‘2 
“ novice’s ” GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE, 
gives us most pleasure of anything about the 
“masheen.” 
Boards must be cut square in two and to do 
this they must have one edge out nearer 
straight than we buy them. We quarreled 
a long while with our mechanics about it 
and now do it our way with great satisfaction. 
About six inches in front of the saw cut 
out a strip of the table lengthwise, three or 
four inches wide, and fit a piece of hard wood 
to slide easily but closely in the groove, its top 
being level with the top of the table. Screw 
a similar piece across this at right angles, 
resting on the bench and reaching up to the 
saw, and of about two feet in length. 'I lus 
piece must be so nicely adjusted that a 
board held hard against it will be cut 
exactly square off. 
To cut pieces of frames on a square mitre 
we must have another stiip fastened at an 
angle of forty-five degrees to the first piece, 
and to keep both of these firm, their ends 
furthest from the saw can be screwed to- 
gether, making a complete figure 4, the up- 
right part of the figure being the one that 
slides in the top of the table, the horizontal 
bar cuts stuff square off, and the slanting one 
is to cut pieces beveling or so their ends go 
together like a picture frame. 
“Stops” are made on both pieces at the 
proper places to cut off work, for instance, 
the square bar has a stop to cut the length ot 
side of the hive, end of the hive, and cover 
of the hive. Slanting bar has stops for top 
for bottom of frame and end of frame. Now 
it is a very nice point to set these ‘ stops ^ 
just right, and when they are set we don t 
want to move them, tout they would inter- 
fere with each other if stationary so we have 
them made of a strip of brass with one end 
turned square so that it will spring out and 
make a secure stop for the end of the board, 
yet may be pressed in a mortise out of the 
wav when we wish to use the stops beyond it. 
So you see we can make a hive complete as 
fast as we can handle the stuff, all exactly 
right, and “ nary a square or rule ” do we 
have to bother ivith. . 
But observe, cut ofT your pine boards 
(dressed on both sides accurately to seven- 
eighths) first into lengths for one end and one 
side and a liUlemore. Nowstraightcn one edge 
by setting itdown firmly on some small points 
projecting out of the sliding strip so that your 
saw will just trim one edge. 
When this trimmed edge is placed against 
the squarcstripyou can cut the piece in two so 
that you have one square end on each, 
[’lace the square end against the proper stop, 
and your piece lias three sides true. H e 
bring it to the proper width and leave the 
edge of the proper bevel to makothejoint 
(between the cover and hive or upper and 
lower story) shed rain at one operation by 
elevating the finished edge on a wedge 
shaped platform supported on those same 
points in the sliding strip as it is moved 
against the saw. The pieces that come oft 
make the frame that holds the cover from 
W So you see a piece of board thirteen inches 
wide, and about six and a quarter feet long 
makes our dollar liive complete except cover, 
which is 20Jxl6. 
The rabbeting in the end pieces should be 
done just before the strips for cover are 
sawed ofl. 
In answer to many inquiries we would 
state that aftercareful experiments last season 
we preferred the space between end of frames 
to be not less than threc-eigths and not more 
than one-half inch. A distance of one-fourth 
inch can be used but much greater care is re- 
quired in handling combs to prevent squeez- 
ing our young friends that “ want to know 
what we are trying to do with them. 
To those who claim that bits of comb will 
be built in one-half inch space we reply 
that it’s your business to see that they have 
better employment. 
Keep the honey out of their way and give 
them one frame to build comb in, during the 
comb-building season. You will never get 
too many nice combs for they will sell even 
now, especially if we adopt some fixed di- 
mensions for our frames so they will fit our 
neighbors’ hives as well. 
Again, keep the honey out of their way as 
faithfully as you milk your cows daily, and 
we had far rather remove all the honey from 
a hive than milk a cow. Cows require milk- 
in" about six times as often and don’t 
give honey either, and— “ bless our stars,” if 
we run on this way it will take a weekly paper 
instead of a monthly even, to enable us to tell 
you how simple a matter it is to save the 
floods of honey that bountiful nature pours 
down at our very doors, and everybody 
seems to be afraid to even give the “ little 
chaps ” a place to put it conveniently, cause 
they’ll sting.” Now we are afraid our friends 
will have to run their buzz saws by foot power 
until next month ; it is cheaper and is healthy 
exercise and gives one an elastic feeling about 
the walking apparatus afterward, and so we 11 
tell about the windmill next month. 
HOW TO MAKE A HONEY EXTRACTOR 
AT. AN EXPENSE, OF, NOT EXCEEDING 
j|5.GO, AND PRATICALLY SUPERIOR 
TO ANY NOW OFFERED FOR SALE 
SO FAR AS WE KNOW. 
S our machine, kind friends, is to bo 
^r,V mado all of metal, aiul, like the dol- 
lar liive is to lie useful only and not or- 
namental, it is important that the roofing 
tin plate, of which it is to be made, be 
purchased at a small margin above what 
it costs by the box. A limit ton sheets 
14x20 will be required, and your tinsmith 
should not churgo you more than 15?. 
each, as they cost at present only jfl4..il> 
per box of 112 sheets. 
The only difficulty of the work is the 
revolving frame inside the can, and to 
make it clear wc employ the following 
illustration, which is supposed to repre- 
sent the framo as viewed Irom above 
before the arm supporting the gearing is 
placed on one side of the top Of t Ijo can. 
