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OF THE

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AGRICULTURAL

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521

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This book may be kept out

TWO WEEKS

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only, and is subject to a fine of TWO
CENTS a day thereafter. It will be due on
the day indicated below.

I MAY 3 1896
!ViAY14l80:

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PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

Jf\NUf\RY, 1892.

NO. I.

Instructions to Amateur Bee-
Keepers,

BY \V. S. VANDRUFF

With this, the first number of the
new year, 1 begin a series of articles
for the readers of the American Bee-
Keeper, but more particularly for
the amateur bee-keeper. These art-
icles will more than likely continue
throughout the year. I may intro-
duce some advanced ideas, and give
somewhat different advice and in-
structions than is usually done, but
nevertheless I shall aim to treat all
fairly and give due respect to other's
opinions ; yet I must treat the subject
in the light of my own experience, and
mould and shape my instructions in
accordance with my knowledge as
gained from years of actual work in
the apiary, testing and comparing
many different theories and practices.

I may not be considered orthodox
on some points that may be raised,
nevertheless 1 shall aim to get at the
truth and facts, orthodox or no ortho-
dox. 1 know of some things that were
considered well settled when I began
bee keeping that are now very much
unsettled. So you will understand
that I write from my own conclusions
and not from what others have said

or borrowed from tradition, except so
far as I believe from experience to be
the facts of the case.

Heretofore great stress has been
laid on the hive question. It seems
that the great aim has been to con-
struct a hive that would winter our
bees safely — one that would prevent
our winter losses— one that would pre-
vent our spring dwindling. Just as
if the hive had all to do with the win-
ter problem. I have experimented
much in this line and have met with
losses equally as much with one hive
as another, and have learned that the
hive has not been made that will win-
ter bees in all cases. I have also
learned that some bees will winter in
any kind of a hive while others will
die or dwindle in the best hive made.

Now I will say to the beginner: the
first thing you do get a good book or
two on bee-culture, take one or more
bee journals and read up on the sub-
ject from now until spring, and post
yourself on the best ways of man age-
ing bees.

During the winter months is a good
time to prepare and get ready your
hives. Anticipate your wants, order
your supplies early, and be ready
when spring comes to apply your

7 HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

knowledge thus gained to the success-
ful management of your bees.

Auother thing I want you to do this
winter is to look about you hives often
and notice how much faster some col-
onies of bees die off than others. You
will find that some will keep strong all
winter and be as good apparently in
the spring as they were last fall, while
others will die off more in one month
than some do all winter, and they
keep on dying until they are so reduc-
ed by spring that they are worth but
little, and others dwindle and die long-
before spring, and all this in face of
the fact that you had them all as near
alike in the fall as it was possible to
have them. Yes, in the same kind of
hives, securely packed in orthodox
style.

Now why all this difference in the
wintering of your bees?

Well, please make the observations
above mentioned, and I will say that
this is one of the questions among oth-
ers that I propose to advise you on in
these articles.

M'aynesburg, Pa.

{To be continued I
^m m —

Winter Dwindling, Honey Dew

and Preparing Bees

for Winter.

BY M. H. DEWITT.

Bees sometimes die off during the
winter, and this is often caused by
unwholesome food and confinement to
their hives during long, cold winters.
Honey dew is frequently the cause of
this trouble, as it makes very un-
wholesome winter stores, although I
notice that Mr. Jas. Heddon recom-
mends it as good winter stores in sev-
eral bee journals. It would do for
winter stores during mild, open win-

ters. When bees can have a cleans-
ing flight they may winter on sucdi
stores, but if the winter is long and
protracted they will become diseased,
and will soon dwindle away to noth-
ing and die,

I would not recommend honey dew
as a winter food by any means, as the
result of feeding it would be heavy
losses and discouragements to the api-
arist. It is a product of the Aphides,
or plant lice that feed on the leaves of
many trees and emit a sweet liquid
and spray it over the leaves of the
trees and the bees gather it. It is not
a dew, as many suppose, that falls like
the dew on the grass. It should be
extracted from the combs and sugar
syrup fed instead, unless it is too late
to do so.

Many bee keepers who do not use
chaff hives pack their bees in an out-
er box that answers the purpose of a
hive of that kind. A rough box of
any kind that is six or eight inches
larger each way than the hive will
answer. Make an entrance-way thro'
it and then fill in between the hive
and box with chaff or sawdust and
cover the hive over with the same
material, and then cover the box so as
to exclude the rain. By so doing we
can have our bees in as good condi-
tion, with respect to thick walls, as
the best chaff hive can make them.
If we winter without packing in an
outer case, we should place chaff or
sawdust in and over the brood frames
and cover them up as warm as wTe can.
Many of our leading bee keepers in
the north, where the winters are the
coldest, practice cellar wintering with
the best of success. The condition
necessary is to have a cellar dry and

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

sufficiently warm. The temperature
should never go down to the freezing
point. It should be kept as near 45
degrees as possible, and should not go
much below 40 degrees nor far above
50 degrees.

By the time the first frost comes,
not later, all the colonies should be
looked over, and these that have not
enough winter stores should be fed
until they have plenty, which should
not be less than 20 lbs.; 25 lbs. would
be better. For out door wintering
they should have not less than 25 lbs.
of good sugar syrup or honey.

Sunny Side, Md.

Inducements for Bee-Keeping

BY C. J. ROBINSON.

Bee-keeping is honest, honorable
and easy. It needs but little capital
and no unusual skill; neither great
strength nor profound learning. It
does not depend on political favor nor
the smiles of the rich. Rural, but not
rude ; royal, but not rigorous. It asks
but the smiles of nature and a quiet
spot. It makes by saving and does
not injure by taking. It requires many
operatives, but they support them-
selves, requiring of their employer
only a cheap, suitable place to store
the product of their skill and industry,
ready for his or her use or for the
market. It can be conducted al-
most anywhere, and more money made
from the same amount of capital and
labor than in any other business.
Many a farmer loses more than he
makes by not keeping bees, or not
keeping them properly. He and his
family grow prematurely old with
plowing and reaping, and mowing and
hoeing, and all the drudging inciden-
we will relieve you from wasting toil."

tal to tilling the s >il, while every flow-
er is saying to them, "Send bees and
These sable servants challenge com-
petition in con forming the sweet treas-
ures of nature to their masters' use.
Spare them life — it is short at best.
Let inventive genius protect and aid
them — they appreciate favors. We
cannot afford to do without bees, much
less to keep them in a profitless man-
ner. The profits of bee-keeping may
undoubtedly be far greater than here-
tofore, and whoever shall provide more
feasible ways to accomplish it will de-
serve a nich with him who makes two
blades of grass grow where one grew
before.

Perhaps the most important consid-
eration for keeping bees is, that honey
is the most healthy sweet that is or
can be produced. Cane sugar cannot
be assimilated as food until it becomes
transformed into glucose (grape sugar)
and lumdose (uncrystallized sugar).
Bernard states that when cane sugar
is injected into the blood it circulates
therein as an inert body, and is in no
degree used as nutriment by the tis-
sues, but is eventually entirely re-
moved unchanged with the urine. Iu
his research to ascertain where in the
digestive economy cane sugar is trans-
formed, he failed to find it changed
in the saliva or in the stomach. He
at length discovered it in the small
intestines. Such being the order oP
nature, it would seem that in cases
where the small intestines, the assim-
ilating organ, becomes weakened, cane
sugar should not be taken into the
stomach. On the other hand, honey
is ready for assimilation, being nat-
urally fitted for absorbtion by the lac-
teal vessels, by which it is conveyed
into the circulation, assimilated into

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

blood and converted into nutriment.
Honey is digested nectar, digested by-
distillation in nature's labratory, and
does not undergo digestion in the
human organs.
Richford, iV. Y.

What I Have Observed, Etc.

BY T. K. MASSIE.

( ontinued.)

The frame is an indispensible part
of the hive, aud why any one can tol-
erate a loose hanging frame, like the
L frame, is more than I can divine.
The i in. space at each end between
end bars and hive is almost certain to
be filled up with comb in a strong col-
ony, and when they are not plugged
up and made fast the greatest care in
handling or moving a hive is required
to keep from killing bees by the frames
slipping together. The space in cold
winter weather is filled with the bit-
ing, frosty air, to chill the life out of
our bees, but if such frames must be
used then we should use spacers to
make them "fixed."

The Simplicity hives have 106 cubic
inches of vacant space between end of
frames and hive. Of what use is this
vacant space ? Can any one tell me ?
I can nan die the closed end frames
more rapidly than I can those loose
hanging "raitle traps," and when a
hive is moved the frames remain in
their places, even if the hive has been
carried on its side. I want a reversi-
ble, closed end frame, one that will fit
closely inside the hive and leave no
useless vacant space, and so arranged
that my bees can pass through the top
bars. This is all the winter passage I
want. It seems to me that the frames
should embody the following princi-
ples : hanging, closed end, reversible,

winter passage through the bars, and
so arranged that the bees will be en-
tirely excluded from the walls of the
hive at the end of frames. If some one
will get up a frame that can be made
cheap and embody the above princi-
ples, I think it will make almost a
perfect frame.

The winter case should be made so
that it can be detached from the
bottom board. This is necessary to
sun and air our hives in winter and
spring, as previously mentioned. Such
a winter case, with the cushions re-
moved, is all the shade boards we need
in hot weather.

I fancy I hear some one say, " you
have drawn all your conclusions from
box hives." Not all together. I am
seeking for knowledge and I am will-
ing 10 accept it from any source. My
conclusions are drawn from what I
conceive to be the best result, whether
that be from a box hive or any other
kind of hive. I want a frame hive ;
one that conforms to the natural re-
quirements of my bees. I want my
bees on frames so that I can assist
them, by giving stores or taking away,
when necessary, and for the thousand
and one other advantages in manipu-
lating.

Some may say, " You are harping
too much on the 'according to nature*
plan." We all assist the natural in-
stincts of our bees in a great many
ways. It is their instinct to clean out
their hives, build combs, etc., yet we
assist them in this by giving them a
nice, clean hive ready to occupy, and
we give them foundation whenever it
will pay to do so. Then why not give
assistance in every instance where it
it will be to our (and theirs too) ad-

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

vantage to do so ? It is their natural
instinct to glue up their hives tight
for winter. Then why not also assist
them in this respect by furnishing
properl)- proportioned hives, causing
them as little labor as possible in their
preparations for winter, and why not
also assist them to keep their hives
dry and warm by means of cushions,
winter cases, etc., as previously men-
tioned ?

Concord Church, W. Va.

(To be continued^)

S§JT

Editor American Bee-Kekper :
I have found that when. bees are win-
tering on summer stands the hives
should be raised four or five inches
from the ground to prevent them
drawing moisture. Staves of nail kegs
or even light barrels make good strips
to put over the frames in winter ; both
ends being sawed off and only the
middle piece used, as it has the most
curve iu it. Split them about 1^ in.
wide and nail them to another strip in
the center, and put over this a cushion
made of burlap filled with chaff or dry
leaves. This, of course, makes it neces-
sary to put, on a super.

For fumigating honey or combs,
melt some sulphur over the fire in a
pan, stir in small rags until all is wip-
ed up. These r.igs will bum in a per-
fectly tight box or honey house with-
out any draft.

I have just found out that honey
dew can be distinguished from dark

amber honey by holding sections up
to the light ; the honey dew being per-
fectly dark, while the amber looks
yellow.

I happened to have a few red pine
slats in a honey board and found that
the bees had not put any propolis on
them, while the bassw'ood slats in the
same board were badly daubed with
both propolis and burr comb.

I hope some of the points I have
given above will be of some benefit to
your readers. Ed. Smith.

Carpenter, III, Nov. 20, 1891.

Editor American Bee- Keeper :
I am afraid the five banded bee is a
failure. I am sorry to say that they
are not what they are claimed to be.
At least that has been my experience
with them, and I am going back to
my first love, the regular three band-
ed Italians. I have had five banded
queens from four large breeders.
Their bees are all cross. Two are
worse than any Hybrids I ever handled
They are about equal to the Blacks as
honey gatherers. Like some Hybrids,
smoke has no effect on them.

Now, this may sound strange to some
to whom I have sold five banded queens
as "the gentlest, best, etc.," but I was
then telling it as the breeders told it
to me. Now, I write from practical
experience. Take my advice, stick to
the three banded and get the best.

By the way, who has bees that will
work on red clover ''. I can not get
them, and it is not because I have not
tried either. Yours, etc.,

Harry L. D wight.

Friendship, A. Y.

The W. T. Falconer ManfgCo.,
Gentlemen : As my subscription has

6

1ME AM ERIC Ah BEE- KEEPER.

now expired for the first volume of
the Bee-Keeper, you will please find
herein inclosed 50c for renewal anoth-
er year.

I like the Bee-Keeper very much
and hope that other subscribers like it
as well. It is more interesting to me
than the other journals that I am
familiar with, and hope this will
be a continuance in the future.

Wishing you a very happy and
prosperous New Year, I remain,

Your true friend,

Wampum, Pa. J. H. Jenkins, Jr.

Editor of American Bee-Keep-
er : Here, as in many other places,
the honey crop was light, caused prin-
cipally, 1 think, from late breeding.
My bees are going into winter quarters
in fine shape, and I shall iu the spring
repeat an experiment which I tried
with one colony last spring, which is
as follows: (Allowing, of course, that
the bees have a fair amount of sealed
stores) .

Take a knife and pare off or uncap
all the sealed honey in the hive. If
there is too much, do not uncap more
at a time than the bees can take care
of. I did this with one colony and
was more than surprised at the result.
In six clays every available cell in the
hive was filled with brood, and the
weather was not very favorable, as
bees could not fly more than half of
the time. . This was done March 27th.
This colony furnished 60 lbs. of sur-
plus in one pound sections, while oth-
ers equally as strong only gave 20 lbs.
of surplus.

I do not know that this plan would
be profitable in every locality, but I
think it would.

In the American Bee-Keeper for

December, I noticed an article from
Lowry Johnson, in which he advocat-
ed a movable outside case which could
be taken off in the dooming and re-
placed again in the evening. I think
this would be an endless amount of
work, especially with a large apiary.
I use a 9-frame hive with frames 8£x
16i inches inside, and the hives are
double wall with space lh inches all
around filled with chaff or sawdust,
and I let my bees set on their summer
stands all winter with good results. I
believe a case that will keep out the
cold will, to the same extent, retain
the warmth. Yours, etc.,

S. J. Anderson.
Palouse City, Wash., Dec. 14, 1891,

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir: Inclosed please find 50c for
one year's subscription to the Bee-
Keeper, for I think it is one of the
best journals of the kind, the price
considered, that there is in the field
for the advancement of bee culture.

Yours truly, Peter L. VanAlen.

Maiden Bridge, N. Y., Dec. 10, 1891.

The January number of Lippincott's
Magazine is marked by several new
features: the first of sundry stories
and sketches illustrating journalistic
life and labors ; the first of a series of
articles on athletic subjects; an edi-
torial department headed " As it
seems," containing brief essays and
comments on various topics of the
times, literary and other; and notices
of several recent books, given in the
form of dialogue.

Clear everything in the shape of ap-
pliances away after they are done with,
and place them where you can find
them readily for next season's use.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

STUNG.

A Vagrant bee came buzzing round,
And Chloe, frightened at the sound,
Cried, 'Mary, help! Go, Lizzy, fetch
A broom and kill the little Wretch ! '

Too late! despite the bustling maids,
The Wanton imp at once invades
Poor Chloe's lips — the saucy thing !
And lix.es there its ugly sting.

The culprit caught, the maids prepare
To kill the monster then and there ;
When, trembling for its life, the bee
Makes this extenuating pica: —

•Forgive ! O beauteous queen! forgive

My sad mistake; for, as I live,

Your mouth (I'm sorry, goodness

knoWs),
I surely took it for a rose ! '

'Poor insect ! ' Chloe sighed ; I VoW
'Tw'ere Very hard to kill him noW;
No harm the little felloW meant —
And, then, he seems so penitent ;
Besides, the pain Was Very small —
I scarcely feel it noW at all! '

John Q Saxe.

THE HONEY EXTRACTOR —ITS USE AND
ABUSE.

The Honey Extractor ! What a
wealth of thought in those words to a
bee-keeper. There dances before his
eyes golden honey, clear as a crystal,
buckwheat cakes, adulteration, hard
work in summer's hottest sun, mad
bees, sticky fingers, gummy apron, but
above them all there appears the word
success.

Also does he see that the invention
was born of necessity. The honey ex-
tractor is a necessity in modern bee-
keeping where financial success comes

into the problem at all, and not only
is it a necessity to the man producing
honey not mixed with comb, but also
to him whose sole purpose is to put
upon the market that which has never
been manipulated by any one, save the
bees themselves. I refer to comb-
honey.

The Divine law governing the habits
of the honey-bee, directs that they
shall store honey for winter use, and
shall also take their queen, leaving a
sufficient number to look after affairs,
seek a new home, where they shall find
room to store the necessary provinder
for their iuci'easing needs. We cannot
absolutely control God's immutable
laws as interpreted in the hbneydiee,
but we can take advantage of them
and use the talent, that we may return
it to the Master increased ten fold.

Now to facts. Swarming can, to a
great extent, be controlled by extract-
ing, I do not say always, because
some colonies would swarm if
they knew they were all going to be
distroyed the next minute, but I refer
to those having ordinary sense and
who know what's good for them. Lazy
bees mud work if their stores are taken
from them. Take a colony hanging
out when they ought to be working in
boxes. Go to that hive and extract
it clean and see what will happen.
Well, in about the shortest time im-
agineable, that crowd of lazy little
rascals will, by flying around, try to
get stores enough to last them over
night. Keep them going, put on your
boxes, aud where you would have ob-
tained nothing from that hive you will
now get a good crop. Of course it is
useless here for me to speak of any
apiary run for extracted honey, in

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEIER.

which cast', of course, the honey ex-
tract >r must he a prime necessity.

To control swarming cut out queen-
cells, extract the outer combs, place
them in the center, put on empty box-
es, and let them buzz away.

Another important work for the ex-
tractor is emptying- brood combs that
are filled, or partly filled, aud have
been taken from the bees when you
have extracted the brood nest for win-
tering. Were you to leave the combs
filled, or partly filled, with honey all
winter, the chances are your honey
would be granulated in the spring.
You may feed the granulated honey
to your bees, but the dextrose of the
honey will be left in a granulated state
and the levulose only used. This
means wastage of half the honey.
Poor economy I think.

Now to the abuse of this goodly tool.
I do not refer in this sentence to whirl-
ing it around till the basket bursts, or
even getting mad at it and kicking the
sides in (no one but an ass would do
that), but I refer to the abuse you can
do yourself and the bees in not using
it judiciously.

One great fault with apiarists run-
ning for extracted honey (amateurs
particularly), is generally to extract to
death. They extract something like
the fellow did the golden egg— that
is, they kill the bees getting one crop.

I speak now to those running an
apiary for extracted honey, because
the use of an extractor in that case is
easily understood, but the abuse i> what
is to be guarded against. Don't ex-
tract from the brood chamber so late
that the bees will not have their honey
well evaporated and sealed ere winter
sets in. Don't extract unripe honey,

unless you own afirst-class evaporator
and understand your business. Don't
extract up to the last moment and then
find you have to feed sugar, then turn
around in the spriug and get it mixed
with your honey. Don't extract from
the combs containing brood, unless you
turn very, very slow, and don't of all
things, use the extractor as a conven-
ient machine with which to mix honey
and glucose together.

Lastly, let me say, an extractor is
like a gun— a first-class thing in its
way. Don 't " monkey " with it unless
you can learn, by experience, how to
use it, then when you luive learned
how, you can not only have the bird
that is in the hand, but with it you
can go out and kill those two others in
the bush. — Bee - Keepers' Magazine.

HINTS to BEGINNERS.

In writing this it would be more to
my taste if I could commence with a
concise and glowing account on month-
ly management, but, alas ! I look out
on our apiary and see hives covered
with snow and the temperature most
down to zero and the thought strikes
me, what shall I say to the beginner?
what shall I tell him to do ? and then
my mind runs on many things to say,
but will they answer? Shall I say,
sweep the snow away ! that would be,
to say the least, timely advice, still I
say. no, don't do that ! it keeps them
warm, let it bank up as it may on all
sides, but the front I say most de-
cidedly, keep clear from snow. I hear
lots of older heads than mine saying,
he is wrong ! but. dear reader, I can-
not be convinced that I am wrong up
to the present time, so I say, keep the
entrance clear of snow ; bees must
have ventilation, and as long as the

THE AMERICA* BEE-KEEPER.

entrance is clogged with snow they do
not get it. I have heard of eases
where the bees in a hive have winter-
ed nicely where the hive was covered
with snow all winter, but this is an
exception and not by any means the
rule. I also know of bees who have
all died from the entrance being
blocked with snow ; this I think the
rule and not the exception. If bees
are wintered on the summer stands,
there is nothing cau be done to help
them, unless you have some stocks
who went in without a full supply of
winser stores ; if this be the case, ou
the first pleasant day, raise the cover
and place some cream candy on top of
the frames directly over the cluster
and under the cushions.

If you are wintering inside, be very
careful to keep the room at an even
temperature ; do not allow it to get
too warm or too cold, and above all do
not allow any dampness ; bees can
stand a long siege of cold weather, but
they cannot stand dampness; it is sure
to prove fatal. If you go in the rooms
where they are, move very quietly so
as not to disturb the bees, as perfect
quiet is one of the principal featun s
of successful indoor wintering.

I cannot close without again calling
your attention to the numerous works
on bee lore that are now in circulation
and if you do not avail yourself of
these long winter evenings, you are
losing valuable titne; study them well;
read everything that any of the writ-
ers have to say, and then you will be
competent to draw your own conclu-
sions. Map out your next season's
work and send your orders for supplies
early ; then should you have spare
time, you can best occupy it by get-
ting subscribers for this magazine — W.
B. T.

IMPORTATION OF BEES.

There has been a marked disposi-
tion ou the part of a number of api-
cultural writers to oppose all importa-
tion of bees. There certainly can be
no good reasons given for such unpro-
gressive ideas.

It may be well enough to say that
there is no further use of importing
the Italian and Caruiolan races that
have been improved and made better
by having been carefully bred from
selected specimens under the superior
skill and patience of American api-
arists until our selected American bees
are superior to any bees in Italy. A
little good sense and judgment is as
useful, along this line, as in any other
department of business. The man
who would not engage in importing
Italian queens and breeding from
them because he imagined that im-
ported stock was no improvement,
would be thought badly behind the
times.

But progressive apiarists will con-
tinue to import new races of bees and
give them a fair trial, as long as there
are new races brought to light in the
darkest corners of the earth.

When Italian bees were first im-
ported to this country it was an ex-
periment pure and simple, and they
were denounced as "humbugs ' by
many people without knowing any-
thing practically concerning them.
The first of these bees I ever saw were
about fourth-class hybrids and cost
$25 per colony. I then and there set
down Italian bees as an unmitigated
"humbug." But after that I met with
the race in its best estate, and I chang-
ed my mind toward them sufficiently
to give $10 for a queen and a handful

10

1 HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

of bees, which I built up into a strung
colony, and thence commenced my
career as a modern bee-keeper

At that time, and for years after-
ward, the Italian was believed to l>e a
pure race of bees, and at the start I
shared in this common belief. But,
being a close observer of all matte: s
pertaining to bees, 1 soon discovered
that, when breeding from imported
queens, I could "find none that did not
"sport" in a way that convinced me
that the Italian bee was a hybrid, and
1 was the first American writer who
disclosed the fact to the public.

I was opposed in my views by many
at the time, and supported by none.
But it was noticeable that the " thr^e-
band test" followed rapidly on the
heels of my announcement. Now no
reputable writer would venture to
speak of the Italian as a pure race of
bees.

In those days I owned one imported
mother that "spurted " in her off .spring
- — worker, drone and royal progeny —
in a fashion that opened up a new field
of study to me. I discovered speci-
mens among the worker progeny that
were pure yellow bees, minus any
stripes, hands or dark veins, and other
specimens as black as night, with
broad, short abdomen — the very pic-
ture of what I have since seen in the
new " Punic " race. I inferred from
those out-cropping specimens that the
Italian was a cross, of long standing,
between a pure "yellow" and a pure
"black" race of bees.

Some smart persons tried to make
fun at my expense at the time, but
now the pure " black " race of bees in
the new Punic (Apis niger) has been
brought to light " black as jet," and

are actually now on trial in hundreds
of apiaries in this country.

I have never lost faith in the forth-
coming " pure yellow bees." They are .
going to be discovered, and the man
who first procures them will need no
machinery to "boom" them. The
pure yellow bees will be taken with-
out the asking.

There are more chances in favor of
importing new races of bees than most
people are aware of. Before the yel-
low races of bees were brought into
Kentucky, no person had ever seen a
honey-bee working on the red clover.
Its luxurious growth in the blue-grass
belt put the blossoms beyond the reach
of the native black bees. The Ital-
ians, however, visited the blossoms of
the first as well as the second crop of
bloom every season.

The Italians also work on the iron-
weed bloom, which is never visited by
the native black bees. There are pos-
sibilities connected with the newly-in-
troduced Punic bees that cannot be
known until these bees are tested.

Why may not these "little bees"
find their way into flowers loaded with
nectar that are inaccessible to the
larger races ? On this account the
trial of the new race is a matter of
much interest to me.

About the Carniolan bees much wild
fuss has been made. The idea has
taken hold that the jCarniolan must be
a pure race. In my opinion nothing
is farther from the facts. I procured
an imported queen direct from Mr.
Benton, two years ago, and though her
working progeny were uniformly dark,
only some of the aged workers show-
ing slight splotches of rust color, not
yellow, on the first segment of the ab-

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

If

.lomen, when I came to breed from
her the young queens were far from
uniform in color.

Among the first brood of young
queens reared, there was one nearly
as yellow as the queen of my light-
colored Italians; and, when she was
mated, her workers were just like well-
marked Italians. One of the features
noticeable in these bees is the fact
that they never deteriorate, in breed-
ing, like other bees.

Of the number of colonies of these
bees that I have handled, not one of
them has slid back into colonies of
dingy hybrids, so commonly met with
in nearly all Italian apiaries.

I gave two Carniolan queens to a
friend of mine, who lives in a black-
bee region, and he has reared queens
from them, and he says that they hold
their grip of yellow blood, against the
black bees, much stronger than do the
best types of the Italian race. This
would be beyond belief tome, if I had
not seen it for myself.

Introduce some Italian queens in an
apiary of black bees, and leave them
to fight their own battle for color, and
the result has no uncertainty about it.
The black blood will predominate
over the yellow till but a trace of the
yellow will be visible.

But when once the Carniolan be-
comes vellow in color, no influence
seems to force them down.

But to deal fairly with them, and
all other races of bees, I have found
the Carniolan bees, especially in their
Austrain dark dress, more inclined
to swarm, and harder to manage when
they swarm, than most races of bees
that I have handled. But as they be-
come American bred this undesirable

feature in their make-up disappears^
in a measure at least.

The little nigger Punics may be no-
good when thoroughly tested, but now
they stand before.the judgment bar of
unprejudiced apiarists untried. They
exhibit peculiarities not seen in any
other bees heretofore introduced into
this country.

Their small size, solid color in a state
of purity, and their quick movements,
(quick as a flash), are points that must
interest any close observer, while he
watches the outcome of the little black
strangers.

I have made it a point to test for
myself all new races of bees. It has
cost me some money to do it, but the
interest I have felt in the enterprise,
and the pleasures I have derived from
the experimentation, have been ample
compensation. I now have a Punic
queen, and anticipate much pleasure
in testing her workers next season. —
G. W. D., in ApieuliMrisL

ARE YOU MUSICALLY INCLINED ?

If so, you should subscribe to a first
class musical journal. Such an one is
The Etude. It is the leading educa-
tional musical magazine and has won
success on its merits. Its aim has
been to encourage progress in methods
and a love for all that is best in music.
It is a great help to struggling teachers
and earnest students; its articles are
alike helpful to everyone interested in
music. The music pages of The Etude,
are alone worth many times the sub-
scription price, as the music given
would cost from fifteen to twenty dol-
lars a year if bought at regular sheet
music prices. The subscription price
is only $1.50 yer year. Address, The
Etude, Philadelphia, Pa.

12

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The American Bee-Keeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS ;

50 cents a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
■copies, $1.20 ; all to be sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the D S and Canada; 10 cents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
•cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 9 words ; S2.00 per inch. 5 per
«ent. discount for 2 insertions; 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions; 10 per cent, for 6 insertions; 20 per cent.
for 12 insertions.

Y.dvertiseiiients must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THK AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Falconer, N. Y.

^^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue cross will know that their subscripiton
■expires with this number We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

. .. blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-

EDITORIAL,

A great many of the paid subscrip-
tions to this magazine expired List
month. We hope that every one will
hasten to send in their renewal. If
we do not hear from you we will con-
tinue to send it regularly for six
months, at the end of which time you
will receive a postal card notifying
you of the amount due us, l( you do
not wish the magazine continued do
not fail to notify us promptly. We
do not wish to send the magazine to
any one who does not want it, hut
were we to stoji it promptly at the ex-
piration of the time paid for by each
subscriber there would be a general
complaint, and so we think it better
to continue sending it unless especial-
ly ordered not to do so, relying on the
proverbial honesty of bee-keepers to
pay for what they get.

Our friend Alley, in Dec. Apicuhm--
ist, calls Bro. Hutchinson's attention
to the fact that the Beekeeper for
Nov. was as much of a " booming cir-
cular " as the August Api. Now, this
was rather unkind of Henry, and the
statement was almost as great a stretch
of his imagination as for him to im-
agine he would not accept one hundred
cold dollars for that $100 queen, for
by comparison we find that the August
Api. has not to exceed two columns of
matter that is not, strictly speaking,
pertaining to the business of the edi-
tor, while the November Bee-Keeper
has sixteen full pages of matter that
does not refer in any way to our busi-
ness. Friend Alley is getting some
rather hard rubs from both home and
foreign journals, and he feels a little
edgewise in consequence.

One can hardly realize what a vast
power is required to move the machin-
ery of a great factory. For a num-
of years past we have been supplied
with power by a Ball automatic en-
gine, 60 H. P., aided by a 50 H. P.
water-wheel, and the demand for our
ever increasing business made it nec-
essary to add new machinery from
time to time, until finally our little
engine, like an over-worked animal,
reached a point where it could do no
more. The load was too heavy and it
gave (nit, so that we had to let it "rest
up " while we were repairing it. This
state of ail'airs continued until recent-
ly we concluded to put in a " dust
collector" which made it necessary to
have a much larger exhaust fan, aud
of course a larger fan required more
power to run it, and our little engine
was not competent to perform the
duties required of it, so we sold it and

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

15

purchased another just like it only
nearly four times larger ; a sort of big
brother to it, capable of 200 H. P. A
monster. And this, together with an
additional 100 H. P. boiler, has just
been put into running order and works
beautifully. We now have an abund-
ance of power; much more than wre
need, but it is better to have power to
spare than be in want of it,

Our new dust collector takes the
dust and shavings direct from the ma-
chines and deposits them under the
boilers so that no labor is required in
handling them. Taking, everything
together we are in better shape than
ever before for supplying our friends
with their needs. We believe we have
the most complete manufacturing
plant of its kind in this country;
abundance of power and perfect
cleanliness in and about the factory;
our own electric light plant ; plenty
of room.

The Apiculturist " scooped " us all
in being the first to publish a report
of the proceedings of the N. A. Bee-
Keepers' Convention held at Albany,
Dec. 9-11. The report was written
by E. L. Pratt, and is very concise
and entertaining.

Our large illustrated catalogue and
price list for 1892 will be mailed about
the 20th of this month. It will be
more complete than ever, and while
the prices of many articles remain the
same as heretofore, there are some re-
ductions in prices. If you do not re-
ceive a copy by Feb. 1st drop us a
card.

The best time for dealers and queen
breeders to begin advertising is now.
Many make the serious error of wait-
ing until the season has arrived, when
bee-keepers have no time to write for
price lists.

The self-hiver, like the bee-escape,
has come to stay, says E. H. Dibbern,.
and he has recently invented one
which is illustrated in the December
Review.

In our vicinity we had more real
winter weather in Nov. than in Dec.

After several months of silence the
White Mountain Apiarist has again put
in an appearance, and promises to is-
sue regularly hereafter.

The practice of spraying fruit tree?-
during bloom was condemned by the
Albany convention.

The Bee-Keepers' Review for Decem-
ber is the acme of neatness and inter-
esting bee journalism. Brother Hutch-
inson has hit on the novel idea of
presenting a half-tone portrait of the
authors of the different articles, about
the size of a postage stamp, at the be-
ginning of each article.

The North American Bee-Keepers7
Association held its 22d annual con-
vention at Agricultural Hall, Albany,.
Dec. 9th to 11th. The attendance was
not as large as was generally expected,
there being only about 130 member©
present. The opening address by the
president, P. H. Elwood, was well
worded and interesting. He was short-
ly followed, after some routine busi-
ness was finished, by G. M. Doolittle,
who spoke at length on " The Hees, the
Location and the Apiarist," giving
his hearers some excellent advice in
regard to queens, location, and many
other points.

Mr. W, F. Clark, of Guelph, Can-

14

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

ada, expected to be present to read a
paper prepared by him on "Preven-
tion of Swarming," but was detained,
and in his absence W. Z. Hutchinson
read the article in a very creditable
manner considering the circumstances.
The paper itself showed considerable
knowledge on the subject

An interesting paper on the advis-
ability of adopting a standard for Ital-
ian bees was read by G. H. Knicker-
bocker. Considerable time was given
to discussions on the " Prevention and
Control of Swarming," "Should Bee-
Keeping be made a Specialty ? " etc.,
etc., but as usual no definite conclu-
sions were arrived at. Bro. Hutchin-
son also read a paper by Dr. A. B,
Mason, who was unable to be present,
"The Outlook of Apiculture at the
Columbia Exposition." Ernest Root
read Dr. Miller's paper, " Can we set-

tle on two sizes of Sections as Stand-
ard?" Di\ Miller was unable to at-
tend the convention owing to an attack
of the grippe. There was some pref-
erence shown for a narrow, short pound
section, glassed or in carton, especial-
ly by the commission men. A com-
mittee was appointed to report on a
preferable size and shape of section
best adapted for market. There is not
much probability of any change being
effected, however, even if some odd
size from the regular 4^x4J is recom-
mended, as the latter is in too general
use to be easily displaced.

The following officers were elected
for the coming year : President,
Eugene Secor ; Vice President, Capt.
John Hetheringtou; Secretary, VV. Z.
Hutchinson; Treasurer, Ernest Root.

It was decided to hold the next con-
vention at Washington, D. C.

ANOTHER AUTOMATIC HIVER.

We have just received from the
inventor, F. D. Lacv, an illustration

and description of a new automatic
hiver. We reproduce the illustration
below :

The hives are placed side by side.
No. 2 is the occupied hive connected
with the vacant one by a broad tube
which is made so short that it allows
the two hives to come close together.
The hives may be coupled at any

time before swarming, but it is better
to attach them early so that the bees
will become familiar with the vacant
hive. After they are coupled, hive
No. 1 is to be closed at the entrance,
compelling the bees to pass through

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

15

the vacant hive to reach their home.
When the bees are nearly ready to
swarm the queen excluder is to be
placed at front entrance of hive No. 2,
and its being large it will remain
where it is placed.

It will take about fifteen minutes to
place the side hives and attach them
to about fifteen hives, and about one
minute to place the excluders in front
of ten hives. When the bees swarm
the que n and drones will be left be-
hind the excluders, consequently the
bees will cluster around the front of
the hive. At this time the hives
should be detached, and must not be
neglected in order to insure success,
otherwise the bees will enter the hive,
and unless comb is furnished for them
in hive No. 2, will all pass back into
hive No. 1. As soon as the hives are
separated No. 1 entrance is opened
and button closed down, the tube re-
moved from No. 2 and the buttons al-
so closed on that hive. There is no
danger of the queen passing back into
hive No. 1 before the bees cluster
upon the front of No. 2 and com-
mence to go in. Now, when the bees
have settled a little, you can regulate
the forces of the two hives just as you
desire by the manner of placing them
upon the stands.

It has been demonstrated by Mr.
Lacy that by the use of the adjacent
hive, swarming is much less than it
otherwise would be. He recommends
the vacant hive to be filled with comb
and supers to be put on both hives
and left standing. In this way he has
had both hives and supers filled and
frequently the supers twice filled, all
from one colony.

There are several other points of

advantage in the use of this device
which will suggest themselves to any
one using it.

The patentee seems to exercise no
desire to shove the hives upon the
market, but offers a written guarantee
that they will work successfully, if
manipulated according to the instruc-
tions he gives with each pair of hives.
The patent also extends to the use of
a front hive, when preferred, the
principle of connecting being virtual-
ly the same, but after testing the two
carefully last season, Mr. Lacy con-
cludes the foregoing illustration is
most convenient, and practically the
best.

One good feature of the device is,
that at noon-day the bee-keeper can
pass along, pick up the queen exclud-
er, let the drones out, then set it down
in place, and in this way exterminate
the drones, or as many as are deemed
advisable.

$3.25 for one dollar. The pub-
lishers of Frank Leslie's Weekly have
made a hit. They have made a com-
plete innovation in publishing a
monthly and colored frontispice be-
sides giving two pages extra to chil-
dren. The first issue of each month
of Frank Leslie's Weekly will be sent
to a subscriber on receipt of $1. But
the novelty does not end there, and
the publishers will also give to every
subscriber an order on Peter Hender-
son & Co., good until June 1st, 1892,
for four rose or chrysanthemum plants
or twenty-five packets of choice flow-
er-seeds, Either of these three col-
lections is catalogued in Peter Hen-
derson & Co.'s book for $1,25. The
subscriber will also receive a grapho-
logical chart worth $1.

16

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The Cosmopolitan for January is fill-
ed as usual with good things. An in-
teresting article, "Aluminium — The
Metal of the Future," by Prof. Rich-
ards, should be read by every one in-
terested in that direction. "In Camp
with Stanley," is the subject of an art-
icle by A. I. M. Jephson, and a finely
illustrated description of the "French
Salons," by M. Ricardo Nobile, will
be of great interest to artists. There
is a continuation of the charming
story, "A Daughter of the South," and
numerous other shorter stories and
sketches.

Poultry raising by the use of Incu-
bators and Brooders will be given a
boom by the introduction of the Im-
proved "Champion" Incubator, as the
manufacturers, The Famous Mfg Co.,
of Chicago, are the first and well
known manufacturing company in the
country to begin the manufacture of
Incubators and Brooders.

Artificial incubation has long been
recognized as a success, but the well
known fact that the manufacture of
incubators was one of the modes by
which unscrupulous parties have
swindled the public has deterred
many from using the incubators who
otherwise would.

The Improved " Champion " Incu-
bator was invented and patented by
one of the officers of the company,
who has had years of experience in
operating and manufacturing them,
so that they are no experiment, but
have been tested and tried. Many
improvements have been added to the
machine, and as now manufactured
by the Famous Mfg Co. it will no
doubt meet with success and give the
highest satisfaction wherever intro-

duced. Those who intend to buy in-
cubators and brooders should not fail
to address the company for a descrip-
tive catalogue of the Improved
" Champion."

Clubbing List.

We will send the American Bee-Keeper with
the—

American Bee Journal,
American Apicnlturist,
Bee-Keeper's Review,
Canadian Bee Journal,
Gleanings in Bee Culture,

PUB. PRICE.

BOTH.

($1 Oil)

$1 35

( 75)

1 15

il mi)

. 1 35

I 75)

1 15

il 00)

1 35

Honey and Beeswax Market Report.

Below we give the latest and most authen-
tic report of the Honey and Beeswax market
in different trade centers :

New York. Dec. 20. — The demand for fancy
white 1 lb. comb i< good, with small supply. Price
14c. Extracted 7@7%c. Light demand for bees-
wax with fair supply. Price 26c for ordinary

P. C. mrohmeyer .fc Co., 122 Water St.

Albany, N. Y., Dee. 18. — There is a moderate
demand for cou.b honey and good demand for ex-
tracted, with ii light supply. Price of comb 9(a>13c.
Extracted f.@8c Beeswax is in fair demand with
light supply. Prices 24@26c.

Chas.. W. McC'ui.louch & Co.. 393 Broadway.

Albany. N. Y., Dec. 21. — Honey in good de-
mand with good supply. Price of Comb 9@15c.
Extracted 6@8c. Bee>wax in steady demand at
28@3Ue, with light supply.

H. R. Wright. 326 and 328 Broadway.

Chicago, III., Dec. 19. — There is a good de-
mand for white comb honey at 16c. Fair demand
for other grades at 12<§ 14c. Extracted selling
slow at 6V£(g»71/2C. Beeswax is in good demand
at 26e We think the cause of the poor demand
for extracted i^ on account of the abundance of
fruit and the low price of sugar

S. T. Fish & Co., 189 S. Water St.

Boston. Mass., Dec. 19. — The demand for honey
is light with ample supply- Price of comb 14(3)15c.
Extracted 7c. Beeswax in good demand at 28c
with light supply

Blake & Ripley, 57 Chatham St.

Kansas City, Mo., Dec 19. — There is a fair
demand for honey with good supply. Price of
white comb, 15@16c. Dark l(l@12c. Extracted,
white l(a>7]4c. Dark 5(s»6c. Beeswax is in light
demand with small supply. Prices 2-'ite26c.

(lemons, Mason & Co., Cor. 4th and Walnut Sts.

Kansas City, Mo, Dec. 19.— There is a lighf
demand for honey with fair supply. Price ot
fancy 1 lb. comb 16c. Dark I2(<j i.e. Extracted,
white 7("7!;<2C Dark n@tic. Beeswax in light de-
mand with light supply. Prices 2,@2oc.

H amblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut St.

St. Locis, Mo., Dec. 19.— Honey is in light de-
mand with good supply. Price of comb l(i(a'i33^c.
Extracted -: (s'^/ifi- Beeswax is in moderate de-
demand with fair supply. Hrice 24c.

Thk D. G. Tutt Geo. Co.

Cincinnati, 0., Dec. 12 — The demand is slow
with good supply, except choice comb We quote
choice white comb 12@l6c. Extracted 5@8c. Bees-
wax is in go d supply and fair demand at 23@25c.
for good to choice yellow.
Chas. F. Muth A: Sun, Freeman and Central Ave.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MANPG CO.

VOL. II.

F&BRUf\RY, 1892.

NO. 2.

Instructions to Amateur Bee-
Keepers.

BY W. S. VANDRUFF.
[Continued.)

If you have looked your colonies
over aud examined them closely you
have duubtlefS by this time noticed
quite a difference in their mortality.
I have some colonies of which the
bees have died off so much already
that there is not half the bees in the
hives that there was last fall, while
others seem to have lost but few, and
seem about as strong in numbers as
they were. Now I am satisfied that
some of my colonies that are losing so
in numbers will dwindle out before
spring. I have one or two in partic-
ular that are from queens I bought
that I feel sure will dwindle out en-
tirely.

Now, why is this? 8 >me will say,
" Oh! they perhaps have net got good,
healrhy winter stores, or they are not
in the right kind of a hive, they are
not chaff packed, you have not got
them ' tucked ' up warm and comfort-
ably, or they should be in a good,
warm cellar, etc." Now I say, none of
these things will save them, with the
exception perhaps of having good,
healthy winter stores, for I have tried

all these things, such as chuff packed
double walled hives, thin hives, and
hives packed and unpacked, in the
cellar and out, and instead of the
trouble being in these things, it is in
the blood, or the bees, whichever you
please to call it.

If you have a hardy strain or stock
of bees that have good fixed wintering
qualities you will find that they will
winter well in most any kind of a
hive, in the cellar or out, packed or
unpacked, and I think a little better
unpacked. In proof of this I have had
under my observation for the past ten
years a strain or stock of regular Ital-
ian bees that have stood the test all
these winters under the control of a
party that gave them little or no at-
tention, and knew little or nothing
about bees. These bees were in single
walled L. hives, no packing was ever
used, not even over the brood frames.
The super or upper story was left on,
sometimes empty or with the empty
sections in them, but never were they
filled with chaff or any kind of pack-
ing, while my bees in my own apiary,
which were made up of all the new
strains that have come up for past ten
years and have been in all kinds of
hives and packings for winter, have

18

7 HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEVER.

proven a source of trouble and dissat-
isfaction in their wintering qualities.

These experiences have led me to
look more on the strain of bees as a
remedy to our winter trouble than
anything else.

From the foregoing it will he seen
that I do not go much on winter pack-
ing. Spring packing may have some
merit, at least it is not so objection-
able as winter packing, as the ap-
proaching warm spring weather tends
to keep it dried out, yet I am not so
sure that anything more is needful
than a single walled, or a thin double
walled hive with the cover tightly
glued on, either for winter or spring,
for I am well convinced that the best
winter or spring packing either, is a
good, hardy winter strain of bees.

Waynesburg, Pa.

My Experience with Bees.

BY D. B. STORY.

I was always a great lover of honey.
When a small boy about seven years
old, I went to my Uncles, who lived
near and kept bees, to get honey to
eat. He told me to go up stairs in
his dry-house and help myself. Among
the combs were some containing more
or less sealed brood. Of course I se-
cured some of these, and came down
munching lively, with the "milk,"
as Uncle said, running out at the
cn-ners of my mouth. I was laughed
at of course, but it did not dampen my
love for honey.

When about twelve years old father
commenced keeping bees in old box
hives, and had fair success. I used to
help him hive the swarms. After
teaching school twelve years 1 started
in the nursery business, and followed

that a few years, when I conceived
the idea of keeping bees in conjunc-
tion with the nursery. Three years
ago. after reading Root's A B. C.
carefully, I purchased a good swarm
of Italians for $3.50. They increased
to tluee stands the next year, and
gave me seventy-five pounds surplus
honey. The second year they gave
me no increase but about one hundred
pounds surplus. That fall 1 purchas-
ed from a neighbor twenty-seven
stands in fair condition, with fixtures
consisting of hives, crates, sections,
etc., to the amount of $30.00, giving
him for bees and fixtures $120. This
made my apiary consist of thirty
stands.

I moved them rather late in the fall,
and packed them on summer stands
except four which I placed in the cel-
lar. I removed the outside frames,
placing thin dummy boards next the
comb, and filled in between dummy
and hive on both sides with chaff and
sawdust. I prefer the chaff.

They came out last spring in fair
shape, except two, which had became
queen less. Those in the cellar were
no better than the outside packed
ones. True, the winter was mild, but
I think, with proper protection, such
as your outside winter case, that bees
will winter outside as well as in a re-
pository and save the trouble of car-
rying in and out.

I used Doolittle'splan of manipulat-
ing frames — changing outside frames
to inside as fast as they fill the inside
ones with brood, and I think tolerably
well of the plan.

I "clipped" all of my queens, but
from what experience I have had, and
the experience of others, I think 1 shall

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. V.)

discontinue the plan. As my apiary used with queen excluding board, will

is situated among trees in an old give excellent results.

nurserv I think I will have no trouble results of investment.

with them absconding for the trees >s«'<»>'<l 1-00 lbs surplus

.,, , .1 i £4.1 t i- u* honev *130.00

will fu.nish a iilace t<>r tnem to ah^ht.

\\ ax, line-, seel Kins, etc.

We had a hue colli wave that de- on |,a,„| 30.00

stroyed most of the Maple and Elm Thirty-five stands of bees,

bloom, but strange to say the fruit (3 *«.«K) 105.00 $295.00

bloom was abundant, and the weather. Cosl of 2T st:,mls of bees

, . ,. , , ,, , v 1 11 with fixtures, $120.00

being favorable the bees did well _ .,

0 raid out tor books, papers,

on it. The Poplar, Judas and Sugar fixtures, eto , 17 00 $137.00

tree bloom was good. — — ^—

Balance in favor of investment, __.$l2tS.00

There is another tree that I have ™. . , , L . . '

, . , 1 his statement does not include cost

never seen mentioned as good " nee „ , 111

, . . . ° , _. ot stand purchased three years ago at

pasture, and that is the Black bum. _A , \ , .

1 , , ,. , , ©O.50, but they gave me in the two

Mv bees worked tor about a week on ,_„ „ , 1A . .

. . . . , , , veai's 1/U lbs. honey, at 10c would

it, and -judging from the way thev " , ei-AA rr, . * ,,, , ,

. . , ,. • • 1 r make SI/. 00. J his would leave bal-

poured 111 and out oi it in the forest ... „ , ,. _A .

r . _ auce in favor 01 bees ot $ I0.0O, but as

it furnished honev equal to the Bass- T . , . „ .

^ . ' „ , ,. I made no calculation tor interest on

wood. On tasting some ot the flowers . , , . ,. . n

. , . the money invested in the bees and

I was surprised at their sweetness. a T . , ,, . .. , ,. ,

r fixtures I omitted this from the list.

We had a beautiful White Clover Thig js not quite ag gnod a showing

bloom, but it was not as sweet as it as gome a Iiateuvs publish, but if lean

should have been. The bees did fairly get my beeg t0 d() as we]1 every year

well on it. Sumach was badly injured T feelassured I shall not complain,

by the frost and furnished less than HemJock Grove, O.

usual. Basswood did fairly well. .^ .,.,„ ^.

Actinnse, Golden rod and fall Aster Instructions to Beginners on

furnished considerable for winter jne Advantages and Dis-

stores. advantages of Out-

I used mostly "T" supers and fol- door Wintering.

lowed the tiering up plan on all strong by h. m. dewitt.

stands, but on weaker ones took out I will try and give you the ad van t-

the sections as finished and filled in ages and also the disadvantages of

with empty ones. This is the best out-door wintering. In the first place

plan with stands that are weak. It is out-door colonies can be prepared in

more laborious than taking off a whole October, and left without examination

super, but it saves the sections from until the first part of May, if prepared

becoming travel stained, as they should be, providing you do

I use mostly standard 4|x4|xlf sec- not fill orders for bees and queens in
tions, and Root's old Simplicity hives, the fail. If the bees from a long spell
I tested others this season, and think of cold, have contracted dysentery,
well of Dr. Ticker's Nonpariel and the first warm day gives them an op-
Hill's American. Dr. Tinker's, when portunity for a cleansing flight. Be-

20

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

ginners and others who do not possess
the requisite skill for in-door winter-
ing will ordinarily be successful with
the out-door plan.

The colonies of the home apiary can
remain year after year, and winter up-
on the same stands ; and where one
can afford it, an out-apiary of chaff
hives does away with hauling bees in
the spring or fall. The chaff hive is
always preferred, even for a cold day
in the late spring or early summer,
whereas single walled hives sometimes
give rather meager protection after
setting out. The out-door colonies in
chaff hives have been used to the rig-
ors of winter; but the in-door colonies,
being set out about the middle of
April or last of May, many times re-
ceive a set-back that takes them all
summer to get over, by an unexpected
cold wave. The disadvantages are:
The first cost of hives. Every begin-
ner, not knowing whether he can
make the business successful or not,
wishes to start out as economically as
possible, and accordingly is in a quan-
dry as to whether he shall go 10 a
greater expense and purchase chaff
hives, or be more moderate and pur-
chase the single walled hives. It seems
to be generally agreed, that colonies
in-doors consume less stores than those
out — just how much less nobody seems
to know exactly ; some think half the
stores or over, others a third. Chaff
hives, as I have already stated, are
rather heavy and un wieldly ; and in
swarming, too, it becomes necessary
many times to change the location of
the hives. One person can hardly
handle a chuff hive without the aid of
a wheelborrow, while he can. with
comparative ease, cany a single walled
hive wherever he pleases. It some-

times happens that a bee-keeper dis-
covers that a certain district is yield-
ing for a time considerable nectar,
while at home his bees are doing noth-
ing. He desires to carry a large num-
ber of colonies to the place in ques-
tion as soon as possible, to catch the
flow. If he had chaff hives, he can
not very well carry more than five or
six at a time in a wagon ; whereas he
can load twenty-five or thirty single
walled hives, and when the flow has
ceased he can take them to another
place.

In these days of out-apiaries, chaff
hives have the very disagreeable fea-
ture of being non-portable, or practi-
cally so. Experienced bee-keepers
will winter in the cellar with perhaps
less loss of bees and less consumption
of stores than outdoors ; and this
brings me to the subject of Wintering
in Cellars or Special Repositories.

Years ago the cellars and special
repositories became, all at once, very
popular, and bee-keepers all over our
land, especially in the northern local-
ities, invested much labor and money
in constructing good frost-proof cel-
lars, or sawdust packed buildings
above the ground. But a few years
later, when the spring dwindling, as it
has been called, made its appearance,
I made the discovery that bees taken
out in March, in fair order, would
often, in spite of me, become reduced
before the end of April to a mere
handful, and then perish outright or
leave their hives and swarm out. I
had two colonies last spring come
through in snch a bad condition that
they dwindled to about one pint each,
and they swarmed out and went into
one of my other colonies and were all
killed at once. These two colonies I

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

21

wintered in a bee house above the
ground, while at the same time good
strong colonies that were left out doors
on their summer stands, without any
especial care, would often be full of
bees and ready to swarm. I do not
mean to say that such was generally
the case, but there was always more or
less in the neighborhood that would
winter finely without care, while many
so carefully housed would turn out
disasterously. A neighbor who had
devoted almost all his time to his bees
would be obliged, in spite of his well
built bee-house, to buy back bees in
the spring to keep his others alive. It
seems as though the black bees winter
better in this locality without any
packing than they do with packing.
My bees are all pure Italians.
Sunny Side, Md.

What I Have Observed, Etc.

BY T. K. MASSIE.

I Continued.)

If I clip my queens wings I am at
no loss when a swarm issues. All I
have to do is to catch and cage the
queen, remove the old hive to a new
location, and set a new one in its place,
letting the bees return to the old loca-
tion and enter the new hive, and re-
leasing the queen so she can run in
with the bees. I thus get them swarm-
ed and hived at one operation without
the aid of the hiving box and pole
which are used by some to hive and
carry the bees to the hive. The hives
can be put in place in less time than
is required to get the box and pole out
and again return them after using.
The hive has to be put in place any
way, and therefore I have drawn the
conclusion that the money invested in
the hiving boxes, and the time and

labor in using them is all thrown away.
When the queen is allowed to fly out
with the swarm there is always danger
of losing queen, bees and all, by ab-
sconding, and then our honey crop is
gone , so far as it relates to that colony.
But I have decided to no longer mar
the beauty of my queens by clipping
their wings when I can get Alley's
queen and drone traps for a few cents
each and accomplish the same good
results by their use. The trap costs
less than the hiving boxes, can be
used with less labor, and, when not in
use, can be stored away in much less
space. They are also very useful in
controling the flight of drones and for
trapping and destroying the useless
ones, while the boxes can only be used
for the single purpose of hiving
swarms. And after they are hived if
they take a "notion" to depart, as
they sometimes do, the hiving boxes
are useless, and we lose queen, bees
and all, our surplus crop of honey is
gone "a glimmering," and we are
short in cash from $5.00 to $15 00.
With the traps we need never lose a
queen or swarm of bees by abscond-
ing. And then we stand a chance at
least to get a crop of honey.

The subject of feeders is another
matter in which we find a good many
nuisances. Hill's is the nearest per-
fect of any I have seen. There is no
daubing of bees, and no loss of syrup,
as the bees can take much or little
just as it suits them. And after we
have done using them for feeding'
they make good cans for berries, pre-
serves, extracted honey, etc., thus be-
coming useful for more than one pur-
pose.

The notes for these articles were
written in March, 1891, and my ex-

22

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

perience the past season strongly con-
firras all the "conclusions " mention-
ed in them. Besides, I have a vast.
amount of evidence from others, (some
of which will be given in next article),
which goes to prove that what' I have
observed, and the conclusions I have
wrought therefrom in "my own little
think shop" are not far from correct.
The answers to question 7(50 in the
American Bee Journal for April 2, in
regard to the "advantages the Sim-
plicity frame has over one of a square
build," are certainly amusing. The
most of the parties answering the
question say the Simplicity frame
gives "a larger surface over which to
place the sections." As if a large
surface was an '' advantage " to the
bees ! If a large surface is the " ad-
vantage " they possess then why not
reduce their depth 3 or 4 inches and
their length and the number of frames
in a hive in proportion ? By this
means several square feet of area over
the frames could be obtained.

To be continued '

American Bee-Keeper : A year
has passed since the A. B. K. started
in its mission of carrying information
to those just starting on the road to-
ward success or failure as bee keepers,
as well as helping those further along,

I for one wish to say " thank you "
for the many useful hints gained from
its pages.

As many of the beginners, especial-

ly those who are women, may be in-
terested to know of remedies for bee
stings I will tell my experience.
When I first begin to handle bees
every time I got a sting I was marked
for a week at least, the poison causing
a good deal of swelling which was
very painful. I tried all the remedies
I had heard of, ammonia, laudanum,
soda, etc., and finally discovered that
baking soda, wet with spirits of cam-
phor, was the most effectual, in my
case at least. Mrs. Axtell, in Glean-
ings, appears to think that a little grit
is the best remedy. Well, I've tried
that, too, mixed all I could get of it
in along with the other ingredients,
and don't know but I could stand it,
on that alone, if no one else ever got
stung but myself, but the trouble is,
sometimes other members of the fam-
ily, the little ones, or strangers, will
be so unfortunate as to get a sting and
then soda and camphor come good, as it
stops the pain almost instantly and as
long as kept damp the disagreeable
burning is not felt.

AVith regard to sulky colonies that
pile up in front of the hive, and re-
fuse to go to work, in spite of any-
thing you can do to coax them, and
will only enter the sections to roost on
the nice white foundation and soil it,
I sometimes get even with them in the
following way : If the trouble is not
with the queen, and often it is not, in
my yard at least, I just naturally rob
them, and then the lazy little rascals
will go to work all right. The sec-
tions with "roosting" bees I place
over some other colony that needs
more room, the brood is given to other
colonies that need it most, or used for
nuclei. I only leave two frames with
honev in them which I place in the

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

23

center of the hive, placing frames
with foundation starters on each side.

Those with more experience and
large apiaries might manage some oth-
er way, but the owner of only a small
number of colonies don't like to have
any, idle ones hanging around only
making their living, or consuming
what they have already stored.
Yours, &c,

Mrs. A. L. Hallenbeck.

Millard, Neb., Jariy 13, 1892.

Ed. Am. Bee- Keeper, Dear Sir :
I notice in the Jan. number that Mr.
B. C. Anderson takes exception to some
of my remarks on outside winter cases
in the Dec. number, iu that it would
be an endless amount of work, etc.
Now, I think he has gotten the wrong
impression in regard to the manipula-
tion of these cases. It is not the idea,
nor is it necessary to remove the cases
every day the sun shines and at all
times, but there are times when the
weather closes up and stays so for a
considerable period, and the bees are
needing a cleansing flight. Then comes
a warm day, sufficiently warm for
them to fly out, but being protected
and clustered up the bees do not re-
ceive any indication of such, and so
remain within. The weather closes
up again, and — well, this day might
have been the life of the colony had
the case of protection been removed
and the sun allowed to warm them up,
causing them to take a cleansing
flight. See the point ?

And then again in the spring, it is
not necessary to go through this oper-
ation every day; When there comes
a warm spell and the sun is shining,
take off the case, allowing the bees
the benefit of the sun, putting them

on again when it gets cool. There is
no better preserver to all nature than
pure air and sunshine. This promotes
breeding, which is very necessary, in
this locality at least, in order lhat the
bees be in condition to take advantage
of the fruit bloom and the locust
bloom the first of May.

1 use a case that can be removed al-
most as quickly as a cover, and can
remove them from 75 to 100 colonies
in one hour's time. Yours truly,

♦ Lowry Johnson.

Masontoim, Pa., Jan. 11, 1892.

Ed. Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir:
As my subscription to the Bee-Keep-
er has expired I inclose herewith 50c
for renewal another year. We have
done very well with our bees the past
year, not having lost any or had any
destroyed by moths. The first year
we had them we lost more than half
by moths, but we kept up our courage
and studied up a plan to destroy them,
and here is the way we went at it :

If you will notice, moths and a great
many other bugs fly at night besides
the mosquitoes, so it is useless to both-
er them in the day time. So, in the
dark nights of June or July we go out
near the hives and start a blazing fire,
and you can sit there and see them fly
in by the dozens. We do this twice a
week for a while, and we have not
seen a worm of any account in two
years, and the be s don't leave the
hive either.

We keep a great deal of poultry,
and the chickens often get- into the
garden and can be seen chasing the
insects around the hives, and thus
they help clean out the moths also.

Iu this partof the country very few
people pay much attention to bees, so

24

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEIER.

we have a good sale for our honey at
home at 15c and 16c a pound. Our
hives have turned out from 25 to 70
lbs. of honey each. We bought a big
chaff hive at a sale last spring full of
bees and 25 lbs of comb honey in sec-
tions for $1.25. We filled the hive
with sections in April and it took in
80 sections, but it was the poorest hive
we had. It was full of bees all the
time, and they swarmed in May and
everything looked promising all sum-
mer, but no honey hardly. What do
you suppose ailed it? They were pure
Italians. The young swarm from it
made 40 lbs. We have all togethei
27 colonies this winter. Down here
we do not have many days at a time
when the bees cannot get out some,
and we winter them all on summer
stands. Yours truly,

John Field.
Tennent, K J, Jan. 18, 1892.

Ed. Am. Bee- Keeper, Dear Sir :
I desire to protest against the chang-
ing of the " usual width " of sections
from 1 15-16 to 1£. I think thick
cakes of honey taste better than thin
cakes. The same wax is required for
bases and cappings for shallow cells as
for deep ones. There are too many
standard widths of sections kept in
stock. Let the supply dealers unite
and give notice that hereafter no nar-
rower sections than If will be kept in
stock, and that all persons wishing
narrower .sections than If will have to
order them as odd widths. That would
discourage, and perhaps do away, with
the extremely narrow sections and de-
crease the number of narrow widths
now on the list. I would advise that
all the other widths from li to 2 ins.
be kept as they are for the present.

Yours, &c, Philo S. Dilworth.

Ingram, Pa., Jan. 5, 1892.

Ed. Am. Ree Keeper, Dear Sir:
Papa has been sick and neglected to
send in the names of bee-keepers that
he promised, so I send them for him.
He says that he cannot take time to
read much this year, for he has sixty
swarms of bees and the Niles City
flour mills to attend to. He has to
work until 11 o'clock at night some-
times.

I am a little girl only eight years
old and have two swarms of bees, but
I can tell you some of papa's tricks
about the bees and will be a corres-
pondent for your paper. My two
swarms are the banner swarms of sixty.

I will close for this time.

Yours truly, Ollie Jones.

[We thank Ollie very much for the
list of names and hope she will write
again and tell us how her bees get
through the winter. She is quite a
little girl to take care of bees, but
perhaps her papa finds time to help
her.— Ed].

^ in §■ —

It is said that the death-roll of train-
men in the United States is greater
every year than the death-roll of Get-
tysburg or Waterloo. Apropos of
this the Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge has
contributed an article in the February
number of the JSorth American Revietv.
The same number will contain A Year
of Railway Accidents, by Col. H. G.
Prout, editor of the Railroad Gazette.

FAR-FETCHED.

A Monticello, 111., man claims to
have crossed Indian bees with light-
ning bugs so successfully that the
hybrids gather honey at night, while
the buzz made by their wings plays the
tune, " We Won't Go Home till Mora-
ine:."— Exchange.

Subscriptions may begin with any montb.

THE AMERICA* BEE-KEEPER.

25

THE SWARM THAT DESERTED ITS HIVE.

That beautiful swarm,
It has all goue, —
What a pity !

Drones, bees, and queen,
Nothing to be seen, —
What a pity !

No cheerful hum to greet
When you are on your beat,—
What a pity!

