88 rORTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES. 



half an inch more than the inside depth of the frame. 

 The frame is all complete except that one of the two 

 pieces of the bottom-bar is not yet nailed on. The frame 

 is laid on a board of the usual kind, which fits inside the 

 frame and has stops on the edg'es so that when founda- 

 tion is laid on the board it will lie centrally in the frame. 

 The half of the bottom-bar that is nailed on lies on the 

 under side. The foundation is put in place, and one edg'e 

 is crowded into the saw-kerf in the top-bar. Then the 

 lacking half of the bottom-bar is put in place, and a light 

 nail at the middle is driven down through both parts. 

 Then the frame is raised and the ends of the two halves 

 of the bottom-bar are squeezed together so as to pinch 

 the foundation, and nailed there. Then the usual wedge 

 is wedged into the fine saw-kerf in the top-bar. 



FOUNDATION SPLINTS. 



Now we are ready for the important part. Little 

 sticks or splints about 1-16 of an inch square, and about 

 34 inch shorter than the inside depth of the frame, are 

 thrown into a square shallow tin pan that contains hot 

 beeswax. They will froth up because of the moisture 

 frying out of them. When the frothing ceases, and the 

 splints are saturated with wax, then they are ready for 

 use. The frame of foundation is laid on the board as 

 before ; with a pair of plyers a splint is lifted out of the 

 wax (kept just hot enough over a gasoline stove), and 

 placed upon the foundation so that the splint shall be 

 perpendicular when the frame is hung in the hive. As 

 fast as a splint is laid in place, an assistant immediately 

 presses it down into the foundation with the wetted edge 

 of a board. About i>4 inches from each end-bar i$ 

 placed a splint, and between these two splints three others 

 at equal distances (Fig. 31). When these are built out 

 they make beautiful combs, and the splints do not seem to 

 be at all in the way (Fig. 32). 



