Have a tin-worker make you a tin tube, one inch in diameter, six inches long, and fit stoppers of soft wood closely in each end, two and three inches long respectively, with a hole through each, one-fourth inch in diameter. Fit one end of the longer stopper to hold in the mouth. Before placing the shorter piece in the tube, cover the inside end with wire cloth, bent a little convex, to prevent the ashes and tobacco filling the quarter-inch orifice. Taper the outer end of the short piece nearly to the point. Remove the mouth-piece, and fill the tube nearly full of tobacco (cigars are best for they burn freely.) Dip with live embers, replace the mouth-piece and blow the smoke from the pointed end.
With this instrument smoke may be forced among the bees in any part of the hive or boxes. In all operations likely to arouse the anger of the bees, as taking off and putting on boxes, lifting out comb frames, putting on and taking off feeder, removing the honey board, examining the rearing boxes in queen raising, etc., smoke the hive well. In short, use smoke freely when about to perform any operation upon the bees. Before touching the hive give the bees two or three smart puffs at each entrance of the hive; then commence your operations immediately. If the honey board is over the brood section, and your operations are to be performed in that part of the hive, raise the board just enough to puff in the smoke, but not enough for the bees to come out. Give them the smoke here freely for about one minute, before you remove the board. They will show their submission by a loud humming throughout the hive. When they set up this humming noise is the time to proceed with your work. Remove the honey board entirely, keeping the smoker at hand ready for use, and giving them a puff of smoke occasionally to keep them under submission.
It is best for the inexperienced bee raiser to protect the hands and face in all operations, at least until he feels perfect confidence in his ability to avoid irritating the bees sufficiently to cause them to sting. To protect the hands, wear thick woolen mittens, with very long wrists, so they will come up over the dress or coat sleeve, thus protecting the hands and wrists completely from stings. To protect the face and neck, get coarse black lace, one-half yard wide and a yard and a quarter in length. Take three-fourths of this piece for the front breadth and the balance for the back breadth. Seam together at the selvedges, and gather the upper edge on an elastic cord so as to fit closely, and draw around the crown of the hat. When putting on the hat ready for use, leave the longer part in front, to button beneath the coat or vest of a gentleman or the sack of a lady. At the back the lace tucks beneath the collar. Thus protected, we are perfectly safe from stings, and can see as well, and perform all operations nearly as well, as when uncovered.
The best antidote for stings is the application of water in which salt has been dissolved—a heaping teaspoonful of salt to a teacupful of water. Bathe the affected part freely, and in severe cases take a swallow of the salt and water into the stomach. Avoid rubbing or irritating the stung part. Be sure to extract the sting immediately, as the longer it remains, the more serious will be the consequences.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE BEE MOTH.
IN some localities the bee moth is said to be very destructive, yet I regard the depredations of this insect as much less to be feared than some bee-keepers suppose. The bee moth is the agency provided by nature for returning back to the earth the contents of any hive when left by the bees, in the same manner that the flesh fly is the means provided for returning to the earth the carcass of any animal.
I do not believe that a strong, healthy stock of bees was ever attacked and destroyed by the bee moth. The stock must from some cause become reduced in numbers so there are not bees enough to cover all the comb, before the moth will make an attack. But when the comb is unprotected, the moth follows the instinct of its nature, and deposits her eggs in it. The bees from some cause keep decreasing, and the moth continues depositing her eggs in the vacated comb, until the entire comb of the hive is a complete mass of vile worms, the progeny of the bee moth.
About this time the bee keeper notices for the first time (for, if he is keeping bees on the old plan, he lets them take their own course, believing if he meddles with them, they will "run out") that something is wrong with that hive. So he examines them and finds the combs a mass of webs, with hundreds of moth millers among the combs, and the combs themselves filled with vile worms. "Ah!" he says, "the bee moth has destroyed that swarm of bees;" when in fact the moth had no more to do with bringing about the loss than the maggots, found in the carcass of a nice lamb destroyed by dogs, had to do with destroying the life of the animal. "Oh," says some wise bee-keeper, "I know better than that for I have seen the bee moth flying about my hives and trying to get in." Very well; I have seen the flesh fly circling about live animals, but think you there was any danger from them as long as the animal was in health? Not a bit. Neither is there any danger from the bee moth, if you keep your stocks of bees strong and healthy. But if you have weak or diseased stocks, or have honey in boxes in warm weather unprotected by the bees, look out for the bee moth.