BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
**Fig. 1** is the gin case of bees as it was brought from the apiary for the purpose of transferring. It was procured from elsewhere for that purpose. It has many open joints; these are stopped up with old bagging. Such a box fitly illustrates bee-keeping as it was prior to the introduction of the bar-framed system. 'The open joints are the entrances for bee enemies and dampness and cold draughts of air that foster all manner of bee diseases, and the old bagging is the breeding ground for the bee-moth and the harbour of spiders, etc.
Fig. 2 is the same box on its side, showing the arrangement of the combs within. It will be seen that some of the combs have fallen down. Fallen comb is always a trouble to the bees, and a loss to the bee-keeper. In a Langstroth hive if such a thing happens it can be rectified. It will also be noted that the combs are built diagonally, and in two different directions.
Fig. 3 is the box turned bottom upwards and one of the sides removed. The receiving box is in position and drumming is being done. The bees are driven into the receiving box by rapid and constant tapping at the sides of their old home. Sometimes a puff of smoke or two is driven in between the combs for the purpose of hastening their movements. If the bees should cluster in amongst the combs in the corner of their old homes it is sometimes necessary to remove them. It can be done with the naked hand far better than with a bee-brush. It is quite safe, as can be seen in Fig. 5.
Fig. 4 illustrates the method of fixing the transferred combs in the frames. The largest combs are first taken and cut to fit the frames as near as possible. They are held in position with the narrow tapes, as seen in the frame to the right. The smaller combs are the ones in the frame to the right. The pieces of comb, seen in the frame to the left, are cut to fit each other as near as possible, and are also held by tapes. Sometimes wires are used in lieu of tapes. **T** always prefer the latter. These frames are now ready to be placed in the bar-frame hive prior to the bees taking possession of their new home. Care must be taken in transferring the comb to the frames that it is put in correctly, and not reversed, _i.e.,_ upside down.
Fig. 5. You see bees are quite harmless under transferring, and can be handled as easily as chickens. After drumming, the box with the driven bees was put on one side out of the way, but is now brought back and is resting on their old home. from which all the brood combs have been transferred. To your right is unused comb, some of that which had fallen, drone comb and empty worker comb, for in transferring we never use these, nor-the comb with stored honey. The smoke bellows is there, but it has done its work long since, notwithstanding the advice of the ancient Virgil. The bees are now ready to be placed in their new quarters where the frames with the transferred comb have already been placed as in Fig. 6, where thousands of bees are seen still clinging to their old home. Other thousands are in the transfer box ready to be tumbled pell mell, as seen in Fig. 7, where the onlookers' intense interest is plainly seen. Half an hour ago and you dare not handle those bees as here seen. What has made the difference? They have been subdued ; we have obtained dominion over them. The manipulator is jerking them from the transferring box, from which they are falling like sand, and are piling up on the top of the frames. Yet not one of them puts on that angry tone so indicative of something sharper to follow. What would our grandfathers have thought of seeing anyone handling bees as the manipulator is here doing? And yet anyone can do it when they have been shown _how_.
Fig. 8. What a transition. Look at it. The past and the present. The old and the new. The old, with its accessories for disease and enemies. A home for bees where they could store honey in its purity for winter consumption, but man in obtaining it for his use had to destroy the bees or the brood comb, or both, with the destruction of the honey-comb, at the same time receiving many a reminder from the bees. And what did he obtain? Honey, mixed with bee-bread, and broken comb and bee-cgss, and crushed larvae, etc., too numerous to mention. The old, where all the interesting sights in the natural history of the bees that the sagesand naturalists of old desired to look into in vaiu. The new with its ease of manipulation, giving us an insight into the development of the bees from the egg to the perfect insect, giving us full control of the queen, the centre around which revolves successful bee-keeping at all times, and giving us a food free from those objectionable matters named.
