18 BEE-KEEPING : THE OLD AND THE NEW. 
Rough, uncouth, wooden boxes were constructed and 
placed upon the hive, and the bees had access to them 
through holes bored in the top. These were succeeded by 
others more neatly made, with a hole in each end, covered 
with glass that the progress within might be inspected. 
Thus, the first steps in the right direction being taken, 
it was easy to devise boxes with glass sides; and twenty- 
five years ago, we find Mr. Quinby recommending boxes 
six inches square, with glass on all four sides, with the 
remark that, ‘the expense of making is a little more for 
the same amount of honey, yet, when it is marketed, a few 
customers will prefer this size.” Up to that date, the 
chief advance in practice, seems to have been in the better 
adaptation of the box-hive to the production of surplus. 
Mr. Quinby’s desire to understand the minutest details 
of everything which came under his observation, led him 
to become thoroughly familiar with the habits of his little 
favorites; and, unaided by the discoveries of foreign 
writers with which he was then wholly unacquainted, he 
demonstrated for himself many of the facts and princi- 
ples which the progress of to-day easily enables us to verify. 
At the end of a quarter of acentury, he had so satisfac- 
torily established a system of bee-keeping that would in- 
sure reasonable return for a stated investment, that he felt 
warranted in publishing the first edition of this work en- 
titled ‘‘ Mysteries of Bee-keeping Explained.” He hoped 
thereby to benefit others by disseminating the knowledge 
he had acquired, and to encourage an industry, evidently 
designed by the Creator, when he caused uncounted flow- 
ers to annually secrete tons of liquid honey, and created 
a tiny insect with instinct to gather and preserve this 
“* treasure-trove.” 
Simultaneously with this publication, appeared the first 
edition of ‘‘Langstroth on the Hive and Honey Bee.” 
These two works were the first of any great value that 
had been written in America. 
