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GEOBG-X: W. VOBK, I DEVOTED EXCj-USIVELY

Editor. f —

- J "Weskly, $1.00 a Year.

To Bee-Culture. I Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JANUARY 5, 1893.

NO. 1.

Senator Hilton is what we shall
have to call our friend Geo. E. Hilton
now, as he was elected to the position of
Senator of the State of Michigan at the
last election. It is indeed an honorable
office, and bee-keepers will be glad to
know that they have such able repre-
sentatives of their interests in the Legis-
lature, as are Hon. E. L. Taylor and
Hon. Geo. E. Hilton. We don't care
what color a man's politics may be, so
long as he does not fear to always stand
up and be counted on the side of the
right.

"LrOvely Oleaning^s^' is what
we said after reading the number for
Dec. 15th, which was something of a
holiday number. It well deserves to be
called the illustrated bee-paper of Amer-
ica, as almost every issue contains such
beautiful pictures. May its subscription
list become longer and longer, and its
" shadow ne'er grow less," is the New
Year wish of the old Amekican Bee
JouBNAL for our Brothers Root.

Xlie Time for Reading: is now

at hand, and in order to be equipped for
all operations next spring in the apiary,
you should " digest " one or more of the
excellent bee-books, as well as the
weekly " viands " brought to you in the
Bee Jouknal. We would refer you to
our complete book-list on the third page
of every number of this paper, where
you will find everything that heart or
mind could wish for in the way of stan-
dard and practical bee-literature. When
renewing your subscription, order some
good book that you can refer to as a
sort of " dictionary " while reading the
Bee JouKNAii.

On page 20, Mr. Doolittle has an
article just packed with excellent advice
for bee-keepers to heed during the win-
ter season. Read it, and then profit
by it.

** Bees and Honey "—page 5.

Xhirty-T^wo Years Ag^o this
month the Amebican Bee Joubnal, was
born. With this issue it begins its 33rd
year. Many have been the changes
that have taken place within its history,
covering nearly a third of a century.
Numerous and valuable have been the
improvements from time to time that
have resulted from the eflforts of those
who have labored for the advancement
of the pursuit of apiculture.

Upon the pages of this first-born of
American bee-papers have been recorded
the investigations and discoveries of a
people whose lives have been unselfishly

8

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

devoted to setj^iSsxng for the best means
by which every man's table might bear
upon it a pure sweet, whose health-
giving properties might bless all its par-
takers with a happier and more grate-
ful life.

The culture of bees and the best
methods by which their product may be
temptingly placed before the eye of man
have enlisted the most hearty co-opera-
tion on the part of men and women in
almost all stations in life. The keeping
of bees for the production of honey has
grown from a pleasurable avocation to
one of the most useful and necessary, as
well as important, industries in the
agricultural development of our coun-
try. That the American Bee Journal
contributed much to placing this pursuit
upon the high plane which it occupies
to-day is unquestioned ; though in these
latter years a few other periodicals
have aided in the work first begun by
the Bee Journal, through its lamented
and honored editor — Samuel Wagner.

As in the past, so in the future, the
old American Bee Journal will en-
deavor to lead, and it hopes to merit the
continued support of all the honest-
minded and truth-loving devotees of
this fascinating and ennobling pursuit.

With all the lessons and experiences
of the past from which to profit, and
feeling assured of its ability to press
into newer and richer fields of apicul-
tural usefulness, the American Bee
Journal to-day begins the march of
another year, inspired by unnumbered
opportunities for proving itself a help
and a blessing to all its thousands of
readers.

Bro. Hutcliinson tells the story
of himself in the December Review. He
shows how he tried to look when at the
age of 18 years, and also how he looked
without trying at the age of 36. Those
18 years almost illustrate the theory of
evolution, though Bro. II. had that same
honest, straight-forward, whole-souled
look when less than half as old as he

now. When looking at his later picture,
one hardly knows whether to say " a
professor," "a preacher," or "a sol-
dier." He might be mistaken for any
one of them, or all. His own story is a
good one, and we hope soon to condense
it for the benefit of our readers. That
December Revieiv is a good one. Bro.
Hutchinson merits all the success with
which his paper is meeting.

Xhe Officers Blected at the

recent meeting of the Illinois State Bee-
Keepers' Association at Springfield, are
as follows :

President — Hon. J. M. Hambaugh, of
Spring.

Vice-Presidents — 1st, J. Q. Smith, of
Lincoln; 2nd, Mrs. L. Harrison, of
Peoria ; 3rd, Peter Miller, of Belleville ;
4th, Geo. Poindexter, of Kenney ; 5th,
C. P. Dadant, of Hamilton.

Secretary — Jas. A. Stone, of Bradford-
ton.

Treasurer — A. N. Draper, of Upper
Alton.

Those wishing to have their names en
rolled as members for 1893, will, by
sending their fee of $1.00 to the Secre-
tary, receive the coming report, as well
as the report for 1892.

We hope to publish the report of the
convention in a short time.

Mr. Orang^e Judd, the eminent
and widely-known editor of the Orange
Judd Farmer, died at the age of 70
years, on Dec. 27, 1892. He was the
founder, and for 30 years the editor, of
the American Agriculturist. We pub-
lished his biography with portrait in the
Bee Journal for Sept. 15, 1892, page
363. He will be mourned in myriads
of homes where his name has long since
become honored and revered. The
American Bee Journal deeply sympa-
thizes with the family in their sad
bereavement.

Read our great offer on page 5.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

Bee-Keepers' Union.— The fol-
owing is the General Manager's 8th
Annual Report, for the year 1892 :

At the close of another year, it is my
duty to review the work of the National
Bee-Keepers' Union, and offer some com-
ments thereon.

The influence of such an organization,
and the help which its moral support
renders to its members, have been demon-
strated many times during the past year,
and such is but a repetition of the past 8
years of its history.

" Great deeds cannot die ;
They with the sun and moon renew their light
Forever— blessing those that looli on them."'

The limits allowed to this Report will
compel the greatest brevity, and so I must
enter at once upon the facts, without any
further preliminary remarks.

Early in the year the city council of
Miami, Mo., was petitioned to expel the
bees from the city limits. An ordinance
was passed and the work begun, but the
influence of the National Bee-Keepers'
Union was so great that the city council
dared do nothing more than thus to make
itself "the laughing stock of the world."

In April, malicious hatred worked up a
case against Mr. H. D. Davis, in Bradford,
Vt., and threatened to prosecute him for
keeping bees there. The village trustees
passed the law declaring bees a nuisance,
but they dare not in force it. Copies of the
Decision of the Supreme Court of Arkansas,
officially deciding that "bee-keeping is not
a nuisance," were freely distributed among
the Trustees and those in authority, and
Mr. Davis was allowed to continue to keep
bees there, as he had done for 13 years
before. An envious neighbor made the
trouble, but he was soon squelched by
public opinion, which had been created
after reading the documents of the National
Bee-Keepers' Union.

Down in Tennessee, in Hill City, John F.
Haeger keeps bees. His neighbor raises
grapes, but found them rotten because of
the very rainy season, and concluded that
the innocent bees had done the damage.
He threatened to spray them with arsenic,
to destroy the bees. He was informed that
it was a dangerous thing to do, for some of
the poison may get into the surplus honey,
and humanity would suffer by its consump-
tion. He was further told of the existence
of the National Bee-Keepers' Union, and
that its special work was to protect its
members from such malicious folly. He
went home to think about it, and the next
day came to Mr. Haeger and apologized
for his abuse of the bees and murderous
intent. Mr. H. wrote thus to the General
Manager: "Stick another feather in the
Union's cap." Surely, its moral influence
is as potent as its flnancial backing.

Iowa next came into line. John Foulkes,
in Cascade, sued his two neighbors, who
kept bees, to compel their removal. Among
other foolishness he claimed that "the bees
swarmed around his premises, shut out the
light of day, and kept his house in dark-

ness." Possibly, the bees had stung him
near the eyes, and so had shut out the light
of day to him personally !

This is about on a par with the ignorance
of the fellow who declared that his neigh-
bor's bees ate up his peaches, and made a
meal of his young ducks ! !

The bee-keepers, Messrs. Wyrick and
Hunter, were members of the Union, and
the General Manager took charge of the
case and employed an able attorney to
defend it. The case was submitted in
August, on ex-parte testimony, by agree-
ment, the affidavits being very numerous
on each side. The judge refused to grant
injunctions, because he said it would
"interfere with a business which the Courts
recognize as legal." The Arkansas Decision
did it ! Thus ended the bombast of John
Faulkes, and his malicious slanders against
the bees and their owners.

Out in California a member of the Union
was threatened by jealous neighbors for
keeping bees in National City. It was Mr.
Arthur Hanson, and he applied to the
General Manager, who dosed the city
officials with the official Decision of the
Supreme Court of Arkansas, that "Bee-
Keeping was not a nuisance !" That settled
the whole matter. Peace and quietness
reigns there now.

But why multiply words ? All cases of
trouble submitted to the Union show the
same result, and this part of the Report
may well be concluded with the following
from the pen of that staunch friend of the
bees, Mrs. L. Harrison. She says :

"The Bee-Keepers' Union has done much
to cause our industry to be respected and
placed upon a firm foundation. It has
taught evil disposed persons and corpora-
tions that the production of honey is a
legitimate business. Its able Manager, Mr.
Thomas G. Newman, of Chicago, is always
on the watchtower, scanning the horizon,
and on the least appearance of danger is
on the alert with well-directed guns. He
has caused the enemy to retract and apolo-
gize for malicious statements."

Ne^v ^Vork for the Union.

For several months there has been much
discussion in the bee-periodicals, about the
Union assuming new functions. As no one
is able to say whether it shall or shall not do
so, it is now proposed to submit it to vote.

In order to act in a legitimate manner,
here comes a motion from one of the Vice-
Presidents. It explains itself :

" Mr. Thos. G. Newman,
General Manager of Bee-Keepers' Union:

I move you that the scope of the National
Bee-Keepers' Union be enlarged, so as to
include prosecutions, looking to the preven-
tion of the adulteration of honey.

Yours truly, A. J. Cook."

This has been seconded by Mr. Ernest
R. Root, and supported by a number of
other members.

In order to submit it to the members, I
have prepared an amended Constitution,

10

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

sufBciently broad to allow of the proposed
new functions and any others which may
hereafter come up. It vests in the Advisory
Board the power to act on any matter in
the interest of the pursuit of bee-culture,
presented to the Union for its action. In
this way immediate work can be done
without waiting for a full vote of the
membership. Of course, care must be
taken to put into office its best and most
reliable members, (a good selection can be
made from the list of names attached to
this Report, and such only are eligible to
office.)

I desire that this matter should receive
due consideration and would ask every
member to vote. Let there be no spaces
unfilled when you return the " Voting
Blank," to be exchanged for a Membership
Certificate.

The only changes in the Constitution
submitted are in Articles IV and VI. Please
read these carefully, and then vote FOR
or AGAINST, as you deem for the best
interests of the Union.

If the amended Constitution is adopted,
(it takes a majority vote to do so) then the
duties of the General' Manager will be
greatly enlarged, and it is nothing but
just that he should have a salary. I would
suggest that it be decided to make that
salary 20 per cent of the gross income of
the Union for each year — whatever that
may be.

Some have stated that it was a mistake
not to have done this at the start, and
perhaps it was. This matter can, however,
be adjusted now, and it is therefore sub-
mitted to vote when such salary should
commence.

By paying a percentage as salary for the
General Manager, there can be no risk.
The more the gross income, the more work
to be done, and the more pay for doing it.
The more work done, the more prosperous
will be the Organization; the larger its
available funds, the more remunerative to
the Manager. Let every member vote as
he feels on this subject, by filling up the
space devoted to it on the Voting Blank.

The General Manager can do a great deal
to keep expenses down. Twice during the
past year I have cut the attorney's fees
down one-half, and during my administra-
tion have in this way saved many hundreds
of dollars for the Union. The Manager
should, therefore, have an interest in con-
tinuing this watchfulness, and practicing
strict economy.

The Future.

The movement now on foot to add to the
membership of the Union, after enlarging
its powers and multiplying its work, may
make such a change that the next Report
may show from 1,000 to 5,000 names.

Each of the bee-periodicals have donated
a page to the Union, to assist in gaining
members for 1898, and a vigorous effort
will be made to place it in a position to
command respect in maintaining the rights
of apiarists, as well as to prosecute the
adulterators of honey who now seem bent

on destroying the pursuit, if not arrested
in their career of crime and madness.

Financial iStatenient.

Balance, as per last Report $558.58

Fees from 404 members for 1892. 404.00

962.58
Court expenses, briefs, printing,

attorney fees, postage, etc.... 339.50

Balance, Dec. 20, 1892 $623.08

The Union has engaged attorneys for
the defense of several cases, the c6st for
which will have to be paid when the cases
are reached on the docket.

Dues and Election of Officers.

It now becomes my duty to call for $1.00
for the coming year, as dues from each
member. A Blank is enclosed to be used
for sending it, and also a Voting Blank.
Fill up all the blanks, and send to the
Manager with a postal note or money-order
for $1 in the envelope sent with it. It must
be received by Feb. 1, 1898, or the vote
will be lost.

Now comes the most difficult part of my
Report. I have repeatedly stated that I
ought to retire, and give place to a younger
man, but the appeal comes to me from so
many members not to think of such a thing,
at least for the present, that I have called
a halt, — to let "feelings" consult with
"judgment" as to my duty in the matter.

Mr. Root, in Oleanings in Bee-Culture
for December 15, puts it in this way : " Mr.
Newman's management of the Union has
been so wise and efficient, that, if it will
be out of the question for him to act as
chief, he certainly should be retained as
assistant or adviser, in the event of the
change; then, if necessary, let younger
blood do the work."

In reference to this proposition, I will
say that if there is henceforth to be a
salary attached to the office, so that I can
hire that part of the work done, which
would require more time and energy than I
could command, I will consent to take the
office for another year, if the votes give a
decided call for me to do so.

THOMAS G. NEWMAN, Manager.

The foregoing Report was written to
be mailed to all the members of the
Union, hence the reference to the Voting
Blank, return envelope, etc. The Voting
Blank may be found on page 4 of this
issue of the Bee Jourxal, as may also
the amended Constitution. Wo refer
the reader to page 4 for further infor-
mation.

HaTe You Read page 5 yet ?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

11

MR. BARXETT TAYLOR.

The following biographical sketch
was kindly furnished by a friend of Mr.
Taylor's, who knows him well :

The subject of this sketch was born in
Green county, Pennsylvania, on May 8,

BARNETT TAYLOR.

1830. His father died when he was
two years old, and he remained with his
mother until his 16th year, when they
moved to Quincy, Ills. There he lived
nearly three years, one of which was
spent in the army raised by Gov. Tom
Ford to disperse the mob that killed Joe
Smith in the spring of 1845, and drove
the Mormons from their homes at
Nauvoo in the fall of that year. Here it
was he worked in a printing and book-
binding office. Afterwards he moved to

Green county, Wisconsin, in the fall of
1848.

At the age of 17 years he had me-
chanical skill enough to do the inside
finishing for the Methodist church,
which, when completed, gave entire
satisfaction.

In the spring of 1849 he secured his
first swarm of bees, which increased to
many colonies in a few years.

Mr. Taylor remained in Wisconsin
until 1856, when he moved to his pres-
ent home in Forestville, Fillmore county,
Minn. Immediately he purchased a
colony of bees, which he increased to six
the first season, and to 31 the second,
and he sold $175 worth of surplus
honey. His bee-keeping up to this time
had been with box-hives, in the old style.
At this point he secured "Langstroth on
the Honey -Bee," and also obtained the
agency for Langstroth's movable-comb
hive, and began bee-keeping in a more
scientific manner.

He at once became dissatisfied with
the guess-work of the spacing frames,
and being of an inventive turn of mind,
invented the wire-end frame as now used
in his hive, which he considers the most
practical frame and hive in use since
1857.

During all these years he has given
bee-keeping his best thoughts, and doing
the (to him) delightful work with his
own hands. He has increased his colo-
nies until he has produced 26,000
pounds of fine comb honey in one season,
and Mr. Taylor says that he has never
had such an interest in his bees, or felt
so happy in his apicultural work, as at
the present time.

At the Taylor homestead there is to
be found one of the best equipped api-
aries In the West. There may be larger
apiaries, but perhaps none so complete.
There is everything with which to do,
and harmony and cleanliness go hand
in hand. It is a most lovely spot, nest-
ling at the foot of the hill on the Forest-
ville road, and surrounded on three sides
by fine, old trees, not forgetting the
massive pines which fringe the road
leading to the place,
can be seen the north
river, winding in and

From the apiary
branch of Root
out, leaping on-

ward over the stones and through the
willows.

Here, endowed with Nature's best
gifts to man — grass, wood and water — is
situated the Taylor apiary. Scattered
upon the hillside are to be seen hundreds
of Mr. Taylor's hives. One can see the
handsome machine shop complete with
steam power and cunning machinery ;
the wintering cellar, built upon honor,

12

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

thoroughly painted, and strong as a
castle ; also the curing house, and the
much-talked-of house-apiary, all thor-
oughly painted and kept in excellent
order. This order and harmony per-
vades everywhere and everything, even
to his swarm-catcher.

His handiwork is to be seen in every-
thing, including a bee-escape. We spoke
of the cunning machinery. This was all
invented and made by his own hands,
and is so perfect in workmanship and
finish as to cause remark by all who ex-
amine it.

Across from the apiary on the left are
acres of as fine fruit as is grown in the
great State of Minnesota. Apples there
are of many varieties, and the ever-
greens and flowers go to prove that Mr.
Taylor is an enthusiastic horticulturist,
as well as a scientific bee-keeper, and
has done much to advance the growing
of fruit and the adorning of homes in
his section with ornamental trees.

Mr. Taylor is one of the assistants to
Hon. O. C. Gregg, in preparing the
"Farmers' Institute Annual," issued
once a year, and is the editor of the bee-
department, as he is also the "Apiary "
in Farm, Stock and Home, and for years
has contributed valuable information to
the several bee-periodicals.

In conclusion, Mr. Barnett Taylor is
a good, plain, everyday man, honest
from the ground up, and thoroughly
trusted by all who know him. He would
scorn to do a wrong, and has a pure
heart and clean hands, honored by all,
and admired by many.

The Programme has been sent
to us, of the 4th annual convention of
the Minnesota State Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation, to be held in the Lumber Ex-
change, corner of Fifth street and
Hennepin avenue, Minneapolis, Minn.,
on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Jan.
12, 13 and 14, 1893.

I^atest and Prettiest Sons:

now being sung on the stage. Is entitled,
"The Indian Summer Time." It is by
the popular author, "Will L. Thompson,
of East Liverpool, Ohio. The price is
40 cents. Send the author half price,
and you will receive a copy.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville, Texas.
Bee-Keeping and the Home.

Don't Fail to read all of page 5.

Deab Readek* : — As I sit at my desk
this drear day, wondering what I could
write or say that would be most likely
to interest you, my mind falls upon
home ; and while I expect to be as origi-
nal as possible, in all my writings, please
excuse me if I make extracts at random
from something I have read, in order to
make my meaning more clear. I expect
to use this department to advance bee-
culture, at the same time it is necessary
to mention our homes occasionally, as
bee-keeping and our homes are very
closely related. It is the desire and de-
sign to furnish, through the medium of
this department, a place for honest dis-
cussion and an interchange of views for
all th« bee-keeping fraternity, and as its
name implies, to those of the Sunny
South especially.

I know of no way in which greater
benefit can be derived than by a com-
parison of our methods with those prac-
ticed by others, and I cordially invite
every one to make such use of the pages
of " Sunny Southland." I am surprised
sometimes to find that the most com-
monplace of my daily duties are per-
formed very differently by the bee-keep-
ers and house-keepers of other sections,
and I am always interested in diversified
ideas and customs. It will not do for
one locality or section to claim all the
desirable points in everything. Each
has much to learn from the others, and
the best results are obtained by combin-
ing the good and discarding the evil
from all sources. Strive for that equali-
zation of plans and achievements which
will insure to the benefit of the greatest
number.

If you find that another method ac-
complishes a desired end more readily
and satisfactorily than the one you have
been using in your own house or apiary,
adopt it rather than cling to the old,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

13

simply because it is your way. Make
"Improvement" the watchword of
your home and your apiary. Improve
your mind ; improve your methods ; and
also improve your surroundings.

There are homes and apiaries in this
Sunny Southland of ours that has been
of a monotonous sameness for years. I
need not say that these are not the
happy homes, or prosperous apiaries.
The great ocean must move in order to
avoid stagnation, and homes and api-
aries must advance, or they will retro-
grade. Let us bring the products of
ingenuity to our aid, borrow and lend
the results of experience until all shall
know the pleasures and benefits of well-
directed efforts in the art of bee-culture
and proper living. Let every wife and
mother of all sections fully co-operate
in improving our homes, and systems
and home surroundings, which means
the apiary as well as the front yards
and gardens, thereby uniting on a most
effective plan for elevating American
manhood and womanhood.

Again, I say, let us make it our first
object in all things to bring the most
good to the greatest number. What a
change might be wrought in the condi-
tions of mankind by the application of
this rule I How unselfish and how far-
reaching as compared with seeking the
greatest good of a chosen few. There is
a great deal of work to be done, and the
fields are white with the harvest. What
part will you take in this great and
grand work of helping others ? It may
be by this poorly written article, or it
may be by personal influence in your
own home and neighborhood ; widely
different are the means capable of appli-
cation, but there is work for all.

For whosoever shall give you a cup of
water to drink in my name, because ye
belong to Christ, verily I say unto you,
he shall not lose his reward.

After proper home influences, we have
a subject in whom each seed sown should
bring forth good fruit. For such a per-
son the scenes of nature and the inci-
dents of life all teach lessons for the
broadening of the mind and the develop-
ment of the soul. Travel will open new
avenues of thought at every change, and
books will prove mines in which most
precious gems are stored. All fellow
creatures should be teachers, and each
note of nature should awaken new and
deeper instincts for good. In such a
person happiness is ever present, and
must light the way for all associates.

•'Bees and Honey" — see page 5.

Drones for Breeding Purposes-
A Large Question.

Query 852.— 1. Would it be safe Tor me to
rear drones from pure Italian virgin queens
to breed from, with respect to the purity of
the future progeny, since it was holden by a
majority of those answering Query 843 (see
page 598—1892), that there was no difference
between eggs as they existed in the ovaries
of virgin and impregnated queens ? 2. If not,
why not ? 3. Would not the experiments of
Mr. Doolittle and other prominent apiarists
along this line, by mating pure Italians with
black drones, and continuing to mate for two
or three generations pure Italians to the
lineal drone descendants of this first progeny
or drone offspring of a pure Italian and black
drone, in which case they obtained drones
from pure Italians showing marks of im-
purity, show that the eggs in the ovary of a
f)ure Italian virgin are different from the eggs
n the ovary of a pure Italian that has mated
with a black drone, the theory of partheno-
genesis and its exponents to the contrary
notwithstanding ?— P. R. O.

Yes, don't do it. — James Heddon.

1. Let those who have differed on this
point, answer this. 3. Yes. — Jas. A.
Stone.

I don't know anything about it, but I
believe the male has some influence on
the offspring with bees as well as with
other folks. — E. France.

All I have time and space to say now
is, that I now hold the ground that the
drone is affected by the mating as well
as the worker, but may be not so much.
— Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

I see no good reason for doing so.
Though it might be safe, I should prefer
to follow only safe, well-known rules for
breeding the purest and best bees, as
well as other livestock. — C. H. Dibbern.

1. This is a pretty tough question for
a starter, but I will venture a yes. 3.
The trouble is they cannot be sure how
their queens were mated, whatever they
may say to the contrary. — J. H. Larra-

BEE.

Drones from a virgin queen must of
necessity be of the same "blood" as
their mother ; but the trouble which
meets us here is, that many who have

14

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

experimented carefully claim that
drones from a virgin queen are not
virile. Such being the case, all queens
producing workei'-bees must have mated
with drones from a fertile queen. — G.

M. DOOLITTLE.

1. It would, but not as likely to get
strong, healthy stock. Follow the course
of nature as nearly as possible. 8. There
are too many possibilities connected with
these experiments to consider them a
safe and infallible guide. — Mrs. L. Har-
bison.

1. I think so, if one could do it.
Virgin queens do not always lay eggs.
See my article on reproduction soon to
be published in the Bee Journal. 3.
Yes, granting there is no mistake ; but
how can any man be sure that his
queens are certainly pure with no trace
of black blood. — A. J. Cook.

1. No. 2. Such drones would not
prove fertile. 3. Such experiments, I
believe, must conform to the above rule.
The recent article of our worthy brother,
G. W. Demaree, was just " my senti-
ments." The progeny of an Italian
queen mated to a black drone, must of
course be tainted. — W. M. Baenum.

1. I do not think it would be safe so
to do. 2. This opens up too big a ques-
tion to be answered in this department.
3. The doctrine of parthenogenesis is
proved to be true, still the doubt remains
as to how far impure copulation affects
the drone progeny. It is safe to breed
from pure drones — why not do so ? — J.
E. Pond.

1. I think not. There is no necessity
for such a course, even if such drones
were certainly fertile. In my late arti-
cle in the Bee Journal I have laid
down the proposition that it can be
demonstrated by experiment whether or
not the drones of a virgin queen are fer-
tile. Until this is settled, it is useless
to discuss probabilities. — G. W. Dem-
aree.

No ; leaving the scientific discussion
of this subject to naturalists, and to
those who have time and talent for
lengthy experiments, I will say to the
propounder of 852, if he wishes good
bees, not to depend upon drones reared
from virgin queeas, for the conditions
necessary to the rearing of good drones
will be greatly lacking in a colony that
cannot rear worker-brood. — S. I. Free-
born.

Parthenogenesis Is not a theory. It is
a fact. The assumption that the drone
progeny of a queen are In no way

affected by her mating, is theory that
has not been proven, and perhaps can-
not be. I think it likely that they are
thus affected. The question is of little
practical importance. It would not be
profitable to rear drones as you suggest,
even if they were as good as any as
breeders, and you would have to rear
drones from a number of such queens,
in the average locality, to stand much
chance of their being valuable under
any circumstances. — James A. Green.

1. I believe that drones from virgin
queens, and even from laying workers,
are virile, and as potent as any. I be-
lieve that the drone progeny of a queen
is unaffected by the drone she has mated
with. 3. I do not think that any ex-
periments prove that there is any taint
in the drone progeny of a queen from
the drone she has copulated with. There
are too many sources of mistake for ex-
periments to be of much value. — M.
Mahin.

1. Yes, so far as regards purity, but
generally, no. 2. Because drones reared
from a queen that did not succeed in
getting mated, and in a weak colony of
old bees such as hers would be likely to
be, would probably be wanting in vigor,
and of a race wanting in good qualities
generally. 8. The mating of bees for
several generations is too uncertain a
thing to base any scientific conclusions
upon — at least in most localities. — R. L.
Taylor.

We are told that in some cases in the
human race, after a white woman has
had a child to a black father, subse-
quent children to a white father may
show traces of black blood. Something
like this may hold good with bees, but
for practical purposes I should be satis-
fied with drones from a thoroughbred
queen impurely mated. But how could
there in any case be impurity in "drones
from pure Italian virgin queens ?" — C.
C. Miller.

1. No. 2. For the reason that all ex-
perience has shown that the drones of
virgin queens do not possess virility, and
are therefore worthless ; although the-
ory and scientific deduction proclaim
to the contrary. 3. Yes ; but the differ-
ence is probably in the elemental life
forces imparted to the eggs rather than
in material substance. — G. L. Tinker.

Have You Head, that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 5 ?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

15

Report of the Michigan State
Bee Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

The Michigan State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation held its 27th annual conven-
tion in the Senate Chamber at Lansing,
on Dec. 13 and 14, 1892.

The meeting was called to order at 11
a.m., but so few were present, that it
was adjourned to 2 p.m. When the
convention came to order at the ap-
pointed time, the following members
paid their dues :

T. F. Bingham, Abronia, Mich.

Prof. A. J. Cook, Agricultural College.

H. D. Cutting, Tecumseh, Mich.

James Heddon, Dowagiac, Mich.

Geo. E. Hilton, Fremont, Mich.

M. H. Hunt, Bell Branch, Mich.

W. Z. Hutchinson, Flint, Mich.

H. J. Kusig, Ravana, Mich.

Jacob Moore, Ionia, Mich.

J. A. Pearce, Grand Rapids, Mich.

R. L. Taylor, Lapeer, Mich.

M. White, Wheeler, Mich.

F. W. Wunsch, Lowell, Mich.

It will be seen that the attendance
was very slim, but most of those present
were leading bee-keepers, and for the
number present there was an unusually
interesting time.

First upon the programme came the
address of Pres. R. L. Taylor, which
was as follows :

The Apicultural Outlook.

I am impressed with the idea that the
bts-keeping fraternity are just now in a
stite of unrest. I do not refer to that
heilthy state of activity so desirable and
necessary to the attainment of the
higiest success, but to a thirst for " big
thills," a straining after the unattain-
able discontent with moderate returns,
and , spirit of complaining at the recur-
renci of poor seasons. This condition is
indicted by the desire so often ex-
pressd for non-swarming bees and non-

swarming hives ; by the rumors about
comb honey made from sugar ; by the
fussing with solf-hivers, and by the hints
about abandoning the business.

Bee-keepers are not peculiar in being
subject to this condition. We can all
perceive it in farmers, even if we do not
see it in ourselves among them. On the
return of ordinary seasons after a period
of unwonted prosperity, dissatisfaction
and complaining, and new schemes, lift
their heads in all directions. Individuals
may indeed escape this disease, but there
is no class but feels it on occasions in
some degree. What is the cause of this
unsatisfied and restless state among
those interested in, apiculture?

The golden age of apicultural inven-
tion is comparatively recent. The be-
ginning of the movable comb, of comb
foundation, and of the extractor are
within the memory of many of us. In-
stead of considering these inventions as
of themselves constituting a well-rounded
period, many have been prone to regard
them as only the beginnings of an age of
brilliant discoveries to be continued in-
definitely ; but time has left those in-
ventions 25 years away, and their re-
sults have all been gathered up and
utilized, and the field is like a played-out
gold-mine.

During all this time, of course, great
progress has been made, but there has
been no invention which can stand even
second to any of those mentioned. This
has been a disappointment, and this
disappointment is giving utterance to
the question heard on every side, What
is to be the next great invention in api-
culture ? The thought is, that it is high
time for another great stride forward.
Apiculture is looked upon as almost
equal to electric science as a field for
discovery. How wide the difference is
between the two it is hardly necessary
to point out.

The electrician has the agent — elec-
tricity— and knowing its nature, capa-
bilities and laws, he seeks in accordance
therewith a medium by means of which
he can compel it to accomplish a certain
definite desired end.

The apiculturist's desired end is a
wonderfully better bee. His object is
indeed not very definite, but.how utterly
he breaks down in his means, and in his
knowledge of the capabilities of the bee.
He sends his money for descendants of
this one's one-hundred dollar queen, or
of that one's red-clover queen, or of the
other one's non-swarming queen. He
forgets that the bee has been undergoing
for ages untold the sharpest possibl
course of training calculated to develoe

16

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

in the highest possible excellence, that
quality in which all bee-keepers delight
— the ability to gather nectar. In that
school the lazy, the delicate, the dis-
eased, died of starvation or exposure,
leaving no progeny to perpetuate their
weaknesses.

The longest tongued industrious ones,
having abundance of honey in the
spring, were out of all proportion the
most prolific in swarms, and so rapidly
crowded those of shorter tongues and
less careful, to the wall. How futile it
would seem to be to attempt, by any
even ordinarily careful methods, to im-
prove bees thus effectually cleared of
culls, when one great object of modern
bee-culture seems to be to cuddle and
strengthen the weak, and so enable
them to propagate their failings.

Or, again, the apiculturist wants bees
that have no desire to swarm, not re-
flecting that he might as well attempt
to rear a race of doves with no inclina-
tion to mate.

Or, he looks longingly for the advent
of the coming self-hiver, when he should
know that no one would want them at
the price it would be absolutely neces-
sary for him to pay.

Or, having lost faith in every hoped-
for discovery that seemed to promise
easy wealth and relief from labor, and
utterly discouraged, he turns as a last
resource to sugar for comb honey, not
perceiving the twin mountains his train
is about to plunge into head on.

What a strange and impracticable
class the fraternity of bee-keepers is,
but it is much like other classes of
humanity. Give one of them an inch,
and he will take an ell, if he can get it.

You have a cow, we will say. You
must be at expense for food for her for
every day of the year, and a good deal
of it if she is to yield any profit. You
must feed and water her two or three
times a day, or take her to pasture in
the morning and fetch her again at
night. You must milk her twice a day,
and every year you must fuss with a
calf for a tiresome period ; yet, notwith-
standing the almost constant care and
labor, you are not calling very loudly for
a self-milker, nor for a " non-swarmer,"
that is, for one that is calf-proof, how-
ever desirable such a cow might be ; nor
for a " self-hiver," that is, for a con-
trivance that would enable the calf to
take care of itself.

But your colony of bees, which you
need "milk " but once a year, and feed
seldom if ever ; whoso progeny you can
care for for good and all in five minutes,
which comes so near working for noth- I

ing and. boarding itself; it, forsooth, is
felt to be a burden on account of the
little supplementary labor necessary for
its care, and because you are relieved of
so much you are scarcely willing to be
thankful for that relief, unless you can
also be relieved of the little necessary
care and labor remaining.

The moral is, that it is not wise to
want the earth. By trusting too much
to what the future may seem to promise,
we are apt to neglect what the present
actually offers. R. L. Taylor.

Prof. Cook — For once I must take is-
sue with my good friend, the President.
It seems to me that bee-keepers have a
good deal to complain of during the last
few years. They have not had very
much of the earth of late, and ought to
complain. When things go wrong, I
think we have a right to be dissatisfied.
We ought to at least be so dissatisfied
that we are willing to try to find a
remedy for our troubles. I believe in
encouraging this kind of dissatisfaction.
Then, again, I think the figure of the
mating of the doves is too strong.
Swarming is not mating. The mating
principle is stronger than that of swarm-
ing. Some colonies do not swarm.
There is a reason for this. If we could
find out this reason, we could prevent
swarming.

James Heddon — I agree with the Pro-
fessor. I think it possible to breed a
non-swarming strain of bees. I think
that bees swarm less than in days past.
To be able to have bees stop swarming
would be one of the greatest advances
that bee-keeping has ever made. I
think that both the President and the
Professor are right. I agree with the
President, that bee-keepers ought not to
become discontented. They should keep
steadily on, and not be carried away
by side issues. The dish must be ever-
lastingly kept right side up ; but there
must be enough discontent so that bee-
keepers will ever be striving to better
their condition. ,

The Adulteration of Honey.

Mr. H. D. Cutting was down on tie
progran\me for an essay on the abci*^e
subject, but he plead guilty to not hiv-
ing finished his essay. Several asJed
him to read what he had written. T>ey
wanted to see right where he " bi it
off." He didn't have the few pages *ith
him, but said he had been through the
Detroit markets looking for adultoS'ted
honey, and found only two sanples.
Continuing, he said that "Two-hirds

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

17

of the peanut candy is glucose. The
people demand It." As the boy said,
"he wanted something that he could
chaw." Pure sugar won't make such a
candy. I would favor laws to prevent
adulteration, only the laws are evaded.

Prof. Cook — I think the law all right.
I have a right to mix glucose with
honey, but I must say what it is when
I sell it. As 1 said, I think the law all
right, but it must be enforced, and this
duty does not belong to one man ; it
belongs to the Bee-Keepers' Union.

Pres. Taylor — I think the law is all
right, the trouble is in its enforcement.

Mr. Heddon — There is no trouble in
enforcing the law against murder. Peo-
ple dislike to be murdered. There is no
trouble in enforcing any law that the
people care enough about to have it en-
forced. The trouble with enforcing the
laws against the adulteration of honey
is that the public care very little about
the matter. They see the stories in the
newspapers about adulteration, but they
like the honey that they buy, it agrees
with them, they are healthy, and some
of their neighbors disagreeably so, and
the result is that they don't know nor
care whether honey is adulterated or
not.

Now I am going to do a little proph-
esying about this matter of the adultera-
tion of honey. You know that years
ago I was abused and called unpleasant
names, etc.j because I plead for priority
of location, and kept everybody out of
my field. How is it now? Every man
wants his field, and to encroach on the
field of another is looked upon as unfair.
I also ©pposed the idea of persuading
everybody to engage in bee-keeping ;
again I was called selfish, but this mak-
ing bee-keepers of everybody has been
dropped, and bee-keeping has sought its
level, as all business will. It has gone
below its level, and will probably rise
again. Now what I am going to say of
adulteration will probably bring down
another shower of abuse, but I am going
to say that I think that the adulteration
of honey has never injured bee-keeping ;
that it has rather been a benefit, and
that in a few years all this hue and cry
among bee-keepers over the matter will
have died out. Yes, I know such views
are the rankest kind of heresy, but they
are my honest opinion.

Glucose was first obtained by those
careful French and German chemists
that have been held up to us as models.
When its manufacture was first begun
in this country, it is possible that it was
somewhat crude, but as it has been made
for years, I believe it is as healthful as

the corn from which it is made. It was
first used to mix with cane syrups. The
manufacturers of the syrups raised a
howl, they held up both hands, on one
was painted " horror," and on the other
" poison." They thought their business
was going to be injured, and they sought
to prejudice the public against the new-
comer. But the demand for "black-
strap" increased wonderfully. It was
learned that the stronger and blacker
the syrup the more glucose was needed
to bring it to the right flavor and color.
The opposition from sugar syrup makers
was soon over.

About this time the hue and cry was
taken up by some of the bee-papers, and
the same changes were rung over again
with variations. Has the use of glucose
in cane syrups injured their sale?
Everybody knows that our " golden
drips " are largely glucose, yet they buy
them just the same. There is no attempt
at concealment. Go into a store and ask
for almost any brand of syrup, and in-
quire if it isn't part glucose, and the
answer will be, "Certainly." The fact
is, that those strong, dark cane syrups
have been improved by the glucose, and
everybody knows it.

It is the same with confectionery, as
Mr. Cutting has said. It has been just
the same with those who have adulter-
ated honey. They have sought for the
strong, weed honey, as it would bear
more glucose. Time and again have C.
O. Perrine and Mrs. Spades bought my
strong fall honey and paid me a good
price for it because it was the kind of
honey that would be improved by the
addition of glucose. They put their
goods up in good shape, and could out-
sell me every time. They would get $9
a dozen for their glasses where I got
only $6, and the worst of it was they
were not troubled by the granulation of
their product, while I h:!,d often to take
back goods and re-liquify them. I once
sold $1,700 worth of honey in jars to
D. D. Mallory, of Detroit, and had to
take back half of it and melt it up
again. The people who sold mixed
goods had none of this trouble. They
sold to the same customers over and
over again, which they could not have
done had not their customers been satis-
fied. They made a market for our
strong fall honey tbat otherwise would
have been scarcely salable ; they pushed
its sale, and kept the markets supplied,
and I say they have not injured the bee-
keeper nor the public.

Now, if we are going to fight adultera-
tion, let us decide why we fight it. If it
does not injure us, then why fight it ? Is

18

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL

it because it is wrong ? If so, then let
us attack it where it is doing a thousand
fold more harm — m cane syrups and
confections. If glucose contains so much
death-dealing damnation, what untold
miseries it must be causing among the
consumers of these two articles. Let's
attack it there and save the prejudice
that must attach to our own product
from our continual harping on the sub-
ject.

There is one other point that I want
to call attention to, and that is that a
honey-producer with the right kind of
bees and appliances and management,
can always produce honey cheaper than
he can buy glucose. All this talk about
adulteration is the height of folly. No
one is practicing it except the city
dealers, and they do not injure us if
they do piece out a poor season and keep
up a demand that they have created.
One or two good seasons will stop adul-
teration so completely that it will
amount to nothing.

James Heddon.

Prof. Cook — Mr. Heddon may be right.
I have tried to get bees to take glucose,
and failed. I have tried mixing glucose
with honey, and it certainly was not
good. If the grades of glucose that Mr.
Heddon has mentioned are really whole-
some ; if its addition to some grades of
honey really improves them and aids in
their sale, I have said my last word
against adulteration.

The Professor agreed to bring samples
of honey and glucose mixed, and submit
them to a "tasting committee," and the
discussion was dropped to listen to the
reading of au essay by W. Z. Hutchin-
son, on

The Production of Sugar Honey.

The Secretary has asked me to an-
swer the question. Shall we produce
sugar honey ? First, allow me to give a
brief history of the discussion that has
been conducted on this subject.

About a year ago the Review asked its
principal contributors to say what should
be done if the poor years keep on com-
ing. When the turn came for the inimi-
table E. E. Hasty to speak, he said,
"Produce sugar honey." I knew that
this had been tried before, at least there
had been reports to that effect, but it
had been looked upon as adulteration.
It seemed strange tbat so conscientious
a man as Hasty should advise such a
course. He then went on to defend his
position. He said that bees do make
huney in the same sense that brick-

makers make brick. The nectar of
flowers is almost wholly cane-sugar,
which the secretions of the bees change
to glucose, or honey. If by any artifi-
cial means we could gather a gallon of
nectar and evaporate it, the product
would be cane-sugar instead of honey.
Mr. Hasty argued that it made no differ-
ence whether the bees got their cane-
sugar from the flowers or from the sugar
barrel.

I knew that bee-keepers had never
looked at the matter in this light, and
felt that the public opinion would not
approve, but I also knew that prejudice
and preconceived notions are things that
can be overcome, also that our greatest
blessings are often rejected when first
offered. I had frequently fed sugar for
winter stores, and the white combs were
so dainty that I had often yielded to the
temptation to cut out small bits and
taste them. When I remember the
smooth, oily, mucilaginous, twangy,
honey taste of these bits of sugar-fed
honey, I did not Icnow but our Hasty
friend was correct, and I decided to fol-
low the course that had always charac-
terized the Review, that of allowing
everybody to be heard, even if their
views were peculiar.

The article was published. I expected
severe criticism, but not in the form
that it came. Everybody seemed to
jump to the conclusion that the feeding
of sugar was to be done with the intent
to deceive. Right here allow me to call
attention to the fact that no one seems
to worry for fear that basswood honey
will be sold for clover, or that golden-
rod will be palmed off for buckwheat,
but all feared that sugar-honey would
be sold for clover, or basswood. If sugar
fed to bees becomes honey in the fullest
sense of the word, then it is honey, and
to sell it for honey no deception.

The criticisms that came in were pub-
lished, when, to my surprise, such men
as G. M. Doolittle, Wm. F. Clarke and
C. W. Dayton came to my support.
Their views were published, and the re-
sult was that red-hot letters on both
sides of the question came pouring in.
At such times men do not reason coolly,
and sharp, unkind, cutting remarks are
made, hence I thought best that the
matter be dropped until the first excite-
ment had worn away.

In a few months Prof. Cook published
statements showing that chemical analy-
sis, a class of forty students, and the
best Cook that ho ever knew could not
detect the difference between sugar
honey and floral honey. It seemed a
good time to try to decide what honey

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

19

really is. I knew of no one better quali-
fied than Prof. Cook to answer that
question, so I asked him to write an

article having for its title :

What is

Honey ?" That article was really an
out and out defense of Hasty's position.

I then decided that the subject should
be discussed; that our best men should
say in the Review, if they would, what
they thought of the practicability and
advisability of the scheme. You who
read the Review know what has been
said, and can judge for yourselves as to
what you had better do.

It seems to me that the first question
to be decided is, When sugar is fed to
bees does it really become honey ? If
nectar is cane-sugar, and its manipula-
tion by the bees changes it to honey,
then cane-sugar made from the juice of
the sugar-cane evaporated, clarified and
then made into a syrup, becomes honey
when manipulated by the bees. It is
true that each kind of blossom furnishes
a flavor, and in some cases a color, that
is distinctive. It is true that some kinds
of blossoms furnish but little flavor.
Willow-herb is one of this class. Sugar-
honey has a kind of spicy, sugary flavor
that is not at all unpleasant ; but, as
Mr. Doolittle has explained, enough of
any kind of floral honey can be added to
give the distinctive flavor if desired.

When I produced some sugar-honey,
my wife was prejudiced against it. Now
we use it on the table every day, and it
is her choice. Knowing what I do now,
if I should go into the market and buy a
section of honey without knowing what
kind of honey it was, and it should turn
out to be sugar-honey, I should not feel
that I had been cheated. In fact, I
should prefer it to a great many kinds
of floral honey.

How will the public look at the mat-
ter? Candidly, I don't know. How does
it look at the-use of comb foundation in
section-boxes ? There was once a great
hue and cry raised against the use of
foundation in sections. Many persons
were not clean in the rendering of their
wax. The old combs were allowed to
stand until inhabited by disgusting
worms, and the combs fouled by their
excrements, then the whole mass was
cooked up and the wax squeezed out.
U-g-h-h ! Who wants to eat the stuff ?
Then it was not the work of the bees, It
was artificial. It was tough and leath-
ery, and its use would ruin the honey
market. Not one in ten of the honey-
eating public knows anything, or cares
anything, about comb foundation. Is It
wrong to sell them honey made on foun-
dation without telling them that it con-

tains the " fishbone " made from bees-
wax that has contained disgusting
worms, and perhaps been rendered by
the use of sulphuric acid? Nothing is
ever said of these matters, and bee-
keepers think it is all right, simply be-
cause they have been so educated.

This matter of education is a great
thing. If bee-keepers should take every
means in their power to inform the pub-
lic in regard to sugar-honey, it would be
a failure so far as informing the public
is concerned. See how we have worked
to educate the public in regard to the
difference between strained and extract-
ed honey. When you use the word
"extracted " in speaking to one not con-
nected with bee-keeping, nine times out
of ten the use of the word must be ex-
plained. The honey consuminR public
know but little, and care less about
these things. They go into the market
and buy what suits them. Very few
people go 10 market to buy bassivood
honey, or clover honey, or sugar honey —
it is simply honey. It looks nice, tastes
good, satisfies hunger, and that is all
they know or care. Mind you, I don't
say that everybody is thus ignorant, but
the majority are, and will remain so.

If we produce sugar-honey and tell our
commission man that it is such, and ask
him to so inform the retailer, and have
him inform the consumer, somebody In
the line will, forget, and the consumer
will never hear of it any more than If
we should take all this pains to have him
know that It was basswood honey that
we had sent to market, or that our
honey was produced on foundation, and
the great question is. Would such a
course wrong anybody ? I should be
glad to hear it answered.

But to the question, Shall we produce
sugar-honey ? I say let us not put away
the rup until we have tasted. I do not
say to everybody, goto producing sugar-
honey, but I do say that the subject is
worthy of consideration and experimen-
tation. Just take one colony next
August, when the bees are gathering
nothing, and feed them sugar, and let
them build combs, or furnish them foun-
dation, and then consume the product
yourself, and you will then know for
yourself whether you would be willing
to have such honey sold to you for
honey.

Many seem to fear that sugar-honey
will be produced so cheaply that it will
reduce the price. All seem to forget
that sugar-honey will always cost as
much as floral honey, plus the cost of
the sugar and the labor of feeding.
Where Is the profit, then, in Its produc-

20

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

tion ? There is not so much as there Is
in floral honey, but is vastly better than
to produce no crop at all. The advance
of civilization has largely crushed out a
large share of the honey-producing
flora, and it is no wonder that the fertile
brain of E. E. Hasty suggested what
may eventually become one of the great-
est blessings that have been given to
bee-keepers.

To my mind, this is not a question of
producing sugar-honey at a loss, or of
its injury to the market, as I have no
fears of either, but will its production
and sale, in the open market, under ex-
isting circumstances, work an injury to
my fellow man ? If it will, no one is
more anxious than myself to know it. I
simply desire to know the truth — can
man desire more ?

W. Z. Hutchinson.

T. F. Bingham — Would sugar-honey
be as good for sore throat ?

Prof. Cook — I don't know. I don't
know what it is about honey that does
a sore throat good. Sometimes we want
something that will produce irritation.
In that case I should say basswood
honey is what is needed.

Pres. Taylor — I would like to ask
Prof. Cook, if he were producing sugar-
honey, would he sell it as honey ?

Prof. Cook — I should. I agree with
the essayist in every point.

Jacob Moore — Suppose some one
should ask me if my honey was clover,
and I should say that it was sugar-
honey, and then they should say that
they could make their own sugar-honey.

Prof. Cook — When they tried making
simply sugar syrup (for that is all that
it would be), they would soon discover
the difference.

T. F. Bingham — I think this discus-
sion is unfortunate. There is a peculiar
mystery about honey that is very fasci-
nating.

Prof. Cook — We need not fear the re-
sults. Sugar fed to bees becomes honey.
There can be no question of this. The
only point is, can it be produced at a
profit ?

T. F. Bingham — The product Is un-
doubtedly good ; but the question is,
how will the public look at it? You say
that you fed 23 pounds of sugar syrup
to the bees in one night, yet they trans-
formed it into honey. I do not see how
they could do it so soon.

Prof. Cook — They have great glands
that are continually pouring out the acid
that transforms the cane-sugar into the
glucose of honey, and it makes no differ-

ence whether that cane-sugar comes

from the flowers or from some other

source.

G James Heddon— Yes; but Professor, I

do not see how there can be any flavor.

Prof. Cook— There is not the distinc-
tive flavor of any flower. There is a
honey-flavor, if that is the proper word.

W. Z. Hutchinson — I should say that
it had a kind of spicy, or cane flavor.

(Concluded next week.) ^'

How the Bee-Keeper Should
Prepare for Next Season.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY 6. M. DOOLITTLE.

The apiarist who is to be successful
has little time to waste, and if any have
started into the bee-business on the sup-
position that " bees work for nothing
and board themselves," they had better
leave it at once, for no success can be
attained along that line.

As soon as the bees are properly pre-
pared for winter, which should be done
as early as Oct. 31st, we are ready to
go to work for next season, and so we
commence operations at once, remem-
bering the proverb of the. ancient wise
man who says in the good book, "Seest
thou a man diligent in business, he shall
stand before kings."

The first work is to get the wide
frames and sections, wliich have been in
use the past season, in readiness for the
next harvest. Get them around, and
scrape off all the propolis adhering to
the tin separators, and all the bits of
comb that are fastened to the bottoms of
the wide frames. All these bits of comb
should be saved, and to best save them
the sun wax-extractor should be close at
hand, and all waste pieces of comb put
into it during the whole season. As
often as it is full, take off the cover and
allow " Old Sol " to get out the wax, and
have it ready to fill again.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

21

All sections which are partly filled
with honey, should have the honey ex-
tracted from them (unless you think you
will need it to feed in the spring), as
the honey will not correspond in color
with that which the bees put in to finish
out the sections the next season. To
extract this nicely, fix a shelf close to
the ceiling of a room, put the honey
thereon, and keep the room so warm
that the mercury will stand at 90° to
100° for three or four hours before you
extract. By placing the honey near the
ceiling, it does not require nearly as
much fire to heat it as it would if placed
on the floor or a bench.

These partly-filled sections, if ex-
tracted without warming, would be
ruined, and the apiarist's prospect of a
large yield of honey the coming season
would be much impaired also, for these
combs are better, to him, than money in
the bank, when used as " bait sections."

After the honey is extracted, these
sections are to be put in the center wide
frame for each hive, so as to secure an
early commencement of work by bees in
the sections, and so the full sections
shall not all come off at once, which will
cause the bees to be loth to enter a sec-
ond set. Fill the rest of the wide frames
with empty sections, each having a
starter of nice white comb or comb
foundation attached to the top.

To put on this starter, get a flat piece
of iron and heat it, hold the starter close
to the top of the section (now turned
bottom side up), draw the iron under
the starter, and immediately place it
(the starter) in the right position, and it
becomes a fixture.

After having your wide frames all
filled as directed, pack them away so
that they will be ready for use at a
moment's notice next June.

The next work is to get out material
for more section boxes, if we have ma-
chinery, or to purchase the material in
the flat if we do not get it out ourselves.
It does not matter so much how it is ob-
tained, as when it is got ready, for if
put off until just before the honey har-
vest, the result almost always shows a
greater or less loss.

To arrive at the number we wish, if
we allow 100 one-pound sections for
each old colony in the spring, we shall
find the estimate not far out of the way,
as I have proven after several years of
experience. It is well always to be ^ure
to have enough, for it is far better to
have a few sections left over than to
have " our pile " become exhausted in
the midst of a good honey-flow. As soon

as the sections are on hand, furnish
each one with a nice starter, and pack
them nicely away.

Next, we are to make or get what
hives we wish, together with more wide
frames, if we think more will be needed.
Fill all of the wide frames from the pile
of sections as before directed, put a strip
of foundation in each brood-frame, and
pack all nicely away. This strip of
foundation is placed in the frames as a
comb guide, where they are not filled
full of foundation. I use a strip three-
fourths of a inch wide, and, to fasten it
to the frame, get out a bourd which is
the size of the inside of your frame, and
only half as thick, which is to be fast-
ened to another board a little longer,
having a handle to it, so that it can be
easily held in the left hand.

Now lay the frame on the thin board,
and then place the strip of foundation
on it, and next to the top-bar of the
frame. Now tip the board to such an
angle that the top-bar of the frame and
the strip of foundation will make a V-
shaped trough, which is to be so inclined
that when the melted wax is poured in
at the upper end it will immediately run
down to the lower end, which (the
melted wax) in passing along adheres
to both the frame and foundation, thus
fastening the strip of foundation se-
curely.

Then there are the shipping-cases for
the honey to be prepared ; shipping-
cages for queens, if we rear queens for
sale, etc., etc., all of which should be
prepared during the wintry days, so
that when spring opens we shall have
nothing to do but to give our whole
attention to the bees.

Above all else in importance, is a
thorough knowledge of apiculture, and
during the long winter evenings which
are here, is just the time to gain this
knowledge. Get around the back num-
bers of the American Bee Journal,
and other bee-papers if you have them,
and thoroughly read them, so as to put
what you learn in practice the next sea-
son, so as to be always advancing in-
stead of standing still or retrograding.
Do this instead of spending your even-
ings at the store, saloon or hotel, listen-
ing to the idle gossip, or worse than
gossip, and, ray word for it, you will
make a success of bee-keeping which
will astonish those about you.

Borodino, N. Y.

Great Premium on page 5 !

22

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

The Packing-Case method of
Wintering Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY J. A. GBEEN.

It is now near the end of December.
According to the advice usually given,
bees should have been fully prepared for
winter two months or more ago. This
advice I have frequently given myself,
and I am afraid that I would have been
inclined to call the bee-keeper careless
and negligent who should put ofif pre-
paring his bees for winter until so late a
date as this. Yet I did not finish pack-
ing my bees until last week.

Most of them, it is true, were ready
for winter long ago, but 50 or more col-
onies were left to take their chances
until quite recently. This was not
wholly due to either intention or negli-
gence. First, my helper deserted me
just as the fall work began, and then
an unusual amount of work presented
itself. Then we sold the old home where
I had lived all my life, and it became
necessary to hunt up a new place and
remove to it, which was a serious under-
taking, and consumed several weeks of
time. Then I had always wintered a
part of my bees in the cellar. This was
not convenient now, so that I had to
make packing-cases for a number.

These packing-cases I made on a plan
somewhat different from what I have
used before, and it is this method of
packing that I propose to tell about in
this article.

Heretofore 1 have always packed each
hive in a packing-case by itself, making
a box, of light lumber about 8 inches
larger each way than the hive, without
top or bottom. This was set over the
hive, a " bridge" being placed over the
entrance, after which leaves, planer-
shavings, or some similar material were
packed all around and over the hive, the
whole being covered with a sheet of cor-
rugated iron for a roof. This plan of
protection has always proved very suc-
cessful with me, and with some slight
modifications I expect to continue it,
having now about 200 colonies thus
packed.

There are some decided advantages in
having every hive entirely independent
of every other hive. There are other
very pronounced advantages in making
a packing-case large enough to hold
several colonies. Among these are a
considerable saving in lumber, and a
much greater economy of heat, as the
several colonies in a " tenement " pack-

ing case mutually help to keep their
neighbors warm.

My new packing-cases are made to
take in 4 colonies. Four hives are
placed close together, two facing east,
with their backs close against the backs
of another pair facing west.

These hives are upon the Heddon hive
stands, which raise them from the
ground about 5 inches. The bottom-
boards are loose — I wouldn't have any
other kind — and the hive is raised from
the bottom-board, and what I call a
" wintering rim " placed between. These
rims raise the hive about 2 inches from
the bottom-board. The sides project
be:fond the front of the hive, and on this
projecting part is nailed a board that
forms a " bridge" to make a passage-
way through the packing material. The
front of this rim is so made that the en-
trance is at the top of the rim. This
.rim allows the bees to cluster in a com-
pact bunch below the frames, which
they will almost always do if they have
the chance.

The bees that die in the hive drop to
the bottom, instead of clogging up the
spaces between the frames, and the en-
trance being at the top of the rim, it
isn't easily stopped by dead bees from
within, or snow or ice from without, as
there is a hall-way two inches high with
the entrance at its top.

The sides of the packing-box are
nailed up separately, and then lightly
tacked together at the corners. The
nails holding them at the corners are
not driven clear in, so that they are
easily drawn with a hammer in the
spring, and the sides piled up until they
are needed again, thus occupying but
little space, and lasting much longer
than if they were kept nailed up in the
large boxes. This also makes the re-
moval of the packing much easier.

As covers for these I have made roofs
of various styles, of boards covered with
shingles, tin, sheet-iron, and paper. I
do not like any of these very well, as it
is hard to make a substantial roof in
this way without having it too heavy to
be easily handled. I think that in the
future I shall use, as in the smaller
packing-cases, sheets of corrugated iron
simply laid over the top of the box and
weighted down so that the wind will not
blow them away.

In these packing-cases the bees will
remain until next June. Those that
are likely to need more honey will be
looked over as soon as warm weather
comes, but all that I know have stores
enough, and that show by their manner
of working that they have a good queen

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

23

will not be disturbed until the honey
harvest is near at hand.

As long as things are going well with
a colony of bees, they are better off with-
out any interference from the bee-
keeper, and this is especially the case in
the early spring, when all unnecessary
opening of the hive should be avoided.

Ottawa, Ills., Dec. 19, 1892.

_ Do notwrite anything for nublication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Texas Weather — Honey in 1893.

This is Dec. 22nd, and bees have not
had a flight for three days. It has been
raining almost all the time, but it is not
cold yet. We had ice only on two or
three mornings, so far. We expect a
little " norther " any time from across
the peach orchard, forcing us to put on
wraps and overcoats. I really would be
glad to see a little snow, but often we go
clear through the whole winter without
any.

Southern bee-keepers, look out. nl look
for one of those old-time bee years, that
makes this our land flow with milk and
honey. Why ? Just because we have
had fine fall and.winter rains, and horse-
mint and other lioney-furnishing plants
are growing finely, which means honey
next year. Mks. Jennie Atchi^et.

Greenville, Texas.

Cleaning' Propolized Separators.

I want to thank Miss Emma Wilson
for that valuable recipe by which tin
separators, etc., can be cleaned of propo-
lis, which was published on page 80.
In order to show its value, I will explain.

I have about 2,500 tin separators to
clean every season. Until last spring,
the glue was scraped off with a case-
knife, which scratches the tins, is slow
and tedious, and, worst of all, it is
bound to leave some stains, and bees.

like people, are ashamed of the daubing
that others do, and therefore cover up
those stains with a new coat of glue,
from end to end. (If you don't believe
it, try a row of stained sections in a case
of clean, smooth ones, and be satisfied).

But now I heat some water to the
boiling point, dissolve in a box of con-
centrated lye, throw in my separators,
stir them a little, and with a pitch-fork
throw them out on some straw, and pour
some clean water over them. I then
spread them out, or set them up on end
to drain and dry — and the job is done.
The tins are as bright and clean as new.

Now you can see what I have gained
by that one article in the American Bee
JouRNAX, and there are thousands of
others who, no doubt, have tried It and
found it good, and, like myself, come
very nearly forgetting to say, " Thank
you." But some say, "Oh, they get
paid for it !" I doubt whether the writer
or editor ever gets full value.

Savanna, Ills. Jno. HANDEiy.

The Season of 1892.

My report for 1892 is as follows :
Spring count, 16 colonies ; fall count,
18 ; 7 natural swarms; and I took 400
pounds of honey with the extractor. I,
fed 100 pounds of granulated sugar for
winter stores, and'^'put 16 colonies of my
bees into the cellar on Dec. 10 ; 2 are
packed on the summer stands, and are
wintering nicely so far. This has been
the poorest year for bees since I have
been in the business, but white clover
never looked any better in this vicinity,
and as basswood did not bloom this year,
I have good hopes for 1893.

Oakwood, Wis., Dec. 19, 1893.

That Q,ueen-Bee Experience.

On page 828 Mr. Kauffman tells his
experience with a queen-bee, and wants
to know what made her do as she did.
She was not to blame for going up the
tree, nor over the house and being struck
with a lightning-rod. But she was to
blame for going off and staying two days
in a snow-storm, when she came from
the South. If it had been one of our
Northern queens I should not have
wondered at it so much. She is from a
hardy race, I should think. I wish he
would send me one of her daughters by
telegraph. Chas. Tarey.

Houghion, N. Y., Dec. 24, 1892,

24

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

He Says the Bees Did "Well.

Bees have done well this year. I had
6 colonies, spring count ; one became
queenless and died, one stored no sur-
plus, and from the other four I took 250
one-pound sections of nice white honey.
I have 6 colonies packed in forest leaves
on the summer stands, and 3 in the cel-
lar, all well supplied with winter stores,
from which I hope for still better results
next summer. My bees, which were
wintered on the summer stands, stored
more suplus honey than those wintered
in the cellar. Levi Higgins.

Orion, Ills., Dec. 22, 1892.

Temperature in November, 1892.

I want to conduct a sort of " weather
bureau " for the use of bee-keepers,
with the aid of several other bee-keepers
in different parts of the country. It
will likely prove to be very interesting
when once in proper running order.

The first report is as follows, for the
month of November, 1892 :

(Freezing (32 deg.) given as the meridian line.)

1st day, 6^ above freezing.

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

6th

7th

8th

9th

10th

11th

12th

13th

14th

15th

16 th

17th

18th

19th

20th

21st

22nd

23rd

24th

25th

26th

27th

28th

29th

60

" go "

" go '(

" 12° below

" 6° above

" 6° below

't go "

t< 20 "

'< 30 ''

" freezing.

" 2° above

" 1° below

(I 20 "

" 6° above

a 20 "

(I 20 "

" 180 "

" freezing.

" 40 below

" 200 >*

" 22° "

'< yo '»

" 50 "

<i 'JO a

" 100 "

" freezing.

(Rain)
(Snow squalls)

(Bees had
[a flight)

(Bees had
[a flight)

It was cloudy every day but three
during the month, with heavy winds.
The temperature was taken when near
sunrise each day. The above is for 22°
north latitude. On the 2nd and 5th of
October was the first frost of the fall.

At Floyd, Tex., for the same period of
time the temperature stood about the
same until about the 20th, ranging
from 450 to 500 above zero, then they
had a rain which brought it down to
350 for a week; then it turned colder,
and on Dec. 1st they had their first frost
of any note. Mrs. Jennie Atchley re-
ports this from Texas.

At Hamilton, Ills., 40o north latitude,
the coldest day was about the 18th — 14°
below freezing. The last time bees flew
was on Nov. 30th, the mercury showing
430 in the shade, and the wind in the
east. Chas. Dadant & Son reports the
above for Illinois. Jacob Mooke.

Ionia, Mich.

Just Before the Battle.

The " grand army" of honey-producers
in Ontario have held a council of war,
and in a few days will march to the
annual meeting at Walkerton, Ont., and
blow up the sugar-honey magazine. I
believe that every real honey-producer
is going to use his " Windchester" on
the sugar-honey business, and fight it,
war to the knife. Wm. McEvoy.

Woodburn, Out., Dec. 30, 1892.

CONVENTION DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

Jan. 10-12.— Ontario, at Walkerton, Ont.

W. Couse, Sec, Streetsville, Ont.

Jan. 13, 14.— S.W. Wisconsin, at Boscobel.Wis.
Edwin Pike, Pres., Boscobel, Wis.

Jan. 12-14.— Minnesota, at Minneapolis, Minn.
A. K. Cooper, Sec., Winona, Minn.

Jan. 16, 17.— Colorado, at Denver, Colo.

H. Knight, Sec, Littleton, Colo.

Jan. 18, 19. — Indiana, at Indianapolis. Ind.
G. P. Wilson, g^c, Tolgate, Ind.

Feb. 7, 8.— California, at Los Angeles.

John H. Martin, Sec, Redlands, Calif.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

MTorth American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Eugene Secor.. Forest City, Iowa.
Secretary- W. Z. Hutchinson — Flint, Mich

« » » ♦ «

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— James Heddon . .Dowaglac, Mich,
SEC'y AND Manager— T. G. Newman, Cbicago.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

25

^^7j* ^M3^3R]re^i^ ^^^

T5~--

jteJIwiiiMiE,:

PXTBLISHED WEEKLY BY

A.t One Dollar a Year,
199 RANDOLPH ST.. CHICAGO. ILLS.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

T2ie Bee tTorirnal Is sent to subscribers
until an order is received by the publishers for
Its discontinuance, and all arrearages are paid.

A Sample Copy of the Bee JOURNAL will
be sent FREE upon application.

Mow to Send JVTojiey.— Remit by Express,
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■Register your Letter, affixing Stamps both for
postage and registry, and take a receipt for it.
Money sent thus, IS AT OTJR BISK; otherwise
it is not. Do not send Checks on Local Banks—
we have to pay 25 cents each, to get them cashed.

^ever Send Silver in letters. It will
wear holes in the envelope, or may be stolen.

Malce all JHoney Orders Payable at

Chicago, 111.— not at any sub-station of Chicago.

Postag-e Stamps of any denomination may
be sent for any fraction of a dollar; or where
Money Orders cannot be obtained, stamps for
any amount may be sent.

Subscription Credits.— The receipt for
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of every paper. The subscription is paid to the
END OF THE MONTH indicated.

' )o not Write anything' for publication on
the same sheet of paper with business matters,
unless it can be torn apart without interfering
with either part of the letter.

Bmerson Binders, made especially for
the AMERICAN Bee JotrKNAL, are convenient
for preserving each weekly Number, as fast as
received. They will be sent, post-paid, for 50 cts.
each. They cannot be sent by mail to Canada.

f.ost Numbers. — We carefully mail the
Bee Journal to every subscriber, but should
any be lost In the mails, we will replace them if
notified before all the edition is exhausted.

Always State the Post-OfiBce to which
your paper is addressed, when writing to us.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
SoflBeld, Portage co, Ohio

CouTentiou rVotice&i.

INDIANA.— The Indiana State Bee-Keep-
ers' Association meet at Indianapolis, Ind.,
on Jan. 18 and 19, 1893. G. P. Wilson, Sec.

Tolgate, Ind.

ONTARIO, CAN.— The annual meeting of
the Ontario Bee-Keepers' Association will be
held in Walkerton, Ont., on Jan. 10, 11 and
12th, 1893. All interested in bee-liecping are
cordially Invited to be present.

Streetsville, Ont. W. Couse, Sec.

COLORADO.— The Colo. State Bee-Keepers'
Association will hold their annual meeting in
Denver, on Jan. 16 and 17, 1893. Election of
oflBcers and other important business will
come before the meeting.

Littleton. Colo. H. Knight. Sec.

CALIFORNIA.— The 2nd annual meeting ol
the California State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Chamber of Commerce in
Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 7th and 8th, 1892.
Programmes will soon be issued, for which
address, John H. Martin, Sec.

Redlands, Calif.

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be— an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

MINNESOTA— .The annual meeting of the
Minnesota Bee-Keepers' Association will be
held at Minneapolis, on Thursday, Friday and
Saturday, Jan. 12, 13 and 14. 1893. The
Thursday meeting will probably be a union
meeting with the Horticultural Society which
meets at the same place, commencing on
Tuesday. A. K. COOPER, Sec.

Winona, Minn.

WISCONSIN.— The Southwestern Wisconsin
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its next
annual meeting as Boscobel, Grant Co., Wis.,
on Jan. 13 and 14, 1893. All members of the
Association are requested to be present as the
following officers are to be elected ; President,
Vice-President, Secretary. Assistant Sec, and
Treasurer. Blank Reports will be sent each
member, for the year 1892, with instructions.
A cordial invitation is extended to all bee-
keepers, and especially to those that would
like to join with us. Each member will be no-
tified at least one month before the meeting.

Boscobel, Wis. Edwin Pike, Pres.

Doolittle's Queen-Rearing:

book should be in the library of every
bee-keeper ; and in th-e way we offer to
to give it, there is no reason now why
every one may not possess a copy of it.
Send us one new subscriber for a year,
and we will mail the book to you bound
in paper, as a present.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal,. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

26

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
December 31st, 1892 :

CHICAGO, III.— Demand for comb honey is
quite good, and choice lots bring 18c., others
in proportion. Extracted, 6@9c„ according
to what it is— sales chiefly at 8@9c.

Beeswax— 23@2 5c. R. A. B.

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey of all iiinds is plen-
tiful excepting choice white comb. There is
no activity, owing to the closing of the year.
A good business is expected after New Years.
Comb— white, 18@17c. ; darii, 14c. Extrac-
ted—white, 9c. ; dark, 7®8c. ; Southern, 75®
80c. per gal. J. A. L.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7}4c. ; amber, 5®6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C.-M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand is good for
honey, with scant supply of all kinds. Extrac-
ted brings 6@8c., and comb sells at 14@16c.
for best white. Although honey is scarce,
there is no demand for dark comb.

Beeswax— Demand good.at20@25c. for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7®754c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Comb honey is selling
slow, very much slower than we like to have
it, and it Is our experience that when we start
honey in at a high price, it sells hard right
through the season. We auote our market
nominally at 17@1 8c. for best white honey,
1-lb. combs. Extracted, 8@9c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNEAPO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c.; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9@10c. J. A. S. & C.

NEW YORK. N. Y.-Our market is quiet.
Arrivals are freely, and the demand limited.
We quote : Fancy wbite, 1-lbs., 15®16c. ; 2-
Ibs., 12@13c. Fair white, 1-lbs., 12®13c. ; 2-
Ibs., He. There are large stocks of buck-
wheat honey on our market, and we know of
two lots of fancy 1-lbs. that sold at 8 and 9c.
per lb., respectvely. We quote 1-lbs., glassed
or in paper-boxes, 10c. ; unglassed, 9c. Ex-
tracted is in good demand at 8®8Hc. for bass-
wood and white clover ; 6@6>4c. for buck-
wheat ; 70@75c. per gallon for Southern.

Beeswax— Dull at 26@27c. H. B. & 8.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market some qui-
eter and prices some easier. White clover,
15®17c.: mixed, 14@15c.; dark, 10@llc. Ex-
tracted, white, 8@8'/^c.; mixed, 7®7»/ic.; dark
7c. Stocks light of both comb and extracted.

Beeswax, 27®28c. H. B. W.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Chicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett, 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minneapolis, nnnn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bbarss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway.

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

fflaiits or Exctajiges.

Under this heading, Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

WANTED - A good Second - Hand Well-
Drill. Give description, and lowest cash
price. ALFRED SOPER,

26A3t Eau Claire, Wis.

Advertisemeiits.

DO NOT ORDER YOUR SECTIONS

until you get our Prices on

]

'Bees and Honey" — see page 5.

The "Boss" One-Piece Section

—ALSO-

Dovetailed Hives, Foundation

AM> OTHKIC M PPIilKS.

We are in better shape than ever to fill orders
an short notice. Write for Price-List.

J. FORNCROOK & CO.

Watertown, Jeflf. Co., Wis., Jan. 1st, 1893
Mentioih the American Bee Journal.

PIJMJHI

OEOBGE W. YORK J DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. f To Bee-Culture. ( Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JANUARY 12, 1893.

NO. 2.

The Honey Almanac for 1893
will be issued about Jan. 20tli.

Sug'ar-Money production cannot
be condemned any too strongly. Don't
" monkey " with that " gun." It's loaded.

Xhe Voting: Blank of the Na-
tional Bee-Keepers' Union, on page 4 of
last week's Bee Journal, you should
cut out, fill up all the blanks, and send
it with $1.00 to Thomas G. Newman,
as directed in the Blank. This must be
done before Feb. 1st, if you want your
vote counted. Better do it now, before
you forget it.

Mr. Bugfene Secor and wife
passed through Chicago last Friday on
their way to their home in Forest City,
Iowa, from the Washington convention.
Mr. S. reports that it was one of the
very best meetings ever held by the
Association, particularly on account of
the presence of Hon. Edwin Willctts,
Professors C. V. Riley, and H. W. Wiley,
and Mr. Frank Benton.

Paddock Pure Food Bill.—

Since Prof. Cook suggested that the
editor of the Bee Jouknal, examine the
Pure Food Bill introduced into Congress
by Senator A. S. Paddock, for the pur-
pose of prohibiting the adulteration of
food products, we have investigated the
matter, and would report that the Bill
as it now reads is general in its inhibi-
tions, as to all sophistications, adultera-
tions and manipulations of every kind
and nature calculated to debase any and
every edible product, manufactured or
otherwise, and the branding and selling
of the same as the pure and genuine
article.

The Paddock Bill is much stronger in
its provisions, from the very fact that it
mentions no particular food, but em-
braces them all in its very general terms.
This is a point greatly in its favor, as it
can be applied to the adulteration or
mixing of honey as well as to any other
food product that may have been tam-
pered with by the criminally inclined of
this or any future perverse generation.

It seems to us that if the passage of
Senator Paddock's Bill can be brought
about, it will be to bee-keepers a great
weapon to use against those who prac-
tice the adulteration of honey without
plainly indicating such adulteration or
mixing when attempting to sell the
same.

This Bill is now on the calendar, in
the House of Representatives, and it is
believed that with proper pressure it

fr

£40

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

can be brought under consideration at
an early day. All can materially aid in
securing the passage of the Bill by at
once demanding their representatives in
the lower House of Congress to insist
upon the immediate consideration of the
Bill. Not only will it be well for all
people interested in the passage of this
Bill to communicate directly with their
own representatives, but also to address
letters and petitions to the Hon. Wm.
H. Hatch, Chairman of the Committee
on Agriculture of the House, who now
has the Bill in charge.

On page 42 of the Bee Journal for
July 7, 1892, is a sample letter sent us
by Mr. J. H. Larrabee on this very sub-
ject. As we then urged every bee-
keeper to copy that letter and sign and
mail it to their representatives, we would
now again, more strongly if possible,
entreat them to do so at once, sending
the same not only to their representa-
tives now at Washington, but also send
a copy of it to the Hon. Wm. H. Hatch,
mentioned in another paragraph of this
editorial.

For the benefit of our new readers,
and lest some who read this may have
mislaid the number of the Bee Joxjrnal
containing the sample letter to be copied
and mailed, we reprint it as follows,
making a few necessary alterations :

HOK. -

Washington, D. C.
Dear Sir : — I understand that the Pad-
dock Pure Food Bill is now on the cal-
endar of the House of Representatives.
May I urge upon you to support it in
the interests of, and in justice to, the
producers of honest food ? Bee-keepers
all over the land are very much inter-
ested in its passage, and, regardless of
party, urge its evident justice, and the
great need of it. Please consider your
own interests, and the interests of the
people you represent, and, so far as you
can, consistently and honorably, use
your vote and influence in this good
cause. I am,

Respectfully yours.

representatives, and also to Hon. Wm.
H. Hatch— all in Washington. This will
necessitate making several copies of the
letter, but you certainly can afford to
spend that much time in a cause which,
if triumphant, will result in such abun-
dant good to yourself and everybody
else. Please don't put this matter ofif,
for now is the time to act — " now is the
day of salvation " for the producers of
honest honey, or any other pure food
product.

The North American Conven-
tion met in Washington, D. C, on Dec.
27th, 28th and 29th. Bro. Hutchinson,
who was the Secretary, and who took
the report of the proceedings for the
Amekican Bee Joubnal, writes us that
the meeting " was not largely attended,
but those present were mostly leaders,
and a very profitable time was passed."
The next meeting is to be held in Chi-
cago. The following are the new oflBcers
elected for 1893 :

President— Dr. C. C. Miller, Marengo,

Ills.

Vice-President— J. E. Crane, Middle-
bury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washing-
ton, D. C.

Treasurer— George W. York, Chicago,

Ills.

The report of the convention will ap-
pear in full in the Bee Journal, as
usual, and then will be put into pamph-
let form. We expect to begin it in next
week's issue.

We ask that each reader of the Bee
Journal just now copy the above letter,
sign your name to it, and mail it to your

Mr. F. H. Map plierson, now of

Windsor, Out., called at the Bee Jour-
nal office last week. Until about a year
ago, he was associate editor of the Cana-
dian Bee Journal, but is now publishing
a weekly newspaper in Windsor. We
enjoyed his call very much, and trust
he may " drop in " again when in the
World's Fair city. He has almost en-
tirely recovered from the effects of the
accident which befell him about two
years ago.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

41

Bees and Peaclies.— It seems
that Mr. J. A. Pearce, of Grand Rapids,
Mich., has been threatened by some 25
of his envious or ignorant neighbors,
who have gotten up a petition and sent
, him, ordering him to " take care of his
bees," on account of them eating their
peaches, as they foolishly claim.

The following is a letter received from
Mr. Pearce a few weeks ago :

I mail you a petition sent me by my
neighbors — fruit-growers — just to show
how some people will act toward their
best little friends, or big ones either, if
they happen to "step on their toes."

A year ago all nature was perishing
here for want of water, and the first
cling-stone peaches (that are nearly all
water as they can be), seemed to be the
only available supply for the bugs,
beetles and bees, and they all went for
them — the bugs and beetles first, mostly
in the night, and the bees lastly ; and
all the trouble was laid to the bees.
They were certain the bees were the
ones that cut open the peaches.

The real damage, however, was very
insignificant, as I asked one man who
had 3,500 bushels, how many peaches
had been eaten by the bees, and he said
he thought about a bushel ! In my own
orchard, I do not think it was more than
that, while it would be safe to say that
those very bees helped this man to one
out of every three peaches, thus making
over 1,100 bushels for the one de-
stroyed !

This year (1892) there have been
seasonable rains, and no trouble at all.

If any one would take the pains to
look at a bee going into a flower, or not,
and see what an elegant little brush she
is, with those curved hairs all around
the forepart of her body, and her
" bangs," and then to think she must
have this pollen to feed her young, those
who would thus charge the bees must go
and hide their heads for shame, if they
are fruit-men, and have been " kicking "
about the bees sucking the juice from a
few cracked grapes or peaches 1

J. A. Peabce.

The following is a copy of the petition
referred to by Mr. Pearce, which was
signed by 25 neighboring fruit-men :

We, the undersigned, fruit-growers in
your neighborhood, respectfully request
you to take care of your bees, for the
reason that they do great damage, and
we have suffered until we can stand it

no longer, and we want the matter set-
tled in a neighborly manner, so as to
relieve us from further damage. Please
attend to this at once, and oblige.

Yours truly.
{Signed by 25 persons.)

We would suggest that Mr. Pearce
send to the Manager of the National
Bee-Keepers' Union for copies of the
decision rendered by the Arkansas Su-
preme Court, declaring emphatically
that bees are not a nuisance, and that
bee-keepers must be protected in their
rights to keep bees. That leaflet would
be interesting reading for those 25 who
believe in having things done in a
" neighborly manner."

Also, for the benefit of those "neigh-
bors," and others who may think that
bees eat peaches and other fruit, we
present here some testimony on the sub-
ject, from one who knew what he was
talking about. Read what Mr. B. E.
Rice, of Boscobel, Wis., says :

In reading my bee-periodicals and
some of the local papers, I see that there
is considerable said from time to time
about bees damaging grapes, as well as
some other kinds of small fruit. I claim
that it is all " bosh," unless the fruit is
first injured in some way or another. I
make this assertion from my own experi-
ence in growing grapes in the same yard
with a number of colonies of bees, at the
same time using the grapes as shade for
the bee-hives. As my attention has been
called to this matter at different times,
I have given it much thought, and
watched it most carefully.

In the last three years there has been
only two instances where the bees have
worked on grapes in the least.

In the first instance the damage was
caused by the chickens picking and eat-
ing the lower branches, or clusters, that
were hanging low down within their
reach. The second instance was caused
by a very severe hail-storm, which
bruised or punctured the grapes enough
to expose their seeds, enticing the bees
to work on them. This lasted only for a
few days, until the bruises became seared
over. You will observe that in both in-
stances the fruit was first injured before
the bees would have anything to do with
it, and I do not believe that bees will
hurt grapes, or other kind of fruit, un-
less it is damaged by something else.
Using them as I do for shade for bee-

42

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

hives, large clusters of the delicious
fruit hang all around the hives — yes, and
even within a few inches of the entrance
to the hive. This must certainly give a
pretty good chance to test the matter.
In conclusion I will say that I really
believe that the most of this complain-
ing is caused by prejudice.

B. E. Rice.

The foregoing ought to finally settle
the matter, and if we mistake not, after
those petitioners have carefully read jt
all, they will see the error of their way,
and " respectfully " and in a "neigh-
borly manner " apologize to Friend
Pearce for their very ttnneighborly
manners.

Xlie Progframme of the Colo-
rado State Bee-Keepers' Association, to
• be held in Iron Hall, Charles Block,
Denver, Colo., on Jan. 16th and 17th,
1893, is principally as follows :

President's Address — E. B. Porter,
of Longmont.

Some of the Newer Races of Bees —
Frank Rauchfuss, of Montclair.

Are bees an Injury or a Benefit to
Horticulturists? — V. Devinney, of Villa
Park.

Matters to be Considered by this Con-
vention— Suggestions — R. C. Aikin, of
Loveland.

Bees for the Average Parmer — A. M.
Preston, of Longmont.

Why Bee-Keepers Should Organize —
H. Knight, of Littleton.

What Ought the State Department of
Agriculture to do in Apiculture ? — D. C.
Tracy, of Ni Wot.

Bees and Flowers, Illustrated — Prof.
C. S. Crandall, of Agricultural College.

A "January Swarm," by "Queens"
and " Drones."

How Shall we Increase the Consump-
tion of Honey ? — J. E. Lyon, of Edge-
water.

Bee-Hives — R. C. Aikin, of Loveland.

General Discussion on How are Your
Bees Fixed for Winter?

The Best Method and Time of Re-
quecning — H. C. Rauchfuss, of Magnolia.

Apicultural Experiments — Prof. C. P.
Gillette, State Agricultural College.

What are the Benefits to be Derived
from Making an Exhibition at the
World's Fair ? — E. Milleson, of Denver.

Future of Bee-Keeping in Colorado —
J. B. Adams, of Longmotit.

Littleton, Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

Mrs. Hlmina Hambaugfli died
at Versailles, Ills., on Dec. 23rd, and
was buried on Christmas Day. She was
over 80 years of age, and the mother of
Hon. J. M. Hambaugh, of Spring, Ills., •
who has just been elected President of^
the Illinois Bee-Keepers' Association.
The Hambaugh's are one of the old and
prominent families of this State.

Our friend, Hon. J. M. Hambaugh,
who sent us the sad notice of his
mother's death, adds the following ten-
der words :

A pall of gloom is upon our household.
Our angel mother has closed her eyes in
death, and only through the drapings
that conceal the great beyond, can we
find a solace. She was our life, and her
memory will be as sacred as the eternal
spirit, and will be our beacon to lead us
to a better home above.

J. M. Hambaugh.

The American Bee JotrBNAL desires
to extend to the bereaved family its own
heartfelt sympathy, as well as that of
the many readers who have come to
know, as well as honor, the name of
Hambaugh through the writings and
efforts Hon. J. M. has put forth in their
behalf.

Dairyman's Association of

Illinois will hold its 19th annual meet-
ing in Sycamore, DeKalb county. Ills.,
Jan. 25th, 26th and 27th, 1893. Many
questions will be discussed that will be
of great importance to the dairymen of
the State. Liberal premiums will be
offered on butter and cheese. Supply
dealers will have ample room to show
their goods. Premium lists may be ob-
tained by addressing the secretary, W.
R. Hostetter, Mt. Carroll, Ills.

James Parton wrote so many
books which come home directly to all
Americans, that one of the most inter-
esting features in the January maga-
zines to most readers will be the Rev.
Julius H. Ward's fine study of his work
and character in the January " New
England Magazine." Get the magazine
for 1893. Price, $3.00 a year.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

43

MR. P. H. EL.WOOD.

This week we present to our readers
the portrait of Philip Henry Elwood, of
Starkville, N. Y. For some time he has
contributed replies to the queries pub-

P. H. ELWOOD.

lished weekly in the Bee Jouenal, and
occasionally an article has appeared
from his cultured and efficient pen.

In 1889, at the convention of the
North American Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion held in Keokuk, Iowa, Mr. Elwood
was elected President for the year 1890.

In the last edition of the " A B C of

Bee-Culture," Dr. Miller says that Mr.
Elwood is a good illustration of the
healthf ulness of bee-keeping as a voca-
tion. At the age of 23 he was advised
by his physicians to abandon a college
course and choose some out-door occupa-
tion, and now P. H. Elwood, the bee-
keeper, is known as a man who tips the
scales at 225 pounds.

Soon after leaving school he was
offered a desirable position as teacher of
natural sciences in a high school In
Michigan, but the offer was refused. In
1872, at the age of 25, he commenced
bee-keeping as a partner of Capt. Heth-
erington. This partnership was profit-
ably continued for five years, when he
removed a distance of ten miles to Stark-
ville, Herkimer County, N. Y., where he
has since remained, to carry on the
business of producing honey. He was
happily married in 1879.

Mr. E. is a conservative bee-keeper,
little inclined to rush after new things
simply because they are neW, and is
sometimes accused of being at fault in
not placing sufficient confidence in the
recommendations of others. He cares
more to be sure that his plans and im-
plements are such as experience proves
the best, than to be constantly trying to
invent something new.

He uses the small Quinby hive, and
after giving a thorough trial to out-door
wintering, he winters his bees exclu-
sively in cellars. The larger part of his
comb honey is put up in two-pound
glassed boxes, and it was his honey that
took the first premium at the Paris
World's Exposition, exhibited in the
same packing-cases in which it was
shipped from his apiary. He prefers
Italian hybrids, and keeps about 1,300
colonies.

However earnest he may be in other
things, he believes that the preparation
for the life to come is of infinitely more
importance than anything else in this
life.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 37 ?

44

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

CONDUCTED BY

Gre^ville, Texas.
Good-Bye to 1893— Welcome 1893.

The weather in this part of Texas, at
this date (Dec. 31), is pretty gloomy.
It has been pouring down rain for nearly
21 hours, and everything is in a float.
Ah, me ! if it don't rain in Texas some-
times. It is not cold, though, but the
bees cannot get out without getting their
heads wet and their feet muddy.

At a late hour, the last night of the
year 1892, I sit at my desk punching
the type\i(riter, and wondering how many
of us are willing to fall upon our knees,
this, the last night of the year, and
thank God for all the blessings he has
showered upon us the past year. Even
the first month is a fine time to turn
over a new leaf, if we fail to turn it the
first day. Friends, let's all try to be
of more help to one another, this
.year than we we're last, and see if we
won't be any happier when a new year
comes again.

Friends, I will soon begin giving bee-
keeping from the start, in this depart-
ment, as we have a new crop of readers
this year. I hope the veterans will over-
look us in this matter, and consider that
we all were beginners once. I hope the
bee-keeping friends all over the South
will join in and help me to make " In
Sunny Southland " what it ought to be —
an interesting department for all.

I am now through, and must bid you
adieu for the year 1892. J: A.

P. S. — Dr. Miller and I are too good
friends to let little things break our
friendship, aren't we, Doctor ?

Queens as Premiums — Who Will Win?

To the person sending to me the
largest number of new subscribers to
the American Bee Journal from Jan.
1st to June 30th, 1893, I will give a

fine breeding queen of the five-banded
variety — such sell for $10 ; for the next
largest number, a three-banded breeder
from imported mother ; the next largest,
a tested queen of either* strain ; the
next, a dollar queen. Who will be the
lucky parties ? A correct account will
be kept, and the premiums promptly
paid on July 1, 1893.

Bee-keeping friends, why not each of
you who is not now a subscriber to the
Amercan Bee Journal, send me your
name with $1.00, and receive as a pre-
mium the book "Bees and Honey?"
This is the biggest ofi'er in beedom, all
to every new subscriber — 52 Bee Jour-
nals weekly, brimful of the very best
bee-news, suited to all localities, all for
$1.00, and " Bees and Honey" to boot.
Just think of it ! Jennie Atchley.

Greenville, Texas.

When a Queen is Safely Introduced.

Here is a way to tell whether a queen
is safely introduced when released
among the bees :

In 15 or 20 minutes after you release
her, disturb the bees in some way by
smoking, jarring the hive, etc., and if
they do not pounce upon her at once,
shut up the hive and go on, and give it
no further attention regarding the in-
troduction of that queen. A queen is
never safely introduced until the bees
show her royalty, or feed her, and I
might say she is only safe in summer
when she begins to lay. J. A.

Hiving Swarms on Starters, or in
Empty Hives.

It is becoming more and more apparent
to me that bee-keeping in the Northern
States, is nearly entirely different from
what it is in the South. Mr. Hutchinson
comes out again, on page 823, with an
article on hiving bees on starters, or in
empty hives, as the best method. Well,
Mr. H. is all right for Michigan, but all
wrong for Texas.

It will not pay to hive our early swarms
on only starters, or, worse still, empty
frames. Our early swarms are of no
use whatever, only to perpetuate the
colony, and the means of our having a
booming colony two months later. We
get no use of the bees that compose our
early swarms, for storing surplus honey.
So, fearing that our Southern bee-keep-
ers might take it for granted that Mr.
Hutchinson's article would apply to all

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

45

sections of country alike, I write this to
inform you that it will not do in this
section.

Now, should we have a swarm just at
the beginning of our honey-flow, then
Mr. H.'s rule will apply here or else-
where alike. His plan is a capital one,
where we have a swarm just as our har-
vest begins, the way they have it in
Michigan. By his method we may push
the bees right into the sections, and get
a fair yield from the very bees that com-
pose the swarm. So I say, give me all
the nice brood-combs I want, and watch
me gain ground on the bee-keeper that
hives his swarms on starters and in
empty hives. J- A.

Telling When a Q,ueen Grows Old.

Will Mr. G. W. Nance please teach us
how to tell when a queen is getting old ?
(See page 670.)

I have had young queens, two to six
months old, that for awhile would almost
cease laying, then within a week's time
have every available cell occupied ;
while occasionally an old 23^ or 3 season
queen will always have her hive filled,
as it should be, with bees.

Spurger, Tex. Geokge Mott.

Wintering Bees in the South.

We know nothing by experience in the
South of the experience and trouble
they have in wintering bees in the
North. No cellars or housing are re-
quired. We see it is more trouble and
expensive in the North to winter bees,
than to care for them in summer. We
have none of this trouble and expense.
Our bees winter out-doors without any
danger or risk. All that is required is a
good, tight hive, and about 15 or 20
pounds of honey. In ordinary winters
15 pounds is sufficient. In fact, some
winters my bees have gathered honey all
winter.

As to the quantity of bees, it is not
necessary to have a very large colony. I
prefer a small one, as it requires less
honey, and there is no trouble to breed
them up strong enough for the first
honey-flow in the spring. They will
winter on the summer stands without
any risk. In this locality (Marshall,
Texas) bees begin to swarm the last of
March. W. K. Marshall.

Marshall, Texas, Dec. 2, 1892.

■ «»»l«^^^^^W^^«^^.

lArlXH

li A^ A Hfc >«■-»■-'--»• ft M

"Bees and Honey"— page 37.

Sure "fl^ays of Rnowin;; How
Far Bees Fly lor Honey.

Query 853.— 1. Is there iiny sure way of
telling how far bees go for honey, except by
the bee-hunlers' rule of setting them to work
and " lining " them the entire distaaoe ? 2.
Are not the most of those long-distance Ideas
more or less guessing, unless ihe bees are
" lined " the entire distance ?— Bee-Hunter.

1. That is the readiest sure way. 2.
Yes. — R. L. Taylor.

1. Not that I am aware of. 2. Not
always. — J. H. Larrabee.

If the bees are bringing in a particu-
lar kind of honey or pollen only to be
found in a certain place, this is proof
enough for me. — W. M. Barnum.

They are "lined" by watching them
start 4 miles from home when there is
not a place for a colony to exist between
the starting point and the hive. — James
Heddon.

Not that I know of, except in case of
robbing, when bees may be dusted with
flour so that one can tell them when
they return to the home hive. — C. H.

DiBBERN.

Not absolutely sure, but by watching
the honey yield in apiaries located from
two to four miles apart, you can be rea-
sonably certain as to the distance they
profitably go. — P. H. Elwood.

1. I know of no way, unless they
could be sprinkled with flour, and their
return watched for. 2. No guess-work
about it, if they were seen to return as
named in No. 1. — James A. Stone.

Under some circumstances, such as
the introduction into a locality of a new
race of bees, the distance to which bees
will fly may be easily determined with-
out lining them. — James A. Green.

1. I don't know of any sure way to
tell ; and, Mr. Bee-Hunter, I do not
think you can tell by " lining," either,
as the bee you line to-day may go a half
mile further to-morrow. — Mrs. Jennie
Atchley.

46

AMERICAN BEE JOURMAL-.

1. Yes, in case of cleared regions, and
knowledge of all the apiaries in the re-
gions, and also by seeing bees work on
islands of a known distance from bees.
2. No, certainly not, in case of islands.
— A. J. Cook.

1. No, unless no other bees are kept
within a range of several miles. 2. The
long-distance ideas are largely guess-
work. Probably bees will not do well
that go further than 2 or 3 miles for
honey. — J. E. Pond.

1. To make it short, I will say no. 2.
Years ago, when Italians first came to
this country, it was easy to say how far
they had been found from home, but of
late years it is a matter of "long-dis-
tance guessing." — H. D. Cutting.

1. Yes ; you might sprinkle flour on
quite a number of bees in the field be-
fore night, at a long distance from your
apiary, and have some one watch at
home to see if the little "millers" came
home. 2. Probably many of them are.
— Mrs. L. Harrison.

The distance of the flying of bees was
easily found by the introduction of new
races in the country. If you are alone
owning Italian bees, and find them
working 3 miles from your apiary, you
will know that bees can go so far for
honey, without guessing. — Dadant &
Son.

1. I do not know of any other certain
way under ordinary circumstances. If
there were no bees except in one place
in a radius of many miles, it would be
easy to tell ; or if there were Italian
bees in only one place. When I had the
only Italian bees in the vicinity, they
were found in the mornings in great
number in a buckwheat field two miles
away. That is as far as my experience
goes. — M. Mahin.

1. Yes. In many instances where the
bees' energies are directed across lakes
and marshy barren district^, rivers, etc.,
it can be accurately determined. Several
years ago, my bees were actively en-
gaged in an easterly direction, which
was over a barren waste ; with some
curiosity I followed their course until I
found them on timber 3 miles distant.
It was honey-dew they were gathering.
— J. M. Hambaugh.

1. Yes, there is often a field of buck-
wheat one, two or three miles away, and
the larger part of the bees of an apiary
are seen to fly in that direction. I have
followed them up, and several times
found beyond any question upon what
they were working. In one case it was

a field of red clover ; in another field
sorrel, which furnishes a very sweet
pollen ; in another buckwheat. 2. Not
always. — G. L. Tinker.

1. Perhaps not in a general way. 2.
Yes, and wild guessing at that. My ex-
perience of last fall, at a time when
there was but one plant in bloom, bear-
ing nectar — the white aster — convinced
me of what I have long suspected, that
bees do not go as far as many guess they
do in quest of honey. To know a thing,
and to guess at it, are two different
things. — G. W. Demaree.

1. Yes, there was a time when mine
were the only Italians in this county.
Finding them seven miles from home
was conclusive evidence to me that at
times they would go that distance for
honey, 2. No, not when we know what
kind of honey our bees are gathering,
and that they must fly a certain number
of miles to reach the flowers from which
they are gathering. — S. I. Freeborn.

1. Yes, there may be other ways. If
I had the only Italians within a possible
range, and found Italians in a certain
field within that range, I would think
my bees flew that distance. Marking
bees with different colors on different
days by flouring in a buckwheat field,
then watching to see if they returned to
my hives, might settle it. 2. I'm afraid
we don't know anything too positively
about it. — 0. C. Miller.

No, sir, they are not guesses. When
there is no buckwheat nearer the apiary
than five miles, and the bees are at work
on buckwheat, the bees must go that
five miles to 'get it. H. A. March, of
Fidalgo, Wash., followed his bees seven
miles while at work on the flowers gath-
ering honey; and when the Italians
were first introduced into this locality,
they were found quite plentifully at
work on clover four miles from home,
with clover in profusion everywhere. —
G. M. Doolittle.

In my younger days I lived by the side
of a lake six miles wide ; there was kept
about 100 colonies of bees on the north
shore of the lake in one place. About a
mile out from the north shore there was
a very small island, all rocks and sand,
nothing grew on it. I often went there
to fish, and I saw a great many bees
going back and forth across the lake to
work on the other side of the lake — 6
miles away. Of course, after getting
across the lake, the bees had to go more
or less inland to work, perhaps a mile or
two. — E. France.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

47

ukJlu

Report of the niicliig^an State
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY "W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

(Continued from page 15.)
Prof. Cook then read an essay as fol-
Jows, on

Experiments in Apiculture.

Inasmuch as I presented this subject
quite fully in one of the leading bee-
papers (page 498 of the American Bee
Journal for Oct. 13,1892), the task
before me now is considerably lessened
in magnitude and importance. In that
article, as some of you may remember, I
suggested a line of action for our Na-
tional and State associations at their
next annual meetings, which I doubt not
is the cause of my being assigned to
speak on that subject now.

I need not argue here, that experi-
ments are desirable with such important
problems as the " Nameless Bee-Dis-
ease," "Adulteration," "Sugar-Honey,"
and " Honey Analyses," before us for
settlement; he must be dull, indeed,
who says that bee-keeping, unlike other
industrial pursuits, is crystallized into
fact and certainty, and needs no wise,
patient, pains-taking research to secure
the fullest possibilities in its prosecution.

Again, it goes without saying, that
bee-keepers should not be asked to as-
sume the expense and spend the time to
personally attend to, or even to oversee
this experimental work. With the large
appropriations granted for State and
National effort in experimentation in
practical lines, why should not Apicul-
ture have at least the crumbs? If all
other pursuits were left to themselves,
then we might view with complacency
the neglect of Apiculture, but with an
appropriation of three-fourths of a mill-
ion of dollars for just such work, it
staads to reason that Bee-Keeping
should claim and secure at least a few
thousands to aid her in the struggles
which she in common with all Industrial

pursuits, must confront in the onward
march to success. Is it not sheer injup-
tice, that with the exception of two or
three States at most, not a scintillation
in this great glow of experimental re-
search comes our way ?

Again such work needs the skill,
patience, and accurate habit which long
years of training alone can give. This
is the weighty reason that secured to us
the experimental laboratories of the
States and the Nation.

Bee-keepers, had they time and money
to spare in developing their pursuit in
obscure lines, could not, for very lack of
skill and training, study the microbes
that bring disease ; determine the ways
and means to thwart the demon of adul-
teration ; and should not be required to
settle the doubts regarding " sugar-
honey." No, we need trained men ; we
must have trained men ; if we assert our
rights, we will have trained men. I say,
let us go resolutely to the men in con-
trol and request action ; if requests do
no good, let us demand attention ; and
if we are persistent, our demands will
be heard and heeded.

We have two factors in our struggle
which maybe made exceedingly influen-
tial in our effort : A very intelligent
bee-keeping press, sustained by an ex-
ceptionally bright and intelligent corps
of readers. These papers, if they will
unite in a wise plan of action, can
through their readers bring such a force
to bear on executive and legislative
bodies that success is assured. The
Director and Board of an experiment
station would never stand before a hun-
dred petitions from practical men ; what
then shall we say of a thousand such
pleas, which, through wise action, our
bee-keepers may easily secure.

If bee-keepers would only realize this,
they have a power in their hands, strong
enough to conquer the strongest enemy
that can be brought to oppose them.

Of course, the National Association is
the body to secure recognition from the
general government. Yet a word in
that connection may not come amiss.

The statement is made that a reduc-
tion of $10,000 in the appropriation, of
necessity makes it impossible to secure
any aid from that source. But is this
true ? When we remember that the
grand sum of over $1,600,000 is appro-
priated to run the Department, and that
the by no means insignificant sum of
$27,300 is devoted to the Division of
Entomology, we see they are not yet re-
duced to a starvation level. The Divis-
ion of Pomology receives $11,300, and
yet entomology, as studied and investi-

48

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

gated at the Department of Agriculture,
bears on that industry more directly by
far than it does on Apiculture. Yet it
is left in full force and activity. Why
then should not the Entomological
Division, in case it still holds control of
the bee-keeping experiments, with its
still larger appropriation, continue its
one man with a paltry $1,000 a year in
the service of bee-keeping ? I earnestly
believe that it should do so, and would,
if bee-keepers would insist on their
rights as they may, and ought to do. I
know that Mr. Benton is still in the
Department, and we all know that he is
competent to do royal service ; yet we
all know that he is doing almost nothing
to aid bee-keeping. He is kept in other
lines of work. Perhaps we are unfortu-
nate, in that he is such a good all-
around man.

I was criticised at the late Illinois
State Association for suggesting that Dr.
Riley might not be an enthusiast in our
line of work. Do not the above facts
make such a suggestion reasonable, es-
pecially as he commenced preparation to
discontinue the position held by Mr.
Larrabee long before he could know that
this excuse for it would ever exist ? Dr.
Riley is an entomologist, and a good
one, but he has little knowledge of api-
culture, and it would not be strange if
his interest and sympathy were no
greater than his knowledge. In view of
the facts, this is so probable, that I be-
lieve the suggestion criticised was, war-
ranted.

Again, Dr. Riley's whole plan must be
approved by the Assistant Secretary, or
the Secretary of Agriculture, and so no
action by Congress is necessary, and we
can petition directly to the head of the
Department for a change that shall re-
store the one worker to the field ; and if
we are full of push and determination,
we can surely secure it. A committee
appointed by the National Association
to appeal directly to the Secretary of
Agriculture, backed by a copious shower
of petitions from all over the country,
will insure action. I say, let us on to
the conquest !

As to State action, I need not add
very much to the above. Those States
where apiculture is an important indus-
try, like New York, Michigan. Illinois.
Ohio, Iowa, Colorado, Utah and Califor-
nia, owe it to bee-keepers to institute
experiments in apiculture in connection
with the experiment stations of the sev-
eral States. To secure this, we only
need to inaugurate the same earnest,
persistent action suggested above. We
ought to have a good, live committee,

and the same flood of petitions. Our
President and Secretary, as expert bee-
keepers,and at the same time legislators,
should be on this committee.

All the above andsimilar States should
be asked to select some wise, energetic,
wide-awake bee-keeper to take the work
in hand. If he were asked to give all
his time, he should have $1,000 or
$1,500 a year salary. If he is only to
keep watch and secure aid when dan^
gers menace, then a few hundred dol-
lars will pay him well, and prove a very
wise expenditure on the part of the
station.

In our own State we have a very ex-
cellent plant now owned by the experi-
ment station, and yet the State has not
for the last two years paid anything for
its management. It seems to me that
Michigan could do no wiser thing than
to man this station with one of its
brightest and mpst capable bee-keepers.
I believe the station would get as good
and as ample fruit from such a course as
in any line of work which it could un-
dertake. I believe this association could
institute action that would secure this
benefit. Can we make effort in any
more desirable direction ?

A. J. Cook.

James Heddon — I would like to know
how it so often happens that such offices
are so frequently filled by incompetent
men ? I am ready to vote, too, for the
measure if I can only be sure that the
office will be filled with a competent
man. I want a man that has produced
a crop of honey, and knows something
about the real bread-and-butter side of
the business.

Prof. Cook — There are many things
that the right man could do. For in-
stance, in our old cellar, the bees have
always wintered perfectly. In the new
one it has always oeen a failure. Now,
there must be a reason for this. If this
point could be decided it would be a
great help. There are many other simi-
lar points that might be decided if we
could have the right man at the work.
At the College is an apiary. All that is
needei is a man to make the experi-
ments. If a thousand petitions should
go to the proper officers it would be
found that a paltry cut of $10,000
would not result in leaving the place
vacant.

Geo. E. Hilton — I know something of
the experiments that Mr. Larrabee had
outlined, and they ought to be continued.
I hope this meeting will not be allowed
to pass without something being done to
secure our rights in this matter.

AMERICAN BKE JOURNAL.

49

Upon motioH of Prof. Cook, a commit-
tee consisting of W. Z. Hutchinson, R.
L. Taylor and Geo. E. Hilton was ap-
pointed to look after the matter.

Bee-Escapes and Their Use.

An essay was expected upon this sub-
ject, but neither it nor its author
"showed up." A discussion followed
however, if unqualified praise from every
one who had used the escape could be
called a discussion. The Porter was
considered the best escape, but Mr. Hed-
don called attention to the fact that to
Mr. Reese belonged the honor of the
original bee-escape from which sprung
all the others.

Shall We Go Out of the Bee-BusinessP

T. F. Bingham led in the discussion of
this topic. He said that he had always
advocated that the farmer keep a few
bees on the same principle that he keeps
fowls, hogs, sheep, etc. He may not be
quite so successful as the specialist, but
he will have a fair success with all, and
a poor season for bees does not pinch
him as it does the specialist. It is not
necessary that the farmer bee-keeper
should know all the fine points of bee-
keeping, that a bee's sting is composed
of three parts, etc. ; he simply needs to
know something of the ordinary princi-
ples of bee-keeping. He can engage in
nothing on the farm that will pay him
as well as the keeping of the bees.

James Heddon — I differ from Mr.
Bingham. Each and every branch of
farming is more related to one another
than is that of bee-keeping to any one
branch of farming. Bee-keeping is more
like manufacturing than like farming.
A man may stay inside high walls and
never see the surrounding country, and
yet make a success of bee-keeping.
Shoe-making or wagon-making would be
better than farming to combine with
bee-keeping. Bees swarm just when
the farmer is the most busy. The spec-
ialist is always at the head in any busi-
ness. Specialty is ' what makes the
prices on the bargain counters. A man
cannot easily change from one business
to another without loss. Prof. Matthews
well illustrates this in his book, " Get-
ting on in the World," when he says that
the different professional paths do not
lie parallel ; they start from a common
center like the spokes in a wheel, and
the distance between them widens the
further we get from the hub. We can-
not step from one spoke to another, but
must go back to the hub and start anew.
There is a law that he who produces at

the minimum cost will succeed, while he
who produces at the maximum cost will
fail.

J. A. Pearce — I have bees and fruit.
I should nbt like to drop either. One is
an advantage to the other. When we
have a poor fruit season it often happens
that the bees help us out, and vice versa.

Few Bees and Much Attention vs.
Many Bees and Little Attention.

This topic had been assigned to Byron
Walker, but as he was not present, Mr.
Heddon said that was the topic that he
would have preferred to the one that was
assigned him, viz.: "How Can We
Stimulate the Market ?" as he did not
believe that any stimulation was needed.
He was asked to give his views on this,
his favorite topic, and spoke in sub-
stance as follows :

The wise bee-keeper first looks out for
a good field — one that is well stocked
with the different plants that furnish
the main honey harvests, and that is
not already stocked with bees. Having
found the field, the next question is how
to gather the nectar — how to " drain the
field " — so to speak, and get the results
in the market with the least expenditure
of capital and labor. That is the ques-
tion. It is not a question of how many
pounds per colony can be secured. That
has nothing to do with it. I say, keep
enough bees to get the honey with the
least labor to the apiarist. Labor is the
great expense in honey-production.
Have enough bees so that it will not pay
to fuss with weak colonies. When the
Western cattle-raiser with his thousands
of head of cattle hears one of his men
say, "One of the steers is sick," does he
stop and dose that animal with medicine
and try to cure him ? Not much. He
says: "Knock him in the head ; takeoff
his skin, and come on ; we can't fuss
with a sick steer." That is the way we
should keep bees. Have enough of them
so that when we lose some of them in
winter, we can save the hives and combs
and keep right on and lose no time.

Prof. Cook — For once I must agree
with Mr. Heddon. I think that he is
nearly correct. We are now working
bees with much less labor than in the
past. I think that we are learning to
work more bees with less labor.

Geo. E. Hilton — Years ago, in conven-
tions, we used to hear people say that
one man could care for 75 or 100 colo-
nies of bees. Now the talk is of hand-
ling 200 and 300 colonies. I, myself,
believe that I could care for 500 alone.

J. A. Pearce — I hope Mr. Heddon

50

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAU

won't get bee-keepers into thinking that
they can keep bees profitably in a slip-
shod manner.

James Hedon — I would do everything
when nine cents of labor will bring ten
cents of pay

Prof. Cook — I would like to have Pres.
Taylor say how many colonies he thinks
he can handle.

Pres. Taylor— Perhaps 300.

James Heddon — I don't think it pos-
sible, nor profitable if possible, for one
to handle 500 colonies. The swarming
will swamp him.

Testing Glucose Mixtures.

Prof. Cook now brought forth the
samples of glucose and honey mixed. A
testing committee consisting of Messrs.
Bingham, Pearce and Hunt proceeded
to taste the samples. They reported as
follows :

No. 1, very little honey flavor.

No. 2, some honey flavor.

Nos. 3 and 4, nearly all honey.

Prof. Cook then said that No. 1 was
one part glucose and one of honey. No.
2, one part glucose and two of honey.
No. 3, one part of glucose and three of
honey. No. 4, pure honey.

James Heddon — That is what I was
telling you. You say that the sample
with one-half glucose is of but little
honey flavor. Suppose that the honey
had been strong, fall honey instead of
clover honey, don't you see that the glu-
cose would have improved it ?

There was also a bottle that had held
honey, but it was so nearly empty that
only a spoonful or two could be obtained.
The committee did not get enough from
this to be able to give a report. One
thought it was basswood honey. Mr.
Heddon thought it was Florida honey
from some sort of magnolia. W. Z.
Hutchinson thought it California honey.
Prof. Cook then said: "That is the
bottle that had the sugar-honey in. That
is all that I could find. The rest had
been used in making analyses."

James Heddon — I don't understand
how the bees add that flavor.

Wliat Will Michigan Bee-Keepers Do

in Exhibiting Bees and Honey

at the World's Fair ?

Mr. Woodman, the Manager of the
Agricultural Department of Michigan's
show at the coming Columbian Exposi-
tion, came before the convention, and
asked what bee-keepers expected, and
what they could do.

After some discussion the following
resolutions were passed:

Resolved, That we, the Michigan Bee-
Keepers' Association, think it is desir-
able for the Slate to make an exhibition
of bees and honey at the Columbian Ex-
position.

Resolved, That in our judgment it will
require at least $1,000 to make a cred-
itable exhibit of the honey and bee-
products of the State.

Resolved, That we think it imperative
that an expert be employed to make the
collection and exhibit, and we earnestly
urge that H. D. Cutting, than whom
there is no more competent man in the
country, be appointed.

Mr. Woodman — There is no such
amount of money that can be used. Your
demands are not exhorbitant, but your
only hope will be in future appropria-
tions. If further appropriations are
made, the purposes should be specified.
The State Grange is now in session, and
will ask the legislature to make more
appropriation for use at the World's
Fair.

Upon motion of Prof. Cook, Senator-
elect Geo. E. Hilton was made a com-
mittee to look after legislation for this
purpose.

Carniolans — Have they Come to Stay?

This was the title of an essay by E. R.
Root. It was as follows :

My question is of such a nature that I
scarcely know whether I am able to an-
swer it except evasively, by saying, with
Dr. Miller, "I don't know." But I pre-
sume your Secretary means that I shall
give briefly the good and bad qualities
of the Carniolans ; and, after placing
the two in the balance, decide whether
they shall be recommended to bee-keep-
ers generally or not. I will attempt to
give only their general characteristics,
good, bad, and indififerent, and leave the
other problem to the convention.

Briefly, what are their good qualities ?
First and most prominent, is their in-
clination to deposit little or no propolis.
In these days, when fixed or spaced
frames are receiving such general
adoption, it is very desirable to have a
bee that is content to let the gluing
business alone. Again, I find the Car-
niolans to be early breeders, and rather
more prolific than the average Italians,
though not so much so as the Cyprians
and Holy Land bets.

As to their honey-gathering qualities,
I think they average fairly with the
yellow race. The cappings of their
combs are no whiter; in fact, I am in-
clined to think that they have a more
water-soaked appearance. In shaking

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

51

off for extracting, they do not drop off
so readily as do the black bees and Holy
Lands and Cyprians, but rather more so
than Italians.

Before we come to their bad qualities,
let us sum up, in a word, their good
qualities : Non-propolizers ; early breed-
ers ; easily shaken from the combs ;
average honey-gatherers.

Now for the other side, and I fear
that before I get through, some of my
Carniolan friends will take issue with
me : The progeny of all Carniolan
queens that we have ever had from dif-
ferent breeders — some from different
bee-keepers in the United States, and
some from Carniola direct — while they
have not been as vicious and cross as
the Funics and Cyprians, were decidedly
more vindictive than the average Ital-
ians. I know that their breeders have
generally pronounced them to be gentle,
but we have never found them to be so,
except in one case, I believe, where the
progeny of one queen was as gentle as
our average Italians. I have never been
stung any worse by any bees than by
Carniolans; although I am free to ac-
knowledge that there are bees more
vicious, such as Cyprians, Holy Lands,
and Funics — or Tunisians, as they are
more properly called.

Carniolans are said to be inveterate
swarmers. Some of the colonies that we
have had have borne out this assertion,
while others have shown no more incli-
nation to do so than Italians.

There is another quality that I have
not seen in all the Carniolans, and that
is, they are inclined to run down the
combs and form in festoons, very much
like black bees — in fact, act wild ; but
this may have been because they were
crossed with the common black bees;
and right here it may be proper to re-
mark that it is almost impossible to tell
by their appearance, crosses of Carnio-
lans and black bees from the pure Car-
niolan stock. This is really an unfortu-
nate condition of things, because, in
breeding such bees, it is very hard in-
deed to determine when we have the
pure stock, because the black bees are
generally so common throughout the
country.

In view of the facts, pro and con, I do
not think it would be advisable to rec-
ommend them to bee-keepers generally ;
and at present I know of no large api-
aries outside of queen-rearing yards
where Carniolans largely predominate.
If this is the casje, and Carniolans have
been tried in hundreds of apiaries, it
looks as though the race had not come
to stay — nothing but the future can de-

cide. As in everything ^else, if they
have real merit they will come and
make America their home ; if not, they
will be relegated to the past, like Cyp-
rians, Syrians and Egyptian bees.

E. R. Root.

No discussion followed the reading of
the essay. The associ.ition then pro-
ceeded to the election of officers, which
resulted as follows :

President — R. L. Taylor, Lapeer.

Vice-President — J. A. Pearce, Grand
Rapids.

Secretary — W. Z. Hutchinson, Flint.

Treasurer — M. H. Hunt, Bell Branch.

Flint was decided upon as the next
place of meeting. The convention then
adjourned to meet next December at the
call of the Executive Board.

W. Z. Hutchinson, Sec.

Does ibe Will of the Queen
Decide the Sex of the Egg ?

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY DK. C. C. MILLER.

I was quite interested in that reply, on
page 724, of Mrs. Atchley, to the ques-
tion why a young queen gets mixed up
in her way of laying eggs. Mrs. Atchley
deserves the credit, I think, of being
first to mention the fact, that "just
about the time the queen is hatched, or
a little before, there are some workers
that begiu to lay, etc."

I have an impression that Mrs. Atch-
ley generally knows what she Is talking
about, but I think it has generally been
believed that laying workers are not
tolerated in a hive until after the colony
has not only become queenless, but after
all means of rearing a queen have dis-
appeared. So in a case where there is
such a manifest departure from time-
honored traditions, there ought to be
pretty clear proof. If a case has been
found in which a queenless colony with-

52

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

out having given to it any brood other
than that left by its own queen before
her departure, has been found to have
laying workers before its new queen has
commenced to lay, then we must bid
good-bye to the old tradition.

It cannot be disputed that traditions
are not the most reliable things in the
world. I think a little investigation will
make Mrs. Atchley lose respect for an-
other tradition, which locates the sper-
matheca of the queen "on one side of
the forked stem" in such way that only
the eggs that pass down one of the stems
become impregnated. The fact is that
the spermatheca is located on the com-
mon oviduct, after the union of the two
oviducts that proceed from the two
ovaries. So a worker-egg may come
from either siie, and also a drone-egg.

Even if careful dissection had not
shown that the spermatheca is attached
to the common oviduct, a little reflection
might make it appear rather unreason-
able to think the drone-eggs come from
one ovary and worker-eggs from the
other. For the two ovaries are always
represented as being equal in size, in
which case there ought to be as many
drones as workers in a hive, and we know
there are only a few hundred drones to
the thousands of workers.

But that doesn't change the practical
result. For it would be just as easy for
the queen to decide at will from which
ovary an egg should come, as to decide
at will when an egg should, and when it
should not become impregnated as it
passes through the common oviduct.
And while you are in very good company,
Mrs. Atchley, in thinking that just "as
you can move your right or left hand,"
so the queen can will to lay either kind
of egg, yet is it anything more than a
guess ?

Prof. Cook thinks with you, and
Cheshire in speaking of the view held by
Wagner and Quincy that mechanical
pressure is the agent in deciding the sex
of the egg, says, "This notion, so re-
pellent from its bald crudity, is shown
to be utterly without foundation." Yet
at the risk of being thought to harbor
baldly crude ideas, I must say that I
cannot see that Messrs. Cheshire and
Cook give us satisfactory proof that the
kind of eggs is entirely a matter of the
queen's will. To be sure, Cheshire says
that experiment proves it, because if a
colony has only drone-comb workers will
be reared in drone-cells. But he does
not tell us that in such cases the bees
never narrow the mouth of the cell so as
to make it nearer the diameter of a
worker-cell. *

Dadant cautiously says, " It is very
difficult to admit that the queen is en-
dowed with a faculty that no other ani-
mal possesses, that of knowing and de-
ciding the sex of her progeny before-
hand." On the whole, I think it is pretty
safe to say that this is one of the things
we don't know.

CBUEL, DK. GRESS AND BEE-STINGS !

Why, Mr. Editor, do you allow Dr.
Gress to make such unpleasant sugges-
tions as that on page 730, where he in-
timates that it might be a proper thing
to apply from 6 to 20 stings to Mr. Root
or me ? Don't you know. Doctor, that
stings hurt, even if they don't swell or
last long ? It may be all right to have
Mr. Root thus numerously pierced, as a
matter of experiment, and for the ad-
vancement of science no one should ob-
ject to a little pain, and I am willing to
sacrifice friend Root in the cause of
science, but I protest that one is enough,
and it is very unkind in the doctor to
want me to suffer.

Marengo, 111.

[How kind it is of Dr. Miller to con-
sent to the sacrificing of Bro. Root in
the interest of science ! Perhaps, he
too, might object, especially if he con-
sulted his own feelings at all. For once
our good friend. Dr. Miller, didn't say,
"I don't know" about it, when it was
suggested to numerously perforate his
epidermis for the advancement of med-
ical science. — Ed.]

■^-^

Pass the " Pure Food Bill," then
Enforce the Law.

Written for the American Bm Journal

BY J. R. COMMON.

As a member of the National Bee-
Keepers' Union, I now wish to give my
opinion as to the advisability of enlarg-
ing its duties so as to include getting
laws passed to punish the adulteration
of honey.

As the Paddock Pure Food Bill is now
before Congress, no time should be lost
in assisting those that are now trying to
get the measure passed. If it becomes a
law, the Bee-Keepers' Union should see
that it is enforced as far as honey is
concerned. There has not been any law
agitated in many years that would be of
greater benefit to the whole country at

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

58

large, as that would be, if it were passed
and enforced.

It is a well known fact that there are
a large number of diseases that were
unknown years ago, especially nervous
disorders, lung and heart troubles; it is
a well known fact that large quantities
of canned goods, prepared foods, etc.,
are largely adulterated ; also certain
injurious drugs are used to preserve
them in any climate ; it is also under-
stood that the drug mostly used is sali-
cylic acid, which the medical profession
claim is one of the most injurious things
people can use if they are subject to
heart or lung troubles. As large quanti-
ties are used, it is easy to see what
makes so many unhealthy people in this
country. A son of one of my neighbors
worked in a canning factory a while last
fall, and he says if people knew how
canning was done, they would never eat
any more canned goods.

By all means, let the Bee-Keepers'
Union put its shoulder to the wheel, and
see that honey adulteration and the sale
of adulterated honey be made danger-
ous and unprofitable.

Angelica, N. Y.

[We refer the reader to an editorial
on this subject on page 39 of this num-
ber of the Bee Jouknal. Let all read
it, and then act. — Ed.]

Some more Experience with the
" Punic " Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY A. C. MATTHIAS, M. D.

Perhaps my experience with the
" Funics" may be interesting to at least
some of the readers of the American
Bee Jouknal.

I procured a queen and introduced
heron Oct. 28, 1891. She filled the
frames with brood early in the spring,
and soon had her hive chock-full of
young bees — in fact, she proved to be a
" champion " breeder.

On June 20, 1892, she put out a fine
swarm, which I hived. On June 25th,
swarm No. 2 came out — a strong one —
that I hived. On July 2nd, swarm No. 3,
also a good one, which I also hived. On
July 4th, swarm No. 4 turned out. I
destroyed the queen, and returned the
bees to the hive. On July 6th, swarm
No. 5, which was a small one, came out,
and I also returned it after killing the
queens.

Swarms Nos. 1, 2 and 4 had each one
queen. No. 3 had 2, and No. 5 had 3
queens. On July 8th I picked up 4
virgin queens on the outside of the hive
containing the Punic queen ; on the 9th,
2, and on the 10th, one, making a total
of 15 queens she hatched out during
the season. Those picked up on the out-
side were all crippled, having been
driven or carried out.

The swarms hived are all hybrids, the
Punic queens having been fertilized by
my Italian drones.

SuflSce it to say, I got .no surplus
honey. The bees are the toughest cus-
tomers to deal with I ever handled ; the
least touch on the hive sets them in an
uproar ; as Bro. Root says, they are
" little black devils," and fully answer
the description in handling, that he says
his do. I have decapitated the queen
and introduced an Italian.

The three hybrids (Punic and Italian)
I shall watch closely, possibly there may
be some improvement over either or both
races.

Yes, they are good defenders of their
hives, but the worst robbers I ever saw.
They are eternally "fooling around"
other hives, trying to slip in, not only in
my apiary, but neighbors two miles
away have discovered them around the
entrances of their hives. Hereafter I
shall stick to Italians. They are good
enough for me.

Gilboa, Ohio.

Can Bees

Hear?— Their Sense
of Smell.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY G. P. HACHENBEBG, M. D.

The opinions expressed on this subject
in Query 845 (page 630), is an inter-
esting page of the Journal. Mr. Doo-
little's laconic answer in the negative
specially attracted my attention.

We have reason to believe that the
bee has no tympanum, and if it had one
in proportion to its body, it would be
useless; and there is nothing useless
about insect or animal beings. The
function of a tympanum is to effect
vibration, and is an instrument that
only performs this office within certain
limits. When it is too small, a mere
punctum (as it would be in the bee, if it
existed), it would cease to be a tym-
panum of hearing. The tympanum is
like a steel spring, if the latter is too
short or too long, it has no oscillation,
and when it comes down to a mere point,
it is no longer a spring.

54

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

The bee does not hear by an ordinary
living apparatus, yet still it is conscious
of sound ; but its recognition is through
the sense of touch— a hyperaesthesia of
the external organism of the bee. Under
the microscope you will see a thousand
setse or bristles over the body of a bee,
sticking up, that serve as so many tun-
ing forks. This fuzz subject to vibra-
tion attached to an exceedingly sensitive
body, serves the functions of the tym-
panum.

It may be strange to say that the sense
of smelling is an auxiliary to the sense
of hearing in a bee, and accounts why
many sounds are unnoticed by them.
Let any offensive object approach them
with a sound, they are up in arms at
once. The olfactories of the bee is one
of the most delicate in its execution
found in nature. It is from an organism
where minuteness will not impair its
function. It is in the order of things,
any sound that attracts their attention,
the first thing they do is to nose for
effluvia to ascertain its nature. Sound
travels faster than odor, audit is always
the former that usually draws their at-
tention to the latter.

In connection with our subject, it is
interesting to study the habits of the
bee robber. Its exterior is smooth and
shining, and without a seta on its body
it is evidently " deaf and dumb." It
hears nothing — no angry warning will
keep it out of any hive, for it hears it
not ; and in the open air it is a non-com-
batant, and only draws its sword when
you squeeze it with more than gentle-
ness.

To be very minute about this matter,
the vibration of the setae of the bee, or
any insect, and even worms having
them, alone would not excite the nerv-
ous action of hearing. They are but the
agency to apply an electrical excitant
(always associated with sound) for nerv-
ous recognition. There is a law in elec-
tricity I once advocated in the Electrical
Review, that around all sharp points
(even of an organic nature) exposed to
the air, through any action whatever on
them, will attract electricity, and serve
as an excitant to growth, or cause sen-
sation, as we have it in the process of
hearing through the setae of the bee.

These bristles in animal life likewise
serve to favor the sense of touch. This
is well demonstrated in the feline kind
that seek their prey in the dark. With
them they are long, and but few of
them, and are located on the face.

Austin, Texas.

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Worth $100 a Year.

I cannot get along very well without
the "old reliable" American Bee Jour-
nal. When I first commenced keeping
bees they would swarm and swarm, and
keep on swarming, and that was about
all I did get. I was puzzled to know
how others got so much honey. Finally
I subscribed for the American Bee
Journal, and in that I found a letter
from a lady bee-keeper, telling how to
prevent after-swarms. That put $100
into my pocket the first year.

A. M. FiSK.

North Freedom, Wis., Dec. 23, 1892.

Rambler, on California Bee-Keeping.

Some parts of this State have received
bountiful rains, which makes the bee-
keepers feel happy ; though back near
the mountains we have had but little
thus far, but are at present having hope-
ful indications.

I am learning something new about
California all the time, and find it a
wonderful State for bee-keeping, and
many portions of it are producing honey
by the carload, and making no noise
about it.

In this portion of the State, the rapid
settlement of the valleys is driving the
bees back into the mountains. But the
grand old mountains are there to stay,
and there the apiary finds a safe and
profitable refuge. John H. Martin.

Redlands, Calif., Dec. 23, 1892.

Uniting Colonies, Etc.

After wintering my bees in the cellar
pretty successfully, I began in the spring
of 1892 with 100 fair Italian colonies
of bees, but I soon saw that the condi-
tions were very unfavorable for building
up my bees for successful work, the
spring months were very cold and wet.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

55

Though we had an abundance of fruit
and white clover bloom, my bees did not
store any surplus white honey until
after harvest, and then got but about
1,500 pounds. The fall flow was much
better. My entire crop for the season
amounted to about 4,000 pounds.

Swarming was fair for the desperately
poor season. I increased the number to
150 colonies, but in the fall united the
weaker with the stronger, to the number
of 125 colonies, and this is the way I
did it :

I use the Heddon eight-frame Lang-
stroth hive. With an extension-bit and
brace I bored a 1}4 inch hole in the bot-
tom of an empty hive, then placed it on
the colony I wished to unite the bees
with, having first removed the surplus
cases, and placing a queen excluder on
the brood-chamber. I use in all my
uniting of bees, and introducing of
queens, whether they be virgins or fertile
queens, green or fresh catnip leaves,
placed over the wood in the fire-box of
my Bingham bee-smoker. It is the best
and most convenient means I ever used.
Daniel Whitmeb.

South Bend, Ind., Dec. 20, 1892.

A Poor and a Sad Report.

My report for the past year is the
poorest one I ever made. In the fall of
1889 I put into the cellar 110 colonies,
and by the next spring I only lost one.
In the fall of 18901 put in 120 colonies,
and only lost 2 by the next spring, and
the rest were all in good condition. I
obtained 8,000 pounds of honey, and in
the fall of 1891 I put into the cellar
130 colonies. The next spring, when I
took them out of the cellar, some were
dead, and the rest dwindled down to 75
by the time they could get enough to
live on. They have now increased to
95, and because I prevented swarming
this year, I secured about 200 pounds
of honey. It was a very poor season in
my location. They gathered just about
enough to keep the queen laying, but
the bees are in good condition now, and
I live in hopes of better things next year.

The reader of this report will properly
call it a heavy loss, and so did I until
Aug. 27, 1892. Since that date I have
learned that heavier losses can occur
than the foregoing ; for on the above
date I lost my only daughter — Lydia
Koehler. She died with diphtheria, at
the age of about 10 years. One hour
before she left us, she prayed to God to
leave her with her papa and mamma
and her brothers ; still the Great Shep-

herd took her away from us to a better
land, where the storms of this life will
never reach her any more, and where
all diseases are unknown — to a home in
Heaven. What a joyful thought. *

A home in heaven ! where our friends are

fled
To the cheerless gloom of the mouldering

dead,
We wait in hope of the promise given ;
We will meet up there, in our home in heaven.

Louis C. Koehlek.
Tisch Mills, Wis., Dec. 20, 1892.

[Dear friend, the latter part of your
letter is indeed a sad report, and yet
what great satisfaction is in the thought
that your beloved Lydia is at home and
at rest forever. Our prayer is that the
Great Comforter of all the sorrowing
and bereaved may be your constant sup-
port in this time of your sadness and
distress. May you all so live as t© some
day meet your little " guardian angel "
in that better and brighter home beyond
earth's cares and sorrows. — Ed.]

Bees Did Better than Ever.

My bees did better this year than they
ever did in the years I have kept them.
I had 10 colonies, spring count, and 5
swarms during the season. They were
late in swarming, and only one of the
swarms stored any surplus honey. The
average, per hive, was 25 pounds,
spring count. My hives were all in good
order, and worked like a charm.

I winter my bees on the summer
stands. I have cases outside of the hive
that takes 33^ inches of chaff over the
top, with some loose, porous cloth that
will keep the dirt out. Then I put six
inches of chaff on the top, or grass cut
with a lawn mower. I don't believe my
bees had over 15 pounds of honey each
last winter. They had never stored
much honey, and I did not care whether
they lived or died, but they came through
all right, and did better than ever before.
Telah C. Whiting.

Athens, N. Y., Dec. 23, 1892.

Wintering on Honey-Dew, Etc.

The past two seasons have been very
discouraging for bee-keepers in this
county. I did not get a pound of white
honey. The crop of white clover (which
is our only source for white honey) was
rather short, but what there was did
not seem to have any attraction for the

56

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

bees. I got several hundred pounds of
what I supposed was honey-dew. It
was not fit to eat, and therefore was not
fit to sell, so I fed it back to the bees,
and it is all they have for winter stores.
They wintered nicely last winter on it,
and I think they will do the same this
winter, unless we have a much harder
winter than last winter was. I have
them well packed on the summer stands,
so they can have a good cleansing flight
any pleasant day that occurs, which I
think is necessary with such stuff as
they have to live on.

All the honey we have in our market
here is imported from other parts of the
country, and I think none of it is pure
honey, but is syrup made from sugar
and mixed with glucose, and fed to the
bees, that fix it up very nicely — so
nicely do they do their part of the fraud
that it takes more than an ordinary ex-
pert to detect it by its looks.

Middlemen may adulterate extracted
honey, but it is not they who do the
mischief with comb honey, but the bee-
men themselves ; and how are we going
to help it ? I think it will be about as
hard to stop it as it will be to stop men
from sinning. But I console myself that
as long as I am able to attend to my
bees, I can have pure honey for myself
and family. Wm. B. McCokmick.

Uniontown, Pa., Dec. 22, 1892.

A Criticism Corrected.

Mr. H. Fitz Hart, on page 733 of the
Bee Journal for 1892, erroneously
asserts that "Mr. C. J. Robinson makes
the assertion that there is no foul brood
virus in comb-cells." What I asserted
on the page he refers to — 506 — reads
thus: "Pure honey, while in comb-
cells, never is — never was — charged with
foul brood virus."

He further says : "As this was pro-
mulgated eight years ago by Mr. Prank
Cheshire in an essay on foul brood read
before the British Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion, Mr. R.'s discovery is too late for
him to claim any credit." Mr. Cheshire's
essay read: "I have searched most
carefully (with the microscope) in honey
in contiguity with cells holding dead
larvae; have examined samples from

colonies dying out with rottenness

yet in no instance have I found a living
bacillus;" thus confirming my allegation
that foul brood virus does not exist in
honey — the point I made, and gave the
cause why the virus does not exist
therein. I have not laid — directly or
otherwise — any "claim" of priority of

discovery concerning foul brood virus in
honey, but I here make the assertion
that I am the first who recorded that all
honey is charged with formic acid, which
destroys the vitality of foul brood bacil-
lus and spores that become immersed
therein. This was the theme of my
article which Mr. Fitz Hart criticised.

I may be allowed, in connection with
Mr. Fitz Hart's allusion to Mr. Cheshire's
writings, that years ago, prior to his
having " promulgated " anything con-
cerning foul brood, I wrote an "essay
on foul brood," which was read before
the Bee-Keepers' Association, and pub-
lished in two or more bee-periodicals,
wherein I set forth that foul brood is a
germ disease, and which claim was dis-
puted by the solons. Later, Mr. C.
claimed to have discovered bacillus in
foul brood, and he assumed to coin a
name for them, and later still he claims
to have discovered a different nation of
foul brood germs — smaller and not as
wicked, cannibal-like as his first found
bacillus. The facts are, germs pervaded
all rotting brood, but only such as feed
upon animate larvas are foul brood virus.
A glass cannot aid the eye to distinguish
foul brood virus from other germs.

Richford, N. Y. C. J. Robinson.

My Experience with Bees.

My success with bees is as follows :
Three years ago a swarm alighted on a
tree within three rods of my house,
which I secured on Aug. 1st. They
stored honey enough to winter on, and
the summer of 18901 increased them to
2 colonies, and obtained 91 pounds of
honey. In 1891 I increased to 7 colo-
nies, and got 65 pounds of honey; the
past season, or 1892, I increased to 13,
and secured 442 pounds of honey,
mostly in one-pound sections. Bees are
in good condition at this date, in the
cellar. I have wintered them in perfect
condition each winter. I will give my
method of wintering in detail, if desired.
Austin Reynolds.

Cataract, Wis., Dec. 26, 1892.

[If not too long a description, we
should be pleased to publish your method
of wintering bees. — Ed.]

Bee-Stings and Rheumatism, Etc.

About three weeks ago I had rheuma-
tism in one knee so that I could scarcely
walk. I caught a bee and made it sting
me on the knee. I felt better in a few
hours. The pain all left me long ago. I

AMERICAN BEK JOURNAL.

57

have had as many as 40 stings in one
day, and would not fee) any worse ; if
any difference, I would feel better in a
few minutes. I have handled bees for
seven years, and have met with but two
cross colonies that I would call m-oss ;
they reminded me of yellow jackewmore
than anything else.

I attend to my neighbors' bees, who
have them in soap and cracker boxes.
Some of them have a few dovetailed or
Simplicity hives. I notice that the bees
in soap and cracker boxes winter just
as well as those in good hives. They let
them stay out in the orchard all winter.
One man wintered a colony in a potato
basket last winter; I transferred it to a
good hive, but it had wintered in fine
condition. I leave my bees on the sum-
mer stands all winter, as I think that
they do as well there as in the cellar.

C. C. ZiNN.

New Windsor, Colo., Dec. 27, 1892.

COWVEWTION DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

Jan. 13, 14.— S.W.Wisconsin, at Boscobel.Wis.
Edwin Piiie, Pres., Boseobel, Wis.

Jan. 12-14.— Minnesota, at Minneapolis, Minn.
A. K. Cooper, Sec, Winona, Minn.

Jan. 16, 17.— Colorado, at Denver, Colo.

H. Knight, Sec, Littleton, Colo.

Jan. 18, 19. — Indiana, at Indianapolis, Ind.
G. P. Wilson, Sec, Tolgate, Ind.

Feb. 7, 8.— California, at Los Angeles.

John H. Martin, Sec, Redlands, Calif.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — Thb Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Asaooiation

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York. . .Chicago, Ills.

I » « ♦ »

XTational Bee-Keeper*' Union.

Prbsidbnt— James Heddon . .Dowagiac, Mich,
Sic'y and Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago.

Xbere is TSot One Person

but what can secure at least two new
subscribers to the Bee Jouknal, and get
the splendid Premium offered on page
37. Try it.

^^.AE^3^3RIOA]^,^^

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

At One Dollar a Year,
199 RANDOLPH St.. CHICAGO. ILLS.

TO CORIIESPONDENTS.

Tiie Bee J^oximal is sent to subscribers
until an order is received by the publishers for
its discontinuance, and all arrearages are paid.

A Sample Copy of the Bee Journal will
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Mow to Send money.— Remlth J BxpreBS,
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Money sent thus, IS AT OUR RISK; otherwise
it is not. Do not send Checks on Local Banks—
we have to pay25cent*each,togetthem cashed.

Never Send Silver in letters. It will

wear holes in the envelope, or may be stolen.
Make all JMoney Orders Payable at

Chicago, 111.— not at any sub-station of Chicago.
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Money Orders cannot be obtained, stamps for

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money sent us will be given on the address-label

of every paper. aThe subscription is paid to the

END OF THE MONTH indicated.

/^o not Write anything for publication on
the same sheet of paper with business matters,
unless it can be torn apart without interfering
with either part of the letter.

Emerson Binders, made especially for
the American Bee journal, are convenient
for preserving each weekly Number, as fast as
received. They wiU be sent, post-paid, for 50 cts.
each. They cannot be sent by mail to Canada.

Cost N'xiaibers.—We carefully mail the
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any be lost in the mails, we will replace them if
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AlTX'ays State the Post-OflBce to which
your paper is addressed, when writing to us.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
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which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffleld, Portage co, Ohio

58

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
January 7th, 1892 :

CHICAGO, III.— Demand for comb honey is
quite good, and choice lots bring 18c., others
in proportion. Extracted, 6@9c„ according
to what it is— sales chiefly at 8®9c.

Beeswax— 23@2 5c. R. A. B.

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey of all kinds is plen-
tiful excepting choice white comb. There is
no activity, owing to the closing of the year.
A good business is expected after New Years.
Comb— white, 16@17c. ; dark, 14c. Extrac-
ted—white, 9c. ; dark, 7@8c. ; Southern, 75®
80c. per gal. J. A. L.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7^c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C.-M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand is good for
honey, with scant supply of all kinds. Extrac-
ted brings 6@8c., and comb sells at 14@16c.
for best white. Although honey is scarce,
there is no demand for dark comb.

Beeswax— Demand good,at20®25c. for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7®7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb i»not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality. 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Comb honey is selling
slow, very much slower than we like to have
it, and it is our experience that when we start
honey in at a high price, it sells hard right
through the season. We a note our market
nominally at 17@18c. for best white honey,
1-lb. combs. Extracted, 8@9c.

Beeswax — None on hand..

B. &R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNEAPOLIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16®17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c.; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

NEW YORK. N. Y.-Our market is quiet.
Arrivals are freely, and the demand limited.
We quote : Fancy white, 1-lbs., 15®16c. ; 2-
Ibs., 12@13c. Fair white, l-lbs., 12®13c. ; 2-
Ibs., lie. There are large stocks of buck-
wheat honey on our market, and we know of
two lots of fancy 1-lbs. that sold at 8 and 9c.
per lb., respectvely. We quote 1-lbs., glassed
or in paper-boxes, 10c. ; unglassed, 9c. Ex-
tracted is in good demand at 8@8J4c. for bass-
wood and wbite clover ; 6®654c. for buck-
wheat ; 70@75c. per gallon for Southern.

Beeswax— Dull at 25®27c. H. B. & S.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market some qui-
eter and prices some easier. White clover,
lo@17c.: mixed, 14®16c.; dark, 10®llc. Ex-
tracted, white, 8®8'/,c.; mixed, 7®7i/,c.; dark
7c. Stocks light of both comb and extracted.

Beeswax, 27@28c. H. B. W.

Bees axid Honey" — see page 37.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Chicago, Ills.

R. A.JfcjRNETT, 161 South Water Street.
J. A. ipjvtON. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken,

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minneapolls, ininn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, ITIo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oliio.

C. F. MUTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central ave.

fJouTention rVotices.

INDIANA.— The Indiana State Bee-Keep-
ers' Association meet at Indianapolis, Ind.,
on Jan. 18 and 19, 1893. G. P. Wilson, Sec.

Tolgate. Ind.

COLORADO.— The Colo. State Bee-Keepers
Association will hold their annual meeting in
Denver, on Jan. 16 and 17, 1893. Election of
oflicers and other important business will
come before the meeting.

Littleton. Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

CALIFORNIA.— The 2nd annual meeting ol
the California State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Chamber of Commerce in
Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 7th and 8th, 1892.
Programmes will soon be issued, for which
address, John H. Martin, Sec.

Redlands, Calif.

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the HoteliBelmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

WISCONSIN.— The Southwestern Wisconsin
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its next
annual meeting as Boscobel, Grant Co., Wis.,
on Jan. 13 and 14, 1893. All members of the
Association are requested to be present as the
following officers are to be elected; President,
Vice-President, Secretary, Assistant Sec, and
Treasurer. Blank Reports will be sent each
member, for the year 1892, with instructions.
A cordial invitation is extended to all bee-
keepers, and especially to those that would
like to join with us. Bach member will be no-
tified at least one month before the meeting.

Boscobel, Wis. Edwin Pike, Pres.

Great Premium on page 87 !

f

GEORGE W. YORK, I
Editor. i

Devoted Exclusively-

-To Bee-Culture.

J "Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
j Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JANUARY 19, 1893.

NO. 3.

Pennsylvania bee-keepers expect
to make a good exhibit at the World's
Fair this year. Read their advertise-
ment on page 68 of this number of the
Bee Journal.

Please Don't send to us for bee-
keepers' supplies. We do not deal in
them. If in need of anything for the
apiary except a good bee-paper, just send
for the catalogues of some of our adver-
tisers. They will be glad to fit you out,
and do it well.

Xhe Apiarian Hxhiliit of the

State of Illinois at the Columbian Expo-
sition this year may be all right yet.
H(in. J. M. Hambaugh and Mr. Jas. A.
Stone, respectively President and Secre-
tary of our State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion, were to meet, on .Jan. 10th, a com-
mittee from the Illinois State Horticul-
tural Society, for the purpose of arrang-
ing to join forces to urge the Legisla-
ture for an appropriation for the exhibit
of both societies at the World's Fair.
We feel almost certain that the Legisla-
ture will grant their very just requests.

That Sugar-Honey Fraud. —

Although we have positively refused to
permit a discussion of the subject of
sugar-honey production in the Bee
JouKNAL, yet owing to the great number
of condemnatory letters we are receiv-
ing, we have decided to say something
more about it, and allow our correspon-
dents to express themselves on the only
side of the subject — for there is but one
side — and that is the one of uncompro-
mising opposition and condemnation of
even the slightest suggestion of feeding
sugar to produce honey.

We do not believe so much in heaping
criticism upon the careless few who have
so foolishly helped on the nefarious
scheme of sugar-honey production, but
we do think that we cannot come down
too hard upon the idea itself. And if
this lollipop business should be persisted
in, we are ready to throw against it, and
upon it, all the power and force that the
old American Bee Journal may be
able to wield.

The very suggestion of the production
and sale of comb honey from feeding
cane-sugar is the most prodigious wrong
against the honorable pursuit of bee-
keeping ever perpetrated ; and that such
ideas should be advanced and defended
by persons within the ranks of honey-
producers themselves, is entirely beyond
the comprehension of sane mortals.
Why, the notorious Wiley fable is indeed
a " pleasantry " compared to the flood-
gate of ruination that has been opened

72

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

by those who have so foolishly advised
bee-keepers to adulterate their honey
by compelling the bees to store sugar !
If this be "advanced bee-culture," the
less bee-keepers and all others have of
it, the better for them and the whole
world.

We present here some of the many
letters received in reference to the sub-
ject, which we desire should be read
very carefully. The first was not in-
tended for publication, so we omit the
writer's name and address. We feel
certain he will not object to having it
appear thus :

Friend Yokk : — When I received the
last Bee Journal, and saw the stand
you took on the sugar-honey question, I
felt like shouting "Good boy !"

Many of my idols in apiculture have
fallen in the past year — those whose
judgment I most relied upon. Let them
now discuss the selling of glucose for
sugar, cotton-seed oil for lard, suet for
butter, and uphold it, too. They might
also include counterfeiting money — it is
as good as genuine until discovered to be
bogus. All are equally honest, I think.

When I saw on page 849 of the Bee
Journal for Dec. 29th, the stand you
and Mr. Newman took, I could not help
writing and saying, "Shake !" All honor
to the American Bee Journal !

Minnesota, Dec. 31, 1892.

Friend York : — I wish to commend
your course in the sugar-honey discus-
sion. I can see no good result whatever
from the discussion. Its principal use
has been to give hints to would-be imita-
tion-honey producers.

The Devil does not need any aid. Can
we not profit by the experience of the
dairy people, in their fight with oleomar-
garine, etc. ? Very respectfully,

Tiffin, 0. J. F. Moore.

Friend York : — I notice that you are
ignoring the sugar-honey discussion. It
is a great surprise to me that any of our
leading bee-keepers should favor such a
business, and try to prove its advan-
tages. It would be the death-knell to
the bee-keeping interest of this country.
Respectfully,

N. P. Aspinwall.

Harrison, Minn.

Dear Mr. Editor : — I beg to express
my satisfaction at the course taken by
the American Bee Journal in refer-

ence to that very imprudent, ill-advised
discussion of the " sugar-honey " ques-
tion. The American Bee Journal,
since I have known it, has always been
the uncompromising foe of all forms of
adulteration, and has done invaluable
work toward its suppression. I regard
the proposed "sugar-honey" as one of
the worst forms of adulteration — worst,
because it emanates from the producers
themselves. Allen Pringle.

Selby, Ont., Jan. 2, 1893.

Mr. Editor: — What use is there to
fight adulteration of honey when profes-
sors and bee-paper men teach their con-
stituents how to adulterate, and tell'us
that sugar is honey after passing
through a bee's honey-sac ? This is the
most contemptible act that honest bee-
keepers have ever seen, or heard of. All
adulteration together, of honey, so far,
has not done as much damage, or made
and created as much suspicion.

The newspapers already have gotten
hold of it. A lawyer (an old acquaint-
ance), to whom I have sold honey for
many years, said to me the other day,
" How much sugar have you sold me all
these years?" I asked him where he
read about it ? " Ha ! in one of my news-
papers," he replied. "I am going to
make my own honey after this."

Then he explained to me that sugar
was honey ; that a certain professer and
his students had made experiments, and
found that no difference could be noted,
etc. Now, how are we going to stop the
slanderous talk of that professor and
that bee-paper man ? I have almost
lost confidence in men, and about decided
to keep bees without literature — so as to
keep cool and silent, and not get excited
when we have to see such lies in our
bee-papers. The only reason I subscribe
for a few bee-periodicals this year is,
that they are not all on that side, and I
felt good when I read your editorial and
noted your stand-point on this senseless
act.

Every experienced bee-keeper knows
that sugar cannot be changed to honey
by the bees. It is sugar first, and sugar
last. It is a shame for learned men to
be so stupid — yes, we may say dishonest.
I may be a little harsh, but I cannot
help it.

I am afraid our industry has received
a blow from which it will not recover
for many years, by this sugar-honey
swindle. Those who have advocated
the thing, should know better than to
threaten the destruction of honest bee-
keepers and honey-producers. What

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

T3

good will a " Pure Food Bill " do under
these circumstances ? Ridiculous !
Yours very truly,

C. Theilmann.
Theilmanton, Minn., Jan. 2, 1898.

We shouldn't wonder if your blood
began to "boil " before you half finished
reading the foregoing letters. Ours did ;
aud then we felt sorry for those who had
been advocating the practice, and who
were so short-sighted and careless ; for,
personally, we have respected them so
highly, and long ago tried to show at
least one of them the error of his way in
this matter. We endeavored to make
clear to him the folly and great harm of
the thing, though we felt all the time
that he should know better. We think
they all know better 7iow, and no mis-
take about it, either !

Although having said what we have
above, we want to say right here, that
we do not believe that any one of those
who have championed this unfortunate
course intended to injure the business of
honey-production ; but the evil has been
done, nevertheless, and nothing that
they can do now, can possibly prevent
the untold injury that must inevitably
result to the industry of bee-culture.
How much better it would have been to
have " kept in the middle of the road,"
than to have permitted themselves to be
" switched ofE " on such a dangerous
" side-track."

But what good to lock the stable after
the horse is stolen ? Why cry over spilt-
milk? The only thing that can be done
now is to try to counteract the evil
effects of the whole pernicious affair, and
try to " grin " while bearing the conse-
quences, which cannot help being so
universally disastrous to the pursuit of
bee-keeping.

Let all sincere and honest honey-pro-
ducers stand together, and victory over
all such slanders — and even over the
Devil himself — will yet be theirs.

After the foregoing was in type, we
handed a proof of it to the General
Manager of the Union, who writes thus :

Friend York : — I have read the proof
you gave me, and most fully endorse the
positions taken by you and your corres-
pondents upon the sugar-honey question.

The degredation brought upon honey-
producers by this " sugar-honey " abomi-
nation, is almost unbearable. The dis-
cussion of the subject is inexcusable,
since it was closed last spring by the
frowns of apiarists. To revive it at this
time is a crime as well as a blunder. If
it is right to feed sugar and compel the
bees to store it in combs in poor seasons,
why is it not right all the time ? It can't
be right. It is a fraud practiced upon
the bees ; it would compel the bee-
keeper to be dishonest, and it would be
a dishonorable, fraudulent trick played
upon consumers.

One heresy leads to another. The
argument is : If bees nkike honey, and
it is partly-digested nectar — then that
nectar may be sugar or glucose at will I
But that is all bosh ! We all know that
it is no such thing ! It is precisely the
same after having been stored that it
was before, and the bees neither digest
nor make it into honey.

As Manager of the Bee-Keepers'
Union, I have received a perfect shower
of such letters as those you have printed.
The instigators of this nefarious swindle
have "sown to the wind," and are now
"reaping the whirlwind."

Just think of a person asking to have
the Constitution of the Union amended
so as to fight adulteration, and within a
month to be advising bee-keepers to
adulterate their honey with sugar ! ! It
is monstrous for him to say : " I have
no doubt that sugar-syrup honey will be

produced largely next year I have

no fear of a market." Away with such
lollipop bosh !

If the National Bee-Keepers' Union is
to prosecute adulterators, and I have
anything to do with it, its most energetic
work shall be to prosecute to the full
extent of the law, any who may dare to
offer for sale as honey any of that sugar-
syrup swindle.

Consumers must not be trifled with.
Their butter must be made from pure
cow's milk, and their honey must be
pure nectar from the flowers ! " Sugar-
syrup "must be sold under that name,
not honey — just as the law requires
oleomargarine to be sold under its
proper name — not butter ! With the
Paddock " Pure Food Bill " as a United
States law, these and all other degrad-
ing swindles shall " bite the dust."

Thomas G. Newman.

Chicago, Ills., Jan. 13, 1893.

74

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Bee-Keepers' Union.— Again
we wish to call the attention of our
readers to that " "Voting Blank " on page
4 of the Bee Journal, for Jan. 5th.
Cut out that sheet, fill up all the blanks,
and then send it to Mr. Newman, as he
there directs.

We have nothing to say as to whom
you should vote for, but if you have not
already voted, we would like to call
your attention to the following para-
graph taken from Oleanings for Jan.
1st, which we fully endorse ;

Without wishing to disparage the
capacity of Mr. James Heddon, the Presi-
dent, we would suggest that, as he is
not of the legal fraternity, the Hon. R.
L. Taylor, a good lawyer and bee-keeper,
be elected in his place. While Mr. New-
man is possessed of good legal knowl-
edge, it will be of great advantage to
him to be in direct consultation with the
next chief officer of the Union.

Keeping: Italian Bees Pure.

— A subscriber sends in this question for
reply :

How can I keep Italian bees pure
when my neighbors have black bees
within a half mile of me, and won't sell
them ? S. C.

You probably cannot keep them pure,
bat by constantly weeding out objec-
tionable queens, and occasionally intro-
uucing a pure Italian queen and rearing
your queens from her, you will get along
as well as many others.

Transferring: Bees.— A corres-
pondent in South Carolina asks the fol-
lowing question :

What is the best time to move bees
from old box-hives to frame hives ? I
have 17 colonies in old boxes, which I
want to move as soon as it can be done.
I also have 8 in frame hives, that I can
help the others with. R. C. F.

The stereotyped answer to the ques-
tion when best to transfer bees, is at the
time of fruit bloom. The reason for
that is, that at the time of fruit bloom
the combs are as nearly empty as at any
time in the year when they are gather-

ing honey. The chances for danger
from robbers are very much diminished
if the transferring is done at a time
when the bees are working in the fields,
and robbers are not on hand. The
lighter the combs are, the more easily
they are kept in place until the bees
fasten them in.

There is, however, a plan given by
James Heddon, that is on the whole bet-
ter. Wait until the first swarm issues,
and hive it in a movable-comb hive.
Then on the 21st day after the swarm
issues, the last worker brood will be
hatched out, and you can transfer with
no brood in the way, except some that is
very young.

HON. EUOEXE SECOR.

Few men have been so constantly in
public life, and in so many different
positions, as has Hon. Eugene Secor, of
Forest City, Iowa, whose name is so well
known to the readers of the American
Bee Journal. His literary productions,
both of prose and poetry, are familiar
to all. He has very appropriately been
called the " poet laureate " of apicul-
ture. For years he has been among
those who have generously undertaken
to reply to the queries propounded for
publication in this paper, and as to how
well he has succeeded in "cracking"
the " nuts," we need only to point to the
printed record.

Mr. Secor was born on May 13, 1841,
and was brought up on a farm, near
Peekskill, N. Y., being one of eleven
children, all of whom lived to manhood
and womanhood. He attended the pub-
lic school in winter, and worked on his
father's farm in summer.

At the age of 21 he went to Iowa,
borrowing the necessary money of an
older brother who was already located
in the West. He went to work at what-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

75

ever he could find to do ; learned the
mason trade— worked at plastering and
bricklaying summers and taught winters.
In 1864, he entered Cornell College in
Iowa, but owing to the fact that his
brother David wanted to take a hand in
the "late unpleasantness "—(he being
Treasurer and Kecorder of Winnebago
county, and Postmaster of Forest City)
he left school to take charge, as deputy,
of his brother's business, which position
he held for two years.

EUGENE SECOR.

In 1866, he married Millie M.Spencer
a native of Ohio, who still lives to charm
and bless her beloved. They have four
children living, and six have crossed to
the other shore, awaiting the " meeting"
and the " greeting " of the " loved ones"
left behind.

In 1867, Mr. S. was appointed Deputy
Clerk of the District Court, and in 1868
was elected to that office, which he held
for six years, being elected the last term
without opposition. Believing in rota-
tion in office, he refused to run for a
fourth term. In 1875 he was elected
County Auditor, ^nd was re-elected two
years later without opposition.

He was one of the Commissioners ap-
pointed by the Court to complete the
incorporation of Forest City ; was elected
Its first Mayor, and re-elected three con-
secutive times, being the only one, up
to the present time, who has held the
office four terms. He was a member of
the Town Council up to 1890, and has
been a member of the city school board :
IS a member of the Board of Trustees of
Cornell College, and one of the Executive
Committee ; also trustee of the Iowa
Agricultural College— the latter Board
being elected by the State Legislature.

Mr. Secor is a life member of the
Northern Iowa Horticultural Society
has also been Director, Vice-President
and President, and has charge of one of
its experiment stations. He helped to
organize the Winnebago County Agricul-
tural Society, and was its first President
for two years ; is a member of the Iowa
Fine Stock Breeders' Association, and
President of the State Bee-Keepers'
Society. He has just retired from a
year's Presidency of the North-American
Bee-Keepers' Association, whose last
meeting was held in Washington, D. C
on Dec. 27th, 28th and 29th, 1892,
and a report of which is begun on
page 79 of this issue of the Bee Joue-

NAL. '

In politics, Mr. Secor Is a Repulican.
He has been a delegate to many State
and District conventions; was one of
the delegates from Iowa to the last
National Republican Convention that
met in Minneapolis last summer.

In religion he is a Methodist, but not
sectarian ; and has been a trustee in his
local society since its organization. He
was honored as a delegate to the last
General Conference of the church of his
choice, in May, 1892. at Omaha. He is
also President of the County Bible
Society, which is interdenominational.

Owing to various public and private
enterprises which occupy so much of his
time, Mr. Secor has never attempted to
build up a large apiary. His chief study
is to keep the number of colonies within
the possibilities of personal supervision
and recreative enjoyment. But they
have always paid. He doesn't run after
new-fangled inventions because they are
new, nor after new races of bees because
they are widely advertised. He believes
in the injunction, "Prove all things:
hold fast that which is good."

At different times he has had charge
of the apiarian department in various
agricultural periodicals. His writings
are always instructive, and are read
with a satisfaction and interest rarely
met with in these latter days. g. w. y.

76

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAJL.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas

Bees and Red Clover.

On page 789 (Dec. 15, 1892) is a
short item with the above title. The
writer seems to convey the idea that
bees never get honey of any consequence
from red clover. My experience is quite
different.

About the year 1875, I lived at the
head farm of Hickory Valley, White
county, Tenn. This valley was then
noted by its extensive red clover fields.
One day I noticed that the bees began to
store hftney very fast, and on going out
to look I found they were working
wholly on red clover. Any kind of bees,
blacks, hybrids, Italians and bumble
bees were all working just as though it
was a life-and-death case, and it was not
the dwarfed or imperfect blossoms that
they were working on, either, but it was
the vast clover fields "mumming" all
over with bees. The bees worked on it
for weeks, and filled their hives, and
some of the strongest colonies filled two
supers each.

I do not claim that bees get honey
from red clover every year, and under
all circumstances, but I do know that
they get honey from red clover, and lots
of it, too. Nor do I believe that bees
visit flowers just because they see them.
My experience is that when you see bees
working on flowers of any kind, you may
know they are getting a little taste of
honey at the least. Even any flower
that bees get pollen from furnishes more
or less honey, as the pollen is a little
sweet.

