THE PRODUCTION OF HONEY. 
463 
complication, can only be cheaply made by special 
machinery; but that has already been provided. 
We must not. fail to note that the separator has an 
influence over the thickness of the combs, as, without it, 
single passage-way alone remains between those that 
are contiguous ; while with it, passage-way of the same 
width is necessarily left on each side of the separator. 
This reduces the weight stored in any given width of 
section; but, what is worse,. the comb is prevented from 
coming up flush with the edge of the box, which gives 
the latter objectionable prominence. The presence 
of four incepts, narrowing the sides, of course 
balances somewhat this defect, which may be over- 
come, even with wide-sided sections, by putting a half 
bee-space on to the separator itself, thus d e stroyi ng 
the width of the comb, by holding the boxes a whole 
bee-space from one another. The separator holds 
its own because it gives always an amount of flat- 
ness and regularity, which can only very occasionally 
be attained without it ; and this is even true, although 
in a less degree, of the thinner combs produced in 
narrow section-boxes. 
The separator [sp, Fig. 109) may be permanently fixed 
to the frame, as the sections can be easily pushed out 
from it by arranging on a board an upright stop to guide 
the top bar of the frame, and then two thin pieces, 
standing 2in. high, the length of the frame within, and 
so placed that, when the frame is placed over them, 
separator downwards, they should just meet the top and 
bottom bars of the sections. Pushing the frame down- 
wards, the separator passes between the thin pieces, 
but the sections remain behind, resting upon them. 