## Chapter Xxii. The Historical Bee-Hive-its Evolution.
'Mare your cage before you get your bird'' is a proverb very applicable to amateur bee-keepers.'' I have always advocated that spare hives should be on hand and in position to receive any stray swarm that may chance put in an appearance. No matter how small it may be, it is always more or less valuable if only to strengthen a weak colony. The object of these pages is to give instruction as far as can be on paper, not to professional bee-keepers, but to beginners and would-be bee-keepers of the 'back-blocks'' and other remote places where carriage and other concomitant troubles are always more or less standing in the way of newly fledged and enthusiastic amateur apiarists.
Artificial homes and habitations for bees, like those of man, have had their periods and architectural developments and changes from the first primitive type to the more or less perfect movable bar-frame hives of almost universal adoption. Like man, too, bees were once 'cave dwellers,'' and indeed _eild_ bees still are. Whilst man led a nomadic life he was content with the ''wild honey'' that was found ''dripping from the rocks.'' In those early times there was no occasion to construct artificial homes for the domestication of the bee till man himself became a settler on the soil. The development of an artificial home for bees has been very slow. Some of the earliest history of civilization is silent thereon. Nevertheless, artificial homes for bees ''are as old as the hills.'' The artificial beehives used in Egypt at the present day are sun-dried carthen tubes, about 4 feet long, similar to unglazed drain-pipes. The same style of hive is said to be the one adopted by the Japanese, and also among the hill tribes of Northern India. From these sun-dried clay- pots of the ancients to the old straw hives of our great grandmothers, architectural progress was very slow.
For obtaining the honey from both the clay-pots and the straw hives, ''fire and brimstone'' were the persuasive arguments used to induce the little busy bee to yield up its laboriously-gathered winter stores to satisfy the cravings of the sweet-tooth of the bee-keepers of bygone days. How long the common straw hives were annually operated upon with fire and brimstone before some humane individual came to the conclusion that something more than a drain-pipe was needed to save the value!le lives of the inmates I don't know. Notwithstanding that after the applications of the brimstone argument, when every onlooker smelt a little of the torments of the valuable sufferers, all the sympathy of the bee-keeper ended in, ''What a pity; only this, and nothing more!'' until Nutt invented a straw super. This invention was improved by Neighbour's, Pettitt's, and Taylor's bell-glass supers. Nutt's super straw skip was superseded by Mr. Pettitt's ''Temple Bee-hive for the humane treatment of the honey-bee.'' It was got up in a tasteful and substantial manner, and when placed in a neat and ornamental flower-garden had a very picturesque appearance. ''Each live was furnished with four bell-glasses.'' he tells us, ''from which the drones are effectually excluded, and the temperature of the interior can be so regulated by the use of the ventilators and thermometers, as to prevent the necessity of swarming.'' only this ''necessity for swarming'' came off all the same.
About 1864, _The Times_ (**London**) Bee-master, strongly recommended ''Pettitt's hexagonal,'' as improved by himself by the introduction of six slides for the purpose of communication between the brood chamber over the super. But, later on, he discarded it for the Ayrshire box-hive. Pettitt's ''Temple hive'' seems to have been one of the first wooden structures for bee-keeping having any pretensions to use and ornament used in Great Britain.
In 1846, _The Lipzig Illustrated Almanac_, in a report on agriculture, said, ''Bee-culture is no longer regarded as of any importance in rural economy.''
In 1848, the Rev. Mr. Dzierzon published his Theory and Practice of Bee-culture, wherein he describes his method of removing the combs without the said combs being wholly destroyed. His method was by a movable top-bar to which the bees attached the comb, and also attached it to the sides of the live from where it had to be removed by the application of the knife. This was the germ from which sprang the movable bar framesThe Rev. L. L. Langstroth constructed a hive on the plan of the folding hives used by the celebrated Huber, for the purpose of verifying some of his (Huber's) valuable discoveries. The use of the Huber hive convinced Langstroth that a hive could be made that should give the bee-keeper a complete control of the combs without enraging the bees. The cutting of the combs from their attachment to the sides and bottom of the hive was the great draw-back to Dzierzon's invention, and Dzierzon's movable to p-bar speedily gave place to Langstroth movable frame.
Having thus given a short history of the rise and progress of artificial homes for bees, I propose to give a detail description of some of the movable bar-frame hives in general use. The various forms of hives now in use are all more or less modifications of the Langstroth.