I think you might waste your life in
making cast-iron flowers, and placing
them in the field, without the satisfac-
tion of seeing a single bee alight on
one of them, unless you put some honey
on them. Bees are attracted to flowers
by scent — it is the sweet fragrance or
the smell of honey in the blossoms that

stops the bee as she passes by. This
sweet substance is placed in the flower
by nature on purpose to attract the
bees, and the bees are made to seek,
work upon, and fertilize the blossoms.
So you see it would seem like a blank
in nature for bees to visit cast-iron
flowers.

Bees go by scent, as you can easily
determine by watching them ; for in-
stance, notice a colony of bees that has
lost its queen ; they will hover around
the spot where the queen has been, just
as if she were there, and you know they
do not see her.

Bees, no doubt, see the blossoms, and
bound from one to another by sight, but
it is my candid opinion that they are
first attracted by the sweet perfume. I
am aware that neither red nor white
clover, or in fact none of our best honey-
plants furnish honey right along, year
after year, that amounts to much ; but
my experience is that bees do get some
honey when they work on flowers. What
do you all think about it? And who
will set me right if I am wrong?
Friends, let's here from you on this
question. J. A.

Qiueens Mating in the Air.

There has been a great deal said on
the subject of queens mating in the air.
Some writers have gone so far as to
deny statements made by some who have
claimed to have witnessed the mating of
a queen, and it is likely this letter will
meet with the same fate. However, I
can produce conclusive evidence that the
following is the true way the mating
takes place.

As to the act of copulation taking
place in the air, it is all true enough as
far as it goes. I will state, without the
least fear of contradiction, that the act
begins in the air, and ends on the
ground, or some obstacle, where the
queen releases herself from the drone
by means of her teeth instead of tearing
loose, as some say or have imagined. I
have not only witnessed a case of this
kind, but a negro in this neighborhood
who is reliable, claims to have witnessed
a similar case.

It has never seemed to me that the
the queen could tear the gexual organ
frem the drone as claimed by some
writers. Therefore, I have watched with
patience to ascertain the true way this
little freak of nature was performed,
and my experience has been as stated
above. Any extensive queen-breeder

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

77

may, during a season, see queens mate,
by getting in a position to see objects
falling from tiie air, and in the evening,
when the young queens are flying out on
their bridal trip, he will have a chance
to see the queen and drone falling to the
ground. Should you meet with a failure
the first time, try, try again.

C. B. Bankston.
Chrisman, Tex., Dec. 29, 1892.

Friends, I think the time has just
about arrived in beedom for us to say
yes if we know it, and if we don't know
it, better say nothing about it.

Again, my dear readers, let us look at
things and examine them ourselves, as
we start out with the new year, and let
us realize that this is the time for selfish-
ness and narrowness to disappear, and
for all the world to be filled with the
Auroral light of a broader and more per-
fect peace and good-will toward men.

J. A.

Kansas and Texas Contrasted.

Mbs. Jennie Atchley : — It is very
pleasing to read in your department ai
the American Bee Journal, that apple
trees are in bloom, and bees gathering
some honey. The contrast between here
and there is remarkable. Bees here at
the Experiment Station have not had a
flight since Nov. 30th. It snowed on
the night of Dec. 6th, and remains yet.
People say they have not seen snow re-
main on the ground so long for twenty
years. Bees are as silent as the tomb.
I hope the season for 1893 will be
superior to that of 1892.

Cha«. L. Strickland.

Peabody, Kans.

Friend Strickland, it will be remem-
bered, is Professor of Apiculture at the
Bee-Experiment Station of Peabody,
and is the right man in the right place.
The day he speaks of their big snow in
Kansas, our bees worked all day on
apple-bloom, but it was what we term
" fall bloom," and out of season, but the
bees worked on it nicely, just the same.
"We have had at this writing (Dec. 28th),
however, a pretty fair taste of winter,
the mercury running down to about 28°
above zero. Our bees had a nice flight
Christmas day, but have not flown since.
This morning the sun is shining brightly,
and the bees will likely have a flight
to-day. J, A.

ii

Bees and Honey ''—page 69.

Cyprian Bees as "Watchmen."

Mrs. Atchley:— In your article on
kinds of smoke and smokers, in the
American Bee Journal, you mention
Cyprian bees. Can you tell me where I
can get queens of the Cyprian race? I
want the bees for educational purposes,
to teach thieves to let bees alone. Do
you think Cyprians would be good for
that purpose ? Answer through the
American Bee Journal. W.

Grasmere, Fla.

Friend W., I cannot call to mind just
now where you can get the Cyprian
queens. I should think that the "Cyps"
would make a pretty good set of
*' watchmen," especially if your thieves
have no knowledge of the habits of bees.
The "Cyps" are sure fighters when
handled a little roughly, like a thief
would likely have to do. Get a colony
of Cyprians, and place them at the spot
where it will be most likely to be filched,
then the day after the depredation,
search the neighborhood for big, ugly
faces, and I believe you will be success-
ful in finding the guilty party. Will
any one who reads this, that has Cyprian
bees, please put an advertisement of
them in the Bee Journal ? J, A.

Queens as Premiums — "WTioWill WinP

To the person sending to me the
largest number of new subscribers to
the American Bee Journal from Jan.
1st to June 30th, 1893, I will give a
fine breeding queen of the five-banded
variety — such sell for $10 ; for the next
largest number, a three-banded breeder
from imported mother; the next largest,
a tested queen of either strain ; the
next, a dollar queen. Who will be the
lucky parties ? A correct account will
be kept, and the premiums promptly
paid on July 1, 1893.

Bee-keeping friends, why not each of
you who is not now a subscriber to the
Amercan Bee Journal, send me your
name with $1.00, and receive as a pre-
mium the book "Bees and Honey?"
This is the biggest offer in beedom, all
to every new subscriber — 52 Bee Jour-
nals weekly, brimful of the very best
bee-news, suited to all localities, all for
$1.00, and " Bees and Honey " to boot.
Just think of it ! Jennie Atchley.

Greenville, Texas.

Have You Read page 69 yet ?

78

AMERICAN BEE JOURMAi.^

^////i4un0j/(((///,//i/»/,,,Mu,,,,,, '".

What Advantage in a Flaring:-
Top Comb-Rack ?

Query 854.— 1. Is not an extractor having:
a flaring top to its comb-rack, the best? 2.
Is it not best for the following reasons, viz. :
That the honey-frames will the better stay in
place, and also that the downward slope thus
given to the honey-cells will be aided by gravi-
tation ?— Subscriber.

1. Yes. — E. France.

1. Yes. 2. Yes. — M. Mahin.

Don't know. — Mrs. Jennie Atchlky.

1. Yes, I think so. — Mrs. L. Harri-
son.

Pass me by. I'm like Dr. Miller — I
dunno. — W. M. Barnum.

Extractors work well enough without
flaring sides. — P. H. Elwood.

1. Possibly, but I think it would need
several experiments to fully establish it.

— G. M. DOOLITTLE.

1. I have never used this kind of an
extractor. Your points seem meritorious.
— J. M. Hambaugh.

Try it in actual practice. In such case
an ounce of practice is worth a pound of
theory. — C. C. Miller.

It is said to be the best, though in
practice I have never found much dififer-
ence. — J. P. H. Brown.

1. I think not. 2. No. Gravitation
ceases to affect the flow, when the revo-
lutions are rapid. — J as. A. Stone.

1. No. 2. This matter has been tested
ofttimes, and the flaring sides are found
to be no improvement. — J. E. Pond.

Centrifugal force holds them in place
any way, and I doubt if there would be
any advantage. — Mrs. J. N. Heater.

I fear that your points are too small
and unimportant to be of practical
value, if ever so true. — James Heddon.

1. Probably it would do no hurt, but I
think one with a perpendicular basket
would answer every purpose. — S. I.
Freeborn.

1. No. 2. With a straight frame
holder the speed will be the same top
and bottom ; with the other style it will
not. — H. D. Cutting.

1. I could never see any advantage to
speak of, though I have used both for
years. 2. I don't think that in practice
there is special advantage. — A. J. Cook.

1. Yes, I think this an improvement,
as the honey will leave the cells with
less motion, and consequently less labor
and liability to breakage. — C. H. Dib-
bebn.

1. I should not care a dime which way
the extractor was built, if it was strong
and durable. 2. Not necessarily. The
theory seems to be all right but in prac-
tice.—J. H. Larrabee.

1. No. 2. When a good extractor is
running, the centrifugal force is so much
greater than that of gravity, that the
sloping cells would tend to impede
rather than to aid in releasing the
honey. — R. L. Taylor.

1. I think not ; besides it is doubtful
if a good reversible extractor could be so
made. 2. If the power of gravitation
was of any consequence, I do see that
we would need a honey extractor. The
only force available in extracting honey
is centrifugal force. — G. L. Tinker.

I have seen both the forms of " reels"
you mention, and I have seen but little
difference in their working, except that
the frames will sometimes topple inward
when first set into the straight reel. But
the straight reel is not affected as much
by the difference in the weight of the
combs, as the flared reel. Both forms,
however, work well under my care. — G.
W. Demaree.

1. No. It is true that the frames
will lie in place somewhat better, but
this advantage is more than counter-
balanced by the fact that the centrifugal
force is greater at the top than at the
bottom, so that if there is unsealed
brood in the frame, it is liable to be
thrown out the top before the honey Is
extracted from the bottom of the comb.
2. The part that gravitation would play
would be but trifling. — Jameb A. Gbkxs.

Have You Bead that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 69 ?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

79

Report of the IVortli American
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

The North American Bee-Keepers'
Association held its 23rd annual con-
vention on Dec. 27th, 28th and 29th,
1892, at the Randall House in the city
of Washington, D. C.

The meeting was called to order at 2
p.m., with President Secor in the chair.
R. F. Holtermann opened the exercises
with prayer. The following members
then paid their dues :

Prank Benton, Washington, D. C.

Ralph Benton, Washington, D. C.

Henry E. Bliss, West Winfield, N. Y.

J. P. Brown, Colora, Md.

Chas. Dallett, West Chester, Pa.

C. E. Dieffenderfer, Martinsb'g, W.Va.

C. D. Duvall, Spencerville, Md.

P. Eberiy, Strasburg, Va.

H. Frickey, Bishop, Calif.

O, L. Hershiser, Buffalo, N. Y.

J. E. Hetherington, Cherry Valley,N.Y.

Wm. Hislop, Strasburg, Ont.

R. F. Holtermann, Brantford, Ont.

A. C. Hoopes, Washington, D. C.

W. Z. Hutchinson, Flint, Mich.

W. L. Kemp, Farmington, Pa.

T. F. King, Landover, Md.

W. H. Laws, Lavaca, Ark.

E. M. Pittman, Centerville, Va.

J. W. Porter, Charlotteville, Va.

H. Segelken, New York, N. Y.

Geo. Sharpless, London Grove, Pa.

E. A. Stratton, Horseheads, N. Y.

R. F. Wier, South River, Md.

George W. York, Chicago, Ills.

LIFE MEMBERS PRESENT.

A. N. Draper, Upper Alton, Ills.
A. I. Root, Medina, Ohio.
E. R. Root, Medina, Ohio.
Eugene Secor, Forest City, Iowa.

O. R. Coe, Windham, N. Y., became a
life member during the year, but was
not present at the meeting.

LADY MEMBERS PRESENT.

Mrs. H. E. Bliss, West Winfield, N. Y.
Miss Sarah E, Joslin, Cincinnati, O.
Mrs. W. H. Laws, Lavaca, Ark.
Mrs. H. Martin, Yonkers, N. Y.
Miss Ellen Reed, Cincinnati, O.
Mrs. A. I. Root, Medina, Ohio.
Mrs. Eugene Secor, Forest City, Iowa.
Miss Segelken, New York, N. Y.
Mrs. H. Segelken, New York, N. Y.
Mrs. Geo. Sharpless, London Grove.Pa.
Miss Jessie Wier, South River, Md.
Mrs. R. F. Wier, South River, Md.

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES.

The following societies paid their
affiliation fees :

Connecticut State Bee-Keepers' So-
ciety.

York (Nebraska) Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation.

Iowa State Bee-Keepers' Association.

Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion.

The payment of dues being completed,
Mr. Eugene Secor then delivered

The President's Annual Address.

I wish, first of all, to express my sense
of gratitude to the all-merciful Father
who has permitted us to see each others,
faces again at our annual gathering.

So far as I know, no member of this
association has been called to cross the
silent river since last we met. Abundant
labor and insidious disease may have
enfeebled some of our honored veterans,
and deprived us of the pleasure of their
presence and counsel, yet I am thankful
that they still live, an4 their interest in
apiculture will turn their thoughts
towards this convention.

One of the pleasant features of an or-
ganized association is the thought of
meeting kindred spirits and renewing
old, or forming new, friendships. The
opportunities which these meetings
afford for social intercourse and personal
acquaintance should not be lightly
thrown aside. Life-long attachments
are created which are cheering and help-
ful to many a pilgrim as he nears the
sundown of life. These meetings, too,
bring us face to face with those whose
writings we have read, and I opine that
after we have become acquainted with a
writer we know better what value to
place on his dictum.

Those who believe that bee-keepers'
conventions are only valuable In propor-
tion to the number and length of the
discussions on technical subjects, have
failed to take into account the socia

80

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

part of our nature, and the benefits to
be derived from a closer personal con-
tact with those who have achieved suc-
cess in the same line of work.

INVENTIONS IN APICULTURE.

Our meeting in this city is opportune.
We are enabled by the records and
models in the Patent Office to learn what
science and invention have done in the
last forty years for the pursuit which
we represent. Indeed, it will not be
boasting if we assert that in the period
named, more progress has been made in
the field of practical apiculture than in
all previous recorded time. Some inter-
esting and important facts relating to
the natural history of the honey-bee had
been known for a long time, but they
were facts which were not particularly
valuable to the honey-producer until the
invention of the movable-frame hive.
The improvements which followed in
rapid succession made a new era in bee-
keeping. Until then it was an uncer-
tain and unremunerative employment.
When the caravans of the East took
honey as an article of merchandise from
the land of Assyria to Egypt, they prob-
ably got their supply from the mountain
caves, where the wild bees, in favorable
years, had stored a suplus. But I have
no idea that any one in the great cities
of the ancients ever got a taste of it ex-
cept the rich.

Following the invention of the Lang-
stroth hive came the extractor, the sec-
tion honey-box, and comb foundation, the
last two, in my opinion, as important as
anything ever given to bee-keepers. The
section-box has popularized honey to an
extent little known or dreamed of a half
century ago. Instead of the large, un-
wieldy boxes of honey which our grand-
fathers took to market, or the tubs of
broken honey so familiar in those days,
the grocer can now supply his customer
with a neat package of almost any de-
sirable quantity, without so much as
soiling his fingers.

The queen-cage, also, and the ability
to send queens by express and mall to
the remote parts of the earth, gave an
impetus to bee-culture never before felt.
And be it said to the credit of American
inventors and breeders, they are never
content with mediocrity. Bee-keepers'
meetings and our excellent bee-litera-
ture have awakened Interest and en-
quiry, the mechanical genius of the age
has been stimulated to meet the demand
for improved appliances, and queen-
breeders have spent much time and
money trying to Improve the honey-pro-

ducing qualities of the bee first intro-
duced into this country. In the desire
for improvement (or novelty), in the
latter direction there have been un-
desirable importations in my judgment,
but, on the whole, progress in the right
direction. Indeed, it may be said, too,
that not all our inventions are improve-
ments, but they mark the milestones on
the road to success. Bee-keeping, like
our civilization, is yet in a state of
transition, but as Paul advises, we are
going on toward perfection, although we
may never reach it.

IMPORTANCE OF THE HONEY-BEE.

The bee-keepers of the country belong
to that great army of producers whp are
feeding the world, and at the same time
are trying to solve the problem how to
feed themselves — in other words, how to
make an honest and decent living from
the natural resources which the Creator
has placed within their reach — resources,
too, the use of which do not impoverish
but inrich the earth.

Were the honey-bee blotted out of the
book of nature, few people realize the
loss to agriculture, horticulture and
floriculture that would result. These
kindred industries are slow to acknowl-
edge the benefits derived from the bees,
as an Important aid to complete fertili-
zation in many plants, as positively
necessary to others, and beneficial to all
flowers visited by thera. Cross-fertiliza-
tion is Nature's method of progress. The
bees are Nature's assistants in this work.
No other known agency can be sub-
stituted. Instead of hostility, the bee-
keeper should receive the thanks of the
agriculturist and fruit-growers, and the
fostering protection of the Government.
Its entomological experts should not only
spread abroad knowledge regarding in-
sects injurious to vegetation, but also
correct information as to those which
are helpful to the farmer.

If bee-keeping be a lawful and neces-
sary pursuit, the Government should
throw around it the same protective
legislation that is granted the dairyman
and pork-raiser. We can no more com-
pete against glucose honey with an
honest product than the farmer can
against oleomargarine butter or cotton-
seed lard.

ADULTERATION OF HONEY.

I wish right here to express my disap-
proval of a method of adding to the in-
come of the honey-producer (which has
been recently much discussed) by feed-
ing a substance not distilled in Nature's

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

81

laboratory. If it is no longer possible
to produce honey at a profit in large
apiaries from the natural secretions of
plants and flowers, it is an argument to
my mind that the business is being over-
done in some localities, and that it is
time to return to the practice, once
more general than now, of smaller api-
aries and a wider distribution of bees
throughout the country.

In my judgment we cannot longer
prosper if we adopt methods which will
put us on the defensive in every honey
market in the country. Adulteration is
the crying sin of the age. The people
are becoming aroused on the subject.
We ourselves are trying to put a stop to "
it. It will not be sufQcient to say that
this improved article is to be sold for
just what it is. If it is possible to produce
it at a profit, it will not be long before
every consumer will have heard of the
trick, and conclude to make his own
honey. Any attempt to forestall the sea-
sons will prove a delusion and a snare.

world's faik apiarian exhibit.

The Columbian Exposition in 1893
offers to the bee-keepers of this country
an opportunity for instruction which
will probably not come to many of us
again. For the purpose of contrasting
the new with the old, and comparing
products and appliances with the lead-
ing honey-producers of this and other
lands, it will be an object lesson too val-
uable to lose. Pride, if nothing else,
should stimulate every lover of his coun-
try to add to the collection. Although
the management failed to suitably recog-
nize our industry, we cannot afford to
let this occasion pass to impress upon
the people the magnitude of our indus-
try. Nothing so impresses one as quan-
tity. A glass of water is insignificant,
but the Atlantic ocean needs no encom-
ium to its majesty. So while a few
pounds of honey, although perfect, will
attract little attention, tons of a less
perfect article*will make its impression.

Perhaps some of the States have not
offered that encouragement to exhibitors
that you feel is due. It may be, by prop-
erly presenting the matter to the State
Commissioners, arrangements can yet be
made, and the expenses of a State exhibit
at least be secured.

BEE-KEEPERS' CONGRESS IN 1893.

At some time during the Exposition I
hope to see a bee-keepers' Congress ar-
ranged for in Chicago. It will be a
great pleasure to meet bee-keepers from
foreign lands — many of whom I have no

doubt will visit our shores at that time.
I call your attention to this matter that
you may, if you so desire, appoint a
committee to determine the time of such
convention, and publish proper notice
thereof. If thought best to hold such a
meeting in connection with the next
gathering of this association, timely
notice should be given that some of our
friends across the water might arrange
to be with us. A gathering of bee-keep-
ers at that time ought to be of unusual
interest to us.

In closing, allow me to thank you for
the honor conferred by calling me to
preside over this, the 23rd annual meet-
ing of this association. Among my
predecessors are some of the foremost
bee-keepers of the country and world. I
am happy to be numbered among such
an array of talent and worth. The bee-
keepers of America may well be proud
of the pioneers in this industry. Such
names as Langstroth and Quinby will
ever make bee-keeping a respectable
calling. Eugene Secor.

Frank Benton — Pres. Secor says that
the Government ought to pay attention
to beneficial as well as injurious insects.
It does. The Government entomologists
study insects from a purely scientific
standpoint. Their life history and habits
are studied most closely, and when it
becomes desirable to work against their
multiplication, or to encourage it, this
knowledge is of great benefit. For in-
stance, the scale insect threatened to
destroy the orange industry of Califor-
nia, when the Government sent a man
to Australia, the home of the scale
(where, by the way, it did comparatively
little harm), to see what could be learned
of its life history, and of any parasitic
insects that might prey upon it. As it
did no harm in that country, the ento-
mologist argued that there must be some
natural enemy that kept it in check. It
was found as supposed. A sort of lady-
bug fed upon the scale. Large quanti-
ties of this bug were imported to Cali-
fornia. The ravages of the scale soon
diminished, and the vast orange indus-
try of California was saved.

R. F. Holtermann — I am glad to see
the President touch on the subject of
sugar-honey. Our local associations
have passed resolutions asking the legis-
lature to pass laws in regard to sugar-
honey similar to those in operation for
regulating the sale of oleomargarine.

A. N. Draper — I think that something
ought to be done to prevent the spraying
of fruit trees while in bloom.
(Continued next week.)

82

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Written Jor the American Bee Journal
BY PBOF. A. J. COOK.

The Subject of Reproduction in
Bees Considered.

We will understand our topic all the
better if we give the subject of repro-
duction a brief, general consideration.

There are three methods of reproduc-
tion among animals — by Fission, Gem-
mation, and Sexual Reproduction. The
first two, by separation and budding,
seem to ally plants and animals ; indeed
the whole philosophy of the science of
to-day shows that nature is one great
whole.

Fission is explained by the word sep-
aration. An aniaal separates, and two
animals are the result. We see the
same in reproduction of strawberries by
runners. This division is no rare sight
in our Zoological laboratories. It is
often a rapid performance, and so we
may witness the whole operation at one
sitting at our microscopic study. This
method is confined to four branches of
the animal kingdom : the lowest, or
Protozoans, single-celled animals, where
it Is the only method ; the sponges,
where any separation, however rude,
results in no serious harm, but in as
many perfect animals as there are of the
divisions ; among the coral branch of
animals, where even accidental division
often results, in as sure and perfect re-
production as that just described among
sponges. The branch Vermes — worms —
illustrates this method of reproduction
in a few cases.

Gemmation, or budding, is well ex-
plained in the last word. A bud starts
forth, develops, and possibly drops off,
when it becomes a single animal like its
parent. It may not drop off, in which
case we have a compound form, as seen
in all real coral animals. This law of
reproduction is best illustrated in the
branch of animals including the corals,
and is also illustrated in a few of the
worms. In our laboratories we have

opportunity to observe the whole opera-
tion in the very interesting fresh-water
Hydra. This is so rapid in development
that it is not tedious to watch it, from
beginning to end. All animals that de-
velop by gemmation develop also sexu-
ally.

Sexual Eeproduction is where an egg
or germ-cell is produced in an organ,
called an ovary, or female organ, and a
sperm-cell ia a male organ. Usually the
sperm-cell must enter and become incor-
porated within the egg, to Insure devel-
opment or reproduction. In some cases,
as with drone-bees and plant-lice, the
eggs are fecund without receiving the
sperm-cells; but this is exceptional. This
kind of reproduction prevails in all ani-
mals except the lowest of single-celled
branch, and in all of these branches, if
we except the coral animals and a few
worms, it is the only method of increase.

There are two kinds of sexual animals,
those where both the male and female
organs are found in the same animal,
and those where the sexes are distinct.
Th« first are known as hermaphrodites,
and unl-sexual or monoecious animals;
the others are bi-sexual or dicecious.
Here, again, we see a tie binding plants
and animals together, for every observer
knows that most, even of our higher
plants, are monoecious, while not a few,
like the willow, the poplar, the hemp,
etc., are dioecious.

Both of these methods are Illustrated
in most of the lower branches, indeed in
all branches of sexual animals except
the two highest. Thus animals as high
as the angle worm and snail are her-
maphrodites or uni-sexual, that is, each
animal is both male and female, while
we find bi-sexual animals among all the
lower branches of sexual animals ; the
two highest branches, the insect and
back-bone branches, consist wholly of
them. Thus our bees are not only bi-
sexual, but they belong to a branch that
is practically dioecious throughout.

The sexual animals are again divided
into the oviparous, those which lay eggs •
which develop and hatch outside the
mother, and where the unhatched young
must get all its nourishment from the
egg, except as it may secure something,
as oxygen, from the surrounding media ;
the ovoviviparous also called sometimes,
unfortunately, viviparous, where the egg
hatches inside the mother, and so the
young is born alive and active, though
the nourishment is still wholly from the
egg; and viviparous where the young
develops within the mother and secures
nearly all its nourishment from the
mother, and not from the egg.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

83

Birds, bees, indeed most insects, are
oviparous, or of the first group. Some
of the sharks, many snakes, all the sum-
mer broods of plant-lice, and indeed not
a few other insects are of the second
group or ovoviviparous. One has to hold
a stem or leaf covered with aphides
plant-lice — but a few moments in mid-
summer, under close observation, to see
a number of lice born. Here all the
eggs hatch within the mother.

The mammals, all back-boned animals
that suckle their young, are viviparous,
that is, the young receives their food
almost wholly from the mother. Here
the blood-vessels of the mother and
young come in very close contact, so
that while the blood never passes directly
from mother to her prenatal young, yet
nourishing material, including oxygen,
does so pass, and so the young is fed.
The placenta, a very vascular organ
where this Interchange takes place, may
be likened to the lungs after birth, ex-
cept that here the blood receives not
only oxygen, but all nourishment, and
gives off not only carbonic acid, but
nearly all the excreta.

In bi-sexual animals, as we have seen,
the sperm-cells of the male must pass
into the eggs or germ-cells, or no devel-
opment ensues. In some cases, as with
most fish, there is no mating. The milt,
or sperm-cells, and the roe, or eggs will
pass from parents into the water, and
their meeting is portuitous. Here, of
course, impregnation is not at all cer-
tain, and so sperm-cells or germ-cells
exist by the millions — must, or the
species would soon cease to exist. The
danger is less, however, from the fact
that at times of spawning both males
and females resort to the same localities,
as the salmon and other marine species,
then pass up rivers and over gravel beds.

Nearly all dioecious animals, even
some fish, mate, and so germ and sperm
cells are brought near together. In the
same tubular aparatus, and as the
sperm-cells are always very active, mat-
ing if both parents are healthy and per-
fect, is almost sure to be followed by im-
pregnation.

In a few insects, like our bees, the
sperm-cells are received at mating time
into a special vesicle, on the side of th«
oviduct of the female, known as the
spermatheca. It is estimated that the
spermatheca of the queen-bee may con-
tain millions of the sperm-cells. This
organ is under the control of the female
Insect, and she can liberate the sperm-
cells or withhold them, as the eggs pass
by this organ ; and as all bee-keepers
know, If the sperm-cells are liberated

by the queen, the egg is impregnated
and develops into a female, while if they
are withheld, of course the egg is not
impregnated, and yet curiously enough,
it still develops, and a male always re-
sults.

The queen liberates the sperm-cells by
simply opening the duct from the sper-
matheca, when the ever active sperm-
cells push out. In case a female insect
is possessed of a spermatheca, she does
not need to meet the male but once, and
probably never does in case impregna-
tion is successful. We see, then, that
our bees reproduce by sexual reproduc-
tion, that they are bi-sexual, oviparous,
must mate, but if successful, never mate
but once, as the female possesses a
spermatheca, and that in the production
of the drones or males they are agamic,
that is, the unimpregnated eggs develop,
but always produce males.

It is sometimes questioned if drones
from eggs of fertile workers or unimpreg-
nated queens, would be able to impreg-
nate a queen. All such drones have per-
fect organs, and the sperm-cells are
present, and to all appearances just as
active and perfect as in other drones. I
see no reason to doubt their potency
Indeed, I think cases have been re
ported where they were proved to be
sexually potent.

There is one more question connected
with reproduction in which there has
been much discussion and some differ-
ence of opinion. It is stoutly affirmed
by some, that the mere presence of
sperm-cells in the reproductive system
of a female affects her organism so that
the eggs which pass subsequently from
her ovaries will be affected. Thus if
the sperm-cells are from an animal of
another breed, her offspring will be im-
pure long after these sperm-cells are
gone, and even if impregnation occurs
by pure mating. The presence of sperm-
cells in the organism, taints the organ-
ism. To illustrate this point, suppose a
short-horn cow was mated with a gallo-
way male and produces a cross, half
short horn and half galloway. All sub-
sequent offspring from this cow, even
though mated with a pure short-horn
like herself, would be tinctured with
galloway blood. It is claimed that this
law holds with mammals, birds and bees.
I wish to say that I am skeptical in
this whole matter. As to mammals I
have no positive proof, but a large
breeder of mules in Texas writes me that
he has had opportunity over and over
again to see proof of It, and yet he never
saw a vestige of proof. It is easy to see
how, through carelessness, or atavism in

84

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

case of a slight trace of impurity, in
either parent, there should be seeming
evidence for this law, and yet really be
none. It would seem more probable in
case of mammals than with birds or
bees, for here not only are the sperm-
cells present, but a half-blood foetus is
present in the uterus all through gesta-
tion, and possibly might, through cell
inoculation, so affect the mother as to
affect her subsequent progeny. Yet" I
must say that it seems to me so impossi-
ble, that I question the whole position.

In case of poultry, where the law is as
stoutly defended as with mammals,
there is no organic connection, for birds
are oviparous. Here, then, any affect
must come wholly through the simple
presence of the sperm-cells, for a brief
time, in the oviduct. To test this, I
secured some light Brahma and brown
Leghorn fowls. These are so different
as to color, markings, eggs, etc., that
they afforded an excellent chance to test
the matter. I kept cocks and hens to-
gether in one pen all winter, and saw
the cocks of one breed repeatedly mating
with the hens of the other breeds. In
the spring I separated them, putting the
Brahmas in one pen, and the Leghorns
in another. I waited three weeks, and
commenced to set eggs. I reared over
100 chickens, and yet saw no trace of
impurity. Both breeds were entirely
true to standard. We know how a mere
trace of Brahma blood will put feathers
on the legs. Yet every Leghorn had
legs as clean as ever seen in the most
typical Leghorn. I hardly need to say
that I now have still less faith in this
law as applied to poultry.

When Messrs. D. A. Jones and Frank
Benton went to the Orient for bees, I
rejoiced in the chance to get some of the
Asiatic bees that I might test the same
law with them. I got a fine Syrian
queen, and reared a number of queens
from her eggs the first summer. Of
course all of these were mated with
Italian drones, for as yet we had no
other. The next spring we had abun-
dant drones from the old queen, and
many more from the young queens
mated with Italian drones. The first
were from a purely-mated Syrian — one
mated in the Orient — the others were
from queens mated here before we had a
Syrian drone in the apiary. Here we
had hundreds, yes thousands of cases, to
test this law in case of bees.

All who have seen Syrian drones need
not be told that they are so different
from Italians that no one could mistake
them. Yet in all these cases all the
drones were emphatically and entirely

Syrians. I could never see a trace of
Italian markings. I had many persons
look with me, and all were of one mind
in the matter. Thus with me, the mat-
ter is settled. The drones from a pure
queen ivill be pure and of her blood, no
matter how she is mated. If drones show
taint, then the queen is impure. This
must be true, from the law of agamic
reproduction, which holds in the produc-
tion of drone-bees, unless the mere pres-
ence of sperm-cells in the reproductive
apparatus affects the entire reproduc-
tive organism of the queen. Thus I
think we may say no in case of birds and
bees, and I claim the right to use an in-
terrogation point in case of mammals,
like our horses, cattle, sheep and hogs.

Sometimes bee-keepers think that
they have evidence that bees have re-
moved sperm-cells from worker-eggs,
and that worker-eggs have produced
drones. I think there must be a mistake
here. The sperm-cells are very minute.
It takes a high-power microscope to even
see them. They pass at once into a
microscopic opening — the micropyle — of
the egg and becomes incorporated into
the substance of the egg. Thus the bees
could not see or handle these cells, even
if they could reach them, and this, of
course, they could not do. Thus in all
such cases some other explanation must
be sought.

Eggs often refuse to hatch. This is
true of eggs of all animals. Such fe-
males are barren. We cannot say just
what is wrong, only that the ovaries are
diseased, or at fault, and so the eggs are
worthless. It is no wonder that this is
so. The wonder is, that there are not
more cases, when we consider the ex-
treme complexity of the whole appara-
tus. The sperm-cells, as well as the
eggs, may be worthless, in which case
the male is diseased.

Agricultural College, Mich.

Good Prospects for Bee-Culture
in California.

Written for the Amervvin Bee Journal
BY W. A. PRYAL.

This year has opened up in grand
style. The weather for the past three
or four days has been charming — clear
and bright, and balmy. It is like April
or May weather. As we have had an
abundance of rain, and as there is no
doubt that more will follow at the right
time. It is pretty safe to say that Cali

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

85

fornia's chances for a good honey crop
are good.

The rains have been general all over
the State. While here we have had in
the neighborhood of 14 inches, half.that
amount has fallen in some of our big
valleys, and yet In other portions of the
State, mainly in the mountains, possibly
more than twice as much has fallen, as
we, down here near the bay of San
Francisco, have had.

With plenty of rain early in the win-
ter, and copious rains in the spring, the
big bee-gardens of California yield nec-
tar quite profusely.

My bees never "wintered" in finer
condition. I have not lost a single col-
ony of the 60 I have in frame hives. I
had three August swarms in old fruit-
boxes, two of which are no7i est, and the
other is being built up in a double hive.

MAKING COMB FOB BEESWAX.

If I were running a large apiary here-
abouts, I would not try to have over 100
decent hives; all others I would put in
old boxes and work them for the wax I
could get from them. The reason of
this is that this locality is overstocked,
and yet there is enough honey to allow a
large number of colonies to build comb.

Late swarms could build the hive
nearly full of comb, and if they were
not able to go through the winter with-
out becoming a prey to robbers, or with-
out requiring more food than they were
worth, they could be allowed to demon-
strate "the survival or the fittest." This
may not be good doctrine, but it will go
for this section. Of course I would act
differently if I were in a good honey re-
gion, for it would be to my interest to
have as many colonies as possible.

If all the swarms that go to the woods,
rocks, or into the ground every year in
this State, were "hived" in old fruit-
boxes (and wagon loads of them can be
had for the hauling), and run for wax,
just think what an enormous lot of wax
we would produce annually ! and that
in addition to what we obtain in the
usual way. This could be done, and it
would be perfectly right, too, for is it
not better to keep the bees rather than
have them go to the hills and help over-
stock good bee-ranges ? This subject
alone is material enough for an article.

We usually have some severe frosts by
Dec. 28th or 29th, but they have passed
us, and it is probable we will have an
open winter, as I have intimated. So
far tomato plants have just been frost
bitten enough to cause them to die,
though the fruit yet remains good on the

open ground. Calla lilies, heliotropes and
bedding plants have not been affected
by what cold we have had, and which
was about the middle of the past month.
The blue-gum (eucalyptus globulus) is
coming into bloom, and will give the
bees plenty of nectar.

I find that raspberries are blooming
very early this year — nearly every plant
in our two patches (3 acres) is in bloom,
and to-day I noticed the bees were mak-
ing merry upon the blossoms. How
would the reader like to eat raspberries
right off the bushes at Christmas and
New Years? Well, that is what we
have been doing. The only trouble is,
the berries have not that tine flavor they
have a mouth or two later, and all
through the spring and summer.

I find that this is the best time to go
through the hives and clip the queens'
wings that have not been previously
"barbarized." It is easy to find them'
now.

To-day I find that some of my hives
have three and four combs well filled
with brood ; the young bees are coming
out of some of them. I do not remem-
ber them doing so well before.

North Temescal, Calif., Jan. 2, 1893.

^ I ^

But Little Adulterated Honey
marketed.

Written for the American Bee JoumcH
BY J. M. JACOBS.

To speak plainly, I think there is but
very little adulterated honey on the
market. I have made one or two trips
every fall in Northern Iowa, Dakota
and Minnesota for the last nine years ;
have sold from 20,000 to 40,000
pounds of honey each year, and never
have I been able to supply all of my
customers ; and with three exceptions
never have I found any adulterated
honey, and the adulterated honey I
found was so inferior that I could not
see how any one could be deceived. Pure
extracted honey will granulate, and in
its granulating will settle to the bottom
of the can or jar, and that will expose
the fraud.

I went into a merchant's store to sell
some honey. He looked at my samples
and pronounced all honey-dealers as
frauds. I asked him his reasons, and
he said, "Come here, and look at this
stuff I have just received from some of
your honest bee-keepers !" I was shown
five cans of very fine granulated white
clover honey. I called for a dish, took

86

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

a common lamp, melted the granulation,
and handing him the liquidated honey,
I said, " What do you think of that ?"
He thought it very nice. I explained to
him, and he was happy.

It seems strange to us, but it is a fact
that people do not know that pure ex-
tracted honey will granulate, and that
alone is responsible, for the public gen-
erally are inclined to think because
honey granulates it must be adulterated.
I think we have nothing to fear from
that source. I could sell 200,000
pounds every fall, if I could get the
honey to sell. I never yet have been
able to get enough to supply my trade.
I am a bee-keeper, and sell pure honey.

Clinton Co., Iowa.

[We do not presume to say to just
what extent the adulteration of honey is
practiced, but we have it on pretty good
evidence that if it were fully known how
much it is done, it would cause our
friend Jacobs and others like him to
stand in utter amazement ! Murder is
not a general thing, and yet we believe
in preventing or prohibiting it entirely,
and must have good laws upon that sub-
ject. When we once get a law that we
can "screw down" on adulterators of
honey and other food products, a good
many will be surprised at what will re-
sult from the " squeeze." The Bee
Journal is ready to push on the
" lever " with a pretty heavy force. Just
give us a chance ! — Ed.]

Convention Notices.

CALIFORNIA.— The 2nd annual meeting ol
the California State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Chamber of Commerce in
Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 7th and 8th, 1892.
Programmes will soon be issued, for which
address, John H. Maktin, Sec.

Redlands, Calif.

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Fabnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bbk
Journal. Then please call upon ihem
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

Do not write anything for publication

on the same sheet of paper wltn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Heavy Colonies for Wintering.

I got my bees all into the cellar in
time to miss this cold spell. Their aver-
age net weight was 60 pounds per hivg
— the heaviest I have ever put into win-
ter quarters. Jas. A. Stone.

Bradfordton, Ills., Dec. 28, 1892.

Profitable Reading, Indeed.

I have followed instructions given in
the Bee Journal the past season, and
as a result, I have gained more than ten
times the cost of the Journal from 10
colonies of bees.

Horatio N. Scratch.

Kingsville, Ont., Dec. 30, 1892.

Bees Wintering Well.

I commenced last spring with 4 colo-
nies, and had 6 swarms, 2 of which
went off. I saved the other 4, which
are wintering well. I did not get much
honey, as the season was bad., and not
much bloom. I could not get along
without the Bee Journal and keep
bees. W. S. Meador.

True, W. Va., Dec. 31, 1892.

Experience of the Past Season.

I bought 2 colonies of bees last spring,
and transferred them to dovetailed hives
on May 6th. One stored 29 one-pound
sections of honey, which brought 15
cents per pound at home. The other
colony took the swarming fever and
swarmed four times ; two times they
went back into the old hive, and the
third time I hived them, but they came
out again, and flew about 50 feet,
then returned to the new hive. I now
have 3 strong colonies, with the hives
crammed full of capped honey.

Frank B. Aticins.

Hannibal, Mo., Dec. 26, 1892.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

87

Honey from Golden-Rod and Alsike.

, We had a very fine season in this part

of Michigan, especially for fall honey,
but few bees, as those that wintered bees
on the summer stands lost nearly all
last winter. I got 14 cents for my
honey in my home market — fall honey
and all — and could have sold double the
quantity. I never saw nicer fall honey ;
it was white and thick, and of good
flavor.

There is a great deal of golden-rod
here. I would like to have some of those
here, some fine day in the fall, that say
bees do not work on golden-rod. I could
show them thousands of them at work
on it. We have two species of it, and
the bees work well on both. I have
about five acres of Alsike clover, which
is a splendid honey-plant, and the honey
is of good quality. C. A. Wright.

Little Prairie Ronde, Mich., Dec. 29.

More than Paid their Expenses.

Bees did very poorly last season, but
In the eight years that I have kept bees
there has been no season but that they
have paid their expenses, and more. I
can't do without the American Bee
Journal as long as I keep bees.

Geo. Gale.

Adams, Nebr., Jan. 4, 1893.

Wintering' Very Nicely So Far.

I put 25 colonies into the cellar on
Nov. 12th, in fine condition, with plenty
of stores. They are wintering very
nicely so far. The past season was very
poor for honey. From 20 colonies,
spring count, I got only 500 pounds of
comb honey. I hope we may get better
crops in the future than we have had for
the past three seasons.

L. Chandler.

New London, Minn., Jan. 2, 1893.

Gathered Enough Honey for Winter.

The past was a poor year here, and
the bees barely gathered enough honey
for their food. I have 46 colonies in
good condition in winter quarters. They
are all in double chaff hives, and I hope
to bring them all through. From 40
colonies I only got 200 pounds of comb
honey, and 100 pounds of extracted,
and only 3 swarms. Numerous colonies
died from hunger in this neighborhood,
and many more will suffer from hunger
this winter. Albert Schumacher.

New Elsace, Ind., Dec. 27, 1892.

Has Kept Bees Over 50 Years.

I have been reading the American
Bee Journal for many years, and I am
not tired of it yet. I have kept bees
over 50 years, and the last 10 years T
have had from 150 to 250 colonies, but
I am nearly 73 years old, so I reduced
them to 120. I had over three tons of
honey the past season. My brother, J.
H. Byer, kept about the same number of
colonies. I am sorry to say that he took
sick Dec. 10th with inflammation of the
lungs, and died on the 19th ; his wife
took sick on the 18th, and died on the
20th. Both were buried in one grave
on the 21st. We used to help each other.

David Byer.

Markham, Ont., Dec. 26, 1892.

Bees in Good Condition.

I had a tolerably good fall flow of
honey ; I got about a ton of it. The
flow stopped quite suddenly, and left
quite a number of sections unfinished.
We have a fairly good market for it
here. I have 95 colonies, and they are
in better condition than they have been
for a number of years.

D. C. McLeod.

Pana, Ills.. Dec. 29, 1892.

Results of the Season.

Being sick last winter, and not able
to look after my bees, about one-half of
them died during the winter, and the
balance, except 3 colonies, died from
spring dwindling. My loss in all was
over 20 colonies. They all had an
abundance of honey. Two swarms came
to me, and went into empty hives. I
had 2 swarms from my own. One of
the stray swarms was very weak, and
became queenless, so I united it with
another. I have now 6 good colonies,
and all in good condition. I got about
150 pounds of comb honey.

Cedar Falls, Iowa, Dec. 30, 1892.

Experience with a Young Queen.

On June 17, 1892, I had a prime
swarm issue, and nine days later I cut
out all queen-cells but one, as I then
thought. On July 8th, or just 21 days
after the old queen had left the hive, I
examined them, expecting to find a
young laying queen, but to my surprise
I found nothing of the kind, and on
holding a frame in my hand, I heard the
piping of a young queen thereon, and

88

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

found between the bottom-bar and the
lower edge of the comb a ripe queen-
cell. I at once took a pen-knife and
opened the cell, and out came a nice
yellow queen, as lively as could be. She
ran over my hand, and in a few seconds
flew off, which was the last I saw of
her. Will some experienced bee-keeper
please explain how she remained in her
cell for 21 days?

John Sundermann.
Huntington, Ind., Dec. 31, 1892.

Fair Crop Realized, Etc.

The past season, in this part of the
bee-world, was not very encouraging to
bee-keepers. The producers of comb
honey realized almost a total failure,
while the one^ that produced the ex-
tracted article met with a little better
success. As I belonged to the latter
class, I realized a fair crop. I received
the first premium at the Great Inter-
State Fair held here, but the prize was
not very " scrumptious " — only $2.00. I
also exhibited the first bees at this Fair,
and the first beeswax. There was no
premium on either of these.

Joseph Ehket.

Trenton, N. J., Dec. 31, 1892.

Wintering- No More a Problem.

Seven years ago last fall I caught a
stray swarm, and kept them along for
about three years in the old-fashioned
way. I have 82 colonies in the cellar
now, well provided with good honey —
not honey-dew, as last winter. Winter-
ing is no more a problem to me.

The last was the poorest season we
have had here. Last spring I had about
40 colonies. I secured about 600
pounds of comb honey, and the bees
doubled in number of colonies. My
hives are all eight-frame but five. I
hope the next season will be better, but
I think it pays me, for it keeps me In
good health to attend to bees. The
stings seem to do me good — it is good for
my neuralgia. I shall be 75 years old
before bees swarm again.

A. F. Crosby.

Sheffield, Iowa, Dec. 30, 1892.

Xlie Honey Almanac for 1893
will be issued about Jan. 20th.

Great Premium on page 69 !

A Half-Dozen "Stray Straws."

350 million people talk Chinese ; 105,
English ; 100, Hindoo ; 80 Eussian ;
•45, German ; 38, French.

A correspondent asks what insurance
companies insure bees against fire, etc.
I don't know. Who does ?

British bee-keepers are to have in
London a competitive exhibition of the
honey intended for the World's Fair,
before it starts for this side the water.

For Dysentery, the Medical Brief says
one of the best remedies is two or three
eggs daily, beaten up lightly with or
without sugar. This for people, not for
bees.

"A nuclei" is something spoken of
quite too often. There is no such thing,
any more than there is " a women."
You may have a " nucleus ;" but if more
than one, then they are "nuclei."

A common error is to suppose that, in
setting a weak colony in place of a
strong one in order to strengthen it, it is
important that the change be made when
the largest number of bees are out.
There will be just as much gain if the
change is made at midnight. — Db. C. C.
Miller, in Gleanings.

Best Advice I Can Give Bee-Keepers.

Prevent waste. There is no occasion
for a well person in this country to be
poor. Waste in some form makes the
dififereuce between poverty and comfort.
Are any of your hive covers or bottom-
boards or feeders or other implements of
the apiary unnecessarily exposed to the
weather ? What becomes of your broken
comb and pieces of wax ? Do you allow
the moths to destroy your empty combs ?
If so, get your hand on the stop that
controls waste, and bear on. Get on it
with both feet, if necessary. It will im-
prove your circumstances.

Don't chase rainbows. You think you
are an inventor, but you are not. That

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

89

new hive or frame or other contrivance
you have been planning so long — drop it.
And be a little wary of other people's
inventions. Your indorsement is not
encessary to save a good thing from ob-
livion, and your money can't save a
bad one. Don't waste time waiting for
some promised invention that is to work
wonders. The chances are a thousand
to one that it won't come, and like odds
that if It comes it will prove worthless.

Don't get discouraged. Be neither
elated nor depressed. Don't give away
your bees nor don't destroy them. Crowd
them for all they are worth, but go slow
on increase. Add as few to the number
of your colonies as possible. Feel your
way till you know your ground and stick
close to your business. The horse with
the best staying qualities is the one to
bet on.

Strike while the iron is hot. In bee-
keeping work must be don^^ at the right
time. To do otherwise is to give success
away. If you will do everything at the
right time, your work will not crowd
you at any period. Get everything ready
this winter for the honey season and
swarming, and then keep up with your
work.

Finally, don't get excited about new
things or new ways. Follow present
plans until in your coolest moments you
decide a change to be the best. Let
others try novelties first. Exercise your
intelligence and keep your head level.
Sleep well at night, and keep wide
awake in the day time. — R. L. Taylok,
in Bee-Keeper's Review.

Bee-Keeping as a Specialty.

Bee-keeping as a specialty is all right
in exceptionally good localities ; but
there are but few localities in the United
States where it can be made a specialty.
In California, most of the bee-keepers
have some outside work or industry: the
fruit and bee business go well together ;
also, the raising of strawberries and
vegetables. For myself I have combined
the small fruit and nursery business,
with the bee business and find they go
admirably together.

Bee-keeping is not worked here (Cali-
fornia), as it was a few years ago ; it
has kind of quietfed down, in one sense.
That is a good thing, for it will princi-
pally be conducted in the future by those
most eminently qualified to run such a
business. Bee-keeping will pay as well
as any other rural occupation if rightly
followed. No farmer at first depends
entirely upon one variety of grain, or
fruit, as his sole occupation, and there-

fore bee-keeping must follow suit. I am
heartily glad that I commenced bee-
keeping ; glad that my vision has been
opened to a higher, greater, grander
range of thought concerning God's works.
Bee-keeping is an ennobling and elevat-
ing occupation. I have met with more
reverses than generally falls to the lot
of the average bee-keeper ; the whole
trouble was caused by investing too
heavily in bees and implements in a very
poor location. I am afraid I was too
ambitious and overdid the matter ; still,
I now see that I have greatly gained in
bee-culture and everything else by these
early reverses.

I now have a splendid location and
have done well the past season ; but I
have learned one thing, and learned it
well — if bees do not pay for their care
and attention in surplus honey that
you must bestow on them, that is, enough
to pay for sections, crates, foundation,
cans, etc., and earn you a small per
cent., you had better not invest a cent in
supplies until they do. Make your bees
pay for everything needed in the apiary,
and you will be all right. — S. L. Wat-
kins, in American Apiculturist.

Floating Bee-Houses on the Nile.

In Lower Egypt, where the flower
harvest is not so early by several weeks
as in the upper districts of that country,
the practice of transportation is carried
on to a considerable extent. About the
end of October the hives, after being
collected together from different villages
and conveyed up the Nile, marked and
numbered by the individuals to whom
they belong, are heaped pyramidically
upon the boats prepared to receive them,
which, floating gradually down the river
and stopping at certain stages of their
passage, remain there a longer or shorter
time, according to the produce which is
offered by the surrounding country.

After traveling three months in this
manner, the bees, having culled the per-
fume of the orange flowers of the Said,
the essence of roses of the Faicum, the
treasures of the Arabian jessamine, and
a variety of flowers, are brought back
about the beginning of February to the
places from which they have been
carried.

The productiveness of the flowers at
each respective stage is ascertained by
the gradual descent of the boats in the
water, and which is probably noted by
a scale of measurement. This industry
produces for the Egyptians delicious
honey and abundance of wax. — B. B. J.

90

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

^^^^^la^^,.^

*\.

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

JLt One Dollar a Year,
199 RANDOLPH ST.. CHICAGO, ILLS.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Tb.e> Bee Journal is sent to subscribers
until an order is received by the publishers for
its discontinuance, and all arrearages are paid.

A Sample Copy of the Bee JoubnAL will
be sent FREE upon application.

Nofv to Send Jlfoney.— Remit by Express,
Post-Ofiace Money Order, or Bank Draft on New
York or Chicago. If none of these can be had,
Eegister your Letter, affixing Stamps both for

Sostage and registry, and take a receipt for it.
[oney sent thus, IS AT OUR RISK; otherwise
it is not. Do not send Checks on Local Banks—
we have to pay 25 cents each, to get them cashed.

Never Send Silver in letters. It will

wear boles in the envelope, or may be stolen.
IMalie all Money Orders Payable at

Chicago, 111.— not at any sub-station of Chicago.
r»ostag-© Stamps of any denomination may

be sent for any fraction of a dollar; or where

Money Orders cannot be obtained, stamps for

any amount may be sent.
Subscription Credits.— The receipt for

money sent us will be given on the address-label

of every paper. The subscription is paid to the

END OF THE MONTH indicated.

(:>o not Write anything- for publication on
the same sheet of paper with business matters,
unless it can be torn apart without interfering
with either part of the letter.

Emerson Binders, made especially for
the American Bee Jouknal, are convenient
for preserving each weekly Number, as fast as
received. They will be sent, post-paid, for 50 cts.
each. They cannot be sent by mail to Canada.

Cost Numbers.— We carefully mall the
Bee Journal to every subscriber, but should
any be lost in the mails, we will replace them Lf
notified before all the edition is exhausted.

Always State the Post-Offlce to which
your paper is addressed, when writing to us.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffleld, Portage co, Ohio

Honey & Beeswax Market ((uotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
January 14th, 1892 :

CHICAGO, III.— There are occasional sales
of best grades of comb honey, but the retail-
ers are not yet sold out on supply laid in
before the holidays. Prices are a little easier,
especially on that which will not grade " fan-
cy"—such brings 17@18c., and other grades
12@16c. Extracted, 6@9c., as to quality.

Beeswax— 22@25c. R. A. B. & Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8% ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers, for extracted honey, was slow for
the last few weeks, while there was, and is
still, a fair demand from consumers for family
use. There is no choice comb honey in the
market. Best white comb brings 14@16c.
Extracted honey brings 6@8c.

Beeswax— Demand fair, at 23®25c. for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. T.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote; Bass wood and
white clover, 8@854c. ; buckwheat, 6@6^c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25®27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Comb honey is selling
slow, very much slower than we like to have
it, and it is our experience that when we start
honey in at a high price, it sells hard right
through the season. We quote our market
nominally at 17@18c. for best white honey,
1-lb. combs. Extracted, 8@9c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supt
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B

ly

MINNE APO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16®17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9@10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber l-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7^c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C.-M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our honey market is slow
on account of cold weather, but our stock was
never so liglit as now. We have less than 50
cases of honey on hand, and only one barrel
of extracted; when usually we have 1.000
cases in stock. For honey not granulated in
comb,wequote: Wlute(small),15@18c.; mixed
13@14c. ; dark, 10®Ilc. Large comb and
double glass sell for 1 to 2c. less per lb. Ex-
tracted, white, 8^@9c.; amber. 7^®8c.; buck-
wheat, 7®7»4c. H. R. W.

lll|lPHIttllMlWIM

GEOBGE W. YOBK, I
Editor. f

Devoted Exclusively-

-To Bee-Culture.

j Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
I Sample Free .

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JANUARY 26, 1893.

NO. 4.

Mr. E. Kretclinier, of Red Oak,
Iowa, has been appointed to take charge
of the World's Fair apiary exhibit from
the State of Iowa. For the exhibit in
the Iowa building it is desired to pur-
chase some choice white comb honey,
and he would like to hear from any Iowa
bee-keeper that has such ; or any Iowa
bee-keeper that desires to place choice
specimens into the Iowa exhibit, may, if
he desires, place his name thereon, as an
advertising medium. Mr. K. would like
to get the name and address of every
bee-keeper in the State, to whom a cir-
cular, giving further information, will
be mailed. Let Iowa bee-keepers re-
spond promptly.

Xhie California State Bee-Keep-
ers' Association meets at the Chamber
of Commerce, in Los Angeles, on Tues-
day and Wednesday, Feb. 7th and 8th,
1893. The following is the interesting
list of subjects to be considered :

Can We Develop New and Better
Methods for the Sale of Our Honey — J.
H. Martin.

Bees i;s. Fruit — R. Touchton.

Chemical Composition of Honey and
its Adulteration with Glucose and Cane
Sugar — Geo. W. Brodbeck.

Reminiscences of California Bee-Keep-
ing — R. Wilkin.

How Shall We Make Our Short Honey
Seasons Profitable? — M. D. Mendleson.

Economy in Bee-Keeping — T. F. Arun-
dell.

The evening session of the first day
will close with a general social buzz, in-
cluding vocal and instrumental music.

Birds and Insects that are Injurious
to Bees and Fruit. — H. E. Wilder.

Rise and Progress of California Bee-
Keeping, and the Aid it Should Receive
from the State University — W. A. Pryal.

Honey-Plants of Southern California —
L. T. Rowley.

San Francisco Honey-Markets — Wm.
Styan.

The railroads will make their usual
reduction, and all wishing to avail them-
selves of lower rates should address the
Secretary at once for rebate certificates.

Redlands, Calif. J. H. Maetin, Sec.

Hon. Geo. £. Hilton, who is

one" of Michigan's State representatives,
wrote us on Jan. 13, 1893, that the
Rules were suspended the day before,
and a Bill passed granting an additional
$50,000 for the purpose of making a
creditable exhibit at the World's Colum-
bian Exposition. The Bill takes im-
mediate effect. Agricultural exhibits
get $17,000 of this, and the bee-keep-
ing department expects $1,000, which
will enable them to make a creditable dis-
play. Mr. Hilton, we are glad to learn,
has been appointed chairman of the
important committee on "Roads and
Bridges." Good for Michigan !

104

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

R. A. Burnett & Co., is the new

firm name explained in the following
letter :

Fkiend York:— I take pleasure in
informing you that on the below date I
took into partnership two faithful em-
ployes, who thereby become the company
of R. A. Burnett & Co., which shall,
until farther notice, be the style of the
firm.

Asking for a continuance to the firm
of the favors you have shown me during
the past 17 years, I am,

Very truly yours,

E,. A. Burnett.

Chicago, Ills., Jan. 3, 1893.

As heretofore, the above firm will con-
tinue to deal in all kinds of farm pro-
duce, including honey and beeswax.
They are represented in our market
quotations on another page.

Freight Rates on Honey.—

Our friend, and also the great friend of
all honest honey-producers, Mr. Chas. F.
Muth, of Cincinnati, O., writes us as
follows on the subject of freight rates
on extracted honey :

Friend York : — The very exhorbitant
freight rates on honey have been a seri-
ous stumbling-block to dealers and bee-
keepers. It was a source of general
dissatisfaction that freight on extracted
honey should be from 40 to 50 per cent,
higher than on molasses or syrup, the
consistency, weight, nature of packages
and value being about the same. We
have written many letters to freight
agents, the Inter-State Commerce Com-
mission, and others, but the only result
obtained was that Gen. McLeod, freight
agent of the C. H. & D. R. R., told us to
ship our honey as "syrup," and they
would rate it as "syrup." The C. H. &
D. did it, but other roads did not; and
one time when the Big 4 railroad had
spilled a barrel of honey for us, and we
made our claim for damages, the agent
told us that our claim was not valid,
having shipped the honey under a wrong
name, etc.

Since the Ohio State Bee-Keepers'
meeting of a year ago, I have endeavored
to Interest, for our benefit, the Commis-
sioner of the Freight Bureau of our
Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Wilson is a
prompt man, and he informed me on
Dec. 14, 1892, that the classification
has been made, and that the new issue

will be promulgated without delay. So
honey will hereafter be rated the same
as syrup. This is good news, and well
for our bee-keepers to know.

Yours truly,

Chas. F. Muth.

Friend Muth has thus added another
"star" for the "crown of honor" which
he has won in working for the interest
of bee-keepers. Finally, through his
efforts, justice in the rating of extracted
honey, when shipping the same, has
been obtained. There never was any
reasonable reason why such honey
should be classed higher by railroad
companies than was syrup. We are
indeed glad to publish Friend Muth's
success in thus securing for producers of
liquid honey what they long have de-
sire 1. We doubt not that bee-keepers
will be very grateful for this knowledge,
and the saving to them in freight charges
that will now result therefrom.

Bee - Supply Dealers

should
now begin their advertising for the sea-
son—let would-be customers know ivhere
you are, and ivhat you have for sale.
Write us for estimates, or consult our
advertising rates published on the sec-
ond page of each copy of the Bee Jour-
nal.

One of our best advertisers has just
said that this is "the only independent
bee-paper in the United States "—we
presume because it is nut interested in
the sale of bee-keepers' supplies. Try
an advertisement in it now, if you have
never used its columns before. Those
who have advertised in the Bee Jour-
nal know its value without trying—
they keep an advertisement running the
greater part of the year, if not all the
time.

The Ninth Annual lUeeting:

of the Wisconsin State Bee-Keepers'
Association will be held at the Capitol,
at Madison, on Feb. 8th and 9th, 1893.
C. A. Hatch, of Ithaca, is President ; H.
Lathrop, of Browntown, Recording Sec-
retary ; and Dr. J. W. Vance, of Madi-
son, Corresponding Secretary.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

105

DR. €. C. :raiL.L.ER.

We are glad to have the opportunity
this week to give to our readers the

from getting to this interesting story of
his life (vs^hich is so kindly furnished by
his sister-in-law, Miss Wilson, who is a
member of the Doctor's family), we here
present it :

Dr. C. C. Miller was born June 10,
1831, at Ligonier, a small village in
Western Pennsylvania. At the age of
12 he commenced work in a little coun-
try store at Laughlinstown, three miles
from home. He worked there two years,
getting $24 for the first year, and $50
for the second, his washing being^done
at home. •**«!<"'

From there he went into the office of
the principal physician of Ligonier,

DR. C. C. MILLER.

picture and biographical sketch of one
whose practical and entertaining writ-
ings are so well-known to bee-keepers
all over the world. The more we have
come to know Dr. Miller and his life,
the more we have loved him.

At the recent convention of the North
American Bee-Keepers' Association he
was elected for the second time as its
President, having served in that honored
position in 1886-87.

Not desiring to keep the reader longer

nominally to study medicine, but really
as an office boy. After being there for
some time, the big words in the medical
books he was reading made him decide
he needed a better education, and he
was allowed to go to school part of the
time, working the rest of the time in the
office. But this did not satisfy him, and
he made up his mind that for a time he
must give up the study of medicine,
much against the physician's wishes,
who told him he never would amount to
anything if be was so changeable. He
hated to lose his office boy. But he did
lose him, for with his usual push the

106

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

young man worked his way through
school and college, graduating at Union
College, Schenectady, N. Y., at the age
of 22. He commenced his junior year
with a little more than $26, and grad-
uated with some $70 surplus, after pay-
ing all expenses. His fear of debt made
him take every opportunity that pre-
sented itself for earning money,by orna-
mental penmanship, teaching classes in
mathematics and singing, working in
cornfield or garden at 7>^ cents an hour,
and other ways. In spite of time taken
up in this way, he kept the highest
standing attainable in his class.

I have before me his old account book,
where all accounts of college days were
carefully kept, and have been looking it
over with no small interest. I have just
run over accounts for five weeks, and
find that it cost him precisely 323^ cents
per week to live. At other times he was
more extravagant, as at one place I
found the cost 60 cents per week ! He
boarded himself and did the cooking. In
fact, he took boarders, as he boarded his
chum for some time at 50 cents per
week, though he tells me that his
boarder rebelled at one time when he
had beef suet in place of butter.

Rice and wheat seemed to have be«n
the chief articles of diet, and the Doctor
assures me that a half bushel of wheat
boiled goes a long ways. However, I
don't believe he would advise others to
follow his example, as he paid for it
afterward with poor health.

As soon as he graduated at Union, he
commenced the study of medicine in
earnest at Johnstown, Pa., graduating
at the University -of Michigan, in Ann
Arbor, at the age of 25. He settled
down to practice, but was compelled to
give up at the end of a year on account
of poor health. Teaching school and
music occupied his time for some years.
For two or three years he worked for
Messrs. Root & Cady, at that time the
leading music house of the West. After-
ward, for the Mason & Hamlin Organ
Co., at Chicago. The well-known com-
poser. Dr. Geo. F. Root, availed himself
of no little of his services, especially
when writing his chief work, "The
Musical Curriculum." For several years
he wrote for the "Song Messenger,"
over the nondepluvie of "P.Benson,
Sr." — "whitch theSr. itstans for singer."

Dr. Miller also spent about a year as
official agent in getting up the first Cin-
cinnati Musical Festival, under Theodore
Thomas, in 1878.

In 1876 he turned his back on a sal-
ary of .'iJ;L',500 a year and all expenses
paid, to accept a position as principal

of the Marengo public school at a salary
of $1,200 a year, paying his own ex-
penses. This he did that he might have
more time with his bees, and gradually
work into bee-keeping as his sole busi-
ness.

He began bee-keeping in 1861, with
a runaway swarm caught by his wife,
which was hived in a sugar-barrel. In
the fall of 1871 there were 50 colonies
placed in the cellar, most of them weak,
as he had increased too rapidly. By the
first of April there were only 2 colonies
left. During all these years up to 1876,
he was away from home most of the
time, consequently bee-keeping was
rather uphill business.

In 1876, when he came home to live
with his bees for good, he had 34 colo-
nies. In 1878 he gave up all other
business, commencing the season with
154 colonies, a little more than 400
being the largest number ever reached.
Of late he prefers to keep a smaller
number of colonies, as much of his time
is spent in study, writing, and Sunday-
school work.

So many bee-periodicals are published
now, that it takes no little time to go
through them, especially as a number
from France and Germany are included.

For a number of years he has been
the chief working officer of the County
Sunday School Association, and for two
years past President of the 2nd State
District, including six counties. This
involves a large amount of correspon-
dence and attendance at conventions in
each county. Aside from the four regu-
lar church services which he attends on
Sunday, he conducts on that day a nor-
mal training class, made up from the
different churches of Marengo, when not
absent attending township conventions.
In fact, he is a very busy man.

As a writer, he is extremely careful
not to overstate the facts plain and
practical. But, of his qualifications as
a writer, I need say but little, as doubt-
less many of the readers of the Ameri-
can Bee Journal are familiar with his
" A Year Among the Bees," and fre-
quent contributions to the bee-papers.

Dr. Miller's musical ability, and his
grand voice are among the things he
ought to thank God for, and I believe
he does, for much of that voice is given
to the glory of God. At different times
he has gone as singing evangelist, and
were he able to be away from home,
more of his time would be spent in that
way.

Of Dr. Miller's home life much might
be written. I will simply say lie is an
earnest Christian, carrying his religion

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

lOT

into his every day life. His jovial,
happy manner at conventions is his
everyday manner at home. Full of fun
himself, he is quick to see the comical
side, as his P. Benson writings show.
He will always find someting of the
humorous in the most doleful situations,
and a joke is none the less enjoyed be-
cause it is on himself.

His ability, and willingness to help,
lays much work upon his shoulders, both
from our Christian Endeavor Society
and the church, for I know that our
pastor depends upon him greatly.

He is passionately fond of flowers, and
roses are his hobby, of which he has
some 300 plants. Emma Wilson.

Albino Bees.— Among the en-
quiries we have had about these bees, is
the following from Mr. E. B. Ellis, of
Cooksville, Ills. :

Will you please give, in the American
Bee Journal, a description of the
Albino bees ?

1. From whence did they come, and
when were they introduced ?

2. What are their markings, and in
what colors ?

3. What are their good qualities, and
what their bad ones ? E. B. Ellis.

Mr. A. L. Kildow, who has reared the
Albino bees, replies to the above ques-
tions thus :

1. It is claimed that they originated
in the apiary of D. A. Pike, of Mary-
land, in the fall of 1873. A queen was
reared from a colony of Italian bees,
and allowed to remain with that colony
until the next spring, when it was found
that one-half of her working progeny
was mildly marked Italian bees ; the
other half having white rings or bands.
As soon as this was discovered, the
breeding out was begun, using the
greatest care to get them pure. They
were removed to a place where they
were not likely to come in contact with
other bees, and were kept there until
they reproduced themselves with all
their distinctive markings ; hence the
name "Albino" was given.

2. As to their markings, the difference
between them and the pure Italian is
very striking. About the eyes they ap-
proach nearer a purple than that of the
Italians. Beginning at the waist, they
have three distinct yellow bands, then
three distinct white ; the white are pure,
not muddy and dirty; the wings are

fine, and of a bright silver color. Their
shoulders and the under part of the ob-
domen are very thickly coated with
white hair. The queens are large, and
of a bright reddish yellow, and gen-
erally have the white hair, as described
in the workers.

3. They are more gentle than the
average Italian, and stick closer to the
comb, thus making them easier to
handle. They are good defenders of
their home, have no superiors in honey-
gathering, and are as hardy as the race
from which they sprang. The queens
are very prolific. As yet I have found nf«
bad qualities in the Albino bees.

A. L. Kildow.

'* Soutlierii California " is the

title of a handsome, illustrated pam-
phlet, giving an account of the resources
and interests of that unique section, has
been received at this office. It contains
some fine work in the way of half-tone
engravings, and an excellent map of the
section. Any one who is interested in
the land of honey, oranges, and olives,
and desires a copy of this book, can
secure one by writing to the Secretary
of the Bureau of Information, Los An-
geles, Calif., and enclosing a two-cent
postage stamp. The book treats of such
subjects as the following : The Semi-
Tropic Climate, Methods of Irrigation,
Growing of the Orange and Lemon,
California Prunes and Olives, the Eng-
lish Walnut, and the Almond, Stock-
Raising in California, Beet-Sugar Man-
ufacture, Honey-Production, Etc. It
cannot fail to interest all who have ever
visited California, or who expect at any
time to journey to that interesting
country.

"Xhe "Winter Problem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. E. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Journal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
$1.30. Send to us for a copy.

108

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

Bro. Alley ^Wants TVar, and

no " sham fighting " will suit him either.
He wants some one to drop a " big
bomb" "right down among the bee-
keepers !" He thinks bee-keepers are
"getting sleepy." May be they are
"hibernating," like some other animals
do at this time of the year. Just read
the following from the December ^piciii-
turist, and see what a wide-awake
" young man " Bro. Alley is :

Bee-keepers are getting sleepy. Can't
some one of the readers of the Apicul-
turist write an article that will awake
them? Who will try it? What is
wanted is a big bomb dropped right
down among the bee-keepers ; so charged
that when it explodes, the noise will be
heard as far west as California, and with
force enough in the east, to break win-
dow glass in Nova Scotia.

If something isn't done pretty soon,
the bee-keeping community will not
arouse in season to reap the honey har-
vest of 1893.

We have had the Punic bee question ;
the Ajnculturist has sent out a warning
note ; yet bee-keepers sleep right along
as though nothing has happened. Who
will fire the first gnn ?

Now we, here in the West, don't want
to be shaken up. Why, many of the
folks haven't got settled yet from the
election shock — almost "electric shock."
We can't see the use in stirring up folks
all the time.

We had taken quite a fancy to Bro.
Alley, but if he is going to " fire guns "
through his Apiculturist, he needn't aim
them at folks out this way. We are a
peaceable people, and don't care to be
frightened out of what few wits we have
left. We need them ; and if any one is
going to " drop bombs " or " fire guns "
we just want to know it awhile before-
hand, so as to have time to get out of
the way.

In 1886, Chicago had a few people
that advised, and actually did take to
throwing, " bombs " to gain their "end."
They got their "end" — but it was at
the dangling extremity of a rope. Of
course, Bro. Alley means " literary
bombs," that would be no more harmful
tlian any average "spit-ball" that little

boys used to throw at the smaller girls
in school. Bro. A. wouldn't hurt any
one, but he does know how to handle
the English language " without gloves"
— and, we hope, without " smoke."

Here are a few seasonable Api-
thoughts which are also taken from the
December issue :

Now that bees are in winter quarters,
let them remain so until they commence
to carry pollen freely in the spring. It
will make little difference what the
trouble is with bees in winter, nothing
will be gained by overhauling the combs
before the colony is fairly wintered
through.

The bees should have several cleans-
ing flights before they are meddled with
for any purpose in the spring.

CONDUCTED BY

TNSLirm. Je]^iii@ MteMey,

Greenville. Texas.

Ajt^

I

I Laying "Workers — The Queen's Will
j and the Sex of the Egg.

Dr. Miller, on page 51, rather takes
me to task, and says that tradition says
that laying workers are never present
until after the colony is hopelessly
queenless. Now, Doctor, when tradition
or theory is proven wrong, I am willing
to lay them aside forever. So in hun-
dreds of instances I have had laying
workers present before the brood was all
sealed, after the queen was removed,
and years ago when I kept Cyprian bees
I have had every available queen-cell
stub, and some drone-cells, chocked as
full of laying- worker eggs as a guinea's
nest, in 48 hours after the queen was
removed.

Now, Doctor, I do not wish to ever
make a statement in regard to a matter
like this, until I am perfectly satisfied
that I am right. So lay down tradition,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

109

and go to sleep on this matter, as far as
I am concerned.

I will admit, that in the majority of
cases, laying workers are not present
until all hopes of rearing a queen is
past. While lots of good old traditions
are true and correct, I will agree with
Dr. Miller that traditions are not the
most reliable things in the world. Such
as making a witch mad would cause the
cows to give bloody milk ; and we must
put a horse's shoe in the milk and take
it to the supposed witch, by moonshine,
to get the witchcraft cured, etc.

Now, right here, in this same article
of Dr. Miller's, I feel almost forced to
relate some experiments about the sex
of the egg, etc., that I was not ready to
tell, as I have many experiments under
way whose results I wish to relate after
awhile. While my examinations under
the power of a glass (that makes anickle
look almost as big as wagon-wheel) do
not quite agree with Dr. Miller's in re-
gard to the location of the spermatheca,
and that the eggs pass from the ovaries
through the oviduct in such a manner as
to be impregnated, etc., I see nothing in
this for us to disagree upon. But, to
relate my experience that I speak of is
this:

I wish to banish the tradition of me-
chanical pressure being the means of
the sex-changing of the eggs, just like I
did the laying worker theory. Now,
listen. When this was being discussed a
good while ago, I took a gentle old queen
that was so full of eggs that she could
hardly get her breath, or at least it
seemed a misery to her.

Well, I let this queen lay about two
dozen eggs on my hand, and I removed
them to the combs of aqueenless colony,
put some in drone-cells, some in worker-
cells, and some in queen-cells ; and
every egg that I got to grow, or that the
bees did not destroy, produced worker-
bees. Out of the first trial T got three
or four workers in drone-cells, and twice
as many in worker-cells, and none in the
queen-cells. I have tried ten since, and
I never have succeeded in getting a
queen to lay any but worker-eggs in my
hand, or in the cage. I have tried this
business until I must say that mechani-
cal pressure may lie down and go to
sleep, as far as I am concerned.

Now, I have often thought if bees can
change the sex of an egg, why did they
not make drone-bees out of the eggs I
put into drone-cells ? Or did the little
things "catch on " to my trick, and fool
me, as I know queenless colonies love to
rear drones as well as queens ?

If I were able, I would quit work one

year and go on to an island (18 miles
out in the sea) one mile wide and about
twenty long, that I know of, and experi-
ment with drones from laying-workers,
and drones from virgin queens, and
those from a queen (Italian) mated to a
black drone ; and drones from a queen
(black) that had mated with an Italian
drone, and a whole lot of other experi-
ments too numerous to mention. Take
them clear beyond dispute of flight,
range, etc. I have thought of trying to
get help from the Government, or other-
wise, for I would just like to settle these
points, so they can be answered with a
"yes" or "no." But if I quit my regu-
lar work it might not be long until soul
and body might be holding a conference
as to how long they should stay together;
that is why I cannot carry out my ex-
periments.

Now, Doctor, to close this article,
please permit me to relate a bit of the-
ory, that two Irishmen were said to try
to put into practice. They were said to
have gone up on the side-hill above a
river to cut some rail-timber, and they
felled their trees in such a manner that
as soon as they cut oflf a log it would
roll down into the river and be lost.
Moikey says to Pat, after becoming
tired of the state of things, " I have
caught on to a plan to stop the logs."
" Well, Moikey, what is it ?"
" Faith, and I will get me a rope, Pat,
and toy around me body, while you, Pat,
cut the log off."

"All right," says Pat, "Good."
And Pat cut it off, and the log started,
and Moikey, not being able to hold it —
away went the log with poor Moikey ;
and as he went rolling into the river,
Pat hollowed out, " Hold on Moikey,
you are on top half of the toime !"

Now, Doctor, don't think I have com-
pared you to Moikey, but far from it.
I thought of this joke, and could not
withhold it. So you see this was theory
that did not work in practice.

Now, I am glad to know that I am in
the same boat with as safe a person as
Prof. Cook, and while we iire out at sea
together, I feel he won't let me drown.

And I had confidence in Dr. Miller,
to feel safe in his boat, when he and I
go out to sea together, until I saw the
way he was willing to have Bro. Root
"butchered," and himself escape. Now,
Prof. Cook, don't you think that Dr.
Miller is getting dangerous, anyhow ?

Well, I guess Prof. Cook and I will
have to acknowledge that Dr. Miller is a
head of us at least half of the time.

J. A.

110

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAl-

Sfumber of Colonie§ for Comb
aud Extracted Honey.

Query 855.— If 75 colonies is the rigiit
number for my range when run for extracted
honey, how many should I keep if 1 work
them for comb honey ?— Nebraska.

100. — James A. Green.
Not many more. — M. Mahin.
75 to 100. — J. H. Larkabee.
80 to 90.— Mrs. L. Harrison.
The same (75) — Jas. A. Stone.
75. Why not ? — G. M. Doolittle.
About 100 colonies.— H. D. Cutting.
110 to 125 colonies. — James Heddon.

I would make no difference. — P. H.
Elwood.

We cannot see any difference. — Da-
DANT & Son.

The same number, if you wish to. —
Eugene Secok.

I am not sure, but I will venture to
say 85 or 90. — J. M. Hambaugh.

I don't think it would make any differ-
ence about the number of bees. — E.
France.

From 100 to 150 — or as many more
as yoxi can well take care of. — Will M.
Barnum.

If for the former you have combs, and
for the latter foundation, I should guess
you might keep 100 or 110. — R. L.
Taylor.

Theory says 25 per cent, more, but
here in Nebraska we are more sure of
such matters after making a test of it.
— Mrs. J. N. Heater.

I see no reason why there should be
any difference. But I cannot find room
here to discuss a matter of so much
breadth. — G. W. Demaree.

I don't see any reason why more or
less than this number should be kept.
That is to say, I don't think it makes
any difference whether extracted or
comb honey surplus is being worked for.
—J. E. Pond.

I do not think it makes much differ-
ence whether run for comb or extracted
honey. My theory is that the bees will
gather about the same, the difference in
yield being consumed in comb building.

— C. H. DiBBERN.

I can only state my belief in answer to
this query, and that is that I think that
75 colonies run for comb honey would
be capable of carrying in just as much
nectar as the same number of colonies
run for extracted honey. — G. L. Tinker.

I don't think any one can tell what is
the right number for his range, as the
whole thing is controlled by the season.
In some seasons one colony might be
too many — and in another season 100
might not be too many. — J. P. H. Brown.

You've struck new ground, but be-
tween you and me, I don't know. I'll
only venture this much, that if each
colony stores 50 per cent, more ex-
tracted than comb, you will not need
50 per cent, more pasture for extracted.
— 0. C. Miller.

The point is to keep as many as will
secure the best returns. This considers
convenience or nearness, and amount of
honey. If 75 is the number for ex-
tracted, I think it is for comb. I see no
reason for a difference. The honey to
build comb is still honey. — A. J. Cook.

Try them with the same number. You
might guess some year that you could
run a greater number for comb than for
extracted, but unless there is more uni-
formity of seasons in your locality than
there has been in mine, you will have to
guess anew every season. — S. I. Free-
born.

I think the number of colonies should
be about the same, while you would not
get as many pounds of comb honey, but
the bees would need about the same
range, as they would use more honey in
comb building. Possibly you might
profitably work 100 for comb honey on
the same range you worked the 75, but
there is nothing certain about this un-
less you are on an island, as bees may go
farther some seasons than others. — Mrs.
Jennie Atchley.

Great Premium on page 101 1

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Ill

Report of the JVortli American
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BT W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

(Continued from page 79.)
Dr. C. C. Miller, of Marengo, Ills.,
was down on the programme for an
essay on " The Grading of Honey." He
wrote the Secretary that he had nothing
better to offer than the article that he
contributed to Oleanings last June ; and
he asked the Secretary to read the arti-
cle, which appears on page 454 of
Gleanings for June 15th. It reads as
follows :

The Grading of Honey.

Although exceedingly anxious that
before the convention at Washington,
some system of grading should be offered
that would be so nearly acceptable to all
as to meet general acceptance, yet I
shrink from any attempt at formulating
such a system. The plain truth is, I
don't feel that I know enough for such a
task. Yet I have made the attempt to
do as requested.

I cannot apologize for the system I
offer by saying it is hastily thrown to-
gether. It is nothing of the kind. It
has been the subject of much care, and
the hardest thought I am capable of
giving. There is nothing original about
it except the string that ties it together.
It is a mosaic, made up from all the
systems that have been offered, modified
somewhat by the discussions I have
heard and read. If freely criticised in
the right spirit, it is possible that some-
thing may be made out of it that shall
be satisfactory, even if it be so modified
as a result of the criticism that nothing
of the original draft can be recognized.
But here is the system, having four
grades, depending on appearance or
condition independent of the source of
honey, and four classes of honey :

Fancy.— Combs straight, white, well filled,
firmly fastened to wood on all four sides ; all
cells sealed ; no pollen, propolis, nor travel-
stain.

No. 1.— Wood well scraped, or entirely free
from propolis ; one side of the section sealed
with white cappings, free from pollen, and
having all cells sealed except the line of cells
next to the wood ; the other side white, or
but slightly discolored, with not more than
two cells of pollen, and not more than ten
cells unsealed beside the line of cells touch-
ing the wood ; comb fastened to the wood on
four sides.

No. 2.— Three-fourths of the total surface
must be filled and sealed ; wood well scraped
of propolis.

No. 3.— Must weigh at least half as much as
a full-weight section.

There are the four grades.

For the classes of honey, I would suggest
the four already in use, sufficiently under-
stood from the names alone ; namely, light,
amber, dark, mixed.

Y®u will see that there is nothing new
in any of this. It is hardly probable
that it will entirely suit any one. It
does not suit me. I have not tried to
give what would suit any one man, or
set of men. I have merely made an
attempt to come as nearly as I could to
what all might agree upon, each one
making some concession for the general
good. If some one has something better
as a basis to start with, I shall be not
only willing, but glad to see this thrown
aside and the better taken in its place.
But something must be taken as a basis.
It will not do for each one to offer the
system that exactly suits him. We'll not
get on very fast in that way.

If no better basis is offered than the
one I have given, then let each one look
it over and see, not what changes must
be made to make the plan entirely ac-
ceptable, but, rather, let him see what
is the least change necessary to make
him willing to agree to the system, tak-
ing into account what others, as well as
himself, may desire.

I see I have made the impression that
W. C. Frazier's system suits me better
than all the rest. That is hardly true,
as will be seen from the system I have
attempted ; but I like his idea of having
a system of grading which does not in-
volve the honey itself, leaving that as a
separate classification. Others had the
same idea, but did not bring it out so
clearly, or, at least, it did not strike me
so.

The names of the grades are simple.
They are easily understood, both by the
producer and consumer. And I don't
know why the consumer shouldn't fully
understand just what they mean. There
will never be a great overstock, I fancy,
of honey classed as fancy. Perhaps it is
drawing the lines rather tightly to say,
" All cells sealed." Possibly a certain
number of cells next the wood ought to
be allowed unsealed. I think very few
have been in the habit of sorting out

112

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

their best honey into this grade ; but the
man who puts several tons on a large
market could select a number of crates
for which an extra price could be ob-
tained, and that without lowering the
price of his No. 1 honey.

The No. 1 contains the bulk of a good
bee-keeper's crop, and on that account
it is the most important of all. The only
bee-keeper with whom I have had a
chance to talk the matter over, objects
to my putting down " ten cells " as the
limit allowed unsealed on the poorer side
of a No. 1 section. But it seems to me
that, so far as possible, everything
should be very exact. If such a phrase
as "only a few cells" should be used,
then some would understand that to
mean three, and some fifty. If ten isn't
the right number, then make it five,
twenty, or whatever is thought best ;
but don't leave it indefinite. The term
" slightly discolored" is indefinite, and
on that account objectionable, but I
don't see how to better it easily.

In No. 2, not more than one-fourth of
the total surface must be left unfilled
and unsealed. Possibly it is not neces-
sary to say three-fourths of the surface
must be filled and sealed, for it will
hardly be sealed without being filled.
As to the remaining fourth, it may be
filled and not sealed, or there may be
empty comb or entire vacancy to the
amount of one-fourth of the section. Of
course, the unsealed part might be on
one or both sides. That is, one side
might be all filled and sealed, and the
other side half sealed, or each side might
be three-fourths sealed, or one side may
have anywhere from the half to the
whole of it sealed, only so that there
shall be enough sealed on the other side
so that the sealing on both sides taken
together shall be as much as three-
fourths of the total surface of both sides
added together.

The difficulty of adopting a system of
grading that shall be satisfactory to all
is greater than at first anticipated, so
that I do not wonder that some have
little faith that any one system can be
agreed upon. I think that all agree
that the ground of the difficulty lies in
the fact that different localities produce
different kinds of honey, and each local-
ity wants a system of grading that shall
show no discredit upon the honey pro-
duced in that locality.

If I am rightly informed, the York
State men have no difficulty in agreeing
upon a system that suits them ; so can
the California men ; so can the Missis-
sippi Valley men. Now, suppose white
clover is the only kind of honey pro-

duced all over. There would probably
be no greater difficulty in settling upon
a system acceptable to all. No. 1 white
clover would easily be the same in York
State or in Western Illinois ; and then
suppose that, all over the land, a second
crop should be obtained from Spanish-
needle. Would not all agree that a No.
1 Spanish-needle section should be just
the same as a No. 1 white clover sec-
tion,except that one was filled with white
clover honey and the other with Spanish-
needle ? and the same way if all the
different sources of honey ruled in every
location. Now, if I am correct in this,
then there ought to be no more difficulty
in agreeing upon the grades, as things
now exist ; and then the only thing to
add is, to say what kind of honey is con-
tained— light, amber, .dark or mixed.

If any one objects that light, amber,
etc., are not distinctive enough, then
there need be no difficulty at any time
in specifying particularly any one class
of honey. Indeed, I should expect that,
in time at least, some few particular
kinds of honey would come prominently
to the front, and that possibly in some
markets No. 1 Spanish-needle might be
quoted higher than No. 1 light. But
the great thing is, to agree upon the
grades, to be alike applied to all kinds
of honey, and I have some hope that we
may reach that. C. C. Miller.

J. E. Crane — Commission men are op-
posed to a fancy grade, because it de-
tracts from the sale of the lower grades.
Dealers say they have no trouble in
selling honey even if the "fancy " grade
is mixed with the No. 1. Some people
are very particular. They want a nice
article, and the dealer gives it to them.
Others are not so particular, and they
get the combs that are not quite so
nicely finished.

W. Z. Hutchinson — I suppose it ia
upon the same principle that my grocer
never sends me any poor butter, yet I
pay no more for my butter than the man
who is not so particular.

A. N. Draper — These extra-nice peo-
ple have an extra-nice pocket-book, and
they don't object to having it squeezed.
I say the fancy grades of honey should
be sold for a fancy price.

Frank Benton — I think Mr. Draper is
correct.

R. F. Holtermann — Taking one year
with another, what proportion do you
suppose would rank as " fancy " accord-
ing to the exact gradings that have been
published?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

113

Frank Benton — I do not know. Per-
haps not more than 5 per cent.

J, E. Crane— It has been a great dis-
appointment to me that I cannot grade
my honey as Dr. Miller proposes to have
it graded, but the commission men have
always objected. They say, put your
fancy and No. 1 all in one grade. If
you don't, you will not get much more
for the small amount of fancy honey,
while the No. 1 will suffer more by the
comparison than you will gain by the
little extra that you get for the small
amount of fancy that you may have. I
have never been able to get more than a
cent a pound more for the fancy than
for the next lower grade ; nor more than
two cents more for my No. 1 than for
my lowest grade.

K.. F. Holtermann — I think too much
stress is placed upon the few unsealed
cells. There is more difference in regard
to travel stain.

A. C. Hoopes — I am a dealer here in
Washington. I have handled honey
here for 20 years. I am not in favor of
having a superfine, extra, fancy grade.
I would have no pollen in the best grade.
No section should be less than three-
fourths full.

A. N. Draper — There is the point of
pollen. I think that two cells of pollen
in a section ought not to throw it over
into the lower grade.

J. E. Crane — I think it a little severe
that a cell or two of pollen should con-
demn a section to a lower grade.

H. Segelken — An occasional cell of
pollen, or an unsealed cell, ought not to
throw a section into a lower grade.

R. F. Holtermann — Upon which would
you draw the line closer, pollen or cap-
pings ?

H. Segelken — On cappings.

It was in this way that the discussion
ran on for an hour or two, and the re-
sult was that only two grades were
adopted, and they were the first two
grades of the grading adopted a year
ago at Chicago. The wording was
slightly changed in the first grade, al-
lowing sections with the row of cells
next to the wood to be unsealed in the
fancy grade. The grades as now adopted
and approved by the North American,
are as follows :

Fancy. — All sections to be well filled ;
combs straight, of even thickness and
firmly attached to all four sides ; both
wood and comb to be unsoiled or travel-
stained, or otherwise; all cells sealed
except the row of ceils next to the wood.

No. 1. — All sections well filled, but
with combs crooked or uneven, detached
at the bottom, or with but few cells un-

sealed ; both wood and comb unsoiled by
travel-stain or otherwise.

In addition to the above, honey is to
be classified according to color, into
light, amber and dark. For instance,
there will be "fancy light," "fancy
amber," and "fancy dark." "No. 1
light," "No. 1 amber," and "No. 1
dark."

While there are some points in the
above that are not covered, that of pol-
len, for instance, and some other omis-
sions, I think it the best plan that has
yet been approved by the North Ameri-

can.

Spraying- of Fniit-Trees.

This subject was again brought up.
A. N. Draper thought something might
be done through the manufacturers of
pumps and spraying outfits. Get them
to recommend in their instructions that
spraying during bloom was of little
benefit in any case, and in most in-
stances of no benefit, while it was almost
always an injury to bees, which are of
great benefit to fruit-growers.

Frank Benton — I doubt if we could
get the manufacturers to do this. They
wish to sell pumps, and have no desire
to put any restrictions upon their use.
It is well-known that spraying for the
coddling-moth does no good until the
little apples are formed, and people
should be informed upon this point. The
Department of Agriculture has a Bulle-
tin upon this point, and it is sent free to
all applicants.

R. F. Holtermann — We found it im-
possible to educate people fast enough,
so we have secured the passage of a law
forbidding the spraying of trees while in
bloom.

Upon motion, a committee consisting
of Frank Benton, A. N. Draper and J.
E. Crane, was appointed to draft resolu-
tions upon this subject. Later the com-
mittee made the following report, which
was adopted :

Whekeas, Strong evidence from vari-
ous portions of the country has been pre-
sented to the North American Bee-
Keepers' Association at several of its
meetings, to the effect that the spraying
of fruit-trees while in bloom has resulted
in serious destruction to bee-life through
poisoning ; and.

Whereas, Since the complete pol-
lenization of the fruit-blossoms is of the
greatest importance to the fruit-grower
himself, and therefore the destruction
of the bees is not only a loss to the bee-
keepers, but also a great one to fruit-
growers ; and,

114

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Whereas, The possible benefits to be
derived by the fruit-grower from spray-
ing during the time of blooming are
slight at most ; therefore, be it

Resolved, That the North American
Bee-Keepers' Association recommends
the apiarian societies of the various
States to memorialize their respective
legislatures to enact such laws as shall
forbid the spraying of fruit-trees during
the time of blossoming.

Respectfully submitted,

Fkank Benton, 1
A. N. Draper, V Com.
J. E. Crane. )
(Continued next week.)

txzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzi

ILAJ

"Where Are We At" on the
Adulteration of Honey ?

Written for the American Be-e Journal
DR. C. C. MILLER.

In the report of the Michigan State
Convention, on page 16, is found the
discussion upon the adulteration of
honey. More than three-fourths of the
space given in the report to this discus-
sion is occupied by Mr. Heddon, and as
his name is signed to his argument, it is
reasonable to suppose that he is cor-
rectly reported. His remarks can hardly
be held up as a model for fairness and
freedom from sophistry.

His first utterance is, "There is no
trouble in enforcing the law against
murder." Isn't there? Does every
murderer suffer the full penalty of the
law? A friend of mine was sitting
quietly in front of his home in Chicago
in broad daylight, when in cold blood a
man came up to him and shot him dead.
It was a deliberate, premeditated mur-
der, yet the murderer got ofif scot free,
and has defiantly walked the streets of
Chicago for years. If I am not mistaken,
statistics show that about one murderer
in fifty suffers the full penalty.

Then Mr. H. goes on with the general
statement, "There is no trouble in en-

forcing any law that the people care
enough about to have it enforced." I
don't believe that is true, and I don't
think he will believe it after he has time
to think it over ; but if it he true, it is a
very encouraging thought for those who
want rigid adulteration laws, for I think
there are in the ranks of bee-keepers a
sufficient number of the people who
"care enough about" the matter.

Mr. Heddon says the public "don't
know nor care whether honey is adul-
terated or not." Then why all the
anxiety and trouble about the Wiley
"pleasantry?" Why did the papers
take it up and circulate it so industri-
ously ? Was it all a mistake on the part
of bee-keepers to believe that the mere
report of adulteration, false though it
was, injured decidedly the sale of honey?
Why do the public take so much inter-
est in the Paddock Pure Food Bill?
Don't you fool yourself, Bro. Heddon.
The public do care, and care a great
deal.

Mr. Heddon says : "I think that the
adulteration of honey has never injured
bee-keeping ; that it has rather been a
a benefit." The reason given is that
the adulterators " made a market for
our strong fall honey that otherwise
would have been scarcely salable ; they
pushed its sale, and kept the markets
supplied, and I say they have not in-
jured the bee-keeper nor the public."
Even if an outlet should thus be made
for the dark honey, which may lack
proof, what is done with it when adul-
terated ? It is made into lighter honey
by being mixed with glucose, if I under-
stand Mr. Heddon correctly, and so the
market for light honey has just this
much more to compete with. Is this a
benefit to bee-keepers?

If adulteration is wrong, Mr. Heddon
thinks we ought to attack it where it is
doing more harm — in cane syrups and
confections. He seems for the time to
forget that bee-keepers are looking out
for their own interests. I'm not so
much interested in the adulteration of
coffee, because I don't raise coffee, and
I do produce honey. For the same rea-
son the adulteration of honey comes
closer home to me than that of syrups
and confections.

"Now if we are going to fight adul-
teration, let us decide why we fight it,"
says Mr. Heddon, but he doesn't do very
much deciding. I think the mass of
bee-keepers have decided that they want
to fight it for the simple reason that it
hurts their market by increasing the
supply, and also by making the public
suspicious of the genuine article.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

115

"A honey-producer with the right
kind of bees and appliances and man-
agement, can always produce honey
cheaper than he can buy glucose," says
Mr. Heddon. It is to be presumed that
he has the right bees, appliances and
management, and if he can always pro-
duce honey cheaper than he can buy
glucose and then sell it for two or three
times as much, he is hardly wise lo be
fooling away his time in the publication
of a newspaper instead of expanding his
honey-production. Guarantee for a
series of years to furnish a suGScient
amount of honey at 50 per cent, advance
on the price of glucose, and I think
quite a few bee-keepers would prefer
to buy rather than to produce their
honey.

" No one is practicing it except the
city dealers," Mr. Heddon says. How
does he know that ? And if adultera-
tion is the nice and good thing that Mr.
Heddon represents, why should the bee-
keeper leave it to the city dealer ? Can't
he mix glucose and honey just as well as
the city dealer ? Even admitting that
he can produce honey for less than he
can buy glucose, could he not, the past
season, have made quite a nice little ex-
tra profit by adding to his honey one-
third glucose, and then selling at the
price of honey ?

Mr. Heddon winds up with the state-
ment: "One or two good seasons will
stop adulteration so completely that it
will amount to nothing." Not a very
reassuring statement, certainly. For I
suppose that means that a big crop
would bring down the price of honey to
that of glucose, in which case I suspect
a good many would leave the business of
producing honey. Just so long as there
is a profit in mixing glucose with honey,
you may count that adulterators will
continue their work, big crop or no big
crop, if they can safely do so. Just for
this reason an earnest effort is .now
being made to enlarge the scope of,, the
Bee-Keepers' Union so as to prosecute
adulteration, and if the effort is success-
ful I am sure Mr. Heddon will have the
good sense to resign the office of Presi-
dent, for it would hardly be in keeping
for the President of the Union to take
any part in the prosecution of those
whom he esteems benefactors of the
members of the Union.

The strangest part in the whole affair
is the reported reply of Prof. Cook,
" Mr. Heddon may be right." I don't
believe he said it. At least I don't be-
lieve he meant It in the broad sense in
which it appears, as applying to all that
Mr. Heddon said. Even if glucose may

be entirely pure and good, it is a dishon-
est act to palm it off on the public as
honey. But you'd better see and taste
for yourself. Professor, those grades of
glucose that are really wholesome be-
fore you make any apparent concession.
And I very much doubt if you find them
better than what you tried and pro-
nounced " not good." But whether good
or bad, adulteration is still adulteration,
and it will be a " cold day " for us if the
man who has been the leader in saying
brave words against it shall have said
his "last word against adulteration."
Marengo, Ills.

How to Catcli and Kill Skunks
that molest Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY H. C. FARNUM.

On having my bees disturbed nearly
every night during the fall and early
part of the winter by a digging at the
front of the hive, and as I was not thor-
oughly acquainted with the nature of
affairs, and being no tracking on snow,
so I could see any tracks, I set a steel
trap at the entrance of a hive where the
pawing was done most, and concluded
to have the " chap " that was disturbing
my little friends.

Behold, the next morning I had a Mr.
Skunk fast. Now I had him, but the
next thing was to kill him without scent-
ing everythiag with his pot^erful per-
fume. It was about that time I felt the
need of some kind of literature in which
I might learn how to kill a skunk and
not get killed myself.

But fortunately I had a kind neighbor
who possessed the very kind of knowl-
edge which I wished to know, so I hast-
ened to him and told him what kind of
a trap I had got into. I asked him for
relief, which he granted me at once, by
arranging a long pole with a hook at the
end to pull the stake to which the trap
of the skunk was attached, and led Mr.
Skunk to the river, where he drowned
him, which proved a very successful
way, as it left no scent behind at all.

Since then I have caught quite a num-
ber in the same way, the past month
affording sufficient tracking snow to
follow the little " chaps " home. Of late
I have not been troubled any with
skunks, and with the exception of a
few colonies the skunks raided, my bees
are all in good condition, numbering
120 colonies, with sufficient stores for
winter.

116

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

SUGAR SYRUP FOR WINTER STORES.

The past fall I fed quite a quantity of
sugar syrup, which I think is far ahead
of dark honey for wintering purposes.
Some colonies have scarcely anything
but sugar syrup stores, and are in full
better condition than those containing
all honey.

If nothing prevents, another fall, I
shall extract from the brood-chamber at
the end of the honey-flow, and feed
sugar syrup in place of honey, which, in
my opinion, will be better for the bees
to winter on, and more profitable to my-
self.

Transit Bridge, N. Y.

Divided Colonies as Good as
from IVatural Swarming.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY J. li. WOOLDRIDGE.

I noticed on page 790 (1892) the
question asked, and answered by several
prominent bee-men, as to whether or not
we can have divided colonies as strong
as natural swarms. It seems that the
most of those who answered the ques-
tion seemed to think that we could not.
Well, I did not answer the question,
and if I had been called upon I suppose
I would have left it to somebody more
competent than I to answer; but as it
was a Texas friend that asked the ques-
tion, may be my experience will be of
interest to nim. We are in about the
same climate, and I think his bees ought
to do as well as mine, that is, if he is in
as good a location as mine.

Last spring I had only 7 colonies, and
I divided them early in the spring, and
took about 800 pounds of what I call
first-class honey, and increased from 7
to 20 colonies, all of which are in fine
condition for winter.

Now I will tell how I divided, and how
the best colony built up, swarmed and
stored surplus honey after it was
divided, while there were several others
that did nearly as well.

Late in the fall of 1891, I purchased
some select-tested Italian queens which
I introduced successfully. I divided
them some time during March the fol-
lowing spring.

Of course I will tell about the one that
I think did the best. I moved this col-
ony just a little to one side, then put an
empty hive by it. I turned the entrance
a little to the right of what it was be-
fore, and turned the new one about as

much to the left, with the rear ends
touching, and the front about 12 or 15
inches apart. Then I took about half
of the comb, honey and brood, and put
them into the empty hive, leaving the
queen in her own hive, and gave the
queenless colony a few the most bees,
and plenty of eggs to rear a queen from,
I left the hives in this position a few
days, then turned the backs a little from
each other, so as to make them front in
nearer the same direction. In a few
days I did the same thing again, and so
on until they were fronting the same.

Now, I had 2 colonies side by side,
both working as if they never had been
divided. Of course they were both weak,
but the queenless colony built five
queen-cells, and instead of hatching one
queen and tearing down the other cells,
as I expected, she swarmed with a vir-
gin queen, but some returned to the old
hive. I went and cut out, as I thought,
all the cells that were left, but over-
looked one, and the next day they
swarmed again. I would have put them
back, but thought they were determined
to swarm anyhow, and may be would
run away the next time, and being from
one of my finest queens, I did not care
if they run for increase, and not much
for honey.

So I hived them on one frame of honey
and one of brood. This little swarm
filled ten frames 13%x9 inches, and
stored about 100 pounds of surplus
honey, which was the most I got from
any one of my colonies. The one this
swarmed from (which was the queenless
one after dividing) built up the same as
the other one, and stored about 80
pounds of surplus honey.

Now, I come to the colony with
the old queen, thas filled her hive,
threw off a fine swarm, and stored about
80 pounds, and I took about 40 pounds
from her swarm.

Now I have 4 colonies, all of which
have plenty of stores for winter, and I
took 300 pounds of first-class honey,
which I sold for a good price, that is, as
much as I wanted to sell.

These queens that I spoke of were the
first ones I ever saw shipped through the
mails, or introduced in new colonies,
and I never saw a colony divided before
I divided mine, and never have seen one
divided since. If some one can give a
better plan to divide, it will be kindly
accepted. I will give it a test next
spring, and satisfy myself as to which
is the best here in Texas — dividing or
natural swarming.

Ennis, Texas.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

117

Various Bee-Xotes and Coiii-
iiiciits on Tilings.

Written for the American Bee JoumaZ

BY O. r. MILLER.

On page 822 (1892), Mr. Demaree
says that bees can only take food in a
liquid state, which I believe. If this is
so, what will we do with the statement
from reliable people that I have heard
say, and I have read it in bee-literature,
that a boiled chicken put into the hive
of a starving colony they will devour
greedily, and winter on it? I have heard
an old, reliable man say this. I also
heard the same man say that he had
wintered his bees on corn bread by
baking a large loaf, then split it in two,
and while hot put molasses on it, and by
the next morning it was all devoured by
the bees.

My bees seem to be doing well in their
winter quarters in the cellar, where they
have been ever since Nov. 1st.

I am much pleased with the American
Bee Journal, and with its new dress. I
think that the one article, on page 823,
is worth the subscription price for one
year, although I have been following the
plan there suggested, yet I have gath-
ered some new ideas from the article.

My report for the past season, though
not a good one, is as follows :

I had 40 colonies, spring count, took
about 2,300 pounds of honey, most of it
being white clover and linden. I sold
(and gave away) .^160 worth up until
now, and still will sell some more. I in-
creased by natural swarming to 58 colo-
nies, nearly all in good condition for
winter.

I find no trouble in selling my honey
at an advance of from 2 to 5 cents more
per pound than that put upon the mar-
ket. I also find no trouble in selling to
parties who once purchase of me. My
rule is to sell none but the best article
of both kinds, and guarantee every
pound of it. Some ask, " Must we keep
it in the cellar, where it is cool ?" I an-
swer no ; put it in the pantry or kitchen,
and if it sours, let me know, and I will
give you two pounds for every one that
sours. I have been in the market for 6
or 8 years, and never had to replace a
pound of sour honey, nor have I ever
had to carry any over until the next
year. I sell my honey to consumers,
and take it to their houses.

I plant buckwheat for my bees, and
this year, they have stored quite a
good amount of honey from this plant,
and I got a nice lot of the grain, which

I consider all clear gain, as I got enough
of the honey to pay for the seed and
sowing, and the patch was too wet in
the forepart of the season to farm, and
would have grown up in weeds had it
not been for the buckwheat. I can
nearly always find some such patch
on my farm. By planting the buck-
wheat, the ground was in fine order,
and is now in winter wheat. I intend to
sow a small piece of stumpy land in the
spring to buckwheat early, so as to florae
in between white honey and fall honey ;
about that time it is generally dry here,
and no honey, but last year I drilled in
a row in my garden, and the bees
worked on it at that time of the year.

I received a circular, a few days ago,
advertising (to me) a new variety of
clover, called, I think, " purple clover."
The blossom is long, and the plant seems
to be quite full of bloom. They want
$10 per bushel for the seed, or 20 cents
per pound. Does any of the readers of
the Bee Journal know anything about
this new plant?

Glendon, Iowa, Dec. 27, 1892.

COWVENTIOW DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

Jan. 28 — Ontario Co., at Canandaigua.
Miss Ruth E. Taylor, Sec, Bloomfield, N. Y.

Feb. 7, 8.— California, at Los Angeles.

John H. Martin, Sec, Redlands. Calif.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville. Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec. Golden, Tex.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

ZTorth American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller.... Marengo, Ills.
Secretary— Frank Benton. Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

• * m * •

XTational Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— James Heddon ..Dowagiac, Mich.
Sec'y and Manager— T. G. Newman. Chicago.

Webster's Pocket Dictionary we offer
as a premium for sending only one new
subscriber with $1.00. It is a splendid
Dictionary— and just right for a pocket.

118

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Bee-Keeping Improves the Health..

I have 15 colonies of Italian bees in
winter quarters, put In on Nov. 19th
vfith plenty of honey and strong with
bees. I commenced the spring of 1892
with 7 colonies of Italian bees, they in-
creased to 18 colonies, and gave me 450
pounds of surplus honey, besides having
plenty to winter on. My health is poor,
but it helps me to work among the bees,
and I long for spring to come so that I
can be among my pets again.

I could not keep bees very well with-
out the Bee Jouknal. It is a welcome
visitor 52 times a year.

Jesse B. Lewis.

Weston's Mills, N. Y., Jan. 13, 1893.

Wintered Without Any Loss.

Last winter I wintered 100 per cent.
of my colonies, 12 in all, increased them
to 18, and took 360 pounds of comb
honey, mostly in one-pound sections.
Every colony had plenty of honey for
winter, viz. : from 35 to 75 pounds
each. Perhaps I should have extracted
part of it from them, but I didn't have
an extractor, or the time, but expect to
give them more attention this year.

G. W. Bell.

Bell's Landing, Pa., Jan. 9, 1893.

Experience in Wintering Bees.

Having bought 17 colonies of bees, I
will give the readers of the Bee Journal
the benefit of my experience in the win-
tering of the same. About Nov. 15,
1892, these bees were packed in clamps
with chaff and straw packing about 6
inches in thickness on the sides, and one
foot on top. They were left in the open
yard where the hives were in the sum-
mer, and at present they appear to be
in good condition. The hives were cov-
ered with gunny-sacks filled with chaff

about 6 inches in thickness, before the
loose chaff and straw was put on.
Through a mistake made in leaving the
oil-cloths (that had been used to cover
the hives a year ago last summer) on top
of the hives when they were put in in
the fall of 1891, we lost the greater
part of them last winter. Starting with
only 4 colonies in the spring, we put in
the 17 for the winter. With the excep-
tion of the loss last winter, as mentioned,
we have never had any trouble in win-
tering. I expect to continue in the
business from this time on, and am glad
to acknowledge the help I derive through
the American Bee Journal.

Mrs. Charlotte Marden.
West Weston, Wis., Jan. 12, 1893.

Bees in Good Condition.

Bees did very poorly the past year.
All the surplus we got was from the
first cutting of alfalfa, after that the
grasshoppers destroyed most of the
bloom. I got about 10 pounds of honey
per colony. Some got none. Bees are
in good condition for winter. I have
100 colonies. F. H. McDonald.

Star, Idaho, Jan. 2, 1893.

Most Open Winter Ever Known.

Bees have wintered well here so far.
We are having the most open winter
here that I have ever known. There is
no snow, and the ground is dry in some
places. K,. T. Rhkes.

View, Utah, Jan. 13, 1893.

Some Experinece in Bee-Keeping.

I started last spring with 40 colonies,
spring count, and let them increase to
53. I put sections on 38 of that num-
ber, and took about 700 pounds of
honey altogether. About 60 pounds of
it was extracted. I put my honey in
groceries to sell, and it was retailed at
20 cents ; that gives me about 16 or 17
cents a pound. I pay 15 or 20 per
cent, for selling. I believe I can say
that I hear of no complaint from any,
but that my honey is very good. Even
those that bought of me in 1891,
with some honey-dew in, bought of me
again the past season. I put into win-
ter quarters 45 colonies, having lost
two, one with the diarrhea, and the
other became queenless. I sold three,
and that left me 40 colonies. My health
I has been very poor all summer and fall,
1 although some better now. In view of

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

119

the condition of my health, I sold 50
colonies of my bees for fear I would not
be able to care for them another year,
but if my health keeps on getting better,
I may stock up again in the spring. It
is the only thing that I have worked at
for six years, and made more in the last
year than in any two years before. The
reason is, I understand it better. Bee-
keeping is not all learned in one or two
years, but it takes one's lifetime,
almost, to make a success of the busi-
ness. I have learned a great deal from
the American Bee Journal, and may it
live long to educate the people in the
science of handling bees, for I know
from my own experience that there are
only a few that will make a success at
the business. One has to go at it with
an eternal vigilance or grit, to make
anything out of it. Ira Adamson.

Winchester, Ind., Jan. 6, 1893.

Brood-Chambers Well Filled.

I losi 15 colonies out of 21 last
spring, and the others were reduced so
low that they hardly built up. When
the white clover blossomed they worked
on it very little. I had 5 late swarms,
and as I wanted the bees I did not put
the sections on until late, and only got
10 to 12 pounds of honey in partly-
filled sections. The late honey-flow
seemed to be better, and the brood-
chambers were well filled with honey
and bees. My farm crops were on a
par with the bees — not one bushel of
apples on some 90 trees, and very little
small fruit. Edward H. Beardsley.

Deer Park, Ills., Jan. 9, 1893.

Bee-Keeping in Tennessee, Etc.

My neighbors keep bees. I try to
keep bees. My neighbors don't read any
bee-papers. I read all that I can get
hold of, and wish for more. My neigh-
bors don't wish for anything in the way
of bee-literature, beause they think they
are versed in apiculture, and the old
box-hive thrown in. I have 14 bee-
keeping neighbors within four miles of
me representing 72 colonies of bees. I
represent 25 myself — in all, then, 97
colonies, all black bees except my own.
My bees were housed up from November
until Dec. 31st, when they had a good
flight. The weather has been very cold
here, the mercury standing at 10'^ to
50° above zero for about three weeks.
On Dec. 31st It was up to 60° above. I
do not see why the bee-keepers of Teu-
nessse don't have associations and con-

ventions, and so on. Are they not as
able as the bee-keepers of other States ?
or is it because they don't want anything
of that kind, or don't care ?

I send a stalk of clover that I found
last summer. Please tell what kind it
is. A. C. Babb.

Greenville, Tenn., Jan. 2, 1893.

[It is Alsike clover, one of the best
honey-yielding plants, as well as being
excellent for feeding" stock. — Ed.]

Too Rainy— Too Cold— No Nectar.

The honey season of 1892 was the
poorest we have had for the past eight
years in this locality. Last spring I put
24 colonies of hybrid bees on the sum-
mer stands, and all were in good condi-
tion, and with plenty of honey to start —
from 15 to 18 pounds per colony. They
did not gather one pound of comb honey,
and most of the colonies not enough
stores for winter. The cause was too
much rain, and too cold in the earlier
part of the summer. There was no nec-
tar in the flowers, either.

C. F. Pbussing.

Fountain City, Wis., Jan. 4, 1893.

Poor Season — Cold Weather.

This has been the poorest season for
years in Central New York. But few
have obtained any surplus at all. I
commenced the season with 24 colonies,
increased to 36, and obtained 600
pounds of comb honey, mostly from
buckwheat and golden-rod. Basswood
blossomed profusely, but yielded noth-
ing. I am wintering 9 colonies in chaff
hives, and 27 colonies are in the cellar
— all seem to be doing well. The weather
has been very cold so far, temperature
being below zero a number of times.
F. F. Harrington.

Lena, N. Y., Jan. 4, 1893.

Bountiful Crop of Honey Secured.

The season of 1892 will long be re-
membered by me for its bountiful honey-
flow. Forty-six colonies, spring count,
gathered 4,342 pounds of honey, all ex-
tracted but about 75 pounds. There
was a continuous honey-flow, more or
less, during June, July and August, but
September was a surprise, being cold
and wet, so that I had to double up a
few colonies that I had expected to build
up for winter, and feed back about 300
pounds of honey to put my bees in a

120

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

somewhat reliable condition for winter-
ing. My increase was to 98 colonies —
52 colonies increase, and 4,000 pounds
of honey from 46, spring count, ought
to satisfy (if it is in our nature) a fellow
even if he is in California. I have in-
quired of other bee-keepers in this
county (Manistee) as to their crop, but
they do not report anything extra.

Walter Hakmek.
Manistee, Mich., Jan. 16, 1893.

Success in Wintering Bees.

I have as good luck in wintering bees
as most bee-men. I have a cellar 18x28
feet, all brick, 13 inches thick, with
three windows in it. I put my bees into
this cellar, and I keep the east window
out all winter, but covered with boards.
I have one chimney in the center of the
house, and it is built from the bottom
of the cellar. There are two holes in
the chimney in the cellar, and a part of
the time I keep the holes open, and the
draft draws fresh air from the open win-
dow. My bees seem to do well. I have
55 colonies. I have kept a few bees for
15 years. I also give the bees upward
ventilation, leave off the honey-board,
and keep the cellar cool and dry.

C. W. Blaki.ey.

Pre-emption, Ills., Jan. 4, 1893.

Milkweed and Buckwheat Honey.

I began the season of 1892 with 27
colonies, 7 of which were in such poor
condition that they yielded neither
honey nor increase. T secured 2,000
pounds of milkweed honey, and about
200 pounds of buckwheat honey — ex-
tracted. I had 100 one-pound sections
of comb honey, all of which, with 40
pounds of extracted, came from one col-
ony. I have 34 colonies in the cellar,
and 4 in a snow-drift. Basswood pro-
duced no honey last year.

Clabk a. Montague.

Archie, Mich., Jan. 12, 1893.

Sow Alsike Clover for Honey.

The last was a poor season in this
vicinity. I had 38 colonies in the
spring, increased to 58, and had 400
pounds of comb honey. The honey was
stored from Alsike clover, as there was
no surplus before the clover was in blos-
som, and none after it was out of blos-
som. White cloviir was quite plentiful,
but bees worked on it very little. I think

that Alsike clover is the surest to yield
honey of any plant I know, and it is
good for hay or pasture, when mixed
with timothy ; but for seed it must be
sown by itself, as you cannot separate
the seed. I have a new stocked piece of
13 acres, and there is as much more in
the immediate vicinity, so I am expect-
ing a crop of honey next season.

I. W. Rollins.
Elgin, Minn., Jan. 14, 1893.

Still Likes Bees and the Bee Journal.

I must have the Bee Journal while I
am able to care for the bees. In a few
days I shall be 84 years old, but the
bees interest me as much as ever. I have
had every number of the Bee Journal
since it became a weekly. I could not
be comfortable without it.

L. Eastwood.

Waterville, 0., Jan. 10, 1893.

Stored Only Enough for Winter.

I took my first swarm from a tree late
in the fall of 1891, and I fed them
about 35 pounds of sugar syrup, besides
the brood-comb that I got out of two
other trees. They wintered in good con-
dition in the cellar, and last season they
gave me one large swarm, but quite
late, so I fed them a little. I think they
are doing well, but I don't know, as I
cannot handle them very well. It has
been a poor year, for bees here stored
only about enough to winter on.

Huntington, Vt.

W. E. Martin.

Prefers Double- Walled Chaff Hives.

In 1892, from 48 colonies, spring
count, I got 400 pounds of comb honey
and 110 pounds of extracted. This was
my first season, and it rained every day
in May and June, excepting three days.
I examined my bees on July 3rd, and
some were ready to starve, but they
picked up after that. I have now 76
colonies in good condition for winter.
My hives are all double-walled chaff
hives, made by myself. I have yet to
lose the first colony in those hives. I
prefer them to all others. I have been
keeping bees for 7 years.

Fred Streule.
Delhi Mills, Wis., Jan. 16, 1893.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 101 ?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

121

^.^^3^1^SO^^,^^

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any be lost in the mails, we will replace them if
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Always State the Post-Office to which
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Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that Is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffield, Portage co, Ohio

"We Club the American Bee Journal
for a year, with any of the following papers
or books, at the prices quoted in the Li ASX
column. The regular price of both is given
n the first column. One year's subscription
for the American Bee Journal must be sent
with each order for another paper or book :

Price of both. Club.
The American Bee Journal 81 00

and Gleanings In Bee-Culture.... 2 00.... 175

Bee-Keepers' Review 2 00 175

The Apleulturist 175.... 165

Bee-Keepers' Guide 175 165

American Bee- Keeper 150 140

Canadian Bee Journal 2 00 ... 175

Nebraska Bee-Keeper 150 135

The 8 above-named papers 6 25 5 25

and Langstroth Revised (Dadant) 2 40 ... . 2 25

Cook's Manual 2 00.... 1 75

Doolittle on Queen-Rearing. 2 00. . . . 1 65

Bees and Honey (Newman). . 2 00 1 65

Advanced Bee-Culture 150 135

Dzierzon' 8 Bee-Book (Cloth). 2 25.... 2 00

Root's A B C of Bee-Culture 2 25. . . . 2 10

A Year Among the Bees 1 50 1 35

Convention Hand-Book 125 115

Illustrated Home Journal .. 1 50 1 35

Do not send to us for sample copies
of any other papers. Send for such to the
publishers of the papers you want.

Doolittle's Queen-Rearing:

book should be in the library of every
bee-keeper ; and In tv^e way we offer to
to give it, there is no reason now why
every one may not possess a copy of it.
Send us one new subscriber for a year,
and we will mail the book to you bound
in paper, as a present.

Wajits or ^xcjiajiges.

Under this heading, Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
Into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

'^ Bees and Honey" — page 101.

122

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
January 21st, 1892 :

CHICAGO, III,.— Tliere are occasional sales
of best grades of comb honey, but the retail-
ers are not yet sold out on supply laid in
before the holidays. Prices are a little easier,
especially on that which will not grade " fan-
cy—such brings 17@18c., and other grades
12@16c. Extracted, 6@9c., as to quality.

Beeswax— 2 2@2 5c. R. A. B. & Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8i-4 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers, for extracted honey, was slow tor
the last few weeks, while there was, and is
still, a fair demand from consumers for family
use. There is no choice comb honey in the
market. Best white comb brings 14@16c.
Extracted honey brings 6@8c.

Beeswax— Demand fair, at 23@25c. for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. T.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light, White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote; Basswood and
white clover, 8@8'/ic. ; buckwheat, 6@6}4c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Bee8wax-25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Comb honey is selling
slow, very much slower than we like to have
it, and it is our experience that when we start
honey in at a high price, it sells hard right
through the season. We quote our market
nominally at 17@1 8c. for best Avhite honey,
1-lb. combs. Extracted, 8@9c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on^he market. fl. & B.

MINNEAPO LlS,MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9(§>10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14(aioc.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7^c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C.-M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our honey market is slow
on account of cold weaiher, but our stock was
never so light as now. We have less than 50
cases of honey on hand, and only one barrel
of extracted; when usually we have 1.000
cases in stock. For honey not granulated in
comb,woquote: White(small),15@18c. ; mixed
13@14c. ; dark, 10@llc. Large comb and
double glass sell for 1 to 2c. less per lb. Ex-
tracted, white, 854®9c.; amber, 7J4@8c.; buck-
wheat, 7@7>ic. H. R. W.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Clilcago« Ills.

R. A. BtTRNETT & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minneapolis, Rlinu.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oltio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

CouTention IVoticesi.

NEW YORK.— The 4th annual convention
of the Ontario County Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion will be held in Canandaigua, N. Y., on
Jan. 28, 1893. All are invited.

Chester Olmstead, Pres.

East Bloomfleld, N. Y.

CALIFORNIA.— The 2nd annual meeting ol
the California State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Chamber of Commerce in
Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 7th and 8th, 1892.
Programmes will soon be issued, for which
address, John H. Martin, Sec.

Redlands, Calif.

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

TEXAS.- The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
in Greenville, one mile north of the Court
House, at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
on Wednesday and Thursday, April the 5th
and 6th, 1893. One of the biggest bee-meet-
ings ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody is invited. No hotel bills to pay.
Come one, come all, and let us have a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to
exhibit. A. H. Jones, Sec.

Golden, Texas.

Please Don't send to us for bee-
keepers' supplies. We do not deal in
them. If in need of anything for the
apiary except a good bee-paper, just send
for the catalogues of some of our adver-
tisers. They will be glad to fit you out,
and do it .well.

GEORGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY

Editor. f To Bee-Culture.

J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
I Sample Free .

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, FEBRUARY 2, 1893.

NO. 5.

REMOVAI. NOTICE.

In order to get better accommodations,
and for greater convenience, we have
moved the American Bee JouRNAii into
a new office, at 56 Fifth Avenue, near
the northwest corner of Randolph St.
Our correspondents, and friends who may
desire to call upon us when in Chicago,
will please bear in mind our new place —
56 Fifth Avenue.

Xbose Sug^ar- Honey Folks.

— The following, which we have re-
ceived from Dr. Miller, of Marengo,
Ills., shows what he thinks of what has
been said in the Bee Journal about the
sugar-honey folks and their proposed
sugar-honey:

The " Old Reliable " seems not to be
very strongly in favor of the sugar-
honey business. In fact, if my knowl-
edge of the English language is not at
fault, it is decidedly " f urnenst " the
whole business. That's all right, and
I'm with you. I like your attitude
toward the business. But I don't like
your attitude toward Prof. Cook and
Editor Hutchinson. Or, rather; your
seeming attitude, for I think I know all

the parties well enough to know that
both Mr. Newman and Mr. York count
Messrs. Cook and Hutchinson as good,
straight men.

And yet I am inclined to think that a
stranger to the controversy, seeing for
the first time a copy of the American
Bee Journal, would understand that
you both thought the two Michiganders
very bad men. True, you say, Mr. Edi-
tor, that you do not believe any harm
was intended, but the general reader is
very likely to lose sight of that when he
reads in the letters published such ex-
pressions as " nefarious swindle," " con-
temptible act," " advising adulteration,"
and the like.

Please, please, dear friends, don't let
us lose our heads, and above all, don't
let us lose our hearts, forgetting the
"mantle of charity." Let us look at
the matter dispassionately. But you
say, " How can we look at it dispassion-
ately when one of our own number
clearly and distinctly advises adultera-
tion at the very time we are making an
effort to kill it '?" But-, my friend, no
one advises adulteration, and are you
not just a little previous in saying so?
And then you reply, "Oh, well, I have
no patience with such namby-pambying.
Haven't they advised feeding sugar to
have it stored ? And isn't mixing sugar
with honey, adulteration, no matter
whether done with or without the inter-
vention of the bees ?"

Now, look here ; don't go off at a tan-
gent. Don't yourknow that everything
depends upon the circumstances, and
especially the motives. And to your last
question I answer a blunt "No; not
always. Hundreds of good bee-keepers
have mixed honey and sugar to feed
bees for winter stores, and there was no
adulteration about it."

These brethren believed (and please
don't forget that they two were not

186

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

alone in their belief) that when bees
lick up sugar syrup and put it into cells,
they so change it that it is honey just as
much as if in place of sugar syrup they
had had the nectar from white clover.
Believing that, was there anything
criminal in their saying it ?

" But look at the results, actual and
possible," you say. Yes, I admit they
are bad, and they look worse to me now
than they did at first. But I insist that
the intent was good, no matter how mis-
taken. A townsman of mine gave to
one of his children, by mistake, mor-
phine instead of quinine, resulting in the
death of the child, but no one viewed
him with anything but pity, for there
was no evil intent. Let us not fail to
discriminate between errors of the head
and errors of the heart.

Under the circumstances, it seems to
me that Messrs. Cook and Hutchinson
have done a manly thing in saying that
if the mass of bee-keepers so desire they
will say no more ; for I'm afraid some of
us would be so stubborn and mad that
we would go on in our own pig-headed
way, just so long as we could not see
that we were in the wrong.

I think it is the wish of nearly all that
the whole unfortunate business may
sink into oblivion as rapidly as may be,
and this will not be helped by bitter
words. I don't know of anything better
to do now then to let everything pass in
silence, and all of us keep sweet.

C. C. Miller.

When we read the foregoing we
couldn't help saying, "Now that's just
like our good Dr. Miller. He's so kind-
hearted that he'd almost rather take a
thrashing himself than to see some one
else get it, whether the other fellow de-
served it or not." We may be unfortu-
nate, but we are " not built that way."
When we have committed a wrong we
expect to suffer for it, unless by showing
sincere repentance we may be forgiven.

Now as to "Prof. Cook and Editor
Hutchinson " in this sugar-honey affair
— why, of course, we have always
counted them as " good, straight men."
We never had any reason to think them
otherwise, until they attempted to de-
fend sugar-honey production. When
they switched off on that side-track,
why they just " switched " while we kept
r'mht 011 the main line. We are not to
blame for their "switching."

The Doctor intimates that it was an
error of the head and not of the heart.
He may be correct, but we certainly have
not as yet seen any such admission on
the part of either Prof. Cook or Mr.
Hutchinson. The only statements we
have seen are those they made in Olean-
i7igs for Jan. 15th, which are simply, in
the main, a reiteration of former asser-
tions that bees do make honey out of
sugar syrup. Of course, Mr. Hutchin-
son says he will publish nothing more
on the subject in the Review, and yet
tells of another Professor who has sent
him an article in which he sustains
what has been published on the sugar-
honey subject and says that bee-keepers
who oppose it are ignorant, etc. ! Mr.
Hutchinson sent exactly the same thing
to the Bee Journal, but, of course, if
he had taken a second thought, he would
have known that we could not consis-
tently publish it.

We can assure Dr. Miller, and al
other kindly-disposed people, that just
as soon as either Prof. Cook or Mr.
Hutchinson are ready to do the manly
act of admitting their mistake, and show
a desire on their part to as far as possi-
ble right the wrong done (unconsciously
and unintentionally it may be) the pursuit
of bee-keeping — when they are prepared
to thus do the " manly thing," why, the
columns of the old American Bee Jour-
nal will simply fly open to receive
them, and to help them to regain the
honored positions they held a few
months ago in the hearts of thousands
upon thousands of bee-keepers all over
the world. We bear no malice toward
them, but feel that they have made a
mistake that they should hasten to
correct.

Xlie Illinois Appropriation.

— At the meeting with the State Horti-
cultural Society Committee, it was de-
cided that the bee-keepers go in with
the horticulturists and dairymen in ask-
ing for an appropriation from the Legis-
lature, for a World's Fair exhibit, and
a Bill is being prepared to go in that
way. So says Bro. Stone, the Secretary
of the Illinois State Bee-Association.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

137

Tlie " Xro^wel Theory " of the

Rev. W. F. Clarke, which some thought
to have gone asleep, seems to be travel-
ing around in a lively manner across the
water. A correspondent of the British
Bee Journal sends to that paper a clip-
ping from the Pall Mall Budget, to this
effect :

It will be a surprise to many to learn
that, says a correspondent of the Hoi~ti-
cuUural Times, after all, the most impor-
tant function of the bee's sting is not
stinging. I have long been convinced
that the bees put the finishing touches
on their artistic cell-work by the dex-
trous use of their stings, and during this
final finishing stage of the process of
honey-making the bees inject a minute
portion of formic acid into the honey.
This is, in reality, the poison of their
sting. This formic acid gives to honey
its peculiar flavor, and also imparts to it
Its keeping qualities.

The sting is really an exquisitely con-
trived little trowel, with which the bee
finishes off and caps the cells when they
are filled brimful with honey.* While
doing this, the formic acid passes from
the poison-bag, exudes, drop by drop,
from the point of the sting, and the
beautiful work is finished.

Whoever the " I " may be, in the
above case, any one familiar with Mr.
Clarke's "Bird's-Eye View of Bee-Keep-
ing," will see a strange resemblance be-
tween the above paragraph and the note
on page 60 of said book. The writer of
the paragraph, however, has gone a step
farther than Mr. Clarke, and assigned
to the sting, the duty of flavoring the
honey. This helps to clear up the
sugar-honey question. As the flowers
have nothing to do with the flavor of
honey, the flavor being given by the
sting, find out the condition of the sting
when clover or buckwheat honey is
stored and by getting the sting in the
same condition when feeding sugar, you
will have respectively clover or buck-
wheat honey. And so of honey of any
other flavor.

Evidently the editors of the British
Bee Journal have not carefully read Mr.
Clarke's book, for they say the " trowel
theory " was started "as a pleasantry,
no doubt."

"When Bees Need Feeding.

— Often we receive questions for the
"Queries and Replies" department
which should be answered sooner than
they would be if allowed to wait their
turn. Again, questions are asked that
can be as satisfactorily answered by one
person as if twenty or more replied to
them. The following query we think
comes under the two kinds we have re-
ferred to, hence we give it here with a
reply :

How can you tell whether or not bees
need feeding ? C. G. R.

The question, doubtless, refers to bees
in winter quarters. As a rule, there
should be no need for such a question to
arise, for bees should go into winter
quarters with more than enough stores
to carry them through, so that there
need be no attention paid to the matter
until spring.

Still, there always have been, and
probably always will be, cases in which
there is danger that certain colonies
may exhaust their stores before leaving
winter quarters. If, among 100 colo-
nies, there are two or three that need
feeding, and you don't know which two
or three they are, but must overhaul the
whole hundred to find out, then if they
are fn the cellar it may be best to
let them entirely alone and run their
chances, but if out-doors, and a good,
warm day comes in which they fly freely,
you can look to them.

You will tell whether they need feed-
ing in winter just as you would in sum-
mer, and that is by actual inspection.
Lift out the combs and see whether they
contain honey, but be sure that you
don't touch them when it is too cold for
the bees to fly. In the cellar, if abso-
lutely necessary, you can examine them
at any time, disturbing the bees as little
as possible.

If, on glancing over the tops of the
combs without lifting them out, you see
quite a little sealed honey near the top
bars, there is no immediate danger.

Have You Read page 133 yet

138

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

mn. ADAIfl ORIMH.

As variety is said to be the "spice of
life," we must have a little of it in our
biographical sketches ; so this week we
present to our readers the picture and
account of the late Adam Grimm — the
man who made money by keeping bees.
Though not living, the following sketch
will serve to show what Mr. G. did in
the line of honey-production 15 or 20
years ago, and what may again be ac-
complished when good seasons once more
shall smile upon those engaged in bee-
keeping.

Dr. Miller, in that unequalled "ABC
of Bee-Culture," says :

Adam Grimm was born in Germany,
in 1824. His father kept a few hives
of bees, in which Adam took deep in-
terest, and did not rest satisfied until he
himself became the owner of a few colo-
nies. He emigrated to this country in
1849, settling at Jefferson, Wis., on a
farm where he remained until his death,
which occurred April 10, 1876. Soon
after settling at Jeflferson he obtained a
few colonies of bees, and was so success-
ful with them that at one time, when all
other crops failed, his bees came to the
rescue and helped him over the most
critical time of his life.

In 1863 he had increased his apiary
to 60 colonies of black bees, in all sorts
of box hives, and in 1864 he commenced
to use frame hives, and transferred all
his bees into them. In the same year,
1864, he bought his first Italians, and,
as rapidly as possible, Italianized his
apiary, and then sold largo numbers of
Italian queens all over the country.

About 1869 or 1870 he imported,
personally, 100 Italian queens, 60 of
which were alive on their arrival at New
York. Of this number he introduced 40'
in his own apiaries. He increased his
colonies regardless of cost, every year,
but had larger returns, especially in late
years, both from the sale of honey and
bees. Queen-rearing he thought un-
profitable. He had an intense enthusi-
asm in the business, and worked so hard
in the apiary as probably to shorten his
life. His success was the cause of many
others engaging in the business.

He established a bank at Jefferson, of
which he was cashier (his bees having

ADAM GRIMBI.

provided the capital) ; but during the
honey harvest he left his bank to the
care of employes, and went from one
apiary to another, personally supervis-
ing all that was done.

We shall not soon forget two or three
pleasant visits which we made at his
homo, with his interesting family. He
told us his wife remonstrated with him
for working so hard, telling him that he
now had a competence, and could give
up his bees with the laborious care of so
many ; but he seemed to think the re-
turns were larger for the amount of
labor, making the work still a pleasure,
although no longer a necoessity. He

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

139

reached the number of 1,1:00 colonies ;
and on one of our visits, when he had
nearly 1,000 colonies, he said, with a
half-comical expression, " What would I
do if all should die in the winter?" And
then, the comical look giving way to one
of German determination, he said, "I
would buy some more ; and with so
many hives full of empty comb, I would
show you how soon I would fill them up
again."

His daughters, Katie and Maggie (both
since married), were his able and faith-
ful assistants ; and the son, George,
since his father's death, has assumed
the principal care of the bees, for which
he is well fitted by his previous training.

Mr. Grimm was trim built, of medium
size, pleasant in manner, but especially
impressing one as of great earnestness.
He was very methodical, and kept an
exact account of his business, showing,
in a single year, $10,000 as the result
of his hee-keeping.

Sus;ar-Cane Syrup for Wintering
Bees.

Query 856.— 1. Is sugar-cane syrup good
to winter bees on, if they are wintered In the
cellar? 2. If not, will It do for spring feed-
ing ?— Minnesota.

1. Yes. 2. Yes.— C. C. Miller.

1. Yes. 2. Yes.— Dadant <fe Son.

1, Yes, undoubtedly. — Eugene Secor.

1 and 2. I do not know. — Jas. A.
Stone.

1. Yes, but do not feed it if the least
bit sour. — W. M. Barnum.

1. In this I have had no experience.
2. Yes. — J. M. Hambaugh.

Bees will winter well on puix sugar
syrup, but they breed up better on
honey. — P. H. Elwqod.

I think sugar-cane syrup made from
granulated sugar is good bee-food at
any time and place. — E. France.

It makes good winter and spring food.
I prefer the addition of one-fourth good
honey for winter use. — H. D. Cutting.

1. I have never tried it, but should
say it is not. 2. It would probably do
for spring feeding. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

1. Yes, if it is made from granulated
sugar. 2. Any that the bees would
readily take would do for spring feed-
ing.— R. L. Taylor.

1. I do not know what you mean by
" sugar-cane syrup." If you mean
syrup from sorghum, I must answer no
to both questions. — M. Mahin.

1. Yes, sir ; better than any honey, if
properly prepared. 2. Honey is the
best when the bees are breeding and can
fly frequently. — James Heddon.

1. No ; use syrup made from the best
granulated sugar for winter feeding. 2.
Almost any kind of sweet food will do
when they can fly. — Mrs. J. N. Heater.

1. I never wintered any bees in the
cellar. 2. Almost any kind of syrup
that bees will use can be fed in the
spring with safety. — Mrs. Jennie Atch-

LET.

I should be afraid to try It where you
live — even as far South as I live (Geor-
gia) I have found it a poor substitute
for honey or sugar syrup. — J. P. H.
Brown.

1. If cane molasses is meant, no.
Syrup from granulated sugar is equal to
good honey for feeding. It may do for
spring feeding if bees will use it. — C. H.

DiBBERN.

1. Yes, if you mean clariiied syrup
made from Southern cane, or by melted
granulated sugar. 2. No, if you mean
sorghum or crude from any kind of
cane. — S. I. Freeborn.

1. I do not think it is. I should use
nothing but the best granulated sugar.
2. Syrup will answer well enough in the
spring, or at any time when the bees
can fly out. — J. E. Pond.

Fifteen pounds of water put Into a
vessel of suitable size and brought to a
boil, then slowly stir in 30 pounds of
granulated sugar and bring the whole

140

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

to a boil, after which set from the fire
and stir in 5 pounds of honey, gives 50
pounds of as good food for bees to win-
ter on as anything I know of. Would
you call this "sugar-cane syrup?" If
not, what would it be ?— G. M. Doolit-

TLE.

Pure cane-sugar syrup is the best food
for bees in the winter, in-doors or out.
If you mean unrefined sorghum syrup,
it is entirely unfit for winter food,
though it would do very well for spring
feeding-

-James A'. Gkeen.

1. I should prefer to transpose the
words "sugar cane," for I know " cane
sugar" is to be relied upon. 2. Almost
anything saccharine will do for spring
feeding, provided it is wholesome and
acceptable to the bees. — J. H. Larra-

BEE.

Sugar-cane syrup is all right for
spring feeding, but in my own experi-
ence, both in cellar and out-door winter-
ing, the natural stores are better. The
principal reason was that earlier breed-
ing was promoted by the natural stores,
and hence stronger colonies for the
harvest. — G. L. Tinker.

Sugar syrup fed to bees and trans-
formed is super-excellent for winter
stores. I should prefer to feed it in the
fall so as to have it transformed into
honey. Fed in the winter might not be
as safe. I do not know. In case of
necessity I should not hesitate to try it.
It is certainly all right in the spring. —
A. J. Cook.

The sugar-cane syrup that we used
here, many years ago, when re-boiled
and prepared, would winter bees safely
in this climate (Kentucky). But the
stuff I see under this name now-a-days
ought to kill any living thing that would
venture to swallow it. The best sugar
Is nearly as cheap, and is quite safe as
a winter and spring food when honey is
scarce. — G. W. Demaree.

Please Don't send to us for bee-
keepers' supplies. We do not deal in
them. If in need of anything for the
apiary except a good bee paper or book,
just send for the catalogues of some of
our advertisers. They will be glad to
fit you out, and do it well.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 133 ?

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville, Texas.

Busy Bees and Spring Birds in Texas.

We are dipping cells and starting
queens to-day. The weather is fine, with
bright sunshine every day. Garden
making is the order of the day. Bees
are working nicely, and spring birds
singing sweetly. Oh, how happy we
ought to be ! Jennie Atchley.

Greenville, Tex., Jan. 24, 1893.

The "Nameless Bee-Disease.'

Is it not possible that we have two dis-
eases compounded in one, in the so-
called " nameless bee-disease ?" I think
we have, from the fact that most of the
writers, in speaking of the disease, say
that the workers become slick and shiny
from the loss of hair on their bodies,
and that they have a nervous or tremu-
lous movement of the wings, etc. But
with the disease we have here, none of
the slick, shiny, hairless bees are to be
seen, and they do not have the tremulous
motions spoken of above. In the first
case spoken of, they are usually affected
more in early spring, and late in the
fall than at other times ; but in the lat-
ter case, they never show it until hot,
dry weather begins. In the first case
they seem to dwindle along and die off
about as fast as the young bees hatch.
But in the latter they just die by the
wholesale — a strong colony dying out in
a few days. They seem to have their
natural size and appearance in every
way except a few that seem to have
their abdomens somewhat swollen.

When a colony first becomes affected
its bees will almost stop work and hang
in a cluster on the front of the hive,
with only now and then a bee attempt-
ing to leave the cluster apparently to
work ; but being unable to fly they crawl
off and soon die in the hot sun. At this
stage of the disease, the brood and

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

141

youug hatching bees seem to be healthy
and all right, but as the disease advances
all of the unsealed brood dies, either
from the disease or starvation, and I am
unable to tell which ; but I am of the
opinion that it is for the lack of food,
for it seems that the nursing-bees are
unable to secrete or prepare food for
them. But when the disease reaches this
stgae, the old bees will be dying by the
thousand. Sometimes the whole colony
will die and leave the combs filled with
sealed honey, and a good supply of pol-
len ; at other times they will all die ex-
cept the queen and a mere handful of
young, downy workers. Then they get
well and build up to good colonies, with-
out any remedy, or any help whatever.

I sent Prof. Cook a cage of sick bees,
describing the disease. His reply is as
follows :

" I think this the worst form of a
bacterial or microbe malady that is be-
coming worse and worse. I think the
Government at Washington would take
it up. Suppose you send the enclosed
notes to Hon. Edwin Willits, Depart-
ment of Agriculture. Tell him that I
say it is a microbe, and ask him if the
Bureau of Animal Diseases will take it
up if you will send diseased bees."

I at once wrote to Mr. Willits what
Prof. Cook said, and here is a part of
his reply :

"The Department apiarist, to whom
the matter was referred, thinks from
you'- description that Prof. Cook is quite
right in supposing it to be due to some
microbe. But, of course, only an ex-
tremely careful microscopical examina-
tion of freshly dissected bees would de-
termine which of the numerous microbes
known to produce disease in bees, this
one is, or whether it may not be a new
one not yet identified and figured. Such
an examination might be undertaken by
this Department, if you would send in
live specimens of the diseased bees, etc."

This I did, but perhaps it would be
nothing but fair to state before giving
their reply, that all the worst cases had
got well or died before I could send
them any sick bees. So the ones I sent
were only slightly affected. Here is
their reply after receiving the last sam-
ple :

" Your letter, and also- a cage of
worker bees, are received. No bacteria
were found in the tissues or juices taken
from these bees alive, and an effort was
made to obtain tuberculosis from these
by inocculation. But the tubes re-
mained perfectly clear, thus proving the
absence of bacteria, and hence no trace
of disease due to the latter. Material

taken from the abdomens (which were
much swollen) of some of the workers
that arrived dead, showed under the
microscope numerous bacteria, none of
which, however, could be recognized as
bacillus alvei (foul brood) or bacillus
gaytoni (dipilis) the cause of the name-
less bee-disease. Probably they were
only such as usually develop in the dead
tissues of bees, or in the bowel contents
of dysentery specimens. In an exami-
nation of ;this kind it is necessary to
simplify the matter as much as possible
by removing all the other causes tend-
ing to produce diseased conditions, and
as in the case of the bees arriving dead,
indications of dysentery were present —
swelled abdomens and bowels filled with
a brownish liquid ; also cage soiled. It
seemed useless to experiment further
with them," etc.

Further on in the same letter he says :
"As indicated in the answer to your
other letter, the remedy most likely to
prove effectual is that of replacing the
queens of the diseased colonies with
those of different blood." That I have
done, but all to no purpose. I now have
queens to breed from procured from
three different States, but it seems to
make no difference, all suffer alike with
the disease, and I shall call it " bee-
cholera " until I learn a better name for
it. L. B. Smith.

lometa, Texas.

Xlie ^intli Annual I^eeting^

of the Wisconsin State Bee-Keepers'
Association will be held at the Capitol,
at Madison, on Feb. 8th and 9th, 1893.
C. A. Hatch, of Ithaca, is President ; H.
Lathrop, of Browntown, Recording Sec-
retary ; and Dr. J. W. Vance, of Madi-
son, Corresponding Secretary.

Annual Catalogfues or Price-

Lists we have received from —

Levering Bros., Wiota, Iowa— Bee-
Keepers' Supplies.

E. T. Flanagan, Belleville, Ills.— Bees
Keepers' Supplies, Bees, Queens, etc.

W. H. Norton, Skowhegan, Maine—
Bee-Keepers' Supplies, Bees and Queens.

John Nebel & Son, High Hill, Mo.—
Bee-Keepers' Supplies, Italian Bees and
Queens.

G. B. Lewis Co., Watertown, Wis. —
Bee-Hives, Shipping-Cases, Sections,
Frames, etc.

142

AMERICAN BEE JOURlMAi^.

Report of tlie IVortli American
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

(Continued from page 114.)
Next came an essay by Mr. E.
Root, of Medina, Ohio, upon

Self -Hi vers and Their Use.

R.

Up to about a year ago I took but
little interest in self-hivers. They seemed
to me to be too complicated, too expen-
sive, too everything, in fact, to be avail-
able and practical for bee-keepers. So
far, they vi'ould hive only a third or a
half of the bees, and they were, there-
fore, but little better than a complete
failure, for nothing is a success that is
only half a success.

At the previous meeting of this asso-
ciation, however, which assembled at
Albainy, Mr. E. L. Pratt, of Marlboro,
Mass., after one of the sessions, drew
me to one side, and showed me specifica-
tions of his new automatic hiver. Un-
like all previous arrangements for the
purpose, the bees entered into anew hive
on returning from the air, the entrances
to which they had long been accustomed.
This struck me at the time as being a
vital point, and possibly the key to
future success. The trouble with the
former self-hiving devices that had been
brought out was, that the bees on re-
turning, if they followed their queen,
which it seems most of them did not,
would have to go to a new entrance and
to a new hive.

Those of us who have had experience
in handling swarms with clipped queens'
wings, will remember how readily the
bees will return to the hive on discover-
ing the absence of their mother; and it
is nothing strange that they should rush
pell-mell into the old entrance, thinking,
of course, that she must still be in the
hive. It would not matter particularly
whether the queen had gone through
the perforated-zinc passage-way to
another hive — the majority of bees would
go to the old place, just the same.

Mr. Pratt, realizing the above fact,
placed a new hive that was to receive
the swarm, in front of the old one, in
such a way that the bees going to and
from the field would pass through the
new hive into the old one. A set of
combs was placed in the former, and a
sort of bee-escape was arranged in con-
nection with the perforated zinc in such
a way that the queen could readily pass
into the new hive, but not back again ;
and when in the new hive she would be
debarred from passing out at the en-
trance by the perforated zinc. Thus,
when a swarm should issue, the bees
would fly out in the usual way, and the
queen, following or preceding, would
enter the new hive, and there be en-
trapped. The bees remaining out for a
few minutes would soon discover the
absence of their queen, and return to
the old entrance, and, behold, the queen
would be in the new hive. From some
preliminary trials that Mr. Pratt had
been able to make the previous season,
he found that the plan worked success-
fully, and that all of the bees remained
in the new quarters.

I told Mr. Pratt, at the time, that this
was the only self-hiver that I ever took
any fancy to, and that I believed the
principle of having the bees go back to
an old entranoe, and to which they had
long been accustomed, was the key to
success.

The following summer, we rigged up
some 10 or 15 hives, on the principle
before stated ; and although I was san-
guine of success in the very beginning,
the result greatly exceeded my expecta-
tions. If I remember correctly, there
was not a single failure. The colonies
were not only automatically hived In
every case, but they went to work In
their new quarters, building comb, stor-
ing honey just as they would have done
had they been hived in the old-fashioned
way in a new location.

By way of experiment, some of the
colonies were left from three weeks to a
month, to see what the final result would
be. Young bees hatched in the parent
colony, and finally began to add their
numbers to the swarm. The latter, in
the mean time, went to storing honey to
the extent of 50 or 60 pounds in two or
three instances ; and one in particular
had stored itjto the phenomenal amount,
for these poor seasons, of 150 pounds.

Most of the colonies mentioned above
were arranged a little differently from
what Mr. Pratt originally designed, but
not so as to change the essential princi-
ple of allowing the bees to go to an en-
trance to which they had long been ac-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

143

customed. The new hive to receive the
swarm, instead of being placed in front
of the old one, was placed below. This
simplified the arrangement to the extent
that it required only one bottom-board,
and made it less difficult to adjust the
hives so as to be perfectly bee-tight as
far as communication from one hive to
another was concerned.

The plan that we used so successfully
was this : The old hive-body was taken
temporarily off from the bottom-board.
Another body, precisely like the other,
was set in its place. Into this was put a
full set of empty combs. On top of this
was then placed a board having a couple
of holes, on the under side of which,
and communicating with said holes, was
a sort of queen-escape, made of perfor-
ated zinc, like the sample I herewith
show you. This is so arranged that the
bees can readily pass up and down into
either compartment of the hives ; but
the queen can pass only one way, and
that downward; and having gotten into
the lower hive she is prevented from get-
ting out into'the air by means of per-
forated zinc. When preferred, the
queen's wing may be clipped, and the
zinc omitted at the entrance.

The mode of operation is simple. The
bees, in working, pass through the new
hive not yet occupied, crawl up into the
hive above, through the perforated zinc.
This seems as if it might be an objection
in that the bees are compelled to travel
so far before entering the hive proper.
This objection exists more in imagina-
tion than in actual practice. In a few
days, the swarm issues; the queen, be-
ing below, is trapped ; the bees return,
and finding their queen below, seem to
accept their new quarters as their new
abode. This, in brief, is the Pratt
method of self-hiving.

I am not prepared to say that the
Pratt automatic hivers will prove to be
as successful in the hands of others, be-
cause bees do not always follow an in-
variable rule, especially when their
owners try to make them do just as they
plan they ought to do, or as they do for
others under like circumstances ; so it
will probably take another year or so
before we can speak definitely with re-
gard to its success in the hands of bee-
keepers in general.

But an implement may be a success,
and yet not be practical. This may be
the case with the automatic hiver. At
present I fear they are rather too expen-
sive to be used generally by bee-keepers,
even if their success as, to actual opera-
tion is assured. -Bee-keepers cannot
afford to pay more for self-hivers than

it costs to hive swarms in the old-fash-
ioned way. By a little more experiment-
ing I am in hopes that their mode of
construction may be simplified enough
so as to permit of their general use.

Automatic hivers are old — very old —
in principle. Mr. H. A. King used a
device that was very similar in princi-
ple to the automatic hivers of to-day.
But as he did not then have perforated
zinc, it could not be made to work suc-
cessfully.

The late Moses Quinby also used a
similar device. Henry Alley, I believe,
was the first one to revive the idea of
any connection with perforated zinc.
Although his was the first, it seems not
to have been a complete success, as it
hived only a part of the bees — at least I
judge so from the reports I have re-
ceived.

Mr. E. L. Pratt took one step further,
and gave us the automatic hiver which I
have described here to-day. It remains
for some one else now to make It
cheaper ; and, last of all, for some en-
terprising editor — if they are a success
— to get bee-keepers to use them.

Ernest R. Root.

Frank Benton — I fear that in count-
ing the cost of the hiver, Mr. Root for-
gets that a hiver lasts several years. It
lasts as long, or longer, than a hive.
The cost is but little more than the in-
terest on the money.

W, Z. Hutchinson — At our late Michi-
gan State Convention, Mr. Heddon said
that as soon as a hiver was brought out
that was practical and successful, he
would put one on every hive, though
they cost as much as hives. The great
cost, in his estimation, in the production
of honey, is the labor, and any arrange-
ment that will allow a man to manage
his bees without constant attention will
eventually be adopted, even if it does
cost something. Instead of a trap at
the entrance, Mr. Heddon would use a
queen-excluder under the hive.

R. F. Holtermann — The honey-boards
would be needed for other purposes at
that time.

E. R. Root — One objection to the use
of honey-boards under the hive is that
they become stopped up by the drones
getting their heads fast in the zinc and
dying there, and there is no way of re-
moving them without lifting up the hive.
When an entrance-guard becomes stop-
ped up in this manner, a stick can be
run over it in a "jiffy," and the drones'
heads rubbed off, and thus the entrance
is kept clear.

144

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

W. Z. Hutchinson — Mr. Heddon's ob-
jection to an entrance-guard is that it
interferes with the ventilation of the
hive. I might say that at this same
convention, Mr. R. L. Taylor said that
he could manage very well without self-
hivers. He used simply a queen-trap.
If the apiary is visited once in three or
four days, the colonies that have
swarmed can be picked out by finding a
queen and a bunch of bees in the trap of
a colony that has swarmed. He then
divides those that have swarmed.

R. F. Holtermann — A queen might be
injured by a cold rain if left in the trap
three or four days.

W. Z. Hutchinson — Mr. Taylor says
that there is quite a little bunch of bees
remaining with the queen, and that he
has had no losses from this source.

Next came a long and exhaustive
essay by Mr. Frank Benton, of Wash-
ington, D. C, on

Varieties of Bees and Their Oharacter-
istics.

It is now nearly 20 years since I
called attention, through the apiarian
periodicals, to the important work of
Mr. Edward Cori, then a director of
chancellory in Bohemia, in the introduc-
tion and testing of various foreign races
of bees, some of them little known, and
others entirely new. And shortly after
the first mention of this work of his, I
translated several lengthy articles writ-
ten by him bearing on the subject.
These may be found in the Bee-Keepers'
'Magazine of New York city, for 1876.
Other notices from various foreign jour-
nals were given from time to time by
me, and in 1878 I srave a review of the
subject of foreign races of bees before
the Michigan State Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation.

Again, In the autumn of 1879, I had
the honor of presenting to the North
American Bee-Keepers' Association as-
sembled in Chicago, an extended notice
of the remarkable race of bees native to
the Island of Cyprus. A few months
later my interest in the subject led me,
in connection with Mr. D. A. Jones, an
extensive and capable Canadian bee-
master, to undertake a journey to the
Old World for the purpose of investigat-
ing the various races of bees which had
come into prominence, as well as to dis-
cover others still unknown, if such ex-
isted, and in rase these now races seemed
valuable, to import them to our own
country.

To many of the older members of this
society the facts are familiar, as re-
corded in numerous articles in the bee-
papers, that we sailed in January,
1880, on this long journey, made visits
among many of the prominent bee-
keepers in various countries of Europe,
initiated the work of queen-breeding in
Cyprus, Syria, and Palestine, and also
that Mr. Jones returned to America a
few months after, bringing with him
Cyprian, Syrian and Palestine bees,
while I still remained in the Orient.

One of the conditions of the contract
with Mr. Jones was that the qualities of
these new races should be represented
to the American public exactly as they
seemed to be, and that unless, as far as
could be discovered, a given race was
more valuable than the bees we then
possessed it should not be offered for
sale. Mr. Jones had exclusive control
of the sales in the United States and
Canada. I answered such calls as came
from the continent of Europe, and
after Mr. Jones, left England on his re-
turn trip in June, 1880, those that came
from the British Islands also.

Many of those present have also done
me the honor of following me, through
the published accounts, imperfect
though they were, of the long journey
to India and the perilous search in the
jungles for the famous Apis dorsata —
the Giant East India bees of which such
mythical tales had come to us. And
though it is true that the illness which
was the immediate cause of my failure
to get the bees here alive, resulted from
an over-estimate of my powers of endur-
ance, I am really more pleased at pre-
senting for your inspection dead speci-
mens of Apis dorsata than these re-
spectable bees would likely have been
over my demise had they compassed It.

Mr. Jones, who It will be remembered
returned to America after spending
about three months in the East, did not
visit the Orient again, although he re-
mained connected with the work. But
when, at the close of 1882, I found
myself obliged to leave the East, on ac-
count of the effect of the climate on my
health, he severed his connection with
the undertaking.

During the following years, with
headquarters in Munich, Germany, most
of the countries on the Mediterranean
sea were visited, some of them repeat-
edly, and stays of a few weeks or months
made. The races of bees native to each
country were studied and experimented
with in their own land, and In each in-
stance queens were taken with me to
other countries in order to test their

• AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

145

progeny in direct comparison with other
races, and also to secure certain known
crosses for experimental purposes.

Thus eleven years were passed in
foreign lands during which I recall that
once for a period of four years in succes-
sion I heard no word of my mother
tongue spoken outside of my own
family.

It is but just that I should mention
that the constant sharer in this long
exile and in these undertakings, their
pleasures and hardships (generally too
many of the latter), has been my de-
voted wife. She often took charge of
an apiary and receivad and cared for the
valuable queens from distant countries,
introducing them and preparing and
shipping them on long and difficult
journeys. It was her skill in this direc-
tion which landed in fine condition the
first queen-bee that ever made success-
fully, by mail, this long journey from
Europe.

And since misapprehensions regarding
the possible returns from such work
have arisen, and have often been al-
luded to in print, it is quite proper to
mention here that it is safe to say that
one-half the effort and expenditures put
Into queen-rearing at home would have
yielded a far better income, in fact ;
though I come back with more than a
decade added to my years, and, I trust,
correspondingly richer In experience, it
is poorer in pocket and in health than
when I sailed from my native land, and
this even though the bee-keepers in
many European countries extended to
the undertaking a patronage hardly an-
ticipated in the beginning. But as the
work was not undertaken on my part
with the expectation of money-making, I
.could only be disappointed in this direc-
tion, in so far as the returns were not
equal to the expenses.

Fbank Benton.

[Here is as far as Mr. Benton had his
essay in manuscript. The description
he gave extempore. I supposed it was
all written, hence I took no notes, but
Mr. E. R. Root, of Oleanings, did, and
he has kindly sent me proof of what he
took down, having first subniitted said
proofs to Mr. Benton. Here follows the
correct version as approved by Mr.
Benton.— W. Z. H.]

Although long, it was one of the most
entertaining talks that we believe we
ever listened to at any convention. Mr.
Benton began his address by giving a
description of the general characteris-
tics of black bees ; but as these bees are

so well known, we will not reproduce
his remarks here.

THE BEES OF ITALY.

Next he took up the Italians. These
were introduced into the United States
in 1860 by Mr. S. P. Parsons, acting
for the Department of Agriculture, as
the Government records showed. It was
generally stated in the text-books that
Italian bees 'were first introduced into
the United States by Wagner and Colvin
acting together, and Mahan independ-
ently. They were actually the first to
land Italians on our shores, but not
queens bred in Italy, nor was it from
their importations that the country was
stocked to any great extent with Italian
bees. Their first consignments, which
arrived alive, came from Germany in the
fall of 1859, Mr. Mahan, to whom too
little credit has been given in this con-
nection, having charge of them. The
Wagner and Colvin queens were all lost
during the winter, which was near at
hand when they arrived. Nor had the
Mahan importation been multiplied be-
fore the arrival in May, 1860, of the
consignment which Mr. Parsons had, in
1859, been commissioned by the United
States Department of Agriculture to
purchase in Italy. And it was chiefly
from this importation that Langstroth,
Gary, Quinby, and other skillful breed-
ers multiplied the race in this country.

Then turning to the general character-
istics and markings of the Italians, Mr.
Benton gave a very fair description,
which I also omit. Italians were, he
said, to be found in their greatest purity
in the region having Bergamo and
Brescia on the north, Montua and
Modena on the east, the Ligurian Appe-
nines on the south, and Pavia and Milan
on the west. He also found the bees in
Genoa well-marked, likewise those in
Leghorn, Florence, and other parts of
Tuscany, and in Rome. Perhaps it may
be interesting to note right here, that
the Italia,ns which we have been import-
ing to this country for many years have
been coming from the vicinity of Bologna,
which is just to the southeast of the re-
gion first mentioned by Mr. Benton.

OARNIOLAN BEES.

Of these Mr. Benton had the most to
say. They were dark in color, some-
what of a steel gray, but quite different
from the black bees. As to size, they
were a little larger than the Italians ;
were excellent honey-gatherers, sealed
their honey white, good wax-producers,
and collect little or no propolis. They

146

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

were very prolific, but not so much so
as the Eastern races, and the gentlest
bees in the world ; in fact, in this re-
spect, no other bees could be compared
with them. During the whole four years
that he worked with them in their native
country, he wore no veil, and yet hand-
led hundreds of colonies, even manipu-
lating the combs of strong ones late into
the night.

Carniolans could be readily shaken
from the combs, and this feature made
it possible to find the queens very readily
by shaking all the bees out of the shal-
low brood-chambers such as were used
and had been used for a century or more
In Carniola. In fact, it is the way the
natives usually find the queens. Carnio-
lans could be shaken from their combs,
and not fly up and resent it as Italians
would sometimes do. They were not
lacking in courage, but the loss of a
queen affected them greatly.

