132 THE BEE-KEEPER’S MANUAL. 
shelf, with a perforation similar to the other, the 
holes in both coming together: to ensure this the 
shelf can be marked. By moving the hive-bourd 
(which is best square) a little sideways of this mark, 
the position of the two holes is altered, and the 
communication downwards becomes stopped; always 
doing this cautiously, to avoid injuring the bees. 
Or the same object is perhaps better attained by 
means of a narrow zinc or tin slide, inserted from 
behind, between the two boards, and moving in a 
sroove ploughed its own thickness out of the shelf. 
A reference to our last engraving sufficiently exhibits 
a box, or rather drawer (of suitable size), which, when 
in its place, moves close on the underneath side of 
the bee-house shelf by means. of blocks and run- 
ners; drawing out at the back by a handle. It 
may have a window and shutter, but no entrance 
for the bees, except downwards through the cover, 
in which is an aperture, corresponding in size and 
position with those in the boards above it. It will 
be seen that the cover of the drawer is a movable 
one, of half-inch board, fitting down flush into it, 
and resting at the four corners upon wire supports, 
or small blocks, placed the thickness of the cover 
across the angles. The edges of the cover (except 
at the corners) are cut away just enough to admit 
of passing a knife-blade down, to separate the combs 
from the sides, when the whole may be lifted up, 
with the combs attached. The honey thus obtained 
is of the purest kind,* and I have known a large 
* The use of queen-preventers will of course make this far more 
certain. 
