock them 
with eggs. The foundations should always be the right 
size for worker comb. Even for surplus comb honey the 
small cells are best. The honey evaporates more quickly, 
and so will be sooner capped, and it looks better. For 
brood combs I prefer wired frames. The sheet of founda- 
tion should not quite fill the frame. The advantage of 
foundation is, first, to insure worker comb, and thus worker 
brood, and second, to furnish straight, nice combs. We 
have proved in our apiary repeatedly, that by use of foun- 
dation, and a little care in pruning out the drone comb, we 
could limit or even exclude drones from our hives, and we 
have but to examine the capacious and constantly crowded 