The hive out there to rot,
Perhaps to be forgot, —
What a pity 3

Perhaps one summer clay
In May, before the hay,
Another song we'll sing,
Without this doleful ring,
And not a pity.

— B. B. J.

HOW TO DESTROY MICE IN A BEE
HOUSE .

We do not believe in advocating
cruelty to animals, but we are forced
from last years experience to advocate
most strongly the use of any and every
means to rid the hives from mice. It
is very important indeed that this
should be closely looked after — equal
quantities of arsenic, white granulated
sugar and flour mixed dry, put on lit-
tle pieces of paper about the hives or
apiary, where it can remain for some
time without being exposed to damp-
ness, is a very sure way of ridding the
place of mice, yet in some instances
where they can feed on bees in hives
they seem to care little for the poison.
Another plan we have adopted, which

frequently gave us good satisfaction:
Take a tin pail half full of water, scat-
ter a little wheat chaff on the top to
make it look like a chaff bin. A board
from two to four feet long, with one
end on the floor and the other on the
side of the pail, in fact better one on
each side of the pail, then scatter a
little bran, meal or flour, dust it light-
ly on the board. The mice will run
up and look down upon the chaff
where you have the meal scattered,
they will jump down off the board on
the chaff in the pail to get the meal,
the chaff will sink around them, and
the mice drown. We have caught
five or six in a pail in one night this
way. We recollect once, that in one
of our out apiaries having several
deer-mice and a chipmonk, which had
gone into the bee-house from a neigh-
boring wood about twenty rods away.
They were so anxious to investigate
the pail business that they got into it.
Perhaps rats might be caught in the
same way. — W. F., in C. B. J.

THE LANGUAGE OF THE BEES.

The honey-bees are found among
the most intelligent of the insect tribe,
and could not, I think, do all the
things they do among themselves un-
less they had some mode of communi-
cation to keep up their government.

I have often observed the queen-bee,
perched upon the center of a section
of comb, surrounded by her subjects
at a respectable distance, every bee
with its head turned toward her, as if
in convention assembled, to listen to
her. When, finally, the queen would
move forward, her subjects would
make room for her to pass through
them by backing out of her way. I
was never able to distinguish any

26

1 U E A M ERICA N BEE-KEEPER.

sound, but then they were inside the
hive, and I was looking through a
pane of glass, and could not perhaps
hear, if there were sounds from her.

Outside the hive, however, it has
been different. For instance, when the
bees return to their hive in the even-
ing, each laden with honey, there is a
pleasant hum of satisfaction or greet-
ing made with their wings— I suppose
telling of their joy.

But if they are disturbed, or have
any apprehensions of danger, these
sounds are changed toothers of sharp-
er tone, which soon brings the colony
out in angry meod. Now, these alarm
signals are, of course, natural, and
easily enough understood ; and there
would be nothing at all in them if it
were not that when these bees, which
have chased off the offender, return to
the hive, all outside and in who have
not, to all appearances, yet learned
what the trouble was, return peaceful-
ly to their work.

Again, when by accident the colony
has lost its queen (she may have been
picked up by a bird), there are entirely
different sounds coining from the hive.
Few, or none, of the working bees go
off in quest of honey, but hang around,
in and out of the hive day in and day
out, purring in a tone which might be
construed to mean sorrow, but if a new
queen be placed among them, or a
queen-cell taken from another hive be
placed in theirs, there is again joy
among them, which any one who has
listened to the language of bees may
readily distinguish. I firmly believe
that bees have a language, and a meth-
od, at least, if not an actual system of
communication. — A. 11. J.

Subscriptions may begin witli any month.

INTRODUCING QUEENS.

After experimenting as an amateur
bee-keeper for a number of years, and
engaging in the business <>f queen-
rearing for a longer term of years, I
have concluded that there is uo plan
that is absolutely certain when applied
to introducing queens. The tempera-
ment of queen bees vary as much as
that of other animals. Some queens
are gentle and steady, and they may
be introduced to any queenless colony
in most any way chosen to perform the
manipulation, while other queens are
wild, fidgity and nervous, if bees have
a nervous system, and it is a very dif-
ficult thing to do to get any colony to
accept such queens. Perhaps this
statement will strike many persons as
being on the "hair splitting" order,
but I am quite sure that many experi-
enced bee men will agree with me
along this line I once trained a large
fine queen till she was so steady and
confident that no bees would attack
her as she walked unconcernedly
among them. On one occasion I in-
troduced her to a colony that had a
laying queen of their own, and I had
the satisfaction of seeing both queens
moving leisurely on the combs treated
as nearly alike by the workers as could
well be. Of course this was an experi-
ment pure and simple, but it taught
me that the queen has much to do with
the success or failure, when introduc-
ing. I am aware that laying queens
have been, and may be introduced in
many ways and with surprising suc-
cess, but I know of but one rational
and methodical plan, and that is to
cage the queen on top of the frames
where I can see the behavior of the
worker bees toward her, by raising a
corner of the quilt that covers the top

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

27

of the frames. As long as the bees
gather in knots about the cage and
engage in biting at the wire cloth I
leave them to vent their spleen till
they get into a better humor. As soon
as they become reconciled to the cag-
ed queen, they will be found crawling
about the cage as leisurely as any-
where else on the combs. At this
stage of their moods I remove the stop-
per to the feed department of the cage,
and leave the b -es to liberate the
queen by eating out the soft candy. I
now leave them to themselves till the
queen has had time to begin to lay
eggs, after which she is as safe as if
she had been reared in the hive. I
insist that this is the only bushms way
to perform the manipulation, and the
only way that is practically sure be-
cause it depends on the judgment of
the apiarist and not on the whims of
the senseless bees. I do not deem it
necessary or advisable to describe the
many plans that may be adopted, with
more or less success, in the introduc-
tion of laying queens, because it is
much safer plan and adheres to that
as long as it does not disappoint.

INTRODUCING VIRGIN QUEENS

Is a different matter altogether. It is
well understood by all experienced
apiarists that virgin queens when first
born may be introduced to almost any
queenless colony by simply permitting
them to "toddle" into the hive. A
new born baby queen has an artless
confident way of staggering in among
the bees that insures its safety against
violence. But once let her become a
few hours, to a week old, and take on
that "pert," fidgety temperament char-
acteristic of the virgin queen, and it
is well nigh impossible to get any full
colony to accept her, and a very risky

matter to install her in an ordinary
nursing nucleus. I have often intro-
duced a dozen of them to nuclei by the
caging process as described above, with
little or no loss, and perhaps, the next
trial with the same number and under
apparently the same circumstances
would prove nearly an entire failure.
I have met with the best success when
introducing old virgins, by removing
the nuclei to new stands and immedi-
ately after the field workers have re-
turned to the old stand leaving the
nuclei with mostly young bees pro-
ceed to introduce the aged virgins.
This experiment explains why Mr.
Alley and some others, have reported
better success when introducing this
class of virgins. They were wee 6/teof
nursing nuclei, so small that the bees
with which they are stocked are in-
different as to what goes on in their
toy home. There was a time when I
thought I could introduce aged virgins
to most any queenless bees by follow-
ing closely my caging process, the same
as when introducing laying queens.
And the fact is 1 can introduce them
with very nearly uniform success, but
strange and unaccountable to tell, so
many of them disappear before, and
at the mating period that the loss is
too heavy to count it a success. That
worker bees should exhibit spite and
jealous contempt toward virgin queens
of several days old, is a curious fact,
but a true one. They are ready to
persecute them on any occasion and
often to the death. And often young
queens suffer persecution though rear-
ed in the hive from the cells. Many
persons believe that young queens are
lost by entering the wrong hive, on
their return from their bridal trip, or
are caught by birds, etc.

-2$

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

According to ray observations very
few queens are lost in this way. The
great loss comes from persecution at
home. I have spent hours, days and
weeks, looking up this matter, and I
have been astonished to discover how
many young queens are persecuted
and "balled " by the crankish workers
at the time they are engaged in their
•wedding flights. The average writer
and author speak uf the "queen's mat-
ing" as though she took but a single
flight into the air to mate. Such is not
the fact, The queen under ordinary
circumstances never makes less than
three trips into the air, and frequent-
ly a half dozen trips before she mates.
I remember of seeing one queen take
fifteen trips into the air before she
was mated.

I can introduce virgin queens of any
age by confining them in a nursery on
all sealed brood that is hatched rapidly,
and keeping them in the nursery till
enough young bees are hatched to form
a small nucleus, when the combs with
bees and queen are placed in hives in
the yard when the queens are soon
mated. But this plan is too expensive
for practical purposes, but it is a good
thing when one wishes to save valua-
ble young queens without taking any
risk. Very valuable laying queens
may be introduced by this plan with-
out any risk. My nursery is simply a
hive body with a wire cloth bottom
and divided into three departments.
It is kept warm by setting it over a
strong colon}'.

It appears that quite a number of
virgin queens were sent through the
mails the past season to be mated in
the yards of the purchasers. It would
be interesting to know what propor-

tion of them became laying queens. I
have only heard from a half dozen of
them and only one of the number lived
to lay eggs. Mr. D. A. Jones claims
that there is much virtue in introduc-
ing virgins "after night." Mr. Alley
uses tobacco smoke, and Mr. Pratt
recommends little spiritless nuclei.
According to my observations the lat-
ter will succeed best. If you want to
introduce aged virgins the smaller
your nuclei the better your success
will be. But in my opinion until we
learn more about introducing virgin
queens, the safest way is to use queen
cells. — G. W, Demaree, in Bee-Keepers'
Guide.

The tyro in bee-keeping is generally
an enthusiast ; this is well, and the
successful bee-keeper is the tyro who
has had the courage and perseverence
to keep up this enthusiasm to the end.
Bee-keeping cannot be learned in a
day , nor a fortune made from it in a
year ; each step as you advance may
show you a mistake you have made,
and the point is to avail yourself of this
experience and not commit the error a
second time. Thus each step is a true
advance, and you may be sure that if
this is the case with you, dear reader,
all you have to do, to reach the goal
you are after, is to keep on stepping.

Our first advice is to take a period-
ical devoted to bee culture. We care
not if it he this one or some other,
only provided it will advance you.
Never get to that stage where you
think you cannot learn. When that
deplorable state is reached you had
better give up the pursuit, for you
have not reached the goal and you are
standing still ! Never try to economize
by stopping your bee paper, for you

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

2D

would be like the man who, finding he
had to retrench in his expenses at
home, because his pay was somewhat
reduced, concluded he would not eat
in the future and thus save his butch-
er and baker bills, and yon know full
well what was the result.

The next thing is to buy your bees —
either obtain them from some reliable
dealer or from some one in your
neighborhood. See that they are in
movable frames of some size, such as
can be bought on the market, so that
you may buy a hive and move them
into it.

A movable frame is a rectangular
frame of wood, inside of which is built
one of the honey combs of the hive ;
these combs are, as a rule, ^ of an inch
thick. A full hive should contain
eight of these frames full of comb.

Buy a stock or two of native bees
(Blacks) as your first investment. A
stock or colony consists of the queen
and about thirty thousand workers.
There may be also a few hundred
drones. Our reason for advising the
purchase or black bees instead of Ital-
ians, is because they can be obtained
much cheaper, and thus the first out-
lay will be less— -85 per colony on eight
movable frames delivered early in the
month of May would be about the
correct price for this latitude. Of
course if you are further south you
must get your bees earlier. Dealers
ship colonies of bees by express in
shipping boxes, and guarantee their
safe arrival at your nearest depot. Do
not ask the dealer to ship them in a
hive, particularly if it, is heavy, as the
consequent heavy jars in handling will
break the combs. Leave the dealer to

use his best judgment, seeing he guar-
antees safe arrival !

The colony has for its principal per-
sonage the queen. This bee is the
mother of all in the hive, and the only
perfect female in it ; she lays all the
eggs. This monarch has very restrict-
ed powers, so far as government goes.
The old idea that she governed the
colony like a true despot, is one only
remarkable for its antiquity. The bee
hive is a very limited monarchy ; in
fact it is a republic, the office of whose
head is, as ex-President Cleveland apt-
ly remarked of his own position, a pure-
ly executive one. The worker's govern
the colony in truth. These workers*
are females whose ovaries (egg laying,
apparatus) are undeveloped. They
sometimes do lay eggs, as will be-
spoken of later, but in that case they
become a hindrance instead of help-
These workers do the honey gather-
ing, comb building, and are in fact
the life of the hive. Upon their en-
ergy depends, to a great extent, the
prosperity of the colony. — B. K. M.

SPRAYING FRUIT TREES.

Recent census statistics rhow that
the ravages of our insect pests cost the
farmers and fruit growers of the
United States the enormous sum of
8200,000,000 annually. And recent
experiments by our leading entomolo-
gists and horticulturalists show that
75 per cent, of this loss can be pre-
vented by the proper use of insectci-
des. Valuable information on the
above subject furnished free by P, C.
Lewis, Catskill, N. Y. Mr. Lewis i»
an extensive manufacturer of spray-
ing outfits. Write him for further
information at the above address.

See his advertisement in another
column.

THE AMERICAS BEEKEEPER.

Tie American Bee-Keeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :
50 cents a year in advance ; 'I copies. 85 cents : 3
copies, $1.2o ; all to be sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the U S and Canada; lOcents
extra to all to mtries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:
IS cents per line, 9 words: $2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount for 2 insertions; 7 percent tin-:; in-
sertions: 10 per cent, for 6 insertions-; 20 pei cent.
for 12 insertions.

Vdvertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,
Falconer, N. Y.

"Subscribers finding this paragraph marked

with a blue cross will know that their eubscripiton
expires with this number We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

4@=-A blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

In Gleanings, for Dec. 15th, Ernest
gives an exhaustive view of G. R.
Pierce's hook, "The Winter Problem
in Bee-Keeping." Friend Pierce is
decidedly apposed to having cushions
next to the bees, preferring to have a
board glued down on top of the frames
by the bees in warm weather, and on
top of the board the cushions should
be placed. He takes no stock in the
pollen theory. Earnest is very much
inclined to the same views. Editor
Quigley, in the Misouri Bee-Keeper,
page 144, in reply to a correspondent,
also takes this view. He says that a
flat cover well glued down is better
than cushions.

In the articles by T. K. Massie,
which have been running in the Bee-
Keeper, it will be seen that he ad-
vances this theory of having the boards
glued down, and protecting the hives,
sides and tops with cushions made of
some non-conducting material. Friend
Massie published this theory in the

Bee World long before Messrs. Pierce,
Root or Quigley ever gave their ideas
to the public. Friend Massie certain-
ly has priority on this theory. He
not only advocated it, but "practiced
what he preached," for he had closed
end reversible frames with the winter
passage through the top bars, and
boards, made by us last winter for the
purpose of carrying out this theory.
He has again ordered frames of the
same kind for another year.- He is
going to push this theory further next
season by wintering a number of col-
onies in thin walled hives, by simply
protecting the board that is glued down
on top of frames with cushions on them.
We are now making him some half
stories, which will be covered with tin,
and used as a cover in which the
cushions will be placed, and then fitted
down on the hives. He claims that
with closed end frames a hive is prac-
tically a double walled hive, so far as
the ends are concerned, and that solid
sheets of comb are better than division
boards or chaff packed hives.

News comes to us that the California
Bee- Keeper will shortly resume publi-
cation. We hope this is true, as it was,
during its brief career, a welcome visi-
tor and much superior to some of its con-
temporaries that are still flourishing.

There are a great many subscribers
whose time has expired, but as we have
heard nothing from them, we shall
continue to mail the magazine to them
regularly, as heretofore, and shall ex-
pect them to pay up the same as if
they had ordered it continued.

The weather in this locality has been
very severe the past few weeks, and we
shall not be surprised to learn that a
great many colonies have frozen.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

31

Our new illustrated catalogue and
price list for '02 lias been mailed to all
our customers and subscribers. It' you
have not already received one, please
let us know and we will send you one
at otice.

The name of the Missouri Bee- Keep-
er has been changed to the Progressive
Bee-Keeper. Friend Quigley's paper
is certainly just what its name implies.

There was not the usual crop of new
bee papers started last month that the
new year generally brings.

$2.00 for 75c.
We have made arrangements with
the well known seedsman, A. T. Cook,
Hyde Park, New York, by which we
can offer one of his excellent boxes of
seedsand bulbs, the full value of which
at retail is $1.50, and the American
Beekeeper for one year for only 75c.
This is a splendid offer and one which
cannot be equalled elsewhere. Send
without delay and secure one of these
boxes.

We have received the following cat-
alogues and price lists for 1802 :

St. Joseph Apiary Co.. Supplies, St. Jos-
eph, Mo.

A. L. Kildow, Queens, Sheffield, III.

S. F. & L. Trego, Queens, Sweduua. HI.

Geo. E. Hilton, Supplies. Fremont, Mich.

I. G. Stringham, Supplies and Queens, 92
Barclay St., New York.

MR. HOWELL'S NEW WORK.

The announcement that Mr. How-
ells will leave Harper's Magazine, to
take editorial charge of the Cosmopol-
itan, on March 1st, calls attention to
the process of building up the staff of
a great magazine. Probably in no
monthly has the evolution been so dis-
tinctly under the eyes of the public as
in the case of the Cosmopolitan, The
first step after its editorial control was
assumed by Mr, John Brisben Walker,

was to add to it Edward Everett Hale,
who took charge of a department call-
ed "Social Problems," subjects con-
cerning which the greatest number of
people aie thinking today, Some
months later, a department was estab-
lished called " The Review of Current
Events." To take charge of this, a
man was needed who should be famil-
iar not only with the great events of
the past thirty years, but who knew
personally the leading men of b th the
U dted States and Europe who could
interpret motives and policies. Murat
Halstead accepted this position with
the distinct understanding that his
monthly review should be philosophi-
cal and never partisan. The next step
in the history of the Cosmopolitan, was
the placing of the review of the intel-
lectual movement of the month in the
hands of Mr. Brander Matthews, who
fur some time has been recognized as
one of the two or three ablest critics in
the United States.

Finally came the acceptance of the
editorship conjointly with Mr. Walk-
er, by Mr. Wm. Dean Howells. Mr.
Howells, who is recognized universal-
ly as the foremost American of letters,
upon the expiration of his contract
with Harper Brothers, on the first of
March will take in hand the destinies
of a magazine which promises to exer-
cise a share of influence with the read-
ing classes of the United States. His
entire services will be given to the
Cosmopolitan, and everything he
writes will appear in this magazine dur-
ing the continuance of his editorship.

A RISING YOUNG ARTIST.

No young American artist has come
more rapidly to the front in beautiful
effects and character-sketching than
Mr. B. W. Clinedinst. Among the best

32

THE AMERICAN BEE-KhEPER.

things in the Christmas number of
Frank Leslie's Weekly were the pic-
tures by him, and this week's issue of
this popular paper has a most capital
illustration of a NeAV Year's dinner on
a transatlantic steamer. Among oth-
er striking pages are those devoted to
the tunnel under the Hudson River,
which is now in the hands of an Eng-
lish syndicate. There is also a page
devoted to the water-works system of
Denver, Col. A great many people
have asked about the graphological
chart to which the .subscribers to the
monthly edition are entitled. All that
one would have to do in order to have
his character read would be simply to
copy these lines, if nothing else, and
send SI to the Arkell Weekly Com-
pany, and he would receive the month-
ly edition of Frank Leslies Weekly,
the graphological chart, and an order
on Peter Henderson for $\ 25 worth
of rose or chrysanthemum plants or
flo.ver seeds. This offer is good until
June 1st, 1892.

MARGARET FULLER.

Margaret Fuller, a very plain woman,
with what struck me as a hump-back,
was the oracle. I believe my youth-
ful love of beauty caused me to do her
injustice. She had a very long neck,
which Dr. Holmes afterwards describ-
ed as resembling " the great ophidian
who betrayed our Mother Eve," and
perhaps her habit of craning it caused
me to think her slightly deformed.
But all was forgotten when she began
to talk. It was a long, low ripple of
fascinating and well-rounded senten-
ces, a certain originality in the use of
words, and that Cambridge pronunci-
ation which I have always admired.
Mr. Everett and Mr. Longfellow had
it. Miss Fuller gave lessons in the
art of conversation afterwards, and 1
am sure every girl who attended them

has talked better ever since. Although
an intense egotist herself, Miss Fuller
uttered the wise axiom, " Never talk
about yourself, your diseases, your
domestics, or your dresses. Talk about
your friend's interests, not your own."
She also said (and how good it was !)
"To have unity, one must have units:
one can not be unanimous alone." She
was an original thinker; and after I
heard of her romantic marriage, her
tragic death as Marchioness Ossoli, I
was grateful for the privilege of hav-
ing once touched this sparkling mind.
—From " Recollections," by M. E. W.
Sherwood, in February LippincotVs.

Honey and Beeswax Market Report

Below we give the latest and most authen-
tic report of (.he Honey and Beeswax market
in different trade centers :

New York, Jan. 20.— The demand for extracted
is fair, with small supply. I'riee I0@l4c for comb.
California extracted 7 He. Florida extracted 7@
7^4C. There is a moderate demand for beeswax at
27(01300 per pound. Small supply.

V. (i. Strohmeykk & Co., 122 Water St.

Albany, N. Y.. Jan. 20— There is a very slow
demand for cou.b honey and an ample supply.
Price of comb S@ 14c. Extracted i.@8c lieeswax
is in good demand but the supply is light. I'rices
25@2bc. We are still receiving small tots of comb
honev but the market is veiy dull.

Chas. W. McCui.louch & Co.. 393 Broadway.

Albany, N. Y„ Jan. 21.— '1 here is an ample sup-
ply of honey with light demand. Hrice of Comb
S(oj12c. Extracted b@7^c. Beeswax in good de-
mand with light supply. 1'nces 2h(gi30c. Ihe
season for comb hon<y is about over, and prices-
have been good considering the large ciop.

11. R. Wright. 32b' and 328 Broadway.

Boston. Mass., Jan. 20.— The demand for honey

is light with good supply- Prices, tomb 14@>5e.

Extracted 6(a*7c. per pound. JSo Heeswax on hand.

Klakk & Ripley, 57 Chatham m.

Kansas City, Mo., Jan. 21— The demand for
honev is poor. Large supply, of como. Price off
lib. fancy white Comb 15c. Dark 10® Vie. Ex-
racted, white 7ta7!^c. Dark 5@6c. No Beeswax
on the market. Weather cold with light trade.

Hamhlin & Beakss.514 Walnut 1st.

St. Louis, Mo., Jan. 20.— Supply of honey is
good. Bight demand Price of comb lu@i3e. Ex-
tracted o^faO^c Fair demand for Beeswax with
good supply. Price 24^oC for choice yellow. Trade
never has been so quiet in this line as at present.
T'Hk L>. (i. TUTT (iKO I'O.

Cincinnati, O., Jan. 20 —Demand for honey is
very slow from manufacturers; fair from oousum-
ers. I'lentifnl supply, t'rice of comb 12® 4c. Ex-
tracted 5<« Sc. '1 here is a good supply of Beeswax
with fair demand. Prices 2.!(y2.;.c for good to
choice yellow. Low prices of sugar seem to bear
heavily on the honey market with manufacturers.
ChaS.'F. Muth A Si'H, Freeman and Central Ave.

Chicago, III.. Jan. 20.-There is a good de-
mand for white comb honey at 16c. Fair demand
for other grades at I0@l4o. Extracted slow de-
mand at ny2mHo. Beeswax 26c per pound.

S. T. Fish & Co., 189 S. \\ ater St.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MAIMFG CO

VOL. II.

MfVRGtt, 1892.

NO. 3.

Hints to Beginners in Bee
Culture.

BY II. M. DEWITT.

This is the month that we should
begin to feed and build up our bees,
especially our weak colonies, and to
get them ready for the honey har-
vest. Commence by giving them one
half pint thin sugar syrup each day;
do not feed them in the daytime, feed
them at night and they will have all
the feed taken down before the next
morning. This will start them to
rearing brood rapidly and by the
time the honey harvest arrives they
will be strong and overflowing with
bees ready for it. Make but a -lim-
ited number of swarms and make
them strong and early. Late natural
swarms should be returned to the par-
ent hive, about twenty-four hours
after hiving them. The colonies that
work freely on red clover should be
used as breeders in preference to
others as the tongues of these bees
are evidently longer.

The old queen always goes with the
first swarm unless she is unable to fly.
When making artificial swarms raise
your.jueens ami drones from the best
colonies. A queen less colony will
raise queens at once if it has larvie

less than three days old and these
queens will hatch within 10 to 12
days. If you give your bees a good
supply of empty combs before the be-
ginning of the honey crop and keep
them at work they will rarely swarm.
But if they once find themselves
crowded and get the swarming fever,
nothing will keep them from swarm-
ing. The honey harvest hists but a
few weeks, so you must be ready for
it. "Make hay while the sunshines."
When hiving a swarm give them a
hive full of worker comb, or comb
foundation if possible, or else give
them narrow stripes for guides, but
do not give them a hive partly filled
with comb, as they would be sure to
build a great deal of drone comb in
the remaining space.

BEE DIARRHEA, FOUL BROOD, ETC

Bee diarrhea in the latter part of
winter and early spring is a malady
that effects some apiaries. The
discharge their excrein r the

hives and combs, producing a dark
appearance and offensive odor. The
cause is either fermented hon<
proper food, long confinement, or too
warm and poorly ventilated quai
Give them good rapped honey and a
cleansing flight. If too cold for this

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

out-of-doors take them into a warm
room, make a box, with the front and
top made of wire cloth, or mosquito
netting, adjust it to the entrance, so
that the bees must enter it on leaving
the hive. This will usually prove an
effectual remedy.

FOUL BROOD.

Foul brood is the rotting of brood in
a hive; the caps of the sealed brood
appear indented and shriveled and
the larvae and young bees in unsealed
cells become putrid, emitting a dis-
gusting stench or smell. When the
disease has a firm hold, even though
it may be possible to care it, I would
advise the total destruction by fire of
the bees, combs, frames and hives,
with everything which might harbor
the disease. In its primary stages it
can be cured in this way: With an
atomizer spray the hives, bees, brood,
honey and combs with a solution of
salicylic acid, borax and rain water,
repeated on the sixth day. Remove
the diseased brood from the hive and
give them capped honey, if not too
far advanced this may give relief.

There is another plan, which is as
follows: Take a clean new hive with
new, clean frames, fill it with
comb foundation, take and run
all the bees out of the diseased hive
into the clean one, do this in the even-
ing and as soon as the bees are all in
close the entrance with wire cloth,
keep them confined for forty-eight
hours until they have consumed all
the honey in their sacks in building
comb. At the end of forty-eight
hours open the entrance and let them
fly if they wish, feed them a little
sugar syrup every night for about a
week, and if the honey season is ovei,

or, if this is done during a dearth of
honey you should feed them regular-
ly so as not to let them starve. I had
the disease in my apiary the past sea-
son and this is the plan I used to cure
it. My bees are a? healthy now as
as if they had never had it.
Sunny Side, Md.

[The instructions which friend De-
witt gives in the first part of the fore-
going article will apply this month
only to the more southern localities.
Here in the North the hives in many
places are still covered with snow and
the bees should not be disturbed until
spring has unmistakably arrived. —
Ed.]

New Inventions.

BY JOHN P GATES.

The question has been asked "Are
we drifting from our moorings."
I used to think that we should not,
but if all bee keepers anchored to one
idea there would be no improvements.
While it is safe to our own pockets to
be conservative, yet no class has done
more to advance the interests of the
bee-keepers than those who experi-
ment, and seem not to be satisfied
with* their present condition. Had
the inventors of the Monitor been
contented with wooden war ships our
great American Republic would have
been divided. Had we all been con-
tent with stage coaches where would
our railroads have been ? Had Edson
preferred to sit at his telegraph in-
strument we 'should now be without
his master ideas. This onward impell-
ing force in Americans has sought
out so many good things in the last
fifty years that I have not space to
tell them. Some rejoice in real im-
provements, well, we can't grind out
out a grist of real improvements to

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

35

order. We have many discourage-
ments and losses before we succeed in
turning out one. Many of these in-
ventions must be tested by bee-keep-
ers before a true verdict can be given,
and we should all be willing to lend a
hand to be one of the great jury in
the discussion of these cases as they
are brought before us by our leaders;
the inventors. Yet while the tester
goes hand and hand with the invent-
or, each watching the others move
ments, each helping the other to dis-
cover and rectify mistakes. It is too
true that many good inventions have
been swamped and for years laid dor-
mant when they might have been in
use, simply for the lack of wisdom to
guide us to small experiments first.
Yes, there seems to be too much rush,
new things can't be tested in a hurry.
To change an average apiary all at
once to some new mode of manage-
ment, or new style of hive, even if the
hives wei'e given to us, would be un-
wise. But add the cost of hives and
fixtures which the change involves
with the loss which one is sure to meet
with for a time under any new ar-
rangement, and can we wonder that
there is so little confidence placed in
inventions or the inventors. Still
had we gone more slowly, tested more
carefully, and on a smaller scale and
given ourselves more time to sum up
the evidence, no doubt many times our
verdict would bless instead of curse
the inventor. No doubt there are in-
ventors who abuse one's confidence,
but they too well have but little
chance to deceive us if we go slow.
We can change too much, and again
too little. I am aware that I have
missed some good opportunities by
being a little too set in my ways, and

I have had too little charity for im-
provements; medium ground is safe
ground on which to stand. We
should watch the signs of the times
and not jump conclusions, nor bite at
all that takes our fancy, nor kick at
all that we dispise, we ought always
to review, draw conclusions and watch
very closely what the mass of bee-
keepers seem to favor, or decide upon.
If we are good readers of indications
we need never get left, and often can
go across lots, thus reaching the head
of the procession, but be sure we know
the way across else better we had
gone around.

Ovid, Erie County, Pa.

What I Have Observed, Etc.

I'.Y T. K. MASSIE.

(Concluded.)

In the last article I promised to
give some evidence confirming my
conclusions, but before doing so I
want to say a word in regard to "large
vs. small hives." In the discussion
of the subject in the different bee
journals from time to time, I neg-
lected to note the size of the frame
used by the advocates of a large hive,
but I imagine they use a deeper
frame than the "L," and if so they
are evidently right in advocating a
large hive, for such a hive would be
better proportioned, and would con-
form nearer to the natural require-
ments of the bees than a small hive
with shallow frames.

In Gleanings for July 15th, page
r>53, friend C. J. H. Gravenhurst, in
speaking of "handling hives instead
of frames," hits on the same ideas given
in these articles in regard to the winter
problem. He tells us that the bees
winter better in the straw skeps than

J 6

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

they do in the movable frame hives,
as made and used at present. This is
because the bees in the skeps have
their hives propolished overhead
which prevents upward ventilation
and keeps the bees dry. He also says
he gets more honey with less labor
and cost ; then he^ shows how he
sought to combine the skeps with
the movable frame hive, advocating
about the same advantages that I
have given in these articles.

But the most clinching arguments
in favor of doing away with the useless
Hill device &c, is found in Ernest R.
Root's review of G. R. Pierce's book,
"The Winter Problem In Bee-Keep-
ing," which appeared in Gleanings
for December 16, '91, page 952. Mr.
Pierce says the pollen theory is not
the cause of diarrhea ; that diarrhea
in bees is caused by cold and lack of
stores, and is only intestinal catarrh.

Chaff cushions, or other porous ma-
terial over a sealed cover are all right
and serve a good purpose.

Mr. Pierce is a thorough advocate of
protection and packing around the
bees; but the cover must be sealed down
that no heat can escape into the pack-
ing above. In the first of this series
of articles I took this same position.
1 said "Therefore I have drawn the
conclusion that a thin walled hive,
protected by a movable winter case,
and packed on all sides with a cush-
ion made of felt and filled with
non-conducting material — one that
will prevent all radiation of heal
be best" — and. in substance, that we
could remove cases and packing <>n
warm days and have our hives puri-
tied by the son ami air and protect our
by wrapping them up with the

warm cushions and prevent the radia-
tion of heat at night. In the second
article (See American Bee-Keeper,
page 164) I said the "pollen" theory,
and upward ventilation, cut no figure
in the winter problem in my locality.
Now if we place a thin board down
solid on the top bars of our brood
frames early enough in the fall for
the bees to glue up the crevices and
thus prevent all air currents from
passing up through our hives, we
again get even with our box hive
brethern, and when we prevent all
radiation of heat by placing a cush-
ion on top of this hoard, the same as
we do the sides. And further, in
spring and early summer, when we
give our bees just the ventilation re-
quired by raising this board, we are
another long step ahead of them.

In the winter of 1891 I had The \V.
T. Falconer Manf'g.' Co. make for
me closed end frames with winter
passages through the top bars, and
boards to be sealed down for the pur-
pose of carrying out my plan as given
above.

"Ernest" tells us of his experiments
in using thin boards and pieces of
glass imbedded with white lead paste,
as it was too cold for the bees to seal
them down with propolis. Under the
glass he placed a thermometer, which,
when the weather outside in the wind
was ten degrees above zero, registered
45 to 50, and "the hire was perfectly dry
inside." These are valuable experi-
ments in the right line.

My ideas, as it is plain to be seen,
were given to the public before friend
Pierce's book made its appearance,
and before " Ernest " tried any experi-
ments on this plan.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

37

On page 592 of Gleanings, L. Stach-
elhausen tells us that having found
out the advantages of closed end
frames, he will use no other. The
closed end frames have only to be
given a fair trial to prove their super-
iority over all hanging frames. All
the "rattle traps and nuisances" I have
mentioned in these articles will soon
give way to something better and
more simple.

Friend Lowry Johnson also is of
my way of thinking, as his article in
the American Bee-Keeper for De-
cember, '91, page 182, will show.
Also Brother Quigley of the Missouri
Bee-Keeper, is advising his readers
that a board sealed down on top of
frames is better for wintering than
cushions next to the bees. See his
answer to a correspondent to his paper,
page 144.

These articles end here, but I would
like the opinion of the reader on the
points taken in them.

Concord Church, W. Va.

A Talk on Bee Hives— Fixed
Races — Honey Crops, Etc.

BY S. L. WATKINS.

The production of honey is the
principal object that a beginner has
in view when he contemplates start-
ing in the apiarian business. Of
course, he generally buys a few box
hives and does the transfering him-
self ; which I think is a good idea, as
he gains considerable knowledge of
the inside of a bee-hive and of hand-
ling bees. Before he invests in bees,
he generally buys and reads a couple
of bee books and obtains a few cata-
logues of leading apiarian manufac-
tures, to see what style of hive is best.
If he is gifted with an average in-

sight into the mystery of common
things, he will quickly choose the
hive and system that are most univers-
ally used, and will stick to that sys-
tem, and nine chances in ten he will
make a success of his bee business.
If, however, he is gifted with a vola-
tile nature, he will not be satisfied
until he has eight or ten different
style hives in his apiary at one time,
and will spend all the money he
makes in trying new apiarian fix-
tures, until he finally gives the bee
business up in disgust. I do not
mean to say that all new bee hives
are useless — far from it ; but gener-
ally speaking, there is a flood of new
style bee hives on the market which
are miraculously complicated and con-
tain numerous paraphernalia in the
way of wedges, glass doors, clasps,
useless bee spaces and other orna-
ments not worthy of mention.

A hive that is too complicated will
never come into general use. Com-
petition in the honey business requires
that we use the cheapest appliances,
combined with the greatest excel-
lences. Here in this state (Califor-
nia) where hcney is so cheap, it would
be folly to spend $8.00 for a bee-hive,
because a $1.50 hive will answer
every purpose equally as well, the
hive does not make any difference in
the amount of honey gathered, bees
will store as much honey in a box
hive as in any frame hive ever de-
vised ; the queen and race of bees
make the difference in the amount of
surplus gathered. The simplicity
hive, with its various modifications,
is the hive that gives the best satis-
faction among advanced apiarists, and
when used with the Hoffman frames
it is hard to beat. To persons who

38

THE AMERICAN BEE- KEEPER.

contemplate starting out-apiaries, the
Hoffman frame offers very superior
advantages. My opinion is, that bee-
keepers who keep out-apiaries, and
who move bees considerably, will in
time settle down to the fixed frame.
I shall no doubt experiment consider-
ably with fixed frames the next few
seasons.

In Ventura county this state, the
bee-keepers have adopted the Lang-
stroth as the standard frame, and
there is something like 1,600 hives in
that county, which produce annually
about $60,000 worth of honey. The
one pound section is rapidly gaining
favor with the progressive apiarists of
this state, and are fast superceeding
the old Harbinson two pound section.

Our honey crop here last season
was about one fourth of a crop. In
the upper Sierras, at an elevation of
3,000 feet and upwards, there was a
good crop. Some honey plants yield-
ed well. In all extensively irrigated
districts bees did pretty well because
of the abundance of alfe alfa grown.
.Reports from Antelope Valley state
that in that section the honey crop
was far better than usual, 200 to 400
lbs. to the colony for entire apiaries
being the yield.

The Italian race of honey bees I
have tried pretty extensively, and
found them to be very good, but I
like the Carniolans better. t I think
they are a fixed race ; the Italians are
not.

In an apiary composed of Italian
and hybrids if a Carinolan queen be
introduced and the Carinolans then
be left to reproduce themselves nat-
urally they will hold their own for
hundreds of generations before their

markings will begin to be eliminated.
Place a colony of Carinolans in an is-
solated location, and allow natural
breeding, and in ten years they will
not detoriate a single bit; but take a
colony of Italians, and allow natural
breediog and in a year or two we
have nothing but common black, or
very poor hybrid bees; thus proving
conclusively that the Italians are not
a fixed race.

Grizzly Flats, Cal.

A Few Words to Beginners;

BY T. K. MASSIE.

As The American Bee-Keeper
is published in the interest of begin-
ners, allow me to say to them that
the first thing to be learned is the fact
that no set rules can be given to suit
everyone under all the varying con-
ditions of climate, location, etc., and
that everyone must use intelligence
and make rules to suit his own indi-
vidual case — must make a vigorous
use of his own "think shop." He
must thoroughly acquaint himself
with the flora of his location ; he must
know when the honey flow is likely
to commence and end, and must man-
ipulate his bees to suit that time.
Friend Doolittle's advice to manipu-
late our bees at the proper time can-
not be too strongly impressed upon
the minds of beginners. In my local-
ity we have two honey flows each
year. The early flow last season end-
ed on the 24th day of July, the fall
flow commenced on the 16th of Sep-
tember. There was a dearth from
July 24th to September 16, of 53
days. A hive full of bees during
these 58 days are not only of no use
to me but a positive disadvantage.
They are only consumers and not

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

39

honey gatherers because there is no
honey to be gathered. Reason would
dictate to me that I must use every
means in my power to build up my
colonies as strong as possible from
early in the spring to within 35 days
of the end of the honey flow, or about
the 19th of June, that about- this
time, certainly not later than June
25th, I must restrict my queen to as
few frames as possible, so as to have
but few bees during the 53 days of
dearth. (I base my calculation upon
the fact that 21 days are required for
the egg to hatch and then the bee
must be 14 days old before it becomes
a forager.) Now I wish to say em-
phatically that every one whose loca-
tion is similar to mine must practice
restriction or his honey crop will be a
failure every time. Again by the
16th of September. I want my hives
as full of bees as possible ready for
the fall flow. Then going back 35
days from September 16th takes me
to August 12th, the day on which the
eggs must be laid for the bees to have
hatched out, ready for the beginning
of the fall flow. But as the queens
could not under any circumstances
fill the hives full of eggs on the 12th
day of August, (or any other one day
for that matter,) reason would again
tell me that I must remove the restric-
tions from my queens two or three
weeks before, or, say July 24th to
August 1st, and then stimulate brood
rearing. If the beginner fails to fol-
low this plan he will certainly get no
surplus fall crop. We must also make
sure that each colony contains a good
prolific queen.

Brother Demnree's "Practical hints
in Bee Culture" on page 179, Ameri-
cau Bee-Keeper, is timely and

should be read and studied until per-
fectly familiar with every "hint" he
has given. When he speaks of the
bees "crowding the queen" being
simply an effort on the part of nature
to assist the bees by curtailing brood
rearing during the honey flow he is cer-
tainly correct, yet, by restricting our
queens as I have suggested above we
accomplish the same end, provided the
restriction is performed at the right
time. When he speaks of giving his
colonies, after swarming, a queen cell
instead of a laying queen, as some "in-
nocent bee men" had written him, he
gives a "hint" that should be well
and long remembered. By this plan
he also assists the bees in curtailing
brood rearing, when such brood would
hatch out bees that would be consum-
ers instead of honey gatherers.

His article on "Concentration of
Forces" in Bee-Keepers Guide for De-
cember, 1891, page 356, is worth the
price of that paper for several years.
"Concentration of forces" is his rem-
edy against poor honey seasons. His
plan of "concentrating forces" can be
easily carried out in connection with
the suggestions I have given. He
says "not a swarm should be allowed
to issue." He accomplishes this by
one single manipulation, which is
simple and easy, and performed "just
at the commencement of the honey
season, and before any swarms issue."
All the colonies strong enough to cast
swarms are treated on the following:

PLAN.

"All the combs containing brood
are removed from the brood chamber,
except one that contains but a small
amount of unsealed brood and eggs.
This is left in the brood chamber with
the queen on it If she is not Found

40

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEIER.

on it she must be hunted up and put
upon this comb. The brood chamber
is now filled out with empty combs
and a queen excluder is placed on its
top. The combs containing brood are
adjusted in a super or hive body, and
if they do not fill it, it is filled out
With empty combs. It now goes on
top of the brood chamber with the
queen excluder between. We now
have all the brood above the excluder,
except what is in the comb with the
queen on it below the excluder.
You now have nothing to do but to
"turn up" to suit the season. Treating
all colonies in this way the season will
have to be more than usually extend-
ed if there is a single swarm. Colon-
ies treated in this way are the strong-
est colonies I ever handled, and I
never seen a season so barren of nec-
tar that they fail to fill the combs
above the excluder by the time all the
brood they contain are hatched out,
and if the season is a good one they
will surprise the natives and make
you uneasy about the safety of your
honey floor, like mine did me the past
season, though the season was but an
average one."

Next month I will give my experi-
ments with two colonies the past sea-
son managed on a plan similar to
to Brother Demaree's, as given above.
Remember, beginner, that if you dont
manage your bees inteligently you
had better never go into the business
for you will have no "luck" and the
business will be a failure with you ;
and you might as well try to raise
corn without seed as to try to raise
honey without a scientific work on
bee culture and one or. more of the
many excellent bee journals.

Concord Church, W. Va.

< 'onoludt il next month.)

Er>. Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir:
I inclose herewith 50 cents for renew-
al to the Bee-Keeper, and in a
month or so you will receive a little
order for supplies from me, but I wish
to find out first what I need. There
is a lot of reading in the American
Bee-Keeper for beginners, but there
are so many different ideas given that
the beginner must have a big head
indeed to remember them. I will
take the liberty to tell you how I be-
gan. It was a year ago about Christ-
. mas when I resolved to keep bees. I
wrote to the New York Volksseitung ,
a German newspaper, for the address
of a good bee paper, and I received
your address. The same day I sent
50 cents and received in time the
American Bee-Keepkr, in which I
found the address of Mr- Knicker-
bocker of Pine Plains, N. Y., to whom
I wrote for a catalogue and price list
for bees and queens. The price of a
good colony of Italians was $8.00,
and I sent him $16.00 and got two
colonies of bees about the 20th of
May, which was after all fruit trees
had blossomed. The bees com-
menced to work, and the 15th of July
I took out of each hive the surplus
case of 28 sections well filled with
white honey. I replaced them with
new surplus cases, and about the 12th
of October both the hives were as full
of honey as they could be again. I
left the hives in this condition for
winter so the bees can consume as

THE AMERICA A BEE-KEEPER.

41

much as they please, and 'if there
should be any honey left this spring
it is just as good for me as if I took it
out in the fall. I left them on the
summer .stands packed up good and
warm and will leave them alone until
spring. I do not think much of look-
ing into the hives every little while.
I may be wrong, but I ihink this
would make the bees swarm earlier
next season.

I cannot find any one around here
who knows anything about bee-keep-
ing. I sold 40 sections of honey and
16 I kept for myself. There is at
least 35 pounds in the hive yet, and
I think I did very well for the first
year. With regards I remain,

Yours truly, F. Tlegman,

Seymour, Conn., Feb. 10, 1892.

[Friend Tlegman: We are glad
to hear from you and your success the
first season with bee-keeping. You
were unusually fortunate with your
bees and must not be discouraged if
the coming season or the one follow-
ing, you find your bees doing noth-
ing. Evidently you are in a good lb-
cation for keeping bees, and would ad-
vise you to go into it more extensive-
ly. We shall be pleased to hear from
you again later in the season. — Ed.]

Ed. Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir:
As my subscription has expired, I send
you herewith a postal note for 50
cents, as I cannot do without the Bee-
Keeper. I think it is the best bee
paper for new beginners or old ones.
I put seven colonies in my cellar and
left the balance on the summer stands,
so far they have all done well ; some
that were a little short I fed up. Last
season was a poor season for bees
here, so those that came off late did
not gather enough to get through the
winter.

My way of feeding' bees is to get an
empty comb and put it on a thin
board, then put it on the top of the
hive and put sugar syrup in it. The
bees will fill themselves and carry it
and put it in the empty comb below.
Yours truly, John W. Harris,

Colfax, Ind., Feb. 8, 1892.

Ed. Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir:
I have neglected sending in my sub-
scription but will do so now. You
will find inclosed SI. 00 to pay arrear-
ages and also for another year's sub-
scription. We like the Bee-Keeper
very much and think every bee-keep-
er should take it.

The winter of '90 and '91 was a
hard one in Maine for Us bee men. I
lost all but three swarms. Did not
get a drop of surplus honey ; some-
thing that has not happened before in
the forty years we have had bees. Up
to date what few I have appear to be
getting through the winter all right.
The weather has been quite mild with
but litle snow.

Yours, &c, Ezra Withee,

Pittzfield, Me., Feb., 8, 1892.

Ed. Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir :
I think the American Bee-Keeper
is the best paper for the novice there
is published. It does not publish
things unconcerning bee business,
like others, as for instance, in regard
to tobacco, gardening, &c.

I will tell you how I pack my bees
for wintering. I had 12 strong col-
onies in ten frame simplicity hives
about Nov. 20th, 1 did not molest
them in the brood chamber at all. I
just took off the top of the hive and
set on top of the frames a super with-
out anv sections in it aud filled

42

1 H E AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

it with buckwheat chaff and
packed it tight. To be sure the
enameled cloth was on top of the
frames under the chaff. There was
enough ventilation between the super
and the side of the top of hive or up-
per story, as I do not think the caps
on the hives were any too light to pre-
vent the foul air from escaping. I
will tell you in the spring what suc-
cess I will have had in wintering.

Yours truly, Otis Callahan.

Wellsboro Pa., Jan. 25, 1892.

Ed, Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir:
Bees are wintering well in Michigan ;
at least mine are wintering well on
their summer stands. Had a good
flight February 12th. In looking
through them I find they have plenty
of stores. My crop of honey last
year from seven colonies was very
good. I increased to twenty colonies
and got 450 lbs. of comb honey be-
sides, in one pound sections. This is
my third year in the bee business and
I like it very well and intend to keep
at it. G. W. Franks

Belzes, Mick: Eeb. 20th, '92.

Ed. Am. Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir:
We have watched every day for my
Bee-Keeper because I am anxious
to see it. Papa got twenty hives and
1,000 sections from your factory last
year. He thinks the outside winter
case is very nice. He can put a
warm brick in under the cushions
and feed the bees almost any time in
the winter. He has the outside cases
painted red on the sides and ends, and
the top is white. He faces them to
the east so the morning sun will warm
them up and get the bees up early in
the morning. Yours truly,

Ollie Jones.

Cortland, O., Eeb. 14, 1892.

WINTERING- ON SUMMER STANDS.

The epiestion of wintering is always
of interest and for that reason is al-
ways seasonable. In treating the
question I do not expect to give any
new points to experts, but many of
the readers of this magazine are be-
ginners, and are looking to this valu-
able journal for information on this
as well as on all other apicultural mat-
ters. Many successful apiarists of
large experience claim that all winter-
ing should be done in cellars, or other
special depositories ; with these I
have no quarrel, but never having
wintered except on summer stands, I
am unable to speak thereof from per-
sonal experience. One objection to
this plan of wintering I can well im-
agine will force itself into the minds
of a large majority, viz. : the expense
required to fit up as it should be fitted,
with regard to ventilation and temper-
ature, such a special depository as is
necessary in order to guarantee success
and the objection of itself will prob-
ably prevent that majority from in-
curring the required expense

For the benefit of the same ma-
jority I will give in detail the plan of
wintering on summer stands, adopted
by myself with perfect success, and
which I have made use of for eigh-
teen years or more, and that too on
Langstroth frames, with single walled
seventh-eight inch pine hives.

As theories in regard to matters
connected with apiculture are of

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

43

little consequence Avhen compared
with actual facts. I will not attempt
to theorize now, but will detail the
facts for the use of any who may de-
sire to know them.

AVhen the honey season ends, which
with myself is about the 10th of Sep-
tember, I examine the condition of
every colony, crowd each colony on to
seven frames I intend they shall all
be strong enough to cover fully that
number) and see that each frame is at
least filled with sealed stores in its up-
per half the whole length. Later on
when I get ready to back for winter I
extract jf necessary from those combs
that are more than two-thirds filled
with stores and combs throughout the
brood chamber are equalized and plac-
ed in a position where the colony can at
times get at them if desired. When
the temperature falls so low that the
colony begins to cluster closely I
force the cluster to one side or other
of the brood chamber, which can eas-
ily be done, by moving the frames
on which the cluster is formed. Prior
to this, however, I have stimulated
the queen by feeding regularly each
day a small amount of of sugar syrup,
and thus kept the colony rearing
brood as long as possible.

After the cluster is forced to the
side of the hive I place a "Hill's De-
vice," or some substitute therefor, over
the frames, and cover the bees with a
light porous blanket. Burlap or cot-
ton duck is as good as anything for
this purpose. The "Hill's Device"
under the blanket forms a means of
communication for the bees with
every frame in the hive, and that too
without danger of becoming chilled.
As the hive in use is wide enough for

ten frames I use one and a half inch
division board in each side of the
hive, which allows the seven frames to
be spread apart a little more than de-
sirable for summer use. After cover-
ing the frames in closely so that not a
bee can show his head outside, I put
on an upper story and fill it one-third
full of forest leaves pressed lightly
down, and use a cover with one and a
half inch hole bored in each end for
ventilation.

1 give a large entrance, using a
bridge about four inches wide for the
bees to crawl under, which prevents
the easy access of sudden draughts
into the hive. The only other pro-
tection than that prescribed above,
found in my apiary is a close osage
hedge, six feet high on the north and
west sides. With the above means
of protection my bees have withstood
the rigors of our eastern winters for
years, with a temperature vary-
ing from 20 degrees above to 20 de-
grees below zero, and some seasons
without a purifying flight from mid-
dle of November to middle of the fol-
lowing February. Many mornings
with the thermometer below zero in
January I have found a warm current
of air being forced out from the en-
trance, so strong as to be perceptibly
felt upon the back of the hand. I
know not and care not whether others
may agree with me or not, I state the
facts as I find them, and have no hes-
itation whatever in advising every be-
gin nei to follow the methods outlined
above.— J. E. P. in B. K. M, (Mass.')

SURPLUS HONEY.

Under the modern system of bee
culture we obtain two kinds of honey,
known as comb and extracted. Comb

44

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

honey is brought before the consumer
just as it was stored by the bees, while
extracted honey is the pure honey
emptied from the comb by means of
the honey' extractor. If not adulter-
ated by middlemen both are equally
healthful and nutritious.

Honey is not a luxury, but a nec-
essary addition to our food, it being
the pure sweet as secreted hy the flow-
ers from which it is gathered by the
bees, being healthful and much safer
than the poisonous confections sold
under the name of "candy."

Comb honey is preferred by many
on account of its fine appearance. It
must be placed in the market in good
shape, indicating that it is intended
for food and not simply as a luxury, a
sweet morsel to be tasted by the chil-
dren . Some of our writers on bee cul-
ture (but I am happy to say only
a few) went wild some time ago
advocating one-half pound frames.
They argue that it can be sold at a
higher price, but all bee-keepers
know that forcing bees into such
small combs greatly reduces the crop,
and if such a course could be pursued
by our bee men it would at once con-
vey the idea that honey was only a
substitute for candy or chewing gum.
My advice to the bee-loving readers
of this magazine is to let them severe-
ly alone in their craze. A season or
two will abolish such small things.
The man whose soul is so small and his
ideas so contracted, and his business
principles so mean as to place a half
pound honey package upon the mark-
et for the purpose of extorting a half
penny or so from his fellow man de-
serves to be classed with — you may
draw your own comparison.

Anything smaller than a one pound
section or frame is a loss to the pro-
ducer as well as the consumer. A one
pound comb makes a nice package,
and such frames can be nicely crated
and safely shipped.

Comb honey should be removed
from the hive as soon as all the cells
are sealed over. If left to remain it
becomes darker by the bees passing
over it. When taken from the hive
it should be placed in a dark room
until sold or shipped to market..
Some writers advise smoking it with
sulphur to kill the wax worm. I
never found this necessary, asl never
have found worms on my comb honey.
Honey should be nicely graded, and
the finest shipped or sold in separate
lots. My frames hold two pound each,
of these I place six in a crate having
glass at each end showing quality of
honey. These crates suit the retail as
well as the wholesale dealers and con-
sumers generally buy a whole crate —
12 to 13 pounds. Many of my cus-
tomers in adjoining towns buy from
three to six crates. Unfinished or
partly sealed combs can be emptied
with the extractor and put away for
next season.

Extracted honey should be placed
in nice, clean, attractive packages.
For home trade self-sealing jars do
very well. For shipping, kegs are
found to be the best,

Just here I would give a word of
warning. Do not extract before your
honey is sealed, if you do it is not
ripe and too thin and will sour, thus
spoiling your reputation as a honey
producer. Don't be too eager to ob-
tain a large quantity, let the quality
be good and you will have no trouble

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

45

to find plenty of buyers. It is only
the poor, unripe article that cannot be
sold, and which gives some of our
writers in the bee papers so much
trouble to find a way to dispose of
their honey.

(Penna.) H. H. Flack.

EXPOSE YOUll HIVES TO THE SIX.

In a village in Germany, where the
number of bees kept was regulated by
law, a bad season had proved that the
place was overstocked, from the great
weakness of all the colonies* in the
neighborhood. There was but one
exception, that of an old man who
was generally set down as being no
wiser than his neighbors. The honey
harvest came round, and when he had
stored away double the quantity that
any of the rest had saved, he called
his friends and neighbors together,
took them into his garden, and said:
"If you had been more charitable in
your opinions, I would have told you
my secret before," and he pointed to
the facing of his hives — one degree
more to the east than was generally
adopted. The sun came upon his
hives an hour or two sooner by the
movement, and his bees were up and
stirring, and had secured a large snare
of the morning's honey before his
neighbors' bees had roused themselves
for the day.

•, AND OUTDOOR WINTERING.

The heavy fall of snow which we
have just had is very favorable for
outdoor wintering, and we would ad-
vise our readers not to shovel it away
from the hives, but if you have time
put a little more on with a snow
shovel. We would much rather have
ten feet of snow over hives than none
at all.

A friend of ours once told us how
he had made a great mistake by dig-
ging away the snow from some of his
hives,, but at the same time learned a
valuable lesson. His apiary was sit-
uated in somewhat of a valley, and
one morning after a heavy fall of
snow which had been considerably
drifted, he looked out and was dis-
mayed to see his entire apiary buried
beneath the fleecy flakes. One por-
tion, however, was much worse than
the other — that at the north end
being buried in some places ten feet
deep. The south eud was not so bad,
and so he determined to clear what he
could and leave the rest to perish, as
he supposed. After considerable
shoveling he got about 25 colonies
pretty well cleared off, and by dint of
hard work managed to keep them clear'
till spring. When warm weather
came these 25 colonies were flying in
and out, while the snow was still ly-
ing upon the other portion. Think-
ing the latter were dead he paid no at-
tention to them till quite late in the
spring, when the tops of some of them
began to show above the snow, and
what was his surprise and delight to-
discover every colony in splendid con-
dition, some of them filled with broodr
and all ready for a good season's
work, while at the same time they had.
not consumed nearly so much stores
as those he kept clear of snow ! Upon
investigation he discovered that the
heat from the bees had melted spaces
about the hives varying in size from
a square foot to a square yard, and
the air from the hives became puri-
fied by contact with the snow, while
at the same time the temperature was-
kept so even and was so little affected
bv the cold breezes of winter that

46

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

very little stores were consumed.
The method of purifying air is one
which is taken advantage of by some
of our native animals. We have
often amused ourselves by watching
the otter who will stay underneath
the ice for hours together engaged in
fishing, and when finding it necessary
to breathe will place bis nose against
the ice, expel the air from his lungs
when it forms a bubble between ice
and water, and then inhale it again.
— C. B. J. (Canada.)

STRAWBERRIES IN OCTOBER.
(From Western Garden, Oct. ".U.i

To-day's mail brings a fine speci-
men plant of the New Wonder Straw-
berry from J. B. Alexander, of Hart-
ford City, Ind. It is a strong plant,
and the peculiarity about it is that it
has three ripe and fourteen green ber-
ries on it, besides quite a number of
blossoms. Our readers should try a
few plaats of this wonder. See Gold-
en Rule Nursery "ad." elsewhere.

Some women cannot keep bees, any
more than some men ;. but many can ,
and to their great profit. Often a
farmer's wife or daughter welcomes
an occupation for the sake of its nov-
elty, something to break up the rou-
tine of cooking, washing and sewing ;
and bee-keeping, even if it brings
only a few pounds of honey for the
table, is undertaken and carried
through with pleasure and delight.
— Ex. __

Let it be remembered, says Julia
Allyn, that the more bees there are
on farms the greater will be the pro-
duct of the farms ; for the bees distri-
bute pollen and fertilize flowers more
thoroughly than they can be fertilized
otherwise.

The American Bee-Keeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cents a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
copies, $1.20 ; all to be sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the U.S. and Canada; 10 cents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 9 words ; $2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount for 2 insertions; 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions; 10 per cent, for 6 insertions; 20 per cent,
for 12 insertions.

Vdvertisenients must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,
, Falconer, N. Y.

j&^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue cross will know that their subscripiton
expires with this number. We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

jftg=A blue cross on-this paragraph indicates rhat
your subscription expired last mouth. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

Some of our readers being begin-
ners, are often perplexed to know just
what methods of the many different
ones advocated by our contributors
will be the best for their individual
needs. Now, there are many methods
of manipulating bees and hives, any
one of which followed out will bring
success. Take "Wintering" for in-
stance. Some of the most successful
bee-keepers winter out-doors. Others
in-doors. Some with chaff hives ;
hives with air spaces or with outside
winter cases. Some winter in cellars,
and others in special depositories or
in bee houses. Each method has its
strong supporters.

About the only thiug to be consid-
ered in adopting either method is the
climatic location. For instance, bees
in the Southern states will not win-
ter well in cellars, nor are chaff hives
necessary, while in the Northern
states, outside cases packed, dead air
spaces, chaff hives or in-door winter-
ing is a necessity.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

47

A great many letters of complaint
have been received from persons to
whom we have been sending the Bee-
Keeper, because we asked them to
pay for it. Many of them say they
never subscribed and do not think
they should be compelled to pay. We
do not send this magazine to anyone
unlesss ordered to do so, excepting to
the former subscribers of the Advance
Bee-Hive and Bee World, whose sub-
scrition lists we have purchased, and
we have continued after their orig-
inal subscriptions have expired, ex-
cepting when ordered to stop doing
so by the subscribers themselves.
We have frequently mentioned the
necessity of ordering us to stop if
the magazine was not wanted, and
have sent postal card notices to
to those whose subscriptions have
expired six months back or more.
Now, we do not wish any one to
take this magazine against their
wishes, nor pay for it either, but
we do wish you would notify us on
a postal card or otherwise, if you
want it stopped when your subscrip-
tion expires.

The Paddock Pure Food Bill now
before the United States Senate is
one in which every bee-keeper
should be interested. The bill pro-
vides for the prevention, by govern-
ment inspection, of the mis-brandine:
or mis-labelling of all articles of
food and drugs. In other words, if
a can containing honey is marked
"Pure Honey," it will necessarily be
exactly what the name implies, and
not an adulteration.

out the country, especially in the
Eastern and Middle states, and we
wish our friends would send in
their views in regard to the advant-
ages of the Simplicity or Langstroth
style of hives over the old style
box hives. Send it to us either as
a regular contribution or corres-
pondence for publication.

We notice in Gleanings. Tfie Re-
view, Progressive Bee- Keeper and other
journals the "ad." of the "Chicago
Bee-Keeper's Supply Company," in
which they state their office as being
68-70 South Canal Street. , Chicago.
Parties interested have endeavored
to find such a concern at this street
number but they have failed to do
so. A man by the name of Kline,
claiming to be the secretary of the
company, offered this magazine a
very liberal "ad." some months ago,
but as our information regarding
the concern was not satisfactory we
declined to accept the "ad." All
bee-keepers will do well to deal
only with old established manufac-
turers and dealers.

We have been making an exten-
sive inquiry as to the styles of
hives in most general use through-

Hereafter we will put the name
of the state in which they are writ-
ten at the end of all articles, so that
our readers will know that a meth-
od or system advanced by a bee-
keeper in Georgia, for instance,
will not be of much use to any one
in this state, especially if it relates
to handling bees.

C. H. Dibbern is not satisfied with
his bee escape invented the latter
part of last season, and claims now
that he has another almost perfect-
ed which will beat anything yet.
A great man on bee escapes is our
friend Dibbern. By the way, M. E.
Hastings has recently invented an es-
cape something on the principle of

48

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

the Porter, which appears to be about
perfect. We will endeavor to give
an illustration and description of it
next month.

Edward R. Newcomb, formerly of
Pleasant Valley, N. Y., has moved to
Chicago and has given up his supply
business ; also the manufacture of
the Stanley Automatic Extractor.

Everyone whose subscription has
expired, or is about to expire, will do
well to take advantage of our seed
offer given in another column ; a $1.50
box of seeds, &c, for only 25 cents.

The ever-increasing migration to
the Tropics from American ports will
probably receive a fresh stimulus
from the article on the Highlands of
Jamacia, which Lady Blake, the wife
of the Governor of Jamaica, contrib-
utes to the March number of the
JSorth American Review.

"the flowers of CHILI."
This week's issue of Frank Leslie's
Illustrated Newspaper being the col-
ored number, contains a beautiful
page of portraits of the handsome
women of Chili, a sleighing scene in
Chicago, character sketches from the
tenth annual dinner of the famous
Clover Club of Philadelphia, illustra-
tion of the Young Women's Christian
Association and Margaret Louisa
Home of New York City, and of the
"Captain Prat," the formidable Chil-
ian ironclad. The Children's Depart-
ment contains a beautiful story entitled
"Majorie's Valentine," and the Graph-
ological Department is full of inter-
est, while the fashion letter and edit-
orial pages, together with the beauti-
ful colored front page, make this
number the handsomest that the
Arkell Weekly Company has ever
published. Price only 10 cents; 12
numbers $1.00, with flower premiums
catalogued at 81.25 by Messrs. Pete*
Henderson & Co., SI .25.

The complete novel in Lippincotfs

Magazine for March, "A Soldier's Se-
cret," is by Captain Charles King,

who alone among living Americans
ha3 the secret of the military tale.
What he does not know about army
life in the West is not worth know-
ing, and what he knows he can impart
with unsurpassed and unfailing
charm. The post, the bivouac, the
battlefield, — whatever goes on at
these he makes to live again before
us ; for he has been a part of it all,
and his heart is with the cavalry still.
Hislaststory has a very recent theme;
the Sioux war of 1890, — and will be
found equal to any of his previous
work.

