Britain at Work
A Pictorial Description of Our National Industries

BEE FARMING. 203 hive—a “ super ”—may be placed on the top, with crevices for the working bees to get through and continue their labours for the shopkeeper and the honey-loving British public. The modern hive takes many forms that it would be impossible to describe here in detail, but we show some of them in our illustra- tions, and the principle on which they are all worked may be gathered from what has been said. The whole advance of the most efficient bee-keeping has been achieved by closely observing the inhabitants of the hive, setting up new houses “ fitted with every modern convenience,” and affording every possible assistance in their work. One extremely useful idea has been hit upon for facilitating the handling and general management of the little creatures. It was noticed that, however viciously disposed at other times, bees very rarely stung when they were in a condition for swarming, and it was believed to be due to the fact that at such times they were replete with food as if in preparation for their change of home. It was also observed that they would similarly gorge themselves whenever they were frightened, and that a very simple way of startling them was to puff a little smoke upon them. A small apparatus, which we depict, was de- vised by means of which the smoke of smouldering brown paper or anything of the kind may be blown into the hive. The bees in their alarm rush to their honey, take their fill, and may then be examined or even freely handled with very little risk of their sting- ing. There are several forms of the “ smoker,” but they are all pretty much alike in prin- ciple. The same thing may be effected in other ways—by means of a fine spray of diluted carbolic acid, for instance. The “ honey extractor ” shown in our illus- tration on this page is one of the latest of the inventions by which the work of the bee-farm has been so greatly facilitated. It is an adap- tation of the principle embodied in the patent “ wringing machine ” familiar to anyone who has ever inspected a well-appointed modern laundry, where, instead of wringing the clothes in order to get out the water from them after washing, they are put into a wire cage and swiftly revolved. The honey ex- tractor works in the same way. Instead of crushing the comb to squeeze the honey out, it is placed in a wire receptacle and made rapidly to revolve, the honey being whirled out by centrifugal force, and may be drawn off clear and bright and perfectly free from wax. The extractor is not absolutely essential on the bee-farm, but it is a very great con- venience, and in some of its simpler forms it is quite cheap. & R MlLLIN. THE HONEY EXTRACTOR.