34 BEEKEEPING 



combs. Bees which build their combs in 

 boxes with nothing to guide them as to 

 the distance between them almost always 

 approximate this distance. 



The top bar of the frame should be 

 heavy enough to support the weight of 

 the resulting comb and it should extend 

 beyond the end a sufficient distance to 

 provide ample space to engage the end 

 wall of the hive, which as I have said is 

 cut out so as to allow the top bar to rest 

 below the top surface of the hive wall. 

 All standard frames are now constructed 

 so as to allow room for the bees to work 

 around the ends, top and bottom of the 

 frame, and in this way passage from one 

 frame to another is not interfered with 

 in the least and the activity of the hive 

 can proceed with the least interruption. 



In order to get the bees started straight 

 in the building of their combs it is cus- 

 tomary to provide a "starter" on which 

 they can begin building. This starter 

 consists of what we call "comb founda- 