At first Mr. Benton thought they were
rather given to robbing ; but later he
found they were no worse than other
bees. On account of their capping
honey so white, and their gentleness,
Mr. Benton felt that the Carniolans were
the best bees for comb honey.

Referring to their demerits, he ac-
knowledged that they were rather in-
clined to swarm ; but this trait had been
encouraged in them for centuries. The
native bee-keepers in Carniola practice
a method where excessive swarming
seems desirable. Their inclination to-
ward excessive swarming is simply a
trait that has been bred into them ; and
Mr. Benton thought that the same trait
could be bred out, or at least held in
subjection here in America. It would
be foolish for Americans to reject them
solely on this ground ; and while the
Carniolans have many valuable traits,
he did not think that they would en-
tirely replace the Italians.

DALMATIAN BEES.

These bees were found on the east
coast of the Adriatic sea. Their bodies
are rather slender, and are shiny blue-
black in color, with lightish fuzz. In
qualities they are similar to Carniolans,
being prolific, excellent honey-gatherers,
and builders of very white combs,
though not quite so gentle as the latter.
It would be desirable, he thought, to in-
troduce them into this country, and
study and test them more thoroughly.

THE ATTIC, OK UKES OP HYMETTUS.

Those bees were found in the plains
of Attica — probably the same race of

bees that gathered honey for the gods.
They no doubt now gathered the same
honey, of the same quality that they
were reputed to have done in ancient
times ; but as the native bee-keepers put
the honey in goat-skins, Mr. Benton did
not think he would like to be one of the
"gods." The Hymettus bees look very
much like Carniolans, and their move-
ments are the same ; but they are very
cross, notwithstanding they are good
honey-gatherers. They used more prop-
olis, and were great breeders.

Mr. Benton here related an incident
of a case where he had the Attic, or
bees of Hymettus, in an apiary alongside
of Carniolans. He had been handling
Carniolans, and by mistake opened a
hive of the Hymettus bees, treating
them as he would Carniolans. The re-
sult was, that they poured out in such
numbers that he was driven precipi-
tately from the apiary. These and cer-
tain other bad qualities would make
them rather undesirable for importation
to this country.

CYPKIAN BEES.

These were reared on the Island of
Cyprus, and were rather peculiar on
account of their isolation. They were
kept in mud cylinder hives ; movements
were very quick — so quick, indeed, that
they might flit on one's nose. As to
their honey-gathering qualities, they ex-
ceed all other known races; will often
gather honey when others are doing
nothing. The cappings of their comb
honey have a rather watery appearance,
and therefore they were not suited for
comb honey. They were prolific — more
so than the Carniolans.

Eight at this point Mr. Benton wished
to emphasize the fact that it was not a
bad thing to have bees extra prolific,
because an intelligent bee-keeper — one
who knows how — could always turn this
quality to good account.

As to the temper of Cyprians, they
feared nothing. Great quantities of
smoke would not subdue them ; in fact,
the more they were smoked, the worse
they became. They were very sensitive
to light ; and hence on opening a hive it
must be done gradually. By working
cautiously, using, of course, a veil, and
a slight amount of smoke, he could get
along with them very well. They win-
ter bettor than the Syrians and Pales-
tines.

For extracted honey, ho believed they
were the best bees, in the world. If
honey wore to bo extracted it would
make no difl'erence whether the cappings

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

147

were water-soaked or otherwise. As the
swarminR disposition has been bred into
the Carniolans, so vindictiveness has
been bred into the Cyprians on account
of their natural environments. Wasps
were their natural enemies on the Island
of Cyprus, and Mr. Benton had known
them to pounce upon the weakest of the
colonies, and so decimate their number
as to end finally in their utter anihila-
tion. Mr. Benton regretted that the
Cyprians were not now to be had in this
country, and thought they had been dis-
carded prematurely. He believed that
they should be kept in their purity or
crossed with Carniolans, as their crosses
with blacks were evidently undesirable.

TUNISIANS, OR, AS SOME HAVE CALLED
THEM, FUNICS.

These, Mr. Benton said, were found
from Tripoli, Africa, westward. He had
reason for thinking they were the same
bees that were to be found on the island
of Minorca. They had been originally
imported to France, and all that region ;
and on the Island of Minorca they had
been isolated. The Tunisians resembled
most our black bees. They were much
darker, however, and smaller than these.
They fly quick, are excellent honey-
gatherers, active, good comlj builders,
and cap their honey fairly well ; but
they were the worst gatherers of propo-
lis of any bees known, and would some-
times close up their entrances to narrow
passage-ways with propolis, leaving
little pillars between the holes. Indeed,
the amount of propolis they will gather
is so much that they are unsuited for
comb honey, because they daub the cap-
plngs with it so much. They were vin-
dictive, and probably for the same rea-
son that Cyprians are so ; namely, on
account of their inveterate enemies — the
wasps.

The Tunisians, when aroused, are ten
times worse than Cyprians — worse even
than Syrians and Palestines, and besides
stinging they bite. Mr. Benton thought
the introduction of them into this coun-
try was detrimental to the best interests
of bee-keeping. As Mr. Benton has
thoroughly studied their habits in their
native clime, taken them from Tunis
with him and bred them in other coun-
tries for several years, and has also sent
imported queens of this race to apiarists
in various European and Asiatic coun-
tries, these statements may be taken
with some degree of authority.

APIS FLOREA.

These bees — the smallest of the genus
Apis — build in the open air, their single

comb being attached to the limbs of
trees. There can be nothing expected
from them, as they are so small, and are
quite disposed to migrate.

APIS INDICA.

These were very small and pretty five-
banded bees ; and as they could be kept
in hives, he thought they might be
worthy of a trial. They were so small
they might be well adapted to the small
flora of our country, without detriment
to our other bees, since they would
gather honey from some blossoms which
the ordinary-sized bees do not.

APIS DORSATA.

This was a very large bee ; general
color smoky black, abdomen having
three deep orange bands; wings blue-
black, and shone in the sunlight; work-
ers were about the size of our queen-
bees. Their movements were very dif-
ferent from that of the ordinary bees,
and, if disturbed, they whiz from the
combs like hornets. They were excel-
lent gatherers of honey, and of good
quality, and their wax was produced in
such quantities as to make an important
article of merchandise. The combs,
usually only one, were about five feet
long, hang from the limbs of trees. If.
as sometimes happens when they build
in rock cavities, they have more than
one comb, the secondary combs are at-
tached parallel to the central or main
comb, one on either side, and not as
commonly illustrated in one of the bee-
papers, showing several combs attached
to one limb. The worker-cells of the
Apis dorsata were about the size of the
drone-cells of our bees, and the drones
of Apis dorsata were reared in the same
cells as the workers. They looked like
drones, having a blunt appearance, not
differing greatly from drones of Apis
mellifica from our drones.

The vindictive power of these beei
had been greatly exaggerated. They
were not particularly cross, and could
be handled and kept in hives. Mr. Ben-
ton secured some of the bees and found
they could be successfully kept in hives.
Circumstances were such (a serious ill-
ness from exposure having befallen him)
that he could not make the observation
of their general characteristics that he
desired, but he found that they were
slow to repair combs that were broken.
So awkward were they in stinging that
by a quick brushing movement the
sting could easily be averted, and even
when they were successful in accom-
plishing their object, the wound was not
as painful as from other bees.

148

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Mr. Benton thought it desirable to im-
port and test them here, for, though it
is quite possible they might not prove of
direct value in domestication, and there-
fore private enterprise should hardly
venture upon the work of getting them,
the possibility of beneficial results to the
apiarian and agricultural interests of
the country through their introduction,
make the virork something which he
thought the government might very
properly undertake.

A. I. Root — Wherever there is Syrian
blood, there is trouble in handling the
bees. I know that smoke often makes
them worse. There are apiaries in Cali-
fornia where it is understood that no
smoke is to be used.

R. F. Holtermann— I think that what
Mr. Benton says is correct. But this
trait of the Syrians of defending them-
selves is so great, and passes on from
one generation to another — is so hard to
eradicate — that it ought to be avoided.

Frank Benton— ylpis dorsata is not
looked upon as valuable for a cross.
What would be the result of their intro-
duction, I cannot say. Their sting is
not so severe as that of the ordinary
bee. They are also more clumsy. They
can be brushpd off before they sting, if
the bee-keeper is just a little spry about
it.

R. F. Holtermann — Do the drones fly
at a different time of the day from other
drones ?

Frank Benton — I do not know. I
know that they fly just at dusk, when
the workers are still, but they may fly
at other times.

Prof. Riley — While the matter is prob-
lematical, I think that Apis dorsata
would not cross with our ordinary honey-
bees.

(Continued next week.)

cxxxxxxxxxxxTXTTTTxxTxyxxxxxxxxxxa

Mr. Aaron Coppin, of Wenona,
Ills., is on the programme for an essay
on the subject of " Bees on the Farm,"
to be given before the Marshall County
Farmers' Institute, which meets in
Armory Hall, at Wenona, on Feb. 2nd
and 3rd. Wish we could be there and
hear that essay. Perhaps Mr. C. will
send it to us for publication in the Bee
Journal.

§ection Holders —Wide Frames
and Ho^v to Use Tbem.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY G. M. DOOLITTLE.

Great Premium on page 133 !

A correspondent writes me thus : " I
wish to change my surplus arrangement
next season to some extent, and as I
wish to do it this winter, while I have
leisure, will you kindly tell me some-
thing of what you prefer, and how you
make and use it ? Please reply through
the American Bee Journal, as I am
taking that excellent paper."

After trying nearly all of the section-
cases advertised, I have come to the con-
clusion that wide frames, holding but
one tier of sections, give the best results
with the least work, trouble and annoy-
ance, taking all things into considera-
tion.

Wide frames, two or more tier of sec-
tions high, to be used in the upper story
of a two story hive, do not work at all
satisfactory with me, so I have discarded
them entirely for that purpose. How-
ever, I find them very handy when hiv-
ing large swarms, where such frames of
sections are placed at each side of the
hive to take the place of the number of
frames which we do not wish to use
when working on the contraction plan,
using these instead of the dummies
which are usually used in contracting
hives.

These wide frames are hung in the
hive with separators toward the combs
or frames of foundation, and it is a rare
instance that I get either brood or pol-
len in them. These wide frames are left
in the hive for 2J: days, or until they are
filled, when they are taken out to give
place for empty combs, which are used
to fill out the hive so there will be stores
enough for winter, thus securing the
lighter colored honey for market, while
the bees winter on darker honey gath-
ered later on, which is just as good for
the bees, but not as salable to customers.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

149

If all are not filled when taken out,
that portion of them are placed on top,
In the one-tier wide frames which are
used there, and left to be finished. This
makes some work, but as such are only
used on very large colonies, but little of
this changing of sections is required, as
they are generally completed at the end
of 24 days, or before, so that it is no
more work to handle wide frames of>
sections than it would be dummies.

Some one may ask, How about tiering
up? I do not like tiering-up, and never
did, though using it in the past to con-
siderable extent, for by this plan I am
liable to have too many partly-finished
sections, especially if the season be a
little poorer than we expected. How-
ever, the wide frames, as I use them,
can very easily be made to tier up. A
brief description of what I prefer is as
follows :

Make wide frames to accommodate
the number of sections you desire, con-
sistent with the top of the hive and size
of section. I use four sections in a
frame. Next, make two boards of the
same length and height of the wide
frames, cleating them to prevent warp-
ing. Drive a nail into each end of one
of these boards, letting it project one-
fourth inch, and a large, flat-headed tack
into each end of the other, driving it in
so that by winding a string around once
or twice it will hold the string as in a
vise.

Now procure some coil wire springs,
about three-sixteenths of an inch in
diameter, and tie a short string by mak-
ing a slip-knot, or otherwise, to the
spring and to the nail driven in the first
little board, and then tie the longer
string to the other end of the spring. I
use one 20 inches long. Put the wide
frames on the hive, two, three, five,
seven or ten, as you wish, set one of the
little boards up on each side, draw the
springs at each end until a strong ten-
sion is made, and wind strings around
between head of tack and board to
fasten, when you have an arrangement
that you can enlarge or contract, invert
or tier up, as you please, and one which
I consider superior to anything yet
brought before the public in the shape
of a surplus arrangement for comb
honey. For practical work I use it as
follows :

When the honey season opens, 1 put
from two to five wide frames on each
colony, according to size, being careful
not to give too much room at first, so as
to discourage the bees on the start. In
a week or more, add two more wide
frames, one on each side, and so on until

the full capacity of the hive is reached,
according to the room on the top, always
putting them on the outside. As I use
chaff hives largely, this gives room of
about 60 pounds capacity, which Is all
that is required by the largest colonies,
while many colonies do not require
more than from 30 to 50 pounds
capacity, when worked on this "lateral"
plan, as some term it.

As soon as the first sections are com-
pleted, they are taken off, the remaining
wide frames crowded to the center, and
empty sections put on the outside as
before. As the season draws toward a
close, calculations are made so as to get
all as nearly completed as possible, and
to accomplish this, no empty sections
are put on to take the place of the full
ones taken off, so that at the end of the
season the number is about the same as
it was at the beginning, nearly all of
which are generally finished. Should
any remain unfinished, the honey is ex-
tracted from the combs, the sections
given to the bees to lick dry of honey,
when they are stored away as "bait
sections " for the next year. The few
that are not filled, I consider of great
value when used in this way, for by so
doing the bees are started to work in the
sections much earlier in the season than
they otherwise would be.

Borodino, N. Y.

>■ »

Canadians Bloiv Up the Sugar-
Honey magazine.

Writteji for the American Bee Jourtial
BY WM. M'EVOY.

At the annual meeting of the Ontario
Bee-Keepers' Association, held in Walk-
erton, a committee was appointed, com-
posed of Messrs. S. T. Pettit, of Bel-
mont, James Frith, of Princeton, and J.
K. Darling, of Almont, to go to Ottawa
and get an Act passed against the manu-
facture, importation or sale of "sugar
comb honey."

Mr. Pettit, the chairman of the com-
mittee, has the Bill prepared, making it
a very serious business for any person to
make, buy or sell sugar comb honey.
The fines are to be $400, which I be-
lieve are none too much when we con-
sider how easy it would be to ruin the
real honey producers' business by such
work. If the feeding of sugar for the
production of comb honey got started, it
would end in putting the feeders on the
crates of sections, and then feeding the
very cheapest grades of sugars.

150

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

It was too bad to over start such a
subject in any periodical, to advise bee-
keepers to feed sugar for such a fraudu-
lent purpose, because it v^ould be noth-
ing but fraud to sell such for honey. I
do not mean to say that these men that
pushed the sugar comb honey so to the
front would even try to push anything
that they did not believe to be strictly
honest ; these men that gave that advice
did it with the very best of intentions to
help bee-keepers in poor seasons, believ-
ing that bees make honey out of sugar,
which I positively declare they cannot.

Woodburn, Ont., Jan. 16, 1893.

[We are glad that ourCanadian friends
are moving in this matter. Let every
bee-keeper, as well as all bee-conven-
tions, condemn the very suggestion of
such a thing as feeding sugar for the
production of honey, whether comb or
extracted.

Nothing, it seems to us, could more
completely and speedily wipe out the
business of honest honey production,
than sugar-honey making. Because
those who proposed the scheme were
sincere in their desire to aid bee-keepers,
it does not lessen the stupendous damage
bound to result from what has been so
unwisely published and advised upon the
subject. We have heard of a man who
couldn't open his mouth without putting
his foot into it; in this case it seems
that the champions of the sugar-honey
scheme, opened their mouths and then
l)ut in both feet. It will be a long time
before they get over the effects of that
mouthful !

You can count on the old Amebican
Bee Journal, as dead against all such
schemes, every day in the week. — Ed.]

A Good Reason Why Bees Don't
Pay Sometimes.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY CHARLES E. FALKNER.

The past season was a total failure as
regards surplus honey. From 34 colo-
nies I obtained no surplus honey to
speak of. The spring of the year was
very wet, and all during 'fruit-bloom
and up until white clover commenced to

bloom ; so much so that the bees scarcely
made a living.

White clover and basBwood furnished
a sufficient nectar for the bees to fill
their brood-chambers, providing they
did not swarm. I kept mine from swarm-
ing, and consequently they went into
winter quarters in splendid condition.

I always see that my bees have
^plenty of stores to take them through
the winter safely before I ever attempt
to take a single pound of their faithful
labor, which, I think, is right and just.
I know of plenty of so-called bee-keepers
that in the fall of the year take the last
pound of surplus, and often rob the
brood-chamber by extracting the well-
filled outside combs, and never attempt
to feed the bees ; and those are the ones
who expect to receive the largest returns
from their bees the coming summer ! If
they fail, they are ready to say that it
don't pay everybody to bother with bees
at all. Well, I don't wonder much why
it don't pay in their haphazard ways of
management ; but I do wonder why they
are so hasty in saying that it don't pay
anybody to keep bees at all, just because
they failed in their poor way of doing
business.

I don't wish to be understood that I
think it would pay a farmer to adopt
farming and take up bee-keeping en-
tirely, nor would I advise anybody to do
so, for the reason that past experience
has taught us that we cannot always de-
pend upon a honey-flow each year in
succession ; neither would a farmer dare
to depend upon raising wheat or corn,
and nothing else on the farm, as I fear
he would be "left" fully as often, and
if not more so, then the bee-keeper
would.

Now I would say to those that think
it doesn't pay to bother with bees, to
purchase one or two good, strong colo-
nies of Italians, and send $1.00 for the
Amercan Bee Journal, and by the
time they have 20 or 25 good colonies
of bees, they will have a pretty good
idea of the business, and will more than
doubly be repaid for their time and
capital invested. They will also dismiss
the false idea that it doesn't pay any-
body to keep bees at all.

Twenty or 25 colonies can be success-
fully managed by a man who is farming
but 30 or lo acres of land, and they
will pay him well for the little extra
bother.

TO RID HIVES OF ANTS.

I noticed on page 828 that Mr. Kauff-
man, of Brickersville, Pa., says he Is
bothered with little ants around the bee-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

151

hives, and that he has tried everything
given in the Bee Joubnal, and it did
not destroy them. I never try to de-
stroy them ; I simply keep them away
from my bee-hives by taking a good
bunch of tansy, and mash or bruise it by
rubbing it on the outside of the hives
and the inside of the cover, and scatter
some of it on the cloth over the bees.
Be sure to try it the coming summer,
and report in the Bee Journal.
Pioneer, Ohio.

ncxxxxxxxxxxxVxxxxxxrxxxxxxxxxxxx;

-^--v-'vY'

_ Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

tt^

Gathering Pollen.

Many colonies of my bees are ventilat-
ing, denoting strength. Considerable
pollen is gathered now. The weather
permitting, I expect early swarms.

M. H. Mendleson.

Ventura, Calif., Jan. 2, 1893.

Reminded of the Winter of 1880-81.

The weather for the past few days are
reminders of the winter of 1880-81 —
20 to 22-^ below zero. That winter the
loss of bees was great, and if the winter
continues for any length of time as it
has been, I fear there will be a serious
loss this winter. But we will hope for
the best. H. H. Brown.

Light Street, Pa., Jan. 17, 1893.

Winter Packing:-Cases — Top-Bars.

In Mr. Green's article on page 22, he
says there are pronounced advantages in
making a packing-case large enough to
hold several colonies, and that his new
packing-cases hold four. Now if they
held eight, having two entrances at each
side and each end, there would be still
greater advantage, as there would be
more economy of heat, and only a trifle
over one-half more labor, packing ma-

terial, and lumber required. The roof
could be made of half-inch cedar or pine
lumber, 10 or 12 inches wide, and
nailed to three hardwood rafters for
each side of the roof, one inch square,
with 2)4 inch wire nails well clinched.
The two sides of the roof may be hinged
at' the ridge with three strap hinges,
one at the center, and the other two
near the ends, just over the rafters, and
nailed on with three-inch wire nails in-
stead of screws.

There is another point I should like to
make in regard to making a bee-space
at the ends of top-bars, which can be
done by rabbetting out %-inch instead
of %, and having the sheet-iron rest
raised )^-inch above the shoulder, thus
leaving a bee-space of half an inch all
around the projecting end of the top-
bar, and so avoiding all propolization
during the use of the hive.

R. F. Whiteside.

Little Britain, Ont., Jan. 13, 1893.

The Season of 1892— Wintering.

I put 73 colonies of bees into the cel-
lar in the fall af 1891. They were light
in stores, but all wintered well except 2
colonies. I put them out on April 5,
1892. It was fine weather, but in a
few days it turned cold and windy, and
it rained, and rained, and the east wind
blew ice cold for 31 days. I could not
look at-my bees all of this time, as it
was so cold and windy, and when the
first warm day came, that was on Sun-
day, they commenced swarming out
about 9 o'clock in the morning. I had
fed all of these colonies well, and they
all had plenty to eat ; all had brood and
good queens. I put some of them back
six times into the one hive, and the first
thing I would know they would be out
on the wing. So they swarmed out
until I had 36 colonies left out of 73.
I then gave the 36 the very best of
care, and got 1,200 pounds of comb
honey, all nice and white. I now have
58 colonies.

My neighbor had 11 colonies, and he
came to me and wanted to know if I
would help him kill his bees, and take
my extractor and extract the honey. I
told him I thought it was wicked to kill
the bees that way. I offered to buy his
bees, and he paid all right, he would
sleep over it. They were in Root's ten-
frame hives. I weighed some of them,
and they weighed from 66 to 70 pounds
each. I got them for .$3.00 per colony,
and I let my neighbor have 2 colonies
out of the 111 bought. The one I bought

152

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL,

the bees of got only 60 pounds of honey
in sections. He used no foundation in
the sections. He has 13 acres in small
fruit, and won't keep bees. I have 68
colonies in my cellar this winter in the
very best condition, and they are win-
tering finely. I have lost only 2 colo-
nies in cellar wintering for 6 years. « I
think I have one of the very best plans
for Minnesota wintering.

C. A. GOODELL.

Mankato, Minn., Jan. 10, 1893.

Bees Wintering' Nicely.

My 27 colonies of bees are wintering
nicely. The honey crop was very light
last year — about 300 pounds from 22
colonies. I took out 6 pounds to-day, of
tolerably fair honey. The prospects are
good for next season.

Apple Grove, Ala.

John M. Ryan.
Jan. 6, 1893.

Good Cure for the Blues, Etc.

I wonder if the most of the readers of
the American Bee Journal have
learned by personal experience that
these words by our Lord Jesus were
true, that it is "more blessed to give
than to receive." It is true, I am sure
it is true. I know from experience. I
don't believe there is a better cure for
the blues than to go to work with all
one's might to help some one more un-
fortunate than ourselves.

If we are too poor to have much
money to give, there are thousands of
other ways of doing good. Jesus said :
" Gather up the fragments, that nothing
be lost." In almost every home there is
clothing that we can spare as well as
not, and if mended and laid away in a
box kept for that purpose, it would grow
beautifully full before the year closed.
There are thousands of such homes
where such clothing would make happy
hearts.

Some people say, "Oh! I would not
hurt people's feelings by offering them
such clothes !" I would not give to such
people as are too proud to receive them.
I can tell you where you can send such
clothes, and they will be very thank-
fully received. It is to a Christian In-
dian Orphanage, that has been recently
established at Swenndale, near Vinita,
Indian Territory, under the care of
Evangelist Wolf. I could mention many
other places, did space permit.

IJces in this vicinity are wintering
well, 1 think ; especially those in the

cellar. The bees out-of-doors have not
had a good flight for about eight weeks,
but the weather has not, until now,
been severe on them — not much cold
winds thus far this winter, which is, I
think, harder on bees out-of-doors than
quite cold weather. White clover, also,
seems all right.

I wish to thank the editor for the
honor conferred upon me by placing at
the head of the editorials, on page 719
(1892), the poetry ending with letters,
copied from Oleaninys. •> Honesty sug-
gests to me that I should write and in-
form the readers that it was not my own
composition. I found the lines in "The
Yankton Student," as selected poetry ;
no name given. I thought it applicable
to our beloved pursuit, and so I quoted
them. Mrs. L. C. Axtell.

Roseville, Ills., Dec. 14, 1898.

S&vere Winter in New York.

We have-had the most severe winter
here since the 23rd day of December,
that I ever remember at this time of the
year. On the day alluded to, the wind
sprung up from the northwest, whirling
snow filled the air, roads were block-
aded, and the mercury sank to below
zero, so each one of us had our Merry
Christmas around our own fires, and
the many Christmas trees, houses, boats,
etc., were nearly or quite failures.

On New Year's day it thawed just a
little bit near night, but the next day
found us in the midst of another zero
wave, and the mercury has scarcely
been above since, staying from 2^ above
to 6° below, with high winds most of the
time. There is about 14 inches of snow
on a level in the center of large pieces
of woodland where the wind cannot
reach, but elsewhere the lots are bare,
with the snow-drifts anywhere from 2
to 10 feet deep behind fences, in the
roads, etc. I have been four days shov-
eling on the roads, and now they are
hardly passable, in many places.

All of my bees are in the cellar except
7 colonies, I was in there two weeks
ago, and those in it were very nice, so I
have no fears for them.

G. M. DOOMTTI.E.

Borodino, N. Y., Jan. 18, 1893.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send thorn sample copies of the Bke
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

153

PXJBIilSHED WEEKLY BY

iGE m. imK' R

At One Dollar a Year,
56 FIFTH AVENUE, CHICAGO, ILLS.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Til© Bee xToru-xial is sent to subscribers
until an order is received by tlie publishers for
its discontinuance, and all arrearages are paid.

A Sample Copy- of the Bee JOURNAL will
be sent FREE upon application.

How to Send Afoney.— Remit by Express,
Post-OfQce Money Order, or Bank Draft on New
York or Chicago. If none of these can be had,
Kegister your Xetter, affixing Stamps both for
postage and registry, and take a receipt for it.
Money sent thus, IS AT OUR RISK; otherwise
it is not. Do not send Checks on Local Banks—
we have to pay 25 cents each, to get them cashed.

^evei- Send Silver in letters. It will

wear holes in the envelope, or may be stolen.
Make all Money Orders PayaMe at

Chicago, III,— not at any sub-station of Chicago.

Postag-e Stamps of any denomination may
be sent for any fraction of a dollar; or where
Money Orders cannot be obtained, stamps for
any amount may be sent.

Subscription Credits.— The receipt for
money sent ua will be given on the address-label
of every paper. The subscription is paid to the
END OF THE MONTH indicated.

I Jo not Write anything for publication on
the same sheet of paper with business matters,
unless It can be torn apart without interfering
with either part of the letter.

Emerson Binders, made especially for
the AMERICAN Bee Joubnal, are convenient
for preserving each weekly Number, as fast as
received. They will be sent, post-paid, for 50 cts.
each. They cannot be sent by mail to Canada.

Cost Numbers.— We carefully mail the
Bee Journal to every subscriber, but should
any be lost in the mails, we will replace them if
notified before all the edition is exhausted.

Always State the Post-Offlce to which
your paper is addressed, when writing to us.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffleld, Portage co, Ohio

CaWVENTION DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time arid place of meeting.

Feb. 7, 8.— California, at Los Angeles.

John H. Martin, Sec, Redlands, Calif.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville. Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

Jt^* In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

Iforth American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Secretary- Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

« » » ♦ »

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— James Heddon . .Dowaglac, Mich.
Sec'y and Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago.

Webster's Pocket Dictionary we offer
as a premium for sending only one new
subscriber with $1.00. It is a splendid
Dictionary — and just right for a pocket.

» — ■ ^» P %

CL,UBBII^O I^I!$X.

"We Club the American Bee Journal
for a year, with any of the following papers
or books, at the prices quoted in the 1L<ASX
column. The regular price of both is given
n the first column. One year's subscription
for the American Bee Journal must be sent
with each order for another paper or book :

Price of both. Club.
The American Bee Journal 81 00 —

and Gleanings in Bee-Culture. ... 2 00 ... . 1 75

Bee-Keepers' Review 2 00 175

The Apiculturist 175.... 165

Bee-Keepers' Guide 175 — 165

American Bee- Keeper 150 140

Canadian Bee Journal 2 00 1 75

Nebraska Bee-Keeper 150 — 1 35

The 8 above-named papers 6 25 5 25

and Langstroth Revised (Dadant) 2 40 — 2 25

Cook's Manual 2 00.... 1 75

Doolittle on Queen-Rearing. 2 00. . . . 1 65
Bees and Honey (Newman).. 2 00 — 165

Advanced Bee-Culture 150.... 135

Dzierzon's Bee-Book (cloth). 2 25.... 2 00
Root's A B C of Bee-Culture 2 25 ... . 210

A Year Among the Bees 1 50 135

Convention Hand-Book 125 115

Illustrated Home Journal . . 1 50 — 1 35

Do not send to us for sample copies
of any other papers. Send for such to the
publishe'rs of the papers you want.

154

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Wmmix Market ((noiiitions.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
January ;28th. 1892 :

OHIOAGO, li.Ti.— Thuro are occasional sales
of bost Krados ol'coinb lionoy, but tlio retail-
ers arc not yet sold out on supply laid in
before tiio liolidays. I'riccs are a little easier,
especially on tlnit wliicli will not urado " fan-
cy —such brings 17@18c., and other grades
12@l(ic. Extracted. 6@!)c., as to quality.

l$eeswax-22®25c. K. A. IJ. & Co.

(nilCAGO, Iiii/.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
wltli i)lenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It soils readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, l()@17c. Darlt sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8'/i ;
dark, G®7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J.A.L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers, lor extracted honey, was slow for
the last few weeks, while tliere was, and is
still, a fair demand from consumers for family
use. There is no choice comb iioney in tlie
market. Host white comb brings 14@10c.
Extra(tted honey brings 0@8c.

Heeswax- Demand fair, at 2;J®2.^)C. for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey Is very ligiit. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are Ir-
regular. Extracted Is In good demand and
stocks are light. We <iuoto: Basswood and
white clover, 8®8'/4c.; buclcwheat, (J@U'/ic.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax-2.'")®27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Cat.if.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7®7J4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax Is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Comb honey is soiling
slow, very much slower than we like to have
It, and It 18 our experience that when we start
honey in at a high price. It sells hard right
through the season. We quote our market
nominally at 17@18c. for best white honey,
1-lb. combs. Extracted, 8@9c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 10c. Extracted. 6®
7o. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNEAPOLIS.Minn.— The market is good.
We (luoto : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
ut 18c.; 2-lb8. l(5®17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®l''c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; In 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J.A. S. &C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 10®17c.; No. 2, 14®15c.; No. 1
amber l-lbs. 15c.; No. i amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@754c.; amber, 5®6.

Beeswax— 20®2:Jc. C.-M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our honej' market is slow
on account of cold weatlier, but our stock was
never so light as now. We liave less than .'"lO
cases of honey on hand, and only one barrel
of extracted; when usually wt< have 1.000
cases In stock. For honoj' not granulated In
comb.wequote: Whlte(8mall).l.'")®18c.; mixed
i:5®14c.; dark, 10@llc. Large comb and
double glass sell for 1 to 2c. less per lb. Ex-
tracted, white, 8Vi@ac.; amber, 7J4®8c. ; buck-
Wlieat, 7®7>4C. II. K. W.

List (if Honey mid Heeswax Dealers,

Most of wliom Quote In tliis Journal.

<!lileago, IIIm.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. V.

F. I. Saok & Son, 18:! Reade Street.
HifiDiiETH Bros. & SKaEi.KioN.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

Sail FraiiclMco, €alir.

SCHACHT, Lemckk & Stkinkh, 10 Drumm St.

iniuiioapollH, ITIIiiu.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

KaiiNaN City, rflo.

Hamumn & Bearss. 614 Walnut Street.
Ci.emoms-Mason Com. Co., .521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Haiuiltuii, IUm.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

€luclnnati, Ohio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Doolittle's Quccn-Rearitis:

book should be in the library of every
bee-keeper ; and in ti^e way we offer to
to give it, there is no reason now why
every one may not possess a copy of it.
Send us one new subscriber for a year,
and we will mail the book to you bound
in paper, as a present.

>* Bees and Honey" — page 133.

Wajits or Exctapges.

» *■ V. -s ^ ^ ■> -- V

Under this heading, Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 t-eutN per line,
for each Insertion, when specially ordered
Into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

^u-v^ — ^.".-^

- -N r w N y w -N ^ ..

WANTED— A male or female who under-
stands Bees, to start a new apiar3\ State
experience and wages desired.
J. B. Summers. Berthoud, Larimer Co., Colo.

WANTED— A situation in an Apiary or In a
Hive Manufactory, by a practical apia-
rist. 12 years' experience.

Address. G, C. R.. Box 707,

5Alt Austin. Minn,

WANTED — Every Queen Dealer in the
United States to send for our prices on
5-Banded Italian Queens. Every one warran-
ted. Address, V. B. BANKSTON,
6Alt Chrisnuiu, Tex.

GEOSOZ: W. YORK, ' DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY

Editor. t To Bee-CulTURE. (

j Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, FEBRUARY 9, 1893.

NO. 6.

' Iioveliest of lovely things are they.
On earll) that soonest pass away.
The rose tliat lives its little hour
Is prized beyond the sculptured flower."

Oathering^ Pollen.— Mrs. Jen-
nie Atchley, of Greenville, Hunt Co.,
Tex., wrote us thus on F(!b. 1st:

Bees btigan to gatlier tlie first natural
pollen yesterday, and tiicy just rolled it
in this morning.

Here in Chicago, this morning (Feb.
4th) it is lO- below 7myo. Quite a va-
riety of weather we have; in these United
States !

A Bad Mess. — When papers other
than bee-papers attempt to say any-
thing about bees they generally make a
mess of it. A pseudo-religious paper,
attempting a comparison, says : "The
fact that the two larvae, the drone and
worker-bee, placed together in the
queen-cell, will so blend as to develop an
impregnated queen-bee," etc. There's
advanced science for you ! And the re-
ligion of the paper is a good deal worse
than its bee-lore.

The Bee-Keepers' Union.—

We have received from the General
Manager of the National Bee-Keepers'
Union, th(! following

OFFICIAL STATEMENT.

Chicago, Ills., Feb. 3, 1893.

To tfie Members of the National Bee-
Keepers' Union :

I hereby submit the following state-
ment of Votes received up 'the time of
closing the polls, on Feb. 1, 1893 :
There were 348 votes cast.

For President — Hon. R. L. Taylor,
141; James lieddon, 136; scattering,
50; blank, 21.

For Vice-Presidents— C. C. Miller, 272;
G. M. Doolittle, 270 ; A. I. Root, 265 ;
A. J. Cook, 242 ; G. W. Demaree, 228 ;
scatt<!ring, 248.

For General Manager, Secretary and
Treasurer — Thomas G. Newman, 321;
scattering, 3 ; blank, 24.

For Amended Constitution — 289 ;
against, 28; blank, 31.

For Salary of Manager — 20 per cent.,
342 ; scattering, 6. Back salary voted,
the years being added together, amount
to 566. This, divided by the number of
votes, lacks a little of being twice — car-
rying for one year, and leaving votes for
218 over. It will therefore commence
with Jan. 1, 1892.

Thomas G. Newman,
General Manager.

In Queen-BreedinsTt it is wisely
said, we should aim to rear prolific
queens. This, indeed, is of prime im-
portance. If we would have strong col-
onies, we must have queens that will
commence to lay early, continue to lay
abundantly, and keep on in the way of
well doing until in the autumn.

168

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Olucosing: Dark Honeys.—

It seems that this latter part of the
marvellous nineteenth century is to be
made still more marvellous by way of
great and consternating surprises in the
field of honey-production.

Not content with the death-threaten-
ing invention of the Hasty sugar-honey
plan, James Heddon — once the proud
leader in the production of honest
honey — now steps almost to the low level
of honey adulterators, by defending the
practice of mixing glucose with dark
honeys in order to effect its sale ! This
indeed would be hard to believe, were it
not for the published report of his un-
fortunate utterances at the late meeting
of the Michigan State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation, which are found in the Bee
JouKNAL for Jan. 5th.

If there is one thing this editor re-
grets since taking hold of the helm of
the old American Bee Jouknal, it is
that he was so almost criminally careless
as to publish the parts of that Michigan
convention report referring to the "Pro-
duction of Sugar-Honey" and "Adultera-
tion of Honey." We trust that we may
be forgiven for having published it, and
we certainly shall take better heed in
the future, that no more such damaging
stuff shall find a place in these columns.
We are perfectly willing to let sensa-
tional publishers ride their hobbies, but
the "old reliable " will hereafter try to
avoid the quick-sand route.

Oleanings in Bee-Cidture for Jan.
15th has such a good editorial on this
very subject of glucosing dark honeys,
that we feel we cannot do better, if as
well, than to republish it entire. Here
it is :

By the report of the proceedings of
the Michigan State Bee-Keepers' Associ-
ation, Mr. Heddon offers quite a lengthy
argument in defense of adulterating,
saying that it helps the sale of the poor
dark honeys, because they will stand a
large quantity of glucose. He says
truthfully, that "there is no trouble
about enforcing the law against murder,
because people dislike to be murdered;"
but when he says that enforcing laws
against adulteration is impracticable be-

cause the public care very little about
the matter, he is surely mistaken. The
public does care.

Again, he says broadly, "I think the
adulteration of honey has never injured
bee-keeping; that it has, rather, been a
benefit." And, again, quoting, "If we
are going to fight adulteration, let us
decide why we fight it. If it does not
injure us, then why fight it?" And,
once more, "All this talk about adulter-
ation is the height of folly." We regret
exceedingly that any one in our ranks
should take such grounds as these; and
we are sorry that even Prof. Cook should
go so far as to say that, if the addition
of glucose " to some grades of honey
really improves them and aids in their
sale, I have said my last word against
adulteration."

Replying to Mr. Heddon, we will say
that we know positively that the adul-
teration of honey by glucose has injured
the bee-keeping interests, else why is it,
in this year of great scarcity of honey,
the extracted article fails to go up in
price? In fact, it rules just about the
same as it does in years of plenty.
There was a time, and not more than
three or four years ago, when very little
honey was adulterated; but now things
are changed; and if the continual harp-
ing on the subject is bad, that silence
which lets the evil go on unrestrained
and unchecked is tenfold worse. If cir-
cumstances were only such that we dared
reveal some things that we know — well,
we wont make any threats.

Referring to the quotation fron Prof.
Cook, does he not see what a fearful
flood of fraud and adulteration the ad-
mission of his argument would bring
upon the country? Does he suppose for
a moment that adulterators are going to
stop at dark grades of honey and glucose
in order to give the dear people some-
thing better than real floral honey? A
little stream of water over the edge of
Conemaugh dam "improved," perhaps,
the water below; but it did more than
that; it let loose death and destruction
in its wake.

Now, it is possible that neither of the
gentlemen above named have been cor-
rectly reported; but as Mr. Hutchinson
acted as reporter, and is unusually care-
ful and accurate, wo presume the quota-
tions are not far from correct. To have
such "heresies" advanced by the pres-
ident of the Union, now on the very eve
of starting a well-organized effort to sup-
press adulteration of honey, is too bad.
If bee-keepers should not be unanimous
in this fight, if some of them should pro-
pose sugar comb honey, and others coun-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

169

tenance adding glucose to dark honeys,
where would we be coming to? Verily,
the foundations of the bee-keeping in-
dustry would bfe threatened. Such a
state of affairs must not come, and will
not, because we believe that neither Mr.
Heddon nor Prof. Cook would be willing
to hazard the industry, or even run the
risk of doing so. Surely Prof. Cook and
Mr. Heddon will reconsider.

The suggestion and attempted defense
of sugar-honey production was bad
enough, but this championing of the
criminal work of adulteration is i)ifinitely
■worse ! Indeed may it be asked, "Where
are we at?" If such things continue,
reputable bee-keeping will be at the
door of Destruction. Such wild asser-
tions as are enclosed with quotation
marks in the foregoing paragraphs from
Oleaniiigs, are the rankest kind of
heresies, and that such should be ad-
vanced by those prominent in the coun-
cils of bee-keepers themselves, is the
most stupendous outrage of this apiarian
age.

If there are any persons on the fair
face of this earth to-day, who should
make the most humble apologies, and
earnestly beg the pardon and forgive-
ness of honest honey-producers all over
the world, it is those who have so un-
wisely, so unfortunately — yps, so disas-
trously defended the adulteration of
honey.

The question is, Will they be manly
enough to make the amende honorable ?

Bee-Keepers — Xo W^ork !—

Mr. Jas. A. Stone, Secretary of the
Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Association,
wrote us thus on Jan. 25, 1893 :

The Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation Legislative Committee have in-
troduced (in connection with the State
Horticultural and State Dairymen's As-
sociation) a Bill in the Senate, and also
in the House of the 38th General Assem-
blyi for an appropriation to enable them
to make a competitive exhibit at the
World's Columbian Exposition.

This week there will be presented by
the Legislative Committee (Hon. J. M.
Hambaugh, S. N. Black, and J. A.
Stone) of the Illinois Bee-Keepers' Asso-

ciation, Bills to prevent the spraying of
fruit trees, etc., while in bloom; for an
appropriation to publish a report ; and
one to compel the adulterators of honey
to label their manufactured articles with
the true name of their components
(whether sugar, glucose, or other sweets
not gathered from the flowers), with the
names of manufacturers.

Let every man or woman interested
in the keeping of bees, who can influence
their representatives to favor these
" Bills," work upon them by letting
them know of the importance of the in-
dustry of bee-keeping in this broad State
of owrs ; and that, no matter how much
our interest is extended. It does not take
the acreage from some other product,
as would that of corn, wheat or oats,
etc., wherein the increase of one results
in the diminishing of the others' ; but
on the contrary, the increase of bees
assists the horticulturist and farmer, in
causing their products of fruits and
seeds to be increased.

We wish to say further to bee-keepers,
that nothing helps more before the
Legislature than a large list of members
to the State Bee-Keepers' Association.
Jas. a. Stone, Sec.

Bradfordton, Ills.

These are indeed important matters,
and we trust that every bee-keeper in
the State of Illinois will at once comply
with the urgent request of Secretary
Stone. He and the other members of
the bee-committee are doing their utmost
to aid the pursuit of bee-keeping, and
they should have the hearty support of
every one at all interested in the indus-
try. Let all encourage them in their
good work by helping them to be suc-
cessful in their efforts.

t,iterary Chicagfo. — An article
that will be read with great interest in
every literary center In the East, and in
every refined circle in the East and
West, is William Morton Payne's article,
" Literary Chicago," which opens the
New England Magazine for February.
The article is well illustrated, and con-
^ tains portraits of Francis F. Browne,
Dr. Paul Cams, Gen. Alexander C. Mc-
Clurg, Horatio N. Powers, Benjamin F.
Taylor, Eugene Field, Harriet Monroe,
Blanche Fearing, George P. Upton, Dr.
J. W. Foster, Elwyn A. Barron, Joseph
Kirkland, Dr. William F. Poole, and
George Howland.

170

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Something: Very Funny.—

The American Bee Joubnal does not
claim to be a comic paper, but here is
something so very funny, taken from the
American Farmer, and signed "J. W.
Tefft," that we cannot forbear giving it
to our readers :

Bee-keeping knowledge must be gained
by ourselves. He who tries to solve bee-
problems through the bee-trade journals
will find that it takes a little longer than
a lifetime. There are eight bee-papers
published, and all of them are filled with
literature upon drone-traps, bee-escapes,
Hoffman frames, clipped queens, and a
host of worthless things had on sale
which the bee-keeper can have as a ,
premium if he will only subscribe for '
their paper.

Isn't it just too funny for anything
that bee-papers are filled with things
that bee-keepers write about and really
want to know all about ? And isn't it
a side-splitting joke that bee-keepers
will continue to subscribe for such
worthless things, from which they can
learn nothing ? Bro. T. will have to try
again, we think.

Changfing: the Air in Cellars

— In a recent number, Mr. S. Plummer
asked the question whether in a wet and
moldy cellar it would do any good to
" place a fan wheel in one side of the
cellar, and run by a wind-mill so as to
put the air in motion around the cellar."
The question was understood to refer to
forcing in fresh air by means of a fan
wheel (a method used for ventilating
large buildings), and was answered ac-
cordingly. That was not intended, how-
ever, and now Mr. Plummer asks :

What will be the effect of a moderate
circulation of the dead air in a cellar, on
its temperature ? What difference will
there be in the density of the same ?

It is not likely that merely keeping
in motion the air in a cellar would give*
any satisfactory result. It will hardly
make any noticeable difference either in
the temperature or the density. You
can easily try the experiment by putting
a thermometer in a cold room, fanning

it vigorously for 15 minutes or longer,
then letting it stand the same length of
time without fanning, then fanning
again, and so on. If, during the inter-
vals when the air is stirred by the fan,
the thermometer shows no higher stand-
ing than when the air is at rest, it will
be hardly worth while to stir the air in
the cellar. To make it a more satisfac-
tory trial, you might stir the air in the
room by means of a closet-door swung
back and forth.

On the whole, you will probably come
to the conclusion that it will be better to
change the air in the cellar by introduc-
ing fresh air slowly, warming it in some
way, if that should be necessary.

Honey Caramels. — Chas. F.
Muth & Son, of Cincinnati, Ohio, have
kindly sent us a sample box of their
delicious " honey caramels." We have
eaten caramels before, but none like
those made by Friends Muth & Son.
Theirs are simply superb, and there
should be a great demand for them.

We cannot understand why not more
confections are gotten up with honey in
them. Here is a remunerative field for
some genius, who would also win much
honor by helping to replace tasteless
adulterations with a pure and health-
giving sweet. Chas. F. Muth & Son are
leading the way.

An Attractive Calendar is the

one sent out by that enterprising bee-
supply dealing firm — The W. T. Falconer
Mfg. Co., of Jamestown, N. Y. We
have one hung up in our home, and our
very much "better half" is delighted
with it. See their advertisement on the
last page.

Xhe Inter-mountain— a paper
published at Salt Lake City, Utah, by
Mr. John C. Swaner — is discontinued.
We regret to loarn this, and hope Mr. S.
is none the poorer for having made the
attempt at publishing a paper.

AMERICAN BEJE JOURNAL.

171

IWR. JAUES A. GREEN.

The subject of this sketch is one of
the younger bee-keepers of to-day,
though he is becoming quite well known
by his clear, practical writings, and un-
commonly common-sense views of api-

JAMES A. GREEN.

arian matters. He was born at Dayton,
Ills., on Oct. 20, 1861. Except for a
few months spent at school, he has
always lived, until very recently. In the
house in which he was born.

His father was a manufacturer of
woolen go»ds, and a large part of his
son's early life was spent in the woolen
mill. A store was also kept where
groceries and the products of the woolen
mill were sold, and he presided over the

counters of this for several years. As
his labor was needed in these directions,
his schooling, after the age of 14, was
confined mostly to the winter months;
Besides the common school, two terms
were spent at a seminary in Aurora, 111.,
and six at a High School in Ottawa,
from which he graduated in 1884, at
the age of 22.

Feeling the need of a better training,
this education has been supplemented
by considerable reading and private
study. In 1891, he received his diploma
for the course of reading laid down by
the Chautaqua Literary and Scientific
Circle, and he expects to be a student all
his life.

In 1876, the woolen business having
proved unprofitable, was abandoned,
and his father went to Colorado for a
time. He had for many years kept a
few colonies of bees. In his absence the
care of these fell upon James. In this
he had the invaluable assistance and
encouragement of his mother, to whom
is probably due his choice of bee-keep-
ing as a business.

The bees were in box-hives, and had
been managed after old methods, receiv-
ing but little care. His mother thought
there must be better methods of man-
agement, and attempted to find some
literature on the subject. It seems very
strange now to consider how hard a time
she had to find anything that related to
bees. No one seemed to know where
anything of the kind was to be found.

At last Harbison's work, published
some years ago, was procured and care-
fully studied. Though there was much
valuable information in it, that part of
it devoted to hives only led him astray.
Finally a copy of the American Bee
JouKNAL was procured by Mr. G..
through a newsdealer. He has this yet,
the first copy of a bee-paper he ever
saw, and he would not part with it foj-
a great deal. Through its pages other
periodicals and books were learned of
and secured.

About the same time he learned that
a farmer not far away had procured

172

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

some modern hives and appliances, and
he lost no time in visiting him and
securing a part of his stock. This farmer
was the veriest tyro in bee-keeping, and
his newly-found enthusiasm did not last
more than a year or two, but what Mr.
G. learned frono him was indeed a reve-
lation.

Thereafter Mr. Green was a bee-
keeper, and with the exception of one
winter spent in teaching school, and
another as a book agent, bee-keeping
has been his sole occupation ever since,
except that for a year or two he has
helped out the poor seasons by selling a
few bicycles. The number of colonies
kept has ranged from 50 to 400. At
present he has only about 225. Bee-
keeping has always paid him satisfac-
torily until the past five seasons, but
he has not extended it as he would have
liked, as the failure of his father in
business placed such a heavy burden of
debt on him that capital has always
been lacking.

For several years he was Superin-
tendent of the Sunday-school at Dayton,
and also filled the office of Justice of the
Peace.

The neighboring city of Ottawa had
always furnished more congenial society
than the little manufacturing village,
and in the fall of 1892 he removed to
Ottawa, where he will probably make
his home in the future. He has been
for some years a member of the Congre-
gational Church where he now lives.

He started in his political life as a
Democrat, but soon espoused the princi-
ples of the Prohibition party, in which
he has been a candidate, and done some
most excellent work.

Mr. Green is not married, and says he
does not expect to be until fortune has
smiled upon him a little more kindly.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon ihem
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

CONDUCTED BY

Mrs. Jmmmlm Mt©tol^y,

Greenville. Texas.
Some Pioneer Bee-Keepers of Texas.

I wish to make some extracts from a
private letter written by Dr. W. R.
Howard, of Fort Worth, Texas, to W.
R. Graham, of this place, regarding the
pioneer bee-keepers of Texas, and those
that founded the Texas State Bee-Keep-
ers' Association, 16 years ago ; and I
wish to call attention to the outgrowth
of these bee-masters. With the Doctor's
permission I now make the extracts as
mentioned :

" It affords me much pleasure to see
the result of our work of many years
ago. It was back in the 70's when we
organized the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Association, which, through its annual
conventions, stirred Texas from the pan-
handle country of the north to the coast
countries of the south, and from Texar-
kana on the east to El Paso on the west ;
and awakened an interest in bee-keeping
in every county in the State; and, as a
result, developed some as fine bee and
honey producing localities as are found
in the United States, as well as bringing
together ' kindred spirits,' developing
filial affection and friendship, known
and felt in no other pursuit.

"Many and happy have been the
hours we have spent together in com-
pany with such men as Judge Andrews
(rest his soul) — a man whom to know
was to love, whose opinions were deci-
sive, and whose experience in scientific
as well as practical bee-keeping, has es-
tablished facts which had never been
discovered or mentioned, before his prac-
tical hand and deep theories brought
them to light. But, alas, he tottered
and fell.

"Then we have our Dr. W. K. Mar-
shall, whom it is a pleasure to please,
and who appreciates a friend so much,
that it is felt with joy. If he ever sees
a fault he never discloses it.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

173

"Then, to be brief, we will meutloti a
few more of the pioneers : F. F. Collins,
Dr. B. F. Carroll, and many more whom
it was a pleasure to meet and know.
And last, but not least, W. R. Graham,
the present President of the Association,
and to whom we now owe the present
existence of the Association, while some
of us have strayed into other branches
of business more profitable, as we
thought, but of less pleasure and con-
tentment, but our W. R. Graham has
held firmly and unflinchingly to the old
mast-pole, and stands to-day like a peer,
and at the head, as one of the foremost
bee-keepers of the South. He is always
pleasant, meet him when you will ; and,
I now speak as 1 feel, and say to my
mind, that no better, truer or kinder
gentleman ever lived. I know him and
love him for what he is."

Now we want to see every living char-
ter member, and every bee-keeper in the
South, and all that will come from the
North, at our meeting on April 5th and
6th ; and let us extend that brotherly
love, as mentioned above, all over our
land, and then what a happy class of
people bee-keepers will be !

No hotel bills to pay at the meeting in
Greenville, on the 5th and 6th of April.
Let all come and enjoy themselves.

Jennie Atchley.

COWVEWTIOW DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

I^orth American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pbes.— J. E. Crane Middlehury, Conn.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer- George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

• * 9 * •

XTational Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, III.

Have You Head that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 165 ?

The Bigfg^est Snow-Storm

since February, 1885, visited Chicago
on Jan. 24th. On a dead level it was
nearly 10 inches deep, although it was
hard to find a place in the city limits
where the snow. had not been packed
down or scooped into heaps. As soon as
the people saw that the storm was in
earnest, they began to fight it with
brooms, shovels and plows. At every
business house the porters and janitors
came out with their Implements, and If
pedestrians didn't dodge they were hit
in the back with hard wads of the com-
pressed stuff. Oh, it was a regular, old-
fashioned snow-storm, and no mistake
about it. The sleighing here has been
splendid for several weeks.

Bee-Men to Organise.— There
will be a bee-keepers' meeting held in
Bronson, Bourbon County, Kans., in
Goodno's Hall, on Saturday, Feb. 11,
1893. The object is to organize a bee-
keepers' association for Bourbon and
Allen counties. You are to bring your
dinner basket and stay all day, and are
assured ©f having a good time. There
will be a full programme. The meeting
is called by J. C. Balch, of Bronson, and
others.

Mr. R. S. Russell, President of
the Indiana State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion, says that their late convention at
Indianapolis was " not so largely at-
tended as was expected, yet the work
performed was very satisfactory, and
will result in much good to the bee-
keepers of Indiapa."

Anpual Catalos:ues or Price-
Lists we have received from —

Thomas G. Newman, 147 S. Western
Ave., Chicago, Ills. — Bee-Keepers' Sup-
plies.

J. W. Rouse & Co., Mexico, Mo. — Bee-
Keepers' Supplies, Bees, Queens, Honey
and Beeswax.

J. F. Michael, German, O. — 5-Banded
Golden Italian Queens, 3-Banded Queens,
and Bee- Keepers' Supplies.

174

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

l<fcA^A^A^A<

i^^jtUU

■-'■■^ ■»■■«»■■»■■-

Proper IViimber of Cubic Indies
in a Brood-Ciiainbcr.

Query 867.— How many cubic inches
should there be in the brood-chamber of a
bee-hive for the most ^successful production
of comb honey ?— N. I.

2,000. — James A. Green.

About 1,600.— J. P. H. Brown.

About 2,000 suits me. — Mrs. L. Har-
rison.

Near 3,000 cubic inches. — J. M. Ham-

BAUQH.

From 1,400 to 1,600.— G. M. Doo-

LITTLE.

Eight Langstroth frames. — Will M.
Barnum.

Use an 8-frame Langstroth hive. —
Mrs. J. N. Heater.

All depends. Minimum, 1,600. Maxi-
mum, 8,000. — J. H. Larrabee.

I do not know. Opinions dififer. I
prefer about 2,000. — M. Mahin.

Not less than the space of a 10-frame
Langstroth hive. — Jas. A. Stone.

1,900 or 2,000, that may be readily
reduced to 1,200 during clover and
basswood bloom. — R. L. Taylor.

Not less than 8 Langstroth frames. I
would rather have 10. But I am not a
comb-honey producer. — B. France.

I think that depends upon the loca-
tion. I like a hive not larger than an
8-frame Langstroth. — Eugene Secor.

I guess the Langstroth is about right.
The one-half story case, like Heddon's,
is often used with much advantage. — A.
J. Cook.

There are few bee-keepers, perhaps,
who have made more experiments in the
past ten years than myself to determine
this question, and my judgment is, that
1,400 cubic inches is about right, or a

space to accommodate about 800 square
inches of brood-comb. With such a
brood-chamber, a queen-excluder is
necessary, as also special management
in spring breeding. — G. L. Tinker.

I use a hive containing about 1,700
cubic inches, and consider it hard to
beat. This question depends somewhat
upon the management. — C. H. Dibbern.

My own idea is, that 10 frames, each
containing one foot of comb space, is the
correct size. I use the Langstroth
frame, about 9 inches deep. — J. E.
Pond.

At least 2,000 up to commencement
of work in surplus receptacles. After
that it may be reduced a third, if you
want the job of feeding for winter. — P.
H. Elwood.

As no two apiarists use the same
methods exactly, it will be impossible to
give the size of hive for the " most suc-
cessful production of comb honey." — H.
D. Cutting.

Let the comb-honey men answer ; but
my convictions are that I would risk a
standard Langstroth without contract-
ing for either comb or extracted honey.
— S. I. Freeborn.

To our minds, a hive large enough to
receive the eggs of the most prolific
queen is better than a small one, even
for the production of comb honey. We
have tested it before the introduction of
the honey extractors. — Dadant & Son.

I don't know. I'm using eight Lang-
stroth frames, but I'm not really sure
I've gained anything by changing from
ten. Even if eight frames are all right
for me, different management might
make a different number right for some
one else. — C. C. Miller.

No matter what anybody tells you,
this is a matter that depends upon
locality and method of management. It
would take an article of ordinary length
to discuss it. With my method of man-
agement I want a brood-chamber as
large as the standard Langstroth. — G.
W. Demaree.

Ten or twelve years ago, when I pro-
duced comb honey by the ton, I thought
there was no better than the Simplicity
hive holding ten Langstroth frames, and
were I to begin producing comb honey
again, I would be fool enough to try the
same size hive. But as I am behind the
times on comb honey, probably I had
better say, I don't know. — Mrs. Jennie
Atchley.

.:\MERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

175

Report of tlic Xortli American
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

(Continued from page 142.)
The Secretary then read an essay
from Prof. A. J. Cook, of Agricultural
College, Mich., on

The Analyses of Honey.

Without any question, the adultera-
tion of honey is one of the most serious
obstacles to success that now stands in
the way of bee-keepers, but like any
other thief it can be restrained if it can
be caught. We now know that through
the aid of chemical analyses we can de-
tect this arch enemy. And, of course,
detection means capture.

Heretofore there has been doubt re-
garding the ability of chemical science
to certainly distinguish the genuine
from the spurious. The formulf© in use
gave the maximum and minimum
amounts of water. Every bee-keeper
knows that since the advent of the ex-
tractor, and the often under ripe pro-
duct, which is surely genuine honey,
though not of best quality, the above
rule would not be reliable.

Again, the amounts of cane and re-
ducing sugars were to guide in making
the determination. These vary largely
in honey of undoubted purity, and the
limits fixed upon were arbitrary. It is
quite possible that these limits were not
correctly fixed. We know that bees re-
duce the sugar in transforming nectar
to honey, and it stands to reason that
this reduction may be much decreased if
honey is stored rapidly.

Again, honey comes from such varied
sources, that a very large number of
analyses must be made to fix upon the
limits. It seems certain that the old
rules are not entirely reliable.

The third means to a correct determi-
nation rests with the polariscope. It has
been supposed that honey would always
give a left-handed rotation. But when
we find that this varies from 1^ to 25°

direct, and from 6° to 30° indirect— in-
deed some genuine honey gives a right-
handed fotation — we may reasonably
assume that arbitrary limits may mis-
lead here as before. And that owing to
the fact that bees may reduce the sugar
more or less, and to the innumerable
sources from whence nectar comes, we
may conclude again that very many
analyses must be made, to determine the
range in all the varied cases, and that
very likely the limits set in the past
have been too narrow.

From the investigations made the past
season, through the kindness of Drs.
Wiley, Kedzie, and Scovell, in which
over 50 samples of honey from different
sources were analyzed, we have it pretty
conclusively shown that our chemists
now can malie determinations that are
practically conclusive. We can also de-
tect a mixture of even one-fourth, or
much less, of glucose with honey, by the
high right-handed polarization. Yet we
find that some honey from honey-dew —
very poor, rank stuff— gives the same
high right-handed polarization. As the
rank honey-dew honey could never be
put on the market, we see that practi-
cally we are secure at this point. It is
desirable that we have a way to surely
detect this honey-dew honey from honey
adulterated with glucose, aside from the
appearance and taste ; and I congratu-
late the bee-keepers that we have one of
the best chemists of this or any other
country. Dr. H. W. Wiley, heartily in
sympathy with us, who is now engaged
in solving this problem, and who. if the
thing be possible, will discover some
re-agent that will make even this de-
termination sure. As glucose will al-
ways be the greatest adulterant, owing
to its cheapness, light color, and slow-
ness to granulate, we see that we have
the "detective" that can lay fast hold
of this defrauder — adulteration.

If glucose were fed to bees and so con-
verted into honey, I do not know
whether we could detect it or not. That
is a problem which 1893 is to solve
But this is not very practical, for bees
are so adverse to taking glucose that it
can never be fed at a profit, and so such
honey, whatever its character, will never
be produced. The very fact that it is
not a good food for bees, makes us re-
gard it with ill-favor even though con-
verted into honey. But as just sug-
gested, that is not a question of practi-
cal importance.

The experiments of the past season
show that the chemist cannot by use of
the present methods determine honey
from cane-sugar from that of the best

176

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

floral honey. This is no surprise to us.
Honey is transformed nectar. This
transforming process simply reduces a
portion of the cane-sugar. It is the
same whether the nectar be floral or
cane-sugar syrup. When we eat and
digest cane-sugar we do precisely the
same thing. Floral honey consists of a
small portion of unreduced cane-sugar,
the reduced sugar, either already in the
nectar, or produced by the bees, plus a
very small amount of certain additions
received while in the honey stomach of
the bee, as formic acid, etc., plus cer-
tain aromatic or flavoring organic sub-
stances from the flowers, which give to
each special kind of honey its peculiar
flavor, and enables us to distinguish it.
In clover honey this last is very slight or
mild ; in linden honey more pronounced;
in buckwheat honey very marked.

As clover honey is the choice of most
lovers of honey, we see this last element
is not always an advantage. Could we
easily, cheaply and harmlessly remove
it and its companion, the dark hue, from
buckwheat honey, we would be glad to
do so. In transforming honey, the bees
are not able to change this element of
honey no more than is the cow able to
change a similar though disagreeable
instead of agreeable organic element
which she finds in leeks, and which
causes leeky butter.

Now honey from cane-sugar is pre-
cisely the same as the above, minus this
very minute organic element. So the
chemist detects no difference. And even
lovers of honey pronounce this last real
honey, and of excellent character, and
they are certainly correct. You all
know that Mr. Doolittle, who, by the
way, knows much, believes that the
younger bees transform the nectar
largely, that possibly they swallow and
regurgitate it several times, that the
ferment from the head-glands may the
more perfectly transform the nectar.

Last summer we fed 23 pounds of
sugar syrup in one night. Some of this
was extracted the next morning, and
some after it was capped over, several
days later. I was interested greatly in
the analyses of these two samples of
honey. One, No. 2, that extracted the
next morning, gave : (Dr. Scovell's ana-
lysis) direct polarizatinn — 1.1°; indi-
i-ect — 11.9°; sucrose, 8.21 per cent.;
reducing sugars, 66.67 per cent., and
water, 17.65 per cent. The other gave
direct polarization — -(5.0 ; indirect —
-11.75; sucrose, 4.00 per cent. ; reduc-
ing sugars, 78.39 per cent., and water,
16.80 per cent. It will bo seen that
though the change was principally ef-

fected the first night, yet there was a
marked modification afterward, too
great to be accounted for by the simple
evaporation of water. With Dr. Wiley's
approval, I shall hope that we may have
more light on this special point another
season. It seems now to support Mr.
Doolittle's view.

If cane syrup was mixed with honey
and not fed to bees, it would be adul-
terated product, and not honey. This
could be told by the chemist at once.
The large amount of sucrose and the
altered rotation of the polarized ray
would reveal its true product. It would
not be honey, would not possess the
peculiar honey flavor which all know too
well, and so to sell it as honey would be
fraudulent and indefensible.

Dr. Wiley is now analyzing several
samples of honey-dew honey, that we
may have more light on that product.
In 1893 we shall have several analyses
made of cane-sugar syrup, and the same
mixed with honey in varying proportions,
and the transformed product after each
is fed and stored by the bees. We shall
also have analyses of the same, except
commercial glucose will replace the
cane-sugar. And with these and the
conclusions that Dr. Wiley will give us,
I think we shall be in possession of all
that we shall need in this direction.
Even now we have the detective. What
we want, and must have, is a live, wide-
awake prosecutor, which we are to have
in the National Bee-Keepers' Union.
And adequate laws, which can be easily
secured, if we wake up to the impor-
tance of the subject, and ask that they
be enacted.

It seems to me that I see a brighter
path in the near future for apiculture ;
nor do I believe it is wholly my optimism
that produces this impression.

A. J. Cook.

In reply to the foregoing. Prof. H. W.
Wiley, Government chemist, addressed
the convention as follows :

The Adulteration of Honey.

Mr. President, Ladles and Oentlemen :

I have been much interested in Prof.
Cook's essay on che subject of the adul-
teration of honey, and am glad to have
this privilege of complying with your
request to add something mere in the
same direction.

After the publication of the results on
the analysis of honey contained in Part
6 of Bulletin No. 13, the question was
raised in some quarters whether or not
chemists were able to distinguish be-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

ITT

tween a pure and an adulterated honey.
Some of the samples which we examined,
and which were purchased in open mar-
ket in different cities of the country,
were found to be adulterated with glu-
cose, and it was claimed that such an
aduleration was unlikely, and that the
chemists had been mistaken. Prof.
Cook took a great deal of interest in this
matter, and asked permission to send a
number of samples of honey and honey
substitutes, designated only by number,
to the laboratory of the Department of
Agriculture for examination. He also
sent similar samples to the laboratory of
Prof. Kedzie, of the Michigan Agricul-
tural Experiment Station, and to Prof.
Scovell, of the Kentucky Agricultural
Experiment Station. In all 53 samples
of honey were received at our laboratory
from Prof. Cook, and these have been
analyzed, and the data transmitted to
him.

We have not yet been informed by
Prof. Cook of the nature and origin of
the samples, and therefore cannot tell,
as far as that is concerned, what success
we have met with in distinguishing be-
tween the good and the bad ; yet Prof.
Cook has already published the fact that
all three of the chemists engaged in this
work have detected every spurious or
adulterated honey which was contained
in the lot. On the other hand, a few
samples which were of known purity
have been classed as "suspicious," but
not condemned as adulterated. The
general result is that the chemist work-
ing with ordinary care, and with well-
known processes, is able to detect all
ordinary adulterations of honey, but at
the same time he may include among
the spurious articles some samples which
are genuine.

The special forms of adulteration
which we were expected to determine
were glucose and cane-sugar. Both of
these adulterations are very easily de-
termined.

Some of the samples of honey received
were obtained by feeding directly to the
bees cane-sugar syrup which was stored
rapidly and at once extracted. Other
samples were obtained from bees which
were storing honey very rapidly from a
known source, and this honey was taken
as soon as , deposited. These general
items of information I have gleaned
from the article Prof. Cook has already
published in regard to that examination.

I am sorry not to be able to entirely
agree with Prof. Cook in his definition
of honey. A few years ago I defined
honey at the saccharine exudation of
flowers gathered and stored by bees.

This definition may properly be applied
to any saccharine exudation of flowers
or plants gathered and stored by bees,
provided they are not aided in this mat-
ter by any artificial means. In other
words, cane-sugar which a bee would of
itself extract from a plant would very
properly be classed as pure honey when
stored by the bees in the hive ; but cane-
sugar fed to the bees in the form of
syrup and simply stored by the bees in
the hive could hardly be deemed a pure
honey. This is a matter, however, which
it is not within my power to determine,
and I shall be much interested in know-
ing the result of the discussion now
going on among your own members on
what constitutes pure honey.

The problem of the adulteration of
honey has been somewhat complicated
within a few years by the discovery that
certain honeys or saccharine exudations
gathered by bees show at ordinary tem-
peratures a right-handed rotation. Such
honey was formerly supposed to be of
coniferous origin, that is, gathered ex-
clusively from pine trees. Later it has
been shown that such honeys are prob-
ably derived from exudations produced
by this aphis or plant-louse, either di-
rectly from the trees, through the in-
fluence of the louse, or through the or-
ganism of the louse itself. This exuda-
tion is commonly known as "honey-
dew," and entomologists are undecided
whether or not the honey-dew passes
through the organism of the louse, or is
the result of the attack of the louse
upon the plant. At any rate, such exu-
dations show peculiar properties, and it
is doubtful whether, under the definition
given above, they could be classed as
genuine honeys.

It is said by Prof. Cook that a number
of the samples of honey sent by him
were of plant-louse origin, but the num-
bers representing these samples are not
yet known to me. I have, however,
found in the number sent by him, six
which are peculiar in their optical prop-
erties showing a slight right-handed ro-
tation not due to cane-sugar, and which
I would class as suspicious honeys. It
is more than probable that it will be
found that these honeys are of plant-
louse origin.

Prof. Cook doubts whether or not a
honey made from pure cane sugar,
which has been stored for some time in
the hives, can be detected from a gen-
uine floral honey gathered and stored
by bees. In the present state of our
chemical knowledge the doubt of Prof.
Cook is well founded. I am confident
that it will not be long before we shall

178

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

be able to discriminate definitely be-
tween such articles of artificial honey
and genuine honeys as those above men-
tioned. Investigations in this line have
not gone far enough to enable any defi-
nite statement to be made now, but I
can only say that the results are very
hopeful, and lead to the just expectation
of soon formulating a method of dis-
crimination between the honeys men-
tioned.

One property of pure invert sugar will
be found very valuable in such an inves-
tigation, namely, the fact that pure in-
vert sugar made from cane-sugar when
examined in a polariscope at a tempera-
ture of about 88- C, is optically neuter,
that is, neither deflecting the plane of
polarized light to the right nor to the
left. In every case of a pure floral
honey which has come under my obser-
vation so far, it was found that at the
temperature mentioned it showed a
right-handed polarization. In two of the
samples sent by Prof. Cook, it was found
that the honey examined at 88- showed
a left-handed polarization. Now this is
due probably to the fact that the honey
was partially crystallized, and the sam-
ples sent were the liquid portion con-
sisting almost exclusively of levulose,
while the solid portion not sent would
consist almost exclusively of dextrose.
This is only a supposition on my part,
as I have not yet learned from Prof
Cook the nature and origin of the sam-
ples mentioned. But every one will
agree that a honey obtained by drawing
off the liquid portion from a partially
granulated honey would not in any sense
of the word be a pure, normal honey,
any more than the residue would be. It
is possible, however (and that must be
mentioned here), that the nectar of
some flowers contains naturally an ex-
cess of levulose, in which case the honey
gathered therefrom, although left-handed
at 88^, must be considered pure. These
are matters which subsequent investiga-
tions will make clear.

Another important factor in the ex-
amination of honey is in the amount of
reducing sugar, so-called, which it con-
tains ; that is, the quantity of sugar in
it which is capable of reducing a copper
salt to the condition of a sub-oxid. In
all pure floral honeys it has been ob-
served that the percentage of reducing
sugar in the dry substance does not fall
in any case below 85^, while In general
it reaches nearly to 90^^ or above.
When, therefore, a honey is examined in
which the reducing sugar is decidedly
less in quantity than 85 per cent, of the

dry substance, it must at once be re-
garded as suspicious.

The percentage of ash is also a matter
of some importance. It has been found
so far that in the suspicious honeys in
the samples sent by Prof. Cook, that the
percentage of ash is greater than in the
honey which seems to be pure. Further
investigations, however, will be neces-
sary to determine whether this is a gen-
eral rule or not.

Strange as it may seem, one of the
most difficult things in the analysis of
honey is to determine the amount of
water which it contains. One of the
simplest methods consists in drying a
small portion of the honey in a flat bot-
tom platinum dish for about 15 hours,
at the temperature of boiling water.
Determined in this way the average per-
centage of water in the samples of
honey examined was found to be about
16. The lowest percentage found was
13.75 in a clearly adulterated sample,
and the highest percentage found was
22.75 per cent, in one of the samples
which was abnormal in having still at
88- a left-handed polarization.

In general it may be said that it is
possible for any one who is disposed to
make a mixture of pure honey with a
small quantity of certain adulterants in
such a way that the chemist would be
unable to detect the fraud ; but such a
method of adulteration would never be
practiced commercially because it would
not be profitable. On the other hand we
may boldly say that in all commercial
adulteration the chemist will be able to
find the fraud, and the skill of the
chemist will doubtless keep pace with or
excel the skill of the adulterator.

In the general examination made by
the Department, which has been re-
ferred to above, two particular samples
of honey deserve a special word. In
almost every market of the United
States were found samples of honey
labeled "Pure Old Virginia Honey,"
manufactured by Geo. K. McMechen &
Son. In no instance was a sample of
this honey found to be pure. All sam-
ples purchased in the open market were
adulterated.

Another peculiar sample of honey was
labeled " Hoge's Horehound Honey,"
good for coughs and colds, and said to
be gathered from a" certain region in
California. This sample was accompa-
nied with the most enthusiastic testimo-
nials, and also had a certificate of a jus-
tice of the peace in regard to the nature
of the locality where it was supposed to
bo gathered. Several samples of this
honey were obtained, and they were

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

179

found to be pure fabrications, consist-
ing of cane-sugar syrup with about 3
per cent, of alcohol. They contained no
honey whatever.

I have thought the members of this
Association might be interested in see-
ing some of the apparatus and re-agents
which are employed in the analysis of
honey, and in looking at some of the
operations of a chemical nature. I have
on the table here the principal appara-
tus and re-agents employed in such ex-
aminations, and which I shall take
pleasure in showing the members.

(The polariscope and chemical ap-
paratus used in honey analyses were ex-
hibited and explained to the audience.)

In conclusiou, permit me to say that
the work of the Department has shown
that of the liquid honeys on sale,
bought in open market, nearly 45 per
cent, are adulterated. Every bee-keeper
can see at once how greatly enhanced
in price the product of his industry
would be should such adulteration be
prohibited and prevented. It is neces-
sary that all should work together in
harmony and in earnest to secure this
result. The bee-keepers will find the
Department of Agriculture hereafter,
as heretofore, doing everything in its
power to detect and prevent the adul-
teration of honey. H. W. Wiley.

Prof. C. V. Riley — There is such a
difference in honey obtained even from
natural sources, and it is so difficult to
be able to know exactly from what source
a sample comes, that I regard it as ex-
tremely doubtful if the chemist will ever
be able to say positively in regard to the
puriiy or impurity of all samples.

A. N. Draper — Can a person who is
not a chemist, by the use of litmus
paper, or some chemicals, determine in
regard to the purity of honey ?

Prof. Wiley — No, sir. It requires
great skill and training, and the proper
apparatus.

Although Prof. Wiley thought that
there was so much adulterated honey on
the market, he doubted if it was of a
character that was injurious to health.
He considered glucose a healthful food,
but said that its use robbed the bee-
keeper of selling just so much honey.
(Continued next week.)

A New Era in the Production of
Honey.

Written for the A.merir,an Bee Journal
BY J. F. LATHAM.

Webster's Pocket Dictionary we offer
as a premium for sending only one new
subscriber with $1.00. It is a splendid
Dictionary — and just right for a pocket.

If the conventicle spirit of the times
is portentous, it is apparent from the
gist of the discussions emanating from
some of our "leading bee-keepers," that
a new system of honey-production is in
process of evolution. Whether it is to
result in bee-manipulation, or the ab-
sence of "bee-mediation," much depends
upon the definition applied to the terms,
as the basis of the movement indicates,
in a ratiocinative aspect, that a reaction
is in progress of inauguration strongly
tending to artificial mediation, which
may culminate in raising the "scientific
pleasantry " to the head of the list.

Sugar-honey ! Glucosed honey ! ! Is
not the lauded " gift of the gods " fall-
ing into disrepute ? Then, again, "honey-
dew honey " — a newly-coined Anglicism
— is placed on the list of honeys as an off*
spring Corpus sinepectore ; for mutual
adoption by the apiarian world.

What is to become of the pure nectar
from the flowers — Honey — that has re-
ceived so much admiration in poetry and
prose for more than 30 centuries ?
Surely, if the medical qualities alone of
honey are a sham, I fear Pluto's domin-
ions may not be adequate for the immi-
gration to his realm ; and an overflow
will be left behind to chant the virtues
of sugar-honey.

But enough of this. Let us stir up the
witch's cauldron, and try a survey of
the contents.

First, it may be asked with propriety
in what exists the necessity of feeding
sugar syrup to bees for the purpose of
obtaining honey by the process ? How
often we have been told in the bee-
papers, by our mentors in bee-knowl-
edge, that sugar syrup fed to bees, and
stored by them in the combs, will be
sugar syrup still. That has been my ex-
perience while feeding sugar syrup for

180

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

winter stores. This fact is noticeable
when sections of honey, in bright, new
combs, are taken from the hives as soon
as filled an 1 capped, and when allowed
to remain over the brood apartment
until the close of the season. The flavor
of honey in the comb, that has remained
on the hive through the season, is modi-
fied more by the odor of the pollen in
the brood-combs than any other way,
and, in many instances, very agreeably
so. The musky odor from the bees may
have something to do with the ideal
quality — the subtile "twang" purported
to exist in "sucjar-honey,'.' after it has
passed through the bee's honey-stomach
and received the benefit of the " diges-
tive " process. But as the theory of
digested honey appears to be somewhat
metaphysical, perhaps the alimentive
propensitives of the narrator may pos-
sess attributes outside of the sphere of
common mortals, and is therefore better
qualified to judge of the merits of his
favorite sweet than those who do not
have " it on their tables every day."

If the advocates of sugar syrup prefer
it to honey, they have an absolute right
to use it, and no one has a right to ob-
ject to their doing so ; but when they
attempt to purloin the merits of honey
to foster their intents, when offering
their preparation for sale, they should
receive a decided condemnation from
every bo7ia-fide bee-keeper in the land.

The plea of a honey famine is no ex-
cuse for dishonesty, or a movement "of
the kind advocated by the would-be
votaries of " sugar-honey." If the foun-
tains of nature are insufficient for their
greed, why not " step down and out ;"
and adjure the pursuit of bee-keeping,
thereby freeing it from the odium of a
masked insincerity ?

On page 160 of Prof. Cook's "Manual
of the Apiary," 3rd edition, may be
found the following, viz :

" In all feeding, unless extracted honey
is what we are using, we cannot exercise
too great care that such feed is not car-
ried to the surplus boxes. Only let our
customers once taste sugar in their comb
honey, and not only is our reputation
gone, but the whole fraternity is in-
jured."

If the foregoing admonition from the
Professor was sound 15 years ago, it
seems that an explanation is needed
from him to reconcile his teaching then
with those purported, on page 20 of the
Bee Journal, to have been uttered in
the 27th annual convention of the
Michigan State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion, viz. :

"Pres. Taylor — I would like to ask
Prof. Cook, if he were producing sugar-
honey, would he sell it for honey f

" Prof. Cook— I should. I agree with
the essayist [Mr. Hutchinson] in every
point," etc.

There is an old adage, that " every
house has its skeleton." Should this be-
come a reality with the bee-keeping fra-
ternity, they may find that, like Ban-
quo's ghost, " it will not down."

P. S. — Since the foregoing was writ-
ten, I have received the Bee Journal
for Jan. 12th, and I find, on perusing
its contents, that my position on the
"sugar-honey" question is well fortified.
The latest outcrop of scientific labor in
the interest of bee-keeping, is likely to
prove an abortion.

Success to the "old reliable" Ameri-
can Bee Journal.

West Cumberland, Me.

Coovention Reports — Bees and
Pollen, Etc.

Written for the American Bee Journal
DR. C. C. miller.

A report of a live bee-convention may
be the most interesting part of a bee-
paper, and it may be made the very
poorest. Some secretaries report all the
part that the general reader wants to
know, omitting that which is of no par-
ticular interest to any except members
of the convention, while others omit en-
tirely that part that outside bee-keepers
want to hear, and give exactly that part
which has no interest at all for outsiders.

In reading a report of a convention,
the principal thing, if not the only thing
that interests generally is the bee-talk.
There are other things of prime impor-
tance to be kept in the Secretary's book,
as the names of members and the pas-
sages of resolutions demanding action
at the next meeting, but that doesn't
interest the outside reader. In fact, if
the discussions are fully reported in any
of the bee-papers, there is little need to
enter them on the Secretary's book, in
which case there is little entered on the
Secretary's book that is worth printing,
however valuable it may be to the
society.

I am not greatly interested to know
that a vote of thanks was given to the
landlord for the excellent manner in
which his parsnips were cooked, nor do
I care much to read the Mayor's speech
of welcome to the beautiful town of
Skeezington, but I am very much inter-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

181

ested in hearing every word of practical
bee-talk that occurred.

Condense as much as you like, so long
as you leave everything clearly under-
stood, but please give us in print only
that which will be of interest to those
outside of the society, and you will find,
as a general rule, that that includes
very little more than the discussions.

BEES STARVING ON POLLEN.

I was just a little surprised to find the
answerers on page 822 (1892) so unani-
mous in the opinion that bees could not
live on pollen alone. The general ver-
dict seemed to be that of Mrs. Atchley,
that "They will live just about long
enough to starve to death."

Two of the number were of the opin-
ion that when bees are confined to a
pollen diet they die because pollen
makes them sick. There may be cases
where this is true, and for aught I know
it may be true generally, but I am very
sure there are cases where bees finish
up their honey in the winter, and then
starve with plenty of pollen inside the
cluster, and yet show no signs of diar-
rhea. I have seen more than one case
of this kind, with combs and frames all
nice and clean. I think it quite likely
that when bees die from starvation after
a long confinement, they will suffer from
diarrhea, whereas if they had less honey
and died earlier there might be no dis-
ease.

AN IMPORTANT DISCOVERY (?).

On page 825 (1892), C. J. Robinson
says : " The notion that a virgin queen
receives from a drone into her ' sac ' suf-
ficient spermatic fluid to impregnate her
worker-eggs during an existence of six
or more years, is the sum of»ignorance."
As this " sum of ignorance " is to be
found generally among bee-writers and
authors, barring the unusual age given
to the queen, it would be interesting to
know by what means Mr. Robinson ob-
tained his light.

"APICULTURAL LITERARIAN8. "

Referring to the article of Mr. Clarke,
on page 827 (1892), I wonder if it is
not possible that he and Mr. Heddon are
looking on dilSferent sides of the same
shield. There are some things con-
nected with bee-keeping in which I
would give much more for the views of
a man who kept 100 colonies, than of
one who kept only one. On the other
hand, there are things as to which the
views of a man who had only a single
colony would be worth just as much, or
more, than if he kept a thousand.

If Capt. Hetherington were in the
presence of some of the scientists who
have with great painstaking found out
all about the internal structure of the
bee, he might stand in open-mouthed
wonder, and feel that he knew very little
about bees ; but if one of those same
scientists wanted to get a big crop of
honey, he might be glad of the Captain's
advice.

Even in every-day, practical matters,
the close observation of the man with a
few colonies is hardly possible for the
man who is kept on the keen jump to
get through the work of his hundreds.
But on either side, there may be such a
thing as saying a good deal without
knowing much — as he that " darkeneth
counsel by words without knowledge."

Marengo, Ills.

" That Bee Witli tlie Glands "-
A Challengfe.

Written for the American Bee Jowmal
BY DR. J. W. M'KINNEY.

On page 861 of the Bee Journal for
Dec. 29, 1892, also on pages 19 and 20
of the current volume, the strange and
positive statement is made to the effect
that "bees can make honey out of cane-
sugar that cannot be told from honey."
It is absolutely surprising to find men,
claiming to be men of science, make such
glaringly absurd statements as are here
referred to.

As the publisher of the Bee Journal,
perhaps judiciously, has seen fit to in-
terdict the discussion of the "sugar-
honey " question through its columns, I
would ask permission to make a few
plain statements in regard to this mat-
ter.

1. That cane-sugar cannot be con-
verted into honey by bees.

2. That honey as gathered from the
nectaries of flowers by bees contains, in
addition to saccharine matter, a muci-
l^ginous substance, together with an
aroma and flavor not present in cane-
sugar, nor in the syrup made from it.

3. That bees cannot supply the muci-
lage, etc., of honey to syrup made from
pure cane-sugar.

4. That the acid present in honey and
in sugar syrup is a vegetable acid, gen-
erated by the action of atmospheric oxy-
gen, and not an animal acid, or an acid
secreted by the bees.

These are some of the plain facts per-
taining to pure honey and sugar syrup ;
and as Prof. Cook has made the positive

182

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

statement that they cannot be distin-
guished the one from the other, after
the bees have handled them and stored
them in their combs, I wish to make
this proposition :

I will agree to deposit $100 with
Thomas G. Newman, the General Mana-
ger of the National Bee-Keepers' Union,
or with the editor of the Bee Jouknal,
Geo. W. York ; and Prof. Cook, or any
one else, to deposit $50. Then there
shall be furnished a sample of pure
honey gathered from white clover,
Spanish-needle and heart's-ease stored
separately in new combs' and capped
over ; together with a sample of pure
cane-sugar syrup that has been furnished
the bees and stored by them in new
combs and capped; and if I cannot dis-
tinguish the sugar syrup thus stored
from either of the samples of honey, I
will forfeit the money deposited. Should
I succeed, however, in making the dis-
tinction, I will "take down the pot,"
and present the Professor with the sam-
ples of honey and sugar syrup.

Camargo, Ills.

|"krf*^rf'■^■'^.^%./^./^>

Do not write anything for publication

on the same sheet of paper •with business
matters, unless It can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

4kAi

Bees "Wintering Well.

The winter is rather hard on bees,
that is, outside, in this locality. I have
100 colonies in the cellar, and they are
doing well. J. R. Eskew.

Shenandoah, Iowa, Jan. 21, 1893.

"Purple" or Italian Clover.

On page 117, Mr. O. P. Miller asks
about " purple clover." The name is a
humbug, but not the plant. It is noth-
ing but Italian clover — crimson trefoil,
or scarlet Italian — Trifolium incarna-
tum. It is an annual or biennial plant,
according to the time when it was sown
— in fall or spring. I tried to sow it in

the fall (as it is mostly practiced in my
native country), but it did not stand the
American winter, here in central Illi-
nois. I will try it again as an annual.
It resembles red clover, but the spikes
of flowers are long — as long as 6 or 7
inches — which open successively in
about 4 weeks, and give an immense
quantity of seed, far larger than red
clover. The flower-tubes are much
shorter than those of red clover, are
perfectly accessible to bees, and fre-
quented with unusual zeal. Ten dollars
per bushel is exorbitant.
Sigel, Ills. Wm. Leeks, M. D.

Queens Showing Their Age.

Queens do not show their age all alike.
A queen's looks do not always indicate
correctly her age. They vary in their
outward appearance the same as man-
kind. Some queens live to be five years
old, and some only one year. Queens,
as a rule, the first year look very nice
and bright. A good queen, the second
year, looks about as nice as the first
year ; the third year her beauty begins
to fade. As a rule the fourth year the
wings get short, and they get short all
over — a good deal like you will look
when you get old ; you will show your
age. Those queens that Dr. Mott spoke
of on page 45, put me in mind of buff
Coachin hens — they lay a while and then
want to set. I never had a queen act as
his did. I have had some start out
slow, but after they got started they
sent the eggs out like shot from a
double-barrel shot-gun. Practice makes
perfect. G. W. Nance.

Peiro, Iowa, Jan. 19, 1893.

Feeding Bees in Winter, Etc.

In tlie swarming season of 1891 I ac-
cidehtally found a swarm of bees settled
on a bush by the roadside late in the
evening, as I was coming home from
work. We got a hive and hived them,
and brought them in. They worked
nicely and stored honey. When winter
came on, I placed them in a cave. I was
very anxious about them, fearing they
would not winter all right, as my pre-
vious experience with bees was that they
always died ; but this time they went
through all right.

On July 10, 1892, they sent out a
nice swarm, which I hived, and they
filled the hive full of honey. Again on
July 19th they sent out another swarm,
which died about with the old year,
having no stores. I failed to see after

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

183

them, and feed in the fall at the proper
time, so I made a fixture to feed after
cold weather set in, which was as fol-
lows :

I took a box 6 inches square by 10
inches long, with both top and bottom
removed ; in place of the bottom I
placed in a glass, and set the top of the
box uy to the entrance of the hive, and
supported it by means of a cord tied
around both the hive and box (or
feeder). In the top of this box I split
out a strip 3 inches wide the full length
of the box, and tacked screen-wire over
it, to admit of air and ventilation. I
put it In the cave opposite the door
which opens to the south, and admitted
sunshine. In the box I placed a small
trough which I filled with syrup ; on
sunshiny days the bees would work at it
well, but they failed to get enough in
sunshine to keep them through the
cloudy weather, so my feeder was a
failure.

I also caught three wild swarms last
swarming season. I now have 5 colo-
nies that I think are in reasonably good
condition, and comfortable in the cave.
I have them in box-hives, and will trans-
fer to movable - frame hives in the
spring, and will Italianize them and try
to take care of them on a little more
scientific principle. 1. Please give the
dimensions of the Langstroth hive, and
how to make it. 2. In transferring bees
from box-hives to movable-frame hives,
will foundation starters, 3 or 4 inches
wide, be suflBcient, or will it be neces-
sary to give full sheets.

0. E. McCabe.

Bear Grove, Iowa, Jan. 5, 1893.

[1. The size of the Langstroth frame
if 93^x17% inches. Any supply dealer
will be glad to furnish you a sample
nailed hive. Consult our advertising
columns for dealers.

2. It is generally considered best to
hive swarms on full sheets of comb
foundation. — Ed.]

* — < ^ » — •■

Coldest "Weather in Five Years.

Bees have not had a flight since the
first part of last December. They are
sleeping a la Clarke. We have had the
coldest weather — that is, continuously
cold — that we have had in five years,
though if bees are packed in good shape,
they will be all right. The mercury has
been 15° below in places.

Geo. Spitler.

Mosiertown, Pa., Jan. 19, 1893.

Alsike Clover for Seed and Honey.

There is no question in my mind at
present, as to whether it pays to raise
Alsike clover or not. From eight years'
experience with it, I feel safe to advise
every bee-keeper that is located in the
clover belt, to try at least a small patch
next year, on low ground. It grows
very luxuriantly with timothy, and
makes an excellent hay for either cattle
or horses. Last year was the first that
I cut it for seed. The patch that I cut
for seed was only one-third of a stand,
and yielded four bushels of nice seed per
acre, and is selling fast to my neighbors
at $10 per bushel ; and the clover after
it is thrashed makes good feed for cat-
tle, even if rain-beaten and bleached
before stacking. I have never before
been able to obtain $40 for the use of
an acre of ground, and with so little
labor ; and, besides all this, I also had a
fine flow of honey of excellent quality.
Hundreds of acres will be sown here next
season. Frank Coverdale.

Welton, Iowa, Jan. 19, 1893.

Too liittle Protection for Winter.

Bees did not do much last season — did
not get honey enough to supply the
home market, yet the bees went into
winter quarters with plenty of honey. I
built a bee-cave last fall, and put in 30
colonies which I think are doing finely.
But a great many here leave their bees
out on the summer stands with but little
protection. I think this winter will be
pretty hard on them, as we are having a
pretty cold winter so far. We have had
fine sleighing for over a month.

Samuel Flory.

South English, Iowa, Jan. 17, 1893.

Results of the Season of 1892.

My report for 1892 is as follows : I
put into the cellar 215 colonies Nov.
20, 1891, and took out 210, which
spring dwindled to 170, almost all
weak, and some very poor, and did not
gather any surplus. About 100 got in
fair condition for the honey-flow by July
1st. I obtained about 2,500 pounds of
comb clover honey, and about 1,500
pounds of extracted clover honey. My
total amount of comb honey was 5,155
pounds, and total of extracted was
7,580. The fall honey was heart's-ease.

The spring of 1892 was the worst for
bees that I remember of in all my bee-
keeping— for more than 20 years. The
bees were in poorer condition in June

184

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

than in April, when they were put on
the summer stands. I have now 2,30
colonies In the cellar, in fine condition,
that will average about 60 pounds each,
of good honey. My best wintering breed-
ing colony has had only 2 dead bees on
the bottom-board so far this winter ;
while I have a few others that have had
more than a quart of dead bees to date.

I am still not discouraged with bee-
keeping, and the prospects for another
year are promising. There is plenty of
white clover and plenty of snow to cover
the ground to keep the claver from get-
ting frozen. N. Staininger.

Tipton, Iowa, Jan. 20, 1893.

Dark Italians or Golden Italians?

Which are the best honey-producers,
dark Italian bees or golden Italians ? I
have 32 colonies, mostly Italian hybrids,
and one golden colony, that I exchanged
queens last fall. As honey gatherers, it
was too late to find out much. I have
two golden queens due me in the spring.
I have heard it disputed, or claimed,
that the dark Italians would store more
honey and breed up faster than the
goldens. I do not want to make any
mistakes. I want the bees that will
breed up the quickest in the spring, and
store the most honey.

Cazenovia, Wis. John Boggs.

[Will some one who has had suflBcient
experience with both varieties, please
reply to the above question ? — Ed.]

Hiving Swarms on Drawn Combs.

After reading Mr. Hutchinson's article
on hiving swarms on drawn combs (page
823 of 1892), I must say I am sur-
prised, too. It seems very strange that
two bee-keepers living in nearly the
same locality have such a marked differ-
ence in experience. For the last ten
years I have hived swarms on starters,
full sheets of foundation, and full drawn
combs, resulting in favor of the last
named. I hived 20 swarms on drawn
combs last year, and met with the same
result — one colony giving me 80 pounds
of comb honey, 50 pounds of which was
gathered in 14 days from the time they
issued. I do not see anything slow,
gingerly or grudgingly about that, do
you ?

Last year I hived swarms on starters
only; I put queen-excluders on, and
then the supers, and now for the result :
About one out of five gave me 20 pounds

of comb honey, and filled their brood-
chamber, while the remainder gave me
no finished sections, neither did they fill
their hives. Just think of the condition
they were in for winter, or for the fall
honey-flow ! You may say that I did not
hive my swarms, but I did just the same
as I always do. Please remember that
the honey-flow lasted about the same
length of time.

Mr. H. also speaks about sorting out
all imperfect combs, and melting them
into wax. Yes, we all know what a de-
sirable job that is — it is not only a dis-
agreeable work, but a very expensive
one. Orville Jones.

Stockbridge, Mich.

Down with Honey Adulteration!

I am very glad to learn the American
Bee Journal is still taking a firm stand
against the aduleration of honey in any
form, and that earnest work has already
commenced for its suppression. I con-
sider it a more worthy enemy to draw
swords with than the one the National
Bee-Keepers Union (of which I am a
member) has been fighting. The mon-
ster must be crushed. All honor to Prof.
Cook for any truthful discoveries, but I
feel as if it (the idea of bees turning
sugar into honey) would do ten times as
much harm to our chosen pursuit as
good — it would make a loophole for the
adulterators (pension them off, so to
speak) to slip through, and then con-
tinue their villainous work. Hurrah for
the amendment to the Constitution of
the National Bee-Keepers' Union !

Walter Harmer.

Manistee, Mich., Jan. 6, 1893.

Value of Bee-Literature, Etc.

We have had cold weather here, 18°
below zero, so I thought I would look
over my back numbers of the American
Bee Journal, and I see that I have been
a subscriber more than 20 years. Then
the Bee Journal was $2.00 per year,
and I would rather pay .^2.00 now for
it than to do without it. The Bee
Journal and other bee-papers are our
welcome visitors. We are always sure
to find something new, and they are
seldom laid down until every article is
read ; then when we are in bed we can
think of what we have read. It seems
wonderful how much can be learned
about bees, when we read the many
periodicals and books that have been
written, all devoted to the busy bee. It
seems the more we read and study, the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

185

more we are surprised how little we
know about our pets.

The farmer can breed his stock just
as he pleases ; I wonder how long it will
be until the bee-keeper can say the same
with his bees. Mr. Doolittle says he
would willingly give $50 for a plan by
which he could mate the queens that
are reared to selected drones as he
wishes. Now cannot some of our lead-
ing bee-men help to solve this question,
and if so, then I would say give him the
highest seat in our ranks, and call him
our leader. Samuel Utz.

Kenton, Ohio, Dec. 20, 1892.

Good at Starting Q,ueen-Cells.

Bees in this locality were put into
winter quarters in pretty fair condition.
The honey crop was not very good. I
secured 25 pounds of honey, on an aver-
age, per colony. I experienced some-
thing new last summer. One evening,
as I came home from my work, I found
a cluster of bees on a bush. I hived
them at once, as the sun was set, on one
empty comb. The next morning I found
some 70 queen-cells started. I at once
gave them a queen, as I had some in
readiness ; but to my surprise they at
once balled her. I then caged her and
left her with the bees for 48 hours, then
turned her loose, and she was accepted.
Why did not these bees return to their
hive? If queenless, why not accept the
queen at once ? There was no brood or
eggs in the comb.

Bee-keeping is carried on in a " hit or
miss " way in this locality. I see a great
many box-hives. I saw some last sum-
mer which were in the weeds and
thicket-grass so that it took a bee about
five minutes to climb and crawl through ;
that is a fact. The owner said he would
quit keeping bees. I think that is the
best plan for him.

Feed Biesemeier..

Sterling, Nebr., Jan. 2, 1893.

"Xhe TVinter Protolem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Jouknal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
$1.80. Send to us for a copy.

^.^lMI3^3REe^^,,^^

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

At One Dollar a Year,
56 FIFTH AVENUE. CHICAGO. ILLS.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Joxjrnal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffield, Portage co, Ohio

REMOVAL, NOXICE.

In order to get better accommodations,
and for greater convenience, we have
moved the American Bee Journal into
a new office, at 56 Fifth Avenue, near
the northwest corner of Randolph St.
Our correspondents, and friends who may
desire to call upon us when in Chicago,
will please bear in mind our new place —
56 Fifth Avenue.

Oouvention PVotices.

NEW YOKK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th.
1893, in the HotellBelmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farndm, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

TEXAS.— The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
in Greenville, one mile north of the Court
House, at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
on Wednesday and Thursday, April the 5th
and 6th, 1893. One of the biggest bee-meet-
ings ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody is invited. No hotel bills to pay.
Come one, come all, and let us liave a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to
exhibit. A. H. Jones, See.

Golden, Texas.

186

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
February 4th, 1893 :

CHICAGO, III.— There are occasional sales
of best grades of comb honey, but the retail-
ers are not yet sold out on supply laid in
before the holidays. Prices are a little easier,
especlallj'^ on that which will not grade "fan-
cy"—such brings 17@18c., and other grades
12@16c. Extracted. 6@9c., as to quality.

Beeswax— 2 2@-2 5c. R. A. B. & Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily ^.t 18c. ; No. 1
comb, leOlTc. Darli sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 854 ;
darls, 6@7c. Beeswax— 2 3@3 5c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers, for extracted honey, was slow for
the last few weeks, while there was, and is
still, a fair demand from consumers for family
use. There is no choice comb honey in the
market. Best white comb brings 14@16c.
Extracted honey brings 6@8c.

Beeswax— Demand fair, at 23@25c. for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8i/4c.; buckwheat, 6@6^c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. -H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.— Choice extracted
Is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Comb honey is selling
slow, very much slower than we like to have
it, and it is our experience that when we start
honey in at a high price, it sells hard right
through the season. We a note our market
nominally at 17@18c. for best white honey,
1-lb. combs. Extracted, 8@9c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNBAPOLIS,MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®l^c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c.; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9@10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber l-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7®7i4c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. • C.-M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our honey market is slow
on account of cold weather, but our stock was
never so liglit as now. We have less than 50
cases of honey on hand, and only one barrel
of extracted; when usually we have 1.000
cases in stock. For honey not granulated in
comb,wo quote: White(smaU),15@18c. ; mixed
13@14c. ; dark, 10(2>llc. Large comb and
double glass sell for 1 to 2c. less per lb. Ex-
tracted, white, 8J4@9c.; amber, 7^@8c.; buck-
wheat, 7(a7J4C. H. U. W.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cbicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

Sau FrancIsco« Calif.

Schacht, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

rainneapolis, mtnn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.
Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oliio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Doolittle's Queen-Rearing:

book should be iu the library of every
bee-keeper; and In tl-e way we offer to
to give it, there is no reason now why
every one may not possess a copy of it.
Send us one new subscriber for a year,
and we will mail the book to you bound
in paper, as a present.

Please Don't send to us
keepers' supplies. We do not
them. If in need of anything
apiary except a good bee paper
just send for the catalogues of
our advertisers. They will be
fit you out, and do it well.

for bee-
deal in
for the
or book,
some of
glad to

Wants or Excliajiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
Into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

WANTED— A practical apiarist. A situa-
tion in an Apiary or Hive Manufactory.
12 years' experience.

Address, G, C. R., Box 707,

6Alt Austin, Minn,

GEORGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. ) To Bee-Culture. I Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, FEBRUARY 16, 1893.

NO. 7.

*' stars will blossom in the darkness,
"Violets bloom beneath the snow."

Xhe North American conven-
tion report is completed in this issue of
the Bee Jouknal. We wish to call
particular attention to Prof. C. V.
Riley's address, which is very interest-
ing, as it comes from one so near to the
head of the Department of Agriculture.

We will put the whole report in
pamphlet form in about two weeks, and
any one disiring a copy of it can get it
by sending us 25 cents. Of course the
members of the Associatian will get it
free.

Very much matter for publication has
accumulated during the past few weeks,
but we felt that the North American
Report should come first ; now as that
is finished, we will be able to publish
other very interesting matter that we
have been compelled to hold back. We
trust that those who have sent in any-
thing for publication in the Bee Jour-
nal will not get uneasy, as we are doing
the very best we can, and will soon
reach their particular contribution.

Su^ar-Honey Folks As:aiti.

— In reply to our editorial remarks on
page 136, Dr. Miller has this to say
further regarding those who think it
would be a good thing for bee-keepers
to feed sugar to produce comb honey :

Now, look here, Mr. Editor, don't you
imagine that you're going to choke me
off by calling me "kind-hearted." May
be you'll not think me so kind-hearted
before I get through. Reading very
carefully all you say on page 136, it
seems to me you don't squarely meet the
issue. You say, " When we have com-
mitted a wrong we expect to suffer for
it, unless by showing sincere repentance
we may be forgiven." That's all right,
but are you going to repent just because
somebody calls you names, instead of
trying to show you anything you have
done wrong ?

That's a nice figure about " switch-
ing," but figures sometimes don't prove
anything, and many a train has been
wrecked just because it "kept on the
main line" when it ought to have been
side-tracked. In fact, in the present
case, the trouble is that the sugar-
honey idea wasn't switched off onto a
side-track long before it was, and quietly
left there.

Are you " so mad with rage " that you
can't look at the thing straight? The
whole gist of the matter lies in a ques-
tion that I asked you, and that you ut-
terly ignore. I said, practically, that
these brethren honestly believed that
bees make honey out of sugar, and then
asked, " Believing that, was there any-
thing criminal in their saying so ?"
Please give a categorical answer to that.

I think the whole case in a nutshell is
just about this : They said, "Bees make
honey out of sugar." We said, "They

200

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

don't. Shut up." They shut up, and
stay shut up, and you're not satisfied.

Now will you formulate in words
what you think our mistaken friends
ought to say ? They have a certain be-
lief that I think erroneous, and yet may
they not be just as honest in their be-
lief as I ? Have you proved that their
belief is wrong ?

You say, " We bear no malice toward
them, but we feel that they have made
a mistake that they should hasten to
correct." Candidly, I don't believe you
bear any malice, but I ^hink others do
believe it, and think they have grounds
for their belief. You want them to
" hasten to correct" their "mistake."
Now how do you want them to correct
it? Do you want them to say, "We
were mistaken in our views ?" But they
don't think so. Do you want them to
lie? What do you want anyhow? Do
you remember that at one time A. I.
Root thought it would be a good thing
to feed glucose ? Then everybody called
out, "Stop; it will hurt the business."
Then he stopped. Did he get down on
his marrow bones and " hasten to cor-
rect his mistake?" No, he just stop-
ped, and no one wanted him to do any-
thing else. Now these brethren have
stopped ; hadn't you better stop ?

C. C. Miller.

Did you ever read so many questions
in all your life ? Why, one would think
that our good Doctor would turn com-
pletely into a regular interrogation
point ! We think he fully appreciates
the questionableness of the subject he's
asking about, and that may account for
his numerous "categorical " inquiries.

We never thought of "choking off"
the Doctor by calling him "kind-heart-
ed." We have heard of " killing people
with kindness," but somehow we don't
think that kind of "murder" is very
effective. We wouldn't like to try that
on a mule, at any rate — but may be that
is what he is trying to do with us. Per-
haps we are rather mulish — but we be-
lieve mules, sometimes, have their ad-
vantages.

As to repenting " just because some-
body calls you names," we would say
that we didn't know anybody was called
names ; but even if they had been, there
likely would be a good cause for it.
After all that has been printed in the

Bee Journal on this subject, we are
surprised that any one should question
the wrong done by the utterances of the
sugar-honey people. If they haven't
seen the wrong yet, they must be " as
blind as those who won't see." If bee-
keepers can conscientiously feed sugar
to bees to be stored in combs, and then
sell it for honey, may they not almost as
consistently mix glucose with extracted
honey, and sell it for pure honey ? It
differs mainly in appearance — the re-
sults are about the same.

We quite agree with the Doctor that
" the trouble is that the sugar-honey
idea wasn't switched off onto a side-
track long before it was, and quietly
left there." The Bee Journal thought
it had succeeded in getting the "idea"
safely side-tracked over a year ago, but
its friends wouldn't let it stay side-
tracked. We are not to blame for their
running it on the main line again, and
causing a regular smash-up. All
" wrecks " must be cleared away, how-
ever, no matter who is responsible for
the accident.

No, sir ; we're not " mad with rage ;"
and are "prohibition" enough both in
principle and practice to always " look
at the thing [any thing] straight !" We
never see things " double," if that's
what you mean. Just because " these
brethren honestly believed that bees make
honey out of sugar " — does Lhat make it
so ? If their statements result in the
great harm to the production of honest
honey, that thousands of the best bee-
keepers really believe it will, then we
would say, yes, it was criminal for them
to say what they did. A bee-keeper may
" honestly believe " that mixing glucose
with honey and then selling the mixture
as " honey " is right — but then all other
conscientious bee-keepers, who have a
speck of morality left, know that it isn't
right.

Shutting up, and staying "shut up,"
will never counteract the evil effects of
what was published before the "shut up'
admonition was heeded. " What is writ,
is writ," and you can't "unwrit" it.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

201

But if what was written should result
just opposite to what was intended, one
can at least express a regret. We will
not attempt to "formulate in words
what" we " think our mistaken friends
ought to say," but it is another mistake
for any one to say that we expect them
to state anything contrary to their hon-
est convictions. The question is not
whether bees make honey or not, but
whether the publishing of the suggestion
of feeding sugar to bees for the produc-
tion of honey will not result in untold
danger to floral honey production. We
have said before, that these columns
would be open to a manly expression of
regret that the stupendous mistake had
been made, of publishing the idea.

We know a man who is "honest" in
his " belief" that he is doing right when
he sells liquid damnation to his fellow
men; but we think the whole cursed
traffic should be annihilated. We don't
have to prove to that man he is wrong.
Self-evid«nt truths need no proof.

Again we must say that we bear no
malice toward the sugar-lwney folks, or
anybody else. But we do feel sorry that
we must disagree with them in their
views ; and that we feel it our duty to
oppose them in their suggestion of pro-
ducing honey by feeding sugar syrup to
bees. We don't want any one to " lie,"
but we cannot believe that only two or
three are right about this matter, and
all the thousands of others are wrong.
We prefer to stay with the majority this
time, though it was safer with the
minority in the days of Noah and his
ark.

Bro. Root's glucose idea is not a
parallel case. Good testimonies say that
bees don't like glucose in their honey
any more than do people. But we are
very certain that Bro. Root had grace
enough to say that if what he suggested
was going to result disastrously to bee-
keeping, he most assuredly regretted
ever having even hinted at such a thing.
These latter-day brethren may have
" stopped " as did Prof. Wiley in his
" manufactured comb honey " talk, but

just like that unfortunate utterance we
fear the sugar-honey idea will be car-
ried in the sensational newspapers
throughout the length and breadth of
the land, and, it seems to us, cannot
help being to the great detriment of the
sale of pure floral honey. We sincerely
hope that we may be wrong in our views,
but we are inclined to believe that we
are not.

Is there Poisonous Honey ?

^The following question is sent for re-
ply in the Bee Journal :

Does honey from the ailanthus poison
bees ? Is there any other honey from
common plants or trees that poison bees?

Prof. Cook replies thus :

From all that I can gather, I doubt
if any natural honey will kill bees or
people. The stories about ailanthus,
rhododendron, etc., are much to be
questioned. It is very probable that
some plant-louse or honey-dew honey is
bad for bees, and will prove fatal for
winter, just as glucosed honey does. I
think the sickness from eating floral
honey is not because the honey is pois-
onous. Of course, I may be wrong, but
I have excellent reasons for my opinion.

A. J. Cook.

COWVE\TIOW DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

Feb. 25.— Wabasb Valley, at Vincennes, Ind.
Frank Vawler, Sec, Vincennes, Ind.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville. Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo. Ills.

Vice-Pres.— .T. E. Crane Middlebury, Conn.

Secretary— Frank Benton. Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

* • m *•

National Bee-Keepers' ITnion.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich
Gen'l, Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

202

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

I^ovingf Bees in ^Winter.—

The following questions are asked by
Mr. F. H. Richardson, of Elliott, Mo. :

1. I have just moved my bees in
wagons very carefully. It was pretty
cold. Please tell me whether it will
hurt them. I found 6 colonies with
light stores. 2. How can I feed syrup
in cold weather ?

1. Yes, moving bees in cold weather
is likely to hurt them, but it depends
upon circumstances how much. If it
was not too cold, and thfey had a chance
for a flight within a few days afterward,
the weather being warm enough, the
probability is that you will not detect
any great damage. Since the moving is
already done, it is well to look on the
hopeful side, and in any case it would
be well for you to report in May how
they come out, for the benefit of others.

2. In freezing weather you can feed
syrup most easily by pouring it all over
the bees, and this will kill them quicker
than to let them starve to death. In
other words, don't think of feeding
syrup unless the weather continues
warm enough for the bees to fly freely
long enough to store the syrup and get
it in good shape, which can hardly be
before spring fairly opens. If you have
comb honey, that is the best winter feed,
but be sure the bees get to it. If you
haven't comb honey, make candy.

Old Subscribers.— In response
to our call in the issue of the Bee Jour-
nal for Dec. 29th, for those to report
who have taken this paper ever since it
was started, in 1861, we have heard
from the following, which shows there
are very few who have been subscribers
for 32 years :

J. L. Hubbard, Walpole, N. H.
A. D. Sellers, Jefferson City, Mo.
R. Dart, Ripon, Wis.
D. D. Daniher, Madison, Wis.
Wm. Ashcom, Ligonier, Pa.
Wm. Wilson, Bardstown, Ky.
J. D. Goodrich, E. Hardwick, Vt.

ii

Bees and Honey »»— page 197.

Hfin. O. 91. DOOLITTI^E.

We are much pleased this week to be
permitted to present to our readers the
picture and biographical sketch of one
so well and favorably known all over
the bee-keeping world — Gilbert M. Doo-
little.

Mr. Doolittle, of Borodino, N. Y., was
born April 14, 1846, near his present
location, in the town of Spafford, Onon-
daga County. His parents were natives
of Connecticut, and moved to New York
a few years before he was born ; hence
the thoroughness, energy anij activity
of the " Yankee" are largely manifested
in the subject^of this sketch. From his
earliest youth, Mr. D. has been an ad-
mirer of the busy bee, taking great in-
terest in them when kept by his father.
Later on, nearly all the bees in his sec-
tion of country perished with foul brood,
so that from 1856 to 1862 a colony of
bees was a rarity. After this the disease
seemed to abate, so that, in 1868, bees
were quite common again.

As 1868 was a splendid honey season,
bee-talk was rife in his locality, which
again brought to life old ambitions which
had been crushed out by the former loss
by disease among the bees, so that the
spring of 1869 found Mr. D. with 2 col-
onies of bees of his own, as the starting-
point to his present apiary. Wishing to
know for himself all of the minutiae of
this (to him) interesting pursuit, he pro-
cured nearly all the bee-books of that
day, and subscribed for the bee-papers.
As his ambition led him toward the
practical side of bee-keeping, Quinby's
" Mysteries of Bee-Keeping Explained "
was his favorite, the pages of which

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

203

were as familiar to him as a nursery
rhyme. His intense desire to learn and
investigate the bees in every particular
has been such that he has dreamed of
them at night, and thought of them in
his working hours to almost an absorb-
ing extent, and to-day he is still a stu-
dent, believing that there are many un-
explored regions, and much room for the
deepest thought, even on the practical
part of this pursuit.

In the first years of his apicultural
study, Elisha Gallup, then living in

was in bee-keeping, which has caused
the subject of this sketch to study along
the line of queen-rearing to a much
larger extent than any other part of this
interesting pursuit, and it is believed by
him that much of his success as a honey-
producer has come from this, and his
ever-anxious care to get the hive filled
with brood at sijch a time that there
would be multitudes of field-bees at the
opening of the honey harvest.

To the above we may add the follow-
ing, which was written of Mr. Doollttle

GILBERT M. DOLLITTLE.

Iowa, gave him by letter much practical
instruction, which, together with Gal-
lup's articles in the different papers of
that time, so grew into his life that he
went by the name of " Gallup " among
bee-keepers about him for several years;
and to-day he is often heard to say that
there never has, to his mind, been a
greater man in the realm of bee-keeping
than E. Gallup.

Gallup, in his private letters, laid
great stress on good queens, claiming
that around the queen centered all there

by a good friend, in the "ABC Bee-
Culture :"

As a business, Mr. D. has made bee-
keeping a success, although he has never
kept a large number of colonies, princi-
pally, if not wholly, because he prefers
to keep no more than he can manage
without outside help. In 1886 he wrote
in the American Bee Journal :

" From less than 50 colonies of bees,
spring count, I have cleared over $1,000
each year for the past 13 years, taken
as an average. I have not hired 13
days' labor in that time in the apiary,
nor had apprentices or students to do
the work for me, although I have had

204

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

many applications from those who
wished to spend a season with me. Be-
sides my labor with the bees, I take care
of my garden and small farm (29 acres);
have charge of my father's estate, run
my own shop and steam engine, sawing
sections, hives, honey-crates, etc., for
myself and my neighbors ; write for
seven different papers, and answer a
host of correspondence."

Mr. D. works for comb honey, and
also makes quite a business of rearing
queens for sale. Although a prolific
writer, his fund of information never
seems exhausted, and h>e is uniformly
practical and interesting. His writings
give evidence of the close and careful
thinker. In personal appearance Mr.
D. is of commanding presence,being large
(275 pounds) and well formed, of sandy
complexion, and in manner he is a genial
Christian gentleman.

fxxxxxxT«xxx««Trxxzzzxzzxxxzzrxxx3

CONDUCTED BY

Biff®. Jemmfe Mi^&ley,
Greenville. Texas.

Our School in Bee-Keeping.

Dear readers, I will now begin bee-
keeping with you " from the stump,"
and will go'through almost all the details
connected with successful Southern bee-
culture. As promised, I do this for the
benefit of beginners, and as some of our
readers have asked me to tell them how
to rear queens, I will go with you
through this branch of bee-keeping, be-
fore I am done. These articles I will
call "Our School in Bee-Keeping," and
the larger the class the better the school,
or the more there are of us the happier
we will be.

All the tuition fee that I will charge
is $1.00 to pay for the Amekican Bee
Journal for a year, and you can have
the book, "Bees and Honey," besides.
Should you fail to start in with us, we
will send you all the back numbers, let-
ting your subscription begin with the

school. Those of my bee-keeping friends
in the South, who take the Bee Joub-
NAL, will confer a great favor if they
will send to me the names of their neigh-
bor bee-keepers that do not take it, and
tell them that this little' school will be
worth to them twice the price of the
paper, and encourage them to send in
their subscriptions.

Now, I am desirous of doing more for
bee-keeping in the South, in the next
few years, than has been done in the
last ten ; and to do this, I must get the
bee-keepers to read the Bee Journal,
and trust that all my friends in the
South will help me out in this, by send-
ing in all the names and subscribers you
can.

Now I will close this preface, by again
asking all to lend a helping hand, and
let's bring forward bee-keeping in this
Sunny Southland of ours — the paradise
of the honey-bee.

THE FIRST lesson.

First, let me ask if you have a book (a
colony of bees), if not, you* had better
get one by the next lesson, as we cannot
learn as well without books. I will take
the ones with box-hives as the ABC
class, so you that bought your bees in a
frame hive just wait a little until I show
the others how to transfer their bees
and combs to a frame hive, then we will
all start together.

The best time to buy a colony of bees
is in the spring, about fruit-bloom time,
and the best time to transfer it will be
as soon as you get it home. Yes, and I
had better tell you how to get your hive
home.

Go over to the nearest neighbor that
has bees, and tell him you want a colony
of bees, and that you are not particular
whether they are black or yellow, but
you would like to buy a thrifty colony.
They should cost you about $2.50, or if
the hive is real heavy, and a good colony
of bees, do not grumble if he asks you
$3.00 for them.

Now, light a smoker well, and get a
sack that is large enough to slip over
the hive, slip the hive into the sack, and
lay it in your wagon.

Ah, hold on, you are doing wrong right
on the start ; that is just why so many
people fail in working with bees — they
go right on without asking permission
from the bees ; that is, never touch the
hive until you have smoked the bees
well. Now you have smoked long
enough ; In four or five minutes they
will all be filled with honey, then you
can do what you please with them — they
have given you permission.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

205

Now you are ready. Put the hive into
the sack and lay it in the wagon, drive
home, and every time you handle them
in any shape, smoke them until they
become used to being handled, and then
always thereafter just smoke them when
they begin to show fight. Now you have
a good start — a fine colony of bees in a
box-hive.

I will now show you how to transfer
them. Lay the hive on a table, raise the
entrance of the hive about two inches
the highest, and let the top of the hive
extend out over the edge of the table.
Now knock off the top of the hive, only
raise it up a little at first, and blow in
some smoke, then take it clear off. Now
smoke the bees up toward the entrance
of the hive, and thoy will leave the
honey and cluster on the hive. Place a
pan or some vessel under the dripping
hive, and get as much of the honey out
as you can, then pry open the box, or
cut the nails with a cold chisel or an old
hatchet. To lay the hive down in such
a manner as to have the combs edgewise
is best.

Now, if the bees have clustered on any
part of the hive, you can take a dipper
and dip them off, and pour them into the
new hive, then they will be out of your
way.

Now begin taking out the combs, and
use the smoker to drive the bees out of
your way, and as you lift out the combs,
brush the remaining bees off of it into
the new hive. A brush made of corn-
shucks is good, tearing the shucks into
shreds, and tie on a handle like a little
broom ; this makes the best and cheap-
est brush of anything that I have tried.
When It becomes hard, dip it in water,
when it will be soft, and will not hurt or
make the bee^ mad.

Now as you take out the combs, lay
those containing the most honey by
themselves, and put the brood-combs in
a separate place. When you have the
combs all right, then lay the frames
down on the transferring board — a board
a little larger than the frame, and you
should have two of them. Now lay the
combs on the frames, and cut them to fit
the frames, and tack small, thin strips
of wood across the frame in such a man-
ner as to firmly hold them. Then turn
the frame (board and all together) over,
by placing the other transferring-board
right on top of the frame that you have
tacked in ; take hold of the two boards,
and turn over, holding tight enough to
keep the comb and frame in place.

Remove the board, and tack on strips
as before ; then hang it in the new hive
with the bees, and continue this until all

combs are in that you wish to put in,
and close up the new hive — I mean, put
on the quilt and cover, and place the
hive where wanted, and all is well. If
you did not have combs to fill all the
frames, you can, if you wish, put in
foundation in the rest.

Now, you have the bees into a frame
hive, where you can handle them as you
choose ; and if you have done a good
job, the combs will be just about as
straight as if built there by the bees.

There are other ways of transferring,
but I have given you this as my best
way to have the combs nice and straight.
I can transfer some faster with strings,
or with tin clasps, but when the combs
are heavy with brood or honey, they ^
will bulge. Where the combs are cut to
fit nicely, they will stay without any-
thing to hold them, but you had better
use the wooden clasps clear across until
you get used to it. Then when the bees
get the combs well fastened, you can
pull off the clasps, and you are done.

Now these directions are where you
are to do all the work yourself. Of
course, when you have plenty of help
you can cut out combs, and some one
else tack in, and another dip off the bees
and place the transferred combs in the
new hive, so by the time you get the
combs all cut out, the bees are ready to
put away, etc. Now the ABC class is
ready to start in with the next class.

Bees Gathering Pollen in Mississippi.

Bees, in this part of southern Missis-
sippi, so far as my knowledge extends,
have wintered finely, though we have
had the coldest weather, and the most
of it, that we have had for years. We
have had some pleasant weather for a
week or ten days past, and the bees
have had a good flight, and were bring-
ing In pollen yesterday and to-day as
though spring had opened up in earnest.
Upon examination I find my bees have
plenty of stores to carry them through.
The indications are that we will have a
good honey-flow this year. I hope to see
our Southern bee-keeping friends give
us the news from different parts of our
Southland. R. W. Thompson.

Estabutchie, Miss., Jan. 28, 1893.

Please Send TJs the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

206

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

How to Safely Disinfect Foul-
Broody Hiyes, Etc.

Query 858.— 1. Having had a colony of
bees with foul brood, how can I disinfect the
hive so that it will be safe to use again with-
out contracting the disease ? 2. Will foul
brood originate in a healthy colony of bees if
the bees have access to decaying or rotten
brood, the brood being talsen from a healthy
colony and left exposed ?— Mich.

—James A. Green.
think not.— C. C.

2. No.— Mrs. J.

-Will

1. Boil it. 2. No.-

1. Burn it. 2. I
Miller.

1. Burn the hive.
N. Heater.

1. Boil it. 2. I should fear it.-
M. Barnum.

1. I do not know. 2. I think not. —
Jas. a. Stone.

1. Boil it in water. 2. I don't know.
— J. M. Hambaiigh.

1. If I had one hive, and only one, I
would burn it. 2. No. — E. France.

1. By keeping it in boiling water for
say 15 minutes. 2. No. — E,. L. Taylor.

1. Look up authorities on foul brood.
2. I have no experience. — EugeneSecor.

1. Sulphur it, and let it remain empty
for a season out-of-doors. 2. No. — P.
H. Elwood.

1. Burn it, and use the ashes around
your grape-vines. 2. I do not know. —
Mrs. L. Harrison.

1. Keep it five Tuinutes in boiling
water. 2. Never; no more than will
figs come from thistles. — A. J. Cook.

1. This question cannot be answered
in a few words. 2. No, if the brood was
not killed by foul brood. — Dadant &
Son.

1. I have had no experience whatever
with foul brood, and know very little
about it. 2. I should say yes. — C. H.

DiBBERN.

1. Boiling-hot water will destroy any
living germ if the contact is long enough.
2. Such a thing has never occurred in my
apiary, and I have no fears that it ever
will. But I don't know. I have never
seen a case of the disease known as

" foul brood," and if there was ever any
such disease among bees in this end of
the earth, the oldest men I have met
never heard of it. — G. W. Demaree.

1. I don't know. I never had any
among my bees. I always thought I
would burn them up if I had. 2. I think
not. — S. I. Freeborn.

1. I don't believe it can be done. I
have tried it, and find it don't pay. 2.
Foul brood will not originate in the man-
ner suggested. — J. E. Pond.

1. Scald it out thoroughly, then give
it a good coat of paint inside, and it will
be safe to use again. But unless lumber
is high, the better way would be to burn
the whole business. 2. No. — Mrs. Jen-
nie Atchley.

1. Boil it for 30 minutes. 2. No.
You can contract blood-poisoning from
several different sources, but you will
not take small-pox from the measles,
nor the itch from erysipelas. When you
get the germs that produce foul brood,
then you will have foul brood, and not
before. — H. D. Cutting.

1. Melt the combs, burn the frames,
scald the hive, including top, bottom,
and all the traps, even to the smokers
and feeders. Old sections should be
burned, etc. The trouble is, you are not
half thorough and careful enough. 2.
No. — J. H. Larrabee.

1. I think that boiling it for a time
would do. There are several disinfect-
ants which I think would do, such as
carbolic acid, sulphur, and perhaps
chloride of lime. 2. I think not. — M.
Mahin.

1. Wash the hive inside and out with
carbolic acid, then give it inside and
out a coat of paint. 2. While I cannot
say positively, I would dislike to have
the experiment tried in my apiary. — J.
P. H. Brown.

1. Burn the hive and all its contents,
this winter, for you cannot afford to run
any risk for one bee-hive. 2. I think
not. But why leave rotten brood
around ? If you are to be an apiarist
worth the name, you will not leave such
around you or the bee-yard. — G. M. Doo-
little.

1. My belief is that if the inside of
the hive was saturated with a mixture
of equal parts of alcohol and carbolic
acid, and allowed to dry out, it would be
safe, especially if a little napthaline was
used upon the bottom-board after the
bees were again put into the hive. 2.
There seems little doubt but that foul
brood may originate in the manner sug-
gested, but not always. — G. L. Tinker.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

207

Report of the IVortli American
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the Amei-ican Bee Journal
BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

(Continued from page 211.)
At this juncture, Assistant Secretary
of Agriculture, Hon. Edwin Willits, was
introduced, and made a few remarks.
In substance he said that the Secretary
of Agriculture was in sympathy with
bee-l<eepers. He is not so very much
interested in the introduction of fancy
races of bees, but is very much inter-
ested in the improvement of practical
apiculture. In the way of bee-keepers
securing aid from the Government there
are two difficulties. One is to secure the
money to work with. There are very
many interests that are asking for as-
sistance, and the average congressman
is very ignorant upon bee-keeping sub-
jects. The next difficulty is as to wJiat
to do. An apiary cannot be established
at Washington. The Department of
Agriculture has asked for 300 acres of
idle land near Washington to be used
for experimental purposes, and have
failed to get it.

What the Department of Agriculture
Ought to Do for Apiculture.

Last year, at the Albany meeting, a
committee was appointed to decide what
bee-keepers ought to ask of the Depart-
ment of Agriculture. The committee
reported as follows :

The committee to whom was referred
the matter of Government aid to apicul-
ture, beg leave to report and advise that
the bee-keepers of the United States
petition —

1. That the Section of Apiculture in
the Division of Entomology, Department
of Agriculture, be raised to an inde-
pendent Division.

2. That in connection therewith there
be an experimental apiary established at
Washington, having all the appointments
necessary to a first-class Apicultural
Experiment Station.

3. That the appropriation for this
Division be sufficiently large so that the
work may not be embarrassed for the
lack of funds.

This is the least that we can ask in
justice to ourselves. That most impor-
tant part of our business devoted to the
production of liquid honey is in great
danger of being ruined by cheap sugar.
The- chief competition of liquid or
strained honey in the manufactures is
cane-sugar, and the recent removal of
the duty on it, and the consequent low-
ering of prices, has materially lessened
the demand for honey. We find that we
will have to lower the cost of producing
honey in order to meet this most un-
equal competition so suddenly thrust
upon us. Millions of money are taken
from the treasury to reimburse the pro-
ducers of cane and maple sugar for the
loss occasioned by the removal of the
duty, but our legislators entirely forgot
the producers of honey, whose product
is but sugar with the flavor of the flowers
added. We do not ask a bounty, but we
do ask the Government for all the assis-
tance that scientific research and well-
directed experimental work can give us
in cheapening the cost of production.
This is but a moiety of what is granted
the sugar men.

Our industry is still in its infancy, and
while many million pounds of honey are
already produced, the business is capa-
ble of an expansion so great as to
wholly eclipse the present production of
sugar from the sugar-cane. Four con-
tiguous counties have produced, in one
season, over four million pounds of
honey, and this represents but a frac-
tional part of what might have been
gathered. Vast as our business may be-
come, the indirect benefits conferred by
the honey-bee on the agriculturists of
this country in the fertilization of the
flowers of fruits, grains and seeds, will
always surpass in value the value of the
honey gathered by the bee.

The committee have named Washing-
ton as the place for the experimental
yard, because it would be most conven-
ient; also because of the longer season
in which to experiment. There may be
better locations for honey, but for many
experimental purposes a poor location
may be best. If for any purpose a bet-
ter flow of honey is desired, such a loca-
tion may be found a few miles out, and
a part of the bees removed to it.

Should the convention decide to
adopt this report, it would undoubtedly
be best to have a committee estimate the
necessary expense, and immediately
formulate a petition for circulation

208

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

throughout the country, naming the
amount of the appropriation desired,
and the changes called for, together
with a few of the reasons why we de-
mand help at this critical juncture.
Respectfully submitted,

P. H. Elwood, ) ^

J. E. Hetherin&ton, )

Following this came an essay by Dr.
C. V. Riley, Government Entomologist,
on

What the Department of Agriculture

Has Done, and Can Do, for

Apiculture.

The wisdom of establishing as a part
of our Government machinery a Depart-
ment of Agriculture charged with doing
all it can to foster and encourage agri-
culture in all its branches, will not be
questioned by any one who has made
himself acquainted with the work of the
Department since its organization, first
as a bureau in the Department of the
Interior, later as a separate Department,
and finally as a co-ordinate Department
with representation in the cabinet.
There are those who would abolish it,
and who believe that the moneys appro-
priated for it are thrown away, but such
are Ignorant of the needs of agricul-
ture in a great and new country like
ours. That, as in all Government
bureaus, there is some waste of means,
and that some unnecessary or parasitic
growths have attached to it which might
well be removed or reformed, is also in-
cidental to the development of any Gov-
ernment organization ; but so far as my
experience goes , there are fewer of these
abnormalities in the Department which
ministers to the wants of the farmers,
than in almost any other of the Depart-
ments of the Government. In almost
every case, also, they have resulted from
political interference, and indeed the
greatest danger to the Department as at
present organized is the increase of
political and bureaucratic Influences,
which is almost inevitable.

Some of the most beneficent and far-
reaching work of the Department was
done during its earlier history, when Its
means were limited, but when the field
was fresh, and the opportunities rela-
tively greater ; and it is a notable fact
that when the appropriation for the in-
troduction of seeds and cuttings did not
reach $10,000, where now it reaches
over ten times $10,000. The introduc-
tion of new and improved varieties of
grains and fruits gave results that were
more beneficial and far-reaching than
now, because the fund originally Intend-

ed for such purposes has, through Con-
gressional action, been so largely per-
verted to the miscellaneous distribution
of ordinary seeds, as to be looked upon
by many as a serious abuse.

It has been the desire of almost every
one who has been at the head of the
Department to pursue a broad and lib-
eral policy, to the end that all the
branches of rural economy might receive
their due share of attention. The head
of the Department is, however, helpless
without Congressional aid and sympa-
thy, and it has too often happened that
investigations which promised valuable
results have had to be abandoned be-
cause of the failure of Congress to make
the needed appropriations.

I venture these introductory remarks
in part explanation of the record of the
Department in apiculture, which it is
my privilege to present to you.

The annual products of the apiary
have been variously estimated at from
fifteen to twenty millions of dollars,
while I need not insist to the members
of this Society that the work of insects,
and chiefly of our bees, in the fertiliza-
tion of our seed and fruit-producing
plants far exceeds in value all the honey
and wax product, so that it is quite im-
possible to estimate the combined value
of these direct and indirect benefits from
the bees.

Fifteen years ago, when I first ac-
cepted a position in the Department,
there was provision only for an ento-
mologist without assistants or means
for any experimental or field work. Dur-
ing the next four or five years I suc-
ceeded in impressing the Commissioner
of Agriculture and Congress with a sense
of the importance of the work to be done
in efforts to counteract the ravages of in-
jurious insects, and the appropriations
for both ofifice assistants and field work
increased. But the self-evident advan-
tage of endeavors to protect the farmer
from some part of the immense losses
occasioned by insects, had to fight its
way into recognition. It was not until
1885 that the more important work
done in counteracting the ravages of in-
jurious species had suf3Bciently advanced
to justify my giving some attention to
apiculture, and the fact that nothing
more resulted from the work then begun
may, to some extent, be laid to the lack
of effort on the part of the bee-keepers
themselves, i. e., to their failure to take
united action, such as would bring home
to the head of the Department, and to
those in charge of the general appro-
priations, the needs and just demands of
the industry.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

209

However, that considerable has been
done by the Department, and through
its agency for bee-keepers — much more,
probably, than most of you are aware
of — the published reports of the Depart-
ment show. These reports, hundreds of
thousands of which have been distributed
very generally over the land, have
surely had their influence in the promul-
gation of intelligent and humane meth-
ods in the culture of bees. Beginning
about the time of the first edition of
Langstroth's celebrated work, or nearly
a decade before any bee-periodical had
been printed in the English language,
the Department reports have from year
to year given some notice of prog-
ress in bee-culture, statistics of honey
and wax production, and on several oc-
casions excellent little treatises on bees
and bee-management. Notable among
these is the article on the nature and
habits of the honey-bee, in the report
for 1857. I cannot give the name of
the author, as the initials only of the
Chief Clerk of the Patent Office are at-
tached to it. In 1860 Mr. William
Buckisch, of Texas, gave, in an extend-
ed article, a review of bee-culture as
practiced by Dzierzon and his school.
The essay by my old friend, Mrs. Ellen
S. Tupper, of Iowa, published in the
report for 1865, and covering her theory
of bee-keeping, was widely read and fre-
quently quoted, creating much interest
in improved methods.

The introduction of Italian bees into
this country is certainly one of the ad-
vances in American bee-culture which
ranks second only to the invention of
the frame hive, the honey extractor and
the comb foundation machine. But how
many even now know that the Depart-
ment of Agriculture had anything to do
with the matter ? Leading text-books
on apiculture are silent on this head.
The fact is, however, that the first suc-
cessful importation of Italian bees from
their native land to America was made
by the Department, and it was almost
wholly from this importation that such
skillful apiarists as Langstroth, Cary
and Quinby bred and disseminated the
race during the early '60's.

Individual effort had, for some years
previous, been directed to securing this
race of bees, and in the autumn of 1859
a few queens were landed here from
Germany by Mr. P. J. Mahan, of Phila-
delphia, on his account, and by Samuel
Wagner, of York, Pa., and Richard Col-
vin, of Baltimore, acting together.
Those imported by Messrs. Wagner and
Colvin were lost during the winter which
succeeded, and those which Mr. Mahan

imported do not seem to have been mul-
tiplied as rapidly as the importation
made through the Department of Agri-
culture the following spring.

Mr. S. B. Parsons, acting for the De-
partment, was in Italy at this time,
making purchases of cuttings and plants
for testing in this country, and an order
was transmitted to him by the Depart-
ment to procure some hives of Italian
bees. Ten were purchased by him in
1859, and forwarded to this country in
May, 1860. These were distributed
among several of the best bee-masters,
and they at once set about the rearing
and sale of the queens of the new race.

Thus it was that the Department suc-
ceeded where private enterprise had
failed in this most important undertak-
ing. Those who wish confirmation of
this statement will find it in the Agricul-
tural Report for 1859, page 543, and in
that for 1863, page 530. The former
is a letter written by Mr. Parsons while
in Lausanne, Switzerland, and the latter
is an extended article on the Italian
honey-bee by Mr. Richard Colvin, a com-
petent authority, and who had been one
of the private parties who had tried dur-
ing the years 1858-60 to import this
particular strain from Europe.

It were beyond the scope of this com-
munication to enlarge on the merits of
the Italian race of bees, particularly as
Mr. Benton has treated us to a com-
munication on the varieties of bees ; but
I may be pardoned for calling attention
to what I believe to be a truth which all
will admit who are familiar with the
progress of apiculture in the United
States during the past thirty years or
more, namely, that the benefits, direct
and indirect, which have accrued to
American apiarian interests through the
introduction of the bees of Italy, far ex-
ceed the few thousand dollars which, all
told, the Department from the time of
its organization to the present day has
expended in the development of this in-
dustry as one of our national sources of
wealth. As will appear from its report
for 1877, the Department was earnestly
solicited to appoint a Commission for the
purpose of gathering statistical informa-
tion as to the condition and growth of
bee-keeping in the United States; to
communicate with the largest and most
successful bee-masters, and secure their
methods of wintering, and otherwise
managing bees; to test modern and
improved apiarian appliances, and rec-
ommend such as are worthy; to point
out the most favorable bee-ranges in the
country ; to encourage the cultivation
of honey-producing plants ; and to ed-

210

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

ucate apiarists to use caps and crates of
uniform size for commercial convenience.
The Department had, however, neither
the means nor the power to organize
such a Commission as was urged.

In 1885 I was enabled to establish,
in response to what I felt was an evident
want, an apicultural station, having
fortunately the full sympathy of Com-
missioner Colman in the work. The
station was located at Aurora, Ills., and
Mr. N. W. McLain, an enthusiastic and
well-informed apiarist, was placed in
charge. The reasons for establishing
the station, and the objects in mind, I
quote from the introduction to my report
as Entomologist for that year :

." Among the subjects which I desire
to* have investigated in addition to some
of more purely scientific interest, are the
following :

" 1. To secure the introduction and
domestication of such races of bees as
are reported to possess desirable traits
and characteristics ; to test the claims
of such races of bees as to excellence,
and to prove by experiments their value
to the apiculturists of the United States,
and their adaptation to our climate and
honey-producing flora.

" 2. To make experiments in the
crossing and mingling of races already
introduced, and such as may hereafter
be imported, and by proper appli-
cation of the laws of breeding endeavor
to secure the type or types best adapted
by habit and constitution to the uses of
practical bee-keepers in the United
States.

" 3. To make experiments in the
methods of artificial fertilization, and, if
possible, demonstrate the best process
by which the same may be accomplished.

" 4. To study the true causes of dis-
eases yet imperfectly understood, and the
best methods of preventing or curing
such diseases.

" 5. To obtain incontestable results
by intelligent experiments on scientific
methods, as to the capacity of bees, un-
der exceptional circumstances, to injure
fruit; i. e., to set at rest the ever-dis-
cussed question of bees vs. fruit."

The experiments of the first year— the
station having only been started in June
— had reference to economy in the pro-
duction of wax ; feeding devices ; the
wintering of bees, and the question as
to whether bees injure fruit ; the arti-
ficial fertilization of queens, etc.

In 1886 the experiments as to whether
bees can injure fruit or not, were con-
tinued, and Mr. McLaln's report con-
tains the results of experiments and ob-

servations as to wintering bees, the pre-
vention of spring dwindling, bee forage,
(especially in regard to plants, etc.,
that might be cultivated for honey);
diseases (particularly foul brood), and
the control of fertilization in confine-
ment. These last two subjects received
special attention again in 1887, and ex-
periments in mating queens to selected
drones were made.

In Commissioner Colman's report for
1888 occurs the following paragraph in
explanation of the cessation of the api-
cultural experiments:

" Owing to the lack of specific appro-
priation, it has been necessary to dis-
continue the apicultural experiment
station. This is to be regretted, as the
station has done good work, and as it
has accomplished results of considerable
benefit to this extensive and growing in-
dustry. This Division stands ready to
continue this work at any time when
Congress shall make appropriation for it."
Personally, I was intensely interested
in the results of this experimental work,
and while unforeseen contingencies arose
which materially interfered with my
plans, yet I knew Mr. McLain to be a
man full of energy and enthusiasm in
the cause, and exceptionally well posted
in all matters relating to bee-culture.
Yet he never had the full sympathy or
co-operation of some of the most volumi-
nous writers on the subject, and who,
from being looked up to as authorities,
are not always most sympathetic with
others. There is probably not one of Mr.
McLain's critics who would have done
more of real benefit to apiculture during
the same time and under the same cir-
cumstances. The experiments to deter-
mine whether bees injure fruit or not,
certainly put a quietus to the discussion
in so far as grapes are concerned, and
have done much to prevent misappre-
hension on the part of growers who are
not bee-keepers, and to harmonize both
classes.

Aside from the above, the observations
and information containnd in Mr. Mc-
Lain's reports on foul brood, and in ex-
periments looking to the control of fer-
tilization of the queens, are many of
them valuable, even though in the latter
case he could not finally present any
practical method of accomplishing this
object.

The apicultural exhibit which I pre-
pared for the Department for the Paris
Exposition of 1889, was largely made
up of material contributed by individual
bee-keepers, and received very favorable
notice from foreign bee-experts. In fact,
It was rated the best of all the exhibits

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

211

In this line. It certainly had much to
do with educating foreigners as to the
forward part taken by Americans in this
Industry, notwithstanding the display
was hampered by restricted space. The
success of the exhibit was largely due to
the efforts of Mr. McLain.

In 1890 I felt that the appropriations
to the Division of Entomology justified
further effort to do something for bee-
culture. It was my purpose to continue
experimentation more especially in lines
which individual efforts could not so well
reach, as indicated in the previous work.
The conditions around Washington are
very unfavorable for this kind of experi-
mentation, and three methods of carry-
ing it on remained. One was, to estab-
lish a station controlled and worked en-
tirely by the Department, as had been
done under Mr. McLain, previously.
Another was to establish a number of
sub-stations in different parts of the
country, representing different climates,
but all under the general management
of some one especially in charge here at
Washington. The third was to estab-
lish one or more stations in connection
with some of the State experiment sta-
tions created by the Hatch Bjll.

After visiting a number of prominent
bee-keepers in the South, and consider-
ing the matter fully in connection with
the limited means to be devoted to the
subject, the last of these methods was
chosen. Prof. A. J. Cook and Mr. J. H.
Larrabee were commissioned early in
1891 to conduct the experiments at the
apiary of the Michigan Agricultural
College. The results of the work of that
year are reported in Bulletin No. 26 of
the Division of Entomology. They in-
cluded a continuation of the earlier ex-
periments, especially planting for honey;
observations and experiments In regard
to the fertilization of plants by bees ;
selection in breeding ; the amount of
honey consumed In the secretion of a
pound of wax ; the effects on bees of
spraying fruit-trees while in blossom ;
and other minor experiments and obser-
vations, some of them a repetition of the
work that had previously been per-
formed by others.

There was not much that was original
in the apiarian work of the year, and
perhaps the most important were the
results in reference to the poisoning of
bees by arsenical sprays. Moreover, the
policy of dual interest in and control of
the work at the station was not the most
satisfactory as a working policy, because
of the diflBculty of separating the De-
partment's interests from those of the
station, and the feeling which developed

on the part of others, and which I could
not very well overcome myself, that the
funds furnished by the Department were
utilized primarily to improve a somewhat
neglected apiary, and to add to the in-
come of the station.

Prof. Cook's commission expired June
30, 1891, and Mr. J. H. Larrabee was
appointed to continue the work, which
he did up to June 30, 1892, when, by
virtue of the great reduction in the ap-
propriation for the Division of Ento-
mology for the ensuing fiscal year, all
the bee-work had to be abandoned
there. Mr. Larrabee's report will soon
appear, and will, I think, make a cred-
itable showing for the season, consider-
ing the means which he had at command.

Early in 1891 I had considerable cor-
respondence with Mr. Frank Benton,
whose Interest and work in apiculture
you all know, and who had made a
personal effort to introduce Apis dor-
sata. The failure of his effort was due
to over-exertion and undue exposure,
and I have little doubt that, under
more favorable circumstances, and with
the aid of the Department, the effort
would prove successful. I felt that of
all men he would be the most desirable
agent to employ in the effort to intro-
duce Apis dorsata, because of his famil-
iarity with the subject, and his acquain-
tance with the countries to be visited ;
but in addition I had some important
incidental work that I wished him to do
in that connection, namely, the intro-
duction also of certain parasitic forms
of injurious insects, and particularly the
introduction of the caprifig insect, Blas-
tophaga psenes, to colonize in those parts
of California where the Smyrna fig is
cultivated.

I had made all due arrangements, In
consultation with Assistant Secretary
Willitts, fully expecting to be able to
send Mr. Frank Benton on this pro-
posed trip, and had so economized the
appropriation that there was means to
doit. Mr. Benton, also, had been led
to give up other plans in anticipation of
this mission. The project was never
carried out, however, for the simple rea-
son that the Secretary finally refused to
endorse it. There seems to have been
some promise made to the Senator who
had charge of the appropriation Bill
that no one should be sent abroad, or at
least this was the chief reason given for
the refusal to carry out my recommen-
dations and wishes. Professor Cook was
made aware of these circumstances, and
it is consequently somewhat surprising
that, in a recent communication to the
Amekican Bee Jouknal (Oct. 13,

212

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

1892), he should insinuate that the
Entomologist felt no hearty concern for
the bee-keepers' interests, and should
urge that "all move in solid phalanx
upon the head of the Department " in
order to " gain our desires and rights."

What may be hoped from the intro-
duction of Apis dorsata most of you are
probably aware of, but I may say that
there was some hope that it might be
domesticated in our hives like the com-
mon mellifica, while Mr. Benton thinks
that possibly some advantage might be
gained by crossing it with that species.
On physiological and zoological grounds I
have doubts whether this can be done
to any advantage, for, while hybridism
is feasible with the races of Tnellifica
(which, however much they may differ
in popular names, are zoologically mere
varieties of one and the same species),
yet Apis dorsata is a sufficiently distinct
species, and even if crosses could be ob-
tained between it and melliiica, it is
questionable whether such crosses would
be fertile. Mr. Benton, however, has
fully set forth the possibilities in Glean-
ings in Bee-Culture for June 15, 1892,
and also in his remarks before this As-
sociation, and while the introduction of
this species would not be the sole object
in sending him abroad, the question of
the possible value of this large bee of
India is of sufficient importance to jus-
tify thorough experimentation and effort.

WHAT THE NATIONAL DEPAKTMENT OF

AGBICULTUEE CAN DO FOB API-

CULTUKE.

So far I have indulged in retrospect,
and indicated what the Department has
done, or attempted to do. Let me now
come to the second part of the subject,
viz. : what the National Department of
Agriculture can do for apiculture.

What it may accomplish — I sincerely
hope this may be much — will depend
greatly upon what suras Congress may
see fit to appropriate for such investi-
gations, and this will depend in turn, to
some degree, upon what representations
as to the needs of the industry, and the
possible benefits to the material inter-
ests of the country, are made to the
head of the Department, to the Commit-
tees on Agriculture, and to other mem-
bers of Congress by their constituents.
Certain kinds of experimental work can
be undertaken by individuals without
serious interference with the main work
of their apiaries. Indeed, it is desirable
thai each should experiment in a lim-
ited way, for localities differ in respect
of climate, flora, etc. ; in short, the con-
ditions upon which methods of manage-

ment depend are so variable that each
progressive bee-keeper must study to
ascertain by experimentation what
methods are best adapted to his own in-
dividual surroundings.

But there are certain larger fields of
investigation, requiring more time and
expenditure than individuals usually
have at their command, and the results
of which are pretty sure to benefit api-
culture, if not directly at least indirectly.
For instance, if a species or race of bees
could be bred or introduced which, in
the early part of the season, when bum-
ble-bees are few in number, would ferti-
lize the red clover, and later in the sea-
son do the same work more thoroughly
than it is now done, there is no question
that we should reap a reward in the
larger yield of clover seed, and in this
way our pasturage would be very gen-
erally improved. So that this would in-
directly affect beneficially our stock and
dairy interests, to say nothing of a more
general employment of red clover as a
green manure in the increase of most of
our crops. In cases like this the benefit
would be general, and so great that the
expense of accomplishing it would be
insignificant in comparison. Even an
experiment which fails, and which would
be disastrous to individual participants
in it, would not be felt by the general
Government, and might serve to point
out the way to success in subsequent at-
tempts, for failure often proves very
useful in pointing out the directions in
which we should not look for anything
valuable. Thus, if the Department by
ample effort should prove that nothing
can be gained in any given direction, it
would save further disappointment to in-
dividual experimenters, and prevent a
repetition of useless effort.

To my mind the character of the work
to be undertaken by the Department
should be of such a nature as to benefit
the industry in all parts of the country
alike, and prominent among the subjects
which it should undertake is this intro-
duction and testing of foreign races of
bees, of which there is much yet to dis-
cover, and about which our actual ex-
perimental knowledge is limited. The "
distribution of queen-bees of improved
varieties where they would most aid in
building up the industry, might be un-
dertaken by the Department wherever
it would not interfere with individual
effort in this direction. But while the
lines for Government action so far as
the economic side is concerned, are lim-
ited, there is a large and most interest-
ing field for further scientific investiga-
tion of the actual life-history of the bee,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

218

of its diseases, and of its relations to
plant-lice.

Few of you who do not view the econ-
on^y of the bee from the purely ento-
mological or scientific stand-point, are
aware of the errors that are yet extant
in connection with the subject, and are
still perpetuated in many of the popular
treatises on the bee, and there is no bet-
ter evidence of the biological questions
yet to be decided than the discussions at
such gatherings as these, which, as
evidenced this afternoon, involve the
Influence of the bee on the sweets which
it gathers. I am satisfied that no thor-
ough investigation under competent
direction would fail to elicit most inter-
esting facts, and to settle many disputed
points.

In connection with the wintering of
bees in the cooler portions of our coun-
try, there is much that remains to be
investigated. The statistics of the in-
dustry have never been properly col-
lected, and could not be, except by some
national organization.

These are a few of the directions,
gentlemen, in which I feel that the Na-
tional Department may work advanta-
geously, and if, in dealing with the sub-
ject, I have endeavored to indicate in
plain words some things which the De-
partment has and has not done, it is in
the hope of calling attention publicly to
the matter, and of bringing about in the
future the action which I feel all bee-
keepers desire. C. V. Riley.

In reply to a question, Dr. Riley said
that in the Secretary of Agriculture's
report, there was a recommendation to
re-organize the Department, and to les-
sen the number of the Divisions. For
this reason he doubted if the plan of
asking for the addition of another Divi-
sion would be looked upon with favor.
He also doubted if an experimental api-
ary could be, or rather would be, estab-
lished at Washington. If we knew how
diflScult it had been for him to secure
what was necessary for him in carrying
on the legitimate work of his own special
department, he doubted if we would ask
for what had been suggested that we
ask for. He said that the best thing
that bee-keepers could do would be to
make friends with the incoming Secre-
tary of Agriculture, and get him inter-
ested in bee-culture.

It was decided to retain the committee
another year.

Relinqiiishing Incorporation.

The Secretary read the following com-

munication from Wm. F. Clarke, of
Guelph, Ont., Canada:

Fellow Bee-Keepers :

Being unable to attend your annual
convention, by reason of distance and
cost of the journey, I beg to submit for
your consideration, a respectful remon-
strance and protest against the action
taken by the Association in regard to
incorporation.

1. Because the said action was uncon-
stitutional. By virtue of its original
Constitution repeatedly re-affirmed, the
Association was international. At the
outset, both the United States and Can-
ada were contracting parties. By virtue
of the incorporation, the international
feature of the Association has been de-
destroyed, and the body has been con-
verted into a local and State organiza-
tion.

2. Because the action was taken with
undue haste, and without full discussion.
At the Kei>kuk meeting, where the mat-
ter was literally rushed through, the
attendance was small, comprising but
few of the older members, and none at
all from the far East. Such an impor-
tant step;might at least have had a
year's notice of motion, and full discus-
sion in the bee-periodicals.

3. Because the action was precipitated
in the face and teeth of strong objection
on the part of the two Canadian dele-
gates, who forwarned the prime movers
in the scheme, that those whom they
represented would consider the proposed
incorporation equivalent to an act of
expulsion. The chief promoters of the
scheme have since declared that they
did not understand that Canadian bee-
keepers would regard it as an act of ex-
communication. It has been demon-
strated that the Canadian delegates'
present at Keokuk were right in their
judgment. Their clients assembled at
the annual meeting of the Ontario Bee-
Keepers' Association in January last,
unanimously took this view of the mat-
ter.

4. Because the act of incorporation is
of no earthly use. It is like the fifth
wheel to a carriage, or a second tail to a
dog. The only argument in its favor
urged by its advocates, has been that it
would enable the Association to hold
property, sue, and be sued ; neither of
which it needs or wants to do. It is
therefore, literally, a work of super-
erogation.

5. Because it has caused friction and
unpleasant feelings among those who,
for a score of years, had worked in har-
mony. Coming at a time when tariff

214

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

and other political irritations were un-
usually rife between the two countries,
it was most unfortunate. Little people
are perhaps more sensitive than they
need be, but there is a certain degree of
self-respect which no Nation can afford
to suri'ender. Even a minority has its
rights. It may be that we have "kicked"
too vigorously in regard to this matter,
and that we have not shown suflScient
courtesy to our big brother Jonathan,
but it is not easy to be polite when you
are put out-of-doors. I have, perhaps,
been the chief offender in this respect,
and I most humbly withdraw and make
apology for any improper utterances and
uncharitable imputation of motives with
which I may be chargeable. We prob-
ably indulge in greater freedom of speech
than is common or deemed proper on
your side of the lines, but we cherish at
heart a kind and cordial feeling toward
our fellow bee-keepers in the United
States, and sincerely desire to live on
terms of peace, good fellowship, and co-
operation with them.

For the reasons above given, I would
respectfully overture the Association,
and earnestly beg of it to re-consider
and revoke the act of incorporation, so
as to restore the intimate and harmoni-
ous relations of past years. As one of
the founders of the Association, and one
of its oldest members, I think I may
fairly claim a kind and indulgent con-
sideration of this appeal.

All of which is respectfully submitted.
Wm. F. Clarke.

E. R. Root — Inasmuch as the pro-
posed change in the National Bee-Keep-
ers' Union, if It goes into effect, will en-
able the Union to perform the work that
was in view for the North American
when it was incorporated, and incorpor-
ation has caused a little unpleasantness
between us and our Canadian brethren,
it might be well to give up incorpora-
tion ; but I would not counsel hasty ac-
tion. There are not many here. I am
the only member present of the original
committee who proposed the feature of
incorporation. It would only be fair to
allow the others to be heard ; hence I
move that the matter be laid on the
table one year, with a recommendation
that it be favorably considered at the
next meeting. Carried.

Shall the Scope of the Bee-Keepers'
"Union be Broadened ?

An essay had been expected from the
General Manager, Thomas G. Newman,
on this subject. The Secretary read a

letter from Mr. Newman, in which he
explained that the press of business had
prevented him from preparing an essay.
The Secretary also read a "proof"
showing the proposed changes in the
Constitution of the Union. They would
allow the money and influence of the
Union to be used for any purpose for
which the Advisory Board thought it
desirable.

E. R. Root — It has been many times
shown that an organization of some kind
is needed to fight adulteration. To have
a separate Union for each kind of work
is too expensive. Better have one Union,
and a good one.

Upon motion, the proposed change
was recommended.

Upon motion, it was decided to pay
George W. York & Co., of Chicago, Ills.,
$20 toward the cost of publishing a re-
port of the proceedings in pamphlet
form, as usual. It was also voted to
pay the Secretary $50 for his services.

The following ofiScers were elected for
the ensuing year :

President — Dr. C. C. Miller, Marengo,
Ills.

"Vice-President — J. E. Crane, Middle-
bury, Vt.

Secretary — Frank Benton, Washing-
ton, D. C.

Treasurer — George W. York, Chicago,
Ills.

Treasurer's Report.

The Treasurer, Mr. Ernest R. Root,
then presented the following report :

RECEIPTS.

Cash from former Treasurer $81.38

Interest on average monthly balance.. 3.85

Membership fees 25.00

Affiliation fees 30.00

Total 8140.23

DISBURSEMENTS.

To T. G. Newman & Son, amount to-
ward printing proceedings of Albany
convention $-^0.00

To postage on programmes, as per bill
ofH.M.Seeley 50

To W. Z. Hutchinson, for reporting pro-
ceedings of Washington convention.. 50.00

Total $70.50

RECAPITULATION.

Total receipts $140.23

Total disbursements 70.50

Cash on hand $69.73

The report was accepted and ap-
proved.

Honorary Members.

Upon motion of Frank Benton, the
following were made honorary members:

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

215

C.J.H.Gravenhorst,Wilsnack, Prussia.

Samuel Simmins, Newhaven, England.

Cav. Andrea de Rauschenfels, Collec-
chio (near Parma), Italy.

Harald Hovind, Tredestrand, Norway.

George de Layens, Louye (Eure),
France.

Hjalmar Stalhammar, Gothenburg,
Sweden.

Karl Gatter, Vienna, Austria.

A. de Zoubareflf, St. Petersburg, Eus-
sia.

G. P. Kandratieff, Russia.

Charles Dadant, Hamilton, Ills.

*Alfred Neighbour, London, England.

*Edward Cori, Bruex, Bohemia.

Prof. H. W. Wiley, Washington, D. C.

Chicago, Ills., was selected as the
place for holding the next meeting ; the
time of meeting to be left to the Execu-
tive Board, but the society recommended
the forepart of October as a desir
time to meet.

The convention then adjourned.
W. Z. Hutchinson, S

Review of a Report of Foul
Brood Experiments.

Written Jor the American Bee Journal
BY J. H. LARRABEE.

The Canadian Bee Journal of Jan.
1st contains a report by J. J. Macken-
zie, the bacteriologist of the Provincial
Board of Health, upon the subject of
Foul Brood. The experiments were in-
stituted at the suggestion of an Experi-
mental Union, organized in Ontario,
Canada, for advancing such work. This
report contains some new ideas, and
new light is added to many old ones.
This is one of the many lines of work
where a trained scientist is of more
value as an investigator than any bee-
keeper could be.

The scientist first isolated and ex-
amined microscopically the bacillus of
foul brood, and then having determined

its character, he reviewed the methods
of cure, and tested the values of anti-
septics and heat as destroying agents.

He says : " I certainly would not be
prepared to spot foul brood in an apiary,
though I certainly think I can under the
microscope ;" thus directly contradict-
ing Mr. C. J. Robinson, who, on page 56
of the American Bee Journal for Jan.
12th, states that " a glass cannot aid the
eye to distinguish foul brood virus from
other germs." Such statements as the
latter cannot be weighed against the
former, when we consider the sources
from which they come.

Mr. Robinson has also promulgated
the old theory that foul brood generates
spontaneously under certain peculiar (?)
conditions. Mr. Mackenzie says, refer-
ring to the above theory, " Unfortu-
nately it is a theory which is not sup-
ported by the results of investigation."
Of course, Mr. Robinson, Mr. McEvoy,
Mr. Jno. F. Gates, and our honey-
weather prophet — Mr. Sam'l Wilson —
and others will not accept such evidence,
but I prefer to accept the statements of
those who have investigated the subject
rather than the dictum of those who
state it can be done, but who have
never, and never will originate foul
brood without infection from the disease
itself.

There are two common methods by
which foul brood is cured or eradicated
from an apiary, viz. : 1st, by starvation;
2nd, by the use of disinfectants. The
effect of antiseptics, and of hot water
upon foul brood germs was quite fully
investigated. Prof. Mackenzie suc-
ceeded in rearing the foul brood bacillus
from a cake of wax into which when
melted he had introduced the germ, thus
proving that simply melting wax will
not destroy the germs in it.

