The Townsend Bee Book 59 
might move the honey down if they would; but they did not, so I 
shook the bees from these supers on the ground in front of the 
hives and set them in my little bee-escape building, which is six 
feet square inside, with open screened windows. The weather was 
cool and rainy, so the honey was undoubtedly very thin, although 
I was not afraid of its souring, because of the cold temperature. I 
should have put it in my extracting-room; but as I was busy there 
I left it outside, where it was more out of the way. After these 
cases had been exposed to the damp air for five or six days it was 
set into my honey dry-kiln, where it was left just seven days, when 
it was extracted. I then found that it had been exposed to the 
warm air about four days too long, as it was possible to get only 
a part of the honey out of the combs. This thin watery honey was, 
therefore, evaporated down to the heaviest-bodied honey I ever 
saw, in seven days. 
“My building is built well. It is sheeted with planed un- 
matched boards, then covered with a good firm quality of building- 
paper, and finally sided over with ordinary beveled siding. The 
room at the end for warming the honey is 10x14 feet, and is 
lined on the sides and ceiling with the same kind of paper as that 
used between the sheeting and siding, this paper being lapped and 
fastened to the studding with lath, making good tight joints. I 
find that the paper retains the heat as well as or better than plas- 
tered walls, and it allows the moisture to pass through it, insuring 
a dry room. The paper cost 50 cents per roll of 500 square feet. 
““ Tn the center of the room is a box stove with oval sides, the 
first joint of the stovepipe having a damper. As the fire-door fits 
tight, the draft can be regulated to perfection, which feature is 
important, as it allows the heat to be controlled, and prevents the 
waste of fuel. With wood of fair size the fire can be kept over 
night if the dampers are properly regulated. 
‘* When the extracting is to be done in cold weather I start 
the fire a day or two beforehand. As mentioned before, three or 
four days are necessary to ripen thin honey; and when the evapo- 
ration has been kept up long enough the covers can be placed 
tightly on the supers to prevent the further escape of moisture. 
There is some danger of melting the combs in the upper supers if 
the covers are tight; but if one is careful to keep the temperature 
right, there will be no trouble. I have quite an air-space above the 
supers of honey in the gable roof, which keeps the temperature of 
the room more nearly constant. 
‘‘T do not depend upon the warm room for ripening all my 
honeyy, as it is left on the hives all through the season. However, 