Whatever the pattern, model, or size, hive chosen by the bee-keeper who intends to make his own hives, its construction must be simple, and the material most suitable is a soft, porous, light wood. The wood should be well-scasoned, so there may be no shrinkage with atmospheric changes. Hives should be so made that in the manipulating of them it will not be necessary to injure any of the inmates in the slightest degree.
The hives in use in this State are the Langstroth or Langstroth Simplicity, although occasionally we meet with the Gallup, the Heddon, the Quinby, the Ierlepsch, the Long-Idea, etc., or modifications thereof.
The following description is taken from Cheshire's Bees and Bee-keeping. Vol. II.* "The body-boxes (bb) are each 54 inch deep, by 19 7-8 inch, by 13 inch, outside the ends 7-8 inch, and the sides 4 inch thick. Before nailing together, the inner part of the top and bottom edges is rebated down 3-16 inch, leaving a rim 3-8 inch wide only, so that when the boxes come together they touch only at the 3-8 inch rim, while the 3-16 inch rebate in each make together a full bee-space (bs) of 3-8 inch. This principle of allowing a half bee-space above and below in each horizontal section of the hive, so that the needed 3-8 inch and no more is given in any possible combination, is a salient and new feature in the Heddon hive. The bottom board carries a lath 3-8 inch deep and 3-8 inch wide at its upper edge, upon which the hives rest, so that a larger, but not excessive, bee-space is made beneath. An entrance (e) is thus secured, which is regulated by the Langstroth blocks (lblb). Since the body-boxes are made invertible, Mr. Heddon has felt himself compelled to abandon the hanging Langstroth frame, and adopt a modification of the standing form of Quinby with wide ends. This frame he dove-tails together in the manner of section-boxes. The top and bottom bars are 4 inch by 13-16 inch by 18 1-16 inch, while the end pieces are 3-8 inch by 1 3-8 inch by 5 3-8 inch, _i.e._ (to preserve the before-mentioned bee-space) 3-8 inch shallower than the body-box itself within which the length of the frame has 1-16 inch play. It will be seen that the end pieces of these frames are 9-16 inch wider than the top and bottom bars; hence the space between any two top bars, or bottom bars, will always be 9-16 inch, by which the bees pass freely from section to section of the hive body. To prevent these frames falling through the body-box, the inside measure of which is 1-16 inch greater than their external length, strips of tin are nailed on to the lower rebates of the end pieces. These tin strips project 1-8 inch, and give a resting-place for the frameswhich stand upon them. As the outside width of the body-box is 13 inches, and the thickness of the sides \(\frac{3}{4}\) inch, 111 inches intervene between the latter. Eight of the frames, each 1 3-8 inch wide, occupy 11 inches of this, so that the \(\frac{1}{2}\) inch play provides the additional space required on the outside of the outer combs. To divide this equally, a narrow off-set, \(\frac{1}{4}\) inch thick, is nailed into the corner on to the side, and against this the outside frame rests. Wooden thumb-screws (ss), that have been previously boiled in tallow, are now tapped into the sides, so that their ends work on the edges of the wide sides of the frames, squeezing them together until they hold their position securely when the body-box is inverted.
"The stand (st) needs little explanation. The cleats of the bottom board touch its end pieces a trifle before the bottom board itself touches the side pieces, such a bearing causing the weight of the hive to assist the cleats in keeping the bottom board perfectly straight. The honey-board (hb) Mr. Hedden arranges on the 'break joints' principle, its slots standing over the interspaces between the frames of the body-box, with the object of preventing the building of brace-combs as they are termed, _i.e._, strips and irregular extensions of comb introduced between upper and lower frame or frames and section-boxes, filling the bee-space and attaching together, according to bee notions of security, parts that the bee-keeper desires to remain separate. The frame which holds the honey-board together extends in thickness 3-16 inch, both above and below the slots, thus keeping the half bee-space so characteristic of the Heddon system. The honey-board, as supplied, has no further addition, but the inventor recommends, and Mr. Jones actually places, queen-excluder zinc between the slots, which have saw-kerfs made in their edges, so that zinc, wider than their interspace, can be run in and kept in position. Zinc expands and contracts greatly by change of temperature, and would be consequently likely to seriously buckle if given in full sheet; but this is entirely prevented by the arrangement described.