By the use of silk threads saturated
with jelly filled a with growth of the bac-
illusa Ivei (which threads were then sus-
pended in wax at the boiling tempera-
ture of water), he concluded that "to
destroy the foul brood in wax it is neces-
sary to heat to a temperature of at least
194°, F., for at least three hours." If
these preliminary conclusions are cor-
rect, why is it that the disease is seldom
if ever spread by the use of comb foun-
dation ? Even Mr. Mackenzie states
that he has yet to discover a well-au-
thenticated case where this has oc-
curred.

The methods of scores of lesser foun-
dation-makers are not as thorough as
those of Messrs. Dadant, Hunt and Root,
and all sorts of wax from unknown
localities is made into foundation with-

216

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

out ever having been heated to the
boiling point, or having remained at
that temperature for two or three
hours. May it not be that the heating
of the wax at two distinct times renders
the spores harmless ? The wax is melted
and " rendered " from the combs and
caked, then shipped to the foundation
maker who melts it at least once, often
more, when dipping into sheets for foun-
dation. Possibly the greater specific
gravity of the germs, as suggested, may
cause them to settle to the bottom of
the wax, where, coming in contact with
the water always used in melting, the
germ would be very soon destroyed, if
Mr. Corneil's theory of dry vs. moist
heat be true.

I should like the length of vitality of
the spores when immersed in boiling
water, tested to determine the truth of
this theory. Mr. Mackenzie has prom-
ised us more light upon several points in
consideration of this subject, after
another season's work, when doubtless
many of these doubtful points will be
cleared up.

Referring, to the starvation method of
cure, as used by Mr. McEvoy and others,
Mr. Mackenzie says: "If this is com-
bined with a removal to absolutely clean
hives with new foundation, it may suc-
ceed ; but I must say that absolute
cleanliness in this respect must be in-
sisted upon."

That the extreme virulence of the dis-
ease is recognized, is apparent from the
above statement, which is again re-
peated in another form in another pas-
sage. Without doubt many cases of so-
called spontaneous generation could be
traced to uncleanness or carelessness in
treating the disease.

It was found that the spores of foul
brood could not be destroyed by the use
of antiseptics of the strength advised by
Cheshire and others, but the chemicals
prevented the further' growth or spread
of the disease. May this not be valua-
ble, as teaching us to combine with the
starvation method of cure the feeding of
medicated syrup to prevent the germina-
tion and growth of the spores until the
bees can cleanse themselves from all
traces of the disease ? This was, I
think, the method used by Mr. A. I.
Root in curing the disease in his apiary.

Prof. Mackenzie considers the possi-
bility that there may be a diiference in
the power of individual bees to resist the
.disease. Now it seems to me he is mis-
taken in thinking that the presence of
the germs of the disease in tiio intesti-
nal canal of mature bees is evidence
that the bees themselves are diseased.

As I understand it, the disease is of the
brood, and the germs are found in ma-
ture bees only when carried there in
their food, or in the attempt to clean
out the filth from the cells, and never
affects the blood or organs of the mature
bee ; hence, these mature bees do not
resist the disease.

New, and I doubt not effectual, agents
for cleansing hives, etc., in connection
with hot water, are suggested. They
are soft soap and washing soda, in a
very strong solution.

While I express the hope that these
experiments may be continued under the
same competent worker, I cannot but
regret that these United States of Amer-
ica cannot do as much as is Canada, for
her bee-keeping interests ; and that we
cannot send a bacteriologist, chemist,
botanist, and other scientists to the
apiary, hand in hand with the practical
bee-keeper, there to work out together
these many problems waiting to be
solved. *

Larrabee's Point, Vt.

i'V»'K.''\.^\./X.i

Do not write anything^ for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless It can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Bees All Right in the Cellar.

My bees are all right in the cellar. I
am 73 years old, and like bee-keeping
as well as ever. My bees did very well
last summer. D. P. Shiglet.

Mankato, Minn., Jan. 31, 1893.

Seem to be Wintering: Well.

We have had a cold winter here up to
this time. My bees are wintering on the
summer stands, and seem to be doing
very well. There was very little swarm-
ing the past season, but the hives were
full of bees in the fall, and they looked
large, plump, and healthy. I like to
read the reports from the brethren in
the Bee Journal. J. T. Higqins.

Bethany, Mo., Feb. 4, 1893.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

217

Can Always Tell their Experience.

I imagine a number of the correspon-
dents of the Bee Journal belong to a
certain church of whom it Is said, " You
can never stick them ; for when they
have nothing else to say, they can
always fall back on their experience."
Lighthouses and buoys are to keep
mariners from stranding, so the experi-
ence of veterans in bee-culture are as
beacon lights to the amateurs.

I was pleased to read in the Bee
Journal that Mrs. Jennie Atchley was
going to give advice to beginners. We
are watching and waiting, and possibly
the beginners of to-day may be the
veterans of the future.

My average, during the past season,
was 50 pounds per colony, with ample
stores left to winter on. So much for a
poor season, without any white clover.
Horatio N. Scratch.

Kiugsville, Ont., Jan. 24, 1893.

[You will notice that Mrs. Atchley
commences her advice to beginners in
this issue of the Bee Journal. — Ed.]

Bees "Wintering Well — Cold Weather.

It is 35° below zero this a.m., with
about 18 inches of snow. ' It is 40°
above zero in my bee-cellar. Bees seem
to be wintering well so far.

C. Theilmann.

Theilmanton, Minn., Feb. 4, 1893.

Prospects Were Never Better.

Prospects for a good season were
never better in this part of the State.
Almond and peach trees are just com-
mencing to bloom. L. L. Jackson.

Soledad, Calif., Jan. 29, 1883.

Nova Scotia Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Of late considerable interest has been
shown in the advancement of bee-cul-
ture in Nova Scotia, and as this industry
is of quite a strong growth in Kings
county, it was thought advisable to call
those interested together to see what
could be done to forward the advance-
ment of the industry. A number of
those interested met at the American
House, in Wolfville, on Jan. 5th, and
from the strong interest shown, a bee-
convention was formed, being the only
one at present in Nova Scotia. The
convention was not confined to Kings

county alone, but thrown open to Nova
Scotia.

J. B. Davison, of Wolfville, was chosen
President; Chas. R. Pineo, of Chipman
Corner, Vice-President ; E. C. Johnson,
of Wolfville, 2nd Vice-President; E. F.
Beeler, of Berwick, Secretary and Treas-
urer.

The association starts with a good,
strong membership. The time was well
taken up by several of the members in
showing the advantages and benefits to
be derived from the culture of bees, and
it is expected that when the convention
meets again in March, that the session
will be of much interest to bee-keepers.

Berwick, N. S. E. F. Beeler, Sec.

Reports from Minnesota.

Bees are wintering finely so far.
They have good white honey to " go it "
on, and if they do not make a " go " of
it, it will be for some other cause besides
the honey. I saw a statement last
spring from Wisconsin, saying it was a
wonderment to him how the bees in
Minnesota could get enough to live on.
Mr. " Wis.," we are near neighbors, and
as I have lived in Wisconsin, I would say
that Minnesota compares well to her
neighbors in the production of honey,
as well as everything else for this lati-
tude.

I have 43 colonies wintering, but got
no honey to speak of in 1892. The cold,
wet weather in early spring was the
cause of it.

I will give the statement of my bee-
friend, Mr. O. H. Curtis, to show that
Minnesota gets a "lick" once in a
while. . Mr. C. had 4 colonies of the 5-
banded bees, and one colony of the 3-
banded variety. From the 5, spring
count, he increased to 13, and obtained
800 pounds of honey in one-pound sec-
tions, all white as could be. The hives
were well supplied with honey for win-
ter. He thought the 3-banded colony
" got there " in a little the best shape.

M. S. Snow.

Osakis, Minn., Jan. 28, 1893.

Doolittle's Queen-Rearing^

book should be in the library of every
bee-keeper; and in t>^e way we offer to
to give it, there is no reason now why
every one may not possess a copy of it.
Send us one new subscriber for a year,
and we will mail the book to you bound
in paper, as a present.

218

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

^^7;. ^M3^^3IO^j^ ,^^

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

«»

At One Dollar a Year,
56 FIFTH Avenue, CHICAGO. ILLS.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper Indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffield, Portage co, Ohio

Bees and Honey" — see page 197.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cliicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

nilnneapolls, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Obio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Read our great offer on page 197

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
February 11th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, III.— There are occasional sales
of best grades of comb honey, but the retail-
ers are not yet sold out on supply laid in
before the holidays. Prices are a little easier,
especially on that which will not grade "fan-
cy"—sucli brings 17@18c., and other grades
12@16c. Extracted. 6@9c., as to quality.

Beeswax— 22@25c. R. A. B. & Co.

CHICAGO, iLL.r-Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 854 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers is slow, but the demand is good for
extracted for family use. It brings 6@8c. —
No good comb is on our market. It would
bring 14@16c.

Beeswax— Demand good. at 23®25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M, & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8©8i4c.; buckwheat, 6@6J4c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNEAPOLIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

G

KANSAS CITY, Mc— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14®15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10®12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7i4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C.-M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our lioney market is slow
on account of cold weather, but our stock was
never so light as now. We have less than 50
cases of honey on hand, and only one barrel
of extracted; when usually wo have 1.000
cases in stock. For honey not granulated in
comb,we quote: White (small), 15®18c.; mixed
13@14c. ; dark, 10®llc. Large comb and
double glass sell for 1 to 2c. less per lb. Ex-
tracted, white, 8J4®9c.; amber, 7^i®8c. ; buck-
wheat, 7®7»4c. H. R. W.

Oreat Premium on page 197 1

QEOBGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY

Editor. i To Bee-Culture. 1

J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, FEBRUARY 23, 1893.

NO. 8.

Xo 'Wisconsin Bee-Keepers.

— We have received the following from
Mr. Franklin Wilcox, of Mauston, Wis.,
which will interest every honey-producer
in that State :

Mauston, Wis., Feb. 13, 1893.

If the Wisconsin bee-keepers desire an
exhibit of honey from this State, they
must speak very soon. As I understand
it, they must decide what they will ex-
hibit, and report to me before March
1st, if they wish to get their names in
the Directory as exhibitors. I have been
asked to collect, prepare and arrange
the State exhibit. I think it very doubt-
ful if individuals can get space to ex-
hibit independent of the State exhibit.

I want all who have any choice honey
or beeswax, to report to me at once, just
what they have. All expense of collect-
ing, transporting and arranging exhibits
will be paid out of the State appropria-
tion. Exhibitors furnish the honey and
wax. Franklin Wilcox.

There is indeed no time for delay in
this matter. Let there be a prompt re-
sponse to Mr. Wilcox's appeal, so that
he may be able to make a creditable dis-
play for Wisconsin bee-keepers.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 229.

Final Statements, even on the
sugar-honey subject, must come some-
time, and we think it is best to let them
cease with this number, so far as the
Americ/n Bee Journal is concerned,
unless absolutely necessary to refer to
the matter again. Here is Dr. Miller's
reply to our editorial of last week :

I will not ask the space % reply in
full to your editorial in last number, but
will make some effort to be brief, reply-
ing only to part of what seems to call
for reply. Allow me first of all to ac-
knowledge with pleasure the good-na-
tured spirit your have shown toward
myself personally, even in your hardest
thrusts. There is something always to
admire in an open foe, and when good-
nature is joined to that openness, it's
hard to draw the line between foe and
friend. Now I'm going to spoil that
compliment by saying, if in this case
you were only as reasonable as good-
natured — but then we're none of us
perfect.

You say : "If bee-keepers can con-
scientiously feed sugar to bees to be
stored in combs, and then sell it for
honey, may they not almost as consis-
tently mix glucose with extracted honey,
and sell it for pure honey ? It differs
mainly in appearance — the results are
about the same." Friend York, please
put that paragraph in some safe place,
and in the year 1903 (that will be ten
years from now, and I hope you'll be
editor of American Bee Journal long
after that) — in 1903 read it over, and
see if you don't feel inclined to think it
was written during a fit of temporary
aberration. In the first place, mixing
and feeding are two very different
things. The books tell us that the cane-
sugar of nectar fed to the bees becqmes
honey, but we know that cane sugar

232

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

mixed with honey does not become
honey. In the second place, sugar and
glucose are not the same, so that even
if it could be proven right to mix sugar
with honey, that doesn't prove that it
would be right to thus mix glucose.

You say : "It differs mainly in ap-
pearance." Does it? If there were
placed before me two bottles, one con-
taining pure honey and the other glu-
cose and honey, half and half, I'm sure
I could not be certain from the "appear-
ance " which was pure, and I don't be-
lieve you could. But 'I think I could
tell a decided difference in the taste, if
one bottle contained a mixture of glucose
and honey, and the other a mixture of
cane sugar and honey, even if the bees
had nothing to do with the latter. In-
deed to prove that there is a difference,
it is only necessary to quote the words
of your editorial, "Good testimonies say
that bees don't like glucose ^in their
honey any more than do people." And
we know that bees do like sugar. So
that sentence, "It differs mainly in
appearance — the results are about the
same," is entirely correct if we make
some sliglit verbal changes, so as to
make it read, " It differs not at all in
appearance — the results are widely dif-
ferent."*

You ask, "Because they honestly be-
lieved that bees make honey out of
sugar, does that make it so?" I'll give
you a categorical answer — No. But it
makes a world of difference as to their
criminality in the case whether they
honestly believed it or not.

Now let's see if we can't get down to
bed-rock. I am sorry that you did not
say in just so many words what was the
direct charge, but I think it may be
prettly clearly inferred from your say-
ing, " The question is not whether bees
m,ake honey or not, but whether the
publishing of the suggestion of feeding
sugar to bees for the production of honey
will not result in untold danger to floral
honey production." Not stopping to
consider a certain inconsistency that
may be lurking in those words, and put-
ting the matter in just as few words as
possible, confining it to a single case, I
think you and I would agree that the
charge is this : Prof. Cook gave it out
as his opinion that it would be a good
thing to feed bees sugar for them to
store as surplus.

Now if that's the charge, then we
have something definite to talk about,
and if it isn't the correct charge, then
you say what is the charge, for I am not
trying to make the charge, only for the
sake of saving time trying to put it into

specific form. You say, " It is another
mistake for any one to say that we ex-
pect them to state anything contrary to
their honest convictions." Good. Now
you're talking reasonably, and we may
yet see eye to eye. The accused thought
it would be a good thing to feed sugar
for surplus. That was his honest con-
viction, and you don't expect him to
state anything contrary to it. Further-
more he gave out or published that opin-
ion. But it was his honest conviction
that it would be for the good of bee-
keepers to publish what he believed to
be the truth, and you don't want him to
state anything contrary to that honest
conviction.

Now there's the whole thing in a nut-
shell. He honestly said what he hon-
estly believed, and he cannot honestly
say he is sorry he believed what he
thought was truth, nor that he is sorry
he said what he honestly believed would
do good.

But you intimate that he might make
"a manly expression of regret that a
stupendous mistake had been made."
Yes, he might do that. But you would
not publish it if he did. For it would be
something like this, "I regret exceed-
ingly, more than I can well express in
words, that my friends York and Miller
are so blinded by prejudice that" — but
about that time you'd stop him, and tell
him that you wanted him to regret what
he had himself said. But he'd tell you
that he c»uld hardly regret having said
the truth, and then he'd commence to try
to convince you that he was correct in
his belief, but you would tell him you
didn't want that discussed. But he
would tell you that you are allowing it
to be discussed, and would point you to
page 179, and ask you whether J. F.
Latham's article did not discuss it, as
also the article of Dr. McKinney, on
page 181, where, under the pretense of
not discussing it, he asks " permission
to make a few plain statements." Would
it not be entirely in order for Prof. Cook
to " make a few plain statements" in
reply ? No, you don't want him to, and
I don't want him to ; neither do I want
to see the other side discussed with no
chance for reply.

In regard to that $50 and $100 which
is labeled "A Challenge," I think if you
will go out to — where is it, Hawthorne,
or Garfield Park? — the sports will tell
you that's a plain bet, and I don't think
you'll find Prof. Cook a "taker." I
don't think he ever gambles.

It would be entirely like Prof. Cook to
think, "Well, if I had known how it
would be received, I doubt if I would

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

233

have wasted my breath or ink, and I
wish the thing had never come up ;" and
you and I can heartily second the wish,
but you'll not get any such expression
out of him by pounding him. I'm sure
you wouldn't out of me. " No, not upon
compulsion, not if regrets were as thick
as blackberries," to paraphrase the
words of Falstaflf. No, I'd see you — i
was going to say I'd see you hanged
first; but I don't know that I would, for
with all your "mulishness" I think lots
of you, and would do almost anything
to save your neck from the halter.

Heigh-ho ! this is brevity with a ven-
geance, isn't it ? But really and truly I
did mean to be brief, and I've left un-
touched several spots where I thought I
could get in a good " lick " at you. But
I think I'll agree not to take up any
more space on the subject, and will
leave you the closing argument, unless
indeed I've been arguing on the wrong
charge.

If regrets will do any good, I regret
with all my heart that the subject ever
came up at all, and although it might
not be best to say so publicly, I'll just
whisper in your private ear that I be-
lieve the quicker you and I "shut up "
the better. C. C. Miller.

*A word in explanation of the sen-
tence— " It differs mainly in appearance
— the results are about the same." Dr.
Miller did not get our intended mean-
ing, which was this : We did not have
reference to the looks or "appearance "
of the "honey" and mixture, but had
in mind the two acts — one of transfer-
ring sugar into combs by bees, and the
other of mixing glucose with extracted
honey. Also, what we meant by saying
" the results are about the same," was
that customers would so consider it.

As said in our introduction to the
above reply by Dr. Miller, we think this
matter has been ventilated quite enough
for the present. We have endeavored
to do and say in reference to it just what
we sincerely thought was our duty to
all concerned. We may have been
pretty severe in our condemnation, but
we felt the case demanded it, and we
think that the great majority of our
readers will approve our course. No
one could possibly regret more than our-
selves the seeming necessity for the use

of strong language in treating the sub-
ject of sugar-honey production. What
we have " writ," we have "writ," how-
ever, and are now quite willing to leave
to the future the final decision upon the
question.

We are also pleased to let Dr. Miller
have the " last word," rather than to
reply again as we should like to do, but
which would tend to continue the un-
profitable questioning and commenting.
No one can mistake the position of the
Ameeican Bee Jouknal upon this or
any other subject, and so long as we
may be permitted to control this publi-
cation we propose to stick to our clear-
cut motto — " Do right and fear no one "
— doing our duty and the right as God
may giv^ us to see that duty and that
right.

Mr. John H. lUartin, Gleanings'
notorious "Rambler" — Secretary of the
California State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion, has sent us an interesting report of
the meeting of that association held in
Los Angeles on Feb. 7th and 8th. The
attendance was large, and they had "a
very profitable season." We will pub-
lish the report later.

Bees ISot Xaxable in lo^wa.

— Mr- O. L. Packard, of Sac City, Iowa,
wrote us as follows recently, desiring to
know whether or not bees are taxable in
the State of Iowa :

I want to ask if bees are taxable
property in Iowa. The supervisors of
this county for the last three years have
them assessed at $2.00 (per colony) for
all over 6 colonies. Several of us have
refused to pay the tax, and the question
has been referred to the Attorney Gen-
eral by our County Auditor, and by the
member of the State Legislature from
this District, and to neither one has he
given an answer as yet.

This year they have agreed to assess
them $1.00 per colony, and we don't
want to pay even that, as chickens,
turkeys, etc., are not assessed, and
there are thousands of dollars worth of
them shipped out of the county every
year, and I guess never a pound of
honey. Will you please refer this ques-

234

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

tion to Mr. Eugene Secor, for reply in
the American Bee Journal, ?

If bees are assessable, how are they
classed ? There Is nothing assessed in
the State over six months old, and there
is no certainty that we have even one
bee in the hive over that age.

O. L. Packard.

As requested, Hon. Eugene Secor, of
Forest City, Iowa, replies thus :

I answered quite fully on page 666 of
the Bee Journal, for 1889, a question
very similar to the one propounded by
Mr. Packard. I think it would fully
satisfy him that bees are not taxable in
Iowa. It seems strange to me that as-
sessors and other officers having in charge
the listing of property for taxation and
collection of the county revenues, should
fail to understand the meaning of a stat-
ute so plain in its provisions.

Section 797 of chapter one, Title VI,
of the Code gives a list of exemptions for
the guidance of assessors. After enum-
erating various classes of property to be
omitted from the assessment rolls, it
says in paragraph 4 of said section,
' ' Animals not hereafter specified. "

Section 801 specifies the animals to
be listed — "horses, cattle, mules, asses,
sheep, swine."

Perhaps it is the words "all other
property" in the same section which
puzzles them. But they should not, be-
cause bees are "animals." See defini-
tion in Webster's latest unabridged dic-
tionary. Geese, turkeys, ducks, chickens
and pigeons are not taxed. Why ? Be-
cause they are exempt by the s|me
statute quoted first above — "Animals
not hereafter specified."

Under that statute, a man may invest
$1,000 in poultry, and it would not be
taxable. A good many people are doing
it, too.

I am not saying that such exemptions
are wise, but there can be no question,
it seems to me, that the letter of the law
is, and the intention of its framers was,
to exempt all these smaller animals.

The merchantable products of the
poultry yards of this State are a thou-
sand-fold more than the apicultural, but
I have never known an assessor who
insisted on listing my chickens, either
as " animals" or "other taxable prop-
erty."

If the assessor insists on listing bees,
you can safely say to him that you have
only one bee in each hive "over six
months old" on the first of January.
I do not pay taxes on my bees, and do

not purpose to, until the law compels
me.

I would not object to such a law, but
when bees are taxed, poultry should be.

Eugene Secor.

L,ocal Checks.— Please do not
send us checks on local banks. We have
to pay from 15 to 25 cents each to get
them cashed here, which is quite a use-
less expense, when you can either send
money by registered letter, or get an ex-
press or post-office Money Order. We
prefer the express Money Order, if you
can get that ; otherwise the post-office
Money Order or registered letter.

CHAS. F. mUTH.

Bro. Root, in Oleanings for June,
1883, wrote as follows concerning our
friend Muth:

Charles F. Muth is one of "our veter-
ans in bee-culture. Years ago, when
we first began to talk about movable-
frame hives and Italian bees, he was one
among us, and a man always posted. Of
late years he has been pretty well
known by his articles on the treatment
of foul brood ; and as he succeeds in
curing it in his own apiary, we think
it fair to presume he would in any api-
ary, if he had proper facilities. Although
for many years friend Muth's apiary
was on the roof of his store, or, rather
store and dwelling, it is now situated in
a sort of open veranda, the open side
being next to the river. Through this
open side the bees go out and in. The
hives are placed a convenient distance
from the floor, and arranged with alleys
between them.

Although he has some 30 or 40 colo-
nies grouped together quite closely,
they seem to go out and in, and find
their respective hives just as well, for
aught we could see, as those located in

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

235

the open air. The bees we saw there iu
1882 were beautifully marked, and
very docile.

He has, of late years, been more widely
known as a great honey buyer, than as
a producer of honey on a large scale.
Perhaps no man in the world has bought
and sold more honey than he has ; and
one very pleasant thing about it is, that
in all these large business transactions,
all his customers seem to be warm per-
sonal friends.

While at the convention last fall, the
subject of the palmetto honey of the

CHAS. F. MUTH,

South came up. Friend Muth was called
upon to tell what he knew about it. In
order to Impress upon us that the honey
was of excellent quality, he made the
remark that on one shipment which he
had engaged for 8 cents a pound, he
afterward paid the man 10, because it
went so much beyond his expectations.
At this point Prof. Cook arose and in-
terrupted him.

"Friend Muth," said he, " I wish to
ask just one question right here."

"Very well, go on," said our jovial
friend.

"I want to know," said friend Cook,

" if the convention are to understand
that this is the kind of a man you are."

" It is the kind of a man I was that
time," was the prompt reply. And we
really believe that that is the kind of a
man friend M. has always been, and we
trust always will be.

We may say further that Messrs. Chas.
F. Muth & Son have been for 33 years
in the honey trade, and in the hundreds
of thousands of pounds of honey they
have handled, not a single instance can
be produced where an ounce of adultera-
tion was found. Their goods have al-
ways been labeled pure, and are sold
under a positive guarantee, o'r no sale.
The foundation of this now widely
known business dates back to 1860,
when it was begun in a modest way by
Mr. Chas. F. Muth, who, ever since, has
contined to direct its annually widening
interests.

In 1886, his son, Mr. Aug. J., was
taken into partnership, and under this
style of firm name it has since been con-
ducted.

The succeeding paragraphs were re-
cently published in a paper in Cincinnati,
the home of Messrs. Muth & Son, and
show what this firm has accomplished :

As honey merchants, the firm is cele-
brated throughout the length and
breadth of the country, and ship their
product into every State, and draw for
their supplies on nearly all the States
and Territories in the Union. While a
large portion of their trade is naturally
with wholesale grocers, confectioners,
tobacconists, other manufacturers and
caterers, they also do a large business in
the sale of beeswax to manufacturing
establishments, the hardware trade and
others. Tons of beeswax they manufac-
ture in comb foundation annually.

No man engaged in apiculture is bet-
ter posted than Mr. Chas. F. Muth. He
has made honey and its production a
life-long study. His Indiana farm, util-
ized for bee-culture and for stock-rais-
ing purposes, comprises an area of
nearly 600 acres, occupies one-third of
his time, and is in a perfect state
of cultivation. It is located in close
proximity to Indianapolis, and is said to
be a model of progressive ideas, with re-
gard to these branches of agriculture.

This, however, is far from being the
sole source of supply. The firm buy

236

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

direct all available honey stocks in all
sections of the country, besides making
large importations from Cuba, whenever
stocks in America seem insuflBcient.
Buyers have long since learned that they
can place implicit confidence in all goods
bearing the firm's trade mark.

The trade in pure honey is becoming
larger every year. Its wholesomeness
and nutritious qualities commend it in-
stead of syrups and other adulterated
products. Consumers find the proof
verified. The more honey in a family
the less medicine. Messrs. Muth & Son
fill car-load orders of honey very often.

Such a far-reaching and growing de-.
mand has been fully earned and de-
served. When this firm entered the
trade, over 30 years ago, there was
neither system nor profit in apiculture.
They have been actively identified with
putting a system to honey-production
and bringing the business up to a recog-
nized commercial standing, and they are
now reaping the reward of hard, practi-
cal study and enterprise.

XX T T » X xxxxTTxya

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.
Our School in Bee-Keeping.

Now let all pay close attention. I am
going to show you how to divide your
bees, or swarm them, as some call it ;
then further on we will learn how to
Italianize and to extract, and, in fact,
we will go through all that we can think
of ; but let us take each subject by it-
self, and we will learn faster.

I know you want increase, but we will
not go into extremes on any line, but I
will run your bees for a moderate in-
crease, and to get some honey, too, as I
think you will be better pleased, as some
go wild on increasing their bees, and go
too far, and fail, and get no honey. We
usually find such in the " blasted hopes"
column sooner or later. I do not wish a
single one of my class to fail, so I am

going to carry you over on the safest
bridge I know of. Now, attention all,
while we divide the bees.

SECOND LESSON — DIVIDING COLONIES.

I will only give you my best way to
divide, and where we do not wish to
divide but once. We will suppose that
the bees are gathering at least honey
enough for daily supply, and that the
hive is chock-full of bees. Now bring
on the new hive, with its frames filled
with foundation, lift out the combs until
you find the queen, then hang the frame
of bees with the queen on it in the new
hive, and one more with it ; shake
enough of the bees oflf of the other combs
in front, or into the new hive to make a
rousing colony, then fill it up with
frames of foundation, and place it on
the old stand, carry the old hive off to a
new location, and put in the places
where you took out the two frames of
bees for the swarm, frames filled with
foundation, though the bees will not use
them until they recruit, but they will be
there ready.

Some make colonies this way, except
they do not shake any bees into the
new hive, and let all the old field work-
ers make up the colony by returning,
when they leave the old hive and return
to the new one. This is wrong, and the
reason I shake what bees I wish with it
at once is to get both young and old bees
the same as a natural swarm, and for
me they work off as nicely as any natural
swarm I ever had. But when you only
let the old bees form the colony, you de-
prive the hive of its active inside work-
ers, and throw it out of natural chan-
nels, and then if a honey-flow sets in,
the old bees disappear too quickly, or be-
fore a new crop of bees comes in, and
the hive is at a stand-still, or on a down-
hill course until the young workers get
ready for the field. But this state of
things is remedied by shaking, as stated,
and the new colony will at once assume
a natural course, and work just as well
as any swarm ; while the old colony will
not work at all for three or four days,
or at least not much, and should be
looked after about stores, until it has a
working force.

Now the old colony will start queen-
cells, and after they have all their brood
capped, open the hive and take out all
the queen-cells but one of the nicest
ones, and then you have no after-swarm-
ing, and the reason that I want you to
wait until the brood is all sealed is, then
the bees have no chance to start more
cells and swarm in spite of you, and
then this would cause an inferior queen

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

237

in the hive, should it swarm, as the larva
would be too old that they made the
queen from.

Should the cell you leave them fail,
from any cause, to hatch, then swap one
frame with the new colony, and give a
frame of brood and eggs, that they may
have a chance to rear another queen.
Or should the queen get lost on her
bridal trip, or fail to lay from any
cause, take her out and give the bees a
chance to rear a good one ; or if you do
not wish to wait, send to a queen-
breeder and get one. In short, if you
are going to make a bee-keeper, you will
not let the colony perish.

PREPARING FOR THE HONEY-FLOW.

Now as we have our bees divided and
working nicely, we will begin to prepare
them for the honey-flow. If the harvest
comes on soon after the division, the new
colony will need sections first, as we will
produce comb honey first, then try ex-
tracted.

When the bees seem to be gathering
more honey than they need for brood-
rearing, or when we see the tops of
combs with white specks on the them,
this is a sign that they are beginning to
gather a surplus. Now bring the sec-
tions, filled with the thinnest founda-
tion you can get (and when I say
"filled," I mean to have it fastened at
the top of the section, and lack one-
fourth of an inch of touching it any
where else). The reason I want them
filled is from a common-sense stand-
point, that if a slice of a watermelon is
good, a whole melon is "gooder." Why ?
Just because there is more it. I have
found that it paid me to fill the section
with foundation.

At first we will only put on one tier of
sections, and when the bees get well
started on them, we will, if honey still
comes in, and the general prospects war-
rant it, put on another crate, by lifting
up the first crate, and placing a new one
under it. I usually leave a partly-filled
section in the lower crate, swapped with
one out of the second crate ; this serves
for a bait, or for a string of bees clear
from the top of the brood-nest to the
upper crate, as the bees will at once
cluster where the honey is ; but this is
not so very important, as they soon go
to work and fill up the empty space as
soon as possible, any way.

As soon as the old colony needs sec-
tions, we will give them in the same
manner. We will not discuss any particu-
lar hive or crate, but will be expected to
use those that some of our most exten-

sive and successful honey-producers use,
as they are sure to use the best.
(Continued next week.)

ftueenless Colony in Winter.

Mrs. Atchley :— I have a queenless
colony, I am sure, because I found their
queen dead at the entrance. We have
had zero weather here since long before
Christmas, and it is very cold yet, and it
would be a loss to send a queen at this
season. Do you think these bees will
rear a queen in cold weather ? If they
do, it will be hard to introduce one in
March or April, or when they can fly,
will it not ? I know they have brood
now. What is the best way to manage
such colonies? A reply through the
American Bee Journal, will do.

L. D.

Bishop Hill, Ills., Jan. 30, 1893.

Friend L. D. :— Your finding a dead
queen in front of the hive is not conclu-
sive evidence that the hive is queenless.
There are hives that have two queens
pretty often — one very old, and a young
queen — and they sometimes go into win-
ter with two queens, and during cold
weather the old one may die or be de-
stroyed, and the young one lay right
along as though nothing had happened.
I rather think you have a case of this
kind, as you say you are sure they have
brood. Here in the South, we often
have what we term "pauper swarms,"
that come out of their hives on warm
days in winter, and enter other hives,
and of course one of the queens is
killed.

But in case your colony is queenless,
and they have brood as you say, they
will rear a queen just the same as at any
other time of the year ; but she may not
have a chance to mate, and of course
will be useless only to keep the colony
pacified until you can give them a queen,
or a frame of eggs and brood in the
spring. Should they rear a queen, just
let her alone in the hive until you get
ready to introduce one in the spring, or
give them brood, and at the time of
giving a queen or brood, take out the
worthless queen, and all will go well. In
fact, one of the best ways to introduce a
queen, is to remove the old and put in
the new queen at one and the same
operation.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 197 ?

238

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Value of a Good Colony in Fall
and in Spring.

Query 859.— What Is a good average col-
ony of bees worth in November, and also in
the spring ? I allude to bees in box-hives only,
as those who have frame hives seldom want
to sell their bees.— Tennessee.

I do not know. — M. Mahin.

About $1.00.— Will M. Baknum.

From one . to two dollars. — J. P. H.
Brown.

That depends upon your pocket-book
and longing to buy. — Dadant & Son.

I have bought them for one to two
dollars, in the spring. — Jas. A. Stone.

Locality, demand, and circumstances
will govern in such cases. — H. D. Cut-
ting.

Nothing in the fall, and $2.00 in the
spring ; that is, in my locality. — J. E.
Pond.

In November, $2.50, and $3.50 in
the spring, for Italians. — Mks. L. Har-
rison.

Here, in box-hives, in November,
$2.00 to $3.00 ; May, $3.00 to $4.00.
— J. H. Lakrabee.

It is impossible to name a uniform
price, as their value depends upon the
location.— P. H. Elwood.

In this locality, $1.00 to $1.50 in
November, and $1.50 to $3.00 the first
of April. — J. M. Hambaugh.

Two dollars in the fall, $3.00 in the
spring, would be a fair price for bees in
such hives.— G. M. Doolittle.

I should say $3.00 to $4.00 in the
fall, and $5.00 to $6.00 in the spring,
according to strength.— G. L. Tinker.

Circumstances vary so much that
there is no rule. What's the going price
in your neighborhood ?— C. C. Miller.

In fall, $3.00 ; in spring, $5.00, if
they are strong and vigorous in both
cases. Of course, prices vary with the
locality. — A. J. Cook.

The market price. If there is no mar-
ket price established, then all you can
get for them from an ordinarily shrewd
man. — R. L. Taylor.

I should be a poor judge of what they
should be worth in your locality. Here
I would say 50 per cent, less in fall
than in spring. — Eugene Secor.

That depends upon supply and de-
mand. Bees in box-hives are worth less
the price of the frame hive and cost of
work to transfer them into frames. — B.
France.

It must necessarily depend upon the
supply and demand, as there is no *' cor-
ner " on bees. I used to buy bees in
box-hives for $2.50 to $3.00 per colony.
— G. W. Demaree.

I should say $3.00 in the fall, and
$4.00 in the spring. This may seem a
high price to some, but in comparison
with other live stock I consider it very

low. — C. H. DiBBERN.

It would be hard to set a price unless
acquainted with the surroundings ; so
much depends upon pasturage, price of
honey, etc. Here, good colonies in the
spring, in box-hives, would be worth
$2.50 to $3.00.— S. I. Freeborn.

I don't know what bees would bring
in Tennessee, but in most places the
price in box-hives would range from
$2.00 to $5.00 in the fall, and from
$5.00 to $8.00 in the spring, depend-
ing upon location, supply and demand. —
—Mrs. 0'. N. Heater.

You ought to know what bees are
worth to you better than I can tell you.
Add $1.00 to the value of the frame
hive, and the sum will be the difference
in value of 2 colonies of the same kind
of bees, of the same strength, one in
frame, the other in box-hive, provided
the frame hive has straight, all-worker
combs. — James A. Green.

As supply and demand usually rule
the price of nearly every thing, I should
think $2.50 about the price of a good
colony of black bees in a box-hive in
November, and $3.00 in the spring, be-
fore swarming time. They are sold here
for all sorts of prices. Willie (my son),
a few days ago, bought 13 colonies, in
boxes, for $13, and has taken out $25
worth of nice chunk honey, and trans-
ferred them, and still left them plenty
to winter on. — Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

239

Report of the Illinois State Bee.
Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY JAS. A. STONE.

The 4th semi-annual meeting of the
Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Association
met in the Senate Judiciary Room of
the Senate House at Springfield, Ills.,
on Dec. 14, 1892, at 10 a.m., for a
two days' session, with President J. M.
Hambaugh in the chair. The meeting
was opened with prayer by Rev. T. D.
Logan, of the 1st Presbyterian Church
of Springfield.

The minutes of the last meeting were
read and approved.

The following members paid their an-
nual fees for 1893 :

J. M. Hambaugh, Spring.

C. P. Dadant, Hamilton.
Chas. Dadant, Hamilton.

A. N. Draper, Upper Alton.
S. N. Black, Clayton.
Geo. E. Robbins, Mechanlcsburg.
P. J. England; Fancy Prairie.
Jas. A. Stone, Bradfordton.

D. D. Cooper, Sherman.

W. J. Finch, Jr., Springfield.
Geo. Poindexter, Kenney.
Chas. Becker, Pleasant Plains.
A. Phelps, Springfield.
Elias Robinson, Carmi.
C. V. Mann, Riverton.
Jas. Poindexter, Bloomington.
A. W. Spracklen, Cowden.
J. Q. Smith, President Central Illinois
Bee-Keepers' Association, Lincoln.
Jas. Forncrook, Watertown, Wis.

The following sent in their fees by
mail just before or after the meeting :

Peter Blunier, Roanoke.
M. Bevier, Bradford.

E. T. Flanagan, Belleville.
Aaron Coppin, Wenona. •

Advancing Bee-Interests — Caring for
Honey.

Remarks on " How to Advance the
Interests of Bee-Culture," and "How to

Care for Honey," brought out some good
thoughts.

Mr. Robbins said that honey, whether
comb or extracted, if properly cared for,
would grow better by age. He waited
for his honey to be sealed before ex-
tracting.

Mr. Becker never waited for his bees
to seal or cap the cells before he began
to extract, and he never had any to spoil.
He did not approve of too small a pack-
age for extracted honey ; while Mr.
Robbins thought we ought to have very
small packages for it.

Mr. Dadant said the sealing of honey
had nothing to do with the ripening of
it, and that the package ought to be
larger when honey was cheap, and
smaller when it was high. He said the
time was coming when honey would be
as common as butter.

Mr. Finch said that when a trade in
honey is established, it can be sold in
small packages.

Mr. Dadant said that it only takes five
or six days to ripen honey.

Mr. Hambaugh said the consumer will
buy it in whatever shape it is put up.
He compels his buyers to furnish the
cans to put the honey into. He thought
the amount of the blooms had nothing
to do with the flow of honey. It was the
conditions of the weather which caused
the blooms to furnish honey, or not to
furnish it.

Mr. Black thought there ought to be
a large package for wholesale, and a
small one for retail trade.

On motion, a committee of three was
appointed to confer with the other asso-
ciations in session in the State House, in
regard to a union meeting at night. The
committee were Chas. Dadant, Jas. Poin-
dexter, and S. N. Black.

Adjourned until 1:30 p.m.

AFTERNOON SESSION.

At 1:30 p.m. the meeting was called
to order with President Hambaugh in
the chair. The President's address,
which will be published in full in our
next Report, was highly applauded.

On motion of Mr. Becker, a committee
of five was appointed for a legislative
committee to recommended legislative
measures, and report the following
morning. The committee were, C. P.
Dadant, Jas. A. Stone, Chas. Becker,
Geo. S. Robbins and Geo. Poindexter.

The Secretary's report was then read,
received and placed on file.

On motion, the further distribution of

240

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

the Reports of 1892 was left to the dis-
cretion of the Secretary.

The committee on programme foi- the
evening, made a report, which was ac-
cepted, that the other associations had
all adjourned until the next day, and
that they had left an invitation with the
chief janitor, that any further attend-
ants upon any of the associations, be in-
vited to attend our meeting.

Empty Combs and Extracted Honey-
Packages.

An essay was then r^ad by P. J. Eng-
land, on " Empty Combs and Packages
for Extracted Honey," which will be
published in full in the Report.

In the discussions which followed Mr.
England's essay, there was quite a differ-
ence of opinion in regard to drumming
the bees out of the old hives, some claim-
ing they could not do It, while others
spoke of it as a matter of no difficulty.

Mr. Robbins never would drum bees »
out of old comb until about swarming
time.

Mr. Becker would drum bees out, tak-
ing care to save all the brood.

Mr. Dadant would take great care in
saving all the brood, when drumming
out of old hives.

Mr. Hambaugh would always transfer
about the time of fruit bloom, smoking
the bees a little before he started to
drum them out. He used string to tie
old combs in the frames, and the bees
would pick them to pieces and carry
them out, by the time the combs were
fastened.

Mr. Dadant said strings bothered the
bees too much ; and that the bees some-
times got tangled in them. He used
wire, bent L shaped at the ends, and
drove them into the frames.

Standards for Judging Italian Bees.

The question-box was taken up next,
and the following question asked :

" Should there be two standards for
Judging Italian bees at fairs ? If so,
what should those standards be ?"

Mr. Hambaugh did not see how we
could have two standards for a single
race of bees.

Mr. Dadant said the standard should
be three yellow bands, whether they be
bright yellow or leather-colored.

Mr. Smith said his experience had
been that light-colored combs made
light-colored bees.

Geo. Poindoxter said he believed in
rearing the Italians that produce the
most honey, regardless of color.

Mr. Dadant thought we could not de-

cide which color was the best, as we did
not know.

On motion a committee of three was
appointed to investigate as to the steps
to be taken for the affiliation of other
bee-keepers' associations of the State
with the State association. The com-
mittee were S. N. Black, J. M. Ham-
baugh and J. Q. Smith.

On motion, the convention adjourned
to meet at 7 o'clock, for an evening ses-
sion.

EVENING SESSION.

The convention met at 7 o'clock, and
the order was unfinished business.

The treasurer's Report was read, and
showed a balance on hand of $31.10 of
the association fund, and $60.85 of the
State appropriation.

Heport on Afi3.1iating Associations.

The committee on affiliation reported
as follows :

We, your committee, appointed to ex-
amine Constitution with a view of adopt-
ing an article admitting bee-keepers'
associations to affiliate with the Illinois
State Bee-Keepers' Association, beg
leave to submit to you the following re-
port :

In view of the fact that we have no
application for affiliation from other
societies, that we deem it the part of
wisdom to discourage the plan of affilia-
tion, and recommend that the bee-keep-
ers of the State join personally, thus
placing every bee-keeper in the State on
an equal footing with us. Mr. Smith
assures us that their society prefers this
plan, and will join us personally.
S. N. Black, )

J. M. Hambaugh, yCom.
J. Q. Smith, )

The report was discussed, and finally
laid on the table.

The convention then adjourned to
meet at 9 o'clock the following morning.

SECOND DAY— Morning Session.

On Thursday morning, at 9 o'clock,
the meeting was called to order by Presi-
dent J. M. Hambaugh.

An essay by Dr. C. C. Miller was read
by the Secretary, on the subject, "Do
Bee-Keepers Need an Experimental Sta-
tion ?" The essay was discussed, but no
further action was taken than that
taken at the Chicago meeting in October.
[Dr. Miller's essay will soon appear in
the Bee Journal. — Ed.]

The Committee on Code of Rules and
Standards for Grading Apiarian Exhibits
at Fairs, made their report, but the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

241

final action on the same was deferred
until the meeting at Springfield, next
year. '

A resolution of Greeting was voted
unanimously as follows :

Illinois State B.-K. Association,
Springfield, Ills., Dec. 15, 1892.
Besolved, That we extend our con-
gratulations to our friends and brother
farmers of the State Grange, now in
session in this building, wishing them
and their organization success and pros-
perity ; and that a copy of this resolu-
tion be sent to them at once.

Resolutions were offered by Mr. Da-
dant, and adopted, as follows :

Resolved, That we extend our hearty
thanks to our President, Hon. J. M.
Hambaugh, for his successful efforts in
securing the annual appropriation from
the Legislature for our industry ; and
also for his successful attempt at secur-
ing recognition from the Illinois Com-
mission at the World's Columbian Fair
and Exposition ; and.

Resolved, That we also extend to our
worthy Secretary, Jas. A. Stone, our
thanks for his efficient and valuable Re-
port for the year 1891, and for all his
work in behalf of the association ; and
that we instruct the Treasurer to pay
into his hands the sum of $25 out of
the membership funds of the association,
regretting that the sum may not be
larger at present.

On motion by A. N. Draper, it was
voted that the $20 paid W. Z. Hutchin-
son for reporting the Chicago meeting,
be taken from the State appropriation ;
this was amended by taking it from the
appropriation for next year.

A discussion followed on the "Code of
Rules and Standards for Judging Api-
arian Exhibits at Fairs," and on motion
of Mr. Draper, the report of the com-
mittee on the same be ordered printed
in our next Report, and not acted upon
until next year.

In the discussion on Dr. Miller's essay,
Mr. Draper thought we needed no Ex-
perimental Station. Mr. Dadant said it
was very evident that we had never re-
ceived any benefit from an Experimental
Station, and that we never would unless
it be in the hands of a good bee-keeper.

Greetings from the Illinois State
Grange, in session at the State House,
Springfield, Dec. 15, 1892.

Jas. a. Stone, Sec. Ills. State B.-K.
Association.
Dear Sir : — The friendly message of
your Association to the State Grange

has been received and presented, and I
am directed to respond, thanking you
and your associates for the courtesy ex-
tended. We are all co-workers on the
farm, and in the various interests of
agricultural affairs, and it is meet that
we give each other the right hand of
fellowship and good-will in the common
cause.

Trusting that your meeting is pleasant
and profitable, and will be crowned with
success, I am very truly and fraternally
yours, Thomas Keady, Sec.

The above message was read, received,
and ordered printed in our Report.

The committee on Legislative meas-
ures reported, and on motion their re-
port was read and adopted by sections
as follows :

Your committee recommend that it is
advisable to secure the following Bills
from the Legislature :

1. A Bill to prevent the spraying of
fruit-bearing trees, shrubs, vines or
plants with poisonous compounds during
bloom.

2. A Bill to compel adulerators to
label all mixtures of extracted honey
with the true name of their components,
whether sugar, glucose, or other sweets
not gathered from the flowers.

We believe that all mixtures that are
not entirely pure extracted honey as
gathered from their natural source by
the bees, should be so marked, and la-
beled with the name of the manufac-
turer.

3. A Bill to continue the appropria-
tion to the State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion for the publishing of its Report.

4. We also recommend the election of
a committee to be composed of Messrs.
J. M. Hambaugh, S. N. Black, and J. A.
Stone, as a standing Legislative commit-
tee to pursue the aim of securing the
above-mentioned legislation.

C. P. Dadant, J. A. Stone, )
Chas. Beckee, G.E. Robbins, I Com.
Geo. Poindexteb, )

The convention then adjourned until
1:30 p.m.

afternoon session.

The convention met at 1:30 p.m.,
with President Hambaugh in the chair.

An essay was read by Mr. C. P. Da-
dant, on, " Why Farmers and Horticul-
turists Should be Bee-Keepers." This
will be published in the Report. [It will
also appear in the Bee Journal soon. —
Ed.]

Mr. A. N. Draper read an essay on
"The Adulteration of Honey," which,
on motion, was ordered sent to Mr.

242

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

Ernest Root, to be read at the meeting
of the North American at Washing-
ton ; and that our meeting earnestly
protest against the sale of sugar syrup
fed to bees and sold under the name of
"honey."

The election of officers for 1893 re-
sulted as follows :

President — Hon. J. M. Hambaugh, of
Spring.

Vice-Presidents — 1st, J. Q. Smith, of
Lincoln ; 2nd, Mrs. L. Harrison, Peoria;
3rd, Peter Miller, of Belleville ; 4th,
Geo. Poindexter, of Kehney.; and 5th,
C. P. Dadant, of Hamilton.

Secretary — James A. Stone, of Brad-
fordton.

Treasurer — A. N. Draper, of Upper
Alton.

On motion, the Executive Committee
was instructed to place the next State
appropriation in the hands of the Treas-
urer.

The convention then adjourned sine
die. Jas. A. Stone, Sec.

COWVEWTIOM DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

Feb. 25,— Wabash Valley, at Vincennes, Ind.
Frank Vawler, Sec, Vincennes, Ind.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete.
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, VTasbington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills,

♦ > ♦ >

national Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Your Neightoor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 101.

Further Details of Packing; Bec§
for Vl^iiiter.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY JAS. A. GEEEN.

Several bee-keepers have written me
asking me to detail more fully the
method of wintering bees given on page
22. In this article, and a succeeding
one, I will endeavor to cover the points
inquired about, and to render the whole
subject as plain as possible for the be-
ginner.

There are localities, no doubt, where
it is better to winter bees in a cellar.
This does not depend altogether upon
the matter of latitude, as we find from
reading the reports from various locali-
ties that there are some places very far
north where bees are wintered out-of-
doors with success year after year, while
in other places much farther south, bee-
keepers have come to regard cellar-win-
tering as the only safe method. Neither
is this difference in results due entirely
to the variations of climate from local
causes. A part of it is to be ascribed
to the differences in methods of prepar-
ing the bees for winter, and another
part to the differences in cellars.

For some unexplained reason, or rea-
sons, cellars vary greatly in their suit-
ability for wintering bees. This is a
matter that will perhaps bear consider-
able investigation. At present all we
know in regard to it is that two cellars,
in the same locality, apparently exactly
alike in all the requisites for a good bee-
cellar, will show year after year a wide
difference in results. For these and
other reasons, no one can be sure that it
will pay him better to winter bees in the
cellar, until he has himself made it a
matter of experiment. If he makes a
change in cellars, he may have to ex-
periment anew.

Without going deeply into the subject
of out-door vs. cellar wintering of bees,
I will simply state that it Is my belief

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

243

that wherever out-door wintering can
be made successful, it is the preferable
method. Furthermore, I believe that
there are but few localities where bees
may not be wintered successfully out-of-
doors by using proper methods.

After experimenting with several dif-
ferent cellars for a number of years,
some of which wintered the bees as well
as I should ever expect any cellar to do,
I have come to the conclusion that, for
me at least, it is much more profitable
to winter bees out-of-doors. In forming
this opinion, I have taken into consid-
eration all the factors that may arise
during the whole year, that bear on the
problem. Too many limit their consid-
eration of the subject to the time the
bees are in the cellar.

The essential requisites for successful
wintering, beyond a sufficient number of
bees and a sufficient quantity of food of
good quality, are that they should be as
well protected from the cold as possible,
and at the same time leave them ready
to fly whenever the weather will permit.
It is common to attempt to fill these con-
ditions by removing a part of the frames
on each side of the hive, and fill in the
space left with chaff-packed " dummies,"
filling the upper story with chaff cush-
ions or other packing material.

This inside packing is good as far as
it goes, but in the ordinary single-
walled hive it does not go very far, and
is a very incomplete protection. Good
two-story chaff-hives give much better
results — almost as good, in fact, as those
obtained by outside packing. But such
hives are very much more expensive to
make, and so much more inconvenient
to handle, that the practical bee-keeper
in these days cannot afford to burden
himself with them. A defect in such
methods of protection is, that the pack-
ing material cannot be made to form an
unbroken protecting envelope around
sides and top, as is the case when hives
are properly packed on the outside.

As I go about the country, I frequently
see bee-hives that the owner has tried
to protect by piling corn-fodder, straw
or litter about and over them, leaving
the fronts exposed. While this may be
of considerable value in keeping the
wind from striking the hives, it does not
afford as complete a protection from
cold as is desirable. The covering be-
comes wet, and is apt to prove a verit-
able " wet blanket " to the prosperity
of the colony. Besides, this continual
dampness is very hard on the hives.
Quite an important item in favor of com-
plete protection is that the hives, being
completely protected from the weather.

will last much longer, and especially
will not need painting nearly as often.
The outer cases, being made of cheaper
material, will probably add enough to
the durability of the hive to pay for
their cost.

An error that many beginners fall
into is to attempt a method of wintering
that I will describe by quoting from the
letter of inquiry lately received. It Is
as follows :

"I have this winter taken my hives
into an open chamber over a summer
kitchen, which is very cold, of course. I
set the hives close together, all facing
one way, and put around the sides and
back a good supply of newspapers, then
covered over with thick quilts, and also
around the sides, back and front, but
not tight .enough in front but what
plenty of air can get to them. Now, do
you think they will winter this way ? or
should I remove this and fix as you have
stated in the Bee Jouknal ?"

This man was evidently anxious to
prepare his bees for winter in the best
possible manner, as is shown by the
pains he took with them ; yet it is prob-
able that his bees would have wintered
better if he had left them out-of-doors
without any attention whatever. The
method has all the defects of cellar win-
tering— some of them in an aggravated
form — without any of its advantages.
Such a place as is described is but little
warmer than out-of-doors, in the coldest
weather, and it does not warm up as
quickly when warm days come.

There are often days in the winter
when the sun shines bright aad warm
for several hours, and the bees outside
have a good, cleansing flight that puts
them into good condition to stand
another siege of cold weather. But the
enclosed building does not warm up
readily in the brief sunshine. The bees
confined to their hives for month after
month in a low temperature, become
restless and uneasy from the overloading
of their intestines with fecal matter,
and perish with diarrhea, or come out in
the spring in such a weakened condition
that they soon succumb.

If the building does become warmed
up enough for bees to fly, and results
are as bad or wdlrse, as the bees, leaving
the hive, fly to the windows, where they
perish. .If there are no windows, they
fly out at the cracks, and in returning
fail to find the hive.

I advised this inquirer to leave his
bees where they were until a day came
warm enough for bees to fly outside,
then take them out and protect them
there. They should be put on the stands

244

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

they occupied in the fall, unless there is
snow on the ground, when this will not
be necessary.

It is generally conceded that a cellar
or building in which bees are kept,
should be kept as dark as possible to
secure the best results. This is especi-
ally true if the temperature ever be-
comes high enough to tempt the bees to
fly from their hives.

Some bee-keepers are successful in
wintering their bees in buildings above
ground, though their numbers are few.
These wintering repositories are made
with thick, frost-proof walls, and a num-
ber of colonies are wintered in the same
place. It should be remembered that a
hundred colonies may winter perfectly
in a place where half a dozen would all
die.

As stated in my article on "page 22, I
now prefer to pack 4 colonies in one
box. In doing this, I do not want to
move the bees far from the positions
they occupied in the summer. A com-
mon mistake on the part of novices is to
move their bees into new positions on
the approach of cold weather, for the
purpose of protecting them more con-
veniently, usually setting them'in a long
row. If a warm day comes soon after,
or in fact, at any time, unless the ap-
pearance of the surroundings have been
greatly changed by a fall of snow or
otherwise, the bees return in great num-
bers to their former location, and thou-
sands of them are often thus lost.

When a number of hives are set
closely together in a row, trouble is
often experienced if it becomes necessary
to examine a part of them, as it is hard
to do anything with one colony without
disturbing all, to a greater or less ex-
tent. Besides this, when the bees fly
out, they are apt to become mixed, and,
in returning, enter the wrong hives,
sometimes a few hives getting nearly all
of them. This is especially the case
when their first flight is on a day that
grows suddenly warm after a long con-
finement. In the spring, this is very
ruinous, and there is often great loss
from this source.

To obviate loss from this mixing of
bees, never place more than three hives
in a row at any season.. For conven-
ience in handling, it is better not to
have more than two.

The hives that I pack together are set
in groups of four, two facing east and
two west, which position they occupy
all summer.

It is not necessary or desirable that
they should be as close together In the
summer as they are wanted for winter.

A hive of bees may be moved two or
three feet forward or sidewise, or twice
that distance back without detriment,
provided its general position toward its
surroundings is not thereby changed. If
it becomes necessary to move them
greater distances than this, or to change
their relative positions, it should be done
gradually, moving the hive a foot or two
each day that the bees fly freely.
Ottawa, Ills.

(Concluded next week.)

* ■

W^orkers Layini^ with Unsealed
Brood— Will of the Queen.

Written for the American See JourruA
BY DR. C. C. MILLEK.

Not often does one meet with so jolly
a foe as Mrs. Atchley. We ought always
to be glad to have the truth prevail, no
matter which side whips, but it is much
easier to do so when our opponent fights
fair and good-naturedly.

I think Mrs. Atchley has given satis-
factory proof as to workers laying with
unsealed brood in the hive, as many such
cases have come under her own observa-
tion. And although she does not say so,
I suppose she has also seen with her own
eyes, cases of laying workers while
young queens were present.

Her experiment with the eggs laid by
the queen in her hand is very interest-
ing, but I must say it doesn't prove be-
yond the possibility of a doubt that the
will of the queen has anything to do
with the sex of the egg. Indeed, inter-
esting as are her experiments, they hardly
can be said to prove anything new, for
queens often lay eggs, in rudimentary
cells, much the same as if laying eggs
on the hand. The possibility is that
a queen, when laying eggs in drone-
cells, is in some way in a different posi-
tion from that in which she lays
worker eggs.

Please understand that I don't pretend
to know. Indeed, I have some doubts
if any of us will ever know positively
about it. And practically, I'm not sure
that it is a matter of any great impor-
tance. As it seems to me, there are dif-
ficulties in the case, whichever view we
take.

I can think of one argument that
would be more convincing than any-
thing yet brought forward in favor of
the "will " theory. It would be to find
the queen laying in drone-cells that
were merely begun. Because in that
case she would be in about the same

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

245

position as in rudimentary worker-cells.
Does a queen ever do this, or does she
always wait until drone-cells have a fair
depth before laying in them ?

We know that workers are reared
sometimes in drone-cells, and that in
such cases the queen must have laid
worker eggs in them. But in such cases
are not the mouths of the drone-cells
made the size of worker-cells by the ad-
dition of wax? I think they have always
been in the cases I have seen. Now if
workers can be reared all right in drone-
cells (and we know they can), and if the
queen can lay either kind of eggs at
will, why is it that at a time of year when
workers only are reared, the queen will
leave vacant the drone-cells that are in
the middle of the brood-nest instead of
filling them with worker-eggs?

I once gave to a colony a hive filled
with drone-comb." Surely, if the " will "
theory is correct, the queen, in that
case, ought to have laid worker-eggs in
drone-cells. Did she? No; with no
brood in the hive she wouldn't lay drone-
eggs, and it seemed she couldn't lay
worker - eggs, so she deliberately
" struck," and the bees swarmed out. I
suppose they thought it would be too
big an undertaking, and take too much
wax, to narrow the mouths of all the
cells.

At times when the queen seems so
anxious to lay in drone-cells that she
will go two or three combs out of the
brood-nest to find drone-cells, why
doesn't she lay drone-eggs in worker-
cells in the middle of the brood-nest, if
she can ? To that it may be answered
that she will not do so because there is
not room for a full-sized drone in a
worker-cell ; but that is hardly a satis-
factory answer, in view of the fact that
in other cases the bees don't use that
kind of reasoning, as when they try to
rear a queen from a drone larva. They
are anxious for a queen, and they try
their best to rear one with the material
on hand, although it must be a total
failure, why should they not try to rear
drones in worker-cells when so anxious
for them, and no dr.one-cells in the hive?
Or is it because the workers are more
stupid than the queen when a thing is
left to their intelligence ?

Just a word about "compression:"
Possibly it isn't best to use that word,
but if the will of the queen does not con-
trol the matter, and there is nothing
better than to suppose that there is
mechanical compression when worker-
eggs are laid, it does not follow that
such compression does not exist even
when the queen lays eggs on the hand.

For it is possible that in that tiase there
is sufficient curving of the body to make
the same compression as when the queen
is laying in a worker-cell.

On the whole, I don't know for certain
which theory is true, and I doubt if
either of us will ever know. So if Mrs.
Atchley thinks she knows, she can con-
sider herself ahead more than half the
time, and we'll look for something else
to quarrel about.

Marengo, Ills.

l./*.^*h/".>"k.

*\.fS./N.^,./,,

Do not write anything for nubllcation
on the same sheet of paper ■wltn business
matters, unless It can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Unable to Supply the Demand.

I have 26 colonies of bees, most of
which are in movable-frame hives. My
frames are 11x17 inches, with the top-
bar in two pieces, which makes it very
easy to fasten the foundation. The
super holds 2T one-pound sections.
Last year was very poor here, my best
colonies storing only 54 pounds, and
others none. I got 20 cents per pound
for all my honey, and cannot nearly sup-
ply the demand. Joel Conrad.

Linden, Ind., Jan. 25, 1893.

The Seasons of 1891 and 1892.

The year 1891 was a poor one for
bees. I had 53 colonies which yielded
only 700 pounds of comb honey, but the
bees were in good condition for winter.
I winter my bees in the cellar, and on
April 24, 1892, I put out 51 colonies,
which seemed to be strong and hearty,
but on account of much rain and cold
weather, I had to feed them and double
them down to 42 colonies, and many
were then so weak I had to feed them
through May and two-thirds of June.
On July 16th they began to move up
into the surplus boxes. On Aug. 10th
I had some swarms, having 130 pounds
of surplus honey in one and two pound
boxes, and in all I had 2,500 pounds

246

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

of honey, and the colonies had increased
to 51, which had plenty to live on until
next spring. I have sold all my honey
at 123^ cents per pound.

There are many here that have lost
all their bees — some lost one-half, and
others two-thirds of what bees they had,
while I only lost 2 out of 53 colonies,
and 9 swarms I doubled, so I believe the
cellar is the best place to winter bees.

As my bees are black and hybrid, I
expect to get a good queen-bee of the
best 5-banded Italian, if possible to im-
prove my bees, though I believe the
black bee winters the best. I think that
hybrid queens breed the fastest in the
spring. The hybrid bees are generally
the ugliest, but I have no trouble in
handling them. I use neither veil nor
gloves, and I go right in amongst them
with my sleeves rolled up, and no pro-
tection of any kind.

J. E. Thokstad.

Blair, Wis., Jan. 26, 1893.

Visionary Bee-Keeping, Etc.

I saw the advertisement of Mrs. Lizzie
E. Cotton in the Topeka Capital, also in
the Lawrence Journal, wherein she
stated that one person from her new
system of bee-keeping started with one
colony, and the third year sold $800
worth of honey, and increased to 26
colonies ! Can it be that she is as big a
humbug as she used to be a few years
ago?

Bee-keeping has been a poor business
in Kansas for the past two years. There
was no surplus honey. I have 49 colo-
nies wintering on the summer stands,
and all seem to be in good condition.
Some are in double-walled hives, and
the rest in single-walled hives. I never
could see any difference in their winter-
ing. A. L. Williams.

Lawrence, Kans., Jan. 27, 1893.

Virgin Queens — Comb-Baskets.

I notice in Gleanings, page 53, that
some reviewing has been done, and some
valuable knowledge given in the matter
of virgin queens being fertilized beyond
21 days old. My rule has been to kill
them after 21 days, if no appearance of
laying or fertilization was noticed. Now
I think I will wait 31 days.

I have read Query 854 in the Bee
Journal about sloping comb-baskets in
extractors, and would say that the slope
is far the best for all combs that hang
in a basket the same as in a hive ; for
two reasons, viz. : 1st, the brood will

receive less centrifugal force, it being
near the center shaft, and if no brood,
the bottom honey will be the last stored,
and thinnest, and go out easily. 2nd,
honey-cells are sloping upwards when
the combs are plumb, but when sloping
the comb brings the cells level, other-
wise the honey would have to be raised
up before going out of the comb. But
for Langstroth combs, or any that stand
in the basket on an end, I want them to
stand plumb, because the honey is as
ripe at the bottom as at the top, and
needs as much force to throw it out.

One more "kink" I will tell about:
There is a right and wrong way to put
Langstroth combs into the extractor, on
account of cells of comb sloping upward.
Always make the bottom-bar of the
frame go ahead when turning, then
the cells will be sloying backward a
little, and the honey flows out easily.
For illustration, see how a scoop shovel
can be loaded or unloaded by this slop-
ing either forward or backward. I have
my bees in the cellar this cold winter.
•J At. R. Bellamy.

Black Bank, Ont., Jan. 23, 1893.

What the Black Bees Did.

I have a colony of black bees which
cast a prime swarm on May 30, 1892,
and one on June 10, which were both
hived separately. The first swarm
swarmed again on July 20, and the sec-
ond swarm gathered 50 pounds of comb
honey, besides 55 pounds for winter
stores. I call that pretty good for last
season, as we had so much rain here
that bees could work only half the time.

Aug. Bartz.

Chippewa Falls, Wis., Jan. 30, 1893.

Beginner's Experience and Troubles.

I desire to report my success in honey-
production, and also my troubles, and
see if any one can help me with advice.

On July 8th I procured a colony of
black bees ; in three weeks they filled
28 one-pound sections, and later filled
the hive full to overflowing with honey
of No. 1 quality.

On Aug. 16th they cast a fine swarm,
which stored about 40 pounds of honey
before frost came. The hive was a
home-made affair, hastily constructed ;
the tops of the frames were not beveled,
and no starters were used. The bees
built their combs crosswise of the
frames, so they cannot be removed.
They were a strong, vigorous colony,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

247

and I intended to run them for increase
next season.

In October the parent colony (with its
rich stores of white honey) was stolen —
we never discovered the loss until after
dark the next night. The young colony
was hurried into the cellar, right then —
without any examination. They had
plenty of fresh air, and seemed all right
by their hum, whenever I tapped on the
hive, so I did not disturb them by open-
ing their hive until Christmas, when I
peeped in and saw a few webs and
empty moth-shells.

To-day they are numerous, and honey
is running out of the hives, while the
bottom-board is covered with powdered
comb. The bees are still alive, with
plenty of good honey. Now, my query
is, Can anything be done to save them ?

The frames were 16x10 inches, 13 in
number, and the bees or honey occupy 9
of them. Perhaps there is too much
vacancy. Mks. A. M. Shank.

Sioux City, Iowa, Jan. 30, 1893.

[The case may not be so desperate as
it looks. As there is plenty of honey, if
there are plenty of bees they may come
through all right. But if there are so
inany worms that they have torn down
the combs enough to set the honey run-
ing, it is probable that there are so few
bees that they will hardly pull through.
Are you sure it is honey and not water
that is running out of the hives ?

In either case, you can hardly do any
better than to wait patiently until you
can set them out for a flight, after it
seems fairly settled for warmer weather.

If they live through, and the combs
are too crooked to be removed, you can
treat it as a box-hive, and transfer three
weeks after swarming. — Ed.]

Cold Weather^Extracted Honey.

As I write the thermometer indicates
very severe cold weather, from 10° to
30° below zero. Bees that are left out-
of-doors unprotected will perish if this
weather continues long. Those that are
well packed in chaff or other dry absorb-
ing material, will stand a far better
chance ; still, if this severe weather
continues very long, many of these will
probably succumb. Those that are in
warm positions, or cellars, I think are
very much better off — at least for the
present; but when April and May come.

many of the hives may be empty, or the
bees so reduced in numbers that very
little surplus honey can be obtained
until July.

The past year has been quite an un-
favorable one for the bee-keeper in my
locality ; not more than one-half of an
average crop has been obtained. A large
number of colonies died last winter and
spring, still there seemed to be plenty
left. Many of the novices have been
discouraged. For several years bees
have wintered well any where. The
wild bees seemed to pull through all
right, and swarms are very often to be
seen by farmers in the summer.

There are very few bee-keepers who
give much attention to the extracting of
honey, nearly all seeming to be content-
ed to obtain what they can in the comb ;
not seeming to understand how much
more certain they are to obtain a good
crop, or how much better the swarming
can be controlled. But, alas ! where is
he to find a market for his extracted
honey ? Can he place it on the market
and get his cash? Not much. The
adulterator has been there, and the
would-be consumer has been fooled and
swindled so much, and so long, that he
has no confidence in any "strained"
honey. It seems to me that it is high
time for bee-keepers to arise en masse,
and cry loudly to Congress to pass such
laws as will give us relief. I am glad
the Amebican Bee Joubnal is wide
awake on this subject, and is pushing
the work. Let every bee-keeper in the
land bestir himself, and let us see if we
can't stop this nefarious business, that
is so ruinous to our business.

A. C. Sanford.

Ono, Wis., Jan. 14, 1893.

The Changeable Weather of 1892.

Last season was about the most destruc-
tive we have had in the history of the
State, on bee-culture, especially south-
eastern Kansas. February opened warm
and niee ; the soft maple and elm blos-
somed, then came a freeze about the
first of March, killing the bloom. The
bees having commenced rearing brood,
they dragged some of it out, as they
could not cover it all. The weather con-
tinued bad all through the month. The
fruit-trees began to bloom in April,
starting the bees to breeding again, then
the weather became wet and cold, chill-
ing a great deal of the brood, and con-
tinuing wet and cool until the last of
May, and a great many bees starved to
death, unless th(y were fed, and leaving

248

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

them too weak for the honey-flow of
June to give any surplus. They just got
built up nicely when the drouth set in
in July, so they consumed about all of
their stores until the last of the month,
when the fall honey-fiow began to come.
They gathered a little until the first of
September, then the bees began to roll
the honey in. My report is as follows:

From 16 colonies I took 300 pounds
of comb honey, and 204 pounds of ex-
tracted honey, making an average of
SIJi pounds to the colony. My best
colony gave me 104 pounds of honey —
84 pounds of comb honey, and 20
pounds of extracted. My bees went
into the winter with about 50 pounds
per colony. The winter has been good
so far for the wintering of bees.

L. Wayman.

Chanute, Kans., Jan. 23, 1893.

An Old Bee-Keeper's Report.

I purchased 5 colonies one year ago,
and increased them to 14, which I have
in winter quarters. I secured a copy of
the Bee Journal from a friend, and
found in it an article on bee-catchers
that was worth to me more than the
price of the Bee Journal. I am in my
85th year, and still in good health.

John W. Crary.

St. Paul, Minn., Jan. 27, 1893.

Experience of a Beginner.

In the fall of 1891 I purchased one
colony of bees, and before cold weather
came on I fed them a large amount of
sugar syrup, so they would be sure to
get through the long winter ; but they
all died before spring. I immediately
purchased another, that was alive, al-
though a little short of honey, but it
carried them through. These I looked
on for some profit, but almost in vain.
They swarmed once, but left for parts
unknown, so I was still left with one col-
ony, and 1 thought of course they would
store a good supply of honey, but to my
surprise only 33^ pounds. Not quite
discouraged, I purchased 2 colonies
more to make 3 to put away for the
winter, which I did as best I could, and
as yet they are all alive.

Some of the writers speak of their
bees taking a flight on such a day that
they could not speak of here in Vermont,
for we have about fou months of the
year that a bee could n')t leave the hive
ten seconds before she would be frozen
stiff. The mercury often drops to 35°

or 40' below zero ; the average temper-
ture for the last 40 days and nights has
been 4° below zero. Now, saying noth-
ing about the weather, I well know that
I am on the wrong track in bee-culture,
and would like to be helped on the right
one, by all who wish to assist one that
always wants to succeed in his under-
takings. E. H. Hallett.
St. Johnsbury Center, Vt., Jan. 28.

Temperature in December.

I send the report of the December,
1892, temperature here at Ionia, Mich.,
Greenville, Tex., and at Hamilton, Ills.,
which is as follows :

Taken near sunrise at each place.

Dec,

1.
2

3!

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.

Bees fly.

Mich.

11° above

11

11

20

noo

40° Rain.

20°

32° Snow

30°

26°

19° Snow,

32°

30°

30°

24°

30°

28

24

22

16

6

5
10

1

6

8° Snow,
11° Snow
16° Snow

4°
15°
34°

Frost.

Frost.

Snow.
Snow.

Snow.
Below 0,

Tex.

45° above.
440

48"
43<'

as"

31
30
31

33° Bain.
35° Kaln.
37°

35° Rain.
36°
33°
34°

36° Rain.
37°
30°
36°
28°
34°
37°
40°
.43°
45°

28° Freezing
30°
32°
32°
38°
38°

Ills.
30° above.
40° Bees fly.
21°
27°
41°
46°
48°
21°
25°
14°
15°
25°
32°
31°
22

Snow.

Rain.
Rain.

Rain.

Rain.
Rain.
21° Rain.
21°
21°

19° Rain.
— Rain.
13°

3°
22°
27°
13°

8°

5°

2°
20°
26°
28°

During the month the 3rd and 6th
were clear, the remaining part cloudy
mostly all day. Directiou of the wind
was — west 13 days ; southeast, 3 days;
south 3; northwest 6; west 4. In Green-
ville, Tex., 18 days it was north and
northeast, and northwest.

Jacob Moobe.

Ionia, Mich., Jan. 4, 1893.

[This Is the second temperature re-
port we have published, and if they are
of sufficient interest they will likely be
continued. We should be pleased to
know whether our readers care enough
about it to ask that we keep up the pub-
lication of these monthly records of the
weather. — Ed.1

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

249

Wintering "Well — Good Prospects.

My bees are wintering well. This is
about the time when our bees have the
hardest time. They have been in the
cave two months. If bees are in good
condition this time of the winter, they
will be in good condition in the spring.
I examined five hives to-day, and they
all had sealed brood. We have had a
grand winter — about six inches of snow,
and five weeks of cold weather. When
we have a good cold winter and snow,
we have a good grain crop later, and
also a good honey year. Why not have
good courage? May we all be blessed
this year with a good crop of honey —
and that means money.

G. W. Nance.

Peiro, Iowa, Jan. 23, 1893.

Cold Weather— Moving Bees, Etc.

I have 120 colonies — 80 in chaff hives,
and the balance in cellars. I have not
made an effort to keep them warmer
than 88° in the cellar, but leave on
duck and cushions. When this cold
spell is over, it will be about 40° to 45°.

I use the Tinker 7-inch depth 8-frame
Langstroth hive, and add alternate
combs with additional hives until the
honey-flow ; then I put the queen down
in the lower story, and as the brood
hatches, and the combs are filled I add
more combs and hives, and at the close
I have a queen in the top hive over an
excluder, often laying before the harvest
is over, and then I can divide, or destroy
the old queen. I have stored them as
high as 10 stories in a few cases, but
mostly 6 or 8, and to go into my yard
at night makes me think of the engine
depot, with all steamed up ready to
start.

I am only 50 feet from a church, and
close to a horse-shed, and I do not have
much trouble, but I have noticed that if
I am out, and they get a little unsteady,
when I return they seem to know it, and
become quiet very soon after, if 1 go
around among them.

Last summer I thought I would move
one large colony, and let come what
would. I moved them in the afternoon,
while part of the bees were away, to the
other side of the yard, about 30 feet,
and in a few moments the old stand was
enveloped in a dense cloud of bees.
With quite a cluster on the old stand, I
took this and moved slowly to the new
stand, many following me ; then I went
back and talked and motioned to them
to go with me to the new stand, and
finally succeeded in getting them all

into their own hive. During the time I
was at work I could see that part of the
bees understood, and were acting as
guides, and soon all were quiet. The
next day they worked better than ever.
The reason 1 moved them was, they
were too much in my path. The last
two seasons have been so mild that
many have left bees out without protec-
tion this year, and are caught in this
deadful cold spell, and we will see how
they come out. My " knock down " chaff
hives contain 2 colonies each, 2 inches
of planer shavings on the sides, and a 6-
inch chaff cushion on top of duck ; 2
stories, with 2-inch rim under, and they
seem to be doing well.

Martin H. Adams has 60 colonies that
he left out in double-walled hives, and
he is now sorry he did not put them in.
It will be a test worth noticing ; they
are in large hives, heavy with honey.
We have had it 23° below zero, and
some less for a long time ; occasionally
a few degrees above, but no let up from
cold weather for four weeks. Honey
was poor with us last year, but we have
hopes for next summer.

E. H. Sturtevant.

Fort Ann, N. Y., Jan. 20, 1893.

CI^UBBIMG} L,IST.

"We Club the American Bee Journal
for a year, with any of the following papers
or books, at the prices quoted in the LAST
column. The regular price of both is given
n the first column. One year's subscription
for the American Bee Journal naust be sent
with each order for another paper or book :

Price of both. Club.
The American Bee Journal 81 00

and Gleanings in Bee-Culture. ... 2 00 ... . 1 75

Bee-Keepers' Review 2 00 175

The Apiculturlst 175.... 165

Bee-Keepers' Guide 175.... 165

American Bee- Keeper 150 140

Canadian Bee Journal 2 00 ... 175

Nebraska Bee-Keeper 150 135

The 8 above-named papers 6 50 5 50

and Langstroth Revised (Dadant) 2 40 2 25

Cook's Manual 2 00 ... . 1 75

Dooiittle on Queen-Rearing. 2 00.... 1 65

Bees and Honey (Newman).. 2 00 165

Advanced Bee-Culture 150 135

Dzierzon's Bee-Boot (Cloth). 2 25 2 00

Root's A B C of Bee-Culture 2 25 ... . 210

A Year Among the Bees 1 50 1 35

Convention Hand-Book 125 115

Illustrated Home Journal . . 150.... 135

Do not send to us for sample copies
of any other papers. Send for such to the
publishers of the papers you want.

(i

Bees and Honey" — page 229.

250

a'merican bee journal.

^^•^^^l^A.

'^\.

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

At One Dollar a Year,
56 FIFTH AVENUE. CHICAGO. ILLS.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffield, Portage co, Ohio

Doolittle's Queen-Rearing:

book should be in the library of every
bee-keeper ; and in t^e way we ofEer to
to give it, there is no reason now why
every one may not possess a copy of it.
Send us one new subscriber for a year,
and we will mail the book to you bound
in paper, as a present.

"Xlie "Winter Problem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Journal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
$1.30. Send to us for a copy.

Read our great offer on page 229.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
February 18lh. 1893 :

CHICAGO, III.— There are occasional sales
of best g-rades of comb honey, but the retail-
ei-8 are not yet sold out on supply laid in
before the holidays. Prices are a little easier,
especially on that which will not grade " fan-
cy"— such brings 17@18c., and other grades
12@16c. Extracted, 6@9c., as to quality.

Beeswax— 22@25c. H. A. B. & Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8^ ;
dark,6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers is slow, but the demand is good for
extracted for family use. It brings 6@8c.—
No good comb is on our market. It would
bring 14@16c.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 23@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light, White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8^c.; buckwheat, 6@6}4c.;
Southern, 70@7oc. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted. 8@10c.

Beeswax — None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNE APO LIS,MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
©I't.c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9@10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, MO.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7®7^c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C.-M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our honey market is slow
on account of cold weather, but our stock was
never so light as now. We have less than 50
cases of honey on hand, and only one barrel
of extracted; when usually we have 1,000
cases in stock. For honey not granulated in
comb,woquote: White (sniall).l.')®18c.; mixed
13@14c. ; dark, 10@llc. Large comb and
double glass sell for 1 to 2c. less per lb. Ex-

tracted, white, 8^@9c.
wheat, 7®7^c.

amber. 7^® 8c.; buck-
H. K. W.

Great Premium on page 229 1

^a^^ -V

GEOKGE W. TOBK, \
Editor. r

Devoted Exclusively-

-To Bee-Culture.

j Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
( Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL. MARCH 2, 1893.

NO. 9.

Anti-Adulteration Bill.— Mr.

Jas. A. Stone, the indefatigable Secre-
tary of the Illinois State Bee-Keepers'
Association, on Feb. 6th, sent us a copy
of a Bill that was to be placed in the
hands of the members of each branch of
the State Legislature the next day. It
is directed against every form of adul-
terated honey and its sale, and reads
thus :

An Act to Prevent the Adulten'ation of
Honey :

Section 1. Be it enacted by the peo-
ple of the State of Illinois, represented
in the General Assembly, That it shall
be unlawful for any person or persons
to adulterate honey by mixing with it
any sweets of whatsoever kind, not
gathered from flowers or blooms ; or to
mix together any such sweets, whether
with or without honey, or cause it to be
done by any agency whatsoever, and to
offer for sale, or sell without labeling
it with the true name of its component
parts, with the proportion of each, and
with the name and location of the manu-
facturer.

Sec. 2. Any person or persons con-
victed of a violation of any of the pro-
visions of Section 1 of this Act, shall be
deemed by the court guilty of misde-
meanor, and shall be fined in any sum

not less than one hundred dollars
($100), and not more than five hundred
dollars ($500), one-half of said fine to
go to the informer, and the other half to
the school fund.

This a move in the right direction.
Once give the Bee-Keepers' Union a
good law to use against the adulterators
of honey, and there will be lively times
ahead for that kind of evil-doers. The
Bill should become a law at once, and
then be brought to bear upon those who
would tamper with pure honey. Down
with every form of adulteration ! Give
the American people what they demand
above all things, pure and unadulterated
food!

Xlie Victorious Union. — Once

more the National Bee-Keepers' Union
has fully demonstrated its great value to
tbe industry of bee-keeping. Whether
its iufluence is brought to bear upon
local decisions or State Legislation, it is
alike successful in each. The following
is from the General Manager, and will
be encouraging reading :

FkiendYokk: — The members of the
National Bee-Keepers' Union will be
pleased to learn through the columns of
the American Bee Jouknal of the re-
sult of the " first round " for the year
1893, in the battle with the enemies of
the pursuit of bee-keeping.

On Jan. 16th, as soon as the Senate
of Missouri got to work, Senator Sebree
Introduced the following, entitled, "An
Act to regulate the keeping of Honey-
Bees in Cities, Towns and Villages In
this State, and to provide a penalty for

^64

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

its^fiolation." The full text is as fol-
lows :

Be it Enacted by the General Assembly of
the State of Missouri, as follows :

Section 1.— No person shall own,
keep or have in his possession or under
his control, any honey-bees in boxes,
bee-gums or other thing of confinement
in any city, town or village in this State,
whether organized under general or
special charters, nearer than fifty (50)
feet from the line of any adjacent real
estate owner, or person in possession of
such adjacent property.

Sec. 2. — Any person violating the
provisions of the preceding section shall
upon conviction be fined for each offense
not less than ton nor more than twenty
dollars, and each offense shall be deemed
a period of one week after one notice in
writing shall have been given to the
owner or person in possession of the
bees to remove the same to a distance
provided by the first section of this act ;
and if after notice the owner or owners
or party in possession of said bees, it
shall be the duty of the sheriff of the
county, or the constable of the township,
in which the offense is committed to re-
move the said bees to the said distance
of fifty feet, and for reasonable compen-
sation for his services he shall have an
act of debt against the owner or person
in possession of said bees, and the said
bees, nor the boxes or bee-gums, or
thing in which they shall be kept, shall
be exempt from execution to pay the
judgment founded upon such claim for
said services for removing the same as
aforesaid.

Sec. 3. — If the said honey-bees cannot
be removed and kept in boxes, bee-gums
or other thing at a greater distance than
fifty feet from the line of the adjacent
owner or proprietor, as provided by Sec-
tion 1 of this Act, then in such event
the keeping of them in such city, town
or village is absolutely prohibited, and
after ten days, notice in writing to re-
move the same, the owner or person in
possession or control of them shall be
punished upon conviction, as provided
by Section 2 of this Act.

Here is a clear case of prohibition of
the pursuit in all "Cities, Towns and
Villages" in Missouri, if it should be-
come law, for a bee-keeper must have
OVER 100-foot lot to be able to keep
his bees " fifty feet from the line of any
adjacent real-estate owner, or person
in possession of such adjacent property."
But few bee-keepers would have more
than 50 feet in all.
Mr. W. S. Dcrn Blaser, ex-Secretary

of the Missouri Bee-Keepers' Associal
tion, sent the "Bill" to the Manager ol
the Union, and instantly the Decision ol
the Supreme Court of Arkansas was
brought into play like a Gatling-gun,
and copies of it were sant to the mem-
bers of the Legislature and to the Gov-
ernor. Letters were written to them
advising them not to allow it to pass,
showing that it would be a dead letter,
as it was unconstitutional, and would be
so construed by the Courts, as they had
the precedent of the Arkansas Supreme
Court to guide them.

The Hon. R. L. Taylor, President of
the Union, was appealed to, and he
backed up the General Manager by
giving his "opinion" on the Bill— that
It was unconstitutional, and should be
" fought to the end " vigorously.

Mr. Joseph G. Banning, President of
the Missouri State Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation, also appealed to the Manager of
the Union, and was instructed to fight
the Bill at every step — that the Union
would see him through, etc. If it had
passed both houses, then the Governor
had been appealed to, and would in all
probability have vetoed It. President
Banning writes me thus : " I thank you
for your prompt assistance."

When it came up in the lower House,
the Legislators were "posted," and
promptly killed it. And thus ends
another chapter in the "Comedy of
Errors," of the enemies of apiculture I
The Union is again triumphant, and
adds " another feather In its cap."

A similar "farce" is now being en-
acted in Nebraska, but it will doubtless
end in a like fizzle. Bee-keepers have a
right to be proud of the achievements of
their Union for Defense.

Thomas G. Newman,
General Matuxger.

Separators.— The following ques-
tions have been sent us about the usual
width and thickness of separators :

"Will you kindly let me know what is
the visual width of separators — wood
and tin — for use with one-pound sec-
tions ? Also, the usual thickness of
wooden separators ? It seems to me
that the inset is scarcely deep enough to
permit separators to be used full depth
of section, say 4J^ inches."

The usual width of separators for 4J^-
inch sections, whether the separators be
wood or tin, is 3)4 inches. Wood sep-
arators are one-twentieth to one-six-
teenth of an inch thick — perhaps nearly
all being one-sixteenth.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

265

" INameless Bee-Disease."—

Mr. Chester Belding, of Claremont, Va.,
asks these questions about the so-called
" Nameless Bee-Disease :"

Can you give any information about
the "nameless bee-disease," or where
the bees turn black and shiny, and
other bees in the same hive fight and
kill them ? Do they hatch out in that
condition, or do they become so with
age, etc. ? Does changing combs from
hive to hive carry the disease with the
combs ? Is there any known cure or
remedy for it? My bees have been but
slightly troubled thus far with it. Please
answer in the Bee Journal.

Chester Belding.

There is a good deal of difference of
opinion about the nameless disease, some
thinking the queen at fault, and a num-
ber of cures have been reported as a re-
sult of changing the queen. Allowing
the bees access to salt water has been
reported a cure. Others, however, who
have had considerable experience, re-
port that the disease disappears of itself
when let alone, and think that in the
cases where the trouble ceased upon
changing queens, it might have ceased
equally soon in the same cases had no
change of queens been made.

Perhaps the majority are in favor of
changing queens. It is quite possible
that the disease is more virulent in some
cases than others, as some look upon it
as no very serious matter.

The bees do not hatch out with the
black, shiny appearance, neither does
it seem the result of age, for such bees
are generally found with perfect wings.

INEice in Bee-Cellars, Etc.—

Mr. E. S. Miles, of Denison, Iowa, asks
this question about mice troubling bees
in the cellar ; its answer will serve to
reply to similar questions that we have
received :

I have nevor seen anything in the bee-
papers about mice injuring bees in cel-
lars. Do they injure bees when in the
cellar, where they can get into the hives?

One day, lately, as I was holding a
light so as to shine Into the bottom of a

hive, a mouse jumped out from between
the combs almost amongst the bees. I
saw where they had been eating dead
bees, and other signs of their being un-
der the combs. •

As most of the writers advise leaving
the bottoms off, or large entrances, I
don't see how a person can keep them
out of the hives in the cellar ; and it is
pretty hard to have a mouse-proof cellar.

That article by the Chinese contribu-
tor, on page 858 (1892), was quite a
diversion. I hope we will hear from
him some more.

We are having some zaro weather
here now (Jan. 13), with plenty of snow
on the ground. The coldest it has been
yet is 120 below zero. E. S. Miles.

Yes, indeed, mice will do plenty of
damage if allowed to get into hives in
the cellar. They will eat live bees, and
they will eat honey, but perhaps the
greatest damage done by them is the
gnawing of the combs. They will gnaw
great holes in the combs, and build nests
there, in which they no doubt find it
very comfortable.

As you say, a mouse-proof cellar is
not easily had, but you can do much by
way of persistent trapping, and also by
giving the mice a diet of some kind
spiced with poison, as thin slices of
cheese sprinkled with strychnine, cut
up into little cubes and placed where
the mice can get it conveniently.

The best thing is to bar them out of
the hives. With an ordinary entrance
that is easily done by means of heavy
wire-cloth, having the meshes about one-
third of an inch. The same wire cloth
may be used full size of the bottom if
the hives are left without bottom-boards.

You may like the plan devised by Dr.
Miller. He has reversible bottom-boards.
One side of the bottom-board is a plain,
flat surface, on which the hives rest dur-
ing summer. The other side is a shal-
low box an inch and a half or two inches
deep, open at the front end, where a
piece of wire-cloth closes the entrance.

Don't close the entrance with wire-
cloth of fine mesh that will not allow
th* bees to get through, for in that case
the bees that try to get out and find

266

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

will make the

themselves penned in
others uneasy.

We have another article from that
Chinese contributor, which we will pub-
lish as soon as we have room for it.

Queen Questions.— S. A. Smith,
of Blue Springs, Nebr., asks these ques-
tions, and requests that they be an-
swered in the Bee Journal :

1. When is the best time to re-queen
an apiary ?

2. Is a queen that is reared out of the
natural swarming season as good as one
reared during the swarming season ?

3. Is a queen that is reared in the
South as good as one reared in our own
latitude ? S. A. Smith.

1. The question as to whether the
apiarist should take into his own hands
the matter of renewing his queens or
leaving it in the hands of the bees is one
on which all are not agreed. Perhaps
the majority leave it to the bees. But if
you decide to supplant all your queens,
perhaps you will find no better time
than during the harvest, or near its
close. If you are as successful as some,
and get the new queen to laying within
48 hours after the removal of the old,
you will see that very little will be lost
by the change in any case.

2. As a rule, no. But whether a
queen may be reared out of the swarm-
ing season which shall be as good as
any, is quite another question. Many
insist, and perhaps rightly, that by hav-
ing proper control of conditions the bee-
keeper may secure just as good queens
at a time when bees left to themselves
would rear one.

3. Many queens raised in the South
have been sent North, and there seem
no adverse reports about them.

Self-Hivers is to be the "special
topic" of the March Bee-Keepers' Re-
view.

Read our great offer on page 261.

MOSES qriNBY.

I

To many of the present readers of the
Amebic AN Bee Joubnal, the name of
Quinby is almost unknown ; but to those
who are acquainted with the bee-keeping
of 25 or more years ago, the one whose
picture is shown on the opposite page is
indeed well known.

It is well for us all to often turn back
our thoughts to other days and times,
lest we forget " the pit from which we
were digged," or the struggles and sac-
rifices endured by others, so that to-day
it might be possible for us to enjoy the
unnumbered blessings which are the
results of the untiring efforts of those
who have long since passed from the
field of activity. As in other pursuits,
so it is in bee-keeping, and hence we
this week feel that with no little pleas-
ure will be read the following account
of Moses Quinby— one of the Princes in
the realm of bee-culture a quarter of a
century ago. Once more we are in-
debted to that peer in enduring apicul-
tural literature— the "ABC of Bee-
Culture " — for these paragraphs telling
of a noble man and his nobler life :

Moses Quinby was born April IB,
1810, in Westchester county, N. Y.
While a boy he went to Greene county,
and in 1853 from thence to St. Johns-
ville, Montgomery county, N. Y., where
he remained until the time of his death.
May 27, 1875.

Mr.Quinby was reared among Quakers,
and from his earliest years was ever the
same cordial, straightforward, and earn-
est person. Ho had no special advan-
tages in the way of obtaining an educa-
tion, but he was an original thinker,
and of that investigating turn of mind
which is always sure to educate itself.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

267

even without books or schools. When
about 20 years old he secured for the
first time, as his own individual posses-
sion, sufficient capital to invest in a stock
of bees, and no doubt felt enthusiastic
in looking forward hopefully to a good
run of " luck " in the way of swarms, so
that he could soon " take up" some by
the aid of the brimstone-pit. But " kill-
ing the goose that laid the golden egg "
did not commend itself to his better
judgment, and he was not slow to adopt
the better way of placing boxes on the
top of the hive, with holes for the as-

practical experience in handling and
studying the bees themselves, as well as
the books, he was not merely a bee-
keeper, but a bee-master ; and with that
philanthx'opic character which made him
always willing to impart to others, he
decided to give them, at the expense of
a few hours' reading, what had cost him
years to obtain, and in 1853 the first
edition of "Mysteries of Bee-Keeping
Explained," made its appearance. Thor-
oughly practical in character, and vig-
orous in style, it at once won its way to
popularity.

MOSES QUINBY.

cent of the bees, and these boxes he im-
proved by substituting glass for wood in
the sides, thus making a long stride in
the matter of the appearance of the
marketable product.

With little outside
plenty of unexplored
vestigating mind had
for operation, and he
study of bees and their habits. All the
books he could obtain were earnestly
studied, and everything taught therein
carefully tested. The many crudities
and inaccuracies contained in them were
sifted out as chaff, and after 17 years'

help, but with
territory, his in-
plenty of scope
made a diligent

From the year 1853, excepting the
Interest he took in his fruits and his
trout-pond, his attention was wholly
given to bees, and he was owner, or half
owner, of from 600 to 1,200 colonies,
producing large crops of honey. On the
advent of the movable-frame and Italian
bees, they were at once adopted by him,
and in 1862 he reduced the number of
his colonies, and turned his attention
more particularly to rearing and selling
Italian bees and queens. In 1865 he
published a revised edition of his book,
giving therein the added experience of
12 years. He wrote much for agricul-

^6B

AMERICAN^ BEE JOURNAL..

tural and other papers, his writings
being always of the same sensible and
practical character.

The Northwestern Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation, a body whose deliberations have
always been of importance, owed its
origin to Mr. Quinby, who was for years
its honored President — perhaps it is bet-
ter to say its honoring President, for it
was no little honor, even to so important
a society, to have such a man as Presi-
dent. In 1871 Mr. Quinby was Presi-
dent of the North American Bee-Keep-
ers' Association.

It is not at all impossible that the fact
that so many intelligent bee-keepers are
found in New York, is largely due to
there being such a man as Mr. Quinby
in their midst. The high reverence in
which he was always held by the bee-
keepers, particularly those who knew
him best, says much, not only for the
bee-master, but for the man.

On the occasion of the first meeting of
the Northeastern Society, after the
death of Mr. Quinby, Capt. J. E. Heth-
erington said, in his address, in a well-
merited eulogium on Mr. Quinby : "Of
the great amount of gratuitous labor
performed by him, to advance the
science of bee-culture, the fraternity as
a whole will never know, nor can they
realize the information imparted to the
numbers who flocked to see him per-
sonally, especially in the busy season."
"His life has been in every sense a
life of usefulness, and not wholly de-
voted to the interests of bee-culture, for
he took a living interest in any move-
ment he thought would benefit society ;
and as an advocate and helper in the
temperance work he did no mean ser-
vice. He possessed true kindness of
heart, and regarded it as a religious
duty to make all better and happier
with whom he came in contact, and re-
garded that life a failure that did not
leave the world the better for having
lived."

Tlie Re^ie-w will please accept
our thanks for the very kindly reference
contained in the following paragraph,
which it published in its Jan. number :

The Amekican Bee Journal Is bound
not to fall behind. Each issue is to con-
tain a portrait and biographical sketch
of some apicultural celebrity. There is
nothing like a face to face meeting, and
the hearty hand clasp, but even these
are rendered still more pleasant by hav-
ing first seen the portrait and read the
sketch.

CONDUCTED BY

M. mmmwmm,

JUGENHEIM, HESSEN. GERMANY.

Introduction.

I suppose I ought to make s«me "in-
troductory remarks," but I hate intro-
ductions, so I will only express the wish
that the highly-esteemed bee-keeping
friends in America may be interested
in the contents of this new department
in the "Old Reliable." H. Reepen.

European Doings.

Alcoholized Wax. — Weygandt, the
self-styled inventor of artificial heating
of bee-houses, if he wants a colony to
build as quick as possible new combs,
uses wax alcoholized to a very fine pow-
der. He puts it simply on the bottom
inside the hive, and the bees take it
willingly and carry it up to the combs.
But if the wax is not powdered in a very
fine way, the bees do not care for it.

A New Foul Brood Remedy. — Creo-
line has turned out to be a good remedy
for foul brood. Take a bottle of water
and put some Creoline into it, so that
the mixture is about 4 per cent. ; sprin-
kle the hive, combs and bees once or
twice ft week. If the foul brood is very
bad, sprinkle all the bees going in the
entrance, three or four times a day, so
that the antiseptic is constantly carried
through all parts of the hive.

Drone Mating with a Worker. — I
shortly read in the American Bee Jour-
nal that it was impossible, and it never
could happen, that a drone-bee could
mate with a worker-bee. In the year
1883 the rector Anton Kremer, at
Schroda, Provinz Posen, found close to
his bee-house, a drone-bee mated with a
worker-bee. As he never had heard of
such a case, he immediately sent this
couple to Schonfeld, the famous bee-
savant and microscopist, and he could
only ascertain the fact. As far as I
l<now, this couple is still In possession of
Schonfeld. B. Reepen.

Great Premium on page 261

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

269

Our School in Bee-Keeping.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

Worst Weather for a Long Time.

We are to-day having the worst
weather for a long time, at this season
of the year. The mercury is down to
28° above zero, and ice is hanging on
the fruit-trees and the houses. Well, I
guess we can't always have pleasant
sunshine. The bees are as still as mid-
night, but I think they will soon have
good weather again.

Jennie Atchley.

Greenville, Tex., Feb. 15, 1893.

Bee-Eeeping in Mississippi.

We had a very poor season in this
locality last year, on account of a cold,
wet spring. Our spring honey-flow
usually begins about May 1st, and con-
tinues about six weeks ; but last season,
during the most of the time, it was cold,
rainy weather, and previous to that it
was also cold and wet.

Our fall flow gave the bees plenty to
winter on. My surplus, last season,
averaged about 16 pounds per colony. I
use Root's dovetailed hives, and am well
pleased with them.

I enjoy the reading of the Ameecan
Bee Journal, very much, and especially
"In Sunny Southland " department, be-
cause there are so few in this part of
our country that take any interest in
apiculture. I would be glad to see more
correspondence from this State. I some-
times think that the bee-keepers of Mis-
sissippi should have a convention, and
try to let our brethren of other States
know what we are doing, or rather see
what we can do here with bees. I am
satisfied that we have a very good honey
country, but its resources have never
been developed. Our people devote most
of their time and attention to cotton.

B. F. Lewis.

Lewisburgh, Miss., Jan. 23, 1893.

THIRD LESSON — PREPARING FOR THE
HONEY-FLOW.

Now, as we have got both our hives
equipped with two crates of sections,
we will watch closely, and as soon as
the top crates are finished and nicely
capped clear to the wood of the section
all around, take off the top onte, and if
the honey-flow continues, we will raise
the remaining crate and place an empty
one under as before ; and this may be
continued as long as the honey-flow
lasts. Or here in the South, where one
flow comes and is gone, then another
comes on before the season closes, we
may operate as before.

Two crates are en»ugh to have, on any
hive, in my opinion, at one time, if the
hives are large enough, and we attend
to our business as we should.

At the close of the season, and yet be-
fore cold weather begins, if we have
been successful and secured a fair honey
crop, we may sell a portion of the honey,
and buy two pure Italian queens from
some reliable breeder, and have our bees
Italianized ready for winter, and to
start next spring with none but the best
bees, and we have made our bees self-
supporting, as well as some honey left
to use, and possibly enough money to
their credit to purchase next year's
supplies. Snugly fix the little pets for
winter, and be sure they have at least
20 pounds of honey and a moderate
colony of bees ; and now I leave you to
run your bees for comb honey alone,
next year.

PRODUCING EXTRACTED HONEY.

Now let us produce extracted honey
one year. As we now know how to
divide our bees, we will work the same
as before until the beginning of the
honey harvest, then we will place on
full-sized upper stories, that is, the same
size as the brood-chamber.

Lift two frames from below, and place
two filled with foundation in their
stead. Place the two frames of brood
and bees in the upper story, and in the
center, only spread them enough to
allow one frame of foundation between
them. Fill with frames of foundation
and when the bees get the first upper
story cleverly filled, if the strength of
the colony and the season or flow will
justify it, raise up and place an empty
one between as in producing comb
honey, filled with frames of foundation
as before, leaving two filled with honey
as in the first one.

270

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

If it is not a powerful colony, and an
extra year, you will not need more than
3 stories, and some years 2 will do.

Now listen : When the top story is
full, or when the frames are about half
capped, extract all the frames in it, and
then by this time the bees are well
started in the middle story, raise it up
and put the newly extracted one in the
middle, and so on as long as the flow lasts.

Do d^t be afaid of a little brood in the
upper stories, as I allow my queens to
lay where they please in running for ex-
tracted honey. Then if the brood is not
where we want it, I put it so.

It will surprise you to see the amount
of honey you can take from a single
colony when run for extracted honey,
when a good season comes. I have
harvested over 500 pounds from a sin-
gle colony in a single season, by the
above method, but we must not expect
that amount often.

Now you have a fine start, and you
can Italianize as before, if you choose,
and you can quit extracting a little be-
fore the harvest closes. And what a
nice chance to make some fall colonies
with the partly-filled combs, or what a
nice start you have for next year !

Now we know how to produce honey,
and I will next tell how to sell the crop,
and it is a trade to produce it, and a
separate trade to know how to sell it.
(Continued next week.)

Bees Stealing Honey.

Some years ago I undertook to put
some of my bees on pasture, my own
locality, where I lived then, being rather
poor for bee-pasture. Consequently, I
moved 6 colonies into a yard of one of
my old friends, who lived In a country
town which was located in a rich bot-
tom. I worked 4 colonies for extracted
honey, and 2 for comb honey in sections.
I manipulated the bees according to the
principles of the improved system of
keeping bees for profit.

In the adjoining lot neighbor Jackson
had a lot of black bees in box-hives. He
put on his honey-boxes where he ex-
pected his bees to store the surplus
honey, but never controlled swarming or
anything else. During that honey sea-
son I hauled away from those 6 colonies
at least 600 pounds of nice honey, when
neighbor Jackson did not get any honey;
but he exclaimed "that it is now plain
to him, that Z.'s bees have been stealing
the honey from the neighboring bees, or
it would have been impossible for them
to store so much honey."

The spring following I received a let-
ter without a signature, telling me this :
" If you want to save your bees, don't
bring them down here again ; we will
not be imposed upon — pasture your own
country," etc. I suppose many bee-
keepers of the old school would look at
the matter in the same way, at this
date. Maximilian.

Shawnee, Kans.

Eggs in Queen-Cells.

I notice on page 916 of Gleanings for
Dec. 15, 1892, an article written by
Wilder Graham, who seems to convey
the idea that the bees move eggs into
queen-cells. My experience is different,
as I know the queen lays the eggs in the
queen-cells just the same as she does in
other cells. You may take a queen
from a colony that has a dozen queen-
cells started, and you will never find a
queen reared in one of them, unless it
contained an egg before the queen was
removed. Then if bees move eggs into
queen-cells, why do they not put eggs
into the queen-cells already started,
rather than to start a queen-cell over an
egg or larva ?

An egg that is taken from any cell by
a bee, is destroyed, and never is again
deposited by the bee. Now, my obser-
vations may meet with opposition, but,
notwithstanding, I am settled on this
point. , J. A.

Hybrids vs. Italians for Oomb Honey.

Mr. Grover, on page 667 (1892) says:
" Hybrids are better for storing honey
in sections than the blacks ; but for this
locality I prefer Italians."

During 1892 I had a strong colony of
Italians at an out-apiary, that abso-
lutely refused to work in the sections.
They cast a swarm, and partly filled two
sections, but did not draw out another
piece of foundation in the super. The
hive rested upon eight inch blocks, and
the bees left it and built combs criss-
cross to the under side of the bottom-
board. When I found them they had
brood enough to fill two frames. As fast
as brood hatched in the body, the cells
were filled with honey. I put them into
another hive on the same stand, and
built up another colony with their brood,
giving it another queen. Both are now
good, strong colonies.

George Mott, M. D.

Spurger, Tex., Jan. 12, 1893.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

271

9Io8t Promising; Field of Labor
for Apiarists.

Query 860.— In your opinion, what is the
" most promising field of labor " for apiarists
at this stage of the industry of bee-keeping in
this country ?— Missouri.

I don't know. — P. H. Elwood.

We don't know. — Dadant & Son.

The production of honey. — R. L. Tat-

LOK.

Economy — more honey. — Will M.
Barnum.

I will not venture an opinion. — Mrs.
L. Harrison.

I am not suflBciently posted to even
give an idea. — J. E. Pond.

The production of gilt-edge comb-
honey. — Mrs. J. N. Heater.

This is a large question. An answer
would be only an opinion. — Eugene
Secor.

This is the question that would take a
wiser than Solomon to answer. — Jas. A.
Stone.

A very indefinite question. Rearing
bees and producing extracted and comb
honey, I reckon. — M. Mahin.

Producing honey. If you mean to ask
what is the best location for an apiarist,
I don't know. — James A. Green.

I don't understand the question. Try
the corn-field until you can put your
question in a better shape. — E. France.

To overcome the prejudice in the
minds of the people as regards all liquid
honey being spurious. Increase honey
consumption, etc. — J. M. Hambaugh.

In Missouri, I don't know ; but if you
are in a good locality for honey, and
understand how to make the bees do
just about as you want them to do, you
had better produce comb honey ; or, If
they won't mind you in that line, try
extracted honey. But if I were turned
loose to produce honey again, I would

look upon producing comb honey as the
most promising field for me, as nice sec-
tion honey never goes begging for a
buyer. — Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

At home— in California, Florida, Wis-
consin or Colorado. But almost always
somewhere else than in your present
location, wherever you are. — J. H. Lar-
rabee.

In the apiary, of course. Where else,
or in what other field should an apiarist
or bee-keeper labor ? If you did not
mean this, tell us what you did mean. —

G. M. DOOLITTLE.

I hardly know what is meant by the
" most promising field of labor." I will
venture to say, however, queen-rearing
or running a bee-paper, as the "crop"
never fails. — C. H. Dibbebn.

Locality and aptitude for some other
occupation must govern in all cases.
Poultry-keeping in connection with
fruit-raising will make a good combina-
tion in many localities. — H. D. Cutting.

I don't know. May be washing dishes,
If you're a woman. If you mean inside
of bee-keeping, if there is nothing
to be made producing honey, then there
will be no continued profit in any other
department. — C. C. Miller.

Bee-keeping, to be sure. If other
work is to be added, it must be a kind
fitted to the person. For me, it is to
teach ; for Hutchinson, to edit a paper ;
for Bingham, to make knives and
smokers. The thing, in short, that one
can do best. — A. J. Cook.

It might be best to go at something
else. But in the bee-business I should
produce comb and the article extracted,
in proportion of one-third of the former
and two-thirds of the latter. That has
been my plan for a number of years, and
it has paid me reasonably well. — G. W.
Demaree.

• I don't understand the question, but
will venture to say : Secure all the
honey you can in such shape as will
best suit your market, and then trade
or sell to the best advantage. This plan
will likely "promise" the best— if not

better than any other rural industries

J. P. H. Brown.

I can hardly tell from Query 860 just
what you mean. If you mean whether
you should produce comb or extracted
honey, you will have to determine that
by your taste and market. If you mean
the best location, look for one with
plenty of basswood, clover and wlld-
flowers, and five or more miles from any
large bee-keeper.— S. I. Freeborn.

272

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

kMn

Report of tlie Vermont State
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY H. W. SCOTT.

At the 18th annual convention of the
Vermont Bee-Keepers' Association about
35 members met in the parlors of the
Van Ness House, in Burlington, Vt., on
Dec. 28, 1892.

The meeting was called to order by
President V. V. Blackmer, of Orwell.
Prayer was offered by R. H. Holmes, of
Shoreham, after which the minutes of
the last meeting were read and ap-
proved. The President appointed the
following committees :

On Nominations — O. J. Lowrey, of
Jerico ; E. J. Smith, of Addison ; and
M. F. Cram, of West Brookfield.

On Eesolutions— R. H. Holmes, of
Shoreham ; W. G. Larrabee, of Larra-
bee's Point ; and J. W. Smith, of Mos-
cow.

The report of the Treasurer showed a
small surplus, and the report was ap-
proved.

J. H. Larrabee, of Larrabee's Point,
being unable to be present, the topic on
which he was to speak, was passed
over.

BEE-KEEPING AT THE VEKMONT AGRI-
CULTUKAL COLLEGE.

T. H. Wheatley, of Burlington, spoke
on "The Possibility of Bee-Keeping at
the Vermont Agricultural College Ex-
periment Station." He told of the ef-
forts he had made to get a few colonies
of bees to the station, and his subse-
quent work with them. Lack of time
had somewhat curtailed experiments.
Those connected with the station seemed
not only willing, but anxious to aid the
bee-keepers all that lay in their power,
and he did not doubt that some day in
the near future, the best honey State in
the Union would have a well equipped
apiary for experimental work at the
State College.

President Blackmer thought that bee-

keepers have been altogether too modest
in asking for proper recognition by those
in authority. He thinks it is time we
ask for our fair share of the moneys
appropriated for experimental work.

Some one suggested that a few promi-
nent apiarists be employed to conduct
experiments, keeping an accurate ac-
count of the same, and be paid for their
reports, which reports might be com-
piled in a bulletin. This was thought
to be hardly feasible, as there are so
few that would have sufficient appli-
ances to conduct certain experiments.

A committee being appointed for the
purpose, visited the Station, made an
estimate of the cost of increasing the
apiary there to a suflScient size as to be
serviceable, and the cost of an Expert
Director for the same one year. Their
report being received by the convention,
a special committee was appointed, to
hold office one year, and to confer with
the Board of Control of the College.
Committee — J. H. Larrabee, F. M.
Wright and M. F. Cram.

PERFORATED ZINC AND ITS USB.

Mr. O. J. Lowrey gave an interesting
talk on "The Advantages and Disad-
vantages Attending the Use of Perfor-
ated Zinc." He first tried queen-exclu-
ders in hiving swarms in contracted
brood-nests. He prefers the zinc-wood
slatted honey-boards, because they pre-
vent burr-combs. He had used the zinc
in drone-traps in out-apiaries, also in
caging queens in sections. He has had
very little trouble in queens going
through the zinc, but thinks that there
are different sized queens as well as per-
forations in zinc. Queen-excluders would
be a disadvantage if used before swarm-
ing.

W. G. Larrabee had used queen-ex-
cluders in working for extracted honey,
and could scarcely do without them.

HOUSE APIARIES, ABSORBENTS, ETC.

The address on " House Apiaries and
How to Use Them," was a very inter-
esting one, given by H. P. Langdon, of
East Constable, N. Y. His description
of a model house for 200 colonies was
illustrated by drawings which made all
very plain. He has used it but one sea-
son, but likes it so well that he could
not be induced to change.

The question of absorbents and up-
ward ventilation was discussed. Many
believed that they had been given too
much upward ventilation, and had con-
cluded that a circular hole in the honey-
board, 8 inches in diameter, issuflacient.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

273

EVENING SESSION.

Eight new members were added to the
rolls at this session.

The reports of the members were
given, and showed a rather poor season.
The number of colonies was increased
from 1,382 to 1,823; and 20,548
pounds of comb honey, and 4,100
pounds of extracted honey was reported.
There were three other large bee-keep-
ers, unable to be present, who were
known to have over 1,000 colonies of
bees, and a honey crop averaging with
those reported.

THE BEARING OF QUEEN-BEES.

H. W. Scott read an essay on
"Queens," which was discussed at
length. Few thought forced queens as
good as those reared in the natural way
during the swarming season. Some had
just as good, and others perferred to
hatch their queens in a nursery, since
they could then select those that looked
the best. Some thought that queens
reared in a poor season were liable to be
inferior to those reared in a good season,
while others could see no difference.

MIXTURE FOR SPRAYING POTATOES.

Mr. Crane not being present. Prof. L.
R. Jones, of the Agricultural College,
was called upon in regard to the spray-
ing of potatoes with a mixture contain-
ing molasses and poison. The mixture
is used to spray the potato tops in July
and August to prevent blight. Prof.
Jones was not sure that the addition of
the molasses was of any value, and he
thought it was quite probable that it
would be unnecessary to use it. The
association adopted the following reso-
lution in regard to the matter :

Resolved, That we as bee-keepers ap-
prehend danger from the addition of
sugar to poisonous solutions used in
spraying potatoes.

A vote of thanks was also tendered to
Prof. Jones, in recognition of his evident
willingness to assist the bee-keepers.

MORE UNION AMONG BEE-KEEPERS.

The discussion on, "How Shall We
Create More Union Among Bee-Keep-
ers?" was more of a rambling talk than
discussion. The necessity of urging
fellow bee-keepers to attend the annual
meetings, was one good point. The
harm done by small producers selling
honey at a very low figure, thus de-
stroying the market and the possibility
of forming some union to buy up such
honey, was talked over.

SECOND DAY— Morning Session.

A discussion of the Porter bee-escape
brought out the fact, that they are the
best escape yet used by any members of
this Association ; especially in the tak-
ing ofi of extracted honey they are al-
most indispensable for rapid, easy work.
There is a difference in seasons as to
the time it takes for the bees to pass
through the escapes.

VERMONT world's FAIR APIARIAN EX-
UIBIT.

The World's Fair Committee reported
that it had been difficult to get any defi-
nite answer from the State Commis-
sioners. The latest letters had been
more favorable, and he thought it would
be possible to send an exhibit if we could
get a small appropriation. There was
some doubt as to space being assigned to
hold until July, the earliest date that it
could be filled by Vermont honey. It
was the general opinion that there would
be room found for it, if an exhibit of
Vermont honey should be sent at any
time.

O. J. Lowrey and V. V. Blackmer
were added to the committee of last
year, which was R. H. Holmes, J. E.
Crane and H. W. Scott ; and the com-
mittee was elected and given power to
act for the Association in all matters re-
lating to an exhibit of honey at the
World's Fair under the auspices of the
Vermont Bee-Keepers' Association ; to
secure moneys and honey for an exhibit,
etc.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS.

The committee on nominations re-
ported the following for officers :

President — W. G. Larrabee, Larrabee's
Point.

Vice-Presidents — Addison county, E.
J. Smith, of Addison ; Chittenden county,
0. J, Lowrey, of Jerico ; Franklin coun-
ty, F. M. Wright, of East Enosburgh ;
Lamoille county, J. W. Smith, of Mos-
cow ; Orange county, M. F. Cram, of
West Brookfield ; and Rutland county,
H. L. Leonard, of Brandon.

Secretary and Treasurer — H. W. Scott,
of Barre.

The report was accepted, and the
Secretary instructed to cast one ballot
for the same, which, being done, they
were declared elected.

Besolutions were reported and adopted
as follows :

Resolved, That we as bee-keepers here
assembled feel thankful to the Almighty
Father for our health, happiness and
prosperity ; and, that we are permitted
to meet for the improvement of our

274

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL^

minds and the advancement of our pro-
fession ; and hope that we may have
many more years of health and happi-
ness.

Resolved, That we express our hearty
thanks to the C. V. R. R. Co., for their
accommodations, and to the proprietor
of the Van Ness House for our cordial
entertainment, and the use of the room
for holding the meeting, and to the
Executive Board of the Association for
their untiring efforts in preparing the
programme, and giving the report of the
last meeting ; and to all the members
and others who have lielped to make
this meeting a success ; especially to the
authorities at the Vermont Experiment
Station for their inclination to recognize
our pursuit.

This resolution was passed :

Resolved, That it having come to our
knowledge that the firm of Blake & Rip-
ley have reduced their commission for
selling honey to 5 per cent., it is the
sense of the bee-keepers in convention
assembled that we express our thanks to
this firm and any or all others that have
made this reduction in their commission.

FEEDING BACK EXTRACTED HONEY.

A very interesting discussion on
" Feeding Back Extracted Honey to Get
Partly Filled Sections Completed,"
brought out many facts relating to the
practice. To make it a success it should
be done as soon as possible after the
honey-flow ceases. The brood-nest should
be contracted, and as few colonies used
as is consistent. The honey should be
slightly diluted, and fed rapidly. It is
not advisable except with sections
nearly full, at present prices of comb
and extracted honey.

FEEDING BEES FOR WINTER.

R. H. Holmes thinks that feeding for
winter does not pay ordinarily. Much
is due to locality. Where it is necessary
to feed he advises doing so the first of
August, or after breeding is over. He
does not wish for late breeding. Feed
rapidly, and do not disturb the brood-
nest after feeding. If it becomes neces-
sary to give combs of sealed honey after
cold weather comes, place them at one
side of the cluster, but do not break the
cluster.

RELATIVE PROFIT OF COMB AND EX-
TRACTED HONEY.

W. G. Larrabee gave some facts in re-
gard to the relative profit of comb and
extracted honey. lie finds the profit de-
pends upon circumstances. A man with
only one yard of bees and plenty of time

can get pay for his time in working for
comb honey. If he has out-apiaries he
must hire help, or run them for ex-
tracted honey. A good crop of ex-
tracted honey can be secured In an out-
apiary. Honey can be secured in an
out-apiary with very little labor, and at
more profit than comb honey would give
after paying for the extra work. He
has to use queen-excluders. The cost of
crating it is much less. There is scarcely
any swarming.

MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS.

The question of contracting the brood-
nest during the honey-flow was dis-
cussed. All seemed to agree that more
honey could be secured, and of better
shape, yet it necessitated feeding for
winter, and this is objectionable.

Can more comb honey be secured by
using the two-pound sections ? was an-
swered thus : Yes, but the less price
and the uncertain market is a bar to
their use now.

The adulteration of honey is unknown
in Vermont. The law of 1884 was read
by the Secretary, which provides a fine
of not less than $35 for adulteration, or
knowing sale of adulterated honey. It
was thought that this law is sufficient to
prevent any adulteration.

The next meeting will be in January,
1894, at Burlington.

The business being finished, the con-
vention adjourned. •

There was an informal meeting in the
afternoon, when a social visit was en-
joyed by those present.

H. W. ScoTT, Sec.

tJouTention IVotices.

NEW YORK. —The next meeting- of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be iield at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be— an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

TEXAS.— The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
in Greenville, one mile north of the Court
House, at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
on Wednesday and Thursday. April the 5th
and 6th, 1893. One of the biggest bee-meet-
ings ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody is invited. No hotel bills to par.
Come one, come all, and let us have a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to
exhibit. A. H. Jones, Sec.

Golden. Texas.

i(

Bees and Honey'* — page 2t>l.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

2T5

Further Details of Packing Bees
for Winter.

Written Jor tlie American Bee Journal
BY JAMES A. QKEEN.

(Coatinued from page 244.)

The outer cases which I use for pack-
ing 4 colonies were made of some refuse
inch lumber I happened to have. The
only objection to the use of such lumber
is its weight — a matter of little conse-
quence when two can work together in
packing and unpacking. If new lumber
is to be used in making them, I would
get common lumber, and have it split
and planed on one side. Packing cases
made of such lumber are lighter, easier
to handle, and may be kept neatly
painted if desired.

I formerly advocated making outer
cases of lath, and most of my boxes for
packing single colonies are made of that
material. Lath is the cheapest material
that can be used for the purpose, and it
has some other good points in its favor ;
but all things considered, I would prefer
to use wider and better lumber.

The boxes are made of such size that
when put over the hives there is a space
©f 4 inches for packing all around the
outside of the hives, and 8 inches on
top. This space is quite sufficient to
allow the use of coarse packing ma-
terial, such as planer shavings, leaves,
straw, or any other material of this
nature that is easily obtained. Where
sawdust can be easily obtained — it is
somewhat expensive, and hard to get
here — it is perhaps better than a looser
and more open material. When it is
used, the thickness of the packing may
be somewhat less — say 2 or 3 inches at
the sides, and 6 inches on top.

The wintering cases that have been
offered for sale by several supply dealers
are not large enough to admit of a suffi-
cient quantity of packing material, es-
pecially on top.

Chaff is a good packing material as
long as it is kept dry. A serious objec-

tion to its use, sometimes, is that the
grain which it is apt to contain attracts
mice, which often find their way into the
hive and greatly injure or destroy the
colony.

Perhaps the best packing material,
cost not taken into consideration, is
ground cork. Cork is specially valuable
to those who think it necessary to use
a porous covering for the top of the
hive, with some absorbing material, in
order that the moisture generated by
the bees may pass off in this way. This
is something that I consider entirely un-
necessary. In preparing my bees for
winter I leave on the flat board cover
that covers the top of my hives, and
usually this is sealed down tight, which
is the way the bees will always have it
if they are given the opportunity before
cold weather comes.

I will say right here, though, that I
believe that bees will go through the
winter just as well if a porous covering
is used, which, while not permitting a
draft, allows a very slow circulation of
air that will carry upward the moisture
of the hive. With very large hives hav-
ing only a small entrance, perhaps this
is the best plan. But as soon as the
bees begin to rear brood in the spring, it
is very desirable that the hive should be
perfectly tight on top. As I do not be-
lieve in disturbing bees in early spring
to make any changes in their hives, I
prefer to have the top sealed down tight
at all times, and avoid, as far as possi-
ble, loosening the covers after the bees
have sealed them down tight in the fall.

Some inquire if a dead-air space would
not be as good as the more troublesome
packing. Dry air is a most perfect non-
conductor, and in all our packing the
air that is contained in the interstices is
of more value in retaining heat than the
packing material itself. A perfect dead-
air space, if it could be secured, would
be as good a protection against cold as
could be devised. Practically, though,
a "dead-air space," as a protection
against cold, is an Impossibility.

Heat is conveyed not only by conduc-
tion and radiation, but by "convection,"
the name given to that process by which
heat is carried by moving particles of
air, or other gas or liquid. If a body of
air is confined between two walls, even
though the enclosure is perfectly air-
tight, if one wall is warmer than the
other, or any part of the interior, cur-
rents of air will be set up that will carry
the heat to the colder portions. Parti-
cles of air coming in contact with the
warmer wall are heated, and rise.
Their place is taken by colder particles,

276

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

and this procession of heat-bearing par-
ticles of air is continued until there is a
perfect equilibrium of heat throughout
the enclosure. To obtain the full benefit
of the non-conducting qualities of air,
we must therefore confine it into very
small spaces, so that any motion of its
particles may be as far as possible pre-
vented. Other things being equal, that
is the best non-conductor that contains
most air, finely divided and incapable of
motion.

Mr. M. M. Baldridge has very kindly
sent me samples of a pai)er roofing that
he has used for covering packing cases,
that is certainly far superior to anything
of the kind I ever saw before. It is
called " Bodine Roofing." The cost is
said to be about the same as good shin-
gles. It would be much lighter, and is
apparently very durable. It is likely
that it might be profitably used for cov-
ering bee-hives instead of tin. It is
made for roofing in sheets 26x38 inches,
and is made to lap much the same as
roofing iron.

A correspondent on page 151 advises
packing 8 colonies in one box. There
would indeed be economy of heat, and in
the material required for making such
packing boxes. But such boxes would,
from their size, be much more unwieldy,
especially the covers. The disturbance
of the bees, which is unavoidable in all
handling where more than one colony is
packed in a box, would be doubled.
Eight hives would be top many to have
in a group for summer, and it would be
troublesome to move that number close
together from ordinary positions. They
could not be placed so as to form a com-
pact bunch, with the entrances on all
sides as he suggests, unless half of them
had the entrance at the side of the hive,
which would not be desirable. Neither
do I think it would be best to have any
face the north, nor would it be conven-
ient to work around hives that could be
reached only from the front.

Ottawa, Ills.

■ ■ ^

Bee-Hives -A New One that
Iflay Prove Valuable.

Written for the American Bee Journal
W. J. CULLINAN.

Notwithstanding all that has been
said and written to the contrary, and
the slight importance attached to this
very important part of the machinery
of practical apiculture, I am inclined to
believe that the kind of hive we use has

as much to do with our success, com-
paratively speaking, as the kind of bees
we keep ; and not only does the hive cut
an important figure in the successful
keeping of bees, and the economical pro-
duction of honey, but the frame also,
and the two together go a long way
toward solving the problem of cheap
production; and since it is only by cut-
ting down the cost of production that we
can cope with a declining market, and
get any profit out of the business, this
question of cheap production becomes of
paramount importance. I hold that the
first move in the direction of cheapening
production is to lessen labor ; and how
shall we expect to lessen labor except
through ease and rapidity of manipula-
tion ?

If we can so construct our hives and
frames (of the latter I may speak later),
and change our manner of manipulation
that one man can do the work of two,
and at the same time obtain as good or
better results than formerly, may we
not add the wages of one man for every
day we work in the apiary to our former
profits ? Of course it will cost some-
thing to make the change ; but suppose
it costs all of the extra profits the first
year, we are really not out anything,
and we can put those extra profits into
our pocket each year thereafter, and be
greatly benefited.

According to my notion, a bee-hive for
the general bee-keeper should possess at
least these three essential features :

Ist. The successful wintering and
springing, and comfortable summering
of bees out-of-doors, without other pro-
tection than the hive, for so most of the
bees are kept.

2nd. The encouragement of brood-
rearing to the highest possible degree at
certain times, as the case requires.

3rd. It should be light, and subject to
easy and rapid manipulation at all times.

It is claimed by many that bees winter
as well in single-walled as in double-
walled hives, but I am inclined to doubt
it in case of severe winters. I have
tested them side by side, but not in a
severe winter, and while they did go
through the winter in the single-walled
hives in about as good condition, they
fell behind very appreciably when spring
came, and did not come up to the honey-
flow in as good condition by one-third as
they did in the double-walled hives.
And now, after an experience of four
years with the same, my preference is
for a thick-walled hive — especially where
they are to stand out-of-doors the year

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

277

around ; in other words, where you
want an all-purpose hive.

The shallow sectional hive which ad-
mits of the easy, gradual and at the
same time highest expansion of the
brood-chamber at the proper time, and
its sudden contraction at the beginning
of the honey-flow, and entailing the
smallest possible outlay of time and
labor will, in the course of time, com-
mand more attention than it does at
present. But the shallow sectional hive
as heretofore constructed has, so far as
I can learn, always been a thin-walled
hive ; and this, while it facilitates ma-
nipulation, necessitates packing in the
fall, and unpacking in the spring,
thereby entailing considerable extra
labor. What we want in an all-purpose,
out-door hive is a sectional hive so con-
structed as to be capable of resisting the
extremes of heat and cold, without the
expense of outside cases, or the trouble
of packing or unpacking.

Mr. Henry Hayek, an Illinois bee-
keeper, has lately devised and con-
structed a hive which fills the bill more
nearly than anything I have yet seen.
In its construction, which is both simple
and practical, it combines, to a wonder-
ful degree, the advantages of the old
straw skep of Germany with those of the
modern sectional hive. It is a sectional
hive with thick walls ; the sections are
7 inches deep (but may be made of any
depth desired), 13^ inches thick, and
made of straw. The walls being thick,
it resists heat and cold as well as a ch^ff
hive. The sections being light, may be
as easily and rapidly manipulated as
any sectional hive made of boards. The
exterior being reasonably smooth, may
be painted, and Mr. H. says it will last
as long, if not longer, than the average
board hive.

The Hayek Brothers have used this
hive in their apiary side by side with
the Heddon, American and Langstroth,
and they give it the preference over
either of the others. The present very
severe winter will show which is the
better winter domicile for the bees.

I have no interest in this hive only as
it interests bee-keepers in general, but I
do believe it is going to meet a long-felt
want in the line of a cheap, easily ma-
nipulated and practical general-purpose
hive. It may be made to take either the
hanging or standing frame, and the
thickness of the walls may be modified
in thickness, I believe, to suit the no-
tions of the individual bee-keeper.

Adams Co., Ills.

Things Learned fromExperience
in Wintering Bee§.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY O. 8. BROWN, M. D.

For the past six years I have been ex-
perimenting as to which was the best
to place absorbents or non-absorbents
directly over the cluster. Thinking that
the information thus gained would be of
interest to readers of the Bee Jocbnal,
I will give the various things tried, and
the conclusions drawn from these ex-
periments.

I have tried, thick and thin boards,
with and without chaflf covering then ;
layers of old newspapers covered with
chaff ; mats of brussels carpet and bur-
lap covered with chaff' ; oil-cloth covered
with chaff; Hill's method and short
sticks across the frames, with all the
above excepting board covers ; also laid
covers flat upon the frames ; oats,
wheat and timothy chaff, finely cut ;
hay and oats, or wheat straw, forest
leaves; old rags, old papers torn into
bits ; planing mill shavings, and dry
sawdust, excelsior, and several layers of
old carpet.

From all the experiments, I have
gleaned the following facts about win-
tering bees in this locality :

1st. That next to plenty of good
stores, the next most important requisite
to safe wintering is — to have warm, dry
absorbents placed directly over the clus-
ter, so that this material will absorb all
moisture given off by the bees.

2nd. That it makes but little differ-
ence what the absorbent is composed of,
so that it will readily absorb, and that
the hive keeps It from outside moisture.

3rd. That the absorbents must not be
placed too thick, or the moisture will
not pass through them.

4th. That it is better during the win-
ter, whenever a bright, warm day comes,
to remove the top of the hive, and let
the sun shine directly upon the absorb-
ents for some hours, to dry the moisture
found collected on top of the absorbents.

oth. That it is better to have the ab-
sorbents in the form of mats or cushions,
for convenience.

6th. That it is of no benefit to use
cross sticks or Hill's device under the
absorbents, nor to make winter passages
in the combs ; for the bees will winter
just as well without of any of these.

7th. That for all ordinary-sized colo-
nies, it is useless to remove the brood-
frames and replace by absorbents or
solid division-boards.

278

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

8th. That in this locality it makes but
little difference whether a single or
double walled hive is used, having air
space or chaff packed, just so the ab-
sorbents are placed over the cluster.

9th. That unless you " sun " and air
the packing frequently during the win-
ter, your bees will suffer from dampness.

10th. That the absorbents are of
much benefit in the late spring to protect
the brood from the sudden changes we
have here.

Londonderry, Ohio.

_ Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Bees are All O. K.

My bees are all O. K. at this writing,
in the cellar. I had 5 colonies, and
bought 4 more of Italians at an auction
for $21. Jno. H. Rupp.

Washington, Kan., Feb. 4, 1893.

Skunks in the Apiary, Etc.

There are a great many skunks where
I live. Mr. H. C. Farnum says that they
dig at the front of the hive. He did not
say where it was — in the dirt, or whether
they dug at the hive-entrance. We are
now having some cold weather, but the
bees have begun to rear considerable
brood. T. W. Wheeler.

Menardville, Texas, Feb. 3, 1893.

Cold Weather Long Continued.

I have just looked my bees over after
our unusually long spell of cold weather,
ranging from 13" below zero to a few
degrees above, and I find those with
sealed covers in bad condition, and sev-
eral colonies dead, that had plenty of
bees and an abundance of stores. The
hives were nearly full of frost and ice,
while those with cushions on top so far
are all right, with little frost in the
hives. My hives are double, with so-

called dead-air space, and with cushions
on ; last winter they wintered nicely. I
do not think I shall care to try the
Root's sealed covers any more.

Bees have not had a chance to fly
here since the first of November, and I
fear if this cold weather lasts much
longer without a chance for them to
have a cleansing flight, there will be
few colonies left in the spring. What
bees are kept in this vicinity are win-
tered out-of-doors. We do not get the
large amounts of honey herein southern
New Hampshire that they do in many
places. Last year my surplus averaged
about 25 pounds per colony, spring
count, about half extracted, with about
25 per cent, increase of colonies.

Geo. S. Wheeler.

New Ipswich, N. H., Feb. 8, 1893.

Did Well for a Poor Season.

I have been keeping a few colonies of
bees several years, and concluded to in-
crease the number last spring. Last
summer I had 6 old colonies, and 6 first
swarms, which stored 320 pounds of
honey, and it was a poor season. I have
16 colonies in the cellar now.

S. M. Robertson.

Grey Eagle, Minn., Jan. 28, 1893.

Bees in Fine Condition.

My bees, at present, are in fine condi-
tion on the summer stands, packed in
fine hay, and a roof over to keep all dry.
5 got about 50 pounds of comb honey to
the colony, spring count, last year. All
have plenty of honey to winter on, and
of a good quality. Bees are not so
plentiful now as they were 18 months
ago. We have had plenty of zero
weather for the last two months.

Lee Powelson.

Batavia, Iowa, Jan. 31, 1893.

Bees Tryiug to Get Out of the Hives.

I started last spring with 3 colonies
of bees, and of course I wanted to in-
crease the number, so I did not put on
the surplus cases until late, and, to my
surprise, they did not swarm, and did
not store one ounce of surplus honey.
But they have plenty of stores for win-
ter. I bought 9 colonies more last fall,
of my neighbors, which I think will give
me a good start for next spring, if I
have success in wintering.

They are all packed In straw, with
chaff cushions on top. But the 9 colo-
nies I bought last fall do not act right —

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

279

they are all the time trying to gnaw out
every time the weather slacks a little,
so they can stir out a peg. I have a fine
screen tacked over the entrance, so they
cannot get out. An old bee-keeping
friend told me that he never had good
luck in wintering a colony of bees when
they acted like that; they always died
out in the spring ; so this somewhat dis-
courages me. If any other bee-keepers
have had such experience, I would like
to hear from them through the Bee
Journal. Chas. C. Chamberlin.

Romeo, Mich., Feb. 4, 1893.

Pretty Cold for the Bees.

I started last fall with 90 hives well
stocked with bees. They had a flight
the last of November, and since then
there have been very few days that the
temperature has been above 40°. It
has been so cold that the ice has formed
in the hives so that I cannot poke the
dead bees out as I usually do. This
morning the temperature was 2^ below
zero, with the wind in the west, and
blowing quite hard. If this weather
continues, I think there will be a market
for all the honey the bees gather the
coming season. Edwin Hutchinson.

East Avon, N. Y., Feb. 8, 1893.

Colonies in Good Condition.

I have kept bees for 15 years, but
previous to my sending for the Bee
Journal, three years ago, I knew little
about caring for them, except what I
learned by experience. I had them in
old-fashioned hives, and got little honey;
now I have all in Langstroth hives. I
have 25 colonies in "good condition in
the cellar, in a room partitioned off on
purpose for the bees. I have a good
cellar, and have always had good luck
in wintering them in the cellar. We
got no surplus honey last year, and this
was the third poor honey season. I
could not keep bees very well without
the Bee Journal. Every bee-keeper
should take it. L. A. Stickney.

Plainview, Minn., Jan. 30, 1893.

Coldest Winter in Tennessee.

We have to record the coldest winter
here for years. The thermometer, in
places, has registered as low as 28° be-
low zero. Hundreds of colonies of bees
have been lost by freezing. In this lati-
tude bees are generally wintered on the
summer stands, without any extra prep-

aration for winter, but this season shows
the necessity of more attention. So far,
I have lost none. I began the winter
with 30 colonies, on the summer stands,
packed with chaff division-boards on
each side, with a device similar to the
Hill device, and chaff cushions over the
brood-chamber. The estimate now is
that from 40 to 50 per cent, of the bees
of this section have frozen. The tem-
perature here very rarely goes to zero.
The lowest last winter was 10° above
zero. H. F. Coleman.

Sneedville, Tenn., Jan. 27, 1893.

Commencing to Keep Bees.

Bee-keeping here is only just com-
mencing in the country. There have
been bees in the neighboring towns, but
for the most part they have been more
ornamental than profitable. The bees
themselves have lately been trying to
break into the country. I gathered 4
colonies out of the woods last summer (a
small strip of timber along a creek) on
my farm, and on an adjoining ranch
within 2 miles there are 100 acres of
alfalfa, besides red clover. Our mer-
chants supply their customers with Chi-
cago honey, and I see no reason why we
cannot produce our own honey if we
give bees the same care and intelligent
attention that we do other stock.

D. J. Eraser.

Peabody, Kans., Feb. 6, 1893.

More than Made Expenses.

Three years ago I started with 3 colo-
nies of Italian bees, which increased to
18 during the last three summers. My
best colony, last summer, gave me a sur-
plus of comb honey in sections of 54
pounds, and 80 pounds of extracted
honey. The poorest colony gave me no
comb honey, and 20 pounds of extracted
honey. Bee-men around here say the
last two summers were poor for bee-
keeping. I had my own honey and made
expenses. For my work I have 18 colo-
nies on movable-frames, in two story
double-walled hives, with plenty of
stores, in good condition for winter.
Henry Bohlmann.

Defiance, 0., Jan. 30, 1893.

"Wintering Nicely — Late Queens.

My 200 colonies of bees are wintering
nicely. We have had a very severe
winter. Bees were confined to their
hives^without a flight for six weeks or

280

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

more. A few days ago we had a little
summer weather, which gave me an op-
portunity to examine them somewhat.
My full colonies were in good condition,
but I am trying to winter some 50
nuclei colonies which were used for late
queen-rearing, which did not do so well.
I am wintering 12 nuclei with very late
queens. The queens I thought were too
late to be fertilized, as I could not find a
single drone, yet to my surprise, when
examining them, they had young bees
hatching in January. How is that ? My
bees are all on the summer stands, with
the exception of the 12 nuolei colonies
referred to. Chas. H. Thies.

Steeleville, Ills., Feb. 6, 1893.

Mesquite as a Honey-Plant.

All over this southwestern country
there grows a scrubby tree called " mes-
quite," and 1 want to ask the bee-keepers
of Texas and Arizona what they know
about mesquite as a honey-producing
plant. I have had some evidence on
the question, but not enough to be en-
tirely satisfactory. I am of the opinion
that it outrivals the basswood of the
North, both in quantity and quality,
and that the reason it has not been more
noticed is that it comes before the aver-
age bee-keeper has bees to gather the
harvest, and consequently they have not
found out that they were losing any-
thing, or that the mesquite is a plant
that yielded nectar. It covers a vast
area of country that is almost entirely
unoccupied by bee-men. I estimate the
extent of the region where this tree
grows to be not less than one million
square miles. J. G. Stewart.

Las Cruces, New Mex., Jan. 30,1893.

who wish to participate in the honey ex-
hibit of Wisconsin must address the
agent of the association, or its Corres-
ponding Secretary (your humble ser-
vant), who will give you full informa-
tion regarding the subject.
Madison, Wis. J. W. Vance, M. D.

Wisconsin Honey Exhibit.

I think the Wisconsin Bee-Keepers'
Association are fortunate in securing
the services of Mr. Franklin Wilcox, of
Mauston, Wis., to take charge of their
honey exhibit at the World's Columbian
Exposition. Mr. W. is .a bee-keeper of
large experience and sound judgment,
and thoroughly qualified for the posi-
tion. It is sincerely hoped that all Wis-
consin bee-keepers will co-operate with
him in order to make the bee-keepers'
department of the Exposition a grand
success. The Executive Commissioner
of the World's Fair for Wisconsin — Hon.
R. B. Kirkland — has placed the honey
display of Wisconsin in charge of the
State Bee-Keepers' Association, and all

Gathering Honey in Florida.

Bees are gathering honey very fast
from peach-bloom and the ti-ti. They
carry in very pretty pollen, and drop
down at the entrances of their hives like
shot. The bees of this locality, with
few exceptions, are the common black
bees. The honey of this land is good,
yet bee-culture is in a very backward
condition. The weather is so lovely
here that it does not seem possible that
my bee-friends in the North are in the
midst of snow and ice.

Mrs. L. Harrison.

St. Andrew's Bay, Fla., Feb. 22, 1893.

[We were pleased to get the above
from our friend, Mrs. Harrison, from
her Southern home in the winter. How
delightful it must be where she is. We
just wondered if she wouldn't favor her
Bee Journal friends with an occasional
note from that " Land of Flowers " and
honey. We are sure all would enjoy
reading anything that she might choose
to send. — Ed.]

j Bee-Keeping- in "Egypt."

I My bees are doing well. They had 3
j or 4 day's flight, after prolonged zero
! freezing. They are on the summer
I stands without any protection. My
neighbors say they lost almost all theirs
this winter. I owe my success to read-
ing the Bee Journal and other bee-
literature on feeding and ventilating.
I am well pleased with the Bee Journal;
I can't get along without it. We got
scarcely any honey in 1892 ; 1891 was
a glorious year down hero in " Egypt" —
would like to see 1893 likewise. I have
the little brown bees — 4 colonies in mov-
able-frame hives, and 11 in box-hives.
I will get them all into frame hives in
the spring. I would like to Italianize
my bees. Allen Springer.

Rose Bud, Ills., Feb. 3, 1893.

Have You Bead that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 261 ?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

281

^^A^3^^2©AS^v^^

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

At One Dollar a Year,

56 Fifth Avenue, CHICAGO. ILLS.

Special Notices,

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Journal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
Suffield, Portage co, Ohio

r,ocal Checks. — Please do not
send us checks on local banks. We have
to pay from 15 to 25 cents each to get
them cashed here, which is quite a use-
less expense, when you can either send
money by registered letter, or get an ex-
press or post-office Money Order. We
prefer the express Money Order, if you
can get that ; otherwise the post-office
Money Order or registered letter.

Xlie Silver Cross, the official
organ of the " International Order of
The King's Daughters and Sons," is the
only journal that publishes the Popular
Drawing-Room Bible Talks of Mrs.
Margaret Bottome, President of the
Order. For many years Mrs. Bottome
has inspired large audiences to noble
living and unselfish service by these
familiar talks on Scripture topics. They
have been stenographically reported and
revised by the author for The Silver
Cross. This magazine is the only me-
dium of interchange between members
of the Order. Address, Silver Cross Pub.
Co., 158 W. 23rd St., New York.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 261.

CONVENTION DIRECTORY.

Time and place of meeting.

1893.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

2^" In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller.... Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury. Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George VV. York ... Chicago, Ills.

• * 9 * •

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l, Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Annual Catalog:ues or Price-

Lists we have received from —

-Api-
-Api-

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

George Rail, Frenchville, Wis.
arian Supplies.

J. D. Givens, Lisbon, Tex. — Golden
Italian Queens.

Vaughn's Seed Store, Chicago, Ills. —
All kinds of Seeds.

M. H. Hunt, Bell Branch, Mich.— Bee-
Keepers' Supplies.

James Vick's Sons, Rochester, N. Y.
All kinds of Seeds.

Green's Nursery Co., Rochester, N. Y.
— Fruit and Flowers.

St. Joseph Apiary Co., St. Joseph, Mo.
Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

J. F. Michael, German, Ohio. — Golden
Italian Queens and Bee-Supplies.

J. D. Goodrich, East Hardwick, Vt. —
Foundation, Sections, Hives, and other
Apiarian Supplies.

Chas. H. Thies, Steeleville, Ills. — Api-
arian Supplies, Golden Italian Queens,
and Pure Bred Poultry.

Chicago Bee-Keepers' Supply Co.,
Topeka, Kans., and Chicago, Ills. — Gen-
eral Supplies for Bee-Keepers.

Leahy Mfg. Co., Higginsville, Mo. —
Bee-Hives, Bees, Queens, Honey, Bees-
wax and Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

Haire You Read page 261 yat ?

282

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
February 25th, 1893 :

CHICAGO, III.— There are occasional sales
of best grades of comb honey, but the retail-
ers are not yet sold out on supply laid in
before the holidays. Prices are a little easier,
especially on that which will not grade " fan-
cy"—such brings 17@18c., and other grades
12®16c. Extracted, 6@9c., as to quality.

Beeswax— 22@25c. R. A. B. & Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16®17c. Dark sells ^ow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at SVi ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23®25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers is slow, but the demand is good for
extracted for family use. It brings 6@8c.—
No good comb is on our market. It would
bring 14®16c.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 23@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8i4c. ; buckwheat, 6@6i4c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
Is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S.. L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNEAPOLIS,MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7®8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7V4c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C.-M. C. C.

Albany, N. Y — Our stock of honey is light
and also receipts. Demand keeps up better
than usual this season. We are selling white
comb honey at 14®16c.; mixed, 12@13c.;
dark, 10®llc. Extracted, white, 9@9i4c.;

mixed, 7'/4®8c.; dark, 7@7i4c.

30c

Bees wax, 2 i
H. R. W.

Please Don't send to us
keepers' supplies. We do not
them. If in need of anything
apiary except a good bee paper
just send for the catalogues of
our advertisers. They will be
fit you out, and do it well.

for bee-
deal in
for the
or book,
some of
glad to

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Chicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamow. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. V.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

Minneapolis, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

»

Cincinnati, Olilo.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central av8.

"The ^Winter Problem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Jouenal, for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Jouenal one year for
$1.30. Send to us for a copy.

Wants or Excliapges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

^ /• -.1 N /■ «rf -S ^ ^.

>^*'ta-N^\.'^^\.^»'S.'^./N.'*-^S

-'N.'^_/N/-w*S^'WS/"w"\^V.

WANTED— A second-hand Barnes' Circu
lar Saw. W. J. SHELDON, Parker, S. D-

W ANTED — Every bee-keeper to see the
cut of best Starter Fastening Machine
made. Your name on a card will get it.
CHARLES WHITE.
8A2t Aurora, Nebraska.

TO EXCHANGE — A 454 x 6'/» Photograph
Outfit, for Honey Extractor, or other Api-
arian Supplies. Address.

CURTIS HUNT,
9Alt Durhamville, N. Y.

GEORGE W. YOBK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. 1 To Bee-CULTURE. ( Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MARCH 9, 1893.

NO. lU.

" Tliere is No Friend like the old friend

who has shared our moruing- days.
No greeting like his welcome, no homage like

his praise ;
Fame is the scentless sunflower, with gaudy

crown of gold ;
But friendship is the breathing rose, with

sweets in every fold."

Your Attention is called to the
advertisement of Mrs. J. P. Cookenbach,
on page 291 of this issue of the Bee
Journal. If you wish to secure good
accommodations in advance of coming
to see the World's Fair, just write to her,
and she will be glad to help you, and
see that you are well cared for. Mrs. C.
is a splendid christian woman, whom we
have known for five or more years,
hence we feel that we can recommend
her to you.

Partly-Filled Sections,— The
following sentence appears in a cata-
logue and price-list for 1893 : " As
there are many who will no doubt try
the experiment of feeding sugar-syrup
for the purpose of having partly-filled
sections completed, to such I would
recommend my new feeder, as they were
invented with this purpose in view." In

view of the fact that practically all have
agreed that it is not well to do anything
to encourage sugar-honey, we must im-
plore all who have any spark of honor
not to jeopardize the business of honey-
producing for the paltry sum to be ob-
tained from selling a few feeders or
models. It is safe to say that the great
mass of bee-keepers would call loudly
to keep out of view any feeder invented
with such a "purpose in view."

The Bee-Keepers' Revie-w

for February is perhaps the most val-
uable number yet issued by Mr. Hutch-
inson. Hon. R. L. Taylor's first article
under the head of " Timely Topics," is
packed with hints that are seasonable,
and also well seasoned. "Rambler"
gives one of his usual interesting articles
on the "Pacific Coast, its Magnitude
and Honey-Pasturage." These are only
two of the many " meaty " articles and
items contained in that issue.

Since publishing our "final state-
ments " on page 231, we have received
a long letter from Mr. Hutchinson, and
also one from Prof. Cook, in reference
to the late utterances in the Bee Jour-
nal, upon the sugar-honey question. It
seems that the opinion prevails to some
extent that we thought Prof. Cook and
Mr. Hutchinson were dishonest. Nothing
could be further from our thought. We
have known both too long to be very
easily convinced that they were not
hcmest, either in their convictions or

296

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

otherwise. Neither have we thought or
said that they were " criminals," and
should be sorry indeed to think that we
had caused any one to view either Prof.
Cook or Mr. Hutchinson in any unjust
light.

We may say further, that while we
have felt it our duty to so very severely
criticise the position of the Review on
the sugar-honey subject, it is still a
pleasure to say (aside from this one
point) that the Revipw is almost above
criticism, is always at the front, and
full of the most practical and valuable
information. We have always appre-
ciated its "topical" discussions, and
feel that it covers a unique and special
field of usefulness.

We hope we shall never become so
one-sided or prejudiced that we cannot
see the merits of rival publications, or
enjoy the personal friendships of their
editors. While we may often be compelled
to honestly differ from them, we still shall
trust that there may never occur any-
thing so serious as to sever the friendly
relations that should exist among those
who would advance mutual interests in
any worthy cause.

Feeding Inferior Honey.—

A subscriber in Colorado sends In this
query for reply :

At what stage of the weather in spring
is it safe to feed inferior or slightly
scorched honey or syrup to bees ?

Just as soon as they can fly freely.
Perhaps there might be no danger if you
were sure they could fly as often as once
a week.

Bee-Culture in California.--

The University of California, writes Mr.
W. A. Pryal, of that State (and who
attended the meeting of the California
State Bee-Keepers' Associa tion reported
on page 804 of this number of the Bee
Journal), is to have ap apiarian depart,
ment. This institution should have such
a department, but it was not Mr. Pryal's
fault that such was not the case long er

this. Mr. P. has advocated such a fea-
ture for fully a decade. Still, as it is
better late than never, we hail the an-
nouncement with pleasure, and trust the
new department will be established at as
early a date as possible.

The agricultural department of the
University will conduct the apiarian
experimental station, and also conduct
the studies. The success of this feature
will depend upon how many students
present themselves for admission to the
course. If the number is too small, the
matter will be dropped for the present.

Prof. E. W. Hilgard, who is now
traveling in Europe on a leave of ab-
sence, is at the head of the Agricultural
College ; Mr. E. W. Wickson is profes-
sor of Dairying, Horticulture and Ento-
mology ; Mr. E. L. Greene is professor
of Botany ; and Mr. C. W. Woodward is
professor of Entomology, and will have
charge of the apiarian department.

Mold in Cellars.— We are asked
the following question about mold accu-
mulating in cellars :

Does mold accumulate the faster in a
warm or cold cellar ? W. E. S.

Without claiming to be authority in
moldy matters, we feel pretty safe in
saying that it is not so much a matter of
heat or cold as a close, moist atmos-
phere, perhaps cold being more favor-
able than heat, for it will certainly be-
come moldy, other things being favor-
able, in a cellar too cool for the welfare
of bees.

"Xhe Bfe^w Manum Feeder,"

if we are at all good at reading pictures,
is simply the Miller feeder as described
and figured in Olcanings several years
ago, and in its improved form now of-
fered in different catalogues. The only
difference that appears is that wire-cloth
instead of wood, covers the part to which
the bees have access. There is now
such a multiplicity of implements, that
before sending anything out as new it is
well to look up the old.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAU

297

Why Did the Bees Die ?— Mr.

M. D. Andes, of Bristol, Tenn., wants to
know the cause of his bees dying oflf.
He writes thus :

Why have my bees been dying all win-
ter? They have plenty of honey, and
while I have not lost an entire colony,
as many as 25 to 100 bees are carried
out dead every morning from each hive.
I cannot account for it, unless it is im-
pure honey. Last year was a bad honey
season in this section, and my bees
seemed to gather most of their supply
late in October. M. D. Andes.

At a distance, one can do little more
than make a guess in such a case, but
from the data given your guess would
seem a pretty good one, that the diffi-
culty comes from unwholesome stores.
But it depends a little on circumstances
whether there may be anything very
bad in 25 to 100 bees being carried out.
If that occurs every day for a short
time, or even should there be a larger
number for a very few days, there need
be nothing alarming in the case, but if
it should be a regular thing day after
day for many days, then something is
astray.

"Wide Frames.— Mr. Elmer Brid-
enstine, of North Liberty, Iowa, asks
the following question about the use of
wide frames :

I have read the article about wide
frames by Mr. G. M. Doolittle, on page
148. The question with me is, does he
hang those wide frames, or let them rest
on top of the brood-frames ? I mean the
wide frames that hold one tier deep.
Please reply through the Bee J'ournal.
Elmer Beidenstine.

Mr. Doolittle replies to the above
question thus :

The top of the hive comes 5/16 of
an inch above the tops of the brood-
frames, and the wide frames rest on top
of the hive, which gives 5/16 of an
inch between the tops of the brood-
frames and the bottoms of the wide
frames, or just a bee-space. Some claim
^ inch the proper bee-space, others that
% is right, but I consider the former too
little, and the latter too much.

G. M. Doolittle.

Southern Queens.— Mr. Chas.
Hammons, of De Witt, Iowa, asks the
following questions :

1. Will a queen reared in the South
be as hardy in the North as a Northern-
bred queen ?

2. Would you advise a Northern bee-
keeper to buy queens from a Southern
breeder ? Chas. Hammons.

1. Theoretically it seems there ought
to be a little difference, but as a great
many queens reared in the South are
bought by Northern bee-keepers, and
there are no reports to indicate that
they are anymore tender than Northern-
bred queens, it may be understood that
there is no difference as to hardiness.

2. In general, it is well to have
queens make as short a journey as pos-
sible, and it would be foolish to send a
long distance for a lot of queens if you
can get just as good at no greater ex-
pense right in your own apiary. Still,
it is often advisable to send South for
queens, for queens can be reared there
earlier in the season, so you can get
them there at times when they cannot
be had in the North at all, and perhaps
it is for that reason that W. Z. Hutchin-
son makes a practice of renewing his
queens each year by sending South for
young queens.

Illinois Bee-Keepers are re-
quested to read carefully the following
letter which is written by Secretary
Stone :

Bradfordtox, Ills., Feb. (>, 1893.
To Bee-Keepers of Illinois : —

You are especially interested in the
completeness and character of the infor-
mation to be published in the Second
Annual Report of the Illinois State Bee-
Keepers' Association, nov/ in course of
preparation.

It is important that the bee-keepers
residing in all portions of the State
furnish information concerning this in-
dustry that will be of value and interest
to the readers of the Report, which will
contain the proceedings of the associa-
tion at both its meetings, at Chicago and
Springfield ; essays by prominent bee-
keepers ; the report of the National Bee-
Keepers' Union, etc.

You are therefore respectfully re-
quested at your earliest convenience to
send to the Secretary, answers to the
printed questions, so far as you feel sure
you can answer knowingly, and we will
use them in part, or in full, as needed :

Please write your name and post-office

298

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

address plainly, and also the names and
addresses of your bee-keeper friends.
Yours truly, Jas. A. Stone, Sec.

The printed questions referred to in
the foregoing letter, are these :

1. In what county do you reside ?

2. How many years have you kept
bees ?

3. How many colonies, on an average,
have you kept each year ?

4. What kind of hive do you use '?

5. Do you prefer large or small brood-
chambers ?

6. Do you work your bees for comb or
extracted honey ?

7. If for both, please give the propor-
tion of each ?

8. In working for comb honey do you
use one or two pound sections ?

9. Do you use either wood or metal
separators, and if so which do you pre-
fer ?

10. What are your chief resources for
honey ?

11. Do bees in your locality work to
any extent on red clover ?

12. Do you know of any foul brood in
your locality?

13. Have you ever suffered any loss
from the poisonous spraying of fruit
trees ?

14. If so, what time was the spraying
done ?

15. What do you think about bees
damaging fruit?

16. What is your opinion of bees in
relation to flowers ?

17. What is your loss in wintering,
and how done?

18. Have you succeeded well in selling
extracted honey when granulated ?

19. Do you know of any spot in Illi-
nois where bees cannot make more than
a living ?

20. What has been your average
yield per colony for ten years ?

21. Do you consider Italian bees as
proof against moths ?

22. Have you used bee-escapes? What
kind, and with what success ?

23. Miscellaneous remarks. (Under
this head you are kindly requested to
add whatever will be for the information
of bee-keepers of Illinois, as to inven-
tions or otherwise )

This is a matter that should interest
every bee-keeper in this State. Now,
let all who read the Bee Jouknal in
Illinois, answer the above questions by
number, and <it once, so that a very com-
plete Report may be issued.

ERNEST R. ROOT.

It is not often that a periodical is so
favored as is the Bee JouRNAii, with the
opportunity to present to its readers, in
a biographical sketch and by portrait,
one who has come into well-earned
prominence with such rapidity and
permanency as Mr. Ernest R. Root.
Though we have not met him face to
face, we feel that we have in him a
sympathetic brother and friend, if we
may judge from the exceedingly pleasant
and profitable correspondence that has
passed between us.

Dr. Miller, who has known Mr. Root
since his twelfth year, tells only as the
Doctor can, how he has grown up into
his pi'esent noble manhood and enviable
position of usefulness as editor of
"Lovely Oleanings." Let us all hope
that Mr. Root may long be spared to
bless the field of apiarian literature with
his graceful pen, and more graceful and
earnest efforts in behalf of the whole
bee-keeping world.

Permit us now to invite you to a care-
ful reading of the following interesting
life-story of our friend and brother
editor :

Somewhere about twenty years ago, I
visited Medina, Ohio, for the first time,
going by stage, as there was then no
railroad. Among the things I there saw
was a boy perhaps in his twelfth year (he
was born June 23, 1862). His name
was Ernest R. Root, and in spite of the
three decades that have passed over his
head, he is still called "Ernest," both at
homo and abroad, much oftener than
"Mr. Root." I don't know just why
this is ; certainly not for want of re-
spect. Perhaps because his pleasantly
cordial manner, both in writing and

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

299

conversation, makes every one think of
him as a familiar friend. I hope it may
be always so. If he should ever get to
be "Mr. Root" with me, I don't think
I should like him as well as I do
" Ernest."

The principal thing that I remember
about him on that first visit, is that I do
not recall that during the 24 hours I
was there he was engaged in killing
cats, or tying tin-cans to dogs' tails. So
I don't suppose he was worse than the
majority of boys. Indeed, I suppose he
was too busy in other directions to have
much time for such things. His father
was A. I. Root. That's equivalent to

ERNEST R. ROOT.

saying he was a hobbyist — a born hobby-
ist. I am told that at a very early age
he showed an extreme fondness for
pictures — A. I.'s son, you see.

As a boy, one hobby was machinery,
and to him a w^ell-rigged water-wheel or
windmill was the sum of earthly happi-
ness. Later on, singly or combined,
along with other hobbies, came mechan-
ics, electricity, microscopy, bees, pho-
tography and bicycles.

In electricity to find himself the dis-
coverer and Inventor of many things of
real value, but on Informing himself
more fully was somewhat chagrinned to
find that he was neither an inventor nor

discoverer, for all his new things were
old. In spite of that, he still retains a
fondness for everything connected with
electricity.

The use of the microscope, notwith-
standing its injury to a pair of eyes none
the best fitted for it, was pursued with
zeal; and among other microscopic
studies, he took up the anatomy of the
bee, going so far as to publish two or
three articles thereon, when the appear-
ance of the magnificent work of Cheshire
made him again feel that he was only
working over old ground.

