166 
THE farmer’s manual. 
led (o the expedient of weaving the straw hive, which 
continues in common use to this day. The many 
objections which have arisen to both these hives, 
have led the Apiarians, through nice and curious re- 
search, to ascertain the best materials for construct- 
in_^ the hives for Bees, and tlic best forms to con- 
struct those materials into, to obtain the greatest pro- 
fit from the labours of the Bee, with the least ex- 
pense to ourselves, and loss and damage to the Bees: 
for the solution of this question, we must resort to the 
experiments of the Apiarian. Happy would it be 
for us and them, if their labours could furtiish an an- 
swer to the inquiry promptiv ; but unfortunately this 
is not the case, their owti expjeriments have deceived 
them, and this shouhl lead us to be cautious that they 
do not deceive us. Mr. Hui.sh admits, that no seri- 
ous objections can lie against straw as a material for 
the construction of bee-liives ; but objects only to 
the common form, viz. the bdl-hives, as being un- 
healthy to the swarms, and difficult to extract any 
portion of the honey from, without sufibcating the 
Bee.s, which he very justly abhors : he therefore ex- 
plodes the bell shaped hives. Our author goes on 
to object to the glass hives, constructed to gratifj the 
enripus, as bring unfriendly to the labours of the Bee. 
He adds, “ I have kept ghi->s hives of every sort in 
hopes to obliiin some clue to the development of 
their secrets ; but 1 candidly' confess, that light was 
no sooner admitted, than the utmost confusion prevail- 
ed in the hive, in that particular part ; and the Bees 
were seen running about in the greatest consternation ; 
consequently I never attained to the knowledge of a 
single operation of the P<'cs by means of a glass hive. 
I (iiPreforo call in question all facts stated as the dis- 
coveries of a glass hive. Although the Bee will 
work in any hive, of any sh qie, yet the choice of that 
shape is of impcriatirr to the health and profit of 
ynnr Bees. 'I'he great Itody of the people continue 
the common hive, and the common practice of smo- 
