THE AUSTRALIAN BEEKEEPERS’ JOURNAL. 
183 
in to north, west, and south, and facing down 
the valley towards the rising sun. There is 
“ ample room and verge enough ” for a city of 
hives much greater than that proposed. In 
order to feed the bees between last season and 
this Mr. Hallewell filled the lower compart- 
ment of each hive with about 4Ulb3 of honey, 
saw that each swarm had a queen, and reduced 
^he entrance so that only three or four bees 
J ould enter at a time, and so minimised the 
anger of robbing. All 3') hives so treated 
lame out strong and healthy at the beginning 
jof this season. Owing to the absence of 
natural food it has cost Mr. Hallewell illu to 
keep his bees going of late, the average con- 
sumption being a 70lb. bag of sugar a week. 
The method now adopted for feeding is to keep 
the bees in the lower compartment, leaving a 
small hole in the top, over which is placed — 
either just below the roof or under a smaller 
box— a float containing the required food. The 
entrance to the hive is diminished, and so alien 
bees if they come at all must do so in very 
small numbers, and must go right through the 
hive before a robbery can be effected. Of 
course some of the necessary apiary appliances 
have had to be purchased, but wherever 
possible Mr. Hallewell makes them for him- 
self, because, although almost every con- 
ceivable need can now be supplied, the process 
is too costly to be lavishly indulged in except 
by men who keep bees more for pleasure than 
profit. At the time of this visit the bees had 
begun to find natural food again, and were 
busy making the best of the bright day. 
Unfortunately an examination of some of the 
oldest hives discovered lurking symptoms of 
the accursed foul brood. Mr. Hallewell has a 
specific which is guaranteed to cure Ibis fatal 
disease, but the President puts no faith in it, 
and advises resort to drastic measures. Mr. 
Hallowell's property is situated in a very 
pretty position. The ground slopes in from the 
back ami both sides, and right in front is the 
“ Mount ” and the rising suu, while the color 
of decaying leaves and the glossy green of the 
wattles are framed in by the belt of sombre 
gums beyond. The prospect is extremely 
pleasant for the human inhabitants, and when 
gums are in flower, it must be a very paradise 
For bees A hundred acres of the land carry 
the profitable wattle, from the leaf joints of 
which honey is said to be obtainable . — Mount 
Barker Courier t Aptil 27th, 1888. 
■Hews an& IRcports from Colonial 
Hpiarics. 
We hear that a Bee-farm Company has been 
formed in the Hamilton District, under the 
title of “The Victorian Bee Company.” capital 
to be in 2,000 shares of .£1 : which will take 
over the whole stock of Mr. II Naveau, of 
that place, and establish a bee-farm in one 
of the splendid localities for this purpose near 
the foot of the Pyrenees. We believe Mr. 
Naveau will be appointed manager, and that 
the site to be selected will be n* ar Mt Abrupt, 
aud not very distant from the Dunkeld 
Railway Station. 
We trust the company will make a good 
and successful start this season, and show us 
what can be done by such an industry in our 
Western District. 
This is, we believe, the first instance of the 
formation of a Bee-farming Company in 
Victoria; in the neighboring colonies such 
undei takings have been a financial success. 
©rkjmal Contributions. 
EXTRACTING. 
Many amateurs find a difficulty in extracting 
when commencing operatious which a little 
careful thought would avoid. The first gener- 
ally arises from want of necessa'y appliances, 
beside the extractor and knife. The most essen- 
tial being some means to hold the frame in 
position when uncapping, to secure all drip and 
give a place to scrape the cappings. This may 
be cheaply made by a tradesman or anyone 
handy with tools. First, make a box to measure 
inside 18 x 12 x G, which may be made tight to 
prevent leakage of hom y, by well packing the 
joints or giving a coating of wax or enamel 
paint, but U better lined inside with tin, letting 
the tin project very slightly on one side, to offer 
a sharp surface for scraping the honey -knife. 
Notch out to the depth of half-an-iuch on either 
end. close to the side, a small piece sufficient to 
receive the ears of the frame to rest the top 
bar, and at a corresponding level fix a bar to 
rest the bottom bar of the frame upon. This 
will hold the frame firmly in position, and 
j^llow three inches of room for scrapiog off 
cappings into the box. 
1 lie next trouble which presents itself, is 
the difficulty of keeping the knife hot enough 
to work well, for this there is nothing better 
than a small kerosene lamp stove. Some veiy 
excellent ones with cast iron fonts and frames 
to hold a vessel above the flame are now pro- 
curable for a few shillings. With one of these 
and a deep vessel, such ns a quart pot, the 
water may be kept boiling, and the knife at 
the necessary heat for working well, even if 
convenient to extract out of doors. A second 
knife is a help both of which should l>e kept 
as sharp as a good t urkey stone can make them. 
Practice alone will give the knock of getting 
off the cappings quickly and cleanly. 
The next trouble is that t he extractor shows 
a disposition to waltze about. It should be 
firmly screwed down to something to make 
good work, either to a floor or to some heavy 
timber, but. all these points at last overcome, 
the complaint often is the honey won’t come 
out. In most cases, the honey has been 
