DR IRVING'S BEE EXPERIMENTS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LIII, Issue 5916, 11 February 1880, Page 6

DR IRVING'S BEE EXPERIMENTS.

[bv oue special eeposteb.] I was one of (he number of people who attended at the public gardens, at four o clock on Monday afternoon, to witness tho beo hive demonstration and explanation which; been promised by Dr Irving. I was also one of those who grumbled exceedingly becauiso Dr Irving came not. There was at the time a misty rain, but some of the beekeepers present thought that tho weather was not sufficiently adverse to warrant the general disappointment. Dr Irving, it appears, thought differently, and subsequent events showed not merely that ho was right, but that those who had been priding themselves on their knowledge of the manners and customs of tlio honey bees, bad much, very much, to learn. At four o’clock yesterday afternoon the company had rea.-semblc-l, for they were most anxious not to miss the opportunity, and the doctor's promise was that in the event ot the weather being unfavourable on Monday he would attend on the first fine afternoon. The weather yesterday was all that could be desired, tho doctor was punctual, and tho entertainment given by turn was unique. Nothing at all approaching it, 1 believe, has over before been witnessed in this Colonv, and everyone was both astonished and delighted. Dr Irving’s first care was to explain to his audience what were the requirements of a complete hive, tho rules laid down by him being as follows : 1. That it should give the apiarian such perfect control of all the combs that they may be easily taken out without cutting anything or enraging the bees. 2. It should permit all necessary operations to be performed without hurting or killing a single bee. . . .. . 3. It should afford suitable protection against extremes of heat and cold and suoden changes of temperature, and the injurious effects of dampness. 4. It should permit every desirable operation to bo performed without exciting the anger of the bees. 5. Not one imnecessiry motion should be required of a single bee ; that is, there should be the straightest possi ale road to every pari of every comb. ..... 6. It should afford the greatest_ facilities for inspecting at all times the condition of the tees. „ 7. It should he capable of being readily adjusted to the wants of either large or small colonies. 8. It should allow the combi to be removed without jarring the bees or the combs either. 9. It should allow every goad piece of comb to be given back to the bees instead of melting it into wax. 10. It should offer every inducement (othe bees to build regular combs. 11. It should be capable of being furnished with empty comb or comb foundation, so as to induce the bees to occupy the hive, or a super, or the outer combs, more readily. 12. It should prevent the over-production of drones, by permitting the removal of drone comb from the hive, or its transposition to the outsides of the range of combs. 13. lb should enible the apiarian to trap and destroy the drones, if he thinks it desirable, before they consume the honey in the hive. 14. It should enable him to remove such combs as are too old to be used for breeding purposes. 15. It should afford all possible security against the ravages of the wax or bee moth; but should the eggs, when hatched into worms get the upper hand, the combs being easily movable can be taken out and destroyed, 16. The greatest possible accuracy in fitting of all the parts of the hive, especially those exposed to the outer air, so that there be no j crevices into which the wax moth can thrust her eggs or earwigs gain a shelter. ( 17. The bottom board should slant towards the entrance to facilitate the carrying out of •dead bees and other useless substances. It also gives a slight advantage to the besieged in case they are attacked by robbers ; it carries off moisture towards tho entrance, and prevents rain beating in. 18 The bottom board should admit of being easily cleared, in cold weather, when bees aro apt to die in larger numbers, so as not to got mouldy in the hive. 19. J>o part of tho interior of the hive should be below the level of the entrance or place of exit. 20. It should afford facilities for feeding 1 the bees whenever desired.

21. It should afford the easy hiving of a swarm, without injuring the bees or risking the destruction of the queen. 22. It should permit the safe transportation of bees to any distance, but that would depend in part on the age of the combs. 23. It should afford ventilation and an abundant supply of air without any draft, when from robbing or other reasons it is desirable to shut the entrance. 24. It should enable the entrance to be enlarged or contacted, or closed when desired by the bee master, and when altered the bees should not have to search for it, 25. It should afford facilities for admitting a large supply not only of air but sunlight, eo as to induce the bees to fly out to empty the lower bowel, thereby preventing dysentery and disease, and the ultimate loss of the colony. 26. It should enable the apiarian to remove any excess of bee-bread from old stocks. 27. It should afford the greatest facilities for the removal of all the contents of the hive to another hive. 28. It should permit the safe and easy dislodgment of the bees from the combs—an easy thing from straight combs. 29. It should afford easy access to a super or side box, if such are used. 30. It should permit the honey to be taken away in the most convenient and most saleable form, without risk of annoying the bees or being annoyed by them. 31. It should peimit of the relative size of the body of the hive and the super or supers being altered, according as increase of work or honey is desired. 32. It should be so constructed that the relative distance of the combs is always maintained, viz., 1« inches less l-32nd. 32. It should be weather proof, but capable of admitting the sun in fine days in spring. 34. The interior should be constructed, if desirable, so as to prevent the exit of the queen, and so should the passage or passages to the super. 35. Swarming can be forced or prevented, either by dividing the hive, taking away the queen, or cutting out the queen cells. 36. It should enable the apiarian to multiply his colonies, with a certainty and rapidity, which are impossible if ho depends on natural swarming. 37. It should enable the apiarian to supply destitute colonies with the means of obtaining a new queen as soon as possible, and so save much valuable time. 38. It should enable him to catch the queen, and replace her if required or desired. 39. It should be made of well seasoned wood, which when well painted will not shrink or swell, as I find to my cost most of the New Zealand wood does. 40. It should be complete in itself, not requiring sheds or other expensive and mistaken appliances. 41. It should not be liable to be blown down by winds. 42. The alighting board should be so protected, that neither snow nor rain can reach it, and it should he shaded from winds. 43. Of course it should be impossible for mice to enter. 44. The hive should be neat, cheap, simple, compact; no wasted space; capable of adornment, if desired, but equally efficient, whether plain or ornamental; it should be capable of being locked up. The in; erior should be left rough from the saw,’ as affording a better foothold for the bees. In giving these fundamental rules, Dr Irving enlarged upon them, sometimes replying to a long string of questions from one and of the audience, and at limes quite, an animated debate was proceeding. Besides this, an empty hive was need to explam every detail, and it was made abundantly evident that with a Bar-framed hive as planned iiy Dr Irving, absolutely anything iu reason could be doue with the bees. Old

