FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 69 



shoving the combs apart, and the frame. to be pounded held well 

 down in the hive. But many times it is as well to shake the 

 bees on the gTound. This may not be so advisable if the queen 

 is likely to be among the shaken bees. Yet I have often shaken 

 the queen off among the bees on the ground, and I am not sure 

 that she ever failed to find her way with the bees back into the 

 hive. When the bees are to be shaken on the ground the pen- 

 dulum plan is used almost altogether. With the right hand I 

 take hold of one end of the top-bar, letting the frame hang 

 with the bottom-bar pointing forward, and then swinging the 

 frame baclrward like a pendulum I let it swing again forward, 

 and then as it falls back I let the lower end of the top-bar strike 

 the ground in such position that a diagonal from the point that 

 strikes the ground to the opposite end of the bottom-bar shall 

 be nearly vertical. It is easier than the other plans, and takes 

 less time. 



BEE-BEUSHES. 



Sometimes it is not desirable to get all the bees off, in 

 which case, or with very light combs, no brushing is needed. 

 But if all the bees are to be cleaned off, and the combs are not 

 very light, then brushing must be resorted to. I know of no 

 brush better than one made of some growing plant, such as 

 asparagus, sweet clover, goldenrod, aster, etc. — no little bit of 

 a thing, but a good big bunch, well tied together with a string 

 (Fig. 27). 



But like many a thing that costs nothing, these weed 

 brushes are too expensive, for they dry up so that a fresh one 

 must be made every day, and that takes a good deal of time. 

 So I generally use a Coggshall brush (Fig 28). The essential 

 thing about a Coggshall brush is that it must be made of long 

 broom-corn with a very thin brush, and not trimmed at all at 

 the ends. One of these is always in the tool-basket. 



Of course no shaking or pounding of combs is admissible 

 if queen-cells are on the combs that are considered of any value. 



TOOL-BASKET. 



The tool-basket spoken of is simply a common splint 

 basket (Fig. 29). At different times I have had diiSerent ar- 



