SMOKE AND SMOKERS 
755 
fearlessness of consequences are concerned. 
One may kill them by thousands or may 
even burn them up with fire; but the 
death agonies of their comrades seem only 
to provoke them to new fury, and they 
push on to the combat with a relentlessness 
which can be compared to nothing better 
than a nest of yellow-jackets that have 
made up their minds to die, and to make 
all the mischief they possibly can before 
dying. It is here that the power of smoke 
recting smoke on the bees, such as a tin 
tube containing slow-burning fuel, with 
mouth-piece at one end, and a removable 
cap and a vent at the other end for the 
issuance of smoke. By blowing on the 
mouth-piece, smoke could be forced out. 
Others, again, have used a tin pan in 
which was some burning rotten wood. This 
was put on the windward side of the hive 
so that smoke would be blown over the 
frames. All of these, however, were crude 
makeshifts in comparison with the improv¬ 
ed smokers which are on the market today. 
Moses Quinby (see Quinby) has the 
credit for first giving us a bellows bee- 
smoker. This was a decided step in ad¬ 
vance over the old methods of introducing 
smoke among the bees. It combined the 
tin-tube idea with a bellows. In principle 
his original smoker did not differ essential¬ 
ly from the Bingham and the L. C. Root, 
which were introduced later. It had, how¬ 
ever, one serious defect; and that was, it 
would go out, the fire-pot not being prop¬ 
erly ventilated to insure a good draft. Some 
years after, T. F. Bingham, L. C. Root, son- 
in-law of Mr. Quinby, and A. I. Root in¬ 
troduced bee-smokers on the principle of 
the original Quinby bellows smoker, but 
with several decided improvements. The 
fire-cups, at the same time, were made 
rather larger, with a blast vent near the 
bottom. Thru this vent a continuous draft 
Three sizes of Root smokers. 
comes in; and to one who is not conversant 
with its use, it seems simply astonishing 
to see them turn about and retreat in the 
most perfect dismay and fright, from the 
effects of a puff or two of smoke from a 
mere fragment of rotten wood. What could 
beekeepers do with bees at times, were no 
such potent power as smoke known? See 
Bee Behavior; also Anger of Bees. 
There have been various devices for di- 
'could be maintained, even when the smoker 
was not in use, thus preventing them from 
going out like the original Quinby. 
Of the two smokers, the L. 0. Root was 
taken off the market some years ago. The 
Bingham is still sold, and is now furnished 
in various sizes by dealers. 
All the smokers of today employ what is 
known as the hot-blast principle — that is, 
the blast of air from the bellows is blown 
