As a check to the ill-effects of this moisture some bee-keepers make a practice, when cleaning their hives, of thoroughly scorching the interior walls with a blow lamp.

So-called "rot preventers" are not to be recommended for use inside the hives, for many of them are highly injurious to the bees.

In purchasing hives it should be seen that they are in no wise cracked or warped, that no large knots are contained in the wood, and that the workmanship of the joints is in every way perfect. The roof needs to be completely rain-proof and the eaves should hang well over the sides so as to ensure the rain-water being carried away from the walls of the hive.

Size of Hive.—In the selection of a hive the size must depend upon the bee-keeper's own convenience, so that it is useless to lay down any hard-and-fast rule. Many apiarists have a regular system of moving their hives from district to district to meet the varying crops and honey sources, and it naturally follows that the less cumbersome the hive in their case the better. Personally I prefer a hive of about eighteen inches square, outside measurement. This may be accounted rather large for winter requirements, but it is always a simple matter to reduce the interior space with a dummy.

One or two odd sized hives are convenient to possess; they are useful in emergencies, and the smaller sizes especially come in handy for queen rearing purposes, or when strengthening nucleus.

The Floorboard.—The hive bottom, or floorboard, which includes the sloping platform outside the hive, on which the bees alight, should be removable for the purposes of cleaning—which must be done thoroughly at least twice a year. This alighting board should provide for an entrance ¼ of an inch below the level of the sides and back of the hive and should slope upwards to the floorboard about 4 or 5 inches inside the hive.

When hives are moved frequently from one district to another it is advisable to have a short alighting board, as less space is thereby taken up in the removal conveyance. It is an easy matter to lengthen the board when the hive is in position if it is found necessary. A roofing slate makes a very good addition to a short alighting board.

The Brood Chamber.—The brood chamber rests on the floorboard: it is usually made with a porched entrance from the alighting board, but, although a porch is useful if the hive is in an exposed situation, the bees, as a rule, will do equally well without it. The porch, indeed, often proves a source of trouble to young bees, who fail to find the entrance and rush frantically along the top of the porch in their efforts to do so. The brood chamber usually has two single and two double walls: on the inner, which are lower than the outer, rest the ends of the bar frames that contain the combs or brood foundation. It is here that the brood is reared and the natural life and work, of the hive proceeds.

SIDE VIEW AND SECTIONAL SIDE VIEW OF A MODERN BAR-FRAME HIVE.
(This Hive has a double set of Standard Frames)

Bar Frames.—The bar frame is used as a case or support to hold the honeycombs. Without them it would be impossible to lift the combs from the hive and replace them in their proper position. It is these frames that enable the modern bee-keeper to do so much more than was possible with the old skep, and it has been by their aid that so much has been learned of the home-life of the bee.