"The section-racks (sr) are constructed on the general plan of the brood-chambers, with which they have the same length but a slightly greater breadth; their edges, however, about accurately upon the brood-boxes, which is accomplished by giving to the sides a small outside level. Since they are intended to hold frames accommodating \(4\frac{1}{4}\) inches by \(4\frac{1}{4}\) inches section-boxes, they are only 5 1-8 inches deep, which allows \(\frac{1}{2}\) inch for top and bottom bars of frames, and 3-8 inch for two half bee-spaces. The sides of the section-racks are 5-8 inch only (1-8 inch less than that of the brood-boxes), giving 1 foot full of internal width to the section-rack, which thus accommodates seven frames, each carrying four of the sections previously named. The thinning of the side necessitates battening, to give the tightening screw (s) sufficient hold, and the rack itself adequate rigidity. The tin rest and rebatcs are applied to these racks as to the body-boxes."
These Heddon hives are only suitable for the most experienced bee-keeper. It requires a skilled mechanic to make them, and they are far more difficult in manipulating than the Langstroth. The wooden thumb screws are a serious drawback; notwithstanding they are first boiled in oil, the sides of the hive in which they work always contract in damp weather, and I find it impossible to move them. I have had one in use now for two seasons, and during damp days or after a shower I find it impossible to open them until the sides are again thoroughly dry.
Every bee-keeper of note finds it to his advantage to make certain alterations applicable to his wants and the district in which he lives; but where one cf any other name is used in this State there are a hundred of the Langstroth's or the Langstroth Simplicity, and these terms for all practical purposes are synonymous. The Langstroth hive has stood the test of nearly half a century. Professor Cook's remarks many years ago are still applicable. He (Professor Cook) said of it, 'It left the hands of the great master (Langstroth) in so perfect a form that even the details remain unchanged by many of our first bee-keepers."
Anyone who has a fair amount of skill - a bush knowledge of the use of tools--can make a Langstroth hive. Winter evenings in the country often hang heavily, therefore those having spare time cannot employ it in more profitable pastine than that of hive-making.
The wood used should be soft and light and well seasoned, and the only thing that is imperative in the construction is that the measurements must be rigidly adhered to, otherwise there will be no end of trouble in the manipulating of the bees. Many a bee-keeper who has been his own carpenter has given up bee-keeping in disgust, because in the construction of his home-made hives there has been a want of care in giving bee-space--quarter of an inch--true bee-space is 3-16 inch.
The wood in kerosene and other packing cases is more or less suitable. They are to be found around about all country stores,and can always be cut down for the making of bee-boxes. For the colder districts the sides of the first named is too thin. The smell of the kerosene is quickly evaporated by putting the cases in the full glare of the sun. The most suitable thickness is that of one inch, or a little less if it is not to be planed. The ends must always be of inch wood, or of sufficient thickness to admit of a rebate (rabbet) for the movable frames to hang freely. The ends of kerosene cases, although not an inch thick, answer very well for the purpose.
The brood chamber, or body of the hive, is 91, inches deep if a movable bottom (to be hereafter described) be used, but if the bottom be a fixture (though a movable bottom is always preferable) it should be 10 inches in depth. For an 8-framed live the ends must be 14\({}^{1}_{4}\) inches--that is, if the sides are to be nailed to the ends--but if the ends are to be nailed to the sides an allowance must be made for the thickness of the sides. The sides should be 20 inches outside measurement. Therefore, a piece of timber 6 ft. x 10 in. is sufficient to make a brood chamber or a full size super. From such a piece of timber, first cut off 28! inches (if the sides are to be nailed to the ends, and it is always better so to do) and work a rebate (rabbet) 3-8 in. plus the thickness of the top bar of the movable frame, and the top bar of such frame should be at least \(\frac{1}{2}\) inch thick, afterwards cutting it into two equal parts. Of course, each one will be 14\(\frac{1}{2}\) in. x 10in.