IMPORTANT TRADE NOTICES.

We are in want of bees wax and
will pay 25 to 27 cents per pound
cash, or 2S to 30 cents in trade for
good to choice pure bees wax deliv-
ered at Falconer, N. Y. If you have
any, box it up and ship it to us by
freight or express, (which ever is
cheapest). Be sure and send it to us
at Falconer, N. Y., and write your
name also on the package so we will
know from whom it comes, also write
us at the time you ship.

Colored and Cull Sections very
cheap. We have several thousand
4}x4]xl| and 1 15-16 sections which
are not first class, some being very
poor and others good ; altogether they
are a fair lot and very cheap at SI. 50
per thousand, which is the price at
which we will sell them.

Alsike Clover Seed is consider-
ably higher price now than quoted on
page 27 of our catalogue. We can
now supply a limited quantity at 25
cents per pound, $3.00 per peck or
$11.00 per bu. Postage !) cents per
lb. if by mail. Price subject to change
without notice.

We wish to call attention to the
fact that we can furnish the Hastings
Feeders to anyone wanting them.
They are first class, and in some ways
much better than any other in use.
The price is 30 cents each ; $3.00 pet-
dozen. 1' I cents each extra.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T .FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

f\PRIL, 1892.

NO. 4.

Old Style or New Style in
Hives.

BY E E. HASTY.

Keep bees in old box hives? No
doa't you. Don't cut your grain with
a sickle ; get a twine-binder. Don't
try to kill game with bow and arrow.
Don't have the domestic meal ground
at home between two flat stones. Now
buttons have dawned upon the world,
don't toggle up your clothes with
hooks and pins and strings. All these
things can be done, have been done
by saints, but there's a better way
now. And there's a better way to
keep bees than to keep them in
bungle-boxes and abbreviated hollow
logs.

Nobody does anything well when
he is ashamed of himself all the time;
and a man is pretty sure to be ashamed
of a box apiary. If you keep bees in
box hives probably you will do as
other people of that persuasion do,
wait till you get the hurry of haying
out of the way before you take time
to fuss with the "interestin' little
creeters." We see you in our mind's
eyes putting on boxes and sections and
things in fine old rural style — after
the honey harvest is over for the
year.

If you use boxes for hives the rest
of your manipulation will correspond
with your hive. You will use old
second hand boxes as cases for your
sections. Except by a miracle the
sections will not be an even fit. The
waste space will be filled with prongs
and lugs of honey ; and a sweet and
dripping smash there'll be when you
take your treasures out. ''Fence
the bees out of the waste space" will
you ? You might almost as well
fence the ants out of the buttery,
after they have found the way in
there, as to try to fence bees out of
space where it won't do to have them
go.

Honey is cheap in these years. We
have struggled against the decline ;
but inch by inch it got down to a low
level. Customers have grown habit-
uated to buy it at a low figure, and the
price is never going back where it
was once. To get pay for one's labor
in honey production things must be so
handy that the work can be done
rapidly — there's no other daylight
for us. In your imitation of the
antediluvians, the time you will spend
for each pound of honey will be three
times as great as there is any need
of — lucky if it isn't ten times as

50

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

great. You can figure out the profit
at your leisure. This is the maiu
consideration. No one denies that the
box hive has some advantages of its
own; but it does not lend itself to
rapid work in the production of first-
class honey. Or do you intend to
take the short cut, and carve out honey
with a cheese-knife fro:n the main
hive? Then on arrival in market,
and finding that neither love, logic
nor law can make any dealer in the
city even touch it with a pole — what
an excellent chance you'll have to
learn to be a generous man!

There is another consideration
which sometimes weighs quite heavily.
Half our producers of honey find it to
their advantage to produce the ex-
tracted article; and with the box you
cannot do that. You might indeed
produce a sort of strained honey by
the native Cuban cut-and squeeze
method; but the brethren would be
getting after me with clubs and things
again if I advised you to do that.
And you , on your part, would find
you had forfeited the best feature of
the box hive (good wintering qualities)
by such an outlandish course. Fur-
thermore it requires more correct
judgment, and more intimate knowl-
edge of bees, to get along with box
hives and make them prosper than
frame hives require. But while you
stick to box hives you are never going
to get the inside knowledge of bees —
and I fear that's what ails you, children
dear.

Richards, Ohio.

In successful bee-keeping a vigorous
strain of bees is a prime necessity and a
watchful and thorough spring man-
agement is next in importance.

An Experiment.

BY T. K. MASSIE.

Last month I promised to give my
experiments with two colonies the past
season, managed on a plan similar to
friend Demaree's plan of "Concentra-
tion of Forces," as given last month,
and in fulfillment of that promise, I
now proceed to do so.

I took two average colonies in Dr.
Tinker's hive, (right here I want to
say that Dr. Tinker's Nonpariel hive
is a most excellent hive for this plan
of management) and placed one frame
with queen on it in the center of one
division of the brood chamber, and
filled out with empty frames contain-
ing large starters of medium heavy
foundation, and put on the queen
excluder. On the queen excluder I
placed the super of sections and on
the super I put the two divisions of
brood chamber, containing all the
brood, except the one frame below
the excluder that the queen was on.
This was on the 25th of June. At the
end of honey flow, July 25th, I re-
moved the sections and extracted all
the honey from the brood frames in
the two divisions of brood chamber
above the sections. I then set the
division below the excluder containing
the queen to one side and in its place
I set the two containing the empty
combs from which I had just extract-
ed the honey. I again took the frame
containing the queen and placed it in
the center of the upper division of
these two brood chambers, placing the
empty comb in place of the one remov-
ed with the queen. On the top of the
second brood chamber I placed the ex-
cluder and on it put the division con-
taining the brood, thus giving the
queen full liberty of two brood

TEE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

51

chambers. I then fed them pretty
rapidly for twenty-five days with a
thin syrup made of granulated sugar,
with one-fourth extracted honey add-
ed. By this time all the brood had
hatched out and the combs were filled
with the syrup and mostly capped
over. This feeding caused the queen
to do her best, and by the time the
fall flow commenced she had her hive
full of bees ready to take the crop. I
put the escape under the upper brood
chamber and after the bees had all
gone down, I set the brood chamber
containing the filled combs away for
winter stores. I again put the exclu-
der between the two brood chambers,
taking care that the queen was below
it. Both colonies were managed
alike and at the end of the fall flow I
extracted from one 42 and from the
other 48 pounds of nice fall honey,
an average of 45 pounds each.

Did this plan pay ? Let's see. Say
I fed 50 pounds of sugar (don't believe
I fed that much) to each colony.
Then 100 pounds of sugar at 5 cents
per pound would be $5,00. I got 90
pounds of honey which I sold at 12|c.
or $11.25. Deduct the $5.00, and I
had $6.25 left for my little labor.
Deduct from this for the honey mixed
with the syrup, and I would still have
about $5.00 left me.

How are the bees doing on sugar
stores this winter? Well, the sugar
"caked" in the combs, and I feared
for a while I would lose my bees, but
as the winter has been exceedingly
warm the bees are doing well — in fact
are in excellent condition. Had I
lost them, the fault would not have
been with the bees nor the manipula-
tion, but in the sugar. Bee-keepers

need a better grade of sugar — one
that will not grain so readily. If 1
can get sugar that will not grain, I am
going to experiment largely on this
matter next season. I hope all whose
location is similar to mine, will also
experiment on it and report.

But, says one, "I want increase, and
how am I to get it under brother D's
' concentration ' plan ? " This is my
fix, too. I am going to get my increase
by artificial swarming at the close of
the honey flow in the latter part of
July. 1 will "concentrate" till the
harvest is gathered, and then increase
and feed to stimulate brood -rearing.

Beginners should remember that
the proper time to commence prepar-
ations for a honey crop is about one
year in advance. Thus if 1 want to
get a crop of honey in 1892, I should
have commenced stimulating my bees
not later than last August, or August
1st, 1891. The stimulation can be
accomplished by seeing that they have
plenty of stores. I also should have
made absolutely sure that they had
plenty of stores to take them through
the winter. This being done, they
will come out strong and healthy in
the spring and will build up ready for
the honey flow when it comes.

Beginners should give due attention
to drone comb. I do not allow more
than one or two square inches of drone
comb to the hive, except my breeding
colonies, and what few drones that
hatch from this little bit of drone
comb, I trap and destroy on their first
attempt to fly out. By this means I
save the honey they would consume.

Concord Church, W. Va.

From five to ten square inches of
drone comb is enough for a hive.

52

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Advantages of the Movable

Frame Hive, Compared

with the Old Box Hive.

BY G. W. DEMAREE.

Honey bees were handled in box
hives for thousands of years by the
more intelligent men of the ages
without acquiring any practical knowl-
edge of their natural history and
habits. A few persevering naturalists
by desecting the brood nests of bees
gained some interesting knowledge of
the natural history of bees, but the
knowledge thus obtained was not
sufficiently practical to be put to any
practical purpose in their manage-
ment. But after all the years of the
ages, and but a little more than a
quarter of a century ago, the Rev.
L. L. Langstroth introduced his mov-
able comb system, thereby making it
possible to examine the internal work-
ing of the home of the bees. Men's
eyes were opened and all things were
made plain to them, and the economy
of the bee's nsst became an " open
book."

The writer of this article kept bees
in the best form of box hives for
many years before he ever saw inside
of a normal working bee's nest, and
well do I remember the light that
broke into my mind when when 1 first
began to manipulate the movable
frames of combs of a strong colony of
bees. In a short time I learned to
know the queen and to discover her
functions — the proud mother of a
commonwealth — worthy to be called
a " queen." The drones or male bees
became familiar, and their office was
discovered. The worker bees — dimin-
uated females, — the brood from the
eggs to the imago or adult bees in all

their stages of development and
growtl) became familiarized to my ex-
panding mind. It was the opening of
a new natural world to my now stim-
ulated thirst for knowledge. What an
argument in favor of the utility of the
movable frame hive! It had done for
me in way of knowledge, in a short
time, what years had not accomplished.
Some bee-keepers advance the idea
that they can make bees profitable in
box hives as well as in movable frame
hives; that is, they can produce comb
honey over or on top of box hives.
We may admit this, if the box hive is
made to suit properly made section
cases, as a mere matter of storing
honey cannot differ much. Bee-hives
do not gather honey; the bees must do
this. The movable frame hive is
made for the convenience of the api-
arist, not exclusively for the bees.
The person who would change from
his box hives to the movable frame
hives under the impression that his
bees would gather more honey, has not
caught the true idea of bee culture.
The movable frame hive is superior to
the box hive because you can manip-
ulate the frames in any necessary
way; the latter you cannot. If I take
honey with the honey extractor, I
must have the combs in frames so I
can manipulate the combs. Sometimes
hives become queenless; I want a hive
that I can open and look through it
and rind out the condition of the bees.
Sometimes I want to take brood from
strong colonies to strengthen weak
ones, and I must have movable frames
to accomplish this. Frequently one
colony of bees has more honey than is
necessary to winter them, while an-
other is deficient in stores; the mov-
able frame enables me to help out one

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

53

colony by taking stores from another
colony that has a surplus. With the
best box hive we must simply guess at
the condition of our bees; but with
the movable frame hive, which admits
of the thorough overhauling of our
bees when we are in doubt about their
condition, we can handle our bees in-
telligently and feel that deep interest
in the pursuit that is peculiarly nec-
essary to success in bee culture.
Some occupations may, and do grind
out money like a "tread-mill," but
bee culture is not one of them. Noth-
ing less than a deep interest in bees
will make an apiarist. The movable
frame hive is essentially necessary to
awaken this necessary interest.

The box hive system recorded a
failure for thousands of years; the
Langstroth system of movable frames
has recorded a success in a quarter of
a century. What a contrast! Let
any intelligent man transfer his bees
from his box hives to movable frame
hives and then use his intelligence,
and he will exclaim that "the half
has not been told " him.

Christiansburg , Ky.

Uniting Colonies in Early
Spring — Robber Bees-
Feeding in Early
Spring.

BY H. M. DEWITT.

To unite two weak colonies, remove
the queen from one colony, and put
the frames with bees and brood at one
side, putting in a divider made by
tacking wire-cloth on one side of a
brood-frame, with the ends extending
to reach full length of the hive. Now
bring the brood, queen and the bees
from the other hive and place in this
one; close the entrance on the bees

and queen put in for tweuty-four
hours, slanting a board in front, re-
move the hive vacated, and the work
is done. In twenty-four hours, or the
next night, remove the obstruction
from the entrance, leaving the slant-
ing board in front, which will cause
the bees to mark their home anew.
On the third day remove the divid-
ing frame and the board from the
front. No hive should occupy the old
stand from which the queen and the
bees were removed for several days.

BEES ROBBING.

If all the colonies are kept strong
there is no danger of robbing — it is
only the weak ones that are robbed.
Working with bees at unseasonable
times, leaving honey exposed in the
apiary, etc., induce robbing. Colonies
of black bees and nuclei are usually
the sufferers. Contracting the enter-
ance, so that but a single bee can pass,
is usually a sure cure for robbing. In
times of scarcity of honey, the apiarist
should be careful not to keep a hive
oj:>en too long, or robbing may be the
result. All strong colonies maintain
sentinels at the entrance in times of
scarcity. Those of that colony are
allowed to pass, but strangers are
"arrested on the spot." If a colony
is unable to defend itself, close up
the entrance with wire-cloth and re-
move it to the cellar or some other
convenient place for a few days, and
when it is returned to the old stand,
contract the entrance to allow only
one bee to pass at a time. If you
handle your bees carefully and don't
leave any exposed sweets in their
reach, I don't think you will have any
robbing in your apiary.

FEEDING BEES IN EARLY SPRING.

Feeding in the early spring is advis-

54

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEFER.

able to stimulate breeding and to keep
the colony strong, so that when the
early bloom comes it may be strong
enough to gather the delicious nectar.
Whenever there is any necessity for
it, feeding pays; especially in the fall,
before preparing for winter. If the
stores are insufficient, feed up; each
colony should have at least twenty-five
pounds of good ripened honey, all
capped over. Extracted honey, or
coffee A sugar reduced to the consist-
ency of honey, is best for feeding, in
the absence of good sealed honey.
The poorer grades of sugar and glucose
are totally unfit for feeding bees. To
stimulate in the spring, one-half
pound per day is sufficient for a col-
ony. For feeding inside the hive, the
division-board feeder may be used to
advantage. But for feeding early in
the spring, I prefer the Simplicity
bee-feeder. You can fill them and
set them on top of your brood frames
at night, and if the weather is not too
cold the bees will take the syrup all
down by morning and all danger of
robbing is past.
Sunny Side, Md.

Re-Queening.

BY W. H. LAWS.

The season of the year is now ap-
proaching when many bee-keepers
will again find it necessary to procure
queens. Of a necessity, this must
always remain the case.

Happily for us and thanks to Uncle
Sam who has given us a mail system
so perfectly adjusted to our needs in
this particular, our wants can be sup-
plied within a few days notice.

To save a queenless colony in early
spring, we must have a queen and to
hold that colony until drones and

queens can be reared would be fatal
to its usefulness the coming season ;
but what is better than to wait, is to
invest a trifle and within a few days
we can introduce a young laying
queen. Our once helpless colony
now booms, and with a young prolific
queen from some race bred for busi-
ness, may swell the record beyond
anything in the apiary. It is also
important that all old queens should
be superceded with young ones, that
the colony may become populous?
ready for the harvest when it opens.
Another and the most useful purpose
which re-queening serves, is the in-
troduction of new and better blood to
our already pure-bred races, thus im-
parting that which the laws of nature
demands — life and vigor — and with-
out which all insect and animal life
will quickly deteriorate, and by re-
queening only can we eradicate the
indolent blacks and remove the wick-
ed hybrids.

Now since re-queening is not only
a convenience and a necessity, on ac-
count of the points mentioned, it is
also profitable to the bee-keeper. It
pays handsomely to remove every
queen that is over two years old, do-
ing this in early spring, replacing
them with young queens from the
South. Such queens, reared from
the very best stock and by the best
methods, can be purchased in lots
very cheaply. This furnishing of
young queens in large lots to Northern
bee - keepers is no experiment.
Active, go-ahead bee-keepers are fast
seeing the importance of keeping all
colonies supplied with young prolific
queens, and the transmission of queens
through the mails to meet this demand
is larger than ever before, and the

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

55

writer predicts that this trade will
largely increase for many years to
come.

As to the best race of bees, the sub-
ject has been largely discussed, every
writer having his favorite; but so far,
the Italians, by a large majority,
have claimed the greatest number of
admirers.

Now, friends, as the successful
mailing of queens over long journeys
is now a surety, so should they be as
safely introduced. The introduction
of queens is seemingly a hackneyed
subject; but so long as we lose, just so
long must we try to evade that loss.
With the editor's permission, I will
£reat of that subject in a future
article.

Lavaca, Ark.

Box Hives in Florida.

BY MRS. L. HARRISON.

In reference to the advantages of
plain and modern hives over box
hives, a little experience from those
who have used them for many years
may not come amiss. In visiting a
neat little apiary of 40 colonies, the
owner said: "I have been a bee-
keeper for 40 years, but my bees
never increased from four or five col-
onies until I got the patent hives."
The reason no doubt was that by using
the modern hives he had control of
the combs and could see into the in-
terior of the hives and find out what
was necessary to preserve the life of
his colonies. It is customary for
those using box hives to lift them in
the fall and those not having sufficient
stores to last them until spring are
"taken up." In this way many young
and vigorous queens are destroyed;
and as it is the old ones that leave

with the swarms aud die of old age,
before the following spring many
colonies perish and no increase is
gained.

Where I have been residing in
Florida, I have visited all apiaries
within reach, and yesterday I saw
one of a dozen colonies, all in tall aud
narrow box hives made from the
heavy pitch-pine. The proprietor
stated that he tried movable frame
hives, but they were too much trouble
and he had abandoned them. The
honey was taken from the top of the
hives or secured in a surplus box of
the diameter of the hive. There is
no available market for the honey
thus obtained and they have all they
want for family use. They have some
now that is two years old. It was St,
Patrick's Day (March 17th) and the
bees were working upon fruit bloom,
and I never saw heavier loads of
honey and pollen carried in — they
fairly tumbled over one another to
gain admittance to the hive. Peaches,
pears and dewberries were in full
bloom, and in wet lands the tie-tie
bush.

Since January I have been visiting
many points in and around St. An-
drews Bay in search of apiaries, and
though I found a few colonies here
and there, I have not seen an Italian
bee, but I have seen movable frame
hives in a number of apiaries.
St. Andrews Bay, Fla., March 18.

We are in receipt of a copy of the pro-
ceedings at the tenth anniversary of the
Philadelphia Bee Keepers' Association, held
January 23. . The present officers of the
association are Dr. H. Townsend, president;
Henry M. Twining, vice president; F. Hah-
mann, secretary and treasurer; Miss Dora
Davidson, librarian.

56

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEIER.

ADVANTAGES OF MOVABLE FRAME HIVE.S
OVER BOX HIVES.

Ed. American Bee-Keeper: — As
you requested a short letter from me
on the above subject, I will comply.
Has the electric light any superiority
over the old tallow dip ? As much as
this has the movable frame over the
old box. The reason why so many
still adhere to the old box hive is from
carelessness and a lack of knowledge
of even the first principles of bee-
keeping. Many such bee-keepers
still believe in a "king bee," and the
old box has many king (or drone)
bees, and that is one of the strongest
reasons for changing to the movable
frame. In an apiary of 100 old box
hives, how many drones are raised to
consume the stores of the busy work-
ers ? At least one-third of such would
be drones; that is to say, one-third of
the apiary would be worse than use-
less,— not only taking the places of
industrious workers that should be
raised in their places, but consuming
the stores also.

The great advantage of the frame
hive over the box hive is easy manip-
ulation or handling. All drone comb
can be cut out; queens can easily be
changed when necessary ; supplies of
food readily given ; full sheets of
foundation in wired frames can be
given new swarms, thus insuring nice
straight combs. Two good swarms
hived on full sheets of foundation are
as good as three or four swarms on
starters or in boxes.

Now, let me tell those who have
box hives how to realize a good in-
come from same without transferring*
Let the bees swarm naturally, then
hive new swarms in half-story hives,
with queen-excluding zinc between
lower and upper stories. Fill two
half stories with sections, and be sure
to have sections filled with full sheets
of extra light foundation. If the sea-
son is a good one, in this way you will
obtain nice light or No. 1 comb
honey. Then as soon as the young
queens get to laying in the old boxes,
drive them out into movable frame
hives filled with full sheets of founda-
tion. Melt up all old comb into wax.
In this way little time is lost for the ,
bees and you have all young queens
for the next season and an apiary with
such queens is sure of success in any
fair season. Yours truly,

T. Graham Ashmead.

Williamson, N. F., March 10, 1892.

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir : Bees have wintered very
well here. I have lost but one swarm
out of forty, and have wintered them
on their summer stands in chaff hives-
I find that the swarms that were fed
up well last fall have come out with
much less dead bees than those that
were not fed but had their natural
stores. I give below a good receipt
for making

CANDY FOR BEES.

Two pounds granulated sugar.
Boil until it will crack when dropped
into cold water. Then take off the
fire and stir in one pound of good ex-
tracted honey. Then stir until it
creams and you will have candy that
the bees can use in every kind of
weather.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

57

Please let me know if my time has
expired for the Bee-Keeper. If it
has I will send the money,' because I
do not wish you to send it without the
pay. Yours truly,

Mrs. A. A. Simpson.

Sivarts, Pa.

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir : Would you advise the use
of honey dew for spring feeding ?
There are a number of bee-keepers in
this locality who would like to know.
Yours, etc., Frank Cruikshank.

Randolph, III, March 4, 1892.

[We would not advise use of honey
dew for spring feeding, although there
is some of the stuff that is much better
quality than that which is usually
found, and which we do not think
would be detrimental to the bees fed
on it. Honey dew is supposed to
come from two sources : the sap or
vapor exuded from certain trees and
plants and also a substance ex-
uded from the bodies of Aphides,
or plant lice. It is of dark
color and utterly unfit for food. —
Ed.]

The W. T. Falconer Man'fg Co.,
Gentlemen: I have dealt with you
since 1884, and I am sorry to state
now that failing health, combined
with my hip disease, has compelled
me to give up my bees. I use your
Simplicity hive, many of which I in-
troduced in this locality. Outside of
that there are bee-keepers who use all
sorts of home-made hiyes. These are
generally the old fogy bee-men. I
think if I had bees again, I would
much prefer the new Dovetailed hive-
I am in receipt of your new catalogue
and copies of the American Bee-
Keepkr, and take great pleasure in
showing or giving them to persons
interested in bees. It gives me great
pleasure to acknowledge in all my

years of dealing with you to have
always found your goods of superior
workmanship and in all ways satis-
factory to me. I send you herewith
names of a few parties to whom you
can send catalogues. Wishing you
the well-merited success which is your
due, I remain

Yours respectfully,

Gustavus Weiderhold.
Yonkers, N. ¥., Feb. 22, 1892.

The W. T. Falconer Man'fg. Co.,
Gentlemen: The goods were received
and give the greatest satisfaction.
The careful way in which they were
packed reflects much credit on your
factory and your staff of workers.
I also received the January number
of the American Bee-Keeper. It
is the best journal I have ever seen,
and for such a small cost. I intend
to send for a large amount of goods
sometime soon. I remain
Yours truly,

Jos. S. Morales.

Jamaica, B. West India, Feb. 23.

Ed. American Bee-Keeper, Dear
Sir: Please find inclosed money order
for 50 cents to renew my subscription.
Please answer through the Bee-
Keeper the following questions:

Does Alsike clover yield a crop of
hay and one of seed the same year?

Does it do equally well on upland
or low-land?

How does it rank with our common
red clover in yield of hay and seed?

With wishes for the success of the
Bee-Keeper, I remain

Yours truly, Wm, Partridge.

Tiosa, hid., March 17, 1892.

[Alsike clover yields a crop of hay
and one of seed the same year; and
while we do not state from experience,
we believe it will grow well wherever
common red clover will, but it does
not yield as much in quantity of hay
or seed as the red clover. The hay,
however, is regarded as more nutri-
tious.— Ed]

58

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

TRANSFERRING.

As we have received numerous
questions in reference to transferring,
we will give the method we use, in as
small a space as possible. In trans-
ferring from old box hives into mov-
able frames the very first thing to do
is to have all tools and implements
used in the operation at hand ready
for use. The necessary tools consist
of a hammer, good stout chisel for
prying off side of hive and cutting,
long-bladed sharp knife for cutting
out the comb.-, and a long hook made
like a common stove-poker, with bent
end sharpened; this is for loosening
the combs when the side of box is not
taken off. Also smoker. The very
best time for the operation of trans-
ferring bees is as soon as the fruit
trees begin to bloom, and from that
time until swarming. I say when the
fruit trees are in bloom, because I
mean that the beginner can safely
take hold of the job at that time and
run no chances of his operations be-
ing a failure. Again, when they are
gathering honey very rapidly they
will repair the comb very quickly and
be more prosperous than before.
They may, of course, be transferred
before this, or in fact any time, but as
I said before this, the month of May
is the best time. After quieting the
stock to be transferred, by the use of
your smoker, invert it and keep the
bees down, then set a box up side
down over the inverted hive, and be
careful that no bees can get out

around the box ; then get two sticks
and set down by your hive and drum
on each side of it until the bees have
ascended into the inverted box, now
remove the box and tack a piece of
wire-cloth over it and set it aside
until you are ready for the bees.
Now move the old hive anywhere you
intend to do the work of transferring,
but I would advise a sheltered place,
for if you have other stocks around
look out for robbers. Now drive out
the cross sticks, which you will find
about midway from top to bottom of
box hive, and sever the attachments
of comb on side of hive, which can be
most easily removed. > Pry off the
side of your hive with your chisel,
cutting the nails if necessary, and you
are now ready to carve. Have your
table, that you are to work on, near
by, on which is a cushion of cotton-
batting covered with cloth, about four
inches thick. On this lay your comb,
after brushing off any bees which
might be on it; on this comb lay your
frame. Mark inside the fiame and
cut the comb to fit the frame snug (it
would be best to cut the comb a little
larger and spring frame over it), take
all the little pieces and fit them in the
frames when necessary. I would not
advise you to transfer any drone
comb. Possibly you will find some
combs too thick, in fact so much so
that they will not allow the frames to
fit close together ; if so, shave them
off. When the frame is full of comb,
take strips of wcod one-quarter of an
inch thick and about one-half inch
wide, these strips to extend a trifle be-
low and above bottom and top bar of
frames ; place these one (or as many as
necessary) on each side of frames ;
over these extended ends snap a small

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

59

rubber band ; the frame is now ready
to set in the hive, which should be on
the old stand. I say use rubber bands,
because in a few days these sticks may
be removed, and all that is necessary is
to open the hive, pull band off of top
of sticks and gently pull the stick, and
the band at bottom snaps off, so that it
is not necessary to remove the frame,
as it is when cord is used. The new
hive should be kept well covered, so as
to exclude other bees. Be sure and
get all combs containing eggs or brood
in the center of the hive, with combs
containing honey outside ; now bring
the box containing the bees to the hive,
spread a sheet on the ground at the en-
trance, on which shake the bees and
brush them very gently with one of
our bee-brushes, until they have all en-
tered the hive. Now place the cap on
hive, shade the entrance from the sun,
and your job is done. Here is a very
simple way to get the bees from an old
box hive into a movable hive, which I
have advised timid persons to do, and
they have met with the best of success.
Take your movable frame hive and fill
the frames with worker foundation ;
remove the cap and set the hive on
stand occupied by the old hive, then
raise the old hive and place it on top of
brood frames of new hive containing
foundation, then close up any space
around the hive so the only way to get
out and in is over the frames contain-
ing foundation. It will not be very
long before the bees pull this founda-
tion out and the queen will come down
and go to laying eggs, and in this
way they will gradually vacate the up-
per hive and take up their residence
below, and you can then cut your
combs and transfer at will. I do not
advise this way of doing, but simply

give it for those who are either too
timid or do not want to go to the
trouble of transferring as given above.
— Exchange. (N. Y.)

HINTS TO BEGINNERS.

April is the month in which bees
need the most care. Although there
are few sections in which honey is
gathered, except in the far South,
though bees are active, bringing pol-
len and raising young bees. In any
locality the queen should now be lay-
ing rapidly, and if the beginner has
followed out the instructionsjgiven last
month, there is no question but that
she is laying, and has been for some
time. During this month bees con-
sume large quantities of honey in rear-
ing brood, and here is a very impor-
tant point; for should the stores be
scant, but few bees will be raised, and
perhaps the abundant brood in the
cells will be destroyed. Bees often
starve at this season of the year
because the feed is consumed very
quickly, and if all stocks have not an
abundance of food, it should be sup-
plied at once. Now a few words in
reference to room for the queen :
Every six or eight days spread the
combs in the hive, and insert either an
empty comb or a frame containing
foundation . This, understand, is when
your bees are doing Avell, and be very
careful not to spread too much, lest
the space is more than the bees can
cover, and then all your work would
be undone. If you have some combs
on hand containing sealed honey, un-
cap them and insert in center of hive.
The bees will use and remove the
honey very quickly, and the comb will
be used by the qneen for eggs. I would
not advise the beginner, or in fact any

60

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

one, to place drone comb in the hive
so early, unless drones are desired very
early for Italianizing. Should this be
desired, select an old comb containing
plenty of drone cells and place in the
centre, about the tenth of this month,
I think, plenty early for the Middle
States, and you will then have drones
before swarming is generally desirable,
I should continue feeding this month,
as advised in last number, and do not
stop until honey commences to flow.
Bees from the cellar should be set on
the summer stands, except far North,
where, if they remain quiet, I think
it would be better to wait until the
first of May. This, of course, must
be regulated by the season. They
should be set out as soon as warm
weather seems to have come to stay,
and blossoms begin to appear. In set-
ting them out, open only a few stocks
at a time until the excitement of the
first flight is over. As to the interval
•of time between opening them, I
might say a few hours. Inasmuch as
we often speak of early spring, we
would call six weeks prior to the time
peach trees bloom, early spring. So
the reader can tell about the time
peach trees bloom in his section, and
thus by deducting six weeks he will be
very near the time to which the writer
refers when he mentions early spring.
As bees are increasing in numbers
very quickly this month, common sense
alone teaches us to remove all absorb-
ing material, and prevent as much as
possible all upward ventilation. The
very best that can be used for this
purpose is enamelled cloth, enamelled
side down. You may then, if you
like, put warmer cloths on top, and
in this way we can retain most of the
animal heat in the brood-nest, which

is a big factor for brood-rearing.

Look out for robbing and keep
brood nest open as little as possible,
lest you chill the brood.

Look out for worms or millers and
kill all you see, as this saves trouble,
as each one of them that lives rears
four generations during the summer.
— W.B. T. (N. Y.)

TRANSFERRING.

Transferring is a very simple opera-
tion, and one that the beginner need
have no fear of. After once getting
the "hang" of the thing, it can be
done with a considerable degree of
rapidity. A couple of years back it
fell to my duty to transfer a large
number of colonies from box hives or
gums, to movable frame hives. I de-
viated a little from the usual method,
and I will here give my way of doing
it, which method I believe accomplish-
es two objects: 1st. Equalizing the
strength of the colonies. 2d. The
rapidity of the method. We will
assume you have any number oP col-
onies in box hives and your movable
frames and hives are all ready for
business. Make a board three to six
inches longer than the frame and
about the same wider, and into it and
across this board cut three groves,
equal distance apart, and about one-
eighth of and inch deep and one-half
an inch wride, with cotton and a piece
of cloth or calico, pad the spaces be-
tween these grooves. Do not make
the pad too thick — one-half inch will
be enough . This is your transferring
board. Obtain a box very nearly, if
not quite the size, square, of your box
hives, and about half as high. It is
to have four sides and a bottom, but
no top. Cross-wise inside, and within

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

61

three inches of the hottom, run two
sticks one-half inch or more in diam-
eter. This is your drumming box
Saw out from a piece of board one-
half inch or less thick strips one-
eighth of an inch, and one inch longer
than your movable frames are deep.
These are your transferring strips. If
you can afford it, get a piece of heavy
hoop iron two inches wide and two
feet long, and bevel one end like a
chisel. This is your transferring
chisel. If you cannot obtain this, a
large butcher or carving knife will
answer, but not so well. These four
articles I have described minutely.
They are very simple, but indispen-
sible to successful and rapid work.
Go to box hive No. 1 and give the
bees quite a little smoke at the en-
trance, say three or four puffs, wait
about five minutes and then turn the
hive upside down, take your swarming
box and place it, bottom up, on top of
the overturned hive. Having before
hand obtained two sticks half an inch
in diameter and eighteen inches long,
begin to rap smartly on the sides of
the upturned hive. Before long you
will hear a low hum, and if you raise
the edge of the transferring box you
will observe the bees marching up in
it. This operation is equivelant to
artificial swarming, the bees being fulf
of honey and having left their home.
Lift the transferring box off the hive
and rest it on something so its edges
will be a few inches off the ground.
Carry your hive (which is now almost
free of bees) to your operating room,
garret, cellar or house, and with your
transferring chisel separate the combs
from the sides of the hive by shoving
the chisel down their edges next to
the wood. Now split off one of the
sides of the hive and the work of re-

moving the combs is simple enough.
Remove one and carry it to your
transferring board, which being pad-
ded, will not injure the brood cells,
and lay it flat. Place one of your
frames on this comb and cut the comb
to fit, observing that the brood shall be
distributed as evenly as possible, your
frame will now slip down on to the
board and will permit you to pass the
strips, before spoken of, into the
grooves beneath the comb so that they
project a quarter of an inch below
bottom of frame. Place strips to cor-
respond on top of comb and tie the
ends of each pair of strips together,
when you lift up your frame, your
comb is in position and secure. Pro-
ceed with all the comb, piecing when
necessary and putting on strips to hold
them together. Hang these combs in
a hive and leave them there for a few
minutes while you dump the bees
from your transferring box into an
empty hive. Assuming that the hive
you have just drummed had plenty of
brood, you must now take your empty
drumming box to a weaker colony and
drum it up as directed for first one.
Now bring out the hive containg the
brood of the first colonies and dump
these bees into it. Now you see you
have equalized things by giving the
larger amount of brood to the weaker
colony. The next colony you drum
should be a strong one, to which you
give the brood of No. 2, and so at the
end, you give the first colony, the brood
of the last one. Tnis sounds like a
great deal, but one man can transfer
ten colonies in a day with ease, for I
have done it myself. In a few days
you can go to the hives, cut the top
string holding the strip, and by pull-
ing on one loosen the lower tie, thus
getting them out, without disturbing
the bees. Transferring must be done
by the novice about apple-blossom
time, when there is quite a little honey
coming in, thus guarding against rob-
bing, and also enabling them to pro-
duce the wax and energy to repair
and fasten the combs. — Br K. Mr
(N. F.)

62

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The American Bee-Keeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cents a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
copies, $1. 20 ; all to be sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the US and Canada; 10 cents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 9 words; $2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount for 2 insertions; 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions; 10 per cent, for 6 insertions; 20 per cent,
for 12 insertions.

Advertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THK AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,
Falconer, N. Y.

4®°"Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue cross will know that their subscripiton
expires with this number. We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-

EDITORIAL,

During the latter part of February, we
sent inquiries to 5000 bee keepers, mostly
in the Middle and Eastern States, asking
them to state the number of hives and styles
they had in use. We received several hun-
dred replies, and the result of the inquiries
was indeed a revelation. We find that a
very large majority of the hives used are of
the old box style ; and the owners are, as a
rule, entirely ignorant of the late advances
in knowledge of bees and the economical
care of them. There could be hundreds of
thousands of pounds of honey obt^ited in
excess of what is now produced, if every
bee-keeper knew how he could get the most
benefit from his bees and would take the
necessary trouble to do so. What the ma-
jority of bee-keepers in this country need is
instruction as to the best methods of caring
for their bees. In hopes that we may, to a
certain extent, extend that knowledge among
those who need it, we have devoted the
greater part of this issue of the Bee-Keep-
er to the subject of box hives and their dis-
advantages. We will send out several
thousand extra copies of this number to
those who are* not subscribers, and we ask
overyone who receives a copy to read it,
and then hand it to some neighbor who will
perhaps be benefited by reading the articles

We have a good many inquiries as to
whether it is profitable to use full sheets of
foundation in sections and brood frames, or
simply starters. It is our opiuion that full
sheets of foundation are very much more
desirable. In fact, this is the general con-
clusion of the majority of the experienced
bee-keepers. Tn using full-sized starters in
sections, it is essential that extra light foun-
dation of the best quality obtainable be
used, so as not to deteriorate the quality of
the honey, as is the case when heavy foun-
dation is used. Sometime ago we received
a small consignment of comb honey for our
own use, which, but for the heavy founda-
tion used in the sections, was about the finest
comb honey we ever tasted.

The Paddock Pure Food bill, mention of
which has been made by us previously, has
lately been passed by the United States
senate without a division, and so strong is
public opinion in its favor, especially among
the farmers of this country, that we think
there is little doubt of its passing the house
when it comes up, which will be at an early
day. It has been amended so as to apply
only to foods and drugs which are articles
of exportation and inter-state commerce.
It prohibits, under penalty of fine and im-
prisonment, the introduction into one state
or territory from another, as well as the ex-
portation of adulterated or misbranded
foods or drugs.

it contains.

We send out with this number of the
Bee-Keeper, a 4-page supplement contain-
ing an article on the subject of " Better
Country Roads," which we hope will be
#read carefully by every one into whose
hands it may fall. We are sending out
many thousands of these supplements at a
large expense, without one cent remunera-
tion ; but we hope that they may have a
certain amount of influence in the right
direction. If there is one thing more than
another that the people of this country need
and especially the farmers, it is " better
roads." We will be glad to furnish any of
our readers extra copies of the article free
of all expense if they will distribute them
where they will be caiefully read among
their neighbors.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

63

We would advise those who will be in
need of supplies soon, to send in their orders
as early as possible, for supply dealers will
doubtless be very much crowded with orders
during the coming few weeks. The con-
tinue! cold wtather in March kept bee-
keepers generally from realizing that spring
was so near at hand, hence they delayed order-
ing goods until later than usual, resulting in
a rush of orders.

There are certain parties in the queen and
supply business whose advertisements appear
in some of the bee journals whose business
careers will soon come to an ignominious
end unless they reform, and reform quick.
We shall certainly publish them if their
present course is continued. " Honesty is
the best policy."

Several thousand copies of the American
Bee-Keeper are sent out this month to
those who are not subscribers. We hope
everyone who receives a copy will look it
through carefully, and then send us fifty
cents and receive it regularly for a year.

We are in receipt of a copy of the Cali-
ifornia Orchard and Farm, published at San
Franciso, which contains an apiary depart-
ment under the editorial charge of S. L.
Walkins, of Giizzly Flats, Cal.

Every bee keeper who receives a copy of
this number of the Bee-Keeper is request-
ed to read it and show it to some of their
box hive brethren, and endeavor to induce
them to change to frame hives.

Be sure that your bees have plenty of
stores this month. If they have not it is
advisable to feed them up well, as they will
consume more now than at any time during
the past winter, as the queen is rearing
brood.

In the March number we stated that The
Revieiv was one of the papers containing the
ad. of the Chicago Bee-Keepers' Supply
Co. Brother Hutchinson advises us that
The Review has not contained the ad. refer-
red to since last June, as upon learning at
that time some of the facts which we gave,
the ad. was stopped. We are glad to know
that The Review is with us in our endeavor
to weed out some of the unreliable concerns.

Owing to an unusual larje number of
ads. sent in for this number and a large
number of important items of interest to our
readers which we wished to present this
month, we are compelled to add four extra
pages.

The American Bee-Keeper will be
sent to new subscribers for the balance of the
year — eiyht months — for only 25 cents.

Remember that we will send a package of
seeds worth 11.50 at retail and the Bee-
Keeper one year for 75 cents. This is a
rare chance.

LITERARY ITEMS,

Allen Eastman Cross contributes a fine
tribute to Cardinal Manning in the April
New England Magazine. It is based upon a
newspaper paragraph, which in noting his
beneficence said that, at his funeral the best
thing said of him was, ' " He was good to
the poor.' This alone is a noble epitaph."
Mr. Cross takes this for the title and central
idea of his poem, which all lovers of Man-
ning will cherish.

The complete novel in Lippincott's Maga-
zine for April, " But Men Must Work," is
by the well-known and popular author,
Rosa Nouchette Carey. In it the narrator,
as visiting governess and presiding genius,
digs her way into the family secret, and
at last banishes the family skeleton.
" Milk for Babes," a short but important
article, by Mrs. Louise Hogan, discloses
facts which bear directly on the health and
life of children.

"Reciprocity and the Farmer," is the
subject of an article written for the April
number of the North American Review by
the Hon. Hilary Herbert, chairman of the
committee on naval affairs.

Under the head of " Our National
Dumping Ground," the North American
Review will give in its April number a study
of immigration, written by the Hon. John
B. Weber, United States inspector of immi-
gration, and Charles Stewart Smith, presi-
dent of the New York Chamber of Com-
merce.

64

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEIER.

HE WAS SKINNED ALIVE.

If our readers want to know who was
skinned alive, when he was skinned aliye,
and why he was skinned alive, they should
purchase a copy of Stanley Wood's Great
Divide, for March, or send a dime to the
publishers, Denver, Colorado, for March
number as a sample copy. With this num-
ber is an art supplement, in seven colors, of
Trout Lake, in the silver San Juan, which
is alane worth the price of a year's sub-
scription.

" HURRY UP."

When the attempt was made to give
twice a s many illustrations in a monthly
magazine as were ever before published,
the " know it all " people said, " it won't
last;" but when the Cosmopolitan went even
beyond that figure and continued to thrive
and grow more popular, the fact became
apparent that not only could it be done,
but that the reading public appreciated it.
So far the success of this brilliant magazine
has never been equalled in the history of
illustrated monthly literature, and it is daily
finding its way into new homes throughout
the country. The latent master stroke, in
obtaining the services of William Dean
Howells as associate editor, is the talk of
the literary world.

To make the magazine still more popular,
its publishers are offering, for almost noth-
ing, a choice of the original editions of the
Memoirs of Generals Grant, Sheridan,
Sherman, McClellan and Lee, if taken in
connection with a year's subscription to the
Cosmopolitan Magazine. If you are not on
reading terms with this popular monthly,
write to the Cosmopolitan Publishing Co.,
Madison Square, New York, for a free
sample copy ; then judge for yourself.

TO MUSIC LOVERS.

The March number of Brainard's Musical
World contains, besides a large amount of
interesting reading matter, six new piano
pieces : " Danse du Ballet, La Cigale,"
a new skirt dance by North rup ; " Marie
Antoinette" Minuet and " Valse du
Chopin," two exquisite new compositions
by Kichard Ferber ; " Never More," a tone
poem by Stephen Emery ; and the cele.

brated " Melody in F," by Anton Rubin-
stein. Also a charming new Scotch song^
" Jennie," by Theo. H. Northrup. The
music in this number is alone worth $2. CO.
Mailed postpaid for 15 cents in stamps.

The Musicians' Guide (new edition for
1892) contains, besides 212 pages of musical
information, biographies of 150 musicians,
with 25 portraits, a "Teachers' Guide"
and other valuable features ; three new
songs, " My Kathleens Coming Back,"
"Last Night" and "That is Love," and
two piano pieces, " Sounds from the Ball
Boom" and "Stolen Kisses" — Gavotte.
Mailed free for eight two-cent stamps, or
the World and Guide, containing the above
eleven songs and pieces, mailed for twelve
two-cent stamps. Addiess, The S. Brain-
ard's Sons Co., Chicago, 111.

important Trade Notes,

Hastings Lightning Bee Escape. —
We wish to call special attention to this
escape, which is described and illustrated
in this number of the Bee-Keeper. We
will supply these at the same price as the
Porter escape — 2U cents each, or $2.25 per
dozen. Although we have not given them
a trial, we believe that they will do all that
the inventor claims for them.

Hasting's Feeders.— We can supply
these feeders at 30c. each, or $3.00 per doz.
Postage 13c. each extra. They are con-
sidered to be among the best feeders in
use. ■

Colored and Cull Sections. — We
have several thousand of the sizes 4}x4]xl|
and 4^x4}xl 15-lrj only, which are not first
quality, but are a very fair lot and are well
worth the price, — $1.50 per thousand.

Pasteboard Boxes or Cartons. — These
are for one pound sections. We have fif-
teen thousand, without tape handles, which
we will sell at $1.00 per thousand less than
the prices given in catalogue. This will
make them cost $4.00 per thousand, $2.25
for five hundred, or 50c per hundred, plain.
If printed one side the price will be extra
30c per one hundred, 75c per five hundred,
$1.00 per thousand. If a large quantity is
wanted, will make special price.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

65

How to Manage Bees, a 50-cent book,
just the thing for beginners, for only 25
cents postpaid, or with the Bee-Keepeb
one year for 65 cents.

Beeswax is getting a little Scarcer,
and consequently the prices are a little
better than for sometime past. We will pay
25c to 29c in cash, or 28c to 31c in trade for
good to choice pure beeswax, delivered at
Falconer, N. Y. If you have any, box it
up and ship it to us by freight or express.
(Whichever is the cheapest) Be sure to
send it to us at Falconer, N. Y ., and write
your name on the package ; also write to us
at the time you ship.

THE NEW COMBINED SECTION FOLDING
PRESS AND FOUNDATION FASTENER.
There have been a great many va-
rieties of machines invented for fold-
ing one-piece sections, nearly all of
which have more or less good points.
There have also been several machines
invented for fastening foundation in
sections, but it has remained for Mr.
W. O. Leach, of Tilbury Centre, Out.,
to invent a combined machine which
not only folds the sections, but also at
the same time fastens the foundation
starter in it.

It is the only success-
ful machine of the
kind we have seen.
Unlike nearly all oth-
er folding presses, the
section has only to be
put in place, when

the press automatically folds it at each
corner and locks the dovetailed ends
together. At the same time, while
this is being done, a thin sheet of
metal melts the edge of the founda
tion starter, which causes it to adhere
to the section exactly in the proper
place ; the entire result being effected

practically by one motion. The start
ers being put in the sections just as
rapidly as the sections are .folded, no
time whatever is lost, consequently
saving just one-half the time lequired
where a separate machine is used for
folding the sections and fastening
the starters.

It can be used as a combination
machine, or only as a folder, or again
as a foundation fastener. It is oper-
ated either by foot or hand power,
and can be used on any workbench or
table; is entirely automatic and always
ready for operation. Sections of any
size are evenly and squarely folded,
and the machine obviates a large per
cent, of breakages. It is not only a
great saver of time and labor, but of
material. It is light, simple and
durable, being c mstructed almost
entirely of metal. The weight is only
abuut ten pounds.

Mr. Leach has been at work on this
machine for several months, but has
only just recently perfected it. A
great many of the leading apiarists,
not only of this counlry, but Canada,
have given it a trial with the most
satisfactory results, as is shown by the
numerous favorable letters which Mr.
Leach has received from them. It is
the most practical machine made for
the purpose, and should be in the
hands of every bee-keeper who works
for comb honey and has large quan-
tities of sections to handle, as the
price is very reasonable. We pre-
dict for it a large sale.

A NEW BEE ESCAPE.

As promised last month, we give
our readers a description and illustra-

66

2#£ AMERICAN BEE-KEEPE&.

tions of the Hastings Lightning Bee
Escape. It is very similar in size and
shape to the popular Porter Escape,
but seems to be superior to the latter,
as it has four outlets or passages
through which the bees may escape,
while the Porter has but one, and it, is
much less liable to become clogged.
Both operate on similar principles.

Fig. 1 shows the escape complete,
ready for the board. C is the perfor-
ated top, which allows free ventilation
from the hive to the supers. A is the
top opening which the bees enter on
leaving the supers.

Fig. 2 shows the escape with the
top removed. A is an outline of top
entrance. B B B B are the outlets
from the escape to the hive. C an
outline of top plate; D D are side
walls, and E E are circular end walls.

The ground plan shows the bees
passing out through the four passages
toward B., each bee pushing against
the spring as it passes out. It is im-
possible for them to return, there be-
ing only space enough for a drone to
leave, between the ends of E E and
the side walls D D, and the springs
hang in the center, between the above
mentioned walls. By simply placing
a suitable board, with bee space top
and bottom, having an escape in the
center, (as explained in printed direc-
tions which accompany each escape)
between the supers and the hive; the
escape will do the work that is most
dreaded, — that of harvesting the sur-
plus honey, with neither the taint of
smoke nor the capping injured, leav-
ing the honey in perfect condition for
market. It has been thoroughly test-
ed and is no experiment. It will
clear the supers in from two to four
hours time. One case of supers of
27 one-pound sections was cleared of
every bee in one hour and 43 minutes.

THE PHILO SECTION FORMER & GLUER.
Ed. American Bee-Keeper, Dear
Sir: For quite a number of years
past, I have felt the need of a machine
for doing more rapid work in putting
together and gluing sections. I have

made several devices for accomplish-
ing this, but have never been fully
satisfied with any of them. All of
those which I have heretofore invent-
ed were too expensive to come into
general use with the average bee
keeper, but the one I have now
completed, is, I think, as near
perfection as I can expect to
accomplish. My aim for the past year
has been for a machine that would do
the whole work without any hard
work, except filling the machine up
with section strips and turning a crank.
Everyone knows how to turn a crank,
and that is all that is required to
operate the machine. When that is
done, the sections are turned out all
folded and glued, one every two
seconds or thirty a minute. To give
you an idea of the amount of power
required, my boy Ernest is four years
old and can work the machine nicely.

When the crank is raised to the
highest point, the slender board at the
back of the machine is pushed in, and
there are two little horizontal sticks
fastened to the end of the board that
push the bottom one of the section
strips out over the block to be folded.
The folding block then comes down,
folding the first joint, as you will see
in the cut. The upper part of the
little claws come down on the top of
the section, causing the lower ends to
turn in and bring the ends of the sec-
tions together. The whole block,
section and all, which is held up by a
spring, comes down until the section
is forced together in the V groove at
the bottom. The two little blocks in
the V groove are to make the ends of
the section come right so they will go
together easily; and while the section
is being pressed together, the gluer
comes up out of the glue and puts
some glue right into the groove and
on the end of the section where it is
dovetailed. Yours, etc., E. W. Philo.

Halfmoon, N. Y., Feb. 29, 1892.

[Mr. Philo's advt ., with a very good
illustration of his machine, will be
found elsewhere in this issue,]

SUPPLEMENT TO

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Published Monthly by the W. T. FALCONER MANrG CO., Jamestown, N. Y.

YOl, II,

APRIL AND MAY, 189S,

No, 4 and 6,

FARMERS, BEE-KEEPERS, EVER YBODY :-DO YOU WANT

BETTER COUNTRY ROADS?

The time has come when something should be done toward an improvement of the highways
and by-ways of this country, especially in those states which are thickly settled, such as the
New England, Middle and Southern States. It should be plainly evident to everyone that good
roads the year round would be of untold benefit to all; and especially to those people who live
in the rural districts. There has been considerable said and written on the subject recently,
and the following which is taken from Harper's Weekly, of March 19, is by Jno. Gilmer Speed
and will repay any one well to read it through carefully , as it covers the subject very thoroughly.

The Movement for Better Country
Roads.

BY JNO. GILMER SPEED.

The common roads and country highways in
the United States are worse than those to be
found in any other country in the world pre-
tending to be civilized and enjoying a stable
form of government As it has long been an
axiom that the common highways of a country
are at once the means and the measure of its
civilization, it is somewhat strange that in this
country, where we boast of enjoying a higher
type of civilization than is to be found elsewhere,
our roads should always have been so wretchedly
bad. Even in the colonial times the necessity
to make better the condition of the common
roads was seriously felt, and in those parts of
the country settled by particularly long-headed
people, as, for instance, in the neighborhood of
Boston, there have always been pretty good
public highways. But, as a rule, all over the
country, from then till now we have been con-
tent with dirt roads, which in the winter are
muddy quagmires, and in summer streaks of
dust. Both Washington and Hamilton, after
the establishment of the republic, appreciated
fully the importance of a general system of
common highways. Washington recommended
to Patrick Henry, then governor of Virginia,
that the location, the building, and the repairs
of roads be taken out of the hands of the local
authorities; for he saw, what we see yet more
clearly to-day, that where our highways are left
to the tender mercies of the local authorities,
they are mismanaged, badly built, and even in
their worst condition harmed by any attempts
to make them better. This is not because these
local authorities would not like to have good
roads, but it is because they have no means

with which to do much better than is done, and
if the}7 did have the means, they lack the
requisite knowledge, without which no decent
roads can be built or managed.

Some time ago there was begun in this
country a systematic movement in favor of the
betterment of country roads. The most active
promoters of this movement have been the
members and the committees of the League of
American Wheelmen, or, in other words, the
bicycle riders of the country. At the outset,
and even at this time to some extent, these
gentlemen have been somewhat handicapped
by the lack of esteem of the farming com-
munities The idea that better roads would
be only beneficial to bicycle riders is about
as wise as to suggest that cellar doors
were built primarily for children to slide
upon, or gates hung that young girls could
swing upon them. And, again, there have
been other difficulties in the way. The f aymers
have always had to pay for building and repair-
ing roads in this country, even when the roads
happened to lead from one prosperous town to
another. Very naturally these people, already
overburdened by direct and indirect taxation,
have felt very indisposed to take any action
which would add to that already heavy burden.
Any effort to secure their co-operation in road
improvement must provide that the cost of
such improvement shall not fall entirely upon
them. Unless this be made entirely clear,
from the farmers there will always be an active
and stubborn opposition.

INDIFFERENCE OF THE FARMERS.

Strange though it may seem, the farmers, as
a rule, take less interest in this matter of road
improvement than any other people. Very few
of them are travellers, and very few realize
how bad the country roads are. When they
are told of the roads which were built in pre-

SUPPLEMENT TO THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

historic times by the Incas of Peru, when the
Carthaginian roads are described to them, and
those noble highways which radiated from
ancient Rome are mentioned, they listen as
though a fairy tale were being told; and when
they hear of the great highways in France, in
England and Switzerland and Germany, they
listen with the same incredulity with which
they receive the yarns which sailors and other
travellers are privileged to bring from beyond
the seas. They have never had better roads
than those which exist to-day, nor did their
fathers or grandfathers. Conservative men
that they are, they feel that what was good
enough in the olden time is good enough to-day;
therefore, with a kind of contempt which is
miserably pitiful, they "wallow in the mire of
their ways, paying excessive tolls, enduring, in
a word, a grinding taxation generation after
generation, without appreciating the burden
which rests upon them."

It has been suggested that the American
roads be placed under a system of government
supervision, and be divided somewhat as the
French roads are:

First, national roads. These to be built and
maintained by the general government, and be
located with reference to military and postal
requirements.

Second, state roads. These to be built and
maintained by the several states, and connect
the various localities of the states, and be plan-
ned with reference to the national roads.

Third, county or neighborhood roads. These
to be built and maintained by counties and
townships, and be located with reference to
the classes just mentioned.

Those who advocate this idea say that if our
common roads were improved b}r some such
plan as this, we should soon have them in
charge of competent and educated engineers.
The national roads would probably be in charge
of army engineers; the state roads in charge of
engineers graduated from the agricultural and
mechanical schools; and the neighborhood
roads in charge of local men, who, once having
had the example set them how good roads are
built, would be entirely competent to do what
is usually necessary to be done in making a
road of lesser importance. But even under
such a plan as this, each county should have
an engineer to design the difficult work, deter-
mine upon location of routes, and inspect con-
structions and repairs. Strange as it may
seem, the proper location of a country highway
presents to the engineer more complex problems
than the location of a railroad. Country peo-
ple do not understand this, and are not willing
to believe it, therefore the cross roads store-
keeper and the village blacksmith are usually
thought to be entirely competent to decide
upon the best route for a country road.

THE LOCATION OF HIGHWAYS.

When a railroad is contemplated between
two distant points, careful surveys are made
by competent engineers before a route is finally
selected. All the preliminary lines which have
been run are carefully put down on a map, es-

timates are made as to the cost of building and
v maintaining each, and further calculations
elaborated as to the traffic which each of the
lines would be able to secure and accommodate.
With all these facts and estimates before
them, the engineers and capitalists finally de-
cide where the railroad shall be located.
Upon such preliminary work time and money
are freely spent, for it is well known among all
railroad managers that a bad location is a very
expensive error to make at the outset, and one",
too, which is almost impossible to repair.

When the roads which traverse parts of the
United States were originally laid out, they
were planned without reference to any great
system which should at once answer immediate
requirements and last for all time When the
population became denser, and roads, being
more travelled, were found to be inadequate,
there was an effort made in all such places to
build permanent roads, but in the majority of
cases the old haphazard location of the roads
was deemed to be good enough, and these tracks
through the forests and over the prairies were
adopted as permanent highways. As traffic
again increased, these roads were again found
to be inadequate, and the statesmen of the
country saw very plainly that the poor roads
which prevailed nearly all over the United
States seriously menaced the prosperity of the
people. Then began on a very large scale a
plan of highway improvement by which vari-
ous states should be connected with each other.
Before these great national roads assisted by
the government had been completed, the rail-
way came into being, and the attention of men
was directed to making these new iron high-
ways. The great systems of common roads
were neglected, and the care and construction
of country roads passed back to each count}'
and township, and so they have remained,
neglected, uncared for, a heavy tax on land
and all that land produces, and the great con-
tributing cause which takes to the overcrowd-
en cities from the farms and villages the most
vigorous youths and the most sturdy maidens.
This system of properly locating and build-
ing common highways having been abandoned
some half-century ago, it has been incumbent
upon this generation to take up the work
where it was then left off. In locating the
railroad an engineer needs to bear in mind that
the railroad must be approached wherever there
is to be a station. Stations are usually several
miles apart, and therefore this part of his
problem is so simplified that he can locate his
road with regard entirely to the general topo-
graphical features of the country, and then es-
tablish the stations at such places as may be
eas3T of approach. But the engineer locating a
common highway must bear in mind that his
road must be accessible on both sides as far as
it stretches. See what a difference this makes!
The railroad engineer, in running up a valley,
can hug high hills on one side, with a turbulent
watercourse on the other; but such a location
would be out of the question for the highway
engineer, for those who are to use his road

SUPPLEMENT TO THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

must be able to reach it easily from the farms
on either side, and that without going out of
their way. And in the matter of drainage,
which is of even more importance in building
a highway than a railroad, the task is more
complex. The railroad runs over low ground
wilh an embankment, and at convenient places
lets the water through with a trestle or an open
culvert. Such expedients are not permissible
in locating highways. The highway engineer
must select his route so that he can take the
water beneath the road-bed in covered drains
or bridges or covered culverts, and he must see
that the water which is to go below will be
concentrated at such places as be has provided
for its passage, for it would never do for any
moisture to get below the stone with which
good highways are covered. Now as to grades
on highways, the engineer must display even
greater care and skill. It is poor location to
have deep cuts or high embankments on a
highway, while the railway engineer can do as
much of this as he chooses and his company
has money enough to pay for. If he chooses to
go under a range of hills, he puts a tunnel
through, and there he is on the other side. But
these devices, which so simplify the work of
the railroad builder, cannot be resorted to by
the road-maker. If he is obliged to. go over a
range of hills or cross a valley, he must so
locate his lines that he can do both and still in
each instance keep within a reasonable distance
of the natural surface. And yet he must not
make his grade so steep that heavy loads cannot
be hauled over it easily, nor must he make his
road very much longer than a straight line be-
tween the points from and to which he is building.

THE ECONOMIC ASPECT.

The condition of the common roads has a
veiy interesting economic bearing of a direct
nature, and an indirect one not less important.
In the matter of the earning capacity and value
of horses and other draught animals the com-
mon roads have direct effect. If a horse can
iflo one-third more work on a good road and be
in a working condition one-third longer than
he can on a bad road, then his earning capac-
ity, and hence his value, is increased just one-
third. This assumption is based upon a very
low estimate. In all probability, if it were
possible to make an exact calculation, it would
be found that the earning capacity and the
total length of serviceable life of draught ani-
jriials would be more nearly doubled than in-
creased only one-third. The census enumera-
tors of 1890 found that there were in this
country 14,213,8;s7 horses valued at $68 each;
2,331,027 mules, valued at $78 each; and 36,-
849,024 oxen, and other draught animals, valued
at $15 each— making a total of 53,393,888
animals used on the roads, at a total value of
$1,721,535,798. All these horses and mules
work at some time on the roads, and indeed
much of the greater part of the total work
done by them is upon country roads and city
streets. If all the work done by them was upon
the roads, the increased valuation, based upon
the above hypothesis of earning capacity,

would be $573,845,2(56, but as all the work is
not done on the roads, it is only fair to reduce
this by one-half, and then we would have, by a
general improvement of the roads of the
country, our property in horses and mules and
other draught animals increased in value
$2,866,922,633. I have no figures showing the
value of carriages, buggies, and other road
vehicles in this country. To put their value at
$500,000,000 would be 'placing it very low, and
there would be no chance to say that the esti-
mate or guess was exaggerated. Taking into
consideration the cost of repairs necessitated by
reason of bad roads and the shortened service-
able life to such vehicles, I feel sale in assum-
ing that with good roads these vehicles would
last one-half longer, and their value, therefore,
be increased at least $250,000,000. Taking
these two sources of increased valuation
together, we should have an enhanced property
valuation of $536,922,633, all brought about by
the improvement of the common roads. Mr.
Isaac B. Potter, the chairman of the national
committee on improvement of the highways of
the League of American Wheelmen, has assum-
ed in round numbers that the draught animals
in use in the United States are worth $2,000,-
000,000. He says:

" Busy or idle, these animals must be fed and
cared for every day. They are boarders that
you can't get rid of when the busy season is
over, and it stands you in need to keep them at
work. Two billion dollars make a large sum
invested at 5 per cent, interest. It would pro-
duce nearly $2,000,000 per week. Then you
throw away more th;fn 16,000,000 of horses and
mules alone, and to feed and care for these it
costs the modest sum of $4,000,000 per day. A
little while ago a very clever and intelligent
citizen of Indiana estimated that bad roads cost
the farmer $15 per year for each horse and
mule in his service. This means a loss in the
aggregate of nearly $250,000,000 per year; add
wear and tear of wagons and harness, $100,000,-
000; depreciated value of farm lands, $2,000,-
000,000; total, $2,350,000,000.

"Making the utmost allowance in favor of
the farmer, and granting the necessity of the
liberal use of horse-power in the maintenance
of agricultural traffic, and it is easily certain
that the farmers of this country are keeping at
least 2,000,000 horses more than would be nec-
essary to do all the hauling between farm and
market if only the principal roads were brought
to a good condition. If you estimate that all
these horses are fed an ordinary army ration of
hay and oats, it requires 14,000 tons of hay or
fodder and 750,000 bushels of oats per day to
feed these unnecessary animals, which them-
selves have a money value of $140,000,000.
The value of hay and oats fed to these horses
per day is about $300,000 or something like
$114,000,000 per year."

