APIARIES. 



527 



14 inches in diameter and about 20 or 

 22 inches in length — this depending, of 

 course, on the thickness of the walls. 

 The end of these cylindrical hives next 

 the apartment is closed by a round platter 

 of pottery ware, a little convex in the 

 middle, but the edges are made flush with 

 the wall, and jointed with a luting of clay 

 mortar. The external end is also closed 

 with a similar covering, only having a 

 hole about the third of an inch in diame- 

 ter for the entrance of the bees. When 

 the season arrives for taking the honey, 

 the farmer, provided with a pan of char- 

 coal and a wisp of dry straw, enters the 

 apartment, opens the end of the hive, 

 and burns the straw in small quantities 

 at a time so as to produce a smoke, which 

 he blows into the hive, taking care not to 

 allow the straw to ignite for fear of burn- 

 ing the bees. This process he continues 

 until the bees escape into the open air. 

 He then, with a sickle, cuts away as much 

 of the comb from the inner end as he 

 wishes, shuts up the orifice again, and in 

 a short time the affrighted bees return, 

 repair the damage done to the combs, 

 and proceed as usual. Such a plan might 

 be adopted with us in building garden 

 walls — or, indeed, a bee wall upon this 

 principle might be built on purpose. 

 Upon the principle before laid down re- 

 garding the size of hives, we would sug- 

 gest for this climate cylinders of 8 or 9 

 inches in diameter only ; and earthenware 

 cans might be used, and built into the 

 wall, so that their removal could be effect- 

 ed without trouble. 



Wightorts improved Polish hive. — " The 

 distinguishing feature in this hive," says 

 Mr Wighton, in his excellent " Treatise 

 on the History and Management of Bees," 

 " is its simplicity ; its approach, in fact, to 

 the habitations which the bees instinc- 

 tively choose for themselves. It consists 

 of the root end of a spruce fir, 9 feet long 

 and 3 feet 9 inches in circumference, from 

 which the centre wood is hollowed out, 

 and the planks removed for that purpose 

 are sawn off" to within 3 feet of the bot- 

 tom. One of these is nailed on again at 

 the back ; the other, being divided, fits 

 into its place again as an upper and lower 

 door. The interior, 7 inches square, is 

 separated by a slide into two compart- 

 ments, the roof of each being provided 

 with four slips of wood, nailed north and 



south, for the bees to fix their combs upon. 

 By reducing the cavity, the heat is in- 

 creased within, which enables the bees to 

 get on faster with their cells ; also, in 

 winter, they can be kept in one division, 

 and they always choose the upper. In 

 taking away the honey, if the operator be 

 afraid of the bees, he can force them with 

 a little smoke from brown paper into one 

 division; then, putting in the slide, he 

 will have it all his own way. 



"In the lower division there are two 

 entrances, one at the bottom and the other 

 at the top, made with an auger, having a 

 slip of wood on the inside to keep out the 

 mice : in the upper part there is but one, 

 which is in the centre. They are of course 

 made on the opposite side of the doors : the 

 space out of which these last were sawed 

 being first filled up through its whole 

 length by two glasses fixed in a movable 

 frame, gives the apiarian ample means of 

 observing the proceedings of his bees ; 

 while, when the doors are closed over it, 

 the bees are shielded from the light, and 

 from changes of temperature. The block 

 end of the hive is sunk 2± feet into the 

 earth to keep it firmly upright, and the 

 top is closed with zinc, and surmounted 

 by a block of wood." 



The authority last quoted says, regard- 

 ing crowding hives in close bee-houses, 

 that it is an erroneous practice — " not that 

 the bees mistake their own home, but, 

 when bent on robbery, they get too easily 

 to each other's tenements ; it also tends 

 to hinder their egress and ingress, by 

 causing them to come in contact with 

 their neighbours. Close bee-houses," he 

 continues, " are always objectionable ; for 

 in summer they harbour insects injuri- 

 ous to bees ; in winter they are often 

 damp. An open house, similar to fig. 747, 



Fig. 747. 



affords sufficient protection from the wea- 

 ther, and shades the hives in summer, ex- 

 cept about the doorways." With all due 