To go back. In the year '81 he en-
tered the preparatory department of
Oberlin College, and left at the end of
four years without graduating, bpiiig
obliged to go home and take part of the
burden that had become too heavy for
his father's shoulders. That settled him
in one direction, and shortly after lie
was settUd In another direction, when
he capitulated to a pair of black eyes,
with properly accompanying charms of
mind and body, possessed by Miss Eliza-
beth Humphrey. After some opportu-
nity for observation, I am glad to be-
lieve that in her Ernest has a very
worthy wife. She has a rival in his
affections in the person of their two-
year-old son, Leland Ives, a rivalry that
she seems to bear not only meekly, but
cheerfully.

Like his father, a rider of hobbies, I
think Ernest is the better horseman of
the two. Once fairly seated on a hobby,
A. I. gives free rein, and if, in the chase,
his hat is blown off, he only flings his
arms the higher, and enjoys the fun.
Ernest keeps a steady hand on the rein,
and if the speed is too great, or the
direction not to his mind, with a sharp
pull he brings the hobby under control,
or else deliberately dismounts.

Few have had the chance for editorial
training that Ernest has had, and few
have so well profited by it. Probably no
one could tell when he became editor of
Gleanings in Bee-Culture. 1 doubt if at
any point of time there was any formal
transfer of the position of editor from
father to son. The fact is, he grew into
the place. Very likely not many of the
readers of Gleanings know how fully
under the control of the son are its col-
umns. Except the home and gardening
departments, if I am not mistaken, un-
less you find the initials "A. I. R." at-
tached, you may be sure that every
thing has felt the editorial influence of
Ernest. That the journal has lost noth-
ing by the change of censorship, in the
minds of its supporters, is evidenced by
the fact that within five years from the

300

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

time Ernest took hold, the subscription
list increased from five to ten thousand.
How much of the ability to control
within proper limits his natural inclina-
tion to hobby-riding comes from a bal-
ance-wheel inherited from his mother, I
cannot say. I am quite inclined to
credit that ability largely to the father.
With a matured judgment coming from
a wide experience, so long as it was
needed, he kept a close watch lest any
false step was taken, and very likely
Ernest was saved from coming to grief
more than once by Ijstening to the ad-
vice of his more experienced father.

Being both independent thinkers, it is
hardly to be expected that the father
and son should always hold the same
views. Indeed, they are very far from
doing so. But to me it has always been
very interesting to notice the readiness
to concede on the part of each, and to
view with respect the opinions of the
other. Fortunately for the best use of
the position he holds, in any question
having an important bearing on the
general interests of bee-keepers, Ernest
never hesitates to seek counsel from
those on whose experience he can rely,
and in any important departure as to
the manufacture or use of appliances he
asks the opinions of a number whom he
considers experts, seconded by his im-
mediate cabinet of advisers — his father,
his brother-in-law, J. T. Calvert, and
the foreman of wood-work, J. S. Warner.
It is also fortunate that Ernest has
given up, or sent to the background, his
bent for invention. As an inventor his
field would be more limited. He oper-
ates in a wider field, and is always on
the lookout for improvements, come
they from what source they may, new
or old. And no pains are spared to get
at the truth of the matter, or to bring it
to public notice, if found worthy. Im-
mediately connected with an immense
manufacturing establishment. Gleanings
holds a position as leader in largely de-
ciding what shall and shall not be popu-
larly used among bee-keepers— a position
that it could not long hold if its leadings
were not always carefully made in the
direction of the best interests of all.

I quote here from a sketch published
about two years ago in the Review,
written by the principal stenographer
and proof-reader in the office of Glean-
ings :

" In manners, Ernest is very open and
friendly. In fact, one knows him about
as well after an hour's talk as he ever
will. But this friendly urbanity does
not prevent him from seeing the quack
and impostor in an instant, so he is sel-

dom, if ever, imposed upon. He is ut-
terly destitute of selfishness ; and his
library, his camera, microscope, gun, or
whatever he has, is entirely for the
benefit of any who can be benefited
thereby. His picture shows phrenologi-
cally an even balance of temper, which
is well known to us here ; for it is just
as safe to ask a favor of him before din-
ner as after, which is not the case with
most men.

" In speech, our junior editor is very
rapid, with frequent interruptions, or
going back to get a better word. In
this respect he is just the opposite of
his father, who seldom changes a word
in dictating even two pages of "Our
Homes," containing 3,000 words. A.
I. has all his editorials fully matured
and ready to put together, like the
stones in Solomon's temple, while Ernest
goes more on the cut-and-try plan.

" But the best thing I can say about
Ernest is the unchanging attention
which he pays to his father and mother.
With him, nothing must stand in the
way of their convenience and pleasure."

"In speech," the writer quoted above,
evidently refers to dictation for publi-
cation, for in convention, although per-
haps a little rapid, he is easily followed,
and I do not recall any hesitation or
going back for a better word. He is a
pleasant and easy conversationalist,
with a certain inquiring expression that
always suggests to me an interrogation
point — a never ceasing watch for what
may be new or true.

I can hardly say as much for his writ-
ing as his speech. I have little faith in
the ability to read character from hand-
writing, and if I were called to pass a
night for the first time in a room with
Ernest, with no other knowledge of him
than seeing some of his hand-writing, I
surely would want to put my watch un-
der my pillow. Perhaps if I had the
privilege of a stenographer and a pho-
nograph, viy chirography might be no
better than his.

The word in the German language
that means " earnest," is " ernst," and
changing the first letter to a capital it
becomes the proper name Ernst, which
in English is changed to Ernest ; so
there might seem something prophetic
in his christening, for if any one charac-
teristic stands out prominent in Ernest's
make-up, it is his intense earnestness.
I remember being quite amused at a
bee-keepers' convention at seeing him
carrying about with him a piece of a
frame, in which he was at that time
much interested, and wherever you saw
Ernest, there you saw that piece of stick

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

301

to which he was solemnly holding on,
apparently determined that he must
make others see in it the merits he saw.
And he did.

As mentioned in the quotation given,
another characteristic is evenness.
Whether at the factory, at church, at
convention, at his house, he always has
seemed to me alike, the same earnest
Ernest. As might be expected, he is
active in the church and Christian En-
deavor Society, and has been elected for
the third time as Superintendent of the
Sunday-school.

Among the many bee-keepers with
whom I am proud to claim acquaintance,
none appear to me more like a brother.
He seems more nearly my own age (most
of the others seem older), and somehow
I can get closer to him. Probably others
feel much the same toward him.

C. C. Miller.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

Out School in Bee-Keeping.

FOURTH LESSON — SELLING THE HONEY.

Well, we cannot afford to have any
middleman at first, and as we are in
need of all the funds that we can get
from the bees, I will tell how to get the
benefit of the whole proceeds. When I
say that we cannot afford to have a
middleman, I mean to have it under-
stood that if we have $1,000 outside of
the bees, we are now working to get the
most out of the bees, and no other capi-
tal is considered.

Now place your honey in a wagon and
take it to your customers, and sell it to
them at the highest retail price. Ex-
plain to each one that you make a sale
to, that your honey is all produced by
yourself, and that you guarantee it to
be as represented ; take the name of
each customer, and tell them whenever
they wish more honey like that, to drop

you a postal card, and you will promptly
attend to the order. Always sell noth-
ing but the best, and keep the darkest
to use yourself, as you know it is as good
as any, but would not be called so on
the market. I mean it is as sweet as
the white honey, but does not look so
well.

You need not take all your honey the
first trip, as you need not make more
than a few customers at the start, and if
you sell nothing but the best, your cus-
tomers will increase faster than your
honey, and after you get to be a big bee-
mai^ you can sell to the groceries and
commission men. But by all means do
not allow your honey to lie in the hands
of the store-men and commission houses
over a reasonable time, and if they do
not sell it, take it and sell it yourself.

When I said it was a trade to produce
a crop, and a different trade to sell it, I
meant that we must find sale, and to do
this, I have always found the most ready
cash sales to be right at the doors of the
consumers. Do not get discouraged if
you should pass a dozen houses without
making a sale, as all people do not use
honey, and some may not be ready just
then to buy ; so the next dozen houses
you go to may all take honey.

Now if you have, say 200 pounds of
honey to sell, and the grocery men will
only give you 12 cents per pound for it,
you may be pretty sure to get 15 cent^
from the consumers ; and say it takes
you two days to sell it, then you have
made $3.00 per day. Not bad wages.

I have had sold from one wagon in
the city of Dallas, more than $100
worth of honey in a single day ; and we
sold from wagons one fall and winter in
the cities of Fort Worth and Dallas,
nearly 100,000 pounds of honey.
Pretty big tale, but true, nevertheless.
So you see we have some idea how to
sell honey, as well as to produce it. In
fact, dear friends, if I had not before
known, I would not have started out to
tell you anything about it. I have ac-
quired all this knowledge through years
of hard study, and now I have given it
to you free, that you may do the same
without waiting for years to learn.

Now, all the directions I have been
giving has been for the beginners with
only one or two colonies to start with.
You must increase your honey-trade as
your bees increase, provided your honey-
trade does not out-go you, and you will
have to push the apiary to keep up with
it. I never yet had more nice honey
than I could sell.

Now, as have learned to work our

302

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

bees both for comb and extracted honey,
and know how to sell our product, I will
next tell you a little about the honey
resources, etc.

Growing of Horse-Mint.

Mrs. Atchley, will you please tell me
in the American Bee Journal, whether
horse-mint comes from the seed in the
fall or spring ? J. A. Marsh.

Seay, Oklahoma.

1

Friend Marsh, horse-mint usnally
comes up in the fall, and winters over
like wheat; but it sometimes comes in
the spring when there is insufficient
rainfall in autumn to bring it up, but to
be of much value for honey it must come
up in the fall and winter over. If we
have plenty of rain during winter, we
expect a good yield from it, as it takes
but little rain in the spring to make all
vegetation thrive after we have had an
abundance of rain during winter. We
have now had plenty of rain, and horse-
mint Is growing finely, as it came up
early last fall, and we now look for it to
yield abundantly. J. A.

Preparing for the Honey Season.

• The season of the year when the hum
of the busy bee, and the opening of the
flowers, giving labor to both the bee and
its keeper, will soon be here. The in-
tervening months between fall and
spring, while Nature has on her winter
garments, and our pets are quietly rest-
ing, perhaps dreaming of the good times
we hope for, we should make prepara-
tions for the demands we may expect
another season.

Not only should our hives, frames,
crates, etc., be in readiness, but we
ought to lay our plans — plans whereby
we may secure, house, and market our
crop of honey to the best advantage. To
do this, we should enlighten ourselves in
every way possible, as to the best man-
ner of manipulating our bees to accom-
plish the best results. We should be
thoroughly conversant with at least one
of the best text-books on bee-culture,
faiailiarize ourselves with one or more
of the leading bee-periodicals in which
is found the best thoughts of our most
successful bee-keepers ; also, when pos-
sible, attend some of the numerous bee-
keepers' conventions held in nearly
every State in our land.

If by negligence or otherwise you have

not your hives and fixtures in readiness,
neglect them no longer, with swarming,
caging queens, clipping cells, extracting
honey, renewing sections, or any of the
general work to be found in a live api-
ary, we have no time, in our rush, to
make or prepare anything we probably
need that very minute. It is, therefore,
positively necessary to have everything
we shall need in the apiary, made up and
stored convenient for use the very
moment we may need it. The success-
ful bee-keeper is the man who uses the
winter months in making the necessary
preparation for the coming season.
Lavaca, Ark. W. H. Laws.

Curing Bee-Paralysis.

Mrs. Atchley, will you kindly tell us
in the American Bee Journal, how to
cure bee-paralysis ? T. S. Ford.

Columbia, Miss.

Friend Ford, I do not know of a sure
remedy. I have tried salt, and remov-
ing the queens, but all to no particular
benefit. The most effectual remedy that
I have tried was to put the whole colony
out on new combs, or comb foundation,
and give them sugar syrup or new
honey, and in almost every case I have
cured them.

It seems that so long as they occupy
the same old combs and hive, they keep
dwindling. I do not mean by this that
I think there is any contagion about it,
but under the laws of common rules and
common-sense, we may expect the col-
ony to be infected until it has a chance
to do a general house-cleaning, or after
settled warm weather and new honey
comes in they usually get well, and so
we may hasten to help them by giving
them new, clean quarters at once. This
I " caught onto " by swarms issuing
from hives that were slightly affected
with the disease, and when the swarm
with the old queen was hived in a clean
hive, the disease soon disappeared, while
the parent colony kept on dying, even
after the brood from the young queen
had brought on bees to occupy the hive.
So I concluded that to remove the queen
was no remedy. I would like to hear
from others on this subject. J. A.

Webster's Pocket Dictionary we offer
as a premium for sending only one new
subscriber with $1.00. It is a splendid
Dictionary — and just right for a pocket.

Read our great offer on page 293.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

303

Best Pursuit to Combine with
Bee-KcepinS'

Qnery^ 861.— 1. Will the poultry buBlness
and bee-keeping go well together ? 2. If not,
what do you consider as the best pursuit to
combine with the keeping of bees ? — Ohio.

1. Yes. — Dadant & Son.

1. Most certainly. — A. J. Cook.

1. Yes. 2. Horticulture. — Jas. A.
Stone.

1. Yes. 2. Small fruits, also. —
Eugene Secok.

1. Fairly well. 2. Sheep, and some
kinds of fruit. — P. H. Elwood.

1. Yes, poultry keeping and bee-keep-
ing go well together. — A. B. Mason.

1. Yes. 2. Sheep breeding, winter
dairying, green-house, etc. — J. H. Lak-

RABEE.

1. Possibly it would. 2. Dairying, on
a small scale, works well. — J. M. Ham-

BAUGH.

I see no reason why the poultry busi-
ness might not go well with bee-keeping.
— C. C. Miller.

1. Yes, it would do about as well as
anything. Grapes go well with bees. —

C. H. DiBBERN.

1. Yes. 2. Or such fruits as ripen in
autumn, as grapes, plums, peaches, etc.
— R. L. Taylor.

1. Yes. 2. Almost anything you have
a liking for, unless your locality pre-
vents.— E. France.

I think so, but I have no practical
experience, as I keep nothing but bees.
— Mrs. J. N. Heater.

1. Yes, first rate. 2. I should con-
sider both poultry and small fruits ex-
cellent.— Mrs. L. Harrison.

1. Yes. 2. Fruit growing is another
excellent pursuit, in combination with
bee-keeping. — Will M. Barnxtsi.

They will go together as well as any
two occupations, the busiest time of
both of which comes in the summer. A

better business to go with bee-keeping
would be one which furnished occupa-
tion for the winter, but required little or
no care during the summer. — James A.
Green.

1. I judge that they go very well to-
gether. 2. Gardening and fruit-raising
and bee-keeping go well together. — M.
Mahin.

Yes, they will work nicely together if
you have plenty of tact, snap and indus-
try. So will raising fruits and vegeta-
bles.— J. P. H. Brown.

If you take kindly to poultry it will
succeed with bee-keeping, and if you
own a few acres of land I would advise
fruit raising in connection. — H. D. Cut-
ting.

The poultry business will combine as
well as anything with bee-keeping, un-
less you can teach school winters and
work at the bees summers. — G. M. Doo-

LITTLE.

1. Yes, If one has time to attend to
both. 2. Bee-keeping alone will give
the ordinary man all he can attend to ;
that is, if he expects to make it pay. — J.
E. Pond.

1. It may for those that like it, but
not any for rae. All will admit that it
is a, fowl business. 2. I think I should
like banking, but as I am not prepared
to run banking, I am trying fruit-grow-
ing.— S. I. Freeborn.

First, poultry is very nice to combine
with bee-keeping provided you do not
run either too extensively, but my ex-
perience is that if you have your hands
full of any one business, it is enough, as
one cow properly fed and cared for is
worth a half dozen that are only half
cared for. — Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

1. Yes. I have a flock of the Indian
Games, and so far (two years) all goes
well, although the young chicks play
sad havoc with the drones, unless the
hives are set up a foot or more from the
ground. There are, however, many
other pursuits that are successfully con-
joined with bee-keeping. — G. L. Tinker.

There is mighty little in the poultry
business except, perhaps, to the breeders
of fine stock. A small dairy in a suit-
able locality fits an apiary nicely. We
tried it several years ago, and it paid
nicely, but we don't want too much of
the " root of all evil" now-a-days. and
we have sold off the Jerseys, keeping
only three. When a man gets tired of
too much of "this world's goods," the
only remedy to reduce, is to quit work.
— G. W. Demaree.

304

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Report of the California State
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY JOHN H. MAKTIN.

The California State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation met in the Chamber of Com-
merce, in Los Angeles, on Feb. 7th and
8th, 1893. There was a large attend-
ance, and the assembling crowd were
quite happy and hopeful for a good
honey harvest, during the coming season.

The meeting was called to order at 10
a.m. by President Mclntyre. The fore-
noon was taken up with routine busi-
ness, and the real work of the associa-
tion did not commence until the after-
noon.

The Southern California Association
met at 1 p.m., and by unanimous vote
decided to disband and unite with the
State Association.

Pres. Mclntyre, in his annual address,
reviewed the bee-keeping field, and gave
suggestions for the advancement of the
interests of the industry in the future.

CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY AND
APICULTURE.

Professor C. W. Woodman, from the
State University, then addressed the
bee-keepers upon what the State Uni-
versity proposed to do for apiculture.
Having the necessary apparatus they
would experiment in any direction that
bee-keepers most desired. The bee
structurally would be studied. Honey
would be analyzed. Experimentation in
manipulation of hives and apparatus.
Plants would be tested and tried, and
new plants introduced. An apiary will
be established near the University, and
students so requiring will be given a
course of study in apiculture. The Pro-
fessor said that the University would
meet the bee-keepers more than half
way in their endeavors to aid them. If
bee-keepers of California desire these
benefits, it will be for their interest to
keep in touchjwith this department of
the University.

A vote of thanks was given to the
Professor, and he was also elected an
honorary member of the association.

MARKETING HONEY.

An essay, "Can We Develop New and
Better Methods for the Sale of Our
Honey," was read by J. H. Martin, after
which the subject was fully discussed,
and the point in relation to a better dis-
tribution in smaller packages was favor-
ably considered.

It was also thought advisable to use
new cans instead of second-hand gaso-
line cans.

It was suggested that second-hand
cans would indicate a second-hand busi-
ness.

The Secretary was instructed to cor-
respond with manufacturers of cans,
and to get their prices for a large
quantity.

Mr. Brodbeck then read an essay on
"The Chemical Composition of Honey."

Upon motion of Mr. Pryal, it was de-
cided to ask the Legislature that an Act
additional to our penal code be passed
to prevent the spraying of fruit trees
with poisons during bloom.

MAKING SHORT HONEY SEASONS PROFIT-
ABLE.

The subject of making short honey
seasons profitable was taken up, and the
most valuable point was the re-queening
of colonies. Many pounds of honey
were lost each season by having old
queens in the hives, where a young and
vigorous queen would soon fill the hive
with bees.

"Economy in Bee-Keeping " was
another paper by T. F. Arundell.

The question of " Hives " was then
considered. A large hive was preferred
for extracted honey, while a hive with a
small brood-chamber was desired for
comb honey.

The Heddon hive had been used by
some with success for comb honey, and
several expressed themselves as pleased
with a shallow frame.

At the close of the evening session a
social hour was enjoyed, and Mrs. J. F.
Mclntyre favored the audience with
several bee-keepers' songs, which were
highly appreciated.

SECOND DAY.

The bee-keepers gathered at the
Chamber of Commerce at an early hour,
and the first subject under discussion
was for an appeal to the State Legisla-
ture for aid in the publication of the
Proceedings of our Association, and the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

305

collecting of statistics. According to
this spirit a resolution was presented
asking the Legislature for an appro-
priation of $300 for the purpose of pub-
lishing the reports of the Association,
and gathering statistics.

Mr. W. A. Pryal, of Oakland, was
commissioned to present this Bill to the
proper committee at the State Capitol
at an early date.

BEES AND FKUIT.

An essay, "Birds and Insects Injuri-
ous to Bees and Fruits," was read by H.
E. Wilder, followed by an essay by R.
Touchton. These essays were followed
by general discussion, wherein the
ground was taken that bees will not
puncture fruit, but will clean it up
thoroughly when it is previously punc-
tured by birds or wasps.

Bee-keepers dislike to have their bees
work upon grapes, as the grape juice is
detrimental to the health of the bee.
Mr. Pryal cited instances where the
large grape-growers of Fresno kept bees
with but little injury to their grapes or
raisins.

Mr. Martin said that fig-growers in
s«me instances made complaints against
bees, charging them with attacking the
large end of the fig. It is a fact that in-
sects first deposit a small amount of
yeast-like substance in the fig, which
soon ferments, and after swelling and
breaking the skin, the bee then finishes
the fig. Get rid of the insect, and the
bee will not molest the fig.

bee-keepers' union.

The Constitution of the Bee-Keepers'
Union was then read. This organization
defends all its members against suits
brought against them by fruit-men.
Several cases have been decided in favor
of the bee-keepers, and the bee-keeping
industry stands upon as legitimate a
basis as any other industry.

There has never been a test case in
California, but bee-keepers desire to
have such a case.

Th« Constitution has been recently
amended, so as to include provisions
relative to the adulteration of honey.

Several members of the Association
joined the Union by paying the annual
fee of $1.00.

An essay was read upon "The Rise
and Progress of California Bee-Keeping,"
and the work that could be done for the
bee-keepers at the State University.

The subject of exhibits at the World's
Fair was taken np. and several mem-
bers agreed to contribute comb and ex-

tracted honey and beeswax. Many of
the exhibits will be in fancy shape. A
suggestion was made to exhibit wax in
the shape of a grizzly bear, and also in
the form of wax-flowers. The Associa-
tion manifested a disposition to make a
splendid exhibit of the honey crop of
1893.

Upon motion of Mr. Rowley, Mr. W.
A. Pryal, of Oakland, was recommended
to the World' Pair State Commission as
a suitable person to take charge of the
California exhibit at Chicago.

At the afternoon session officers for
the ensuing year were elected as follows:

President — J. F. Mclntyre.

Vice-Presiddnts — G. W. Brodbeck for
Los Angeles county ; J. W. King, Orange
county ; M. H. Mendleson, Ventura
county ; H. Trickey, Inyo county ; C. C.
Thomas, San Diego county ; F. H. Hunt,
San Bernardino county ; W. A. Pryal,
Alameda county; J. C. McCubbin, Fresno
county.

Secretary — John H. Martin.

Treasurer — C. B. Woodbury.

Executive Committee — L. T. Rowley
and A. Barnett.

AGAINST HONEY ADULTERATION.

The adulteration of honey came up
several times for its share of denuncia-
tion, and every member, without excep-
tion, placed themselves upon strong
ground against it.

Mr. Brodbeck introduced the following
resoluion, which was passed unani-
mously :

Resolved, That the California State
Bee-Keepers' Association in convention
assembled express by a vote of thanks
their appreciation of the interest dis-
played by tlie American Bee Journal,
and Oleanings in Bee-Culture in their
determined opposition to the adultera-
tion of honey in every shape and form
that has thus far been presented.

CALIFORNIA HONEY-PLANTS.

An essay by L. T. Rowley upon
"Honey-Plants of California," called
forth some discussion. Mr. Brodbeck
said the sages were the leading honey-
plants, giving the most beautiful liquid
honey ; but his bees were at present at
work upon eucalyptus and pepper trees,
which gave a dark honey, and highly-
flavored with the medicinal qualities of
the trees.

Mr. Barnett said that the wild buck-
wheat gave, in his locality, an abun-
dance of honey of an amber color, but
he would like to know the name and
order of the plant ; it was not a buck-

806

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

wheat — only called so from its resem-
blance to the cultivated plant.

It was proposed to exhibit pressed
specimens of California honey-plants.
Bee-keepers of the northern portion of
the State have prepared specimens in
the hands of Mr. Watson, of El Dorado
county, and a proper exhibit will be
made of the flora of Southern California.

The last hours of the session were
occupied by an interesting discussion of
the best methods of marketing honey.

It was moved by Mr. 'Mellen that the
Secretary collect statistics as the season
advanced, and correspond with Eastern
honey-dealers and get the best market
prices.

Mr. Touchton believed that bee-keep-
ers should keep their yields, whether
great or small, private. Reports of large
yields had a depressing effect upon the
honey market.

Mr. Martin stated that bee-keepers
were the bluest mortals known during
an adverse season, while in a bountiful
one they lived in a sort of a seventh
heaven, and everybody was sure to
know it.

The Secretary was instructed to send
a report of the meeting to the members
of the Association.

Mr. Pryal thought bee-keepers should
form a Bee-Keepers' Protective Union.

Resolutions, thanking the officers for
the effective work they had done, were
passed unanimously, and the meeting
adjourned to meet in Los Angeles at the
call of the Executive Committee.

A few articles were on exhibition,
notably a very ingeniously constructed
self-reversing honey-extractor, invented
by C. W. Metcalf, of Santa Paula. A
carload of supplies from Medina, O., ar-
rived during the session, and a few of
the articles were unpacked for inspec-
tion.

There was a heavy rain during all of
the second day, and instead of being de-
pressing to the spirits, it seemed to re-
vive every bee-man, for much rain now
means a chance for a good yield of honey
later on. John H. Mabtin, Sec.

Your iNeigflibor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor 1 See page 293.

■laj

How to Unite Colonies of Bees
in the Spring.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY G. M. DOOLITTLE.

A correspondent writes that his bees
seem to be wintering poorly, and from
this he fears he may have many weak
colonies in the spring, so he wishes me to
tell how I would unite them when spring
opened, saying, "Give us an article on
this subject in the American Bee Jour-
nal, as I am a reader of that paper."

Long ago I read that early spring was
the time to unite weak colonies of bees,
but years of experience have proven to me
that each of the united colonies would
often pull through alone, while, if
united, all would perish. The reason
for this seems to be, by early uniting an
excitement is caused which wears out
the nearly exhausted life of the old bees
which then compose the little colonies,
so that they die before the young bees
are sufficiently matured to take up the
labor of sustaining the colony, thus
causing the loss of the whole thing.
Being left as they were, without uniting,
they seem to realize their condition, so
no great amount of extra labor is per-
formed until the young bees mature,
after which such weak colonies build up
rapidly.

After learning that early spring was
not the time to unite weak colonies of
bees, I adopted the following jplan,
which I have used for years to my per-
fect satisfaction :

In early spring, all the colonies which
I think will not make good, strong ones
by the middle of June, are shut to one
side of the hive, upon only as many
combs as they have brood in, by means
of a movable division-board, which num-
ber of combs will be from one to five,
according to the strength of the colony.
They are thus kept shut up until such
combs are full of brood. For food, I
generally set a frame of honey beyond

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

307

the division-board, the carrying over of
which stimulates brood-rearing wonder-
fully.

When the strongest of these weak
colonies have their five frames full of
brood, I take one of them away, and
give it to one having four frames,
always taking a frame where I can see
plenty of bees just gnawing from the
cells. An empty comb is put In the cen-
ter to take the place of hatching brood
taken out, which will soon be filled with
eggs and brood. Don't on any account
give this frame of brood to one of the
weakest colonies at this time, as some
are prone to do ; for by so doing a part
of the brood will be lost, for the bees in
the weakest are not yet strong enough
to care for more brood than they already
have.

In a week, I take another frame of
hatching brood from the same colony
and give it to one that has three frames
full, and also take a frame from the one
I gave the frame to the previous week.
Thus I keep on taking from the stronger
and giving to the next strongest, until
all have five frames of bees and brood,
giving brood the latest to the weakest of
the little colonies. Having all of them
with five frames of brood, I proceed to
unite them as follows :

I go to No. 1 and look it over until I
find the frame the queen is on, which
frame (bees, queen, and all) is set over to
the vacant side of the hive. I then take
the four remaining frames, bees and all,
and set them in a comb-carrier, when I
put the frame having the queen upon it,
back where it was. I also place beside
it an empty comb, and adjust the divi-
sion-board to suit the two frames, when
the hive is closed.

Next I take the comb-carrier and pro-
ceed to No. 2, which is then opened and
the division-board taken out. I now
take the first frame next to where the
division-board stood, and place it next
the opposite side of the hive, when I
take a frame from the carrier, bees and
all, as taken from No. 1, and place next
to the moved frame in No. 2. Next I
move another frame in No. 2 up to the
one taken from the carrier, when
another is taken from the carrier and
placed beside it, and so on until the four
frames from the carrier are alternated
with those of No. 2. As my hives hold
nine frames, it will be seen that I now
have in No. 2 nine frames completely
filled with brood, which will soon make
a very populous colony.

In this way I keep to work .until all
are united, and the sequel nearly always
shows a better result from these united

colonies than from those which were
considered strong in the spring.

As these colonies are generally ready
to unite about 10 to 15 days before the
harvest, they do not contract the swarm-
ing fever before the harvest arrives,
and often go without swarming, which
gives them the advantage over colonies
which are bound to swarm at about the
time the harvest commences.

As soon as the old bees which were
brought from No. 1 fly out, they return
to their old stand, which makes that a
strong nucleus, and as soon as tt^e queen
gets the empty comb given her filled
with eggs, the two are spread apart and
an empty /rame is given, which will be
filled with nice, straight worker-comb in
short order. When this is filled, two
more empty frames are given, and so on,
as long as the little colony will build
worker-comb, and in this way this little
colony contributes much toward the
value of the apiary.

If, at any time I have more bees than
I wish In the spring, I adopt the above
plan with all colonies, keeping the whole
apiary on five combs of brood as long as
I can consistently, when I unite them as
above, thus making one-half the number
of extra strong colonies. As these are
stronger, hence have to be doubled ear-
lier in the season, most of them will
swarm in a few weeks, when I have my
original number,generally much stronger
in bees than any of the very best would
have been had they been left alone to
manage their own affairs.

Borodino, N. Y.

■ ^

Rlieumatlgm Cured by Appli-
cation of Bee-Stings.

Written for the American Bee Journal
E. A. BABNWELL,.

I noticed in an Issue of the Bee Jour-
nal a request for information or experi-
ence In the cure of rheumatism. I think
it was in 1885, I first bought a colony
or two of bees. In June of the same
year I was very severely aflfllcted with
rheumatism. I tried all the cures that
I could think of in the way of liniments,
but they did me no good. So one morn-
ing I went to take off a case of honey ;
and the bees went for me. I think I got
the honey, but the bees got me. Oh,
but didn't they give it to me ? I think
there was a thousand on me at once.
Did I run ? You had better believe I
did. I never thought of my rheumatism
once ; In fact, I never thought of it any

308

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

more for six months. I was cured, and
forgot it. When the bee-stings got well
I had no more rheumatism.

During the next winter I had another
attack of rheumatism. I went to using
liniments again, but it did me no good.
I then began to think what it was that
cured me the previous summer. Then I
remembered that I had read about bee-
stings curing rheumatism, and how I
laughed at the idea of anybody trying
that kind of a remedy, as I thought the
remedy as bad as the disease ; but I
mustered up courage epough to try it,
and the first day of March the bees were
flying. I went down to the hives and
pulled down my stocking, and when a
bee crawled up on my leg or my stock-
ing, I pulled up the stocking and caught
it, and patted it on its back until it
would sting me, then I would let it go
and catch another and pat it on the back,
until I had got about four or five good
stings. When the stings got well, my
rheumatism was well also, and I have
never been troubled with it since.

Now I believe in bee-stings as a cure
for rheumatism. Some of my neighbors
call me a "crank " when I talk to them
about it, but I am willing to be called a
crank if I can find relief by it. 1 don't
care what they call me in that line — it
does not hurt half as badly as rheuma-
tism. I have come to believe that a few
bee-stings are good for me, and I am not
half so afraid of bees as I once was.

Cerro Gordo, Ills.

Corrections — Apis Dorsata —
mailing Queens, Etc.

Written for the American Bee Jowmal
BY FRANK BENTON.

In the report of the Washington con-
vention several omissions and mistakes
occur which cause the views attributed
to me to appear very different from
those I intended to express, and I must
therefore ask for space in which to cor-
rect them.

In the discussion on the self-hiver,
page 143 of the Bee Jouknal, where
I said, " The cost is but little more than
the interest on the money," there should
be added these words : a trifle, which
would be paid several times over If the
seif-hiver accomplished the result sought,
and thus saved what it costs to hive
swarms.

On page 145 is the statement, refer-
ring to Mrs. Benton's shipments of bees:
"It was her skill in this direction which

landed in fine condition the first queen-
bee that ever made successfully by mail
this long journey from Europe." This
last should read : from Europe to the
Pacific coast. As a matter of fact the
first queens sent by mail across the
Atlantic successfully were put up and
posted by myself. But just here it may
be of interest to add that up to the time
of Mrs. Benton's success in mailing to
the Pacific coast those I had sent by
mail to States west of Kansas, had all
arrived dead. Her queens were put up
and mailed in Munich, Germany, June
8, 1885, while I was absent in the
Orient.

There is credited, or I had better say,
debited to me on page 148, the follow-
ing : " Apis dorsata is not looked upon
as valuable for a cross." What I wished
understood was this : Apis dorsata
might not prove valuable for a cross —
perhaps even it would not cross with
our bees.

This is not quite as bad as the ideas
on page 249 of the Canadian Bee Jour-
nal for Nov. 15, 1892, where it is said
that, " personally, Mr. Benton thought
Apis dorsata would be no acquisition
even if it could be acclimated ;" and
" that bee-keepers need not look for new
discoveries of any consequence in re-
gard to other and better races of bees
than those now possessed." How in the
world any one who attempts to report
the views of another can possibly get
them so twisted all out of actual resem-
blance to their original form, I cannot
conceive. I not only never made these
statements, nor do I hold such views.
Moreover, at the Illinois State conven-
tion in Chicago I did not say anything
about foreign races of bees except in re-
ply to a few questions that were directed
to me personally.

It is stated on page 214 of the Amebi-
CAN Bee Joubnal, that those there
named were elected to honorary mem-
bership in the North American Bee-
Keepers' Association upon a motion
made by myself. This is true of all but
the last-mentioned gentleman — Dr. H.
W. Wiley, Chief of Chemical Division,
United States Department of Agricul-
ture, Washington, D. C. Dr. Wiley's
name was proposed by Mr. A. N. Draper,
of Upper Alton, Ills. I shouldn't won-
der if I was the only member present
who did not vote for his election. I con-
ceive that only names of such as have
rendered some eminent service to apicul-
tural interests should be placed on our
list of honorary members.

It might be asked why the names of
two deceased individuals should now be

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

309

entered upon the list, and if these, why
not the names of many others whose
work entitles them to greater promi-
nence. The activity of both Mr. Alfred
Neighbour and Mr. Edward Cori was
continued some time after the North
American Bee-Keepers' Association had
been organized, and I conceive that it
might have been a mere oversight that
they were not placed on the list while
still alive. I suggested, therefore, in
honor to their memory, and as a mark
of respect for their families, that their
names be now entered permanently on
the list, marked as is usual in the case
of deceased members, with a " star" or
other reference.

The Agricultural Department letters
from which Mr. L. B. Smith has quoted
on page 141, were composed by me, and
I shall therefore have to protest when
made to say in referring to the juices
taken from bees received from him :
"An effort was made to obtain tuber-
culosis from these by inoculation." The
letters in question were type-written, in
duplicate, that is, duplicates were made
by placing two sheets of paper in the
type-writer and at one impression print-
ing both. The duplicate copies are be-
fore me, and the above sentence is, very
plainly: "An effort was made to ob-
tain tube-cultures from these by inocu-
lation." Again, to many, " bacillus alvei
(foul brood) or bacillus gaytoni (dipilis)
the cause of the nameless bee-disease,"
appears very different when printed as
my type-written letter now before me
has it: Bacillus alvei ("foul brood")
or Bacillus gaytoni (depilis) the cause
of "the nameless bee-disease."

I have by no means noted all the
errors in the articles referred to, for
that would make this too long and too
dull. But enough have been mentioned
to show that greater care should be
taken by some not to misinterpret the
views of others who have taken pains to
express themselves clearly and decidedly.

Washington, D. C.

Are Drones from Unfecundated
Queens Tirile ?

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY DR. C. C. MILLEK.

On page 1-4, Dr. Tinker says, "All
experience has shown that the drones of
virgin queens do not possess virility,
and are therefore worthless ; although
theory and scientific deduction proclaim
to the contrary."

Dr. Tinker is not inclined to make
careless statements, and for anything I
know he may be right, but I think it
just possible that he might modify his
statement just a little, so as to read,
that no experience had yet shown that
drones of virgin queens possess virility.

The fact that in all these years no one
has yet proven that such drones are
fully virile, if fact it be, is strong pre-
sumptive evidence against their virility,
but it is by no means conclusive proof.
Suppose a number of such drones are
on hand in the spring before other
drones are present, and young queens
flying remain unfertilized, the proof is
still not conclusive, for we know that in
many cases, on account of weather or
otherwise, young queens remain unfer-
tilized when normal drones are plenty,
and this does not prove that these nor-
mal drones are not virile.

Mind you, I'm not saying which way
is right. I don't know. But I do know
that authorities, respected alike by Dr.
Tinker and myself, give out the verdict
that the drone progeny of virgin queens
are fully virile, although I do not know
that they furnish any but theoretical
proof.

If, when drones are plenty of the
kind as to which there can be no ques-
tion, and if at such times queens are
set free in like favorable circumstances
among a large number of the kind of
drones in dispute, with no successful re-
sult, it would be pretty hard to claim for
them virility. Perhaps such a test can
never be made, and it may be that the
question will always be a mooted one.

Fortunately, it is a matter of not such
great practical importance that any
blood need be shed over it, and if Dr.
Tinker and I meet again next fall, it is
quite likely we may be on speaking
terms, even if I do insist that he doesn't
know for sure.

Marengo, Ills.

* I »

"The 'Winter Problem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Joubnal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
! $1.30. Send to us for a copy.

sio

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAt-.

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Wintering Finely So Far.

The weather has been extremely cold
here. The thermometer registered be-
low zero for 30 days continuously dur-
ing the month of January. Bees are
wintering finely so far.

J. D. Goodrich.

East Hardwick, Vt., Feb. 13, 1893.

Bees Have Used But Little Honey.

There is plenty of winter here yet,
with occasional signs of spring. Bees
that were left on the summer stands un-
protected are in a very bad condition
for early swarms. My bees wintered
best with supers on. The bees con-
sumed a comparatively small amount of
honey until the present. My best col-
ony stored about 37 pounds in the su-
pers last year. D. O'Connell.

Cooperstown, Ills., Feb. 20, 1893.

Season of 1892— White Clover.

Last year I commenced the season
with 70 colonies, and put 71 into win-
ter quarters. I did not have a swarm
myself, but one came to me. I got
3,500 pounds of comb honey, or some-
where near that amount, making almost
50 pounds per colony.

My bees had to-day their first good
flight for three months. The colonies
are all strong, and made the air just
boil about noon to-day. It was 50°
above zero at one o'clock. They are
packed in wheat-chaff in chaff-hives of
my own construction. I claim to have
the secret for wintering bees in Mis-
souri.

The clover never looked better ; It is
coming through all right.

I do admire the Bee Journal's way
of talking in regard lo the adulteration
of honey. J. W. Blodgett.

Empire Prairie, Mo., Feb. 19, 1893.

Bttving Swarms on Drawn Combs, Etc.

Allow me a few words in behalf of
Mr. Orville Jones' comments (page 184)
on Mr. W. Z. Hutchinson's article about
hiving swarms on drawn combs or on
starters. I think that Mr. Jones was
unfair, both to Mr. H. and to advanced
apiarists, should he be taken for au-
thority. Please give Mr. Hutchinson's
article another close study, then if you
know Mr. Hutchinson's plan, and how to
work it, and have bees and nectar in the
field, I can't see any reason why you
should not get comb honey. But what
can one do with the old-fashioned hives,
with hanging frames, etc., tight bottoms
and their like ? S. M. Cablzen.

Montclair, Colo., Feb. 15, 1893.

An Old-Fashioned Winter, Etc.

According to the request in a late
issue, I will say that I have the Ameri-
can Bee Journal from Vol. I, No. 1,
to the present time. I have 16 volumes
nicely bound.

We have an old-fashioned winter in
Western Pennsylvania, but the bees
seem to be wintering fairly. Long live
the "old reliable" American Bee Jour-
nal. W. J. Davis, 1st.

Youngsville, Pa., Feb. 16, 1893.

Bee-Keeping in Minnesota.

Bees are wintering well so far, as far
as I can learn in this locality. The win-
ters are long and very cold here, the
mercury often falling to 30° or 40°,
and sometimes to 50° below zero, and
sometimes have two months at one time
that the mercury does not get above
zero. Bees are generally wintered In
cellars here, but there is one man that
has a dark, unused chamber where he
has wintered his bees very successfully
for several years.

There are not many bee-keepers here,
and no very large apiaries — the largest
I know of is about 30 colonies ; from 3
or 4 up to 12 or 15 colonies is the num-
ber usually kept. I have 3 colonies in
my cellar that are very strong and
healthy at the present time. One of
these colonies was found in a bunch of
grass in the field of one of my neighbors,
where he said they had been for two
days. As soon as he told me, I went and
hived them, and in a very short time
after I placed them on the stand they
were at work as I never saw a young
swarm work before in my nearly 50
years' experience with bees.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

311

This is almost a treeless prairie — a
few small groves of timber on the banks
of some of the lakes is the only timber
there is. One of my neighbors has a
grove of about four acres of timber,
mostly oak and basswood. About the
last of December, while cutting down a
tree, he found a colony of bees in it, and
his boys at once began to hunt for more
bee-trees ; the result was they found 3
more, and at last accounts they were
all alive and doing well. The question
is, where did the bees come from, as
there are no bees kept within 12 miles
of this timber except mine, and I have
had only two swarms rue away ?

Last season was a good one for honey,
and bees stored a large amount of it in
sections. There are none that work for
extracted honey in this locality. We
have a home market for all of our honey
at 15 to 16 cents per pound.

S. B. Smith.

Keeville, Minn., Feb. 16, 1893.

Bees Did Well Last Year.

Bees did well out here the past season,
considering the late, wet spring. About
two-thirds of the bees in this locality
dwindled away and died last spring,
owing to the cold, late spring, which
made late breeding and swarming, and
as almost all the young colonies are
light, and the winter severe, the loss
from starvation will be heavy. One of
my colonies had less than a quart of
bees in June, and before the honey sea-
son was over they stored 125 pounds of
extracted honey. I have a good market
for my honey here, and sold my surplus
for 15 cents per pound for comb, and
10 cents for extracted.

R. C. Hatch.

Central City, Iowa, Feb. 16, 1893.

Peculiarities of California Climate.

This State is very peculiar as to
climate. We have a dozen or more
climates ; these we have from the fact
that we have such a long stretch of
country, and that some of our mountain
ranges run up to such a high elevation.
While at my friend Bliss' place 22 miles
east of Los Angeles, last week, I saw
tomato vines in his orchard that were
not in the least injured by frost. He
told me that he has had vines in bearing
for four consecutive years, and they
were never, in all that time, injured by
frost. Our vines are killed every year.
Yet I am told there is a place in this
county, something like 20 miles from

here, where tomatoes go through the
winter untouched. Our mulberry trees
won't leaf out for a month yet ; those I
s'aw on Mr. Bliss' place have already
made six inches of new wood, and formed
leaves four inches across.

Again, we are ahead of them in some,
things. Our list of wild flowers is far"
larger, and the varieties far prettier
than anything they have in the southern
part of the State. I was surprised to
learn that they have no California lau-
rels in Southern California. They are
common up this way, and are one of our
most showy evergreens. They bloom in
January, and give the bees an abundant
supply of pollen. Then we have dozens
of other flowers that do not exist in the
lower counties. Why this is so I do not
know, unless it is that the many dry
years they have there prevented the in-
troduction and spread of the finer kinds
of flowers In that otherwise beautiful
clime. Perhaps it was one of those
compensations of nature.

W. A. Pbtal.

North Temescal, Calif., Feb. 15, 1893.

Good Crop of Honey Expected.

Bees have wintered well here, and are
now gathering some pollen. The pros-
pects are good for a good crop of honey
the coming season in most parts of
southwestern Texas. The crop of last
year was a complete failure in this sec-
tion of the country. Stock of all kinds
did poorly. This is, or was, a hard
country to look at ; we need rain here
badly now, but in almost all of the coun-
try south of the Colorado river there
has been plenty of rain. We indeed live
in a country of milk and honey when we
have a good season. A. W. Lamkin.

Uvalde, Tex., Feb. 18, 1893.

Bees in Splendid Condition.

My bees last season did well in com-
parison with some of my neighbors, as
I took in extracted and comb honey from
100 to 150 pounds to the colony, that
is, from the best of them. I always win-
ter most of my bees on the summer
stands. This has been a hard winter
for them, as the cold was so intense that
they have been kept from flying for so
long a time. On Feb. 12th and 13th
they had a flight. We have lost 3 out
of 47 colonies, but most of the others
are in splendid condition.

John Haskins.

Douglas, Mo., Feb. 17, 1883.

312

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Bee-Stings and Rheumatism, Etc.

So far our bees seem to be wintering
well. About a week ago I had the rheu-
matism in my hand so badly that I could
not use it. I went to the bee-cellar and
let a little light fall upon the front of
one of the hives, and soon a bee came
buzzing out. Catching the bee, I shut
the door and tried to make the bee sting
me. It would not, however, and I was
about to cast it away anl get another,
when it gave me a good pop. Before
five minutes I noticed the pain going
down. It is now entirely cured, and I
think it was better thaii a doctor's rem-
edy.

A year ago last summer father had 2
swarms issue at the same time. He told
me I could have one of them if I would
hive it, which I did. They did nothing
that year, further than to store enough
for winter. They lived through the
winter all right, and last summer I got
about 30 pounds of honey. I had no in-
crease, and they went into this winter
with plenty of stores.

Father says the Bee Joubnal is "a
glad surprise," and that he would not do
without it for $10 a year.

W. E. Stoner.

Atlantic, Iowa, Feb. 14, 1893.

Hard Winter on Bees.

I have just looked over my bees, and
out of 126 colonies I found 13 dead
ones. All are outside in chaff hives, and
all have plenty of honey. I expect a
large honey crop the coming season. It
is a hard winter on bees, and I will be
satisfied if I have 100 colonies to ex-
tract from. Nathan Mercer.

Neosho, Wis., Feb. 20, 1893.

Swarms Hived on Starters, Etc.

In the Bee Journal of Dec. 22,
1892, W. Z. Hutchinson gives his plan
of using empty combs. I was very much
Interested in his ideas, for they agree
with my experience to a T. My early
lessons in bee-keeping were from bee-
books saying that it was as good as
money in banks to save all combs, even
to pieces, and fit them in frames held by
clamps until the bees mended them. I
was very much taken with the idea, and
set about to accomplish the feat. Two
years ago I became overstocked in bees,
so I doubled up until I had the desired
number, and by this means I had a nice
lot of combs to hold over until the next
season. I thought now I will have my
sails trimmed, ready for the breeze.

I hived nearly all of my new swarms
on a full set of nice combs. The bees
seemed delighted with the arrangement;
they stayed right by them, didn't want
any upstairs in theirs ! My " sailing "
was not as pleasant as I anticipated,
the breeze didn't breeze worth a cent.

Now, I feel thankful for what I
learned in bee-books, for if it had not
been for them I would not know as much
about empty combs as I do now. I have
come to the conclusion that starters in
the brood-nest and sections is the best.
Bees do not work with the same vim
when given full combs, or full sheets of
foundation, as they do with starters.
In this management we do not get as
straight combs, but we know how to
make wax out of the crooked and drone
combs, and can replace them with
straight ones, and then you will find
your bank account in a big pile of wax.

Thos. O. Hines.
Anamosa, Iowa.

Hybrids vs. Italians for Honey.

On page 148, Mr . Boggs desires to
know which are the best bees to gather
honey, the dark or the golden Italians.
He wants to discard Italian-hybrids for
bees that will breed up early in the
spring, and store the most honey. If
Mr. B. is not particular about any other
good qualities save the two mentioned,
I would advise him to keep the hybrids •
they are very hardy, and are not ex-
celled by any in gathering the sweets. I
might speak more favorably of their
fine work in the sections, but should I
say more, some one would be sure to
contradict.

In my opinion, the bright yellow Ital-
ians are more gentle than their dark
sisters, and we know they are quite
pleasing to the eye; but on what
grounds could we expect them to store
more honey? If I am rightly informed,
they are no cross, but reared from pure
Italian mothers or a Doolittle queen. I
am greatly in love with them, but I find
it requires much care in breeding to
keep the five-banded beauties.

A. B. Baird.
Belle Vernon, Pa., Feb. 15, 1893.

Wild Peach of Texas, Etc.

Bees have wintered in fine condition
here. They began carrying in pollen on
Jan. 28th, at a lively rate. Wild peach
will be in bloom in a few days.

As several letters have been written to
me asking aboutj^wild poach, I will try

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAU

313

to describe It. It is an evergreen tree,
growing in rich, swampy bottom-lands.
The tree is a beautiful one, growing
from 25 to 40 feet high. It generally
begins to bloom about the middle of
February, and stays in bloom about one
month. The fragrance is delightful.
Berries are then formed, which hang on
the trees all the spring and summer,
and are of a pale green color. In the
fall they change to a jet-black color.
Robins eat the fruit all winter, and get
so fat they can hardly fly.

I have just returned from a trip to the
coast country, and had an excellent
time hunting game and tishlng. Fish
are very plentiful there. Many men are
making money there shipping game and
fish. I learned that bees do very well
there in some seasons, but not so well as
they do in the center and northern part
of Texas. The country is very thinly
settled; stock-raising is the principal
occupation, and is very profitable — in
fact, many men have made fortunes
by it.

I wish Dr. Miller would not say any-
thing about the cold weather, as we
hardly know what cold weather Is here.

W. S. Douglass.

Lexington, Tex., Feb. 10, 1893.

Contention I^otices.

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are Invited to attend and make it what It
should be— an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

COLORADO,— The adjourned meeting of
the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Charles Block, corner 15th
and Curtis Streets, Denver, Colo., on April 18,
1893. Business Important to all honey-pro-
ducers will come before the meeting.

Littleton, Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

KANSAS.— The Kansas State Bee-Keepers'
Association will hold tbeir annual convention
at Ottawa, Kansas, on April 6 and 7, 1893.
All bee-keepers are cordially invited to attend
this convention, and make it one of the most
interesting ever known. Ttiere will be a
good programme. Bring something to ex-
hibit. L. Wayman. Sec.

Chanute. Kans.

TEXAS.— The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
in Greenville, one mile north of the Court
House, at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
on Wednesday and Thursday, April the 5th
and 6th, 1893. One of the biggest bee-meet-
ings ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody is invited. No hotel bills to pay.
Come one, come all, and let us have a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to
exhibit. A. H. Jones, Sec.

Golden, Texas.

^fj^^MS^^SO^I^,^^

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

JLt One Dollar a Year,
56 FIFTH AVENUE. CHICAGO. ILLS.

Special Notices.

The Date on the wrapper-label of this
paper indicates the end of the month to
which you have paid for the Joubnal.
If that is past, please send us one dollar
to pay for another year. This shows
that Mr. Porter has paid his subscrip-
tion up to the end of December, 1893 :

Wallace Porter Dec93
SufiSeld, Portage co, Ohio

CONYENTIOIW DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time mid place of meeti/tig.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

April 6, 7.— Kansas State, at Ottawa, Kans.
L. Wayman, Sec, Chanute, Kans.

April 18.— Colorado State, at Denver, Colo.
H. Knight Sec, Littleton, Colo.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

VicePres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary- Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer- George W. York. . .Chicago, Ills,

< * m • *

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor. .Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

(i

Bees and Honey "—page 293.

314

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
March 4th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 2.5c.

R. A. B. &Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It selis readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8^ ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Demand from manu-
facturers is slow, but the demand is good for
extracted for family use. It brings 6@8c.—
No good comb is on our market. It would
bring 14®16c.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 23@2.5c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8'^c. ; buckwheat, 6@6^c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@2 7c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNE APO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®l'<c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16®17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 1.5c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7(g»7^c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C.-M. C. C.

Albany. N. Y — Our stock of honey is light
and also receipts. Demand keeps up better
tlian usual this season. We are selling white
comb honey at 14@16c. ; mixed, 12® 13c.;
dark, 10®llc. Extracted, white, 9@9'/4c.:
mixed, 7i4®8c.; dark, 7@7i4c. Beeswa»,28@
30c. H. R. W.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 293.

Cblcago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

Sau PranclMco, Calif.

Schacht, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minueapolls, ITIIun.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue

Kansas City, Mo.

HAirBLiN & Beakss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co.. 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Wants or Excjiaiiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each Insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

Advertiseineiits.

'■'^/■•s^-v/-"

50 Colonies of Bees For Sale

IN lO-frame and 8-frame Hives, Langstroth
frame. 10-frame, $4.00 each; 8-frame,
$3.50 each. If 5 are taken at one time, 5 per
cent, discount. Also. 40 Cliaff Hives, 1»4
story, and 20 Root Dovetailed Hives,
nailed up and furnished with section-holders
and brood-frames. Dovetailed Hives, 80 cts.
each; Chaff Hives, $1.25 each. The Hives are
new and ttie Bees are in good condition.

J. M. KINZIK,
10A2t ROCHESTER, Oakland Co., MICH.

Mention the American Bee Journal.

ITALIAN QUEENS.

BRED for Business, Gentleness and Beau-
ty. Untested, 80c. each; three, $2.25;
six, $4.00; twelve, $7.50. Tested, $1.25. Selec-
ted tested, yellow to the tips, breeder, $1.50.
Will commence shipping April 15th. Safe
arrival guaranteed.

O. E. DAWSOBf,

CARLISLE, Lonoke Co.. ARK.
Mention the American Bee Journal.

GEORGE W. YORK, } DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY

Editor. I To Bee-Culture.

Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MARCH 16, 1893.

NO. IL

"God Bless the Man who sows the wheat.
Who finds us milk and fruit and meat ;
May his purse be heavy, his heart be light ;
His cattle and corn and all go right ;
God bless the seeds his bands let fall,
For the farmer he must feed us all."

The l^asliing^ton Convention
Report is now in pamphlet form, and we
shall be pleased to mail a copy to any
one desiring it, for 25 cents. It con-
tains 32 pages. As only a very limited
number were printed, you should order
promptly if you want a copy.

Mr. Frank McXay, of Mauston,
Wis., gives in Oleanlngs a comparative
statement of the honey produced during
16 years (from 1876 to' 1891, inclu-
sive) in the famous " Sespe " apiary in
California, and his own apiaries in Wis-
consin. It is an interesting table, show-
ing that 73 pounds per colony was the
total average of the California apiary,
and 93 pounds per colony of Mr. Mc-
Nay's apiaries. Mr. M.'s best crop in
any one year was 23 tons ; best gain
from one colony, 31 pounds in one day ;
and 335 pounds from a single colony in
one season.

Questions and Answers.— As

there are always new members coming
into the Bee Journal, family, it be-
comes necessary to repeat at intervals
what should be understood about asking
questions. The subscriber who thinks
he is entitled to nothing more than to
find what happens to come in our col-
umns ready printed, whether it fits his
particular case or not, is making a great
mistake. It is no grievance for us to be
obliged to answer questions. Thaf^s
what we're here for ; to tell, just so far
as we know how, what you want to
know. Not but what there are plenty
of questions to be asked in bee-keeping
that we cannot answer — how we wish
we could answer all — but there are also
plenty we can answer.

Too often it is the case that some be-
ginner feels that he does not want to be
troublesome, and so refrains from ask-
ing questions. Let such a one please
remember that there are others just like
himself, and that we are glad to have
questions for the general good. Any one
who has mastered to a considerable ex-
tent the contents of one of the standard
text-books on bee-cu!ture, and then finds
a point on which he has a question, will
be doing us a favor to send it.

On page 333 of this number, we begin
a new department, called " General
Questions," in which we will endeavor to
accommodate those questions that can
be just as satisfactorily answered by one
person, and also such as demand an
ivimediate reply in order for such reply

328

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

to be of any value. Principally it will
be an editorial department, and, we
trust, will prove to be interesting and
profitable to all.

But bear in mind that it takes time to
get questions " through the mill," and
don't expect an answer by return mail.
Sometimes there is a mass of matter on
hand, and your questions may have to
wait some little time ; and even if it
does not have to wait, but is pushed
through with the greatest rapidity, if it
happens to reach us on the day when
the "forms" are closed for the next
Bee Jouenai,, it must be some days be-
fore it can be reached, and then Uncle
Sam must have a little time for his part
of the contract.

So remember that all reasonable ques-
tions are not only permitted, but wel-
comed. Make your questions as clear
as you can, and be sure to ask them so
there will be plenty of time for answer.
Just as soon as your question can be
reached, you will find the printed an-
swer in our columns. Of course, ques-
tions of such character as to go into the
department of "Queries and Replies"
may not be published for a good many
weeks, for such questions are sent out a
number at a time to the experts for an-
swer, taking some time to get such an-
swers, and then they are published in
their order afterward.

The R.evie'w said recently that
" G. T. Somers is the name of a pleasant,
nice looking young man who has been
editor of the Canadian Bee Journal for
the last year. I met him last week at
the Ontario Bee-Keepers' Convention.
Practically, Mr. D. A. Jones has noth-
ing more to do with the Canadian Bee
Journal."

The Hxports of Honey from
the United States during 1892 were
valued at only $42,462, against $70,-
771 in 1891, No record is made of any
importation in the statement of the
Treasury Department.

Illinois Bee-Keepers must act
at once, if they wish to secure the an-
nual appropriation of $500 from the
State Legislature. Here is a letter dated
March 9th, which fully explains Itself :

Bradfokdton, Ills.

Friend York : — A Bill has been pre-
sented in the House of Representatives
to provide for the usual appropriation
of $500, for the purpose of publishing
the report of the Illinois State Bee-
Keepers' Association. A similar Bill
has been presented in the Senate, and
was, by a small majority, not favorably
received.

Unless the bee-keepers of the State
act immediately, it will share the same
fate in the House. It is therefore of the
utmost importance that bee-keepers
write to their respective members of the
House and Senate, urging the early and
favorable consideration of the said Bill.

All are requested to write each of
their three Representatives, and Senator
as well, from their District, and as
strongly as possible urge upon each the
importance of the measure to bee-keep-
ers interested in developing the industry
throughout the State.

Let all please favor the undersigned
with the letters they receive in reply,
in order that the Legislative Committee
may be fully advised of the interest or
opposition to the same in the House and
Senate, and advocate the early passage
of the Bill. Yours truly,

Jas. a. Stone, Sec.

G. W. D£]«IAREE, ESQ.

So far as as we remember, we have
never before seen either a biographical
sketch or a portrait of Mr. G. W. Dem-
aree, of Christiansburg, Ky., in any
publication ; so we are afforded the
pleasure of presenting for the first time,
to the readers of the Bee Journal, the
face and short life-story of Mr. D., who
is so well known as one of the oldest

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

329

contributors to our columns, both by his
answers to queries every week, and by
an occasional contribution — all of which
show practical experience and an edu-
cated naind.

Mr. Demaree is of Huguenot stock,
and was born in Henry county, Ky., on
Jan. 27, 1832. His father owned a
large farm, and, in those days, was con-
sidered "well to do." The farming op-
erations were carried on quite exten-
sively, and young Demaree was brought
up to do all loorli on the farm, and, with
his brothers, was exceedingly fond of

O. W. DEMAREE.

breaking and training the large number
of fine horses they reared.

In the old-fashioned yard was to be
seen a long row of bee-hives perched on
a platform of puncheons, and protected
from the sun and rain by a narrow shed
erected over them. Mr. D. was his
father's main reliance for help with the
bees. He was a natural mechanic, aad
helped make the necessary bee-hives and
" honey-caps," and later on made them
without any help. Many of those box-
hives were nicely " dressed " and painted.
At an early age he developed a remark-
able interest in insect life, especially in
honey-bees, and was never happier than
when prying into the ways of bees and
other insects. Amid all these busy
scenes his education was not neglected,
and being an enthusiastic aspirant for
knowledge, as well as an untiring stu-

dent, he outstripped many of his age
who had spent much more time in the
school-room.

When he reached manhood he left
home and went West, where he con-
tinued his studies, attending school and
working at the mechanic's business. The
year 1855 found him in the (then) wilds
of Upper Missouri and Kansas. In the
past he has published in newspaper arti-
cles a description of the wild bees he saw
while on that trip to the new West.

In 1856 he was again found on the
old farm, in his native State. The
" boys " indulged their slang by declar-
ing that "calico" was the attraction!
And perhaps this was nearer the truth
of the situation than they themselves
believed, for in 1857 he was married to
the woman of his choice, and began life
in earnest. Once on a farm of his own,
he began his career as a bee-keeper, and
"began to invent new bee-gums with
much enthusiam."

Then followed the unhappy years of
the Civil War. The terrible scenes he
witnessed— the bending over the pros-
trate form of a cherished brother, with
a bullet hole through his body; men
with shattered limbs, and dead men with
their boots on— will haunt his memory
until " He that sitteth upon the throne"
shall "make all things new."

The war over, Mr. Demaree left the
farm, and entered the practice of the
law, and from thence his life became an
exceedingly busy one. He has held pub-
lic trust in his county (Shelby) for 25
years, three years of which he was
chairman of the Board of Public Charity
of the county — a most difficult and deli-
cate position, owing to the increase of
poverty by reason of the sudden emanci-
pation of the colored people.

During these years Mr. D. has found
time to manage an apiary of not less
than 50 colonies, reared queens, and
produced profitable crops of honey. In
May and June he can always be found
in his apiary, and is ready to "talk
bees " with all visitors. In the past two
years he has retired from the greater
part of the business that has engaged
his attention, and now enjoys more
leisure, and is happier than ever before.
Mr. D. has been a member of the
Presbyterian church for 37 years, and
is an Elder in his church. He is a firm
believer in the pre-millennial advent of
Christ, having given the subject much
study, and now believes that the " signs
of the times " warrant the belief that
we are nearing the world's great crisis,
which will culminate in the promised
" restitution of all things."

330

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

lEREM

CONDUCTED BY
JUGENHEIM:, HESSENi GERMANY.

Apicultural Notes.

Spermatic Animalcules in Bee-
Eggs. — Mr. Faylor believes, and it
snems that Prof. Cook does too, that
sperm-cells cannot be discovered in bee-
eggs with any kind of microscope. Prof,
von Siebold discovered sperm-cells in
bee-eggs about 40 years ago, and the
microscopes at that time were nbt the
very best ones. If Siebold had not dis-
covered them, there would not have
been a scientific sanction of the ideas of
Dzierzon up to now. Is that true ? No !
it is a fact that the doctrine of Dzierzon
is acknowledged by everybody now-a-
days.

Queen Laying Worker - Eggs in
Drone-Cells. — Rev. Faylor says in the
American Bee Journal, "If you want
drone-bees, give a good colony nothing
but drone-comb. All eggs layed in
drone-cells produce only drone-bees."
Pardon, but that's not correct. The
queen is more clever than many think
for ; she does not like too many drone-
bees, and if you give her nothing but
drone-comb, she will soon lay fertilized
eggs, notwithstanding the drone-cells ;
and it is strange that the worker-bees,
which come from them, are not a bit
larger than those fed up in worker-bee
cells.

This experiment has already been
made in Germany, by Grunhagen,
Oerpke, and afterwards by the well-
known Vogel.

Queen and Spermatic Cells. — The
queen is able to produce spermatic cells
herself. Mr. Metzger, at Budapesth,
has recently published a surprising re-
search about the seminal vessel {recepta-
culurn seminis) of the queen. Up to
now the microscopical researches of
Prof. Leuckart and Prof, von Siebold,
who, together with Berlepsch, first
proved Dzierzon's marvellous doctrine
of the Parthenogenesis to be right, have
been standard ; but now Metzger has
corrected part of these researches,
and added a highly interesting fact. He
says :

"The statement of Prof. Leuckart,
that the seminal vesicle of the queen is

large enough to accept millions of sper-
matic animalcules at once, is not cor-
rect— it is much too small for that, and
the spermatic animalcules cannot live
for three to five years in the seminal
vesicle of the queen, as is believed to-
day. The seminal vesicle is a ' gland.'
and has therefore secretions which con-
sist of an opalescing liquid containing
cells without nucleus. After the copu-
lation, all these cells have a nucleus,
and one can see the spermatic animal-
cules in all kinds of sizes, part of them
just leaving the cells. This is a proof
that the spermatic animalcules can be
increased in number by the queenherself.
If a queen is killed during spring-time,
when the seminal vesicle is ^lled with
spermatic animalcules, one can even see
that the spermatic animalcules are try-
ing to leave the cells even before the
cells have got rid of the mucous mem-
brane of the gland. During winter-time
there are only very few sperm animalcu-
les in the seminal vesicle, and still in
spring the queen is able to lay up to
3,000 eggs a day, and each egg wants
at least one sperm animalcule for ferti-
lization."

This is quite a new view, and a good
many of the men of letters will be sur-
prised at this doctrine. Dzierzon thinks
favorably of it. He says that he some-
times has noticed that an Italian queen
mated to a German drone, in the third
year, did not produce any more hybrids,
but pure Italians. There was no state-
ment as to this curious fact up to now,
but the discovery of Metzger will attest
it.

That's something for Prof. Cook !

H. Reepen.

Xhe Sting: Xro-wel Theory is

thus referred to by Prof. Wm. F. Clarke,
of the Ontario Bee-Keepers' College, at
Guelph, Ont., Canada:

Permit me to say that "Whoever the
I may be " who figures in the English
journals mentioned on page 137 of your
issue of Feb. 2ud, is not r«.e, nor have I
any knowledge who it is. The quotation
is taken bodily from my "Bird's-Eyc
View ;" nor has the writer gone a step
farther than I, in assigning to the formic
acid (not the sting) the duty of flavoring
the honey. I believe that the bees, as
Cheshire happily phrases it, add "drop-
lets " of formic acid to the honey as
they store it, and smear some on the
cappings in the finishing touches which
they give them. Wm. F. Clarke.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

331

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas

kjkjm,

Oiir Scliool in Bee-Keeping.

FIFTH LESSON — PRODUCING HONEY ON A
LARGE SCALE.

You must, to be a successful bee-
keeper, study your honey locality, and
know just about what time each plant
blooms, and be venj particular to note
down those that give you your crops.
Work your bees to have them ready to
catch all you can, as a few days too late
has lost a good part of many a bountiful
harvest.

Now we will go through the operation
of producing honey on a large scale —
say an apiary of 100 colonies or more.
This is an important lesson, and pay
strict attention, as I would not have you
to fail now for a good, big sum.

Producing honey on a large scale is
the same as on a small scale, except that
it seems our skill must be greater to
make a large apiary pay as well as a
small one, in proportion. But after we
get the " hang of it," it is easier to get
our bees in good condition to gather in
the harvest, as we have more bees, and
can take from one and help another,
and get the whole apiary in about the
same shape to catch the harvest. I
know that some apiarists don't approve
of doing this, but where it can be done
long before the honey-flow, it is the best
thing to do, as we can have our colonies
all equalized in time for them to start
off on the sections, or in the extracting
supers, at the same time.

It is no use to be wasting brood on a
colony that has a poor queen. You had
better pinch her head off at once, and
let them rear a queen, or give them one
from some other source. One of the
main reasons why we fail in a large
apiary is, we neglect our duty, and do
not have our extra hives, supers, and
sections all ready, just because it is a
bigger job. And now I will tell you that

it is just as important to prepare for
100 colonies as it is for one, or more so,
as the loss is not so great with a few.
But, to sum it all up, we can make a
large apiary pay as well as a small one
if we will be up and doing, and attend
to everything as we should. I mean, a
large apiary will pay as well as a small
one, unless we overstock a pasture, and
we should look sharp and not do this,
and when we see that we are overstock-
ing, divide our bees out into out-apiaries.
But when a good year comes, there is
not much danger in overstocking in this
locality ; however, when we see that we
are going to have a poor year, it is best
to give the bees better range by moving
them to out yards.

By all means do not think of using
but one size of frame in your yards, as
it is a serious mistake, as you cannot
manipulate your apiary to advantage.

Now, when you get to 100 colonies,
you may, if you wish, make increase
enough every year to make an out-yard
until you get all the bees your brains
can manage, and in this you will have
to be governed as you go along ; and
when you get as many as you are mak-
ing pay, you had better stop ; do not be
mistaken about this, as you are in a
shape now to lose something, should you
fail. But please bear in mind that you
must not try to increase your bees in
poor seasons, rather decrease, if any-
thing.

The Summerland of Florida.

Suffering greatly with sciatic rheuma-
tism in Grand Meadow, Minn., and find-
ing no relief among the Minnesota doc-
tors, I was, in November last, banished,
so to speak, for the winter, at least, to
Florida — the perpetual summerland.
Here in the warm sunshine and balmy
air relief has so far come as to enable
me to walk without crutches or cane.

Before leaving my home, the bees
were carefully stored in a dark depart-
ment of my cellar, and I bade them an
affectionate farewell for the long, cold
winter. How I have wished to have
them here with me, to share my banish-
ment, and that they might revel in the
blossoms of February. For a week past,
the peach, plum, cherry, blackberry,
yellow jessamine, and other blossoms,
have been in full beauty, and the bees
are swarming among the branches, eager
to gather the sweet nectar. Soon this
will be followed by the orange, lemon,
grape-fruit, dogwood and magnolia,
with many others.

332

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

In Florida, bee-keeping Is not done as
we do In the North. I have seen none
but the natives, or black bees, and If
they survive the millers all right, and if
they gather any surplus, all right ; and
if they do neither, it seems to be all
right any way, in this careless going
State. Very little care is ever given
them.

Now, being lonesome, and weary with
aching, longing for some bees, I have
fitted up a hive, frames and all, filled
part with guide-combs, and have dis-
covered a bee-tree. Now I am happy,
and next week I will try the transferring
from a rotten old tree, away in the
swamp and water, to a new hive, clean
and bright. I long to have them hum
under my window, even though they are
black. I have often transferred from a
barrel, box, and nail-keg, but a rotten
log is a " new deal." At some future
time I will report progress.

Here in Florida, it is claimed that the
honey from the yellow jessamine is pois-
onous, or at least makes people deathly
sick who eat it. I should like to know
as to the truth of this claim.

C. F. Greening.

Orange Park, Fla., Feb. 23, 1893.

An Aged Bee-Keeper's Flan to Intro-
duce Queens.

Mrs. Jennie Atchley : — I will say in
the first place that I am in my 73rd
year, so I am not able to get around
much, but so far as I know, bees are
kept upon the let-alone principle here.
We are having very heavy weather in
Spanish Fork at present, and we thank
God for it, as it means plenty of water
this year. We have but little rain in
Utah, so we must irrigate our crops.

No, my plans of introducing are not
too good to give away, and if I give
them to Jennie Atchley I know what she
will do with them. What? Why, she
will give the plans to everybody else, of
course.

Here is one way : I put the queen in-
to a spiral-wire cage, with a cork of
comb to keep her in the cage. I then
go to the colony I want to introduce her
to, kill the old queen, put the cage with
the new queen between two combs, have
by my side a cup of honey, put some of
it on each side of the cage, and all I
wish on top of the frames. I do this
about four or five o'clock in the after-
noon. That is one way.

Here Is another : Take a nucleus with
its queen, and introduce to any colony
that has no queen, or you can go to the

colony you wish to introduce to, and re-
move the old queen. Now, have with
you a sheet of paper — any kind of thin
paper will do, or a newspaper is good.
Lay it over the top of the hive, and
place the nucleus with the queen on top.
The bees will do the rest.

I suppose these plans are as old as
Adam, but I have never lost a queen
with either way, but I have with all
other plans that I have tried.

Chas. W. Leah.

Spanish Fork, Utah.

Bees in a Hive with Crooked Combs.

Mrs. Atchley : — I write to ask you
if you would advise me to set an empty
hive over a colony that has combs so
crooked that I cannot handle them ? I
see that is the way Root's " A B C of
Bee-Culture " says to do, and I ask what
you think about it ? F. A. Gardiner.

Friend Gardiner, I would not think of
setting an empty hive over one with
their combs built crooked, as that is a
very slow way, and does not always
prove satisfactory. Just take off one
side of the hive and smoke the bees out
of your way, and cut out the combs,
brushing all the bees that adhere to the
combs into a new hive, and tack in (see
"Transferring," page 205 of the Bee
Journal for Feb. 16th) — only yours are
in a frame hive already, and it is box-
hives the directions are given for ; but
fasten in your combs the same. I will
add that it is best to leave out all drone-
comb, or place it in the outside frames ;
this I forgot in my transferring direc-
tions. J. A.

Florida, the Land of Flowers.

It does not seem possible that at the
North there can be so much snow and
ice, when here fruit-trees are blooming,
and the air is so soft and warm. The
bloom of peach trees is large, and of a
beautiful dark pink, and bees fairly
swarm upon them. The ti-ti is bloom-
ing, and very fragrant, and bees are
gathering beautiful white honey from it.
Wild sage is in blossom, and residents
say that it is the same variety that is to
be found in California. Yellow jessa-
mine is quite a favorite, and Is trained
up as an ornamental vine. All of the
bees that I have seen in this immediate
vicinity are small and black, and the
hives are non-de-script affairs.

Mrs. L. Harrison.

St. Andrews' Bay, Fla., Feb.27, 1893.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

333

In this department will be answered those
questions needing isimediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to malie "Queries and Replies" so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Camiolan Bees.

Are the Carniolan bees suitable for a
climate that is not very cold, but very
damp in winter ? D, T. Phillips.

Cornelius, Oreg.

We referred this question to Messrs.
F. A. Lockhart & Co., of New York
State, who have had much experience
with these bees. They answer thus :

In reply to Mr. Phillips' inquiry, we
will say that he will find that the Car-
niolans are suitable for any country
where any other race of bees can exist,
whether it be a country that is cold, hot,
wet, or dry, as the Carniolan bee is a
native of a cold and windy country ;
showing that they will succeed in any
country, for they are used to rapid
changes of temperature. The rough
climate of the Alpine mountains has
made them a strong, robust and hardy
race, for they have been hemmed in by
mountains for centuries, and that no
other race of bees could possibly have
endured.

We have handled the Carniolans by
the hundred colonies, for the past six
years, and upon a series of observations
and demonstrations with different races
of bees as to gentleness, activity, pro-
lifiness, working qualities, and their
ability to withstand climatic changes in
cold regions, we give the highest prefer-
ence to the Carniolans.

F. A. Lockhart & Co.

TTniting and. Feeding Bees.

I have 3 colonies of Italians, that were
late swarms, hived in common boxes.
No. 1 is in a soap-box, No. 2 is in a
cracker-box, and No. 3 is in a nail-keg.
Quite an apiary, isn't it ? Nos. 1 and 2
were bought for 25 cents apiece, and
hauled 15 miles. They have no more
stores. No. 3 had fall honey from
golden-rod, and is also out of stores. On
Jan. 26th I brought No. 2 out of the
cellar, the thermometer registering 50°.

I fed syrup in a plain feeder outside,
and placed a screen cage over the box.
The heat of the sunshine induced them
to fly, and they discharged their feces (a
dark-colored, ordorous fluid) all over the
cage, and at night, when I put them in
the cellar, half of them were dead.

On Jan. 27th I examined Nos. 1 and
3, and seeing nocappingson the bottom-
board, I concluded they were out of
stores. The day being warm (50° above
zero), I decided to bring all the colonies
out of the cellar. They had a good
cleansing flight, and I fed them syrup.
There were no dead bees. I returned
them all to the cellar.

Now, as all the colonies are weak, and
have no stores, could I, on the first
warm day, take away the queens from
two of the colonies, and unite all in the
soap-box, which has the most combs,
and feed by placing white comb honey
in sections beneath the cluster ? Per-
haps you would say, let 'em starve, but
I being a beginner, do not wish to lose
them, as by trying to bring them
through the winter, I will get hard-
earned experience. All the bees com-
bined now number only about 20,000.
J. C. Wallenmeyer.

Evansville, Ind.

No, don't "let 'em starve." After
confinement in the cellar, bees are not
very hard to unite, and you hardly need
trouble to kill two of the queens. The
bees will look out for that. But you
must look out that the honey you feed is
not out of reach of the cluster, for it's
no use to give them honey if they cannot
reach it.

Moving Bees in Winter.

I have an apiary that I wish to move
a few miles from where it is now located.
What time would be best for moving it —
at the present time on sleighs, with a
a splendid track and lots of snow, or not
until spring and warm weather ? I have
the hives packed away in large cases
out-doors, with four hives in a case, and
space enough between each one to fill in
some two inches of leaves, and the same
around the inside of each case. Would
it do to have help enough to place those
cases on sleighs as they are, already
packed at this time of year, and shift
them to their new location ? We have
had some four weeks of very severe
winter weather here, and if they would
do to change this time of the year, would
it be advisable to leave them until after
we had a few warm days, and they had

334

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

a flight, as they have been confined
for a number of weeks ?

I have 121 colonies in the apiary that
I wish to move, and I took some 8,000
pounds of surplus honey from them last
season. They were all in fine condition
on Oct. 10th, when I put them away. I
fed back just before packing them, some
600 pounds of honey, and weighed them
up, all told, to 60 pounds. So far they
appear to be wintering splendidly to all
appearances. This locality is in all re-
spects first-class, this section of country
being well adapted for white clover,
Alsike, bue-gloss, and any amount of
basswood. F. Finch.

Southwold Station, Olit.

It may be best for you to wait until
spring has advanced enough so that you
will bo safe in expecting the bees to fly
as soon as put on their new stands, or
two or three days later. It certainly
does bees no good to be disturbed in the
winter, and it may do harm.

Cause of the Differenee in Size
of <4ucen-Bee8.

Query 862.— 1. What Is the cause of the
difference in the size of queen-bees ? 3. Are
the larger queens to be preferred to the
smaller ? 3. Why ? 4. Is It in the bee-mas-
ter's power to insure the production of large
queens?— New York.

Jl 1. Better nursing. 2. Yes. 4. Yes.
— Dadant & Son.

1. Food and care. 2. As a rule, yes.
4. Yes, practically. — J. H. Labrabee.

1. Strength of colony and amount of
food. 2. I don't know. 4. I think so.
— Eugene Secor.

1. The same as makes the difference
in the size of people. 2. Not necessarily.
4. Yes.— C. C. Miller.

1. I don't know. 2. As a rule, yes.
3. They are better developed. 4. I don't
know. — J. M. Hambaugh.

1. I think the cells in which they

grow. 2. I prefer them. 3. Expect

better results. 4. I think it Is. — Jas.
A. Stone.

1. The size of queens may be in-
creased or diminished by breeding with
that end In view. 2. I prefer them. 4.
It is. — A. B. Mason.

1. I don't know. 2. I prefer large
queens, every time. 8. I think they are
more prolific. 4. Yes, by careful selec-
tion.— C. H. DiBBERN.

1. The difference in method of rear-
ing. 2. As a rule, yes. 3. They are
apt to be stronger, better developed,
more prolific, longer lived. 4. Yes. —
James A. Green.

1. I don't know. 2. No. 3. They
have proven to be no better than
smaller ones. 4. No doubt, to some ex-
tent, by selecting and breeding In that
direction. — S. I. Freeborn.

Such effects are brought about by
various and numerons causes ; but as a
usual thing a large queen is the most
valuable. A good, healthy, active queen
is to be preferred above all. — Will M
Barnum.

1. Food, temperature, parentage, and
general thrift. 2. Yes, as a rule. 3.
For the same reason that a well-devel-
oped specimen of any animal is better
than a " runt." 4. To a large extent. —
P. H. Elwood.

1. The strain and breeding. 2. Yes.

3. If you are a practical man, just stop
and think why a fine, large, strong, vig-
orous queen is better than a small, in-
ferior queen. 4. To a great extent, yes.
— H. D. Cutting.

1. I am not a queen-breeder, and don't
know. 2. I would say yes. 3. I should
expect them to be more prolific, would
be easier found, and more sure to be
kept in the brood-nest by an excluder.

4. I think it is.— E. France.

1. Sometimes it is the season, and
sometimes the way they are reared. 2.
Yes. 3. They are stronger, and I think
usually more prolific, and I should ex-
pect a larger race of workers from such
queens. 4. Yes. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

1. Inherited characteristics, and early
feeding while yet larvaj. 2. If more
prolific, of first-class workers, which
should be the best of quality. 4. I think
we could breed In any direction. Mere
size is not alone a desirable end. — A. J.
Cook.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

335

1. Difference in the development con-
ditions. 2 and 3. Large queens are to
be preferred to smaller ones, but we
often see small queens more prolific than
some large ones. 4. To a great extent
— by observing the laws of queen-devel-
opment.— J. P. H. Brown.

1. It may be caused by ancestry, or
from lack of care during development.
Traits of family character very often
overbalance stature. 2. All things con-
sidered, yes. 3. Good evidence of
strength and faultless development. 4.
Largely. — Mrs. J. N. Heater.

1. I don't know any more than I
know why there is a difference in the
size of poultry of the same stock. 2. I
do not think they are. It can only be
told by testing. 3. A good queen can
only be told by her progeny, and large
queens use the same sized cells that the
small ones do. 4. I don't think it is, as
yet. — J. E. Pond.

1. Some are smaller by nature, and
some because of defects in the method
of their rearing. 2. Yes, if not abnor-
mally large. 3. Because they are likely
to be better developed. 4. Yes, in so
far as he can select the parents and con-
trol the nourishing, etc., of the imma-
ture queen. — R. L. Tatlok.

1. The queen honey-bee is the result
of development, and this fact alone re-
moves all surprise why they vary in size.
2. Not always, and perhaps seldom.
The medium size is preferable. Nothing
that is over big of its kind, or over small
of its kind, is likely to be the best. 4.
Yes, by proper management he may
have his queens fully developed. — G. W.
Demaree.

1. Temperature and the amount of
food given the larvas. 2. Abnormally
large queens are seldom good layers ; so
also are the small ones, as well as short
lived. 4. Yes, good, normally-devel-
oped queens ; but I claim that they must
be fed for queen development from the
time the egg hatches, to get the best
laying, most vigorous, long-lived queens.
— G. L. Tinker.

All queens are small when not laying,
and increase in size just in proportion to
the number of eggs they are laying each
24 hours. Queens which are reared
under favorable circumstances are us-
ually of about the same size when they
are virgins, and queens should never be
reared under other but favorable cir-
cumstances ; hence it is in the bee-mas-
ters' power to rear queens of the normal

size. — G. M. DOOLITTLE.

1. Generally those started from the
egg, or very young larvaj, and well fed
from the beginning, are large and well
developed. 2. Not always. I have had
small queens that were very prolific, and
I have had large ones that were value-
less. The largest and finest looking one
I ever had. never laid an egg, though
she was in a good, strong colony in the
height of the breeding season. I prefer
a queen normal in size, that looks wide-
awake. 4. It is in the bee-keeper's
power to secure well-developed queens.
— M. Mahin.

1. There are only two main causes.
In the first place, some good queens
produce small, slim queens that are just
as good as any, as far as I can see. In
the second place, any queen reared from
a larva too old, will likely be small, a
poor layer, and short-lived. 2. The
larger queens are usually preferred by
me, unless it is in the stock, as first
mentioned. 3. On account of her stout
looks and general appearance ; however,
the largest queens are not always the
best— any of them, large or small, will
turn out to be worthless sometimes. 4.
Permit me to select my queen mothers,
and I will insure you large queens.—
Mrs. Jennie Atchlet.

COWVESfTIOW JDIRECTORY.

Time and place of meetina.

1893. ^

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex.
A. H. Jones. Sec, Golden, Tex.

April 6, 7.— Kansas State, at Ottawa, Kans.
L. Wayman, Sec, Chanute, Kans.
Apr. 10, 11.— Utah, at Salt Lake City, Utah
R. T. Rhees, Sec, View, Utah.

April 18.— Colorado State, at Denver, Colo

H. Knig-ht Sec, Littleton. Coio.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co., at Montrose, Pa
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford, Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N Y
H. C. Farnum, Pres.. Transit Cridge, N. Y

In order to have this table complete.
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller. . . . Mareneo Ills

Vice-Pres.-J. E. Crane Middlebury Vt

Secretary— Frank Benton. Washington D r"
Treasurer- George W. York ... Chicago" Ills'

» > • »

National Bee-Keepers' Vnion.

PRESiDENT-Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich
Gen'l Manageb-T. G. Newman. Chicago, ill!

336

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

hMLAA

■■*--~--^-^-^ffl>ifir*-^'~-f»rmi

Report of tlie Cortland Union
Bee-Convention.

Written ior the Amei-ican Bee Journal
BY C. W. WILKINS.

The Cortland Union Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation met in annual session at Cort-
land, N. Y., on Jan. 24, 1893. The
meeting was called to order by President
J. L. Kinney, and the reports of Secre-
tary and Treasurer were read and ap-
proved, after which an opportunity was
given the members to pay their annual
dues.

The following officers were elected for
the ensuing year :

President — Marion R. Wood, of Cort-
land.

Vice-Pesident — Miles Morton, of Gro-
ton.

Secretary — C. W. Wilkins, of Homer.

Treasurer — T. T. Barrows, of Groton.

It was voted to give their Secretary,
in the future, a salary of $1.00 for each
meeting, to be paid at the succeeding
meeting when his report is approved.

At the request of the Secretary the
Association will meet for their spring
meeting at his residence, three miles
northwest of Homer village, at the call
of the committee. It was voted to make
these spring meetings, which are held
among the various members of the asso-
ciation at their invitation, a basket pic-
nic, and thus share the burden and labor
of supplying the assembly with lunch.

BEE-ESCAPES.

The discussions were opened by the
questions, "What Has Been Your Ex-
perience with Bee-Escapes ? Are they
a Success ?"

These questions were answered mainly
by Mr. Morton, who had had more ex-
perience with them than any bee-keeper
present. He pronounced them an entire
success in his yard ; especially so in the
clearing of bees out of extracting supers,
which they did quickly, and in a very
thorough manner.

WINTEBING BEES UNDEE SNOW.

The question which has agitated the
thinking powers of the apiarist, in this
latitude more than any other which has
been brought to bear, we believe to be
found in the above words, and their dis-
cussion pro and con.

Some of those present preferred their
colonies to remain underneath the snow,
as the wind might leave it piled above
the hive tops until the warm weather of
approaching spring caused the snow to
become heavy and damp ; then they
wished it removed before the dampness
penetrated the hives. Others thought it
much better to keep the hives free from
snow, especially in front, claiming that
their bees wintered much better in those
hives where the wind kept the snow
swept away, that in those covered un-
derneath. This latter argument is based
upon the point that bees, as nature gave
them instinct, seek homes in hollow
t.rees, crevices in the rocks, etc., where
they are subject to the prevailing tem-
perature, which is generally low enough
to keep them in a semi-dormant condi-
tion, with the exception of perhaps an
occasional flight.

When we place a colony of bees in a
hive and allow them to become covered
with snow to a depth of perhaps several
feet, and remain thus, the order of na-
ture is tampered with, and the " little
busy bees," as they liven up with a
higher temperature, imagine "spring
has come with its birds and flowers,"
and they immediately begin to " hustle"
to increase their numbers. "What is
the hurt in that ?" you ask. Simply
this : The snow is finally removed, or
melts away ; the bees are brought more
nearly in contact with the prevailing
temperature; they find out they have
been too "fast;" they have used up
their honey in brood-rearing before the
flowers " got there," and now their young
chills in the cell, and they die with what
is commonly called "spring dwindling ;"
or, if their stores should all have been
consumed, starvation will have preceded
all other ailments. Is this exaggerated?
We honestly believe not.

OPENING HIVE-ENTRANCES IN WINTER.

This subject received quite a spirited
and lengthy discussion. The preference
seemed to be in favor of leaving a little
snow over the entrance, or in not raking
out the dead bees and refuse so as to
hasten (or allow if it could be prevented)
the flight of the bees until the tempera-
ture should reach 48^ or 50^ Pahr.,
when it would be possible for all bees in

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

337

a healthy condition to regain their
wings, if they should alight on the snow.

MARKETING HONEY.

" Would it not be better for bee-
keepers to be united in demanding a
reasonable price for their honey at home,
and not send to commission men and
overload some markets, thus knocking
down prices in all sections, and having
to take whatever the conscience of these
men will not allow them to keep for
their commission, which, by the way, in
some instances, isn't much ?"

The above question received some
spirited remarks, especially upon the
unlimited resources of " middlemen."

SECTIONS PARTLY FILLED.

" What shall we do with the partly
filled sections?" was asked. Some had
tried feeding a few colonies in the en-
deavor to get the sections completed,
but with indifferent success. It was
thought best to extract those which were
not full enough to be profitable to sell
as light weights.

KEEPING COMBS FROM MOTHS.

This was the last subject discussed.
Some preferred hanging them up singly ;
others fumigate them ; placing them on
hives, and allowing the bees to protect
them, had been practiced with success
where the colony was large. The only
objection to the latter method seemed to
be the lowering of the temperature of
the brood-nest by the addition of unnec-
essary room in early summer.

The convention then adjourned sub-
ject to call of the committee.

C. W. W1LKIN8, Sec.

Report of the Central Bee-
Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY J. E. LYON.

The Arapahoe and Jefferson county
bee-keepers met at Methodist Episcopal
church in Berkeley, Colo., on Feb. 15,
1893, for the purpose of organizing a
local bee-keepers' association.

The meeting was opened by prayer by
H. D. Seckner, and then organized
themselves into a bee-keepers' associa-
tion, to be known as the Central Bee-
Keepers' Association, with 22 charter
members.

The following were elected as officers :

President — W. L. Porter, of Berkeley.

Vice-President — Mrs. Greer.

Secretary— J. E. Lyon, of Villa Park.

Treasurer— V. De Vinney, of Villa
Park.

The regular meetings are to be held
the second Wednesday of each month at
the M. E. Church in Berkeley, at 10
a.m.

Come one and all, and don't forget to
bring your dinner basket, and have a
good time. J. E. Lyon, Sec.

rxxxxxxxxxi

OgxxxxxxuxatMU

Stock or Beveridgc Willow and
BassAvood for Bee§.

Written Jar the American Bee Journal
BY GEORGE J. FOSTER.

But few people are aware of the im-
mense value of the common Stock or
Beveridge willow for bees in the early
spring months.

The very first tree to put forth its
flowers in spring is the Beveridge wil-
low, and the eagerness with which it is
sought after by the bees one can hardly
imagine ; they will travel miles to find
such pasture, which produces a wonder-
ful flow of honey in a very short time.

Every bee-keeper should see that his
apiary is provided with say a half acre
or more of these willows, which will pay
for themselves the second year after
planting. Nothing is more easily grown,
and they may be planted in some low or
wet land in any out-of-the-way part of
the farm considered worthless, and
which will in this way become the most
valuable part of it.

The trees should be planted three feet
apart in the row, with rows six feet
apart. This willow delights in a rich,
black, damp soil, and in such a situation
will flourish with the least of care.

Take an ordinary breaking-plow, and
turn one deep furrow each way, leaving
what is called a " hollow furrow " where
the row of trees is to stand ; then place
the trees along this furrow at equal dis-

838

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAl..

tances apart, say three feet. The plant-
ing is done very rapidly with a boy to
hold the tree in an upright position in
the center of the hollow furrow. A man
can, with a spade, very quickly throw in
sufBcent soil from the furrow that has
been thrown out to cover the roots and
hold the tree in place ; then, with the
foot, press the earth firmly down on
them, take the plow again and turn
what remains of the furrows towards
the row of trees, and the work is com-
plete. They should be plowed a few
times the first season to keep down the
weeds, and after this they will care for
themselves.

This willow is very hardy, never win-
ter kills, and is sure to furnish an an-
nual and an abundant crop of flowers.
Trees about six feet In height are the
most desirable for planting out.

AMEKICAN LINDEN OE BASSWOOD.

Another tree of great value for bees is
the American linden or linn (basswood).
Coming into flower later in the season
they fill a very important place in the
bee-keepers' pasture.

The linden is also one of our very best
lawn or shade trees ; being a tree of
noble form and rapid growth, very
hardy, and also free from all insect
pests, it is one of the most desirable of
all our American shade trees.

Every bee-keeper should see to it that
his place is well supplied with this best
of all honey-producing trees.

The American linden being easily
transplanted, any one can grow them,
and we need more of these shade and
honey trees.

Planted in groves 25 feet apart, they
also furnish excellent wind-breaks, and
with their large, round leaves are very
showy in the summer season.

Bloomington, Ills.

[Mr. Foster, who kindly contributes
the above article, is Secretary of the
Phoenix Nursery Company, of Blooming-
ton, Ills., whose advertisement may be
found on page 346 of this number of
the Bee Joubnal. — Ed.]

Bee-Stings and Rheumatism-
Wintering Bees.

Written Jor the American Bee Journal
BY WM. 8T0LLEY.

Of late I have seen several times men-
tion made of this subject in the Bee
JouKNAL. Many years ago I read about

an old forester in Germany, having been
cured from a severe case of rheumatism
of long duration, by the stings of bees.
As near as I can remember, the report
was as follows :

The old forester, for years very much
crippled and afflicted with rheumatism,
was a bee-keeper. One day he went
tottering to take a look at his bees, and
as it happened, stumbled and fell against
a hive and upset it. Being clad only in
thin trousers and shirt, he was terribly
stung by the enraged bees, and it was
expected that he would die from the
effect of the numerous stings he had re-
ceived. But the final result was the
other way. In a few days the old man
got quite well, and was entirely cured of
rheumatism.

Acting upon this report, I had occa-
sion, some seven years ago, when a sis-
ter-in-law of mine was suffering with
rheumatism, to apply the same remedy.
She had tried, for a long time, the treat-
ment of various highly-reputed physi-
cians, and still no relief would be ob-
tained, from all the medicines she took
internally, nor the liniments used ex-
ternally on the parts most afflicted.

So, one day I called at her house ac-
cidentally, and found her suffering very
much with inflammatory rheumatism in
one of her knees. I suggested to her to
try the bee-sting cure, which she
promptly agreed to. I at once went
home to ray apiary and got a lot of bees,
and applied six of them around about
the affected knee, and, strange to say,
that in about a week, and after another
application of four more bee-stings, she
was cured completely. She was 63
years old at the time when this experi-
ment was made.

Again, three and four years ago, a
daughter of ours (13 years old) was
quite sick with rheumatism in one foot
and shoulder, and I applied the same
remedy. The effect was always a good
one, and two or three bee-stings applied
at the place most affected, would bring
instant relief, and she would go to sleep
soon after the application,

I subsequently, and before the attack
of rheumatism came again, sent her for
one winter season to the sunny South in
Texas, near the Gulf of Mexico, and
since then she is not any more troubled
with rheumatism.

These instances may induce sufferers
from rheumatism to try the bee-sting
cure, and be benefited. I, myself, do
believe that a dozen bees can do more to
cure rheumatism than a hundred physi-
cians possibly can. Their (the bees')
remedy is applied with a point, is to the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

339

point, and goes directly where it is most
needed, and not into the stomach when
■the foot is afflicted. The good effect is
felt almost immediately after the stings
have been applied, it seems.

HOW THE BEES ARE WINTERING.

Since I last reported (Dec. 2, 1892)
the wintering of bees (out-doors) has
been very satisfactory. On Dec. 8th we
had 8°, Fahr., below zero, and on Dec.
26th 24° below zero.

On Jan. 4, 1893, my bees had a good
general, cleansing flight. Then, again,
on Jan. 13th we had zero weather, and
on the 15th the thermometer registered
10° below zero, and kept at zero (at sun-
rise) on the 16th, 17th and 18th of
January.

On Jan. 20th and 21st my bees had
again a good flight, when the thermom-
eter registered 54° above zero in the
shade. We have had but very little
snow so far (Jan. 21st), and the bees
are in the best possible condition. Should
they have another good flight in the
month of February, then I shall expect
them to winter safely, as usual for the
last 12 years, that is, without loss.

Grand Island, Nebr.

m I *

IVhat to Do With Bees Affected
With Diarrhea.

Written for the American B«6 Journal
BY DR. C. C. MILLER.

I have received the following letter
about bees affected with diarrhea :

"I write to ask if there is anything
I can do to help my bees. I have 13
colonies in the cellar, and they all have
the diarrhea, are spotting their hives
badly, and have a bad odor. I cannot
.give them a flight for some time yet. I
have your book, ' A Year Among the
Bees,' and Newman's ' Bees and Honey,'
and take the American Bee Journal,
but can't find anything to help me out
of my trouble. Austin Reynolds."

The thing needed above all things is a
good flight for your bees, and possibly
you can't do much better than to wait
patiently, and hope f?arm weather will
soon come. Even if it should be warm
enough for a day for them to fly now,
I'm not sure but I would rather risk
them in the cellar than to take them out
to stay. And if you take them out on
a fine day for a flight, and then put
them back again, somehow that doesn't
seem to work first-rate.

I have considerable faith in warmth,
and if I were in your place I'd try right
hard to raise the temperature of the
cellar up to 50° or more. If there is
any way you can have a stove in the
cellar, especially a hard coal-stove,
that's the thing. If the cellar is small,
heated stones or jugs of water may do,
but don't have hot water without having
it corked up tight to prevent steam get-
ting out. Possibly hot stones right on
the hives would help, only they must not
melt the combs in the hive.

If I couldn't have a fire in the cellar,
I think I'd try to get on the good side of
the women-folks, a^^d get possession of
the kitchen about dark, unless there is
some other room more convenient.
Manage to have the room very warm,
but not light. Bring up the bees (you
might try it first on a part) and keep
them up to a good heat for several hours.
I don't think it would hurt if they should
go up to 80°, but mind there must be no
light from the stove.

Likely they will come out of the hives
in great numbers, running all over the
hives, or else hanging out in great clus-
ters. Don't be too badly scared over
that; very likely they'll get back again.

Toward morning, when they have
cooled off and quieted down, you can re-
turn them to the cellar. But suppose at
that time they are largely out of the
hives, and not in shape to be handled.
Well, commence early enough so that if
they have not quieted down, you can
open up doors and windows and cool
them off before daylight.

If there comes a time when it is as
warm at night out-doors as it is in the
cellar, open up the cellar doors and win-
dows, and give them a good airing out.
Very likely they will roar so as to
make you think they are all going to
ruin, but by morning they'll be quiet.

If a good day comes for a flight, I
think I'd let them out, and then put
them back at dark. Report success.

Marengo, Ills., March 2, 1893.

A " Michigander's " Experience
in modern Bee-Keeping.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY S. D. CHAPMAN.

In the spring of 1881 my brother and
I started with a few colonies of bees. At
that time northern Michigan was away
down near where the Bee-Keepers' Re-
view is now printed. We soon heard
from it up in Newaygo county, and it

340

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

has been bobbing back and forth on that
latitude ever since. I don't think it has
ventured as far north within 100 miles
of my location.

We increased our bees to about oU
colonies in the year 1883. It was a
good year for honey, and we took as
high as 130 pounds of comb honey, and
over 200 pounds of extracted, per col-
ony. Our bees were all hybrids, yet
they gathered so much honey that it was
almost impossible to sell it all, as our
home demand was light.

At this time I was taking our excellent
bee-periodicals, and 1 soon found to fol-
low the line of progressive bee-keeping
it was very necessarf to keep pure Ital-
ians, so I decided to change imme-
diately. Let me say right here, that
when I start for deep water I wade right
out until there is but one little bald spot
left for "Old Sol" to shine on. Just so

with the bees.

I purchased pure Italian queens by
the dozen from all parts of the United
States. The next season I gave them
plenty of room, and watched them
closely. I found they commenced breed-
ing early, and they stuck right to it
until the middle of October, consequently
they consumed every pound of honey
they had gathered. They not only
solved the problem of a home demand
for all my product, but two years I
bought sugar by the barrel to appease
their avaricious appetites ; still I stuck
right to them until I discovered that one
following progressive bee-keeping was
always away in the rear. Now, I am
not built that way. My locality de-
manded modern ideas and modernized
bees, radical changes were necessary—
often, too.

First I purchased some of the cele-
brated strain of "red clover bees." I
had plenty of clover. This strain of
bees in other localities was bringing in
large yields of red clover honey an-
nually. I found the bees all right, but
the honey— well, it resembled Fay's
comet — makes its appearance once in 7
or 8 years.

Next I tried some of the " best bees in
the land." Here we have bees designed
expressly for terraqueous purposes— all
you have to do is to bury them up and
they will root, hog or die. Here is some
bees that " just roll in the honey." Now
this rolling process struck me most
favorably, and I still think if my apiary
was only situated on a steep side hill,
they would prove decidedly a success —
they could roll down, roll up, tumble up,
any way to get up. , ^ ,

Next, my brother purchased a selected

tested Golden Carniolan queen, ex-
pressly for breeding purposes. The
breeder of this fine queen kindly re-
quested us not to rear any queens from
this stock to sell, for a certain length
of time ; just then we thought we had
got "the tip." With more than ordi-
nary interest we watched this colony for
a whole season. We found this new
race of bees are very dark, more so than
any we had in nearly 200 colonies,
hardly one-half of them show a yellow
band. We sometimes almost think they
are hybrids, yet they hum around about
the same as other bees, and we felt
proud that we were able to show to our
bee-keeping friends some of the " old
original yellow race of bees."

After trying these different strains of
bees, and several others, I felt some
better ; still I knew there was something
wrong, either in the bees or in the man-
agement. All at once I discovered I had
not one queen — no, not a solitary queen
in the whole yard reared upon " scien-
tific principles." That was enough. I
ran to the house, pulled off my coat, and
back I came into the yard, pushed the
bees one side, and went to work.
Within thirty days I turned out from 80
to 100 queens according to specifica-
tions. Now all these fine queens were
mated to "hand-picked" drones, and
right here is where the success of the
whole business lies — we should hand-
pick, or at least winnow, our flock of
drones at least six or eight times during
each season. I think now my success is
assured. All I lack is a little more ex-
perience. But the fraternity may rest
assured that this part of the State will
keep apace with modern apiculture.

Mancelona, Mich.

The Hasty Conclusions of Some
Apiarian Writers.

Written iar the American Bee Journal
BY DR. A. W. TUFTS.

I wish to enter a protest against the
practice of jumping to conclusions with-
out sufficient data or evidence to base
those conclusions upon. We can see the
fault, or the effects of it, in nearly
every bee-paper that we read for any
length of time.

Some one makes an experiment in
some field of apiculture, perhaps per-
fectly satisfactory to himself, however
insufficient he may be prepared by prac-
tice, or inefficient his equipments may
be for the purpose ; and forthwith he

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

341

gives the results of his experiments to a
waiting, eager, and weary world. And
then what are they worth to any one ?
Has he proven them ? No ! If they were
proven, they would be true ; but that
the opposite is the case any one can see
by reading the " Mysteries of Bee-Keep-
ing " or the " A B C of Bee-Culture," or
any standard work on apiculture, and
verify the assertions of these observers
in the apiary.

Now, after reading the chapters in
these standard works,on laying workers,
and then seeing them in the act of de-
positing eggs, and watching these eggs
hatch drones, just as this writer said
that they would do ; after reading Cook
and Cowan on the anatomy of the honey-
bee— that workers are females to all in-
tents and purposes, their only defect
being a want of development; and then
to be told that some one "don't think"
that they ever lay eggs — I say I don't
think, but that I know that that writer
bases his conclusions on insufficient evi-
dence.

Another has found a laying queen in
an upper story from which he is morally
certain that there is no means of egress
(a virgin queen can go through a pretty
small hole). In opposition to the teach-
ings of the above writers, as well as
those who have made a careful and
studious observation of the habits of the
queen, and her habits for years, he
jumps to the conclusion founded on in-
sufficient evidence, that queen mated and
became fertilized in the hive ! He sits
down and writes to Mr. Doolittle, giving
his views, and when Doolittle suggests
not only the possible or most probable,
but veteran bee-keepers will say the
certain solution to the difficulty or prob-
lem— a hole in the super — the bee-
keeper answers, " I am not that kind of
a bee-keeper." While he may not be
the kind of a bee-keeper that tolerates,
or has a hole in a hive, I ask in all can-
dor and earnestness, what kind of an
observer is he who takes a single inci-
dent or accident like that to contradict
and overthrow all the evidence that goes
to prove that queens mate only in the
air?

Another follows some plan of intro-
ducing queens — more than likely it is an
old one, discarded years ago by the
veterans, or one that involves more work
and fussing with the bees than queens,
bees and all are worth, or as much time
as to sit over them in a July sunshine
and guard them with a shot-gun, to pre-
vail on them to behave themselves ; yet
up he bobs serenely with an infallible

method of introducing queens that is
the joy of his heart. He would impart
it to the American Bee Journal or
Gleanings, Alley or Doolittle, for a small
consideration.

Yes, I can safely say that, like taxes
and the bill collector, they are always
with us— those that jump to conclusions,
and base their assertions upon insuffi-
cient evidence. Every season some one
proves on these insufficient data that
bees do steal eggs for the purpose of
rearing a queea. The authors of text
books quoted above tell us that it may
be done, that it is not impossibl«, or
rather that they are not prepared to
doubt its possibility ; yet they have
never seen it, and their langugae im-
plies a doubt.

Twice during my bee-keeping experi-
ence I have been almost certain that I
had almost proven that bees do steal
eggs ; but after losing several queens,
and having valuable cells torn down, I
instituted a rigid search through the
colony, and found an old queen only
capable of laying, or at least she only
laid, an occasional egg here and there,
from which the bees were trying to rear
a queen— I might say, to supersede her,
but that would be jumping to a conclu-
sion. As I destroyed her, I have no evi-
dence as to what would have taken
place. So my triumph where Root had
failed — ignominiously failed — many
times. Had it not been for my rigid
training as a physician, I would have
rushed into print with an account of my
success, based on Insufficient evidence,
that would have been a reminder of my
folly in after years, when more careful
experiments, or the evidence of others,
had overthrown my ill-based deductions.

Pity the editors, pity the readers, pity
the writers, who have these so-called
facts in articles attempting to prove
that which we all know, or may know,
are without* sufficient data to make
them of any value whatever, continually
thrust before their eyes, and offending
their judgment of the fitness of some
men to observe even trivial matters
connected with our beloved pursuit. If
what I have written seems harsh or
pitiless, it refers as much to myself as
others, for who can stand in judgment
on his own pet theories, or see the weak
places in the evidence that supports
them ?

Musson, La.

Have You Bead that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 325 ?

342

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

manageineiit for Winteriug Bees
in the Cellar.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY GEO. T. GUNN.

Two weeks ago, when looking over
my bees in the cellar, I found one colony
that showed signs of diarrhea. There
were 30 or 40 spots on the alighting-
board and front of the hive that were
unmistakably fresh voidings.

They were pulling dead bees out of
the entrance, and making some noise
(not roaring). Those ,they dragged out
were large, and when pressed with the
finger, would burst.

I knew that a cleansing flight would
cure them, but that was out of the ques-
tion with the mercury below zero. But
something had to be done, so I took
them out of the, pile and pried the cover
off — it was an inch board, and was glued
down tight. It came off with a snap,
that brought quite a number of bees up
to see what was the trouble. The combs
were clean, and smelled sweet, so I put
the cover on again, with a piece of sec-
tion under each corner.

The mercury was at 40° in the cellar
then — a few days before it had been
down to 33°. I put a kerosene-oil lamp
on the floor near the hive, with a piece
of building-paper around it, to keep the
light from the bees, and shut up the
cellar.

The next day I found the mercury at
52°, and the colony quieter, so I re-
moved the lamp. One week later I ex-
amined them, and found no fresh void-
ings, and the dead bees at the entrance
were dry and shrunken, and they were
very quiet. To-day they are still quiet,
and I think they are all right.

I am a iirm believer in cellar winter-
ing. I have yet to lose my first colony
in wintering, but I lost one by mice get-
ting in and eating them ; ^ey gnawed a
rather too large entrance larger.

My bee-cellar is under my dwelling-
house, and is also my house-cellar. In
it are kept potatoes, beets, etc. My
wife also keeps lots of flowers there. It
has two doors, one of wire screen inside,
which is covered with building-paper in
the winter; the outer doors are slanting
to shed rain. These doors are opened
several times a day to get things out of
the cellar, but I do not see that it does
any harm, if they are not left open more
than a minute or two, until towards
spring, when they must be kept closed
to keep the light out, or the bees will
leave the hives.

I put the bees into the cellar soon
after Thanksgiving Day, or just before,
if there is snow. I like to haul them to
the cellar on a hand sled, and then the
snow comes handy to cover the entrance
with while handling them. Entrances
are open full width of the hive. The
hives are piled three or four deep around
the cellar, with the backs to the wall.
The lower tier is on scantlings.

Towards spring the doors are opened
at night, and the bees are watered by
throwing snow on the alighting-boards.
They are put out for a flight as soon as
the weather is warm enough, then put
back until settled warm weather comes.

Wall Lake, Iowa, Jan. 31, 1893.

fxxxxxxxxxxx

xxxxrxxxxxxi

Do not write anything for publication

on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless It can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Looking^ for a Good Season.

Bees have done well so far. I have
lost one colony out of 38, all on the
summer stands. I hope the Amebican
Bee Joubnal may prosper the coming
year, and that I may share in prosperity
also. I look for a good season.

ThOS. C. KJELLY.

Slippery Rock, Feb. 2, 1893.

Fine Honey Season Expected.

I have kept a few colonies of bees for
the last 16 years. I make my own hives
12x16 inches in the clear, and 12 inches
deep, with 8 frames. I never bothered
with the bees on the summer stands be-
fore, but this winter caught me ; I lost
15 colonies, which leaves me 30, all in
good condition. Most of them died with
plenty of honey.

I got but little surplus honey last
summer, but I think we are going to
have a fine honey season this year. My
bees have been working a little for
three or four days, and carried the first
pollen to day from the maple.

F. W. Wiedemann.

Equality, Ills., Feb. 26, 1893.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

343

Disastrous Season to Bee-Keepjng.

The past season has been the most
disastrous to bee-keepers, throughout
this locality, that they have experienced
in 20 years. So far as I can learn, not
a pound of surplus honey was gathered,
and over 50 per cent, of the bees went
into winter quarters short of stores,
and notwithstanding the large amount
of feeding done, fully 25 per cent, are
starving, which, added to the 25 oT 30
per cent, losses already sustained from
the extreme cold weather, so unusual in
this latitude, leaves the majority of bee-
keepers very much disgusted, giving the
pursuit a blow from which, I fear, it
will take many years to recover.

J. W. Barringek.

Berryville, Va., Feb. 20, 1893.

Temperature of the Weather.

If the following notes can be of any
value to the " weather bureau," which
was published on page 24 and on page
248, I submit them with pleasure from
my daily note-book. The temperature
was taken each day between 10 and 11
a.m. :

The degree columns
exterior temperature
of hive ; 3rd, temp, at
last frame.

below denote— 1st, the
; 2nd, temp, in middle
the side of hive on the

Oct

1

28

53°

89°

81°

11

64°

94°

88°

29

56°

89°

80°

12

64°

94°

88°

30

50°

89°

80°

13

59°

92°

87°

31

49°

89°

78°

14

69°

93°

87°

Nov.

1.5

70°

94°

88°

1

53°

89°

78°

16

73°

94°

87°

Q

61°

90°

79°

17

65°

92°

87°

3

65°

90°

79°

18

63°

92°

87°

4

51°

90°

79°

19

65°

92°

86°

o

35°

87°

77°

21

64°

92°

88°

6

43°

89°

77°

22

63°

91°

88°

7

57°

89°

77°

23

64°

91°

88°

8

62°

89°

77°

24

48°

90°

87°

9

40°

88°

77°

2.5

48°

88°

82°

10

41°

88°

77°

26

47°

88°

82°

11

39°

88°

77°

27

52°

89°

81°

The bees were active nearly every
day, except during a sudden change.
The colony from which the temperatures
were taken is on the roof, the hive fac-
ing the south, and is at present doing
well. (Mrs.) Carrie B. Aaron.

Philadelphia, Pa., Feb. 1, 1893.

No Flight for 100 Days.

Last fall I left on the summer stands
75 colonies, from which I took 3,000
sections of honey the last season, and
they started into winter in fine condi-
tion. All were in double-walled hives,
and well packed, but they have not had
a flight for about 100 days, and they

are getting uneasy now, and I am afraid
that they will suffer badly if they do not
get a chance to fly pretty soon. Last
winter was a very hard one on bees here;
I lost from 75 colonies down to 50, and
in May and the first of June I thought
that we would not get any honey or
swarms, but when they did commence to
gather honey I never saw them build up
faster or store honey more rapidly.

J. H. Manchester.
Preble, N. Y., Feb. 22, 1893.

Wintering Well— Long, Cold Winter.

I have 20 colonies of bees in chaff
hives, and I think they are wintering
well. We have had a long, cold winter.
Mrs. S. a. Davenport.

Roseville, Ills., Feb. 28, 1893.

■*— ^ — *

Bees Flying in Winter.

I put my bees into the cellar on Nov.
19, 1892, and there has not been a
warm day since. Would it do to let the
bees take a flight the first warm day,
even if the snow is two feet deep ? or is
it better to leave the bees in the cellar
until the spring, when the snow is gone?

John Peterson.

Weyauwega, Wis., Feb. 7, 1893.

[Read Dr. Miller's article on page 300
of this number of the Bee Journal,
which will doubtless help you. — Ed.]

A Colorado Report — Mongrel Bees.

Six summers ago I came to this the
Uncompagre valley, with 7 colonies of
bees, in the month of June. I got 375
pounds of comb honey, and 3 swarms.
The next spring I started in with 10
colonies, increased to 27, and secured
2,000 pounds of comb honey. These
were the results from black bees.

The next spring I introduced 2 Ital-
ian queens, spread them out " muchly,"
and obtained an average of 175 pounds.
My average gradually fell off to 120
pounds, until last year our State only
reported one-fourth of a crop, bub my
average was 65 pounds. My black bees
are still ahead — and I am unable to find
any other bee-keeper who has made that
average, even where ihey run part of
their bees for extracted honey, and have
been trying to follow Mr. S. E. Miller's
plan of buying queens to improve their
stock. Climate and locality may ac-
count for the wide difference of opinion
on these two races of bees, but what I

344

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

have stated is no guess-work — it is on
record.

Now I, like all bee-keepers, would like
to get a race of bees that would produce
more honey, but, when I think about it,
there is one great difficulty that stares
me in the face. There passes my house
every fall, large herds of cattle ; they
are range cattle, and among them may
be seen samples of all the different
breeds that were ever imported to Amer-
ica— a perfect mongrel herd ; and why ?
Because in a range herd they cannot be
purely mated. The American people
are also a mongrel race, and cannot be
purely mated, still we are a pretty good,
all-purpose "gang;" and may we not
with some degree of reason hope that
the many experimenters and speculators
in queen-bees may still leave us a good,
all-purpose strain of bees, though mon-
grels they be, in spite of all the queens
we may buy to improve our stock ?

Montrose, Colo. Wm. Willis.

An Octogenarian Subscriber.

I have every volume of the American
Bee Journal yet published. I com-
menced in 1866, and afterward pro-
cured Vol. I. For many years, at the
conclusion of each volume, I had them
neatly bound in cloth. It is highly im-
probable that I shall subscribe again,
having attained my 81st year.

W. P. Taylor.

Fitzroy Harbor, Ont.

[We hope our aged friend may be
spared yet many years to enjoy life and
the old American Bee Journal. — Ed.]

First Experience with Bees.

Last summer I got 4 colonies of bees,
and that was my first experience. I was
bothered all summer with one colony
being queenless half the time, but I got
140 pounds of honey from the others.
All colonies have plenty of honey to last
through the winter. I read the Bee
Journal, and try to keep posted.

W. W. Gardner.

Chanute, Kans., Feb. 23, 1893.

Your INeig^libor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 325

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

•»

A.t One Dollar a Year,

56 FIFTH Avenue. CHICAGO. ILLS.
fJouTention Hfotices.

t^tFT4P~;J1^® semi-annual meeting of the
Utah Bee-Keepers' Association will be held in
Salt Lake City, Utah, on April 10, 11, 1893.
All interested are cordially invited.
View, Utah. R. t. Rhees, Sec.

PENNSYLVANIA.-The Susquehanna Co.
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold their 12th
semi-annual meeting at the Tarbell House in
Montrose, Pa., on Thursday. May 4, 1893. All
are invited. H. M. Seeley. Sec.

Harford, Pa.

NEW YORK. - The next meeting of the
Alleganv County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., oh May 4th
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be— an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farndm, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

COLORADO,— The adjourned meeting of
the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Charles Block, corner 15th
and Curtis Streets, Denver, Colo., on April 18
1893. Business Important to all honey-pro-
ducers will come before the meeting.

Littleton, Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

aKANSAS.— The Kansas State Bee-Keepers'
ssociation will hold their annual convention
at Ottawa, Kansas, on April 6 and 7 1893
All bee-keepers are cordially invited to attend
this convention, and make it one of the most
interesting ever known. There will be a
good programme. Bring something to ex-

^i!^!*- ^ ^ L. Wayman. Sec.

Chanute, Kans.

TEXAS.- The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
in Greenville, one mile north of the Court
^^"Hl^'i'^* ^'^^ apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley
on Wednesday and Thursday. April the 5th
and 6th, 189.3. One of the biggest bee-meet-
mgs ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody Is invited. No hotel bills to pay.
Come one, come all. and let us have a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to

^^rlVS*- rv A. if. Jones. Sec.

Golden. Texas.

Webster's Pocket Dictionary we offer
as a premium for sending only one new
subscriber with $1.00. It is a splendid
Dictionary— and just right for a pocket.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

345

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
March 11th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted" 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

K. A. B. &Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 854 ;
dark,6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6@8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good, at 24@27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8^c.; buckwheat, 6@6V^c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, MASS.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNEAPOLIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lb8. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c.; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16®17c.: No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber l-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7}4c.; amber, 5®6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C.-M. C. C.

Albany. N. Y-— Our stock of honey is light
and also receipts. Demand keeps up better
than usual this season. We are selling white
comb honey at 14@16c.; mixed, 12@13c.;
dark, 10@llc. Extracted, white, 9@9i4c.;
mixed, 75^@8c.; dark, 7®7i4c. Beeswax,28@
30c. H. R. W,

Please Send TJs the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
JouRNAii. Theft please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

Bees and Honey" — see page 325.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Clilcago, Ills*

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Seoelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

Minneapolis, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Xhe 'World's Fair l^omen

" Souvenir " is the daintiest and prettiest
book issued in connection with the
World's Fair. It is by Josephine D. Hill
— a noted society lady of the West — and
contains superb full-page portraits and
sketches of 31 of the World's Fair
women and wives of prominent oflQcials
connected with the great Fair. It is
printed on enameled paper, with half-
tone engravings, bound in leatherette.
We will send it postpaid for 75 cents, or
give it for two new subscribers to the
Bee Jouknal at $1.00 each.

Wants or Excliaiiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

EXCHANGE for Bees or Supplies, $160 in
Poultry Cuts, $40 Organ Pedals. Attach-
ments for Plauo, or First-Class Printing.

L. JAQUES, Chatham Otr., N. Y.

WANTED— A lady partner as a wife, that
is a bee-keeper or that would like to
learn the bee and poultry business, with a few
thousand dollars to go into the bee and poul-
try business on a large scale; between the
ages of 25 and 50 years. All letters ancwered.
Good reference given. D. BROTHERS,
llA2t Sarahsville. Noble Co., Ohio.

346

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

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TREES, SIirub»«, RoJieM, Vine!«, !«uiall
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Catalogue mailed free. Established 1852.

PHCENIX NURSERY COMPANY

Successors to SIDVEY TITTLE & CO.. Bl(IOMI\(iTO\, 111.
llA7t Mention this Journal.

P?.E]iwd:0"V"HlID !

I HAVE removed my Hive Factory, Bee-
Keepers' Supply Business and Apiary from
Prairie Home, Missouri, to Ne«r Palestine,
Cooper Co., Mo. — a point on the Mo. Pacific
Railroad, where I have good Shipping. Express
and Mail Facilities. I am well-equipped at
my new stand, and can fill orders promptly
and at louver prices than ever before.

Hoping that all my old customers and many
new ones will avail themselves of these ad-
vantages, I remain theirs for business.

llA6t G. P. MORTON.

50 Colonies of Bees For Sale

IN 10-frame and 8-frame Hives, Langstroth
frame. 10-frame, $4.00 each; 8-frame.
$3.50 each. If 5 are taken at one time, 5 per
cent, discount. Also, 40 Cliaff Hives l'/^
story, and 20 Root Dovetailed Hives,
nailed up and furnished with section-holders
and brood-frames. Dovetailed Hives. 90 cts.
each; Chaff Hives, $1.25 each. The Hives are
newr and the Bees are in sood condition.

J. ITI. KIISZIF,
10A2t EOCHESTER, Oakland Co,. MICH.

Mention the American Bee Journal.

Electrotypes of Engravings.

XITE can furnish Electrotypes of all the
^ ' Engravings used in the Bee JouKNAii,
at 25 cents per square inch.

If to be sent by mail, add 10c. for postage.
No single Electrotype sold for less than 25 cts.

Measure from outside points shown, on both
length and width of the printed impression.

GEOBGE W. YORK & CO.,

CHICAGO, ILLS.

A HANDY TOOL-HOI<D£R !

Sent by Express, for $2.00 ; or with the Bee Journal
one year — both for $2.50.

Every Manufacturer, Miller, Carpenter,
Cabinet Maker, Machinist. Wheelwright and
Quarryman, Farmer, or any one using a grind-
stone, should have one of these Tool-Holders.
One boy can do the work of two persons, and
grind much faster, easier and with perfect
accuracy. Will hold any kind of tool, from
the smallest chisel to a draw shave or ax.
Extra attachment for sharpening scythe
blades included in the above price. The work
is done without wetting the hands or soiling
the clothes, as the water flows from the opera-
tor. It can be attached to any size stone for
hand or steam power, is always ready for use,
nothing to get out of order, and is absolutely
worth 100 times its cost.

No farm is well-equipped un-
less it has a Tool-Holder. Pays
for itself in a short time.

How to Use the Holder.

Directions.— The Tool is fas-
tened securely In the Holder by
a set-screw and can be ground
to any desired bevel by insert-
ing the arm of the Holder into
a higher or lower notch of the
standard. While turning the
crank with the right hand, the
left rests on an steadies the
Holder ; the Tool is moved to
the right or left across the
stone, or examined while grind-
ing, as readily and in the same
way as if held in the hands.

For grinding Round - Edge
Tools, the holes in the stand-
ard are used instead of the
notches.

Address, GEOBQE W. YORK & CO., 56 Fifth 4ve., CHICAGO, ILL.

GEOBGE W. TOSK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY )

Editor. f To Bee-CULTURE. 1

Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
Sample Free.

VOL XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MARCH 23, 1893.

NO. 12.

Mr. Frank Benton, the new

Secretary of the North American Bee-
Keepers' Association, has been elected
an active member of the " Entomological
Society of Washington." Dr. C. V. Riley
is the President of the Society. The
bee-keepers of the United States have in
Mr. Benton an earnest and faithful rep-
resentative at our National capital.

Ha-ve Patience, friends, as the
contribution which you may have sent
for publication some two months ago
has not been overlooked, but has simply
been waiting its turn. We have a great
deal of interesting matter on hand, that
we have not had time to even read, much
less to prepare and publish, so if your
particular communication has not yet
appeared in the Bee Jouknal, please
don't get uneasy or worry about it, for
there are others who are waiting also.
We are trying to do the very best we
can to accommodate all, and would ask
you to exercise a little patience in the
matter.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 357

Xo Indiana Bee-Keepers. —

Mr. Walter S. Ponder, of Indianapolis
Ind., at the request of Hon. B. F.
Havens, of the same place, writes the
following letter, which should be read
by every bee-keeper in the State of
Indiana :

Indiana bee-keepers, who are to make
an exhibit at the World's Fair, must
make application soon, or space cannot
be reserved for them. Space can be re-
served, and there is nothing compulsory
about utilizing it. Thus far only a few
have responded. Bees have wintered
fairly well, and the honey season prom-
ises to be good. It is to our interest to
have a good showing, and all expense of
collecting, transporting, and arranging
exhibits will be paid from the State ap-
propriation. Make application to Hon.
B. F. Havens, Executive Commissioner,
Indianapolis, Ind.

In making application, state what you
have to exhibit. Beeswax, comb and
extracted honey is wanted for the show-
cases, and bee-appliances are under
another classiflcation, but will be dis-
played near the honey exhibit. Do not
delay. Walter S. Pouder.

Let all who desire to assist in making
the Indiana apiarian exhibit a fine one,
address Mr. Havens at once in regard to
the matter. The time is indeed very
short, and prompt action is necessary.

Dr. Bzierzon, now in his 83rd
year, received quite an ovation at the
September, 1892, meeting of 250 Ger-
man, Austrian and Hungarian bee-
keepers, at Budapest, in Hungary. He is
the " grand old man " over there.

860

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Anti - Adulteration r,etters

have come in by the scores during the
past few weeks, from the awakened
honey-producers all over the land. The
proposed Amendment to the Constitu-
tion of the Bee-Keepers' Union, which
was adopted almost unanimously, shows
that bee-keepers are not afraid to put
themselves on record against the crimi-
nal practice of adulterating honey or
other food products.

When our good friend, Chas. F. Muth,
of Cincinnati, sent his vote to the Gen-
eral Manager of the Union, he accom-
pained it by the following letter, with
the request that we publish it :

Cincinnati, O., Jan. 24, 1893.
I am heartily in favor of the proposed
amendment, heartily in favor of the
suppression of adulteration, and I am
heartily in favor of exposing and pros-
ecuting the culprits.

But I verily believe that the best
chemist in America, if possessed of a
fair and unbiased mind, would have
been unable to find a jar or a package of
any size or shape of adulterated honey
within the limits of the city of Cincin-
nati for the last ten years, except it be
some so-called "white clover " honey,
put up in round bottles, and sent here
from some parties in Philadelphia. It
was recognized as spurious at sight,
found no sale, and consequently was of
no importance. Adulterated honey, put
up in eastern cities and sent to Cincin-
nati, has been a thing of the past for
many years.

We don't adulterate, and we never did
adulterate, Prof. Wiley to the contrary
notwithstanding. And I don't believe
that with all the "soft-soap" at the
command of those who have tried to use
it in the matter, they will prejudice
against me any one of those friends who
have a close acquaintance with me.
Many friends have advised me to have
our honey analyzed by our best chemist
here, and have him advertise the result,
which I always felt to be below my
honor. I admit that such "blarney"
would take the masses, but — if I was
adulterating, would I send adulterated
honey to a chemist for analyzation ?

It has happened more than a hundred
times that I said, or wrote, to a custo-
mer who was doubting the purity of our
honey, to have it analyzed, and that I
would pay the expenses, and pay him

$100 besides, if he found it to be adul-
terated. This always brought the mat-
ter to a satisfactory end. Any respon-
sible chemist always has been, and is
now, welcome to a sample of honey for
analyzation from any package in our
possession. Chas. F. Muth.

We think that no one who knows Mr.
Muth has the least idea that he ever was
guilty of adulterating honey — he cares
more for his honor and good reputation
than to stoop to such a practice for the
sake of gaining a few extra pieces of
" filthy lucre." No, no ! A dollar ob-
tained by thus doing should burn the
hand of the receiver until he ceases
his nefarious work. Let us try to secure
good laws upon this subject, and then
help to enforce them. Simply passing
condemnatory resolutions, and writing
and talking against adulteration, will
not stop it. A good anti-adulteration
law, well enforced, will be the kind of
"prohibition that prohibits," in this
case.

Xlie March IVumber of the

Progressive Bee-Keeper shows much im-
provement both in its appearance and
general contents. To look at it, one
would scarcely think it had so recently
been " tried as by fire." Bro. Quigley
has shown courage and determination
in meeting and surmounting difficulties,
and should have all the success that
such qualities of character always de-
serve. The Amekican Bee Journal
has none but the kindliest feelings for
the Progressive, as well as all other bee-
papers that are earnestly striving to
further the best interests of bee-keepers.

Later. — We now learn that the Pro-
gressive Bee-Keeper^s list of names has
been sold to the Leahy Mfg. Co,, of
lligginsville. Mo., who will publish it at
that place. We wish them success in
their new venture.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bke Journal we mail for
only 50 cents; or clubbed with th«
Journal for $1.40.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

361

MISS EMMA WILSOX.

As we have so far this year catered to
the fancies of the women for pictures
and life-stories of men, we this week
vary the proceedings, and are much
pleased to be able to present to our

EMMA WILSON.

gentlemen (as well as lady) readers, one
whom we know they all have longed to
see.

We have not the delightful pleasure
of a personal acquaintance with Miss
Wilson, though we felt assured we
should like her ever so much, after hav-
ing read the good things that Dr. Miller
tells of her in the succeeding short

sketch of her life ; and the Doctor ought
to know what he is talking about, as
Miss W.'s home has been for ten years
at his house. Knowing that our very
much " better half " is not afflicted with
a jealous disposition, we may as well
confess right here that we have a great
admiration for the "queens of the
home," and only wish that their num-
bers might be multiplied several thou-
sand times among the readers of the
Bee Jouknal.

Begging the pardon of the readers for
keeping them so long from the real
biographical sketch by these preliminary
remarks, we now have the honor of in-
troducing to you, in Dr. Miller's own
happy style, and also by portrait — Miss
Emma Wilson, of Marengo, Ills. :

A neat, trim figure ; of medium stat-
ure; not an ounce of superfluous flesh ;
a sunny disposition, and a face that
shows it ; an indomitable energy that
will push through anything undertaken;
a capacity for endurance and accom-
plishment that seems impossible in one
of so slender frame — that's Emma Wil-
son. Her middle name is Margaret, but
she seldom uses it. Just why, I don't
know, unless it be that she thinks it too
good a name for everyday wear ; for it
is her mother's name, and if there is
any strongly developed trait in her
character — and there are several — it Is
love, respect, and constantly thoughtful
care for her mother. For the past ten
years her home has been at our house,
and in all that time she has never failed
to go home Saturday afternoon or even-
ing to spend the night with her mother
(unless some grave reason prevented),
coming back to church in the morning.

Her mother still lives on the old farm
where Emma was born — you can see it
from the window of Emma's room, three
miles away — her father having died a
few years ago. Her parents came from
Scotland, and although she has none of
the Scotch brogue, she has fully devel-
oped the usual Scotch determination of
character, sometimes displaying itself
as downright stubbornness.

As a bee-keeper, she is practical and
thorough. Thoroughly thorough. If
there is some part of the work that I
think it possible I may not compass,
and Emma says she will see that it is
done, I dismiss all anxiety about it. She
is rapid in all her work ; invariably

362

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

beats rae at overhauling colonies, and
then I comfort myself by saying she
kills more bees than I — a thing not so
easily proven.

If she were keeping bees all alone, I
think she would be a well-read bee-
keeper. As it is, I am sorry to say, she
does not do the reading she ought. In-
deed, I am too much her book, and it is
often comical, sometimes bordering on
the vexatious, to have her array me
against myself. I suggest a certain line
of action, and she promptly informs me
I am wrong, falling back on my pre-
viously expressed opinioh or practice.
Perhaps I may convince her that I have
learned better, or that the conditions
are different, but sometimes she is not
satisfied with my reasons, holds on to
the old opinion, and — I may as well con-
fess it — has her own way. But she is so
deeply interested in the success of the
work that I cannot deeply grieve over
her perverseness.

It would be hard to find two sisters
more unselfishly devoted to each other
than Mrs. Miller and Emma, for it just
occurs to me I have not mentioned that
they are sisters. Certain things in the
matter of cookery Mrs. Miller thinks
not well done unless done by Emma.
The care of the house-plants is left to
her, and I'm afraid the credit that I
sometimes get for having nice roses in
winter, hardly belongs to me ; indeed, I
am sure it is entirely hers, so far as the
work is concerned. But we are all very
fond of flowers.

In church and Christian Endeavor
work, Emma is a factor, arid a very
active one. She is deeply interested in
Sunday-school work, and a strong bond
of affection exists between her and her
class of girls some fifteen or sixteen
years old.

Her life has always been in the coun-
try, and her tastes are all very pro-
nounced in that direction.

C. C. MiLLEK.

Immediately after we had published
the excellent biographical sketch of Dr.
Miller (see page 105), we received the
following letter from Mrs. W. H. Laws,
of Lavaca, Ark. :

Friend York : — The picture and bio-
graphical sketch of Dr. C. C. Miller, on
page 105, we thoroughly enjoyed. Of
course we have seen his picture, and
read other biographical sketches before,
but never have we gotten such an in-
sight into his life and character as was
here portrayed by his genial helper. Miss

Emma Wilson. With his wonderful
talent for writing and giving instruction
in our pursuit, his exemplary life, and
his love for the beautiful, do we not all
love him ?

As husband and I made our way to
the North American convention at
Washington, it was one of our first de-
sires to meet Dr. Miller, and hear him
both in speech and song ; but, alas ! we
were disappointed.

Now, when I started out, I wanted
just to say, since Miss Wilson has so
kindly "written up" our friend, the
Doctor, we think it next in order to give
us the picture of Miss Wilson, "written
up " by the Doctor. All in favor, hold
up hands.

We desire to say that we think the
biographical feature of the American
Bee Journal is a great improvement.
Mrs. W. H. Laws.

Well, Sister Laws, it seems that
" all " were " in favor " of your motion,
and to show how decisive the vote was,
we need only to refer you to the previous
page. Are you pleased with it all ? Of
course you are, and so will be the thou-
sands who are this week permitted to
see and read our department "Bio-
graphical."

By the way, It is an' entire surprise to
Miss Wilson. Upon receipt of your
letter, Mrs. L., we immediately wrote to
Dr. Miller, saying that if he would send
Miss W.'s photograph and a sketch of
her life, we would surprise her, for at
least once in her lifetime.

The Doctor had an exceedingly diffi-
cult time to keep it all secret, as it was
necessary to have Miss Wilson sit for
the photograph in order to carry out the
scheme. How well he succeeded is
already shown.

That we all might fully injoy it, we
wish that all could see the expression on
Miss W.'s fair face, when she first opens
to the page showing the picture of her-
self. Perhaps she will write us at least
o?ic of her "surprising" thoughts, after
she has fully recovered.

Old Combs, if you have any to
melt up, should be broken up fine while
it is cold enough for them to be brittle.
— Oleaninys.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

363

conducted by
Greenville. Texas

Our School in Bee-Keeping'.

SIXTH LESSOK — THE FEEDING OF BEES.

Now I will tell you how to feed during
poor years or any other time when you
have to feed.

If you have much feeding to do, you
had better put on the upper stories .and
feed with the bread-pan feeder, or any
vessel that will hold about a quart. Fill
the vessel with syrup made of sugar,
and cut a cloth just to fill the inside of
the vessel, leaving a strip of the cloth
. long enough to come out over the top of
the vessel, and down to the frames.
Now turn up the quilt at one corner,
and let the strip extend from the food
down to the bees, and let the cloth lay
right on the syrup. Pour a little food
all along on the strip to get the bees
started, and all you will have to do ■will
be to go around each evening and fill up
the vessel.

The feeding should be done at night-
fall, so as not to excite robbing, and in
this way you can feed all you wish with-
out drowning the bees or having robbing
started. But should you wish to feed
• only a little, you may fill a comb and
hang it in the hive, about sunset or a
little later, and for stimulating it is a
good way.

If you do not lookout, you will get
robbing started, and then you are apt to
lose as much as you have gained by
feeding, as the colonies that need the
least food will get the most, and you will
suffer a loss in bees, besides. We can-
not be too careful about robbers, for
they are the worst sort of a plague when
started.

HOW TO PREPARE THE FOOD.

To make the sugar syrup, I place a
vessel on the stove, holding as much as
I wish to make at a time, and put about
three parts sugar in and one part water,
and let it strike a boil ; then set it off.

and pour in about one part honey, if you
have it, if not, use a piece of pure cream-
of-tartar as large as a marble, or say a
table-spoonful to a gallon of syrup,
and it will seldom turn back to sugar.
Then feed as above stated.

I do not like syrup made cold, that is,
water poured on sugar, as it seems not
to give me nor the bees the satisfaction
that the boiled syrup does, but in
heating the syrup we must not scorch
it, as it might result in harm to the bees.

I use for spring feeding the cheapest
grade of open-kettle brown sugar, or
what is just as good, the settlings of
syrup barrels that has candied in the
grocery stores, that is. Ribbon-cane
syrup. I have bought this at not over
two cents per pound, and it served my
purposes for spring feeding just as well
as any.

Pleased to Read. " Sunny Southland."

Mrs. Atchley : — You cannot imagine
how pleased 1 am to read your part of
the American Bee Journal, especially
your instructions to beginners. I feel
like giving you a warm shake of the
hand, and say. May the blessing of the
Good Father attend you and yours.

Horatio N. Scratch.

Kingsville, Ont.

Queenless Colony— Feeding in Winter.

I made the discovery Sunday that I
have a queenless colony in my yard.
They have no brood from which to rear
a queen. What would you advise? I
have queens in the yard laying. Would
you advise me to change one over, or
give them brood ? Or would you advise
me to order a queen ? I have lost one
colony with diarrhea, and one starved
out by robbers before I thought of such
going on. It was done during the pretty
days immediately following the long and
severe cold weather. We are now in
the midst of the coldest weather of the
winter.

I notice some one inquiring through
the Bee Journal whether he could
feed his bees in the winter ; the answer
by some one was that it was not practi-
cable. I have been feeding mine all
winter. I have a feeder invented (not
patented) by G. H. Bymun, of this State,
that is a success for feeding bees in win-
ter. It consists of a circular piece of
tin 6 inches in diameter, with a rim
crimped to it like a bucket lid, around
which fits a band. Slip off this band,

364

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

and stretch some thin bed-ticking across
the rim, and press on the band like put-
ting a cloth in an old-fashioned strainer.
Through the tin, which is now the top,
there is a hole made, to which is soldered
a half-inch tin pipe 6 inches long ; this
reaches through a hole bored in the
cover of the hive, when the feeder sets
on two 3^-inch sticks laid on the top-
bars of the brood-frames. The super is
left on, and a hole cut in the cloth over
the brood-frames, for the pipe to pass
through. The syrup is poured through
this pipe, and oozes through the bed-
ticking bottom, and it being right over
the bees, they can and do eat it even
when it is too cold for them to get out
to the ends of the hive. If they are fed
more than they need to eat, they take it
up and store it in the cells.

D. L. Nelson.
Fair Dealing, Ky., March 4, 1893.

Friend Nelson, I would at once give
the queenless bees, eggs and brood, and
let them rear a queen ; it would be
cheaper, in my opinion, then if they
failed to rear one, or if she failed to lay,
you could buy a queen. The brood you
give would keep the strength of the col-
ony up, any way, should they not get a
queen all right. I feed my bees any
time when they need it.

Introducing: Qiieens.

Mrs. Atchley : — In the last three
lines of " How to Introduce Queens," on
page 237, you speak of taking out the
old queen and introducing the new one
at the same operation. Will the bees
not ball and kill the new queen ? or do
you mean to cage her in the hive '? Can
I introduce a queen to a colony that has
swarmed out ? S. M. Carlzen.

Montclair, Colo.

Friend Carlzen, I meant to cage the
new queen, and let the bees release her
on the " candy plan." You can intro-
duce a queen to any colony in the same
manner, provided there are enough bees
to take care of the queen.

From One of the Scholars.

The snow is going away yesterday and
to-day. Four colonies have " gone up"
so far. My bees have not had a general
flight since Dec. 3rd. They are packed
in outer cases in wheat chaff and maple
leaves. I am one of your scholars.

Jacob Moore.

Ionia, Mich., March 3, 1893.

In this department will be answered those
questions needing- immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the ^5 or more apiarists
who help to make -'Queries and Replies" so
Interesting- on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Keeping Bees on the House-Top.

In your opinion, can bees be success-
fully kept on top of a house (store or
residence) in a large city? How about
cold winters and hot summers '?

Washington, D. C.

Answer. — Bees have been so kept
with success. Mr. C. F. Muth kept an
apiary successfully for a number of
years on the roof of his house in Cincin-
nati. The only protection he wanted
was to have the top well covered.

"Working for Increase.

We have had very cold weather here
for the last 33^ months, and it has been
hard on the bees. Last fall I had three
good colonies of bees, and now I have
one. The two were frozen in a hard
block, but the remaining one is in good
condition.

To how many can I increase one col-
ony to the best advantage, in one sea-
son, so as to have them in good condition
for next winter ? I do not care for
honey — it is bees that I want. My
locality is ordinarily a good one for bees.
The golden-rod, smartweed and white
clover are plentiful.

Henry Leveling. ,

East St. Louis, Ills.

Answer. — The number you can in-
crease to depends upon your skill and
upon the season. If the season should be
very poor, it is possible that you might
not be able to increase any, at least
without feeding. Again, you might in-
crease to a dozen, and have them all so
weak and In such poor condition that
you would have none left the following
spring. Without a good deal of experi-
ence, you hardly ought to try to do more
than to make two new ones for each old
one, that Is, trebling your number.

But if you want to increase all you
can with safety, a good plan is not to
divide up the one colony into a number
(which you might do with safety if you
knew exactly what the season would

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

365

be), but first make one new colony;
then as soon as that is In good condition,
make another out of the two ; then a
little later make another out of the same
two, or out of the three, and so on, never
reducing any one of them so much as to
endanger them if the harvest should
close any day.

Moving' Bees a "Long Distance.

1. Which is the best time of year to
ship bifees, if shipped as late as Novem-
ber, or as early as March ?

2. Should they have ventilation at the
top and at both ends of the hive ?

3. Will it do to ship In unwired
frames as far as from Illinois to New
Mexico or Colorado by freight ? And
how should they be prepared?

Carpenter, Ills. Edw. E. Smith.

Answer. — 1. Probably in March, un-
less so warm that they can have a good
flight after shipping in November.

2. They are not likely to be hurt by
too much ventilation ; but whether they
need ventilation at more than one place,
depends upon how much ventilation they
have at that one place. So early as
March a much less amount is needed
than later in the season, 12 to 20
square inches being perhaps sufficient.

3. Unwired frames are all right if the
combs are not too new, unless in excep-
tional cases where they are not attached
to the bottom-bar, or to the greater part
of the end-bars. Particulars as to prep-
aration for shipment depend somewhat
on the kind of hive ; the main thing in
all cases being to have the frames fast-
ened in some way so they will remain
firmly in place, plenty of ventilation so
given that it is not likely to be closed up
in the car, and sponges of water to pro-

, vide against thirst.

" Condensed "Vie-w of Current
Bee-Writing" is the heading of anew
department begun in the February Re-
view, conducted by Mr. E. E. Hasty. If
confined to apicultural ideas and things,
this new addition to the contents of the
Review will prove very interesting as
well as profitable to all its readers. We
believe, with Bro. Hutchinson's usual
carefulness in selecting matter for pub-
lication, nothing will appear that may
not be distinguished from mere " hasty
pudding." Of course ive expect to come
in for a share of kindly criticism, and
hope to be able to have something in
each number of the Bee Journal worthy
the "view" of a "condenser."

Planting^ to Increase the Ran^e
of Bee-Pasturase.

Query 863.— What would you advise a bee-
keeper to plant for honey, in order to profit-
ably Increase his range of bee-pasturage ? —
Bee-Lover.

Out-apiaries. — J. H. Larrabee.

Alfalfa or buckwheat. — Will M.
Barnum.

White clover, Alsike clover, and sweet
clover. — Jas. A. Stone.

It does not pay to plant for honey
alone.— Dadant & Son.

If you own the land, plant Alsike
clover. — H. D. Cutting.

Clover and buckwheat, in my locality
(Neb). — Mrs. J. N. Heater.

In this section (Ills.), linden trees and
Alsike clover. — J. M. Hambaugh.

Basswood trees, if he is young ; buck-
wheat, if he is old. — S. I. Freeborn.

Plant nothing especially for honey,
unless it be in waste places. — Eugene
Secor.

I would not advise the planting of
anything for the honey alone. — A. B.
Mason.

For honey alone, I should say sweet
clover ; for honey and hay, Alsike clover.
— C. H. Dibbern.

Nothing, unless for other purposes
than honey he is inclined to "raise Alsike
clover. — E,. L. Taylor.

Buckwheat, Alsike clover, white
clover, and raspberries for this climate.
(N. Y.)— P. H. Elwood.

It will not pay to plant anything solely
for honey. Alsike clover is good for
honey, pasturage, and hay. — M. Mahin.

I know of nothing that I would advise,
except to sow sweet clover and plants of
similar habits in waste places. — James
A. Green.

366

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Plant such honey-flora as will best suit
your climate. But it won't pay to culti-
vate plants exclusively for the honey. —
J. P. p. Bkovfn.

Alsike in some localities ; also buck-
wheat. Melilot in waste places, or on
cultivated ground, if you teach your
stock to eat it. — 0. C. Millek.

In this latitude (Wis.) Alsike clover
and buckwheat. I don't know where
you live. What would be best in one
place, would not for some other location.
— E. Fkance.

That depends so mubh upon locality,
and various other things, that without
knowing something of the possibilities
of your range, and the ownership of it,
I would not advise. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

Nothing. If his pasturage is not good,
it were well to move to a better field.
Planting for honey alone is not consid-
ered a financial success by the most of
those who have tried it. — G. M. Doolit-

TLE.

Yes, if useful plants, like Alsike
clover, possibly rape and buckwheat,
and especially of basswoods along all
the streets. Urge basswoods on the
roadsides instead of maples and elms. —
A. J. Cook.

I don't think it pays to plant anything
specifically for honey. Bees extract
their stores almost wholly from natural
flowers. Civilization and agricultural
cultivation diminish the natural sources
on which bees forage, and from which
honey is extracted. — J. E. Pond.

Some years ago I scattered 10 cents
worth of sweet clover seed along the
railway here, and now it is scattered for
miles, and promises to be of some worth
to the bees. If I were to do any plant-
ing, it would be to set out all the young
basswood trees I could get. — G. L.
Tinker.

You must be somewhat your own
judge about this. If none of the wild
honey-plants that furnish your best
yields will not thrive under cultivation,
I would select some of the tame varieties
that are best suited to your soil and
climate. It would be a difficult matter
to tell exactly what to plant, unless more
was known of your location. — Mrs. Jen-
nie Atchley.

I cannot give advice of any value on
this point, because I have precious little
faith in planting for bee-forage. You
can beautify your grounds by planting
trees that bloom and furnish nectar, but
after all, Nature must " bloom as a

rose " for our bees, or the whole thing
will disappoint. The " patches " of
blooming plants that I have scattered
by seeding the waste places, have never
shown any perceptible results. — G. W.
Demaree.

Comrention rVotices.

UTAH.— The semi-annual meeting of the
Utah Bee-Keepers' Association will be held in
Salt Lake City, Utah, on April 10, 11, 1893.
All interested are cordially invited.

View, Utah. R. T. Ehees, Sec.

PENNSYLVANIA.— The Susquehanna Co.
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold their 12th
semi-annual meeting at the Tarbell House in
Montrose, Pa., on Thursday, May 4, 1893. All
are invited. H. M. Seeley. Sec.

Harford, Pa.

NEW YORK. —The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y.. on May 4th.
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Fabnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

COLORADO.— The adjourned meeting of
the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Charles Block, corner 15th
and Curtis Streets, Denver, Colo., on April 18,
1893. Business important to all honey-pro-
ducers will come before the meeting.

Littleton, Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

KANSAS.— The Kansas State Bee-Keepers'
Association will hold tbeir annual convention
at Ottawa. Kansas, on April 6 and 7, 1893.
All bee-keepers are cordially invited to attend
this convention, and make it one of the most
interesting ever known. There will be a
good programme. Bring something to ex-
hibit. L. Wayman, Sec.

Chanute, Kans.

TEXAS.— The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
In Greenville, one mile north of the Court
House, at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
on Wednesday and Thursday. April the 5th
and 6th, 1893. One of the biggest bee-meet-
ings ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody is invited. No hotel bills to pay.
Come one, come all, and let us have a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to
exhibit. A. H. Jones, Sec.

Golden, Texas.

All Illinoisans should feel special
interest in " Society Leaders of Illinois,"
published in " Demorest's Family Maga-
zine " for April, which includes superb
portraits and authentic biographical
sketches of the best known and most
accomplished and beautiful women
throughout the State. The collection
can be got for only 20 cents, together
with many other tine attractions with
which the "Easter Number" of " Dem-
orest" is crowded. Published by W.
Jennings Demorest, 15 East 14th St.,
New York.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

367

Report of the Eastern Iowa
Bee-Keepers' Couveiition.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY FRANK COVEEDALE.

The Eastern Iowa Bee-Keepers' Con-
ventiou was called to order at 1 p.m.,
with President H. S. Bowman in the
chair. Twelve members were present.
After the preliminary business, the
convention spent some time in discus-
sions.

COMB HONEY FOR MAKKET.

Preparation of comb honey for the
market, and the production of the same,
was first taken up.

T. O. Hines fastens a strip of comb
foundation along both the top and bot-
tom of the sections, causing the bees to
•fill out a very plump and nice section for
the market. It also ships well.

D. Benton — I think that we should use
full sheets of thin foundation ; this
would prevent the building of drone-
comb, and help very much in securing
very nice, straight combs for the market.

E. J. Petch — I shall use full sheets
next season.-

H. S. Bowman — Don't allow thje bees
to propolize the wood-work of the sec-
tions, and what little may be glued on,
scrape ofif, and you will laave neat sec-
tions of honey for the market — all other
things being done right.

FULL SHEETS OF FOUNDATION.

Shall we use full sheets of comb foun-
dation in the sections or in the brood-
nest?

Mr. Hines^Foundation is no good ex-
cept for guides }4 inch along the top-
bars of the brood-frames, and 3< inch
fastened aloilg the top and bottom of
the sections.

Mr. Bowman — Why not simply rub
beeswax along the lower edge of the
brood-frames ?

Mr. Hines — Where foundation in full
sheets is used, the bees secrete the wax
anyhow, and it does no good. The same
holds good with full combs, and the more

I use them the more I am convinced of

the fact.

Mr. Benton — I notice that when I hive
bees on full combs, they won't leave me.

A Member — I have been taught from
experience, that the bees fill out the
combs faster where full sheets are used ;
in fact, too much honey is often stored
below, and the queen is restricted in
laying-room.

Mr. Petch— The bees will move the
honey up into the sections if full sheets
are used there also.

F. M. Merritt — I notice that where
only starters are used below, the queen
uses the first cells made by the new
swarm.

SECOND DAY— MoBNiNG Session.

The meeting was called to order by
the President.

BUILDING UP colonies IN SPRING.

The best way to build up colonies in
the spring to prepare for a honey crop,
was discussed.

Mr. Merritt — In the first place, I leave
my bees out all winter snugly packed in
chaff. In spring, a super is placed on
top to retain the heat for brood-rearing.

W. M. Kimble — I don't think it pays to
fuss much with weak colonies. Take
good care of the strong ones.

D. D. Hammond — I think it is not best
to draw from the strong to build up the
weak, but on the other hand do all that
you can to make the weak colonies
strong.

Mr. Kimble — I used to advise the
spreading of the brood, but if the
weather proves unfavorable, the brood
may be chilled.

Mr. Benton — My neighbor spread his
brood last spring, and his bees far out-
stripped mine in strength, and gathered
more honey.

Mr. Hammond — I am inclined to think,
on account of the severe changes in the
weather, that an amateur should go
slow in this direction. About all we can
do is to keep them warm, with plenty of
stores.

BEGINNERS AND THE MARKET.

How can beginners be best educated
not to ruin the honey market?

Mr. Hines — Buy their honey.

Byron Crevlin — Beginners, as a rule,
do not produce honey that will sell on
the city market.

Mr. Bowman — Get them to come out
to conventions ; educate them by wiser
heads and bee-periodicals.

Mr. Merritt — They won't take jour-

368

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

nals. You can't do anything with them.
They don't produce much honey, anyhow.

Mr. Kimble — I have offered just as
much as they could get at the store, and
spot cash at that, and they wouldn't sell
to me, and it is often poor in shape.

Mr. Hammond — Amateur bee-keepers
don't do it all. When the amateur does
ship his honey to city markets, he
doesn't often compete with the more ex-
perienced.

Next was the following essay by D. D.
Hammond, of Malone, on

UNION OF BEE-KEEPERS.

I take pleasure in responding to a call
made by our earnest Secretary, to write
upon the subject of union of bee-keepers.

Trusting that all may have already
learned the good lesson taught them
through the nature of bees, I need not
further urge the union of hands, the
union of hearts, and the union of deeds,
in the spirit of a true bee-keepers' fra-
ternity ; placed at the head of all ani-
mate creation, the Giver of all good
things has expected we will honor and
glorify the land with true and noble
deeds.

Then where is union needed worse,
and where is sympathy less, than in our
ranks ? For in a large majority of
cases our noblest deeds are considered a
fraud and a deception ; we are sus-
picioned In every transaction connected
with bee-keeping. In my first dealing
in bees I practiced selling for less than
the value of my articles ; the results
were I received about this class of com-
pliments, and I guess I am not alone in
the same ; it was, " Beware of a tamed
wolf ; a baptized Jew — bee-keepers as a
class !" O when shall we hail the long-
looked-for day when the "lamb " of the
innocent bee-keeper and the "lion "of
uncultured enemies of the many true
heroes who have spent many weary,
toiling hours, searching deep in the
genius of not only the most genial to
man, but the most wonderful of all in-
sect nature — when shall they lie down
in peace and harmony on the banks of a
second Jordan, when the short-comings
of the few of our ranks, and the true and
noble deeds of the many may be placed
in rank and file with other legitimate
business, and all non-union of fellow-
men pass away like the dew before the
uprising sun of life and light ?

Dare I say I think that I am intruding
upon the principles or belief in any way
of the honest bee-keepers, when I say
yes, a thousand times yes, in favor of
the union of bee-men ? The trusts of

all other pursuits are constantly forming
in all parts of the known world, for the
protection of dishonest work and deal-
ings. Then, why fail, brothers, In unit-
ing to protect an honest industry ? The
time is coming when we should use our
united effort in protecting ourselves
against unprincipled opposition of adul-
teration against us. Then, as bee-
keepers, let us rise and assert our rights
in requesting all bogus honey to be sold
and branded as such. In one way, and
one only, can we accomplish this, and
that is by our united efforts.

D. D. Hamnond.

After the above essay was read, there
was a short discussion, and it was
thought that never since bee-keeping
became an important industry was there
more need of united effort than now.

AFTERNOON SESSION.

Do bees locate their future home be-
fore swarming ? was asked.

Mr. Fetch — Some swarms know where
they are going.

Mr. Benton — My neighbor's bees
swarmed and came right into my hive,
and that without ever clustering at his
place.

Mr. Merritt — It is a common thing to
see bees cleaning out hollow trees in the
woods.

Mr. Benton— When I have a swarm
that insists on leaving me, they are sup-
plied with empty combs, and that ends
it.

It was thought by some that where
bees do locate their future home before
swarming, their chances are very poor
to stay at home unless the queen's wings
are clipped.

The subject of wintering bees was as-
signed to Conrad Kuebler, of Calamus,
but on account of a sick child, he could
not be present ; however, the question
received much discussion.

SUGAR SYRUP OR HONEY FOR WINTERING.

Which is the better for winter stores,
sugar syrup or honey ?

Mr. Hines — Natural fruits of the bee —
anything else would be artificial. Sugar
fed for winter stores always candies for
me.

Mr. Bowman — I have had the very
best of honey to candy.

Mr. Hines — That sort of candy isn't
crystallized into little, hard pellets.

Mr. Fetch — Some bees that I fed sugar
syrup soon died, while those having
honey lived through.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

369

Mr. Merritt — When did you feed that
sugar syrup ?

Mr. Fetch — Early in October.

Mr. Hines — Perhaps it should be mixed
with tartaric acid.

A Member — Mix either with tartaric
acid or about one-fifth pure honey.

WINTERING BEES.

Mr. Hines — The time that my bees
wintered best was when the temperature
in the cellar was at 56° for much of the
time.

Mr. Fetch raises the temperature after
March 1st in the cellar.

Mr. Bowman — Moisture has much to
do in wintering bees. If dry, 42° will
do very well ; if damp, a higher tem-
perature is best. •

Mr. Benton— It is my belief that bees
hibernate in hollow trees.

Mr. Hines — The years they freeze in
that state, that is what kills them.

The production of sugar honey was
quite freely discussed, and it was unani-
mously thought that even if it could be
produced at a profit, it would be a club
furnished by the bee-keepers at large to
knock out their own brains.

The following resolution was passed
unanimously :

Resolved, That we tender our thanks
to the mayor, and to the citizens of
Maquoketa, for the free use of their city
hall in which to hold our convention ;
and also for past courtesies shown
toward us. Bykon Crevlin, 1

D. D. Hammond, V Com.

F. M. Mekbitt, )

A vote of thanks was extended to D.
D. Hammond for exhibition of flve-
banded bees, honey and wax ; to D.
Benton, for a section-case; and to T. O.
Hines for a non-swarming bee-hive.

Election of ofiScers for the ensuing
year resulted as follows :

President — H. S. Bowman, of Maquo-
keta.

Vice-Presidents — Byron Ci-evlln, D. D.
Hammond and T. O. Hines.

Secretary — Frank Coverdale, of Wel-
ton.

Treasurer— W. M. Kimble, of De Witt.

The convention adjourned to meet at
1 p.m. in Delmar, on Dec. 13, 1893.
Frank Coverdale, Sec.

South Texas Bee-Keepers' Con.
ventlon Report.

Webster's Pocket Dictionary we offer
as a premium for sending only one new
subscriber with $1.00. It is a splendid
Dictionary — and just right for a pocket.

Read, our great offer on page 857.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY T. H. MULLIN.

The following bee-keepers, viz. : Mr.
and Mrs. W. O. Victor, R. A. Jansen,
R. A. Armstrong, Jr., and H. J. Moses,
of Wharton; and Messrs. J. H. Mullin
and son, of Oakland and Eagle Lake,
met on Feb. 25th at the apiary of Mr.
W. O. Victor, in Wharton, Tex., and
after a temporary meeting, with Mr. R.
A. Jansen Chairman, and Mr. T. H.
Mullin Secretary, a permanent organi-
zation was effected, to be known as the
"South Texas Bee-Keepers' Associa-
ion ;" Mr. W. O. Victor President, and
Mr. T. H. Mullin Secretary.

The object of this organization is to
further the interest of the honey-bee,
and discuss bee-ology to the advance-
ment and benefit of the bee-keepers.
The members present represented 508
colonies of bees, spring count, and 35,-
000 pounds of honey, and 300 pounds
of wax as their last crop.

The prospects for an average honey
crop this year were discussed, and de-
cided good.

An amount sufficient was furnished
the Secretary for stationery, with in-
strfictions to invite all bee-keepers of
this section to join us.