These are large figures. Now let us see
what it would cost to do the necessary work so
that such savings could be made. It has been
estimated by the authorities of the stale of
New York that with $10,000,000 the roads iu

SUPPLEMENT TO THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

the entire state could be put in very good con- families of the men who do what is callec
dition. The roads in Jfew York are not better laborers' work are lodged, when he sees thei
than they are in other states. They are a great huddled together in great, badly smelling ten
deal worse than in some of the New England ment houses, he marvels that they shoull
States, for instance, and I therefore assume that prefer this to life in the country where fresl
this estimate can be followed as a guide in air is free and wholesome food is cheap but
determining what would be needed to complete there can be little doubt that there is a prefer^
in the whole country excellent roads, which, ence for this kind of existence in cities even
once constructed, could be cheaply and easily though it be a fact that work is harder to get
maintained. Considering the area of New there than in the country, and not a bit more
York and the density of population, and using regular. Not only is thi's the case with labor-
these figures in the problem, I estimate that ers, but we find, whenever we choose to inquire
$400,000,000 would give us a good system of that the best youths born of country families
common roads all over the country. This is a early begin to feel a hankering for" town life
great deal of money, but it doesn't seem great If thev staid at home to till the soil or th
compared with the values which would be en- fields there would not be this scarcity of a°ri
hanced by its wise expenditure. And right cultural laborers which has just been noted
here it may be noted that the cost of maintain- but no sooner does an adventuresome youth i
ing and repairing a highway properly con- the country begin to feel the down upon hi'
structed in the first instance ought never to be cheeks changing into whiskers than he is fired
greater for a year than one per cent, of its first with an ambition to go to some city and become
. cost In the two items of horses and vehicles, a member of the great bustle and* strife which
as 1 have shown, the increased value of these the close competition of men with men
properties would more than pay for the im- produces. This doesn't mean that he is afraid
provement: but it is not the greatest value, by of the hard work that has to be done on the
any means. The effect upon the horses and farm, for none but a fool would believe that a
vehicles used on roads would be more immedi- man to succeed even moderatelv does not have
ate and more direct, and therefore I have called to work just as hard in town as* in the country,
particular attention to this phase of the subject, and farmers' boys are not fools— at least they
Ihe enhancement of the value of real estate have not proved'themselves to be in America
would be so great that the items I have men- for the great majority of our distinguished and
tioned would seem so insignificant as not to be successful men have* been recruited not from
worth discussing. In one neighborhood alone the colleges and universities of learning, but
—that of Union county, New Jersey— the im- from these very fields which now suffer because
provement oi the roads has changed values so there are not men enough to cultivate them
greatly that men who a few years ago were Among those who conspicuously advocate
struggling farmers, with earnings so scant that the idea that the national government should
it was difficult to make two ends meet, are take a part and lead in this matter of road im*
now not only well-to-do, but absolutely rich, provement is General Bov Stone, of New York
1 hey can sell their crops at good profits: they the engineer and inventor The restless
can grow more profitable crops; they can get activity of General Stone's mind has been

:S

I

these crops quickly and cheaply to market; directed to this problem for many years, and

and their lands, for which at low prices it was he has recently secured the co-operation of

formerly almost impossible to find purchasers, several prominent statesmen in Washington

are now m demand at prices which, compared a project soon to be formulated in a bill

of

in

to be

with the old order of things, seem fabulous, brought before congress. This bill proposes the
and the mere mention of which suggests a most formation of a National Highway Commission,

unaccustomed condition of opulence

THE SOCIAL SIDE.

These are a few of the direct economic
problems in which the roads are factors.
There is another one worthy of mention of even

which shall examine the whole subject, formu-
late a plan for a National School of Roads and
Bridges, and make an exhibit attheWorld's Fair.
The suggestion that it shall be shown during
the World's Fair that America is alive to the

greater importance. It is hard to put any necessity of improving her interior method of

money estimate upon the value of an improved communication is particularly happv.. It is

social condition; indeed, it is impossible. But true that the larger proportion of" foreign

our bad roads have so serious an influence upon visitors who will come to America in 1893 will

country life and the happiness of the men and see only such highways as railroads and city

the women who lead rural lives that in all streets; but those who* come really to study us

probability a purely social aspect of the case is and to measure our civilization and general

more important than any other. One can progress will go further afield, and they, of

scarcely pick up a newspaper nowadays with- course, will see the disgraceful condition of our

out reading that m farming communities it is common roads. It will be well worth while to

most difficult to get competent and trustworthy show to such as these that we are alive to the

agricultural laborers. When any thoughtful importance of the subject, and aware of the

observer sees in the great cities how the reproach of our wretched ways.

*** Extra copies of this Supplement will be furnished in limited quantities free; large
quantities at actual cost of printing. Prices made known on application.

T. H. 4 W. A. WHITE, PRINTERS, JAMESTOWN, N. Y.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

- THE LEACH

Combined

SECTIOI

FOLDER

— AND —

FOUNDATION

FATENE R.

(patented.)

w^-

This is a perfect section folder and press,
Mini also foundation fastener. Can be used
fur all sizes of sections. Saves H the time
taken to do the same work by any other
machines or process — and does the work
absolutely perfect. We are the sole manu-
facturers of this machine, and will have
them ready for delivery May 15. Price
$8.00 each. Wholesale rates made known
on application. Address

The W. T. Falconer M'f'g Co.,

Jamestown, N. Y.

AWFUL CHEAP HIVES.

The price of our Complete Thin Wal-
led Hive, without inside furniture, iis
only 56c in the flat, 10 for $4.60. This
is with winter case bottom ; the regu-
lar thin bottom is lie each less. The
winter case is only 55c in flat, without
bottom, 10 for $5.00, with bottom, 75c
each, $6.50 for 10. The Thin Hive and
Winter Case together, only $1.11 each
or 10 for $9.60, Satisfaction assured.

The W. T. Falconer Mfg Co.,

Jamestown, N. Y.

GOOD AS GOLD.

THIS advt. will be taken in part payment for
*bupplies— SOe-na >■> order, -I on a H10 order
No. i beetions, |3; No. M Dovetail

Hives. Foundation, Smokers, etc., cheap No
sreiget prepaid on this offer. Send for new list
free. W. L>. SOPER, Box 14-73,

Jackson, Mich.
4tf Please men/ion American lice Keeper

Progressive Bee-Keeper.

(formerly THK mo. bee-kkkper.)
Alive, wide awake, monthly journal for practi-
cal lire keepers. Sixteen pages and cover 50 cents
per year, sample copy free. We breed Golden
Honey Queens— gentle, and the best honey Rath-
erers. Each $1.00, 6 for $5.00. Progressive Bee-
Keeper one year and one Queen $1.15. Circular
Free, Address,

PROGRESSIVE BEE-KEEPER,

Unionville, Mo.
Please mention American Bee-Keeper.

$2.00 FOR 75c.

We have made arrangements with the
well known seedsman, A. T. Cook, Hyde
Park, New York, by which we can offer one

of his excellent boxes of seeds and

bulbs, the I'nll value of which at retail is
$1.5o, and the American Bee-Keeper for
one year for only 75c Two subscriptions to
the Bee-Keeper and one box of seeds for
$1.15. This is a splendid offer and one
which cannot be equalled elsewhere. Send
without delay and secure one of these boxes.
Address,

The American Bee-Keeper,

Jamestown, N. Y.

1872. Keystone Apiary, 1892.

ITALIAN QUEENS AND BEES

$3.50, July to. Oct., $3.00

3.50, •• ■• 2.00

L.50, " ■• i.nn

8.00, " ■■ 5.00

No Supplies.

W. J. ROW, Greensburg, Pa.
Please mention American Bee-Keeper.

Select. .Tune.
Tested, "
Fertile, "
ii fertile, one order,
Send for circular.

!--!

Headquarters for QUEENS!

ALBINOS AHEAD while common
bees were gathering dark honey-dew the
ALBlNOSwere bringing in twice the amount
from the fields, and it was honey clear and
white. I never had such a large stock of
Superior Queens and Bees as at present, and
I will fill orders for either Albino or Italian
at very low prices. If you should ask for
the best the reply is ALBINO; my circular
explains why.

I also manufacture and deal in HIVES,
SECTIONS, FOUNDATION, EXTRACTORS!
and other Apiarian Supplies. Circulars free.

S. VALENTINE,

Hagerstown, Md.

4t£ Pleast mention American Bee-Keeper.

1HE AMERICAN BEEKEEPER.

FOR 1392 AND A FINE, TESTED, ITALIAN QUEEN, OF LAST YEAR'S
REARING, FOR $1.75. ESTHER ALONE, $1.QQ. FOR 02. OO, THE
REVIEW, THE QUEEN AND THE 50 CT. BOO'?, " ADVANOED BEE
CULTURE," WILL BE SENT. W. Z. HUTCHINSON, INT, "SGH.

TfirV* I Our c italogue of Italian. Punic

LlcUL I arl^ Golden Carniolan Queens.

rlVrr | OurSelf Swarm-Hiveristbeonly

I llbla I one that has ever hived a swarm

of bees.

5tf H. ALLEY, Wenham, Mass.

Please mention American See-Keeper.

ITALIAN AND ALBINO BEES.

Headquarters for the Albino Bee. If you desire
plea-ure in working among bees, and wish for
large yields of honey, then buy those beautiful
Albino queens from my one hundred dollar queen.
Untested Albino queens from tame queen in sea-
son. Fur circulars address

D. A. PIKE, Smithburg, Md.

4-2 Please mention American Sec-Keeper.

WHY, YES, EVERY COuY KNOWS
that it pays to purcnuse
their Honey-Comb Foun-
dation atC. W. PHELPS
ws /,. ] &CO.'S Wholesale and Ke-
,WlK* •^f,r' t:lil Foundation Factory.
vfeVoi/rt// They- dl heavy for Brood,
IdxZff 45c-; tLin for Comb Honey,
55c. They deal in all kinds
of A piarian supplies. Their
customers are always
pleased, for their work is
good and prices reasona-
ble. Send for free sam-
ples Foundation and price-list of Bee supplies.
Address C. \Y- Phelp3 & Co., 74 Pettit street,
Bingham ton, N. Y.

Please mention American Bee-Keeper.

*tik

^g£^

T PfVYS

fO ORDER the best made goods. For fine

* Sections, Foundation, Perforated Zinc, Queen
Excluders, imd the

BEST HIVE

for comb honey now before the public, order from

PRICES GREATLY REDUCED.

Address for catalogue,

DK G. L. TINKER,
5-2 New Philadelphia, Ohio.

Please mention American Bee-Keeper.

ITALIAN QUEENS -Choice tested. $1.50 (Jn-
* tested. Ode. Satisfaction guaranteed. S. A.
Roddy & Bao., Mi. St. Mary's, Md. -r>-4

Please mention American Bee-Keeper.

Honey and Beeswax Market Report.

Below we give the latest and most authen-
tic report of the Honey and Beeswax market
in different trade centers :

New York, April 20.— On account of the sea-
son the demand is very quiet. There is no comb
honey on the market. Prices of extractd: —
California, T^c. per tt>. ; Southern, 1 55 @ Toe. per
gal. Beeswag is in good demand with light supply
of domestic. Receipts consist mostly of forei.au.
Prices— Carolin i and Georgia, 29@29%c.; For-
eign, 2s (n 29c.

F. G. Strohmeyer <fc Co.. 122 Water St.

Albany, N. Y., April 20. — The demand for
honey is very light, on account of the lateness of
the season. Prices of comb, 8@12c. ; extracted, 15
@ 8c. Beeswax is in good demand with light
supply. Prices, 28 @ & c.

11. R. Wright. 326 and 328 Broadway.

Albany, N. Y., April 24. — There is a very
moderate demand for honey, with ample supply.
Price of comb ti @ 10c. ; extracted, 0 @ 8c. Bees-
wax is in fair demand: the supply is small.
Prices, 2(5® 28c. We had quite a demand for
comb honey previous to Easti r. which enabled us
to close out all we had on hand.

Chas. W. McCullouch & Co.. 393 Broadway.

Boston, Mass.. April 24. — The demand for
honey is light with fair supply. Price of comb, 13
@15c. ; extracted, T@TJ.^c. Beeswax is in fail-
demand with light supply. Prices, 2s @ 3Co.

Blake & Ripley, 57 Chatham St.

Kansas City, Mo., April 21.— The demand for
honey is poor and the supply light. Price of l-tt>.
fancy comb. 12@13c. ; dark, 8@9e. Extracted,
white. 7c; dark. 5@6c. There is no beeswax
on the market.

Hamblin& Bearss, 514 Walnut St.

St. Louis, Mo., April 23. — There is only a fair
demand for honey with a moderate supply. Price
of comb lots, 16e. ; extracted, b®5%£. The de
ma.nd for beeswax is good with light supply.
Price, 28c.

Tub D, G. Tutt Gro. Co.

Cincinnati, 0., April 23 —The demand for
honey is slow with a good supply of all kinds.
Price of comb, 10@12^c; extracted,
Beeswax is in good demand at 23@28c. on arrival.
Supply is good.

Chas. F. Muth & Son.

Kansas City. Mo , April 20.— The demand for
honey is light; supply large. Price of No. 1 white.
12@ 14e.; No. 2 white, 10 ©12c; extracted. 5(3 8c.
Beeswax is in good demand i light, supply. Prices
23 ("i 27c. The demand for comb honey has im-
proved the last two weeks- Think old crop will
be out of the way for the new.

Clkmons, Mason & Co.

Chicago, III.. April 20.— Fancy white comb
selling at. hie; other grades, I0@14c; extracted,
slow demand, i;1-. <« T! •..<>. lieeswax 2(ic.

S. I. Fish & Co., 189 S. Water St.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W. T FALCONER MANPG CD

VOL. II.

Mf\Y, 1892.

NO. 5.

Finding Queens.

BY J. A. GREEN.

One of the most important and
necessary operations of bee-keeping is
that of rinding the queen. While it is
quite possible to keep bees — and suc-
cessfully, too — without ever seeing a
queen, yet as the queen 'is the main-
spring of a colony, so the possession
of the queen is the pivotal point on
which much of modern bee-keeping
turns, and to find queens quickly and
easily is a very great desideration.
To the beginner, though, it is usually
very difficult. Well do I remember
the number of times I overhauled my
first colonies before I could get sight
of a queen. I am reminded that others
find the same difficulty by the number
of times I am asked, " How do you
go to work to find a queen ? " I used
to reply that the only way to find a
queen is to look for her.

While in one sense this is true, so
much depends on the way the looking
is done, that for the benefit of the
novice I will detail some of the prin-
cipal methods of finding queens.

The first is the ordinary method of
looking them up on the combs of the
hive. The best time of day is about
ten or eleven o'clock, when the great-

est number of bees ore away from the
hive. Open the hive carefully and
quietly, not jarring the hive, and us-
ing just as little smoke as possible, so
that the bees may not be unnecessarily
alarmed.

Beginning at the side of the hive
nearest you, take out about the second
frame from you, as the queen will not
often be found on the outside combs
at the start. Look over this frame
quickly and then set it in an empty
hive placed within convenient reach.
As you remove the next frame, look
first over the surface of the nest comb
in the hive. If you do not see her
there, look over the side of the frame
in your hands that is fartherest from
you. The queen has a tendency to
run from the side that is exposed to
the light, so if you glance at the side
of the comb nearest you as soon as it
is exposed to view, it will be unneces-
sary to closely examine that side
agiin. Look over the frames rapidly
in this way, setting each frame into
the empty hive by your side as soon
as examined. If you have not found
her by the time all the frames have
been gone over, look carefully on the
sides and bottom of the hive. If there
are any bunches of bees, make them

GQ

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEIER.

run around by using a little smoke.
Often you will not see the queen
while she is standing still, but as soon
as she begins to move you will see her.
Look over the frames carefully as you
put them back into the hive. If there
are any bunches of bees make them
scatter with a little smoke or shake
them off a foot or two away from the
entrance so that you can get a good
view of them as they run in. If you
do not find her on the combs or in
the hive they were set in, you have
overlooked her. If the bees are
Italians yon might go over them again ,
but if they are blacks you had better
close the hive for at least half an hour
and then try it again.

I often find queens, especially black
ones, by the driving process. Take
any box, one side of which is about
the same in width as the end of your
hive. Remove the top of the hive, or
if it is a box hive turn it upside
down. Lean your box, bottom up,
on the back end of the hive at an
angle of about forty-five degrees, so
that you can easily see up into the
box and over the top of the hive. It
will be better if the edge of the box
is beveled and a couple of little strips
of tin nailed on that will just catch
the inside edge of the hive. The box
may be held in place with one hand,
or you may tack a prop to it, which
will leave both hands free.

Now blow a good volume of smoke
in at the entrance and pound on the
hive with a hammer or anything that
is convenient. The object is to make
the bees go up into the box. If you
manage right you can make them all
go up within five minutes. Smoke
has a tendency to make them leave
the combs and pile up on top of the

frames and the drumming persuades
them to go up into the box. Do not
smoke them all the time, but by a
judicious combination of smoking and
drumming, keep a stream of bees
moving upward. You are to keep
your eyes wide open that you may see
the queen as she goes up. Very often
she will be among the first ones, and
I often find a queen by this method
in less time than I could remove a
single frame from the hive. Some-
times, though, all the smoking and
drumming will not make her go up
and she will stay below with only two
or three dozen bees. Oftener you will
fail to see her as she goes up.

Remove the drumming box, turn
it over and tip it from side so side to
make the bees run about, or pour
them on the ground or on a sheet or
board about two feet from the entrance
and run them back into the hiue,
picking up the queeu as she goes in.
The advantages of this method are
that by it queens may be found in box
hives almost as easily as in frame
hives. Black queens are found about
as readily as any. If bees are very
cross you will get fewer stings in this
way than any other. No honey need
be broken and the combs are not ex-
posed to robbers. If robbers are al-
ready bad though, the colony is for a
time in poor shape for defense, if the
smoking and the drumming has been
long continued.

When colonies are small, a few
puffs of smoke on top • of the frames
will drive the queen down on the
bottom board, where she may be
found by simply lifting off the hive.
This method, made public by James
Heddon, is perhaps the best of all
when colonies are not too strong.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

67

In connection with the foregoing,
with light, shallow, fixed frame hives,
the bees may be shaken out of the
hives in front of the entrance, when
the queen may be easily found.

Another good way is to set the hive
on a queen-excluding honey board,
having several inches of clear space
under it, and then drive the bees
down with smoke until the queen is
found trying to get through the honey
board; or the queen-excluder may be
placed on top of the hive and the bees
driven upward until the queen is
found trying to get through the zinc.

I use all these methods upon oc-
casions, especially of late those for
finding the queen without handling
the frames.

Dayton, III.

— ^^^^ » o • m ff ^

Frame Hives.

BY J. E. POND.

Much to my surprise, I learn that
an attempt, (slight it may be, but
still an attempt), is being made in
some localities to belittle the use of
frames in practical bee-keeping and
to assert that as great benefits can be
attained without as with their use.
This attempt, if fully carried out,
would result of course in relegating
us to the old "bee-gum" and box
hive. Will it succeed ? 1 say no,
and so will every practical bee-keeper
in the world. This I know is only
assertion, but the improvements made
and the result's that have followed
them during the last fifty years are
conclusive to my own mind that such
an assertion is not only correct, but
that events prove its correctness.

What was it that created a new era
in bee-keeping but the introduction
of the frame hive? What means

prior to its introduction had the stu-
dent in the apiary to test his work,
prove his theories, or make a public
showing of his experiments and their
results ?

It is very true that the late Mr.
Quinby once said that " He could
make a success of bee-keeping with
the old box hive," but had he meant
by so saying that he could produce
better results than with frames would
he not have continued to work with
them, and would he have continually
recommended the use of frames?

It seems to me that no argument is
needed to support the frame question;
that the great results gained by their
use prove their great superiority over
the box hive system of management,
and the fact that they are used by in-
telligent bee-keepers the world over
proves their merit and superiority.
Why is this? I have partially
answered the question, but will further
say in detail that by the use of frames
full and complete control is given over
every portion of the hive. Inter-
changes can be made that are not
practicably possible with the old box
or " gum." Manipulations that are
utterly impossible in them are per-
formed with ease, speed and facility.
Is any proof of the above assertions
needed? If so, they can be had in
any apiary in the country. In fact
proofs can be so easily obtained, if
desired, that it is not worth while to
add them here. They are so plenty,
in fact, that the burden rests wholly
on those who attempt the assertion
that they possess no superiority.
Until such proofs are offered by the
box-hive advocates, the practical, in-
telligent bee-keepers of to-day will
continue the use of frames and stand
firm in the belief that their introduc-
tion was the greatest boon the bee-
keeping world has ever received.

South Attleboro, Mass.

68

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

How to Separate Swarms

When They Cluster

Together.

BY M. H. DE WITT.

As this is the month in which bees
generally swarm, a few words or in-
structions on separating swarms may
not be out of season.

It sometimes happens that two or
more swarms come out at or about the
same time. It seems that when the
swarming note is heard in the apiary,
it effects other colonies and causes
them to swarm out and go together.
If you are a novice in the business,
you will perhaps be puzzled about
what to do; while with an expert it
will be no trouble. The mammoth
swarm must be divided into as many
parts as there were swarms united,
and the queens hunted out and one
gotten with each swarm if possible.
Give each swarm a frame of comb
containing eggs, so that if you fail to
get the queens all divided you can
tell which one has no queen, as they
will soon start queen cells if they have
no queen. If you get two queens in
one hive the bees will ball one of
them. By making an examination of
the swarm shortly after hiving them,
you will know if one has two queens,
as you will find a ball of bees about
the size of a walnut or a little less;
and you can carry the queen to the
colony that has none. If you do not
know at once which colony is queen -
less, you can tell in a few hours, as
the bees will soon start queen cells.

CONTROLLING SWARMING.

When a bee-keeper gets as many
bees as he wants, it is often desirable
to keep down swarming and keep the
bees at work storing honey and not
wasting their time in swarming. If

this could be accomplished, we might
get large yields of honey, per colony.
But whether we can get more honey
by this means than we can from the
old colony and its increase, is a matter
I very rnnch doubt. If we could only
keep down the swarming fever, we
might get as much or more honey
from the old colony ; but as it is bees'
nature to swarm, I think it best to let
them swarm once and then prevent all
after swarms by removing all queen
cells about a week after the first swarm
issues. While we cannot very well
prevent swarming entirely, we can
control it to a great degree by giving
the bees plenty of room in which to
store their honey, this will discourage
swarmiug to a great extent.
Sang Run, Md.

How Far Apart Should Bees
be Kept to Insure Purity?

BY (i. M. DOOLITTLE.

Seeing lately in some of our bee-
papers the assertion made that "from
one-half to one mile apart was all the
distance that different races of bees
need be kept to insure the pure mat-
ing of queens," and this coming from
the pen of one who is held up as
authority on most subjects pertaining
to bee culture, I thought a few words
on this important subject, (important
to us who are trying to have our bees
growing better each year), would not
be amiss. Another prominent writer
also claims that after an experience of
twenty years he is convinced that
queens do not fly more than one-half
mile from home, and that said distance
is far enough to insure the pure mat-
ing of queens ; yet this writer admits
that drones may fly one mile from
home. Now allowing that he is cor-

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

69

rect that a queen flies one-half mile
from home and the drone one mile, I
ask what is there to hinder the queen
being the one-half mile from home
when she meets a drone a mile from
home? I can see nothing, and if I
am correct in this, this very thing
would show the faulty part of the
argument, and prove that at least one
and one-half miles were needed to
secure pure mating, based upon this
writer's opinion. But let us look at
some facts, for these are always strong-
er than theories, or anything based
upon supposition. Many years ago
when I was a boy, we planted a piece
of corn on a high hill, from which
there were no bees nearer than two
miles, unless perchance, astray swarm
might have been in a small piece of
woods not quite so far off. As this
season was a very wet one during the
forepart of it, the weeds got the start
of us so that they were quite rank in
the corn in the forepart of August.
As soon as we were through haying
we went into this cornfield to cut
weeds. Every afternoon, from one to
three o'clock, it would sound as if there
was a swarm of bees in the air, and at
first we looked often to see if we could
not find them, but, as none were dis-
covered, we concluded that it must be
flies of some kind which congregated
there to play. Previous to this, father
had kept bees, and had often pointed
out the queen to me as a swarm was
going into a hive, so that I knew all
three classes of bees perfectly well.
One day I was sent to this cornfield
alone, and as it was a very warm day,
along about two o'clock I felt extreme-
ly tired, and so laid down partly in
the shade of the corn , to rest. As I
remained there listening to the hum

of the flies, as I supposed, I thought I
would try and ascertain if I could see
anything. So shading my eyes by
placing one hand on either side of
them and looking steadily up into the
clear sky, after a little I could see
thousands of living creatures circling
in all directions, so swift that at times
they looked like a streak of black
shooting across the sky. As I was
looking at them, I saw a dozen or so
of these shooting objects give chase
after another, and soon overtake it,
when their flight was less rapid.
Circling around and coming lower
they apparently nearly all left, but
the center as it were, and as this cen-
ter came near the ground it stopped
on the tassel of a cornstalk which
stood about a rod from where I lay.
I got up at once and proceeded to the
stalk, but before I was half way to it
something flew away which looked to
me like a queen honey bee, and at the
same time something fell to the
ground. Upon picking that which
fell to the ground up, I found it to be
a dead drone. Although at that time
I knew little of bee lore, still I had
solved the mystery of the humming
noise, no longer believing it to be
flies that made the noise, but knowing
it to be made by the drones of the
honey bee. Since then I have heard
the same humming noise in the after-
noon of warm days in August in
different places, and now believe that
this was a place where drones and
queens congregated ; but the facts
only show that in this instance drones
were numerous which flew two miles
from home. Again, when I first kept
bees, there were no Italians nearer
than five miles distant, yet I found
that some of my young queens would

70

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

produce yellow bees. My bees were
all black when I bought them, and
the Italians were introduced five
miles away after I had bought- the
black bees. The next season a man
four miles distant Italianized his
whole apiary, and the year following
I found about one-third of my queens
producing many yellow bees. Beiug
pleased by the work done by these
hybrids, I introduced the Italians into
my apiary the next year, which, of
course, put a stop to my observations,
as to the distance queens will mate.
From the above facts I am positive
that queens of any race will mate with
drones of another race of bees, unless
such are kept more than five miles
apart. Nature has so ordained
things, that the best results possible to
be secured are accomplished by the
instinct which she prompts, and thus
the queens from one apiary or bee-
tree are fertilized by drones from a
distance, which secures a cross which
prevents too close in-and-in breeding,
and gives us a race of bees capable of
doing the best work. That it would
often be more to our seeming interest
as queen breeders if it were otherwise,
I am well aware ; but foi the honey
producer and for the perpetuation of
a hardy race of bees, the Creator has
ordained things aright, in this as well
as in other matters.
Borodino, N. Y.

" Fruit is not injured by bees because a
bee has no biter, but only a slender proboscis
with which she sucks her food." Dr. Miller
says: " That's an argument I've seen used
several times, but I don't believe it's wise
to use it, for the simple reason that it's not
true. I5ees have a biter, as every bee-keep-
er knows who has seen them gnawing quilts
and even pine wood when the hive entrance
is too small." — Ex.

Ed. American Hee-Keeper, Dear
Sir : The Bee-Keeper is more than
a success, if I may judge, and why
should it not be when we realize it is
not an experiment or enterprise
sprung in a careless manner just
merely to see if it would work. Then
we cannot help taking pride in it.
Praise is cheap and it seems to me
is growing cheaper every day.
Perhaps some water the stuff, and of
course can afford to reel off their
seines in doxological order and pre-
cision, thinking thereby to gain a
little in the anticipation of any enter-
prise. The local praise machines,
which are always wound up, are set
agog, and the result is some people
wait until. quiet is restored, the dust
all settled, then if they find the new
enterprise is on bed-rock they are
willing to go to work, even when they
know, as I did concerning the Bee-
Keepee, that the enterprise had good
bottom.

When the Bee-Keeper was estab-
lished, I knew from long experience
with the firm publishing it, that if
they run the journal on the same
business principles that has governed
their supply trade, the journal was
not only established firmly, but would
excel all journals in clean-cut, pro-
gressive literature. I believe I have
never given the firm anything that
resembled molasses candy, and I do
not intend to. I simply owe them a
reward of merit and I am man enough

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

71

to pay it, and do not intend to over-
pay it. The facts are, I have dealt
with the W. T. Falconer Man'fg Co.
many years and I can find no fault
with them, and I am mean enough to
find it if it could be found. All the
fixings I have bought of them have
not been one point below their de-
scription of them. I want to say to
my brother bee-keepers that I am not
"gassing," when I say that I do not
believe Falconer's comb foundation
can 1)3 beat, and 1 have used quite a
good many kinds in the last twenty-
three years.

Now sirs, I give this testimony un-
asked, and I wish you would print it
so the boys may feel as good as I have
in having their orders filled like as if
they were at the snap end of a chain
of lightning. I know when I wanted
fifty queen-excluding honey boards
once, I wanted them bad, for I was
caught in the middle of the sear-on
with a new and unexpected turn of
affairs, which demanded the presence
of the boards instantly. Well, it was
not much longer than " instantly,"
when they came sailing up, and they
all had to be cut special size for me,
too. It was the same with my honey
extractor and comb foundation, which
I had to have on short notice.

There is one little mistake in the
Chicago A. B. J. which Thomas made
on purpose, so he would not correct it
if I ask him. You see I ain't got
dyspepsia no how7, and I sometimes
laugh a little when I write. Well, I
wrote a piece for the A. B. J., and
happened in my merry mood to
stumble onto the idea that it seemed
to be a good year for the propigation
of monthly journals. Brother Thomas

happened to have a grudge against
humor that morning, so he dumped
out all my piece but that part that
drove at monthlies, and in order to
make that part have the effect desir-
ed, he squeezed all the laugh out of
it and wrote it all over into what they
call "Extracted;" and sir, when
pressed, it made me say " I didn't like
monthly bee journals." Do you sup-
pose, sir, that this was a cold-blooded
plot on his part to get the monthlies
to drive me out, or did he try to use
my high standing and influence to
crush the monthlies ?

John F. Gates.
Ovid, Erie Co., Pa., March :',, 1892.-

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir : The following item of
interest is translated from a German
bee- paper:

" It is a well known fact that the
honey bee has been fostered and cared
for during the dark ages according to
the Grecian code of laws by Solan.
In that country bees were kept six
hundred years B. C, and in the days
of Pericles, who died 42!) years B. C.
Apiculture had advanced in that
country so that twenty thousand colo-
nies of bees were found in the small
territory of Attica. Even the coin
of both silver and gold bore the
figures of honey bees on one side and
the head of an Artemis (a holy deer)
on the other, with the inscription,
"City of Ephesus," (in lower Asia
Minor) and the name " Theodarus,"
(not very plain). This is one of the
oldest coins in the world, excepting
that of Ichidon, the youngest king of
Argus, who lived about the middle of
the seventh century, B. C."

The above stated facts furnish satis-

72

1 HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

factory proof that the honey bee was
highly honored by the nations during
the dark ages.

The honey harvest in Western
Wisconsin proved a short one for
1891. The fall crop was a total fail-
ure, and in consequence there was no
late breeding, excepting where arti-
ficial feeding was practiced, and
reports from all directions show that
the death rate among bees was very
great during the past winter.
Yours, etc.,

Stephen Roese.

Maiden Rock, Wis., April 8, 1892.

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir: In your last issue I see
that the subject of hives, box or mov-
able frames, predominates. Now there
has been for the past twenty-five
years a constant advancement in all
the ways of work to gain a livelihood.
The farm is worked by machinery,
which if taken in the field twenty-five
years ago, people would have said the
farmer using it was crazy; yet the
advancement in farm machinery keeps
wralking along, and why should we
progressive bee-keepers go back to the
days of box and straw hives any more
than the farmer should go back to the
days of wooden plows and drags made
of logs with nails driven into them?
Of course I do not mean to say that a
bee-keeper should get all the new
riggings that are put on the market,
but I say that this is an age of ad-
vancement, and our industry should
not fall behind.

The great question with bee-keepers
to-day is how to sell their honey at
the ruling prices and be able to make
a living at it. In order to do so we
must have machinery in the bee-yard

that will lessen the labor of the bee-
keeper on every pound of honey pro-
duced, and also increase the amount
gathered by each colony. With the
old box hive or gum it is very near
impossible to bring all the colonies up
to the same strength at the beginning
of the honey flow as they should be in
order to acquire good results, and with
the old box hives wdiat could we do in
the line of bettering our stocks? It
would be a rather hard job to raise or
introduce queens. Even this should
be considered by all to be sufficient
reason for giving preference to frame
hives, for the future of the honeybee
depends like cattle, horses and sheep,
on the introduction of new blood into
our bee-yards.

Certainly we do not want to take
any steps backward ; we rather want
to walk right along, only keeping in
a practical path. Give the past its
just dues, and strive to make the
future grander by far in all things,
bee-keeping especially.

Yours, etc.,

D. G. HlGLEY.

Hartford. X. Y„ April 10, 1892.

W. T. Falconer Man'f'g Co.,
Gentlemen: I enclose check for the
amount of bill. The goods have come
and are the finest lot of bee-hive
material I have ever received.
Hastily yours,

G. H. Knickerbocker.
Shekomeko, N. Y., April 19, 1892.

Ed. American Bee-Keeper, Dear
Sir : I would like to have you answer
through the columns of the American
Bee-Keeper, or have some of your
readers give their opinion as to the
cause of bees becoming queenless
after swarming. I will give a little

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

73

of my experience since I have been
keeping bees.

In 1890 I had several stocks that
became queenless. I gave some of
them brood to rear queens from. They
hatched some of the queens. Others
I tried to introduce queens into, but
failed to get any queens fertilized
from them I gave brood, nor could I
get any of the stocks to accept a good
laying queen. In the fall the frames
were completely filled with honey,
with but few bees. In 1891 those
same queens that came from those
queenless colonies were about the
first to swarm, and I kept close watch
to see that they hatched them a queen,
and to my astonishment found them
the same as the year before, without a
queen. I thought I would try a
different method of introducing the
queen into those colonies. I took a
hive with empty comb, took the
frames from queenless hives, brushed
the bees into the hive of comb, caged
the laying queen on one of the combs
and set the empty hive with bees on
the old stand.

This way of introducing queens to
the queenless colonies proved satis-
factory with me. I have twelve colo-
nies of Carniolans and twenty-one
colonies of Hybred Italian and Black,
making thirty-three in all, in compar-
atively good condition. Tbey were
all carrying in pollen quite freely last
week. Yours, etc.,

Andrew M. Thompson.

Whitney's Crossing, N. Y., Apr. 15.

Houey-water, from which to make
good, sharp vinegar, should, the
Bee-Kee-per s Review says, be strong
enough so that an egg floating on it
will just show at the top.

SECT-RING COMB HONEY.

To secure a good yield of comb
honey in good marketable shape, many
points have to be looked after. The
first essential is a good hive. The
second is a good strong colony at the
opening of the honey season. Free
communication betwen brood and
surplus departments, also from one
side of the surplus receptacle to the
other under every row of sections, and
when sections are tiered up free passage
from bottom to top rows. The sec-
tions should in all cases given a bee
space between outside sections and the
inside of case. The first sections put
on should, we think, have partly
drawn combs to induce an early start
in the surplus department. All sec-
tions later put ou should have full
sheets of foundation. By following the
above requirements we get our sections
very nicely and evenly filled so we have
no trouble in crating. If no bee space
is given on the outside sections at top
and bottom very many of such will be
poorly filled on the outside and unfit
to sell with otherwise nice sections
We use no honey board of any kind
and have no use for such. The queens
hardly ever enter the surplus depar-
ment— not to the extent of one per
cent. This is probably owinw to the
depth of the frame, which is one foot.
— A. Snell.

AN EASY WAY TO FIND ANY QUEEN.

I have had one year's experience at
bee-keeping, commenced in the.spring

74

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

of 1887 with one swarm, and had a
varied experience, and very, very much
solid pleasure, (no honey) transferred
increased by division, and had one
swarm come out, and now have, or had
last fall, five swarms in chaff hives, one
black and four Italians, but my great
feat, if I can call it such, was in Italian-
izing a swarm of black bees. I fol-
lowed the directions as laid down in
the books at my command and all told
me to open the hive and examine each
frame carefully for the queen, if not
found close the hive and wait twenty
minutes and look again. This I did
again and again, every time with the
same result, till I almost came to the
conclusion that it was a queenless
swarm, and looked at my beautiful
yellow queen in her cage at a loss what
to do with her. I thought of the
following plan, and it worked well.
I opened the hive again, gave them
plenty smoke, jarred the hive, and gave
time for every bee to till with honey
then took each frame out and brushed
every bee into the box, set the frame
back and put a trap made of perforated
zinc at the entrance of the hive, placed
a newspaper on the ground in front of
the hive, and brushed all the bees out
of the box on the paper, and let them
run in through the trap into the hive
and as the queen could not get through
the openings in the zinc, was found
and caught. As soon as I had her
safe, I put the cage containing the
Italian queen in the hive between the
frame, and closed the hive, this was
done about noon, when most of the
bees were out. The next morning I
looked into the hive found all quiet, so
let the queen run out. In the after-
noon looked again, found her oa a
frame, and think she had been laying

that day, everything went well after
and I am in hopes to see her sometime
again this spring, — Ex.

RENDERING OF COMB INTO WAX.

The rendering of comb into bees-
wax can be effected by artificial heat
or by the sun's rays. The heating on
stove or by steam is the most usual
way, but many inexperienced persons
spoil their wax either by melting it
without water, or by overboiling, or
by using dirty iron kettles. When
comb is melted over a stove, it is not
absolutely necessary to have an ap-
paratus expressly made for the pur-
pose. Any ordinary boiler will an-
swer, A great deal of water should
be used, and a moderate heat applied.
When the wax is throughly melted,
it can be dipped off the top, by using
a piece of wire-cloth shaped like a
dipper, hung in the kettle, to prevent
the coarsest impurities from being
dipped out. We have never seen any
old combs, no matter how old, that
did not make nice yellow wax when
treated in this manner, or by the use
of a wax-extractor. As a matter of
course a good wax-extractor, if proper-
ly used, will give cleaner wax at the
first melting.

If steam is used to melt comb, it
should not be turned directly on the
comb, but into the water below it,
the steam often damaging the wax
and making it grainy and green look-
ing. The same unpleasant result is
sometimes attained by overboiling.

If some wax remains in the dregs,
it is not advisable to throw away these
residues. We have never yet seen any
process that separated them so com-
pletely that they could be called
worthless. Wax-bleachers usually

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

75

press the wax out of them in a small
press while hot. But a cheaper way,
on a small scale, is to preserve them,
or rather the best of them in a box,
exposed to the weather, until more
comb has to be melted, when they can
be melted again with it. The expos-
ure to the weather dissolves the for-
eign substances, but not the wax,
which to all appearances is indestruc-
tible.

Cappings of honey are melted in
the same manner as old coral). It is
well, however, to work them first in
warm water to separate the honey that
is left. This sweetened water can be
used to advantage in cider or wine
making, and for vinegar. Honey-
vinegar is the very best that is made.

We have many times heard it said
that it did not pay to melt old combs,
but this is a mistake. It is not advis-
able to melt them with nice new comb,
but any apiarist who will try rational
methods, can find a profit in melting
the very oldest and dirtiest combs that
can be found.

The heat of the son, in rendering
eorab, makes the finest beeswax, as it
not only melts it, but partly bleaches
it, and we have to thank our Italian
brothers for the first idea of this, as
well as for the invention of the extract-
or. Thus far, however, little use has
been made of this discovery, but the
time is not far distant when the solar
extractors will be as plentifully found
as steam or stove extractors. This
method will have the advantage of
giving clean wax at the first melting,
without any danger of spoiling it. —
Dadant.

BEE-KREl'IXc; FOE WOMEN.

Bee keeping, although a laborious
mployment, demands no. great outlay

of strength at one time. It embraces
the performance of many little items
which require skill and gentleness
more than muscle. The hand of
woman, from nature, habit and edu-
cation, has acquired an ease of motion
which is agreeable to the sensibilities-
of bees, and her breath is seldom ob-
noxious to their olfactories, by reason
of tobacco or beer.

Women have proved that the mak-
ing of hives and surplus boxes is no
objection, as they have purchased
them in the flat, nailed and painted
them. The hiving of swarms is-
neither more difficult nor dangerous
than the washing of windows or milk-
ing. The right, time to extract honey,
or to put on or take off surplus boxes,
requires no more tact or skill to de-
termine, than the proper fermentation
of bread, or the right temperature of
the oven required for baking. She is
in her allotted sphere while raising
queens and nursing weak colonies or
caring for the honey when off the
hive.

The most powerful argument, in
view of the suitableness of bee-keep-
ing for women, is this: That it is
something she can do at home, and
not interfere with her domestic duties.
Many women of small means have
young children depending upon their
exertions for support, and remunera-
tive work performed at home brings
very little in the market of to-day.
For instance, the making of overalls
at five cents a pair and shirts at fifty
cents per dozen. She is compelled to
accept less pay than men, for the
same 'service performed. We had a
friend chosen as principal of a school
on account of her efficiency, but she

76

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

was compelled to accept lower wages
than her predecessor, who was a man,
and dismissed for his incompetency.
But we have never found a dealer
unscrupulous enough to offer less for
a pound of honey, because it was pro-
duced bv a woman. — Ex.

TO PROMOTE BROOD REARING.

The experienced apiarist manages
to have but little honey in his hives
at the beginning of the surplus honey
flow. By uncapping the cells and
placing the combs in the center of the
brood nest it is used for brood rearing.
If some hives contain more than can
be used in this way, probably others
will be lacking in stores and an ex-
change of combs may be made.
Worker combs from box hives may be
fitted to frames and used in place of
old combs, which may be cut out,
rendered into wax and the frames re-
filled. Whenever I have tried the
plan of getting foundation drawers
between frames containing full combs,
I always get irregular combs. Colo-
nies that contain a large amount of
stores at the beginning of the honey
harvest will store only about half the
surplus they would if the brood nest
had been judiciously enlarged. The
entire stores may be used for brood
rearing and when the surplus cases
are put on, frames containing eggs
should be placed at the outside of the
brood chamber. — J". H. Andre.

CAREFULLY BRED BEES.

There is a great difference between
the worth of bees that have been bred
up for many years by a skilled apiarist
and those that are in box hives, that
have never given any surplus. I
should prefer the former at a good
price instead of the latter as a gift.

The Italian bees are superior to the
blacks in every way, unless it is cap-
ping the honey to show white. I
sometimes think this is caused by their
working on the alsike and other plants
that the native bees are unable to ob-
tain honey from on account of their
inability to reach it. Probably the
honey gathered from the same flowers
by each race would show the same.
They are never idle. I have observed
them when taking nights in midwinter
busily engaged in house cleaning,
when colonies of natives close by the
side of them were only enjoying them-
selves on the wing. Their marked
superiority is more noticeable during
poor seasons. Some think the progeny
of cross-bred queens equal to full-
blooded Italians. I prefer the pure
Italians in every respect, as they
cross-breed soon enough with neigh-
bors' bees. — Stockman.

WORKS OF ART BY TWELVE FAMOUS
ARTISTS.

Sometimes a magazine varies its
plan of make-up for a single number,
in a way that makes that issue unique.
The Cosmopolitan published one num-
ber some months ago filled entirely
with contributions from women. In
the same way the May issue of the
Cosmopolitan will be noteworthy on
account of the change in the style of
illustration. With hardly an excep-
tion, the number is entirely made up
of original works of art and all by the
best artists that could be found.
There has never been a number of any
magazine that contained so high a
class of illustration, and the names of
Walter Crane, the English decorator,
W. M. Chase, E. W. Kemble, F.
Remington, C. S. Reinhart, etc., are
enough to distinguish the issue alone.

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

77

The American Bee-Keeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cents a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
copies, SI. 20 ; all to be sent to one postoffice,

Postage prepaid in the U.S and Canada ; 10 cents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 0 words: s)2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount tor 2 insertions: 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions: in per cent, for 0 insertions; 20 per cent,
for 12 insertions.

Advertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,
Falcoxer, N. Y.

.(©"Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue cross will know that their subscripiton
expires with this number. We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

4®= A blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-

EDITORIAL,

Spring has been very backward in this
section. The buds are only just beginning
to show on the soft maples, while most
other kinds of. trees and vegetation is, to all
appearances, as it was a month ago. About
the first of April we had a few spring-like
days, but since then have had a heavy fall
of snow, and the weather has continued
cold, so that bees have not been doing
much. However, a late spring is apt to
insure rapid breeding when once the weath-
er becomes warm, besides there is not so
much danger of spring dwindling. A late
spring is also usually followed by a good
honey pasturage, so that large swarms, the
result of rapid breeding, combined with
good pasturage, results in a successful
honey season.

We have observed that bees seem to
prefer the unpainted to the painted hives.
Whether the odor of the paint is distasteful
to them or for other reasons we do not
know, although presumably it is the smell of
the paint, for of course it is unknown to
them in their natural state.

As now is the time when many new hives-
and supplies are purchased, we wish to im-
press our readers with a realizing sense of
the advantages to be gained by purchasing
everything of a regular or standard style
and size. You will then be able at all times-
in all seasons to order your future supplies-
of hives and inside " fixings" of almost any
dealer or manufacturer and they will have
them in stock ready to ship you on short
notice, while if your goods are "odd," the
large manufacturer cannot take the time
and trouble in the busy season to make the
goods and consequently you will be com-
pelled to get along without them when most
needed. This has been the experience of
many bee-keepers who run off after some
patent hive or other uncommon style of
furniture.

Our friend, Dr. Miller, calls our attention
in " Stray Straws " to the fact that while
we object to our friends using the initials
A. B. K., for American Bee-Keeper, we
do not hesitate to use initials for the names
of some of our cotemporaries. Our reason
for not wishing the initials used in reference
to the American Bee-Keeper is that there
are so many magazines whose initials are so-
similar ; for instance, the Progressive Bee~
Keeper, the Nebraska Bee-Keeper, and at the
time we originally raised the objection there
was the California Bee-Keeper. Then, too,
there is much liability of A. B. K. being
confounded with A. B. J. Brother New-
man himself objected on this score and
suggested to us that we use the full name of
our magazine. So Doctor, we prefer that
you continue to call us the American Bee-
Keeper, as heretofore.

The spring has been so backward that
bee-keepers have hesitated to send in their
orders for supplies so that there is general
complaint among dealers of a lack of orders,
but we look for a heavy trade this month,
and shall not be surprised if some of us
get "behind orders." It is a good plan for
you to "order early," and we may add,
" and often."

Your bees require your attention contin-
ually if you desire to be successful with*
them.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Mr. T. W. Cowan, editor of the British
Bee Journal, left England early in April
for an extended trip in Northern Africa
for the object of removing if possible some
uncertainties concerning bees from that
part of the world. He expects to return to
London in June. We shall look for some
important disclosures concerning the Punic
and other African bees.

CATALOGUES RECEIVED.

We send a* ain with this number a copy
of the article on " Better Country Roads,"
as a supplement. We have had several re-
quests for extra copies during the past
month, all of which we have sent. We can
still furnish copies to those of our friends
who will distribute them.

We have received from W. Dibble, Mid-
dltburgh, N. Y., photographs of a new
swarm-hiver that he has recently invented,
which can be used as a queen and drone
trap, a self-hiver, or for the complete pre-
vention of swarming.

We notice with a quiet smile the manner
in which several would-be bee writers strive
for cheap notoriety by advancing long and
windy arguments favoring the common
black bee in preference to the Italian.

The 0. B. J. now appears with colored
cover and is very much improved in its
literary make-up. D. A. Jones is still do-
ing the editorial work on it and doing it
well.

We wish to call the attention of our read-
ers to our ad. of second-hand foundation
mills, which will be found in another col-
umn. There is a bargain for some one.

We mail a large number of sample copies
to our friends again this month and request
that every one who is not already a sub-
scriber, send 25 cents for the Bee-Keep-
er the balance of this year. Don't delay.'

We are glad to note that Br®. Newman,
of the A. B. J., has received much benefit
from his recent vacation.

The National Bee Geizette is announced to
be issued by George W. Penn, at St. Louis,
Mo , ihe first number to appear on or about
May 7th.

Chas. F. Muth k Son, Cincinnati, 0., supplies.

Chas. Dadunt & Son, Hamilton, 111.,

I. J. Stringham, 92 Barclay St., N. Y. "'

Geo. E. Hilton. Fremont. Mich ,

A. L. Lindley. Jordan, Ind.. bees and queens.

U. E.Lukens, 19 N. 2nd St., Philadelphia, Pa.,
bees and queens.

W. J. Row, Greenburg. Westd. Co-, l'a., bees
and queens.

Levering Bros.. Wiota, Cass Co., Iowa, supplies.

Gregory IJros. & Son, Ottuuiwn. la.,

Leahy Manfg. Co., Higginsville, Mo., "

A. F. McAdams, Columbus Grove, Ohio, "

St. Joseph Apiary Co., St. Joseph, Mo.. "

M. L. Muloon, West Bowdoin. Me., Italian
queens.

S. F. & I. Trego, Swedona. 111., Italian queens.

J. M. Kinzie, Rochester. Mich., supplies.

A. F. McAdams, Columbus, Ohio, supplies.

A. L. Kildow, Sheffield, 111.. Albino and Italian
queens.

A NEW USE FOR THE DRONE
QUEEN -TRAP.

AND

HOW" THE TRAP MAY BE UTILIZED AS A
SELF-HIVER.

Herewith I present the readers of
the American Bee-Keeper an illus-
tration and description of the drone
and queen trap when used as a self-
hiver.

The hive shown in the background
is supposed to contain a colony of
bees, while the box directly in front
having the trap attached, is the new
or decoy hive. This new hive is large
enough to take seven Langstroth
frames. The two hives are connected
by a bottom board specially construct-
ed for this arrangement, and is not
adapted to all style hives in use.
Those who use the trap for a self-hiver
must devise a way to arrange the bot-
tom board, as directions for doing so

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

cannot be given that will apply to all
the different hives in use. All that
is needed is to so arrange it that all
the bees must pass through the trap in
coming out and returning to the hive.

When a swarm issues, the queen
and many drones enter the trap.
Now to trap the drones and at the
same time let the queen return to the
hive, a small piece of perforated
metal, which has holes large enough
to let the queen pass, is placed in the
trap.

All bee-keepers kn/>wn when a
swarm issues the bees go into the air,
and if their queen is not with them
the bees soon return to the hive.
About the time they get back, the
queen, in case where the trap is used,
has found her way out of the trap and
back to the hive, and the bees have
hived themselves. Now in order to
make the trap-swarmer a success, a
clean brood comb should be placed in
the new hive at the front. The queen
will take possession of it, when the
bees will join her and settle down to
business. The swarm should be given
a new location as soon as possible.
The trap should then be placed on the
old hive and left there until the
twelfth day after the first swarm
issued, and then removed to give the
young queen a chance to go out and
mate.

I invite all who have the traps to
test this swarmer and report their
experience through the bee-papers.
Henry Alley.

Wenham, 3fass.

Clubbing List.

We will send the American Bee-Kkeper with

, _ . PUB. PRCE. BOTH.

American Bee Journal, ($1 00) SI 35

American Apiculturist, ( 75) 1 15

Bee-Keeper's Review, (100) 135

Canadian Bee Journal, ( 75) 115

Gleanings in Bee Culture, (1 00) 1 35

LITERARY ITEMS,

It is said that Gen. B. F. Butler
intends to give the tail of the British
lion an unusually severe wrench in
the May number of the North Ameri-
can Review. His article is on the
present status of the Behring Sea
question. The same question from
another point of view will be treated
in that number by the Marquis of
Lome, the former governor-general
of Canada.

WALT WHITMAN.

I have seen a manuscript, a part of
"November Boughs," a single page
of which was composed of at least a
dozen kinds of paper, written in black
pencil, blue pencil, black ink, and red
ink. Some of the parts of this man-
uscript were written on bits of brown
straw paper, others on manilla paper,
others on the blue paper that had
once formed .a part of the cover of a
pamphlet, and each piece of a different
size, shape and color, suggesting the
idea that as a thought or a sentence
had come into the mind of the writer
he had made a note of it and pasted
the whole together without thinking
it worth while to give to the total
result coherence or form.

His nickname, Walt, he told me
himself he had received from the 'bus
drivers in New York, with whom he
rode as constantly when he lived in
that city as he did with those in Cam-
den when he made the latter place
his home.

To those who knew him Walt
Whitman was such a straghtforward
man that the apparent eccentricity of
costume which -he affected seemed
almost inexplicable, as indeed it was
to me until he told me that he had

SO

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

once worked at carpentering, and
then the idea suggested itself that,
after all, the loose rolling collar ex-
posing the chest and the turnedback
cuffs were only a conventionalized
form of the laboringman's ordinary'
garb; and when I asked Whitman
whether this was so he said he sup-
posed that was the case, — William H.
Garrison in Majj Lippincott's.

Reuben Gold Thwaites writes an
interestinof account of " Village Life
in Old England" in the May New
England Magazine. It. is finely illus-
trated by Louis A. Hoi man, who
spent the summer of 1891 in England,
and who furnishes the frontispiece of
the number, " A Picturesque Bit of
Old England," finely engraved by M.
Lamont Brown.

"On the track of Columbus," a val-
uable and interesting paper by
Horatio J. Perry, is also one of the
features of the May N'eio England
Magazine.

The Musicians Guide (Spring Edi-
tion, 1892) contains, besides 212
pages of musical information, biogra-
phies of 150 musicians, with 25 por-
traits, a "Teachers' Guide " and other
valuable features, three new .songs,
"My Kathleens Coming Back,"
"Last Night" and "That is Love;"
and two piano pieces, " Sounds from
the Ball-room" and "Stolen Kisses"
— Gavotte. Mailed free for eight
two-cent stamps, or the World and
Guide, containing the above nine songs
and pieces, mailed for twelve two-cent
stamps. Address, The S. Brainard's
Sons Co., Chicago, 111.

Hives, should never be painted a dark
color, as it draws the heat of the sun, caus-
ing the combs to melt down in hot weather.

important Trade Notes.

Has ting's Lightning Bee Escape. —
We wish to call special attention to this
escape. We will supply these at the same
price as the Porter escape — 20 cents each
or $2.25 per dozen. Although we have not
given them a trial, we believe that they will
do all that the inventor claims for them.

Hasting's Feeders. — We can supply
these feeders at 30c. each, or $3.00 per doz.
Postage 13c. each extra. They are con-
sidered to be among the best feeders in
use.

Colored and Cull Sections. — We
have several thousand of the sizes 4}x4^xl J
and 411x41,xl 15-16 only, which are not first
quality, but are a very fair lot and are well
worth the price, — $1.50 per thousand.

Pasteboard Boxes or Cartons. — These
are for one-pound sections. We have
fifteen thousand, without tape handles,
which we will sell at $1.00 per thousand
less than the prices given in catalogue.
This will make them cost $4.00 per thous-
and, $2.25 for five hundred, or 50c. per
hundred, plain. If printed one side the
price will be extra, 30c. per hundred, 75c.
per five hundred, $1.00 per thousand. If a
large quantity is wanted, will make special
price.

How to Manage Bees, a 50-cent book,
just the thing for beginners, for only 25
cents postpaid, or with the Bee-Keeper
one year for 65 cents.

Beeswax. — We will pay 25c. to 29c.
in cash, or 28c. to 31c. in trade for
good to choice pure beeswax, delivered at
Falconer, N. Y. If you have any, box it
up and ship it to us by freight or express.
(Whichever is the cheapest ) Be sure to
send it to us at Falconer, N. Y., and write
your name on the package ; also write to us
at the time you ship.

Our Thin-Walled Hive and Winter
Case has proven to be a first-class success.
We have failed to hear of a single complaint
so far. For cheapness and quality, they
" can't be beat."

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Dovetailed Hives. — We wish our
friends and customers to know that we
make the Dovetailed hive with all the latest
improvements, at all limes, and can furnish
them at lowest prices, promptly.

We have been somewhat delayed in
getting the new Leach section press ready
to put on the market, owing to some
changes being made in the original patterns,
but hope to be able to furnish them not
later than May 15th.

Dewey - Peete Cages — We have a
large quantity of these which we will sell
very cheap. They are superior to the old
style Peete cage, but as wa have a large
stock will sell them at 3c. each or 10 for
25c, without candy, iucluding printed di
rections. Postage '20c. per dozen extra ;
candy 1c. each extra.

The Leach Section Folder and
Foundation Fastener. —We have begun
the manufacture of these excellent machines.
We will have them ready to put on the

market in a short time. The price is $3.00
each. Special discounts to dealers. This
is the best machine of the kind ever invent-
ed, and will tfive universal satisfaction.

• The Queen's" Prize Problem.

Mr. A. and Mr. B. have to cut down a, mighty
tree. The time 'twill bike for Air. A. this mighty
tree alone to slay, is sixty minutes— standard time.
Beneath B's blow, the bulk sublime goes to the
ground in half that time. The question now we
ask of thee is, how long 'twill take to cut this tree
if both begin— one on each side— and thus their
labor do divide ?

Thk Qukkn will give an elegant Mason & Rich
or Stein way Fine Toned Upright Piano to the first
person answering the above prob'-eui correcily ; an
elegant Gold Watch for the second correct answer;
a China Dinner feet for the third correct- answer;
an elegant Silk Dress Pattern for the fourth correct
answer ; and many other valuable prizes. Valuable
special prizes will be given for the first cokhect
answkrs Ii'ROAI kach kta ' K. Each person answer-
ing must enclose fifteen U S. two cent stamps for
"THK CANADIAN QUEEN GALOP " the latest
and most popular piece of fifty cent copyrighted
music issued during the past year, .hist out,
together with copy of Thk Qukkn containing full
particulars. The object of offering t'<ese prizes is
to iutrease the circulation of Thk Qukkn, which
already is- the largest of any publication in Canada,

BY SKNDING TO-DAY YOU MAY SKCUKE A VALUABLE

piiizK. Address

THE CANADIAN QUEEN,

" X," Toronto, Can

The Porter Spring Bee-Escape

Supply dealers send for wholesale Prices.

We guarantee it to be the best escape
, known and far superior to all others. If
\ after three months trial of from one to a
dozen they are not found entirely satisfact-
ory, return them by mail and we will re-
fund your money. Prices, each, with full
directions, 20c. Per dozen, $2.25. Sent
post-paid on receipt of price. Send for
descriptive circular and testimonials.
R. & K. (J. I'ORTKE, Lewistown, Illinois.

Agents Wanted!

We want agents everywhere for our

MPIRE WASHER,

Ironing Tables, Clothes Reels,
Etc.

Olir Washer is first-class and wan anted
to give satisfaction. We sell over 2000 each month. Agents are* making big money
canvassing for them. RUg^ Send for illustrated catalog and price list. "XiM Sample
Ironing Table for $1.00, worth $1.50. Other goods equally low. Address,

EMPIRE WASHER CO., Jamestown, N. Y.

IBE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

STAGE.

PRICE

15c

$1.10

5c

.45

loo

1.(10

15c

1.25

5c

.45

10c

1.40

2c

.48

5c

.20

BOOKS FOR BEE-KEEPERS.

Every bee-keeper, and especially if he has not had long experience should
have at least one good text-book on the subject. The following are doubt
less the very best works on bee-keeping. In ordering by mail besuretoadd
the amount of postage named.

A. B. C. of Bee Culture, (A. [. Root), Cloth,
A Year Among Bees, (Dr. C. C. Miller),
Bee-Keeper's liuide, (Prof A. J. Cook).
Lanjjstroth on the Honey Bee, revised, (Dadant),
Success in Bee Culture, | Heddon),
Quinby's New Bee-keeping, ...

Thirty Years Among Bees, (Alley),
How to Manage Bees, (Vandruu"),

Address. THE W. T. FALCONER MFG CO., JAMESTOWN, N. Y.

CULL SECTIONS CHEAP.

We have several thousand Cull and Col-
ored Sections, 4 1-4x4 1-4x1 7-8 and 1 15-16 at $1.50 per
lOOO — Cheap at the price.

THE W. T. FALCONER MFG CO., Jamestown, N. Y.

FOUNDATION MILLS

AT HALF PRICE. - - -

SAME AS THE DADANTS USE. See our ad. in another
column. The W. T. Falconer Mffg Co., Jamestown, N. Y.

PAINT YOUR HIUES

WITH OUR PAINT.
PEARL G R E Y, Strictly Pure, $1.50 per gallon in pails.
Iff you want any other color we can furnish it cheap in quan-
tity. Address The W. T. Falconer Mffg Co., Jamestown, N. Y.

Hf\WK-BYE, CAMERAS

And all kinds off Photographic Supplies for Amateurs, will
be furnished at low prices.

Iff you want a Camera write to us.

THE W. T. FALCONER MFG CO., Jamestown, N. Y.

VOL. II.

JUNE, 1892.

NO. 6,

The Cause of Foul Brood.

BY JOHN F. GATES.

The foul brood question may ap-
pear to be worn out, but it will not
be until we have conquered the thing
and put it away forever. This can
never be done by curing the disease
any more than you could bring about
a temperance reform by buying rum
continually and burning it.

There is a first cause of foul brood.
This no one will attempt to deny, and
though wise men shake their heads at
this or that theory of its origin, it
looks strange that they are able to
tell what don't cause it, but are pro-
foundly silent when asked what does
cause it. I venture to say that no
reasonable man can be with his bees
almost continually as I have for the
last 23 years, making the apiary their
specialty, and study deeply every-
thing connected with the welfare of
his bees, and not know pretty nearly
what is the matter. I speak thus be-
cause I am possessed of holy wrath at
the thought that after being faithful
in a specialty and digging deep in the
problem of cause and effect, and
writing the best I could concerning
these things, that men with gold pens
and high literary aspirations, and not

much faith in others, should retain
their high position by the proverb of
"silence on great questions," looking
down on others that cannot explain
things with their pen, saying, '' You
go away. What do you know, who
have been sitting on the grass watch-
your bees, while my manuscript is
piling up and my students do the
drudgery iu the apiary?''

With this prelude I will try and
get my back clown again to its natural
elevation and run my lead pencil
smoother. I will try and tell you
what I know of foul brood. It is
caused by chilling the brood. This I
have said in the past, and am now
more convinced of its truth than ever,
after my experience the past year. I
have not been contented to know that
we simply have a cure for the dis-
ease, nor yet was I satisfied to stop
after finding beyond doubt that brood
was first chilled before it became foul.
The question in my mind has been,
how does the brood become chilled?
There is no doubt in my mind thai
a greater part of the chilling is done
by careless or thoughtless operations
in early spring, yet I feel sure that
there is a greater cause even than
this, I saw that the disease was most

82

THE AMERICAN BEEKEEPER.

common in Canada, and at first
thought one would suppose, as has
heeu intimated by others, that their
cold climate caused it, but I don't
believe their climate is at fault when
we remember that Canada produces
extracted honey almost exclusively.
Their seasons are short, and every
expedient is resorted to, both early
and late, to increase their yield, even
that most terrible practice of extract-
ing from the brood chamber. And
here friends, is where the disease of
foul brood is born. I have wondered
for years past why bee-keepers were
so silent in regard to this terrible
practice, but when we consider that
man is but little behind the robber
bee in selfishness the matter needs no
explanation. "No man liveth unto
himself,.' and this is exemplified with
terrible force in this case. If the
men who do the wrong were the only
ones to suffer, the matter would not
present such ugly features, but neigh-
bor A knows nothing of his friend's
means of producing extracted honey,
but he knows all at once that his bees
have got foul brood, and no one
knows how it originated. But ig-
norance is a poor excuse in the mat-
ter. The man who whirls frames of
brood in the extractor simply to get
honey knows that he is doing wrong,
or else his stock of commonsense is
limited. It is selfishness more than
ignorance, and every man who starts
the disease should be made to pay full
damage. I do not wish to appear too
positive, but I will say that I know
whereof I speak when I saythat foul
brood is caused by whirling the combs
of brood in an extractor. I can kill the
larvie in brood combs every time in
this way and start the disease.