Louis Langlois was looting on quietly, smoking his short pipe with intense eatisfaotion, and I asked him what ho thought of such a plan of bee-keeping as that He expressed himself as being , well pieced ' bo far, but he preferred to withhold : any definite opinion until wo had , 1 peoted the tenanted hire, towards which we were now moving. Langlois was evidently disturbed about something, but 1 could not yet understand what it was. There was a short halt, just before approaching the bees, to enable the visitors to don their bee dresses, and certainly the appearance which was soon presented was ludicrous in the extreme. Some had provided themselves with heavy-looking black veils, extended at a considerable distance from their faces by means of an enormously largo false hat-brim of cardboard, and they might been taken for some now order of priests. One gentleman, in addition to his big veil had a broad strap tightly buckled round his chest, lest perchance some prying ( bee should insinuate itself beneath the closely buttoned coal. His hands were encased m hedging gloves, with added gauntlets, and a liberal application of twine to the bottoms of his bifurcated garments bad made all secure in that quarter. “Aha! Zee bees won t sting to-day, and zero will be no fun. Louis Langlois was at my elbow, and he it was who spoke. I took the hint, and thrust back the veil which I was in tie act of taking out. There was a fair sprinkling of uncovered faces and hands, for some of the spectators knew that they would experience no ill cffett from a sting, and so were secure in their immunity from suffering. The cover of the hive being gently lifted off, the frames and their contained combs were exposed to view, with the bees about them in rich brown clusters! They had been tenants of this new home only twelve days, but the work they had done was marvellous. The doctor took out the combs one by one, explaining the mode of construction followed by the insect architects and builders, and the variation of worker, drone, and queen bee cells. For some time ho could not find the queen, so thickly were the bees crowding about the golden walls, but she was at length detected, and the frame containing the comb over ■which she was travelling, was gently lifted out, and placed in an exhibition hive. Ihis hire consists of a bottom, ends, and top of polished wood, the sides being of glass, and the distance of the glass sides from each other is only sufficient to admit of one sheet of comb and the attendant bees being included. On the hive being closed, no bees can escape, and their movements can be minutely examined. There was something extremely beautiful in the stately march of the queen, elegantly shaped, deliberate in all her movements, and obsequiously made way for by her loyal subjects. But of far more practical interest was the proof given that in a hive of suitable construction the bees are made to build perfectly flat sheets of comb, and that at any time a slice may be taken without injuring a single bee. For an hour and a half Dr Irving entertained his visitors, and during the greater part of that time he was giving explanatory illustrations with the crowded hive, yet so far as could be ascertained there was no sacrifice of the life of even a single bee, and so little did they appear to be disturbed by the mode of inspection adopted, that no one even felt a sting. The doctor also showed a slinger, made on the American principle, for extracting honey from the combs, and a large sheet of comb was emptied in less than half a minute. It will readily be perceived that by this method of taking honey, the empty comb can be returned to the hive, to be cleaned, repaired, and refilled, and that as a result the labour of the bees is economised, and the produce of honey materially augmented. An ingeniously simple apparatus for feeding bees in unfavourable weather was also shown, Both t o feeder and the slinger were manufactured by Air G. P. Day, Colombo street. I was now made aware of the reasons for the uneasiness which Louis Langlois had shown. Champion of the old system of beekeeping though, he was, he frankly admitted that he was delighted with the new plan ; but he was disappointed that the bees had not shown their irritability and “ made ze people dance about.” He was also, perhaps, a little disappointed that he had not been afforded an opportunity of displaying his powers. He determined to create that opportunity. Calling a few of us to him, he led the way to a large wooden hive, overstocked with bees, and so having an immense cluster of the insects on the outside, immediately above the entrance, as if preparing to swarm. Quietly stepping up to the hive, he gathered up the bees in his bare hands, as if they were so many dead flies, and carried the living mass to us. The bees clung to his hands, working about in confused heaps, and one only inserted its sting. Langlois was pleased at this, and with great glee he desired us to notice how the little brown chap was vainly trying to withdraw the barbed lance. He then dropped the bees repeatedly from oue hand to the other, and finally replaced them on the flight-board of their hive. Curiously enough, not one of these bees attempted to fly. At the conclusion of the experiments, Dr Irving was heartily thanked for the gratification he had afforded, and he kindly undertook to repeat the exhibition on next Monday afternoon, at four o’clock. Stops will (hen bo taken to form a Bee-keepers’ Society, by means of which members may exchange experiences and ideas, and be enabled to perfect their knowledge of a subject of intense interest.