146 HANDY BOOK OF BEES. 



Crystal Palace straw step, and the common Wood- 

 bury; and I think it will be a long time before we 

 find better in the market. I took 110 lb. of honey out 

 of one Pettigrew, and 97 lb. out of another, which was 

 considerably more than the returns from any other 

 hives on the same ground under the same treatment." 

 This experience of Mr Ollerhead is in harmony with 

 my own, and that of hundreds of the most successful 

 bee-keepers of Great Britain. 



Within the last few years great efforts have been made 

 to improve the bar-frame hive, and make the movable- 

 comb system of management popular. To some extent 

 these efforts have been successful. The most successful 

 bee-keepers of the bar-frame school now use large hives, 

 and are gradually making improvements in their con- 

 struction and management. 



The " Stewarton hive," used by some bee - keepers, 

 deserves honourable mention and notice in this work, 

 as some clever men prefer it to either the straw hive 

 or bar-frame one. Our aim now is to give the reader 

 a short sketch of both the bar -frame hive and the 

 Stewarton, together with the ways in which they are 

 managed. And in noticing this, that, or any hive, let 

 it be well understood that no hive or system of man- 

 agement concentrates within itself all excellences and 

 advantages. Both the Stewarton and bar-frame hives 

 and systems have advantages and disadvantages. 



The Bar-frame Hive. 



In studying the natural history of bees, every facility 

 for examining hives internally is an advantage. The 

 movable - comb hive afifords greater faoUities for in- 

 ternal examinations than any other hive — save the 

 unicomb or leaf hive. 



All the combs of properly constructed bar-frame hives 

 can be easily taken out and examined. The eggs of 

 the queen, and the brood in all stages of advancement, 



