862 
VENTILATION 
A hive of bees nearly burned up by the heat from an immense lumber yard fire close by author’s plant. 
Somebody threw a pail of water over the hive and put the fire out. During all this heat, the bees, by 
vigorously fanning with their wings, kept the hive ventilated so that the combs did not melt. Combs made 
from paraffin or any substitute for beeswax would melt even with the heat of the sun. 
and require more than an ordinary amount 
of air. Their breathing-tubes are in different 
parts of the body, under the wings and on 
each side of the abdomen (see Anatomy 
op the Bee) ; hence, as soon as the entrance 
is closed, and they crowd about it, the heat 
of so many becomes suffocating in a very 
few minutes; the honey is involuntarily dis¬ 
charged, wetting themselves and their com¬ 
panions, thus most effectually closing their 
breathing-tubes in a way that causes death 
to ensue very quickly. Heavy swarms have 
been known to be killed in the short space 
of fifteen minutes, when the hive was thus 
closed. The heat generated by the smoth¬ 
ering mass often becomes great enough to 
melt down the combs, enveloping bees, 
brood, honey, and all, in a mass almost 
scalding hot. Bees are sometimes smoth¬ 
ered in this way, in extremely hot weather, 
even when the hives have very large open¬ 
ings covered with wire cloth. In fact, bees 
shipped by railroad, in July and August, 
have been known to be smothered, when the 
whole top of the hive was covered with wire 
cloth. 
HOW BEES DO THEIR OWN VENTILATING. 
If one will watch a colony of bees during 
a warm day, he will see rows of bees stand¬ 
ing around the entrance, and far inside of 
the hive, with their heads pointing one 
way, all making their wings go in a pecul¬ 
iar manner, much as they do in flying; but 
instead of propelling their bodies along, 
they propel the air behind them, and a 
pretty strong “blow” they get up too, as 
may be felt by holding the hand near them. 
If the air is very hot and close inside the 
hive, so that there is danger of the combs 
melting down, they manage to send cool¬ 
ing currents clear to the furthest parts of 
the hive. 
At the end of a hot day when the bees 
have been working heavily in the fields, it 
is very interesting to try the following ex¬ 
periment: Hold the smoker, with a little 
smoke issuing from the nozzle, near one 
side of the entrance and then at the other 
side. It will be noticed that there is a 
strong draft of air on one side of'the en¬ 
trance into the hive, and an equally strong 
