REQUISITES OF AN IMPROVED HIVE. 99 



be filled by the bees with propolis or bee-glue ; a substance, 

 which is always soft in the summer heat of the hive, and 

 which forms a most congenial place of deposit for the eggs 

 of the moth. If the sides of the hive are of glass, and the 

 corners are run with a melted mixture, three parts rosin, 

 and one part bees-wax, the bees will waste but little time 

 in gathering propolis, and the bee-moth will find but little 

 chance for laying her eggs, even if she should succeed in 

 entering the hive. 



My hives are so constructed, that if made of wood, they 

 may be thoroughly painted inside and outside, without being 

 so smooth as to annoy the bees ; for they travel over the 

 frames to which the combs are attached ; and thus whether 

 the inside surface is.glass or wood, it is not liable to crack, 

 or warp, or absorb moisture, after the hive is occupied by 

 the bees. If the hives are painted inside, it should be done 

 sometime before they are used. If the interior of the 

 wooden hive is brushed with a very hot mixture of the rosih 

 and bees-wax, the hives may be used immediately. 



15. It should furnish some place accessible to the Apia- 

 rian, Where the bee-moth can be tempted to deposit her 

 eggs, and the worms, when full grown, to wind themselves 

 in their cocoons. (See remarks"on the Bee-Moth.) 



16. It should enable the Apiarian, if the bee-moth ever 

 gains the upper hand of the bees, to remove the combs, and 

 expel the worms. (See Bee-Moth.) 



n. The bottom board should be permanently attached to 

 the hive ; for if this is not done, it will be inconvenient to 

 move the hive when bees are in it, and next to impossible to 

 prevent the depredations of moths and worms. 



Sooner or later, there will be crevices between the 

 bottom board and the sides of the hive, through which the 

 moths will gain admission, and under which the worms, 