Let any one try the experiment
with hens eggs that are half hatched.
Wrap them up so that they will not
break and give them a whirl with
your extractor and see if the hen will
hatch them. This will not be the
case with the eggs of the bee, but the
larvae if disturbed will rot, and who
that has tried it dare say that the ex-
tractor does not disturb the larvae ?
Look at the extracted honey ; see the
scum that rises on top. This scum is
albumen. If you can throw this
albumen off from the larva? and have
the larva' live' then you can extract
the albumen from a hen's egg and
still have it hatch ; but it may be
stated that the bees put other albu-
men on the larva? in place of that
which has been thrown out with the
extractor. Well, if they do they
cannot save the life of the larva? any
more than you can save the life of a
half-hatched chicken by replacing the
albumen of the egg after it has been
removed. Again, the larvie that is
thus uncovered is easily chilled by
the whirling they receive in the ex-
tractor ; and can larvae thus mal-
treated live and produce good bees ?
My experience and experiments say
no, to say nothing of the quality of
honey extracted from brood combs,
mixed as it is with larva? food. The
fact that some do in innocence and
others in wilfull carelessuess produce
the disease of foul brood by extract-
ing the brood combs, should arouse
the indignation of all honest bee-
keepers, and enlist their energies,
not only in an endeavor to discourage
the evil practice, but to educate those
who need it to the fact that we can't
go contrary to nature and escape pun-
ishment.

Ovid, Pa.

THE AMERICAN BEEKEEPER.

83

Introducing Queens.

BY M. H. DE WITT.

As this is the season, or time of
year that introducing queens is done,
I will try and give your readers my
plan of doing so. Perhaps the best
way is to place the cage containing
the new queen between two brood
combs and leave her there for 24
hours, when the cork is replaced by
a chunk of comb honey, which the
bees will knaw out and thereby lib-
erate the queen. Twenty-four hours
confinement is better than a longer
term, because by this time bees have
not yet commenced to construct queen
cells, and therefore accept a queen
more readily. It is a matter of course
that when introducing we must be
sure that no second queen or capped
queen cell is in the hive. No queen
should be introduced in any colony
which was without brood for a week
or more, because only young bees
take care of the queen and her pro-
geny. If you have such a colony,
take at least two comb3 with hatch-
ing brood and adhering bees from a
strong stand, put them in the middle
of the swarm in exchange for two of
their combs, and put your cage with
queen between them. One end of the
introducing cage should contain a
sponge saturated with honey. A cage
with a new queen may be placed in a
colony for several days before the old
queen is taken out, and the cork on
the down end of the queen cage re-
placed by a chunk of honey at the
time when the old queen is removed.
A good manner of introducing a val-
uable queen, also, is to have the old
queen caged for a day or less, then
putting the new queen in the same

cage, (after the old queen is removed,)
and placing it in the same spot, closed
with a chunk of honey. The cage
retains the scent of the old queen , and
the colony, believing their queen to
be in the same place, put up with the
stranger by the time the honey is
knawed out of the opening. When
we open a colony and find a lump of
bees as large as a walnut, or larger,
in the bottom of the hive or on the
side of the comb, the bees are bunch-
ing or balling the queen for some rea-
son or other, and will starve her to
death if left alone. The best manner
to save that queen is to take up the
ball of bees with your hand and drop
them in a tumbler of water (luke-
warm if the temperature be cold), dip
them under with your finger ; the ball
loosens, and the queen escapes with-
out being stung. Put her in a cage
closed with a good chunk of honey,
and place it between two brood combs.
You are very apt to see her next day,
walking among the bees as if nothing
had happened.
Sang Run, Md.

Fixed Frames.

BY J. E. POND'

The time is fast approaching, if it
has not already arrived, when the
great majority of educated bee-keep-
ers will admit the imperative, yes,
absolute necessity for using fixed
frames. Loose frames cannot by any
means as yet known to myself, be so
used that they will hang perfectly
plumb and true, and unless frames
do so hang, the maximum of gain
cannot be obtained. When I first
began experimenting on the close-
spacing-of -frame principle, which I

84

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

still believe will in time be generally
adopted, my great difficulty was ex-
perienced in getting combs built true
throughout their whole surface, the
reason being that loose-hanging
frames could not be made to hang
absolutely true. The question then
arose, how shall we avoid this diffi-
culty ? In the American hive the
question was solved, but I did not
want a deep hive. In the "Lang-
stroth." the "American" plan might
be used, but I did not want a side
opening hive. Then what should I
do ? I wanted my frames top- bars,
and all to be just % inch wide. The
only plan I could adopt was to wedge
the frames true with the sides of the
hive, and then if the hive was set
plumb the comb would be built plumb
also. Now this would be all well
enough when but two or three colo-
nies were kept, but with a large apiary
it would almost require a mau to a
hive to keep the work up. The Hoff-
man frame more nearly solves the
problem than any method I have yet
seen. I solved it in my own hives by
nailing triangular pieces outo -ides of
frames. This of course would accom-
plish the object perfectly, but caused
considerable labor, which is wholly
done away with by using the Hoff-
man frame.

It is possible that there is still a
chance for improvement, but I do not
see to-day how it is possible to get up
a frame that will work better or cause
comb to be better built than will the
Hoffman frame.

North Attleboro. Mass.

If bees were not of great value they
would not have been provided with
the sting. — Iowa Homestead.

Comb Honey.

BY W. S. VAXDRUFF.

However great may be the demands
for extracted honey, and whatever
favor it may gain among our apiarists,
comb honey will always be in demand,
commanding a price far above that of
extracted honey. Beautiful comb
honey, as now put up in one pound
boxes, will always attract buyers and
command fancy prices. The securing
of a large crop of comb honey de-
mands considerable time and atten-
tention, and without good strong col-
onies, rightly managed, the apiarist
will fall far short of the goal. To
get a colony of bees in the right con-
dition requires a preparation on the
part of the apiarists several months
beforehand. He should begin early
the Fall previous, by seeing that the
colony has a good, young, prolific
queen ; have -them go into winter
quarters with plenty of bees and
stores.

When spring arrives see to it that
they do not run short of provisions,
but keep them well supplied, and by
the time the honey season arrives you
should have a booming colony of bees.
Now unless they are properly man-
aged, although with the best of a
honey season, you will fail to get a
crop of honey. They should be given
the sections early, and get them
started to work in them as soon as
possible. If you have some sections
left over with partly finished combs
in them you can usually get them
started to work immediately, and you
will get along nicely so long as they
don't swarm ; but they often swarm
before they finish the sections. Now
on the right management of the

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

85

swarms is the turning point of success
or failure. There are many ways of
managing for comb honey, but the
sum total of them all is in keeping
the force all together, not allowing
auy division of colonies. Some bee-
keepers hive swarms back in the old
hive, first destroying all queen cells.
This, however, will not always pre-
vent them swarming a second time.
Tlie plan that will succeed with one
colony will not always do for another,
and the bee-keeper that will get the
largest crop of comb honey must so
manage as to keep the working force
all together.

Another plan is to remove the old
hive to a new location and hive the
swarm in a new hive on the old loca-
tion, thus getting all the working
force together on the old place. This
will give an increase of one, and give
a fair crop of honey in a'good season,
and is a good plan so long as the api-
arist wants increase.

There is still another plan coming
into use, that I expect to try this sea-
son, which is as follows : Begin by
gradually moving two hives together
so they are side by side , at the open-
ing of the honey season, about the
time they are ready to swarm, or you
can wait until one swarms. Then
turn the entrance of both hives back
and put a new hive between them,
with the entrance in the original po-
sition, so as to catch all the working-
force of both old colonies. This will
make a powerful working force, and
will no doubt work well.

Waynesburg , Pa.

Don't go to dinner and leave that
big swarm of Italian bees hanging in
the sunshine.

A Word to Beginners.

BY STANTON E. HITCHCOCK.

Now is the time when the bees claim
the constant attention of the bee-
keeper if a large amount of honey is
expected, and every precaution should
be used which will tend to assist
them in storing honey. I have seen
people set out and feed the bees in the
height of honey flow, thinking it
would be of much benefit, but it only
kept the workers at home when they
should have been in the field. Begin-
ners often make a mistake in this
way, and then they get discouraged
and quit the business, exclaiming,
"There is no money in it." They
were anxious to secure the coveted
honey, and would not listen to advice.

A man whom I knew commenced
in the spring with a few colonies pur-
chased of a well-known apiarist. He
knew nothing of the business. The
man of whom he purchased gave him
a few points in regard to caring for
them. He took them home and
thought he knew more about them
than the apiarist, He began by in-
troducing his own methods. The re-
sult was, he lost his bees before fall.
A man like him I call " Know it all.',

Now, friends, don't think all begin-
ners are like the above, and don't
think this is intended for a personal
thrust. But it shows how bee cul-
ture is regarded by some people.
Some whom I have met think if a
man can hive a swarm of bees he is a
successful bee-keeper. But being
able to hive a swarm of bees is the
smallest part of it, and in order for
one to become a successful apiarist
he must study and not be afraid to
learn .

86

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

There is one more point on which
1 would caution beginners more par-
ticularly. When looking over the
frames in cutting out queen cells, be
sure to hold the frames over the hive,
so in case the queen should drop off
she would fall into the hive. If the
frames are held at one side the queen
is liable to be lost, and the loss of a
queen, even for one day in the height
of the honey flow, would occasion
great loss.

My advice is, "Be careful."

Troy, Vt,

W. T. Falconer Man'f'c Co.,

Gentlemen : I have once more ex-
perienced the lesson that he who has
must lose. My Sweet has all turned
to Sour this spring. One year ago I
had fourteen .-warms that had win-
tered and spring out in a thriving
condition out of twenty-one swarms.
In March three or four were short of
supplies, while as many seemed to die
from some unknown cause, perhaps
old age or long winter.

I felt quite determined that no
more should die from want of sup-
plies, so I commenced feeding most of
the apiary about twice a week about
one gill of syrup made from granu-
lated sugar, except to two or three
swarms, which had no more room than
they needed, and had an abundance
of honey in the hive.

This feeding greatly stimulated
brood raising, and one of the smallest
swarms which I had, which I could

have held in my double hands, gave
me fifty-four pounds of nice comb
honey, eight full L-frames of brood,
eight full L-frames filled with honey,
and cast two swarms besides. The
balance of the apiary, excepting three
swarms, gave me from forty to sev-
enty pounds of nice comb honey.

The first of November I had my
bees back again to twenty-one swarms,
all apparently in fine condition, ex-
cept a few late swarms, which it was
necessary to feed a little to carry
them through the winter. In Novem-
ber sticks were laid across the frames
to give the bees a chance to pass over
from one frame to the other, and
then a piece of canvas was laid over
these, covered with about ten inches
of clean, planer shavings, the roof of
the hive forming a small air chamber.
I closed the entrance partly up, and
thought I had them in fine shape for
wintering.

The last of March I looked my
bees over and found half of them
dead. One or two swarms had con-
sumed nearly all the honey in the
hive, while the remaining hives had
plenty of honey in the outside frames,
but the bees did not seem to have
vitality enough to get to it. I have
now but three swarms living.

Now the question naturally arises
what is the cause of the great mor-
tality ? I think it is simply this :
Since the first of last November up
to the first of April, the bees haven't
had a good warm clay so they could
get out and take a good flight, and
with the exception of a few days the
fore part of April it has been too cool
for the bees until now, and we had
much northwest winds.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

87

The season is extremely backward,
and as yet there are no flowers. The
trees have not put forth their leaves,
and the buds have only just begun to
show on the earliest shrubs. The
bees have lived out their allotted time
waiting for the approach of warm
weather to bring forth the necessary
elements to invigorate and sustain
brood rearing.

• Yours, etc.,

P. L. Dwtght.

De Ruyter, N. Y.

Editor American Bee-Keeper:
nclosed please find 25 cents for the.
Bee-Keeper for the balance of the
year. Sample copy for April received.
On page 57 Mr. Win. Partridge asks
about Alsike clover. Your reply is
not in accordance to our experience,
and as I sit here by the window I can
look at fifty acres grown for seed
alone or hay, for my neighbors do
not keep bees. Near Flint, in this
county, the home of the Review, it is
raised extensively ; does not winter-
kill as red clover does, is finer and
better hay, but for seed it is the first
crop that seeds and gives no after-
math to speak of. For seed it is cut
when quite green. The chaff is good
feed. One man last season cut six-
teen acres that threshed five and one-
fourth bushels per acre ; sold it for
$6.75 from the machine before seed
advanced, then sold the straw for
$4.20 per ton .

Bees are in good shape with us
this spring.

Yours respectfully,

H. R. Van Wagoner.

Linden, Mich., May 2, 1892.

Don't put in too much time talking
politics at the village store during
swarming; time.

HINTS TO BEOTNNERS.

This month being the great swarm-
ing season, those depending on natur-
al swarms must keep constant watch
on their bees, lest they swarm out and
leave them. When a swarm leaves the
hive get your new hive, which should
be cool and clean, go to some strong
stock and get a frame containing both
brood and honey, brush off the bees,
place this in the new hive, filling bal-
ance of space with frames containing
foundation. Now, if the swarm is
hanging on a small limb that can be
sawed off easily, saw it off, being very
careful to jar them as little as possi-
ble, carry the limb to the hive and
shake the bees on to a sheet which
should have been placed in front of
hive, before taking the swarm. If
they do not start in at once take a
small twig and work a few up to the
entrance, when they will all follow.
As soon as the bees are all inside
move the hive to the stand it is to oc-
cupy, should any bees remain outside
they will give you no trouble, as they
will return to the old stand.

In order to avoid the above trouble
and at times difficulty in securing the
swarm, proceed as follows: When bees
are ready to swarm, bring your new
hive close to the old one, take ont two-
thirds of the frames with the adhering
bees, place them in the new hive, till-
ing up balance of space with frames
of foundation, putting them alternate-
ly between the frames of brood and

88

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

bees. If you have a practiced eye
and can find the queen, leave her in
the new swarm or division. If there
are any queen cells have them in the
hive that has no queen. Now remove
the new hive to the stand it is to occupy.
In fastening your foundation in box-
es I think there is no better or rapid
way than to use a foundation fastener.
However, if you have no fastener,
yeu may take two parts of wax to one
part of rosin, melt it together, and
when warm dip your foundation into
this, then place it in the center of top
of box, aud hold it there a second un-
til cool, this will hold it firmly, or use
the same, only hold your foundation
in the box, then with a spoon, pour it
so it will run along the edge of founda-
tion, it will, if not too warm, cool im-
mediately, and be ready for use.
Still, I say again, there is no way as
quick, simple and cheap as the founda-
tion fastener. Take off your top box-
es as soon as capped over, as the bees
traveling over them will darken the
cappings and spoil its market value.
Have a system and use it in grading
and sorting for market. Remember
the old adage, "cleanliness is next to
godliness," and bear in mind that
holds good in the apiary as well as
the household.— W. B. T. (New York.)

INTRODUCING QUEEN;

Should I attempt to give all the di-
rections and various methods that have
been tried and recommended from
time to time it would almost make a
book within itself, as well as confuse
the average bee-keeper. As this book
is intended for the " masses," I will
only give a few plain, practical meth-
ods of introducing queens, and try not
to confuse the average reader, as it is

only through practical experience that
we can become experts at introducing
queens. Queen dealers send queens
by mail to most all parts of the world
in cages called queen cages. These
cages are usually so made that they
answer as an ntroducing cage.

Now the colony we wish to intro-
duce the qupr* to must be made queen-
les. tj first tally considered best to
let tx nek aga queenless a few hours
until i. ' invome aware of the fact
and thex. give them the caged queen
which can be laid on top of the brood
frames if the weather is warm, or the
caged queen can be placed between
two brood combs, which is rather the
best plan. It usually takes 24 to 48
hours before the bees will accept the
strange queen; sometimes it will take
three or four days, and in extreme
cases it will take a week. The queen
should not be let out until the bees
became friendly toward her, which we
have to judge of by their actions. So
as the bees cling to the cage in a close
cluster, seemingly to try their best to
get in to the queen it is not safe to let
her out. We must wait until they
are walking leisurely about over the
cage, not paying any particular atten-
tion to the queen, and then we can let
the queen out with safty.

LETTING THE QUEEN OUT.

When you think it safe to let her
out, have your smoker in readiness,
and be sure to get the bees under sub-
jection. Now open the cage a little,
just so the queen will have plenty of
room to crawl out, and watch closely
how the bees behave toward her.

If they attack her, or " ball her,"
you should cage her and wait another
day.

By " balling," I mean the peculiar

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

89

way the bees have of attacking a
stranger queen, by gathering about
her in a dense mass and enclosing her
in a ball of bees, often as large as a
hen's egg or small walnut. To get
the queen released frorr the ball we
have only to give the b °s a liberal
supply of smoke, and then we pick up
the queen and cage hce aT'ain. En
picking up a queen 4 ot

take hold of the body, t , her

abdomen, as we would be i ' ' sure
to injure her ; we should pick her up
by the wings. If a colony of bees re-
fuses to accept a queen after two or
three clays, we should look through
the hive and destroy all queen cells
that they may have started, as this one
thing alone will often cause them to
refuse to accept a queen ; and if they
still continue obstinate I would re-
move all their brood from them until
they have accepted the queen. It is
more difficult to introduce a queen
during a dearth of honey than at
other times. — " Hoic to Manage Bee*."

ABOUT SHELTERING BEES.

Some subscriber asks whether it is
best to shelter bees. I reply that I
have had about fifteen years' experi-
ence with bees, nine years with the
old-fashioned box hives, which was
unprofitable as well as unpleasant,
and six years with the frame hive.

I have made the honey-bee a special
study, aided by the best authors on
bee culture, and from experience I
have found that three very wide boards
laid on top, with across piece between
the hive and boards, about three inches
thick at one end of the hive, so as to
give the boards pitch, first two boards
extending over the hive, and a third
board to break the joint, is all that is

necessary to shelter them from rain
and sunshine on the top; during the
extreme hot weather two or three
boards set on the ground and leaned
on the hive on the west side will often
save the melting down of the combs.

All bee hives should face a little
east of south, for the following reasons:
First, bees need the earliest sunshine
they can get about the entrance in the
morning, and especially in the spring
of the year. Second, the entrance is
in an opposite direction from the cold
winter wind and stormy weather.

Hives should not be closer than a-
bout six feet, as the apiarist needs at
least that much room to work in, to
prevent disturbing the adjoining hive.

Then, also, young queens can go out
and mate with the drones on wing, and
as it is their first trip out they do not
recognize their own hives if they are
all close together. . They, in many
instances, enter another hive, which
proves fatal to the whole colony.

Now, taking into consideration the
distance that hives should be apart to
obtain the best results, any kind of a
shelter built with posts, rafters, lathing
and boards would be an expense that
a few loose boards would save, and yet
answer every purpose. Bees need
protection from hot sunshine and rain,
but should not be densely shaded. — Ex.

WINTER AND SPRING MANAGEMENT OF
BEES, AND PREVENTION OF FOUL BROOD

In the fall with division boards I
crowd each colony on six combs of
solid sealed stores of the best quality.
If the combs in every colony are not
all sealed when I have the bees crowded
on the six combs I feed in the evening
until evey cell is sealed, when 1 have
to feed, I do it the first week in October.

90

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

I remove the hi.ve, place a feeder with
10 lbs of warm feed on the stand, then
put the colony on the feeder. The
feed being warm, and only five-six-
teenths of an inch from the bottom of
the frames, it warms up the whole
cluster at once. Then the bees will
rush into the feeders and take up 10
lbs on cold nights when they would not
look into top feeders. I then pack
each colony in a single case with four
inches of leaves on each side front and
back, and six inches on top. I make
the entrance three-eighths high by
three inches long. I see that every
colony is real strong in bees before I
fit them up, and if not I double (hem
up until (.hey are. In warm evenings
in spring I lake out the division boards
and give each colony its full set of
combs. The combs that I put in in
spring will all have more or less honey
in them. I then carefully let every
colony alone until the fruit bloom is
over unless the weather lias been un-
favorable during fruit bloom. By
crowding my bees on six solid, sealed
combs of the best quality of stores I
can bring {'wry colony into spring all
right. Hut if I were to let ray colon-
ies take their chances with their full
set of combs I would meet with more
or less losses, because in cold winters
the bees would be too much spread out
by having their full sets of combs; and
if January was' very mild, the strong
colonies with young queens and empty
combs in the centre would start too
much brood, which would completely
break up the cluster by causing the
bees to care for so much brood at a
time when they should have been at
rest. When the cluster is broken up
by caring for so much brood in Janu-
ary, the bees will become very restless,

consume larger quantities of their
stores, and in spring will dwindle. Be-
tween fruit bloom and clover I see
that there is plenty of unsealed honey
in the combs, because brood is never as
well led when all the unsealed stores are
used up. It doesn't matter how much
sealed honey colonies have between
fruit bloom and clover, as it is the
unsealed stores that do the business at
that time of the year. In favorable
weather the hees will gather abun-
dance from fruit bloom and dande-
lions to feed the brood well, and keep
a large quantity of unsealed honey
on hand. Then right in the middle
of it all, we sometimes get a frost, fol-
lowed by rainy weather, which cuts
off the honey flow so suddenly that
the bees have to use up the unsealed
stores at once to feed the brood.
When the unsealed stores are used up
so suddenly by the bees having to feed
it to such a large quantity of larva3,
they will not uncap the sealed stores
fast enough to keep pace with the
amount of larva3 that needs feeding.
Then if the weather keeps backward
after that, so that the bees get little
or no honey, they will then begin to
drag out some of the larv:e, and a lit-
tle later on we find dead brood which
which will be starved brood caused
by a sudden closing of a honey flow
at a time when the bees had a large
quantity of brood to feed. And this
larva1 that is lost in many localities at
such times is the very life blood of
the honey business, because that
larvae saved would be the very bees
that would gather our honey crops.
At such times I put on top storeys,
and in the evenings uncap and put
the combs in them so as to keep up
the honey flow by supplying the bees

1HE AMERICAN BEEKEEPER.

91

with plenty of unsealed stores. After
the great killing frost of May 28th,
1889, I uncapped and fed over 500
bs. before the clover season opened,
and every colony had plenty of
sealed honey in their hives while I
was doing that. My colonies did
great business that honey season, as I
had them in grand condition when
the honey flow came. — Wm . McEvoy
in C. B. J.

DO BEES INJURE FRUIT CROPS ?

The question, we are sorry to say,
of bees injuring the crops, has had
many advocates. It is nothing but a
silly prejudice against bees, entertain-
ed by some covetous fruit-growers
based on the notion that the crops are
injuriousy affected both in quantity
and quality. It is an unfounded no-
tion, and it deserves no support from
close observation and science. Yet it
occasionally looms up, and dreates as
much alarm, as the comet did in the
past days.

I claim that nectar passes oil' and is
lost if not collected by the bees. It is
the sweet secreted by the flower which
produces this nectar.

A gentleman in France, several
yers ago, established a green-house
and stocked it with a great variety of
choice fruit-trees, expecting to have
bountiful crops. Time passed, and
every year there was a super-abun-
dance of blossoms, but very little
fruit. Various plans were devised
and adopted to bring the trees into
bearing, but without any success un-
til it was suggested that the blossoms
needed fertilization, and that by
means of bees the needed work could
be done. A colony of busy workers
was introduced the next season, and

the remedy was a success. There was
no longer any difficulty in producing
ci'ops there. The bees distributed
the pollen, aud the setting of the fruit
followed naturally.

But some will contend that bees do
injury to the crop by extracting the
honey from the bloom; and they will
say that it is reasonable that if a por-
tion of the plant is taken away by the
bees, there must be a less quantity of
material left for the formation of
seed! It is a fact that if a person has
an opinion formed, he will build up
strong proofs in his favor, which, he
thinks, he can substantiate by satis-
factory reasons.

The flowers expand, and a set of
vessels pour into the cup, or nectary, a
minute portion of sweet liquid; and
strong testimony proves very plainly
that it never again enters the stalk or
flower, but there it evaporates like
water. For instance in passing a
field of horsemint in full bloom, we
are assured of the presence of honey,
by the oder in the air. Now what is
the difference, whether this honey
passes off in the air, or whether it is
collected by the bees. If any differ-
ence, it appears in favor of the bees
getting it, for it thus answers an im-
portant end in the economy of nature.

Instead of the bees being an injury
to the crop, I shall prove that they
are an advantage. The stamens and
pistils of flowers correspond to the
different organs and sexes of the male
and female. The stamen is the male,
which furnishes the pollen; the pistil
is the female, which must be impreg-
nated by this dust or pollen from the
stamen or no fiuit will be produced.

This is fully accomplished by the

92

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

bees traversing from one flower to an-
other, and carrying the pollen, stick-
ing to their legs and wings, to the
next flower, and impregnating the
pistils of it. This was the case with
the Frenchman's greenhouse. The
necessity was seen and planned by
the all-wise Creator. He has created
the bee for the flower, and the flower
for the bee; endowed the plant with
the bower of secreting the liquid
sweet, and giving the honey-bee the
instinct to search after it and treasure
it up for his own as well as for man's
wants.

The prejudice against bees injuring
the crops has no foundation, and I
hope that the day is dawning when it
will wholly disappear. — W. S. D. in A.
B.J.

A FEW APIARIAN DOn'ts,

Don't make a veritable curiosity
shop of your apiary, by filling it with
a job lot of hives of all the different
patterns you can hear of, just to see
which is best.

Don't wait until there is a heavy
honey-flow from clover or basswood
before you order those new hives and
sections.

Don't write a long, abusive letter
to the suffering supply dealer about
July 15, asking him why those sec-
tions you ordered by telegraph yester-
day noon had not arrived at the
depot.

Don't sell your honey in any shape
and for any price your local grocer
may see fit to pay you.

Don't make that common mistake
of crating the nice white sections next
to the glass and the dark ones in a
'family group" in the centre.

Don't put off that little job of Sept.
feeding until the following Spring,
and then wonder how it comes that
some people have such luck with bees!

Don't leave your bees out so late
in the Fall that you have to chop the
ice off the the hives before you can
house them.

Don't ; but I know you will —

some of you. — A. B. J.

PRESERVING EMPTY COMBS.

If you have a lot of empty combs
on hand, and wish to preserve them
for future use, they will have to be
looked after carefully when warm
weather approaches, else the moths
will destroy them. After the combs
get thoroughly dry, the best place to
keep them is in a cool, dry cellar — so
cool that the eggs of the moth will not
hatch, aud so dry that the mold will
not ruin them. If it is not practical
to preserve them thus, they may be
saved almost anywhere by hanging
the combs about an inch apart.

Combs are seldom destroyed by
worms unless they are close enough
together to allow the moth to build
their web between. As combs hang
naturally in a hive, they are too close
to save well without bees on them.

Spiders are friends to the bee-keep-
er, if he has empty combs to preserve.
Let them build their web between the
combs aud worms will never be seen.
Perhaps it will pay for bee-keepers to
start a spider farm. They are useful
animals. — Eugene Secor in the Farmer
and Breeder.

Clubbing List.

We will send the American Bee-Keeper with

the — PUB. PRCE. BOTH.

American Bee Journal, (81 00) SI 35

American Apiculturist, ( 75) 1 15

Bee-Keeper's Review, (100) 135

Canadian Bee Journal, ( 75) 115

Gleanings in Bee Culture, (1 00) 1 35

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

93

The American gee-Keeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cents a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
copies, $1.20 ; all to be sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the U.S. and Canada ; 10 cents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 9 words; $2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount for 2 insertions ; 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions; 10 per cent, for 6 insertions; 20 per cent,
for 12 insertions.

Advertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,
Falconer, N. Y.

/^^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a bine cress will know that their subscripiton
expires with this number. We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

4ST-A blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

The weather in this locality during
the past mouth has been most un-
pleasant, and not at all favorable to
bee-keepers. Rain has fallen at least
four days out of every five, and the
weather has been cold. Vegetation
is far behind, and bees have hardly
done anything. We have heard of
only two or th.ree swarms yet, al-
though things should be getting quite
lively in the bee yard by this time in
ordinary seasons. It will be found
necessary to feed in some localities
some days yet, unless it comes oil'
warm very soon.

Brother Hutchinson says he has al-
most concluded to give up the "Spec-
cial Topic " feature of the Review, as
so many miscellaneous articles are
constantly crowding in upon him
This has been one of the special fea-

tures of the Review since it started,
and it will hardly seem the same old
friend without its special topics, but
W. Z. will find it much easier work
without that feature, aud we doubt
not that he will make the Review just
as interesting as ever.

Considerable is being said in differ-
ent bee journals about imbedding
wire in foundation by electricity.
Several bee-keepers of a scientific
turn have experimented in this direc-
tion with fair success. We do not-
think the method will become of very
general use, as the apparatus is too
costly and requires too much care to
keep it in running order.

The first number of the National
Bee Gazette has appeared, and is a
neatly printed 28-page magazine hail-
ing from St, Louis. Its rather high-
sounding name is, however, hardly
applicable, as but uine pages are de-
voted to bee-keeping, the other nine-
teen pages being made up of clippings
concerning farm and literary matters,
and a miscellaneous lot of advertise-
ments, a large number of which, if
we may judge from our own, which
is included, were not ordered, for we
find on one of its pages a copy of an
old "ad." which we run some months
ago, and which makes us offer a spe-
cial discount of five per cent, on all
orders until December 1st, At this
time of year we cannot allow any dis-
count whatever from our catalogue
prices, and the insertion of this "ad."
has caused us considerable trouble
and expense, as we are compelled to
explain to all our customers who write
us regarding it. The publisher as-
sumes considerable when he takes the

94

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

liberty to advertise for a firm without
that firm's consent, and in some cases
is liable to get himself into serious
trouble. The publisher of the Na-
tional Bee Gazette doubtless thought
to do us a kindness, but unfortunately
the result is quite otherwise.

We stated recently that there were
some queen and supply dealers to
whom we would give our attention,
unlesstheymendedtheirways. We are
glad to know that some of them we had
in mind took the hint and made satis-
factory settlement with their swindled
customers, but there are still several
who do not seem to care to do what
is right. Among them, we regret to
say, is Jacob T. Timpe of Grand
Ledge, Mich., a young man who a
year ago was held in high esteem by
all who knew him, and in whom we
had ourselves much confidence. His
future looked bright and hopeful, and
he was apparently on the road to
much prosperity. By his liberal ad-
vertising he became known through-
out the country as an extensive queen
breeder and acquired a large patron-
age. The season proved a rather poor
one for queen breeders, and many of
them found themselves unable to fill
all their orders. This man Timpe
was one of them, and instead of re-
turning the money to his customers,
when he found it impossible to sup-
ply them with the queens, as all hon-
est dealers did, he retained it, thereby
committing a felony. We have sev-
eral letters in our possession written us
by persons whom he has swindled in
this way, one of them to the tune of
$5.00 ; besides he has failed to pay
his advertising bills of last season in
some if not all instances.

We do not know how much money
he gained by his dishonest dealings,
but no matter what the amount, he
lost his honor, reputation and future
prospects.

Early this season he sent out a cir-
cular in which he endeavored to ex-
plain his position. He frankly ad-
mitted that he had used the money
sent him by his customers without
returning them an equivalent. The
circular was in itself an acknowledg-
ment of his dishonesty, but in it he
endeavored to work on the sympa-
thies of bee-keepers. To what extent
he succeeded we do not know.

His "ad," has appeared this season,
so far as we know.only in the Bee-Keep-
ers' Guide. We warn all our customers
against having anything whatever to
do with him. He has doubtless been
unfortunate, but that did not make it
necessary for him to be dishonest also.

Verily, " Honesty is the best pol-
icy." '

Speaking of the practice of some
publishers of inserting "ads." free
without consulting the advertiser, E.
R. Root says in a private letter to us :
" * * It is time there was a stop
put to it. Publishers of new bee
papers, or publishers of any other
periodicals have no right to insert an
"ad." free without first giving the
parties in question due notice of the
same and procuring their consent."

It is with much regret that we note
that Thos. G. Newman & Son have
sold the American Bee Journal. Brother
Newman has been its editor for many
years, and has conducted it in a manner
commendable throughout. His con-
tinued ill health has compelled him to
take this step, and he also offers his en-

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

95

tire supply business for sale. Messrs.
Geo. W. York & Co. will continue
the publication of the A. B. J., and
will doubtless do so in a manner
pleasing to all its readers. Mr. York
has been assistant editor for some
time past, and so the editorial mantle
falls gracefully on his shoulders.

This certainly ought to be an un-
usually good honey season, as the
long continued rains will make a
serious drougth almost impossible, and
we have always noticed that when
there has been a severe winter or
spring resulting in a heavy loss of bees,
there was invariably an abundance
of nectar. Those who have carried
their stock through successfully the
past spring will doubtless reap a rich
harvest.

Send in your subscription for bal-
ance of the year, only 25c, or with
"How to Manage Bees" 45c.

We are in receipt of No. 1, Vol.1,
of the Australian Bee Bulletin, pub-
lished by E. Tipper at West Mait-
land, Australia. It is a neat and
well edited 16-page magazine, devoted
entirely to bees.

Thanks are due Secretary A. K.
Cooper of Winona, Minn., for a copy
of the proceedings of the third annual
meeting of the Minnesota Bee-
Keepers' Association, held January
20 and 21, 1892.

The crop of new Self-Hivers this
season is quite large, but unless the
weather warms up soon there will not
be much use for any of them. Even
in England they are trying the>ir
hand at inventions in this line.

We wish our readers would send us
more letters for publication. Write
us about your Methods of Wintering,
Requeeuing, Feeding, etc.

The Progressive Bee-Keeper and the
White Mountain Apiarist are both
about two months behind, each issue.
When the busy season is past they
will have time to catch up.

Comb foundation in full sheets for
both brood frames and sections is the
most economical for the bee-keeper.

The cull sections which we are offering at
$1.50 a thousand are giving good satisfac-
tion, as is shown by the large number of or-
ders we are receiving for them. We still
have quite a quantity of 4^x4^x1 15-16
andl^, and if you want any you ought to
send at once.

Hasting's Lightning Bee Escape. —
We wish to call special attention to this
escape. We will supply these at the same
price as the Porter escape — 20 cents each
or $2.25 per dozen. Although we have not
given them a trial, we believe that they will
do all that the inventor claims for them.

seasonable hints.

If you have not yet ordered all the
things you will be sure to need, do so
without further delay. It will not do
to wait until the swarming season is
on hand, and then order hives, sec-
tions, etc., and expect them by re-
turn train.

Boom the bees in every possible
way now, by feeding, etc.. so Hint
the first of June will find the hives
literally " running over " with bees.
Never mind honey just jet, but get
the bees, and let them "do the rest."

It is of no use to put on a lot of
honey sections over the brood-cham-

96

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

ber to conduct the heat away as soon
as fruit blossoms as it will only re-
sult in loss to the bees, and no gain
in surplus honey. Before giving ex-
tra room on top, be sure that the
brood-frames are all occupied.

After all, about the best way to
get the wax out of the old combs is
mash them up in cold weather, soak
them a day or two, and then boil the
mass with plenty of water. To sepa-
rate the wax from refuse, scoop all
into a strong burlap sack and press
out all the wax possible. Repeat the
pressing as long as any wax remains.
The refuse will be good kindling
when day, to start the fire with. —
C. H. Dibbern, in Western Plowman.

LITERARY ITEMS,

An article that will attract consid-
erable attention in religious circles is
"The Christian Endeavor Movement"
in the June New England Magazine.
It is written by the Rev, Francis E.
Clark, Amos R. Wells, and John
Willis Baer, three of the most active
leaders and workers in the organiza-
tion. It is fully illustrated with por-
traits of eastern and western presi-
dents and workers.

The famous revolutionist, Karl
Blind, the friend and associate of
Mazzini and Garibaldi, has written
for the June number of the North
Ameaican Review an article on "Mod-
ern Revolutions and Their Results,"
into which he woven many personal
reminscences.

Maxim, the inventor of the Maxim
gun, one of the greatest of American
inventors, explains in the June Cos-

mopolitan how it is possible to build
without further discussion a flying
machine which will travel through
the air at the rate of 100 miles an
hour; this without the aid of aDy gas-

The complete novel in Lippincott,s
Magazine for June, "John Gray; a
Kentucky Tale of the Olden Time,"
is by James Lane Allen, who gives
his readers a tender historical picture
of the region named, singularly apart
from anything written against a Ken-
tucky background heretofore, yet
brimming with local knowledge, and
rivalling in its exquisite sympathy
and touch all that the author has be-
fore produced. The peaceful theme
of the tale, under Mr Allen's own
marked originality of handling, only
serves to enhance the interest of the
story.

One of the most interesting arti-
cles in the number is Prof. John
Bach McMaster's historical sketch of
The Struggle for the West.

Hon. John James Ingalls contrib-
utes an article on the West, entitled
"Westward the Course of Empire
takes its Way," bearing the impress
of the ex-Senator's powerful style.

A powerfully written story, entit-
led "The Little Death," which is a
mysterious tale of Ex-Governor
Adams, of Colorado, a convict and
the ex- Warden of the State prison
The account is circumstantial and
claims to absolutely true. It is as
analytical as DeQuincey's celebrated
confessions, as exciting as a Gaboriau
novel and as exact £as a legal docu-
ment. It will be read all over the
country. Ten cents secures the June
issus of The Great Divide, of Denver,
Colo., in which it appears.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

JULY, 1892.

ISO. 7.

Foul Brood — Its Cause.

BY C. J. ROBINS! IN.

" The foul brood question, its ori-
gin," as discussed in your leafier for
June, while not perhaps correct in all
that was set forth by its author, is in
its most important part true in fact.
No question is or ever has been raised
over the cause of the so-called foul
brood, appearing occasionally in col-
onies by reason of the virus having
been trasferred from infected colo-
nies. Such is the order of nature.
' A little leaven leaveneth the whole
lump " The query in the case is, where-
of cometh the "leaven?" It is sup-
posed by those who base their conclu-
sions on mere suppositions that foul
brood was in the beginning a distinct
creation — a foul destroyer, and cre-
ated for no other end or purpose by
Him who designed all His works for
good in His wisdom. Reason, under-
thought and reflection calls to mind
that all terrestrial matter is subject to
change, thus changing the character
of various matter and things. By
reason of the organic changes through
the action of the so-called fermenta-
tion, all flesh the moment vitality
ceases to exist therein begins to change
its properties, and under certain con-

ditions passes through distinct changes
by way of evolution. Everybody is
cognizant of the action of fruit juice
that contains saccharine matter when
kept in a warm temperature. If ox-
ygen (air) be not perfectly excluded'
as in perfect canning of fruit, fer-
mentation sets in, evolving in the
first stage wine, which is a composi-
tion chiefly of water, acid and alco-
hol. This stage is called vinous fer-
mentation. In case fermentation
is allowed to proceed to the second
stage an acid (vinegar) is evolved.

All cooks know that yeast may be
generated by various mixtures, such
as potato flour, milk and sugar, and
after yeast has fermented a little of
the leaven is of such vitality that it
can convert any amount of starchy or
saccharine matter into changed ele-
ments. In like manner bee brood
while in its chrysalis state is pecul-
iarly subject to fermentation.

The brood in its early stages be-
comes chilled or starved — dead mat-
ter, which inevitably undergoes a
change or changes of elements. Now
in case certain conditions are present
at the time or soon after the death,
a rapid or active fermentation of the
brood - matter takes place, which

98

THE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER.

evolves yeast-like virus, which is
known as foul brood. Thus it will
be seen that the fermentation of dead
brood under certain conditions gen-
erates yeasty matter, sucu as may re-
produce itself if in contact with mat-
ter like that from which the yeast or
virus was generated. In brief , brood
dies in a colony of bees, the weather
comes on warm, so that the bees
maintain a high temperature in
the hive, thus favoring active fer-
mentation, and the fermentation pro-
ceeds to generate a yeasty virus,
which like yeast is porous, any of
which if lodged in brood-matter will
reproduce rapidly until the whole is
affected. It does not often occur that
the fermentation is produced in i\wA
brood in such a way as to prove the
development of spores. Hence many
bee-keepers have seen dead brood,
but saw no foul brood. Editor Root
says that he has had lots of chilled
brood, and is sure none ever turned
into foul brood. He says he has had
the disease in his apiary, and he has
failed to give its origin, further than
to say "Its catching."

It is well known that putrifying
human bodies develop deadly virus
spores, which, if lodged on, or get
into a person, death results therefrom,
called blood poisoning. Even spores
are sometimes generated by fermenta-
tive irritation in an individual, that
produces his or her death.

The foregoing is no theory. I
learned the facts from past experi-
ments, and will be happy to answer
inquiries or criticism.

Richfield, N. Y.

In selecting hives, by all means buy
those having standard size frames.

A Movable Honey House.

BY A. N. DRAPER.

Why not ? I move my apiaries to
get the different honey flows from
the different plants. The conven-
ience of a readily movable honey
house can hardly be overestimated.
I have two of them. The second one
I made is a little the larger one ; a
little heavier, stronger and more
roomy. It is constructed as follows:

(/ret two pieces of 2x4 7 feet 8£
inches long lor the end pieces of the
floor; six pieces of 2x4 7 feet ()}
inches long for the middle cross-
pieces of the floor; two pieces of 2x4
13 feet 84; hiclies long for the side
pieces of the floor. The end pieces
are let into the end of the side pieces,
six middle cross pieces nailed at the
proper places within the two" side
pieces, making a frame to nail the
floor on of the size of 7 feet 10} inches
wide by 13 feet 8} inches long, I
also put in lour pieces of 1 inch by
four for braces, two at each end, to
hold the frame perfectly square. I
proceed to cover this with the best
white pine flooring. I nail it well.
Next get out six pieces of 2x4 for
the two sides of the building, 13 feet
8} inches. Cut out a block two inches
square at each end, so that it will
leave a notch for the pieces corre-
sponding to these, in ihe two ends of
the building, to rest in.

The wide side of the 2x4 will be
perpendicular, and the notches on the
side pieces, when in the building,
will be on the lower edge. For the
end pieces the notches will be on
the upper side. With a spirit level I
level up my floor, which is now in
one solid piece. 1 made mine on my

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER

99

barn floor, as I have a door large
enough in the barn to carry it gut
through. As the pitch of the roof
is all one way it will be necessary to
make it to have one side two feet
higher than the other. I made the
upper, or rather the wider side first.
The lower side is six feet in height.
The upper side is eight feet. To get
the side just right, 1 place ray 2x4 for
the lower sill of the high side on the
floor of the honey house with the edge
of the sill flush with one edge of the
floor, and tack it there slightly, so as
to hold it in place until the side is
completed. Now, parallel to this sill,
exactly even with it, and two feet and
eight and three-fourths inches from the
outer edge,I place another 2x4. Then I
place another 2x4 seven feet ten and
three-quarters inches from the outer
edge of the first 2x4 to the outer or
upper edge of it, Before fastening
this 2x4 to the floor it must have its
upper edge beveled off to conform to
the roof. Now I cover this with best
white pine flooring, the same as the
roof, at the ends of the 2x4s. The
flooring must project seven-eighths of
an inch to receive the ends of the
building. As the boards are to be
cut eight feet long for the side, it will
allow the flooring to project one inch
over the lower edge of the lower sill
and one-quarter of an inch above the
upper 2x4. This allows room for the
bevel at the upper edge to conform to
the roof. The lower side is made in
a similar manner, only it is to be two
feet lower, and the 2x4 will project
the beveled edge beyond the upper
edge of the siding, to conform to the
roof. The ends of the building are
made in a similar manner. Only the
pitch of the roof is allowed for and

th'> top end of the flooring is cut off
square and flush with the upper edge
of the upper 2\4. At the lower end
the flooring or siding must project
the same as the sides. When com-
pleted these ends are seven feet eleven
and three-quarter inches high at the
upper end and three feet at the lower
end, and is seven feet ten and a quar-
ter inches in width. I have my door
in one end. ■ It is 2 feet llAxtl feet
4h inches. Tins lets ray large "Stan-
ley 4-frame Extractor" pass easily,
and is also very convenient for car-
rying in full hives of honey. At the
opposite end I have a window of one
sash 8x10 glass, and two of them on
each side. These sash set on top of
the middle 2x4, and have a run fixed
so that they can be shoved to one side
when it is desired to have them open.
When moving the house they are
taken out. I have wire cloth over
the openings on the outside, with bee-
escapes at each window. I tried a
wire-cloth door, but it is not desira-
ble, The Porter escape is not a suc-
cess used on the window of a honey
house. For the roof get out three
2x4s thirteen feet eleven inches long.
A block three and a half inches long
is to be cut out of each end of the
lower edge of these 2x4s, leaving a
shoulder to project three and a half
inches and two inches square of the
upper side next to the roof. Get out
two pieces of 1 inch by 2, seven feet
eight inches long. Place the three
2x4s on the floor of the honey house,
even and parallel with the two out-
side ones, seven feet eight inches
from outside to outside, and the mid-
dle one three feet nine and a half
inches from the lower one. These
2\4s are to set up on the lower edge,

100

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

so that the longest edge of them will
be up. Now nail on the pieces of
1x2s across the ends of the projections
on the 2x4s flush with the upper
edge of the 2 x4s. Now cover it with
the white pine flooring, eight feet nine
inches long. It will project over the
lower 2x4s six inches, over the upper
one seven inches. It wants to pro-
ject at least half an inch over and be
nailed to the strip 1x2 across the ends
of the projections on the 2x4s. This
is to strengthen the roof while hand-
ling and hauling it, and to give a
good place to take hold of it. Notches
are cut into the upper edges of the
ends of the building two inches deep
and two inches wide, and at right
angles with the face of the pitch of
the roof, at the proper places to re-
ceive the projections on the ends of
the 2x4s. The lower notch is two
inches from the edge of the end of
the building, or just far enough in so
that the 2x4 on the upper edge of the
lower side will not strike it when in
place. Now in order to hold the build-
ing together when set up, get at the
hardware store four light angle or
corner irons. Mine are of iron, only
3-16 in thickness, f- inch in width,
and each end is 2f inches long.

And I have sixteen little bolts one-
quarter by three and a half inches
long. I believe everything is com-
plete now, ready to set up. I use
one of my straw wagons to haul it
where I want it.

It will take three men to load it
and place it in position, I first load
the roof on the wagon. It will rest
on the bows over the hind wheels of
the wagon , and on the cross piece in
front. I have a little stay that I
place on the rails of the rack near the

middle of the wagon to make the roof
rest solid so that it does not spring
too much in the middle. Next I
place the lower side of the building
flat on top of the roof, with the inside
face down. Then the two ends, one
on the front the other on the back end
of the wagon, so that both lay flat.
Then the high side on top of the ends,
and the floor on top. If I am going
to an out apiary I place on top my
Stanley Extractor the capping can and
all the other necessary tools, together
with a lot of blocks and short boards
for a foundation to set up my house.
I also take four 2x6 pieces to set the
floor on ; also a spirit level.

The first thing to do is to make a
foundation perfectly level, or the
house won't come together right, The
2x6 are to be twelve feet long. The
two outside ones are to be placed eight
feet apart, parallel and even ; the
other two the proper places between.
I now have the floor placed on this
foundation, and try it with the level
and get it right, by placing blocks un-
der the 2x6s. I next get the high
side in place. The lower sill will rest
on the edge of the floor, and the sid-
ing will project one inch below the
surface of the floor. One man will
hold this while the other two get one
of the ends of the building into place,
where it is quickly secured with one
of the angle irons on the inside. The
bolts are shoved in from the outsides.
It is bolted through the middle 2x4s
two feet and eleven inches above the
floor. Now the other end is quickly
got into place aud bolted. Then the
lower side is put into place and bolted.
If there are places that don't draw up
properly we drive it up with a ham-
mer and nail it slightly with six-

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

101

penny wire nails. Now Ave raise the
roof directly from the wagon, which
stands on the lower side of the build-
ing, with the upper edge of the roof
next to the building. It is slid up to
place with very little trouble by stand-
ing on the wagon. When it gets to
the proper place the projections on
the ends of the rafters will drop into
the notches, making the building per-
fectly bee-tight.

It takes from fifteen to twenty min-
utes to take it down and load it, and
about the same time to unload it and
put it into position. I moved it five
times last summer. I intend to have
a pane of glass taken out this spring,
and replace it with a piece of tin with
stove pipe hole, so I can warm it up
as a shop to do my queen rearing
work a la Mr. Doolittle. Last Spring
I used it for an asparagus packing
house, as I was short of room. I have
since built a new house for that pur-
pose, and will not need it there. The
other smaller one I have at an out-
apiary stored full of empty combs,
hives and supers. For extracting
honey there can be nothing better,
as they can be placed wherever want-
ed. One thing I forgot. In driving
the flooring together for the roof all
of the joints must be well leaded. To
do this I mix a very little oil with
white lead and daub it onto the tongue
and into the grooves thick.

Upper Alton, III.

Selecting a Location.

by M. n in: witt.
In selecting a location I would say
to the beginner to get a good one,
where fruit and flowers abound, and
where white clover and linden or
basswood are found. Almost any-

where within the United States will
be good. One thing I would say:
Don't go where there are already too
many bee-keepers, for several reasons.
First, if you should have Italians,
you don't want to have your queens
fertilized by impure drones ; second,
The pasturage may not be sufficient
to support more bees; third, Older
bee-keepers may think you are tread-
ing on their toes, and it may lead to
unpleasant feelings and a disastrous
competition. A territory of three or
four miles all alone is quite a luxury
and a good place if you intend keep-
ing bees for profit. Use sawdust un-
der and around the hives to prevent
the springing up of grass to the annoy-
ance of the bees Some use sand or
gravel for the same object, with suc-
cess,

A timber range is very desirable,
for a large portion of their honey and
pollen they gather from timber and
shrubs. Many good localities are
found in valleys near rivers or stream-
lets, where linden, sumac, maple, wil-
low and cottonwood and other trees,
shrubs and vines that yield honey and
pollen abound. The bees should be
near the house, or where they can be
heard when they swarm. They should
be so located that the north and west
winds will not strike them — where
they can have a warm, calm place to
alight. A hedge, high board fence,
or building on the north and west are
a protection against the strong winds
which destroy very many laboring
bees in the spring, when one bee is
worth as much as a dozen in the lat-
ter part of summer, as they are then
much needed to care for the brood
and help keep it warm. If, in April,
the day has been rather warm and

102

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

the evening cool and windy, hundreds
of bees may be found on the ground
in front of the hive, perhaps loaded
with pollen, but exhausted from the
flight and chilled with cold. As they
approach the hive they relax their
exertions, and a light whiff of wind
dashes them to the ground, from which
they are unable to arise, and before
the sun could warm them up the next
morning they will be dead. If you
have no shade for your bees, it would
be best to plant fruit trees among
them. These would not only supply
them with pollen and honey in bloom-
ing time, but it would make accept-
able shade in hot summer days. An-
other thing is apparent, the fruit
would be a remuneration. The bees
would fructify the trees and make
them to bear plentifully, while in re-
turn the trees would afford to the
bees that shade which they so much
require, from the burning rays of the
sun. My apiary is located in a val-
ley, and 1 am thus sheltered from the
north and west winds, and the bees
have it down hill when coming home
with their loads. There are thou-
sands of the basswood trees, poplar,
sumac, maple, etc., all around my
apiary on both sides of the hills or
mountains.

Sang Run, 31 d.

Eight inches is a very convenient
height to set hives. It makes them
much easier to manipulate, and one
does not get a backache from continu-
ally bending over so far. The grass in
your bee yard should be kept closely
cut, and hives look better if set
on light stands made for the pur-
pose.

The W. T. Falconer Men'f'g
Co., Jamestown, N. Y. Gentlemen —
1 inclose 50 cents herewith for the
Bee-Keeper. While there is con-
siderable said in the Bee-Keeper
and other journals for the benefit of
beginners, there are some essential
things left unmentioned, and by giv-
ing my recent experience some of the
points may be noticed. The first ad-
vice I would give is, don't believe
half that is published in bee journals,
or books, until by experience you
know the ideas to be correct. Before
the war of the rebellion I kept bees
quite extensively in box hives. Dur-
ing my absence of three years, which
I served in the army, my apiary be-
came defunct. Since then, until two
years ago, I had nothing' to do with
bees. I then purchased three colo-
nies of a neighbor, in box hives, in-
tending to get a start from them and
get into frame hives, so that I could
manipulate at pleasure. I made four
hives, calculating that from what I
knew of bees I would get a swarm or
two from each of the old ones, and
one from the first swarm, and in the
meantime 1 could be making hives as
fast as I would need them. For the
first four hives I made the frames to
hang across the hive, and they were
flat top frames. In due time I had a
colony in each of the hives, and soon
found that my frame hive was no
good, from the fact that the comb was
made across the frames, tying them

1 H Jl A M ERICA N BEE- KEEP Ell .

103

together. Here I was in a pretty fix ;
no lieiter than box hives. By this
time I had Four more hives ready for
the frame?, s - I concluded that as the
bees were inclined to make their
comb from front to rear of the other
hives I would make the frames in
these four lengthwise of the hive and
with V-topped tops. Still after get-
ting a colony in each of them I found
that they were still tied together more
or less. None of the eight, were any
better than box hives for manipula-
tion.

During the Fall I had one of the
old box hives robbed, which I entirely
lost; bees, honey and all. It seems
that during that season there was no
end of swarming, and every few days
I would have a swarm, and as my ob-
ject was then to increase, I hived each
one, thinking that perhaps most of
them might put in stores sufficient to
keep them through the winter. The
first swarm that came out gave me 45
pounds surplus honey. The others
gave me none. That Fall, after ex-
amining them thoroughly I packed
away nine colonies that I thought
would winter. I lost one colony, and
thus ended my first season,

In all bee-journals and books of
modern times I fail to see anything
to warn beginners against the build-
ing of burr comb abross the frames.
Something is said about comb guides,
foundation, etc., but no place have I
seen this. The bees will build across
the frames unless you give them a
guide of some kind. My last year's
experience convinces me that the only
proper guide is a full sheet of found-
ation.

One year ago this Spring I com-
menced with eight colonies in hives

no better than box hives for manipu-
lation. This way of doing -business
did not suit me at all, and I made up
my mind that I would have my bees
in hives that I could manipulate, or
go out of the bee business. The lat-
ter course I did not intend to take, so
the first thing I did was to transfer
the two old colonies and see how it
would work. As I had read that the
Heddon plan was very good, I con-
cluded to try it ; so at apple blossom
time an expert in the manipulation of
bees was in the neighborhood for the
purpose of transferring some colonies
for a neighbor, so I went up to see the
performance and engaged him to
transfer my swarms, which he did.
The result was, two days afterwards
I had for my two strong colonies, each
of which would have given a good
strong swarm in a short time, one
light colony of about a quart of bees,
that is now, after feeding through the
month of April, a very weak swarm.

So much for following Heddon, a6
published in A. B. C. in Bee Culture.

The swarms that were transferred
for my neighbor came out about the
same as mine.

I think the moving of the old col-
onies quite a distance from the old
stands is a mistake. The reason why
I think so will be given later on. The
A. B. C. says : " Place a hive with
frames filled with foundation on the
old hive, making all tight between
the hives, and after a while they will
all go up in the top." So I thought
if there was no better way I would
fall back on that, but made up my
mind to put my own brain to work,
and during the remainder of the sum-
mer experimented. I put on a hive
with frames of full sheets of founda-

104

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

tiuu , and as soon as I found the queen
in the upper hive and laying, to set
the upper hive on the stand in place
of the lower one, which I moved off
to a distance, thinking there might be
a queen cell in the lower hive, and
that it would be all right. So I put
hives on five, one of which was a Sim-
plicity tnat I purchased a year ago,
and four of them were those of my
own make, which, by the way, if they
were the same leugth as your Dove-
tailed hive I would prefer to any other
hive I have, and I have some Dove-
tailed hives of your own manufacture.
The result was, that in three of the
hives they worked into the top hives,
and in the other two they did not.
The first two hives in which I noticed
the queen at work I set on the stands,
but set the lower hive at a distance.
I lost both the lower colonies. The
three, which I divided after having
lost the first two, I did not move to a
distance, but moved the lower hive suf-
ficient to set the upper hive where the
lower one was. Both came out all
right. Now why lose the first two?
Either the moving to a distance, which
I think was the reason, or not moving
soon enough after the queen had
taken possession of the upper store
was the cause of the loss.

Bees did nothing here last year,
either in increase or honey. Three-
fifths of the bees put into winter
quarters last fall are dead this spring.
One of my neighbors who had in the
fall nine swarms now has two. Two
who had five now have two each. An-
other who had quite a number now
has three left. Another a few miles
distant who had sixty swarms now
has ten. I passed an apiary the other
day, about seven miles from here,

consisting of some fifty hives. I
stopped to examine it and found the
owner. Upon inquiry I found that he
had in the fall forty-three colonies,
and there was not a dozen bees flying
about when I was there. The owner
stated that he did not know how many
he had lost, but thought it was about
thirty.

In reading the articles to the Bee-
Keeper, noticing how well bees are
doing in some localities, and some
other things that are not as bees are
are with us, then glancing at the bot-
tom and finding that the article is
from Missouri, Virginia, Maryland, or
some of the states south of us, while
we have from our climate something
about "Box vs. Frames," and some-
thing in regard to foundation, etc.,
but not enough in regard to what is
best to do for the safety of bees in our
latitude. From what I read I have
come to the conclusion that people do
not know one-half as much about bees
as they think.

I noticed a piece from some writer
that granulated sugar is not the kind
to make syrup for bees. Why not?
He says because it will granulate.
Root says 20 pounds of sugar to one
gallon of water is just right. So fol-
lowing his theory to feed this spring,
I took my sugaring-off pan and put it
on the stove and put in a gallon of
boiling water and then put in seven-
teen pounds of granulated sugar, and
according to Root, stirred it until it
came to a boil and took it off. As
soon a.- it was cold enough I put it
into glass cans and tied pieces of
cheese cloth over the top and turned
them bottom up on the. frames to feed
towards night. The next afternoon
I examined them and found that each

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

105

■can was from one-quarter to one-third
full of hard crystalized sugar. So hard
that it could not he broken without
breaking the can. I afterwards found
that fifteen pounds of sugar to the
gallon was just right. The result last
year leaves rne with ample supplies for
the coming season. I am starting this
spring with six colonies, which I have
saved by feeding through April.
Yours, <fec. ,

Gilbert G. Prey.
Eagle Village, N. Y., May 23, 1892.

Editor American Bee-Keep kk :
Dear Sir : — I will send you a few lines
from this part of Iowa. You want
bee-keepers to tell you how they win-
ter bees. I am a new beginner in this
business. I winter my bees on the
summer stands with protection on the
north. 1 do not put any packing
around them at all. I leave the su-
pers ou. My hives are the old Langs-
troth pattern with telescope covers,
nine frames, my own make. They
hold 24 and 28 sections each. I never
lost any bees from cold weather. I
lost three colonies this spring from
lack of stores. Two late swarms from
last year and one old colony. One
.came out on February 25 and went
into another hive, and one died in
April, and the old colony came out
on the 29th day of May and went into
another hive. I looked in the hive
and it was full of little black ants. I
had been feeding the bees sugar.

The prospects for a good honey
crop are good here now. There is a
£;o<>d deal of white clover that is be-
ginning to bloom. Raspberries and
blackberries are in full bloom, and no
swarms yet and no prospects of any
soon. The bees are all working; like

Turks. 1 don't know anything about
requeening. I feed sugar syrup over
the brood frames.

Yours, &c,

H. T. Latiirop.
Willard, la., June 11, 1892.

Editor American Bee-Keeper :
Dear Sir: — In the June number of the
Bee-Keeper I notice that John F.
Gates seems to think that foul brood
is caused by the Extractor. This is
not always the case. There is no ex-
tractor in this country, and foul brood
is everywhere. I have never known
of it here since I began keeping bees
in 1885, until this spring. All my
bees now have it (fifteen colonies) and
all my neighbors' bees, as far as I
have examined, are afflicted with it
more or less. I have my bees in chaff
hives, and do not think the brood has
been chilled. Is anyone positive that
chilled brood causes foul brood? I
once spread the brood nest so much
that one frame of brood became
chilled, but I had no foul brood. Per-
haps it was not chilled enough, but it
was just before winter. I do not know
what causes foul brood, and would
like to know who does.

Here is a plan to fas.cn comb guides
in brood frames. Plane a three-
eighths inch board smooth on edges.
Have it two inches wide and as long
as a comb guide. Have your founda-
tion warm enough, and lav it on the.
comb guide. Dip the edge of the
board in cold water, press the founda-
tion on the comb guide, and there it
will stay. Of course you must fix the
board so the frame lies flat and will
not move out of place.

Yours, &c,

.1 E. Hershberger.

Grantville, Mel, June 12, 1892.

106

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Editor American Bee- Keeper:
Dear Sir: — Not having noticed any-
thing in your journal from this sec-
tion, and noting your request for let-
lers from your readers, accounts for
this epistle.

The loss of bees in this section has
been very heavy this spring, mainly
caused by going into winter quarters
last fall short of stores and deficient
bees, caused by a drouth last season,
and also by the very backward spring
we have had. It was necessary to
feed bees in this section until June 1,
and now, although white clover is in
bloom, they are barely making a liv-
ing. Brood rearing is progressing
nicely, however, and, singulai to say,
I never saw more drones at this sea-
son. If this can be taken as an indi-
cation of swarming, the prospects are,
bee-keepers will have plenty of work.

I noticed your article in regard to
Jacob T. Timpe. I received a nice
queen from him last spring, but if he
is not doing what is right Iad.nire you
for jutting your readers on their
guard against him. There are many
reliable breeders, both north and
south, who have been in the business
and who have advertised in our jour-
nals for years, and while their prices
may be a little higher perhaps than
some of the new queen breeders, who
spread themselves by way of a bis;
advertisement in our journals each
springj it should be impressed on new
recruits in out industry that they will
receive more satisfaction, and in the
end save more money, by patronizing
one ( f the old established breeders.
Not that all our new queen breeders
are dishoi.e t, for \\ know that many
of them are not ; but it is best not to,
patronize a breeder simply because he
quotes queens at a cheap price. Cheap
queens as a rule prove very costly in
the end. Yours truly,

W. D. Ball.'

Stieator, III, June 8, 1892.

In the spring when the green gits back in
the trees,
And the sun comes out and stays,
And yer boots pulls on with a good, tight
squeeze,
And you think of yer barefoot days ;
When you ort to work and you want to not,

And you and yer wife agrees
It's time to spade up the garden lot —
When the green gits back in the trees —
Well, work is the best of my ideas
When the green, you know, gets back in
the trees.

When the green gits back in the trees, and
bees ,
Is a-buzzin' aroun' again,
In that kind of a lazy, " go as you please "

Old gait they hum roun' in ;
When the ground's all bald where the hay-
rick stood,
And the crick's riz, and the breeze
Coaxes the bloom in the old dogwood,
And the given gits back in the trees —
I like, as I say, in such scenes as these,
The time when the green gets back in the
trees.

When the whole tail feathers o' wintertime
Is all pulled out and gone,

And the sap it thaws and begins to climb,
And the sweat it startes out on

A feller's forrerd, a silting down
At the old spring on his knees —

I kind o' like, jes' a loaferin' roun'

When the green gits back in the tiees —
Jes' apotterin' roun' as I — durn — pleased
When the green, you know, gits back in
the trees.

— James Whitcomb Riley.

Sul tseriptions to the American Bee-
Keeper can besjin at any time.

'I HE AMERICAN BEEKEEl'tR.

107

COMB FOUNDATION AND ITS DSE.

Foundation is not a new invention,
yet there are many people who have
handled bees for years who have but
little idea of its use ; and some do not
even know what it is. As I remarked
in a former article foundation is sim-
plv beeswax made into sheets of the
proper thickness, with the imprint of
the cells in them. The wax is first
cleansed from all impurities and then
made into sheets for the imprints of
the cells. These are made by run-
ning the sheets between rollers
which are manufactured for the pur-
pose. A foundation machine looks
very much like a clothes-wringer, but,
of course, the rollers are made of metal.

