28 BEEKEEPING 



It loses its head with astonishing speed 

 and regularity on the least provocation. 

 Consult any bee journal for confirmation 

 of this statement and you are almost cer- 

 tain to find a group of correspondents 

 contributing flocks of letters trying to 

 confirm or deny the latest fad. I enjoy 

 those little arguments because the bee- 

 keepers themselves remind me so much 

 of the activity of the hive, perhaps from 

 long association. But I will say that for 

 the most part their arguments are con- 

 ducted in a gentle manner and they carry 

 no sting — at least they never seem to use 

 it. 

 :< Eegardless of where or how a modern 

 hive is built it must conform to two fun- 

 damental requirements. It must provide 

 a safe home for the colony and it must be 

 so constructed that the beekeeper can, 

 with the least labor, examine each frame 

 of brood as often as he may find neces- 

 sary. These requirements have largely 

 been fulfilled in several makes of hives 