An easier and simpler way of making the rebate, although not so workmanlike, is to plant a strip along the end piece of the frame, and fasten it with fine nails thus :--(a) \(\frac{3}{4}\) x 3-8 in. piece planted on (c) to form the rebate, and fastened with fine nails; (b) rebate, which should be \(\frac{3}{4}\) in. by not less than \(\frac{1}{2}\) in., for the frame to hang on; (c) \(8^{3}_{8}\) in. x 1 in., or a shaving or two less. (aa) 91\(\frac{1}{2}\) in. if the bottom board be a fixture.
A full-sized super is the same measurements as the brood chamber. It will be noticed that if a movable bottom board be used the depth of the bar-frame (to be hereafter described) will be 91\(\frac{1}{4}\) inches, thus coming flush with the base of (c), and showing no bee-space--a cleat to form the bee-space is fastened on the bottom board. Half-size supers for shallow frames are the same measurements in all except in depth. This will be explained in the article on Frames, etc.
## Chapter 3 Movable bottom boards for the Langstrom simplicity Hive.
Like all other portions of the hive, the bottom board should be made of well seasoned timber, light and free from cracks. A faulty bottom board is always a nuisance and vexation to the bekeeper, and alike a fruitful source of trouble to the inmates of the hive. Cracks and badly fitting joints in bottom boards, and indeed in any other part of the hive, are always nurseries for the larvae of the bee-moth and other enemies. If cracks, etc., cannot bo avoided they should be filled in with putty or some such stopping.
For an eight-framed five the width of a movable bottom must be \(14^{1}_{4}\) inches, plus the thickness of the sides of the hive; that is, if the sides are nailed to the end pieces, but if the end pieces are fixed to the sides, they should not be included in the measurement of the bottom board. In other words, a movable bottom should be the full width of the hive, and no more. in length it should be \(2^{1}_{2}\) inches longer than that of the bottom of the hive, the extra length being used as an alighting board. The wood in thickness should not be less than 1 inch stuff dressed down to 7-8 inch.
There are several patterns of bottom boards, but I have selected two that are the most commonly used. If the hives have been constructed the full 10 inches in depth, with a view of having a \(1\)-inch space beneath the frames, and a \(1\)-inch above, it may be constructed in either of those shown in the two following diagrams :=
**For this platform, or bottom board, a piece of wood 1 inch thick, 2 feet long, and 16 inches wide (the width of the hive) is needed. It may be made of two or more pieces, but the fewer joints the better. As before stated, joints give great facilties to bee enemies for depositing their ova, and these chinks and crannies are difficult places for the industrious bees to dislodge them from. The entrance is cut in the solid wood in V shape, as shown in the diagram, or in crescent form, shown in the diagram by a dotted line. The first shape named being by far the easier method, especially for amateur carpenters. In marking out the entrance take either 16-inch end and draw a line 1\(\frac{1}{2}\) inch from each corner to a point 5 inches from the front of the bottom board. Run a saw-cut from the corner points to the centre one 3-8 inch deep. This will save a deal of after labour in chiselling away the superfluous wood. The legs, marked E F, should be about 16 inches long, 3 inches wide, and of sufficient substance to securely hold the
nails when fixed to the bottom board. These legs are for a two-fold purpose ; they keep the hive well up off the ground, and also prevent the wood from warping. The underside being invariably damp, and the upper surface dry, the bottoms have a great tendency to twist. Four bricks will answer the same purpose for keeping the hives free from the ground, and have the advantage of preventing the ravages of the white ant. Nevertheless, it is always well to plant strong cleats on the underside of the bottom board. It is a preventive for the warping, and, of course, is absolutely necessary if the bottom is made from more than one piece of wood. The twisting may also be prevented by using grooved cleats. The V-shaped entrance has the advantage of providing for greater or lesser ingress or egress, as may be required according to climatic changes, by sliding the hive forth or back as may be found necessary.