Some of the advantages growing out
of using foundation are the following:
first it enables the bee-keeper to secure
straight and even combs, which is no
small item in manipulating a movable-
frame hive. It prevents the building of
so much drone comb, the imprints are
the size for worker cells, and the bees
finish out most of the cells as they are
started in the foundation. Every bee-
keeper who has studied the subject
carefully knows that it is a great ad-
vantage to regulate the number of
drones. The greatest benefit, howev-
er, is in the saving of honey. Wax
is secreted by a number of glands
found in the lower part of the bee's
abdomen. Every farmer knows that
it takes a good supply of nourishing
food to produce plenty of rich milk,
which is secreted by the milk glands.
So a bee must v'at plenty of rich food
to secrete an abundance of wax. Es-
timates as to the amount of honey con-
sumed to produce a pound of wax vary
from ten to twenty pounds. Now, a
pound of what is known as heavy brood

foundation costs from -15 to 48 cents,
depending on the quantity bought.
Ten pounds of section honey is worth,
at a low estimate, $1.25, so that there
is a gain of at least 75 cents. But if
we take the average estimate of honey,
fifteen pounds, and the price at 15
cents per pound, which is not high for
good honey in any market, we have a
very much larger gain. In these es-
timates Ave have made no reckoning
of the time lost by the bees that secrete
the wax, or of the honey that may go
to waste, during a rapid flow, because
the bees have no combs ready in which
to store it.

It takes time to secrete wax and
build combs, but it does not take a
strong colony of bees long to draw out
a number of sheets of comb founda-
tion. Foundation is generally as val-
uable, if not more so, in the sections
as in the brood chamber. In fact, as
we have remarked before, it will not
pay any one to use sections who does
not use foundation. The bees will fre-
quently not go to work in the sections
unless they have foundation in them.
If they do enter them without found-
ation,they are sure to build their combs
crooked. Some use what bee-keepers
call "starters" while others use full
sheets of foundation. That is, they
fasten the foundation to the top of the
sections and cut the sheets large
enough to fill them. Starters are
made any size from one an inch square
to one filling half the section. Foun-
dation for the brood frames comes
cut in sheets to fit the frames. Foun-
dation for sections, which should be as
thin as possible, comes in sheets cut
about four inches1 wide and such a
length ^as suits the convience of the
dealer or manufacturer. These sheets

108

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

may be cut into the desired shape by
the consumer with the point of a sharp
knife. If the knife is warmed slight-
ly, it will cut the wax much better.
To fasten the foundation on the
frames or the sections, lay the sheet
flat down on the wood, letting the edge
rest at the point where it is to be fast-
ened. Press it down closely with the
finger, and then rub it with a piece
of blunt iron, like a screwdriver. If
the screwdriver is first dipped in some
warm honey, it will not stick to the
foundation. Do not get the honey
on the wood or else the foundation
will not stick. If the iron is kept
warm, this will prevent it from stick-
ing to the wax. Rub briskly until
every part of the edge of the found-
ation adheres closely to the wood.
After the foundation is fastened bend
it down so that it will hang perpendic-
ular in the frame or section. Of
-course the foundation should be fast-
ened to the center, so that the comb
will be drawn out an equal distance
■on both sides.

There are a number of machines for
fastening foundation, especially in the
sections, one of which is very simple
and cheap. The Parker foundation
fastener costs only 25 cents or -40 cents
by mail, and may be had of any dealer
in bee-keepers' supplies. However,
this article is written in the interest
of those who have but few bees and
know but little about the machinery
used in the industry, and they will,
no doubt, find the method suggested
above best suited to their wants and
experience . — Kansas Fanner.

POKCING BEES INTO SECTIONS.

Next to the wintering problem in
importance is that of obtaining the

largest amount of comb honey in the
most saleable form. Extracted honey
is comparatively easy to obtain, as
while so doing swarming is kept large-
ly under control ; but when working
for comb honey, we find great diffi-
culty in urging the bees into sections,
and also in controlling swarming, by
reason of such indifference or real
mulishness, as we may reasonably call
it. No matter how little room we
give in the brood chambers, or in how
enticing a manner we may fix up the
sections, the bees won't go "up-stairs,"
bnt instead will stick to the lower story
till they fill it to overflowing, and then
loaf outside the hive in cluster, or re-
duce the hive to a minimum by ex-
cessive swarming. Of the many ways
given as yet to the public, none are
found really sure or practical. At
times and in some seasons everything
is lovely enough, but this is the excep-
tion. What we want, is a rule. The
reversible craze, either with shingle
frames and sections, or at wholesale
by turning the hive body upside down,
frames, crates and all, is somewhat
largely advocated just now, but the
great working majority of the frater-
nity want a method that is tolerably
sure, and what is of more importance
still inexpensive. If in order to gain
twenty-five per cent, more profits in
receipts it is required to expend fifty
per cent, more for appliances, it is easy
to see that the result as a whole is a
"nix." 'This matter is one that I have
given some attention during the last
five or six years, and the result is that
I have hit upon a plan that can be used
without any frame hive, and that has
so far produced unvarying results I
have found by this plan the bees are
not at all disinclined to occupy sections

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

109

as soon as they are placed upon the
frames, and that they continue to oc-
cupy them as long as the honey flow
lasts.

This method too, is one that is in
strict accordance with bee-law, and
and not only theoretically correct,
but practically so, in its workings in
the apiary, and I am so well satisfied
that it is worthy of being tried on a
large scale, and in various different
localities, that I give it to the public,
even at the risk of being accused of
"belittling the intelligence of the
masses." I use the " Simplicity L
hive" with seven-eighth inch wide
top bars, but as 1 said above my j)lan
can be used with any frame hive.

In early spring when I make my
first examination for the purpose of
ascertaining the condition of the col-
onies, and in aiding them in their
"spring cleaning" I extract all the
frames in the broob-chamber, shave
the combs cleanly to exactly seven-
eighths inch in width, and then re-
place them in the hive just bee-space
apart. I feed enough for the wants
of the bees and brood, aud to stimu-
late the queen to full activity. When
the honey season fairly opens I put
on sections and find that they are at
once occupied and tilled, and that
this continuesduring the whole honey
harvest. If room enough is given in
the brood-chamber for the queen and
in the surplus department for the
honey, there is no more inclination to
swarm than is found when extracted
honey is being worked for. It is nec-
essary, however, to watch the combs
a lttle to* see that |they are evenly
built out on each side, and the spaces
between them are just right, viz :
scant three-eighth inch or a large one-

quarter inch. When the honey sea-
son is over, I remove the sections and
a frame or two, spread the combs
apart and then feed up for winter.

The rationale of the above plan is
this: It is a well known fact that
bees dislike to store honey in shallow
cells, and they will not, when they can
find deep ones; it is also a fact equal-
ly well known that they under no
circumstances seal up brood in cells
any deeper than regulation depth viz:
those built in combs just seven-eighths
inch thick. This being so it follows
theoretically, logically and in practice
also, that if we allow no comb thicker
than seven-eighths inch in the brood-
chamber, and give ample room for
surplus for the bees to build cells of
any desired depth, that the brood
chamber will be used for nothing but
brood. And the rule (and an iupera-
tive rule it is too), is that surplus is
stored above the brood — we find it
is placed only in the sections, and so
continued to be placed so long as no
deep cells are allowed in the brood
chamber.

The reversing idea is far from being
new, and I myself have for years
made occasional use of it when desir-
ous of having single frame or section
fully filled. I thought well of it at
first, and for the single purpose of oc-
casional use J still think well of it,
but for general use in my own apiary
1 find it too expensive, both in extra
cost of appliances and in the extra
time and labor involved. The meth-
od I have outlined above will be seen
at once to involve no extra expense,
and as a thorough examination should
be made of every colony in the spring,
no real extra amount of time need be
given, as what extra time is required

110

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

to extract and shave the combs down
to an exact width is more than made
up in the ease with winch they can be
manipulated afterward.

Mass.

J. E. Pond Jr.

LOCATION OF AN APIARY,

1 am aware that it is not the season
of the year to discuss this subject, as
those who have intended to begin bee-
keeping this season have already well
started in the business, but perhaps
some are thinking of starting by pur-
chasing new swarms, and to those I
wish to say something on the subject.
It is generally a poor location for bee-
keeping where bees have to go east-
ward for pasturage, as nine out of ten
of our thunder showers are from the
west, and where the bees are out a
mile and the storm comes up quickly,
it usually meets the heavily laden
workers before they reach the hive
and many are. thus destroyed. In fact
I do not doubt but that in some in-
stances where bees go eastward for
their supplies and are caught in a
storm late in the day which is followed
by a cold evening and night and the
next day be wet, but one-eighth, if not
more, of the bees in a colony perish.

I think this is one of the greatest
of all drawbacks in beedveeping, and
one which is scarcely ever taken into
account. What I have suggested may
account for the reasons why some lo-
calities are worthless for beekdceep-
ing. An apiarist in such a locality
may do his best and never succeed;
his colonies are all the time weak in
spite of breeding, while another, two
or three miles away, meets with great
success, his bees getting warning of
the storm half a mile the start of it,
and only have to sail in with the wind
with perfect ease.

N. Y. J. H. Andre.

Ttie American lee-geeper,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cents a year in advance : 2 copies, 85 cents i 3

copies, SI. 2u ; all to be sent to one i>ostolfice.

Postage prepaid in the 17 S and Canada; lOcents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING KATES:

15 cents per line. 9 words; $2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount for 2 insertions: 7 per cent for .'i in-
sertions; 10 per cent./f or 6 insertions ; 20 pei cent.
for 12 insertions.

Advertisements must lie received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THK AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,

Falconer, N, Y.

^"Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue, cross will know that their subscripiton

expires with tins number We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

*f3r.\ blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

It seems almost a certainty that a
hard winter or spring, one during which
there are heavy losses of bees, is fol-
lowed by an abundant honey flowing
season. The previous two winters
have been mild in most parts of the
country, and consequently almost all
bee-keepers brought their stocks
through with little if any loss, and
when the time for the expected honey
flow was at hand everybody was ready
with large and numerous swarms to
gather it, but it came not.

Clover the past two years has in
most localities yielded but sparingly
of its nectar. Last winter was not
severe, bu1 the past spring has been
one of the most disastrous ones for
bee-keepers that we have had in a
number of seasons: Many colonies
went into winter quarters with insuf-
ficient stores, and unless fed artifi-
cially, the long, wet spring was too
much for them, and many dwindled
away and died out completely, while
hardly any came out strong and in
good condition.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEERER.

Ill

The season 1ms now advanced suf-
ficiently to cause us to feel confident
it will be an exceptionally good one
for those who have the bees to gather
the honey. Taking it altogether, the
season has proven to be a very dis-
couraging one for supply dealers and
queen breeders, as the heavy death
rate among bees has decreased the
demand very largely.

Last month we stated that Bro.
Hutchinson had about concluded to
drop the special topic feature of the
Review. In this we were in error, as
" W. '/'■" writes ns that he does not
intend to drop it excepting occasion-
ally in order to use up miscellaneous
articles which accumulate.

The management of bees the pres-
ent month will be about the same as
for June. As little smoke should be
used as possible in taking off surplus
sections, and the best time to do this
is just at evening. Grive the bees
good ventilation and shade the hives
from the hot sun. Be careful that
all swarms have a queen when the
flow ceases, and if it should cease
look out for robbers. Have your
stocks strong and ready for the fall
flow.

Our agent, W. M. Gerrish, East
Nottingham, N. 11. can supply our
customers in his vicinity with our
goods at regular catalogue prices. If
you need anything in a hurry send to
him for it.

"We have received many commend-
ations since our June issue for expos-
ing the nefarious practices of Jacob
T. Timpe. Friend A. I. Root in
Gleanings says, •• While it is a hard
thing to do we feel sine that the Bee-
Keeper has done right." There are
two or three others who will not
escape unless they make some effort
to "square" themselves very soon.

nent bee-keeper each issue. A new
cover has recently been added, and
it is otherwise considerably improved.

This is about the time that a great
many advertisers withdraw their ad-
vertisements until next season, think-
ing thereby to save considerable ex-
pense but it is poor economy. Our
experience is that an ad. which ap-
pears every month in the year pays
several times better than one which
runs only during the busy season.

Mr. E. O. Young, formerly fore-
man of the D. A. .Jones Co., and for
the past eight months superintendent
of our factory has resigned his
position and returned to Canada.

The season has been late and fully
three weeks behind the usual time,
and will probably last proportionately
later.

We will be glad to have you renew
your subscription promptly when it
expires, and also get a friend to sub-
scribe with you. We will send the
two subscriptions for only 85c.

"We hope our friends will send in
articles or letters for publication on
matters of general importance.

Our British cousins have had an
excellent honey season.

It is etimated that at least one half
the bees have died throughout the
country the past spring and winter.

The cull sections which we are offering at
|1 50 a thousand are giving good satisfac-
tion, as is shown by the large number of or-
ders we are receiving for them. We still
have quite a quantity of 4\ x 4;'f x 1 15-16
andlj, and if you want any you ought to
send at once.

The Canadian Bee Journal now pub-
lishes an engraving of some promi-

Has ping's Lightning Bee Escape. —
We wish to call special attention to this
escape. We will supply these at the same
price as the Porter escape, — 20 cents each
or ij5^.2o per dozen. Although we have not
given them a trial, we believe that they will
do all that the inventor claims for them.

112

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The Apiarian Exhibit.

Below we give special rules and in-
formation governing the exhibit of
bees, honey, beeswax and appliances;
also an illustration of the proposed
glass cases in which the exhibit will
be made at the World's Columbian
Exposition :

1. Exhibits of Honey will be class-
ified as follows :

Class 1. Clover and bass wood.

Class 2. White sage.

Class 3. Buckwheat,

Class 4. All light honey, other
than enumerated in Classes 1 and 2.

Class 5. All dark honey, other
than enumerated in Class 3.

2. Exhibits of Honey produced in
1892, or earlier, must be in place on
or before April 20, 180:)

•'!. Exhibits of Honey in Classes 1,
2 and 4, produced during 1893, will

cases to be borne by the different
State Commissions, Bee-Keeper's As-
sociations, or by individual exhibitors,
in proportion to the number of lineal
feet occupied. These cases will be-
come the property of such exhibitors
at the close of the Exposition. The
following is an illustration of the
proposed cases.

The dimensions are as follows:

Height of base 18 inches, width of

case 5 feet, height of case above base

(inside measure) 6 feet ; total 8 feet..

The case has sliding doors on both sides,

6. Individual exhibits of comb
honey will be limited to 100 pounds,
and may be made in any manner the
exhibitor may desire , subject to the ap-
proval of theChief of the Department.

7. Individual exhibits of extracted
honey must be made in glass, and
must not exceed 50 pounds.

be received between July 15th and
August loth; and in Classes 3 and 5 be-
tween August 15 and Sept. 1, 1893.

4. The following information should
accompany each exhibit:

a. Kind of Honey.

b. Name of Exhibitor.

c. Place where produced.

d. Character of soil in locality
where produced.

e. Variety of bee.

f. Name of plant from which
honey was produced.

g. Yield per colony.

h. Average price of product at
nearest home market.

5. In order to secure a uniform,
handsome and economical installation
of honey and beeswax, the Exposition
will erect suitable glass cases, of a
uniform character, in which such ex-
hibits will be made ; the cost of these

8. Individual exhibits of beeswax
must not exceed 50 pounds, and should
be prepared in such a manner as will
add to the attractiveness of the exhibit.

9. Exhibits of primitive and mod-
ern appliances used in bee culture,
both in this countiy and abroad, will
be recieved, subject to the approval of
the Chief of the Department.

10. Special arrangements will be
made by the Chief of the Department
for a limited exhibit of bees.

11. Collections of honey-producing
plants, suitably mounted and labeled,
and will be accepted if satisfactory to
the Chief of the Department.

12. The right is reserved to add to,
amend or interpret the above rules.

Signed, W. I. Buchanan.

Chief, Department of Agriculture.

Approved, George R. Davis,

Director-General.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

fVUGUST, 1892.

NO. 8.

Successful Bee-Keeping.

BY .INO. F. KATES.

We should commence in midsum-
mer to prepare our bees for the next
year's harvest. Those who work for
fall honey to sell, do so at the expense
of June honey the next season. Fall
honey is always good to 'winter bees
on, but is poor honey to sell, and. our
markets would be better, and our bees
stronger, if we would allow our bees
to keep their dark honey. Why sell
fall honey when the bees will need it
the next spring? Without it you will
have to feed them in the spring to
make it up ; and even then perhaps
some will starve. Why be. so sparing
of bee stores as to always to be just
enough behind not to be able to have
your dish right side up when the honey
flow begins, and then charge your
failure to a bad season? It is the
thorough workman that always gets
over hard places. He is not always
dependent on exact conditions in or-
der to obtain success, but by good
judgment often succeeds where others
fail. We can hope for good seasons,
but should always be prepared for a
poor one ; and by this preparation
we will always be on the safe side.
How then can we obtain honey in

poor seasons? Simply by keeping
more bees than our hives will hold.
And reason shows that the honey case
must hold what the hive can't ; and
then when a few honey days come
they are ready ; and the result is we
obtain a case of honey from each hive,
during that flow. Then we should
see that we are ready for the next
flow. Flowers don't secrete honey
continually, even in our best seasons.
There should be no colonies iu an
apiary to tinker. Don't waste your
time that way. We should pet no
colony, hoping it may do something
before the season is over. I want my
bees to do something now ; and if
one alone wont, then four united in
one will. With strong colonies I have
obtained good results, while my
neighbors called it a bad season. My
location is what I call only medium
for honey ; but the place or the sea-
son is not the thing. It's keeping in
shape to catch those few honey days
that makes a good season out of a
poor one. The majority of us can get
honey in good season, but we should
study to get honey in poor seasons.
Twenty years ago eminent bee-keep-
ers told us many things in their
books that we read, but understood

114

THE AM Eli 1 CA N BEE KEEPER .

not, Now some of these same old
principles are being advocated as
something new. It is strange that we
so many times pass by homely truths
that would carry us to success, in or-
der to adopt something strange and
peculiar that is almost sure to cause
us Joss. Over twenty years ago I
read in a bee book that the whole se-
cret of success iii bee keeping is to
keep all colonies very strong in num-
bers, that they may be able to gather
honey rapidly when it is abundant in
the fields, for a weak colony will
barely live where a strong one will
rapidly increase in stores. I have
proved this truth in the school of ex-
perience and paid for it dearly. We
can't expect our bees to work in their
honey cases just to please us, when
they have room to cluster below. In
a weak colony there is not enough
bees to build comb if they do go in
their cases, and they know it, We
can't raise bees at special times or
occasions for special honey crops, etc.
You can't get them raised at the right
time. It's a peculiar job to practice,
though it may look well on paper.
Some cog is sure to slip if you try it.
Keep them raised all the time. Then
you have time by the forelock, and
no fussing, but all is straight busi-
ness, and not quite so much mixed
science. The science of simplicity is
what we want for our young bee-keep-
ero. They like that kind and will
take interest in it. We are running
away from the boys. Teach them
some simple rules and keep these
rules before them. Beginners dis-
like complex matters. Teach them
that if one man can't lift a load let an-
other help him. If one colony is too
weak to store surplus put another

with it. Keep doing so till you con-
quer, which you are sure to do. If
your horses are not fed until they are
hitched to their load they won't draw
it. x I have not got as many colonies
now as I had last spring. 1 have
been pushing them down, not up. I
keep the hives full of bees in poor
years and keep down increase. It is
poor policy to try to get both honey
and increase "1' shocks in a poor sea-
son. One or the other, and some-
times both, will prove a failure. Fall
is the tim° to begin to make our bees
strong. A colony of bees should not
have less than 45 pounds of sealed
honey if wintered in-doors, and 60
pound.- is little enough is wintered on
■summer stands. Some will think this
too much, but that don't change the
facts. Certainly we can get our bees
through with less stores, but I am
•speaking of first-class wintering. Sec-
ond-class wintering comes cheaper,
.and you obtain cheap results. Com-
pare a cheap wintered horse with
£l well wintered one. On the amount
of natural stores bees have in the fall
depends your success the following
season- Feed is the life of all living
creatures. Scrimp them and they
will pay you hack in like maimer.
" Like begets like." Its a law of na-
ture that can't be changed. Our
brood chambers are too small to hold
enough stores for winter. Leave a
full case of sealed honey on your
bees and you will not regret it.
Ovid, Erie Co., Pa,

CSubbing List.

We will send the American Bee-Keeper with

the—

American Bee Journal,
Aniericiin Apiculturist,
Bee-Keeper's Review,
Canadian Bee Journal,
Gleanings in Bee Culture,

PUB. PRCE. BOTH.

(81 00) SI 35

( 75) 1 15

(1 00) 1 35

( 75) 1 15

(1 00) 1 35

I HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER

115

Pollen for Brood Rearing—
The Necessity for It, Etc.

BY M. H. DE WITT.

I am very much interested about
pollen, because bees cannot rear brood
without it, or some substitute for it.
Bees kept in confinement and hn\ on
pure sugar and pure water, will thrive
aid void little or no excrement ; but
as soon as pollen, or food containing
the pollen element are given to them
their bodies will become distended,
and instead of a transparent fluid
they will void a fluid of a darkish
tint, which soil their hives and emit
quite an unpleasant smell. I once
wintered a fair colony of bees on
stores of pure sugar syrup, and when
they flew in the spring there were no
perceptible spots on the white snow or
their hives. They had no pollen, and
of course no brood rearing could go
on without it. A few years ago I
made some experiments with bees by
keeping them confined and forcing
them to try to rear brood without
pollen. The result was as follows:
Eggs were seen layed in the cells, but
none of them hatched into larva?.
Then I gave them access to corn meal,
and they began to load up and pack
it to their hives, and brood rearing
began in earnest, and every egg would
hatch into larva1. It has been known
for many years that in the springtime
bees will make use of the flour or
meal of many kinds of grain, and
many bee-keepers feed bushels of it
every season. The favorite grain
seems to be rye ; and as the bees are
apt to fall into it and sometimes get
so covered as to perish, I have been
in the habit of having the rye ground
up with an equal quantity of oats. A

great many plans have been devised
from time to time in the various bee
journals for feeding it without waste;
but after all our experiments, a heap
of meal on the ground is about as sat-
isfactory as any way. Of course it
should be protected from rain ; and
as there is usually much high wind
in the spring, which is, to say the
least, very annoying to the bees, it is
well to have it in a spot sheltered as
much as possible, always aiming to
to give them as much sunshine as
possible.

Sang Run, Md.

Feeding.

BY STANTON E. HITCHCOCK.

One of the most important periods
a beginner in bee culture has to pass
through is in feeding at the right
time. Many beginners make a mis-
take in supposing that a colony will
make honey enough for wintering be-
fore working in sections, and will
place them in winter quarters without
closely examining them.

Colonies should be fed in the fall,
even if you think they have stores
enough, for it is safest to be sure. I
would advise feeding colonies and let
them fill the comb, leaving room for
brood. They will come out in a bet-
ter condition if they have liberal
stores than if a small allowance is
given them.

About every bee-keeper has differ-
ent methods of feeding, but for me
the more simple the feeder the
better as long as it auswers the pur-
pose. My method of feeding is by
using an inverted paper box on the
frames. The bees soon find where the
nectar comes from, and will quickly
place it in the comb, I fed fifteen

116

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

colonies iu the above way last spring,
arid it was a success. Just at night-
fall I consider the best time for feed-,
ing, as it will not detain the bees
from the field, and when fed in the
middle of the day the bees will stay
inside the hive. About half a pound
is all that should be fed at a time.

The following rule I used in mak-
ing food. For five pounds granu-
lated sugar use one quart of warm
water, stirring slowly while it melts
over a slow fire. When cool it will
be ready for use. ,

The bees need constant care in feed-
ing time as well as later on.

Troy, Vt

im - «i ■ i» ^-

Honesty Is the Best Policy.

BY S. P. RODDY.

It is encouraging indeed to see that
the American Bee-Keeper is the
first journal to courageously denounce
dishonesty and wrongdoing. Unfair
dealing has done more to discourage
the inexperienced and retard the in-
dustry of bee culture than all the un-
successful seasons put together. When
we have a bee journal as outspoken
in regard to truth and honesty, and
to the interest of the people whose in-
dustry it advocates, as the Farm
Journal, then will apiculture thrive.

Many of our new bee journals, it
seems, are little more than high col-
ored exaggerated advertising sheets.
They give us a " Crash in Prices ;"
"Leather Colored Queens;" "Bees
for Business," etc. All have the
" best strain," as they claim, and all
have the cheapest. In the White
Mountain Apiarist a few months ago
the Punics were lauded so highly and
the demand seemed to be so great that
none could be got at less than $40 to

$100 each, unless ordered the previ-
ous year. That 75 to 100 per day
was all the apiary could furnish.

Of glowing, exaggerated ads. we
are disposed to grow suspicious, since
they convey to the practical mind
one of two things: either that the
goods are inferior and will uot sell
upon their own merits, or that the
firm advertising does not retain cus-
tom beyond the first order. In bee
business, as in all else, " Honesty is
the best policy." Advertise merely
what you have. Give your price, and
when you sell goods make it a point
never to fall short of your advertis-
ing, but rather do a little better, and
be assured your goods will merit trade
in the future.

By the strict observance of this
method we feel grateful and thank-
ful, too, in stating that we now enjoy
the patronage of many customers
whom we furnished with queens six-
teen years ago. Even the inexperi-
enced will be swindled but once by
the same shark. But, even this, as
before stated, has discouraged many
beginners of limited means. The
presses, however, have a power for
good and evil, and it is hoped that
honesty and fair dealing will ever be
demanded by journals devoted to bee
culture. Then there will be an in-
ducement for those to begin and a
reason to continue. When we are
sure that the press is ever advocating
our interest by the standard of hon-
esty and fair dealing to all, when we
are certain that there is no risk in
buying or selling, then we will not
hesitate to order what we need nor
fear to fail in the future. Then, too,
will our favorite industry, Apicul-
ture, keep pace with the times.

Mt. St. Marys, Md.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

117

^^.^m

JIBliliiMiiP

CLIPPING QUEENS ADVISABLE.

Editor American Bbe-Keepek :
Gentlemen : — The subject of clipping
the wings, of fertile queens is one of
many that a beginner has to decide
on. Thinking that an article on this
subject might help somebody that
has perhaps laid awake nights trying
to make a decision, I will relate my
experience.

My first experience dates back to
the first Italian colony that I pur-
chased. This colony had a clipped
queen. They swarmed out and were
hived in the usual way. It proved
to be such an advantage over the other
way that I have adopted it. The best
time to do the clipping is in the fore
part of May or during apple blossom
time. This season of the year they
are generally not crowded with bees,
so the queen can easily be found.
My manner of procedure is as follows :

Some pleasant day in May, early
part, about ten o'clock, when there
will be a large number of bees in the
fields, have your smoker in good blast
and a pair of scissor- in good order.
It is an advantage to have a string
attached to the scissope and to your
own person, then you can throw them
down and you will have them when
you want them and where you can
find them readily. Now step to the
side of the colony whose queen you
wish to cut, blow a fewpuffsof smoke
into the hive, and after giving them
time to get pretty well filled, take off

the cover and then look the top of
the hive over to see how far out the
cluster extends. From the outside of
the cluster take a frame, being care-
ful not to jar the frame or hive. Ex-
amine this comb carefully. If you
notice eggs in the comb the chances
are that the queen is on this comb.
If not, examine the combs on which
they are clustered, setting the first
comb outside the hive, and this will
give you more room. When the
queen is found catch her by the wing,
lift her from the comb, lean this
against the hive, and with your other
hand take the queen by the legs; then
with your hand that is handiest (for
this is the one that should always
catch the queen by the wings) clip
her wings off, either one or both. She
is easier found when both are clipped.
After the wing or wings are clipped
drop her down among the bees with a
puff of smoke following her. In ex-
treme cases, if dropped down among
them without the smoke the bees
might sting her, thinking she was a
robber.

One of the advantages of clipping
is that no first swarms go to the woods,
which does away with climbing trees,
sawing oil' limbs, etc.
Yours, etc.,

B. G. Higley,

Hartford, X. Y., May 21, 1892.

Editor American Bee-Keeper :
Dear Sir: — I wish to ask if any o(
your subscribers know of any remedy
for preventing poisoning by propolis.
The propolis poisons my fingers so I
have to use gloves. I have
using buckskin gloves this spring and
the propolis has worked thi
them and has caused my fingers to be

118

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

very sore, and the poisoning is very
slow to heal. My bees came through
winter and spring in the best of shape;
all have east good large swarms. We
have 67 colonies.

Yours truly,

E. P. Cranston.

Keating, Ore.

[We have never personally known
of a case of poisoning from propolis,
and do not know of any remedy for
it. If any of our readers have had
any experience in propolis poisoning
we shall be glad to hear from them.]
— Ed.

W. T. Falconer Mfg Co., Dear
Sirs: You no doubt remember the
many articles published in Gleanings,
pro and con, on closed end bars and
fixed distances. The matter has been
finally settled in favor of the V-shap-
ed Hoff nan end bar which is the best
up to date that has ever appeared. I
do not wish to review this discussion,
but I think I have improved the
Hoffman frame so much that it de-
serves a place among modern bee ap-
pliances. 1 send you sample end bar
by this mail; you will readily see its
many advantages, a few of which are
as follows :

The end bar is made substantially
as Root makes tne V Hoffman end
bar, except the part that isV'd, which
is entirely removed, and a saw cut
made, into which a piece of zinc is
slipped. Now this zinc bears against
the projecting edge of the neighbor-
ing end bar, and forms a bearing that
is clean, and one that the bees will
propolsze very little, and if a little
propolis is placed along the bearing,
when the wedge is placed behind the
follower it will cause the zinc to cut

through the propolis and bear on the
wood, thereby always preserving the
distance between the frames. The
top bar is made 1 l-16xg, which prac-
tically does away wish burr combs,
etc. The end of same can be extend-
ed, as shown on page 21, Root's Cata-
logue for September, 1891, where a
tin rabbet is used. In this case the
end bar should be made \ inch shorter
than in Root's Catalogue, and the up-
per staple used as per sample I send

you.

If the nail (see sample) is used for
a bearing on the rabbet, then the up-
per staple can be dispensed with, the
nail being driven in just far enough
to preserve the space between the end
bar and end of hive (£ inch). This
space is preserved at bottom of frame
by a staple also, and the greatest good
to lie obtatined from this staple is the
prevention of smashing of bees be-
tween end bar and hive, thereby fa-
cilitating the rapid handling of
frames.

I like the nail better for a bearing
on the rabbet than the extended top
bar, as it is cheaper, t the tin rabbet
being dispensed with, > propolis is re-
duced to a minimum, and less bees
will be killed.

The great objection to the V'd Hoff-
man frame is the placing of propolis
in the corner where the V touches the
adjoining frame, which will cause the
corner of the V'd side to split off un-
ery hard wood. '

1 have over 100 frames with the
metal bearing, and it surely is a great
pleasure to handle these, compared
with any other frame. I can handle
a hive full of these frames— that is
so full of bees they will pour over the
sides, and fill the rabbets full, and by

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEP hit.

119

using just a very little care as I drop
the nail on the rabbet, rarely kill a
bee, :iik1 I can do if in one-third the
time it takes to handle any other
frame. Another great advantage is,
you hardly ever need to separate the
frames with a pry, unless they are
very full of honey and brood.

The only objection to this frame is,
the metal might come in contact with
the honey -knife ; but this is so insig-
nificant that it practically amounts to
nothing, as I have thoroughly tested
this matter ; and if the knife should
strike it, the zinc is soft and would
not hurt it.

I claim the originality of the use of
zinc and staple as per sample, but yet
they may be old ideas, but they are
new to me. I call it Minnick's metal
bearing Hoffman frame, and all I ask
is due credit if I deserve it.

I would like very much to see you
place it in your catalogue, and am
very sure it would have a very large
sale. Yours truly,

James A. Minnick.

Anderson, 1ml., July 19, If

The W. T. Falconek Man'f'g
Co.: Gentlemen: — 1 suppose you
think I have not done my duty for
not writing to you sooner, but this is
my last week of school and it has
kept me pretty bi

My be - hav< got through all i
and i am very thankful too. They
are roaring li ythiug. Papa

is going through th< bees know clip-
ping -the queen's wings, separating
the brood, and tea ;hing them the
"Fireman's Dance" — theoutside here
and the inside there, and making
swarms where they are ready. He
swarms them for those who want him

to do so, and charges 50 cents a swarm
for doing so.

Papa got stung by a queen bee for
the first time in his life the other day,
and he has kept bees ever since he
was fifteen, and now he is forty-five
years old. The way he got stung was
this : He was carrying a queen around
by one wing, and it got its spunk up
and stung him.

I must tell you how papa gets the
bees off the windows. Ha opens the
doors and darkens the windows
on the outside with a blanket,
and they will be gone before you
can get into the house again. Some
people kill them with brooms; Ithink
that is wicked.

I must close now, L'or to-morrow is
Decoration Day, and I must get up
early, as I go in the procession.

Yours truly, OllIE JONES.

Cortland, Q, May 29, 1

Ed. Am, Bee-Keeper, Dear Sir :
My bees are doing pretty good work,
gathering honey and swarming rapid-
ly. 1 had ten spring count,
and have increased to twenty-three
colonies. I purchased on.' new . warm,

I think this will be one of our \

old-fashioned honey years. Basswood

has had very good bloom. The blos-

have been m aty than I

them for several years past.

The Italian Sees are rather bad
swarmers. It seems as if they would
.-warm when there is no need of it.
They frequently swam
the hive is not full enough
make them work in the upper story.
On that account 1 like the blacks bet-
ter. Yours, &c,

John Slaubaugh.

Eglan, W, Va,July, 1892,

120

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

BEES OF GREAT VALUE TO FRUIT AND SEED
GROW ERS.

At last fruit-growers and bee-keep-
ers are getting into right relations
with each other. The numerous dis-
cussions which have taken place re-
garding the value of bees as fertiliz-
ers of fruit blossoms and of those blos-
soms of plants grown for their seeds,
and regarding the alleged damage to
fruit by bees, have led to close obser-
vation and careful experimentation,
the results of which show that the
interests of these two classes of pro-
ducers conflict in but trifling respects
— that, in fact, bee-keepers and fruit-
growers are of great help to each oth-
er, and even indispensable if each is
to obtain the best results in his work.

Bee keepers have never complained
but that the growing of fruit in the
vicinity of their apiaries was a great
benefit to their interests, hence their
position has been merely a defensive
one, the battle waxing warm only
when poisonous substances were set
out to kill the bees, or when fruit-
growers sprayed their orchards with
poisonous insecticides during the time
the trees were in blossom, or again
when efforts were made to secure by
legislation the removal of bees from a
certain locality as nuisances. Fruit-
growers iii'st relented when close
vation ami exp< riment showed
that wasps bit open tender fruits,
birds peeked them, they cracked un-
der the action of sun and rains, and

hail sometimes cut them, the bees ■
only coming in to save the wasting
juices of the injured fruit. The wide
publicity given to the results of the
experiments made under the direction
of the United States entomologist and
published in the report of the Com-
missioner of Agriculture for 1885,
have no doubt contributed much to
secure this change among fruit-growT-
ers.

Hut now it would appear that the
bees have not only been vindicated,
but that in the future fruit-growers
are likely to be generally regarded as
more indebted to bee-keepers than
the latter are to the fruit-growers, for
the amount of honey the bees secure
from fruit blossoms comes far short of
equalling in value that part of the
fruit crop which many accurate ob-
servations and experiments indicate
is due to the complete cross-ferliliza-
of the blossoms by bees. The obser-
vations and researches of Hildebrand,
Muller, Delpino, Darwin and others,
as well as the excellent explanation
of the subject in Cheshire's recent
work, have gone far to prove how
greatly blossoms depend upon the
agency of bees for their fertilization,
and hence for the production of seeds
and fruits.

The facts they have brought for-
ward are gradually becoming more
widely known among fruit-growers
and bee-keepers, and additional evi-
dence accumulates. A case illustrat-
ing very clearly the value of bees in
in an orchard has recently come to
the notice of the writer, and its au-
thenticity is confirmed by correspond-
ence with the parties named, who are
gentlemen of long and extensive ex-

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

121

perience in fruit-growing, recognized
in their locality as being authorities,
particularly in regard to cherry cul-
ture. The facts are these: For sev-
eral yeais the cherry crop of Vaca
Valley, in Solano county, Cal., has not
been good, although it was formerly
quite sure. The partial or complete
failures have been attributed to north
winds, chilling rains, and similar cli-
matic conditions, but in the minds of
Messrs. Bassford, of Cherry Glen,
these causes did not sufficiently ac-
count for all the cases of failure.

These gentlemen recollected that
formerly when the cherry crops were
good wild bees were very plentiful
an the valley, and heuce thought per-
haps the lack of fruit since most of
the bees had disappeared, might be
due to imperfect distribution of the
pollen of the blossoms. To test the
matter they placed, therefore, several
hives of bees in their orchard in 1890.
The result was striking, for the Bass-
ford orchard bore a good crop of cher-
ries, while other growers in the val-
ley who had no bees found their erors
entire or partial failures. This year,
(1891,) Messrs. Bassford had some
sixty-five hives of bees in their or-
chard, and Mr. H. A. Bassford writes
to the Entomologist: " Our crop was
good this season, and we attribute it
to the bees." And he adds further:
"Since we have been keeping bees
our cherry crop has been much larger
than formerly, while those orchards
nearest us, five miles from here, where
no bees are kept, have produced but
light crops."

The Yacaville Enterprise said last-
spring when referring to the result of
the experiment of 1890:

"Other orchardists are watching this

enterprise with great interest, and
may conclude that to succeed in cher-
ry culture a bee-hive and a cherry
orchard must be planted side by side;,
And now that the result of 1891 is
known, "others," so Mr. Bassford
writes, "who have cherry orchards in
the valley are procuring bees to affect
the fertilization of their blossoms." —

METHODS IN BEE KEEPING — WHICH IS
RIttHT ?

The bee-keeper who reads more than
one bee paper, or follows more than
one text-book on ayiculture, is often
compelled to ask himself the question,
" Which of the two is right, for their
advice distinctly differs?" It seems
very odd to find the very highest con-
tinental authorities quite at variance
on fundamental points, and in Amer-
ica similar diversity of opinion would
be more apparent if there were more
bee papers worth reading, but fortu-
nately or unfortunately for the Amer-
ican bee-keeper, the literature devoted
to our science worth perusal is very
scant. The only answer one can
make to the query at the head of these
lines is, to "read both sides, and de-
cide" which appears to you the most
reasonable course; try that, and so
long as it succeeds, stick to it like
Death to the proverbial dead nigger.

Is it right to have thin or thick
walls? Doctors differ, and give such
good evidence of successful wintering
that, unless one absolutely disbelieves
the statement, one must come to the
conclusion that both are right, under
different and varying conditions, sun-
posing quilts, etc., are used in suffi-
cient quantity.

Is it best to have your frames par-
allel with, or at right angles to, the

122

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

entrance? Rear! the correspondence
on this head, that crops up as regu-
larly as the doctor's bill or the tax-
collector, and you will find the evi-
dence so divided that you are driven
To decide for yourself, and be your

own jury.

Is it best to have entrances full
width or narrow; quilts porous or non-
porous; foundation, full sheets or
starters? Head the information con-
veyed in whatever bee papers you
read, and do at once what you will
have to do finally, i. e., decide for
yourself, and buy experience a bit; do
a bit of mental mastication, instead of
having the pabulum prepared by an-
other organism, having different sur-
roundings to your own.

Is it best to put a second crate or
super (either frames or sections) under
or on top of the first? Try both your-
self, and then you get teaching of the
oighest osder, for the conditions of
weather, state of stock, inflow of
honey, condition of first crate, etc.,
vary so much that no one can decide

for you.

Is i; use sections at back,

, top, or under hives, -hallow
frames or standard size for extracting ?
When you ask the question think
well on the answer before you make
any change in your hives involving
expense, and onh decide on dob
when you tire convinced of the

dom .

[s ii use hanging frames for

sections, or the usual crate, or ex-
cluder zinc or none, or plain excluder
laid ban.' on the frame tops, or with a
bee-space betv a it and top

frames7 What a lot of queries
there are, dear readers, that you must
ultimately ask yourself. Get all the

advice and assistance you can from
the query column, get our editors to
give you their best, but be c mvineed
in your own mind that the eour.-e rec-
ommended is the best according toyour
own particular surroundings, for he who
answers your query can only see part,
and can only answer according to his
lights. Heaven forbid thai 1 should
suggest that the authority is wrong I
I want you to only confirm the right
mentally, and then adopt. Even
upon Mich seemingly small matters as
distance guides, broad-shouldered
frames, or '\Y. B. (J." or metal ends,
to say nothing of remedies for foul
brood. In naphthaline, formic, sali-
cylic, or carbolic acid there is great
diversity of opinion. What is new
seems to be true but what is true very
often turns out anything but new,
therefore I conclude by answering my
own query thus: It is right to weigh
everybody in the balance of youroWD
judgment, adopt changes cautiously,
am! when a particular • suc-
ul, stick to it like wax.— R.A.M.
Grinibhaw in Be< '% Record

: TL'RE USE,

But little need aid on this sub-

o hi I he understand ihe

ssary in storing combs

so as to keep properly, and to be of

use later

All honey should be extracted and
combs placed in super- over
strong colonies to be licked off.
.id time to do this will be before
the clover yields freely. They should
In- given to ihe bees in I he evening,
and will uio-i like! idy for re-

moval next morning They can then
be placed well apart in empty hives;

1HK AMERICAN BEE KEEl'tH.

123

for instance, hives containing nine or
ten combs where the bees are at work
on them, and should have at least two
less when stored for preservation; or,
in other words, the further you leave
them apart the safer, and should not
if possible be nearer each other than
one inch.

Hives containing said comb- want
to be kept in a cool dry room, where
neither light nor air will harm them —
in fact, they are the better if the lat-
ter, but keep all doors and windows
screened, especially at night, and
should there not be hive storage
enough the construction of a rack to
place the overplus in should give the
apiarist of any ability but little
thought.

Would not advise keeping combs
with much pollen in, as moths will
breed in them more readily than in
clean comb; but suppose they should
escape destruction in that way, you
will find that after a wnile said pollen
will either ferment and protrude
the ceils or ^\ry into a crisp In either
case it is unfit for use, and when given
to the bees the little laborers will
throw out all they can, and what they
cannot remove will be waxed over to
insure the uon-destructibn of honey
Or pollen which may be afterwards
placed in such cells. By all means,
break up those combs of that nature
— wasii well in warmish water, and
render into wax, which will keep as
long and perhaps longer than you
wish. — C. B. J.

SWARMINi . ETC.

I read lately where a man said that
be could tell when a swarm would is-
sue, and this was the way: If the queen
cells were capped before six in the

morning, the swarm would issue that
day, but if they were not sealed until
later, not until the day following.
His bees must be a very different
strain from mine, or he could not tell
any thing about it. I wanted to pre-
serve all the queen cells in the hive,
from which the first swarm issued, as
the bees were line ones. The second
day alter the swarm issued I discovered
rather a small swarm clustered, and I
inferred that they were a second
swarm, following the first, which might
have peen confined to the hive on ac-
count of wet weather. After hiving
it, I went to the hive from which the
first swarm issued, and on opening it
and looking the combs over carefully ,
ascertained that no second swarm had
issued, as there was no cell from which
a young queer, had emerged, and the
cells had not been long sealed. The
swarm had issued as soon as the cells
were sealed, according to the theory
of the writer named.

Another swarm issued, and I want-
ed to preserve all cells in this also,
but on opening the hive I discovered
that there had not been one built; not
even started. Italian bees often
swarm, without starting queen cells,
if the weather is very warm and
honey plentiful, as I have repeatedly
ascertained when I opened the hive
to remove the cells.

The books say that the ninth day
after the first swarm issues is the time
when a set cm may be ex]

ed. It tal or a que< a

to mature fron hi .gg ; three days
in th< ix day.- in the larval

state, and seven days into the trans-
formation of the chrysalis or win
state. The time is not absolutely
fixed, as it varies according to warmth

124

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

. or care bestowed upon it by the bees.
As a second swarm does not issue un-
til it has a queen to accompany it, it
does not follow that it will have a
queen on the ninth day from the is-
suing of the first. The first swarm of
the season in our apairy had sealed
queen cells when it left the hive, and
might have cast a second on the ninth
day if I had not divided it up into
nuclei. The swarm following it had
not even started cells, and so could
snot have had a queen to accompany
the swarm.

QUEENS TN THE NUCLEI.

To-day is the ninth from the issu-
ing of the first swarm, and we exam-
ined the nuclei to see if the queens
had emerged from the cells. I found
that one queen was out, but that she
had not had time to destroy another
ripe one, which I removed with the
point of a sharp knife, aud gave to a
queenless colony. I simply slipped
the cell between the combs, covered it
up warm and left it. When I exam-
ined the nuclei I gave to each a comb
of eggs and larvae, but without bees,
for it of course came from a hive con-
taining a laying queen, and they
might sting the young one. The nu-
clei now contain- egg^ and larva', and
the bees will not desert it when the
queen goes out on her bridal tour.
When the young queens are fertile
anb laying I can introduce them to
other colonies, or build them up into
strong new ones. If I remove these
queens from the neuclei, I will let
them start queen cells and then give
them a mature cell. If the cell was
given as soon as the queen was re-
moved, the bees would destroy it un-
less covered with a protector, but after

they have cells of their own. they re-
spect it, and when the young queen
appears among them they seem to
think that it is one of their own.

INTRODUCING VIRGIN QUEENS.

Introducing virgin queens to full
colonies that have been but a short
time queenless is no easy matter.
Some persons introduce them in .the
same way as fertile ones, by caging
them. When a young queen crawls
out of a cell the bees do not appear
to notice her, regarding her as a help-
less baby, but if she was three or four
hours old they would attack her with
murderous intent. Therefore, when
you introduce a virgin queen, do it
when she is young, and do not touch
her with the haucls if it can be avoid-
ed. Let her run in among the bees
unnoticed if possible. Young queens
are more apt to be received by nu-
clei than by strong colonies. — Mrs.
L. Harrison in Prairie Farmer.

HINTS TO BEGINNERS — MANAGEMENT FOR
AUGUST.

There are sections in which no hon-
ey is gathered this mouth. Still other
sections will have its largest yield
from now until frost. Take the State
of New Jersey — the largest part of
the bee-keepers there depend wholly
on the fall flow. As to our section,
we look for flow enough in the fore
part of the mouth to keep up breed-
ing, and in the latter part the golden
rod and alters commence and we get
just as much, if not more, from them
than we do from the spring flowers — :
and have only to say, if honey is plen-
tiful, continue the same treatment as
prescribed for July. Keep each hive
supplied with boxes; continue ex-
tracting aud get frames of foundation
nicely diawn out for the fall flow, es-
pecially if you are in a section where
there are quantities of buckwheat
raised, and take the sealed combs

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEhPER.

125*

away and keep for wintering. Au-
gust is a splendid time for Italianiz-
ing if you have reared queens for the
purpose, or if you intend to purchase
queens, and one very good reason is
that queens are cheaper at this season
than earlier, or even later. The
stocks are not disturbed by introduc-
ing new blood, and they go into win-
ter quarter.- with young queens and
just right to turn out good Italian
workers for next season. Have as
much brood reared this month as you
possibly can, even if you have to
feed ; hives strong with young bees
in the fall winter much better and
have more strength and vigor the next
spring. I think I can safely say that
a stock of young bees in the fall will
be worth two stocks of old bees in the
spring; they gather honey faster,
work harder, and thus their queen is
stimulated and commences to lay ear-
lier than those who were worn out when
.they went into quartexs. There is a
fair chance of a honey drought in
some part of this month. In this I
may be mistaken, but we generally
get it, and I always look and prepare
for it. However, what I intended to
say was, should the bees cease to find
honey in the fields they are apt to be
very much harder to handle, and they
rob each other like perfect little sin-
ners. I might add that should they
commence robbing it is more difficult
to prevent them than at any other
season of the year. Hence I say when
you open a hive always smoke it well
before opening, and I would say puff
a few whiffs in the entrance of hives
standing near the one to be manipu-
lated , as this has a tendency . to keep
them at home and mind their own
business. Keep all stocks strong.
If you have any weak one help it
along by giving it a frame of brood
from some stock that is able to stand
it. Keep the entrances partly closed
to prevent robbing. Leave no broken
bits of comb, or sweets of any kind,
exposed.

If box honey is placed in a cool dry
cellar, setting one or two inches apart

so as to allow a free circulation of air
around them, there will be very little
danger of hatching worms. Still they
should always be fumigated before
sending to market, for some of our
bee-keepers have had very sad experi-
ences who failed to do it. There is
no telling how the worms get into box.
honey that has not been in a hive for
weeks or even months, and they have
been all sealed and glassed ever since
taken from the hive. No, there is no
telling how, but I am "just chuck
full', of theory as to causes, and I
think there is no question but that
moth has been all through the hive
from which the boxes were taken, and
has laid her egg in these lioxes. How
the worms evade the bees is another
thing 1 cannot say — but for all that
they do — and should the weather be
very warm these eggs will hatch and
become moths, and after standing in
the store awhile will not only be un-
sightly, but unsaleable and cast aside
as ■• wormy honey." In order to fu-
migate honey sections I would say,
take them into a room that can be
tightly closed and arrange them on
strips of wood about the width of a
lath but thicker, resting the corners
of the boxes on two strips and thus
spread them all out; they can be built
up as high as you like or the quan-
tity of lioxes demands, all you want
is free circulation. Then place an
old iron kettle on a few bricks placed
on the floor under the sections ; in the
kettle throw a shovel full of live coals,
on the coals throw about one pound
of sulphur, then leave and close the
door tightly. This will kill all worms
— cannot say whether it would de-
stroy the eggs or not, but 1 doubt
it — therefore I would advise you to
fumigate them at least three times
defore sending to market, at an inter-
val of every two weeks. I would
say. as a mild suggestion to the be-
ginner, if you have Italian bees there
is little danger of the bee-moth, as
they seem, to- protect themselves from.

126

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

them very Thoroughly, and as far as
I am concerned I have no fear of the
bee moth — in fact hardly consider it
the plague some of our writers would
have us believe. But to be on the
safe side fumigate comb honey as de-
scribed, for you may have a weak
stock, or if a black stock, there is
sure to be moth-worms — for we Snd
three black stocks to one Italian
troubled with the moth-worm. — W.
B. T.

LITERARY ITEMS,

INTERESTING TO LOVERS OF MUSIC.

The July number of Brainard's
Musical World is out and contains be-
sides the usual amount of interesting
reading matter, four pieces of new
music: "Told in Song," a beautiful
ballad by Geo. Schleiffarth ; " Valse
Lente," by Schutt; "Fair Columbia
March" and "Goose Step March," all
new and pleasing pieces. Mailed
post-paid for 15 ceuts in stamps. The
World is publbhed monthly at $1.50
per year, and to enable every music
lover to examine it, the publishers
will (during July only) upon receipt
of twenty two-cent stamps, mail to
any address, the numbers for April,
May June and July, containing sev-
enteen pieces of choice music; or for
ten two-cent stamps, two numbers
will be sent. For eight two-cent
stamps they will send the "Musicians'
■Guide," a 212 page volume of musical
information. Address, The S, Brain-
ard's Sons Co., Chicago, 111.

Years and years ago our great
grandmothers carded wool and cotton
by hand, spun it into thread, and
wove the thread into cloth on a hand
loom. The wheels and looms are a
thing of the past in this section, but

in some part- of the South they still
use the spinning wheel and hand
loom. They are quaint old things,
and side by side with the new ma-
chinery of to-day the managers of the
Southern Department of the Buffalo,
N. Y., Exposition will show them in
full operation; the obi colored women
operating the cards, wheel and loom.

Starting off to a summer resort, or
for a week's vacation , or upon a tramp
with a gun, or to visit your relations
in the country, there is one compan-
ion that you will not regret taking
with you — a copy of the July Co&nio-
politan. It contains a wide range of
subjects for summer reading — twenty-
two articles, mostly illustrated. Stop
at your newsdealers and carry away a
copy of this splendidly illustrated
monthly.

The Duke of Argyll contributes to
the North American Review for A.ugust
a paper entitled "English Elections
and Home Rule." He seeks to estab-
lish in the article that the principles
of secession and the maintenance of
the union as fought out in America
are identical with the Irish question.

Professor Eiihu Thomson, the in-
ventor ami brains of the Thomson-
Houston Eiectric Company, contrib-
utes an entertaining, scientific and
thoughtful paper on " Future Elec-
trical Development," to the July New
England Magazine. He explains the
possibilities of electricity, in all the
public, and private conveniences of
life, and gives practical examples of
its application to manufactures, rapid
transit, and domestic offices, such as
cooking, ironing, heating, gardening,
raising fruit and vegetables, etc., etc.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

127

Digpisaii gee-Keeper,

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Advertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each moul h to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

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^^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with :i blue cross will know tlmt their subseripiton
expires with this number W e hope that you will
not delay in sending ■■< renewal,

*S="A bine cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

Among the correspondence will be
found a description by James Min-
inick of a new style of brood frame,
which has several good points about
it. The frame which friend Minnick
describes, and of which he sends us a
sample, is in some ways different from
any we have ever seen, but the principle
idea of using the metal strip for
spacing seems to be in use by others
than himself, as we recently received
a sample frame with metal spacer (in
place of V-groove of Hoffman frame)
from W. F. Marks. Chapinville, N.
Y. We intended to give an illustra-
tion of the frame, but did not have
time to get an engraving made before
going to press.

We have lately put in a complete
printing outfit at a cost of nearly
$3,000.00. and can now do any kind
of job printing which our customers
may ask for at the lowest prices.

Friend Alley in the July Agricul-
turist says : " I wonder what report
Brother Cowan will make on the Pu-
nic bees on his return from Africa.''
We received a communication from
Mr. ('(-wan, in which he takes occa-
sion to say : "I have returned from
Africa, and need hardly tell you I
failed to find Punic bees.'-' Of course
we do not consider that is perfectly
conclusive that Punic bees do not ex-
ist in Africa, nor does it imply that
they are an inferior race by any
means. On the contrary, while we
have not experimented with them, and
consequently cannot say from personal
knowledge, we know that there are
many favorable reports of them, and
while we think the prices asked for
them by the " Hallemshire Bee-Keep-
er" and others are very exorbitant
and absurd, we shall not be surprised
if they prove to be very desirable
bees to keep.

In many localities bee keepers are
having an "abundant honey flow, and
during this month will be harvested
a larger part of the light colored honey
for the season in the northern states.
Every one should see to it that every
colony has plenty of room for storing
the surplus. The filled sections should
be removed promptly and replaced
with empty ones, and if you are run-
ning for extracted honey do your
extracting at the proper time, being
sure the honey is well ripened before
doinc so.

This has been without exception
the most unfavorable one for bee sup-
ply manufacturers and dealers and
queen breeders that has been known
for several years. Almost every one's

128

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

bees came through the winter in very
fair condition, with comparatively
little loss, but then came the long wet
and cold spring, which resulted in an
unusual amount of spring dwindling.
Many colonies starved, and brood
rearing was so retarded that swarming
occurred in most localties fully three
weeks later than usual. Owing to
the heavy losses and the light swarm-
ing, most bee-keepers had a good stock
of supplies left on hand, so that they
found it necessary to purchase but
sparingly.

The Roots have been giving the
thick top frames a thorough trial the
past two or three years, and find that
they are perfectly clean as far as wax
is concerned, although they are soiled
more or less by propolis. They say
that the bee-keeper who has tried the
two styles of frames side by side, the
thin top bar and the thick top bar,
will surely declare that he will never
use the former again.

The Progressive Bee-Keeper thinks
Ave " never miss an opportunity to
hit one of our contemporaries a lick."
This is a very "unkind cut" from
Brother Quigley, and is really unjust-
ifiable. We never find fault unless
we have good reasons for doing so,
but when occasion requires we do not
hesitate to " call down" the offender.

Some unprincipled wretch has been
putting adulterated honey on the
market bearing the label "Muth's
California Machine-extracted Hon-
ey," although Mr. Muth (G. F.) has
never seen the honey and does not
know from whence it came. This is
some of the honey on which Prof.
Wiley based some of his reports.

About the only advice to beginners-
that we can give this month is to pro-
ceed about the same as during last
month. During the fore part of the
month in this locality the bees get
sufficient flow to keep up breeding,
and during the latter part of the fall
flowers begin to bloom— Goldenrod,-
astors, etc., and often more honey
is gathered from them than from the
spring flowers. As much brood should
be reared as possible, and now is a
good time to introduce new queens.
In case the honey flow should cease
look out for robbers. You will find
it more difficult to restrain robbing
now than at any other time should it
begin. Keep all colonies strong. This
can be done by dividing up, and it is
very desirable to have strong colo-
nies now, for your bees will then win-
ter satisfactorily.

We are quite short of articles for
publication these summer months,
and we hope our readers will send in
some articles without delay.

Owing to the very low prices of
beeswax, we have reduced the price
of foundation three cents a pound on
all kinds.

A Good Feeder.

Above we give an illustration of »
feeder recently put on the market by
W. D. Soper, Jackson, Mich. It is
made entirely of tin, and is recom-
mended by those who have used it as
an excellent entrance feeder.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

SEPTEMBER, 1892.

NO. 9.

How to Separate Swarms

when they Cluster

Together,

BY II. L. JEFFERY.

Under the above title M. H. Pewitt
on page 68, May number of the Bee-
Keeper, has described the laborious
job of pawing over two, three or more
swarms to find the queens, and then
divide them up to equal as many
colonies as you have found queens,
or in such parts as suits the apiarist.
I formerly practiced that plan myself
some fifteen years ago. but I learned
an easier way by am accident, as far
back as 1878. It happened as follows:
One day while caring for an apiary a
swrarm came out, and after it had
clustered, and while 1 was getting the
hive and stand read}' for . the bees,
along came a run-a-way swarm, and
in passing the tree on which was the
cluster the decamped swarm united
with it. and before they were quiet
another swarm came out and the
three went in together. I began to
"sweat "in contemplation of my job,
and being at a strange place (I was
caring for the bees during the owner's
absence) I did not know where to find
things quickly, so I improvised a

large hive directly under the cluster
by fastening two boards up edgewise
on the ground so that I cold hang
frames on them as in a hive. I hung
in thirty or more empty frames with
a comb in every llf'th frame, and then
knocked down the cluster. I threw
a thin cloth over the whole of them
and then attended to the hives that
had swarmed. This being about
noon, I gave them no further atten-
tion until perhaps three or four
o'clock in the afternoon, when upon
lifting the cloth I found that the bees
hail separated into swarms, and there
was very little if any mixing up of
bees from the different colonies. One
of the hives that had swarmed con-
tained pure Italian cells and they
were to be saved. Another was Hy-
brids and the other Blacks. The cir-
cumstance as it happened gave me a
chance to see how far they would
separate. I watched them closely as
a test. Since then, if two or more
swarms go together 1 never hunt up
either queen, but hive them between
two boards on the ground, and always
have the bottem e(]'j:e of the boards
raised from the ground by a half brick
or stick of wood.

130

THE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER.

1 have sometimes separated two
swarms by setting the hive on a stand
on two seven-eighth square sticks.
On top of the hive 1 lay two more
square sticks and place another hive
on them. Then two square sticks
across that and another hive on top,
making three hives high, and in an
hour or so each swarm is a separate
hive. 1 have had to try the trick so
many times that I know it has work-
ed, and I have inner seen it or known
it to fail, but I very much prefer the
two boards in place of the hive. I
then hive them by putting a hive
over each cluster, and give two or
three puffs of smoke and let them
alone till all is quiet, then set each
hive on the intended stand.

Woodbury, Conn

^ .i. ^

reeding, Swarmingj &c,

BY MRS. L. HARRISON.

In the American Bee- Keeper for
August, page 115 Stanton E. Hitch-
cock gives directions for feeding bees
which is a puzzler to me. He says:
"My method of feeding is by using
an inverted paper box on the frames. "
1 asked my partner in the stings and
sweets how it was done. He said:
' ' 1 suppose the fellow has a Heddon
hive, and he whirls it over on to the
box of feed." In Webster's diction-
ary 1 find that "inverted"' means
turned upside down, and how it can
hold syrup in that position is a mys-
tery.

It is a great pleasure for me to read
how other persons manipulate their
bees, and those who write should tell
of their methods so plainly ' • that a
way-faring man. though a fool, can-
not err therein. " In my early days

of bee-keeping I was haunted with
the fear that my bees would swarm,
run off, and that I should lose them.
In order to prevent this I thought
that 1 would swarm them artificially,
and with that end in view I looked up
1 'Artificial Swarming" in all the books
and papers that I then had. I was
very anxious to do it just right, and
when they said take frames of brood
from different hives I was puzzled to
know whether I was to take the bees
also, and could not find out by any
means that 1 then had. I suppose
the writers inferred that no one would
be so dumb as not to know that the
bees were to go along, to feed and
care for the brood, but it would have
been well to have said so.

Let us all remember the days when
we were groping in darkness and in
uncertainty, as to the best ways that
leads to success in bee-culture, and
be careful to remove all stumbling-
blocks from the road.

HONEY AND BEES.

About one-half of the colonies of
bees in this locality "passed in their
checks " before the first of June, and
the remainder that had not been fed
continually during the spring were
weak. There has not been increase
enough to fill up -the hives, where the
bees died last winter and spring. New
hives were made and painted four
years ago, and there has been no de-
mand for them, and this explains why
supply dealers have so few orders.

There has been considerable white
clover bloom, but only a few good
honey days, which were like angels
visits, few and far between, and only
a few colonies finished cases of hone}'.

Peoria, 111.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER

131

Working for Extractor
Honey,

BY II. M. liKWITT.

1 will, Mr. Editor, through, the col-
umns of your valuable paper, tell your
many readers my plan of working for
extracted honey, and how 1 keep my
colonies all strong and have them
ready for the honey harvest. As
soon in the spring as the brood-cham-
ber is tilled with brood in the lower
story I put on the upper story con-
taining ten frames with about three
inch starters of comb foundation in
them. I use the Hoffman L frames
and then 1 take out about from two
to three frames of brood from the
lower story and place it in between
the starters of foundation in the up-
per story, and 1 put full sheets of
foundation in the lower story in place
of those two or three just taken out.
This will start the bees at work in the
upper story at once, and it will also
entice the queen up in the upper
story, and she will All the remaining
eight frames in the upper story with
brood. This 1 do early in the season
before the honey harvest arrives, and
by the time that the honey harvest
arrives I have both stories filled with
brood.

Then I will put on queen excluders
to keep her out of the upper story.
That is, after I have got them as
strong as 1 want to get them, and as
fast as the}' fill the combs in the upper
story I remove them to the honey
room. After putting on the queen
excluders the brood in the upper
stories will all hatch, and the combs
will be filled with honey ready for ex-
tracting- 1 use the novice extractor

and extract the honey and return the
empty combs to the I ices to be filled
again, and in a short space of time,
if the honey Mow is good. I can ex-
tract the honey and so on until the
end of the honey harvest. I gener-
ally let the bees fill up the combs of
buckwheat and basswood honey, pol-
len, etc. .and set a large lot away for
spring feeding. 1 like to have many
combs filled with pollen to give to the
bees in early spring to start and keep
up brood rearing to its highest de-
gree. But if we do not keep a close
watch of our bees and give them
plenty of room and plenty of empty
combs they are sure to swarm.

The honey harvest has not been
very good here this season on account
of cold, wet weather early in the
spring. Locust gave us a fair crop
of fine honey, but it did not last long
and the rainy weather kept our bees
from working on it much, then the
white clover came in bloom very early
on account of so much rain, and it
continued wet so much that bees did
not get scarcely anything from that
source. Basswood gave a fair crop.
I never saw such a bloom before as
there was this season on them.

Sang Run, Md.

Wintering Bees,

BY LIZZIE S. GOODELL.

Perhaps my method of wintering
bees may be of interest to some, as it
was very successful last year ; taking
colonies through without loss and
bringing them out strong in the
spring.