Many subjects were discussed pertain-
ing to the busy bee, and the many ways
of working them to the best advantage.
A bottle of "pure honey" (so-called),
purchased in Houston, Tex., and pre-
pared by Geo. K. McMeacham & Sons,
of Wheeling, W. Va., was presented the
Association by the President ; it was ex-
amined, and passed upon as being minus
any taste or quality whatever of pure
honey. It was decided to send a sample
of the honey to Mr. A. I. Root for
further investigation.

The Secretary was instructed to send
copies of the proceedings of this meeting
for publication to Gleanings and the
American Bee Journal.

The association next meets on May 18
and 19, 1893, at the apiary of Mr. W.
O. Victor, of Wharton, Tex. All bee-
keepers are respectfully invited to at-
tend. T. H. Mullin, Sec.

Please Send TJs the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon ihem
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

870

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL^

Colonies for Comb . or Extracted
Honey— Sting-Trowel Tlieory.

Written Jor the American Bee Journal
BY DR. C. C. MILLEK.

On page 110, to the question how-
many colonies run for comb honey-
should be kept on a range which sup-
ports 75 for extracted honey, there is a
variety of answers, ranging from the
same number to double the number. I
suspect the reasoning on one hand was
something like this ; Only half as much
comb honey can be harvested by each
colony as extracted ; consequently there
must be twice as many colonies to gather
it, forgetting that a good part of the
honey must be counted to make wax %nd
to feed bees.

On the other hand, those who say
there is no difference, reason that if 75
colonies clean the field, it doesn't make
any difference what they do with the
honey, whether they store it all as ex-
tracted honey, or make part of it into
wax.

I suspect those who took medium
ground were more nearly right. For
the sake of illustration, suppose a single
colony cleans the field, working for ex-
tracted honey, thefe being 40,000 bees
in the colony, and 20,000 of the 40,-
000 working in the field. Suppose they
store 80 pounds when working for ex-
tracted, and 40 when working for comb.
If it takes 60 pounds to support the col-
ony, then when working for comb honey,
they must have a field that affords 100
pounds, and when working for extracted
honey a field that affords 140 pounds.
So it will not do to say that the same
number will work the same field in each
case, unless you say that they will store
an equal amount of extracted or comb.
Possibly some may have believed this, in
which case their answer was correct
according to that belief.

THE STING-TROWEL THEORY.

Here's 3,n item clipped from the Chi-

cago News Becord of Jan. 26, 1893,
and credited to the Baltimore News :

" Function of a Bee's Sting. — It will
be a surprise to many to learn that,
after all, the most important function of
the bee's sting is not stinging. I have
long been convinced that the bees put
the finishing touches on their artistic
cell-work by the dextrous use of their
stings, and that during this final finish-
ing stage of the process of honey-mak-
ing, the bees inject a minute portion of
formic acid in the honey. This is, in
reality, the poison of their sting. The
formic acid gives to honey its peculiar
flavor, and also imparts to it its keeping
qualities. The sting is really an ex-
quisitely contrived little trowel, with
which the bee finishes off and caps the
cells when they are filled brimful of
honey. While doing this the formic acid
passes from the poison-bag, exudes drop
by drop from the point of the sting, and
the beautiful work is finished."

If I am not mistaken it is the same
item that was clipped from an English
paper not long ago and sent to the
British Bee Journal. So it seems to have
started on its travels across the water,
and is now having a wide circulation on
this side. If this were its first appear-
ance, it would be promptly denounced
by the bee-papers as the foolish lie of
some penny-a-liner. And is it any more
to be passed by in silence, because it
emanated from one who is the president
of an apicultural college — the only col-
lege of the kind, is it not, on the conti-
nent? For all who were familiar with
the bee-literature of a few years ago will
recognize in the item the " sting-trowel
theory " of Rev. W. F. Clarke. Tne only
addition to the original theory is that
the poison is here credited with giving
honey its flavor.

So far as I know, Mr. Clarke never
gave the slightest hint of any proof for
his belief. He didn't pretend to have
any. Surely, if bees use their stings as
trowels in wax-building, he ought at
least to have looked and seen them at
the work before sending out his wild
guess. For thousands of bees are con-
stantly engaged in the operation in the
busy season in any apiary.

If Mr. Clarke has the feeblest proof for
his statement, I hereby challenge him to
publish it ; and if he has not, I ask him,
in the interest of truth, to do all he can,
even at this late day, to undo the harm
done.

Marengo, Ills.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

371

Divided Colonics — ^Vriting^ for
Ihe Press.

Wrttte7i for the American Bee Journal
BY J. H. ANDRE.

Query 849 — " Having Divided Colo-
nies as Good as Natural Swarms " — re-
minds me of my experience in this line.
The best success I ever had vi^as in
drumming out a swarm and removing
the colony, putting the new swarm in
its place. If there is much larvae in the
hive, some of it should be removed, as it
migiit not be properly attended if the
drumming is quite through. It is a
question to me if it is best to give the
removed larvte to the new swarm. I
sometimes think nature is desti'oyed in
doing so.

If a large swarm is drummed from a
strong colony, they will hardly need any
additional strength. Giving them brood
might partially discourage the great
energy I have always observed when
they are left as a natural swarm (prob-
ably others will differ from me in regard
to their being a natural swarm. Well,
perhaps they are not ; but if not, then a
queen they are forced to rear is not a
natural queen). I have sometimes
thought if larval brood is removed it
would be best to give it to another col-
ony, and replace with sealed brood. A
laying queen should be given them im-
mediately, if possible. This saves the
two weeks or more of lost time it takes
them to rear one.

I have tried the plan of giving colo-
nies laying queens after they had cast
one large swarm, by destroying cells and
queens. Such colonies were very profit-
able, holding strength well until late in
the season.

BEE-STINGS FOR RHEUMATISM.

Probably the cases of rheumatism
being cured by the stings of bees, which
are mentioned in the Bee Journal,
were caused by too much alkali in the
system. No doubt an acid, rheumatism
wrculd be greatly aggravated by the
same remedy. In fact, I think it is a
prime cause in many cases, my own be-
ing one of the latter.

fair play in literary work.

I have read Mr. Wm. F. Clarke's arti-
cle on page 827 of the Bee Journal for
1892, and know how he felt when he
wrote it.

I am very sorry we cannot all think
alike in being careful not to send mat-
ter for publication which is likely to give

i quo

offence to others. Oftentimes the one
trod upon is just in the primary of his
or her literary abilities, and with a little
encouragement might make a first-class
writer. Alas, a slur discourages for-
ever. If there is any class that is more
sensitive than those in limited financial
circumstances who depend in part fbr a
living upon their pen, I have failed to
find them.

I have been attacked through the local
press, and know how it feels. When
paraded as a contributor of a leading
New York paper, and liable to be ap-
pointed confidential advisor to the Post-
master General for trying to right a
wrong, I sent the clipping to the agri-
cultural editor of said paper, and his
reply was : " I have heard nothing from
your enemies, and it will make no differ-
ence if I do ; I judge articles by their
merit. Be sure you are right, then go
ahead." Well, it spurred me on to right
the wrong, and the consequence was the
writer of my local advertisements was
indicted for selling alcohol in the post-
office, fined, and driven from the office.
He also had a plurality of wives.

My rule in writing is to strive not to
offend any one. I do this for the reason
that it is my principle. Also, others are
not interested in reading the petty dif-
ferences between two persons ; and,
most of all, I fear I might drive some
one out of the paper of far greater worth
than myself.

Now, brothers, I am sorry if I have
ever given offence ; well pleased to hear
of your successes, and sympathize with
you in your losses. Let us all shake and
be friends.

Lockwood, N. Y.

►♦^

Dividing the Colonies vs. Natural
Swarniins.

Written for the American Bee Joumdi
BY J. C. BALCH.

I want to give Mr. Wooldridge (see
page 116) some pointers on dividing
against natural swarming. I, too, am
in favor of dividing where it is properly
and not too "numerously" done. The
way I proceed is this :

As soon as the first colony has queen-
cells nearly ready to cap over, I take a
new hive to that colony, open the hive
and hunt the queen. When I find her,
I put the frame that she is on, with all
adhering bees, into the new hive, then
take out one frame with seme brood and
some honey, and put in with the queen.
Then fill the new hive with frames with

372

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

full sheets of foundation, or at least with
starters, to insure straight combs, and
place the new hive where the old one
stood. Then put two frames of founda-
tion starters in the old hive, where you
took the queen and brood from, and
move it to a new location. This work
should be done in the forenoon of any
warm day, when the bees are flying
briskly.

In five days, if your colonies are all
strong and making preparation to
swarm, divide what ,are left, or as many
as you think proper, leaving the old
queen in the new hive, on the old stand,
and moving the colony to a new place ;
then the next day go to the colony that
has been queenless six days, and cut out
all queen-cells but the one that looks the
most advanced, and one of a later date
(to insure a queen if the first doesn't
hatch). Now insert one of the best of
these cells in each of the queenless colo-
nies, by removing one of the most ad-
vanced of their queen-cells, and putting
the new one in its place ; it will insure
them a queen from six to twelve days
earlier than they would rear one. I
would use only the best cells, and de-
stroy the inferior ones, and I would
divide my best Italian colony first, that
might rear a good quality of queens.

I don't think there will be any danger
of after-swarms from those colonies
where the queen-cells are Inserted, as
the new queen will hatch before much
of the brood is hatched, and there not
being many field bees in the hive, the
queen will destroy the other cells.

Bronson, Kans.

^ »

Cloged-End Brood-Frames and
Their Use.

Written for the A.mericnn Bee Journal
BY KEV. W. P. FAYIiOB.

This subject having been discussed in
the various bee-publications during the
last few years so thoroughly, it may
seem useless to some to speak out again
about brood-frames. It is not so much
the "pros" and "cons" of a standing
closed-end frame that I wish to impress
upon the mind of the reader, as the way
to use such frames.

The first kind of closed-end frame I
tried was after the Bingham pattern. I
made two hives of this kind. My great-
est objection to frames used as Mr.
Bingham used them, was the diflSculty
in keeping them even, lengthwise.
Neither did I like the wire attachment
to tighten the frames. More than this,

whenever the frames were all taken
apart, I hardly knew what to do with
them. They would topple about like so
many sticks of wood in trying to make
one frame stand until another could be
placed against it. I used these hives
one season, and then they went "the
way of all the earth."

When I saw an illustration of the
Quinby hive, as used by the Hethering-
tons, like many other bee-keepers seek-
ing after something new, I "waded
into " a few of these. Of course I did
not like the cord or string looped about
the panels and frames, but the worst
feature of all was found in those miser-
able hooks attached to the frames. To
use a hive two tiers or more high, the
hooks had to be left poking out at the
top. What did I do with these hives ?
Well, they disappeared somewhat like
the morning fog. They did not go up to
come down again, but they went down
to " come up no more."

In regard to the Hoffman frame, I
may here say that I never took much
stock in it, as readers of the back num-
bers of the Bee Jouknal very well
know. It was invented more for moving
purposes than anything else, and I have
always thought, like Mr. Heddon, that
it was boomed temporarily, like the
auctioneer's razor — " to sell." Perhaps
in this I am mistaken. I hope I am.

About the time the junior editor of
Gleanings gave the Hoffman frame such
merited praise, I received samples of
these frames from other sources than
Mr. Hoffman, with a request to give my
opinion of the same through the Bee
Journal. In doing so, I received the
most abusive letter the next week that I
ever received in my life. That letter
had about as much force on " my jolly
heart " as a snow-flake would have on a
locomotive.

When I first tried the closed-end
frame, I did not think it could ever be
used successfully, but the way I now use
it, it can be used in any common hive,
such as the dovetailed.

HOW I USE CLOSED-END FBAME8.

Nail a strip of wood % of an inch
wide, and bee-space deep, on the inside
end of the hive, down even with the bot-
tom. Tack a strip of tin against this,
so as to project upward 54 of an inch
above the wood strip. Cut a square, or
rabbet out of all four corners of the
brood-frame H of an inch deep. Thus
you see the frames will stand on the tin
rests with a bee-space between the end
of the frames and the end of the hive.
The frames are to be low enough to

American bee journal.

373

have J4 inch space above the brood-
frames, and % of an inch should be
allowed between the ends of the frames
and the ends of the hive, or the frames
should be H of an inch shorter than the
inside length of the hive. By using two
division-boards as " followers," a bee-
space will be had on every side of the
brood-chamber. This is not necessary
unless desired for a double-walled hive
for wintering out-of-doors. It also allows
space for packing with pasteboard or
paper above and around the brood-
chamber for economizing warmth in
building up weak colonies in the spring.

HOW TO HANDLE THE FRAMES.

First, the brood-frames should be
tightened or compressed with a "fol-
lower" and wedge, or thumb-screws. If
a "follower " and wedge be used, both
must be made tapering ; that is, the
"follower" should be (say) H of an
inch thick at the bottom, tapering to
K of an inch at the top, or nearly so.
The wedge must be made in shape like a
rail-splitter's wedge. I think thumb-
screws the more preferable, doing away
with division-boards.

Suppose I wish to find the queen in
hive No. 1. I go to the hive and pick
out one of the middle frames. Some-
times she will be found on the first comb.
The frames can be slid either way on the
tin rests. In returning the frames to a
hive, smoke the bees to one side of the
hive ; when you get a few frames in
place, the bees will scramble back to the
other side of the hive, leaving the side
free from bees in which to place the last
comb.

A more rapid way to handle the
frames is to turn the brood-chamber
upside down, and the whole body of
frames will slip out together, and can
be separated with knife in halves, pairs
or trios, as may be desired, and placed
in the hive while the bees are outside,
and the whole hive slid back on the bot-
tom-board again.

In using this hive for the extractor,
the whole set of frames can be extracted
and replaced in the hive without a bee
in the way to replace the frames ; and
this body of frames exchanged with the
body for the upper story of the next
hive, and the operation repeated
throughout the whole apiary.

The end projection of the top-bar to a
hanging frame is always in the way to
use rapidly in the extractor ; with my
frame, this objection vanishes. With
the suspended frame the combs are
seldom built to the bottom-bar, leaving
a good lurking place for the queen, and

wiring brood-frames is often resorted to
in hot climates.

With the closed-end frames as I used
it, this is all unnecessary.

Perhaps I had better here state that
for the extractor use, the end-bars
should be all made IK inches wide ; for
comb honey they need not be spaced
quite so wide. I prefer one of the long
bars to be made triangular, as the bees
will build the combs truer out to the
end-bars, and foundation can be fast-
ened more easily and better. My frame is
173^ inches long, and 9 inches deep, out-
side measure. The bars are % of an
inch thick. If the end-bars be made of
poplar wood, they will not swell like
pine; but pine will not swell so much
after used a year or two.

La Porte City, Iowa.

Some Successes and Discourage-
ments In Bee-Keeping^.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY A. E. BRADFORD.

Last season was one of the hardest on
bees that we have had in a number of
years, so the old bee-keepers tell me that
live in this county. I am young at the
business, if not in years.

I commenced in the spring of 1889
with 20 colonies, and took off over 3,000
pounds of comb honey in one-pound sec-
tions, besides an increase of 20 colonies.
Being anxious to get 100 colonies, I
saved all the swarms, and about one-
half were second swarms. In the spring
of 1890, all the second swarms that I
had wintered, emigrated — some to the
woods, but most of them went into other
hives that had plenty of bees and honey,
and when the honey-flow came I had 30
colonies left, and half of them were rob-
bing. I used to sit and bet which hive
would get the most honey, and they kept
it up all summer, for they did not have
anything else to do, as there was no
honey in the blossoms to amount to any-
thing, for I only took about 200 pounds
of comb honey and no increase, or five
swarms, which gave me 30 colonies to
put into the cellar.

I decided to try a new " kink " in put-
ting my bees out in the spring, so after
it had got nice and warm in the spring
of 1891, I put my bees out — not in the
daytime, but at night, and I only took
out 10 hives and set them 16 or 20 feet
apart.

The next night I put out 10 hives
more, and that way I kept on until I had

.374

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

them all out on the summer stands. I
had no trouble in their cominfj out and
going into other hives, but they were
very light in honey, and before I knew
it some had dwindled down so that I
doubled up until I only had 20 colonies
left, but they were in good condition,
and the summer of 1891 I got 1,500
pounds of comb honey in one-pound sec-
tions, with an increase of 20 swarms.
Like a fool, I kept them all over the win-
ter until the spring of 1892, and then
after I put them out 2 colonies starved
before I knew it, and some more of them
were so light that I'doubled up so that I
had 30 colonies in fair condition. Then
I went to feeding, and I had to keep it
up until I had fed about 200 pounds of
honey and sugar, and it kept them rear-
ing brood so that when the honey-flow
came I had 30 hives full of bees, and I
took off 1,100 pounds of comb honey
and 650 pounds of extracted ; and for
all my success I give the American Bee
JouRNAT, credit.
Hammond, Wis.

^^•

A Beginner's Interesting; Experi-
ence with Bees.

Written for the Americaji Bee Journal
BY WALTER SHIVER.

Last winter (1891-92) I bought 5
colonies of bees in box-hives. The holes
for the bees to go in and out of were
large enough for cats to crawl through.
I made some hives to suit myself, as I
have no patent on them. Then came
the " tug of war" for one who did not
know anything about transferring bees.

So I subscribed for the American Bee
Journal, and also got a bee-veil about
April 5, 1892, and on April 15th I put
on the veil and started to transfer the
bees. I got one of the old box-hives on
a table, spreading a quilt on it, and gave
the bees a dose of smoke, and com-
menced tearing the box-hives to pieces.
Such a job you never saw, for it was
nailed with 20-penny nails, and five or
six center sticks for the bees to build
their combs on. I told Mrs. Shiver to
look out for the queen, for neither of us
had ever seen one.

There was about a bushel of bees in
the hive, and Mrs. S. said : " I don't
see any queens, but what a lot of
'kings.'" We have learned since then
that they were drones ! When I was
cutting the comb and putting in the
frames, I said, " Now, don't be scared,"
for she was completely covered with
bees, and so was I. She said, " Well,

your eyes look as large as a tea-cup." I
admit that I was scared. Eight or ten
bees got under my bee-veil, and I
thought that Mrs. S. was right, for my
eyes felt as large as tea-cups.

But the most trouble that I had was
to put a bushel of bees into a half-bushel
hive. But when I put them back on the
stand, they were glad of it, I tell you,
and so was I. They had a jubilee over
it, they were so glad. They were racing
and tumbling and rolling, four and five
together, until nearly sundown. I found
out that it was bees that had come to
see the transferring, and to see if they
would like to be transferred next. So I
thought I would put a stop to that. I took
them to a tight room, and I had no
trouble with them. After that I took
the windows out, and brushed the bees
out of the room.

The last spring was a very bad one
here. No one secured any honey.
About Aug. 15th I took out about 10 or
15 pounds of good honey. Then I had
to go away for two or three weeks, and
when I came back I examined the bees
and found every hive with surplus
honey. I took out a frame, and was
about to take out more, when my wife
said, " Whoopee, taste it !" and behold it
was bitter. What was I to do with it. I
had 12 hives with 8 frames in each one.
It was not honey-dew — it was stored
from what is called the yellow dog-fen-
nel here, and the country abounds with
it. The surplus chambers were full of
it, about 6 pounds to the frame, and
eight frames to the chamber.

My hives are double, and the two are
26 inches from top to bottom, and made
out of 1^8 -inch lumber. We winter our
bees on the summer stands here.

My neighbors that have had bees for
years, say that I have got the prettiest
and best hives they ever saw. They are
all painted red, white and blue, and
they are all numbered ; and because my
bees have done nothing for me last year,
I am not discouraged. Some of the
neighbors think I am a great bee-man,
and get me to hive bees for them. I
divided two of my colonies, and thus
made four out of them, and a neighbor
gave me a queenless colony — the queen
had been drowned, I suppose, by her
owner getting honey out of the top of
the old box-hive.

I bought three Italian queens, and I
did not throw them over the house nor
against the lightning-rod, nor up in the
trees, as Mrs. Atchley once wrote of,
but I simply pulled the corks out of the
cages and loosened up the honey that
had been put in the cage for the queen,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAU

375

and I tied a string to the cork, then I
put the cork, just lightly, into the hole
it came out of ; I set it in front of the
hive, and in five minutes there wras a ball
of bees on it as large as my two fists ;
th«n I raised it up carefully and put
bees and all into the brood-chamber on
top of the frames, and I pulled the cork
with the string, and put the cover
on the hive. It wasn't two hours
before all 3 colonies were working well,
and in two days I took the empty cages
out, and in 30 days I noticed tJhe yellow
bees on the fronts of the hive. Now I
have 2 colonies of very nice Italians.
The other one was not a pure queen — I
think she was mixed. She is very good,
though, and had lots of bees. I am not
yet prepared to say which I would rather
have, the Italians or black bees, but
next summer I will report.

I don't care how far my virgin queens
go to mate with drones, just so they
mate with good ones.

Hope, Ark,

txxxxxxxxxxxxrxxxxxxsxxxxxzxzxxxxi

®%;^

f^~ Do not write anything- for publication
on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Prediction for th.e Honey-Flow of '93.

As promised, I will give the readers of
Americax Bee Joukxal my predictions
for the honey-flow for this year. To be
as brief as possible, I will say the crop
of white honey will be short. You need
have no fears of the markets being
flooded from southern California, nor
from the West, but there ought to be a
good flow in western Nevada, around
about Reno.

The big bee-men of New York will not
have the big yields to hide from the pub-
lic this year ; their crop will be short.
There ought to be a fair yield in Massa-
chusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut,
southern New York, New Jersey, and
eastern Pennsylvania. In Ohio, the
eastern central part will have close on
to, if not a total, failure.

The western part of Michigan, along
the lake into northern Indiana, ought
to have a fair yield, or better than other
parts close by. Also southern Illinois,
western and southern Kentucky.

Minnesota will have a failure, and the
northwestern part of Iowa, but eastern
Iowa ought to have a fair yield, and es-
pecially the southeastern part, close to
the Mississippi river. We will also have
a better yield here in eastern Tennessee
than we have been having.

Let all the bee-keepers watch the
honey-flow. I don't know anything in
regard to the weather, but only as to
the honey-flow. Whether flowers con-
tain nectar or not, let all watch, and
then report. The above has reference
to linden and white clover.

Sam Welsox.

Cosby, Tenn., March 10, 1893.

Report for Two Years.

In 1891 I had 600 pounds of comb
honey in pound sections, and about the
same amount in frames. Last year I
sold only S3. 00 worth of honey from 57
colonies of bees. J. Shaffer.

South Park, Ky.

Bees All Right — Re-Glueening.

Bees are all right so far. We have
had a very cold winter. I winter bees
in chaff hives on the summer stands.
Last year was a poor season for honey —
I had only 300 pounds from 25 colo-
nies. I would say to S. A. Smith's first
question, on page 266, the best time to
re-queen is in the early season. 2. I
find queens reared in the fall just as
good as in May. 3. Just as good, for I
have tried them. A. A. Slmpsox.

Swarts, Pa., March 6, 1893.

"Wintering Bees Out-Doors, Etc.

I have been keeping bees, in a small
way, for more than eight years. I have
been a careful observer, have read Lang-
stroth's, Root's, Newman's, and other
works on the honey-bee, and have been
successful as far as I have gone ; but
having a large farm to manage, I paid
more attention to the farm than to bees.
I usually keep from 10 to 20 colonies,
and sold them when I had more. I am
now getting old, and can no longer fol-
low the plow, so I shall pay more atten-
tion to bees.

Last spring I had 11 good, strong
colonies, which increased by swarming
during the season to 18, and produced

3T6

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

800 pounds of nice comb honey in sec-
tions. One of the new swarms I hived
in a dovetailed hive ; the rest of my
hives are the 10-frame Simplicity. I
like the dovetailed hives so well that
next spring I shall transfer all to that
style.

I winter my bees on the summer
stands, preparing them after this man-
ner : About Nov. 1st I see that the
brood-chamber is full of honey and bees,
and that they have a queen. Then I
place over the frames " Hill's device," or
three corn-cobs across the frames of
each hive, forming a space for the bees
to pass over the top of the frames. I
then cover with burlap, place on the
second story, fill it with oat chaff, and
put on the cover. Then I pile up around
and over the hive some prairie hay or
straw, leaving the front side and en-
trance open, and leaving a wide board
up in front and against the hive ; the
board to be used as an alighting-board
on warm days when bees are on the
wing. I do not allow the entrance to be
clogged up with ice, snow or dead bees.

I have followed this plan for eight
years, and have not lost a colony when
cared for in this manner.

We have a very good bee-country here,
and I shall now try to build up a good
apiary. Jeeome Barnell.

Wahoo, Nebr.

Bee- Yard Under the Snow.

The snow is about four feet deep on a
level in the woods, and the roads are
about all full, and my bee-yard is out of
sight, hives and all. We can beat Dr.
Miller's locality on cold, as it has been
30° below zero here. My bees have had
only one flight this winter ; then they
showed diarrhea badly.

H. M. Seeley.

Harford, Pa., Feb. 27, 1898.

Bee-Keeping in Tennessee.

Our winter has been severely cold. It
set in Jan. 1st, and continued until Jan.
22nd, when the bees flew a little for the
first time since Dec. 31st, being confined
three weeks of about the coldest weather
we ever had here. The cold wave was
the most destructive to bees that I ever
saw in this country. Some colonies froze
clean out ; others half froze to death. I
lost 3 colonies, and others lost from one
to 20. From Jan. 22nd to Feb. 17th it
was warm most of the time, and rainy.
Jan. 13th was the coldest day, and the
pight of the 15th was the coldest night.

Bees have been flying some every few
days from Jan. 22nd until Feb. 17th,
when it turned cold again. There is no
pollen yet for bees to get. As they are
beginning to rear brood they will need
some fresh pollen to help them along. I
will have some oats and wheat ground
together as a substitute, and they work
on this in the warm days finely. I think
we will have a good honey-flow this
year, as the prospect for white clover is
good.

Bees, at this time, are housed up, and
it looks at present as if they would not
be out for several days yet. Last Feb-
ruary, at this time, bees were gathering
pollen.

On page 184, Mr. John Boggs asks a
question in regard to Italian bees as
honey gatherers. My experience is that
the yellow bees gather more honey than
the hybrids ; they also build up faster
in the spring. The hybrids are worse to
swarm than the yellow ones, and are
worse to sting than the golden Italians.
My yellow bees protect their homes bet-
ter than the hybrids. I don't think that
Mr. B. has made any mistake in the pur-
chase of the golden Italians. I think he
would do well to purchase golden Ital-
ians for all his colonies, that are not full
blooded Italians. A. C. Babb.

Greenville, Tenn., Feb. 20, 1893.

Severe "Winter for Bees.

It has been a severe winter here, with
a great deal of snow, but my bees have
so far managed to keep alive, although
they run great risks sometimes in order
to take a flight, and a great many fall
into the snow and perish.

Newton, Mass., March 6, 1893.

How Far Bees Go for Honey.

I have hunted bees in the woods for
the past 12 years, and have found them
to go over four miles to work on horse-
mint, for it Is a good honey-plant in this
location. In 1888 I received a good
yield of honey from it, and it was as
nice as any clover honey I ever saw
around here.

I was out one day hunting bees in the
mint location, in 1891. I caught some
bees and put them into my bee-box to
get them at work. So I got some bees
back on my combs, and I moved the
combs on the line to find the bee-tree;
so I kept on moving, and I got out of the
woods to a marsh. From the marsh it
was over three miles, and I had run

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

37T

them one inile in the woods, and I could
see them go straight to my bees. There
was not one tree between my bees and
the marsh, so I was not sure. I began
to work them on my combs, to see if I
was right, and I moved to my bees at
home. It was a poor season here.

I found, in my experience in hunting
bees the past 12 years, over 50 swarms.
I did not receive much honey in the year
of 1892. I had about 40 colonies,
spring count. The clover did not yield
very much here last season. I got about
300 pounds of extracted honey, and
about 50 pounds of comb honey from
asters, and some from horse-mint. The
mint does not yield honey well every
year here. When it does yield, it is
splendid. I hope we will have a better
season this year. I have my bees in the
cellar, and they are very quiet at pres-
ent. Frank Stephens.

Hageman, Ind., Jan. 20, 1893.

Honey-Dew Did It.

In the fall of 1891 I had 72 colonies
of bees on the summer stands, packed
in good condition ; in the spring of 1892
I had 2 colonies left. So much for
honey-dew. Wm. Alldritt.

Morrison, Ills., March 3, 1893.

Moving Bees in Winter.

I commenced bee-keeping in 1890.
My whole delight is in reading the Bee
Journal carefully every week. As it
may interest Mr. F. H. Richardson, I
would say that I moved my bees on Jan.
7, on a mud-boat, and the snow was 10
inches deep. I don't think It injured
the bees any at all. I noticed with
pleasure, on page 204, that Mrs.
Atchley is going to teach me something
about keeping bees.

John V. Emmert.

Lebanon, Ind., Feb. 18, 1893.

Bees as Weather Prophets, Etc.

I see that the Bee Journal, of March
2nd says that the name of Quinby, to
most of the readers of the American
Bee Journal, is unknown. I could
hardly keep still when that came at me
so sharp as that ; I am only a boy in the
business, and I thought that I could
hardly write anything interesting to the
readers, but I will try.

The second year that I had bees I dis-
covered that they were good weather
prophets. I could tell near sunset just
what kind of weather we would have the

next day. Of course I had to watch
them very close, so that I could tell. My
father often sent me from the harvest
field to tell what the weather would be
the next day. I never made but one
mistake. We often got our hay in dry
by working a little late, having the bees
to guide us. They will work later, and
the way that they leave the hive with a
whiz at almost dark some times. Some
may say that It is not so, bnt I have
proved it for three years. But I am not
going to let the name Quimby die out.

W. R. Quimby.
Liberty Corner, N. J., Mar. 7, 1893.

CONYEIVTIOX DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

April o, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville. Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

April 6, 7.— Kansas State, at Ottawa, Kans.
L. Wayman, Sec, Chanute, Kans.

Apr. 10, 11.— Utah, at Salt Lake City, Utah.
R. T. Khees, Sec. View, Utah.

April 18.— Colorado State, at Denver, Colo.
H. Knight Sec, Littleton, Colo.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co., at Montrose, Pa.
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford. Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit JJridg-e. N. Y

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

VicePres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Tkeasubek— George W. YorK... Chicago, Ills

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Mrs. J. IP. Cooltenbacli, whose
advertisement appears on page 355, will
be glad to have you write to her to
secure a good place to stay during your
visit to the World's Fair the coming
summer. The Bee Journal refers its
readers and friends, with much pleas-
ure, to Mrs. C, who will do the right
thing by all who give her an opportunity
to help them.

378

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
March 18th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. &Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, 16®17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8^ ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6@8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good. at 24@27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light, White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8i4c.; buckwheat, 6@654c. ;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality. 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@I7c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6@
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNE APO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
©I'^c. Extracted, in barrels, 7®8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs.. 9@10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.: No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. : No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7i4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C.-M. C. C.

Albany. N. Y-— Our stock of honey is light
and also receipts. Demand keeps up better
than usual this season. We are selling white
comb honey at 14@16c.; mixed, 12@13c.;
dark, 10@llc. Extracted, white, 9@9i^c. ;
mixed, 7^@8c.; dark, 7®7^c. Beeswax,28@
30c. H. K. W,

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

L,ocal Checks. — Please do not
send us checks on local banks. We have
to pay from 15 to 25 cents each to get
them cashed here, which Is quite a use-
less expense, when you can either send
money by registered letter, or get an ex-
press or post-office Money Order. We
prefer the express Money Order, if you
can get that ; otherwise the post-ol'iice
Money Order or registered letter.

Cliieago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son. 183 Reade Street.
HiLDBETH Bros. & Segelken,

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minneapolls, minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clkmoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N. Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son,

Cincinnati, Ohio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Your ^eig:lit>or Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Jouknal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey " as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 357.

Wants or Excliaiiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at lO cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

WANTED —A lady partner as a wife, that
is a bee-keeper or that would tike to
learn the bee and poultry business, with a few
thousand dollars to go into the bee and poul-
try business on a large scale; between the
ages of 25 and 50 years. All letters answered.
Good reference given. D. BROTHERS,
llA2t Sarahsville. Noble Co., Ohio.

WANTED TO SELL-A good, flrst-class 4-
frame Honey-Extractor. Will take the
frames of any size, and will hold 150 pounds
under the Basket. It has been used but very
little. Will send photographs to all who mean
business. Price. $20; and I will take in part
payment Old Coins, not later tliau 1858 Dol-
lar or 1853 Haif-Doilar; or Quarters and Old
Copper Cents or Old Postage Stamps— all to
be U. S. money and stamps, and I will allow
just double their face value. Let me hear
from all who have any Old Coins or Stamps.

THEODORE JAMES,
10 Montgomery St., North Adams. Mass.

^-i

GEORGE W. YORK,

Editor.

Devoted Exclusively-

-To Bee-Culture.

J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
j Sample Free .

VOL XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MARCH 30, 1893.

NO. 13.

Mr. P. A. Gemmill's Apiary,

located at his home in Stratfoi'd, Ont.,
is shown in a beautiful picture covering
a whole page of last Gleanings. Bro.
Gemmill uses a plan worthy of general
adoption, in that he has each hive
" named after some prominent bee-
keeper in the United States and Canada,"
instead of numbering them. For in-
stance, on the hives may be seen, in
neatly printed letters, these names :
Father Langstroth, Huber, Dzierzon,
Quinby, Doolittle, A. I. Root, Pringle,
Clarke, Jones, Dr. Miller, Alpaugh, etc.
The apiary contains 72 colonies, and one
especially prized hive (an observatory)
was made for Mr. G. by Father Lang-
stroth in 1863 ; it occupies a prominent
position, and "it has contained bees
continuously ever since — nearly 30
years." Mr. Gemmill's family are also
shown in the very life-like picture,
making, all together, a most pleasing
sight.

California Bee-L^egislation.

— Mr. W. A. Pryal was selected by the
California State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion to formulate several Bills to be pre-
sented to the State Legislature in the
interest of bee-keeping.

Three Bills were introduced. One of
them was to prohibit the spraying of
fruit-trees with poisonous insecticides ;
the second Bill made it a misdemeanor to

maliciously kill honey-bees belonging to
another ; and the third was for an ap-
pr»priation of the State funds suflScient
to pay for the printing of the proceed-
ings of the California State Bee-Keepers'
Convention, and the printing of such
other information that will promote the
apicultural industry in the Golden State.

It seems that the Bill to prevent spray-
ing fruit-trees while in bloom, with
Paris-green, etc., was referred to the
Committee on Agriculture, and that
committee " knocked it out." The com-
mittee contained some fruit-growers,
who claimed that it was better to injure
the bees, as the fruit interests of the
State far exceed that of the honey in-
dustry. Had Mr. Pryal been present,
he could easily have shown them that
the proper time to spray trees is not
when they are in bloom ; and he also
would have tried to prove to them that
human lives are more valuable than the
few fruits that might be saved by the
untimely use of insecticides ! It is
strange that fruit-growers will ignor-
antly work against their best friends,
the bees !

The Appropriation Bill gave promise
of faring better, and Mr. Pryal had as-
surances that it would in all probability
be passed, as the sum asked for ($300)
was so modest that no one could very
well object to it. At this writing, how-
ever, we have not heard the final result.

Bro. Hrnest R. Root, the ex-
cellent editor of Gleanings, is " all
' broke up ;' " and the cause of it is the
biographical sketch and portrait of him-
self on page 299 of the Bee Journal.
Here is what he said about it in Glean-
ings for March 15tb :

We are all " broke up." We have been sit-
ting before the desk trying to scribble off an
editorial, as it was one of the kind that
wouldn't '• dictate." We've got something to

892

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

say, but for the life of us we don't know how
to say it, or whether, indeed, we ought to say
anything at ail. We refer to some kind, very
kind things said of us in a biographical sketch,
accompanied by a good portrait, in the Ameri-
can Bee Journal,, of your humble servant.
We seriously fear we do not deserve all of it ;
at all events we tender our awkward "thank
you." and in the meantime will try to ward
off that peculiar insidious malady that some-
times affects young men— the " big head."

We are just excrutiatlngly sorry If we
published anything about our Bro. Root
that can't be proven true. We hope he
will forgive us this time, for our " mo-
tives" were certainly in a healthy condi-
tion, and we'll promise not to do it
again, or at least not until we get
another good chance.

We don't believe in saving up all the
flowers or kind words until a funeral
calls them out. Why not bestow them
while they can be appreciated, instead
of waiting until our friends have passed
away forever ? A single word of en-
couragement given now, will be worth
whole dictionaries of memorial resolu-
tions. We shall all pass this way but
once, and ought tp do all the good we
can while we have the opportunity.

Xlie Kansas State Bee-Keepers'
Association will meet in Ottawa, Kans.,
on April 6th and 7th, and the following
is the programme :

FIRST DAY.

Address by President.
Bee-Keeping in Kansas.
Different Races of Bees.
Economy in Bee-Keeping.
Bees and Horticulture — Their Rela-
tions.

SECOND DAT.

The Subject of Hives, by Mr. P. Shaub,
of Olathe.

Best Methods of Producing Comb
Honey.

Best Methods of Producing Extracted
Honey.

Ups and Downs of Bee-Keeping.

Exhibit at the World's Fair, and
What Shall We Do About It?

The Different Honey-Plants of the
State of Kansas.

Chanute, Kans. L. Wayman, Sec.

Bee Journal at tlie Head.—

Mr. Hasty began his "Condensed View"
in the March Bee-Keepers' Review with
this question : "How many -words of
reading matter, by actual count, did the
several joixrnals place before their Jan-
uary readers?" He then proceeded to a

comparison of the number of words of
reading matter in the January Issues of
eight bee-papers, and here is the result
in an interesting table:

Bee Matter. Total Heading.

American Bee Journal.. 58, 675 Same.

Gleanings 42,229 64,685

Canadian Bee Journal ..24,254 Same.

Guide 16,566 18.316

Review 15,099 16,836

Apiculturist 9,205 Same.

American BeeKeeper... 7,093 7,770

Progressive Bee-Keeper. 5,959 .. Same.

Should Mr. Hasty make a comparison
of the March numbers of the same
papers, we think there would be a still
greater showing in favor of the Amebi-
CAN Bee Journal,, as we have five is-
sues this month, while in January there
were only four. Our nearly 60,000
words contained in four numbers would
make about 15,000 words per week, or
for the extra issue of this month ; then
averaging this number of words among
the three months of the quarter, would
give about 5,000 more words to be
added to January, or in all we print
nearly 64,000 words of reading matter
in one month, aft devoted to bee-keeping.
At this rate, we place before our readers
in one year about 750,000 words, and
all for $1.00.

Bee-Paralysis is thus written
about by Mr. J. A. Golden, of Reiners-
ville, O., in Gleanings for March 1st :

Symptoms of Bee-Paralysis. — In my ex-
perience and study of bee-paralysis, I find
that the first symptoms of the disease are
first noticeable, so far as we have been
able to judge, by the guard-bees at the en-
trances attacking the diseased sisters with
a hustling movement as they go and come ;
and the diseased bee, in this stage, seems to
enjoy this kind of treatment : and this in-
dicates, to my mind, that the bee is fever-
ish— a condition that produces an itching
sensation, also causing the hair to loosen,
and to be easily extracted by the bees in
the hustling movement, as above stated. I
also find that, when bees reach the second
stage, or haiiiess condition, the guard-bees
are more determined to drag them from the
hive than at any other time. Further ob-
servations teach us that, as soon as the bee
begins to bloat, she immediately leaves the
hive, and soon expires.

How TO Cuke. —As soon as the bees begin
to fly freely, make a strong brine and thor-
oughly wet the bottom-boards of these
hives once a week, so that, when they dry.
they will look frosty ; also freely spray the
combs and brood with a solution of salt
water that you can taste quite a little salty
(not strong), once a week, during the sea-
son, then report the result; and if you
don't forget to apply the remedy, I am sure
your report will be in favor of salt.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

393

\VILI.TA]»I Ttt'EVOY.

Prof. Thomas Shaw, of the Ontario
Agricultural College, has kindly furnish-
ed the following sketch of Mr. William
McEvoy, the well-known Foul Brood In-
spector for the Province of Ontario,

WILLIAM McEVOY.

Canada. Mr. M. is the first Canadian
bee-keeper that we have presented in
our biographical department since mak-
ing it a weekly feature of the Bee Jour-
nal. His many friends across the line,
as well as those on this side, will read
with much pleasure this sketch of his
life, and the description of his work in
the interest of bee-keeping. Prof. Shaw
writes thus :

The country is a grand place in which
to commence life. If our young people
could be made to see this truth in its
true light, fewer 6f them would ever
leave it for the more or less precarious
existence of the towns and cities. Nearly
all of those who make their mark in
life, have been cradled in country
homes, and the subject of the present
sketch is no exception.

Wi!liam McEvoy was boj-n in the
county of Walton, in the Province of
Ontario, in the year of 1844. Some
years previously his parents had emi-
grated from Ireland, and while William
was still quite young, they took up their
abode in Woodburn — a beautiful little
country village in the county of Went-
worth, where his father fell a victim to
the cholera scourge in 1854. Mr. Mc-
Evoy, who has lived in Woodburn ever
since, was thus thrown at an early age
upon his own resources, and, to use his
own expression, has virtually had "to
paddle his own canoe" ever since. His
early education was therefore of the
most rudimentary kind. The chasing of
butterflies through the happy, livelong
summer days, with the writer and other
village lads, and the daily summer visits
to "Twisses" big raspberry patch, had
to give place all too soon to labor for the
farmers in the neighborhood.

It was fortunate for Mr. McEvoy,
that while yet a lad, he engaged for
two or three seasons in succession with
Mr. William McWaters, one of the neat-
est and most successful farmers of that
part of Ontario. The example of neat-
ness and painstaking shown by Mr. Mc-
Waters, left a life impression upon Mr.
McEvoy, who, from that time to the
present, has allowed no work to pass
through his hands which was not done
in the best form. He soon became ex-
pert in handling the plow, and other
farm tools.

But it was in connection with the bee-
industry that Mr. McEvoy was to make
the great discovery which was to bring
him fame in bee-circles, wherever the
Anglo-Saxon tongue is spoken — I refer
to his discovery of the cause and cure of
" foul brood." For this discovery, and
for the success which has attended his
efforts in destroying it in the Province,
Mr. McEvoy is deserving of the gratitude
of his countrymen, and has rendered
magnificent service to the bee-keeping
industry for all time.

These great results, as is frequently
the case, have grown out of very small
beginnings. In 1864, Mr. McEvoy
bought two old box-hives with the bees
in them, from a farmer in the neighbor-

394

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

hood. In payment thereof ho cut twenty
cords of wood — beech and maple — on a
piece of land which has since come into
the possession of the writer. Soon after,
he tried frame hives of various kinds,
but with the result in the end that they
were finally used for kindling wood.

The indomitable perseverance of Mr.
McEvoy is well brought out by the fol-
lowing incident : The use of the ex-
tractor had been employed some before
he had even come in contact with it.
The writer informed Mr. McEvoy of one
he had seen in use in Kilbride — a village
80 miles distant. He at once perceived
the advantage it would be to him in his
business, and promptly set off to see it
working. He came back exultant over
the knowledge he had gained, after a
journey of 60 miles on foot.

The two box-hive colonies have long
since multiplied to a number beyond
which Mr. McEvoy does not care to go.
He har labored to prevent increase
rather than to encourage it, as his pres-
ent duties will only allow him to give
personal attention to but a limited num-
ber of colonies, of which he has about
90 at the present time.

Mr. McEvoy commenced exhibiting
honey and wax at the exhibition in
1868. He was a prominent exhibitor
at the leading Fairs of the Province
until 1886. During those 18 years he
was the grefitest success as an exhibitor
ever known in this country, or perhaps
in any other. He was successful on
every occasion except one, viz. : at one
of the Provincial exhibitions, where he
lost the award through incapable judges,
who had been hurriedly chosen in the
absence of the regularly appointed
judges.

In 1875 the dreaded scourge — foul
brood — originated in Mr. McEvoy's own
apiary at Woodburn. He at once set to
work to discover the cause and cure,
and in both was triumphantly success-
ful. This is unquestionably the most
valuable discovery of modern times in
reference to the apiary. The ablest
scientists in the bee-keeping world had
been laboring earnestly to get at this
root of the great bee-scourge, but in
vain, and when Mr. McEvoy first gave
his discovery to the world, by those best
versed in bee-lore, it was received with
cold scorn. Mr. McEvoy was not a
writer, nor a speaker, and he had
always lived in Woodburn, an obscure
country village of about 100 souls. It
was incredible that so valuable a dis-
covery could emanate from such a
source ! But in the wonderful success

that has attended Mr. McEvoy's efforts
to stamp out foul brood in all Ontario,
we find the most fitting answer to the
uncharitable criticisms of those selfish
days.

In 1881 he gave the essentials of his
discovery to Gleanings in Bee-Culture,
but the article never appeared. In 1884
his methods of dealing with the plague
appeared in the January number of the
Canadian Live Stock and Farm Journal,
then under the editorial management of
the writer. This was the first time that
Mr. McEvoy's opinions on this question
appeared in print. It was announced
beforehand that the February number
of the Bee-Keepers' Review, of 1890,
would contain only articles on " Foul
Brood." Mr. McEvoy, with great pains
and labor, forwarded a summary of his
methods, but on the principle, I suppose,
that no good thing could come out of
Woodburn, the article was suppressed.

In 1890 he was appointed Foul Brood
Inspector for Ontario, and has held the
appointment since that time. The wis-
dom shown in the appointment has been
more than justified in the grand results
that have been realized. The fell dis-
ease, though not exterminated, has been
smitten, hip and thigh, wherever Mr.
McEvoy has gone. He justly feels
proud of the fact, that in the wholesale
cures that have been effected under his
supervision, the work has been done in
the hives in which the diseased colonies
were found, and never in his 17 years'
experience with the scourge has he had
to scald, boil or otherwise disinfect a
hive from which foul brood had been
dislodged.

At the bee-keepers' convention held in
London, Ont., in January, 1892, Mr.
McEvoy drew attention to the fact that
bees were being destroyed, wholesale,
by the needless spraying of fruit-trees
with poisonous liquids when in bloom.
He succeeded in getting a committee
appointed to lay the matter before the
Ontario Legislature. The result was,
that an Act was passed the same year,
prohibiting the senseless and exceedingly
injurious practice of spraying trees with
poisonous liquids when in bloom. '

It is not surprising, therefore, that
Mr. McEvoy should be regarded on all
hands as standing in the front rank
amongst living authorities on all practi-
cal questions relating to the bee-keeping
industry. The great discoveries which
he has made is another instance of the
success which is sure to follow patient
investigation, combinedwith untiring in-
dustry in any line. Thomas Shaw.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

395

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

ub

Greatly Encouraged with Prospects.

We feel greatly encouraged with the
present prospects for a spring crop, as
our bees have come through without
any losses whatever, and are strong col-
onies. As we are having some fine
weather, queen-rearing is in full blast.

We (I, for one) would be glad to meet
some of the old veteran bee-keepers of
other States than our own, at our meet-
ing at Mrs. Atchley's, in Greenville, on
April 5th and 6th. We expect to have
an interesting time. W. H. White.

Deport, Tex., March 9, 1893.

Bee-Diarrhea and Its Treatment.

Mes. Atchley : — Here I come, in
trouble again. I examined my bees a
few days ago, and found that one colony,
where I put in a fine queen last fall,
had gone down to almost nothing. It
was one of tiy strongest last fall, and
I thought it was so yet, but I find the
bees dying off rapidly, and their combs
all covered with a yellow, bloody-look-
ing stuff, and they are dwindled down to
a mere handful. On examining further,
I find another colony affected too. What
is the matter ? What must I do with
them ? F. B. Efird.

Winston, N. C, March 1, 1893.

Friend Efird, you have a clear case of
bee-diarrhea, or spring dwindling, and I
would advise you to clean up the sick-
rooms, give them a new, clean hive, and
feed them ; uncap what honey they have
so as to stimulate them to activity as
soon as possible, and if they are reduced
so they are not strong enough to cover a
common-sized brood-nest, I would give
them some help from other hives in the
way of frames of hatching brood.

I do not mean that the disease is
catching at all, or that the germs will

spread to other hives, but look at the
common-sense point, and clean up the
sick-room, and the bees will do better.
I have tried salt, and all the remedies
that I have seen in print, all to no pur-
pose with me. The bees usually get all
right when settled warm weather comes,
and they get new honey, but I find it
helps wonderfully to stimulate them to
perfect activity as soon as possible.

Good Prospects — House Apiaries, Etc.

Never having seen anything from this
part of the world in "Sunny South-
land," I will venture a few notes.

Two years of "blasted hopes" are
gone by, and now everything looks like
a splendid year — plenty of rain all the
month, bees robbing pollen and honey
from willow, early peach and almond
blossoms. The sages are budding finely,
and now we see the " silver lining of
the cloud" appearing that Dr. Miller
told us of in his June "straw-patch" of
1892, and which we failed to sea,
although we searched diligently for it.
That puts me in mind that I want to
thank Dr. Miller for his article on page
1 14 of the Bee Journal for this year.
When I read it, I said : " He shall stand
before kings ; he shall not stand knee-
deep in sugar-honey." We of this South-
ern country have had very little to say
on the subject of honey adulteration,
but I think we are all of one mind in
regard to the matter, and all wish to
stand up and bo counted with the true
men who are fighting against the debas-
ing of our chosen pursuit.

Mr. B. Taylor, of Minnesota, in the
December Review, struck the key-note
of my hobby — the house apiary. Most
authorities claim that bees will not do
well with the hives close together, but
my bees do, and have done well for
years with only one inch between the
hives, in a house apiary. Away back in
Illinois, on the old homestead, one of my
earliest recollections are of bees kept in
a house apiary; and no matter how hard
the winter, we always had honey.

In this climate it is not the winter,
but the summer that troubles us, and
after losing a good many colonies by
combs melting down, and seeing a good
deal of honey run down the hills, as an
experiment in the spring of 1891 I
placed 12 colonies in a house apiary ; in
the fall they had increased to 68 good,
strong colonies, and I sold from the
same a little over a ton of nice comb
honey, and wintered the 68 colonies in
the house apiary without the loss of a

396

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

colony; and in 1891 honey was re-
ported in California as only one-third of
a crop ; in 1892 the honey crop was a
complete failure, but the bees in the
house apiary gave me some surplus, and
went into winter strong, with plenty of
stores, while the colonies outside did
not do anything on account of the differ-
ence in temperature between the day
and night.

The bees that were kept warm in the
house apiary could, and did, work wax
in the sections all night, while those
outside could only keep the brood
warm, and in the middle of the day the
outside bees were working to keep the
brood cool, and their combs from melt-
ing down. Those protected from the
heat were carrying in honey all day.
These are a few of the reasons why the
house apiary is my hobby.

There are a number of beginners in
this neighborhood, and we are all much
pleased with "Our School in Bee-Keep-
ing," and all ready, waiting and willing
for the next lesson.

Please tell the editor of the Bek Jour-
nal that we are much interested in the
temperature reports, and would vote to
have them continued, as in this part of
the country we measure heat by the
foot, and rain by the wheelbarrowful,
because long before the summer is over
we run out of degrees, and the way we
measure rain by the wheelbarrow Is
thus : We place a large iron barrow in
a secluded, convenient place, and meas-
ure the amount of water it holds after a
rain. We have had another splendid
rain for the last four days — it has poured
down nearly all the time. The bees
have done well so far.

John Collins.

Elsinore, Calif., March 10, 1893.

Reads this Department First.

As soon as I get my copy of the Bee
Journal, I look for and read this de-
partment the first thing. I hope to see
our friends in the South " spread them-
selves," and make the " Sunny South-
land " department useful and instruc-
tive. R. W. Thompson.

Estabutchio, Miss.

Xhe Bee-Ifleetins: at Greenville,
Tex., on April 5th and 6th — are you
going to be there ? It will be an enjoy-
able time, and you ought to come if you
possibly can do so.

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufiQcient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " so
interesting: on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Sowing Alsike Clover Seed.

1. Will you please tell me through the
Bee Journal what time Alsike clover
should be sown ? 2. Would It do to
sow with wheat or rye, in the spring ?

Thomas Fore acre.
Marshallton, Del.

Answer. — 1. The sowing should be
done as early as possible, so that the
seed may catch some of the spring rains.

2. Yes ; or it may be sown with oats,
provided the ground can be gotten into
the proper condition early enough.

California Bee-Keeping, Etc.

1. Have there ever been bees shipped
by the pound (in bulk) across the conti-
nent, say from California to New York,
or vice versa ?

2. By doing so, what would be the
possible cost per pound ?

3. Is there any honey gathered in the
the sugar-pine belt?

4. How would a location be above the
pine timber, where brush is abundant,
up on high mountains ? Ctuld bees be
expected to do well in such a latitude?

Millville, Calif. John C. Kropp.

Mr. W. A. Pryal, of North Temescal,
Calif., to whom we referred the above
questions, kindly replies as follows :

1. I have never heard of bees being
shipped to or from this State in pound
packages; yet I should think they can
be. It is not advisable to do so, for
many reasons. In the first place, there
are sufficient bees either in this State,
and in the States beyond the Rockies, to
supply the demands of bee-keepers in
either division. Should Eastern apiarists
want a lot of extra bees early in the
season, it would be wise for them to
send to some of the Southern States for
them ; if an apiarist in the northern
part of this State desires a quantity of
bees early in the season to build up a
nucleus, then he had better send to

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

397

some bee-keeper in Southern California.
When properly packed, they will travel
with safety either way. I would not
advise any one to get bees by the pound
from the East. The same advice holds
as to shipping in the opposite direction.

2. The cost of the bees would be the
same as Eastern prices ; the expressage
would necessarily be high — too high, in
fact, to warrant any one in getting them
in that way. I don't think they could
be brought in pound lots safely from the
East through the mails.

3. It depends just where in the sugar-
pine belt the bees are located, whether
they will find sufiScient honey to make it
profitable to keep them as a business.
Mr. John Muir, the celebrated scientist,
is authority for the statement that all
the region around Mt. Shasta is a grand
bee-garden. There are places below the
snow-line where flowers that are rich in
honey, bloom without fail every year ;
these spots deserve to be tried as loca-
tions for apiaries. I have never heard
of any one starting an apiary in this
region. Any of the wild and grand
gorges through the mountains in the
Shasta country, where there is a plenti-
ful growth of honey-secreting plants,
will be found to be a bee paradise. In
fact, it is my firm belief that inside of
ten years the major portion of our honey
will come from the great mountain
ranges of the State, instead of from the
lower portion of the State, as at present.

The mountain honey of this State as
far as I can learn, is denser than that
obtained elsewhere in California. In
nearly all cases it is not as clear as the
beautiful sage honey of the lower coun-
ties ; yet the difference is not so great
as to make one much cheaper than the
other.

4. The altitude will not make any
great difference to the bees. They can-
not be kept in just the same manner as
they would be in the warm valleys. If
near the snow-line, the apiarist would
be obliged to practice those methods ia
vogue in cold climates, to-wit: winter-
ing, etc. There is such a thing, even in
the glorious climate of California, of
chasing the snow up the mountain side
with one's bees, as is done in some of
the mountainous countries of Europe.
This may be yet done in many of the
mountain districts of this State ; and
when it is so practiced, such a thing as
a dry year among California bee-keepers
will be a thing of the past.

W. A. Pryal.

Read our great offer on page 389.

Separators and the JV umber of
Unfinisliecl Combs.

(ta«ry 864.— A writer In the Bee Journal,
has made the statement that the use of sep-
arators la a super lessens the number of un-
finished combs. I would like the opinions of
different bee-keepers on this subject, and
would ask all that say that separators do cause
the bees to finish what they commence,
rather than commence more than they finish,
to tell WHY it is true, according to their views.
What Is your opinion ?— Ind.

I don't produce comb honey, so I have
no experience. — A. B. Mason.

I see no reason why it should be true.
I have not noticed it in my work. — A. J.
Cook.

I produce very little comb honey, but
I always use separators to keep each
comb true. — E. France.

I prefer separators, but I don't know
that the statement in the above query is
correct. — H. D. Cutting.

I have always produced nice, straight
section honey without separators, so my
views would not be worth anything. —
— Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

I don't know. If there is any such
difference, it might be because bees are
more averse to commence in a place if
it is partitioned off. — C. C. Miller.

My opinion is, bees are a little slower
about starting, where there are separa-
tors; and, this being the case, they are
more apt to finish what they do start. —
Jas. a. Stone.

Separators, with me, are a necessity.
Neat, finished combs are impossible,
practically, without their use. The bees
will build straight across the super with-
out them. — Will M. Barnum.

I have had but one season's experience
without separators, and do not want
another, either. Some combs are made
too thick, and of course such are not
finished as quickly. — P. H. Elwood.

With the open-side sections it is true
that not so many unfinished combs re-
sult. It is because the bees follow the
separators and complete only one or two
rows of sections at a time, except when
the flow of nectar is extra good, when

398

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

all the sections are worked at once. I
long ago decided that I would use sec-
tions without separators rather than use
straight-sided sections with separators,
which diminish the surplus fully one-
third. — G. L. Tinker.

In my experience separators have no
such influence. In fact, close observa-
tion has led me to believe that the very
opposite is true. Bees finish sections
better without separators for me, and
therefore I never use them. — Emerson
T. Abbott.

You are sure to have a great many
unfinished sections, any way, but the
separator has a tendency to shorten the
depth of the cells — that is, prevent
bulging — and of course the honey is more
quickly ripened and ready to cap. — Mrs.
J. N. Heater.

I have not observed that the above is
true. If more supers are put on before
the first is finished, and nectar is not
abundant long enough to fill them all, I
think any one will find unfinished sec-
tions, whether he uses separators or not.
— Eugene Secor.

My experience in this matter has not
been large, but I have not found that
the use of separators makes any particu-
lar difference. I do find that hand-
somer combs are produced by using sep-
arators, than are found where they are
not used. — J. E. Pond.

It is bee-nature to deposit their sur-
plus as near as possible to the brood.
Now, the more obstructions you place in
the way, the more reluctant they are to
go into the supers. Hence, I don't use
separators, but foundation ivell fastened
to the sections.— J. P. H. Brown.

I think that separators tend to make
the bees build their combs closer to the
center of the super, for the reason that
the outer divisions are somewhat cut off
from the others. A few poor seasons,
such as we have had, are excellent for
observing this. — J. H. Larrabee.

If separators are used as wide as the
sections, and especially if of wood, they
greatly lessen the number of unfinished
sections. If H inch narrower at the
top and bottom, they do not do so well.
In the first case, each section forms a
little separate box, and the bees usually
finish all that they start, or nearly so —
C. H. Dibbern.

Writers some times give their own ex-
perience and conclusions based on very
narrow premises. The only way for
" Ind." to settle these matters is to try
the experiment for himself. In my own
experience separators do not lessen the
number of unfinished combs. I have

always been able to find the cause when
I have been caught with an excess of
unfinished sections. The most fruitful
source of an extravagant number of un-
finished sections is a rapid flow of nectar,
with a premature "shutdown." A hot
wave or excessive rain may bring on the
relapse. — G. W. Demaree.

We have never noticed this, but the
cause of it is probably in the fact that
the combs are thus more remote from the
brood than withaut separators, and for
this reason they probably hesitate in
building additional combs. We believe,
for the same reason that less honey is
produced with separators than without
them. — Dadant & Son.

I can't see v/hy separators should
cause less unfinished sections than where
none are used, unless they are a hin-
drance to the bees making an early start
in the super. If such is the fact, they
probably prefer to store all the honey
they have room for in sections already
started, than pass the barriers of sep-
arators to get more room. — S. I. Free-
born.

With wide frames and tin separators,
with me, there are perhaps not more
than half as many unfinished sections as
without separators. The reason is, the
separators act as a sort of fence so the
bees do not spread out sidewise before
they actually need room for their honey
— without separators they move with
equal facility in all directions. — R. L.
Taylor.

Bees seal their 'Ombs as soon as the
ends of the cells come within 3^ to 8/16
of an inch of any surface, be that sur-
face another comb, the side of the hive,
or a separator ; hence sections are often
filled, sealed and finished between sep-
arators before the bees commence work
on other combs, while were it not for the
separators not a cell would be sealed in
the whole surplus arrangement. All
who have used " bait sections " in a poor
season know this to be a fact. — G. M.
Doolittle.

This is often true. To explain when
and why this is the case, would require
more space than this Department can
allow. As a rule, we may say that when
for any reason the bees are a little shy
about working in the supers, they are a
little more inclined to finish the combs
they are working on, instead of starting
new ones, if separators are used. This
result would be greatly varied by a
variety of circumstances, such as sea-
son, temperature, kind of bees, style of
super, character of honey-flow, etc. —
Jambs A. Green.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

399

Report of the ^Visconsin State
Bee-Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY H. LATHROP.

The ninth annual meeting of the Wis-
consin State Bee-Keepers' Association
was opened at 7 p.m. on Feb. 8, 1893,
at Madison. President C. A. Hatch be-
ing absent on farm institute work, the
chair was occupied by Vice-President J.
J. Ochsner.

ADULTERATION OF HONEY, ETC.

The minutes of the previous meeting
having been read and approved, Frank
Wilcox, of Mauston, read an essay on
" Adulteration." He gave it as his opin-
ion that it would be impossible to en-
tirely prevent it; he did not think bee-
keepers as a class practiced it, but that
at least 95 per cent, of honey adultera-
tion was done by dealers in the large
cities.

The convention condemned in very
positive terms the theory that honey
could be produced by feeding sugar to
bees. The opinion was very unanimous
that any such teaching was very detri-
mental to the interests of bee-keepers.

world's fair apiarian exhibit.

The question of the Columbian exhibi-
tion was taken up, and a committee ap-
pointed to make such arrangement as
should be thought best.

As a result of the work of this com-
mittee, Mr. Frank Wilcox, of Mauston,
Wis., was appointed by the Association
to have charge of collecting and placing
the honey exhibitof this State. All bee-
keepers in this State having comb or ex-
tracted honey that could be used for
exhibition purposes, will please write to
him at once. He has authority to pur-
chase the honey, and we hope by this
means to make a fair exhibit, notwith-
standing the fact that the past season
was a very poor one for honey-produc-
tion in this State.

Jacob Hoffman, of Monroe, then read
an essay on "Bee-Keeping for Profit."

FOUL BROOD.

Mr. Danniher, of Madison, spoke on
the subject of "Foul Brood." His method
of treatment is as follows :

Shake the bees out of the affected hive
into a clean box, and confine them in a
cellar for 24 hours ; at the end of which
time burn up what comb they have
made, put them into another clean box,
and feed for 24 hours on sugar syrup ;
then hive them in a clean hive on clean
combs or foundation. Destroy all old
combs, brood, etc., and destroy the old
hive, or renovate by boiling before using
it again for bees. The honey may be
boiled and skimmed, and used in making
vinegar. The greatest danger in the
spread of foul brood was said to be
through the honey.

Mr. Winter, of Madison, spoke on the
subject of legislation against foul brood,
and read a copy of a law that had been
passed in Ontario, Canada. Mr. Wilcox
stated that we had tried and failed to
get legislation, and it was a question
whether it would be advisable at present.
There seems to be but little of the dis-
ease in this State.

BEE-PARALYSIS — FOOD FOR BEES.

Dr. J. W. Vance, of Madison, spoke
on " Bee-Paralysis." It seemed to be a
disease as yet little understood. Salt,
water sprinkled on the combs was said
to be a cure.

Mr. Frank Minnich presented an essay
on "Food for Bees." The best known
food was full combs of honey saved out,
which could be hung next to the cluster
in the spring, or when feeding is neces-
sary.

BEE-FEEDERS — QUESTION-BOX.

The question of " Feeders " was taken
up. A good feeder was said to be one
that would not waste the food, kill bees,
or induce robbing ; would not require to
remove the quilt or honey-board in order
to place on the hive ; must be cheap and
durable, and easy of manipulation.
Several kinds were spoken of which
meet the above requirements, some of
which have been described in the Bee
Journal.

The following were elected as officers
for the ensuing year :

President— C. A. Hatch, of Ithaca.

1st Vice-President — Frank Wilcox, of
Mauston.

2nd Vice-President — Jacob Hoffman,
of Monroe.

Recording Secretary — H. Lathrop,
Browntown.

400

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Corresponding Secretary and Treas-
urer— Dr. J. W. Vance, of Madison.

The question of prevention of Increase
was discussed, followed by the Question-
Box, which was a very profitable feature.
The attendance was small, but the in-
terest good, and the discussions much
enjoyed by all. H. Lathrop, Sec.

Report of the §outli\vestern
Wisconsin Convention.

Written for the Atnei-ican Bee Journal
BY A. A. ARMS.

The seventh convention of the South-
western Wisconsin Bee-Keepers' Asso-
ciation was held at Boscobel, Wis., on
Jan. 11 and 12, 1893, The convention
was called to order by President Edwin
Pike. The Secretary being absent, Mr.
M. M. Rice was chosen Secretary pro tern.
Owing to the bad weather, the attend-
ance was not large, but was very en-
thusiastic, and very many important
questions in apiculture were asked, and
intelligently debated.

The convention then adjourned until
9 a.m., Jan. 12th.

SECOND DAY- Morning Session.

The convention was called to order at
9 a.m., by the President.

The first question asked was, "Have
the last few years of poor seasons been
a detriment to bee-culture ?" It was
discussed, and decided that they had
not.

An appropriate resolution referring to
the death of the late Secretary of the
association, Benjamin E. Rice, who died
Aug. 8, 1892, was passed, and ordered
to be recorded in the minutes of the
meeting.

A resolution on honey adulteration
was laid on the table.

The place of the next meeting was
decided in favor of Wauzeka ; and the
time selected for holding the next semi-
annual meeting was April 20, 1893.
The convention then adjourned until 1
p.m., when it was again called to order
by the President.

The election of officers for the ensuing
year was held, and resulted as follows :

President, N. E. France, of Platte-
ville; Vice-President, J. W. Van Allen;
Secretary, A. A. Arms ; Assistant Sec-
retary, M. M. Rice ; and Treasurer, H.
Evans.

The Secretary and Treasurer read
their reports, which were approved.

The question, "What is the proper
management in such seasons as 1892 ?"
was discussed, and also various other
topics.

A resolution was passed, tendering the
thanks of the convention to Messrs. M.
A. Gill and E. Pike for the interest they
had taken in the convention.

The membership of the Association
numbers 66, and bids fair to be consid-
erably increased in the near future.

The convention then adjourned.

A. A. Arms, Sec.

CouTention I%oticej«.

UTAH.— The semi-annual meeting of the
Utah Bee-Keepers' Association will be held in
Salt Lake City, Utah, on April 10, 11, 1893.
All interested are cordially invited.

View, Utah. R. T. Rhees, Sec,

PENNSYLVANIA.— The Susquehanna Co.
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold their 12th
semi-annual meeting at the Tarbell House in
Montrose, Pa., on Thursday, May 4, 1893. All
are invited. H. M. Seeley. Sec.

Harford, Pa.

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th.
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be— an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

COLORADO,— The adjourned meeting of
the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Charles Block, corner 15th
and Curtis Streets, Denver, Colo., on April 18,
1893. Business important to all honey-pro-
ducers will come before the meeting.

Littleton, Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

KANSAS.— The Kansas State Bee-Keepers'
Association will hold their annual convention
at Ottawa, Kansas, on April 6 and 7, 1893.
All bee-keepers are cordially invited to attend
this convention, and make it one of the most
interesting ever known. There will be a
good programme. Bring something to ex-
hibit. L. Wayman. Sec.

Chanute. Kans.

TEXAS.— The Texas State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation will hold its 15th annual convention
in Greenville, one mile north of the Court
House, at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
on Wednesday and Thursday, April the 5th
and 6th, 1893. One of the biggest bee-meet-
ings ever held in the South is anticipated.
Everybody is invited. No hotel bills to pay.
Come one, come all, and let us have a lovely
meeting, and an enjoyable time. All bee-
keepers invited to bring along something to
exhibit. A. H. Jones, Sec.

Golden, Texas.

The 'Washing'ton Convention
Report is now in pamphlet form, and we
shall be pleased to mail a copy to any
one desiring it, for 25 cents. It con-
tains 32 pages. As only a very limited
number were printed, you should order
promptly if you want a copy.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

401

lSelf*Ili¥er§ and the Queen-and-
Drone Trap.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY HENRY ALLEY.

Self-hivers seem to be receiving a
share of notice by the various bee-
papers. This, of course, is all right,
though there are claims made for some
of the hivers that the queen-trap has
always possessed. We are told that
some of the hivers now used under the
colony that casts the swarm, are so used
merely to detain a part of the swarm,
while the larger part of the bees ascend
to the brood above, and continue work
in the supers they deserted when they
swarmed. This seems to be a new use
for an automatic hiver. Well, now, if
this is the design of a self-hiving ar-
rangement, I think bee-keepers will go
to considerable trouble and expense to
accomplish a thing that can be done
equally as well by using a plain, simple
drone-trap !

I venture to say that it is not half
as much work (and no bother at all), to
place a queen-trap on a hive, as it is to
adjust some of the hivers. When once
there, the trap is in plain sight, and one
can see at a glance whether a swarm of
bees has issued in the absence of the
bee-keeper. Now this cannot be done
where a self-hiving arrangement is used
in a brood-chamber, and placed under
the hive the colony is in that a swarm
issues from.

I will explain briefly how the trap
works : When a swarm issues, the
queen will surely b<5 found in the trap.
That she is there lay be known by the
presence of a considei'able number of the
worker-bees. If there is no queen in the
trap, there will be no cluster of bees.
When a queen is in the trap, there will
be towards night, at least, about half a
pint of bees in one corner of the trap.
During the day the trap will be pretty
well filled with bees if there is a queen
in it.

The bees, as is well understood, when
they swarm and miss their queen, return
to the hive they issued from, and return
to work the same as though nothing un-
usual had happened. Now if not de-
sirable to increase the number of colo-
nies in the apiary, this operation is all
right. But to hive the swarm at the
time it issues, of course it is necessary
that some one should be in the apiary to
change the hives. That is, the hive the
bees came from should be removed to
one side, a new one put in its place, the
trap taken from the home hive and
placed at the entrance of the new hive,
when the swarm will quickly hive itself.

Now if comb honey and not increase
is the object, the hives should not be
changed, nor the trap meddled with
until the third day after the swarm is-
sued. At that time the queen that ac-
companied the swarm (or any other
queen will do) should be introduced to
the home colony. If done as here stated,
there will be no need of opening the hive
to destroy the queen-cells, as the queen
will attend to that in the course of a
few hours after she is introduced. There
will be no more swarms from that hive
during the season.

Well, now suppose it is not desirable
to give the queen back to the old colony,
and it is not convenient to procure
another for two or three weeks ; the
proper thing to do under the circum-
stances, is to let the trap remain with
the queen in it until it is known that a
second swarm will not issue. In the
mean time, the young queens will hatch,
and several will be found dead in the
trap. That is a sure indication that no
more swarms will issue, and the trap
can be removed for the season.

If the old queen is a valuable one, and
the apiarist dislres to preserve the cells
that were built by the bees before the
swarm issued, let the trap remain with
the queen in it until the seventh day,
and then cut out all the cells but one,
and let the remaining one be the largest
and finest of the lot.

Some time last summer I read an arti-
cle in the Bee Journal by a writer
who was describing some sort of a
swarm-catcher. He said among other
things, that he did not like the queen-
trap, as several swarms would issue at
one time, and all alight in the same
place, and that made a bad mess of it.
Well, what has the trap to do with pre-
venting several swarms issuing at the
same time ? Now suppose there are four
or more swarms in the air at one time
where there are no traps in the apiary —
the swarms surely will all settle in the

402

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

same place, bees, queens and all. Now,
isn't that a pretty mess ? What can be
done about it? Why, soak the bees with
water, shake them into a hive-cap, or
upon a blanket, and poke them over to
find the queens. How does that sort of
a job strike the beginner?

Well, now suppose there are traps on
all the hives that the swarms issued
from ? The queens will be found in the
traps, and ninety times out of a hundred,
the bees, as soon as they miss their
queens, will return to their respective
hives. If they do not, it is an easy mat-
ter to divide them up, and as the queens
are safe, the worst part of the job w^s
already done in the beginning.

The trap was designed to save the api-
arist the trouble of going into trees for
his bees when a swarm issues. It also
prevents any swarms absconding in the
absence of the bee-keeper, or at any
other time. It also catches and destroys
all useless drones.

Wenham, Mass.

^ ■ *

The Season of 1892— Wintering
-— Ato§orbents, Etc.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY J. P. SMITH.

The season of 1892 was a poor one
for bees in this vicinity. My bees came
out well in the spring, having wintered
without loss. They built up well in
early spring, but the summer was such
as to give me only about one-third of a
crop of honey. The fall was better ;
golden-rod yielded fairly, so that bees
generally collected a supply for winter.

WINTERING BEES. .

As usual, I reduced the number of my
colonies, by uniting, from 42 to 25.
The advantage of this method is two-
fold— it enables mn, to save my best
queens, and also gives me good, full
hives of bees for winter, which I believe
is a great advantage in this latitude.
They may consume a little more honey,
but with me they generally come out
strong in bees, the warmth of which en-
ables them to breed early, and hence
build up early in the spring. I winter
them on the summer stands, with an
outer case over the hive, packed with
some dry material, such as planer shav-
ings or chaff.

ABSORBENTS — SEALED COVERS.

On part of my colonies I put " Hill's
device," covered with a cushion of some

dry, porous substance from 7 to 10
inches in thickness. On the others I
put a pine board 5i of an inch thick,
fitted closely, leaving a bee-space be-
tween it and the frames, and covering
the board with dry material 4 to 5
inches thick.

I have tried these two methods several
seasons, have observed closely, and have
discovered no difference in their winter-
ing. In fact, I conceive there is but
little difference, philosophically, between
the two methods. I deem one covering
about as porous as the other, for science
tells us the pine is porous. I would not
believe in having the sealed covers made
of a compact metallic substance, thus
preventing the escape of the moisture.
The only mistake I found in opening my
hives last spring, was in the upper part
of the cushion. All the rest was dry
and warm, and the combs were as nice
and dry as they were last fall. By re-
moving the covers one fair day, all this
moisture disappears.

ADULTERATION OF HONEY.

Yes, push the opposition to it. Get
the law against it, and have it so framed
as to include the new-fangled, unauthor-
ized name of " sugar-honey."

Get the law, and then enforce it. Let
the same push be made that has been
made against oleomargarine, and all
adulterated honey will " down." Oblige
every person that offers it for sale, to
label it, setting forth just what it is.
Have this done, then I predict it will
have to beg for customers, and beg in
vain, and honest bee-keepers will have
no harm from it. When Rambler's whirl-
wind strikes them, they may realize that
the Prophet Hosea had them in mind
when he prophesied as in Chapter VIII,
verse 7.

I want to commend the American
Bee Journal for the straight-forward,
high-minded course it has always taken
in regard to adulteration.

Sunapee, N. H.

The Will of the Queen and the
§ex of the Egg.

Wntten for the American Bee Journal

BY DR. C. C. miller.

That proof of which I spoke, as to
queens laying drone-eggs at will. Is
promptly forthcoming. Here it is from
D. Lindbeck, of Bishop Hill, Ills., whose
letter is so Interesting that I give it en-
tire :

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

403

Fkiknd Miller : — I read your article
on page 244, where you say : "I can
think of one argument that would be
more convincing than any yet brought
forth in favor of the ' Will ' theory. It
would be to find the queen laying in
drone-cells that were merely begun."
etc. One such case came under my ob-
servation last season. The bees were
just in the act of building drone-comb,
and the queen laid eggs just as fast as
they had cells fairly started (about 3^
inch deep, and I think some less). You
can put this down as being a, fact. Will
or no will, I had that comb full of
drones, and they hatched out drones,
too. I saw it all. I did not have many
colonies, and you may know I peeped in
quite often and saw what they were
doing.

But there is one thing that beats me,
and I cannot make out how it came
about. I got two queens from Mr.
Alley, introduced them safely, and in
about eight or ten days both colonies
swarmed. I was near at hand, and I
had a strip of queen-excluding zinc in
front of both. I saw the queens trying
hard to get out. I watched quite awhile
until nearly or quite all the bees were
out and in the air. I took the zinc strip
off, and the queens were fast in the zinc.
I caught and caged them, and hung the
cage outside of a new hive with full
sheets of foundation ; the bees came
back in about half an hour, and I let the
queens go in. I saw them go in. I put
the zinc strips back (Tinker zinc, 17/
100 perforations), put on the supers,
and thought all was 0. K.

I did not examine those colonies for 3
or 4 weeks, and when I did, I found in
one a very dark queen (Alley's were both
very yellow) and brood, all in working
order. In the other I found no brood,
and very few bees. I looked long and
well, and finally found a small queen
not much, if any, larger than a worker-
bee, and black.

Now the questions are, where did
Alley's queens go ? and where did the
bees get their black queens, especially
the last named '? They never had any
brood, I am sure — only a little honey.

If I follow directions for introducing
sent with queens by mail, and lose the
queen worth $2.00, who is to blame, I
being a novice ? D. Lindbkck.

refer to the present case, for you say
they were "introduced safely," and
they certainly must have been, as they
issued with the swarms 8 or 10 days
later.

It is not the safest thing to venture a
guess as to the case without knowing
more about it, but one way which might
possibly happen, was that a young
queen had hatched out and the old
queen had been held in up to the time
the young queen was ready to leave.
Again, a small swarm with a black
queen may have united with the swarm
while it was out, or entered the hive
shortly afterward.

If I were sure you were not bigger
than I, I would hint that you might be
mistaken as to that small black qu-een
being a queen at all ; for if she had
been there three or four weeks, it seems
she ought to have had some brood. Per-
haps some one else will give a better
guess.

Marengo, Ills.

A Plan for Cellar Spring Feed-
luif of Bees.

Written Jor the American Bee Journal

BY F. H. WALKER.

The case of those two queens is cer-
tainly an unusual one. To answer your
last question first, queen dealers some-
times guarantee safe introduction if
directions are followed, but you hardly

It is evident that some of the most
valuable information in the Bee Jour-
nal is a repetition of methods of some
simple device used by some of our less
prominent bee-keepers, and I have been
greatly helped by some of the sugges-
tions and ways of contributors to the
Bee Journal. So I hope to give a
little "boost " to some of them in my
way of spring cellar feeding of bees,
which seems to do away with spring
robbing after putting them out for the
summer, and also saves some of those
that are likely to breed too much and
become short of honey during the winter.

This should be done just before the
warm weather that comes in the spring
before we wish to put the bees out, be-
cause in feeding many colonies it is apt
to raise the temperature too high, unless
they are aired out at night. I usually
look, or lift them all over, beginning at
one side, and pack them up, and when I
find a light one, I put it on top, ready
for their food, as I do not like to disturb
the combs while in the cellar. So when
I have looked them all over, I have the
light ones all on top, or by themselves,
ready to nurse.

I use the Mason glass fruit jars (2
quart), and after filling them with a

404

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

sugar syrup thin enough to prevent
granulating, I cut up pieces of cheese-
cloth about five inches square, and tie a
piece over the top of the jar, or hold it
in place, and screw the zinc rim about
one-half on. This makes a little space
between the cheese-cloth and the
blanket over the bees. Then cut a hole
through the blanket just over the clus-
ter, about an inch square, and set the
glass jar over the hole, bottom side up,
and they will cluster up in the little
space, and nurse the syrup through the
cheese-cloth as quiet and undisturbed as
though nothing had happened, after
they have first found their new lunch,
and become used to it. '

The rubber and glass top can be laid
aside, and later wash up the cans and
use them for putting up extracted
honey. The smallest colonies can feed
in this way, when the other feeders
work only on large colonies, unless they
are very warm (too warm for the rest).
I also use this way of feeding in the
yard, both spring and late fall, too,
sometimes. It brings the honey nearer
to the bees than any other way directly
over the cluster.

Manchester, Vt.

How Far Do Bees Go for Honey
and Do Well «

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY F. X. ARNOLD.

How far do bees go in search of honey
and still do good work ? is a question
that seems to have received some atten-
tion of late, and bee-keepers differ
widely in their opinions, some limiting
the distance to IX or 2 miles, while
others go to the opposite extreme, and
say they will go as far as 12 miles.
However, when honey is plentiful, the
former figures may be nearly right, and
but very few bees work outside of that
distance ; while, if honey was scarce in
their immediate vicinity, they would
probably go a far greater distance than
that, although I never saw bees over 3%
or 4 miles from their homes.

Well, last summer was the first time I
had a chance to test the matter a little,
as last year was the poorest of the sev-
eral poor seasons we have had in suc-
cession, and the bees were in a starving
condition all summer, until the fall
blossoms yielded their precious sweets,
which gave the bees more than they
could do for about five weeks.

The main part of our fall crop of

honey is from smart-weed ; now this
smart-weed, or whatever they call it,
has its peculiar ways of blooming, and
also a decided difference in the amount
of honey it produces ; that which grows
on hilly regions has usually small bloom,
and sometimes yields sparingly, while
that in the bottoms blooms from one to
two weeks earlier, and has larger and
more perfect blossoms, and gives a good
supply of nectar before a bee is seen
working on the same plant on the hills.

As my apiary is located about two
miles from the bottoms, the bees began
working very briskly for several days,
and I noticed not a single bee working
on the smart-weed near the apiary; so
I immediately went to the bottoms, and
found the smart-weed in full bloom, and
just literally alive with bees. This sat-
isfied me that my bees were working at
least from 2 to 2>^ miles from home,
and doing good work at that.

The next thing I wanted to know was,
how long it would take a bee to get a
load of honey at that distance, as no
other honey was heing gathered at that
time, and the working bees could be
seen in the morning going in a steady
stream towards the bottoms — like a
swarm that is hurrying off to get to bet-
ter quarters than they had at home. So
I sprinkled flour on a good many of the
bees that emerged from a certain colony,
and waited for their return.

The first bee returned in 13 minutes,
and was well loaded with pollen from
corn-tassels, which it evidently gathered
in some of the neighboring corn-fields.
The second returned in 32 minutes, and
had a load of honey, and a little smart-
weed pollen. Several entered at 34
minutes, and a few at 37, and all the
way up to 40 minutes. All those that
returned after 30 minutes were well
loaded with honey, and some carried
small pellets of smart-weed pollen. The
average length of time it took them to
go to the bottoms, load themselves and
return, was about 36 minutes.

To tell just how much more honey
they would have gathered if they had
the flora near by, is hard to tell — un-
doubtedly a good deal more honey; but
bees can do good work at the above-
named distance.

Deer Plain, Ills.

Please Send XJs the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and wo will
send them sample copies of the Bee
JouBNAL. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

405

A Horse-Blanket that Ang;ered
the Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY CHAUKCEY REYNOLDS.

I wish to relate an incident which
happened to me last September.

On returning from a camp-meeting, I
drove up near the apiary and took a wet
horse-blanket, that had been used to
wrap around ice, and hung it on the
fence to dry, about 12 feet from a hive
of pure Italian bees — not in front, mind
you, but oflf to one side of their line of
flight. The bees were working strong
on heart's-ease at the time, and, in fact,
the only time they did work during the
year.

In a couple of minutes I happened to
notice that there were a lot of bees
around the blanket, but I thought noth-
ing of it, as I thought perhaps there
might have been some sugar spilled on
it, and they were after it. In a very
short time I again noticed the blanket,
and then there were a large amount of
bees on it, and around it in the air for
perhaps 20 feet or more high, and they
were pouring out of all the hives and
making straight for the blanket. By
that time it was a perfect uproar — in
fact, I thought for a moment that every
colony was swarming.

Still I continued to think there was
sugar on the blanket, and started to go
and get it for fear it might start rob-
bing. When I got near it, I saw it was
covered with bees with their stings fast,
and thousands more trying to get a
chance to get a sting in, too. In fact, I
could hardly see the blanket for the bees
that were fast on it. I made three or
four grabs for it, but was driven away
each time severely stung ; and as I am
a man who was an involuntary visitor at
Andersonville during '64, and am nat-
urally rheumatically inclined as the re-
sult of my visit, I do not go far out of
my way to avoid stings. I hastened to
don the "Globe" veil and buckskin
gloves before I could get the blanket. I
then ran with it some distance before I
threw it down, and I believe there was
then a fair-sized swarm of bees sticking
to it.

I am confident if I had left the blanket
hanging on the fence, it would entirely
have ruined my apiary, as I never saw
bees so mad in all my life. In fact, I
could go nowhere near them the balance
of the day, and they hung around and
over where the blanket had been, for a
long time, and it was lucky for me that

my hired man removed the team as soon
as I hung the blanket on the fence, or I
might have lost a couple of horses. Who
can account for it ?
Fremont, Ohio.

Something; in Favor of the Car-
nioian Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY JOHN ANDREWS.

I am inclined to join issue with some
of the writers in the Bee Journal on
the question of " the best bee " for the
masses. My experience has been some-
what different from the most of them.
It may be locality, or it may be in the
management.

I kept the native or black bees 15
years, after which I bought over 30
Italian queens (some at a big price) to
change my blacks so that I might get
rich in a short time (by honey alone),
but I never saw my " pile," but the first
winter's loss was 65 per cent., going
into the cellar with a fair amount of
bees, and a good supply of honey the
fall before.

I kept the Italians 12 years, but
could never succeed in wintering them
as well as I used to winter the blacks
by (at least) 50 per cent., and they
never gave me any more honey to the
colony than did the blacks; but were
much more gentle (when pure) and
easily manipulated, but as they became
somewhat mixed with the black bee,
I often was stung 50 times a day when
I was crowding my work, and honey a
little scarce, I concluded to change
again. So eight years ago I bought im-
ported Carniolan queens, and have made
them since that time (as far as I am
concerned) "the coming bee." For ex-
tracted honey, they will out-do any Ital-
ians I had during those 12 years ; and
neither are the Carniolans behind any
other bees for comb honey, but, I con-
fess, it took me 4 or 5 years' study to
know just how to work them.

On page 567 of the Bee Journal for
1892, we find Mr. Wm. S. Barclay
wants a " rest from the black bee agita-
tion," and wants to know how to winter
bees successfully. With his Italians I
cannot tell him, but with the Carniolans
I winter, commonly, without the loss of
a colony ; but 1 cannot say that in the
springing I do not lose some ; though I
have about come to the conclusion to
set them with their hive entrance north,
and then as the season advances I will

406

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

change them gradually, as I can on my
bee-yard. Of course, it will take some
work, but I think it will pay me. It is
the sun coming into the entrance that
often starts the bees out, when outside
it is too cold for them. This is what I
think to be one of the greatest causes of
spring dwindling, as Colonies facing
south I have thought dwindled most of
any.
Patten's Mills, N. Y.

Be§t Paint for Hives — Does it
Pay to Paint Tliem ?

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY C. J. KOBINSON.

I wish to add an answer to Query 847
— " Is it economy to keep hives painted ?
It so, what kind of paint is most de-
sirable ?"

Generally, it is supposed that " white
lead " (so-called) and linseed oil is most
durable. So-called white lead is car-
bonate of lead, the lead, in thin sheets,
having been reduced to that state by
coming in contact with steam charged
with carbon. Formerly sheets of lead
were coiled and placed in earthen pots
that were filled with vinegar and kept
warm. Hence, white lead is of a corro-
sive nature, has no chemical affinity for
linseed oil (poppy oil is best), but slowly
decomposes the oil, and at length the
paint, being exposed to the atmosphere,
rubs off chalky.

The oil should be rendered drying by
being boiled with lltberage or other
"dryers," so as to neutralize the fat
contained in raw oil. Two who gave
answers mentioned that " white lead
and oil (raw linseed oil) is good enough."
White lead mixed or ground with raw
oil does not, by reason of the fatty ele-
ment present, cohere with a pigment to
form an enamel or body, but the fatty
oil penetrates the wood on which it is
spread, leaving the lead like chalk.

White zinc for painting is an oxide,
not so corrosive as white lead, does not
decompose oil, but does not form so
much of a body as lead does. A mixture
of lead and zinc makes a better paint
than lead alone ; but better still is paint-
ing with lead, and then cover it with a
coat of zinc, by which means the lead is
kept from the destructive action of the
atmosphere, which is far more injurious
to lead than zinc.

Concerning whether it pays to paint
hives, it depends upon circumstances.
A hive made of cedar, or such durable

material, may be kept in use many
years. If made of linden (basswood) or
maple (rock) they soon begin to decay
when exposed to rain, unless painted.
The mineral pigments — yellow ochre,
Venetian red, umber, and some of the
iron ores^ — are superior in point of dura-
bility compared with the metallic paints.
Richford, N. Y.

•.'S./N./SH/Nb/"!

\.f\.^\./%./*k/'

Do not write anything- for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

^kJLA

Nothing' Wrong with the Bees.

In the comments on M. D. Andes' bees
dying at the rate of 25 to 100 per day
for a considerable length of time, it is
said that it would indicate something is
astray. Suppose they were put into the
cellar Dec. 1st, from that time until
now would be 110 days — and 100 per
day would be 11,000 bees. Now sup-
pose there were 30,000 bees in the hive
Dec. 1st, there would still be 19,000 bees
left, which I think would be a good, fair
colony for spring. I finished putting 82
colonies into the cellar on Dec. 1st, and
have carried out an ordinary wooden
bucket five times, heaping full, of dead
bees, and do not think there is anything
wrong with mine. O. B. Babbows.

Marshalltown, Iowa, March 10, 1883.

Winter and. Bees in Minnesota.

For the past week the country here
has been entirely snowbound. We have
had no mail for six days. The neighbors
travel on snow-shoes to see each other.
A week ago to-day 20 inches of snow
fell in just 24 hours, in addition to the
20 inches we already had before, and is
now the deepest snow since the winter
of 1856-57 ; since then we have not
had such a heavy snowfall in 24 hours
as the one a week ago, which followed
a heavy wind storm, and made drifts
from 5 to 15 feet high. Trains, to-day,
are running again, but the country road

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

407

are not opened as yet. We have had
hard freezing nights, 24^ yesterday, and
14° below zero this a.m., with nice,
sunny days.

My bees, in all three bee-cellars, 12
miles apart, seem to be contented so far.
I am sure that they feel better than if
they were left on the summer stands,
packed ever so good. I found out long
before this that a good cellar is the best
place to winter bees, in this northern
country. Those who winter bees on the
summer stands will have lots of trouble
in winters like this, to keep their bees
from smothering in the snow and ice,
with heavy losses besides. The snow in
my bee-yards is from 4 to 5 feet deep,
and it looks now as if it will be a long
time before It all will be melted away. If
big snow means a big honey crop, then
we should get our dishes ready now to
hold it all, and not let any go to waste
when it does come. I hope we all may
«njoy a big harvest the coming season.

C. Theilmann.

Theilmanton, Minn., March 6, 1893.

Holder for Sections.

On page 148 Mr. Doolittle presents a
good way of holding sections tight. My
way is similar, only a "shorter cut,"
namely : I make a key like a tap to a
wooden faucet, only smaller, something
like a fiddle key ; tie to it a cord of
binder twine, and the other end to a
tack. Have a %-inch hole to put the
key in, and a saw-kerf in the corners for
the cord to come around. A twist
tightens everything snug as a drum. I
use the same on the brood-chamber with
closed-end frames. M. Haas.

Mendon, Mich.

Mating of Queen and Drone.

Some twenty years ago I was in the
habit of visiting a bee-friend, who was
the priest of a Catholic institute on a
beautiful hillside near our city. One
Sunday afternoon when I drove up, my
friend told me that one of the " broth-
ers " (of the order of Franciscans) and
himself had seen a queen and drone
locked, and fall on the porch, just an
hour or two before my arrival. The
" brother " had put his foot on the pair
before my friend had a chance to prevent
him. I had reason to believe that the
story was true.

In the Centralblatt of Jan. 15, 1893,
on page 21, is a picture of a pair — drone
and queen — locked in copulation, as
they are still kept in alcohol by Mr. H.

Reepen, of Jugenheim, Germany. A
Mr. I. B. Buchholz found the pair in the
grass, near the hive, just after a second
swarm had returned to the hive. The
queen and drone were locked, and each
trying to get away in opposite direc-
tions. When Buchholz picked them up,
they were alive, but before he put them
into alcohol, they had died and turned
on top of each other, as shown in the
picture, with their abdomens together.
The above may be of interest to our
friends, and cause the iSnding of more
pairs hereafter. Ghas. F. Muth.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

Bees Doing Well in the Cellar,

I have 22 colonies in the cellar, and
they are doing well so far. They have
sealed brood in the combs, and all but
two have plenty of stores. This is the
second day that I thought fit for them to
be out. They did no good last season
until harvest, owing to the cold, rainy
weather, but the latter part of the sea-
son they did fairly well on Spanish-
needle and smartweed. I had one
swarm issue about the middle of July,
and it tilled an eight-frame hive, and
gave me 30 pounds of surplus in sec-
tions. I had 13 colonies, spring count,
and got 465 pounds of comb honey,
which I sell at 18 cents per pound. I
hear of a great many bees dying. They
were all left on the summer stands, as
far as I can hear, except my own, which
are perfectly quiet yet in the cellar, and
while they remain so, I shall leave them
in there. J. B. Dunlap.

Rochester, Ind., March 7, 1893.

Bees and Prospects in North Carolina.

We have just passed through one of
the most severe winters. Just think for
a moment, down here in North Carolina,
snow on top of snow, ice and sleet, and
the mercury playing close around zero
all through January, and our bees out
on the summer stands in single-walled
hives, without any protection whatever !
Well, we wondered and waited to see
how our little pets were going to pull
through this very cold spell.

At last, about Jan. 25th, there came
a nice, warm day. Walking out through
the snow to where my bees are located,
I at once discovered that they were un-
easy, and wanted to get out of the hives.
I at once got a hoe, and began scraping
the snow away from the entrances of
the hives, when out came the bees, and
had a nice flight. I found them all O.

408

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

K., except two colonies, which were
frozen to death, with plenty of honey in
their hives.

We had some rough weather in Feb-
ruary, and have also had some very fine,
sunshiny weather, so much so that the
maple blossoms are beginning to open,
and yesterday and to-day were very fine
days. My bees are carrying in honey
and pollen right along. Brother bee-
keepers, it would surely have done your
heart good to have been with me to-day,
out among the maple trees, and heard
the sweet and delightful hum of the
busy bees among the maple blossoms,
and seen them dart from flower to
flower. It would certainly have put
new life and ambition into your soul.

Let me make this prediction : We are
going to have the best honey-flow in
some parts of North Carolina this year,
that we have had for many years. Get
your supplies ready, and manage to
have the hives full of bees and brood by
April 25th (five or ten days earlier will
do no harm) ; then put on the supers,
and if there is not too much rain, you
will get a nice lot of honey. Try it, and
see if you don't.

John D. A. Fisher.

Woodside, N. C, March 2, 1893.

Compression Theory as to Queens, Etc.

Please score me in the American Bee
Journal as against the compression
theory as to the queen determining the
sex of the egg ; the fact that a queen
will lay both sexes of eggs at will in very
shallow drone and queen cells (which
are so near the one size) — that with me
the theory has exploded.

And here, again, I suppose I am with
the minority. I do not believe that the
queen carries off the male organs of the
drone after mating. My observations
do not warrant such a belief.

Manistee, Mich. W. Harmer.

Profitable Beading, Isn't It ?

We cannot get along well without the
Bee Journal. We are the only ones
who take it in this section, and we get
more honey than all the others com-
bined. Last year we secured more honey
than all our neighbors, and I believe our
success was due, to a great extent, to
reading the most valuable American
Bee Journal, as from it we are able to
gather the thoughts and the experiences
of most of the leading bee-men, not only
in this country, but of many of the
foreign countries as well, and by so

doing we can apply those principles of
apiculture which are best suited to our
section of the country.

We live in that portion of Pennsylva-
nia known as " Little Greene," in the
southwestern corner of the State. We
have 35 or 40 colonies of good Italians,
and in splendid condition. We are now
selling our last year's crop of honey at
20 cents per pound, and trust our many
bee-keeping friends are receiving a price
equally as good.

Jas. C. Pollock & Sons.

Waynesburg, Pa., Feb. 22, 1893.

Nameless Bee-Disease.

1 notice in the Bee Journal for
March 2, Mr. Chester Belding wishes to
know something about the "nameless
bee-disease." I have had 2 colonies so
affected with it that they were black and
shiny, and would come out (and were
driven out, also) of the gum until the
ground was literally covered around the
hive, or in front. They would shake
and tremble until they died. I did noth-
ing for them. My case was the first I
had heard of. Since then I have noticed
in the Bee Journal several such cases.
Mine was 10 or 12 years ago. I looked
in the hive, but it was all right, with
plenty of honey. A. D. Buckly.

Weston, Tex., March 5, 1893.

Anti-Adulteration Laws, Etc.

In case the anti-adulteration Bill (page
263) should become a law, how can we
prevent our bees from going into the
fields and gathering that nasty, filthy
stuff called honey-dew, and mixing it
with the pure nectar of our white clover
and other flowers ? It is thousand times
worse than pure cane-sugar. The Bill
reads, " or cause it to be done by any
agency," etc. Now, I claim the bees are
our agents, and we are responsible for
their actions. I see no other way than
to eradicate them from the face of the
earth. I am a bee-keeper of 25 years'
experience. L. Highbarqer.

Leaf River, Ills.

Experience with Bees — Alfalfa.

I bought 2 colonies of bees on Nov. 1,
1891; they had plenty of honey, but
were on very crooked combs. I had
some wild ideas in regard to bees, and
before the spring of 1892 had fairly
opened, I had paid out for the bees and
other fixtures $48.54.

When spring opened, I found one col-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

409

ony was queenless, and the other reared
nothing but drones, and only for some
" pointers " I got from a queen-breeder
in Texas, I should have lost both colo-
nies. However, I brought both through,
and they increased to four fine colonies,
and then I got one from the woods. All
five have plenty of stores, and are win-
tering well on the summer stands in
winter cases packed with oat-hulls.

There is a great deal of alfalfa raised
here, which makes three crops each sea-
son ; besides an abundance of wild
flowers on brush and prairie, and I am
looking forward to a gsod yield of sur-
plus honey the coming season, although
I didn't get a bit last summer ; yet I
have my bees all on nice straight combs
of drawn foundation, and in good condi-
tion to commence business right, when
the flowers bloom. They were gathering
pollen from the mills last week, but to-
day we had a little blizzard, though it
has cleared off again, and will be warm
in a day or two, undoubtedly. I think
much of my bees as pets, and find a
peculiar excitement in "fussing" with
them, which I really enjoy, although I
get a black eye occasionally. I take
much interest in the Bee Journal, and
find it very instructive.

0. K. Olmstead.

Orleans, Nebr., Feb. 27, 1893.

COWYEIVTIOIW DIRECTORY.

My Experience in Bee-Keeping.

I live on a farm of 93 acres, and com-
menced to keep bees in the spring of
1889. I traded a violin and some lum-
ber for 5 hybrid colonies in box-hives. I
then made some hives of my own that
took 9 frames 11x16 inches, inside
measure. I let them swarm a couple of
times, those that would, and then trans-
ferred them all. From some of the first
swarms I received 70 pounds of comb
honey in two-pound sections, and in the
fall I had increased to 14 colonies ; be-
sides, I had caught 4 runaway swarms,
of which one swarmed, making 5 that I
had got by chance; I thus had 19 colo-
nies to start into winter. I wintered
them all, and last fall I put 65 colonies
into my new bee-house in good condition.
They are wintering splendidly so far. I
will describe my bee-house later, if it
winters bees as well as I think it will.
Andrew M. Thompson.

Whitney's Crossing, N. Y., March 6.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journal we mail for
only 50 cents ; or clubbed with th«
Journal for $1.40.

1893.

Time and pUice of meeting.

April 5, 6.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex.
A. H. Jones, Sec, Golden, Tex.

April 6, 7.— Kansas State, at Ottawa, Kans.
L. Wayman, Sec, Chanute, Kans.

Apr. 10. 11.— Utah, at Salt Lake City, Utah.
R. T. Rhees, Sec. View, Utah.

April 18.— Colorado State, at Denver, Colo.
H. Knight Sec, Littleton, Colo.

April 20.— S. W. Wisconsin, at Wauzeka, Wis.
N. E. France. Pres., Platteville, Wis.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co.. at Montrose, Pa.
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford, Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec. Eagle Lake, Tex.

H^" In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting.— The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton. Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

I » > • «

ITational Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Mrs. J. P. Cookentoacli, whose
advertisement appears on page 387, will
be glad to have you write to her to
secure a good place to stay during your
visit to the World's Fair the coming
summer. The Bee Journal refers its
readers and friends, with much pleas-
ure, to Mrs. C, who will do the right
thing by all who give her an opportunity
to help them.

"The "Winter Problem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Journal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
$1.30. Send to us for a copy.

410

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
March 25th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging- from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8o. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. &Co.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8J4 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 2 3@2 5c. J. A. L.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— Tijere is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6®8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good, at 24®27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light. White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote; Basswood and
white clover, 8®8^c. ; buckwheat, 6@6^c. ;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO, CALir.—Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S.. L. & S.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16®17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNE APO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lb8. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c.; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16®17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7^c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

Albany, N. Y — Our stock of honey is light
and also receipts. Demand keeps up better
than usual this season. We are selling white
comb honey at 14@16c.; mixed, 12® 13c.;
dark, 10®llc. Extracted, white, 9®9i4c.;
mixed, 7Vi@8c. ; dark, 7@7^c. Beeswax,28®
30c. H. R. W,

Wants or Excliajiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each insertion, when specially ordered
Into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cbicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
J. A. Lamon. 44 & 46 South Water Street

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minneapolis, minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Obio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Almost Every Bee-Book that is now
published we mention on the third
page of this issue of the Bee Joubnal.
Look over the list and select what you
want. For every new yearly subscriber
that you secure for us at $1.00, we will
allow you 25 cents, to apply on the
purchase of any book we have for sale.
This is a rare chance to get some valua-
able apicultural reading-matter, and at
the same time aid in spreading helpful
apiarian knowledge among your friends.

Advertisemeiits.

Texas Beared Queens,

BRED for Business and Beauty. I make
Queen-Breeding a specialty. Either 3 or
5 Banded— March, April and May— Untested,
$1.00 ; Tested, $1.50. After May, Untested,
75 cents ; Tested. $1.00. Imported i^neens
reasonable. Send for Price-List — Free. Satis-
faction guaranteed. Remit by P. O. Money
Order or Registered Letter. W, H. WHITE,
13A4t DEPORT, Lamar Co., TEX.

When Answerinq this advextisement, mention this journal.

Seed Corn 1^

ing 90 bu. of
sound corn in 90 days. Ears perfect In shape.
Planted June 18, 1892, and made a good crop.
Price. $1.25 per bushel on board cars here.
Bags free. Send 2c. stamp for samples and
circulars. J. B. ESKEW,

13A Box336, SHENANDOAH, IOWA.

Mention the American Bee Journal.

GEORGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY

Editor. f To BEE-CULTURE.

i Weekly, $1.00 a Tear.
I Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, APRIL 6, 1893.

NO. 14.

* ' The Thrush Sing's in the meadow.

The blue-bird flits on the breeze ;
The bees are humming in gladness

'Neath the budding leaves of the trees.
There's a laugh, a carol, a gambol,

'Mongst the rivulets and the rills.
And white-hoofed flocks are nibbling

The grasses on the hills.

April is here 1"

The North American adjourn-
ed to raeet in Chicago in 1898, and the
forepart of October was suggested. It
Is importaijt that the exact date be fixed
soon, and as a member of the Executive
Committee, we would be pleased to learn
what time would best suit those who ex-
pect to attend. . Here is what Mr. J. S.
Barb, of Oakfield, O., has to say :

Friend York: — Is not October pretty
late for the North American Bee-Keepers'
Association to meet in Cliicago ? I think it
would be better to meet earlier, as there
will be more flowers in bloom on the Expo-
sition Grounds. I wish to attend the con-
vention, but also wish to go when I can see
the most flowers. What do you think of it (

J. S. Bakb.

We are inclined to think that the first
week in October would not be too late
for the meeting, still we are not particu-
lar about it. Whatever is the desire of
the majority of those who expect to at-
tend, of course should decide as to the
date. We would suggest that all who
contemplate being at that convention,
just write a postal card not later than

May 1st (better do it now) to Secretary
Benton, saying in just what month and
the dates you prefer to have the meeting.
That would help the committee greatly
in deciding as to the best time to ac-
commodate the most of those who will
attend.

We have mot consulted with the other
members of the committee about making
this "call," but feel that it will be all
right, anyway. Address Mr. Frank
Benton, at Washington, D, C, in care
of the Agricultural Department.

Let all do this at once, and thus show
their interest in what ought to be the
grandest gathering of bee-keepers the
world has yet beheld.

R. E. Hartjaugli, of St. Joseph,
Mo., committed suicide by taking chlo-
roform, on March 19th. He was a
dealer in bee-keepers' supplies, and
about 50 years old. It is thought that
domestic troubles and partial insanity
caused him to take the awful step. He
left a wife, a daughter, and a son.

Grading: of Honey.— Mr. H. D.

Cutting, of Tecumseh, Mich., has sent
us the following suggestion on the grad-
ing of honey — a subject that received
considerable attention at the late con-
vention of bee-keepers at Washington,
D. C. :

I would like to make a suggestion, and
that is in regard to the " grading of honey."
It has been brought up, and in some cases
acted upon in several bee-keepers' conven-
tions, and in nearly every case veiy unsat-
isfactory. At the coming World's Fair we
will have together one of the best displays
of honey in all grades and all classes ever
seen in this country, and as the bee-keepers
will hold a convention at that time, I think
it would be proper to withhold all attempts
at grading honey until then.

Let it be known that at that convention

424

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

all the different grades of houey will be
brought together, and with the large num-
ber of bee-keepers and honey dealers pres-
ent, plans will be formulated to establish a
grade for honey.

Let every one interested bring a case of
honey, with his ideas of what he considers
the proper method of grading. I do think,
in that way, we can arrive at definite re-
sults, and establish a grade for comb and
extracted honey. H. D. Cutting.

We believe Bro. Cutting's suggestion
is a good one, and hope it may be acted
upon. No doubt the convention of the
North American Bep-Keepers' Associa-
tion in October will be the largest and
most representative ever held anywhere,
especially if the anticipations of Secre-
tary Benton are to be realized. Many
important subjects will receive the earn-
est consideration of the distinguished
leaders in the pursuit, and grading of
honey will quite likely have its share of
attention.

Those Punic Bees have been
the cause of quite a good deal of con-
troversy, it seems. In the March Api-
culturist (which, by the way, is a splen-
did Queen-Rearing number). Editor
Alley offers the following " slurs :"

We can mention two bee-papers that have
never said one word in favor of the Funics,
while the editors seem to spend a good deal
of time searching both foreign and home
bee-papers for all that is said against them.

We do not wish to be understood as mak-
ing any complaint. Our only purpose in
alluding to the matter here, is to show how
manifestly unfair some editors are, in what
they publish.

It seems strange, if Mr. Alley could
" mention two bee-papers that have
never said one word in favor of the
Funics," that he didn't do so. We dis-
like very much such "hinting" or in-
direct "slurring," and as he evidently
refers to the American Bee Journal
and us in the above paragraphs, we
thought it a good opportunity to inform
Mr. Alley that he is quite mistaken, so
far as we are concerned.

If any one is " manifestly unfair," it
is lie, for loe have published every scrap
of correspondence that has been sent to
us relating to the Punic bees, whether
it was commendatory or condemnatory
of their characteristics. We have no
interest in these or any other variety of
bees, further than to keep our readers
posted as far as we arc able, and hence
could not well be biased in any way. We
surely cannot help it if thcs majority of

those who have had the Funics are dis-
gusted with them.

Although Mr. A. doesn't "wish to be
understood as making any complaint,"
of course all will readily see that it
amounts to that very thing. It is queer
that there are persons who expect every-
body to think just as they do, when it is
so well known that people look at things
so differently. We don't expect that all
will agree with us in everything. We
ought all to try, however, in this as well
as other matters, to act in accordance
with the principles contained in the
Golden Rule.

Xhe Vermont I^a-w against the
adulteration of sugar and honey is thus
referred to by Mr. H. W. Scott, of Barre,
Vt., the Secretary of the Vermont Bee-
Keepers' Association, in a letter dated
March 4, 1893 :

Editor Bee Journal : — The follow-
ing is a copy of our Vermont Law
against the adulteration of sugar and
honey :

1890— No. 52. — An Act to increase the
penalty for the adulteration of maple sugar,
maple syrup, and bees' honey.

It is hereby enacted by the General As-
sembly of the State of Vermont.

Section 1. — Number 81 of the Public Acts
of 1884. approved Nov. 35, 1884, is hereby
amended so as to read as follows :

A person who shall adulterate maple
sugar, maple syrup, or bees' honey with
cane-sugdr, glucose, or with any substance
whatever, for purpose of sale, or who
knowingly sells maple sugar, maple syrup,
or bees' houey that has been adulterated,
shall be punishedjay a fine of not less than
fifty dollars, or more than two hundred
dollars, for each offence ; one-half of such
fine, on conviction, shall go to the com-
plainant.

Sec. 2. — This Act shall take effect from
its passage.

Approved, Nov. 13. 1890.

I have consulted good legal authority,
and am advised that the production of
sugar-honey (?) would not be a violation
of the law, but that the sale of the
same, knowing it to be artificial, would
be a violation within the meaning of the
statutes. I therefore hereby warn any
and all persons against the sale of any
such stuff in the State of Vermont ; and
I call upon all bee-keepers who believe
in an honest article and honorable deal-
ings, to assist in protecting the pro-
ducers of pure honey, and the consumers
who desire to get what they think they
are paying for. H. W. Scott.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

425

CHARL.ES DADAIVT.

This week we are afforded the pleasure
of presenting to our readers an autobio-
graphical sketch and picture of Mr.
Chas. Dadant, the senior member of the

j»»»kia&,y-iJ^v

CHAS. DADANT.

firm of Chas. Dadant & Son, of Hamil-
ton, Ills., the largest manufacturers of
comb foundation in the world. Mr.
Dadant is too well and favorably known
to the whole bee-keeping world to re-
quire any extended introduction from
us, hence we at once invite you to a

reading of the following interesting ac-
count of himself :

I was born on May 22, 1817, in Vaux-
sous-Aubigny, a French village of Cham-
paign, near the confines of Burgundy.
My father was a doctor of medicine.
From the age of 6 to 17 I went to
school, living with my grandfather, who
was a locksmith in the city of Langres.

Then I entered as clerk in a wholesale
dry-goods store, and ten years after I
went into partnership with one of the
owners of the store. We began success-
fully ; we had earned some money when
the French Revolution of 1848 came,
followed by the Republic, which was de-
stroyed by Napoleon III, and replaced
by his Empire. For six years the trouble
and the insecurity lasted, and deter-
mined us to quit the business. Then I
succeeded to my father-in-law, who was
a tanner, but bad luck continued to per-
secute me.

The city of Langres, the ancient
Audomatunum, which, several thou-
sands years ago was the capital of a
people named the "Lingones," is situ-
ated on a high mountain, which over-
looks its vicinity nearly on every side.
Cassar, and the other Roman emperors,
at the time when the Roman Empire
owned most of Western Europe, fortified
Langres with strong walls, which were
so well constructed that they are solid
yet, after 2,000 years. These walls
affording a protection to the inhabitants,
the city was densely peopled, and its
commerce was facilitated by a quantity
of good roads, laid with stones and
cement, and directed to every point of
the compass.

These Roman roads, as they are yet
called, helped greatly the business of
the city, which was very prosperous
until the railroads came. Of course
these railroads refused to climb the high
mountains, and built their depot two
miles away, in the bottom of a deep
valley. Then the city began to depopu-
late, and its buildings lost 90 per cent,
of their value. Compelled to go else-
where to get a living, I resolved to come
to the United States.

It was thirty years ago I came, a poor
man, with a family. Unable to under-
stand a word of English, I subscribed
for a weekly paper, and began to trans-
late it with the help of a pocket diction-
ary. But the greatest difficulty was the
pronunciation. I was soon able to write
so as to be understood, but my spoken
English was not intelligible. The French
language has very little accent; while
the English has the accent on one sylla-

426

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

ble in each word, and the scholars them-
selves do not always agree on the sylla-
ble on which the accent ought to be
placed. Then imagine the difficulty of
a foreigner ! A great many store-keep-
ers were amazed to see me explain in
writing what I wanted, when they had
been unable to understand my language.
As I had already tried bee-keeping for
pleasure in France, I began here with
two colonies. What 1 knew of bees had
satisfied me that a well-managed apiary
would give enough profit to support a
family, and the result -proved that I was

rigbt. ' ^^ ,.

Soon after, I began to rear Italian
queens. Being able to understand the
Italian language, and having been
elected an honorary member of the Ital-
ian society of bee-keepers, it was an
easy matter for me to try the importa-
tion of bees. But the conditions indis-
pensable to success were not yet known,
so I lost some money in the undertaking.
Then I went to Italy ; but the trip was
a failure. I had about resolved to quit
the business of importing queens, when
I began experimenting with Fiorini, and
soon after all the queens arrived alive.

But the care of 400 colonies, with the
comb foundation business, was then be-
ginning to give us— my son and myself—
as much work as we were able to do, so
we resolved to quit the importing busi-

nGSS.

We have since revised the book of our
friend Langstroth, and published a
French edition, which has had the honor
of being translated into the Russian
language.

I am now 76 years old, and I have
enjoyed, so far, good health, thanks to
the care of my wife and of our children
and grandchildren living with us, en
famine. Chas. Dadant.

Alley's Queen-Rearing: book,
or "Thirty Years Among the Bees,"
gives the result of over a quarter-cen-
tury's experience in rearing queen-bees,
and describing the practical, every-day
work. By Henry Alley. It contains an
"Appendix," showing the improvements
made in queen-rearing the last four
years. Very latest work of the kind.
Nearly 100 pages, with illustrations.
Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Joubnal one year, for $1.30.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

Oxir School in Bee-Keeping.

Read our great offer on page 421.

SEVENTH LESSON — NATURAL SWARSHNG.

Oh, yes! I had almost forgotten to
tell you about natural swarming.

Well, if you wish the best results in
honey, you had better keep down after-
swarming, and to prevent it, keep all
the queen-cells out of the hive but one,
and you must be doubly sure you have
them all out, too, or they will slip out a
second swarm before you know it. bo
be sure to look into every nook and cor-
ner, as there might be a little, short,
stubby cell that you will overlook if you
do not watch out.

The reason we wish to prevent after-
swarms is, they are divided too much to
build up in time to catch the honey-flow,
and all are lost as to profit the first year.
Still, some of our second swarms are
just as good as any. I am now speak-
ing in a general way, that it is best to
not have them when they are running
for honey. Of course, if we are running
our bees for increase, it is just as good a
way to get it as any way, if we have the
time to spare to look after them, if not,
we had better practice dividing colonies.
Now, to tell when your bees are going
to swarm, look into the hive, and keep
watch of them, and when they begin to
build queen-cells, and you see eggs or
larvto in them, then look out any nice
day, and if they do not come out until
the queen-cells are capped, then you
may get ready to hive them, as they
will be out in a short while, if the
weather is fine, and if not, they will
swarm the first chance; or, if bad
weather continues too long for them,
they will tear down all the cells and be-
gin anew; this will be only in rare
cases, but is sometimes done, and, too,
there some times comes a dearth in
honey before the swarm issues, and that
will occasionally cause them to tear

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

427

down, etc. So it, is not always to be an
unfailing sign when cells are started,
that they will swarm.

The old queen goes out with the
swarm, except in a few cases it will be a
virgin that will lead off the first swarm.
This is the case where the old queen is
very nearly worn out, and the bees have
prepared to swarm, and bad weather
prevents the swarm from issuing until a
young queen is hatched, and she kills
her mother, and leads oflf the swarm.
The old queen failing to tear down the
cells, works things to her own fate, and
in a few cases I have found both the old
and the young queen out with the first
swarm ; and in one case four virgins
and their mother, all out with a first
swarm. But these are only rare in-
stances, and given to show you that
bees do not always act just alike, or
what one colony does another may do
the reverse. So do not become alarmed
at anything the bees do, for they some-
times seem like the people of this world
" Many men of many minds," etc.

And it is not always the right thing to
do to clip the wings of the queen of a
first swarm, as directed by some, and,
in fact, I would not clip the wings of
queens at all.

Next will be queen-rearing, both on a
small scale, and a large one.

Bee-Notes from Flowery Florida.

Of late I have been visiting home-
steads in the pine woods, and at all I
found bees kept in the primitive state.
Most of the colonies were in tall box-
hives made of the heavy pine of this
country, and with few exceptions no
provisions made for storing honey, ex-
cept inside of the hive. Where there
were surplus boxes, they were merely a
cut-off extension of the main hive.

In answer to my query, if I could
purchase some honey, I met with the
usual response, " We've none taken."
This " taking" of honey does not occur,
apparently, at any stated period, but
whenever the appetite craves it. The
surplus honey of last year was yet upon
the hives of some colonies, and they
were nearly at the swarming point ;
having large hives, well provisioned,
they could afford to rear large families.
Many swarms emigrate, for a home-
steader secured 8 colonies from the
woods the past winter.

The ti-ti, orange and lemon trees are
now blooming, and bees are busy all the
day, and humming all night the tune of
plenty. The bees of this locality are

very small and black, and I know of but
one Italian apiary. In that great bee-
country of Florida, known as We-wa-
hitchika, or the Dead Lakes, Italian
bees are kept, and all the improved
methods of bee-culture are in use.

The writer expects to lecture to night,
on "The Relation of Bees to Horticul-
ture." Some fine singers will sing "Dot
Happy Bee-Man," and the " Busy, Buz-
zing Bees." The latter is a new song,
written by the editor of the American
Bee Jouknal. Mrs. L. Harrison.

St. Andrews' Bay, Fla., Mar.22,1893.

Introducing Q,ueens.

On page 28 of the February issue of
the Apiculturist, Mr. Alley seems to try
to take me to task about something, and
I hardly know what. He has the fol-
lowing to say :

" The readei's of one of our bee-paper ex-
changes must have had quite a puzzle re-
cently to work out. Mrs. Jennie Atchley
pitched into us for what we said in the Api-
culturiat about introducing queens. We
were puzzled as much as any one to dis-
cover what she was driving at, until it oc-
curred to us that the remarks she made
had reference to our criticism of her way of
introducing queens. The fair way for Mrs.
A. to have done would have been for her to
have quoted our remarks, and then made
comments thereon. The reader then would
have understood the matter, and could
have judged for themselves as to whether
we or Mrs. A. were in the right.

''Mrs. A. took exceptions to what we
said of her way of introducing queens.
Mrs. A. said a good way to introduce
queens is to remove all the bees from combs
of brood, and after placing the queen on
the combs, let the colony build up by the
increase from the hatching brood.

" Well, now, that does not properly come
under the head of introducing queens. To
begin with, it is far from practical, and is
not such as bee-keepers need.

' ' What bee-keepers desire is a practical
plan for introducing queens tliat will en-
able them to introduce a strange queen as
soon as a full colony is dequeened. Well,
there are just those methods in vogue, and
thousands of bee-keepers make a success of
them."

I have quoted Mr. Alley's remarks in
full as above, and as he requests it, I
comment as follows :

I may have said some time in my life
that it was a good way to introduce a
queen on combs of hatching brood, and
yet say that it is a very sure way in case
we do not wish to take any risk. But,
what I said about introducing, that Mr.
Alley is driving at, has no relation to the
above at all. I said that Mr. Alley

428

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

surely had not learned all the habits of
bees if he did not know that any colony
could be induced to take a queen by
taking away all of the brood, and shak-
ing the bees all out at the entrance a
time or two, as this was after the nature
of bees when they swarm, at which
time they will accept any queen. But
so long as you allow them brood, they
are apt to show fight to a queen or
worker. But while they are out as a
swarm, they will admit queens, drones
and workers, and perhaps bumble-bees,
for ought I know. And I said that
should I have one of that kind of hard
colonies to deal with, I would make
them take a queen after the nature that
a swarm takes a queen.

Now, through some remarks Mr. A.
made to something like the above, I
" caught onto " it that he had been
more than 30 years learning the habits
of bees, and yet did not know their na-
ture. Well, neither do I know all the
habits of bees, but I happened to be ac-
quainted with that part of their nature,
and "Aunt Jennie" was just trying to
" larn" Mr. Alley, and it seems that he
doesn't want to take "larnin."

Now, nothing that is said above has
anything to do with my plan of introduc-
ing queens, as you will find it described
on page 865 of the American Bee
Journal for Sept, 15, 1892. Now, let
all turn to it and read my plan, and
then I think they will count me among
one of Mr. Alley's " thousands" who are
making a success of introducing queens.
Yes, I make it very successful, for at
one time last year, in a single day, I
introduced 50 queens in less than 30
minutes, without the loss of a single
queen ! Now, Mr. Alley may be very
curious to know how I did all this so
quickly. Well, one of the boys had just
gone ahead of me and removed all the
old queens, and I only went from hive to
hive and raised the covers and laid the
cages on the frames, wire-cloth down ;
the end of the cages that contained the
candy had no strip on them, as there
had none been placed there.

Now I hope the above will give Mr.
Alley satisfaction, but J have only quot-
ed from memory, and that is sometimes
faulty.

Please Send. Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
JotJRNAL,. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, aud
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " so
interesting on another page. In the main. It
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— En.

Hives for Comb Honey.

I have 8 colonies of bees in different
sized hives — 2 are in dovetailed hives, 2
in Danzenbaker, 2 in box-hives, and 2
are in hives of my own make. I want
to increase my bees, and I don't know
what kind of hives to use. WMch do
you think would be the best for comb
honey ? Please answer in the American
Bee Journal. Walter R. Wood.

Bellevue, Del.

Answer. — The Bee Journal cannot
undertake to recommend any particular
hive for any especial purpose, or any
other apiarian implement. The reason
for this must be apparent to all thinking
readers. There are many good hives,
and to single out any one would be un-
fair to the others. So it would be with
other bee-appliances.

Yellow Jessamine — Poisonous Honey.

Here in Florida, it is claimed that the
honey from the yellow jessamine is
poisonous, or at least makes people
deathly sick who eat it. I enclose a
sample of the plant, and should like to
know as to the truth of the claim.

C. F. Greening.

Orange Park, Fla.

We sent the sample sprig of yellow
jessamine to Prof. Cook, requesting his
opinion as to the poisonous qualities of
its honey, and here Is his reply :

There have been a few accounts of
bees gathering poisonous honey from a
few plants. I have much doubted the
truth of such assertions. In the first
place, the so-called poisonous plants
bloom every year, and yet how very rare
are even reported cases of poisonous
honey. Again, even our best honey is a
very rich food, and is poisonous to many,
especially if taken immoderately. May
it not be over-eating, or an idiosyncrasy
in the person that caused the sickness,
and not that the honey was poisonous ?

I have heard of severaF cases of pois-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

429

onous honey which I have secured. I
had one analyzed last summer, and it
was pronounced good honey. I have
one now in our Museum, which looks
good, tastes good, and does not hurt
me, though it was reported to have
made an entire family sick. Our stu-
dents, some years since cut a bee-tree
one morning, and all ate freely of the
nice honey. The classes that afternoon
were very thinly attended, and many a
boy wished for his mother. Yet that
honey, to my certain knowledge, was of
the best quality. What a chance was
here for a Xenophon to make a sensa-
tional report regarding the poisonous
honey of Michigan ! A. J. Cook.

Queen Questions — Bee-Feeder.

1. Has the plan of clipping the queen's
wings, and having a stake in front of
the hive for the bees to cluster upon
when they swarm, been tried enough to
prove it a success ?

2. Will a young queen, when intro-
duced, hunt out and kill the old one in
enough cases to make it pay without re-
moving the old queen ?

3. Can a young queen, and the small
colony that reared her, be united with a
swarm when hiving them, without
trouble, if the old queen Is removed?

4. Is there a feeder on the market
that can be placed in one corner of the
super, allow packing to be placed around
it, filled from the top without removing
from the hive, and allow the bees to
come up from below to get the food ?

I cannot be with my bees much of the
time In the summer, so I want to dis-
cover some "short cuts."

John Pedelty, Jk.

Mason City, Iowa.

Answers. — 1. So few have reported
as to their success or failure, that it is
impossible to answer you.

2. Can't tell about the hunting out,
but you will probably find, if you try the
experiment, that the young queen will
generally come up missing.

3. Your chances are favorable for
success.

4. You can put Simplicity feeders in
one corner of the super, but there must
be a chance for the bees to get up, and
they would likely be in the way when
you come to re-fill the feeder or feeders.
The Miller feeder would probably an-
swer your purpose admirably. It is the
same in surface as a super (you could
have them made of any size) ; all you
have to do is to place it on top of the

hive, fill it, and then put the cover on.
As it holds 20 pounds or more, you
would not do much re-filling, but if you
should want to do so, not a bee can get
up in your way when you take the cover
off, unless they lly from the outside.

Maple Sugar for Winter Feeding.

Is it advisable to feed maple 'sugar in
winter, when bees are short of stores,
and one has no bee-candy ? Sub.

Answer. — Whilst the maple sugar
might answer, it would hardly be as
good, and at present prices you could
sell the maple for enough to buy a good
deal more cane sugar from which to
make the candy.

(ZZZZZZZZZZZZZXZXZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZU

How to Manag;c with Loose
Bottom- Boards of Hives.

Query 865.— 1. Tn using a loose bottom-
board, how do you fasten it to the hive so that
it will not shift in handling ? 2. Also, in put-
ting in between the bottom-board and the
hive a (three-sided) rim, say two inches wide,
for winter use, how then do you malie all stay
firmly together ?— Wis.

I don't use loose bottom-boards. — J. P.
H. Brown.

I never used any loose bottom-boards.
— Mrs. L. Harrison.

1. The bees do it. 2. I never did that
way. — J. H. Larrabee.

I began with loose bottom-boards, but
discarded them long ago. — M. Mahin.

1. I do not fasten them. 2. I find no
need. I keep no out-apiaries. — A. J.
Cook.

1. The bees will fasten the bottom-
boards, etc., tight enough.— Will M.
Barnum.

I have never used anything but a tight
bottom-board, therefore, "I don't know."
— Jas. a. Stone.

430

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

I don't use them. Give me your ex-
cuse for a loose bottom-board. — Mrs.
jEX>nE Atckley.

I don't use loose bottom-boards. If I
had hives with loose bottoms, I would
nail them on. — E. France.

1. I don't fasten it. If I did, it would
not be loose. 2. I don't use the rim,
and don't need it. — A. B. Mason.

Our hives are differently constructed.
I have seen Van Deusen hive-clamps
used for this purpose ; also hooks and
screws. — P. H. Elwood.

Use hive-hooks marde for this purprse,
or, better still, have the bottom-board
nailed to the hive. I do not like to have
more loose pieces than is necessary. —
Mrs. J. N. Heater.

1. Use the Van Deusen wire-clamp,
or a simple hook. 2. Leave out the
" rim ;" or if you must go to this use-
less trouble, tack it fast with nails. —
Emerson T. Abbott.

1. I generally use screws, sometimes
pieces of tin, and ?i-inch wire nails. 2.
By using a bottom-board of my own in-
vention, being a shallow box 1,^2 inches
deep, with one end open. — C. C. Miller.

1. I have usually hooked the bottom-
board to the hive by using two hooks on
each side. 2. A dozen ways can be de-
vised by which this can be done. Any
of which would be easy and simple. — J.
E. Pond. .

1. With pieces of lath and shingle
nails. I have moved a good many bees,
and tried strings, wire, hooks, screws,
and other fixings, and found nails and
lath the best of all. 2. Same way. — S.
I. Freeborn.

1. I don't fasten them. I lift the hive
by taking hold under the bottom-board.
They can be fastened, however, by the
Van Deusen clasp, and some people who
are very precise use them, or a similar
device. — Eugene Secor.

1. I lift the hive by putting my hands
under the bottom-board. 2. I use no
rim, and take off the bottom-board also
in wintering — in the cellar. If I used a
rim, I could safely rely on attraction of
gravitation to keep everything firm. — R.
L. Taylor.

I use a maleable-iron hook of my own
invention. In using a wooden rim un-
der a hive, I use a hook on it also, mak-
ing two hooks on each side. Hooks and
screws must be placed in exactly the
same position, so they will all be inter-
changeable.— C. H. Dibbern.

I use a reversible bottom-board, and
get the 2-inch space. I have no trouble
with sliding about, if done say 8 to 10
days before you want to remove to the
cellar. The bees do the fastening. If I
were to remove in a wagon, I would use
the small iron clamps made by Dr.
Tinker. — H. D. Cutting.

I do not fasten it at all. I had a hive
to "blow over" last winter, and the bee-
glue kept it intact, although it was a
two-story hive. This winter a hive in
my apiary toppled over in time of the
January thaw ; it parted from the bot-
tom-board, but the upper story kept its
place. Bee-glue does the work. — G. W.
Demaree.

We use a light, maleable Van Deusen
clasp on single hives. On winter hives
they are not necessary, nor is the two-
inch rim spoken of. I have used a great
many of the 2-inch rims in wintering,
but consider them a damage in winter-
ing. They should be cast aside with the
other useless contrivances of the apiary.
— G. L. Tinker.

1. I do not so fasten it. Pick up the
hive with the hands under the bottom-
board, or use the Van Deusen clamps.
2. I leave the bottom-boards on the
summer stands in winter, and pile the
hives on top of each other, using pieces
of 2-inch stuff between the bottom of
the upper hive and the top of the one
below. Extra Van Deusen clamps will
hold all together, if you so desire. — G.

M. DOOLITTLE.

1. I do not -want it fastened except
when bees are to be hauled. Then I
fasten the top and bottom together by
means of wire loops hooked over nail-
heads projecting slightly from the cover
and bottom-board. These loops are
then tightened by the use of "spread-
ers " — small sticks with notched ends.
2. I would not use a rim with only three
sides. There should be no difficulty,
though, in fastening the parts together,
if it was desired. Under ordinary cir-
cumstances, the weight of the hive
should be sufficient. — James A. Green.

Capons and Caponizing:, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.10.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

431

Report of the Indiana State
Bee-Keeper§' Convention.

Written for the American Be-e Journal
BY WALTEK S. POUDER.

The 13th annual convention of the
Indiana State Bee-Keepers' Association
met in Indianapolis on Jan. 18 and 19,
1893.

The meeting was called to order at
1:30 p.m., with President R. S. Russell,
of Zionsville, in the chair.

After some miscellaneous business
was transacted, the minutes of the last
meeting were read by the Secretary,
and, upon motion, adopted as read. The
Treasurer's report was also read, and
ordered placed on file. Next followed

The President's Annual Address.

Ladies and Oentlemen : — It is with
much pleasure and many thanks to the
Father of all mercies that we are again
permitted to meet in earnest social de-
liberation, whereby each may gain wis-
dom from the practical labors of others,
and be better equipped to solve the
many diflScult problems of our favorite
pursuit — Apiculture ; and to this end, it
is my desire that every member lay aside
every selfish motive and strive only to
glorify our common industry.

We have other urgent duties to per-
form at this meeting, other than the
line of the programme. If it is desired
to place our industry in a firm basis, the
first thing to be considered is the " Pad-
dock Pure Food Bill," which is now
pending in Congress, and in which al)
honey-producers are most vitally inter-
ested. Second, our State exhibit at the
World's Fair should be promptly con-
sidered ; third, our By-Laws should be
amended ; fourth, our State Premium
List should be carefully revised and
honestly adjusted to benefit the entire
industry in a becoming manner; and,
lastly, three competent judges appointed
by this Association, either of which
could award these premiums intelligently
in the absence of the others.

As our State Fair is beyond doubt
our greatest educator, it is absolutely
necessary that our interests be intrust-
ed only to the most competent persons
of our industry. The exhibit made last
year was very creditable, considering
the fact that last year was the poorest
honey season ever known in Indiana.
This was due to the prevailing drouths,
and never perhaps in the history of our
State were the clovers so nearly extermi-
nated, and even our noble basswoods
and fruit-trees of all kinds could
scarcely spare sufficient nectar to pay
our bees to visit them, so nearly were
they famished. It truly was a very
dark year for the bee-keepers, but still
we should not despair.

I still have something further to say.
Copious rains came just at the right
time last fall, and at this time, all
honey-plants are in finer condition than
I have ever seen them before ; and, if I
am not badly mistaken, 1893 will be
recorded as the greatest year for honey-
production ever known.

Now, dear friends, under the present
encouraging prospect, if we are not al-
ready planning, reading and thinking,
now is the time to begin and to work as
we never did before, until the harvest is
secured. Fully believing that our meet-
ing will prove both pleasant and profit-
able to all the bee-keepers of our great
State, I will defer all further remarks
at the present time. R. S. Russell.

Some Reports for 1892.

A summary of reports of the Indiana
bee-keepers for the past season were
called for and rendered as follows :

George P. Wilson, of ToUgate— The
past year has been one of the most dis-
couraging for the apiary that I remem-
ber. The spring was cold and wet, the
rains continuing until late in the white
clover bloom, thereby causing a very
light crop of honey. From 12 colonies
I got five pounds of comb honey, but
had no extracted honey. This was gen-
erally the case with all the bee-keepers
of my acquaintance. One man told me
that he had 50 colonies, and got no
honey at all. Owing to these discour-
agements, I have been unable to induce
all my neighbor bee-keepers to attend
the convention this year ; but I have
sent out about 200 programmes, and
have written all bee-keepers urging
them to attend.

Our society seems to lack the interest
that so important an industry demands,
and I think some effort should be made
to interest the whole bee-keeping fra-

432

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

ternity in our yearly meetings. The
Legislature of Illinois passed a Bill ap-
propriating $500 per year to the Illi-
nois Association to pay their expenses,
but not a dollar of it is to be used to pay
the oflScers for their services. I think
if we had an appropriation of $100 per
year, we should have crowded rooms at
each meeting. In order to arouse more
iBterest, I would recommend that every
bee-keeper who is present this year go
home, tell his neighbor what a pleasant
time he had, and urge them to come to
the next convention \ and when the
time comes, don't let them forget it.
Even the oldest bee-keepers can learn
much from the novices and beginners.

Peter Raab, of Brightwood — I had
only one colony of bees this year, and
got but 16 pounds of honey. I had no
increase.

James Catterson, of Brownsburg — I
had 30 colonies, sold $7.00 worth of
honey, and have on hand 200 pounds.
My best colony yielded 40 pounds. The
increase was 6 swarms. Generally
speaking, the bees did not do well.

Chas. F. Muth, of Cincinnat. — Bees
stored no honey the past year, the prin-
cipal cause being cold nights. My bees
were very strong in April, and I fed
them as they were short of stores. I
got about 800 pounds of surplus honey,
resulting from 20 acres of Alsike
clover. I got no fall honey. I think
one cause of the general failure was
that in spring the stores were used in
brood-rearing, and the bees starved for
want of being fed. I have each year
from 20 to 40 acres of Alsike clover,
and the bees get most of their honey
from that. I never got any surplus
honey from the weak colonies.

George C. Thompson, of Southport —
My colonies were very strong, but I got
no honey until fall, and then the smart-
weed furnished about as much as they
would consume during the winter.

Walter S. Pouder, of Indianapolis — My
bees were in good condition, but I got
very little honey ; they had enough, how-
ever, for winter stores. I should have
had some surplus honey if I had not
disposed of so many bees in filling or-
ders. I expected to have to feed in the
fall, but was surprised to find the hives
well filled with honey, which I thought
was from the smart-weed.

R. S. Kitley, of Julietta— I got 50
pounds of comb honey, and three gallons
of extracted honey. I had in all 20
colonies of bees, but they did not do well
at all.

W. H. Wright— I had only a few bees

— in all two colonies — and from these I
get no honey at all. There was none in
my neighborhood. I had two swarms.
The hives were full in the fall, probably
from buckweat, as I saw buckwheat in
the corn at the last plowing.

A. J. Simmons, of Indianapolis — My
bees are all in Illinois. They did fairly
well there, getting honey from bursted
acorns. They had plenty of honey for
winter stores. It was too cold and rainy
for honey from white clover, although I
succeeded in getting some from the red
clover.

James Catterson — Early in the spring
I looked over my bees and found them
in good shape, but found that they were
removing the larvte from the cells ; this
signified that they were out of stores. I
then fed them, and had no further
trouble. The month of June was very
wet until about the 10th, then for about
ten days the bees did well ; after that
the flow stopped, and there was no more
honey until fall. I use the old American
hive.

Chas. F. Muth — Mr. Simmons speaks
about his bees getting honey from
bursted acorns. I think he must mean
that they got it from honey-dew. There
were no fall honey-plants where I was.
Buckwheat yields honey about once in
five years, and I used to think that
melilot was good, from what others said;
but it is a failure — in fact, a perfect
nuisance, for it grows so thick and rank
that it kills the white clover. The best
fall honey-plant is the aster ; the honey
from this plant is perhaps not so good,
but it does very well for baker's use.

John Manford, of Noblesville — My bees
did not do well, but I got some surplus
honey. The fall flow was good, and the
hives were full for winter. In June I
united 14 colonies down to five.

What, in your opinion, is a strong
colony ? Ans. Eight frames of brood
with the adhering bees.

(Continued next week.)

"Xlie Winter Problem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages, and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Jouknal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
$1.30. Send to us for a copy.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

433

■■-'■■^■'■■^-^■^■'■■^■'■■^■'■■^■^■■^iiaiA^Aixx

^AM

The Location for Bee-Keeping;,
and Over-Stocking.

Written for tlie American Bee Journal
BY G. M. DOOLITTLE.

The above subject has been sent me,
desiring that I should give my views in
the Amekican Bee Journal on the
matter. If I were at liberty to choose
a location when I desired, and could find
such an one, it would be in a place
where the land sloped gently to the
southeast, with pasturage as follows :
Some willow to stimulate early brood-
rearing, with sugar maples to follow;
then apple blossoms, as an assurance of
plenty of honey from apple to white
clover, which should be abundant.

Next, I should want plenty of bass-
wood, and that on a hillside or moun-
tain, so as to prolong its bloom, and,
lastly, where bucl<wheat was raised. Of
course, if asters and golden-rod could be
plenty in the fall, it would be still better.
But most of us have other ties beside the
bees which fix our location, and so we
have to put up with such an one as we
have, and the man is to be honored that
can be contented and bring about good
results with only limited bee-pasturage
at his own home, where duty calls him
to remain.

If I could have but one of the above-
named sources of honey, I would select
basswood first, clover second, and, lastly,
buckwheat. From all sources of infor-
mation I can gather, basswood is the
greatest honey-producer in the United
States, for the length of time it is in
bloom.

The lay of the laud is not of so much
importance as the forage, for tight
fences, or belts of evergreens can be
placed around the bee-yard to protect it
from high winds.

I would have the hives face the south
or east, if possible, as the bees start
earlier in the morning than when they
face the north and west ; also, our pre-

vailing winds are from the direction last
mentioned.

My views on over-stocking may not be
considered quite orthodox by all, yet
after years of experience I find them not
far out of the way. If I had a location
such as the one above described, I should
not fear overstocking it with 400 to
600 colonies, but I think that from 150
to 200 would be as many as an average
location would support to the best ad-
vantage, while there are places that 50
would be as many as would give good
results to their owner.

When we take into consideration that
bees fly, from choice, from two to four
miles from home, and are led on, by re-
ceding bloom, to five, six and seven
miles, this matter of over-stocking is not
so much to be feared as many suppose.

"But," says one, "bees do not go
more than 1^ miles from home, and if
they did, it could not be made profitable,
as so much time would be consumed in
flying that it would not pay." To the
first I reply that plenty of proof can be
brought that bees fly more than 1}4
miles, and I will give a bit of experience
to the point, without calling in any
other, viz :

About the year 1868, a gentleman in
Marietta, a small town three miles dis-
tant in a straight line, purchased some
Italian bees. The next spring (before I
had any Italians, or before there was
any of that variety in this locality) I
was watching the bees at work on apple
blossoms, and presently saw an Italian
collecting honey. Upon examination I
found that an average of one bee to five
were Italians, and this with apple blos-
soms in profusion everywhere.

Once more, in haying, as I was cutting
a field of clover, in this same year, one
mile from home, or four miles from these
same Italians, I saw bees at worlc on the
clover. Having heard much about Ital-
ian bees working on red clover, I jumped
off the mowing machine, and, to my sur-
prise, counted five Italians to two blacks,
with fields red with clover blossoms
everywhere.

Now, to the last objection,- that it is
not profitable for bees to fly so far, I
may say that to the southeast of my
apiary, the land rises gradually for five
or six miles, and at the end of the dis-
tance it is 800 to 1,000 feet higher
than at the bee-yard. Unless inter-
rupted by a long rain, the bees follow
the receding bloom of basswood until
the top of the hill is reached, and I can
see no slackening of work in the sections
as long as the bloom is plenty on this

434

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAi..

hill. The bees, also, all wDrk in that
direction.

The length of time consumed in flying
while at regular work, is not very great,
as a bee can fly at a high rate of speed
in a still day, said to be from 30 to 90
miles an hour. Of course they do not
fly as fast when loaded, or when nearing
or starting from the apiary, as they do
when empty or fully under way.

I have often laid down flat on my
back on some elevated spot, to watch
the flight of passing bees, and, by shad-
ing my eyes by placing a hand on either
side of the face and looking steadily up
for a little while, until the eyes became
accustomed to the strong light, the bees
became plainly seen against the sky,
while the rapidity of flight appeared to
equal that of our fastest passenger
trains. In this way some idea may be
formed of the flight of bees, which would
hardly be thought while looking at them
near the apiary.

If bees did not go over 13>^ miles for
honey, I think that 100 colonies would
overstock most localities.

In conclusion, I would say that if the
proper attention is paid to securing the
maximum number of bees in the begin-
ning of the main honey-flow, so that
multitudes of contented laborers will be
on the stage of action at just the right
time, there will be less cry about over-
stocking and poor seasons than there
has been in the past. Secure the bees
just when the crop is to be harvested,
and they will secure the honey, if any is
secreted within four miles of you.

Borodino, N. Y.

Wintering: Under Oroiind — Fast-
ening; Comb Starters.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY C. E. MEAD.

Does this solve the " winter problem ?"
On page 47, of Vol. XXX, Mr. L. J.
Clark, of Wiscoy, Minn., reports taking
a colony of bees from a burr-oak root,
on the west side of a hill. The bees
were ttvo feet under ground, and in re-
markably good condition.

Could anything have been more favor-
able to good wintering ? They were
above the freezing point at all times,
therefore they could breed, and not con-
sume much honey. Mice would And
them at home ! They could Qy when
the weather would permit. They had
all the advantages of cellar and out-door
wintering, and none of the disadvan-
tages.

Why not bury bees in a side-hill, with
a spout the width of the hive, and %-
inch high, reaching from the hive to the
open air, and have the same conditions?
The hole for the hive could be bricked
up, and made permanent for many win-
ters.

HOW TO FASTEN COMB STARTERS.

My way of fastening comb starters
into sections is as follows :

Take an earthen dish as tall as it is
wide ; fill it two-thirds full of boiling-
water ; place over an oil-lamp; and put
in some nice, clean beeswax. Now, keep
it just at the melting prnnt of beeswax.
(If too hot, it cuts away the comb, and
enough of the wax does not adhere to
the comb to stick it firmly to the sec-
tions.)

Now have the white starter combs
warm enough so you can cut them into
the right sized pieces, and not have
them break into small bits, as they will
do if too cold. Having the starters in a
pan handy, turn the sections top down-
ward, and touch the comb to the melted
wax, and quickly place it in the section.
Have the septum in the center of the
section.

I think this plan beats Doolittle's hot-
iron. Try it and see. I never have
tried fastening foundation in this way.

Chicago, Ills.

i^ » '

Importance of Keeping Records
of Queens.

Writteii for the American Bee Journal
BY S. E. MILLER.

How many bee-keepers and queen-
breeders keep a record of the ages and
methods of rearing their queens ? If we
keep no record, how are we to know
what methods give us the best results ?

Here we find a queen has suddenly
failed, has been superseded, or here is
one whose colony has died in the winter;
if we have no life history of her, how
are we to know to what we shall attri-
bute the cause ? We know she is dead,
but how old was she? By what method
was she reared ? and has she given good
service for the full time alloted to a
queen ? Surely, with 50 to 100 colo-
nies, you cannot keep this all in your
mind !

Again, if we know nothing of her
history, how are we to know whether to
continue rearing queens by the same
method, and from the same strain ?
When we know that so much depends
upon the queen, we should endeavor in

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

435

every possible way to keep only the best
that can be reared.

I give below a system that we have
been using for some time, and one with
which I can find no fault, so far:

We use the little slates recommended
by Mr. A. I. Root, to be hung on a nail
driven into the hive, for keeping a rec-
ord of each colony. On one side of the
slate we keep in a sort of short-hand, or
abbreviation, a record of the condition
of the colony. On the other side of the
slate we have something like this :

Age, Jun 92.
D. S. rd. abov Exc.

This means that the queen was
hatched in June, 1892 (showing her
age). " D. S." means that she was
reared from eggs from one of Doolittle's
Queens, or Doolittle's Strain or Stock ;
and " rd. abov Exc." means that the
cells were built over a full colony having
a laying queen below, and a queen-ex-
cluder between the upper and lower
stories. If the latter read " rd. by N.
S.," it would mean that the cells were
built under Natural Swarming, or by
bees under the swarming impulse.

We find the best thing for writing on
these slates to be a medium soft lead-
pencil. Under ordinary circumstances
this writing will last for many months,
or even a year, and that, too, when ex-
posed to the elements. Should we find
the writing becoming dim, it takes but a
few seconds to renew it. By holding
the slate so that the light strikes it at
the proper angle, this writing is quite
plain, and is easily read.

Many, no doubt, prefer keeping re-
cords in a book provided for the pur-
pose, and having the hives or colonies
numbered. But no matter how we keep
the record, is it not surely worth the
time and trouble ?

Bluflfton, Mo.

► ■ ^

Burr-Combs on Brood-Frames-
Hybrid Bees, Ete.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY C. A. MONTAGUE.

Where deep frames are used, is there
found to be as much trouble with "burr-
combs" as with shallow frames? Do
those who use the Quinby frame gen-
erally have as much bother in this direc-
tion ? This frame I have never used,
but ever since I commenced to handle
bees (in 1882) I have had both the
Langstroth and Gallup frames in con-
stant use. Invariably, I have had much

more trouble with burr-combs on the
Langstroth. In fact, I have had so little
trouble with the Gallup that I would at
once change to that frame, were it not
for the expense.

The greater depth of the Gallup frame
leaves the cluster in better shape for
wintering. On the other hand, I work
for extracted honey, mostly, and I find
it slower work to extract from this
frame, where the bees are allowed to
cap the honey. This would make little
difference, however, especially as I can
procure more honey, and of fully as good
quality, by extracting just as soon as the
bees commence capping.

I strain the honey into the tanks (it
is much easier to strain if extracted be-
fore it is capped), and tie cheese-cloth
over the tops of the tanks. I think the
editor will acknowledge that it is good
honey. [Yes ; the sample sent to us
was excellent.^ED.]

I used 100 of the improved Hoffman
frames the past season, and I could see
no difference as to "buiT-combs," but
they are much easier to handle. Ex-
cepting the Gallup, my frames all have
the thick top-bars.

PREFERS THE HYBRID BEES.

I am not sure that I care for any of
the "yellow" bees. I find that my
hybrids are more cross, and build comb
wherever they can find a chance ; but
they are more active, can't be robbed,
and gather more honey ; and thaVs what
I want.

Archie, Mich.

* I m

Treatment of Svi^arming; Queen§
Explained.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY DR. C. C. MILLER.

I have received the following letter
from James P. Hall, of Wyanet, Ills.,
which I desire to answer in the Ameri-
can Bee Journal :

Friend Miller : — On page 69, in
your book, " A Year Among the Bees,"
you state, " After the queen is in the

cage and the cage put where the

bees can take care of it," etc. Now,
what I wish you would make plain to me
is this : When the queen's wings are
clipped, and a swarm issues, and the
queen found and caged, how long do
you allow the queen caged before she is
released ?

The trouble with my clipped queens
the past season was, they would stay in

436

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

the hives but a short time. I would
often find them strolling over the
ground, sometimes with a small lot of
bees with them. Please make this mat-
ter plain to me, and oblige.

James P. Hall.

I think I see your difficulty in under-
standing, Mr. H. In the second para-
graph, on page 69, I speak of caging
the queen, and then it appears as though
I left the subject, having said all I had
to say about it. But if you will consider
it as closely connected with what im-
mediately follows, I think you will find
all clear sailing.

The caging the queen, and leaving her
in care of the bees, is merely the first
step in the process, and whatever plan
may be followed afterward, the first
thing to do is to cage the queen, for if
she is left free, the colony will continue
to swarm until she is lost, or a young
queen goes with the swarm. And that's
just what yours did, from which I infer
that you left the colony without any
further treatment, and freed the queen
some time before a young queen had
issued. I'm speaking, of course, of a
clipped queen.

Now just consider the caging as the
first step, and follow one of the plans
outlined on page 69 or page 70. If you
follow the Doolittle plan, the one first
given, you will kill all queen-cells in five
days from swarming, then again kill all
queen-cells five days later, at the same
time freeing the queen ; you will thus
see that the answer to your question is
that I release the queen in ten days
from the time of swarming.

If I haven't made all clear, ask again.
I don't know that any of the plans given
in the book can be counted as best, but
I think I would rather use any one of
them than to have all swarms hived in
the regular way. But every one doesn't
dislike swarms as I do.

Marengo, Ills.

^-»-^

Bees and Fruit — Some Careful
Observations.

Written f(yr t?ie American Bee Journal

BY L. J. TEMPLIN.

I see by the action of these Michigan
fruit men, on page 41, that ignorance
of bees, and prejudice against them in
the orchard, are not extinct. This is a
subject that I have investigated for
many years, both in Indiana and in this
State, and all my observation has led to

a conclusion in direct opposition to the
theory that bees ever puncture sound
fruit.

I have often seen bees at work on
fruit that had been cracked, or had been
punctured or bitten by other insects, but
I have never seen a bee puncture, or try
to puncture, the epidermis of a sound
fruit.

I am a fruit-raiser as well as an api-
arist. In my orchard I have apples,
pears, peaches, plums, cherries and
quinces, as well as a good list of small
fruits. Bees are kept in all directions
from and within 40 rods of this orchard,
and yet I do not believe I have ever been
damaged to the extent of 10 cents by
the bees working on my fruit.

My vineyard of two acres lies just in
front of the apiary, and comes within
about 100 feet of It. The bees have to
pass directly over the vineyard to reach
the alfalfa fields just below, but I have
never been able to detect a bee at work
on the grapes ; nor have I ever seen any
sign of such work. Sometimes, when
the bees are booming on the alfalfa, the
mowers are set to work, and in two or
three days all the alfalfa in bloom
within reach is cut for hay. The bees
are sadly demoralized, and may be seen
searching in every nook and corner for
something to carry to the hive. And
yet no evidence of their ever attacking
the grapes has appeared !

True, all this is negative and circum-
stantial evidence, yet it does raise the
presumption of the innocence of our
little pets, and in the entire absence of
any affirmative testimony, it carries all
the force of positive evidence.

So far from being an injury to the
fruit crop, bees are almost an essential
aid in securing the perfect fertilization
of fruit-bloom ; especially is this true in
certain unfavorable seasons.

I think in equity, those 25 neighbors
(?) of Mr. Pearce, ought to give to him
from 5 to 20 bushels of peaches each,
every year, as part compensation for the
services of his bees in helping to secure
good crops of fruit. So thoroughly am
I convinced of the importance of their
aid in this matter, that if I were to en-
gage exclusively in fruit-raising, if no
bees were kept near me, I should keep a
few colonies for the benefit of my fruit
crops, if for nothing else.

Canyon City, Colo.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journal we mail for
only 50 cents ; or clubbed with th«
Journal for $1.40.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

487

_ Do not write anything- for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Bees Getting Along Finely.

Bees are getting along finely so far. I
am wintering 57 colonies, and hope they
will do better this year than they did last,
which was a failure in this part of the
country. P. F. Zillmek.

Boscobel, Wis., March 13, 1893.

Worst Winter on Bees.

We have had the worst winter on bees
that I can remember — nearly four months
without a flight. We shall have heavy
losses, as bees went into winter very weak
on account of no fall honey -flow.

J. C. LiLLIBRIDGE.

Port Allegany, Pa., March 18, 1893.

Fine Prospects for 1893.

I put 140 colonies of bees into a bee-house
last fall, and they have come through the
winter all right, not losing a single colony.
They have had a good flight since putting
them out. I never had bees winter better.
They are strong, and have plenty of honey.
The prospects are fine for the coming sea-
son. Last season they did fairly well.
From 55 colonies I increased to 140, and sold
4,643 pounds of comb honey.

E. R. Wright.

Davenport, Iowa, March 20, 1893.

Btiilding Up Weak Colonies, Etc.

As the time for building up weak colonies
is at hand, I wiU give a plan that I have
used for a number of seasons with gratify-
ing results. The plan usually given is to
take a comb of brood from a strong colony,
and give it to the weak one, but this is ac-
companied with too much risk of having
the brood chilled, should a cool night ensue
before a sufficient number have hatched for
protection.

The plan that I like better is to cage about
a pound of bees in a cage such as is used in
shipping bees by the pound, and place them
in the side of the hive as close to the clus-
ter as possible, after removing the empty
combs. They should be left in the cage 4 to
6 hours, so that when liberated they will
have the same scent, as much as possible.

Then after tlie flight for the day is over,
loosen one side of the cage next to the
combs, to let the bees out, and close the
hive at once to jjrevent the bees from flying
and getting lost. The cage can be removed
on the next day, and the operation repeated
until the colony has bees enough to carry
on breeding successfully.

A prepared comb of brood may be given
at this time, with safety — that is, one that
was placed when empty between two popu-
lous combs of brood in a strong colony 21
days before, so that hundreds, and perhaps
thousands, of bees will hatch from this pre-
pared comb in the next 24 hours, and will
continue to do so for some time to come.

Bees properly protected have wintered
well as far as heard from. I have lost 2
colonies out of 91, and one of those was
carried off and robbed of their honey on a
cold night, and the other was queenless.

I am in favor of fighting adulteration
through the Bee-Keepers' Union.

J. L. Strong.

Clarinda, Iowa, March 13, 1893.

Wintered Finely— Alfalfa.

My bees have gone through the winter
finely, losing only one colony out of 56.
They are rearing brood fast.

Is alfalfa clover a honey producer ?

F. J. R. Davenport.

Nash, Tex., March 18, 1893.

[Yes ; alfalfa is a most excellent honey-
plant, and is found in great abundance in
several of the Western States. — Ed.]

Bees Put Out Earlier than Usual.

Owing to the water getting into my cel-
lar the last of February, I was forced to try
the experiment of putting my bees out on
March 2nd — about a month earlier than is
customary in this latitude. And although
we have had considerable winter weather
since then. I entertain no fears regarding
their safety. They gathered the first pol-
len (from maples) on March 12th, and seem
to be in fine condition.

W. J. CULLINAN.

Quincy, Ills., March 17, 1893.

Experience with Bees in Virginia.

I have been interested in bee-culture, in
connection with other avocations, for 20
years, but I knew nothing of the improved
methods of bee-keeping until two years ago,
when, by chance, I saw some advertisement
of bee books, papers, etc., and very soon I
was in possession of all the bee-literature
I needed, and I took no little interest in the
study of bee-culture. I must say that I
have gained much information from the
American Bee Journal, so full of practical
experience from enterprising apiarists.

I have had many "side shows," as my
wife calls them, in connection with my
merchandising business, but bee-keeping
beats them all in the way of interest and

438

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

pleasure, and I hope the compensation will
follow and be realized to some degree this
year.

Last year I bought, and had made. 40
dovetailed hives, and from 28 colonies,
spring count, I iilled all the hives, and still
have about one dozen colonies in bos-hives,
now disgracing my apiary, all of which I
will transfer to imjjroved hives with mov-
able frames. °

I bought queens and Italianized success-
fully y colonies out of 10. I also have one
Punic queen successfully introduced. My
bees are in fine condition for winter time.
They gave me plenty of surplus honey for a
large family, and some to give to my
friends. I expect big things from my apiary
this year, when the sourwood blooms.

Mount Airy, Va. G. A. Creasy.

Very Severe Winter for Bees.

We have had a very severe winter, and
lots of bees have died. It is still cold, this
morning the thermometer being down to
12 degrees of zero. Lowry Johnson.

Masontown. Pa., March 6, 1893.

Fine Prospects for a Good Crop.

I have 66 colonies now. We have liad an
abundance of rain, and the prospects for a
fine honey crop are certainly good. My
bees did not do much last year — about an
average yield of 17 pounds of comb honey
per colony. They are situated in the moun-
tains at Acton. Calif., where the bee-forage
is principally white sage and buckwheat.

John Hauser.

Acton, Calif., March 9, 1893.

Bees Appear in Good Condition.

I had 27 colonies of bees, spring count,
and put 49 colonies into winter quarters,
packed in chaft' three hives deep, under a
shed 4 feet wide and 4 feet high. Four col-
onies are dead. Bees had the first good
flight on March 9th, that they have had
since Dec. 1st. They appear to be in good
condition. I had about 1,500 pounds of sur-
plus comb honey last season. I like the
Bee Journal. C. L. Nelson.

Odebolt, Iowa, March 11, 1893.

Encouraging Prospects in California.

From the way things appear at this
writing, I should not wonder if we had a
fine crop of honey this year. Everything
points that way. Of course the way the
weather acts later on in the southern part
of the State will have much to do with the
size of the crop. Up here, everything is
insured for a very fine crop. We have had
sufficient rains already, and we are sure of
more at the right time. I was in to see a
firm in San Francisco that is handling bee-
supplies, and they tell me they are having
more calls than they anticipated so early in
the season. This is encouraging.

Our Legislature has been too much taken
up with investigations and Bills that were

introduced early in the session, to find time
to do anything for our bee-keepers. I am
sorry that they did not start to ask for an
appropriation early in the session, for I am
quite sure that they could have obtained
it. At any rate, they will know what to do
two years from now, when the next Legis-
lature meets.

Though I have been elected by our State
Bee-Keepers' Association, to represent it in
the next National convention at Chicago, I
am afraid that I will not find it convenient
to be there. Still, time will tell.

Wm. a. Pryal.

N. Temescal, Calif., March 6. 1893.

Record of a Colony on Scales.

