FORTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES. 323 



he made the stand with the boards standing on edge, 

 making a sort of box without top or bottom. I am in- 

 clined to think the change an improvement. 



GIANT WHITE CLOVER. 



That giant white clover, Colossal Ladino, mentioned 

 as blooming in 1902, page 120, winter-killed the follow- 

 ing winter. Another bubble burst. 



WETTING SECTIONS. 



Instead of holding a funnel in the hand and pouring 

 water in it, as described on page 140, I now have a vessel 

 of hot water somewhat elevated with a small rubber tube 

 running from it, so that the stream from it can easily be 

 directed into the grooves. A fountain syringe works 

 nicely. Before wetting, the box of sections should be 

 stood so that the sections are on end, and then jolted 

 heavily, so as to make the grooves correspond the whole 

 depth of the box. 



After the sections are wet, they swell immediately, 

 making them fit too tightly in the box to be gotten out 

 without much difficulty. The boards are torn off one end 

 of the box, and after the sections are taken out the boards 

 ;ire nailed on again, if it is desired to preserve the box. 



CUTTING FOUNDATION-STARTERS. 



I've given up heating the knife when cutting founda- 

 tion, as mentioned on page 144, and like it better. The 

 steel case-knife is cut off square, and the right-angled 

 point is kept sharp, and three or four rapid strokes readily 

 cuts through the seven sheets. (I now use seven sheets 

 in a pile instead of five.) It saves the time of heating and 

 changing knives, and leaves the foundation in better 

 shape, for there is no need to pull the starters apart if the 

 kriife is cold. Of courge the cutting must not be done 