All bee-keepers recognize three im-
portant factors in successful winter-
ing. 1st, Keep the bees dry. 2d,

132

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Keep them warm, and 3d, Give them
plenty of sealed honey to winter on.
I believe the first two are best obtain-
ed by an outside packing case. I put
it on about the first of October and
do not take it off until June. For
packing I use wheat chaff, pressing-
it down as hard as I can. I have
been experimenting some with the
chaff cushion and the scaled cover.
and have decided in favor of the
latter. Cushions over the bees gather
dampness in the spring. I shall not
use them next spring but will have
the bees ready for winter early in
October, when they will seal the covers
down tight. Then I will put on the
outside case and put the chaff over
the cover to the depth of from four
to six inches. My cases are four
inches higher than the hive, and I
make sure the roofs do not leak.

I am using the Dovetailed hive and
like it better every year. The first
lot I purchased of the Falconer Mfg
Co. This year I had frames and ship-
ping cases from the same firm, and
they are satisfactory in every respect.
The work is good and the lumber is
good ; two things that delight the
bee-keeper when the box of supplies
is opened. When asked where to send
for supplies I always say " Falconers. "

I also use the bee escape and think
it one of the finest things ever invent-
ed for the bee-keeper. It is nothing
but fun to take off the supers and
carry them to the honey room free
from bees.

I had seventeen colonies in the
spring and have now thirty three.
I had a number of swarms in May,
and by feeding a little after fruit
bloom they were ready to work on
Basswood.

Canastota, N. Y.

Fixed or Original Races,
Fall Workj Etc,

BY S. P. RODDY.

As to the Italian honey bee not be-
ing an original or fixed race I beg to
differ with Mr. Watkins of Califor-
nia, as given in the American Bee-
Keeper of March last

A short time ago I noticed an ar-
ticle from the German by Mr. Roese
of Wisconsin, which established the
fact that the honey bee was exten-
sively cared for as far back as the
seventh century. Twenty thousand
colonies are said to have been at that
time in the small territory of Attica,
to such a degree indeed had apicul-
ture advanced in those remote ages. We
are not definitely informed, it is true,
what race of bees was thus cared for
in that country, which was the most
learned and advanced of the then
known world. Did they cultivate the
Albino, the Punic, Carniolan, "or
bees bred for business, etc." AVe
think not. These are claimed to be
something new in our clay. Those
refined and learned people certainly
had the most superior original race of
bees, which is verified by the re-
nowned Latin poet, Virgil, as being
our present standard Italian honey
bee. It is well known that at the
foundation of the Roman Empire all
that was worth borrowing from the
Grecian code of laws of Solon — all the
arts of war, sciences, the knowledge of
Horticulture and Apiculture, in fact,
all that would in any way assist in
making Rome the mistress of the
world, was gathered into Italy by the
Romans, and here it was that Virgil,
while engaged in farming and Api-
culture a short distance from the city

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

133

of Rome, forty-seven years B. C,
wrote his pastoral poems, known as
the Georgics, the fourth of which is
entirely devoted to Apiculture. He
tells clearly and emphatically in beau-
tifully measured lines, that there
were but two races of bees, the black
and the yellow, the latter of which,
as he puts it, is "glittering and spark-
ling with rough golden spots or
bands," and this race he says is the
better, for reasons that he gives.

Thus it is evident that the Italian bee
existed in the davs of Virgil, and that
most probably the bees spoken of by
Virgil were the same bees that exist-
ed in the days of Pericles in Attica
and about the city of Ephesus; and
being brought into Italy they received
their present name from the land of
their adoption. Hence we have two
fixed races, the Italians and the
Blacks, as described hy Virgil. When
we read his beautiful lines on Api-
culture we are forced to admit that
many of his devices and ideas will
more than compare with those of the
present day. In fact, we must con-
fess that our advancement in bee cul-
ture is nothing to boast about when
compared with that of two thousand
years ago. We have done wonders, it
is true, but it is hardly proportionate to
the length of time between his days
and ours.

The fall is a splendid time to reno-
vate the apiary by feeding, etc., to
prepare it for the coming winter and
spring. Old queens not likely to sur-
vive the winter should be replaced by
choice vigorous ones to prevent de-
generation.

The fall too is an excellent time to
improve the external appearance of
the apiary by painting. Those hav-

ing the Italian or Albino bees can

paint their hives without even the

assistance of smoke, The best time

to paint is on a warm day when the

bees are busy. Proceed gently from

hive to hive, finishing always at the

entrance, above which at once stick

a strip of tissue paper to prevent the

bees from removing the paint when

they alight or run above the entrance .

The alighting boards must be omitted

until a cold day, when they can be

gone over easily without disturbing

the bees.

St. Marys, Md.

^> ■■■ ^ — -

Poor Seasons,

BY W. S. YANDRUFF.

As this is the close of another poor
season (being the third one here) I
thought an article on that subject
would be in place.

The last two or three seasons have
certainly been very discouraging ones
to the bee-keeper. It will cause some
to falter on the way, and will no doubt
cause many to give up in disgust, yet
while this is true bee-keeping will, as
it ever has done, go on and on. The
sturdy veteran, the old and tried, will
stick to their bees, and by and by
when a change comes in the season
they will reap the harvest, and those
that have faltered by the way and
given up in despair, will, when they
see the veteran reaping the harvest,
wish that they had not been so faint-
hearted. It is with bee-keeping as
with other pursuits — the business has
its draw-backs, poor seasons, etc.

The farmer has his crop failures,
his good and poor seasons, nevertheless
he that would make a success of farm-
ing does not let a poor season or two
drive him out of the business. No,

134

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

no ! He sticks the closer to business,
lays his plans for the next season all
the same. Perhaps the next season is
a failure also, yet he never loses cour-
age. By and by a change comes aucl
he has a round of good seasons and
he reaps his reward. So with the bee-
keeper. Those that hold out to the
end have their labors rewarded. The
bee-keeper that would make a success
of his business must study and profit
by these poor seasons — he must learn
to concentrate his forces and work
them to the most advantages possible
during such honey dearths, by hav-
ing his bees in the proper condition
to take advantage of every little honey
flow. These poor seasons, many times,
prove blessings in disguise to the ones
that stick to the business. The many
that get discouraged and quit the bus-
iness is that much gain to those that
remain sturdy and steadfast.
Waynesburg, Pa.

Editor American Bee-Keeper, Dear
Sir: I saw in the last issue of the
American Bee-Keeper that you are
short of articles for publication these
summer months, so thought I would
send 3rou a few lines from this part
of the country.

Bees here have clone well since the
first of June, but they were so nearly
starved when the white clover began
to bloom that it took them until the
latter part of June to get built up.

The first swarm I had come out

was on June 23d, and the last one on
July 23d, just one month later than
should have been. My bees are
working strong' now on Buckwheat
every morning until between nine
and ten o'clock, and on what we call
Rattan or Buckberry, that grows on
the creek, the balance of the day.
and they are carrying in a great deal
of pollen besides.

My hives are the story and a half
style with one super to hold twenty-
four and twenty-eight sections. They
filled them once and I took them off
and put on empty boxes with nice
starters, and the bees refused to work
in them. What is the cause? They
surely must be storing honey below.
I have some new colonies that are
very strong and work strong, but
the hives do not seem to be any
heavier now than the day when I
put them in.

Will bees build comb in brood
chamber to any extent after the first
of July ?

Is not a two-story hive best, one
that will hold about fifty-six sec-
tions, and put all the sections on at
once.

Is not fifty-six pounds a pretty
good average per colony?

I am a new beginner in the busi-
ness, and any information from older
bee-keepers will be thankfully re-
ceived. I am deeply interested in
the business, and would rather read
bee books than any other literature.
I like very much to read what others
say, 1 then know what is going on
among bees all over the country.

Yours, &c, H. T. Lathrop.

Willard, la., July 20, 1892.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

135

[We might answer your questions
in several different ways and yet not
answer them correctly , as applied to
hers in your locality.

Possibly the reason the bees will
not work in the super is because they
are not gathering sufficient honey so
that they have any to store. Fifty-
six pounds per colony is a very good
average for this locality, although
some of our colonies, have already
stored as high as seventy -five pounds.
A two story hive is in some ways de-
sirable, hut both supers should not
be put on at once. We. find the best
way is to get one super partially
filled, after which raise it and place
another under it. In this way yon
can get the bees to work in both
supers. In this localit}T a great deal
of comb is often buih in the brood
chambers after August 1st. It, how-
ever, depends upon the amount of
honey there is to be gathered. Comb
is only built when honey is being
brought in.

We are glad to hear from you, and
hope you will be successful with your
bees. — Ed.]

Editor American Bee-Keeper, Dear
Sir: I thought I would tell about my
venture in keeping bees. I have kept
bees more or less for a number of
years, but I lost them all, and during
the Summer of 1890 I purchased a
swarm in a box hive. In 1891 it
swarmed twice. Then I put them in
movable frame hives, and this Spring
in March I purchased six colonies in
box hives. X let them swarm so as
to get some in frame hives without
transferring. (I use the eight- frame
Wisconsin hive.) So this Spring I
had nine colonies. The three I had
I took out of the cellar the first week
of March to let them fly, and put
them back in the cellar again and did
not take them out for good until

April 15th. I never take my bees
out of the cellar to stay until the
willows begin to blossom. I saw
some carrying in pollen in less than
two hours after I had them on the
summer stands. I rind they do not
rob if they find some work to do as
soon as they get out.

From eight colonies I got fourteen
natural swarms and from the first
swarm one, making fifteen in all. I
sold two cotinies and united the sec-
swarms. Now I have nine old colo-
nies and nine young ones. From the
first young swarm I got 40 pounds of
clover honey in one pound sections
before they swarmed. The bees are
working now on Buckwheat in the
supers.

I find it hard to control swarming
when working for comb honey, as I had
two supers on the young swarm when
it swarmed again. I took off a full
super and put on an empty one four
days before the colony swarmed. I
think if I had put on the third super
sooner the}' would not have swarmed
at all, but I did not think they had
the sections filled so soon, but white
clover was extra good here this year.
However we had so much rain during
June and July, excepting the first two
weeks in July, that the bees could not
work.

We have had no honey dew here
this summer. Prospects are that bees
will winter well here the coming
winter. Yours, &c,

John M. Seiler.

Chauhassen, Minn., Any. 'JO, 1892,

How to Manage Bees, a 50-cent book,
just the thing tor beginners, for only 25
cents postpaid, or with the Bee-Keepee

one year for 05 cents.

136

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The W. T. Falconer M'fg Co.,
Gentlemen: Enclosed find post office
order for $8.00 for goods. My fifty
Chautauqua hives are full of bees,
and they are just booming. You will
remember that I ordered ten and then
forty afterwards. I do not have hives
enough to hold single swarms so I
double them, but I will need fifty
more next season. Last season my
best hive gave me 1 50 lbs. surplus.
My average was GO lbs to the hive.
I expect to do better than that this
season. Two swarms which were put
in one. hive July 1st gave me 60 lbs.
in three weeks in the upper story, and
the lower story full.

In my opinion there is no better
hive for comb honey than the Chau-
tauqua, and when wintering on sum-
mer stands they are just the thing.

I contract the brood next to six
frames and leave them so summer and
winter. 1 use a division board on
each side of the frames, and outside
of these two frames, one on each side
with eight sections; sixteen sections
in lower story. I have tried it that
way for three years and am well sat-
isfied with the arrangement. My
folks tell me that 1 have the bee fever
badly, and that makes me think that
I had better draw this to a close.

Yours truly, W. W. BoOROM.

Farmer, N. ¥., Aug. 1, 2892.

Editor American Bee-Keeper, Dear

Sir: I have just received a super con-
taining twenty-four pounds of honey,
the comb of which is very white but
the honey is of the color of raspber-
ries. They made it during the past
four weeks. I never saw anything
like it before and do not know what

to call it or how to account for it. It
may be a common thing, if so would
like to know from what it is taken. It
has a delicious flavor and looks very
inviting. Yours, &c. ,

E. J. Beech.

Warren, Pa., Aug. 23, 1892.

[ AYe do not know that we have ever
heard of a similar instance. The
honey gathered from raspberry bloom
is often of a pinkish color.

The comb made by the black bees
is always white no matter what ma}r
be the color of the honey. In your
letter you would infer that the honey
was of a decided reddish hue. If any
of our readers have ever known of a
similar instance would be glad to
hear from them.] — Ed.

THE USE AND ABUSE OF SMOKE IN HAND-
LING BEES. — SOME EXCELLENT HINTS.

In the first place, why do we use
smoke? If we open a hive quietly and
blow in under the edge of the enamel-
ed cloth a blast of cold smoke clown
will go all of the bees pell mell before
it. But suppose, before we get the
cover off, it slips from our grasp and
gives the hive one or two sharp
knocks? This sets all the sentinels on
the alert, and the moment the corner
of the covering is raised the bees will
come out from under it as if shot from
a pop gun, and in less than a second
will be seen with bowed backs pegging
away at our trouser legs. An ordinary
blast of smoke may confuse a few but
the most of them will go straight
through it, and the few will turn back

7 HE A M ERIC A N B EE-KEEPER .

137

only to return the more persistent in
the fight. At such a time the smoke
should be hot and dense enough to send
them spinning to the ground or they
will follow, as mad bees will, for
hours. Cold blasts or small Binghams
are of little use in such emergencies.
Too clip queens in May when the ap-
iary is quiet and the colonies not so
strong and a little honey coming in,
not more than one colony in ten needs
to be smoked , Clouds, accidents, early
and late handling also modify cases.
A board cover cannot well be removed
without some jarring.

In handling bees all day I find use
for the greatest as well as the least
amount of smoke. If there are a doz-
en angry bees following me about I
want a smoker that will send a blaze
out the muzzle to clip their wings for
them. It is better than boards or
shingles which it takes time to hunt
up and the smashing of the bees leaves
a scent which angers other bees. The
next moment a very gentle colony
may need to be examined.

A person who would direct such a
volume of smoke as would follow this
blaze of fire upon a gentle colony
ought to be fined for cruelty to an-
imals. In such a case the smoke sho-
uld be blown by the side of the hive
and the wind be allowed to waft it over
the tops of the frames, or if there is no
wind the smoker must be put far enough
away so that the smoke is diluted
with the air before reaching the bees,
and as the bees begin to retire between
the top bars, we may set the smoker
down and begin taking out the frames.
By the time one or two frames have
been examined the bees will begin to
crawl up over the top bars again, and
some may be seen to flit their wings

sharply and a bee now and then will
jump quickly at another. These
movements are warnings for the man-
ipulator to look a little out and the
smoker should be brought up with the
right hand and without moving any
other part of the body, and another
whiff wafted over the frames when
the bees will settle back as at first.
Just a little smoke on very slight oc-
casions is the best use of it. When
one or two bees on the top of the frames
begin to get frisky and can't stand
still, a quarter of a puff of dense smoke
with the nozzle held close by sobers
them, when, if they are not looked to,
they would put the whole top of the
hive in commotion, as other kindly
disposed bees catch the idea readily.
If a comb is set out of the hive the
bees on it will seldom fight unless ag-
gravated by quick angular motions,
which are decidedly improper in the
bee yard, unless it be after dark.

All motions should be smooth, easy
and not swift, but to work swiftly
every motion should be made to count.

The gait to acquire when working
with bees comes by practice and it
saves smoke as well as temper of both
bees and keeper.

Practice also makes one expert in
taking out frames, setting them down
and doing other work with the least
jars, all of which saves reaching for
the smoker if not a fight. Some bee
handlers open hives quickly, jerk the
frames out spitefully, and to make up
for their rashness sends smoke in aw-
fully that drives the bees down in ut-
ter confusion, often out at the en-
trance and they go flocking around
the corner of the hive or under the
alighting board.
This is a shocking procedure; it stops

138

THE A M ER1 CA N BEE-KE EPER.

the progress of work inside the hive;
destroys the courage and interest the
bee» have for their home, wastes honey
consumed and honey Hint might be
gathered from the flowers: it also makes
angry bees, which attack everything
that conies near and often at a distance
for days afterward; and bee-keepers
who do not [Hy attention to the gentle-
ness of their baes out of respect for
their neighbors ought to he refund ad-
mittance to the Bee-Keepers' Union,
because it is no more reasonable
to provoke bees to anger and let the
neighbors take care of themselves than
for a farmer to turn a mad bull loose
in the highway.

When I began to open hives I thou-
ght the bees should all be smoked
away from the entrance before taking
the cover off. This was a mistake
because if the hive is not jarred none
of the entrance bees will bother, nor
should the bees on the top bars be
driven far down in the combs; only
the threatening bees at guarded points
need smoking and the colonies may
be handled just as rapidly and the
stream of flying bees to and from the
entrance need not be interfered with.
Beside the cruelty to the bees, there
may be loss financially, for example,
suppose the colonies are smoked as
they are examined until all the bees
are subdued and retreat, this stops
the working of th^ colony at least an
hour. Now if the bee handler goes
over a colony in every fifteen minutes
he will keep four colonies standing idle
all day. This, in the average bass-
wood harvest, amounts lo thirty or
forty pounds a day, so that the inex-
perienced workman may waste twice
his wages in this direction. Still there
are bee-keepers who seek the cheapest

help in the apiary, with little consider-
ation of experience, skill or knowl-
edge. Iu early spring, smoking or
otherwise making a disturbance in
the colonies eau-e discouragement and
the bpes are liable to abscond or ball
and kill their queens, especially on
cloudy days.

At another time we may wish to
look into the hives to se? if they have
enough stores, to clip queens or in-
spect the brood and there are many
robbers prowling around. At this
time it needs a powerful smoker con-
tinually in full blast, so that clouds
of smoke are rolliog upwards all the
time.

Of>en hives gently, smoke the bees
just enough to avoid stings but leave
the bees of the colony in possession of
the frames, so as to have to push them
out of the way in grasping the top
bars. The bees know or soon see that it
is the robbers that need their attention
rather than the manipulator, and
more bees than usual crowd and form
in lines in the spaces and on the top
bars, and as a robber passes over or
attempts to alight, several bees will
reach for or rly after it, so that no
robber can get so much as a taste.
As the case may be we may wish
to put in combs of honey or feed, and
first a comb must he taken out. Now
as soon as we shake the bees from the
comb several robbers hasten to alight
ami get their heads down into cells.
Poke them harshly and they do not
back out but sip as fast as they can,
with a cold blast we may puff and puff
and puff, and they pay no attention,
until the nozzle is stopped, occupying
both hands, and the bellows worked au
average of thirty-five times; then they
will run around and dip into another

THE AMERICAN BEE KEEl'ER.

139

In case of a four inch barrel, hot, di-
rect draft, well fed smoker, four pres-
sures or less ou the bellows brings a
cloud of smoke that no bee can endure;
the comb may be carried in one hand
while the smoker held in the other. it
may be safely guarded until it is safe-
ly in the comb bucket. At the comb
bucket we may find the lid lined with
knots of bees trying to get at the
combs on the inside; one such blast
changes their minds as they shoot out
of the cloud of smoke in all direct-
ions so choked as to fall to the grouud.
Blow a dense cloud inside so if any
robber has gotten in , it will be chok-
ing for breath instead of handing honey
out through the hinges of the lid.
On arriving at the honey house there
too, are found bunches and Hues of bees
trying to get in at the door and only
for dense clouds of smoke no one
could enter without admitting a small
swarm of robbers also.

One load to a robber multiplies
their number at least a dozen times so
it saves to begin with plenty of smoke
and use It understandiugly. Smoke
and manipulations in this way, even
after robbing has gotten under head-
way, in large apiaries, will cause them
to become less and less troublesome
until they give up the business. Such
a smoker will effectively stand guard
over a comb or comb bucket, or if all-
owed to remain in the honey house it
will drive robbers from the windows
anddoois.

A band of robbers learn to detect
colonies which have surrendered be-
fore the manipulator's smoke by the
kind of roar, the bees set up and are
watchful to pounce upon the combs
or in at the entrance at such times
and for this reason the sentinels should

not be driven from the entrance; and
robbers being always promptly met at
the entrnace will soon decide that en-
trances are not successful 01 custom-
ary points to attack.

My smoker burns any dry, hard or
rotten wood or barks, cut to one inch
square by four, the same as a stove
and is lighted with shavings whittled
with a jack knife from a pine stick.

Light the shavings and throw them
into the fire box and pile the wood on
top of the burning shavings. Large,
constant blast, smokers burn lots of
wood but the wood is the easiest kind
to get and prepare. This item is very
small which the trouble robbers may
cause, or the time of the user that
may be wasted with fussing with weak
half spirited ones.

I buy of those in the market the one
most nearly right, and alter it to suit
my notion. In moving bees on wagons
if a colony becomes unfastened so that
the bees pour out, a smoker of th:'s>
description will either drive them back
or burn their wings off which is far
preferable to a runaway; and I have
stood efficient guard, with smoker in
hand, overteoms and men when cul-
tivating land close by the apiary; and
teami may be safely driven through
the apiary under cover of clouds of
smoke. — Bee-Keepei s Review.

ROBBER BEES AND HOW THEY SHOULD BE
TREATED.

At times when bees can find but little
honey to gather in the field it some-
times happens that strong colonies-
will attack a weak colony, and if the
apiarist is not watchful, robbing nay
become general and all the apiary may
be demoralized. To prevent this the
beed^eeper has to be very watchful

140

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

and never permit weak colonies to have
a larger entrance to their brood chanc-
er than the bees are able to guard suc-
cessfully. But then it sometimes will
happen that robbing is going on at a
fearful rate before the bee-keeper is
aware of it, and that thousands of rob-
ber bees have entered a hive and are
-carrying away the stores. All the
remedies as afforded from time to time
in bee papers I find none as good and
effective as the following treatment of
such cases:

Supposing now the hive is full of
robber bees, how are they to be com-
pelled to leave the premises where they
are trespassers? My mode of proced-
ure is as follows: I have frames fit-
ting the front part of my hives, provid-
ed on one side with wire cloth secure-
ly tacked to the frames. This wire is
fastened to the front of the hive raid-
ed by the robbers, with the hollow side,
of course, next to the hive by means
of two screws. No more robbers can
enter the hive of the unfortunate col-
ony but the robbers inside the hive,
after having filled their honey sacks
with the stolen treasure, hurry out to
take it to their own hive. In a min-
ute ortwothe screen is completely filled
with a scrambling mass of bees anxious
to get out, but they heve to stay long
enough to be "marked" so as to as-
certain what colony is guilty of the
crime of robbing. This is best done by
dashing a handfull of flour on the
screen, and the*u lay down the screen,
when pell mell the thieves will leave
in a hurry. Readjust the screen in-
stantly and look for the whereabouts
of your millers with their white jack-
ets and you will generally find but one
colony guilty of robbing, unless the
robbing has been permitted for some

time unpunished. Now% proceed and
allow all robbers to clear out as soon
as they are ready to go home Avith
their booty. This is accomplished in
about ten minutes after the wire screen
was first fastened to the front of the
raided hive and hardly a robber bee
is left in it.

If it is a severe case of robbing I
generally make the thieves carry back
a good share of the stloen goods, and
this is accomplished in the following
manner: After the hive robbed is
clear of robbers I leave the screen fast-
ened over the entrance till after sun-
set. Then I remove the weak and
robbed colony to the stand of the rob-
beas' hive while the robbers' hive is
placed on the stand of the colony they
have raided. A few slices of onions
put into each hive concerned in the
transaction will prevent any fighting
next day. The result is a very funny
one the next morning. The robbers
will be at it with a will, carrying honey
out of their own hive into the hive
of the colony they had robbed the clay
prievous, and all the field bees will
enter the hives on their old stand.
Thus the forces are soon equalized,
the slices of onions are removed, and
in a few hours harmony prevails again
and the thieves are compelled to stop
their pilfering and attend to honest
work once more. I have tried it often
and it never failed to stop robbing in
my apiary. If a colony is queenless,
and if this is the cause of the robbing,
then a queen should be givn at once,
or the queenless colony should be
promptly united with some other col-
ony.— Western Stockman

Hasting's Feeders. — We can supply
these feeders at 30c. each, or S3. 00 per doz.
Postage 13c. each extra. They are con-
sidered to be among the best feeders in use.

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

141

LITERARY ITEMS,

A PRETTY SURPRISE.

A beautifully illustrated and charmingly
bound edition of Longfellow's " Eevange-
line," the most popular long poem ever
published by an American author, and one
of the most famous poems in the language,
just published, is a pretty surprise for book-
lovers. It is in large type, numerous and
excellent illustrations, very fine and heavy
paper, gilt edges, remarkably handsome
cloth binding, with gilt title and ornaments.
No illustrated edition has ever before been
published at less cost than $1.50, and that
is about what you might " guess" the price
of this to be, but it isn't — it sells for only
19 cents ! plus 6 cents for postage, if by
mail. This covers only about the actual
cost of manufacture by the 100,000, the
publisher's object being, not profit, but to
show. the book-loving millions what he can
do. His publications are not sold by deal-
ers, but only direct; catalogue, over 100
pages, a literary curiosity in its way, is sent
for a 2-cent stamp. Every home in the
land ought to have a copy of this Evange-
line, so charmingly beautiful, as a poem,
as a collection of artistic illustrations, and
as a product of the book-making art. Ad-
dress, John B. Alden, puplisher, 57 Rose
street, New York.

The September issue of Idppincott's is a
Pacific number. Every article in it deals
with topics of our western coast — chiefly, of
course, Californian — or has been prepared
by a native or resident of that favored region.

Herbert Howe Bancroft, the distinguished
historian of the Pacific coast, furnishes a
most interesting account of " California
Eras." Next in importance is a sketch of
the history of "California Journalism," by
the veteran editor, H. M. De Young. Por-
traits of these gentlemen accompany then-
articles .

There are short stories by Heine (better
known as Joaquin) Miller, and Emma B.
Kaufman; and poems by Ina H. Coolbrith,
Madge Morris, Martha T.Tjler, Flora Mac-
donald Shearer, Charles Warren Stoddard,
and Nellie Booth Simmons.

Toilettes for September is a superb num-
ber of that elegant Fashion Journal. Each
issue seems to be more beautiful than the
precedii g; it appears to be growing in size
as well, for it has now 20 pages of choice
engravings, instead of 16 as formerly, be-
sides a handsome cover, yet the price, 15
cents for a single copy, or $1.50 per yearr
remains the same. It is quite evident the
publishers are determined that Toilettes shall
be the favorite Fashion Magazine in this-
country, and it is just as evident that our
lady friends are of the same opinion, as-
they are all buying it. All first class book
and news dealers have it on sale one month
in advance. Published by Toilettes Pub-
lishing Co., 126 West 2od street, New York.

Among the shorter articles to be pub-
lished in the September number of The
North American Review are some practical
suggestions as to cholera, by Dr. Cyrus Ed-
son ; A Southerner's View of ■ Lynch Law
in the South, by W. Cabell Bruce; and
some account of women in the field of
art work, by Mrs Susan N. Carter.

Important Trade Notes,

Our Outside Winter Case fits Dove-
tailed or our thin-walled hives, and is one
of the most successful methods of wintering,
out door. Price of Outside Case, with bot-
tom, cover, etc., complete, only 75c; 10 for-
$6.50.

Ground Curk for packing. — We can*.
furnish this at 8c. per pound in small quan-
tities, or $4 ( 0 per 100 pounds. It is the
best packing known. A bushel weighs-
about eight pounds.

Five per cent, discount is now al-
lowed on all prices in our catalogue, ex-
cepting on shipping cases and crates.

Clubbing

List.

We will send the American Bee-Keeper with

the—

PUB. PRCE. BOTH,

American Bee Journal,

(SI 00) $1 35-

American Apieulturistj

( 75) 1 15

Bee- Keeper's Review,

(1 00) 1 36-

Canadian Bee Journal,

( 75) 1 IS

Gleanings in Bee Culture,

(1 00) 1 35

142

LllE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The American Bee-Keeper.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS:

50 cents a year in advance.; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
-copies, $ I. '20 ; all to l>c sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the IT S and Canada ; 10 cents
•extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
.cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 9 words; $2.00 per inch. 5 per
.cent, discount for 2 insertions; 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions: 10 per cent, for 6 insertions; 20 per cent.
for 12 insertions.

Advertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THK AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,
Falconer, N. Y.

^^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue cross will know that their subscripiton
expires with this number. We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

SSg'X blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

The C. B. J. speaks of the use of ground
cork for winter packing, as a " new depart-
ure " and asks its subscribers to advise the
editor how many pounds each will take, if
a. certain cork manufacturer can be induced
to put in a machine for granulating the
cork. Ground, or granulated cork has been
in use in this country for some time as a
winter packing, and is considered very
superior to almost anything else for the
purpose. Almost all cork manufacturers
here furnisli it, and we have sold large
quantities of it to bee keepers the past two
years.

It has been pretty well established that
the so-called Punic bees are nothing more
or less than Tunisians. Mr. Cowan while
in North Africa a few months ago, sifted the

matter thoroughly, and proved that ihe
Punic bees, which have been advettised so
extensively and sold at such exhorbitant
prices are not Panics at all, or rather
the name " Punic'1 is only a fancy name,
hatched in the fertile brains of one Hewitt,
an Englishman, for the purpose of humbug-
ging his fellow bee-keepers and putting a
few extra, ill-gotten shillings in his purse.

The season has averaged unusually poor
throughout the country, the rule being broken
only here and there in especially favored
spots. We hope our friends will not be dis-
couraged, next year may be a " boomer."

We have just invented and constructed a
large and very expensive machine for
making one-piece sections, which does its
work more perfectly than any machine we
have ever seen, making all sections of
exactly equal thickness and absolutely
smooth and polished. Sections made on
this machine will be called the "Falcon
Sections," and in ordering tliem our friends
will please designate them by that name.
They are sold at the same price as our
regular No. 1 sections. A sample will be
mailed each of oir customers and sub-
scribers in a few days

This is an excellent time to introduce
good young queens. Keep up brood rearing
as long as possible and see that your bees
have plemy of sealed honey to winter on.

From present indications the honey
market this fall will be higher than for
several seasons, so that even if the yield is
not up to the average, a fair return may be
obtained from ones' labor and investment.

It seems to be the general opinion that
25 to 30 lbs. of sealed stores and in 6 brood
frames is about the best amount for winter-
ing a colony successfully.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEP Eli

\A:\

Pasteboard Boxes orCartuns — lute
are for one pound sections. We have
fifteen thousand, without tape handles,
which we will sell at $1.00 per thousand
less than the prices given in cataogue.
This will make t> em co>t $4.t'0 per thous-
and, j22-"> for live hundred, or ore. p< r
hundred, plain. It printed one side the
price will he extra, 3t'o per hundred, 75c,
per tive hundreil. $1 00 per thousand. It' a
large quantity is wanted, will make special
price

Honey and Beeswax Market Keport.

Below we give the latest and most authen-
tic report of the Honey and Beeswax market
in different trade centers :

Albany, N. Y., Any. 12. — We have received one
consignment of new comb honey. We have not
yet had an offer on it. The quality is only fair.
The weather is so very warm that there is but very
little call tor honey. We have received no new
extracted honey yet. and '.nr >upply Of old is ex-
hausted, beeswax sells on an i\ al. at 25@2(i cents.

Chas. W. McCui.louch it Co., ;-593-398 iiroadway.

Kansas City, Mo., Aug 13 —There i~ a good
demand for honey, but a very liyht supply. Pi ice
of one pound comb, white, 16c; extracted. 6@7c.
The new crop of honey is arriving and is very tine.
There is no beeswax on the market.

Hamulin & Bkakss, 514 Walnut St.

St. Louis, Mo., Aug. 13. — Fair demand for
honey; good supply. Price of comb, l-iwloc: ex-
tracted, 5J4@o%c. G od demand for beeswax;
fair supply. Price, 25c.

Thk D. G. Tutt Gko. Co

Kansas i'ity, Mo.. Aug. 13.— Light supply of
honey; fair deuiand. Comb. 15@lt5c; extracted.
7@7>£c, white. lieeswax is in good demand.
Light supply. Price 20 @ 2oc.

C lemons. Mason & Co..

Cor. 4th and Walnut Sts.

Cincinnati. 0., Aug. 15 —The demand i< very
good for extracted honey. Slow for comb: insuffic-
ient supply for the demand. Price 12(3 14c. tor
best white; extracted 5@8c on at rival The de-
mand for beeswax is fiir: good supply. Price Z3
@25c. for good to choice yellow on arrival.

Chas. F. Muth Jt S n,
Cor. Freeman and Central Aves.

Albany, N. Y., Aug. 13. — The demand for honey
is light yet. as it is rather eai ly. No receipts yet.
Price of comb, 12@loc ; extracted, IK&Sc. Light
supply of beeswax; good demand. Price. 26@^8c.
The honey market here will not open ui der two
weeks yet. after that look for a good denvud.

11. R. Wright. 326 and 328 Broadway.

Chicago, III., Aug. 20— We are now having in-
quiries for white 1 lb. section comb honey, and
quote market ltic for be-t grade. Amber selling
at 14c. Coo I demand for extracted honey, and we
can sell all shipments roinptly on arrival at troin
7@8c. Heeswax 2(ic. We ask for correspondence
from all those who have honey to market, or wish
to purchase.

S. T. Fish & Co., 189 S. Water St.

New York, Aug. 13.— Demand moderate, and
supply reduced, with no more gla-sed 1 lb^ nor
paper cartons, 1 lb. Wequote: Comb, lib U(5 L5c.
Extracted — liasswood, 7[4fq7l/2c; buckwheit. ^A
@6l/i; Mangrove, 68@75c per gal. Good demand
for dark extracted honey. Beeswax, in fair supply
with small demand, at 26@27c.

F. C. Strohmeyer &. Co., 120 Pearl St.

Scientific American
Agency for

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COPYRIGHTS, etc.

For information and free Handbook write to

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Oldest bureau for securing patents in America.
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world. Splendidly illustrated. No intelligent
man should be without it. Weekly, £3.00 a
year ; $1.50 six months. Address MUNN & CO.,
Publishers, 361 Broadway, New York.

The object of the manufacturers
of Dobbins* Electric Soap lias been,
ever since 1809, to make it of. such
superior quality that it w II give
universal satisfaction. Have they
succeeded ? Millions of unsolicited
letters from women all over the
country, and foreign countries, giv-
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"very best, very purest, and most
economical soap ever used " by the
writers, give an affirmative answer
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I IV/1 PH DT ^°' v:nsh'v9 flannels tliere

IJVII Ul*\ I - is absolutely no other soap

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Soap, and no other, and follow directions,

your flannels will always remain as white

and as soft as when new.

I. L. Crakjix & Co.,

Philadelphia, Pa.

144

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

DID YOU KNOW THAT

FIXED FRAMES ARE THE RAGE?

Well, the question with many is. which one to adopt.
tomers have almost uniformly elected in their orders

After offering
the justly populiir

for sale several styles, our eus-

tiOFFMflN FRAME,

For the Langstroth, or any Hive of that size,
such as the Dovetailed, they are unquestionably
the best. They are not stuck up with burr-combs,
are self-spacing, the most rapidly handled, and al-
ways ready for rough handling, such as for ship-
ping and moving to out yards. The top bar has a
moulded comb guide as shown, and is 1 1-33 in.
wide and % in. thick. The end bars are widened
at the top, and on one side are brought to a blunt
knife edge. The bottom bar i> % in. square so the
bees will build their combs down to it. Queens
can't hide between it and the comb, and it does
not catch and roll over the bees in drawing the
frame out of the hive. This frame, costs a little
more- than the old-style thin-top-bar frames, but,
oh my! how much better! As a good frame will
la-t a life-time, get a good one. Price 51.70 per
LOO; $15.00 per {..000.

OUR DOVETAILED HIVE,

In fact, all our Hives complete, now have the New Hoffman Frame with the other inside furniture.
Although the new frame is more expensive we put up the hive combinations at the SAME PRICE.
Speaking of the DOVE 1'A LLEI) HI VK. remember we were the origiuatnrs of this Hive, and are the only
ones who have put any -ubstmtial improvements on it. It is now out-selling all other hives put together.
If you want the. latest as well as those made u on some new and expensive automatic machinery on which
the dovetailing is v (.'LfiAN OUT, buy of us or our dealers. S ••ml for our 52-l'nge Catalogue of I'ee Sup-
plies which will give full particulars. The information in it will be w< rtu much to you. r\ A. Salisbury,
Syracuse, X. Y.. is our Eastern Agent for these goods. When men' convtaient order of him.

Please mention American Her. Keeper.

Home
Made
Net-
ting.

A. I. ROOT, RBedina, Ohio.

. r- BAFE, DURABLE FENCE; ONI? $80 PER MILE.
250 t9 T A NT) _ flWWTll? R saue one-half the cost

A (VAnte make $200.00 pe/->%,ae|1
Msvl I K^Zf month and expenses ^ual I
The best local and traveling agents wanted every-
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Factory Catalogue with 200 engTaved designs and
prices, sent free to any who want fancy iron and
wire work or city, cemetery and farm fences, etc

a i

....'.

| The Bee~
| J^eepeFs'

REVIEW

Fop 1892 and a pine, Young, haying
Italian QTJJDEN iov $150- Tne
I^evieuu fllone, $1.00. The Queen

3 fllone, 75 Cts. por» $1.75, the Revieuu, the Queen, and the 50 et. Book,

(9

(J| " fldvaneed Bee Culture," uuill be sent. W. Z. Hutehinson, Flint, JVIieb.

5

@©©©©©v\ 5®©@®©©©©©©©@^ r f i - 3,3,©©©©©©©©©

THE PORTER BEE-ESCAPE.

We gu.ir.iiiiee n to be ilie best escape
known and far superior to till others. If
after three months trial o£ from one to a
dozen they are not found entirely satisfact-
ory, return them by mail ami we will re-
fund your money. Prices, each, with full
diteciions, 20c. Per dozen, $2.25. Sent
post-paid on receipt of price. .Send for
descriptive circular and testimonials.
K. & E. C. POKTKK, Lewistown, Illinois.

Supply dealeis send for whole ale Pr.ces.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W. T FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

OCTOBER, 1892.

NO. IO.

Working Bees Too Hard.

BY JOHN F. GATES.

Bee-keeping is a good trade if un-
derstood, but if not well learned will,
like all other trades, prove a disap-
pointment sooner or later. There is
no trade or profession in these days of
close competition that will bring a
person a good living when it is care-
lessly learned and poorly handled.
Certainly bees are industrious and
"work for nothing and board them-
selves," as the saying goes, and be-
cause of this some bee keepers seem
to think that they will '• run them-
selves" and will need no care, the
only thing necessary on the part of
the bee-keeper being to carefully rob
the hives of all the honey they can
force the bees to make, and then try
to worry the bees and themselves
through the' winter as best they can,
and if they succeed somehow, they
write all about it. The theories
they put forth are simply wonderful.
The cobling, the worrying, the tuck-
ing and fussing, and a multitude of
things too numerous to mentiou, and
which a successful bee-keeper would
not think of doing are, they think,
just what wintered their bees. Then
they commence the season with a few

weak and dwindled colonies, and go
through with a set of spring rules
consisting of operations and manipu-
lations that would paralyze a Phila-
delphia lawyer, and if the bees escape
disease they are ready to work them
for all they are worth until frost
comes, and do the same thing right
over all the while, thinking they are
bee-keepers. Friends, don't do it
that way; it is not the way to keep
bees. Don't keep one year behind all
the time. Don't work your bees to
death in the fall. There is where you
commence to do wrong, and so long as
you do it you will be behind and will
always be selling fall honey instead
of white honey. Commence in the
fall and catch up and then keep
caught up. Once you get your bees
strong in the fall with plenty of stores,
then you are ready to take advantage
of each flow of honey the following
season, and keep forehanded instead
uf always being a little behind.

Bees must have plenty of honey if
they winter in good shape. I believe
that the majority of losses which the
bee-keepers now suffer would be done
away with if we would have a case of
sealed honey on each hive for winter
and every hive full besides.

146

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

They need it, even if wintered in a
cellar. There has been too much
written about wintering a colony of
bees on five or ten pounds of honey.
Beginners miscalculate under such
advice, aud think that because bees
consume but little in the summer that
but little is needed at all Bees must
have an allowance of fifteen pounds of
honey to consume from the time of
frost in the fall until housed for the
winter Then fifteen pounds allow-
ance while in confinement. Then
fifteen or twenty pounds for breeding
in the spring when it is too cold for
them to fly.

With the above allowance a colony
will be increasing in numbers while
those on short allowance will be
dwindling. Some would scarcely be-
lieve the facts if they could see the
effects of liberal allowances of sealed
honey in the fall. They would be
almost sure to attribute it to some
other cause. If fall honey could not
be sold at any price there would be
none taken from the bees, and we
would see a wonderful advancement
in the bee business everywhere. If
bees work hard in the fall they be-
come old and restless and will not
winter well.

Some years ago my business was
such as to call me away from home
most of the time from August 1st un-
til October 1st, leaving my bees with
only one case of sections on each
hive, and there was a good flow of
honey from buckwheat and many
other fall flowers, so much iu fact that
my bees not only filled their hives
and cases, but some built comb on the
under sides of their hive shades.
People would gaze in amazement to
see the hives so covered with bees.

The bees hung through all those days
and months and were apparently as
young when put in winter quarters
as when first hatched. Their hives
were very heavy, but I never had my
Vices winter so nearly perfect as
they did that winter. There seemed
to be as many bees in the hive the
following spring as when put in the
cellar. I do not see how all of the
bees got into the hives anyway. But
what a cr p of honey I raised the
next season. Yes, it was a big one.
The colonies were so strong they
seemed to carry all before them. Of
course we winter colonies on less
stores, but it is as poor economy to do
so as it would be to winter cattle on a
a short allowance and turn them out
iu the spring early to pick for them-
selves. Cattle raised that way are
the dearest that can be raised, although
they briug the least money. None
but the rich could stand such farming
and none but the rich can afford to
own a poor farm.

In like manner is everything. Poor-
est quality is sure to bring poverty.
How would a Christian look trying to
squeeze through the gates of Para-
dise?

Dear friends, again I say, don't
work your bees to death in the fall or
rob them of their stores, and your
bees will be in such good shape in the
spring you will be glad you heeded
my advice.

Ovid, Erie Co., Pa.

Prepare for Wintering.

BY STANTON K. HITCHCOCK.

Before the middle of this month all
preparations should be made for win-
tering. Every colony should be'
closely examined to find out the

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER,

147

amount of stores, and whether they
have got healthy queens, for upon the
queen depends the future of the col-
ony. If the queen is a weak one it
should he united with some other, for
the secret of successful beedveepingis
keeping all colonies in a strong con-
dition.

No one can make a success of bee-
keeping by keeping a large number
of hives with a few bees iu each.
Give me the same number of bees in
just enough hives so that each hive
will be full. More honey can be
stored with a certain number of bees
in a few hives than with the same
number in many hives.

If a large colony has forty-five
pounds of stores it will be plenty to
carry them through the winter and
early spring, and you may rest as-
assured they will not starve.

About November first those bee-
keepers who winter their bees in a
cellar should carry in their hives.
The room should be cool and especially
dry, as dampness will produce mould,
and this causes death to the bees
sooner or later. As even a tempera-
ture as possible should always be kept
in a room where the bees are, aud
they should be in a room partitioned
from the main cellar, away from the
light. No unnecessary noise should
be made at any time, nor the bees dis-
turbed, as it tends to irritate the bees
and is very injurious to them.

Troy, Vt.

Uniting Weak Colonies — Pre-
paring for Winter, Etc.

BY M. II. I)E WITT.

It is during this month that bees
should be fully prepared for winter.
In the first place, if you still have
weak colonies, I would advise you to
feed them up, and if there are not
enough bees to cover at least five

Langsiroth frames all over, I would
advise you to unite them at once.
Unite them as follows : Unite two
or three into one. The best time for
uniting is in the evening just before
dark. Take an empty hive and place
it where you wish the new colony to
remain. Then bring the two colonies
you wish to unite near this hive First
catch both queens and cage them ;
then take out a frame of bees from
one hive and place it in the empty
one ; then take one out of the other
hive, putting them into the new hive
alternately. Now, when you have the
hive filled with frames, shake the re-
maining bees down in front and let
them run in. Now select the best
queen of the two and intioduce her
by the usual method. If you have
no use for the other one destroy her,
or if she is a good one you might sell
her to some one near by. If bees are
united in this way they seldom fight,
and it is not a difficult job. A cool
evening is preferable, because the
bees cannot fly so readily. Iu case
they did, many would go back to their
old location and get lost. If all your
stands have plenty of bees, and twenty
pounds of honey or sugar syrup and a
good queen, you are ready to pack
them up for winter. If you winter
your bees in chaff hives or special re-
positories you need do nothing more
with them during this month, but if
you have single-walled hives they
should be prepared as follows : Fir.-t
lay three or four sticks crosswise on
the frames, and on these spread a
piece of old carpet or duck. Some-
thing porous must be used so as to
allow the moisture to pass through.
Now take the cip off the h ve and
pack it full of fine hay or lawn grass,

148

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

(coarse hay, chaff or straw is not good,
for many reasons,) and tread this hay
in tightly, and then set it on its place
on the hive. This will absorb all
moisture as it passes throngh the
cloth, and also retain the heat of the
bees in their cluster. The little sticks
1 mentioned are to give the bees a
passageway over the combs. This
plan of packing has proved more ef-
fectual than any other kind. Chaff
cushions, however, for chaff hives are
just as good perhaps, and more con-
venient. The entrance of the hives
should be contracted to about two
inches, which is about right for all
the winter. Another point, shelter
your bees from the cold north and
west winds, by a wind-brake of some
kind, as this is a great help in bees
wintering all safe. Do not put off
this fall work with your bees until
cold, freezing weather sets in, as your
bees should be left severely alone
when it is so awful cold. If you have
put off feeding up your bees until
now, you had better feed them all
that they need at once, so as to have
them ready to go into winter quarters
with plenty of sealed stores if you
want them to winter nicely. You
must attend to your bees if you want
to make bee keeping a business, for
the bees require strict attention at all
times.

Sang Run, Garret Co., Md.

Hints for Beginners.

BY C. B. HOWARD.

One thing that those without ex-
perience often inquire about is : " How
much honey can safely be taken from
a hive?" In this matter judgment
should be used. It is always safe to
take all the honey stored in the boxes.
If the hive is no larger than two
thousand cubic inches in size it is well
to leave all of it for the use of the
bees for the winter. If wintered on

their summer stands it will take on
an average about thirty pounds to
carry a good colony through from Oc-
tober to April. We have wintered
them on much less, and have also
found it necessary to allow them much
more. It is well not to scant them.
They will not waste what they do not
consume, but if they have seventy or
eighty pounds it is entirely too much
honey to leave for winter. It will be
better for you to uncap the lower two-
thirds of each frame and extract.

When frost comes contract the en-
trances so that they are very small,
and disturb the bees only when it is
absolutely necessary. Put a quilt or
piece of carpet, or what is better still,
straw matting over the top of the
frames when the surplus boxes are re-
moved,

Hayts Corners, N. Y.

^g> * *t*^ * ^a

CarnioEans vs. BiaBians.

BYG. W. MARSHALL.

I take this opportunity to advise
the bee-keepers of a trial test person-
ally made with the above races of
bees. Owing to the Carnolians being
a new race of bees lately introduced
into this country, your correspondent
has many questions frequently asked
with reference to their honey gather-
ing qualities, etc., therefore the fol-
lowing little experiment :

Early in the spring of 1891 we had
a colony of pure Carnolians, also one
of pure Italians of about equal strength
standing in our apiary side by side.
Both were in Simplicity Laugstroth
hives. The queens were of the same
age, they both having been reared
about the same time the year previ-
ous—the former by the noted breeder
Mr. E. L. Pratt of Marlboro, Mass.,
and a magnificent queen she is, too.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

149

No yellow bands on her progeny.
Nothing but those of pure Carniolan
type. The latter was reared by Mr.
Henry Alley of Wenham, Mass., from
his noted $100 Italian queen. She is
a very fine queen, and also shows
well marked workers, yet we had
those in our apiary before her that
produced bees of a deeper golden hue
even than hers. As before stated,
these two colonies being so equally
populated with worker bees, we at
once decided to give them a trial test
of their houey gathering qualities.
The season however proved very un-
favorable for such a test, there being
scarcely any honey in the blossoms —
only that which was gathered from
the forest trees. This was exceed-
ingly dark and undesirable for family
use, owing to the fact that the source
from which it came being the work-
ings of insects on the forest leaves.

Well, as the season advanced the
combs began filling up with what
some of our neighbor apiarists called
"bug juice." We got out our big
honey extractor, which we had made
to order some years ago, with baskets
large enough to receive any sized
frame in use, and store room enough
below the basket for at least 50 pounds
of honey. On the first occasion we
took from the Carniolan colony twenty
pounds and some ounces, and from
the Italians something over fifteen
pounds, weighing the full combs in
each case as we took them from the
hives, then weighing again after ex-
tracting. Later in the season we agian
took from the former nearly thir-
ty pounds and from the latter not
quite twenty-five pounds, making a
sura total of almost fifty pounds for
the Carniolans and a little less than

thirty-five pounds for the Italians,
with plenty of honey left in the hives
for their winter stores. Thus the
reader will observe that the result of
our test was about one-third more
honey in favor of the Carniolans.

This season the Carniolans bred up
so much faster than the Italians that
they became crowded for room sooner
thau we expected, and the first thing
we khew they turned off a swarm.
Then we Italianized all the queen cells
in the hive and formed a neuclei.

The honey crop this season in this
locality will probably average about
one-third of a crop, judging by the
returns from our own apiary. The fall
bloom, however, is jnst now begin-
ning.

Davenport, la., Aug. 24, 1892.

The W. T. Falconer M'f'g Co.,
Gentlemen : — I had one more of your
thin- wall hives this summer than I
needed, and as I was an exhibitor at
the Montgomery County Agricultural
Society Fair, and as there was a pre-
mium offered for the best general pur-
pose bee-hive, I exhibited the thin-
wall hive, and I captured the first
prize over Root's Dovetailed with
ease. If I had been an agent I could
have taken a great many orders.
Yours, &c,

Harshman, 0. S. C. Bates.

[We are glad to know that the thin-
wall hive is so well regarded in your
locality. We have had a great many
good reports from it and believe that
with the outside winter case it is one of
the best summer and winter hives
made. — Ed.]

150

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir : — In the American Bee-
Keeper for September, page 130,
Mrs. L. Harrison says my method of
feeding, which I described in the Au-
gust number, is a puzzle to her, and
it is a mystery to her how the syrup
will remain in that position while the
box is inverted. Perhaps a few ex-
planations will not be amiss.

My hives are of the Langstroth
pattern. When I wish to feed 1 pro-
cure a block about 2^x4 inches and
cut a hole through it just large enough
to allow the top end of a paper box
to fit in the block, keeping the box in
a vertical position. Then filling the
boxes until about even, I turn them
quickly aud place them on the block,
on the top of the frames, as before
stated. With syrup of the right con-
sistancy it will remain in the boxes
until it is removed by the bees, which
will be in a short time. It is the air
in the cover that holds the syrup in
place, and by the bees sucking it, it
comes down, but will never drop.

Hoping my explanation will be of
some benefit to Mrs. Haarison,I close.

Care should be taken that the syrup
is just thick enough.

Troy, VI, S.E.Hitchcock.

Editor American Bee-Keeper,
Dear Sir: — I would like to ask if any
of your subscribers have ever had the
queen go up in the top of the hive
and lay eggs in the pound boxes. 1
have had one hive in which the queen
did so two different times this sum-
mer, and I cannot find out by any of
the bee-keepers here what was the
cause. 1 have just begun to keep
bees. This is my first season. I
have got six swarms. They all seem
to be doing well. I have taken off
over 100 boxes, but would like to ask

what makes the cappings all so yellow.
The honey is white and nice.

I would like to ask also if any one
ever heard of a man climbing a forty
foot ladder, taking a basket, brush
broom aud basin of water and sprink-
ling a swarm of bees, handling them
over, taking the queen out, wrapping
her in tissue paper, brushing the bees
in a basket, then going down and
cleaning a hive out and putting a
swarm in it, carrying the queen in his
vest pocket all the time.

Hoping to see the answers to my
questions in the Bee-Keeper, I re-
main, Yours truly,

Clyde, A . Y. A Subscriber.

[It'is quite acommon occurrence to
have the queen lay in the surplus
boxes. We do not know the cause of
the capping of your homey being
dark colored. Italian bees make
light honey, but the comb is always
darker colored than that made by the
black bees. Then, too, the capping
is sometimes discolored by the bees
running over it. We certainly never
heard of a man going through the

performance you describe. — Ed.]

^ . ■ ii ^

W. T. Falconer M'f'g Co., Gen-
tlemen : — I have never experienced
such trouble before as I have this fall
with feeding. I can hardly get a
feeder in the hive before it is full of
robbers. I will except the Hill feeder,
however. I started feeding the latter
part of August, but did not get much
work done. Could not feed in the
hive in the day time on account of
robbers, then I tried it at night, but
robbers would come in the morning
after the feeder was removed, causing
lots of trouble for me. Then I tried
setting an old hive away about one

THr. AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

151

fourth to one-hail' mile from the stand,
among the bushes so as it was hidden
from view; then after the feeder was
full of bees at night I carried it to
this 'old hive and put it in. I soon
had all the bees there stinging each
other to death , so I soon quit that plan.
This plan is a good one sometimes,
I managed it on one colony that
swarmed August 18th.

There was no honey flow here on ac-
count of dry weather. We had no
rain for about a month or more, but
the above swarm that issued August
18th was a uice one of pure Italiaus,
very strong, so I hived them in a box.
(Am sorry for it now, as it ought to
have been a frame hive ) The size is
15x15x15. It is a square box meas-
uring 15 inches inside each way.

I commenced feeding them by plac-
ing a feeder in an old hive, as stated
before, but I placed the old hive in
my shop window, taking out a pane
of glass for entrance purposes and
covering the window with boards.
This colony carried the syrup from
fifty-six pounds of sugar. This is a
good record I think. Just compare
the dates; as I did not feed some days,
being afraid that the combs might sag
or break down if I fed too fast. Swarm
issued was hived August 18th. Feed-
ing alternately from this date to Sept.
24th, 56 pounds of sugar; size of hive
15 inches square. Number of combs
filled in hive, ten. Time of taking
feeder off, September 21th, Swarm
is now hatching brood. Combs are
filled and sealed.

I had very little trouble in feeding
this last colony. I now have about
half a dozen colonies to feed, but they
do not need much. I like to have all
combs filled and sealed before winter
comes on. J. McC. H. F.

Reading, Pa„ Sept 26, 1892.

WHO SHOULD KEEP EKES

The above quostion has been asked
a groat many times (for the purpose of
being answered by the questioner,) and
the answers have generally been very
broad and comprehensive. The far-
mer, the lawyer, the doctor, the preacher
the merchant, the mechanic, every-
body should keep bees, if we are to
believe what we sometimes read. But
I am becoming more and more con-
vinced that this advice is not good.
Only a small number, comparatively
have the necsssary qualifications to
make bee-culture a success, and if one
ii not adapted to the pursuit, he had
better let it alone. Artemas Ward or
some other humorist says, " Don't
never undertake to do notnin' what
aint your fort, lest you find yourself
sprawlin in the canawl, figeratively
speakin." That is very good advice
and applies to keeping and managing
bees as w7ell as anything else. You
may give some people the best hives
and implements that can be made,
and the combs will be built crosswise
in the frames and the surplus honey
will be all out of shape because the
cases and sections are not properly
put on and arranged, and the hives
lean to one side, or something else
will be wrong. Not long since a lady
who some years ago got some bees of
me desired me to help her take off
some surplus honey, which I gladly did.
The honey was made in small frames
intended for the extractor. I looked

152

IRE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

in several hives, and there was not a
frame in the lot that could be lifted
out. The combs were in all sorts of
shapes, and the best that could be
done was to take off the cafe contain-
ing the frames, and after getting the
bees out of them to cut out the honey
at a disadvantage. A plain box
would have been better for her than a
frame hive. On the following dav I
visited a gentleman friend who wanted
me to look into his hives and see
what the bees were doing. He had
had several large swarms which he
had hived in frames of his own make.
The)' were a little deeper than the
old style American, witnout the move-
able side, and the frames had no comb
guides. The bees had done splendidly,
the hives being full from top to bottom,
but not a comb could be moved. It
is possible that my friend could learn
to manage bees with success, but I
doubt. To be a successful apiarist
one needs to have some good degree
of mechanical skill. That skill is
necessary if hives, sections, comb
foundation, and everything are pur-
chased from manufacturers and dealers,
and it is all the more so if the bee-
keeper undertakes to make his own
hives and fixtures. Another indis-
pensable requisite is the fearlessness
and patience necessary to manipulate
the hives, and perform all necessary
operations when they ought to be per-
formed. And a still more important
requisite is a general interest in the
bees and their habits and work.
Without this, complete success is im-
possible, for without it one will not
become familiar with the instincts of
the bees and the economy of the hives,
so as to know what needs to be done,
and when and how. I know a good

many bee-keepers who would promote
the interests of their pockets if they
would sell their bees and buy the
honey they want of some one who
makes a success of the pursuit. -Mahin,
(Ind.)

HINTS TO BEGINNERS

All arrangements for winter should
be made this month, except in the
Smith, and there where the honey flow
has ceased. All hives that are to
remain on summer stands should be
looked over very carefully, and if
feed isrequiied, give it to them at once;
pack them well on each side with
chaff and remove all frames, but those
that the bees can conveniently cover;
put good absorbing material on top of
the frames, with holes in each cap for
ventilation; lay a stick over top of
frames under cushion tor a winter
passage, and contract entrances so as
to keep out the mice. Unite all
weak or queenless colonies. Super-
sede all old queens, by introducing
young ones. If care has been taken
queens could have been reared by
keeping one strong stock queenless so
it would retain drones for fertilization.
If some stocks have more than enough
honey, equalize them by sharing it
with the stocks less fortunate. It
is well to have a space in bottom of
center combs empty for the bees to
cluster on. If your section is par-
ticularly cold, you may cut holes
through the combs to serve as winter
passages in addition to sticks laid
over frames, and remember that the
success in wintering depends to a
great extent on having lots of young
bees, a good, fertile queen, plenty of
good sealed honey easily accessible,
and warmth with proper ventilation.
Those wintering in cellars should

1HE A MER TCA N B EE-KEEPER .

153

never move their bees until cold
weather has set in in earnest, as they
would, if the weather came off warm,
get uneasy and have to be set on their
stands again.— W. B. T.,(N. Y.)

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT HONEY BEES

The great secret of success in bee
keeping is simple and thorough man-
agement. This can only be accomp-
lished by a complete understanding
of the nature, habits, and requirements
of the honey bee, combined with labor,
study, and experience in handling
them, and a mechanical knowledge
of the construction of hives that will
give the greatest profit with the least
outlay of money and labor.

Everything should be in order about
the apiary. .Let everything be per-
fectly clean about the hives, the grass
and weeds cut from about the entrances,
and, if in a locality where the ants
bother, the hives should be placed
upon a bench with supporting parts
that have been tarred, over which the
ants will not crawl. The bee-keeper
should work with gentleness and care,
avoiding jarring movements or any-
thing that will agitate the bees. If
the bee-keeper is timid or wishes to
protect himself from being stung, he
should wear a veil. Care should
always be taken that each hive contains
a queen. If any are found to be
■queenless, they should be supplied
with brood from some strong colony,
or doubled up with a weak colony.

The queen's office is to lay eggs; she
is, properly speaking, the mother of
the colony, and the only perfectly de-
veloped female in the hive. If there
is plenty of cells for her use, she will
deposit about 3,000 eggs per day, dur-
ing the best breeding season. The na-

tive queen is much darker than the
drones or workers, but the Italian
queen is brighter than either.

The queen has shorter wings than
either workers or drones, with a long,
finely tapered abdomen. She has a
sting, but will never use it only in a
combat with a rival queen. A queen
can be reared from any egg that will
produce a worker. The bees prepare
for rearing a queen after the egi: is
laid, by cutting away the small cells
around it and forming a large cell
about the shape of a peanut about the
ego-. When a queen is lost; the bees
will immediately form a number of
these cells. When the first one hatch-
esshe will immediaielyd destroy the
rest, unless prevented from doing so
by the workers, in which case she
will leave the hive with a portion of
the bees, thereby causing them to
swarm. This can be prevented by watch
ing, and when the first queen is about to
hatch, destroy the others. In about
five days after the queen hatches she
will leave the hive to meet the drone.
This once accomplished suffices for
life, and she returns to the hive never
to leave it unless with a swarm. The
length of a queen's life is from three
to five years.

The drones are shorter and more
bulky than queens; they are larger
than workers, and make a loud noise
when living; they have no sting, and
are physically disqualified from per-
forming any labor; they are reared
about the commencement of the
swarming season to the amount of a
few hundred iu each hive; their only
duty is to impregnate theyoungqueens,
and as soon as the swarming season is
over they are destroyed by the work-
ers. Where there is a large apiary

154

THE A MICHIGAN BEE-KEEPER.

there should only He a .small portion
of drone comb left in each hi.vr, and
therein- prevent an overproduction of
drones.

The workers live from thirr.y to one
hundred and twenty days. Upon
them devolves the duty of building
combs, supplying the hives with pro-
visions, and protecting the stores. The
comb grows in rings on the abdomen
of the workers. Each worker is an
undeveloped female, and would have
been a queen had the cell in which
they were reared been large enough.
The habits and instincts at' the work-
ers are Loo well known to be further
discussed. From the time the egg is
laid until the hatching of the bee is,
for the worker, about twenty-one days;
the drone, twenty-four days; and the
queen, sixteen days. In this climate
they breed the entire year, bnt in
colder countries but little brood is
found in the winter.

When the honey season sets in, you
may naturally expect swarming to fol-
low, and after the first swarm issues
others should be prevented from issu-
ing for the time being, by watching,
and when the first queen-cell is about
to hatch, destroy the others; otherwise
they may swarm too much and become
weak and, without great care, fall a
prey to the moth. But the system of
dividing colonies is considered better
than natural .-warming, for by this
system the loss of bees by absconding
is obviated. The best method of di-
viding is to take from one to three
frames of brood from different hives.
according to strength and liability to
swarm, putting empty frames in their
places in the old hives, then place the
brood so taken in an empty hive, and,
near the middle of a nice warm day,

remove some strong colony from its-
stand and place the new one where
the old one stood, so as to catch what,
bees are in the fie'ds on their return.
They can now be left to rear a queen
themselves, or be given a queen or
queen-cell from a queen-rearing
h i ve . — Bee-Keeper* Magazine , ( b'la.J

FEEDING BKES CANDY. -MAKING A SUCCESS
OF OUT Door. FEEDING

If there is one thing more than an-
other about beedceeping in which I
feel that I have not made as profitable
a use as I might have of the knowledge
I possessed, it is in the matter of
feeding I have always been a full
believer, theoretically, in the advan-
tages to be derived from feeding, but
somehow I have often neglected to put
this belief into practice as fully as I
should have. When 1 had only
forty or fifty colonies of bees I fed
them whenever they needed it, and I
found it profitable. But I got honey
in those days. When the number of
my colonies got up into the hundreds,
and my time was more fully occupied,
and while the increased expenses and
poor seasons kept my pocket-book
light, feeding was more neglected, and
done only when it was necessary.
Some of my best customers, too, were
so particular about the purity of the
honey they bought and so searching;
in their enquiries as to whether 1 fed
my bees anything, that I considered
it worth something to be able to say
honestly, and prove it if necsssary,
that I never fed my bees anything
but honey and very little of that.

Some of the most satisfactory feed-
ing I ever did was by the use of a
candy made of equal parts of grape
sugar and cane sugar with about ten

rlHE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER.

