84 FORTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES. 



of common wire-nails. These nails are 1% inches long 

 and rather heavy, about 3-32 inch in thickness, with a head 

 less than one-fourth inch across. By means of a wooden 

 gauge which allows them to be driven only to a fixed 

 depth, they are driven in to such a depth that the head 

 remains projecting out a fourth of an inch. 



Each frame has four spacing-nails. A nail is driven 

 into each end of the top-bar on opposite sides, the nail 

 being about an inch and a half from the extreme end of 

 the top-bar, and a fourth of an inch from its upper sur- 

 face. About two and a fourth inches from the bottom 

 of the frame a nail is driven into each end-bar, these nails 

 being also on opposite sides. Hold the frame up before 

 you in its natural position, each hand holding one end of 

 the top-bar, and the two nails at the right end will be on 

 the side from you, while the two nails at the left end will 

 be on the side nearest to you. 



The object of having the nails so heavy is so that 

 they may not be driven farther into the wood when the 

 frames are crowded hard together. Once in a great while 

 the wood is split by having so heavy a nail driven, and if 

 such a nail could be obtained it would be better to have a 

 lighter naif with a head a fourth of an inch thick, so that 

 it could be driven automatically to place without the need 

 of a gauge, and without the possibility of being driven 

 farther in by any amount of crowding. 



END-SPACING. 



The end-spacing is done by means of the usual 

 frame staple, about three-eighths of an inch wide. The 

 staple is driven into the end-bar, immediately under the 

 lug of the top-bar. This lug being only half an inch long, 

 there is room for a bee to pass between the end of the 

 lug and the upper edge of the hive-end, so no propolis is 

 deposited there. I like this feature as much as some 

 dislike it. They complain that with so short a top-bar 