The following is my scale hive record for
the season of 1892:

May.

June.

28

Gain

■ iy2

28

Gain

Vt

29

••

%

29

••

1

30

"

9V4

30

•'

IM

31

•'

5M

July.

June.

1

(i

1%

1

»(

4%

2

ti

3

2

"

0

3

44

2

3

(k

2J4

4

44

0

4

"

2

5

(4

0

.5

"

6

6

loss

^

0

"

3J4

7

«•

1

7

"

1

8

«*

%

8

"

21/2

9 swarmed ;

the

9

a

7

swarm weighed 7i4

10

£i

1

10

gain

2H

11

'*

2

11

IH

12

1.

2>4

12

%

13

*'

2

13

1%

14

tt

2

14

3

15

.,

1/2

15

%

16

n

1

16

IM

17

»(

0

17

1J4

18

t.

0

18

IX

19

(4

0

19

3H

20

loss

M

20

5H

21

"

Vi

21

6V4

22

"

. Vi

22

1^

23

gain

U

23

1%

24

ti

1

24

4

25

'*

134

25

2^4

26

((

1

26

2V4

27

(t

0

27

3^

The last of May the poplar bloomed;
about June 10th the clover came on ; and
about July 4th basswood bloomed full, but
owing to a cold east wind I lost about half
of it. The colony swarmed, and thus cur-
tailed my record. I labored under some
disadvantages, you will see.

G. W. McGuire.

Dark Ridge, N. C. Feb. 20, 1893.

Transferring with Crooked Combs.

On page 332, Mr. Gardiner asks how to
transfer bees from colonies having crooked
combs, and suggests placing the new hive
above the old one and waiting until the
queen takes possession of the new hive.

It is much better to put the new hive be-
low the old one, as bees have a tendency to
establish the brood-nest close to the en-
trance, and store their honey above. But
even then, the process is rather slow. On
the other hand, cutting and straightening

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

439

crooked combs is a very disagreeable opera-
tion, and cannot be done without destroy-
ing quite an amount of brood. Here is a
better way :

Drive most of the bees and the queen in
the new hive (the point here is to be sure
to have the queen in the new hive), and set
the old hive on the new, with a queen-ex-
cluder between the two. Twenty-one days
later all the brood in the old hive will be
hatched, and you can then cut and straight-
en the old coiiibs without losing any brood.

As the two hives are generally of differ-
ent size, it is not very easy to fit them to-
gether bee-tight. The best is to secure a
board as large as the larger hive, cut in the
center a hole somewhat smaller than the
other hive, and put that board between the
two. The queen-excluding zinc is to be
tacked over the hole.

This process was discovered in Europe,
though I do not know by whom, but soon
after the movable combs came into use, and
is much better than any other known.

Knoxville, Tenn. Adrian Gbtaz.

Bees Gathering Sawdust.

On March 2nd the sun shone brightly, and
the weather turned quite warm. I was
working at the saw-mill close by my apiary
about 8 o'clock, when the bees commenced
to "nose around" the sawdust, and in a
few minutes the dust pile was completely
swarming with bees. All hands stopped to
watch the bees, to see what they were
doing. Well, they just put one in mind of
a lot of little pigs rolling and tumbling in
the dust, and packing the finer portions in
their baskets.

On going to the apiary, I saw them going
in at the entrances like shot, with large
loads of sawdust. The dust was from syca-
more, elm and cottonwood logs. From the
color I should judge they selected the syca-
more dust. Before night the wind changed
to the north, and turned cold, and this
morning finds the cold wave quite sharp.

A. L. Williams.

Lawrence, Kans., March 4, 1893.

P. S.— To-day. March 10th, I find a nice
pile of sawdust in front of each hive.

Dampness and Bee-Diarrhea.

I read the letter on page 339, from Austin
Reynolds to Dr. Miller, saying his bees all
have the diarrhea. The cause of it, I think,
was dampness in his cellar. I am not as
old a bee-man as Dr. Miller, but I don't
think a flight for Mr. Reynold's bees will do
any good. Drying out the cellar is the right
thing to do.

On March 3, 1893, I bought a lot of bees
in box-hives, and transferred them when
fruit-trees were in bloom. The bottom-
boards were oak, and some of them were
green, just from the saw-mill. One of
them was not dry when I painted it. In
three or four days the bees were affected
with the diarrhea, spotting the hives badly.
I thought they would soon get over it,
being in the yard where the sun could shine
on them, but in one week they were all

dead. In looking for the cause, I could rub
off the paint and mold from the bottom-
board with my finger ; the wood under the
paint was black and sour. This was about
April 1, 1893, and an extra strong colony.
All the others were, at that time, in good
condition.

If the above was not the cause, please tell
me what it was. R. H. Humphries.

Morganfleld, Ky.

DonTention IVotice!<».

UTAH.— The semi-annual meeting of the
Utah Bee-Keepers' Association will be held in
Salt Lake City. Utah, on April 10, 11, 1893.
All interested are cordially invited, ^z ]

View, Utah. R. T. Rhees, Sec.

PENNSYLVANIA.— The Susquehanna Co.
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold their 12th
semi-annual meeting at the Tarbell House in
Montrose, Pa., on Thursday, May 4, 1893. AH
are invited. H. M. Seeley, Sec.

Harford, Pa,

NEW YORK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

COLORADO,— The adjourned meeting of
the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held in the Charles Block, corner 15th
and Curtis Streets, Denver, Colo., on April 18,
1893. Business important to all honey-pro-
ducers will come before the meeting.

Littleton, Colo. H. Knight, Sec.

KANSAS.— The Kansas State Bee-Keepers'
Association will hold their annual convention
at Ottawa, Kansas, on April 6 and 7, 1893.
All bee-keepers are cordially invited to attend
this convention, and make it one of the most
interesting ever known. There will be a
good programme. Bring something to ex-
hibit. L. Wayman. Sec.

Chanute, Kans.

The "World's Fair "Women

" Souvenir " is the daintiest and prettiest
book issued in connection with the
World's Fair. It is by Josephine D. Hill
— a noted society lady of the West — and
contains superb full-page portraits and
sketches of 31 of the World's Fair
women and wives of prominent officials
connected with the great Fair. It is
printed on enameled paper, with half-
tone engravings, bound in leatheretta
We will send it postpaid for 75 cents, or
give it for two new subscribers to the
Bee Jouknal at $1.00 each.

Xlie Wrashington Convention
Report is now in pamphlet form, and we
shall be pleased to mail a copy to any
one desiring it, for 25 cents. It con-
tains 32 pages. As only a very limited
number were printed, you should order
promptly if you want a copy.

440

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
April l8t. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey Is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6®8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good,at 24@27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light, White fancy stock is well
cleaned up. The market is well stocked with
off grades and buckwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote: Basswood and
white clover, 8@8}4c.; buckwheat, 6@654c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
iB scarce at 7®7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

MINNE APO LIS,MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16®17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7®8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16®17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10®12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7»4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14®15@16c ;
mixed, 12@13c ; dark. 10@llc. Extracted,
white, 8@8i4c ; mixed, 7@7i/ic ; dark, 6i/i®7c.

Beeswax, 26@30c. H. R. W.

• Wants or Excjiajiges,

• •». "^ -* S. /^ ^ \. ^ ^ N, r< ,„/ -V ^ ^ >^ *« ^ N *- ^ N ^ WS /• t» > -"- -S • \. -\ -- S. -• -/ N. -• ^ S. (" _/ ■

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each Insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

F

OR SALE— A Circular Saw, hand or foot
power. O. C. BROWN,

14A2t Council Bluffs. Iowa.

WANTED— To correspond with some real
good, nice, beautiful young lady or wid-
ow. THOS. BUTLER, Floyd, Hunt Co., Tex.

WANTED— Foot-Power Lathe for metal ;
Portable Forge and Anvil. I will ex-
change Honey, Bees, Queens, or good Bicycle.
14 Atf J . A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote In this Journal.

Cbicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

Minneapolis, ITEInn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oliio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

COWVEWTION DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

April 6, 7.— Kansas State, at Ottawa, Kans.
L. Wayman, Sec, Chanute, Kans.

Apr. 10, 11.— Utah, at Salt Lake City, Utah.
R. T. Rhees, Sec, View, Utah.

April 18.— Colorado State, at Denver, Colo.
H. Knight Sec, Littleton, Colo.

April 20.— S. W. Wisconsin, at Wauzeka, Wis.
N. E. France, Pres., Platteville, Wis.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co., at Montrose, Pa.
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford, Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

Korth American Bee-Keepers' AsBOCiatlon

President— Dr. C. C. Miller — Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York.. .Chicago, Ills.

• ♦ » » «

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President- Hou.R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
G en'l Manager- T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

*♦ Bees and Honey "—page 421.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

441

Advertisepieiits.

'■'GiiN ITALIAN Q

For sale in April for $1.00. Full Colonies for
$6.50. The Best Spraytns Famp in the
market for the price.

A Full liiiie of Supplies.

Remember we are the Largest Manufactu-
rers in the West. Send for Circular.

WM. H. BRIGHT, Mazeppa, Minn.
14 A8t Mention the American Bee Journal.

Something Entirely New.

ONLY PERFECT AUTOMATIC

Honey-Extractor

BEST of Testimonials can be given as to
the perfect working of the above Honey-
Extractor. Simple in Construction. With-
out Band or Cliaiu. Price moderate. We
are prepared to ship from the United States.
The 4-frame Langstroth, can diameter 24 in-
ches; 8-frame 27 inches.

Goold, Sliapley & Muir Co., Ltd.

BKANTFORD, CANADA.

Patent for above. Either State or larger
territory may be purchased from us.

mauufactnrers and Dealers in
All Kinds of

Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

Texas Beared Queens,

BRFD for Business and Beauty. I make
Queen-Breeding a specialt.v. Either 3 or
5 Banded— March, April and May— Untested,
$1.00 ; Tested, $1.50. After May, Untested,
75 cents ; Tested. $1.00. Imported Queens
reasonable. Send for Price-List— Free. Satis-
faction guaranteed. Kemit by P. O. Money
Order or Registered Letter. W, H. WHITE,
13A4t DEPORT, Lamar Co., TEX.

When Answering this advertisement, Mention this journal.

The Cheapest Music House in the Worldv

For the purpose ot iulroducineourgoods tliroughoiU the Country, and
to advertise our House, we will for ashort time seud any person oue
of the following iDstruments on receipt of cash to pay for Boxing and
Shipping. It is expected that every person receiving one of these In-
struments will show it and inform otheri wheVe he bought it. We
will only send one to each person. We will send a

$10 Ole Bull Violin for $2.

'Outfit consists of Violin, It:ilian Strings, Maple Brlriee,
Kbonizeii Pegs and Tail-piece, inlaid with I'earl, Snake-
wood Bow with Ivory Trimmings, Music Book of instructions, con-
taining over eightv-tive pieces of Choice and Latest Seiectioiu of
Music, all packed fa a neat strong Case, |2.00.

$10 George Christy Banjo, $3. ,

MapIeShell, Sheepskin Head, Silver-plated RimS
Metal Head Fastenings, Italian Strings, Book of
Instructions, All in neat Case, $3.

$10 Celebrated Aimee Guiter, $3.

Maple, imitation of Rosewood, Ebony trlm-
Imings, Patent Head, Pearl inl.iid Sound
I Hole and Edge, Italian Strbgs, Music Book

^^_^,' in strong Case, $3,

SendMoney by Postal Note. Send Stamp for Catalogue.

L. W. LINCOIiN & CO., Chicago, 111.

Mention the American Bee Journal.

TORomo \mm \\\ for sale,

As early as the season admits. Pure-Bred
Queens from Doolittle'is 5-Bauded

strain; also. Iflanuni'is Strain, mated to
Pure Yellow Drones on this Island. Our loca-
tion enables us to warrant Untested Queens
purely mated. This is no experiment. Send
for Descriptive Circular of the Island, etc.

Untf^sted Queens, $1.00. Tested, $1.50.

Special Kates on large orders.

J. McARTHUR & CO.,

14A12t 881 Yonge St., TORONTO, ONT.

Mention the American Bee Joitrnal.

MY FINE-

ITALIAN QUEENS

Will be Ready for Sliip-
iiient April 20tli,

Sc continue until Nov. 1st.

My Bees are equal to any in
the Land. All Queens bred
from Full Colonies. Prices:—
Untested, $1.00; six, $5.00; 12,
$10.00. Tested, $1.50; six for
$8.00; twelve for $15.00.

Remember, I ivarrant all
Queens shipped by me to any
point in U. S., and to be alive
at destination; if dead, return
Queen and I will send one in
place. Relerenee — Any first
class business man in Lenawee
Co. Address all Orders to,

14A30 Manitou Beach, Lenawee Co., Mich.
Mention the American Bee Journal.

ITALIAN QUEENS.

BRED for Business, Gentleness and Beau-
ty. Untested, 80c. each; three, $2.25;
six, $4.00; twelve, $7.50. Tested, $1.25. Selec-
ted tested, yellow to the tips, breeder, $1.50.
Will commence shipping April loth. Safe
arrival guaranteed.

O. E. DAWSOW,

CARLISLE. Lonoke Co., ARK.
Mention the American Bee Journal.

442

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

DR. W1NCHELU8

TEETHING SYRUP

Is the best ineilieiiie for all diseases ineideut to
ehikiren. It regulates the bowels; assists denti-
tion ; cures diarrhani and dysentery in the worst
forms; enres canker sore throat; is"a certain pre-
ventive of diphtheria;;quiets and soothes all pain,
invigorates tlie stomach and bowels ; corrects all
aciiiity , will cure sriping in the bowels and wind
colic. Do not fatijiiie yonrself and child with
sleepless nights, when it is within your reach to
cure your cfiild and save your own strength.

Solil by all druggists. ' Prepared only by the
Emmert Proprietary Co.. Chicago.

2E~0t Alentiun the American Bee Journal

14 RAILROADS

To carry the Goods we manufacture, to all
parts of" the country. Can cut any hive or-
dered. Langstroth improved Simplicity a
specialty. All kinds of Bee-Supplies. Bees
and Queens. Liaht and dark colored Ferrets.
Send for Price- List.

K. E. HARBAITGH,
6E5t 25th & Clav Sts.. St. JOSEPH. MO.

Mention the A.merican Bee Jo2irrml.

HATCH CHICKENS BY STEAM

WITH THE IMPROVED

EXCELSIOR INCUBATOR.

TlioiisaiMls ill Siic-
ocsst'ul Dperiitioii.

S/W/'/.A". rhliFfCT. and
SFLFRECILA TI\G.

fSiiaranteecl to hatch a
larser percentage of

fertile eggs, at less cost,

th.in any other Incubator.

Send 6c. for Illae. Catalog.

Circulars Free.

Lowest p:i>
First ol.-is
latcher nisido

GEO. H. STAHL. Pat. A Sole Mfr..«t"ii't-.v,Ill

•JEyi

JUeniiuii, Uic .-ly/ifcritu/i i>tf joui'nai.

—THE—

Fniit- Growers' Journal

Is a recog-nized authority on

Practical frult-jrrowuig:,

Market-Gardening:, and every

Branch of the business as connected

With the fruit and vegetable industry.

Its columns contain articles from the

Best Informed Gkoweks

In this country.

It is a six-column eight-page, all-around
fruit-growers' journal. It Is published semi-
monthly at $1.00 per year. Send for free
sample copj'.

A. M. Dubois,

Editor and Publisher,
4Etf COBDEN, ILLS.

1,1,
ms
ases

Pilg 5 WISE&SES M

Gives lirstaiit K-lUf ntnMII oALYli

Large *1 box will Stop your Pain vV Heal you.
Addre.is, HER!II1T KE.VEDY CO., 199 Rnnitolph St., Chicago.
2E20t Mention the American Bee JoumcA.

lEEKEEPERS' ^ ^
^ ^ IIEAD-qiARTER^

■Cheap Freight and Quick Transportation.

BEIXG located at the most central point
of railroad and express companies enables
us to furnish bee-keepers with Supplies at less
cost to themselves than any house In the
country. We furnish everything needed in
the aplarj-, as low as the lowest and as good as
the best.

COOK'S COMPLETE HIVE

Combines all the most approved methods of
lilve-maklng. It Is a complete arrangement
for out-door wintering and Is eqiaally well
adapted to producing Comb and Extracted
Honey. Send for Illustrated Circular and
Price-List.

J. H. M. COOK,

(.Successor to Kins A Aspinwall),
7S Barclay Street, NEW A OKK CITA'.

ICEot Mention the American Bee Jcumcu.

CinCAGO BEE-KEEPERS' SUPPLY CO.

X

s

AVholesnle and Retail Dealers in

Bee-Hives, Sections, & Gen'l

Supplies for Bee-Keepers

at Bottom Prices. Write for Circu-
lar to— J. B. KIiXNE, Sec'y,

Office: Topeka, Kan.

12 &14 S. Canal St..

Clitcag'o, Ills. Mention this Joaroal

as.

Eastern Supply House.

We furnish everything used in the apiary and
at bottom prices. Illustrated Circular free.
I. J. STRUT GHAM, 92 Barclay St., N. Y.

GElOt Mention the American Bee Journal.

lO DAYS FREE TRIAL

5 in yi>ur own lionie. First class Sewing
I Machines shipped anywhere to anyone at
j] wholesale prices. .-VU latest improvements.
Standard Singer Machines. U9.50 to #15.50
!oO Arlintrton Sewing Machine tor $19.50
1?60 Kenwood Sewing Machme for iHS.SO
IW.arranted for live years. Complete set of
attachments FREK " Send for catalocne
CiSU BCIiERS' TMON, 160 Vi. Van Baren St. B 118 Chicago.

2E16t Mention the American Bee JouTmal.

HONEY-QUEENS

FR0:TI Imported Mother, warranted purely
mated, after June 10th, at $1.00 each; six
at one time. $5.00. Untested Queens. 75 cents
each. Address, C. A. Ml'NOH,

lOElOt NYE, Marshall Co., TND.

Don't Monkey ""^^^^^

or Poor Goods. Send tor our
Catalogue of Bees, Qrieeus
and B. -Keepers' Supplies.

JOHN NEBEL & SON.
14Etf HIGH Hill, Mo.

READERS

or tills Journal tvbo
write to any of our
advertisers, oltlior In
ordering, or asking about the Goods
offered, ^vlll ploaso state tliat tliey saw
the Advertisement In tills paper.

GEOBGE W. TOBK, ( DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY

Editor. ) To Bee-CULTURE.

J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.
( Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, APRIL 13, 1893.

NO. 15.

Xlie M^eatlier the past few days has
been warm and pleasant, and the bees have
been improving it well. It now (April 8thj
looks like an early spring.

ICiiigliani &, Ilf^tliei-ingtoii^s Cir-
cular will be found on pages 476 and 477 of
this number of the Bee Journal. It tells
all about their excellent Bee-Smokers and
Uncapping Knife. They didn't want you
to miss seeing their Circular, hence this
editorial notice.

'I'lie St. Jo«<»e|>li Apiary Co., of

St. Joseph. Mo., have purchased the busi-
ness conducted by R. E. Harbaugh, of that
place, whose death was announced last
week. They now ask Mr. Harbaugh's cus-
tomers to patronize them, which invitation
no doubt will be accepted.

3Iiss Amanda Atcliley, the 19-

years-old daughter of Mrs. Jennie Atchley,
has just taken charge of the bee-department
in U/tcle Sani'H Live Stock Joarual. a Kansas
farm monthly. She makes a good start in
the March number, and saj-s that she will
•■ endeavor to talk upon practical, profitable
and i^leasant ways to manage bees." Suc-
cess to Miss Amanda, as well as to her
'• Ma," is our wish.

Ciileaiiiugw ibr April \Ht is a mag-
nificent number — but, then, it's just like
every issue of that journal ; except that the
April 1st copy contains two veiy much ap-
preciated editorial references to the Bee
Journal. The following is one :

G. W. York is making the old reliable
American Bee Journal fairly boom.
Every page shows that he is putting a good
deal of hard work on it, and we hope that
his subscription-list may roll up strong ; for
we have always noticed that, when any of
our rival publications are booming well, it
helps boost along (rIeaiumjH ; so you see we
are interested from a selfish point of view.

Why is it that editors of publications in
other lines fail to see this? • They look upon
a successful rival as dangerous to their own
success, and then write more like an idiot
than a responsible being. But perhaps a
point should be made here : An editor who
takes no interest in his own publication but
to get out copies of his paper filled with
" stuffing," will almost surely suffer if there
is an energetic rival in the field. He who
is jealous of a rival, confesses the weakness
of his own efforts in the journalistic line,
and he had better step down and out. Such
kind of editors are not wanted, and sooner
or later they a,TQ j/hliyedjui step^down^ and
out.

We wish to thank Bro. Root most sin-
cerely for the kind hope expressed in the
first paragraph above. We see no reason
why rival publications shouldn't work to-
gether in harmony, and their editors be the
best of friends. Only by so doing can they
all best fulfill their object or mission in life.
Truly, the success of one should but make
more easy and certain the prosperity of all.
We have often, during the past year, been
more than delighted to note the cordial and
friendly relations existing among all the
periodicals devoted to the cause of bee-
keeping. We trust such a condition may
long continue.

The other editorial refers to the biographi-

456

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

cal sketch and portrait of Miss Emma Wil-
son, which we published on page 361. Here
is what Bro. Root says about it:

A very interesting biographical sketch of
a comparatively new writer on bee-lore,
Miss Emma Wilson, appears in the Ameri-
can Bee Journal. It will be remembered
that Miss Wilson has written considerably
for the Ladies' Conversazione of Gleanings ;
and her pithy, brief articles, have, as a gen-
eral thing, contained a good deal of value,
not only to the bee-keepers of her own sex,
but to those of the sterner sort. We have
been thinking for some little time back that
our readers would like to see a picture of
her, but Bro. York has got ahead of us.
Well, we are rather glad of it, because he
has done it so well.

Xlie Apiary for April.— Mr. A. H.

Duff, in the March American Agriculhirist
gives the following advice to bee-keepers
for the month of April :

To secure the best results in honey crops,
careful management is required during this
month. All weak colonies should be united
with others. It will not pay to start with
mere handfuls of bees, as the most valuable
part of the season will be consumed in
building up such into fair colonies. After
uniting until all are fair colonies, they
should be stimulated by feeding. By this
means, only, can we get the best results.
The crop of honey depends upon the force
of bees on hand when the season opens.
This kind of feeding is merely giving each
colony, daily, a small quantity of syrup or
honey. Queens that are not defective,
when fed thus, will produce brood to the
utmost capacity.

If colonies are nearly or quite destitute
of honey, this stimulative feeding sho uld
not be -depended upon for their entire main-
tenance. They should have besides 10 or 12
pounds of sealed honey. Feeding should be
continued regularly except during the in-
tervals when bees are gathering honey from
the fields.

Until the main honey-flow sets in, great
care should be exercised not to feed so
heavily as to have any of our prepared food
enter the surplus honey -receptacles that it
may be placed upon the market for con-
sumption. Many inexperienced persons
seem to think that this feeding of bees is
for the purpose of having them store up
immense quantities of sugar syrup, which
is to be put upon the market as honey. This
is not the fact, by any means. Every api-
arist well knows that this would be a great
injury to his trade. Hence the all-impor-
tant line to be drawn between feeding for
the production of life and brood-rearing,
and feeding for " honey."

Contracting the brood-chamber will be
much help in building up colonies during
April. Division-boards may be used to ad-
just the hive to accommodate the amount
of bees therein. This economizes heat, and
more space will be occupied by brood in
managing thus.

]^eT»- IIee>IIive»« are still being pat-
ented, as is shown by the periodical issues
of the patent-office records at Washington.
One invented recently by Messrs. J. D.
Hawkins and F. M. Ray, of Texas, makes
the following ■' claims:"

1. In a bee-hive, interchangeable sections
containing comb-frames, each having bee-
entrances, and a bottom provided with bee-
passages, in combination with removable
supplemental cover composed of two parts,
and an intermediate slide or valve having
apertures or passages adapted to register '
or align with apertures or passages in said
parts of said cover, said supplemental cover
being arranged between the sections, sub-
stantially as set forth.

2. In a bee-hive, interchangeable sections
containing comb-frames, each having bee-
entrances, and a raised bottom provided
with bee-passages, in combination with a
removable supplemental cover composed of
two parts, one resting in the lower section
upon the comb-frames, and the other part
in the upper section just below its raised
bottom, and the apertured slide or valve
sliding in a slot or seat between said parts
of said cover, substantially as set forth.

3. The bee-hive, consisting of the separa-
ble sections containing comb-frames, each
having a raised bottom provided with bee-
passages, one side forming a door, 'and hav-
ing a bee-alighting platform and entrances,
and a removable supplemental cover com-
posed of two parts, one part resting in the
lower section upon the comb-frames, and
the other part in the upper section just be-
low its raised bottom, and the apertured
slide seated intermediately of the parts of
said cover, and adapted for operation, sub-
stantially as specified.

Death, with relentless on-going, has
visited the homes of two of our sub-
scribers, and took with him two loving
wives and devoted mothers. Mrs. Atchley
writes as follows about one of them :

Dr. George Mott, of Spurger, Tex. , wrote
on March 2, 1893, that on Feb. 10th he was
compelled to say good-bye to his dear wife,
who left an infant babe 3}^ months old, and
a little girl 2 years old.

Weep not, Bro. Mott. there is a day not
far distant when all good Christian people
will meet their loved ones beyond the river,
where the word " good-bye " is never heard.
May God's richest blessings and loving care
ever rest upon the motherless babes and
the bereaved father, is the prayer of a
friend. Jennie Atchley.

The other was Mrs. D. C. Wilson, of
Viola, Iowa. Mr. W. wrote as follows
about her death, on March 7th :

I have to record the loss of my wife — my
bosom friend and counselor in all things.
We had walked down life's road together
for almost 4(') yeai's, passing through some

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

457

very hard and trying places, yet we stood
together without a murmur. She was an
invalid for the last two years, suffering
from nervous prostration, finally ending
with brain trouble, which only lasted three
weeks, when she quietly passed away, leav-
ing myself and two married daughters to
mourn her loss, whilst she joins a son and
daughter in Heaven. D. C. Wilson.

We can conceive of nothing more sad
than the loss of a life companion and a
mother of children who are left to mourn
a loss that can never be replaced. May
our bereaved brothers, in their affliction,
lean upon Him who alone can" comfort
the sorrowing heart, and trust im-
plicitly for that help and strength that
comes from One who has endured all
things for our sakes. The Bee Journal
sympathizes most sincerely with our
sorrow-stricken brethren, and trusts
that they may so live that there may
some day be a blessed reunion in " the
home over there."

(i

Bees and Honey "—page 453.

Exliibits at Fairs — Mr. J. W. Tefft.
who seems to have a good deal to say about
bee-keeping, in the Anoericati Farmer, com-
ments thus upon a question about exhibits
of honey and apiarian implements at Pairs :

Secretary Jas. A. Stone, of the Illinois
Bee-Keepers' Association, asks in the
American Bee Journal, "How can ex-
hibits of honey and apiarian appliances at
Fairs be made to increase the interest in
bee-keeping, and promote the industry?'"

The answer is by separating the exhibits
thus: "The Honey -Producers" Depart-
ment." "The Queen -Breeders' Depart-
ment." "The Supply Manufacturer's De-
partment."'

Queen-breeders and manufacturers should
not exhibit honey at all. for by so doing
they discourage the honey-producers to
such an extent, that at the late New York
State Fair there was but one who had the
courage to exhibit. But the supply dealer
was there in full force, with his honey pro-
ducts and his implements. One supply
dealer took about $80 in premiums, and $10
of it was on wax, $20 on extracted honey,
$20 on comb, and $20 on bees. They were
all Inferior, and not entitled to third prize.
The judge was a manufacturer of bee-im-
plements.

Honey is a branch in bee-keeping of itself.
so is queen-rearing and manufacturing api-
arian implements. All branches of apicul-
ture derive their living from the honey-pro-
ducer, but the queen-breeder and manufac-
turer are driving him to the wall by exhib-
ting honey they never produced, but
bought to exhibit for a prize. It is all
wrong. Let the honey-producer alone in

this matter of the exhibition of honey at
State and County Fairs, or you " kill the
goose that lays the golden egg. ' '

We quite agree with Mr. TefFt, that it is
unfair for supply dealers to purchase honey
for exhibits at Fairs, to compete for prizes
or premiums with that actually produced
by the other exhibitoi's. We doubt very
much if it is done to any great extent —
surely, it would not be considered just. We
cannot imagine a farmer purchasing from
another a pumpkin or squash to place on
exhibition at even the smallest country
Fair, and claiming that it was from his own
growing! We have a better opinion of
supply dealers, than to think they would
purchase honey for exhibition purposes.

On the other hand, dealers in bee-appli-
ances, who also produce honey, certainly
have a right to exhibit samples of their
honey, if they so choose, in addition to
making a showing of supplies for the api-
ary. We see nothing unfair in that.

We know nothing about the apiarian ex-
hibit in New York, mentioned by Mr. Tefft,

but doubtless some of our readers do, who

live there.

COWVENTIO]^ DIRECTORY.

1893.

Tirae and place of meeting.

April 18.— Colorado State, at Denver, Colo.
H. Knight Sec., Littleton. Colo.

April 20.— S. W. Wisconsin, at Wauzeka, Wis.
N. E. France, Pres., Platteville, Wis

May 2.— Connecticut, at Hartford, Conn.
Mrs. W. E. Riley, Sec, Waterbury, Conn.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co., at Montrose, Pa.
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford, Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. MuUin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — Thb Editor.

Nortli American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York.. .Chicago, Ills.

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President- Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

458

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

iriRS. L.. HARRl§OX.

The subject of our sketch this week —
Mrs. L. Harrison, of Peoria, Ills. — is
perhaps the best known among the
women who write about bees. Her name
has been familiar to all our readers for
years, as well as to the thousands upon
thousands who have been permitted to
read her valuable apiarian writings in
both the Orange Judd Farmer and the
Prairie Farmer — excellent agricultural
periodicals published in Chicago.

Mrs. Harrison has for years answered
questions for our department of " Que-
ries and Replies," besides contributing
an occasional article or letter. Her pen
productions are entirely original in style,
always couched in vigorous language,
and often contain an amusing refer-
ence, which, taken all together, make
her an intensely interesting writer.

Through the kindness of the Orange
Judd Farmer, we present herewith Mrs.
Harrison's picture, and from the " Por-
trait and Biographical Album of Peoria
County, Illinois," we have taken the fol-
lowing sketch of her life :

Mrs. L. Harrison is deserving of spe-
cial mention on account of her eminent
success as a bee-keeper and a writer on
the management of the honey-producing
insects. Since 1876 she has edited the
bee-department of the Prairie Farmer,
being likewise a member of the staff of
a British apicultural journal, and for the
past four years has been the apiarian
editress of the Orange Judd Farmer. " A
B C of Bee-Culture," has this to say of
her :

" Among women no bee-keeper is more
widely known than Mrs. Lucinda Harri-
son. Born In Coshocton county, Ohio,
on Nov. 21, 1831. She came in 1836

to Peoria county, Illinois, her parents,
Alpheus Richardson and wife, being
pioneer settlers. Public schools were at
that time undeveloped, and educational
advantages few, but her parents gave
her the best to be had in private schools.
Her brother Sanford was a member of
the first class which was graduated from
Knox College, and she then spent a year
at ail academy taught by him at Gran-
ville, Ills.

" She taught school from time to time
until 1855, when she married Robert
Dodds, a prosperous farmer of Wood-
ford county, who died two years later,
leaving her a widow at twenty-five. She
was married to her present husband on
July 4, 1866."

Mrs. Harrison thus describes her en-
trance into the ranks of apiarists :

" In 1871, while perusing the reports
of the Department of Agriculture, I
came across a flowery essay on bee-cul-
ture from the graceful pen of Mrs. Ellen
S. *rupper. I caught the bee-fever so
badly that I could hardly survive until
the spring, when I purchased two colo-
nies of Italians from the late Adam
Grimm, of Jefferson, Wis. The bees
were in eight-frame Langstroth hives,
and we still continue to use hives ex-
actly similar to those then purchased.
I bought the bees without my husband's
knowledge, knowing full well that he
would forbid me if he knew it, and many
were the curtain lectures I received for
purchasing such troublesome stock. One
reason for his hostility was that I kept
continually pulling the hives to pieces
to see what the bees were at, and kept
them on the warpath.

" Our home is on three city lots, and
at the time I commenced bee-keeping
our trees and vines were just coming
into bearing, and Mr. Harrison enjoyed
very much being out among his pets,
and occasionally had an escort of scold-
ing bees.

" Meeting wijh opposition made me
all the more determined to succeed. I
never wavered in my fixed determination
to know all there was to be known about
honey-bees, and I was too inquisitive,
prying into their domestic relations,
which made them so very irritable."

It is credited to Mrs. Harrison that
she has written more than any woman
in the world on the subject of bee-keep-
ing, as opening up a new industry for
women. Her writings have been exten-
sively published not only in the United
States, but in Great Britain and on the
Continent, as well as in Australia and
the South Sea Islands. Her articles

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

459

have been translated in French, German
and Italian.

Mrs. Harrison is a strong, vigorous,
and advanced thinker, and is a believer
in the rights and privileges of v?omen.
Her contributions in literature embrace
not only articles on bee-culture, but like-
wise on horticulture. Her first writings
appeared in the Germantown Telegraph,
of Philadelphia, and Coleman's Rural
World, of St. Louis.

The perseverance of Mrs. Harrison
was rewarded, her husband's opposition
ceased, and he himself became interested
in the bees, helping to care for them,
declaring that he believed that it would
add ten years to his life. For a number
of years her apiary has contained about

100 colonies. She is prevented from
doing as much as she otherwise would,
by ill-health and family cares, for, al-
though childless, she has been a mother
to several orphan children.

She is best known as a writer, her
many contributions to the press being
marked with vigor and originality, with
a blunt candor that assures one of her
sincerity. She credits bee-keeping with
making her life more enjoyable by open-
ing up a new world, and making her
more observing of plants and flowers,
with which, we may add, her home is
quite surrounded.

Mrs. Harrison is plain and unassum-
ing in her manners, kindly and charit-
able. She says, "The way to be happy,
is to be usefully employed." She has

great energy and perseverance, with
large executive ability, and notwith-
standing her delicate health, accom-
plishes much. She has written her name
among the noble and useful ladies of
our land, who are a blessing to the com-
munity in which they live, and an honor
to their sex.

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Sawdust for Packing Hives.

Is sawdust as good as chaff for pack-
ing double-walled hives ?
Nenno, Wis. Jos. Guenther.

Answer — The testimony seems hardly
so favorable to sawdust, but some report
success with it. It must, however, be
thoroughly dry.

Putting Bees Out of the Cellar.

1. What kind of a day should it be to
put bees out of the cellar?

2. What time of day should it be done?
Conroy, Iowa. John A. Ward.

Answer — 1. A still, sunshiny day,
with the mercury at 50°, or more.

2. Early enough in the day so they
will have plenty of time for a good
flight ; any time in the forenoon, after it
is warm enough.

Flight Temperature —Dead Bees.

As I am a beginner, I would like to
make a few inquiries :

1. At what degree of temperature will
it be safe to let bees out for a flight ;
and would it be safe to let them out with
some snow on the ground, if it be warm
enough in any part of the day ?

2. I have one colony in a loose-bottom
hive, and I removed it to-day and took
out a quart of dead bees. This was a
very strong colony. Will the loss be
much of an injury to the colony ?

3. The rest of my hives all have tight
bottoms ; can I do any more than to
clear the entrance as best I can of the

460

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

dead bees ? I know there are a good
many in the others. I think I shall do
away with the tight bottom-board hives.

E. H. Hallett.
St. Johnsbury Center, Vt.

Answers. — 1. The exact degree of
temperature is not the only, and perhaps
not the best test as to the time to have
bees out for a flight. At 50° it is gen-
erally safe, but there is a big difference
between a cloudy, windy day and a still,
sunshiny day. With no wind and bright
sunshine, 50° or higher is quite safe.
With snow on the ground, it would be
safer to have it warmer, but a little old,
well-packed snow need not be much con-
sidered.

2. If that quart of dead bees consti-
tuted the entire loss for the winter, it
might not be more than the bees that
ought to die from old age in a very
strong colony. Still, that is a pretty
heavy loss.

3. With a piece of strap-iron, you can
rake out all the dead bees, or nearly so,
by taking time enough.

Thumb-Screws and their Use.

Please to insert this in the question-
box for next issue, if possible.

I want to lay aside the follower board
and wedge for pressing the sections in
supers, and use the thumb-screws in
place of them. Would I be infringing
on any patent ? Are any of your cor-
respondents using them ?

SUBSCKIBEB.

Answer — As we have already ex-
plained, it is impossible to get a question
into the question-box to be regularly
answered by the corps of experts, and
have the answer appear within a week.
It generally requires a number of weeks.
In the present instance, however, it is
hardly necessary to submit the question
to them, for we feel pretty sure there is
no patent on thumb-screws. Although
we do not positively know, we presume
thumb-screws, in some shape, are in use
by some of our correspondents.

Bemoving Dead Bees from Combs,Etc.

1. Which is the. easiest way of getting
bees out of cells where they have died in
the hive ?

2. Is honey good to feed back to bees,
taken out of a hive where the bees have
died from diarrhea, which is capped over,
or not capped over ? If not, what Is best
to do with It ?

3. The combs in the hives where bees
have died are very dirty, and smell
badly ; will they be of any use ? Can
they be cleansed for future use, or would
I better render them into wax ?

Bethesda, Ont. D. W. Heise.

Answer — 1. If your time is worth
nothing, pull them out with a crochet-
hook. Some have had success letting
mice dig them out. Perhaps the best
plan is to leave them for the bees to get
out. It may help the bees to have the
combs pretty well dried.

2. The honey is all right to feed.

3. If there is nothing wrong with the
combs except being dirty, don't think of
melting them up. You might scrape off
some of the worst daubed parts, then
give the frames, one or two at a time, to
strong colonies, and you will be sur-
prised to see what a nice job they will
make cleaning them up.

Keep the Cellar Dark.

I have 18 colonies of bees in a cellar,
nice and dry, with two windows at the
east end, so as to make the cellar light.
The hives are all covered with quilts.
Some of the bees come out and go to the
window and die. Do you think that
more than would naturally die, would go
to the window and I thereby suffer loss ?

J. B. Ressler.

Answer — If everything is just right,
and bees in best condition, light may
make no difference ; but it is safe to say
that at least some of the time all the
conditions will not be most favorable,
hence it is equally safe to say that you
will lessen your loss of bees by keeping
them in darkness.

Alley's Queen-R-earing: book,
or "Thirty Years Among the Bees,"
gives the result of over a quarter-cen-
tury's experience in rearing queen-bees,
and describing the practical, every-day
work. By Henry Alley. It contains an
"Appendix," showing the improvements
made in queen-rearing the last four
years. Very latest work of the kind.
Nearly 100 pages, with illustrations.
Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.30.

Read our great offer on page 453.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

461

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

In-Breeding of Bees.

Mrs. Atchley, will you please tell us
what you know of In-breeding of bees?
What difference it makes, and how long
does it take to tell the difference, if any?

Sage, Calif. C. S. Lewis.

Friend Lewis, you have struck me at
a weak place, and I must say I don't
know. Whether God intended that in-
breeding of the insect tribes should or
should not make a difference, is a point
I am stalled on. I do know that it makes
a vast difference In the animal creation,
and that retrograding begins just as
soon as in-breeding starts. It is said
that it holds good Tvith bees, but when
these sayings get started they go ahead,
right or wrong. I always try to keep
down in-breeding as far as possible, as
there might be something in it. I know
of about 30 colonies of black bees in
box-hives, that have been kept for 15
years, at least, 10 miles from any other
bees, and they started from one colony ;
and they are the most hardy, best honey
gatherers, and do the best of any bees
of their race that I know of. So you see
I say I don't know.

Some Hints on Transferring Bees.

I am pleased to see the ladies taking
up the bee-question, and proud to see
that at least some of them are getting to
the front, ahead of many of the sterner
sex. Being myself a bee-keeper for the
last 20 years, and having spoken
through the Bee Journal many times
before, giving and taking good, solid
blows, but always good naturedly, and
to the end, that we may all be benefited,
I would like to make a few suggestions,
or possibly corrections, about Lesson
No. 1, of " Our School in Bee-Keeping,"
about transferring bees, on page 204.

1st. I would not use a dipper to re-
move the bees to the new hive, as it
must kill or maim some of them, and
make the colony cross. I take a dish-
pan and turkey wing, and brush the
bees into the pan, then pour them in the
new hive, making a more complete trans-
fer, and have them out of the way.

2nd. I would not lay the combs on the
frames to cut and fit, but would lay the
combs on the board, then lay the frame
on the comb, and cut with a sharp, thin
knife, on the inside of the frame, and
thereby have a smooth, exact-fitting
comb, that will just go into the frame.

Remove the trimmings, then place two
strips of wood for cleats, across the
comb, extending just above and below
the frame. Place the other board on
top, and turn all over, remove the upper
board, and place two more cleats op-
posite those already there, and in place
of nailing them to the frame, tie the
upper and lower ends of the cleats with
twine, and place all in the new hive.

When they have been there a few
days, gently lift the frames out, one at
a time, cut the upper string, and the
cleats will be easily removed, without
prying or jarring, as would be the case
if nailed, and the brood under the cleats
will hatch out, or be removed after the
cleats are taken off.

With kind intentions, and a desire to
see the ABC class prosper, I am, their
friend. C. F. Greening.

Orange Park, Fla.

Age When Virgin Queens Mate.

On page 916 of Gleanings for Dec. 15,
1892, Mr. Wilder Graham says that a
queen must mate in 21 days, or she
never mates. Will Mr. Graham please
excuse me, when I say that he is wrong
again ? Now just listen, and I will show
where he is mistaken, and I will tell
just when a queen is past being impreg-
nated.

First I will say, that a good many
years ago, when I noticed a good deal
said on this subject, it put me to exper-
imenting. I have reared queens in No-
vember, kept them till the next March,
and had them mate and lay all right ;
and it was not only one queen, or two,
but, I think it will be safe to say I have
had a hundred, so treated; and all of
them, with a few exceptions, have proved
to winter over as virgins, and then mate
in the spring, and be just as good as any
of the rest. These queens were never
allowed to fly at all, as an excluder was

462

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

placed over their hives before they
hatched, and remained there till spring.
Right here I will relate a lesson that I
learned in these operations, that I prob-
ably never would have learned any other
way. Now listen closely.

I noticed that every single queen that
became stimulated for egg-laying never
became impregnated, but was always a
drone-layer ; and every one that retained
her virgin size, and did not partake of
any food to stimulate her, went right
through, and became mated in the
spring, and laid right off and made a
good queen.

Some virgins became stimulated for
egg-laying much younger than others;
and I now see that whenever any virgin
queen is brought up and stimulated by
the bees, or by partaking of a sufficient
quantity of the food that prepares her
for egg-laying, she is never fertilized.
So I now firmly believe that a queen is
rendered incapable of becoming fertil-
ized, or else she never cares to fly for
that purpose, and I would not be sur-
prised if it ruined her forever, to begin
laying before she is ready, or before she
is impregnated.

My idea about when a queen is too old
to be fertilized is, when she partakes of
the stimulations that cause her begin to
lay. Some well-developed virgin queens
will become stimulated right in mid-sum-
mer, before they are mated, hence drone-
layers. Some young queens will lay
drone-eggs for awhile when they first
begin to lay, and then lay worker-eggs
right along; but, mind you, these queens
were mated before they began to lay.
Only made a mistake, or the stimulation
from the male had not thoroughly devel-
oped at the time when she was ready to
lay. One of these two reasons is apt to
be the cause of her laying drone-eggs
first.

This little bit of experience of mine
causes me to say that I think a second
mating of a queen is one of the impossi-
bilities in beedom. J. A.

Bees in Southern California — Skunks.

Our location resembles the one so well
described by Mr. Wilder, on page 20 of
Gleanings for Jan. 1st, only 1 have not
tongue to tell its beauties. Near the
north end of the valley is a huge rock
with a crevice through the center, which
has for years contained a swarm of bees ;
they were so situated that it was impos-
sible to get at the cluster. Last season
I determined to put them into hives.

I closed up all entrance to the crevice
by filling up with old sacks, sage-brush,
or anything that came handy, except
one place over which I put a wire cone
three feet long with only a bee-space in
the top. At the base of the cone I
placed a hive with a frame of brood in
it, and I soon had a fine swarm in the
hive. Every few days I changed the
hive for an empty one, until I had, by
furnishing each hive with brood for a
queen, nine good colonies from that
rock.

What bees were left with their old
queen absconded. As soon as I had bees
enough for a swarm in a hive, I placed
it near the base of the rock, sheltered it
from the sun, and left them to rear their
queen and build up for winter. They
were doing finely when there appeared
on the scene his royal highness, the
skunk, attended by a long and numer-
ous train of relatives. The way I out-
generaled him is what I wish to relate.

In front of each hive I put stones
about the size of a man's fist, in such a
position that the bees could enter be-
tween the stones. The next tier was
placed on top of the first, so as to make
break joints just as our grandfathers
used to stone up a well in the old coun-
try. We used plenty of stones, bunches
of cactus, and everything of that nature
that came to hand. When his skunk-
ship knocks for admission, the bees start
to come out, and meeting the cold air
and stones, turn back before the skunk
can reach them. I have tried the rock
act not only on the bees I spoke of, but
also on the bees of a neighbor which
were unfortunate enough to be left in
my care, and it worked like a charm.
The skunks soon grew discouraged and
and left for apiaries where they don't
use rocks.

In the house-aplary and home yard
the steel trap is always " on tap " along
the line of entrance, and I often find
them occupied not only by skunks but
badgers, wild cats, mountain cats, squir-
rels, and even lizards. We have one
variety of lizard — a big, black fellow,
with bright stripes, that will soon (if
left alone) clean up a colony of bees.
Those I dispose of with a little 22 tar-
get-gun. For the skunk I use the shot-
gun. John Collins.

Elsinore, Calif.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journal we mail for
only 50 cents ; or clubbed with th«
Journal for $1.40.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

463

Filtering Darii Honey to Im-
prove Its Color.

Query 866.— 1. Has there ever been any
attempt made to filter the darker grades of
extracted honey through bone carbon, to im-
prove its color? 2. From an experiment I
made, I think the temperature has to be about
140". Will that hurt the flavor of the honey ?
— Penn.

I don't know. — J. E. Pond.

I should think not. — Mrs. L. Harri-
son.

I have never tried it, so I cannot tell.
— H. D. Cutting.

1. Not that I know of. 2. I should
think not. — R. L. Taylor.

1. None that I have heard of. 2. Do
not know. — Jas. A. Stone.

You know considerably more about
this than I do. — Will M. Barnum.

1. I never heard of it. 2. Perhaps
not, but you can tell by trying. — C. C.
Miller.

1. I don't know. 2. I don't think it
would, if not kept hot too long. — E.
France.

1. Yes. It is not practical, I think.
2. It must be done very carefully, or it
will.— P. H. Elwood.

1. I do not know. 2. A temperature
of 1400 ought not to injure the flavor of
honey. — Eugene Secor.

1. I have never heard of attempts to
filter dark grades of extracted honey. 2.
140° will not injure the flavor. — G. L.
Tinker.

1. I never heard of any. 2. It is
claimed that a temperature above 120^
will injure the flavor. — Mrs. J. N.
Heater.

1. No attempt on a scale to amount
to anything. 2. I should think the
flavor of the honey would be impaired. —
J. P. H. Brown.

1. I think filtering would not take the
rank flavor, and would be too expensive
in practice even if it worked well. I
have not tried it. 2. I do not think it
would harm honey to raise it to 140°,
Pahr. — A. J. Cook.

1. This is something I am not familiar
with. 2. One hundred and forty de-
grees of "heat will not injure the flavor
of honey. — G. M. Doolittle.

1. Not that I am aware of. 2. No,
not under ordinary conditions. Your
ideals, I believe, worth testing. I would
like to do it myself.— J. H. Larrabee.

1. I have had no experience in that
line. 2. Honey remaining at or above
the boiling point long injures both color
and flavor, for me. — Mrs. Jennie Atoh-

LEY.

1. I have no experience, and have
never heard of such experiments. 2. I
do not think that a temperature of 140°
would hurt the flavor of honey.— C. H.

DiBBERN.

1. I have no knowledge of any at-
tempt of the kind. 2. I think a tem-
perature of 140° will injure the flavor
of honey. I will take my dark honey as
it is. — M. Mahin.

1. I do not know. 2. I don't think
this degree of heat would injure honey.
Some varieties of haney are much more
susceptible to injury from overheating
than others. — James A. Green.

1. I have never tried it, but I think I
should prefer to sell the dark grades as
they are, rather than attempt to filter
them. 2. All heating has a tendency to
destroy the aroma. — S. I. Freeborn.

1. Not that I know of. This kind of
"fooling" never pays. 2. If properly
done, honey can be heated to a much
higher temperature than 140°, and not
be injured. An inexperienced person,
however, can easily spoil a fine lot of
honey by heating it.— Emerson T. Ab-
bott.

1. We have thought many times that
this might be tried on honey-dew, but
have never tried it. Its color, much
more than its taste, makes honey-dew
objectionable. 2. We do not think 140°
would hurt the flavor of honey, and we
would very much like to hear of experi-
ments made on this matter. — Dadant &
Son.

1. I don't know. In my locality the
trouble is not the " color," if the flavor Is
right. Too often our fall honey is strong
and "twangy." Filtering would not
cure this. 2. A temperature of 140°
will not injure fall honey, if the applica-
tion of the heat is not too direct. Often
we Improve our strong fall honey for
table use by heating it to the steam
point, and removing the "skim" as
often as it rises. Some falls we have
splendid dark honey, and my customers
do not object to the color, if the taste is
perfect. — G. W. Demaree.

464

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Report or Hie lii<iiana Slate
Kee-lieeperN' 4Joii vent ion.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY WALTEK S. I'OUDEK.

(Continued from pagro 432.)

Remarks on the Paddock Pure Food

Bill.

Pres. Rtissoll — There Is now a Bill In
CongroHs to bo adopted, probably this
Legislature, called the " Paddock Pure
Food liill." It institutes a penalty for
any on«^ adulterating pure food of any
kind. Now, my friends, we want to
raise our voices in favor of the passage
of this Bill. I believe it is the duty of
all bee-keepers to do so, and to lend all
the aid they can in this direction. It is
of great importance to us that this Bill
should bo passed. I would like to hear
the opinions of those present on this
subject.

Dr. J. M. Hicks, of Indianapolis — In
relation to this Pure Food Bill, I want
to say that about one year ago I was re-
quested by a gentleman in the city of
Cincinnati, to write a special letter to
our Repre.sentatlvo in Congress, setting
forth our wishes in behalf of this Pure
Food Bill, believing that this was the
only way in which we could accomplish
anything. I wrote this letter, making
it as urgent as possible in the interests
of the lioney-producers, but got no re-
ply, the reason of which I could not
assign, except that it being the time of
the political contest, his attention was
otherwise engaged. However, my opin-
ion is that the only way in which we can
get this Bill passed is for the people to
teem in letters, stating their wishes in
regard to it. For my part, I am in favor
of this Bill being passed, and also that
the law should bo a stringent one to
protect ail kinds of food, as well as
honey. I know that we have had many
impositions practiced upon us in our
department — that of the honey-producers
of the State. I have in a groat measure
becon\e rather cold, losing my interest
somewhat In the care of bees, but, as

you all know, I once stood ameng those
who were at the top in handling bees
and their products in the West. It has
certainly taken a good deal of the starch
out of me to know that our voices can-
not be heard in regard to this Pure Food
Bill.

Mr. Thompson — it is my opinion in
regard to this Bill that a larger part of
the people of the United States will not
want to see that Bill passed. Do you
know, that the large manufacturers of
butterine and oleomargarine will bo
against its passage? Do you know that
many other large firms, daily manufac-
turing adulterated food of all kinds, will
be against It ? What can we do against
these people who can stand many thou-
sands of dollars to prevent its passage,
while wo cannot stand five hundred dol-
lars for It ? I think the only thing we
can do is for us to pass resolutions here,
and send them to our Representatives in
Congress, and let them do what they can
for us.

C. F. Muth — Well, gentlemen, I sup-
pose it is pretty well understood that we
are all in favor of the passage of this
Pure Food Bill, and I now make a mo-
tion that we send resolutions to our
Congressman, asking hira to do what he
can for us, and to use all the influence
possible.

A motion prevailed, and the following
was unanimously adopted :

WiiKUEAS, It is of the greatest Impor-
tance that tlie interests of the honey-
producers of the State of Indiana be
protected ; therefore.

Resolved, That the Indiana bee-keep-
ers, in convention assembled, do pray
our Representatives in Congress to use
their influence and votes in having the
Bill known as the " Paddock Pure Food
Bill," passed at this session of Congress.

Mr. Muth— I am very sure that all the
adulterated honey that we can find in
this part of the country does not amount
to a "row of pins." The adulterations
have boon carried on chiefly and very
largely in the eastern cities, such as New
York, Philadelphia, and others ; but I
don't suppose that there has been a bar-
rel of honey adulterated in either In-
dianapolis or Cincinnati. As a dealer, I
know that oftentimes a customer would
say that I had sold him adulterated
honey. I would immediately tell him to
have it analyzed, and if ho found it adul-
terated, I would pay him for his trouble,
and give him $100 besides. This gen-
erally satisfied his doubts.

One time, shortly after Prof. Wiley
had been hero and advanced some of his
'* scientific pleasantries," I had just got-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

465

ten from Nevada a car-load of honoy,
and a half load from somo other State.
Thosp two lots of honey were the finest
that I had ever soon. There wasn't a
broken comb in it, and it looked like
alfalfa standard comb honey. It had
the flavor of red clover honey, and was
as white and clear as the white clover
and basswood. Well, I sent ten cases of
this honey to Norwalk, I believe, and I
soon received word that it was adulter-
ated ; that the customer had intended
buying the pure lioney, and not any
adulterated stuff. I wrote him in re-
turn that it t«(is pure honey, for him to
have it analyzed, and if it wasn't, I
would give him $100. The result was
that he afterwards bought two or three
lots more of the same kind of honey.
Many will say to me, "You can't raise
so much honey ; it is adulterated ; bees
cannot make so much." We bee-keepers
know better, and it rests with us to con-
vince our customers that the honoy we
sell is all pure.

Mr. Kaab — I have been selling ex-
tracted honey for a good many years,
and I used to put it in stone jars, as
there were no glass ones at that time.
Well, after a while, it would granulate.
I remember one lady who bought somo
of me, told me that it was adulterated;
that it was not pure honoy, because it
had gone to sugar. I told her that she
was very greatly mistaken, for that was
a sign that it was pure, and that I
always liked to have honoy granulate.
This shows about how much some peo-
ple know about honoy.

Pres. Russell — The next important
question before us is in relation to our
World's Fair exhibit for this State. You
will remember that it was decided in our
meeting last ytfar that we should make
an exhibit there, and so if we are to
make it, I think now is the time for us
to ask for an appropriation. Still
another important question is the revi-
sion of our premium list. But perhaps
it would be wise for us to defer these
two important matters until to-morrow,
when we shall probably have more mem-
bers present, and shall be able to get
opinions in full.

(Continued next week.)

Capons and Caponizingf, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 80 cents ; or (;lubbed
with Bkk Jouknaj, one year, for $1.10.

Wlieii <tiieen-Excluding: Honoy-
Boards arc IVcedcd.

Written Jor the American Bee Jownal

BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

Last Doi^ember, when I contributed
an article to the Bee Jouunal, detailing
my experience in hiving swarms on
foundation starters only in the brood-
nest, I closed with these words :

It was the result of these experiments
that led to tlio publication of luy little book
on "The Production of Conili Honey."
Tliree thousand copies of the hook were
sold, and I would be glad if the purchasers
of that book would tell where I am at fault,
if 1 am at fault.

Soon after the appearance of the
number of the Bee Jouknal containing
that article, Mr. II. R. Boardraan, of 10.
Townsend, Ohio, who has had much ex-
perience in the line of hiving swarms
without foundation, wrote me a letter
showing where he thought I was in
error. Noticing from time to time that
the columns of the Bee Jouunal were
crowded, I have delayed writing further
on the subject. Here is what Mr. Board-
man wrote :

FiiiENi) IIiiTcumsoN:— You are certainly
in error when you say it will bo necessary
to use <(iieen-excluders iu hiving new
swarms on eni])ty frames with only starters.
I have never used a queen-excluder, uor have
I imy M.W for t/imi ; I regard them as oidy
another accuimulatiou of worse than worth-
less fixtures. I have hived hundreds of
swarms upon empty frames with only
starters. This has been ray usual practice
for years.

It is an excmiuiijly ran: occnrmirp, for the
queen to go into the sections, and if man-
aged jtroperly, I doubt if nhe, ii<rr (/ixs into
thctii.. When a ijueen once begins laying,
disturt) lier as much as you will, and she
will return to the brood-nest she left. This
is the rule. If undisturbed, she will not
leave the combs when she has commenced
laying.

I have numy times, by way of experi-
ment, shook out the bees togetlier with the
queen, after she had begun laying, into the

466

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

sections, and I would be sure a short time
afterwards to find her at home in the brood-
nest, as intently attending to her domestic
duties as if nothing had happened. It all
devolves upon having the queen begin lay-
ing before the surplus department is
changed to the new swarm.

I have had a good deal of experience not
only in hiving natural swarms in this way,
but also in drumming and shaking out
swarms upon empty frames, and buUding
up with feed after the season was over.

I have done more or less of this experi-
mental work every year for a good many
years ; I say this only that you may know
that it is not theory I am giving you.

I use a deep hive which might seem to
make some difference, but I very much
doubt if it does.

I usually change the sections over on to
the new swarm if the bees are building
comb 24 hours after the swarm was hived.

H. R. BOARDMAN.

T agree with Mr. Boardman in every
particular. There is one point in his
management that differs from mine,
and that explains why I need excluders
and he does not. I transfer the supers
to the newly-hived swarm immediately
upon its being hived, and often in 20
minutes have the same bees back in the
supers at work again with that energy
that comes only from a newly-hived
swarm. Mr. Boardman says, and says
truly, that where a queen begins laying,
there she will continue, and in the same
way I have been led to believe that
where the bees begin storing their
honey, there will they continue to store
it. For this reason I wished them to put
their first-gathered honey in the supers.

If supers are at once trans/erred to
the new hive, the bees will remove the
honey from some cells in the sections
that are the farthest from completion,
and the queen will occupy them. As
many cells as the bees can empty, she
will fill. After comb-building has pro-
gressed somewhat in the brood-nest, she
will likely go down there, but not until
the majority of the unsealed sections
have a patch of brood in their centers.
As Mr. Boardman says, I have experi-
mented in this direction until I know
what I am talking about. If one or two
combs are placed in the brood-nest at
the time of hiving the swarm, the queen
will begin work in them, and a queen-
excluder is not needed. This I know
from experience.

When I hive bees in the production of
comb honey, I contract the brood-nest,
that the choicest of the crop may not be
stored in a large brood-nest instead of
the sections. When the brood-nest is
contracted, the supers are needed to give
the swarm room. If they are crowded

too much they are likely to swarm out.
Of course, room might be given them
until the supers were added. I do not
know whether Mr. Boardman practices
contraction.

If there is no loss occasioned by al-
lowing the bees to work for a day or two
in the brood-nest, and then giving them
the sections, if a sufficient start can be
secured in the brood-nest to retain the
queen, if this can be done without any
danger of swarming-out, unless there is
considerable manipulation, then I see no
use for queen-excluders in comb honey
production.

I shall be glad to know if Mr. Board-
man, or any one, has experimented suf-
ficiently to know whether anything is
lost by keeping the bees of a newly-
hived swarm out of the sections for a
day or two. If there is no loss, and too
much manipulation is not needed to pre-
vent swarming-out when contraction is
practiced, then, as I have just said, ex-
cluders are not needed.

I do not know as there is anything
objectionable in an excluder, aside from
its cost, and as a honey-board is needed
any way, the extra expense needed to
make it queen-excluding is not very
great. I certainly should not wish to
do any great amount of manipulation to
save this expense.

Flint, Mich.

Alsike Clover — Its Value for
Fodder and Bee-Forage.

Written lor the American Bee Journal

BY L. F. ABBOTT.

The inquiry regarding Alsike clover,
on page 396, prompts me to write a
few words regarding Its cultivation and
value.

Unlike most other clovers, Alsike is a
perennial plant, partaking in this par-
ticular of the nature of the white or
Dutch variety, it being asserted that Al-
sike is a cross of the Dutch and red or
peavine clovers, hence its technical
name, Trifolium hybridum.

Having had some experience in grow-
ing this clover, I can heartily recom-
mend it, both as a fodder plant and for
becrforage. Generally speaking, it will
not yield so large a crop of hay as the
larger variety, yet its value in this direc-
tion is fully equal when sown on soil
adapted to its growth. This is by rea-
son of its finer stem and branching
quality, and profuse bloom. Cut for hay
when its blossoms have begun to brown»

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

46T

it makes readily in a day's sun, and
affords the most elegant fodder for both
dairy cows and sheep. These classes of
stock particularly, for its nitrogenous
qualities, hence, a valuable milk-pro-
ducer, and valuable on that account for
breeding ewes.

As it remains in bloom a long time,
and its blossoms are readily accessible
to bees, to secure its wealth of nectar
which it secretes in fine, warm weather,
it becomes at once one of the most val-
uable plants farmers and bee-keepers,
who have land at their disposal, can
grow.

The quality of the honey it produces
is little if any inferior to that gathered

ALSIKE CLOVER.

from the white clover ; in fact, I have
frequently seen persons who preferred
the former to the latter. Alsike clover
honey has a slight amber tint in distinc-
tion from white clover nectar, and ex-
perts claim to detect a faint taste like
basswood honey ; neither any disparage-
ment to the product of Alsike clover.

All soils are not adapted to the growth
of Alsike clover. It is hardly worth
while to sow it upon dry or sandy soils.
A clay loam ; a tenacious but not wet
soil containing considerable humus or
vegetable matter, is adapted to the
growth of this clover,
moist to grow oats to
be found adapted to
dry soils but little of

seen after the second year. Its roots do
not penetrate the soil like the tap-root
of the larger varieties of clover, but
spread out nearer the surface.

In seeding for hay, it is usual to sow
six pounds of Alsike clover, a peck of
herdsgrass (timothy) and a bushel of
red-top seed, per acre. But for bee-pas-
turage, eight or ten pounds of the clover
would not be too much, with less of the
other varieties ; or even twelve pounds
of Alsike seed per acre with no grass-
seed mixed with it. It should be borne
in mind that Alsike clover seed is but
little more than half as large as the seed
of the red variety, hence much less seed
will suflBce to stock the ground.

I think that many make the mistake
of sowing the fine seeds of grass with
grain, and harrow all into the ground
together; while giving the grain the
right depth of covering of soil, the
fine seeds of the clover and grasses
are covered too deeply, and many never
germinate at all. The preferable way
is to harrow or drill in the grain, and
follow with the clover and grass-seed,
broad-casting it, covering with a brush
harrow, or better still, a moderately
heavy roller. This gives a smooth, even
surface for the reaper and mower, com-
pacts the soil, and gives just the right
covering for the fine seeds of grass and
clover.

Lewiston, Maine.

That Sting-Trowel Theory
Land of Dzierzon.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY DR. C. C. MILLER.

Any soil not too

a good yield, will

Alsike. But on

the clover will be

Are you sure "the intelligent composi-
tor " hasn't been taking liberties with
Prof. Clarke's note on page 330? Does
he really mean that the difference in the
flavor of buckwheat and clover honey
comes from the poison of the sting ? If
there is no misprint in the affair, then it
seems that Prof. Clarke goes a step
farther now than he did, for in his book
I find nothing as to flavor from formic
acid, unless it be elsewhere than on
pages 48 and 60. And isn't it a further
step to say that the bees smear formic
acid on the cappings ?

Bro. Clarke, in the name of all that
some of us old fogies hold dear in the
way of tradition, are you going still
farther ? Will you next tell us of some
further duty of the sting ? Allow me to
say in all candor, that it seems to me
that it is due to yourself and to the

468

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

fraternity, to give some proof of what
you call facts, if you have any.

Six or eight years, I think, have
passed since you published as a fact that
bees smooth and polish the surface of
their cappings with their stings. I think
you have never furnished a word of
proof for what you say is a fact. The
case would be a little different if you had
said that you had seen the bees using
their stings as trowels. I think you
have never said that you had seen any-
thing of the kind. I think no one has
ever pretended to see anything of the
kind, although the work of finishing up
cells is not a hard thing to see any sum-
mer. Will it be asking too much for me
to ask that you will kindly tell us how
you know it is a fact, that the sting is
used as a trowel ?

NEWS FROM

THE LAND OF DZIERZON.

I am glad to see so well-informed a
correspondent from the "land of Dzier-
zon" taking a place in the columns of
" the old reliable." He has for a long
time conducted an exceedingly interest-
ing department in that excellent German
bee-journal, the Centralblatt, giving a
condensed extract of wisdom from all
sources.

I wonder if there is any danger of get-
ting his " Dutch up," if I enter a very
mild protest against one of his state-
ments. On page 330 he speaks of the
Metzger theory as a " fact." Would it
not be better to call it a theory until
opposition to it has been somewhat
silenced ? The great Dzierzon called his
belief a "theory" even after it was well
established in the minds of the majority
of intelligent bee-keepers. Still, I'll not
be too particular about the names he
uses, if he'll only keep us well posted as
to what is going on in the "Fatherland."

Marengo, Ills.

i^-»-

The «« Namelesi Bee-Di§ea§e " in
California.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY FRED M. HART.

I have never seen anything that an-
swered so closely to the description of the
disease of my bees as the one on pages
141 and 142. Below I will try to tell
how my sick bees turned out, after what
I wrote on July 21st, and was published
on Aug. 11, 1892.

On July 24th they stopped dying all
at once. I gave them the medicine I
spoke of at that time, by taking a broom
and sprinkling the liquid all over the

bees, comb, brood, and everywhere Inside
of the hive. I can't tell whether It did
any good or not. I have 165 colonies at
the home apiary, and in June and to
July 20th, I took out every two weeks
3,800 pounds of extracted honey, and
when about 50 colonies took sick be-
tween the 21st to the 24th, they stop-
ped gathering honey, but the rest gath-
ered about the same amount of honey in
the next two weeks, or two months, as
they had before July 21st. Those that
were sick July 21st lost more than those
that were taken sick on July 22nd or
23rd, but they stopped dying about the
same time; but not one colony died out
entirely.

Some colonies with queens hatched in
May, died, while others with queens a
year old, did not die. Some of those
colonies built themselves up ; others I
helped either by giving them a laying
queen or hatching brood.

I have noticed that it is seldom that a
colony of blacks are bothered, while any
colony that shows a trace of yellow, will
take the disease, and a very strong col-
ony is apt to show the disease first.
When they are afflicted, they die faster
in the night than any other time, so in
the morning the colony has the appear-
ance of having been robbed, or of a col-
ony having lost its queen while swarm-
ing.

When they first took the disease, I
noticed about a dozen bees in front of
the hive dead, and some more that had
crawled up in front of the hive were
trembling, weak, and discouraged; others
with abdomens swollen, and when I
touched them they raised their heads
and then fell to the ground. The next
morning much worse, probably a pint of
dead bees would be in front of the hive.
The whole colony would be out of order.

When the first day they had brought
in 3 pounds of honey, the second day
they did not bring in anything, the third
day the same, and the fourth day stop-
ped dying, I opened the hive, and could
notice a peculiar sour smell. The colony
would be very weak, with more young
bees in the hive than anything else ; the
brood all out of order, and in two,
three or four days I would see the bees
dragging out larvae. The eggs were all
right.

Another thing, if the disease should
strike the apiary in two or three weeks,
these colonies are just as apt to take it
as any others in the apiary, and have
several spells during the season, and
then go into winter, and I will not see
anything wrong in November, Decem-
ber or January. On Feb. 8th I had 9

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

469

colonies that were dying very slowly,
and it is much earlier than any year yet
for them to commence. I have noticed
that when the bees are bothered with
the disease in February, March or April,
it is much more disastrous than during
the hot weather. I lay it to the fact
that bees are more apt to rob in those
months than later in the season, and I
think that it might often be called
" spring dwindling," as the queens are
much more apt to die than in July,
August and September, though those
are the months that the disease shows
itself here in my own locality.

The hairless, black and shiny bees are
most plentiful in the spring. In the
summer, to look first at the pile of dead
on the ground, at first sight they look as
though they had starved, but on looking
into the hive it will be found full of
honey.

The first that I saw of this disease
was in the summer of 1883. I pur-
chased several Italian queens, and be-
gan to Italianize, and at various times
since I have purchased colonies varying
in number from 10 or 15 to 75 or 100,
and invariably this disease would show
itself more furiously than in other years
when I did not make a purchase, but at
the same time I can't say that excited it.

During all these years my neighbors
have been bothered with what I supposed
to be the same disease in this county,
and in Kern county, and at San Jose
(this State). Often times they thought
their bees were being poisoned, so I kept
still, thinking that way was the best to
catch the guilty parties. Last year it
showed more than ever, as many as 50
colonies in a single apiary.

In extracting, to take the combs out
of a sick colony, extract the honey and
place the combs into a strong colony, it
will not create the disease, as I have
several colonies that I have placed the
combs in, and they have not had the
disease.

My colonies are in rows, 33^ feet from
center to center, and the rows are 8
apart. The disease will be in hive, and
both sides of that one will stand hives
that will be all right, and have never
been bothered. It doesn't appear to
make any difference whether the hive is
an old, rickety one, or a nice, well-made
hive ; but the disease will take hold of a
great many colonies in a single day, and
in some localities it is much worse than
in others. In writing this it is with the
hope that my superiors will gain some-
thing, if not any more than to see how
the disease appears in different localities.

Traver, Calif.

Some Experiences or a Bei;inner
in Bee*Keeping;.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY T. HOLLINGSWOBTH.

I began to keep bees last spring with
one colony, and got 50 pounds of honey.
They did not swarm, as I know of, and
the hive was so full of bees and honey
that I divided them on Aug. 25th, and
made another colony, taking about one-
half of the bees and combs and the
queen for the new colony, which I put
on another stand. In 14 days the first
colony had a new queen, and a few days
after that I looked again, but could see
no eggs, and the brood-frames were so
full of honey that I took a sealed comb
out and put an empty frame in the cen-
ter of the brood-nest. After a few days
I found they had the comb partly built
in the empty frame, and there were eggs
in it, so I saw they had a laying queen,
and did not bother them any more until
I fixed them for winter.

The colony I put on the new stand,
with the old queen, did not seem to be
very strong ; I think the queen must
have been quite old, and a great many
of the bees went back to the old stand,
and I had such a time with robbers !
Most of the time I had to contract the
entrance to 2 inches, and then I was
afraid I would smother them.

About the end of September I was
watching them, when I saw a queen
come out of the entrance ; she flew about
the entrance for a moment, and then
flew away. I did not know what to
think of it, for that was the hive the old
queen was in, but I watched, and in a
few minutes she came back and went
into the hive again. I made up my
mind I would see about it, and so opened
the hive and found two queens in it, and
one of them had something white at-
tached to it. I supposed it was the ap-
pendages of a drone, and that it was a
young queen they had reared to help her
old mother, and that she had been on
her wedding flight.

I looked into the hive in several weeks
afterward, and the two queens were still
there, but the swarm was weak, and I
still had lots of trouble with robber bees
at that hive. On Nov. 1st I put an out-
side case over the hives with a space of
about 2 inches on all sides filled with
excelsior packing, having a space be-
tween the packing and the hive of about
3 inches. On Nov. 4th it was getting
colder, so I put a 5-inch super on the
hives. (The box was high enough to

470

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

cover that also, and enough higher so
that chaff could be put on top of the
super.) I also put a Hill's "device " (of
my own make) on top of the frames,
and then a chaff cushion on that ; then
put on the super cover, and filled space
between the packed box and hive and on
top of the super with chaff. I then put
a tight, iron-covered top on the box,
leaving an entrance of about % inch by
5 inches. Before closing up the hive
with the two queens in it, I took out a
frame that was entirely empty, and in
its place put the full sealed comb I had
taken out of the other hive, and then
they had, I judged, 25 pounds of stores,
while the other hive was full of honey
and lots of bees.

On Jan. 5th it was quite warm, and
the strongest colony was out in large
numbers, having a good flight. The
other one with the two queens was
quiet. I looked in the entrance and saw
a good many dead bees on the bottom
inside, so I took a stick and poked them
out, and also a lot of dark, yellow mealy
stuff that lay on the bottom-board. It
did not start any bees out, so I took off
the iron cover, and took out the chaff off
the super, and uncovered the super and
put my ear down ; I could hear the bees
inside buzzing quite lively, so I con-
cluded all was right, and I closed it up
again. By that time a few began to
come out at the entrance, but soon went
back. The chaff in the box was as dry
as when put in.

On Jan. 21st I raked out some more
dead bees, and raked out a dead queen.
There was also lots more of that mealy
stuff, so I concluded the the old queen
had^died of old age, or else one of them
had been killed, or perhaps they were
all dying off.

January 22nd was a warm day again,
and the strong colony was out flying
again, and was taking out their dead
bees, but the other one was still quiet,
and plenty of dead isees on the bottom-
board ; but in the afternoon quite a few
came out and were flying about, so I
don't know why they don't come out like
the best colony, unless they are so weak.
I don't like to disturb them for fear of
making them worse.

My neighbor, only a few rods distant
(as I am in town) has 3 colonies on the
same stands as in summer, with nothing
but an empty box over them, and they
are out on all warm days in great num-
bers, while mine are all quiet. I did not
know but it was because they felt the
sun through their thin walls sooner
than my packed ones. But perhaps
mine do not get out as much as they

should. If some one will give me any
advice about it, I shall be glad, as I am
only a beginner, and realize that I can
profit a great deal from the experience
of others.
De Witt, Nebr.

CXTTTXXXZX»T»TXTTXXXXXXXX^

Do not write anything for pubiication

on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

^Aj^Ai

Sell Your Honey at Home.

For bee-keepers who have but a small
amount of honey for sale, it is far cheaper
for them to sell it at home than to buy
shipping crates, etc., and pay heavy
freight charges, as is usually the case with
small lots of anything. And to create a
demand for honey, the people must be edu-
cated enough to know what honey is.

Deer Plain, Ills. F. X. Arnold.

How Far Bees Fly, Etc.

On page 45, in reply to "Bee-Hunter's"
query, I would say that I have hunted bees
more or less for the last 40 years, and I
have known them to fly six miles in the
white clover season. When Italians were
first introduced into this section, they went
that distance into an adjoining town to a
certain ridge where the white clover blos-
somed very heavily. There was no other
Italians anywhere near, that we knew of.
We lined them straight for that apiary, and
carried them far enough to know that they
went there. It was our first introduction
to yellow-banded bees.

In the Bee Journal for Dec. 33, 1893,
there is an article from the pen of Wm. F.
Clarke, criticising the reply of James Hed-
don to a question on the improvement of
bee-periodicals, viz. : " First, most and all
the time, wipe out the curse of filling our
bee-periodicals with the writings of apicul-
tural literarians. and replace it with the
honest reports and opinions of honey -pro-
ducers who make bee-keeping pay."

My opinion of Mr. Heddon's answer is,
that it was the best answer given to that
query. Of what earthly use is an article on
bee-keeping if it is not given by some one
who knows from experience wliat he writes
— something practical, that will benefit
some bee-keeper that has not had such ex-
perience ? While, on the other band, one of

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

471

those " apicultural literarians," perhaps
having a slight smattering of bee-keeping,
or none at all, but are simply well read and
can write fluently, pose as one of the lead-
ing lights in bee-keeping, and try to make
a living with the pen, being too lazy to
work. I have talked with some of the
hard-working bee-keepers about that very
thing, and nothing so easily disgusts them
in the line of bee-literature than to come
across an article written by some of those
same '"apicultural literarians"' they hap-
pen to know. Mr. Clarke's strictures on
Mr. Heddon are overdrawn, in my opinion,
as to the number of colonies kept ; also his
remarks in regard to Father Langstroth. I
think that Mr. Heddon simply wanted
nothing but practical experience in bee-
keeping given.

I understand that Dr. Miller has been
asked by the publishers of a new Diction-
ary, to give them the words and terms in
bee-literature, with definitions, to be pub-
lished in the new edition. I suggest that
he give the words ' apicultural literarians,"
with the meaning thereof.

Angelica, N. Y. J. R. Common.

An Old Bee-Keeper's Experience.

I have been a subscriber to the ' • Old
Reliable" from the first number under
Mr. Wagner, with the exception of a short
time — I think it was when under Mr. W. F.
Clarke's control. Have been engaged in
bee-keeping for 43 years, being now in my
83rd year, but I am still as devoted to the
occupation as I was 40 years ago. I can
take a swarm down from a tree as easily as
ever.

In 1861 1 had 63 colonies, and lost all but
13 from a bad season and bad honey. I re-
cruited up to 33 in 1862, and obtained 62
pounds of comb and extracted honey per
colony, spring count.

Last summer I got Pierce's "Winter Prob-
lem," and prepared 14 colonies according
to his directions, and up to the present time
7 have died. Of the others with chafi" on
the frames, none have died.

I could give quite an experience with
some 14 different styles of hives in the last
43 years of my bee-keeping, but will only
say that in 1852 I purchased the Langstroth
hive, and have never been without it in all
these years, and still believe it to be the
best hive made. Samuel C. Ware.

Towanda, Ills.. March 20, 1893.

The Weather and the Bees.

Since my last letter (Jan. 21st), we have
had five days of zero weather in January,
nine in February, and five in March, up to
this date. In January bees had flights, or
could fly, on nine days in the month ; in
February three days; and in March, so far,
also three days.

While we had but very little snow in
December, January and February, we had
a regular blizzard on Feb. 28th, which
brought about 12 inches of snow on the

level ; and on March 16th we again had a
snowfall of about 4 inches.

On March 9th and 10th I investigated
every colony in the apiary, and found all
of them in good condition except 5, which
had been invaded by mice, and were rather
in a weak condition. Of 38 colonies, I
found every queen on hand; 20 colonies
were extra strong ; 13 were strong ; and 5
weak. I supplied those that needed it with
one or two combs well filled with honey,
and contracted the brood-chambers of those
disturbed by mice.

All of the absorbent packings above the
bees were well dried and then replaced, and
now I propose to give them another severe
letting alone until about the middle of
April, or May 1st, when again a close re-
vision will take place, and those selected
for drone-rearing will receive their drone-
comb well filled with honey. I expect
everything to go well now, unless the
weather proves to become exceedingly ad-
verse. Wm. Stollet.

Grand Island, Nebr., March 21. 1893.

Broom-Handle Swarm-Catchers.

We learn of a great many new inven-
tions, and a great many that are of great
value to bee-keepers, so much so that it
would be hard to get along without the
American Bee Journal. Here is something
quite old, and yet it is new. too. Mr. W.
H. Veeder. of Grand Island, Nebr., told me
the way they used to catch swarms 20 years
ago in New York State. Here is his method :

" We would take broom-handles and wrap
rags on the large end, making a roll about
10 inches in length, and about 3 inches
through the center, tapering off smaller at
the ends. The rags we would saturate with
melted beeswax. The other end of the
handle is sharpened so as to stick in the
ground. We used one handle for every
four hives."

Mr. Veeder assures me that nearly every
swarm that issues will cluster on some of
these prepared sticks. The sticks should
be stuck in the ground about 4 rods in front
of the hives. Mr. Veeder thinks the scent
of the wax has a good deal to do with the
bees clustering on the rags.

Aurora, Nebr. Chas. White.

Self-Hivers and Q,ueen Flights.

On page 142 is an essay on " Self-Hivei*s
and their Use," read at the North American
Convention, in which Mr. E. R. Root says,
at a previous convention, Mr. E. L. Pratt,
of Marlboro, Mass., showed him a self-hiver
which Mr. Root adopted and describes.
There is no use in me describing it, because
it would take too much space. Mr. Root
says that it is so arranged that the queen
can pass out, but not back again. I have
heard the question often asked, '' Does the
queen ever leave the hive to take a flight ?"
I say she does. One Sunday I put a drone-
trap on a hive and sat down, as I most gen-
erally do, took a knife and cut off the heads
of the outside drones trying to get in.

472

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

I was just butchering away when sud-
denly I saw the queen trying to get in. I
at once caged her, and examined the colony,
and found no queen. Then I put the queen
back, and they took her. Now if it was a
strange queen they would not have taken
her.

On another occasion I opened a hive to
find the queen, and the first thing I saw was
the queen right on the top of the frames. I
was just going to cage her when she flew
away. I watched the entrance, and in half
an hour she came back. Now, poor queen,
if she should venture to take a flight, and
be caught and couldn't go back nor out ! li
this is the case, then let the inventor make
a slight improvement, and fix it so the
queen can pass outside and die in the sun-
shine, rather than in the prison.

The best of aU, Mr. Root tried the self-
hiver on 10 or 15 colonies, and succeeded,
and they seem to store lots of honey (150
pounds) . Let some of the celebrated writ-
ers, or others, prove that queens do not
take flights. I mean fertilized queens. If
you have a colony of bees this spring that
are cross, and you want to kill them, the
only remedy will be, " apply the self -hiver. "

Milwaukee, Wis. Arthur Heiss.

Did Well in 1892— Hiving Swarms.

Bees in this section did extra well last
season, motwithstanding the very discour-
aging spring which we had. There was a
splendid flow of basswood honey which be-
gan the first week in July, and lasted until
nearly the close of the month, after which
followed a good flow from buckweat.

I had in the spring 8 colonies, which I in-
creased to 15, and obtained 365 pounds of
comb honey. I use the 10-frame hive about
the same dimensions as the Langstroth. I
later bought 2 swarms more, which made 17
to go into winter quarters. I packed them
in chaff hives, with chaff cushions and
Hill's " device," etc. On March 8th every
colony had a good cleansing flight.

It has been a hard winter on bees, and
especially those in the old style box and
single-walled hives. The majority of the
bees in this vicinity are, however, in the
movable-frame chaff-hives, and but very
few bees are wintered in cellars.

Now, it is a question with me which will.
pay me best, to hive my swarms the coming
season on full sheets of foundation in brood-
frames, or only on starters. Last season I
hived on full sheets of foundation, because
the best authorities I had read at that time
advised it ; but now, after reading three
different bee-publications, I find that the
correspondents differ on this, and also in
regard to using full sheets of foundation or
starters in sections. This season, if my bees
winter all right, and I expect they will, I
wish to increase to 25 colonies, and work
for comb honey only, and would like to
know the best way to manage them es-
pecially about the foundation. My bees are
mostly hybrids. Lmtuku S. Ei,y.

Brooklyn, Pa. March 14, 1893.

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY

At One Dollar a Year,
56 FIFTH AVENUE. CHICAGO. ILLS.

"Wc Club the American Bee Journal
for a year, with any of the following papers
or books, at the prices quoted in the liAST
column. The regular price of both Is given
n the first column. One year's subscription
for the American Bee Journal must be sent
with each order for another paper or book :

Price of both. Olub.
The American Bee Journal 81 00

anc" Gleanings in Bee-Culture.... 2 00.... 175

Bee-Keepers' Review 2 00 175

TheAplculturist 175.... 165

Bee-Keepers' Guide 175.... 165

American Bee- Keeper 150 140

Canadian Bee Journal 2 00 1 75

Nebraska Bee-Keeper 150 135

The 8 above-named papers 6 50 5 50

and Langstroth Revised (Dadant) 2 40.... 2 25

Cook's Manual of the Apiary 2 00 175

Doolittle on Queen-Rearing. 2 00 1 65

Bees and Honey (Newman) .. 200 165

Advanced Bee-Culture 150 135

Dzierzon's Bee-BooJi (cloth) . 2 25 ... . 2 00
Root's A B C of Bee-Culture 2 25 ... . 2 10

A Year Among the Bees 1 50 1 35

Convention Hand-Book 125 115

Illustrated Home Journal . . 150 135

DonTention IVotices.

PENNSYLVANIA.— The Susquehanna Co.
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold their 12th
seml-annuai meeting at the Tarbell House in
Montrose, Pa., on Thursday, May 4, 1893. All
are invited. H. M. Seeley, Sec.

Harford, Pa.

NEW YORK. —The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th.
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. AU bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make It what it
should be— an interesting meeting.

H. C. FABNUM, Pres., Transit Bridge. N. Y.

COLORADO— The adjourned meeting o
the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Assoclatiii
will be held in the Charles Block, corner 15' '
and Curtis Streets, Denver, Colo., on April 18,
1893. Business Important to all honey-pro-
ducers will come before the meeting.

Littleton, Colo. H. Kniqht, Sec.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

473

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
April 8th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6®8c. Beeswax, 25c.

K. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and Btociss
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber l-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7®7!4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6@8c. There is
no choice comlj honey on our marlset, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 24@27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Demand for comb hon-
ey is very light, White fancy stocls is well
cleaned up. The marliet is well stoclied with
off grades and bucliwheat, and prices are ir-
regular. Extracted is in good demand and
stocks are light. We quote; Basswood and
white clover, 8@8^c.; buclswheat, 6@6^c.;
Southern, 70@75c. per gallon.

Beeswax— 25@27c. H. B. & S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.— Choice extracted
Is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16®17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted,fair supply, with good demand at 8»4 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16®17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNE APO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7®8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14®15@16c ;
mixed, 12®13c ; dark, 10@llc. Extracted,
white, 8@8»/4c ; mixed, 7®7i/4c ; dark, 6»4@7c.

Beeswax, 26@30c. H. R. W.

LrOcal Checks.— Please do not
send us checks on local banks. We have
to pay from 15 to 25 cents each to get
them cashed here, which is quite a use-
less expense, when you can either send
money by registered letter, or get an ex-
press or post-ofiSce Money Order. We
prefer the express Money Order, if you
can get that ; otherwise the post-office
Money Order or registered letter.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote In this Journal.

CbicagOf Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDBETH Bros. & Segelken,

28 & 30 West Broadway.

Sau Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

minueapolis, minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

CHA8. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Obio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we oJGfer.

Wants or Excbaiiges.

■^.*•s,^^^^^^./^^^^^<s.*"..^•^/■

rf -S .^ w -s y- %j ->

Under this heading. Notices of 6 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

WANTED— To correspond with ladies be-
tween the ages of 25 and 45. in reference
to matrimony, who would be likely to become
interested in bee-keeping and poultry-raising.
Common sense and honesty preferred to capi-
tal and vanity. Confidential correspondence
solicited. RUFUS WILLIAMS,

15Alt Crescent City, Logan Co., Okla. T.

¥

OR SALE— A Circular Saw, hand or foot
power. O. C. BROWN,

14A2t Council Bluffs, Iowa.

WANTED— Foot-Power Lathe for metal ;
Portable Forge and Anvil. I will ex-
change Honey, Bees, Queens, or good Bicycle.
14Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

WANTED— To exchange, a claim 1 mile
from a thriving town in Logan Co., Okla.
Ter., for land in Northeastern Texas, South-
western Arkansas, or Northwestern Louisi-
ana, contiguous to a river. In a good bee-keep-
ing range. Correspondence solicited.

Address, RUFUS WILLIAMS,

16A4t Crescent City, Logan Co., Okla. T.

474

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

ONE PROFIT ONLY.

Pease Piano Co.

Chas. H. MacDonald, Manager.

Write for Catalogue World's Fair Souvenirs
and Pin Book. Mention this Journal.

ITALIAN QUEENS MAILED NOW

Tested, $1.25; 6, $7; 12 for $13. Untested.
$1.00; 6, $5; 12, 89. Two-frame Nucleus, $1.25.
Drone Nucleus. $4.00. Supplies and Bee«
clieap. Send for Circular. Safe arrival al-
ways guaranteed, by J . N. COIiWlOK,
15Atf NORSE, Bosque Co., TEXAS.

Mention the American Bee Joximal.

ITALIAN QUEENS.

BRISD for Business, Gentleness and Beau-
ty. Untested, 80c. each; three. $2.25;
six, $4.00; twelve, $7.50. Tested, $1.25. Selec-
ted tested, yellow to the tips, breeder, $1.50.
Will commence shipping April 15th. Safe
arrival guaranteed.

O. E. DAWSO^f,

CARLISLE, Lonoke Co.. ARK.
Mention the American Bee Jonnuu.

IP YOU WINTER IN

Hilton's Improved Chaff Hives

You will have Bees to Sell in the Spring.

Send for his Free Illustrated Catalog of every
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VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, APRIL 20, 1893.

NO. 16.

Mr. Alleii Priiigle, of Selby, Ont.,
favored the Bee Joukxal with a pleasant
call last Saturday. He has come to Chi-
cago to remain during the World's Fair, as
he has charge of the exhibit of honey and
bee-appliances for the Province of Ontario.
In Mr. Pringle our Canadian friends have
an excellent and able representative — one
who will bring honor to the country and
cause he represents, and credit to himself
for the wisdom and skill that he will exer-
cise in carefully looking after Ontario's
characteristically fine apicultural exhibit.

Extractors siiicl Extracting' is to

be the very timely special subject for con-
sideration in the May Bee- Keepers'' Eetiew.
The April number, which is just received
( AjDril 13th) , is an unusually valuable one —
not devoted to any special topic, but giving
the final "round up" on ''self-hivers," a
good description of Mr. Langdon's " largest
house-apiary in the world," and other ex-
ceedingly interesting and valuable •• bee-
talk."

In commenting upon our new department
of " General Questions," Bro. Hutchinson
says: "Bro. York is certainly working

hard to make his journal ' worth its keep,'

as friend Hasty says."

On another page of the same issue, just

before so very kindly quoting in full Bro.
Root's editorial, as published on page 455 of
last week's Bee Jouknal. Bro. Hutchinson
writes thus about editorial work :

There is no one who notices so soon the
presence or absence of editorial work in a
paper as the editor of a similar journal. I
have several times noticed the large amount
of editorial work done by Bro. York, of the
American Bee Journal, but I doubt if I
could have expressed myself quite so nicely
on this point as has Bro. Root in GJeanings..,

jflr. "%Vm. McEvoy, whose picture
and sketch we published on page 393, will
very soon write fully his methods of curing
foul brood, for the readers of the Bee Jour-
nal. This notice will answer many of the
requests that have been sent to him. to
Prof. Shaw, of the Ontario Agricultural
College, and to us, desiring that Mr. Mc-
Evoy describe his methods of treating that
dreaded bee-disease. As soon as received,
we will give Mr. M.'s article first place, in
order that those most interested may at
once take advantage of the information
given.

l>r. C C. Miller, of Marengo. Ills.,
was in Chicago several days the latter part
of last week, to set up the apiarian'exhibit
of Bro. A. I. Root, of Medina. O.. at the
World's Fair grounds. We had a most de-
lightful visit from the Doctor, who is just
as jovial and young-hearted as can be, re-
gardless of the 60 years that have helped to
thin and grey his hair somewhat. No bee-
keeper can afford to miss meeting him at
the coming North American convention in
this city, where the Doctor will preside, as
well as cheer with his happy smiles and
harmless wiles.

488

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

<'aliibmia,n Appropriations for

the benefit of the apicultural industry of
that State, do not materialize very rapidly.
Mr. Pryal, who has an article on page 500
of this number of the Bee Journal, wrote
us as follows on April 6th, about the Bill
that was introduced to the State Legisla-
ture looking toward helping the State Bee-
Keepers' Association:

Referring to page, 391, I will say that the
Bill to appropriate |300 to the California
State Bee-Keepers' Association was num-
bered ('60 on the Assembly flle—pretty high
up, or, more properly, down on the list.
The truth was, that it was so well smoth-
ered by older Bills, that it never had a
chance to be forced up to a point \v^here it
could be forced along. I don't think it ever
reached a first reading. If it had been in-
troduced about two weeks sooner, it would
have gone through all right. I knew from
the promises I had, that if it were introduced
sooner the Association would have had the
money, provided the Governor did not veto
it, as he did the whole batch of Bills, so as
to keep the taxes within a limit he pledged
himself to do if elected ; in this regard he
has been more honest than most men who
are elected to high positions.

The bee-keepers can get the appropria-
tion two years from now, if they get their
Bill in in time. There is no State in the
Union that gives the horticulturists such
large appropriations as does this State. The
viticulturists and viuiculturists also receive
large sums from the State, to help their in-
dustries; so there is no reason why the
apiculturists should not receive something,
too. They can get it if they can get in and
work for it. I would be in favor of having
an Apicultural Commission that would
have charge of the foul brood laws, new
races of bees, printing documents that
would help the industry in various ways,
and several other things which might sug-
gest themselves. I think an appropriation
of 15,000 could be obtained for such a pur-
pose, if the bee-keepers went about obtain-
ing it in the right sort of a way.

They have now laid the foundation for
obtaining something for their benefit, and
I trust that they will not let the grass grow
under their feet.

It was. unfortunate that the bee-keepers
were no in time in presenting their appli-
cation for aid. Next time, no doubt, they
will " get there " and get it all right.

In reference to Mr. Pryal's article on
page 500, it is very difficult to decide just
what is best to say. Saying anything,
likely, will not help matters very much,
though it may afford relief to harrowed
feelings. What a shame it is, that tlie
great (?) Sate of California should thus
treat its sweetest people ! Such actions on
the part of the World's Pair representatives

is wholly beyond comprehension, and alto-
gether unjust and contemptible ; and yet,
Illinois bee-keepers, if we mistake not, have
fared no better in their application for as-
sistance in making a display of the api-
arian products of this State at the Fair so
soon to be opened to the world.

To say the least, such action, or i/taction,
is very discoui-aging to those who would
love to show what great advancement api-
culture has made, and is making, in this
land. The result now will be that foreign
countries will make a better showing in our
departmen t than the United States. If so,
it should put to shame those who have with-
held the little help asked for, and which
would have enabled American bee-keepers
to successfully compete with the apiarists
of any part of the world !

I^reiieli I<''tiine aiitl I^oose Uot-
toiiiM. — Dr. Miller thinks that Mr. Chas.
Dadant, in his autobiographical sketch,
published on page 425, did not tell all the
truth about himself, especially as to his
fame in France. Here is what the Doctor
has to say regarding it :

Isn't it a little strange that a man like
Chas. Dadant should be guilty of such mis-
representation as occurs in his autobiog-
raphy on page 435 ? For isn't the suppres-
sion of the truth a sort of misrepresenta-
tion ? Now there isn't a line, nor a word,
to show that Mr. Dadant has a reputation
worth speaking of in France at the present
day, while the fact is. I suppose, that he is
even better known there than in this coun-
try. The Dadant hive is one of the most
popular in France, and one of the most able
and vigorous writers to be found in the
French bee-journals to-day is that same
Chas. Dadant.

We are glad Dr. Miller has so thoughtfully
supplied the above important omission in
Bro. Dadant's sketch, which was no doubt
due to his extreme modesty, and not at all
from any intentional misrepresentation (?).

Dr. M. also sends the following paragraph
for Sister Jennie Atchley, about loose bot-
tom-boards :

Mrs. Atchley, in " Queries and Replies,"
says: '■ Give me your excuse for a loose
bottom-board.'' They're right handy when
you want to turn 'em over, Jennie. So
they are when you want to tier up one hive
above another, or when you want to clean
off the bottom-boards. Count up the re-
plies, and you'll see that about two to one
use them. There's much in being used to a
thing.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

489

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to malse " Queries and Replies " so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Queens Injured by Being Chilled.

Will it injure a queen to become
chilled in a transit from the South in
cool weather? Will she be as fertile as
before being chilled and warmed to life
again ? Chauncey Keynolds.

Fremont, O.

A?fsWEE — Yes, if chilled as much as to
need to be " warmed to life again,"
she might be badly injured. At least
there are cases on record where a queen
was frozen and revived, with the result
that she was afterward worthless.

Will the Colony Swarm ?

Will bees send out any natural swarm
that are on 3 and 4 frames on May 1,
1893 ? or will they only build up by fall
enough to winter? W. K.

Answer — That question will be more
easily answered if you can foretell what
the season of 1893 is to be. Sometimes
the season is so poor that the very
strongest colonies prudently abstain
from swarming. But in a fairly good
season, such a colony as you mention
ought to have no difficulty in building
up strong enough to swarm.

Prevention of After-Swarms.

I would like to know what the " Hed-
don method " is. In the Bee Journal
for Dec. 22, 1892, Mr. W. Z. Hutchin-
son speaks of preventing after-swarm-
ing by the " Heddon method."

Elmer Bridenstine.

Answer — Drive out the queen and a
majority of the bees into a hiving-box or
empty box. Move the old hive a few
feet backward, reversing its entrance.
Set on the old stand a hive furnished
with frames of foundation, run the
forced swarm into it, and then in 21
days drive out the remaining bees from
the old hive, and add them to the former
" drive."

Died with Diarrhea — 1-Frame Nucleus

I would like to have a little informa-
tion about what was the matter with my
bees the past winter. I wintered them
on the summer stands, and sheltered
them with straw to break the wind, and
part of them died with 40 pounds of
honey, and the honey was within reach
of the cluster when they died. They
discharged their feces — a, dark, brown-
colored fluid — on top of the frames, right
above the cluster, and on the combs
close to them. They had white clover
and buckwheat honey to winter on.

Would it work well to put a one-frame
nucleus in the hive of each colony that
died, so as to build them up and have
them ready for the honey crop when it
comes ? W. W. Martin.

Albia, Iowa.

Answer. — The trouble with your bees
seems to have been a bad case of diar-
rhea. It will be all right to use the
same combs again, but you will do well
to scrape off what filth from top-bars
and combs you can. It will be asking a
good-deal of a one-frame nucleus to
build up and be ready for the honey crop
in an ordinary season.

Quilts in Summer — 1-Pound Sections.

1. Please give the reason for leaving
the quilts over the frames in summer, as
I think by reading that most bee-keepers
do so. I canmot see why the bee-space
above the frames should be closed.
Would it not be better to take it off and
use the cover alone.

2. What is best size one-pound section
for the general market ? Those I used
last year were 4}4;x4j^xl%, scant. My
hives are 12 inches wide, inside, so 7 will
just fit them, or nearly so. I weighed
one tier of 7 to-day, and find 3 of them
under weight, 2 over, and 1,. the right
weight, viz. : one pound. Now, if some
of them are under weight, can I sell
them, or will I have to extract them,
and save the comb for another year?

Manus Beaupre.
Forestville, Ont.

Answers— 1. Much depends upon the
kind of hive. Some hives have covers
with so much room under them that the
quilts are needed to fill up, and some are
so arranged that even when the surplus
arrangements are on, the quilts must be
used. But if only a bee-space is left be-
tween the top-bars and cover, there is
no need of a quilt in summer. Indeed,
quilts are going out of use, many pre-

490

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

ferring a tight board-cover with no
quilt, summer or winter.

2. Probably your sections are about as
popular in size as aay. Of course you
cannot sell for a pound anything less
than 16 ounces. Some sell each section
for a pound, heavy or light, plainly dis-
honest, if the purchaser is allowed to
believe that the light-weight sections are
full weight. Others sell all at so much
per section -(vithout regard to weight,
and still others take the better way of
selling each one for just what it is, by
weighing it. There is nothing wrong in
selling a section that weighs only 13
ounces, providing you sell it for 13
ounces. Don't extract the under-
weights, but sell them for what they are.
Some will prefer them.

Transferring- Comb to Another Hive.

I have 50 hives with old-fashioned
brood-frames, some of them have combs
pretty crooked. I should like to trans-
fer them into self-spacing Hoffman
frames. Would you kindly let me know
how I am to do it, and if I should have
foundation starters or not ?

Andrew Girard.

Linwood, Mich.

Answer. — Lay the frames down flat,
and cut out the combs with a knife kept
heated. Lay the new frame over the
combs, and cut to fit, making the combs
crowd a little. Wedge in pieces of comb
where the fit is not tight. There are
various ways of fastening, if the combs
do not stay in of themselves. Some like
to lay strings under the combs before the
frame is crowded on, and tie, then the
bees will gnaw out the strings them-
selves. Some like sticks of tin instead
of strings. Some pierce holes through
the wood, and thrust through common
hairpins, letting the two parts of the
hairpin go on each side of the septum.

Capons and Caponi^ing:, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.10.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journal we mail for
only 50 cents; or clubbed with th«
Journal for $1.40.

DR. O. L.. TIIVKER.

The subject of the following sketch
has for years been among those who
have furnished answers to questions in
our department of " Queries and Re-
plies," from week to week. Formerly
he also contributed an occasional article
for the columns of the Bee Journal.
and we hope soon to again be permitted
to present to our readers something from
his ready and experienced pen.

We are now issuing a new and revised
edition of his excellent little book, "Bee-
Keeping for Profit," which will be ready
to mail about April 20th. It will be
sent from this office, postpaid, for 25
cents ; or clubbed with the Bee Joxjr-
nal, for .$1.15.

Further introduction of the Doctor
being unnecessary from us, we now pre-
sent to you something about his useful
life and its helpful work :

Dr. G. L. Tinker was born on June
19, 1843, at Kingsville, O. His ances-
tors were all Connecticut Yankee or
Puritan stock. Thomas Tinker, who
came to this country in the " May-
flower," and soon after died with wife
and child, is believed to have been a
brother or near relative of John Tinker,
the Doctor's earliest known ancestor,
who came from England soon after and
settled in Connecticut. He was a man
of distinction, and all the Tinkers in
this country are thought to be descended
from him.

At the age of 15 the subject of this
sketch attended the Eclectic Institute at
Hiram, Ohio. He was under the in-
struction of James A. Garfield, and
others, for two years ; when the Civil
War broke out, he was one of tne first
to leave the Institute and enlist for 3
months, and then for 3 years. His
health failed, and with it his army ser-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

491

vice ceased. He soon after began the
study of medicine, and graduated at the
Eclectic Medical Institute in Cincinnati,
O., in 1868, since which time he has
been continuously engaged in the prac-
tice of medicine, having been remark-
ably successfully from the first.

During the last 10 years his hearing
has been so greatly impaired that he
had sought to quit the practice and de-
vote his time to bee-keeping and the
manufacturing of apiarian supplies. But
his friends would not listen to it, and so
he continued to do a large practice. His
success has been greatest in the treat-
ment of all acute diseases, and during

i/i

..,- ■^'ii^^''—\

DR. a. L. TINKER.

the summer and fall he has often been
too busy to reply to his bee-keeping
friends.

The Doctor's most notable success has
been in treating typhoid fever. Many
times after other capable physicians
have given up their cases to die, they
have recovered in a most remarkable
manner under his care. Some of these
cases have bordered upon the marvel-
lous, and caused a great deal of talk,
far and near. Intelligent, silent prayer
is believed to have exerted a most potent
effect in these cases. He generally uses
small doses of vegetable remedies.

For 12 years, or since his hearing be-

gan to fail, he has sought to master the
art of apiculture, although he kept a
few bees for several years before that.
He has made several improvements in
hives, and taken out several patents.
His principal inventions are the Wood-
Zinc Queen-Excluder, the Nonpareil Sec-
tion Super and Hive. He also found the
proper gauge for the perforations in
queen-excluder zinc, as well as for
drone-excluder zinc, and these have
been adopted as the standard by both
European and American bee-keepers.

Being a mechanic from boyhood, hav-
ing learned early to work in wood and
iron in his father's shops — he being a
machinist and founder since the Doc-
tor's earliest recollection — he has made
all of his hives and fixtures, and has
conducted many experiments in a great
variety of hives, finally adopting the
Nonpareil Bee-Hive as the best for the
production of comb honey.

As the management of this hive for
the best results is new and different
from that in general use, he has written
a book upon the subject, called "Bee-
Keeping for Profit," including the most
important practical information on the
general care of bees for beginners. The
first edition is now exhausted, and a sec-
ond, with additional matter, will soon
be given to bee-keepers.

Dr. Tinker has been a frequent cor-
respondentof the bee-papers since 1881,
beginning with the American Bee Jour-
nal,. Being passionately fond of bees
and their care, he has developed a strain
of bees that he has called the " Syrio-
Albino " — the mother stock being Syrian.
By continuing to breed alone from the
mother stock, the original prolificness of
the Syrian race has been retained, with
many of the excellent comb-building
qualities of these bees. They now closely
resemble the average Italian bees, being
mostly Italian blood, but the delicate
building and capping of even, white
combs still distinguishes them. He has
kept about 50 colonies, on the average,
from year to year, and has managed to
care for them unaided in addition to his
other labor.

He expects to keep bees as long as he
is able to care for them ; also his fac-
tory, in which he has very fine and costly
machinery. Three things he has, there-
fore, aimed to be expert in, viz. : as
physician, bee-keeper, and manufac-
turer.

His family consists of a dutiful wife
and one son. A Friend.

** Bees and Honey "—page '485.

492

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

Will of the Q,ueen— Big- Profits.

Mks. Atchley : — I see that Dr. Miller
takes Issue against you in regard to the
will of the queen. A thought occurred
to me when reading his reply, and I give
it to you for what it is worth. If, as the
Doctor maintains, the queen's abdomen
is so compressed by the sides of the cells
when laying in worker-cells, as to force
fertilization of the egg, how shall we
account for the fertility of the egg layed
in the large, wide-mouthed queen-cell,
as is done in natural swarming? Why
does it not develop into a drone ?

Fair Dealing, Ky. D. L. Nelson.

Friend Nelson, I do not think that Dr.
Miller takes issue against me, exactly,
nor do I believe that he is settled on
that point, but he just argued the case
in defence of some one else. He has not
said that he was right, or that I was
right. You see Dr. Miller is a "hard
case," and he is fully posted, and up
with the times, and he will fight back
just to get something good out of us.
The Doctor is dangerous, and we must
watch him, or he will go trotting off,
laughing in both sleeves at us.

You have probably heard of the two
lawyers that argued a case before the
court at daggers' points, then when
court was oyer, they got into a buggy
and drove off, laughing and talking to-
gether. Well, that is the kind of " law-
yers " Dr. Miller and I are.

There is bound to be mechanical pres-
sure, if a queen lays at all ; but the
pressure caused by the curve of the body
or by the mouth of the cell, having any-
thing to do with determining the sex of
the egg, I say is all hosh.

Dr. Miller takes sides against me, or
against an article that I wrote for the
American Fanner, and calb my report
of an average of $8.75 from a single
colony in the hands of a beginner

" fishy." I must inform the Doctor that
this was not my estimate at all, but was
made by about 20 farmers and begin-
ners assembled together not long ago.
Their average for several years back
was 50 pounds for each good colony in
the spring, and 50 pounds for the
swarm ; and I based my figures upon
their decision. So you see, Doctor, I
must be right, as what everybody says
must be so. I know that the tale seems
pretty "fishy," but the truth ought to
prevail, and the hewer ought to go to
the line, and let the chips fall as they
may.

You see, the Doctor is away up in Ice-
land (Illinois), where they have about
an eight-months winter, while we work
with our bees ten months of the year.
And if they miss a honey crop the first
time, they seldom have a second or third
chance as we do, which makes the differ-
ence. The beginners are the ones that
usually get the most honey down here,
as they only have a few colonies, and
reap the full benefit of a large field, and
are usually very attentive to their bees
at first, and will do as you tell them ;
and, then, the bees in Texas liave no
more sense than to work and store as
much honey for a beginner as a veteran.
While the beginner, in a few years, be-
gins to think he knows it all, and won't
listen to anybody, he gets but little honey.
Isn't that the fix with us "know-alls,"
Doctor ? I used to think that I knew
lots about bees, but find now that I am
only an A B C scholar, catching at every
" straw " that blows down this way from
Marengo, and from all other sources.

J. A.

The North and the South.

i was indeed glad to learn that we
were going to have a department for the
South in one of the well established bee-
journals, as there are so many points of
difference, in caring for bees, between
the North and our region.

While the bees of the North are shut
up in their cellars, or buried under their
quilts and chaff cushions, ours are
bringing in pollen and small quantities
of honey from time to time, and flying
around the neighboring hives looking
for cracks and crevices through which
to enter and help themselves to their
neighbors' hard-earned stores, and visit-
ing even the kitchen and dining-room
of our houses to see if we are setting out
any honey or syrup or fruit from which
they can help themselves.

While the Northern apiarist is dis-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

493

cussing the winter problem, we are try-
ing to prevent robbing ; while he is
springing his bees, we are in the midst
of the honey harvest ; and when his
harvest begins, our bees are hanging out
on the hives, "lazy" we call them; but
let a flow of honey come, and we soon
find it is enforced idleness, and not lazi-
ness that leads them to cluster on the
hives.

When the flow from fall flowers in the
North is over, our bees are still busy
gathering their winter stores, and in-
deed there is not a month in the year
when there is no honey gathered — not
enough to support them without their
fall stores, but some.

It has been, and is, to our great dis-
advantage that no text-book has ever
been written expressly for the South. I
am informed that a text-book will soon
be issued, and hope all who need it will
avail themselves of it as soon as it is
published. While there are many good
text-books for the North, they are only
of use here in a general way. We need
something of our own, and for ourselves.

Then, too, I hope many will take ad-
vantage of the opportunity to communi-
cate through the columns of the Ameri-
can Bee Journal, for we need to know
each other better, and this is a good way
to become acquainted.

Long live the American Bee Jour-
nal, Mrs. Atchley, and "In Sunny
Southland."

Mrs. Minnie Wood Gordon.

Bloomfield, Fla.

Granulation of Honey, Etc.

Before I commenced keeping bees I
thought, from what I had read and
heard (mostly from honey labels, per-
haps) that all pure honey would granu-
late in winter in the North, and that no
kind would do so here in the South, be-
cause it never got cold enough. My ex-
perience has been that all spring and
summer honey — all honey gathered up
to the rainy season — will not granulate
here, no difference how long it is kept,
or how cold or hot it may be.

Our rainy season, as a general thing,
begins in June, and ends in September.
All honey gathered during and after the
rainy season will granulate more or less,
and it doesn't take cold weather to do it,
either. In the bottom of the vessel it
will be thick and sugary, and -the top
will be thin. Hence, we have been ac-
cused of adulterating our honey ; there-
fore, I have quit extracting after the
rainy season sets in, i. e., for market.

I don't remember ever seeing sealed
honey (in the comb) that was granu-
lated, but I find in my hives now (Feb.
6th) unsealed honey that is granulated,
thick and sugary, yet moist, but not
liquid. It is not sugar, either, for I
have not fed an ounce of anything the
past winter, neither have the bees had
access to anything of the kind.

Others think the difference lies in the
different kinds of bloom from which the
honey is gathered, as to whether it
granulates or not, but I am inclined to
think it is the weather, rain, atmos-
phere, etc.

My report for 1892 is as follows: I
had 35 colonies, spring count. I ex-
tracted 2,052 pounds of very fine pal-
metto honey, and increased to 47 colo-
nies. I have a fine strain of Italians
that are beauties, and for gentleness and
honey-gathering qualities they are far
ahead of the blacks.

I am glad Mrs. Atchley has " In Sunny
Southland " in the American Bee Jour-
nal. That is what we of the South
have long needed. J. H. Hill.

Grove City, Fla.

COWVE^TIOK OIKE€JTOR1.

1893.

Time and place of meetintj-

April 20.— S. W. Wisconsin, at Wauzeba, Wis.
N. E. France, Pres.. Platteville, Wis

May 2,— Connecticut, at Hartford, Conn.
Mrs. W. E. Riley, Sec, Waterbury, Conn.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co., at Montrose, Pa.
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford. Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y

May 18, 19.— Soutii Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — Thb Editob.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt

Secretary— Franli Benton. Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York.. .Chicago, Ills.

• » < ♦ »

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 485 ?

494

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Old Hybrids and Blacks — Would
I\[ew Blood Improve Tliem ?

Query 867.— I have 60 colonies of hybrids
and black bees that have re-queened them-
selves for the past eight years, from their own
progeny. They are prolific, healthy, and
good workers. 1. Would you advise the in-
troduction of new blood ? 2. If so, from what*
race of bees ?— Minn.

I think not. — A. J. Cook.

Let well enough alone. — A. B. Mason.

1. Yes. 2. Italians. — Jas. A. Green.

1. Yes. 2. Italians. — Mks. J. N.
Heatee. ^

1. It might improve them, 2. Ital-
ian.— C. C. MiLLEK.

I always believe in letting well enough
alone. — Mks. L. Harbison.

If they are doing good work, I would
keep them as they are. — E. France.

1. New blood would no doubt improve
them. 2. Italian. — J. P. H. Brown.

Pure Italian blood will always be
profitable, and never injurious. — Da-
DANT & Son.

I would introduce a few queens of the
dark grades of the Italians, every year.
— G. L. Tinker.

New blood of some good strain will
put new vigor in your bees. Try Ital-
ian.— Will M. Barnum.

1. No, decidedly not, unless for some
other reason than the prevention of in-
breeding.—R. L. Taylor.

1. Yes. 2. Some good honey-gather-
ing strain of Italians — bred for business,
instead of color. — S. I. Freeborn.

I would let good enough alone. But if
you really want new blood, I say Italian,
of course. — Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

If they are doing well, let well enough
alone. They may be just what you
want for your locality. — H. D. Cutting.

1. If they were mine, I would intro-
duce new blood, but I doubt whether
their honey-gathering quality would be

much improved. Their temper would.
2. The Syrians are my favorites, but as
they are not in the market, I would take
pure Italians. — M. Mahin.

An ounce of profitable experience is
worth a pound of theory. But are you
sure of the correctness of the first state-
ment ? — Eugene Secor. •

1. Good, healthy, new blood should be
introduced at the rate of say a couple of
queens annually. 2. Italians, or Car-
niolans. — J. H. Larrabee.

I should say that the bees were doing
well enough, but if I desired new blood,
I should only introduce the best Italian
or Carniolan stocks. — C. H. Dibbern.

1. Yes. 2. Italians, unless you are
in a buckwheat country, or in some sec-
tion where you have found that some
other race does better. — P. H. Elwood.

1. I should not advise the introduc-
tion of new blood, unless it was desired
for some particular and specific purpose.
2. I should advise in such introduction,
tqe old, tried and proved-to-be-good Ital-
ians.— J. E. Pond.

If they were mine, I should try a fine
Italian queen as the mother of all queens
reared during 1893, allowing these
young queens to mate with whatever
drones they happen to. In this way I
think these bees could be improved as
to honey-gathering qualities, etc. — G. M.

DOOLITTLE.

1. Yes. 2. Italians, for the reason
that they work a good deal on red
clover, and are recommended by a
greater number of bee-keepers than any
other race of bees. (See Illinois State
Bee-Keepers' Report for 1892 — 75 per
cent, of the answers given were in favor
of the Italians.) — Jas. A. Stone.

1. You should know best. If your
bees suit you, and are paying a good
dividend on the money invested, I see no
reason why you should take other peo-
ple's advice with regard to what to do
with them. 2. For general purposes,
the Italians are no doubt the best bees
known at the present time. — Emerson
T. Abbott.

1. Yes, it pays me to introduce fresh
blood. 2. I prefer Italians for a cross.
Put in some pure Italian queens, and
encourage their colonies to rear large
broods of drones, while you suppress the
drones as much as you conveniently can
in the other colonies. Don't be in too
big a hurry about it. A great deal has
been lost by hurriedly " Italianizing."
I mean loss of surplus honey. — G. W.
Demaree.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

495

Report of the Indiana Stale
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American B^« Journal
BY WALTER S. POUDEK.

(Continued from page 465. )
We will now proceed with our regular
programme, which is an essay by Mr. J.
F. Michael, of German, Ohio, on

The Rearing of Q,ueen-Bees.

I esteem it quite an honor to be called
upon to contribute my. mite towards
making this meeting a grand success,
regretting, however, my inability to grap-
ple with a question of such magnitude.

W. Z. Hutchinson, Editor of the Bee-
Keepers' Review, says in the November
number, " I feel safe in saying that in
all probability the queen-trade of 1892
was not less than 20,000 queens. This
estimate is based upon the queens reared
in the United States alone." As the
profits of the apiary depend largely
upon the quality of the queens used, we,
as queen-rearers, should try to maintain
a high standard for the queens we place
upon the market. The object, then, of
this article will be, in a measure,
to show how to rear good queens, as
poor ones are dear at any price.

Remember not to crowd the capacity of
the queen-rearing colony ; if you do,
poor queens will be the result. The
condition of the queen-rearing colony
must be good, whether this method, or
some others are used. If queens are
reared before swarming time is at hand,
artificial means must be resorted to, so
as to place the colony in a normal con-
dition ; but I very much doubt whether
any financial benefit will be the result
in trying to get ahead of the season.
When warm weather has come to stay,
and honey is coming in freely, select a
colony whose queen is a good layer, and
average in size — one whose bees will
stand tumbling to the ground occasion-
ally without becoming angry — and place
a queen-excluding honey-board over the
brood-cbamber.

A second story, filled with frames of
honey, hatching brood and frames con-
taining figgs and larvEe can now be
placed upon the brood-chamber, pre-
pared as described above. These frames
of honey, brood and larvfe should be
taken from colonies that can spare them.
If the proper conditions have been
observed, in a few days several queen-
cells may be found upon the combs con-
taining larvfe. Artificial queen-cells
can now be made, and the royal jelly
taken from these cells and a small por-
tion placed in each of the artificial cells.
Now procure a larva for each cell, of
the queen from which you wish to rear
queens, and with a quill tooth-pick
transfer the larvae to the cells ; this
being done, with the open end of the cell
downward, push it into the comb near
where the cells of royal jelly were found.
Or, a still better way is to remove a por-
tion of comb from the center of a frame,
and while holding the frame bottom side
up, fasten the cells by means of melted
wax in the center of the comb.

These cells are to be placed between
frames containing brood in all stages
or the bees will pay no attention to
them. If the larvte used are of the
right age, the queens will hatch in 11
or 12 days. Experience will soon teach
you the kind of larvse to use. When
the larvEB are too old, the queens are in-
ferior in quality and about worthless.
By using a sharp knife in reducing the
comb to 3^ of an inch of the septum, the
minute grub can be transferred to the
cells without much trouble.

Nuclei colonies must be made three or
four days before the queens will hatch •
and about one or two days before the
queens are expected to hatch, give each
nucleus a cell. If queen-rearing is ex-
tensively followed, the lamp-nurserv
may be brought into service. When re-
moving cells from the queen-rearing
colony, examine every comb carefully
for the bees often build queen-cells
where they ought not to, and these will
hatch out and do much mischief.

Frames containing brood in all stages
must>be kept on each side of the cells
or the bees may leave the cell and find
work below with "mother and older sis-
ters." The queen from which you rear
queens should be in her prime, medium
in size, a good layer, and her progenv
good workers, as well as amiable in dis
position. Late in the season, when
nights become cool, the queens are smal
ler and darker.

One very important matter seems tn
have passed the notice of queen-rearers
and that is, to have an^abundance of

496

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

good drones in the apiary. Should the
bees crowd the queen-rearing depart-
ment with honey, another story must be
added tilled with empty combs, keeping
the cells in the top story, or exchange
honey with a nucleus colony for a frame
of brood ; this will better the condition
of both. In case the honey-flow stops,
the feeder must be brought into use, or
the cells will not be started, or, if start-
ed, will be torn down. The same colony
may be used the entire season for ob-
taining cells.

Perseverence will enable a person to
succeed in this business, as well as in
any other occupation.

J. F. Michael,.

The foregoing essay was then dis-
cussed as follows :

Pres. Russell — We have now heard
the essay read by the Secretary, in the
absence of Mr. Michael, and would like
to hear the opinions and remarks of
those present upon it. Mr. Pouder,
what have you to say about this question
of rearing queens ?

Mr. Pouder — I do not know of any-
thing more to add than has already been
said. I see Mr. Michael used the Doo-
little method, which I believe to be the
best one for the specialist, although I
have never reared queens on that plan.
I get my cells built in full colonies, and
have a nucleus hive the same as an ordi-
nary brood-chamber, and put three
division-boards in it, which makes four
apartments without interference with
each other. T use the Langstroth stan-
dard frame and hive ; they assist in
keeping up the temperature. And,
again, when a queen is disposed of, a
division-board can be removed, thus
allowing the bees to work with the next
queen. Mr. Michael's method is a good
one for the specialist, and I know that
he rears choice queens.

Mr. Muth— This is a subject that has
been talked of so often that it is an old
one to the bee-keepers, but perhaps
there are a few young bee-keepers here
who would like to know how bees are
reared, and so I will give a few ideas.
It is a fact well worth knowing, that if
one wants to rear queens, the cells
should be reared in full colonies, and at
a time when the colony has plenty of
honey and plenty of old bees, as well as
young bees. If feeding is necessary,
then they must be fed. Now when the
cells are capped is the time to make the
nucleus. You make this by taking a
couple of combs filled with bees, and
placing them in a hive. After 24 hours

cells may be given them safely. Bees
must be in close quarters to prosper.
Now we know that after the cells are
capped a few days, we can cut them out
and put them in the frames, but it is not
necessary to fasten them to the middle
of the comb. Take a pen-knife, cut a
cell out and lay it between two combs,
put the combs together so close that
they will stay, or lay ihem on top of the
combs. It takes but an hour or two
before the bees have fastened it them-
selves. Thus, you can see at once when
the queen is hatched. On the fourth or
fifth day after the queen is hatched, she
begins to lay. Good queens are only
reared in very full colonies. She gen-
erally hatches on the 16th day after the
egg is laid.

Mr. Catterson — I want to give my ex-
perience in building up colonies. Five
or six years ago I had several nuclei,
and after the parent colony had sent off
a fine swarm, I had four or five cells ;
these I placed in the hives, and perhaps
the second day after that the queens
hatched. I was building up my nuclei
to make them strong, and I gave them
frames of brood and bees. About the
third day after this I noticed that there
was a young queen hatched, so I under-
took to build up these nuclei, and by
giving them combs of brood and honey,
I built them up to good, strong colonies.

Mr. Manford — I have never had any
trouble in rearing queens, but I don't do
it in the way these gentlemen have told
us about. I always double up my colo-
nies at the beginning of the honey sea-
son, because it makes them strong, and
then they can gather the honey. Then
after the season is over, I do the divid-
ing. As far as bees being killed in unit-
ing, I have never had any trouble at all,
and I have been in the business some
eight years.

(Continued next week.)

Alley's Queen-Rearing: book,
or "Thirty Years Among the Bees,"
gives the result of over a quarter-cen-
tury's experience in rearing queen-bees,
and describing the practical, every-day
work. By Henry Alley. It contains an
"Appendix," showing the improvements
made in queen-rearing the last four
years. Very latest work of the kind.
Nearly 100 pages, with illustrations.
Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.30.

Read our great offer on page 453.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

497

Proper Size Brood-Chamber for
Comb Honey Production.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY GEO. F. BOBBINS.

I read with eager interest the replies
to Query 857 — " How many cubic inches
should there be in the brood-chamber of
a hive for the successful production of
comb honey."

The drift of those replies is pretty
much as I would have predicted. No
less than nine of them — the most of them
among the most prominent and success-
ful comb honey producers in the coun-
try— favor a brood-chamber of 2,000
cubic inches or less, at least during the
honey harvest. Four others use the 8-
frame Langstroth hive, which contains
about 2,070 to 2,205 cubic inches, ac-
cording to the length of frame and the
width of spacing allowed.

Another four recommended the 10-
frame hive, only one of whom, I think,
has been especially a comb honey pro-
ducer— Mrs. Atchley. Prof. Cook and
others may, by " standard Langstroth,"
mean the lO-frame hive. But neither
Prof. Cook nor Mr. Pond, I believe, have
ever made bee-culture a means of liveli-
hood particularly.

Mr. Stone, with whom I have a more
intimate acquaintance than with any
other in the list, is a farmer, and does
not make honey-production a very
special pursuit. Only a few months ago
I heard him say, in substance, that he
did not take up bee-culture as a money-
making occupation, but simply because
he liked it. On hearing the remark, I
said to him, •' You would be a poor hand
to instruct one who wanted to make a
living by it." He answered frankly, " I
know I would." None of these, then,
are in any sense specialists in honey-
production.

Dr. Miller, who chafiged from 10-
frame to 8-frame hives, is not sure that
he made anything by the change; but
you know he is never sure he knows

anything ! It is evident, though, that
after having tried both sizes, in his own
mind the preponderance of argument Is
in favor of the smaller. So far as I
know. Dr. Miller is the only prominent
bee-keeper who ever advocated a small
brood-chamber, or contraction of the
same, that ever wavered in his adhesion
to that system.

Mr. Hambaugh and the Dadants are
the only ones who recommend a very
large hive, and they are extracted-honey
producers. The Dadants do claim to
have tested the matter before the ad-
vent of the honey-extractor. How thor-
ough that test was, I do not know, but
it was certainly before contraction or
small brood-chambers were systematic-
ally tried and adopted by comb honey
producers.

These replies strongly, if not conclu-
sively, indicate that producers of comb
honey find sooner or later that they
want a brood-chamber more or less con-
tracted, at least during the honey-flow.
More than that, I will assert that the
more one studies and works to get every
pound of honey his bees will store, and
every pound his field will yield, the more
pronounced contractionist he will be.
This is a rule to which there may be
exceptions, but they are rare.

Understand, it is the comb honey
specialist who usually wants a small
brood-chamber. In discussing this
question of hives, we must always In-
quire what one wants a hive for. Bee-
keepers may be divided with respect to
the size of hive best suited to them, into
three general classes, viz. : The comb
honey specialist, the extracted honey
specialist, and the general bee-keeper.
It is not always easy to apply arbitrary
distinctions. It would be hard to tell to
which class some bee-keepers may be-
long.

The third class, however, would in-
clude the generality of farmer and lady
bee-keepers, amateurs, and others who
devote less time and thought to bee-cul-
ture than to one or more other kinds of
business, or who do not make it particu-
larly a dollar-and cent occupation — all,
in fact, who are not pronounced special-
ists.

Bee-keepers of the first class want a
small hive — not over 2,200 cubic inches,
generally less— those of the second clsss
want a large one of 3,000 cubic inches
or more ; while those of the third want
one of a mean between these two — about
2,500 or 2,600 cubic inches.

The one who runs chiefly for ex-
tracted honey may work on the non-
swarming system. Bees will not swarm,

498

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAjL..

as a rule, so long as there is a quantity
of unfilled comb in the hive. By having
a brood-chamber always large enough to
accommodate the most fertile queen,
and at the same time leave some consid-
erable room for honey and pollen, with
empty combs above in which to store the
inflowing nectar, will generally keep
bees from swarming — something that a
brood-chamber of even 3,000 cubic
inches with empty supers cannot be
depended upon to do.

The majority of bee-keepers of the
third class produce chiefly or exclusively
comb honey. Usually they pay less
strict attention to their bees than the
specialist, and hence want a hive which
will more nearly enable the bees to take
care of themselves. That means one
that will furnish all the breeding room
necessary up to the beginning of the
honey harvest, and allow perhaps one or
two combs for pollen and honey. This,
I believe, they have to the fullest extent
necessary in the lO-frame Langstroth —
about 2,600 cubic inches. That being
enough, they do not want a larger one,
as every extra inch of space below keeps
that much honey out of the surplus
department.

That larger brood-chambers have a
tendency to delay and sometimes prevent
swarming, is no doubt true, but it is be-
cause of the extra room there in which
to store honey. Bees will not readily go
into empty supers or build combs so long
as there is a quantity of empty comb —
ready made receptacles for honey — be-
low. As soon as a flow commences, if
the brood in an outside comb begins to
hatch out, the bees will promptly pro-
ceed to fill the vacated comb with honey
and seal it over. The upper half of the
Inner combs are filled up, likewise, until
often the brood area is reduced one-half
in a few days after the harvest com-
menced. They will even fill up isolated
cells, and groups of cells all through the
brood-nest, until there will scarcely be
found unsealed brood enough left to fill
half a frame.

At the same time the queen, under the
stimulation of warm weather and a
copious honey-flow, will lay faster than
at any time before, if allowed unre-
stricted room. Yet, now she has to be
most restricted, and since at the same
time there are more nurse-bees than
ever before, no wonder they swarm.

If, by any means, swarming is pre-
vented or delayed, and the bees do get
well to work in the sections, they will
often go to emptying the brood-combs
again, and carry the honey above. But
swarm they usually will, sooner or later,

we all know that. To get well under
way in the supers tends to delay swarm-
ing, and the smaller the brood-chamber,
and the more nearly filled with brood,
the sooner the bees will go into the sec-
tions. Bees have to be coaxed or forced
into surplus departments. Nothing but
empty comb will coax them, and nothing
but crowding to force — squeeze — them
into the upper story.

Quite a number who use as small a
hive as the 8-frame Langstroth, contract
that at the beginning of the honey-flow.
There is no doubt in my mind as to its
advantages, but I have found the work
tedious when I have to fill up the spaces
with dummies, and I doubt if that pays.
But to hive all swarms in brood-cham-
bers contracted horizontally or other-
wise, I believe will always find favor
with many comb honey producers. I
believe it to be better to have nothing
but starters of foundation in the brood-
frames. A super to put on, in which
considerable of a start has been made,
with a queen-excluder between, are im-
portant factors in the case. The bees
will then do nearly all their work above.
I have had swarms hived on five Lang-
stroth frames to fill several supers, and
leave some of the brood-combs about
two-thirds completed.

I have seldom found it necessary to
feed for winter, as a result of this prac-
tice. I unite to keep down increase,
and in so doing I strengthen the bees up
well for winter, and by selecting the
fullest combs I can generally supply the
reduced number of colonies with plenty
of stores.

The apparent disadvantages of this
system are the extra work and care re-
quired, and the greatest number of parts
necessary to keep on hand, such as
honey-boards, dummies, or brood-cases
and frames, according to the style of
hive used, requiring a greater outlay of
capital, etc. I say apparent disadvan-
tages, for there is no one, perhaps,
unless it is the one man who never
knows anything, who has ever system-
atically practiced contraction and ex-
pansion, but will tell you these invest-
ments all pay him. But forever bear in
mind, it is only for him who makes the
production of comb honey his specialty
or leader — he who devotes the best
powers of his mind to it — that such in-
vestments will pay. Remember also, he
will get more honey from 100 colonies
of bees, and make more money for the
capital invested xhan he will who makes
comb honey production a less special or
exclusive pursuit.

One thing more deserves attention

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

499

here. Other things being equal, the
more bees we can get in a colony by the
commencement of the harvest, the better.
It is also possible to get more brood in a
10-frame than in an 8-frame hive by
June 1st. At least I can usually get
8 frames solidly filled with brood earlier
when there is an extra comb in either
side of the hive, than when 2 of the 8
come next to the hive walls. But it does
not follow that it is essential to have the
most bees at whatever cost. The pos-
sible half pound, or such, more of bees
that one can get in a 10-frame than an
8-frame hive, would be that much better
in the latter. But we are no better off
with the slightly greater quantity of
bees in the larger, than with the lesser
quantity in the smaller hive, so far as
the crop of surplus is concerned. I be-
lieve the reverse is the case. That is to
say, as a rule, we can get the bees we
can rear in an 8-frame hive into sec-
tions earlier than those we may obtain
in a 10-frame, each colony in its own
hive. The more bees the more honey, is
no doubt true in the abstract, but it is
not true in the concrete.

DIMENSIONS OF THE STANDARD LANG-
STROTH FRAME.

On page 183 are given the dimensions
of the Langstroth frame as 9j^xl7%.
Some years ago Father Langstroth
wrote to Mr. A. I. Root that the correct
length of the standard Langstroth frame
was 17%. Since that Mr. Root has
called his frame the " Simplicity." Mr.
Root was himself, I think, the first man
to make the frame 17% inches long,
and I understand he did it in order to
suit a brood-case in which a wide frame
holding eight one-pound sections could
be inserted.

Mechanicsburg, Ills.

Price of Extracted Honey in
Years of Scarcity.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY CHAS F. MUTH.

Wishing to make good use of a rainy,
sleety afternoon in the country, which
prevents exercise out-of-doors, I shall
endeavor to answer a question raised by
you or Mr. Root, viz. : " Why is it that
the price of extracted honey does not
advance in this year of scarcity ?"

The idea seemed to prevail that adul-
teration was the cause of low prices, if
I remember correctly. Such theory is
not compatible with my experience, as

we have never sold more honey for
family use than we did during the last
twelve months. We have, perhaps,
never before sold as much in our square
glass jars, almost all of which is bought
for table use. Honey is cheap— so is all
produce but hogs ; they are staple, ruled
very low for many years, and com-
menced to advance only a few weeks
ago.

Twenty-five years ago, when honey
was 35 cents a pound, the whole country
did not produce as great a quantity as
California, or as Florida, did in the past
year of scarcity. Although they were
the most favored States in America,
neither one had more than 35 per cent,
of their expectations realized ; yet, those
two States produced more honey in 1892
than there ever was consumed in Amer-
ica during any one year up to about 10
or 15 years ago.

Who in the world used honey for man-
ufacturing purposes 15 years ago ?
Whoever heard, 15 years ago, of one
manufacturer using 20,000 pounds of
honey a month ? We had several such
customers during the late years. They
have curtailed their orders, not because
they are afraid of adulteration, but be-
cause we are charging them a cent or
two more per pound than we did when
honey was plentiful. This convinces us
that honey is no staple article yet ; it
also proves the fact that cheap sugar
has a bearing on the price of honey.
Honey is the preferred article, there is
no doubt about it, but it is considered
" out of reach " by the manufacturer if
the difference in price is too great be-
tween it and sugar.

There was a time in my own experi-
ence, when my own crop of 500 pounds
of honey was an immense quantity. It
was about that time when Ohio, or Ken-
tucky, or Wisconsin, with present im-
provements, when either one of those
States could have supplied the whole of
North America in a good season. We
all remember yet the time when good
Southern honey went begging at 33^
cents a pound. The country was over-
stocked— there was an over-production.
Why? Because the manufacturer had
not yet learned the use of honey. With-
out the manufacturer, there would be an
over-production in the past year of
scarcity. He can do without honey, but
offer it at a price which seems within
his reach, and an over-production of
honey will be a thing of the past.

Extracted honey has worked itself in
as one of the family necessaries, to a
very great extent, especially among the
working classes, while comb honey will

500

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

remain a family article, and " on the
shelf," unless it looks inviting, and its
price is acceptable.

I was amused when Prof. Cook and
his students could not tell the difference
between syrup fed to bees and genuine
honey, and I wondered whether they
would have taken it for clover or for
buckwheat honey. They certainly have
poor tongues. The tongues of the pub-
lic would not be so easily deceived.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

California Apiarian Exhibit and
tiie World's Fair.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY W. A. PBYAL.

Visitors to the World's Fair need not
spend much time in looking for Califor-
nia's display of honey and beeswax. The
reason of this will be a good deal like
that of the small boy who was eating an
apple, and was asked by another lad to
give him the core. The latter was
promptly told, " There won't be no core."
Well, the truth now seems to be that
this State will not have any "core "or
anything else to its honey exhibit, for
the simple reason, as I have intimated,
that there will be no exhibit.

It may seem strange that the leading
honey-producing State of America will
not make a showing of its products of
the bee-hive at the greatest show ever
held on this continent. But it is appar-
ently a fact, nevertheless.

The matter of an exhibit was discussed
at the convention of the California State
Bee-Keepers' Association, held at Los
Angeles, early last February. It was
then expected that the California State
World's Fair Commissioners would do
something toward arranging for a cred-
itable display of our honey. Under this
supposition a number of bee-keepers
who were present at said meeting, ex-
pressed a desire to send some very fine
samples of honey to Chicago. Some of
these apiarists were to contribute pack-
ages of our famous white sage honey,
others some of our mountain alfalfa,
others alfalfa from the San Joaquin
plains, while others were to send sumac
and other varieties.

I did not express myself on the matter
of what I might possibly send to the
Fair, but I had been considering a plan
of sending about a dozen flat display
glasses containing as many grades of
honey gathered here in the vicinity of
San Francisco bay. This collection

would have embraced eucalyptus, alfila-
ree, wild rape, and other sorts. Then,
. there were to be some neat displays of
beeswax made by some of our southern
Californian apiarists. Taken all to-
gether, the showing our honey-producers
were to have made would be a credit to
the State. But now, alas, the whole
thing is " knocked into a cocked hat."

Wha,t little honey that will be sent on
from here will be in the county exhibits;
if these are no better than some of those
I have already seen, they will not be
anything to be proud of. Those who
have had charge of these exhibits have,
in the great majority of cases, been
thoroughly incompetent to attend to the
getting up of an agricultural or a horti-
cultural exhibit.

In one instance, I have known a
County Board to take a man who was a
good judge of leather and wax-ends, to
collect a fruit exhibit of one of the finest
horticultural counties in California. Of
course, in the first place, the fruit men
were not going to do much for such a
man ; they lost confidence in a concern
that would pick out a man to attend to
such a matter who was unfitted by past
experience for such work. It is needless
to say that the county I refer to has a
miserable show of preserved fruits in
great big jars. Some of the insignificant
cow counties have a far better showing.
Too much politics have been the cause
of all these failures in getting the right
man for the right place. ,

But I am drifting away from the main
part of the subject I started to write
about. It was the reason why our Cali-
fornia bee-keepers are not likely to make
any display of honey in the California,
or, for that matter, in the other build-
ings at the big Fair.

Two years ago the legislature of this
State appropriated $300,000 to pay
for a building and the means of having
a fine display of our products exhibited
in this building. A Board of commis-
sioners was appointed to make all the
necessary arrangements. These ar-
rangements were very well carried out
as far as making places for a swarm of
useless officers was concerned. They
have used up about the best part of the
money appropriated, in paying them-
selves, so it is said. The way things
were carried on here occasioned a good
deal of ill-comment. Of the way things
were run, I won't say anything more.

When the bee-keepers came to find
out what was to be done for them, they
learned that if they wanted to make an
exhibit, and have it properly cared for,
they would have to do it at their own

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

501

expense. Otherwise, they would have to
take " pot luck " with the other truck
that would be dumped in the California
building. A case would be provided In
the State building ; the honey and wax
could be placed there by sonae of the
incompetent employes of the building —
possibly a cobbler or a grave-stone carver.

This has been very unpleasant news
to the apiarists of this State. I have
heard that they are going to keep their
honey at home ; and, in fact, some have
gone so far already as to say that they
won't go to the Fair; that a concern
that is run in that manner deserves to
be boycotted.

It is too bad for this State that the
management fell into the hands of a lot
of men who cared for the patronage that
the positions afforded them, more than
for the general welfare of the State.
From my own observation, I know this
to be the fact with some of the county
committees. It is a matter of common
comment here that the State Board has
been doing things in a rather queer
manner. It is bad enough for other in-
dustries to suffer at the hands of such
men ; but as the bee-keeping industry
has received less encouragement in the
past from the State than any of the
other industries, it was hoped that the
managements of the State and of the
World's Fair would have gladly given a
helping hand to our infant industry.

But the hopes of California bee-keep-
ers are shattered. They get no more
from the commissioners indicated than
they get from the State for other pur-
poses of their calling. The only thing
they have a hope of obtaining this year,
which will be of any practical benefit to
them, is an apicultural department in
connection with the State University.

North Temescal, Calif.

[For editorial remarks on Mr. Pryal's
article, see page 488. — Ed.1

The Paddock Pure Food Bill
and a State La^v.

Written for the American Bee JoumaZ
BY WM. LEERS, PHIL. D.

From many sides it has been urged to
make all possible efforts to secure the
passage of the Paddock Bill to prevent
the adulteration of food, etc. — a Bill in
which bee-keepers are highly interested.
It is indeed a vital question for bee-
keeping. Said Bill will be a strong " ad-
jurans " (as physicians say) to State

laws against adulterations, but (I am
sorry to say it) stop the same, it will not.
Its best result will be to cut off the de-
fense to be made in State courts, that
the adulteration was committed in
another State or foreign country.
Enough holes to evade condemnation
will be left. One I will point out. The
word "knowingly" is so often and so
emphatically used in the Bill, that it
will hardly be overlooked by a tolerably
attentive lawyer as an easy escape.

The law of New Jersey, passed in
1879, would be more effective. Its third
section is worth more than the whole
Paddock Bill. The adulteration by
"feeding "was not then known, whih
the New Jersey law passed, but since
that time it has become of the greatest
importance, and should not be over-
looked.

Section 10 of the Paddock Bill pro-
vides for the sale of the adulterated
foods, but here a different treatment was
wanted. Foods which contain ingre-
dients noxious to health, should be de-
stroyed, while others, which are only a
fraud on the pocket of the public may
be sold. (In Europe, e. g., bread, which
has not its full legal weight, is sequest-
ered and given to the poor, while it is
destroyed if it contains noxious ingre-
dients.)

Of greater importance, because of
greater benefit, than the Paddock Bill,
would be for Illinois a State law resemb-
ling the above cited law of New Jersey,
with a provision against " feeding " of
cane-sugar or other substances not gath-
ered by the bees.

Oleanings, in 1879, page 229, ad-
vocated petitions against adulteration
to the legislature of Ohio, and offered
blanks for it gratis. I did not hear of
any result. As Illinois had the same
interest, I wrote to Mr. Dadant, who,
some time prior, had shown so great a
zeal for the matter, but he found it not
advisable to take steps in that direction,
as adulteration of honey had nearly all
died out, on account of the low prices of
honey, making it unprofitable. That it
would revive as soon as the fraud would
pay again, he overlooked.

In all other branches of production,
poor harvests and high prices alternate •
with good harvests and low prices, and
the loss of the producer of one is com-
pensated by the other. In bee-keeping
it is otherwise. When the season is
good, the price is low ; when it is poor,
at once the adulteration is on the place,
and skims off the fat of the soup.

The provision against "feeding" of
inferior sweets is indispensable. The

502

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

omission of it in the enumeration of the
different modes of adulteration, would
make the law nearly inert — inert at the
most vulnerable place. Comb honey was
until now deemed honest, and a pure
product of the bees. Destroy the confi-
dence in it, and the consumption of
honey will be diminished more and more.
That will be the effect of feeding sugar.
To bury in silence the fact, does not help.
The manufacturers will take the care to
promulgate it. It is in their interest.
They will boast now that bee-keepers
also are dishonest ; their comb honey
also adulterated. Why pay more for
flower-honey than for sugar-honey, if
ifcey are identical ?

In all the courts of the old continent —
England excepted — the omission would
do no harm. They would say, the gist of
the law is suppression of adulteration,
and the enumerating of its different
modes is merely enumerated, not re-
stricted, and salus populi summa lex esto.
But in the United States the construc-
tion of the law would be different. I
will say nothing for or against either,
but the fact is undeniable, and must not
be overlooked.

Steps for securing a State law for
Illinois should be taken immediately, as
the time is short to get it through the
legislature, and the session being closed
it would be another two years before the
Bill could be brought again.

About the conviction of the adultera-
tors, I will speak in a subsequent
article.

Sigel, Ills.

[The above was written before the
Anti-Adulteration Bill was published, on
page 263, which was to have been pre-
sented to the Illinois State Legislature.
We have not heard anything further
from Mr. Stone regarding it, whether it
was presented or not. — Ed.]

Darkneiss, Dryness, Dormancy —
Three Wintering Essentials.

Written for the Am.eriean Bee Journal

BY J. A, PEAKCE.

Darkness, Dryness and Dormancy —
these three are the essentials for in-
side wintering of bees. We sometimes
think we have a repository dar'k, when
it really is not; somewhere light is
creeping in, that we do not notice, but if
we remain in it for 15 minutes, we can

see that it is not perfectly dark. It
should be made " as dark as a stack of
black cats."

Dryness. When we speak of this, we
mean the inside of the hives. This, I
think, can be secured in almost any re-
pository by just covering the hives with
quilts or straw-board sufiScient to keep
the bees warm, and yet let the moisture
that so'gradually accumulates as steadily
pass off, with the entrance below fairly
open. This is the fault frequently with
hives becoming damp, simply because
there is not ventilation enough below.
This, I think, is the fault with a great
many chaff or packed hives that would
be perfect only for that. Old box hives
used to winter well frequently out on
the summer stands, with an inch block
under each corner. You cannot cool off
the top of a box that is all tight above
very fast, especially where there is a
good cluster of bees to generate heat ;
but if they are so close that moisture
accumulates, they soon become diseased
and die.

In a state of nature the bees have the
thick shell of the tree with considerable
rotten wood around them, that makes a
good absorbsent, and they usually have
a good-sized opening, and in this way
they winter well. A good cluster of
bees, with plenty of good stores, can re-
sist a great amount of cold, if they are
only kept dry.

Dormancy, quietude. This is the in-
dicator that will be thrown out if every-
thing is all right. If I go into the cellar
and I cannot detect any sound, or just a
gentle murmur, as you hear sometimes
from a far-away, gentle, running stream
in the woods, I know that my bees are
doing well ; but if they are roaring loud
enough so you can hear them in the next
room, you had better look out, for some-
thing is the matter. This is true of bees
or people. If any number get to holding
mass-meetings, or parading the streets
for bread or for other causes, that gov-
ernment over them had better investi-
gate, for there is something wrong.

To secure this dormancy, then, we
want the darkness and dryness, with
plenty of good stores, and a temperature
from 42° to 45°, as nearly as we can
make it stay there. With these condi-
tions observed, we ought to get our bees
through all right, so that we could have
a supply of honey before the public all
the time, like tobacco men do with their
product, and try to imitate them at least
in the tasty and showy manner in which
they display their product.

Grand Rapids, Mich.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

503

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Curing Bee-Diarrhea.

I have read in various papers that bees
were subjected to a disease known as " diar-
rhea, and that no remedy for it thus far
had been discovered. I have been inter-
ested in bee-culture for 20 years or more,
and not until ' recently did I know what to
call this disease, although my bees have
frequently been infected with it. The win-
ter of 1892 it attacked one colony, and by
spring they were all dead. This winter it
entered another hive, and the bees began to
die until two-thirds of them were gone.
Thinking that they would all die anyhow,
if left in this condition. I resorted to an ex-
periment, to see if there was any cure for
it; the experiment proved a success, and
the bees are as free from it now as if they
had never been attacked by the loathsome
disease. John K. Rbger.

South Branch, N. J.

[We should be pleased to have Mr. Reger
describe his cure for bee-diarrhea, for the
benefit of the readers of the Bee Journal.
—Ed.]

Packing-Case Method of Wintering-.

I make packing-cases 6 feet long, 30 inches
wide, and 3 feet high in front, and 2 feet at
the back, with roof of good shingles, and
separate from the case. The boarding in
front extends to within 6 inches of the bot-
tom, at which point a shelf 4 inches wide
extends inward, against which the hives
are placed.

Each case will contain three hives, which
rest upon 4 bricks placed on the ground.
The cases have no bottom, and are set over
the hives and rest on bricks. The hives are
put 6 inches from the end, and the center
one in the middle. This arrangement leaves
a space of 4^o 6 inches on every side, and
12 to 16 on top. I pack it full of di-y leaves.
and place the roof on. when it is ready for
winter.

This method of packing leaves 6 inches of
the hive in front open to the weather, and
nothing to obstruct the entrances, which
are 4 inches wide. All moisture will con-
dense on this side and run out. leaving the
rest of the hive dry at aU times. Each case

is made of good pine boards, and No. 1
shingles are used. I give them two coats of
paint. The total cost is $1.50 each, and they
are good for 20 years.

About June 1st I remove the packing, and
raise the case 6 inches, by means of bricks
placed under the bottom, and leave the
cases on all summer. In hot weather I
raise the back of the roof 4 inches for venti-
lation. I am successful in wintering bees
this way, and lose none.

In the winter, during storms, I set up a
board in front for a storm-door, and keep
all ice out of the entrances. I allow 30
pounds of honey to each colony, including
bees and comb. I wintered 10 colonies last
winter, and all came through safely, the
hives full of bees, and all wide-awake.

Dearborn, Mich. C. W. Learned.

Bee-Keeping in "Egypt."

My bees are doing well, gathering pollen
and some sweets from maple. Elm is in
full bloom, and peach trees will be in a few
days. I have young bees hatched out
already. All my colonies are strong this
spring. If there is a good honey-flow, I
will reap a rich reward.

Allen Springer.

Rose Bud, His., March 20, 1893.

Long and Cold Winter.

We have had a long and cold winter this
time, but it seems to be about broken up
now. Several of my colonies froze to
death, leaving behind them plenty of stores
— something that has not happened in my
apiary since I have been in the business,
which is about 25 years. I think it was
caused by insufficient ventilation. I always
winter my bees on the summer stands, but
they are roofed under, and otherwise well
protected. Elisha Cart.

Doylestown, Pa., March 19, 1893.

Over-Stocking and Over-Production.

During the earlier years of the present
system, of bee-keeping, when the demand
for comb honey in sections was invariably
in advance of the supply, the product
readily brought from two to three times
the present price ; but this condition was
too good to last. Every pioneer in the new
system, who was fairly skillful, awakened
scores from their Rip Van Winkle slumbers,
and as visions of speedy wealth rose before
them, there was a rush for movable-frame
hives and the necessary accompaniments.
And no wonder, for with honey selling at
from 30 to 40 cents per pound, a large api-
ary well managed was a bonanza.

With such brilliant prospect in this line,
the number of bee-keepers was greatly mul-
tiplied, all discontinuing the practice of
killing the bees for their honey, and giving
the business the advantage of whatever
knowledge or skill they possessed. It is
needless to state that one result has been

504

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

over-production, and very low prices ; that
another result is, the older portions of the
country are badly over-stocked with bees.
As conditions now exist, the bulk of bee-
keepers cannot make the business pay, and
would gladly quit it if they could realize
anything near the cost of their investments ;
and the sooner they sell out the better ; for
what show is there at this time of sharp
competition and low prices for any but ex-
perts ?

Among apiarists poor seasons have be-
come a general complaint. In fact, in the
East each one of the past six years has in
turn been pronounced a very poor season
for bees and honey. Now, is not this un-
satisfactory condition largely attributable
to over-stocking ? I firmly believe that if
the stock of bees could be reduced a hun-
dred per cent, in this section of the country
at least, apiarists would be rewarded by
more surplus honey, and hence far greater
profits. Indeed, it has become a pressing
necessity that we decrease our bees, and
increase our honey flora, or capture, civi-
lize, and domesticate the savage •' Apis dor-
sata." For one, I strongly favor making
a conquest of the great bee of Ceylon. If
brought under the control of apiarists, and
successfully introduced into this country,
it would probably double our honey-pi'oduc-
tion, as well as add millions to the agricul-
tural interests by the fertilization of the
larger clovers. S. S. Butts.

Wyalusing, Pa.

Lost Only 3 Out of 30.

My bees have wintered finely during the
long siege of winter. I had 30 colonies, and
have only lost 3, and those by diarrhea.

Geo. L. Winteks.

Sherwood, N. Y., March 20, 1893.

That Horse-Blanket and the Bees.

Mr. C. Reynolds asks, on page 405. who
can account for his bees fighting that horse-
blanket. Don't you think it was the smell
(!) of the ice (on that dirty horse-blanket)
whi*h had been wrapped in it, that angered
the bees so ? I can only think of one other
cause, which is so simjjle that 1 dare not
mention it. W. Hakmer.

Manistee, Mich.

My Experience with Bees.

Three years ago I procured one colony of
hybrid bees in a double-walled chaff' hive.
I placed them on a stand on my lot and
awaited results. I expected to notice a
bunch of bees as large as a half bushel,
hanging in front of the hive, as a warning
to me that they were going to swarm, but,
to my surprise, they gave me no such warn-
ing, and the consequence was, two swarms
left for parts unknown, and I captured the
third one of the first year. Those wintered
nicely and gave me three good swarms the
second summer, which also wintered well
the second winter, and gave me 18 swarms

last summer, which I doubled up to nine in
the fall ; so that I commenced the winter
with 14 colonies, all in chaif hives on the
summer stands.

I use all Langstroth hives of my own
make. I have had some strange and laugh-
able experiences with my few colonies of
bees, if I were to relate them, as I suppose
all beginners have. This winter has been
veiy disastrous to bee-keepers in this
locality^ Out of the 14 colonies I have lost
3 from " diarrhea, I think caused by long
confinement. My bees did not have a
cleansing flight for SJ^,' months — in fact,
there was not a bee to he seen outside the
hive from Nov. loth to March 1st. One of
my neighbors has lost 80 colonies out of 42,
fall count.

There are a great many engaged in bee-
culture to a small extent in this locality,
but only a few who go into it extensively.
My honey yields have been very small, as
I have run for increase, as will be seen by
the 18 swarms from 5. D. W. Heise.

Bethesda, Ont., March 13, 1893.

The Season of 1892.

The bees came through the winter of
1891-92 very strong, and with very small
loss, but the spring was very cold — the
worst in 14 years — and the bees did not
build up as fast as usual. The forepart of
clover bloom it rained so much that there
was no honey in it, and as it was not the
basswood year, we did not get much from
basswood. As we do not have any fall
flowers of any account, we therefore have
to feed more or less every year.

Addison, Vt. E. J. Smith.

Gathering Honey from Sugar-Cane.

The last time I extracted honey was on
Oct. 5 and 6, 1892, when I only extracted 8
out of 10 frames from the top of Langs-
troth-Simplicity hives, which were very
full of honey at that date. We have 65
colonies all in good condition, on summer
stands now (Feb. 7th).

I was surprised to see my bees bringing
pollen and honey, and I wondered where
they could gather /loney in the winter, but I
think I have solved the mystery. In No-
vember we cut our sugar-cane for grinding,
and saving seed cane. I noticed the very
day the cane was being cut down, bees were
about in great quantities, sucking the sac-
charine matter from the stubbles and ends
of top cane. I wanted to write to the Bee
Journal at the time, but I was afraid to
make a blunder, and could not prove what
I wrote. But now I am sure of what I
write. Bees gather honey from stubble-
cane, and pollen from the woods, in this
month of February. All my bees are on
the summer stands, and seem to have more
honey now than they had on Jan. 1st.

From what experience I have had in bee-
culture, since two years. I believe it can be
made very profitable here under proper
management, the climate being a great

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

505

factor in our favor. I am almost afraid to
write, being a novice in bee-culture; but
from what I have so far practically gath-
ered, information that is substantial, I
really believe that bees can gather honey
from cane stubbles, here in Louisiana, and
stay all winter on the summer stands, and
do better than they do in the North, where
they must go into the cellar for 4 or 6
months.

This week came our planting of sugar-
cane, and our dear little friends followed
us to gather aU the saccharine matter they
could find, and I must admit that all of our
colonies are in good condition, and doing
well. P. E. COUVILLON.

Carencro, La.

Cellared Bees "Wintered Best.

Bees left on the summer stands the past
winter suffered severely. Those in the
cellar never wintered better.

Abel Gresh.

Weedville, Pa., March 31, 1893.

Still Thinks it was a Queen.

Many thanks for reply on page 403. It is
hardly probable that my letter was at all
interesting to any one but myself, and I ad-
mire the patience of the editor to publish so
many questions from greenhorns like my-
self.

It is quite humiliating to have Dr. Miller
insinuate that we cannot distinguish be-
tween a queen and a worker. There is some
consolation, however, to think that he
" sized me up " as possibly being a Hercu-
les; but the fact is. my " pugilistic bump "
is quite, if not altogether, undeveloped ;
/. e., I have not had the " sand-bag " prac-
tice to make a success in any maneuvers,
a la Corbett ; besides, the distance between
Marengo and Bishop Hill makes it quite
safe " along this line."

The reason I think it was a queen is. after
I found and captured her. I started for the
house to show her to Mrs. L., when (juite a
number of bees followed, alighting on my
hand and caressed the queen in a manner
that I have noticed several times before in
manipulating with queens under like cir-
cumstances, which, in my mind, is conclu-
sive evidence that the bees regarded her as
their queen, although she was worthless.

Again, I never saw bees do that when I
would take a worker in like manner. Has
Dr. Miller '.

Bees gathered the first natural pollen on
March 28th. The weather is fine, and we
have good reason to ask, as did our friend
A. recently, who saw a spider descend from
the ceiling, and landing on his work bench.
He pointed to it, and calling our attention,
he said: • Ish dot shpring means V'

D. LiNDBECK.

Bishop Hill, lUs., April 1, 1893.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 485.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
April 15th, 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey 18 about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10®12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7i4c. ; amber, 5®6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6@8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax- Demand good.at 24@27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@16c.
OfiE grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@10c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7}4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, 16®17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8Vi ;
dark,6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNEAPO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c. ; 2-lbs. 16®17c. Buckwheat, comb; 13
@14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

ALBANY, N, Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14@15@16c ;
mixed, 12@13c ; dark, 10®llc. Extracted,
white, 8@8i4c ; mixed, 7®7}4c ; dark, 6^®7c.

Beeswax, 26®30c. H. R. W.

Mrs. J. P. Cookenbach, whose
advertisement appears on page 483, will
be glad to have you write to her to
secure a good place to stay during your
visit to the World's Fair the comiHg
summer. The Bee Joubnal refers its
readers and friends, with much pleas-
ure, to Mrs. C, who will do the right
thing by all who give her an opportunity
to help them.

506

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote In this Journal.

Clilcaso, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Seqelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

mtuneapolis, milnu.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway &

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Obio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Wants or Excbajiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

FOR SALE— 360 pounds good Wax; 30 cents
cash gets it. As to our responsibility we
refer to Deposit Banls, of Eminence, Ky., or
G. W. Demaree, Christiansburg, Ky.

E. DRAKE, Eminence, Ky.

WANTED— Foot-Power Lathe for metal ;
Portable Forge and Anvil. I will ex-
change Honey, Bees, Queens, or good Bicycle.
14Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

WANTED— To exchange, a claim 1 mile
from a thriving town in Logan Co.. Okla.
Ter., for land in Northeastern Texas. South-
western Arkansas, or Northwestern Louisi-
ana, contiguous to a river, in a good bee-keep-
ing range. Correspondence solicited.
Address, RUFDS WILLIAMS,

loA4t Crescent City, Logan Co., Okla. T.

Advertisements.

.••^-^^•^•■«^/^v/'^.^"^^"^rf-^.

This Adv't will Appear but Twice !

WE have on hand the following widths of
Planer Sawed Sections, First Quality :
1 15-16, 1^4. and 7-to-the-foot— all 414x414 Oue
Piece V-groove. Parties using said widths can
get a bargain by writing tor prices.

Our Polisliecl Sections

are the finest and smoothest Sections made.
Write for prices.

WAUZEKA BXFG. CO.,
16A2t WAUZBKA, WIS.

Best On Earth

B "

More than 100,000
BINGHAM & HETHERINGTON

Honey-Knives

AND-

Bee-Smokers

IIT TDA-XJ^Hr XJSEl.

Illustrations sent free.

Bingham & Hetlierington,

5Atf

ABRONIA, MICH.