155

per cent, of flour stirred in, this kind
of candy not requiring any cooking.
this was moulded into thin cakes and
and a cake kept constantly over the
frames of each colony, tucked up warm.
These bees built up finely and were
in unusually good condition when the
honey flow came. My hives are not
adapted to such feeding now, and the
fault which I have to find with the
modern style of hive with its board
cover fitting down close to the top of
the frames, is that it is not as well
adapted to feeding in small quantities
within the hive as the old style with
cloth covering and a space above.

The large Heddon feeder as- used
on the new hive is by far the best for
feeding large quantities of feed, as is
needed in feeding for winter, but 1
have not found it so well adapted to
feeding small colonies in the spring.

My favorite way of feeding in the
spring has always been out of doors.
This has some very serious disadvan-
tages, it is true, but it is so much less
labor than other methods that this
alone is almost enough to make me
prefer it. It has always seemed to
me, too, that feed fed in this way did
the bees more good than when it was
fed in the hives. Any kind of refuse
honey is easily fed in this way. We
have often been told that it is unsafe
to feed honey at a time when bees are
inclined to rob. You can do it with
perfect safety at any time provided
you take the precaution to thin it
down sufficiently. If the bees work
on it more vigorously than you like,
just add a little more water. For out
door feeding any kind of a tight
trough with suitable floats, that the
bees may not get drowned, will answer.
The Heddon feeders are just the thing,

though I generally use large atmos-
pheric feeders holding ten gallons of
feed.

These I make by taking a ten-gallon
flour can, such as I use for storing ex-
tracted honey, set it on a hive bottom-
board, place a grooved board or a
shallow trough feeder over it upside
down, clamp the two together with
wire loops and "spreaders", then in-
vert the whole. It will siuprise one
who has never fed in this way to see
how much feed the bees of a large
apiary will carry away in a day.
This thin feed which the bees carry
in from outisde the hive more nearly
approaches to the natural honey flow,
and I think has a much more stimu-
lative effect than what is fed them in
the hive . It is true that some colonies
will get the lion's share and others
little or nothing, but it is an easy
matter to find out which the lazy ones •
are and stir them up, which may often
be done by feeding a little warm honey
in the hive, leading them to go out
and look for more, or these few may
be fed in the ordinary way.

I have been in the habit of saving
the cappingsfrom extracting for spring
feeding. The best way to use them
is to cover them with water and allow
them to soak for several hours, then
feed the sweetned water and allow the
bees to work over the soaked cappings
and get out what honey may remain.

At times when bees are inclined to
rob, or when a few cross bees are con-
tinually following the apiarist about,
a little very thin feed will keep these
nuisances busy, to the great comfort
of their keeper. By diluting it to a
proper degree you can regulate the
rapidity with which they will work
on it to suit yourself, and if you choose

156

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

•you can make a little feed keep a
great many bees busy for a long time.

A great drawback to out-door feed-
ing is that cool weather, by keeping
the bees from flying, stops the regular
supply of food at a time when it may
be badly needed. A much worse fea-
ture is that an ordinary light rain will
not stop the bees from flying after
they have grown accustomed to being
fed regularly, but they will visit the
feeding place in great numbers, only
to be chilled and drowned. On this
.account it would be well to have the
feeding place under an open shed, as
it is not so much the flying through
the rain that wets them as the waiting
around the feeding place.

By doing the feeding early in the
morning I have found that the bees a
mile away did not get any perceptible
amount of the feed, though I have
known other insects, and especially
the large gray hornets, to come in
considerable numbers.

Feeding for winter may be done out
of doors, feeding until the best
colonies have enough, then finishing
with individual feeders. It is my
opinion, on which however I have not
experimented carefully enough to be
certain, that feed given in this way is
not nearly so apt to granulate in the
combs.

Unless the feeding for winter is
done very early, the feed should be
nearly as thick as honey, and in all
cases should be given as rapidly as
possible. — J.- A' Green in Review.

Clubbing List.

The American Bee-Keeper.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cents a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 cents ; 3
copies, SI. 20 ; all to be sent to one postoffice.

Postage prepaid in the U.S. and Canada .; 10 cents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra to all other countries.

ADVERTISING RATES:

15 cents per line, 9 words ; $2.00 per inch. 5 per
cent, discount for 2 insertions ; 7 per cent, for 3 in-
sertions; 10 per cent, for 6 insertions; 20 per cent.
for 12 insertions.

Advertisements must be received on or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THK AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER, .

Falconer, N. Y.

j&g^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with a blue cross will know that their subscripiton
expires with this number. We hope that you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Please re-
new.

EDITORIAL,

We will send the American

Bee-Keeper with

the—

PUB. PRCE. BOTH.

American Bee Journal,
American Apiculturist,
Bee-Keeper's Review,
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•Gleanings in Bee Culture,

($1 00) 81 35
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The season of 1892 goes on record
as one of the poorest for the honey
producer, the queen breeder and the
manufacturer of apiariau supplies that
has been known for many years. The
long, wet and cold spring resulting in
the dwindling and destruction of many
colonies, and retarding the brood rear-
ing, was followed by a generally good
summer season, but so short that the
bees in their weakened condition could
not store any surplus to speak of, most
of the honey gathered going to fill the
brood chambers. In some localities
considerable surplus was stored and
bees did fairly well, but as a rule bee-
keeping has been carried on at a loss
this season.

By referring to the market reports
in another column it will be seen that
the price paid for nice new comb hon-
ey is higher than last season, and the
demand is in excess of the supply. In

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

157

our judgment, the proper time to dis-
pose of honey is during this and next
month. Prices are apt to be stronger
than later on.

We have recently purchased the
entire edition of "How to Manage
Bees." It is a book containing much
valuable information and should be in
the hands of every bee-keeper, es-
pecially beginners. We will give a
copy free with every yearly subscrip-
tion, either from a new or old sub-
scriber, provided ten cents extra is
sent to pay postage, wrapping, etc.
This offer will hold only until Decem-
ber 1st.

to

We hope every bee-keeper will be
sure to leave sufficient stores in each
hive to insure the safe keeping of his
bees through the winter and spring.
From twenty to thirty-five pounds of
sealed honey should be allowed for
each swarm, depending, of course, on
the latitude. In more southern local-
ities the less amount will be suffi-
cient, but in this part of the country
and further north thirty-five pounds
will not be too much.

It is now getting along toward the
season when bee-keepers will have
plenty of spare time, and we hope that
many of our numerous readers will
favor us with short articles on inter-
esting topics pertaining to bees.

We are now at work on our new
catalogue of supplies for 1893. It will
be ready in a few weeks and will be
thoroughly revised. In many cases
the prices will be found much lower
than heretofore.

In this locality September has been
unusually warm and pleasant, and up to
this writing (September 28th) we have
had no frosts.

By the time frost comes the swarms
should be cared for, and all that lack
sufficient stores should be quickly fed
up until they have thirty pounds or
more, and if the weather becomes cold
and disagreeable the hives should bn
moved into the cellar, if you intend
to winter them there, and be sure your
cellar is dry, dark and of even tem-
perature— about 45 degrees.

We have heard very little complaint
of honey-dew this season. One calam-
ity that bee-keepers escaped.

The thirteenth annual convention
of the Northeastern Ohio, Northern
Pennsylvania and Western New York
Bee-Keepers' association will convene
in the parlors of the Mineral Springs
hotel at Sagertown, Pa., at 10 o'clock
a. m., October 19, for a two days' ses-
sion. The program will consist of
practical topics discussed by practical
bee-keepers.

Sagertown is situated six miles east
of Meadville on the N. Y. P. & O.
R. R. Reduced rates for those at-
tending the convention have been se-
cured. Sagertown is one of the finest
summer resorts of the country. A
steamer runs on the river, which will
be at the disposal of all wishing to
take a boat ride. Ladies are especially
invited to attend.

Programs will be sent to members
and to others, upon request, by the
Secretary, (leorge Spitler, Mosier-
town, Pa.

A Bee-Keapers' association was or-
ganized at Angelica, N. Y., recently,
to be known as the Allegany County
Bee-Keepers' association, with H. C.
Farnum of Trausit Bridge, N Y., pres-
ident, W. M. Barnum, Belmont, N.Y.,
vice-president, H. L. Dwight, Friend-

:5*

THE AMEBIC AN BEE-KEEPER.

ship, N. Y. secretary, H. Spring, Bel-
vide re, N. Y., treasurer. It starts
with a membership of twenty-five, and
bids fair to be one of the most pros-
perous associations in this part of the
state.

Happy and eon lent is a home with
"The Rochester," a lamp with the
light ot the morning.

For Catalogue write Hocheater Lump Co.,
New York.

LITERARY ITEMS,

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
With faith unshadowed by the night,

Undazzled by the t ay,
With hope that plumed thee for the flight,

Ami courage to assay,
God sent thee from the crowded ark,

e hrisl-bearer, like the dove.
To rind, o'er sundering waters dark,

New lands tor conquering Love.

— John B. Tubb in October Lippincott's.

While the publishers of some mag-
.azines and periodicals in this country
.and Europe make offers and pre-
sent to their readers gift pictures
which may, or may not, be works of
art, the Godey Publishing Co., of 21
Park Row, New York, announce that
they present to each purchaser of Go-
dey1 $ Magazine, published in its new
form September 15th, (for October,)
with an art subject which is worthy of
its name, and which is beautiful in
conception, drawing and coloring.
The subject is known as " Godey's
Idea of the 'World's- Fair'" The
publishers wish it understood that, in
addition to the magnificent October
uurnber, retailing for 25 cents, this
beautiful picture (size 7x29 inches)
will be given free as a supplement.

E. P. Rowel 1 in the September JSeiv
England Magazine puts forward the
thousand and one arguments, com-
mercial, ethical and artistic, that can-
be made in favor of good highways.
This movement for improved country
roads is evidently here to stay.

Rain-producing by artificial means
suggests to one of the contributors to

the October number of the North
American Beview that a bureau must
necessarily be created in Washington
to control such efforts to assist nature,
and the writer, with not a little hu-
mor, hints that it will also be neces-
sary to establish safeguards against
the subjection of the new office to the
spoils system .

A TWO HUNDRED DOLLAR PRIZE OFFER.

Frank Lethe's H'eekhj, ever enterpris-
ing offers 6201) to the subscriber who
guesses nearest to the pleurality which
the candidate for the presidency may
receive. This means the plurality
of the popular vote, and not the elec-
toral vote. Frank Leslie's Weekly con-
tains nearly every week great front-
page cartoons, which quite equal those
of its lively contemporary, the Judge.
In illustrating the news events of the
week in its highest possible artistic
manner, and in giving also the latest
pictures of foreign events, it fills a
want that no other weekly in the coun-
try does. Frank Leslie's will be sent
for five weeks for 50 cents. This in-
cludes the privilege of guessing on
the plurality.

VERY YOUNG.

Judge's Library for September shows
a very picturesque and happy little
darky making a mid-day meal of the
ever present watermelon. This num-
ber of the Library will especially
please the children. What number,
in fact, does not? And it is filled
with all those oddities that the great
artists are, so skillful in depicting.
Never was so much laughter put in
pages for such a moderate amount as
Judge's Library. Every news-dealer
handles it, and if he does not, he can
make no better investment than by
sending ten cents to the Judge Pub-
lishing Co., 110 Fifth avenue, New
York.

Ground Cork for packing. — We can
furnish this at 8c. per pound in small quan-
tities, or -S4 ■ 0 per 10U pounds. It is the
best packing known. A bushel weighs
jabjut eight i otnda.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER

1 59

Important Trade Notes,

Our OoTsrDB Winter ('ask (iis Dove-
tailed Hi- our tbin-waiied hires, and is one
of (lie most successful methods of wintering
.out door-. I 'rice of Outside Case, with hi t-
tom, rover, etc., complete, onlv 75c ; 1 1> for

Five peu cent, discount is now al-
lowed on ,-iil prices in our catalogue, ex-
cepting on shipping cases and crates.

Honey and Beeswax Market Report.

Scientific American
Agency for

Below we give the luiestaiml must autheu-
tic report of Uie Honey iind Beeswax market
in different trade centers :

Alisan'y. N. Y., Sept. 21. — We have received up
to date 312 cases of comb and 25 halt' bbl- of ex-
tracted honey. The quality of the eonih honey is
only fair, hut it is moving off rapid' y at 14@15c for
•ctover, and ll@13c for buckwheat and mixed.
Fancy white clover will sell at 17@18c; extracted,
7@Sc. Beeswax. 28(5 10c

Ohas. W. McCui.louoh & Co.. 393-398 Broadway.

Kansas City. Mo., Sept. 19.— The demand for
honey i- better than receipts; light supply. Price
■of one pound comb, I0@17c; extracted, (JfeSc.
Beeswax is in good demaud at 24c.: light supply.
Prices are firm. We are not receiving enough to
supply our demand,

11 aw blin& Brakes, 514 Walnut St.

St. Louis, Mo., sept. 20. —Excellent demand
for honey; fair supply. Price of comb, 10@16c:
extracted, Vjcy't1*?. Fair demand for beeswax;
good supply. Price, 25c.

Thk D, G. Tutt Gro. Co

Kansas City, Mo., Sept. 20.— The demand for
honey is good. Supply very light. Price of comb.
15@l(jc ; extracted, 5 (a* 7]/,o. . Light supply of bees-
wax; good demand. Price 'It (at 25c. We are not
getting enough to supply our trade.

(,'lkmons. Mason & Co..

Cor. 4th and Walnut Sts.

Albany, N. Y., Sept. 21.— The demand for honey
is improving. Price of comb, 12@15c ; extracted,
6®7c. Steady demand for beeswax at 27(5 28c. ;
supply light. Think the price of honey is better
now than it will be a month later; advise selling
early. H. R. Wright, 326 and 328 Broadway.

Chicago, III., Sept. 20. — We are now having in-
quiries for white 1 lb. section comb honey, and
iiuote market 16c for lie-t grade. Amber selling
at 14c. Coo I demand for extracted honey, and we
can sell all shipments romptl.v on arrival at from
7@8c. Beeswax 2iic. W e ask for correspondence
from all those who have honey to market, or wish
to purchase.

S. T. Fish & Co., 189 S. Water St.

New York, Sept. 20. — Demand moderate, and
supply reduced, with no more glassed I lb. nor
paper caitons, 1 lb. We quote: Comb. 1 lb U(5 15c.
Extracced — Basswood, T'-t'uo'J^c; buckwheat. 5%
@ti!4; Mangrove, f)S(cu75e per gal. tjood demand
f >r dark extracted honev Beeswax, in fair supply
with sma:l demand, at 26@27c.

F. G. Strohmeykr k Co., 120 Pearl St. 1

Cincinnati, O., Sept. 2u —The demand i- very-
good and exceeds the supply. Price of comb,
12(§>l(ic. for best; extracted 5(»8c. i eeswax is in
fiir demand: good supplv. Price 2U@25c. for
best yellow. Unless a good fall crop of honey is
rai>ed we shall be short, and manufacturers using
honey now will have to resort again to sugar, as
was the ease seven or eight years ago.

Oh \s. b". Muih & S<>.\,
I 'or. Fl'.oemau and Central Ave;.

CAVEATS,
TRADE MARKS,
DESIGN PATENTS
COPYRIGHTS, etc.

For information and free Handbook write to

MUNN & CO., 361 Broadway, New York.
Oldest bureau for securing patents in America.
Every patent taken out by us is brought before
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Mtnan

Largest circulation of any scientific paper in the
world Splendidly illustrated. No intelligent
man should be without it. Weekiv, $3.00 a
year; $1.50 six months. Address MUNN & CO.,
Publishers, 361 Broadway, New York.

The object of the mnnufacturers
of Dobbins' Electric Soap has been,
ever since 18H9, to tmike it of such
superior quality that it \v II give
wiiverwl mtixfact'itm. Ilave they
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IMPART 'r'" '''"■''''"''•'<' y'"""f,/'s' there

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Philadelphia, Pa.

160

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

DID YOU KNOW THAT

FIXED FRAMES ARK THE RAGE?

for sale several styies. our cus-

Well, thp question with many is. which on
tomers have almost uniformly elected in their

> adopt. After offering
irders the justly popular

fiOFFMflN FRflME

• For the Langstroth, or any Hive of that size~
such as the Dovetailed, they are umiuestionably
the best. They are not stuck up with burr-coinbs,
are self-spacing, the most rapidly handled, and al-
ways ready lor rough handling, such as for ship-
ping and moving to out yards. The top bar has »
moulded comb guide as shown, and is I 1-32 in~
wide and % in. thick. The end bars are widened
at tin? top, and on one side are brought to a blunt
knife edge. The bottom bar is % in. square so the
bees will build their combs down to it. Queens
can't hide between it and the comb, aud it does4
not catch and roll over the bees in drawing the
frame out of the hive. This frame costs a little
more than the old-style thin-top-bar frames, but*
oh my ! how much better! As a good frtime wilf
last a life-tltne! get a good one. Price 61.70 per
100; 315.00 per K000.

OUR DOVETAILED HIVE.

In fact, all our Hives complete, now have the New Hoffman Frame with the other inside furniture.
Although the new frame is more expensive we put up the hive combinations at the SAME PRICE.
Speaking of the DOVETAILED HIVE, remember we were the originators of this Hive, and are the only

ones who have put any substantial improvements on it. It is now out-selling ;ill other hives put together.
If you want the latest as well ;is those made uion some new and expensive automatic machinery on which
the dovetailing is A GLEAN CUT, buy of us or our dealers. Send for our 5:.:- Page Catalogue of BeeSup-
plies which will give full particulars. The information in it will be worth much to you. F. A. Salisbury,
Syracuse, N. Y., is our Eastern Agent for these goods. When more convenient order of him.

/ leave mention American, liet-Keepei

A.

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{§ ~ »»-<■-* .* Ai-a ~ji. ^evieuu Alone, $1.00. The Queen

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" Advanced Bee Culture," tuill be sent. W. IZ. Hutehinson, Flint, JVIieh. |

|jm£

Supply dealers send for wholesale Prices.

We guarantee it to be the best escape
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after three months trial of from one to a
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directions, 20c. Per dozen, $2.25. Sent
post-paid on receipt of price. Send for
descriptive circular and testimonials.
R. & E. C. PORTh-R, Lewistowu, Illinois,

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE W T FALCONER MANFG CO

VOL. II.

NOVEMBER, 1892.

NO. II.

My Experience in Wintering
Bees.

BY DB. C. C. MILLER.

Last winter was milder than usual.
It seemed warm enough during the
fore part id' the winter without any
fire in my cellars, and I thought that
I'd see how the bees would come out
not to have any hie all winter. I
doubt it' I'll ever try the experiment
again. From pretty well toward MOO
I came down to 1 28. To be sure they
didn't all die in the cellar— indeed
the larger part of them died after they
came out of the cellar, but J suspect
they were weakened by being some-
what chilled in the cellar, and conse-
quently couldn't stand the remarka-
bly severe spring and early summer
as well as they otherwise would have
done.

Now I don't pretend to say that
every one should have fire in the cel-
lar. I have some faint hope that
some day I'll have a cellar so warm
that I'll not need to have fire. But I
do believe that by some means the
cellar, if a cellar is used, should be
kept from getting down below 40° or
45°.

And it will not do for me to go en-
tirely by what some one else finds the

right temperature. For one thing,
thermometers vary— sometimes five
or ten degrees. So if I have a ther-
mometer that registers five degrees
too high and yours registers five de-
crees too low, and you try to keep
your cellar at the same temperature
as mine, there will bean actual differ-
ence of ten degrees. Then again, cel-
lars differ. I'm not certain that I
fully know just why, but there's a
difference. A dry cellar doesn't need
to be kept so warm as a damp one.
Don't you know that on a morning in
early spring, when the surface of the
ground is frozen up, you feel quite
comfortable, and as it begins to thaw
you feel more chilly? The damp air
is a better conductor than that which
is dry.

Start with the theory that some-
where about 45° is the best tempera-
ture for a cellar, but don't stick too
close to that theory. Watch closely,
and find out whether your bees seem
more quite and comfortable when the
thermometer goes above or below that
point.

If you can get along without fire
in your cellar do so. Some come
down severely on anything of the
kind, saying it isn't natural, and it's

1K2

THE AMERICAN BEEKEEPER.

injurious to the bees. Well, bees are
just like other people. They're better
without fire if they don't need it, but
it's a good ileal better to have fire
than to be chilled to death. I have
used an oil stove in the cellar, but I
shall never do so again. Of course
an oil stove would be all right if there
was a chimney to carry off the smoke
and foul gases. The heat from an oil
stove is all right, but they aiv gener-
ally supposed to be used without any
kind of a chimney , and that'.- what
makes the mischief.

The stoves 1 use are small cylinder
stoves, and with anthracite coal a low,
steady fire can be kept up all winter.
It is quite easy to regulate the mat-
ter by means of cleaning out the ashes
more or less closely, as al.-o by limit-
ing the amount of coal put in each
time. Attention to the fire each
morning and evening is all that is
necessary.

But your cellar may be of that sort
that only occasionally becomes too
cold, and it is not worth while to keep
a stove in it In that case you may
carry down heated stones or jugs of
hot water. Be sure your water jugs
are tightly corked, for steam escaping
from them is very undesirable. Where-
ever the climate is cold enough, every
family ought to have a rubber water
bag,, or one or more soapstones. These
will do good service in helping to
warm the cellar. Of course banking
the cellar is one of the cheapest ways
of keeping it warm.

If you have only a very few bees
in the cellar, it is not so important to
have the cellar just right. A few
bees will winter all right in a cellar
where they might die if there were
ten times as many. Perhaps it may
be because the air is more pure.

I know there are some that say bees
do not require ventilation, but you
may set it d<>wn that anything that
breathes requires air, and bees breathe
all winter long. And on that account
I am very .-lire that warming up a
cellar sometimes does good, even when
the bees are plenty warm. I once
helped my bees when they were warm
enough by putting fire in the cellar.
I'll tell you how it was. It was to-
ward spring, and one of those contin-
ued warm spells came when the tem-
perature oui doors went up to 50° and
the cellar was the same. The bees
became very uneasy. I started a fire
in the stove and run the cellar up to
70° or more. Just at first it didn't
seem to do any good — made them
noisier, if anything. By the next
morning, however, when the ther-
mometer had gone down again to
about 50°, the bees were nice and
quiet. I think the explanation was
that heating of the air had set up a
current, the air was changed, and
with more pure air the bees were all
right.

I have often noticed the same effect
in a little different way. In a warm
spell in the spring, when the bees be-
came uneasy in the cellar, I would at
night open wide all doors and win-
dows. How the bees would roar.
At first it fairly frightened me to find
them so noisy and crawling all over
the hives, but by the next morning
they would be quiet and nice, so that
the sun might shine into the cellar
without disturbing them.

With plenty of good food, plenty
of bees, plenty of good air, and not
too far Irom the right temperature,
there should not be an over amount
of anxiety about bees in winter quar-
ters.

Marenyo, 111.

THE AMERICAN BEE- KEEPER

163

Various Points on the Win-
tering Question.

BY K. K. NAIiTY.

It is a growing sentiment among
apiarists that it' the other ilems are
put right the relative importance of
ventilation is so small that it may
safely be left to the care of itself. To
put it differently, the idea is that un-
der ordinary circumstances hees will
be practically certain to command all
the oxygen they need, if other things
are all right. I am not quite sine
that this is the truth — would he glad
to know— and guess I am in a large
and honorable company right there.

A very favorable point is to have
bees so conditioned that the cluster
can touch, or nearly touch, a warm,
dry surface overhead. A cluster
formed touching the lop, and stores
below them, is very much safer than
a cluster formed away down and stores
above them. But here the ventilating
item may come in again. Some ex-
periments I have read not long ago
indicate that thin glass, made warm
by soft packing above it, will not do
where a cluster of bees is to hug it
from underneath. If this is so I pre-
sume thin metal would work the same
way. The rational idea seems to be
that the bees, hemmed in at a high
temperature against the impervious
glass, are suffocated. Fortunately
glass and metal surfaces for the win-
tering chamber are not common.
Wood, and enamel cloth, and plaster,
and the various forms of baked or
dried clay, are all sufficiently pervi-
ous to oxygen that they may be
hugged without danger to the little
fellows who can't get out.

All know that first-class, perfectly

healthy food lo win t r on is a favor-
able item. Few keep in mind, I fear,
how great is the relative importance
of this one thing. It appears to largely
outweigh all other things put together.
Most bee investigators have at times
stood back ami scratched their heads
in utter puzzlement to see where some
colony had come through splendidly
when almost every condition supposed
to pertain to suceessful wintering had
been violated. I think that these
puzzles do not show that our estab-
lished principles are wrong, but only
that the colony in question had excel-
lent food, and enough of it ; and hav-
ing that, all the unfavorable things
weighed too little to sink them. To
take away the natural stores of the
bees, except in the cases where they
are known to be excellent , and to give
them other stores to winter on seems
to be the only certain method. This
of course must be done before the
war ii weather is over, that the stores
given may have the full benefit of
bee-chemistry before the cheilosis go
into their semi-dormant condition.
Granulated sugar syrup, well finished
and sealed, with a little pollen in the
hive, but not very much, can hardly
fail if a decent care is exercised about
other things.

But what about the crowd of us,
mvself among the number, that would
have to go out of the business if ex-
tracting and refeeding was the only
way of success? It takes money to
buy sugar and pay for the labor re-
quired ; and in some places where
bees are kept the whole profit per
hive will not pay it. The further
fact is, that though the matter of food
does outweiglit all other things, when
all the other things are made as

164

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

favorable as possible we can let our
bees keep such stores as they may
have from year to year, and still suc-
ceed, after a fashion The fashion is
notavery satisfactory one, to be sure —
tot) many losses, some of them very
heavy ones — but still we can main-
tain our apiaries, and produce honey,
and that without buying bees. Warm
double walls, well packed with chaff,
else a good cellar, tight roofs, (say
those two words over several times.)
wind - breaks, natural or artificial ;
chaff cushions above, and the bees ac-
tually up close to the cushion to be-
gin with ; snug chamber, free of cracks
and draughts, and not too big ; inch
or two of dry sawdust underneath to
drink up slops from the thawing of
winter frost ; these be the syllables by
meaus of which, even without sugar
syrup, we can pronounce the phrase
"suc-cess-ful win-ter-ing."

And now one more thing. Ye con-
fiding students look out for yourselves
lest ye be seduced by ruinous non-
sense ; for this is a matter I am al-
most the only writer to maintain —
the place for all stores over ten or
twelve pounds is in the comb closet,
not in the hive. Assign them a
thousand pounds per colony if you
want to, but don't require them to
keep it partially warmed up all win-
ter by their own bodily heat — lose by
it if you do. Besides the fact that
honey is cold stuff, and that excess of
it in the hive at one time is too much
like taking a million silver dollars to
bed with you on a cold night. There
is an accidental circumstance that ag-
gravates matters. Our hives are al-
most all of them so constructed that
with extra stores, that is to say, with
30 or 40 pounds, the cluster must be

formed (or at least will be) low down
in the hive, and much of the honey
will be directly above them. Think
a moment what the inevitable result
of this will be. During spells of
zero weather the empty spaces above
the cluster condense large amounts of
moisture in the shape of frost. This
state of things one can hardly fail to
notice if he will open a hive under
such circumstances. When a mild
spell of weather comes this mass of
frost can do nothing else than melt,
and run down and drench the bees.
Worse yet, the severe spell may con-
tinue SO long that the bees are com-
pelled to warm up things themselves,
in order to take sufficient food and
keep from starving. This they do by
muscular action and returning to the
active state. But midway of the try-
ing effort the frost ovei their heads
melts, and comes down upon them as
cold water. Dear bee-brothers, don't
fix things in such a stupid way as to
have this occur.
Richard*, Ohio.

Bee Notes.

BY M. H. I)E WITT.

We have given the New Improved
Hoffman frames a fair trial this sea
son in our apiary, and I think they
are a great improvement over the old
style. We have had no burr combs
built on them, and my combs are not
all braced together as they were with
the old L-frames — so much so that
when I was manipulating them
the honey was continually running
down from where the brace combs
were fastened together. I shall dis-
card all other old style frames and
have all my combs built on the new
Hoffman frames.

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

165

It is about time now for a new crop
of bee journals to make their appear-
ance. What has become of the Bee-
Keeper* Magazine and National Bee
Gazette t I have not received a copy
of either one for three months. I
guess they must have gone where the
woodbine twineth, or the editors are
several months behind time.

I have given the Italian bees a trial
now for the past two years, and have
compared them with the German or
black bees, and the Italians are the
worst bees to rob and sting that 1
ever saw. They are in the house
and into everything on the table, we
cannot eat any honey on account of
their being into the house every chance
they have. They have flown two miles
or more to rob my neighbors bees, and
they won't work in the sections with-
out so much coaxing and fussing with
them that 1 much prefer the blacks or
Carniolans. The Italians are so bad
to sting that I know that I could not
have handled them at all without a
bee veil, they have swarmed for me
when there was not bees enough in the
hives to work in the sections. When
I kept all black bees I had lots of hon-
ey and strong colonies of bees and had
no bother in inducing them to work
in the surplus boxes, they would only
swarm when they were crowded for
room to make honey. The Golden
Italians were the worst bees to sting
that I ever had and no account to
work for me, when my black bees were
storing lots of honey from the locust
my Golden Italians were not doing
much. I have also tried the Gray
Carniolans and 1 like them, .so far,
better than either the blacks or Itali-
ans, they are so gentle and hardy and
good comb builders, and will not pilfer

about into everything like the Italians
have done for me tor the past two
years I have had them. 1 will intro-
duce all Carniolan queens into mv
yard next spring.
Sang Run, Md

Editor American Bee- Keeper —
I have been using white wash on my
bee hives for several years, and for
many reasons prefer it to paint. In
the first place on account of cheapness,
as I apply it myself and it does not
cost me over 80c to white wash 120
hives, labor not included. In the
second place, it is less trouble and
takes less time to give two coats of
while wash than one of any kind of
paint, and finally, I can have my
hives shining white all the time, no
dirty, dingy looking boxes, reminding
me of deserted colonies. And it pre-
serves the wood also, for a white-
washed hive, if kept so, will last four
times as long as one left standing neg-
lected without anything.

I believe it is an accepted fact by
all bee-keepers, that white is the best
color for hives. It is rather an ex-
pensive affair to keep hives painted
as white as mine are all the time, and
at times it would be difficult to apply
it just when it ought to be done.

In the northern regions the subject
that engages the bee-keepers' atten-
tion is how to keep his bees warm in
winter. Herein the South, especially
in the Gulf states, it is bow to keep
them cool in summer. The subject
of ventilation in summer is quite a
problem. Keep the hives as white as
snow with lime is the way I partially
solve the problem. I do not know
that anyone else has tried it. At
least I have never seen anything of it
published. Yours truly,

Mus8on, La.,Oct. 15, '92 Dr. AW. Tufts.

166

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

DRONE-BEES AND THEIR WAYS

The drone-bee is not so much looked
upon ucuv as formerly as an idler in
the hive. From pulpit and pew, from
wayside and home, he has been the
remark of indolence. Recently a
Presiding Elder in the West issued a
call through a leading periodical, for
some preachers to till vacancies on his
District, and concluded his request by
saying, ''No drone need apply."

To my mind, I helieve that the
drone-bee fills its sphere in life, and
and is jusl as industrious in his miss-
ion here, as any other creature. The
intelligent apiarist has noticed again
and again that a hive of bees with
hundreds of drones has rolled the hon-
ey into the sections, while a sister
colony equal in numbers of workers,
without drones, has yielded almost
nothing. I now usually aim to keep
some drone comb in every hive. If
I only wish drones from desirable col-
onies, then I keep drone-brood shaved
down, and pick by hand a few dozen
drones for each colony. During the
honey season, or flow of nectar, drones
may be shaken into any colony, and
are almost always received.

The life of the drone is very short —
much shorter than that of the workers.
1 believe that many of the drones are
caught by birds and enemies of bees.
Drones are more clumsy and less rapid
in their flight than worker-bees which
renders them a better prey for their
enemies in the air. It is fortunate for

the neuters that they can fly so fast.
The drones aid in keeping up ani-
mal heat in the hive. They a>sist in
stimulating activity. I have also
some faith that they aid in carrying
honey from one ceil to another, and
ripening the same. If we place a
feeder with syrup in front of the hive,
we will usually find drones in this
feeder at all hours of the day. aiding
as best they can to remove the contents
to the cells of their combs.

llow To KEEP DRONES DURING A DROUGHT

A correspondent from the East
wishes me to give a method "for
keeping droiies when the honey sea-
son i> past." This I willingly do.

Always aim to have some choice
drones creeping out of their cells at
the close of the honey harvest. Then
make one or more colonies queenless,
and give the-e emerging drones to the
queenless colony, or colonics. Brood
and eggs may he added once in a week
or two, but look over every comb now
and then to be -ore that no ijueen
gets into this hive, or hives, made
queenless. Keep all queen-cells cut
out before their content.- emerge into
virgins. Feed this colony, or colonies,
well, and always feed about noon ; the
colonies you wish drones to fly from
about the time you expect virgins to
come o it (lithe wing. When there
is no nectar in the lipids, you will thus
create activity amougthe workers and.
drones of such colonies.

At any time should you run short
of drones, you can real- drones by
giving a good colony nothing but
drone-comb so that the queen will be
compelled to lay vgg^ in drone-cells.
All eggs layed in drone-cells produce
only drone-bees. Ii'we remove worker-

1Hj<. AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

m

eggs from worker-cells, and place
them in drone-cells, we will get drones
as a result. Whether the bees by
blind instinct always extract the sperm
fluid or not from worker-eggs when
in drone-colls, I do not know; but one
of two things must be true — either
all og^< from a fertile queen must be
alike, or the worker-bees possess the
ability to change the eggs. Our good
friend, Prof. ( ook, says:

" When the workers are able to ab-
stract the sperm-cells, which are so
small that we can only see them by
using a high power microscope"
(though he acknowledges, and so do J,
that sperm-cells cannot be discovered
in bee-eggs with any kind of micro-
scope). " then we may expect to see
wheat turn to chaff.

That wheat will turn to chaff is
evident — a fact that I have seen dem-
onstrated— a change I can produce
myself; but this egg process is yet
wrapped in mystery. See Cook's
Manual, pages 81 and 74.

DRONES MEETING A VIRGIN O.UEEN

It was ray pleasure yesterday (Aug.

1st) to witness a sight I have longed
to see for year: — thank Providence
for the privilege.

About 1 o'clock p.m. a virgin
queen, urged strongly by the beer> to
go out o[ the hive of a nucleus colo-
ny, tried several times to fly but failed.
Then I caught her and tossed her up
into the air, and discovered that she
could not fly.

Next I picked her up, and seeing
her run about on my left hand, carried
her to within about 10 feet of a queen
less colony that I had fed some honey
a few minutes before, and to my
astonishment, the drones came rush-

ing about this queen on my hand like
mad hornets. One drone threw her
over on her side, but she was on her
feet in an instant. Several drones
gaVJ her each a tap and then left.

In a short time the buzzing stopped,

and the drones all went back to their
hive. But not one of these drones
left any of the sex-organs adhering to
the queen. I do not know that this
queen is pregnated. but I shall wat< h
her closely for the next two days to
see when she begins laying, and
whether she attempts to leave the hive
again.

I have believed in the past that the
reason the bees from one queen vary
so much in color, is because the queen
on her wedding-tour meets and copu-
lates with different drone.- of various
stripes. Then my observation has.
been that only about one-fourth of the
queens that become fertilized carry
enough of the vital fluid with them,
received from the drones, to be v isible
to the naked eye at all.

I have watched some virgin queens
very closely, have seen them come out
of the hive a- many as a half-dozen
times, then I have opened the hive
and scrutinized the queen closely, but
could see no trace of fertilization until
the next two days, then I would see
the abdomen begin to enlarge,, ami
know in this way that -he had met
some drones; for she would begin to
lay at the appointed time.

Oue fact is now settled, namely,
that the queen attracts the drones, and
not the drones the queen. The many
are attracted toward the one, and not
the one toward the many.

Another truth is, that the queen
must be "on the spree," or have the

168

J HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

desired sexual-impulse to attract the
drones.

A few weeks ago, when there were
some 30 virgin queens on the wing
one day I observed that the drones
were so excited as to fly in and out of
their hives like robber bees.

Yes, reader, the drone fills his miss-
ion well in life, and if we can do as
well as he, we shall feel well at the
close of life.— (Iowa.) W. P. Taylor in
A.B.J.

POISONOUS HONEY.

Occasionally one sees in the news-
papers stories of persons made ill by
eating poisonous honey. It is true
that honey made from certain flowers
causes nausea; also that some persons
cannot eat honey at all until it has
been boiled; but I doubt if honey is
ever poisonous, except that gathered
at some seasons of the year in the
Southern States. There is a great
difference between " green" and well
ripened honey. Sumac honey is good
if well ripened, but if removed from
the hive before it is sealed it is scarce-
ly fit to eat Boneset (thorough wort ■
also produces a very poor quality of
honey. If tobacco is used in the
smoker when the surplus is removed
it is easy to get the honey sufficiently
impregnated with its fumes to make
those unaccustomed to tobacco sick
when they eat it. Probably nearly
all the so-called poisonous honey might
be traced to careless apiarists. — J- H.
Andre.

A SWARM OF Bl ES

Is made up of a queen, 30,000 to 40,000
worker bees and in the spring several
hundred drones. The queen is not only
the royal head of the family, but the
mother of all. She lays two or three

thousand eggs daily in the spring
when building up the colony for the
approaching honey flow. The laying
season usually begins about December
in the South, and the number- of eggs
deposited is increased daily until the
hive is overflowing with bees if the
queen is a good one. Just before and
during the flower- blooming season the
brood chamber should be full of brood
in all stages of developement and the
young bees hatching out at the rate of
many hundred daily. During Sep-
tember, October and November, little
or no increase of bees will be detected.
These wise insects appear to know-
when winter is at hand, when honey
will be consumed in boarding the colo-
ny and nothing brought in. — Ex.

MANAGEMENT OF BEES.

In this article I shall endeavor to
instruct the novice as plainly as I can,
in the winter and spring management
,of his bees. There is no trouble in
taking care of bees in the spring if
they are well wintered.

Now is the time to commence prep-
arations for wintering bees and pro-
viding for next year's honey flow, for
one colony well wintered is worth half
a dozen starved and unprotected ones.
In the first place after taking off the
supers, all colonies should be examin-
ed to see if they have queens ; for it
is no use to attempt to winter a queen-
less colony. The next thing is to make
sure that all have sufficient stores; and
to accomplish this they should be put
separately on the weighing scales, so
as to avoid anything like guess-work.
For outside wintering all" colonies
should have at least thirty pounds of
honey, and no less ; if it is not quite
all used it will not be wasted, for it

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

169

will keep. On the other hand, if you
do not give them quite enough you
will be sure to lose both honey and
bees. For cellar wintering from twenty
to twenty-five pounds will be sufficient,
but give me outside wintering in pre
ferenee. My experience with cellar
and out-wintered bees for the last five
years has convinced me that a colony
well packed outside is worth almost
two cellar-wintered colonies, and that
they give less bother and worry. It
is a great drawback to the bee-keeper
to keep constant watch over cellared
bees for six month< or more in order
to see that they do not get eirher too
much heat or cold. Well packed out-
side, and with sufficient store provided
for them, they will watch the ther-
mometer themselves, and govern
themselves accordingly ; and the api-
arist, if he so desires, can leave them
for a few days without uneasiness.

As the bees are now supposed to be
fed up well and ready for packing, I
presume the novice is anxious to
know how to proceed with the pack-
ing of them. There are many meth-
ods of packing, all of them good, pro-
vided they are done right. Some
winter their bees in a long clamp, all
in a row, some singly, with one colony
in each, but the latter method is too
expensive, and gives too much work.
I have tried nearly all the different
modes, and rather prefer three or
four hive clamps, the fours being the
most convenient and the easiest to
make. If you are going to make any
new packing boxes, try the fours. In
the first place, make the bottom, and
have it large enough to stand four
hives upon, back to back, one facing
north and the other south, or in any
other direction you please, leaving the

hives one or two inches apart, and
making the boxes huge enough to hold
five or six inches of packing all around
between the hives and the outside
case. Nail the sides to the bottom,
and have them high enough to allow
for one or two inches of leaves or chaff
below the hives, and from six to eight
inches above. When you get your
outside case r-ady, put one or two
inches of chaff in the bottom, set the
hives in, then have a bridge put to
the entrance from a hole in the out-
side case to allow the bees free exit
and entry.

Now, take off the cover, raise up
the quilt, and place some sticks accross
the frames to enable the bees to cross
over the combs, then put the quilt
back over the sticks, leave the cover
off, and pack all around and between
the hives as tightly as possible, and
the same on top. Then put on a good
tight cover, so that the. packing will
be kept perfectly dry, and I am quite
sure that, if you only feed and pack
up your bees well, you will be de-
lighted, upon advent of the honey
flow of 1893, to see the. bees rolling
in the golden stores. — ( Canada)!). An-
guish in C. B. J. Sept.

J'.KKS FIGHTING WHEN BEING UNITED.

I have two stocks of bees in frame
hives, which have not swarmed for two
or three years. They have not done
well this season, so I concluded the
queens were worn out. I therefore
destroyed ihem, with the intention of
uniting a driven lot of bees to each
Stock. Well, a few evenings ago I
united them in the following way: I
first smoked the bees in each hive,
and, after spraying the combs and bees
with essence of peppermint , shook out

170

Tin. AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

the bees from the skep on a platform
in front of each hive, first wedging up
the front to allow ihi lues no more
room to i:et in. They all went in be-
fore dark, ami seemed all quiet about
eijiht o cluck. An hour later I went
again to tin hive- am! listened, when
I found ill 'iv wasagreat uproar in No.
1, while in No. 2. all wn- still quiet.
The next morning 1 found all th>' driv-
en bees outside No. 1. hive <U ad or
dying. This slaughter ci>ntinu*-d till
I believe every oi>e of the driven bees
were killed. Bui No. 2. still remain-
ed perfectly quiet, and have been ever
since. I ! oked for the queen, but
have not found her. Do you think
she escaped she slaughter? U'hat
puzzle- rue i.-, that one lot killed the
mhI ihe other took to them quite
friendly. To the best of my ability, I
served both lots exactly alike. Can
you enlighten nie on the subject?
Also what to do to quiet them if such
a riling happened again ? Many
thanks for " Useful Hints'' in refer-
ence to old foundation. I find it
answer.- very well, and it is useful to
know these things. For myself, I do
not consider it quite honest for dealers
to palm off old foundation on their
customers.— G. Benford.

Reply. -It is quite impossible for
us to account for perfect success in one
case and entire failure in the other.
The wonder, rather, is that both lots
of driven bees were not all killed.
According to the account given above,
the bees of the stuck in frame hive
were sprayed with essence of pepper-
mint instead of with thin syrup
scented with the essence ; then the
driven bets were apparently not spray-
ed at all ! so that the principle of giving
both lots of bees the same scent was
lacking. — B. B. J.

HINTS TO HMMNNKKS.

The harvest h< ing now fully past,
but few, if any, days during the next
three months will be so mild or invit-
ing as to entice the bees to leave their
hives. Having done [heir duty as
only the hem \ bee can, lhev aie pre-
pared to safely endure this long con-
finement wiih Ci mfort, being, it is
hoped, surrounded with plentv. Do-
not move ih. love.- which you intend
to winter in doors until winter begins
irnest. If ihere are any hives
still hit unpack* d or unprepaied for
winter, attend to them at o ..cc. There
are in.:ii_\ sections in the South where
October managt mei suits this

month, [u ml casts where bees have
been prepared for winter, see that
they have perfect quiet, and do not
bi-turb them unless positively neces-
sary See thai all empty hives are
under cover, and all snug for winter.
lake goo. 1 care of any empty brood
frames yon may have on hand. I
would advise that they be kept in a
room where the temperature is below
freezing, for should they contain an}'
of the moth miller eggs the cold will
destroy the germ, while if in a warm
room they would hatch and soon de-
stroy your combs entirely. A good
way m keep combs is to stretch two
heavy wires from end to end of room
just far enough apart to rest the ends
of the frames on. Dang them on the
wires same as when in hive, having
about one inch space between each
one. This allows the light and a free
circulation of air between them, and
the moth seldom, if ever, hatch in
broad day. Frames hung on wires in
this way are safe from mice, which
are one of our worst enemies, and if
hung above the head are out of the
way'.— /i. K. J/. iN Yd

THE AMERICAN BEE KEEI'EK.

17f

The American Bee-Keeper.

PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY

THE W. T. FALCONER MANFG CO.

TERMS :

50 cent.* a year in advance ; 2 copies, 85 eents : 3
copies, $1.20 : all to be sent toone postoflice.

Postage prepaid in the U S and Canada; lOcents
extra to all countries in the postal union and 20
cents extra, to all other countries.

ADVERTISING KATES:

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Advertisements must .!>,. received (>n or before
the 20th of each month to insure insertion in month
following. Address,

THK AMERICAN BRIE-KEEPER,

Falconkr, N. Y.

^^Subscribers finding this paragraph marked
with ;i ; ill know that their subscripiton

\\ e hope thai you will
not delay in sending a renewal.

blue cross on this paragraph indicates that
your subscription expired last month. Pl< .
new.

EDITORIAL,

Mr. O. L. Hershiser recently called
upon a- to arrange for our manufac-
turing i he hotfev- cusps to be used in
the New York honey exhibit at the
Columbian Exhibition at Chicago
next year, and from our conversation
with him we feel thai the Empire
State's display will be the largest and
best of all, and a credit to the bee-
keepers of the state. Certainly the
work is in compeienl hands, as we
know from persona] experience, Mr,
Hershiser having bad charge of our
exhibits at the Buffalo and Detroit
exhibitions on different occasions,
where he performed his duties must
acceptably. He is now spending con-
siderable time among the honey pro-
ducers of the state, endeavoring' to
insure a good display.

It is desirable that every one who
make an exhibit, the amount tor each
exhibitor being one hundred pounds

of comb and fifty pounds of extracted
honey, which must be in place by
April 20, 1893, Old honey of this
season will be replaced with the new
crop later, or as soon ;>s ii comes in.

A tine exhibit will be of great ben-
efit to the bee-keepers of this state.
Any information will be cheerfully
given by Mr. EL, whose address is
No. 24 West Seneca St., Buffalo,.
N. Y.

Special rules and information for
the exhibit were published in the
July number of The Bee-Keeper.

Advertisers will find the Ameri
Bee-Keeper to be an excellent me-
dium during the coming year, as we

intend to greatly increase its circula-
tion, besides issuing several verj huge
editions. Our circulation has not ma-
terially increased of late, as many of
our old subscribers have ceased keep-
ing bees, owing to the continuation of
open seasons. Still we can safely say
there are but two publications in this
country that issue so large a number
each month the year round. Some of
our contemporaries claim very large
circulation, but whose claims are un-
founded. One of them, who some
time ago claimed 4.000 subscribers,
offered its entire list to us recently for
a few dollars, but we declined it.
There were only 500 names on the list.

We have received several circulars*
and catalogues lately from supply

dealers in Australia, and it is very
gratifying to note that with hardly
any exceptions the Australian bee-
keepers are adopting- and using Amer-
ican hives and furniture, which, as
most of our readers doubtless know,
are decidedly different from those in
vogue in England,

172

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

The American Bee Journal certainly
-hows an instillation of young blood
in its editorial department and gen-
eral make up. It now appears with
an engraved title page, which adds
very much to its general appearance.
The different departments also have
new engraved headings. Friend York's
face appears at the head of the editor-
ial column in a "Globe" veil, and the
column is entitled '' Editorial Buz-
zings." We suppose the illustration
goes to show that the editor is imper-
vious to what his contemporaries may
say of him, good, had or indifferent.
We hope, however, he will hear only
good of himself.

We have recently established a
printing office in connection with our
business and expect to print the Bee-
Keeper ourselves hereafter. We
have four large presses in operation,
and can do any kind of job printing
for you in the finest style at lowest
prices. (Shall be glad to estimate. on
printing you circulars, catalogues,
and price lists for next season.

By all indications which we have
nol iced, there seems to be not to exceed
one-half as many bees now as there
were a year ago.

There are quite a Dumber of our
subscribers who are considerably be-
hind on their subscriptions. We wish
they would remit the amount at the
earliest opportunity.

On page 150 of The Bee-Keeper,
in describing his method of feeding,
Mr. S. E. Hitchcock is made to say
"To allow the top end of a paper box
to fit in the block," when it should
■read, "To allow the top end of a pep-

per box," etc. This of course makes
the description perfectly clear, where
before it was rather ambiguous.

Now is an excellent time to get up
a club of subscribers. We will allow
you 30 per cent, commission on all
clubs sent in before February 1st.

Canada has been honored by the
Columbian Fair Commission by the
appointment of Mr. Allen Pringle as
president of the honey exhibit. Mr.
Pringle is well known and fully com-
petent to discharge the duties, which
he will no doubt do to every one's
satisfaction.

Next month completes our second
volume, and we will include in it a
complete index for 1892.

Notwithstanding the largenumber of
bee-papers which were being pub-
lished last spring, there are now but
eight that appear with any degree of
regularity, as follows: Gleanings:
American Bee Journal, Review, Cana-
dian Bee Journal, Apiculturist, Pro-
gressiv Beee-Keeper, Bee-Keepers' Guide,
and American Bee-Keeper.

We are in receipt of a neat little
pamphlet entitled Handling Farm
Produce, published by A. I. Root. As
there is no price given we suppose
Mr, Root semis it out to those who ask
for it free of charge.

We hope every one has put their
bees in winter quarters with plenty of
stores, so that they will come out
strong and vigorous colonies in the
spring.

Short articles for publication from
our subscribers are very acceptable.
We are always in need of them.

1HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

173

LITERARY ITEMS,

A GREAT POPULAK HISTOID OF THE

WORLD.

The story of the world's history is,
after all, the most interesting and
most instructive story which has ever
been told. It was probably never
better presented, for general reading
and reference, than in Alden's Cyclo-
pedia of History, recently published.
Every nation of the earth, ancient
and modern, is treated in its alpha-
betical order, excepting, only, the
United States, which is to form a
separate work. You have ancient
history as far back as B. c. 5004 and
modern history down to A. D. 1-SO'J.
All countries are described in their
physical aspects, as well as historically,
so you have the equivalent of a book of
travels around the world There are
many illustrations, none for mere oe-
nament, hut all helpful for instruc-
tion. Considering the magnitude of
the work, its small cost is astonishing.
The entire history comprises about
800,000 words— equivalent, you will
find by comparison, to about 10 vol-
umes of ordinary size — and yet is
issued in two handy volumes, in small
but clear type, well and handsomely
made, and sold in cloth binding for
only $1.25 for the set, plus 20 cents
for postage, if by mail. For 10 cents
the publisher sends post-paid a paper-
bound volume of 160 pages, contain-
ing the complete history of several
nations, by which you can judge of
the character of the entire work. Ev-
ery home ought to have a good Uni-
versal History ; this is probably the
best for general use. The publisher's
catalogue of choice books, over 100
pages, a rich feast for book-lovers, is

sent post-paid for 2 cents. John B.
Alden, Publisher, 57 Rose St., New
York .

\ BAD PLACE ['OK COCK FIGHTING.

I know an old sport, formerly a
sexton of a prominent high-steepled
New York church, who was wont, in
the days of church-connection, occa-
sionally to regale parties of his sport-
ing friends with cock-fights in its
belfry. He has laughingly told me
of many a main he brought oil' there
without the slightest fear of police
interruption. This certainlv was a
case of "the nearer the church the
farther from God." I am glad to
say that nowadays no self-respecting
spotting reporter would countenance
by his presence or his silence any
such desecration of a holy edifice. —
./. B, McCormick ("Macon") , in Novem-
ber Lippincott's.

"J roof.;."'

The Omaha Bee, in speaking of
Judge, says that it did fair work in
1884, excellent work in 1888, hut that
in this campaign it is outdoing itself.
Judge was never making such great
hits as it is this year ; it is leaving all
its rivals behind. Such great pictures-
as the " Cleveland Parachute " and
the bursting of the Peck boom are-
memorable in campaign cartooniug.
But Judge has some great pictures in
store, and the five papers for the next
five weeks of the campaign will be
sent for titty cents. Address the
Judge Publishing Co., 110 Fifth av-
enue, New York City.

THAT I'KETTV EVANGELINE.

We published recently under the/
head of "A Pretty Surprise " a notice
of a new and very charming edition)

174

I HE AMERICAN BFF-k Eh I'Ktl.

of Longfellow's most charming poem,
•:' Evangeline." Upon examination,
the hook proves so delightful in every
way that we believe it will be a favor
to our readers to refer to it again. It
is handsomely illustrated, mainly by
Kirket Poster, one of the most famous
of English artists, and bound in ex-
quisite taste in a combination of white
and blue cloth, with gilt edges and
ornaments, ami is sold only by the
publisher direct (not by bookseller.-),
at approximately the actual cost of
manufacture by the hundred thou-
sand— 19 cents a copy, plus 6 cents
postage, if by mail. His object is to
place an example of his book-making
in the hands of a vast number of
readers. He could certainly choose
no more excellent a volume to please
.■all people of good taste. His cata-
logue of books, covering every de-
partment of literature, a veritable
feast of good things for book-lovers,
and at wonderfully low prices, con-
siderably over 100 pages in size, is
sent post-paid for 2 cents. Address,
John B Alden, Publisher, 57 Rose
St., New York.

Very well informed people have
but little conception of the ten great
railways, whose net work of rails cov-
ers the United States — several of
them have a length of more than ten
thousand miles each. How these sys-
tems came to exist in their present
vast dimensions, the territory which
ithey cover, the causes which have led
to their development, and their fu-
ture possibilities and probabilities,
form the subject of a series of papers
which will appear in the Cosmopolitan
Magazine. The first of this series is
iby President Plant, the head of the

extensive system of Railways and
Steamers, and appears in the October
issue of the ( osmopolitav covering the

system of railway-- east of the Alle-
ghanies and south of the Potomac.

TALKS FOR TKAVKI.ERS

"Tales for Travelers" contains
seven completed short stories, illus-
trated in the highest possible style of
art. These stories are by the rising
American short story writers. Those
who are pleased with this sort of fic-
tion, and they number thousands, will
find this little book the he-t ten cent
investment to be had. Address the
Arkell Weekly Co., 120 Fifth avenue,
New York,

The North American Review tor No-
vember will contain a uumber of in-
teresting short articles: " Objections
to Theatrical Life," by Jennie A. Eus-
tace : "The Religious Issue in Poli-
tic-," by Arthur Reed Kimball ; "San-
itation versus Quarantine," bv Thomas
P. Hughes, D. D.; and "The Natur-
alization Problem in New York City,"
by II. B. Bradbury.

A sure indication of the poor honey
season of 1892 is shown in the com-
paratively few advertisements vhich
appear in the different Bee magazines
at the present time. We think it very
poor policy, however, for any adver-
tiser to stop advertising owing to dull
sea-on, for if he does he only invites
dullness to continue with him. By the
way, we note that several of the bee
magazines are so short of advertise-
ments that they are accepting patent
medicine ad.-, fake puzzle ads, etc We
have made it a rule never to publish
such, and our legitimate advertisers
are benefited thereby.

— >- ■ ■ ■ <&—

Clubbing List.

We will -send the American Bkr Kkrpbk with

the — PUB. PKCK. BOTH.

American Bee Journal, ($1 00) SI 35

American Apicultnrist, ( T5) 1 15

Bee-Keeper's Review, (1 UU) 1 35

Cantviiiin lieeJourmil, < 75) 115-

Gleanings in Bee Culture, (1 0MJ 1 35

THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

175

Important Trade Notes, i

Our Outside Winter Case tits Dove-
tailed <>r our thin-walled hives, and is one
of the most successful methods of wintering
outdoor. Price of Ouiside Case, with bot-
tom, cover, etc., complete, only 75c; 10 for
$'i.50.

Ground •' ORE FOR PXCKCNG. -We can
furnish tins at He. per pound in small quan-
tities, or $4.00 per 100 pounds. It is the
best packing known. A bushel weighs
about eight pounds.

Five percent, discount is now al-
lowed on all prices in our catalogue, ex-
cepting on shipping cases and crates.

Honey and Beeswax Market Report.

Scientific American
Agency for

Below we give the latest and most authen-
tic report fit' the Honey and Beeswax market
in different trade centers :

Chicago, I'll.. Oct. 21. — Fancy white comb honey
selling at 17@18c. Second grade comb honey at
15@ltie- Extracted, 7@8>£c. Beeswax 26c. Both
honey and beeswax arc hi good demand, and we
advise prompt shipments.

S. i\ Fish & Co.. 189 S. Water St.

Cincinnati, 0., Oct. 16 —The demand i- good
for extracted honey at 5@8c. on arrival. Supply
f iir. No choice while comb honey on our market.
Best white brings 14® 16c. in a jobbing way. The
demand is only fair. There is a, fnir demand for
beeswax at :i0fg»iic. with a good supply.

(/Has. P. Moth & S->n.
Cor. Freeman and Central Aves.

Kansas '"itv. Mo . Oct. 17.— Good demand for
honey; light supply. Price of comb. 16@17c; ex-
tracted. 5@7MjC Hood demand for beeswax; light
supplv. I'rice 20(5 25c. There is scarcely any
comb honey on the market We cannot fill our or-
ders for want of stock.

CLKMONS. Mason & Co..

Cor. 4t,h and Walnut Sts.

Kansas City, Mo.. Oct. 21— Demand good : sup-
ply very light. White one pound comb, 16c; ex-
tracted. oY5»7c. New crop is arriving and is very
fine. No beeswax on the market.

H amblin & Bkarss, 514 Walnut St.

St. Louis, Mo., Oct. 17.— The demand for honey
is excellent; supply very light. Price of comb,
10@14e: extracted. .->l4fc lie. I'.eeswax is in good
demand; supply fair. Price, 24^c. Are having
inquiries from all section* for extracted honey.
Thk D. U. Tutt Oko i'o

Nkw York, Oct. 21.— Demand i* moderate, and
supply reduced, with no more glassed I lb. nor
paper cartons. 1 lb. We quote: Comb. 1 lb Uwiloc.
Bxtracred — Basswood. 7'.j.(a»7}4c; buckwhe t. 5%
@6*4; M angrove. 68@75c per gal. Good demand
for dark extracted honey Beeswax, in fair supply
with small demand, at 26@27c.

F. (j. Strohmkykr <k Co., 120 Pearl St.

Albany. N. Y., Oct. 27. — Price of white comb
honey. 15<3»l7c ; dark and buckwheat. 10(5. 15c, ex-
tracted white, 7l/i(msl4c- '■ amber 7to7!^c. ; 'lark,
tf%@7c. Beeswax, 27(0*2*0 Receipts of honey
have increased lately, and prices are some easier.
except white comb.

II. R. Wright. 326 and 328 Broadway.

CAVEATS,
TRADE MARKS,
DESIGN PATENTS
COPYRICHTS, etc.

For information and free Handbook write to

MUNN & CO., 361 Broadway, New York.
Oldest bureau for securing patents in America.
Every patent taken out by ns is brought before
the public by a notice given free of charge in the

%mmtm

Largest circulation of any scientific paper in the
world. Splendidly illustrated. No intelligent
man should be without it. Weekly, S3. OO a
year; $l.au six months. Address MUNN & CO,
Publishers, 3(51 Broadway, New York.

The object of the mnnufacturers
of Dobbins' Electric Soap has been,
ever since 1869, to make it of such
superior quality that it w II give
universal sathf notion. Have they
■succeeded '. Millions of unsolicited
letters from women all over the
country, and foreign countries, ^iv-
ing it unqualified praise, as the
"very best, very purest, and most
economical soap ever used " by the
writers, give an affirmative answer
to the above question. If you can-
not accept the experience of mill-
ions who use it. after the twenty-
three years it has been on the
market, one trial will convince
you.

I tilt 13 ^ O'P ^or washi'"H flannels there

IJVII UK I - is absolutely no other soap

that compares at all with
ANT bobbins' Electric All

other soaps shrink and turn
yellow all woolen goods like flannels and
blankets. If you use Dobbins' Electric
Soap, and no other, and follow directions,
your flannels will always remain as white
and as soft as when new.

1. L. Craioin & Co.,

Philadelphia, Pa.

176

7 HE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER.

DID YOU KNOW THAT

FIXED FRAMES ARE THE RAGE?

Well, the question with many is, which one to adopt,
tomers have almost uniformly elected in their orders the

After offering fur sale several styles, our eua-
justly popular

HOFFMflN FRf^AAE

For the Lnngstroth, or any Hive of that size,
such as the Dovetailed, they are unquestionably
the best. They are not stuck up with burr-couibsr
are self-spacing, the most rapidly handled,
ways ready for rough handling, such as for ship-
ping and noving to out yards. '1'he top bir has a
moulded comb guide as shown, and is 1 1-32 in.
wide ami % in. thick. The end bars are widened
at tin- top, and on one side are brought to a blunt
knife edge. The bottom bar i % in. square so the
bees will build their combs down to it. Queens
can't hide between it and the comb, and it does
not e.-i ti-li and roll over the bees in drawing the
frame ou I of tin- h ve. This tranie Costs a little
more than the old — trie thin-top-bar frames, but,
oh my! how much better! As a good frame will
la-t it litV-titne get n good one. Price $1.70 per
LOO; si.'».(ilt,.ei 1.000.

OUR DOVETAILED HIVE,

In fact, all our Hives complete, now have the New Hoffman Frame with the other inside furniture.
Although the new frame is more expensive we put up the hive combinations at the -AMK I'RIUE.
Speaking of the I'Os K l'Al I.EK IIIYK, remember we were he originators of this Hive, ami are the only
ones who have pm any substantial improvements on it It is u<-w out-selling all uth'-r hive- put t '_'• her.
If you want the latesi as well us those made u on some new iinde\pen-ive automat c nuicliinery on which
the dovetailing is \ CLBAN OUT, buy ol us or our dealers. S ml for ourVJ-i'age Catalogue oi K'eSun-
plies which will give full particulars. The information in it will be worth much to you. K. A. Salisbury,
Syracuse, N. Y., is our Eastern Agenl lor these goods. Win n more conv«-iiietii order of hmi

/ tease mention American fiet-i

, , ■,.

ROOT, Medina, Ohso.

Home
Made
Net-
ting.

;|' The Been

I Keepers

a

Alone, 75 Cts.
" Advanced Bee

CAFE, DURABLE FENCE; ONLY $80 PER MILE.
?5° t9 T. A "NT) - O WTTOP S saue one-half the cost

'SiiinrX The best local and traveling agents wanted every-
where. Write at once for circulars and choice ter-
ritory, address A. G. Hulbept, Patentee, care of

Factory Catalogue with 200 engraved designs and
prices, sent free to any who want fancy iron and
wire work or city, cemetery and farm fences, etc

e

Fop 1892 and a Fine, Young, Ltaying £5
Italian QXJ23EM fop •$> SO. The %
Revieuu Alone, $I.OO. The Queen J^

= REVIEW

Fop $1.75, the Revieu_t, the Queen, and the 50 et. Book, ©
: Culture," uuill be sent. W. Z. Hutchinson, Flint, JVIieh. g)

(5(5©<$©©©©©®2;©©©0©Q®®®©©©®©©©©©©ii3©©©®©®© '"-^ "' ' ■ 5©@@<

THE PORTER BEE-ESGAPE.

Supply dealeis send for wholesale Prices.

v\ e guarantee u to be itie best escape
known and fat superior to all others. If

\ after three months trial of from one to a
dozen they are not found entirely mtmfact-
ory, return them by mail and we will re-
fund your money. Prices, each, with full
diiections, '20c. Per dozen, $2.25. Sent
post-paid on receipt of price Send for
descriptive circular and testimonials.

R. & E. U. PORTER, Lewistown, Illinois.