February 4, 1886. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
in straw hives, I will now proceed to the swarm issuing from a straw 
hive. Every thoughtful bee-keeper should have in readiness a few 
long rods, so that one of any length may be formed from these. On 
the one end of the rod a few feathers should be tied and saturated 
with carbolic acid. If the swarm attempts to settle on or in some 
inaccessible place the feathers held close to the place will dislodge 
them, and cause the bees to settle in a handier place near the ground. 
The sooner bees are hived after swarming the better, and should be 
at once placed on their permanent stand and in their permanent hive. 
Where the Stewarton hive is in use one or two boxes make a capital 
hiving box. After the bees are hived they are simply placed beneath 
those previously prepared with comb-foundation, where the bees 
ascend, when the under ones may be withdrawn. If it was not for 
fear of the comb foundation giving way I would use no other than 
the permanent boxes, but caution must be exercised. 
I must, however, hark back and tell all about the hives, and where 
to get them. Messrs. G. Neighbour & Sons, 149, Regent Street, 
London, supply these to English and to the Channel Islands and 
Continental bee-keepers ; Messrs. Warnock & Walker, Blantyre, 
whose advertisement appeared lately, is the oldest firm of hive- 
makers in Scotland, being established in 1835. These two firms are 
reliable, and bee-keepers will be well served by either of them. A 
passing remark about prices, and in justice to all concerned, may not 
be out of place here. I have examined goods from various firms, and 
find if one firm sells cheaper goods-they are not usually of the same 
value. The cheap article is constructed of inferior material, and 
where much labour has been testowed upon an article the price is 
often exorbitantly high. The difference in the value of timber hives 
are made from is about three and a half to one, so that where one 
maker produces an article at 12s. with but a moderate profit, another 
may produce the same article at a third that price with inferior 
material, but at a large profit, consequently it is the dearest. I write 
for the interest of bee-keepers and not of hive-makers, and I hope 
bee-keepers will weigh the matter well in their minds. 
When new hives are wanted discard all those having sapwood, 
and give preference to yellow pine, which, though much higher in 
price, is more durable, and better adapted for hives and the health of 
bees than is yellow deal or white pine, termed in bee nomenclature 
pine. Both of these last mentioned are cheaper, but inferior to the 
first-named one. 
When ordering Stewarton hives do not ask for less in number 
than three body boxes, with as many supers. If sections are 
desirable get the crates made to hold six in width, and there may be 
two or three of these that will project a little at the corners, which 
must be filled in. This applies only to the first tier. But sections 
are not the most profitable things to use, divisible supers are the best. 
There are the common Stewarton and the “ Renfrewshire-Stewarton,” 
the latter has four frames in the centre of each tier. There is also 
the square-tiering hive introduced by me, which, though faulty for 
wintering, in possessing the four comers, which is liable to cause 
damp, as all square and oblong hives do. The above fault is obviated 
if ventilating floors are used. All the top bars of hives should have 
a groove one-eighth wide by one-eighth deep for comb foundation. 
All hives deeper than 6 inches should have frames, hives less than 
that bars are sufficient. Slides of some sort, too, are indispensible in 
every hive ; but the Stewarton proper has but the one sort of slide. 
The only material difference between one maker’s hive and another 
is that tbe slide runs right through and requires double the number of 
pegs of those which are stopped by a permanent peg. The former 
sort is the best, because the slightest tap on the end slackens the 
propolis and is easily withdrawn. These slides, too, should be so 
close as to prevent the bee3 caulking the joint between slide and bar. 
Difficulty in withdrawing the slides is only experienced when 
they have been made slack at first. Each hive should have a pair of 
strong iron handles screwed firmly to the sides, and no hive should 
be without.a ventilating floor. An outside case of some sort or other 
is very desirable, but not absolutely necessary, as they can be well 
protected with straw ; and hives so covered cannot be improved on 
eo far as health and comfort of the bees are concerned as well as for 
ease of manipulation in putting on and taking off supers or other¬ 
wise increasing or diminishing the size of the hive. 
When the bee-keeper gets his hives from the maker his first work 
is to put tbe comb foundation in. These should be an inch narrower 
than the depth of the frame or hive, but should almost touch the ends, 
after which two boxes should be lashed together, the under one fully 
pegged, and the upper one filled with slides between bars. It is now 
ready for the swarm as previously directed. Where a common floor 
is used three entrances are necessary in all octagon hives, but since 
the introduction of the ventilating floor one is sufficient. 
