158 



AUSTRALASIAN 



CHAPTER VIII. 



COMB FOUNDATION. 



The third great improvement introduced of late years, taking 

 rank only after the inventions of the movable frame-hive and 

 the honey-extractor, is that of furnishing the bees with the 

 foundation or septum of the combs which we wish them to 

 build. By this means we are now enabled to dictate to the 

 busy little workers exactly where a comb is to be built, and 

 whether it shall contain worker or drone cells : to secure its 





if 



Kg. 74.— COMB FOUNDATION. 



being built quite straight, and with an even surface ; and to 

 save the bees a great deal of time in the secretion of wax 

 just at the period when their labour can be best employed in 

 the storing of honey. 



HISTORY OF THE INVENTION. 



There would be no use • in fitting up a hive with movable 

 bars or frames, unless we could secure the building of the 

 combs .along the line of the bars or within the frames. The 

 bees, if left to themselves, would be just as likely to build 

 their combs across such lines, connecting all the'bars or frames 

 together, and thus rendering them quite useless. It was 