After a swarm has been located in a Stewarton hive of two 
boxes several weeks, the weather being fine and honey in abundance, 
another good swarm should be added, and several honey boxes added 
at the same time. Should the weather continue fine on the expiry of a 
week, these supers will be well advanced and another added abo 
not between the others and stock hive, because if the weath 
changes the bees will attempt to fill up the vacuum they naturally 
abhor by combing the one interposed from the honey of those above, 
and if there is a scarcity of honey in the stock hive it may be 
carried down into it. With a continuance of fine weather after the 
first manipulation with supers the mishap may not occur, but we 
should never risk the spoiling of fine supers by interposing empty 
ones between the full ones and stock hive. The bees should be 
admitted to supers by outside spaces only in stock hive, but all slides 
should be drawn in supers Perhaps the foregoing will assist the 
uninitiated, and as the year advances 1 will give further instructions 
how to join the swarms and manage as a non-swarming hive the 
following year. — A Lanarkshire Bee-keeper. 
BEES ABANDONING A HIVE. 
I think the cause of the bees deserting the hive as mentioned by 
“ Plus ” was in consequence of the loss of the queen ; indeed, the bees did 
not abandon the hive, but died. I have had them apparently doing well 
until a late period, when they suddenly collapsed, and the invariable cause 
was loss of the queen, which had taken place some time previous, but the 
bee3 kept up an appearance for some time, and all apparently were going 
well to an inexperienced person, for as the bee3 diminish in number 
through death they show at the mouth of the hive ; even a dozen bees 
make a great fuss at the mouth of a queenless hive, and some live on into 
the winter ; indeed, I have had them exist in a state of defence well on 
into spring. I do not think bees desert their home so long as the mother 
remains, or if they do, as may happen through poverty in spring and when 
the colony is strong, yet there are means left of raising another mother in 
the stock hive, and so continuing its existence. These poverty swarms, I 
fear, are only a consequence of neglect on the part of the apiarian—neglect 
of feeding—hut I have a tale to tell some day about such things. 
I suppose “ Plus ” has no more hives, and there is none near, other¬ 
wise the hive would not have been found fairly filled with honey. Perhaps 
the queen has been lost late, which I hardly think, or the bees would have 
lived into spring. My bees do not tolerate a queenless hive long, for they 
allow no honey to escape carriage to their cells, all alike joining in the 
appropriation.—G. Abbey. 
Bees and their Enemies. —At the last weekly meeting of the Ast- 
wood Bank Mutual Improvement Society. Mr. James Hiam gave “A 
Chat on Bees.’’ Mr. Hiam contrasted the old system of bee-keeping with 
the modern, pointing out the superiority of the latter. To illustrate his 
points Mr. Hiam was provided with a full supply of apparatus. It was 
stated that the comb was made from an exudation from the insect’s body, 
and not from the pollen, as erroneously supposed. Pollen was collected to 
make bee-bread for the feeding of the young bees. The first swarm car¬ 
ried on work till the autumn, and the best honey was from the stock of the 
first year. A contradiction was given to the old belief that in swarming 
the queen led the way and all her family followed. Certain bees acted as 
leaders and selected a branch to settle on ; the other bees followed, and 
the queen, finding her family gone, followed. As regarded the comb, the 
advantages of having a prepared foundation were the saving of much of 
the bees’ time, and a less expenditure of honey. It was said that the bees 
consumed 20 lbs. of honey while making 1 lb. of comb. It was incidentally 
pointed out as a remarkable provision of Nature that the cells were in an 
upward direction, that position being better calculated to hold the honey 
safely. Mr. Hiam also said that, as far as his experience went, the neigh¬ 
bourhood was a poor honey district. The modern methods of “ taking 
honey” and feeding the bees were fully explained and illustrated. After 
stating that the bees could make a queen from a grub by feeding it with 
queen bread, Mr. Hiam referred to the enemies of the bees. Wasps were 
given as the chief—viz., Vespa Germanica, Vespa vulgaris, and Vespa 
Britannica. The nests of these wasps were exhibited, and very fine 
specimens they were. The tomtit was defended from the charge of being 
an enemy, and Mr. Hiam assured his audience this little bird was most 
harmless. As on former occasions, Mr. Hiam preferred to treat the sub¬ 
jects on the conversational style, answering questions as they occurred 
during his address, instead of a string at the end. Thus a pleasant evening 
was spent, which was brought to a close by the Chairman, the Rev. W. W. 
Robinson, proposing a hearty vote of thanks for his instructive and 
interesting lecture. 
TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 
Edmondson Brothers, 10, Dams Street, Dublin.— Spring Catalogue of 
Seeds. 
James Yate 3 , 29, Little Underbank, Stockport.— Catalogue of Floioer and 
Vegetable Seeds. 
Ralph Crossling, Penarth Nurseries, SouthWales.— Catalogue of Vegetable 
and Flower Seeds. 
Robert Craig, 90, Stricklandgate, Kendal.— Catalogue of Vegetable and 
Flower Seeds. 
Viccars Collyer & Co., Leicester.— General Catalogue for 1886. 
W. Crossley, 13, Vicar Lane, Leeds.— Catalogue of Vegetable and Flower 
Seeds for 1886. 