WE^ELL

OUR Polished 41^x414 1-Piece V-Groove
Sections, guaranteed as smooth as any
note paper, at $2.50 perM. Parties wanting
more than one M should write for Catalogue
and prices. Parties using Second Quality
Sections can get a bargain by writing for
prices. AVAUZEKA MFG. CO.,

2Atf WAUZEKA, WIS.

30 Thirty Years' Experiece. 30

Try Our Hardy Strains of Bees.

Leather-Colored Italians and Golden Carni-
olan. Qualities: Extra honey-gatherers, long-
lived and winter well. To each customer we
present one copy of the March "Api.," giving
our latest method to Rear Queens. Queens-
Si each. Cat. free. HEMRV ALLEY, Wenhaui, Mass.

The Golden Beauties !

MY Italians cannot be excelled in the
world for Honey, Non-Swarming, Prolif-
icness, Gentleness and Beauty.

One Warranted Queen, 75 cents ; on orders
for 5 or more, 10 cts. discount. Tested Queens
$1.00 each. Safe arrival and satisfaction guar-
anteed. Address, C. B. BANKSTOIV,

16Atf CllKlSMAN, TEX.

BUY your HIVES whore lumber is cheap-
est. That's at LeSueur, Minn. Catlg. free.
24Atf F. C. EKKKIi.

GEORGE W. VOBE, I DEVOTED EXCJ-USryELY
Editor. i —

- J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

To Bee-Culture. ( Sample Free.

VOL XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, APRIL 27, 1893.

NO. 17.

From the brooklet, from the rushes
Come the merry song- of turtles ;

Hark, in tuneful songs the thrushes
Join the chorus, from the myrtles.

There they're cooing', there they're billing,

Each in notes most sweet and ringing.

Say not 'tis the turtle's wailing
Of the sorrows that are nearing ; '

Say, Instead, that new life's creeping
In the veins of all that's sleeping.
" Winter's past and Springtime's coming,"
la the news the bees are humming;
And the birds are clearly singing,
" What you've longed for Spring is bringing.

— Vick's Magazine.

Xlie Ifiee-Esca.i>e was first so-called
by Mr. G. W. Demaree, of Christiansburg,
Ky. He exhibited a " bee-escape " in Lex-
ington, Ky., in 1881, at the meeting of the
North American Bee-Keejiers' Association.

Sci-a.|>s of Quota-tious from some
noted authors are now fittingly placed at
the head of some of the contributions for
the Rmiew, indicating something of the
nature of the article that follows. Editor
Hutchinson says he puts them there, but
" they are not always of his choosing." We
just believe that they are made so appro-
priate by reason of the loving efforts and
thoughtfulness of some angelic presence in
the home of the Review. Now, didn't we
guess it, Bro. H. ?

j^Ir. i\. Ijcvering-, of California, be-
gins with the April number to conduct
"The Apiary" department in the Califor-
nia Cultivnior and Poultry Keeper, published
at Los Angeles. In his " Salulatory," Mr.
Levering says that he believes he originated
the first apicultural department ever pub-
listted in Southern California, in the Los
Angeles Herald, in 1876, and was chosen its
editor by the Los Angeles County Bee-
Keepers' Association, and re-elected to that
position for a number of consecutive years
thereafter. In 1883 he published the Gali-
foruial Apiculturint, the first and only paper
that was devoted exclusively to apicultural
interests published on the Pacific Coast.

Xm«l<* iVotew is the name of a new
department begun in Gleaiunys for April
l.ith. It is intended to " keep track of and
describe all recent useful improvements"
in bee-appliances. Bro. Root will " sit on
the judgment seat," and try " to be as im^
partial as possible. ' ' Only devices or ideas
that he considers worthy of notice will be
described. It will be an interesting feature
of what is already as nearly perfection in
the way of a bee-periodical as can well be
attained. But Bro. Root seems to want the
"perfectest" kind of perfection; and he'll
have it, too, as (^leaiunys is well Root-ed.

Men* Reepeii, of Germany, who re-
ports for the Bee Journal the most impor-
tant apiarian events occurring in "The
Land of Dzierzon," we are pleased to say
has been selected as delegate to the Colum-
bian Exposition for the Kingdom of Prus-
sia. We hope he may be here when the
North American Convention is in session,
so that it may be honored with his presence.

520

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Xlie Bee-Keepers' Enterprise is

the name of a new bee-paper to be first
issued on May 15th, by Mr. Burton L. Sage,
of Connecticut. In his advance notice, Mr.
Sage says it " will contain not less than 12
pages and cover ; same size, and much after
the same style of the ' Review.' "

We wish the new paper all the success its
publisher may hope for, but really he must
be an eiderprUing man who can venture to
now start a new periodical devoted to bee-
culture in view of the numerous poor sea-
sons of the past few years ; but let us all
continue to hope that those unprofitable
years may indeed be jmst, and that the im-
mediate/wfiwr may have in store such un-
usual prosperity for both producers and
publishers, as shall fully compensate for the
trying times which all have been compelled
to endure.

Editoriul Assistance, we claim the
right to secure whenever we deem it best,
in order to make these " Buzzings," etc., as
interesting and profitable as possible.
While we may do this, we of course hold
ourselves responsible for whatever may
appear as editorial matter, just the same as
though we had written it all ourselves.
Nearly all the large daily newspapers and
monthly literary magazines each have
numerous editorial writers now-a-days,
while only one real editor decides as to the
suitability and value of the matter sub-
mitted for publication by the various as-
sistant editorial contributors. By so doing,
the whole periodical becomes correspond-
ingly more valuable to its readers, and the
labor is thus lessened individually by rea-
son of its division among several persons.

** A jflotlern Mee-Earin and Its

Economic Management," is the title of a
splendid book on practical bee-culture, by
Mr. S. Simmins, of England. It is 5%s.S}4
inches in size, and contains 270 pages,
nicely illustrated, and bound in cloth. It
shows " how bees may be cultivated as a
means of livelihood; as a health-giving
pursuit ; and as a source of recreation to
the busy man." It also illustrates how
profits may be ' ' made certain by growing
crops yielding the most honey, having also
other uses; and by judgment in breeding a
good working strain of bees." Price, post-
paid, from this office, $1.00; or clubbed with
the Bee Jouhnal for one year, for sfl.TO.

For Indiiina, Itee-JKeepers. — Hon.
B. F. Havens, one of the Indiana Executive
Commissioners, sent the following, dated
April 22nd, to Mr. Walter S. Bonder, of
Indianapolis, with the request that it be
published in the American Bee Journal.
Indiana bee-keepers should read it care-
fully:

An Appeal to Indiana Bee-Keepers : —

Fifteen feet of show-case, 5x6 feet, has
been purchased for the State Honey Ex-
hibit at the World's Fair. Will you furnish
from your apiary any portion of this ex-
hibit ? It now remains with the bee-keep-
ers of this State to see to it that this space
is well and appropriately filled, and we
fully believe that your State pride, with
our abundant resoui-ces, will prove you
fully equal to the undertaking.

Mr. Sylvester Johnson, well known
among the bee-keepers of this State, has
kindly consented to look after the Indiana
exhibit. He will be at the Fair grounds
throughout the time of the exhibit, and
will do all in his power to see that exhibits
are properly arranged.

We are depending entirely upon this
year's product, and consignments can be
made in July. Plan your exhibit to occupy
a space 2}4 feet square, and 5 feet high,
pack carefully, and ship by freight to B. F.
Havens, Dep't. A, Agricultural Building,
Jackson Park, Chicago, Ills. Freight must
be prepaid, and at the close of the Exposi-
tion the goods will be returned to your
shipping-point free of charge. No cash
premiums will be paid from the State ap-
propriation, but awards will be made by
diploma.

I trust that you will make application for
space at an early date, when more explicit
directions will be sent you. Address me at
"Indiana State Building, Jackson Park,
Chicago, Ills.," giving me positive answer,
as to whether you will furnish an exhibit
or not. I will send you full shipping direc-
tions upon notification that you will furnish
an exhibit. B. F. Havens,

Executive Commissioner.

«f . T»n I>eusen <& Sons, the wired
comb foundation makers of Sprout Brook,
N. Y., wrote us on April 20th, that " bees
in Otsego country are coming out in good
condition." As usual, reports are quite
varied this spring. Some have lost no bees
in wintering, while others have lost all. On
the whole, however, we think that there
was less loss than usual the past winter. Of
course, the "springing" part is not yet
over.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Jouknal we mail for
only 50 cents; or clubbed with th«
Journal for $1.40.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

521

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of suflBcieut special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make "Queries and Replies" so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners. — Ed.

Foundation Starters with Separators.

Is it necessary to place foundation
starters in one-pound sections with sep-
arators ? If so, why ?

Gaston, Oreg. Louis Wilcox.

Answer. — Yes ; unless you use start-
ers of foundation or comb, the bees will
be likely to make very crooked work,
and make a good many sections so they
could not be taken apart.

Test for Purity of Queens.

If all the workers are three-banded, is
that conclusive evidence that the queen
Is pure, and that she is purely mated ?

My experience says no to the above
question ; and that the only true test of
a pure queen, and that she is purely
mated, is the production by her of pure
queens, or queens with the proper mark-
ings. If we would keep our stock pure.
It is essential that we know how these
things are. H. F. Coleman.

Sneedville, Tenn.

Answer. — Others have thought with
you, but the difficulty of carrying out
the theory in practice seems to have
resulted in settling the rule that three-
banded workers are taken as evidence of
purity of queens. The markings of
queens from unquestionably pure moth-
ers you will hardly find uniform enough
to make the task of deciding an easy
one.

Perhaps it was Moisture.

I began bee-keeping in the spring; of
1891, with one colony, increased to
three, and for want of knowledge only
got 40 pounds of comb honey. They
wintered well on the summer stands in
chaff hives, and last year I increased
them to 7 colonies, and got 250 pounds
of comb honey. All were in chaflf hives
with plenty of stores for winter. The 2
stronger colonies have had honey run-
ning out at the entrance. What is the
cause? Is it the moth? If so, how will

I know it ? and what will I have to do
with them ? John Bagshaw.

Vroomantown, Ont.

Answer. — Are you sure it wasn't mois-
ture from the bees, instead of honey ?
If there was much dampness in the hive,
it is just possible that some of the honey
might get thin enough to run out. If
the work of worms, you can tell it by
taking out the combs and examining
them. Then you can dig out the worms
with a pen-knife. But the fact that the
strongest colonies are affected, hardly
points to worms as the cause. Moisture
would be more likely to run out at the
entrance of a strong than a weak col-
ony, and might look very much like
honey, but the taste would decide it.

Transferring— Extracting Pieces.

1. Will you tell me the best method to
transfer bees from a box-hive to the
Langstroth hive ? I have 27 swarms in
the box-hive. They are in fine condition,
and have been carrying in pollen fast
to-day. Would you cut out the old
comb and fit it in the frames, or would
you give them foundation aiid drive out
part of them, leaving the balance 21
days, after Heddon's plan ? I intend to
work them for comb honey.

2. Can I extract the honey I take out
of the old box-hive, with an extractor?

Gran, Mo., March 13, 1893.

Answers. — 1. You will probably like
the Heddon plan of transferring best.

2. Yes, you can extract from the old
combs, but they are not so easy to man-
age as straight combs in frames. If
very crooked, you may have to cut them
up a good deal, and for the small pieces
you will need some kind of a comb-
basket that will hold them.

Robber Bees — Straw-Board Separators

1. What is the best way to prevent
robbing when bees are put out in the
spring ?

2. How can it be stopped after rob-
bing has begun ?

3. Can common straw building-paper,
or any other kind, be used successfully
for separators in the section supers ?

Melrose, Wis. H. N.

Ans. — 1. Try to have all colonies fairly
strong when put into the cellar. Then
you will have fewer weak ones in the
spring, for a very weak colony in spring

522

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

invites robbers. See that any that are
weak in the spring have the entrance
contracted, and after their first flight
the entrance need only be large enough
for one bee to pass at a time.

2. In most cases it is not easy to stop
it after it is begun. The ounce of pre-
vention is vv^orth two pounds of cure. If
the colony is very weak, or queenless
(and quite often queenlessness is at the
bottom of the trouble), it may not be
best to try to stop the robbing. For in
trying to stop the robbers, especially if
you do any such thing as to remove the
victimized colony, you may only start
robbing in others. Just let them go on
and finish up the job, and if not dis-
turbed, they will be satisfied to stop
when there is nothing more to be had,
without pitching into every neighboring
colony. If you don't want the robbers
to get all the honey that is in the hive,
take out what you like, but always leave
in the hive a little for the robbers, so
they will stick to that hive. But what-
ever you do, don't take away the hive
from its place, unless you set in its place
another hive for the robbers to work on.
If the colony is not too weak, sometimes
robbing can be stopped by piling straw
or hay a fool deep about the entrance,
and wetting it thoroughly. The robbers
don't like to go through it, but the bees
of the colony will find their way through.

3. No ; the bees would tear it down.

Stimulative Feeding in Early Spring.

1. What is thought of the feeding of
bees in early spring for production of
brood ?

2. Is Graham flour as good as oat-
meal ?

8. Can too much be given ?
Cooksville, Ills. E. B. Ellis.

1. Opinions are divided as to stimula-
tive feeding. Some believe that there is
much advantage in feeding each even-
ing, or every other evening, about half
a pound of diluted honey or syrup, while
some of our most experienced bee-keep-
ers prefer to do no feeding in spring,
only so far as it may be necessary to
give the bees not only a sufficient
amount of stores, but an abundance of
it. Having given them a full supply,
they are left undisturbed.

2. We do not remember to have seen
a report of any careful coniparison be-
tween Graham and oatmeal. Give a
dish of each at the same time, and see
which they seem to like best. Perhaps
you will not find any difference.

3. It is not very likely that you will
feed too much meal, for in places where
natural pollen is plenty, they will desert
it, and if there is no natural pollen,
they may need some substitute.

Dof s the Formic Acid Cause the PainP

Please tell us if it is the "formic
acid," when administered through the
agency of the sting of the bee that gives
the pain which follows after being
stung. Some will doubtless say " Yes."
Is it formic acid which gives some peo-
ple pain in the stomach after eating I
honey ? Will formic acid give pain if j
introduced into the blood by other agen- '
cies, if formic acid is mixed with the
honey, as Prof. Clarke says it must be in
infinitesimal quantities ? If you cut a
finger, or cause an abrasion of the skin
so as to draw blood, you may put all the
honey on the wound you can, yet you
will not feel any pain similar to that en-
suing after bee-stings. Try it.

SUBSCRIBEK.

Answee. — There's a big difference be-
tween "infinitesimal quantities" and
full strength. Dissolve a teaspoonful of
salt in a barrel of water, and you may
apply the solution to a cut on the finger
without pain, but the application of pure
salt would be quite different. " Try it."

COWVENTIOM DIRECTORY.

Time mid place of meeting.

1893. „ „ , ^

May 2.— Connecticut, at Hartford, Conn.
Mrs. W. E. Riley, Sec, Waterbury, Conn.

May 4.— Susquehanna Co.. at Montrose, Pa.
H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford. Pa.

May 4.— Allegany Co., at Belmont, N. Y.
H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

]^" In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting.— Thk Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller.... Marengo, Ills.

Vice Pres —J. E.Crane Middlebury. Vt.

Seckpitary— Frank Benton. W^asbington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President- Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer. Mich.
Gen'l Manager- T. G. Newman. Chicago, 111.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

523

JOSEPH E. PO]«D, ESQ.

Again we present to our reader one of
our honorable corps of representative
bee-keepers, who have for years aided

»iBianii»i»jniriiii«»aBgiwi>ii>riM<ai<«ririff«ri»iMt»«Bm«iw«er>||

m?

0'^^:

j''-.--.A:<^i^.

m

Ami^

■^.

JOSEPH E. POND.

in making the department of " Queries
and Replies " so interesting and profit-
able to our readers. Mr. Pond has from
the very first — in 1885 — contributed
regularly his opinions upon the various
questions propounded. He has also, at

different times, and doubtless as "the
spirit moved him," written valuable
articles for the Bee Journal, upon the
numerous and important subjects that
have, from time to time, been discussed
in these columns.

Mr. Pond was born in South Walpole,
Mass., on May 21, 1834. He was edu-
cated in the schools of his native State,
and at the "Indiana Asbury University,"
in Greencastle, Ind.

He studied medicine at the Howard
Medical School ; was in the United
States service during the " late unpleas-
antness," in the medical department,
but resigned in 1863, and began the
study of law, which profession he has
been actively engaged in since 1869.

Mr. Pond began the keeping of bees
in 1866, being induced thereto by ac-
cidentally running across a copy of
Langstroth's matchless work, "The
Hive and Honey-Bee." He has kept
bees only as a recreation, but has studied
to a considerable extent, in order that
he might know what he was doing, and
to learn the reasons therefor.

Keeping bees, with him, has been a
labor of love. He has carefully studied
their habits, and tested, experimentally,
nearly all points that in theory seemed
practicable and valuable.

Mr. Pond was the first to call atten-
tion to the matter of close spacing of
frames, and he still believes the method
of so working will produce the best re-
sults.

He has never kept bees for profit, and
only from 5 to 20 colonies at a time ;
hence, in some apiarian things, he has
had more time to learn the " whys " and
" wherefores " than one who has been
constantly endeavoring to make a finan-
cial success of bee-keeping.

Xlae Queen, some one has said, is not
a ruler in any sense of the word. She is a
mother — the egg layer — and is governed
and controlled at every step by the bees.
Slie is under the direction of tlie worker
bees. She does not lead the swarm, but is
generally the last to leave the hive, and
quite often has to be sought out and driven
from the hive by the bees.

524

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

CONDUCTED BY

Hit®. JeMEif^ MteMey,

Greenville, Texas.

Having' Divided Colonies as Good as
Natural Swarms.

This question was asked in Query 849.
As none of those replying had space to
tell the "hows" and "wherefores" per-
taining '0 the question, each one gave a
brief answer that was applicable to his
own locality ; so all the answers we may
say, are correct.

The reason that a divided colony is
just as good as any in the South, is this :
Our main honey harvest never comes
earlier than May, and in some portions
of the South it does not come until July ;
so we may divide our bees in March or
April, and long before the honey harvest
comes, we can have the divisions or
divided colonies just as strong as any
natural swarm, or as strong as one that
did not swarm at all. So they are bound
to be just as good for storing honey, or
for any other purpose, as the natural
swiirms, and for me I will take them
first, as the portion that forms one of
the divided colonoies has a young, vigor-
ous queen (or ought to have, if the api-
arist knows his business) that will have
her colony boiling over in bees at the
right time ; when, if they had swarmed
naturally, the swarm is most likely to
have an old queen that will persist in
swarming again just at the time they
should begin to work in the boxes, thus
almost rendering them useless for stor-
ing comb honey that season.

Or if they do not swarm, the queen in
many instances is beginning to give way,
and as natural ^rst swarms usually build
nearly one-third drone-comb, the conse-
quence is at the time they should begin
in the supers their population is about
one-third drones, which is a great loss
to the owner. Nearly twice as many
bees could have been reared on the same
food, and the hive chock-full of bees in-
stead of drones. Or the queens of nat-
ural swarms may be so nearly " played

out "at the time of swarming that her
colony may be so reduced at the begin-
ning of the honey-flow that they will be
useless for storing section honey. While
some natural swarms, I must admit, are
as good for section honey in the South
as others, I speak of the majority.

The parent colony, where a natural
swarm has been cast, is better for sec-
tion hoiley in the South than the swarm,
for the above reasons.

Now, to make it a little plainer, I will
say that if you make your divisions at
the right time, you will have all natural
colonies long before the honey-flow ; just
for the simple reason that time enough
makes them so.

For instance, we divide in April; by
June the artificial part will have passed
away by an entirely new generation of
of bees, and they have all the natural
qualities of a natural swarm, and are in
fact, or reality, a natural colony. So
why are they not just as good for any
purpose as to let them swarm? I say
they are, and better.

Early natural swarms in the South
are of no value except to perpetuate the
colony until harvest time, and many
times fall behind the rightly made arti-
ficial swarms and the after-swarms just
for the reasons given above. While in
the North their bees seldom swarm until
the beginning of the harvest, so the
Northern apiarist can put his rousing
natural swarm right to work in the
boxes, and, of course, get the use of
them at once. And, of course, divided
colonies have not had time to recuperate,
and are not profitable ; nor can they
work like the natural swarm. That is
why the answers to the above question
were different, and at the same time all
correct.

I have taken 4 frames of bees, brood
and honey from as many strong colonies
in the last of March ; put them together,
carried them to an out-apiary, given
them a good queen, and have had such
a colony outstrip anything in the apiary
that same year ; and the full colonies,
where the frames were taken from,
never perceptibly felt the loss.

More than this, I used to run my bees
for box honey, and have received orders
for full colonies right at the beginning
of the honey-flow ; and on going out to
the apiary to select a good colony to
send to my customer, I have found all
such beginning to work freely in the
sections, I just turned about and pro-
cured a new empty hive, and on going
to 8 strong colonies, took a frame of
bees, brood and honey, placed them In
my new hive, closed the entrance (this

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

525

all beiDg done just about sundown), put
it in a cool place three days, then gave it
a good young queen from a nucleus hive,
and let them work about two days, or
until I knew the queen was all right
and laying, then shipped it. And T have
had the report from such a colony gath-
ering over 100 pounds of surplus that
season.

I gave the full colonies, where the
eight frames were taken, empty frames
with foundation starters, and the effect
was so much of " the drop in the bucket"
character, that it was not perceptible
after the frames were taken out ; but,
on the contrary, when I went to take ofif
the crate of sections, I have often found
a frame of nice comb honey where I had
placed the empty frame.

There is no fiction or theory about all
this, it is only bee-keeping in the South,
and any one that will try and work
rightly, can do the same. J. A.

Bee-Keeping in Florida, Etc.

On the south side of Orange Lake,
Fla., Mr. Chas. F. Henning has some-
where in the neighborhood of 900 colo-
nies of bees, spring count. He has been
engaged largely in queen-rearing until
this season. In a recent letter he states
that he has taken off 2,000 sections of
honey, and has 5,000 more on the hives.
This season he will devote his time prin-
cipally to advancing the interests of bee-
keepers all over the State.

Continuous rains on South Side Lake
Harris have prevented the bees from
giving as much surplus comb honey. We
are hoping for some surplus from the
later flowers, but comb honey from the
orange was short. Those who run their
apiaries for extracted honey had the ad-
vantage this year. Last year the season
was all that could have been desired.

A LAW AeAINST ADULTEKATION.

I fully agree with the editor of the
Bee Journal on the way to deal with
honey adulterators. We need a law
against selling glucose for honey, as
well as against selling oleomargarine for
butter. And more, we want a law for-
bidding the manufacture and sale of
artificial honey under any and all cir-
cumstances.

Let us take this matter in hand, as
suggested by Mr. Newman (page 697 of
the Bee Jouenal for Nov. 24, 1892),
and raise whatever amount will be
needed to carry on the fight to the end.
Let each one who is interested, send in

his dollar, or more, according to his
ability, to be retained until suflScient
funds have been raised to put the matter
through. Let the producers of pure
honey petition for a stringent law
against selling anything but pure honey,
under any name that will injure our
legitimate business, or throw discredit
on any honest producer.

Some may say, " A law will not pre-
vent adulteration." There may be vio-
lators of this law, as well as the laws
against stealing, fighting, etc. There
are some who would sell artificial honey
if there were no law forbidding it, who
would not do so in violation of law.
With a heavy penalty attached to the
law, many others wonld be deterred, and
this difficulty would be practically re-
moved, and our chances of success in
this our chosen pursuit be increased.
Mrs. Minnie Wood Gordon.

Bloomfield, Fla., March 30, 1893.

Father IL.ang-strot]i, in his enter-
taining "Reminiscences," which are being
published as a serial in Gleanings, gave some
" interesting incidents of Samuel Wagner,
founder of the American Bee Journal," in
the number for April 1st. After giving a
letter received from Mr. Wagner in 1852,
Mr. Langstroth follows with these two
paragraphs, showing the excellent charac-
ter and qualities of the lamented founder of
this journal :

As soon as Mr. Wagner became acquainted
with my hive, instead of publishing his
translation of Dzierzon, for which he was
then in negotiation, he urged me to write a
book which he believed would, with my
movable frame, do more for the promotion
of American bee-culture than anything
from abroad. Being an excellent German
scholar, and very famUiar with both an-
cient and modern apiculture, more espe-
cially with all that could be learned from
German sources, he placed all his varied
information at my command absolutely
without money and without price and
labored with untiring zeal to make mv
book and hive a success. Seldom do we
find such an admirable example of rare
magnanimity and disinterestedness

Visiting him at intervals, and corres
ponding with him frequently, he kept me
posted up m everything occurring in Ger-
many which was of interest in our favorite
pursuit. His large library, so full espe
cially in the German literature of bee-keep
ing, was thoroughly at his command and
he could turn at once to book or periodical
for information on any point that mieht
come up for discussion. °

it

Bees and Honey »>— page 517.

r'526

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

Bees Building a Queen>Cell
Over a Drone-Egg.

Query 868.— 1. When bees build a queen-
cell over a drone-eg-g, and feed It on royal
food, are they aware of the fact that It will
not produce a queen ? 2. If not, why does the
capping differ from the real queen-cell ?— Pa.

I don't know. — A. J. Cook.

I don't know. — Eugene Secor.

I give it up. — James A. Geeen.

Not being a "mind reader," I cannot
tell. — Jas. a. Stone.

1. I do not know. 2. Give it up. —
Emerson T. Abbott.

I never asked them. Perhaps some
one else has. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

If they think at all on the point, they
probably have very serious doubts, and
are catching at straws. — R. L. Taylor.

1. I suspect so, from the fact that
they'll not use such an egg if they have
others. 2. I don't know. Does it ? — C.

C. Miller.

1. I think not, or they would not
"fool their time away" building such
cells. 2. Like Dr. Miller, " I don't
know." — C. H. Dibbern.

The bees probably have a way of
knowing a mature drone from a queen
larva, but I do not think they can tell
one egg from another. — G. L. Tinker.

I think they start in good faith, but
as the larva matures, they find that it is
a drone, and then they cap it without
taking much pains with it. — E. France.

1. Who can tell ? Probably not, else
they would save their labor. 2. Can
any one tell why our bees do many
seemingly incomprehensible things ? —
J. E. Pond.

Bees are queer " critters," and do
many (to us) strange things — like a per-
son drinking alcohol when they know it
will produce death and damnation. — H.

D. Cutting.

How much bees reason and know I am
not going to tell you ; for, candidly, I
do not know ; but one thing I do know,
and that is that bees never " build a
queen-cell over a drone-egg." A queen-
cell is never built over anything but a
larva.— G. M. Doolittle.

1. It is not easy to tell what bees
think. 2. I have never seen a queen-
cell built over a drone-egg, and I was
not aware that the capping was differ-
ent.— M. Mahin.

I cannot fathom the thoughts (?) of
the bees on this subject. Bees some-
times apprise you of their intentions be-
fore'stinging. You can be certain after-
ward.— P. H. Elwood.

1. It has seemed to me that they do
not real heartily believe that it will pro-
duce a queen, but I am unable to say at
just what stage doubt give way to cer-
tainty.— S. I. Freeborn.

1. I, for one, am not able to read the
thoughts of bees, though I might some-
times imagine I did. 2. I imagine they
may have some intuitive knowledge on
the subject. — J. H. Lareabee.

This is one of the unaccountable facts
— or rather, "freaks" — of queen-rear-
ing. I am free to confess it is beyond
my ken, but is probably brought about
by some abnormal condition. — Will M.
Barnum.

1. I don't know if they are " aware,"
but they seem to regard it as the last
hope. 2. The excess of royal food kills
the grub, and consequently no cocoon is
spun to preserve the shape of the cell. —
J. P. H. Brown.

1. This is all conjecture, yet there is
evidence that they do know the differ-
ence, and build cells over drone-larvae
simply because they have nothing bet-
ter. 2. The very f«,ct that they do make
a difference in the cells is evidence that
they know there is a difference — Mrs. J.
N. Heater.

I don't think they know anything
about it while it is an egg, but find out
it is a drone before capping time. If
bees can change the sex of an egg, why
don't they make queens out of such ? Or
why don't they make workers out of
laying-workers' eggs? Bosh ! — Mrs.
Jennie Atchley.

1. I guess not. A hen will set on a
nest without any eggs in it. Bees and
hens, and "sich,"do not "reason." The
impression prevails among bee-men that
normal queens are never hatched from
plain, smooth cells. This is a very great
delusion. I have often seen perfect
queens hatched from smooth cells. All
queen-cells are smooth until they are
sealed. The indentations — miniature
cells — are worked on the cell after the
sealing, and cannot effect the inmate of
the cell. Perhaps the embellishment is
the work of the guards to employ their
time. 2. The "capping" does not dif-
fer. It is the inmate that differs. — G.
W. Demaree.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

527

Report of the Indiana State
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY WALTER 8. POUDER.

(Continued from page 496.) •
Pres. Russell — The next In the order
of our programme is an essay by Mrs.
Alice S. Moore, of Greeusburg, Ind., on

What are the Honey-Plants of the
State of Indiana P

•' How doth the little busy bee
Improve each shining: hour ?
It gets a hustle on itself,
And robs the early flower."

Honey is not made by the bees, but
nature has provided the delicious nectar
in myriads of beautiful flowers that deck
forest, field and garden in quantities far
exceeding the wants of bees, and they
store it away and man utilizes it for his
pleasure and profit.

Honey and pollen are supplied by
nearly all the flowering trees, shrubs,
vines and plants of the vegetable king-
dom, and our own State is well furnished
with fine nectar-yielders, and the bees
are always the first to detect the earliest
flowers. In writing of some of Indiana's
honey-plants, I will include a few that
are so universally cultivated that they
might almost be classed as natives.

First come the alders, soft maples and
willows. These are very early, and
furnish the bees an acceptable change
from the spare winter diet. Then the
hard or sugar maple throws out its
golden tassels, and " the little brown
pets " have another supply of nectar and
pollen. The peach, pear, quince and
plum, rich in honey and pollen, later ex-
tend an invitation which is never slighted
by provident bees, and then the apple-
blossoms afford a real harvest.

For bee-pasturage the cherry has
never been fully appreciated. Several
of the early varieties bloom in a time
when most needed by bees, and the
latest are fully improved by them. The
raspberry continues in bloom over two

weeks, and few flowers furnish so large
a quantity of purest nectar; it is a crop
of great value to bee-keepers. Straw-
berry and blackberry blooms also yield
nectar.

Next come the clovers. The sweet
clover blooms and yields honey continu-
ously from June until August, with
usually a second crop of bloom lasting
until late fall, and the honey is unsur-
passed in color and flavor. Melilot
clover is said to be worth the cost of
cultivation to the bee-keeper because its
flow of nectar is not affected by atmos-
pheric changes, and is second to none in
flavor. Alsike clover is also a good
honey-plant, and the bees have no
trouble in finding it. Italian bees gather
considerable honey from the red clover.
The well-known white clover fills the
air with its ambrosial perfume, and the
bees in myriads sing from flower to
flower, and never succeed in gathering
all its honey.

Honey from buckwheat is rich but
dark. Mustard is most profitable as a
honey-plant ; it keeps branching and
blooming all summer. Catnip will repay
cultivation for honey alone. It con-
tinues to blossom for a long time, the
bees working on it with the greatest
assiduity from "early morn till dewy
eve." Hoarhound, peppermint, spear-
mint, wild balsam, teasels, thistles, bur-
docks, wild snap-dragon, columbine,
plantain, wild geranium, may apple,
wild sedums, violets, wild oxalis, the
bell-flowers, field larkspurs, blood-root,
all the milk-weeds, tongue-grass, know-
weed daisies, wild lettuce, iron-weed,
blue-curls, cardinal flower, wild lobelia,
wild hydrangea, starwort, wild parsnip,
wild rose, trumpet creeper, wild agertum,
rap-weed, sumac, leather-flower, etc.,
are all natives of Indiana, and are all
honey-plants.

Motherwort cannot be too highly com-
mended as a honey-plant. It blooms
from July until frost, and grows in great
abundance. The figwort, also exten-
sively advertised as " Simpson's honey-
plant," is a native of Indiana. It is a
large, coarse-growing plant with in-
numerable small flowers, with an open-
ing at the base of the seed-ball which is
hollow and filled with the purest honey,
and so rapidly is it deposited that in two
minutes after being taken out by a bee,
it is again filled with a shining drop of
nectar. So freely does it yield honey,
that a branch removed and given a
sharp shake, the honey will fall in drops.
It blooms from July until frost.

Ground ivy, a creepiTig vine that
covers the ground in many parts of the

528

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

state, is a fine honey-plant. The wild
asters are all pxcellent honey plants,
bees sometimes collecting from them as
late as October.

Spanish-needles yield large quantities
of rich, yellow honey. Smart-weeds
yield strong nectar, in abundance, of a
peculiar odor. Golden-rod, by many, is
given the proud distinction of being the
banner nectar-bearer of fall flowers,
giving bountiful measure from its golden
bloom. The list is almost endless, and
nearly all of the common garden vegeta-
bles and vines secrete honey in their
blossoms. One extravagant writer
speaks of a variety of corn which might
yield "a gallon of honey from the tas-
sel, a cake of beeswax under each leaf,
and a jug of whisky from each ear!"

Among the trees, the locusts are
almost certain to bloom, and they yield
a bountiful supply of rich nectar, and
bees literally swarm among the highly
perfumed blossoms. Locust honey can
hardly be said to be dark ; it is of a rich,
pale red-gold, and its keeping qualities
are excellent. The basswood, or linden
trees, when in bloom are like great
music-boxes, giving forth the hum of
thousands of bees as they swarm in and
out to drain the nectar from over-flow-
ing cups. There is no tree that yields
so abundantly of nectar as the linden,
nor is there any superior in flavor.

The tulip or poplar tree yields an
abundance of delicious honey, nearly a
teaspoonful of pure nectar often being
found in one of its large, bell-shaped
flowers. Box-elder, blooming between
the linden and poplar, is a great favorite
with bees, and yields a superior honey.
Several varieties of willows are good
honey-producers, and grow in nearly all
localities.

Even small grounds could be utilized
for the benefit of bee-keepers. If there
is a pond or low place, it could be trans-
formed into a beauty spot with pussy
and button willows, golden-rods, wild
bergamot, wild asters, and mints.

I have read of a honey-plant mound,
six or eight feet high, and sloping grad-
ually to a level. It was marked off in
rings ; in the center was planted figwort,
next golden-rod, then spider plant; next
motherwort and asters, then catnip and
smartweeds, surrounded with pepper-
mints and finished with ground ivy. The
combination of purple, yellov?, pink and
white flowers makes it attractive to both
man and bees.

Early in spring, a round bed bordered
with dandelion and the center filled with
violets — white and blue — makes a beau-
tiful show of color. They are good

honey-plants, and coming early, they
are a luxury for the winged pets.

If on Arbor days bee-keepers would
see that maples, lindens and poplars
were planted, we should not only have
shade, but beauty and profit. Waste
places along the roadside and railroads
could be covered with figwort, mother-
wort and sweet clover, so that when the

" Swift-winged forager, the bee, sets forth
Scouting from east to* west, from south to

north,
Shall find and gather with industrious haste
Sweetness, that else upon the earth would
waste."

"'Tls for them, the blooming world
Nectareous gold distils."

Alice S. Moore.

Pres. Russell— =-We have just listened
to this very able and enjoyable essay by
Mrs. Moore, and I think she deserves a
vote of thanks from this Association for
it. She is one who has always taken a
very great interest in this branch of
science, and has, at different times,
given us almost a volume of knowledge.
I think as a slight mark of our grati-
tude, we should send to her, as she is
absent, a vote of thanks.

Mr. Muth — I am in favor of what our
President has said. It is an excellent
essay, indeed. I therefore make a mo-
tion that we send a vote of thanks to
her.

The motion was carried, and the fol-
lowing adopted : •

Resolved, That the Indiana Bee- Keep-
ers' Association hereby tender a sincere
vote of thanks to Mrs. Alice S. Moore,
of Gre^nsburg, Ind., for her entertain-
ing and valuable essay.

Mrs. Moore's essay was then discussed
as follows :

Pres. Russell — The basswood that
Mrs. Moore has spoken of I have been
working with for several years. I take
sprouts of these trees up by the roots,
which is very easy to do at this period
of their growth, and set them out all
around my farm, just where I want ray
fence — just a straight row of basswoods,
about 20 feet apart. In about two
years, during which time they did not
give me any trouble, I put up the wire
fence, using these trees as posts. I think
this is a very good plan, and then, be-
sides, it is a grand thing for the bees, as
it has on it a very pretty flower.

Mr. Pope— I think that is a good idea,
and I think the people of this State
should set out that kind of tree more
than they do. If they wanted to get a
shade tree, what is prettier than the
basswood ?

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

529

Pres. Russell — The maples are a most
beautiful shade-tree, but the basswoods
are just as pretty, and have the loveliest
flower that ever was seen. It is a very
hardy tree, too. As for the worms, three
table-spoonfuls of chloro naphtholine
dissolved in a bucket of water will kill
all of them.

Mr. Hicks — I sowed buckwheat, which
made a very fine growth and luxuriant
bloom, but I got no honey and no seed.
I had to feed my bees in consequence for
lack of winter stores. Caji any one tell
me why it is that when we do all the
labor and make preparations, we then
get no honey ?

Mr. Catterson — Some six or seven
years ago, a neighbor of mine had a
field of buckwheat of some six or eight
acres. He said when the buckwheat
was in bloom, about seven or eight
o'clock in the morning, the bees would
just come in flocks there until about 11
o'clock, and then they would go away
again. Two years ago last summer, I
had about six acres of silver-hull buck-
wheat, and I don't think the bees worked
on this at all, and I don't know whether
it provides honey as well as the old-
fashioned buckwheat or not. In regard
to its failure to make seed, I have been
told that during the warm weather, it
will not form. Then if that kind of
weather should last until autumn and
destroy the bloom, of course there would
be no seed. The weather must be cool
to produce seed and honey.

Pres. Russell — About IX miles west
of here, a man raised the silver-hull
buckwheat this year, and it did a good
deal as Mr. Hicks has said. It seemed
to blast at bloom, and to make no seed.
I cannot tell why this is ; but I have
now 50 bushels of as pretty buckwheat
as you ever saw — the Japanese.

Mr. Catterson — The siver-hull will re-
main in bloom about twice as long as
the Japanese, which only stays in bloom
about a week or ten days. It is very
poor buckwheat that will not yield seed.

Pres. Russell — I believe in sowing all
crops at the right time of the moon. I
think that has much to do with success.

Mr. Muth — When is the right time of
the moon, Mr. President ?

Pres. Russell — Well, that I am not
going to tell. (Laughter.)

Mr. Catterson — Mr. President, as it is
getting late, and I don't know but what
my ,name will be called next On the pro-
gramme, I, for one, am in favor of ad-
jouriiiing until this evening.

The convention then adjourned until
7:30 p,m.

(Continued next week.)

Workings Colonies by the Jump-
ing: Plan.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY E. L. PKATT.

Some time ago I published my method
of working bees by the jumping plan,
and it has proven so successful in quite
a number of large apiaries in different
parts of the country, that I give it again,
with what changes and additions that
have been found advantageous in prac-
tical experience for two seasons. All
who try this method are requested to
make a report to the author, with any
suggestions that can be given from ex-
perience with it.

The first thing to be done in spring is
to give the hives a thorough renovating.
Look each colony over, and see that it
has a good queen and plenty of stores
when equalizing operations commence.

For some reason the bees die off in
some hives very much faster than in
others, although the colonies were of
equal strength in the fall, and the
queens were equally prolific. Some
queens do not do so well as others in
early spring, and unless such colonies
are given some aid from the apiarist,
they will amount to nothing all the sea-
son, as they cannot build up in time for
the harvest.

I have found the jumping plan equaliz-
ing the colonies as expeditious and effec-
tive as any I ever tried. I look my colo-
nies through, mark the very strong ones,
and exchange stands with the weaker
ones ; jumping the hives over and across
back and forth, at intervals of about
ten days, until I have them all of equal
and proper strength to store comb honey
in the sections, which means full of bees
and brood, but very little honey.

All colonies that are found too weak to
possibly build up in time, should be left
out of this operation, and let alone to be
built up and re-queened later on.

It is very important that all the
queens be of a prolific sort, and the bees

530

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL^

good workers, if you hope to make any-
thing at handling bees for a living.

A colony covering three or four combs
fairly well will do to work on this plan,
and when a colony of this size suddenly
occupies the stand of one covering six or
eight combs, there is an influx of popu-
lation to the weaker colony that will
give the queen in that hive courage, and
she will at once start to fill with eggs all
the comb available. One or two frames
of the unsealed, and very young larvae,
should be taken from the strong colony
and given to the strengthened one as
soon as a sufficient number of bees have
joined to properly care for it — which
will be in the afternoon if the colonies
were jumped in the morning.

Leave as large a portion of the sealed
and hatching brood with the strong col-
ony as possible ; such a large number of
bees are taken away by the change that
they will not refill with young bees in
time to cover the very young brood that
is left. Here is where outside cases
work in well on cool nights.

We will now suppose that all the colo-
nies are in good working condition. It
is about ten days before clover opens,
and everything is in readiness for a good
crop of honey. For illustration, we will
suppose you have four good colonies of
bees in prime condition, arranged in
groups thus : One facing east, and
three in line at its side facing south.

Ten days before your main honey
flower opens, remove colonies 1 and 3,
and place them in the same relative
position by the side of No. 4, so as to
compel the working force from the
hives 1 and 3 to enter No. 2, which
should be tiered up for extracted honey,
or arranged with two or three tiers of
boxes with foundation starters. To pre-
vent such large colonies from hanging
out or swarming, they should be ar-
ranged according to the Pratt automatic
hiving plan, which has been explained
and illustrated in these columns.

A bottom-board is placed on an even
foundation, and a hive-body or shallow
brood-chamber placed on it; into this
hive-body place one or two combs and
empty frames with starters of founda-
tion ; cover this with a swarm hiving-
board, and place the colony and its
supers on the top of all. The lower en-
trance may have a common excluder,
and the upper one left open wide.

If a swarm issues, it is automatically
hived in the lower body, and work will
progress rapidly in the supers, and with
such a tremendous force of bees the
honey will ' roll in in waves," as it were.

One will readily see that the ventila-

tion with such an arrangement is per-
fect. The entrance is never crowded,
and the bees going and coming do not
in the least conflict with each other. By
this arrangement extra strong colonies
will hold together without the desire to
swarm.

As soon as the bees begin to fly well
again from colonies i and 3, or in about
eight or ten days, they should be jumped
back to their original position by the
side of No. 2, and left in this position
until after the harvest is over. Colony
No. 4 will thus receive extra strength,
and should have extra storing-room, and
the south entrance arrangement the
same as was given to No. 2. If all the
hives had supers started they should be
tiered over the colonies strengthened
for completion.

Having such an extra large force dur-
ing a good honey-flow, the same bees
that would have worked very well in
three different hives, will now show you
what honey-gathering is. The amount
of work and expense by this plan is re-
duced nearly one-half, and with such
rapid storing by this extra large force,
the honey is all first quality. During a
moderate flow, honey will come in such
quantities that one is surprised — every
comb sealed full, and attached firmly to
the section.

After the honey-flow is fairly over,
take every ounce of honey away from
all the colonies. Extract what can be
gotten at in the frames, and leave the
bees with as little on hand as possible,
so they will not rear a large number of
bees that will be consumers only. Then
if you have a good fall flow, no feeding
will be necessary. The same operation
can be gone through again later in the
season, with the view to leaving all the
colonies in good condition for winter.
Unless the fall flow is unusual, such as
from buckwheat, do not catch up the
force from hives 1 and 8, but jump them
simply for equalization, so that each
may then gather enough honey for win-
ter stores. All colonies that have been
used for nuclei, etc., can now be doubled
in to advantage.

Do not try to winter any but strong
colonies with plenty of stores. If your
hives are properly arranged for expell-
ing the moisture, there will be no
trouble about such coming out well in
the spring. If wintered on the summer
stands, outside cases ought to be used,
and the hives should stand about 14
inches from the ground. If possible,
select a sheltered spot for wintering bees
out-of-doors.

Beverly, Mass.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

581

That Case of Bee-Diarrhea aud
Supposed Cause.

Written Sor the American Bee Journal
BY DR. C. C. MILLER.

Here is a letter from Austin Reynolds,
of Cataract, Wis., in which he gives the
sequel to the case reported on page
339:

"As you requested, I will now let you
know how my bees came out. On March
7th, the mercury stood 43° in the shade,
with no wind stirring, and the sun shin-
ing. I scattered oat-straw and chaff on
about one-eighth of an acre, and got a
man to help me bring the bees out. I
took a clean bottom-board, exchanged it
for the dirty one of the first hive, then
scraped and washed this last for the
next hive, and so on through the whole
lot, 13 in number. It was a sight to see
the bees empty themselves ; but one bet-
ter stand from under. I don't think
there was a space of one foot square in
three rods around but what had more
or less spots on it, and but very few bees
failed to return to the hives. They would
alight on the straw and soon rise and fly
back to the hives.

" At sundown, they having become
quiet, I returned them to the cellar, and
if they became restless afterwards I
would open the outside cellar-door at
night, and twice I wet cloths and laid at
the entrance of the hives to give them a
drink, which seemed to quiet them. On
April 3rd I took them out of the cellar,
and placed them on the summer stands,
every colony being dry and healthy as
ever, as far as I can see. They had not
spotted their hives since their flight, and
are now, April 10th, bringing in pollen
in small quantities, and the trough
where I water them is covered with
bees.

" On page 439 of the American Bee
Journal, R. H. Humphries says he
thinks it was dampness that caused my
bees to be diseased. I think he is wrong,
as I have a very dry cellar, and I had
a bushel of lime in it, and a two-inch
pipe running from the cellar and con-
nected with the stove-pipe above. I lay
the trouble to the way the bees were
handled when putting them into the
cellar. The man who helped me was
careless, and hit the hives against the
cellar stairs, and the bees must have
filled themselves without a chance to fly
afterwards, hence the trouble.

Austin Reynolds."

successful cleansing flight with the
thermometer at 43° — a lower tempera-
ture than is generally considered desir-
able, but the bright, still day helped
much.

I think Mrs. Atchley can see in this
case a decided advantage in having
loose-bottoms that could be easily
cleaned.

In this case, at least, the bees stood
confinement all right after their flight,
which has not seemed to be always the
case. Just why, I don't know, for the-
oretically one would think that a flight
would help bees in the cellar as much as
those on the summer stands.

While Mr. Humphries may be right in
thinking that the fatal cases of which
he speaks, on page 439, were caused by
dampness, that hardly justifies the con-
clusion that a flight would do no good in
such cases. I venture the assertion that
if the bees of which Mr. Humphries
speaks could have had a flight in time,
they might have been saved. At any
rate it seems to be one of the things
upon which all experienced bee-keepers
are agreed, that from whatever cause
diarrhea may arise, a cleansing flight is
always a cure. I do not remember that
I ever heard any one but Mr. Humphries
express a dissenting opinion.

It is possible that Mr. Reynolds is cor-
rect in his supposition, that jarring the
bees on carrying them into the cellar
was the cause of the trouble, but I have
doubts about it. In several cases I have
known colonies to have their hives
knocked, not only once but many times,
while in the cellar, and still come out all
right, so that I do not fear that kind of
disturbance as much as formerly.

Marengo, 111., April 10, 1893.

< ■ m

Bee-Keeping in Oklahoma Ter.
ritory, Etc.

Written lor the Ameirican Bee Journal

BY JAMES A. MARSH.

There are some points of interest con-
nected with this case. The bees had a

Spring is coming — is right here, and
with it the bee-fever. About a year ago
I left my home, family and bees in Mis-
souri to seek a home in this country,
now a part of Oklahoma Territory.

Well, I am here. My home is here.
My family are here, and I also have one,
and the only, colony of bees in this part
of the Territory.

I will not waste this opportunity for
proving a few disputed points concern-
ing bees which could not be proved
where bees are plentiful, or at least

532

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

satisfy my own doubts. Horsemint is
coming up, and there are many other
weeds and shrubs, including the mes-
quite, which I believe is a dwarf honey-
locust. Almost all the flora is new to
me, and I have no work on bo,tany
adapted to this region, therefore I^will
have to wait to see what the bees think
about these flowers before I can tell
much about whether this is a good, poor
or indifferent bee-country.

My bees arrived too late in the season
last year, so I am all impatience to see
what they will get from certain flowers
which had an abundance of honey last
year, when there were no bees to gather
it. I do not enjoy sensational stories,
yet I believe I have found something
good growing on these broad prairies.

BEES BEHOVING EGGS FBOM CELLS.

On one occasion my experience was
different from that given on page 270,
concerning bees removing eggs from one
cell to another. A colony lost their
queen early in the season ; I examined
their combs closely, and saw no brood
or eggs. I then cut from a comb of
another hive containing eggs, a small
square, made a hole in a comb of the
queenless hive into which I placed the
piece containing eggs. In three or four
days I examined the comb, in the hope
of finding queen-cells started, but, to my
surprise, I found no cells, and the eggs
were gone from the square of comb. I
replaced it with a fresh section contain-
ing eggs, and again examined them in
three or four days, finding the eggs
missing from the inserted piece of comb
again ; but on close examination of the
other combs, I found larvEe apparently
three or four days old, and eggs not yet
hatched. I took care to see that there
was no queen in the hive.

A queen was reared and fertilized,
and lived until I pulled her head off a
year later.

PACKING AS AN ABSOKBENT.

There is a good article "continued"
on page 275, by James A. Green. But
why use packing as an absorbent, when
we want above all things to get rid of
the moisture? Why not use it simply
as packing, with a non-absorbent inter-
vening between it and the bees ?

I cannot agree with Dr. Brown, on
page 277, and could not afford to be
sunning moisture away, which my ab-
sorbents had collected, when it might
just as well have been allowed to collect
upon the sides where it would run down
to the bottom-board and out of the hive

without damage to the bees, and without
attention from the apiarist.

I mean no offence, but want the ap-
parent inconsistency of these absorbent
ideas aired in the Bee Joubnal, and I
hope Prof. Cook may give his opinion on
this "absorbent" topic.

Seay, Okla., March 8, 1893.

The Packmi^-Ca§e Iflethod of
Wintering; Bees.

Written ior the American Bee Journal
BY IBA W. EUSSELL.

My attention has been drawn toward
Mr. Green's method of packing bees for
out-door wintering. I have wintered
bees on that plan for the last three win-
ters, with this difference in the method
of construction of hives and outside case:
My cases contain four hives, as does Mr.
Green's, with the difference that the
hives are not removable, but are built
stationary in the center of the case, with
about six inches of space left all around,
between the sides and the bottom, for
packing material.

The top of the case is made in two
doors hung with hinges to the sides of
the case, and when closed they make a
roof (gable fashion) to the case. These
doors should be high enough to admit at
least two supers, on top of hives, and
covered with tin. All that is required
to prepare them for winter is to raise
the doors or covers, and fill the space
over the hives with hay or straw.

I think that when bees are thus pre-
pared, they will stand the coldest
weather we have in this latitude, which
is about 30^ below zero.

A great many would object to the bulk
and weight of such a contrivance, on
account of moving and handling. Well,
I have not tried to move mine since
I placed them in their present position,
which was two years ago last fall.

Right here let me say that I have
been experimenting a little with the
colony in one of these hives. Last
spring I wanted to feed a colony that
was weak. One of the colonies next to
it was very strong. As I uncovered
them, the bees of both colonies ran to-
gether over the taps of the frames, from
one hive to the other, there being only
an inch board between the two colonies ;
of course, all they had to do was to
crawl over the top edge of the board to
go from one colony to the other.

As they did not fight, I conceived the
Idea of feeding both colonies from one

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

533

pan of sugar syrup, placed on top of the
frames. I found they worked harmoni-
ously together.

When putting on the supers, I ar-
ranged them as one super, fixing them
so that both colonies could work to-
gether, thinking that by so doing the
strong colony might help build up the
weaker one. This, I believe, they did,
although I could not spare time to watch
them closely. The result was that the
weaker colony built up very fast, and
the supers over both hives were filled at
or about the same time. Neither colony
cast a swarm.

Now, I should like to ask if any of the
old bee-keepers have experimented along
this line. I should like to hear if any
one has tried working two or more colo-
nies together, thus making the strong
colonies help build up the weak ones,
and what effect it had, if any, on swarm-
ing.

I put away 39 colonies last fall. The
winter has been very severe. Bees have
not had a flight in about four months.

Storm Lake, Iowa, March 4, 1893.

Some Que8tion§ About the Re-
Ter§ing of Fraine§.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY F. L. THOMPSON.

I wish to ask for information on some
points about reversing, which are not
clear to me, though I have six bee-books
and have had the Bee Joubnal for the
last year. My case is this :

I have reversible hives which are hor-
izontally divisible into three brood apart-
ments, each apartment having a capacity
of 3}i Langstroth frames, consequently
the whole has a capacity of 10 Lang-
stroth frames. Now, I have carefully
considered the subject of contraction,
with reference to this locality, and it
does not seem to me suitable to it. There
are 600 or 700 acres of alfalfa near by,
which cannot be cut all at once, conse-
quently there may be, and probably will
be, a honey-flow sufficient at all times
before Aug. 1st to enable the bees to
store honey besides what they need
themselves. After Aug. 1st, and until
Sept. 1st. or after, there will be a honey-
flow from cleome ; and After Sept. 1st
it is still desirable to have plenty of
bees, in order to have them in good
shape for wintering. Now, if I do not
practice contraction, and still keep the
honey above those 10 frames, so as to
give plenty of room to the queen, it

would seem as if reversing was the only
thing left.

Although Mr. Heddon has said in the
Bee Journal, " I have found no ill ef-
fects whatever from a large experience
in reversing," Mr. Dadant quotes, in
his book, page 414, "As far as bee-
reproduction is concerned, the reversing
apiarist reaches the same result as the
brirastoning apiarist ;" and below he
says:

" In the present state of progress in
bee-culture, reversing is less damaging,
but its disadvantages cannot overbalance
its advantages, unless It is practiced
very cautiously and sparingly." It
seems strange that in all the time revers-
ing has been before the public, the ama-
teur can find such conflicting opinions
in two good authorities.

But the points I wish to ask about
especially, are. How does Mr. Heddon
reverse ? Does he leave a reversed
brood apartment alone an indefinite
period, trusting that egg-laying and
brood-rearing will go on in reversed
combs with the same ease and safety as
in the normal position ? or does he re-
verse just long enough for the bees to
get the honey out, and carry it upstairs,
then restore the apartment to its origi-
nal position ? If the former is true,
why should not a reversed brood-comb
stay reversed all the time ? How can
honey stay in it, if reversing is what
makes it run out?

Mr. Shuck speaks of " practicing in-
version weekly, when the whole gather
is likely to be in the supers." This
would suit my case, if I knew what he
meant — single or double inversion. But
" weekly " inversion would be very dam-
aging, indeed, according to what Mr.
Dadant implies.

I will be very much obliged for a solu-
tion of these questions, as well as an
opinion as to whether I am right or not
in not practicing contraction under the
circumstances.

Denver, Colo.

[Will some one who has the experi-
ence, please reply to the foregoing
questions ? — Ed.]

The IVinter in loMra, Honey
Prophecies, Etc.

Written for the American Bee Jour?ial
BY THOS. JOHNSON.

The past winter has been one of the
steadiest and coldest we have had for
several years. Bees have perished in

584

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

chaff hives, and what I can gather from
bee-keepers in the surrounding country,
there will be a far greater loss of bees
than there was in 1891, by one-half.
There has not been a day that bees
could fly since the forepart of Novem-
ber, and I have already an applicant for
bees by the pound to fill total losses
from the severe winter, their bees hav-
ing frozen.

I left a few colonies of bees out just to
see how they would winter, and, to use
the language of Dr. Miller, " I see'd."
All perished, even in chaff hives, and,
from all reports, bees that are wintered
out-doors on the summer stands will be
a total loss in this part. Those in re-
positories are wintering well so far.
This being March 6th, most of the snow
that fell during the winter is still on the
ground, but as luck would have it, the
ground is very little frozen, and as soon
as the snow goes off it will have a ten-
dency to vegetation,

THE HONEY PKOPHET AND PKOPHECIE8.

After carefully reading Mr. Wilson's
explanation of his prophesy last year, I
notice he refers me back to his former
article. He wrote that if he were con-
venient to Jackson county, Iowa, he
would move his bees there. If my in-
former is correct, the honey-flow from
linden and white clover was as light, if
not lighter, than in adjoining counties,
and far behind this locality. He refers
to the report of Gleanings for 1892, and
that they say the average has been bet-
ter this year than for the last five years.
I cannot see whereon Qleanings bases
that opinion. If so, where is the honey?
Not on the market, nor has it been, nor
is it in the hands of the producer. Cali-
fornia has not the honey she has had for
the last five years, nor any other State,
even Ohio, the home of Gleanings.

Mr. Wilson tries to make the readers
of the Bee Journal believe that it
rained more in the eastern than in the
western part of Iowa. It did not, and
when it ceased in the western, it also
ceased in the eastern part, excepting
showers now and then, and the loss of
bees was fully as large in this part as it
was in eastern Iowa.

Mr. Wilson says I am no better bee-
keeper than the average. I don't claim
to be, nor I don't claim to tell what kind
of a corn-crop the people of Iowa are
going to raise, nor the cotton or gruber
crop Tennessee will raise, before the
seed is planted. It is true that I re-
ported my bees in good condition, and
tried to give the true cause of loss in
these parts, by bee-keepers not having

their bees properly ventilated. I found
that where the apiary was located with
surroundings to protect the hives from
wind circulating around them, there
was the greatest loss, and, before the
general rains ceased, nearly every col-
ony I had was pretty weak, as well as
those of my neighbors.

Mr. Wilson said that the honey-flow
would be more general than last year,
and still holds to that belief, and says,
"Who says it is not so?" I do, and I
believe every person in the land inter-
ested in honey knows that in the year
1892 the honey product of the United
States was the shortest it had been for
the past five years, and if Mr. Wilson
had watched the different reports that
were published in the papers, from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, he would not
have made that statement.

He also says that most of my honey
was produced from fall flowers, and not
from linden and white clover, as was his
prediction. Three-fourths or more of
my honey was from white clover and
linden, and if we had had the fall flow
last year that we had in 1891, the crop
would have been immense. I wonder if
Mr. Wilson has any recollection of writ-
ing to me, on June 29, 1892, that he
was interested in my travels through
those parts of our State, etc., and ^aid
he would give me a better chance to
prove him a false prophet ; and also said
that southwest of my county (meaning
Carroll, but I live in Guthrie county),
southeastern part of Crawford, and a
very small portion northeast of Shelby
and northwest of Audubon had a better
flow of nectar than any other part
around or adjoining it.

Now if his above prediction is based
on linden and white clover, he has pre-
dicted for a country where that article
is very scarce, and where the country is
new. Linden does not grow on the
prairies in Iowa, but along the streams
of water where in these parts the crop
was short in that direction. As for the
fall flow, they were visited by growing
showers and heavy rains in August,
which caused the fall flowers to produce
nectar, and they had a better fall flow
than we had in this location. Now, I
will leave that prediction to the readers
of the Bee Journal, through which he
requested me to answer his predictions.
I will say that he has jumped to conclu-
sions without any basis ; first, by stat-
ing how much honey I got, and from
what source; and second, by quoting
from Gleanings as proof that the honey-
flow was better than it had been for five
years instead of taking the reports of

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

535

writers In different States during and
since the honey-flow.

Mr. Wilson has been cautioned in re-
gard to his predicting that he might
jump into a country where there was no
linden or white clover, and he did that
very thing when he "jumped on" the
corners of Shelby, Crawford, Audubon
and Carroll counties, because white
clover has just started, and there is no
linden in that part, as it is near the
summit of the dividing ridge of the
Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

KEMOVING EGGS TO OTHEE CELLS.

On page 270, the assertion is made
that an egg that is taken from any cell
by a bee is destroyed, and is never again
deposited by the bees. Now my obser-
vation may meet with opposition, but
nevertheless I am settled on this point,
and will say for the benefit of Mrs.
Atchley, that it is a great deal harder
for the queen to lay in one's hand than
to deposit the eggs indifferent cells than
it is for a bee to remove the egg from
one cell to another.

Being a queen-breeder myself, I have
frequently had bees go from one hive to
another, and steal eggs to rear queens
from, knowing full well that was the
only source they could procure them,
and I have seen them in the cell after
they were deposited, before they were
hatched. Only last year I had a colony
of bees to hatch, and after sealing all of
their brood, I removed all queen-cells,
and gave them two combs of fresh eggs,
and while they were rearing more
queens, the bees removed the eggs, and
reared ten queens on different combs by
the side of the combs I gave them. Now
is it possible that our Northern bees
know more tricks, and are more intelli-
gent than the bees in Dixie ? If Mrs.
Atchley will try different experiments in
rearing queens instead of 'sticking to
the one theory, she will discover in the
near future a great many things to be
wondered at, and will find out that bees
have different ideas.

Guthrie Co., Iowa.

^ ■ ^

Capons and Caponizing^, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Jouknal one year, for $1.10.

Do not write anything for publication

on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

^kAi

Colonies Fine and Strong.

I took my bees out of the cellar yester-
day, and they came out fine and strong.
Only 2 colonies died out of 37.

S. A. Paige.

Masonville, Iowa, Api'il 4, 1893.

Pretty Heavy Losses of Bees.

I put my bees out yesterday, and have
lost 40 out of 64 colonies. I saw one man
last Monday who had lost all he had — over
40; another that had lost 17 out of 18;
another, 50 out of 113, and so on.

A. H. Rogers.

Osseo, Wis., AprU 5, 1893.

Wintered About as Well as Usual.

It has been a fearfully cold winter, and
all expected it would be trying to the bees,
but colonies with sufficient stores and win-
tered out-of-doors in protected hives have
come thus far through about as well as
usual. L. F. Abbott.

Lewiston, Maine, April 1, 1893.

Bees Appear to be Doing Well.

My bees are three-banded. I put them
into the cellar on Nov. 34th, and they have
had no flight up to date, but appear to be
doing well. I have not a very large apiary,
but it is the largest in the township. I am
the first and oldest bee-man in the town-
ship. The weather now looks favorable for
the bees to have a flight. I think I shall
have them out soon. R. Howell.

Gillett, Wis., April 3, 1893.

Bees Wintered All Right.

I took out my bees to-day, and they came
out all right except one colony. I put into
the cellar 48 last fall, having taken 1,300
pounds of honey from them during the
season. Last spring I had 30 colonies. I
keep a dairy in connection with bees, and
they work well together. This is my third
year in bee-keeping. I could not very well
get along without the Bee Journal.

A. J. Pedersok.

St. Paul. Minn., April 4, 1893.

536

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Every Colony Wintered All Right.

Winter is now about over, and I find that
every one of my colonies has come through
all right. We had a very severe winter, the
thermometer registering 25 degrees below
zero part of the winter. Some of my neigh-
bors have lost almost all their colonies.
Some that took my advice in preparing for
winter, have lost none. The last three days
have been nice and warm, and the bees are
bringing in pollen from the willow.

G. W. Bell.

Bell's Landing, Pa., March 30, 1893.

First Flight for 140 Days.

The thermometer registered 64 degrees in
the shade to-day, and bees are lively — what
are left. It was the first flight since the
middle of last November — nearly, or quite,
140 days. Clark A. Montague.

Archie, Mich., April 8, 1893.

Bees Wintering Well.

My bees are wintering well. I have 31
colonies in the cellar, and they will be con-
fined about two weeks yet. I like the eight-
frame Langstroth hive the best of any that
I have tried yet. Chas. B. Allen.

Central Square, N. Y., March 27, 1893.

Bees all Wintered Well.

I put 46 colonies of bees in shape for win-
ter last fall as follows : 12 colonies in 2-
story chaff-hives, and the rest in 1-story
chaff-hives. Now for this spring, at this
date. I have 46 good colonies. They gath-
ered the first pollen on March 24th, and
again to-day. Elbert Greeley.

Lorain, O., March, 30, 1893.

Worth Two Dollars a Year.

I thought when the present publishers of
the American Bee Journal purchased it,
I would never like it any more ; but if it
was worth one dollar then, it is worth two
dollars now. I think it has improved so
much. You may consider me a life-time
subscriber, if you continue it that long. I
wish to thank you for what you have done
for me through the Bee Journal.

A. Finney.

Farm, W. Va., April 5, 1893.

Came Out in Fine Condition.

I put about 40 colonies of bees into the
cellar last fall, and they have come out in
fine condition. Every indication is that we
shall have a good honey season.

The Bee Journal has been a great help
to me in caring for my bees, and any one
in this business, whether for profit or pas-
time as in my case, cannot afford to do
without it, because the correspondents are
mainly men of experience.

W. F. BUUNING.

Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, March 25. 1893.

By Feeding they Wintered Well.

The season of 1892 left many bee-keepers
without a pound of surplus in this locality.
From 3 colonies, spring count, I increased
to 6, and one of them stored 40 pounds of
comb honey. I was obliged to feed a little
sugar syrup to 3 of my colonies. They have
wintered well, as I only lost one colony
from the diarrhea. One of my colonies
was short Of stores, so I fed sugar syrup
during the winter, and they are doing very
well. My bees are all Italians, with the ex-
ception of one colony, which I expect to
Italianize the coming summer. The Bee
Journal is a welcome visitor at my place.

Wm. F. Renk.

Sun Prairie, Wis., March 22, 1893.

Very Cold Winter in Vermont.

I have just finished reading my last Bee
Journal with pleasure. I like it very
much. Mrs. Atchley's '' School in Bee-
Keeping " is just O. K. I am a beginner in
the bee-business, having 2 colonies in the
cellar. One is all right, but the other is
short of stores.' I have been feeding them
for over a month sugar syrup, and they
seem to be all right yet. We have had a
very cold winter here, but most of the bees
are wintered in cellars. W. E. Morton.

Huntington, Vt., March 28, 1893.

Good Prospects for Bee-Keepers.

The weather is now exceedingly pleasant,
and colonies are building up very rapidly.
There are good indications for prosperity
among bee-keepers, at least such is the out-
look. Button-sage is just starting to bloom
in the lower valleys, while in this section,
with its altitude, it blooms about 10 days or
2 weeks later. I am glad to see the Ameri-
can Bee Journal and Gleaniugs offering
their testimonials against the adulteration
of honey, fair and square. Good ! Down
with it ! Albert Unterkircher.

Redlands, Calif., March 27, 1893.

Nameless Bee-Disease in Tennessee.

We are now blessed with fine spring
weather, and the bees, under the influence
of sunshine and bursting buds and flowers,
are happy. Colonies, owing to their loss
in the severe winter weather, are generally
weak, but are building up nicely ; but they
will have to whoop it, to get strong enough
for the honey-flow, which usually sets in
here about May 15th. The poplar, or white-
wood, affords our first crop of honey in this
locality.

Bees are suffering, some with the " name-
less disease." Aside from the wintering
problem, this disease is our greatest draAv-
back. It makes its appearance in the early
spring, when we can least afford to lose a
bee. Its symptoms with us are various.
Some bees will become hairless, slick and
shiny ; others will crawl out of the hive in
a shake or quiver, and seemingly swollen,
but in cases of this kind I have invariably

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

537

found that they were not swollen, but full
of honey. The salt cure for this disease,
with me, has proved a failure. I have tried
it until I am satisfied that there is no efficacy
in it, and that it is only a waste of time to
fuss with salt where your bees are sick with
bee-paralysis. My remedy is to stimulate
brood-rearing by feeding, and in that way
pull the diseased colony through. This, of
course, cannot save the loss of bees, but it
usually saves the loss of the colony, and if
the colony is not too badly weakened, you
may expect some surplus honey from it,
but not a full crop.

The man that will discover a specific
remedy for this disease, will merit a high
reward. Bee-keepers should, and would, be
willing to pay liberally for such a remedy.
Prof. Cook. Dr. Miller, or Mr. Doolittle
could, in my opinion, afford to experiment
in this line. H. F. Coleman.

Sneedville, Tenn., March 30, 1893.

"Wintered Nicely — No Loss.

Bees wintered nicely. Every bee-keeper
that I have seen tells me all is well, and no
loss. I have not heard of a single loss so
far this spring. The bees are on a boom to-
day, as the peach trees are coming into
bloom, and pollen is plenty, and the willing
workers are getting in full tirhe.

Sampson Stout.

Udall, Kans., April 4, 1893.

Wintered Finely — Cell Protector.

The past year was a poor one for bees. I
got only 430 pounds of honey, whereas the
year before I got 1.800 pounds, all extracted.
Bees have wintered finely. I lost only one
out of 33, caused by mice. Bees are work-
ing nicely on peach blossom, and the plum
is in full bloom.

Here is a description of my queen-cell
protector: Take a piece of cheese-cloth l}^
inches square, dip it in hot beeswax, then
just wrap the cell so as to leave the point
below the edge of the cloth, and it is ready
to put in the hive. I have never lost one
this way, putting it on the same time I
take the queen out. I am well pleased with
the " old reliable " American Bee Journal.

James A. King.

Sub Rosa, Ark., March 28, 1893.

Building Up Weak Colonies.

In looking my bees over on March 8th, I
found one colony of Italians and one of
blacks reduced to about one quart each, the
Italians having- some brood yet, but the
blacks none, so I put both colonies into one
hive, placing a division made of screen-wire
between them. On April 2nd I looked them
over again, and found both queens laying ;
but the blacks fell behind a good deal, so I
took a frame of brood, bees and all, from
the Italians, and gave to the blacks, think-
ing that they then had the same scent, but
they started to fighting, and I ran for the
smoker, and smoked them thoroughly, and

closed the hive. The next morning, to my
surprise, I found every black bee killed in
the hive except the queen, which was
treated very kindly by the savage Italians.
Why did the bees not get the same scent in
the one hive, having only two thicknesses
of wire-screen between them ? Why did
they not kill the queen also ? Will some
experienced bee-keeper please give some in-
formation regarding the cause, in the Bee
Journal ?

April 2nd was a warm day, and bees
gathered pollen from rye flour, which I had
placed out on boards. August Bartz.

• Chippewa Falls, Wis., April 7, 1893.

He Beguiles with. " Miles" of Smiles.

I just could not resist writing and saying,
Hurrah for the American Bee Journal ! In
reference to the new department of ques-
tions and answers, I say like Mr. Doolittle
in his comments on the " A B C of Bee-Cul-
ture " — "You are just shouting here."
Both times I have written questions, I did
so almost in "fear and trembling," and
was more surprised at getting an answer
than I would have been if I had heard no
more from it. So the editorial on page 337
made me feel good. I am much obliged for
all the help I get from the American Bee
Journal. I like it better than any paper
or book that I have yet seen on bee-keeping.
I wish its publishers unbounded success.

E. S. Miles.

Denison, Iowa, March 25, 1893.

Uouveiitiou riiotice!*.

PENNSYLVANIA.-The Susquehanna Co.
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold their 12th
semi-aunual meeting at the Tarbell House in
Montrose, Pa., on Thursday, May 4, 1893. All
are invited. H. M. Seeley. Sec.

Harford. Pa.

CONNECTICUT.— The annual meeting of
the Connecticut Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at the capitol in Hartford, on May
2, 1893. commencing at 10:30. All bee-keep-
ers are invited to attend, and bring an exhibit.

Mrs. W. E. RiLEy, Sec, Waterbury, Conn.

NEW YOKK. — The next meeting of the
Allegany County Bee-Keepers' Association
will be held at Belmont, N. Y., on May 4th,
1893, in the Hotel Belmont. All bee-keepers
are invited to attend and make it what it
should be — an interesting meeting.

H. C. Farnum, Pres., Transit Bridge, N. Y.

Alley's Queen-Rearins: book,
or "Thirty Years Among the Bees,"
gives the result of over a quarter-cen-
tury's experience in rearing queen-bees,
and describing the practical, every-day
work. By Henry Alley. It contains an
"Appendix," showing the improvements
made in queen-rearing the last four
years. Very latest work of the kind.
Nearly 100 pages, with illustrations.
Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.30.

638

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
April 22nd, 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, MO.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7i4c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6@8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our marijet. and
prices are nominal at 14®16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good. at 24@27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.-Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@l0c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. &S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8i^ ;
dark, 6®7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, lC@i7c.—
Extracted. 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNEAPO LI S.Minn.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at IHc; 2-lbs. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb. 13
®l''c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

ALBANY, N, Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14®15®lb'c ;
mixed, 12@13c ; dark, 10@llc. Extracted,
white, 8@8i4c ; mixed, 7@714c ; dark, 6'^@7c.

Beeswax, 26®30c. H. R. W.

Mrs, J. P. Cookenbacli, whose
advertisement appears on page 517, will
be glad to have you write to her to
secure a good place to stay during your
visit to the World's Fair the coming
summer. The Bee Jouknai. refers its
readers and friends, with much pleas-
ure, to Mrs. C, who will do the right
thing by all who give her an opportunity
to help them.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cblcagoi Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

milnneapolis, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Obio.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

fflajits or Exdianges.

■^^^^•'"^'*-/'

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

WANTED TO EXCHANGE — A 30-Horse
Power Kokomo Engine and Boiler (sta-
tionary) in good condition — for a Portable
Thrashing outfit (must be in running order).
H. L. VonLienen, Somerset, Saline Co., Ills.

T

O EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

WANTED— To exchange, a claim 1 mile
from a thriving town in Logan Co.. Okla.
Ter., for land in Northeastern Texas. South-
western Arkansas, or Northwestern Louisi-
ana, contiguous to a river, in a good bee-keep-
ing range. Correspondence solicited.

Address, RUFUS WILLIAMS,

15A4t Crescent City, Logan Co., Okla. T.

Advertisemejits.

This Adv't will Appear but Twice !

WE have on hand the following widths of
Planer Sawed Sections, First Quality :
1 15-16, 1%. and 7-to-the-foot— all 4>4x4>4 One
Piece V-groove. Parties using said widths can
get a bargain by writing for prices.

Onr Polished Sections

are the flneet and smoothest Sections made.
Write for prices.

WAUZEKA MFO. CO.,
16A2t WAUZEKA, WIS.

OEOBGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY j Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. f To Bee-CULTURE. 1 Sample Pree.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MAY 4, 1893.

NO. 18.

Mr. Fraiilcliu '%Vilcox, of Mauston,
Wis., is in Chicago looking after the honey
and wax exhibit of his State at the World's
Fair. He gave the Bee Journal office a
pleasant call last week. The Wisconsin
exhibit will be about two-thirds comb
honey, and the balance extracted.

Prof. C Hi. Strickland, who has

been conducting the Bee-Experiment Sta-
tion at Peabody, Kans., has been obliged to
give it up on account of ill-health. He will
return to his former home at Maryville,
Mo. We regret this very much, for Mr.
Strickland was doing a good work, and we
hope he may soon be able to again under-
take it.

Mr. «. K. HMl»l>ara, of Ft. Wayne,
Ind., called at the Bee Journal office last
Thursday. He came to Chicago to look
after his exhibit of bee-keepers' supplies at
the World's Fair. Mr. H. is a pushing
young man, and has, by dint of hard, hon-
est work and good judgment, built up a
large trade. He went to California last
year hoping to find relief for Mrs. H. whose
health is very poor, but little benefit re-
sulted. We hope that in some way she
may soon be enabled to regain her former
strength.

jfliss liVilsott's Surprise I»arty.

— As requested on page 362, we have in-
directly learned how the surprise biographi-
cal sketch and picture affected Miss Emma
Wilson. Dr. Miller tells us about it in the
following :

Friend York : — I tried to get Miss Wilson
to write about her surprise, but she seems
non-communicative on that point. When I
first asked her what were her impressions
on seeing herself in black ink in the Ameri-
can Bee Journal, she replied, " I felt very
queer here " — and her hand made a rotary
motion over the region where the center of
circulation is supposed to be located. She
looked as if she had a notion to faint !

C. C. Miller.

Whew ! we didn't contemplate any such
effect ! I'ts a grand thing that Miss W. was
near a good doctor, or we might have
found ourselves in a nice box— we didn't
mean in our coffin, exactly, though we have
seen some '' nice boxes " in that line. With-
out further (jravelj joking, we hope, now
that Miss Wilson has recovered, she will
forgive us all around — seeing we won't
have a chance to do the same thing again
very soon.

Xlie Coiiib-I^eveler, invented by
Mr. B. Taylor, of ForestvUle, Minn., shown
on page 567 of this number of the Bee
Journal, promises to be a good thing. He
has prepared machinery for making them,
and the price of metal part will be 60 cents
each, by mail, postpaid ; with a neat box
for the lamp, by express, $1.00; with box
knock-down, by mail, $1.10. After a sea-
son's use, if the machine does not prove all
that is claimed for it, the money will be
cheerfully returned by Mr. Taylor, for he
believes each super of comb will be im-
proved enough to pay for the leveler.

552

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Xlie American Apiciiltitrist for

May was, as usual, the first of the bee-
papers for this month to put in an appear-
ance. It reached our oflBce on April 26th.
Bro. Alley " gets there " on time, which is
something we can appreciate, for we are
great believers in promptness, as our readers
well know who have from week to week
received the Bee Journal so regularly for
so many years.

Bro. Alley devotes his May number to a
thorough consideration of the " Queen-and-
Drone Trap,'' in comparison with self-
hivers. Bro. A. says: " It must be evident
to all that there is no particular need of
self-hivers in the apiary. The queen-trap
will do all the work." He quotes a great
deal from the Review for March and April,
and concludes that "Editor Hutchinson
strongly decides in favor of the trap as the
most practical arrangement for managing
bees at s warming-time."

Frame Size ibr Queen-Rearing.

— Mr. G. M. Doolittle, in a carefully written
article in Oleaniugs, in answer to " What
size of frame shall we use in queen-rearing?"
says that after years of trial he has failed
to find any special advantage in a small
frame, but rather disadvantages. In view
of this, he advises using the same size frame
in the nucleus hive as has been adopted for
general use in the apiary.

i^ome Queen-Kearing' ]L<essous

will soon be given by Mrs. Atchley in her
department of the Bee Jouknal. It will
form a portion of the lessons of " Our
School in Bee-Keeping " series, and will be
mainly a recapitulation of the "Queen-
Rearing Dialogue " published last fall. A
number of the new subscribers have
urgently requested that this be done, and
while it will benefit them, it will at the
same time refresh the minds of the older
readers.

Candy ibr Spring- Fee<ling. — In

Gleanings, Mr. J. O. Leinhart, of Clinton,
Tenn., gives this method of fixing candy
for feeding bees in the spring :

In the spring, lay a newspaper on the
floor or table, and form a box by putting
square sticks under the edges of the paper.
Pour in the candy ; when cool, break it in
pieces, and put it into your basket, and go
to the apiary and pull back the quilt from

over the cluster ; give a piece according to
your colony, with the paper side up, and
you can tell when it is gone, by the bees
carrying the paper around the entrance —
that is, if they can fly.

In a foot-note, following the above, Bro.
Root says: " Bees carrying paper out at
the entrance would certainly indicate
whea the food was used up. A rather
bright idea."

Xlie End of tlie Rope has not yet

been reached in apicultural things, says Mr.
H. P. Langdon, of house-apiary fame, in
the last Review. He is • ' astonished that
some of our head-lights should think and say
that bee-keeping has reached the climax of
perfection, or ' reached the end of the rope.'
Why, last year came self-hivers, and next
will come non-swarming without extra
work, and with more and a better quality
of honey; this I know to be a fact.
Watch for it." Verily, there is to be some-
thing "new under the sun." Keep your
telescopes in good repair, and examine all
the " stray straws " you may see, for 'tis
said that " straws show which way the
wind blows."

Xlie Illinois Convention Report

— Mr. Jas. A. Stone, of Bradfordton, Bis.,
the Secretary of the Illinois State Bee-
Keepers' Association, desires us to an-
nounce that the postage provided for the
sending out of the First Annual Report of
the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Association
is exhausted, though he still has on hand
about 500 copies. The Executive Commit-
tee have decided that any party living in
the State of Illinois can have a copy of the
Report by forwarding, with their address,
6 cents in stamps to pay postage on the
same ; and from those living outside of the
State, 20 cents in stamps will be required.
Send to Secretary Stone at once if you
would like a copy. It wiU pay you to do so.

Bees antl 1^'atering Xronglis. —

It has been a question with some bee-keep-
ers how to keep their bees away from
watering-troughs, as they often annoy
horses and other farm stock that drink
from the trough. Mr. Edw. Smith, of
Carpenter, Ills., in Gleanings, recently said
that he greases the tops of the watering-
troughs with any kind of old grease, with
a little kerosene mixed with it, and has not
had a bit of trouble with bees in them since.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

553

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as ai'B not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Hive that Had Diseased Bees.

Is it injurious to put bees into a hive
where a colony has died with diarrhea ?
Sherwood, N. Y. Geo. L. Winters.

Answer. — No ; the bees will clean it
out, but if too filthy they might desert.

One or Two Rowed Zinc.

Which is the better, one or two rows
of zinc for queen-excluding honey-
boards ? Is it quite necessary to use
two rows ? Give me your best advice.

Bishop Hill, Ills. D. Lindbeck.

Answer. — Opinions differ. Perhaps it
doesn't make much difference.

Origin of the Honey-Bee.

Please give in the Bee Journal in-
formation as to the substance and pro-
cess through which the honey-bee origi-
nated. C. S. PiZEE.

Franklin, Pa.

Answer. — Probably you can get no
more reliable information than that con-
tained in the first chapter of Genesis.

Honey or Sugar Syrup for Breeding.

I bought 5 good colonies of bees of
one of my neighbors last week for $30.
There are plenty of bees in every hive,
but they are light In stores. I have
about 20 pounds of choice comb honey
all in one-pound sections. Would you
give them that, or feed sugar syrup ?
Which is the better to breed up on ?
The bees were all. wintered in a good,
dry cellar, and were not taken out until
April 3rd. Wm. Kittinger.

Caledonia, Wis., April 3, 1893.

Answer. — If the honey were worth no
more than the sugar syrup, we should
prefer it to feed. There may not be a
great deal of difference, but we know
that honey is the natural food for them,
and the little pollen that may be float-

ing in it gives it some advantage. But
at the present prices, choice comb honey
being high, and sugar very low, we
don't believe there is as much difference
in the value as in the price of the two,
so we think we should sell the honey
(provided we didn't need it on our own
table) and feed sugar syrup. The bees
can probably get enough fresh pollen to
make up any difference, and if they can-
not get pollen enongh from natural
sources, it may be well for you to feed
some kind of meal as a substitute.

Getting Bees to Empty a Super.

I began bee-keeping last summer with
3 colonies, two of which were in dove-
tailed 8-frames hives, and the other was
in an old box-hive. The two in the
dovetailed hives wintered very well on
the summer stands, but ^the one in the
box-hive either froze, or 'was smothered
to death. They did not starve, for
there is just lots of nice comb honey in
the hive. Now would it be advisable
for me to put an empty super on one of
the dovetailed hives, and take the honey
out of the box-hive and put into this
empty super ? Would the bees carry it
down and put it in the empty combs of
their own hive ? If they would, they
would be all ready to work in the super
when the honey-flow comes.

Wallace H. McCoemick.

Ransom, Ills., April 4, 1893.

Answer, — Sometimes they will carry
it down in good shape, and sometimes
they will not. If they have a good sup-
ply below they may leave it. You may
succeed better by putting it in an empty
super or hive below, that is, if your
hives have loose bottom-board. The
farther it is below their combs the surer
they are to take it.

Swarm Scattering all Over a Tree.

I had 3 colonies of black bees, spring
count, in 1892, and about May 12th
one swarm came out and alighted all
over a small quince-tree. The tree was
black with bees, and I had to sprinkle
water on them to make them bunch up,
and then I hived them. No. 1 swarmed,
and went back into the old hive again.
Then No. 2 swarmed, and I put them
into a hive. They stayed in, but had
alighted the same as No. 1, all over the
same bush. No. 3 swarmed well ; No.
2 and No. 3 stored each about 15
pounds in the supers. No. 1 came out
again, and scattered all over the tree. I

554

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

put them into the hive, and set them be-
tween No. 2 and No. 3, not over 8
inches apart. No. 1 left the hive again,
and went into No. 3's hive. No. 3 car-
ried them out dead. One old colony was
destroyed with moth-worms, so I have 4
colonies in good condition. Why did
they alight all over the tree ? The wind
blew very hard both times. Did that
cause it ? J. C. Dill.

Morganville, N. J., March 18, 1893.

Answer. — It is nothing unusual for
bees to settle in a scattered way over a
tree, and a strong wind would increase
the tendency in that direction.

Queer Actions of a Colony.

On March Idth I had a colony to
come out and settle on the other hives.
I caught the queen, clipped her wing,
and took her back, but the bees would
not follow, and all perished. The queen
was all right, and they had plenty of
honey. It was a strong colony, with
some young brood. What was the mat-
ter? I have been keeping bees more
than ten years, but never had such a
thing occur. Allen Springer.

Rose Bud, Ills., March 20, 1893.

Answer. — This case looks very much
like one of spring dwindling, only you
say it was a strong colony. Possibly
some one may account for their conduct,
or it may be one of those cases where
bees seem to become demoralized in
some way and act abnormally.

L

conducted by
Oldenburg, Grossherzogthum, Germany.

Apis Dorsata — Poisonous Honey.

Introduction of Apis Dorsata in Amer-
ica.— There has been written already a
good deal about this bee in the "Old
Reliable," but perhaps I have something
new to say.

Efforts have been made to get up
capital by shares, but there is only very
little money necessary to introduce their
race. Try to get communication with
some English or American residents in
Ceylon; for instance, with Mr. Holloway,
who lives at Wattagama, Maria Estate,

near Kandy. When Mr. Rud. Dathe, of
Eystrup, Germany, went over to Ceylon
to get the "Dorsata," the assistance of
this gentleman was very valuable to
him. Dathe first spent a lot of money
for bull-carts, a dozen of natives for as-
sistance, etc., and many a day was spent
in those immense virgin forests to catch
the I)orsata on the giant trees. But
afterwards he caught plenty of colonies
on Maria Estate, doing nothing but
smoking his pipe and lying on an easy
chair. He only put some honey in the
open air, and as the Dorsata migrates
from place to place, several swarms
soon found the honey, and settled on
the surrounding trees, and were easily
caught. All hives were filled in a few
days.

But if, for instance, Mr. Crum, of
Streator, Ills., would go himself, he
need not be afraid of fever. Those high
mountain districts of Ceylon belong to
the healthiest parts of the world. I know
half of the world, but never met with a
more healthy place.

A crossing with Apis mellifica is im-
possible, as the Dorsata is quite another
kind of bee. Rud. Dathe noticed that
worker-bees of the Dorsata, when
brought on brood of the Apis mellifica,
took no care of it, and within a few days
the brood died for want of food.

Poisonous Honey at Trebizond. — Mr.
A. I. Root inquired in Gleanings some
time ago for the address of some proper
person who lived near that locality. He
may write to the English Vice-Consul
Bilicki, who will confirm that all is cor-
rect that Zenophon once wrote, viz. :
That the honey of Trebizond is always
poisonous on account of the "deadly
night-shade" which grows there in
abundance. People keep a good many
bees there, but only on account of the
wax. There is another kind of poison-
ous honey in the South of Africa, in
Caffraria, but this honey is only poison-
ous at the time when aloes is blooming.

H. Reepen.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— We

have just issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in all, and is illustrated. Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.15.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

555

AMOS IVES ROOT.

If all has worked as we had planned
it should, this biographical sketch with
picture will be a complete surprise to

A. I. ROOT.

Bro. A. I. Root. We hope it is, for we
cannot now think of any one whom we
would rather give a pleasant surprise
than to our brother publisher and es-
teemed friend.

If there is one man to whom bee-keep-
ers all over the world owe an everlast-

ing debt of gratitude, for his practical
instruction and help in all departments
of their pursuit, that man is A. I. Eoot.
Dr. Miller has tried to tell some of the
good things about him, but were he to
tell all he could think of, we could yet
say that "the half has not been told."

One has only to read his unrivalled
Gleanings in Bee-Culture, to get an idea
of the marvelous man behind it all, and
to learn what can be accomp hed by
untiring and unselfish devotion to a
great and glorious object.

Although we have met Bro. Root only
once or twice, yet we feel that in him, as
in his honored son Ernest, we have a
true friend and brother in whom we can
repose the utmost confidence, and feel
that we shall be the better for being per-
mitted to count him among those whose
friendship and counsels we most highly
prize.

Ever since we took control of the old
Amekican Bee Journal, we have had
much reason for esteeming Bro. Root
for his brotherly interest in our welfare,
and for his readiness to speak an en-
couraging word in our behalf whenever
opportunity presented. We admire him
for the good he is doing, for the host of
friends he has worthily won, and for his
high Christian character, the exemplifi-
cation of which is so clearly shown in
his daily walk and conversation. That
he may live yet many years to continue
to further the best interests of the cause
which he has done so much to honor
and bless, is our sincerest hope and
earnest prayer.

"V^e now present to our readers what
Dr. Miller " knows " of Bro. Root and
his great and successful business enter-
prises :

One who has never visited Medina, 0.,
can hardly have any just conception of
the immense establishment that is car-
ried on there in the interest of bee-keep-
ing. Combine a blacksmith-shop, a tin-
shop, a paint-shop, a machine, carpenter,
and I don't know what else, with a large
printing establishment, a store and
lunch-room attached — all on a large
scale — and you have still to see it, and

556

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

spend a good deal of time traveling over
it, before you have any fair conception
of it. Of course v^rhen I say Medina,
every bee-keeper knows I am talking
about the establishment of A. I. Root.
Just how much money is involved in the
concern, I don't know, but I suppose I
might have known if I had asked, for
friend Root never seems to have any
secrets, but I know that some years ago
$100,000 were in it, and I suppose it
has been growing ever since.

Perhaps I would better say before
going any further, that this is meant to
be a biographical sketch of Amos Ives
Root, but in dealing with such an erratic
customer, I can't be expected to follow
any of the biographical rules, but will
say some things about him with no
special thought of close connection, only
trying to tell what I think I would be
interested in hearing if I had not before
heard it. At different times I have spent
quite a number of days at Medina, and
I believe I know Mr. Root fairly well.

But I'll try to follow ordinary custom
long enough to tell some of the things
that I could not learn by personal obser-
vation, and if you want to know just
how much of what I say is original, and
how much is stolen, you can refer to
page 956 of Gleanings for 1888, where
a sketch written by Ernest is to be
found. Of course you know that Ernest
is the oldest son — but there, I'm all out
again, for I ought first to tell about A. I.
himself.

Well, he was born " in a log house
about two miles north of his present
business," and that's as near to the date
of his birth as I can get from the afore-
mentioned sketch, but I think it was
about '38 or '40. He was a frail child,
and his father had little hopes of raising
him, although the neighbors assured
him his wife would not let him die.
Among his early hobbies were poultry,
windmills, clocks, electricity, chemistry,
etc. He did not take kindly to feeding
pigs, or, for that matter, general farm
work, although he took particular de-
light in gardening. One of the jobs he
disliked was churning. So, to cater to
his mechanical turn, and at the same
time get out of a disagreeable task, he
rigged a windmill, and let the wind
bring the butter.

At the age of 18, a craze for chemis-
try and electricity led him to make a
lecturing tour, in which he gained no
great amount of wealth, but did gain
that which was afterward of greater
value to him — a knowledge of human
nature. A further addition to this stock
of knowledge was gained by his experi-

ence as "schoolmaster" in a tough
country school, where for some time the
larger boys had made good their threat
that they would " lick and put out " any
teacher the directors might select. But
this time the slender young man, Root,
by virtue of a wise use of what physical
strength he had, and a still wiser course
as a tactician, "licked," and made
friends of the bullies.

His next hobby was clock-work and
jewelry, and without capital, he literally
worked himself into a business so large
that the firm of A. I. Root & Co. em-
ployed over a dozen men and girls in the
manufacture of gold and silver rings,
chains, etc., from -^200 to $500 in coin
being weekly used up in this way.

In 1861 he was married to Miss Susan
Hall, and io his wife he very justly at-
tributes much of his success in life.
Quiet and unassuming, keeping herself
always in the background, none the less
she is a real power, and a power always
for good. There are five children in the
family. Ernest is now nearly 31, then
comes Maud (Mrs. J. T. Calvert), then
the two girls, Constance and Caddie,
then the youngest son, Huber.

In 1865, the capture of a runaway
swarm of bees started Mr. Root into bee-
keeping. Being one of the intense sort,
he went into bee-keeping with all his
might. Not long after this, I made my
first visit to Medina, having learned
about Mr. Root in some way through
the American Bee Journal,, to which
he contributed some unique, practical
and very readable articles over the nom-
de-pluine "Novice." A short time be-
fore a fire had destroyed his store, his
jewelry business was crowded into his
house, and another visitor there at the
time, made beds rather scarce, so I slept
that night with Mr. Root. While get-
ting ready for bed he talked about the
possibilities of a sugar-bush in connec-
tion with an apiary. After we got in
bed the subject was continued, and we
talked about it, at least he did, until
it was pretty late, and when I went to
sleep he was talking about a plan to
have a bee-hive under each maple-tree,
with a spout of some kind to let the sap
run directly into the hive so the bees
needn't fly at all.

That settled me in my opinion of him
in one respect, and I've never seen oc-
casion to change my opinion. He's a
hobbyist — one of the hobbyest of hobby-
ists.

The next morning he showed me his
bees, and I showed him how to smoke
bees by blowing with my mouth on a
burning brand. Smokers were then un-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

557

known, and he was quite pleased with
the new acquisition, and before I had
got very far away, he had succeeded in
setting Are to the sawdust and burning
up, I think, one of his colonies.

In 1869, I think it was, he got
$1,500 for the honey from 48 colonies.
A shower of inquiries induced him to
send out a circular answering the main
part of the inquiries. Several editions
of this circular were sent out gratis to
all applicants, and then it occurred to
him to issue a quarterly under, the name
of "Gleanings," at 25 cents a year.
The cordial reception to this led him to
change it to a monthly before the issue
of the second number, and at a later
date it was changed to a semi-monthly.

In the meantime he commenced to
manufacture bee-keepers' supplies, his
total force being himself, a windmill,
and the lad Ernest. By the way, I think
the windmill is one of his most enduring
hobbies. For a time Oleanings was
printed with a windmill, and of late
years an abundant supply of water is
furnished to the factory by an immense
windmill on an adjacent elevation. On
one of my visits he said to me, with
much the tone he would have used if I
had called in question his loyalty to his
government, "Why, you haven't been
to see the windmill !" From that small
beginning with the windmill, gradually,
year by year, grew the largest bee-sup-
ply establishment in the world, of which
I spoke in my opening paragraph. That
business was his hobby, and he threw
into it all his energy, and by prompt
and fair dealing, trying to do always as
well or a little better than agreement,
he has obtained a strong hold upon cus-
tomers in all parts of the world.

Other hobbies have claimed his atten-
tion, carp-raising being one of them ;
among the rest market gardening, and
this seems to have a lasting hold, partly
for his love of the business itself, and
partly because it furnishes a means of
employment for many who need it.

His latest hobby is, I believe, the
bicycle.

With the strong impulses he pos-
sesses, he is not likely to hold middle
ground in anything. So he has put his
religion into his business in such a way
that some who do not know him, accuse
him of doing it for ostentation and gain.
Whoever comes to know him well enough
can never hold such a view. Whatever
else they may doubt about him, they
will never doubt his utter sincerity.
Indeed, ostentation is no part of the
man in any respect. I happen to know
of more than one occasion in which he

has used money liberally for what he
considered the general good of bee-keep-
ers, without allowing it to be known to
more than two or three participating.

Every day the factory whistle sounds
10 minutes before 12, to give all the
employes an opportunity of 10 minutes
at a prayer-meeting held in the largest
room of the factory, thus taking none of
their own time for it. Aside from his
usual church and Sunday-school attend-
ance, part of his regular Sunday pro-
gramme is to visit his aged mother — one
of the sweetest old saints I ever knew —
and on the way to stop at the county
jail, to be locked in with whatever pris-
oners happen to be there, for half an
hour, or an hour, to try to lead them
toward a better life. On Saturday, in
the midst of business hours, he goes a
mile up town to attend the church
prayer-meeting.

In personal appearance there is noth-
ing remarkable about him. You would
pass him in any crowd without ever
thinking of him as the steam-engine
that he is. Rather under the medium
height, and of slight build, he atones for
his lack of distinguished appearance by
having a good-looking son, of command-
ing presence.

Seen at a distance, you will respect A.
I. Root for his remarkable business
qualifications. Seen at shorter range,
you will at first be puzzled to know what
to make of him, but as you get to know
him better, you will give him a high
place in your esteem, as a man of warm
heart, unselfish earnestness, and thor-
ough integrity. C. C. Miller.

COWYEXTIOW DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — Thb Editob.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton. Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York. . .Chicago, Ills.

« » » ♦ »

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Ghn'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

558

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Removing Honey from Brood-
Combs to tlie {Sections.

Query 869.— I frequently have more
noney iu brood-combs than I wish to extract,
not having good sale for it. Is there any
profitable way of inducing the bees to store
me honey fi-om these frames in sections, with-
out extracting it ?— N. H.

I think not. — Jas. A. Green.

I do not knovi'. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

If so, I am not aware of it. — P. H.
Elwood.

"Contract" and crowd. — Will M.
Barnum.

I have had no experience in this kind
of work. — A. B. Mason.

Why not feed it in the spring, then
run all for comb ? — C. C. Miller.

No, sir. Extract and dilute with one-
fifth water, and feed back. — Mrs. J. N.
Heater.

If I were going to get the honey in
sections, I would extract it and then
feed it to the bees. — E. France.

It might be done by restricting the
brood-nest and uncapping the cells, and
putting the combs between combs of
brood. — M. Mahin.

Not that I know of. I have never
found it profitable for bees to handle
honey the second time in any way. —
Emerson T. Abbott.

If the bees are storing in the supers,
they will sometimes carry the honey
from the brood-combs, above, if we un-
cap them. — A. J. Cook.

I have never found any such way, and
I doubt whether honey can be fed back
at a profit. Keep these frames to use in
impoverished colonies. — J. E. Pond.

I have never tried it, but would think
if they stored "sugar syrup" when
placed out for them, they would do the
same by the combs mentioned. — Jas. A.
Stone.

After it is stored in frames it is
cheaper and better to extract ; and if it
is slow sale in your home market, ship
to a better one, provided you cannot
work up a home market. — H. D. Cut-
ting.

I don't know. If you put two combs
in the center of each hive into which
you put a swarm, the bees would prob-
ably carry most of it into the sections, if
honey was coming in pretty well. — R. L.
Taylor.

Use your judgment, and don't have
too many combs left, and use what you
do have left for spring feeding. There
is nothing better. Such work as is pro-
posed above is at least not advisable. —
J. H. Larrabee.

I don't 'know of any. But I should
take steps to prevent a like occurrence
in the future, by contracting the hive.
Get the honey stored in sections instead
of in brood-frames where you don't want
it. — Eugene Secor.

N. H. should prevent the bees from
storing so much honey in brood-combs.
It will be found more profitable to do
this than to try to get the bees to uncap
their honey and put it where they do not
want it. — G. L. Tinker.

I know of no sure way of inducing
bees to remove honey from comb in the
hive to the sections. Shaving the cap-
ping off does not always succeed, as the
bees frequently only cap it over again.
Better extract and feed. — C. H. Dibbern.

You can, by placing the combs in a
box or hive in front of the entrance of a
colony that is working in the sections.
Communication between colony and
combs must be managed so that no rob-
bers can get at them. — J. P. H. Brown.

Not that I know of, unless you can
call the changing of this honey into
young bees, and having more bees to
gather an extra amount from the fields
and store it in the sections, a profitable
way of using that honey. I call this a
profitable way to use such honey, but
perhaps others would not. — G. M. Doo-

LITTLE.

I can't say about the profit part, but
you can get your strong swarms to take
the honey out of the combs by hanging
them, a few at a time, in an extra hive,
set under the brood-nest of those you
wish to feed. It will hasten matters
somewhat If the lower hive has more
light than the upper hive, by using a
piece of glass. — S. I. Freeborn.

No. Should such a condition occur in
my hives, I would leave the honey in the
"brood-combs" until spring, and these
full combs would help to put the brood-
nest in condition early in the season,
and I would get the more surplus by it.
I don't see how your "brood-combs," in
the breeding season, where most of
them ought to be filled with brood, could
contain a great amount of honey. But
such a state of things might occur In the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

559

fall, after breeding is over. I can feed
it back and convert it into comb, but I
have to extract it first.— G. W. Demakee.
No way that I know, without extract-
ing it. You might extract the honey,
and contract the brood-nest, put on un-
finished sections over queen-excluding
honey-boards, and feed it back to them,
and get unfinished sections profitably
finished ; but to get sections filled from
the start, I think would be unprofitable.
If I had such honey I would try to use it
profitably some other way. — Mrs. Jen-
nie AtCHIvEY.

rxxxxxiKxxxxxxxxyxxx'ggxxxxxrxxxxxx:

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

Report of the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Convention.

The 15th annual convention of the
Texas State Bee-Keepers' Association
met at the apiary of Mrs. Jennie Atchley
on April 5 and 6, 1893.

FIRST DAY— Morning Session.

At 10 a.m. the meeting was called to
order by Pres. W. R. Graham, who
stated the object of the convention, and
said he was proud to see so many pres-
ent, and that he knew bee-keeping was
now on a solid basis, and increasing in
Texas.

The roll was called, and the following
bee-keepers responded :

W. T. Pryar,
T. E. Miller,
Melvin Kimbrough,
A. M. Tuttle,
P. G. Carter,
Jason Ayer,
G. P. Cleny,
J. R. Atchley,
T. E. Carter,
Willie Atchley,
W. R. Graham,
J. A. Bailey,
Mrs. Ellen Atchley.
Charlie Williams,
Charley Atchley,
Wm. Stapleton,
W. H. White.

A. H. Jones.
Dr. W. E Smith,
H. L. Bolton,

J. A. Meeks,
W. H. Bailey,
Joel Simmons,

D. T. Willis.
N. N. Atchley,
C. M. Davis,
C. J. Cutler,

E. Atchley,

Mrs. Jennie Atchley,

Levi Williams,

Miss Amanda Atchley,

B. B. Steed,
John Hucliabee.
Dr. W. R. Howard,

W. E. Pennington,
J. T. Spradling-,
T. E. Phillips,
J. F. Teel,
Mattie Buzley.
S. J. Du£f,
E. S. Cathey.
Myrtle Lloyd,
Miss Nannie Litton,
Sammy Litton,
Miss Addle Graham,
J.D.

H. Pennington,
T. A. Beasly,
J. R. Graham,
J. S. Robinson,
Martha E. Robinson,
Josie Hucliabee,
Miss Leah Atchley,
Dollie Huckabee,
Miss Maud Robinson,
Miss Nellie Graham,
Dr. W. K. Marshall,
Givens.

All then joined in singing a hymn,
after which was prayer by Rev. W. K.
Marshal], D. D. Another hymn was
sung, and then the minutes of last meet-
ing were read and approved.

A committee of three was appointed
to arrange a programme for the day,
composed of E. J. Atchley, A. H. Jones,
and J. A. Bailey.

While the programme was being ar-
ranged. Dr. Marshall, in his usual good-
natured manner, related an interesting
story of early bee-keeping away back to
the straw-skep time, and the story held
the listeners almost spell-bound.

The committee then brought in the
following questions, which were dis-
cussed and considered :

"Does any one present know of the
death of one of our numbers ?" None
was reported.

noise at swarming time.

"Does a noise made while bees are
swarming induce them to settle ?

Dr. Marshall said he was passing by a
farm-house not long since, while there
was a swarm of bees in the air, and that
all the children and the mother were
ringing bells, blowing horns, and beat-
ing tin pans, and they made a success of
it, as the bees settled. Of course the
racket did it ! This brought laughter.

C. M. Davis said he believed in making
a noise, as the loud hum of the bees was
more or less drowned, and it frustrated
them and caused them to cluster. He
believed water, dirt, or anything thrown
among the bees, was a great help to get
them to stop and cluster. It was de-
cided that anything to break the ranks
of swarms would induce them to settle.
Even an absconding swaroi could be
stopped by water or dirt.

bees clustering before leaving.

"Do bees ever go off without first
clustering after issuing from the parent
hive ?"

A. H. Jones had one swarm to leave
without stopping, but it settled X mile
away, at the home they had selected
Others reported that swarms left with-
out clustering, but that^ their selected

560

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

. * A-

homes were near by, and it was decided
that some swarms do leave and go clear
ofl without clustering.

OLD QUEENS WITH FIEST SWAKMS.

As it was right in the swarming sea-
son, it seemed that every one was free to
talk about swarming. The next ques-
tion was, "Does the old queen always
go off with the first swarm ?"

J. Bolton, Dr. Marshall, and others,
said that in most cases the old mother
queen led oflf the first swarm, but when
bad weather prevented their swarming
until a young queen hatched, she would
kill the old one and lead off the swarm.
But, after a discussion, it was decided
that it was the oldest queen in the hive
that came off with the first swarm.

QUEENS WITH 2nd AND 3ed SWAKMS.

"How many queens usually come off
with a second or third swarm ?"

Dr. Marshall said that in natural
swarming there were usually only one
or two cells started the first day or two
of their preparations to swarm, and that
about the third day they usually start
the rest, and that, as a rule, there were
only one or two queens with a second
swarm, but that a third swarm may have
6 to 10 queens, according to the amount
of cells they started.

As 12 o'clock was drawing near, and
as the day was warm and pleasant, the
convention was held right among the
bees, under the shade of the trees ; and
as most of the bee-keepers were begin-
ning to "swarm out," and stroll about
through the large apiary and pleasant
woodland, and into the factory, and all
over the place, a motion was carried to
adjourn for dinner, to meet at 2 p.m.

Mrs. Jennie Atchleyand W. E. Graham
then threw open their doors, and gave
the bee-keepers free and full access to
the premises, W. R. Graham entertain-
ing and feeding 30 bee-keepers, and
Mrs. Atchley 28. For two hours all
seemed to enjoy themselves like a lot of
school children at recess, forming them-
selves into little groups, here and there,
each one talking about his or her best
bees, and best management, etc. These
recesses are very interesting, as many
^ ill talk at recess when they will not
ay a word in school.

(Continued next week.)

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Jouknai. we mail for
only 50 cents; or clubbed with the
JouBNAL for $1.40.

Report of the Indiana State
Bee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Be.e Journal
BY WALTER S. POUDEB.

(Continued from page 529.)

FIRST DAY— Evening Session.

The convention was called to order at
8 p.m., with Pres. Russell in the chair,
who said : To commence our evening
session, we will have first an essay by
Mr. J. B. Catterson, of Brownsburg, on

The Winter Problem in Bee-Culture.

The person who successfully winters
his bees is a successful bee-keeper, be-
cause if he has his bees in proper condi-
tion when the honey season comes, they
will do the rest themselves. What I
shall say in this essay is intended to
benefit the average bee-keeper of In-
diana, and localities having a similar
climate.

The work of preparing the bees for
winter must begin early in the fall.
First, they must have food sufficient to
carry them through the winter and
until warm weather comes in the spring;
and perhaps better still, enough for all
purposes to last them until they can
gather their living themselves.

Second, they should be properly
housed, and the colonies all made strong
by uniting the weak ones and equalizing
their supplies. I have kept bees for the
last 25 years, and for 10 or 12 years I
have been very successful in wintering
them, much more so than most of my
neighbors, and have secured larger crops
of honey as a result. I therefore claim
a fair idea of bee-keeping, but do not
claim to be a specialist or an expert in
any line of the business.

A good crop depends almost wholly
upon a strong, healthy colony in the
spring, and such a colony depends upon
proper care and management in the
fall. Have your bees ready for winter
when winter comes, and then let them
alone until winter is over. I have a

AMERICAN BEE JOUR

bee-house in which I winter my bees
successfully. I have never used a cellar,
but what I have known of cellar-winter-
ing, from those who do use it, I do not
think it is the best way, and since most
people winter their bees on the summer
stands, I shall confine myself to a dis-
cussion of that method.

As soon as the frost has stopped all
honey-gathering, I look through the
hives and arrange the frames by ex-
changing, if necessary, so that each col-
ony will have not less than 25 pounds
of ripened honey. If some of it is, how-
ever, unsealed, it is a matter of small
consequence. Place the frames having
the least honey in them in the center.
Summer-gathered honey is perhaps the
best for winter use, but I have never
seen bees suffer by the use of fall-stored
honey in wintering.

Next lay two slats %x% across the
frames, about 5 inches apai't, so that
the space between them will be in the
center of the hive over the cluster.
Bevel the ends so that the quilt will lie
down closely at the ends. The slats
should be as long as the width of the '
brood-chamber ; then across these nail
others in length as long as those are
wide apart, in suflScient numbers to hold
up the mat when placed upon them.
This makes a space over the cluster
through which the bees can pass over
the frames in cold weather to the honey
in the outside frames. In addition to
this, holes may be cut through the
combs for the same purpose, if thought
necessary.

Over this frame arrangement I spread
a heavy woolen cloth, entirely covering
the brood-chamber, and then I partly fill
a common coffee or sugar sack with ex-
celsior, forest leaves, chaff, or an equiv-
alent, and press it down evenly on the
frames. Then I tilt the hives forward
about one inch in twelve, leaving the
front entrance entirely open. The hives
are now ready for whatever outside pro-
tection is desired to give them.

To all who wish to further protect the
hives, I would suggest this plan as a
cheap and handy one :

Place the hives in rows facing east or
south, so that there will be about 10
inches of space between them. Then
place a protection of boards all around
them except in front, leaving a space of
10 inches between the boards and the
hives, into which and between the hives
pack leaves, chaff, cut-straw, or excel-
sior, so that it will come above the
brood-chamber, and let it remain this
way until May, or longer, if the weather
is fickle. AH should be covered up with

boards, however. Bee^ii^jArAd'^in this
way will winter every ti^PH»«ft»^ aad
come out in the spring strong and
healthy. The man who thus takes care
of his bees will only know of spring
dwindling by what he hears from his
less careful neighbors.

I prefer not to winter my bees on
sugar syrup, and never burglarize the
brood-chamber to do so. I fail to see
the advantage or the good policy in
doing so. Let the bees, and not the
hives, gather the honey, and then the
sugar-refiners will not be benefited at
the expense of the bee-keeper.

The pollen theory, in connection with
the winter problem, has been discussed
widely, by our best apiarists, pro and
con, for several years, and the mystery
is, so-called, still unsolved. I believe
the teachings of Mr. Muth are about
correct. If I am not mistaken, his
teaching is about as follows :

Pollen is a wholesome nutritious food,
and essential to the bee life and health,
especially to the larvEe and young bees.
Its nutritious and healthy qualities, if
kept dry, will last for years, but if
allowed to become damp, it will sour. It
then swells, bursts out of the cells, and
is very unwholesome and unfit for food,
for either the young or old bees. The
same can be said of honey under similar
circumstances, but if it is kept in a
warm, dry place, it will keep forever.

Bees in the cluster, when supplied
with healthy food, create a large amount
of heat, and when the outside air is
colder than the air within, the exhala-
tions from their bodies condense and
produce considerable dampness which
must have a way to escape, or the bees
and hives become damp and unhealthy ;
the combs become moldy, and the pollen
and honey sours ; the bees become dis-
eased and die. Such food and combs
are the fruitful source, and I believe
the principal source, of bee-diarrhea.
Moldy combs come from damp hives,
and damp hives are caused by insuffi-
cient ventilation.

And now, when I have reason to be-
lieve that the cold weather is over, I
place the heaviest combs nearest the
cluster, put a division-board on each
side, and contract the entrance. The
division-board should not touch the bot-
tom, so that the bees can pass for food
placed on the opposite side. I contract
the brood-chamber in order thai the
bees can better control the heat during
cold snaps in the spring. I then place
a frame of honey or a frame of syrup
outside the division-board to stimulate
brood-rearing. I think it is best that

562

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

bees do not begin brood-rearing too
soon, because late cold snaps will com-
pel the bees to cluster, and thus expose
the brood to death.

A colony should have no more brood
between the division-boards than they
can well cover. Equalize the colony by
taking from every strong colony a frame
of brood, and exchanging it for a frame
of empty comb from a weak colony. All
spreading of brood is an evil, unless
the bees can well cover all the brood
during the cold nights.

It is proper to remember that in no
case will bees from a hive having a
virgin queen be accepted by a colony
that has a laying queen ; nor should a
comb with adhering bees from a strong
colony be added to a weak colony having
a virgin queen, because they would be
sure to destroy her at once.

Another precaution is to observe that
the queen shall not be on the side of
the comb next to where you place the
comb with adhering bees, for by so sud-
denly coming in contact with a strange
queen, they would probably destroy her.

This concludes ray say in regard to
the winter problem, and if my remarks
have not been sufficiently plain, I will
willingly answer any questions asked, if
I can. J. B. Cattekson.

The foregoing essay was then dis-
cussed as follows :

Pres. Russell — You have all heard
this excellent essay, which is undoubt-
edly one of the best ever presented on
this subject before this Association ; it
is now open for questions and remarks.

Dr. Hicks — I have no criticism to
offer but to say this — which is to say the
least — that I have paid close attention
to the essay on the winter problem, and
without intending any flattery to him, I
will say that I have kept bees for over
50 years, and I have never heard more
common-sense, of the very best quality,
presented to any society on this subject
than I have to-night.

Mr. Muth — I also congratulate our
riend on his very nice essay ; it is a
go d one, indeed. His method is quite
different from the way in which I winter
my bees. I used to lay strips across the
frames, using a blanket or a mat of
straw, which forms a good covering,
and at the same time absorbs the mois-
ture from below. I close up the hive-
, entrance to about one inch in the center,
and cover the brood-chamber with three
boards. The bees easily seal it all
around, and make it almost air-tight.
On top of these boards I lay a straw mat
or blanket, or perhaps both. There is

no absorption of the moisture in the
hive, but I take care of that by leaving
the entrance entirely open, and raise
the hive about two inches at the end,
and for this reason I know that the ex-
halations will turn into water, and run
down and out from the hive. Sometimes
in winter, after the coldest spells, if you
raise the hive as I have said, you will be
surprised at the amount of water. In
this way, the air is admitted, and the
bees are kept dry and healthy. It is
just as handy, and a little less trouble
to cover the brood-chamber up and keep
the bees warm, and, to my mind, it is a
much simpler way than the way Mr.
Catterson speaks of.

Mr. Kitley — Mr. Muth speaks about
three boards on top. Do you have the
edges so that they form a perfect joint ?

Mr. Muth — Yes, I use three boards
because I have section boxes, three of
which just cover the brood-chamber.
The lids to these boxes are what I use.

Pres. Russell — I winter my bees in the
same way. Mr. B. F. Bowers, of Au-
gusta, has one of the most successful
bee-resorts in Marion county to-day, and
he spreads just a cloth over the brood-
chamber, and when the cold weather
comes, he turns that cloth back half
way, leaving this board open (illustrat-
ing). By this method he has never yet
lost any bees from the cold. He is so
successful because he gives them air;
he says that they require it.

Mr. Muth^I think that we should
keep the bees dry on top, for the simple
reason that if the cold air strikes them,
it will kill them surely, and why Mr.
Bowers puts his covering half way back,
is something I cannot comprehend. If
there are those who are more successful
in opening the boards and allowing the
bees air, than those who keep them
warm, I should like to see them. Again,
I say that the top should be kept warm
and dry, and not allowed to become
damp, because then both the honey and
the pollen will sour. If he wants to
keep his bees nicely, then he must keep
them dry.

Mr. Catterson — Mr. President, do I
understand that Mr. Bowers has no
board at all ?

Pres. Russell — No, he has never had
one, and still has the quilt raised about
one-half the way across his frame.

Mr. Muth — He covers the brood-cham-
ber with this muslin quilt ?

Pres. Russell — Yes.

Mr. Muth — How long has he been
successful ?

Pres. Russell — Some 8 or 9 years.

Dr. Hicks — This is truly an artificial

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

56B

mode of wintering bees, and in direct
opposition to the natural tendency and
propensity of the bees. Any man that
has ever handled bees in the old-fash-
ioned movable-frame knows that the
bees will seal it down every time.

FEEDING BEES FOB WINTER.

-How about Mr. Catter-
f eeding for the winter ?

Pres. Russell-
son's method of

Mr. Muth — It is the best way of feed-
ing that I ever heard of. This is not
intended as a compliment, but as the
truth.

Pres. Russell — There seems to be some
trouble arising as to the proper feeder to
use in the spring. It does not take so
much trouble to winter the bees, as it
does to get them safely through the
spring.

' Mr. Muth — If our bees are strong in
spring, and if the fruit-trees don't bloom
and the bees get no honey from that
source, then unless we feed them they
will starve to death.

Mr. Catterson — May be what I have
said cannot be understood by all. I am
opposed to extracting honey from the
lower chamber in the fall, and then be
compelled to feed up the bees with sugar
syrup to take them through the winter.
If they had the honey, in my opinion, it
is not necessary to give them the gran-
ulated sugar in the spring ; if it is neces-
sary to give it at all, give it in the fall
rather than lose the bees ; but if the
brood-chamber is old, then no honey
should be taken out of it. The bees will
store enough honey to winter them.
Some of my colonies swarmed the past
season just when I did not want them
to, and I gave them honey from the
other hives.

Pres. Russell — Here seems to be the
problem throughout the State, where
farmers and many others engaged in
bee-keeping do not examine the bees
closely enough to see that there is
plenty of honey to last until February
or March. Three-fourths of the bees
die in March, chiefly from want of food.
The question is how we can best feed
the bees.

Mr. Catterson — Some years ago I used
bee-candy, but at present I use the
sugar syrup, putting it into the hives, if
they have not a good quantity of ripe
honey. They would take this sugar
syrup and put it in the combs ; but if
you take the cakes of this candy and
lay them in just over the clusters of
bees, my experience has been that if
they have plenty of honey, they will
not bother this candy, but if they are
poor, then they will go to work on it.

Mr. Simmons — I do not know that I
have anything to say that can be of par-
ticular benefit. In making chemical
analysis of honey, I find that it is com-
posed largely of oxygen and nitrogen
as the fundamental constituents. There
is an element called " saccharine," which
is 240 times sweeter than our ordinary
sugar. In feeding my bees I take a little
of this saccharine and place it in a
quantity of water, and also place with
it some loaf-sugar. I find that the bees
eat this and appear to fare well, much
better than those which were fed on
sugar syrup or the stick candy. I like
to try all plans and experiments, and if
I can find a safe plan, an easy one, and
one that is remunerative to me, I try it,
and am always perfectly willing to give
to my neighbors the benefits of my ex-
periments.

Mr. Pope— I heard two parties say
that they fed their bees on this granu-
lated sugar and lost them.

Mr. Simmons — That was doubtless on
account of the inorganic substances
which it contained, such as lime, chalk,
and other things.

The convention then adjourned until
9:30 a.m. the next day.

(Goutinued next week.)

JHLeeping^ Bees Near a Railroad
— Queen Cramps, Ete.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY G. M. DOOLITTLE.

A correspondent wishes to know if it
will be a damage to an apiary, if located
within ten rods of a railroad. As a rule
it should not, yet if the bees are to be
wintered in a cellar or under-ground
cave, such as I use, the jar from the
trains might cause trouble. As I live
some eight miles from the railroad, I
have little experience along this line, but
a friend of mine who lived within six
rods of the railroad told me that he be-
lieved that very much of his loss during

564

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

winter was owing to the disturbance of
his bees caused by this railroad.

While there one day, about train time,
he invited me tc go into his bee-cave, or
special underground repository in which
he wintered his bees, to see what I
thought about the matter. The reposi-
tory was a nice one, in fact the nicest I
ever saw, as the sides and bottom were
of a clean white sand, and kept at a
uniform temperature of from 42° to 46°.
When we went into the cave the bees
were very quiet, as much so as they ever
are in my own cellar. We struck no
light, as he wished me to note the effect
of the train on the bees, the same as it
would be every time a train passed.

Soon we began to feel a slight jar of
the ground, and in a moment more the
bees began to buzz, or show signs of
being disturbed, which increased as the
train neared ; and as it went by, the
trembling of the earth in this dark place
was so great that it was anything but
pleasant to me, and I did not wonder
that the bees became so awakened that
they came to the entrance of their hives
to see what the trouble was.

He told me that this disquietude con-
tinued from ten to fifteen minutes after
the passing of every train, while toward
spring they hardly became quiet be-
tween the passing of the trains. For-
tunately, on this road there were few
trains run, still he was never successful
in wintering bees in this cellar, and soon
moved to a different locality. Since
then, I have felt as though I should pre-
fer some other place for cellar-wintering
of bees, besides near a railroad.

WORKING-QUALITIES OF BEES.

Another correspondent writes that he
thinks that tlje Italian bees work best
on basswood and thistle, and the black
bees on raspberry and buckwheat; and
asks if I have found such to be the case.

After very close watching of these
bees for a long term of years, I have
failed to find a single instance where the
blacks exceeded the Italians as to honey-
gathering, no matter on what plant or
tree they were working, while at many
times the Italians were actually making
a gain when the blacks were consuming
their stores. For this reason I discarded
the blacks for several years.

Later on I saw an advertisement tel-
ling of a large brown bee which would
bring in honey when no other bee could ;
and of an ndustrious gray bee that was
away ahead of most of the bees in the
country ; and not wishing to be behind,
I sent for some of these. After a thor-
ough trial of both they only proved, as I

had expected, that each was not differ-
ent from the black bee of our fathers'
time.

Next I tried the much-praised hybrids,
said to be the coming Apis Americana,
and I found them not a whit ahead of
the hybrids which I had had for years ;
at least the profits made from the sales
of honey from the Italians were ahead
of those, from any of the others, so I
parted company with all the rest.

I know that black bees will store more
dark or buckwheat honey than the Ital-
ians, but my experience is, that at the
same time this is being done, the Ital-
ians are storing more white honey from
red clover, white-weed and selendine,
than the others secure from buckwheat.
When this white honey is not obtainable,
then the Italians store of dark honey an
equal amount with the blacks.

QUEENS CRAMPING.

Another writes, "When clipping my
queens' wings some of them go into
spasms, or have cramps which double
them all up. What is the cause ? "

When queens are caught by the wings
they often double up and appear to have
a cramp, some having reported that
death was the result. For a long time I
supposed this doubling up was caused
by a real cramp, but after a close obser-
vation I learned what the trouble was,
w-ith my queens, at least.

I caught a queen to clip her wings,
when she doubled up as has been des-
cribed. I thought to let her go as I had
always done before when they had thus
cramped, but I hesitated as she was
very shy and I did not like the thought
of hunting for her again, so I concluded
to clip her though she died. I lowered
my hands very close to the top of the
frames, and clipped off all four of the
wings as I usually do. She lay on the
top-bar of a frame apparently lifeless,
so it gave me a good opportunity to ex-
amine her closely, when I soon saw that
she had one of her front feet tightly
clamped in the opening frem which the
sting extrudes. In a moment more she
began to kick about (as the bees hov-
ered around her, so she saw she was in
her own home), when the foot was
loosed by the opening parting, and she
crawled down among the bees unharmed.

Since then I have seen other queens
doubled up in this same way, and always
found the case the same as above. As
the queen is lifted by the wings she
struggles to get hold of something, to
liberate herself if possible, and in these
struggles curves her abdomen and partly
thrusts out her sting. While in thli

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

565

shape one of the front feet catches hold
of this apparently secure foothold, upon
which the opening is closed from the
sensation caused by the foot — holding
the foot as in a vise — thus keeping the
queen in her doubled-up position as long
as the foot is so held.
Borodino, N. Y.

Will of the Queen vs. the Com-
pre§9ion Theory, Etc.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY DR. C. G. MILLER.

Mr. Editor, I see you are determined I
shall have no comfort in the columns of
the "Old Reliable." There was that
woman from Texas, pounding away at
me with her "will "theory, and now
you have got in a man from Germany
that's worse still. I could get along
after a fashion with all the Texas
woman had to say, for no matter what
argument she brought up, 1 could say,
'•But in that case the queen is in a
different position from what she Is in a
drone-cell." But Herr Reepen comes
out in the Centralblatt with the point
that the cells of Apis dorsata are all
alike, whether drones or workers are
reared in them, and if the cells are all
the same size, how can there be any dif-
ference as to mechanical compression ?
Now you see, no matter how much I
might squirm and wriggle out of other
arguments, I don't see any possible an-
swer to that. So the compression theory
must be given up entirely ; but please
don't print this in the copy you send to
Mrs. Atchley. I don't want her to crow
over me.*

AGE OF QUEEN WHEN BEGINNING TO LAY.

I suspect there may be some mistake
on the part of the reporter or printer on
page 496, where C. F. Muth is made to
say, "On the fourth or fifth day after
the queen is hatched, she begins to lay."
Our genial German friend is too well
posted, and careful In his statements, I
think, to make such an assertion.
Dadant and Alley make five days the
shortest time between the birth of a
queen and her first bridal-flight, and
Dadant says she lays two days later,
making seven days the shortest time for
a queen to begin laying. He makes the
average time 8 or 9 days. Root gives 9
days as the average age of commencing
to lay. As a rule, I don't look for eggs
until a queen is about 12 days old, for

although she may commence to lay be-
fore that, it takes less time to find eggs
when they are plentier, and some queens
are slow about commencing to lay.f

QUEEN OR WORKER ?

Friend Lindber^k needn't feel humili-
ated if he should not in all cases be able
to tell a worker from a queen. I'm sure
I've been so puzzled. Moreover, I've
seen workers encircling and caressing a
bee that I thought was a worker. But
I don't know whether they would follow
her if she were held on the hand.

REDUCING BEES 100 PER CENT.

Isn't friend Butts proposing rather
too savage a reduction on page 504 ?
He says : " I firmly believe that If the
stock of bees could be reduced a hundred
per cent, in this section of the country
at least, apiarists would be rewarded by
more surplus honey, and hence far
greater profits." They would hardly
get more surplus honey by killing all
their bees. Or has the "intelligent
compositor " been taking liberties with
friend Butts' figures ? t

Marengo, 111.

[*We don't believe Sister Atchley will
"crow" one bit. She may, however,
"go trotting off, laughing In both
sleeves," as she suggested Dr. Miller
might do, on page 492. But, then. It
would be just like the Doctor to laugh,
too — he's so good-natured he just
couldn't help it if he should try.

fit must have been the mistake of the
reporter, for we printed it exactly as It
was written with a typewriter.

tMr. Butts likely meant 50 per cent.;
but again we can Inform the Doctor that
we printed It exactly as Mr. Butts wrote
It. Our "Intelligent compositor" never
takes any "liberties" with anybody's
" figures." She (for our excellent and
intelligent compositor is a lady) is just
waiting for a good chance to get even
with the Doctor for such Insinuations.
When all the women-folks get after
him, he'll scatter his "stray straws"
worse than ever. If we didn't think so
much of the Doctor ourselves, we would
certainly be inclined to laugh at his
"stray straw" patch predicament— if
such should ever materialize ! — Ed.]

566

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Spreading^ the Brood Unneces-
sary and Cruel.

WrttUn for the American Bee Journal
BY L. G. BEED.

I am, and have been for many years,
a reader of the American Bee Journal,
and I have read so much about spread-
inpc the brood, that I feel constrained to
have my say upon the subject. Not-
withstanding I break new ground on the
long-established views and practices of
probably all of the most advanced bee-
keepers, yet when a fellow thinks he is
right, he has a good right to think he is
right as any one else, and it is pretty
hard for any one to engage in any pur-
suit for 20 years without advancing
and practicing theories of his own, and
this is what I have done in reference to
the spreading of brood, to my perfect
satisfaction.

I have demonstrated by actual test
and experience that it is not only cruel,
but absolutely unnecessary to spread
brood at all, either in early spring, or
any other time ; and I have often been
surprised that such men as Mr. Doolittle,
living in this Northern changeable
climate as he does, would practice such
a manipulation.

Now, in order to give my plan in full,
I shall have to commence by giving my
spring management, which is as follows:

The first warm days in March or early
spring, when the bees fly, I light the
smoker, take an empty hive, and a car-
penter's scraper, which is made of a
piece of saw plate or blade, I go to hive
No. 1, blow a few whiflfs of smoke in at
the entrance, then proceed to open them
up. I take out four or five frames, or
enough to give me room to work, and
set them in a hive provided for the pur-
pose. I then with the scraper clean
that portion of the hive, then place the
remaining frames to that side of the
hive, and finish cleaning the hive, giving
it a thorough scraping out.

I then select such of the frames as
have brood and eggs in, and place them
to one side of the hive — the sealed brood
In the center, the eggs outside. I then
give them a couple of frames of honey,
placing one on each side of the brood-
nest, if they have bees enough to cover
this many frames, if not, I give them a
less number, or just what they can
nearly cover. I then place a division-
board at their side, leaving a bee-space
at the bottom, so that the bees can go
under to get any stores that may be in
the remaining frames, which I place on

that side of the division-board, scratch-
ing with a common table-fork any
places containing sealed honey — if there
is not too much, if there is, I only
scratch a part of it.

I now close them up, leaving off the
burlap, and putting on the oil-cloth
covers and cushions, and tuck them
down snugly to keep them as warm as
possible.

I go over the entire apiary and treat
all as I have this one, unless there
should happen to be a strong, vigorous
colony ; these I clean and leave all the
frames in, placing the brood in the
center.

Now as the season advances and they
require more frames, on account of hav-
ing those already in full of brood, I open
them up and examine ; if they need
room, I add a frame each side of the
brood-nest ; if the center frames are
nearly empty of brood and eggs, I place
them on the outside of the brood-nest ;
also, always keeping the sealed brood in
the center as much as possible, and the
open brood next to the stores. This
plan prevents the possibility of chilled
brood, and saves the energy of the bees,
which is quite an item previous to and
during a honey-flow.

Now I want some of our progressive
bee-keepers to try this plan, along side
of their brood-spreading plan, and if
they do not get better results with the
same or less labor, then I will go and
crawl into a hole, and take the hole in
after me.

My plan is no new thing to the bees —
they have known of it, and practiced it,
when let alone, as long as there have
been bees, and I sometimes think they
know just a little more about their own
business, and attend to it better, than
some people ; man's cruelty to, and sup-
posed superiority over, the lower ani-
mals, to the contrary notwithstanding.

Kent, Ohio.

Against Sealed Covers —The
House-Apiary, Etc.

WriUe7i for the American Bee Journal

BY B. TAYLOR.

The weather is quite cold here to-day
(April 14th). , The bees are yet in the
cellar. They have wintered in first-
class condition. I left some 20 colonies
with sealed covers again this winter ;
they have bean more, and are now more,
restless than those covered with porous
covers. The hives are damp, and un-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

567

satisfactory. I filled one apartment of
my cellar, last fall, with 80 colonies,
prepared as follows :

Each colony was left in 2 stories of
my shallow hive ; 2 combs were taken
from each hive, leaving the bees on 16
combs, 6xl3j^ inches. These combs
were spread to fill the 10-frame hive,
and the bee-space between each set of
frames, made a central passage to all
parts of the hive. They were covered
by spreading a square of cotton-sheeting
over each hive. On top of this I put a
shallow box, 3 inches deep, the bottom
of cotton cloth nailed on ; the boxes are
large enough for the cloth to rest on the
edges of the hive top, and are always sure
to be tight. These boxes were filled
level full with dry, fine sawdust.

The temperature of the cellar was
uniformly very near 42°, and, as to re-
sults, these bees have remained quieter ;
there have less bees flown out on the
cellar bottom than I ever knew in my
experience of 40 years. The colonies are
all alive to-day, and so quiet that I can
only hear a very slight murmur.

I prepared some 50 hives by putting
some thin strips, one-thirtieth of an inch
thick under the board covers. These
bees have wintered fairly, but »ot equal
to those first named, as many more bees
flew from the hives to the cellar floor.

I have made some inquiry, and find
that the bees of neighbors in this part
of the country have wintered poorly ;
those with sealed covers being dead, as
a rule, where wintered in out-door pack-
ing, and all dead where unprotected.

PLEASED WITH THE HOUSE-APIAKY.

My new house-apiary is just now fin-
ished. It is a beauty, of which I feel
proud. I find I can accommodate 46
colonies in the 8x16 feet building, with-
out crowding. I had expected to fill it
with bees about March 1st, but the very
severe weather prevented. I will fill it
now when the weather has moderated
sufiSciently, with bees from the colonies
that have wintered so nicely, and shall
expect to be able to make a good report
for house-apiaries this Columbian year.

I have demonstrated in the past un-
usually hard winter that bees will win-
ter perfectly in house-apiaries, if prop-
erly prepared, as hives in my little, im-
perfect house came through with bottom-
boards as clean as in summer.

THE COMB-LEVELER — A NEW THING.

I send you one of my new machines
for preparing sections filled with empty
comb for use again. It will be seen by
reading Oleanings for March 1st, page

207, how such veterans as Manum have
despaired of producing salable honey by
using these sections of comb againi and
have resolved, as many others have
done, to melt the combs for wax, and
burn the sections.

Now, I regard such empty combs as
nearly equal in value to completed sec-
tions of honey, to use as "baits " to get
the bees into the supers early in the
honey-flow, and to be filled rapidly in a
short flow in poor years. All my finished
honey for the last two seasons was of
this kind, and by the use of this little,
cheap machine, the honey was equal in
appearance to combs built on new foun-
dation.

'■"S---.- .-.,,,_. GtMEftAUVJEW.

I'l'MP FLUE '.

VIEW

e^£■CT)ON^^

aoTror->/*^"'

B. Taylor's Comb-Leveler.

In using the comb-leveler, take a small
box with the front left out, to set the
lamp in, and cut a circular hole in the
top, 714 inches in diameter, to set the
pan in. The box should be high enough
so the lamp chimney will go within % or
14 inch of the tin cone in the round hole
in the bottom of the pan. A block can
be put under the lamp to make it just
right.

Put a little water in the bottom of the
pan for the melted wax to run into, and
light the lamp. By turning the wick up
or down, the right heat can be secured.
The heated plate should be hot enough
to melt the comb in the section quickly,
but not to burn the wax.

Now take a section with comb, and

568

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

press upon the heated plate first one side,
and then the other. When the comb is
full and plump, place the wide side of
the section on the stops, but when less
full, and you need to melt deeper, turn
the narrow part of the section on the
stops. Keep an old table-knife to scrape
the waste from the top of the hot plate
often. The wax will run into the water
in the pan below, and may be emptied
as required.

Practice these directions carefully,
and you will find the combs melted to
equal, even surfaces, and left in such
condition that the bees will have to add
a little new comb to the end of every
cell, and the finished honey will be
white, and of even weight. Combs thus
prepared may be used without separa-
tors.

Fillmore Co., Minn.

,^ ' Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

In Total Darkness for 167 Days.

Reading the reports from many quarters
of "pollen plenty," "balmy April," or
" hives filling up with young bees," I am
led to ask myself if I have the coldest
locality in North America where bees are
kept. We have had high winds, cold and
snow nearly all the year so far, so that
there has been but two or three days suit-
able for bees to fly. Neither the soft maples
nor elm, which give us the first pollen of
any account, are open yet, and as the
weather has been extremely unfavorable,
the bees are in the cellar. They were put
in on Nov. 10, 1892, and when I will get
them out depends upon the weather. I
have been in the cellar to-day, and they
appear quiet and nice after their 167 days
of total darkness. G. M. Doolittle.

Borodino, N. Y., April 20, 1893.

speaks volumes for the helmsmen of our
" good ship of bee-lore," who have justly
earned the name "Old Reliable" for it.
May it live long, and always merit the
title, is my wish.

I would like to mention with pleasure
seeing the letter from our old friend W. P.
Taylor, of Fitzroy Harbor, Ont., the octo-
genarian subscriber, published on page
344. Although in Manistee, Mich., now, it
was at his apiary that I first saw the honey
extractor, pound sections, comb foundation,
and other great improvements in the pur-
suit which, when we consider the time (I
think about 18 years ago) , it would seem as
if our friend were taking in every improve-
ment as soon as invented. Being eager to
grasp the new and the good, and being a
close observer, his store of knowledge must
have a wide range. I remember seeing a
very neat, concrete, octagonal bee-house
for wintering bees in.

Mr. Taylor's experience must be very ex-
tensive, and I think we have missed it not
to have heard from him occasionally. I
know it was a great pleasure to me to visit
his place, and although the bee-business
was in its infancy with me, I feel safe in
saying that Mr. Taylor was one of the
pioneer scientific bee-keepers of Ontario. I
think he was very modest in putting forth
any conclusions, and perhaps this is why
we have not heard more from him. I did
not write this for publication, but I could
not very well see him passing out of our
ranks (as he seems about to do) without
telling of my acquaintance with him. I am
too poor a writer to do him justice, which I
very much regret. W. Harmer.

Manistee, Mich.

Appreciated Octogenarian Bee-Man.

The American Bef Jouknai. has been a
constant weekly visitor since the fall of
1881. I believe rrcnj cojjy has come regu-
larly since that time. Such regularity

Mortality of Bees in Winter.

I notice on page 397, that Mr. M. D.
Andes is alarmed at the rate his bees car-
ried out their dead during their winter
flights. Usually this would be considered a
sign that they were in a healthy condition,
but if continued at an extreme rate, of
course it would result in total annihilation.
Not knowing, I could only hint at what
might be the possible cause.

He says they have plenty of honey, which
shows tliat they must have been strong,
and in good condition during the early fall,
and filled their hives to overflowing, and
probably crowded their queen out of room
to lay, thus cutting oflf brood-rearing at a
very early date, which resulted in the de-
struction of the drones and consequent idle-
ness of the workers, except to gather
enough perhaps to make up for the amount
consumed.

Now in this quiet, contented condition,
their mortality would be very light, and the
colonies would go into winter quarters
with plenty of stores, and strong in bees,
but mostly old ones. This being their con-
dition during late autumn, their winter
mortality, as might be expected, would be
great, owing to the extreme age of the ma-
jority of the bees ; and more especially, if
the weather should be warm so as to admit

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

569

of continuous flights, for one good flight at
that season is more exhausting than several
days would be during their early autumn
life.

In a warm climate there need be but
little fear from loss from winter flights, but
in a more Northern latitude the cluster
would soon become so reduced that, should
the weather change to severe cold, they
would chill and die, with plenty of honey
within easy reach, or they would dwindle
out during the early spring.

It is wrong to allow bees to so crowd their
hives with honey as to curtail brood-rear-
ing too early in autumn. Thousands of
colonies are lost . annually from this one
neglect. They should be carefully looked
after, and when discovered approaching
this condition, remove 1 or 2 rear frames
of honey and s|)read the brood-nest and in-
sert empty combs in the center, so as to
allow the queen a place to lay. Then if the
blooming season should be suddenly cut
short, before this brood has time to mature,
feed immediately, so as to maintain the late
brood, and make up for what you have
taken away. But if the supply of nectar
holds out, feeding will be unnecessary.

Leonidas, Mich. D. Millakd.

Severe Winter in Tennessee.

The past winter was the hardest and most
severe in this section of the country since
the year 1885. It has been a hard winter
on bees. Several people lost 25 to 30 colo-
nies each. I tried to get them to pack their
bees last fall, but they would not do so.

I am only 19 years of age. I started with
one colony of Italians, and now I have
three — one being black. I learn something
about bees every day.

The prospects are bright this spring for a
good yield of honey. I hope that my bees
will do well. Last season was a poor one
for bees here. I had to feed mine all
through the summer and fall, granulated
sugar made into syrup, to keep them alive,
and bring them safely through the winter.
Last fall I packed them, putting a cushion
on each side of them, and one on top, and
now they are all O. K., and doing well, un-
der the circumstances.

Porter Feathers.

Whitesburgh, Tenn.

Honey-Producing Trees and Plants.

A Bee Journal correspondent wished to
know what to plant to increase the bee-
pasturage. A very long list of trees and
plants might be given, but a few of the
most common and useful, as well as orna-
mental, might be added to the list given.
Among trees, the willow comes first;
maple, horse-chestnut and locust ; European
linden (earlier than basswood) ; fruit-blos-
soms of all kinds, currants, gooseberries,
raspberries and barberry; honeysuckles,
plum-leaved and elm-leaved, are all attrac-
tive ; clovers of all kinds, grass, wheat, and
corn, with pumpkins, as weU as buckwheat,
are all in their season utilized by the bees.

In the flower-garden the first is the crocus
and lilies, small but very easily grown;
meadow-sweet, spiderwort, varonica and
sweet clover, the last-mentioned to be
planted in waste places with catnip and
viper's bugloss of the borage family.

Of annual plants, the poppy is the most
attractive, eutoca, phacelia congesta, with
mignonette all the season.

Bees are yet held by the grip of winter,
sometimes down to 15 degrees below zero,
without any outside packing, with liberty
of flight which they have enjoyed, whUe I
have been closed in with more bees than I
know what to do with. B. Losee.

Cobourg, Out., April 2, 1893.

Mr. William Stahl, of Quincy, Ills.,
the well-known manufacturer of spray-
ing outfits, as advertised In these col-
umns from time to time, has published
a number of neat little pamphlets on
subjects connected with spraying, among
them being "Spraying fruits, how,
when, where and why to do it ;" "Spray-
ing apple orchards;" " How to prevent
and destroy diseases and insects affect-
ing grapes ;" "Insects and fungus dis-
eases affecting all varieties of small
fruit and vegetable crops ;" FulJ direc-
tions for spraying fruits, vegetables and
flowers," etc. Any or all of these little
books are sent free of charge to any one
who will ask for them, and each and
every one of them contains much val-
uable information on the subject treated,
and information, too, that should be in
hands of every farmer and fruit-grower
in the laud. Write for them to William
Stahl, Quincy, Ills.

Speaking of Family Story Papers, a

well-known writer once said that the
Family Ledger published in Los Angeles,
Calif., is, without question, the cheapest
and best printed illustrated family
weekly in the world. Over 60 complete
serials are run in a year's issue. The
paper has many copyrighted features,
and is illustrated each week. To those
who are unacquainted with this remark-
able periodical, a special offer is made
of 10 weeks for 10 cents. Few that
read story papers will allow an oppor-
tunity to pass whereby they can secure
so unique a paper for such a small sum.
18C3t

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
JouKNAii. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

570

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
April 29th, 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as flue comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber l-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7^c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6@8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good, at 24®27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@10c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68®75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7Hc., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6@
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16®17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted,fair supply, with good demand at 8^ ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, ie®17c.—
Extracted, 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNEAPOLIS,MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lb8. 16@17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
®14c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c. ; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9®10c. J. A. S. & C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14®15®16c ;
mixed, 12@13c ; dark, 10@llc. Extracted,
white, 8®8'/4c ; mixed, 7®7^c ; dark, 6^®7c.

Beeswax, 26®30c. H. R. W.

IMIrs. J. P. Cookenbacli, whose
advertisement appears on page 517, will
be glad to have you w^rite to her to
secure a good place to stay during your
visit to the World's Fair the coming
summer. The Bee Jouknal refers its
readers and friends, vi^ith much pleas-
ure, to Mrs. C, who will do the right
thing by all who give her an opportunity
to help them.

Annual Catalog^ues or Price-

Lists we have received from —

Leininger Bros., Ft. Jennings, O.— Italian
Queens.

J. J. Bradner, Marion, Ind.— Bee-Keepers'
Supplies.

Jos. E. Shaver, Frledens, Va.— Bee-Keepers'
Supplies.

Plinney Shepardson, Catlin, Wash.— Apiari-
an Supplies.

Wm. H. Bright, Mazeppa, Minn.— Bee-Keep-
ers' Supplies.

E. H. Trumper, Bankers, Mich.— Bee-Keep-
ers' Supplies.

Mrs. J. N. Heater, Columbus, Nebr.— Bee-
Keepers' Supplies.

J. Van Deusen & Sons, Sprout Brook, N. Y.—
Comb Foundation.

J. H. & A. L. Boyden, Saline, Mich.— Bee-
Keepers' Supplies.

Walter S. Pouder, Indianapolis, Ind.— Bee-
Keepers' Supplies.

E. J. Scofleld, Hanover, Wis.- Strawberry
and Raspberry Plants.

S. F. & I. Trego, Swedona, 111.— 5-Banded
Golden Italian Queens.

A. E. Manum, Bristol, Vt.— Leather-Colored
Italian Bees and Queens.

H. G. Acklin, 1024 Miss. St., St. Paul, Minn.
—Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

W. P. Crossman. Ballinger, Tex.— Five-Band-
ed Golden Italian Queens.

C. A. Montague. Archie, Mich.— Bees, Honey,
and Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

Edward Gillett, Southwick, Mass.— Wild
Flowers, Ferns, Bulbs, Etc.

Mrs. A. A. Simpson, Swarts, Pa.— Italian
Bees and Queens, Poultry, Etc.

J. N. Colwick, Norse, Tex.— Italian Bees and
Queens, and Apiarian Supplies.

F. C. Morrow, Wallaceburg, Ark.— 5-Banded
Golden Italian Bees and Queens.

Miller Bros., Blufifton, Mo.— Bees, Queens,
Hives, and Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

Theodore Bender, Canton, O.— Bee-Keepers*
Supplies, Italian Bees and Queens.

Phoenix Nursery Co., Bloomington, Ills.-
Trees, Plants, Shrubs, Roses, Bulbs, etc.

Chas. F. Muth & Son, Cincinnati, O.— Honey,
Beeswax, Seeds and Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

W. T. Falconer Mfg. Co., Jamestown, N. Y.
—Bee-Hives, Sections and Bee-Keepers' Sup-
plies.

G. K. Hubbard, Ft. Wayne, Ind.— Hubbard
Hive, and Section Press, and other Bee-Keep-
ers' Supplies.

Goold, Shapley & Muir Co.. Brantford, Ont.,
Canada.— Bees. Italian Queens, Bee-Keepera'
Supplies and Honey.

Your Neiglitoor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 389.

Bees and Honey " — see page 549.

GEORGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCJ-USrVELY
Editor. i -

- J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

To Bee-Culture. I Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MAY 11, 1893.

NO. 19.

l>r. A. B. jVIa.!»ou, of Auburndale, O.,
is in Chicago looking after the Ohio honey
exhibit at the World's Fair. He called on
the Bee Journal, with the same cheering
smile that he used to carry along where-
ever he went, though a loss in avoii'dupois
has lessened his once plump and somewhat
" aldermanic " appearance. But he's the
same friendly, jolly, good Dr. Mason, whom
all who have ever met want to see as often
as possible.

Xlie Poiil Bi-ood Articles, prom-
ised by Mr. Wm. McEvoy a few weeks ago,
ai'e begun on page 504 of this number of
the Bee Journal. The first article is de-
voted to discussion of the caune of foul
brood. Directions for treating and curing
the disease will follow. We hope all that
Mr. McEvoy writes upon this subject will
be read carefully, as " he speaks as one
having authority,'" after his large experi-
ence as Foul Brood Inspector for the Prov-
ince of Ontario, Canada.

Mr. S. F. Xreg-o, of Swedona, Ills.,
has purchased his partner's interest in the
firm of S. F. & I. Trego, and will assume
all responsibility. The management will
be the same, as he has practically had en-
tire control of the business the past three
years. You will find Mr. Trego's " Fishing "
advertisement on another page.

Mrs. JL. IliirrisoiL has returned from
Florida, where she has been spending the
winter, to her old home at 821 Hurlburt St.,
Peoria, Ills. In a letter received from Mrs.
H., dated May 3nd, at St. Andrews' Bay,
Fla., she says:

Bees have done well this spring in this
part of Florida, but are now taking a par-
tial rest until the blooming of the saw-pal-
metto and other flowers. There is a flower
here which is very abundant, and I watched
in vain to see bees working on it, and ques-
tioned local bee-keepers to ascertain
whether it is a bee-plant or not. This plant
has a pale yellow tap-root, the leaves are
pale green, soft and velvety. The flowers
grow on a spike, are of a lavender color,
have two wings, a banner and a keel, and
in the center of the banner is a dark purple
spot. The woods are full of these flowers,
and a tourist calls them '"lupines." Will
some of our readers, who live where this
plant grows, tell us more about it ?

Mrs. L. Harrison.

luteriiatioiLal lSee-1/Oiiveiitioii.

— The time for holding the next meeting of
the North American Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion in Chicago, has finally been agreed
upo^. October 11th, 12th and 13th are the
days selected. We have received the fol-
lowing letter from Secretary Benton, which
gives full explanations, etc., and which we
trust will be noted by all our readers :

Editor American Bee Journal: — As
there have been but five responses to your
suggestions in the editorial columns (page
323) of the Bee Journal for April Gth, re-
garding the date of the next meeting of the
North American Bee-Keepers' Association
(one of the five being also in favor of Octo-
ber), I infer that an ''overwhelming ma-
jority " of the bee-keepers of our land are
in favor of holding the convention in Octo-
ber, as originally proposed. The President
of the Association first suggested the third
week in October, but I think we are now
all agreed upon the second week — October

584

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

11th, 12th aud 13th— which will probably
accommodate more than would auy other
time.

There is promise of a large and interest-
ing meeting, and the presence of many
whom we all want to see. Due notice will
be given of programme, local arrange-
ments, etc., and the names of famous bee-
masters who promise to be present, will be
announced. There will be no lack of ac-
commodations at moderate rates, so let
every bee-keeper come who possibly can do
so. It is an occasion the like of which this
generation will not again see.

Frank Bentox,
Sechj Xorth Am. Bee-Keepers' Ass'n.

Washington, D. C, April 29, 1892.

We can only second the cordial invitation
extended by Mr. Benton, and hope that
all who possibly can do so will arrange to
attend what promises to be one of the most
interesting meetings held in Chicago this
century. Let it be a general '• swarming
time " among bee-keepers themselves, hav-
ing '' selected " a place •' in advance," and
proper " scouts "' will now do their best to
find a suitable "hive" in which the
"swarm" may bring their "stores" for
the benefit of all.

IVliat Bro. Alley 1* oiildu't I>o.

^In the May Apiculturisit Editor Alley tells
some of the things that he " wouldn't do,"
and among them we find the following,
that have been crystallized from his over 30
years' experience :

I wouldn't feed in the spring to stimulate
brood-rearing. If feeding must be resorted
to, let it be to prevent starvation only.

I wouldn't spread combs of brood and
place empty ones between before June 10th.
It will injure any colony to do such work
before the date named.

I wouldn't use a hive that has a brood
capacity of over 1,800 cubic inches, or say
eight standard Langstroth frames. There
are over .50.000 bee-keepers who think* as I
do on this point.

I wouldn't feed bees rye-meal, wheat-
flour, or anything else in the spring. Any-
thing that induces bees to leave their hives
when the weather is cool, is wrong, and an
injury to the colony.

I wouldn't introduce a new queen for the
sake of changing the race of any prosper-
ous colony of bees. Those who do so will
be the losers in the end. After the swarm-
ing and honey seasons are over, then
change queens if necessary.

I wouldn't wait for the honey to be cap-
ped before extracting, if I were running an
apiary for extracted honey. As soon as
the cells are full of nectar, and capping has
been commenced at the top of the combs, I
would commence to extract. I would put
the honey in barrels from which one head '

had been removed, and there let it remain
in a well ventilated room until fall. You
can rest assured of the fact that the honey
will not ferment, but will be ripened in the
very best possible manner. I have tried it,
and know what I am talking about.

I wouldn't use a section-case that is non-
reversible. When sections are half full, or
even quite full, if reversed the bees will at-
tach the combs solidly to all sides of the
section. Honey so stored can be shipped a
long distance without breaking or leaking.

I wouldn't put sections on a hive no mat-
ter how populous the colony, until I could
see that the bees are gathering some honey,
and had started to build brace-combs be-
tween the top-bars of the frames. Then I
would put a few sections on, but not over
one set of 24 sections at a time.

I wouldn't climb 40 feet into a tree for a
swarm of bees when one issues, thus run-
ning the risk of breaking my neck. Nor
would I permit a swarm to issue before a
queen-trap was placed upon the hive. Use
the trap, and the necessity for climbing
trees for bees is wholly obviated.

I wouldn't stay at home from chui-ch on
Sunday watching bees, fearing a swarm
might issue and decamp. I'd rather use a
queen-trap, and thus force the bees to re-
turn and issue again when more convenient
for me to care for them. No. sir, I don't
allow bees to keep me away from church or
any other place. I always feel easy when
away from home, if queen-traps are on all
my hives.

Mr. E. Jt. Ba^xter, of Nauvoo, Ills.,
(who is a son-in-law of our friend Chas.
Dadant), called on us last week. Mr. B.
reports his 300 colonies of bees as having
wintered with a loss of only about 8 per
cent. Last year his crop was between 10
and 12 thousand pounds of extracted honey.
In 1883, he secured about 10,000 pounds
from 41 colonies, one colony alone gather-
ing over GOO pounds. He has never had a
total failure of the honey crop, and ships
the major portion of his honey to distant
markets, always guaranteeing its purity.

Illinois Bec-Keepers have finally
succeeded in securing an appropriation of
13,000 from the State, for the purpose of
making a honey exhibit at the World's
Fair. We doubt not those having the matter
in charge, will soon have something to say
to the bee-keepers of this State on the sub-
ject of an exhibit. Other States are now
placing their exhibits, and our grand State
must not fall short, though it was very late
in getting the necessary funds.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 581.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

585

The " Slialce-Oiit " Fiiiictioii of

hives as practiced by the native bee-keepers
of Carniola is described thus by Mr. Frank
Benton in an article published in Gleanings
for April 1st :

The hive which, for several centuries, has
been most commonly used in Carniola is
about 6 inches deep (inside measurement) ,
36 inches from front to rear, and 12 inches
■wide, no frames being used. These hives
are placed in bee-houses, each tier of hives
resting on separate stringers of its own so
as to be removable, by sliding out at front
or rear, without interfering with the others.
There are generally 6 or 8 tiers — often 50
hives in each tier. The rear end of each
hive (occasionally the front end instead) is
removable for the purpose of feeding, intro-
ducing queens, etc.. while to get at queen-
cells, the bottom is taken off — the latter
being commonly fastened by hand-made,
wedged-shaped nails that are easily pulled.
Frame hives are not popular, the few bee-
keepers who have tried them, not having,
except in rare instances, understood their
advantages. But frames, when used, are
mostly shallow — from 6 to 8 inches only in
depth, and are placed crosswise of the hives,
being removable from the rear end.

There is in Carniola, on the whole, very
little manipulation of combs or interference
with the interior of the hives' beyond the
cleaning of the bottom-boards, feeding
(which is diligently practiced) , and the sup-
plying occasionally of a queen or a queen-
cell to a hive that has through accident be-
come queenless.

The native bee-keepers do not often have
occasion to hunt out queens ; but when they
do (most of the hives, as already stated,
being without frames) , they can only re-
move the bottom-board and shake out the
bees. They do this by main strength, tak-
ing hold of the box in the middle, and giv-
ing it several violent jerks downward. But
as the main cluster of bees (especially in
the fall, or in weak colonies, after-swarms,
etc., or in such as have stored the rear end
of the hive full of honey) is generally in
the front end of the hive, I was able to
adopt, and to show the native bee-keepers
in many places, much to their delight, a
far easier way ; namely, the plan of holding
the back part of the hive between my knees,
while I grasped the sides about six inches
from the front end and gave two or three
quick downward jerks, each followed by a
quicker upward motion, thus landing about
all — oftentimes all — of the bees on the
ground. In this way I often captured from
these box-hives, and caged in mailing-
cages, 30 to 40 queens in two or three hours.

In an editorial under " Shallow brood-
chambers and the shake-out function cen-
turies old," Bro. Root comments on the
above, written by Mr. Frank Benton, and
says:

All of this is exceedingly interesting — the
more so as Mr. Heddon has claimed, if we
mistake not, that these ideas were entirely

new and original with himself. We have
seen references to both of these things be-
fore, but were not aware that they were
ideas that were older than almost anything
else use in apiculture. The fact that the
shake-out function is, and has been, prac-
ticed successfully by the Carniolan bee-
keepers, and was also employed by Mr.
Benton in making successful catches of
queens, goes a long way toward establish-
ing its practicability. By the way, is it not
a fact that Carniolans are better adapted to
shaking out of a hive than Italians are ?
The latter don't " shake worth a cent."

^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^xxx^

ntsxian

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Frames Having- Pollen in Them.

Where frames have pollen in them,
what is the best use they can be put to
in the apiary ? Fred F. Rockwell.

Leonard, Tex.

Answer. — Generally, nothing better
can be done than to let the bees keep
them. Sometimes a comb filled with
pollen is as valuable as one filled with
honey.

Frames of Honey for New Swarms.

Bees are swarming and doing well. I
give to each of my new swarms a frame
of honey, and I think it is a good plan.
What do you think of it ?

F. J. R. Davenport.

Nash, Tex., April 12, 1893.

Answer. — Generally a good plan. If
a few days of very bad weather should
prevent gathering, such a supply would
be of great value to a swarm.

Will the Nucleus Swarm ?

If I confine a queen on 3 Langstroth
frames (like Mrs. Atchley mentioned
some time ago), will they swarm, or will
they not ? Or, if I confine her with
queen-excluder zinc, will the bees super-
sede her when she cannot follow, in case
they do swarm ? I would like to know
how (every detail) it is done. I have a
fine queen, and would like to keep her

586

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

as long as possible, and if I blunder into
something I do not know anything
about, I will be sure to " get out in the
little end of the horn."
Bishop Hill, Ills. D. Lindbeck.

Answer. — Confined on 3 three frames,
you may be sure of a swarm whenever
the nucleus becomes strong enough, and
much sooner than if more combs were
given. If excluder zinc prevents the
escape of the queen, you may be pretty
sure she will be killed.

If you want to keep the queen from
laying much, it may be well to try a
plan given by Dr. Miller. Set your
nucleus on top of one of your regular
hives. As soon as you think there is any
danger of too many bees, or sooner, re-
move the nucleus and set it on the top
of another hive, thus changing it to a
new place each time it becomes strong
enough, only allowing it to be left un-
disturbed long enough toward the last
of the season so that it will be strong
enough for winter.

Each time you remove the nucleus the
field bees will return to the spot from
which they were removed, and unite
with the bees below.

Bees Leaving in March. — Large Hives.

1. Did you ever hear of bees leaving
in March ? I went out on March 22nd,
and noticed a colony of Italians which
had always been inactive, just boiling.
They would come out, crawl up on the
hive, circle around, and then make a
liner across the field. I thought they
were robbers, so I closed the entrance
for one-half hour, then opened it again
to see the dead bees, but there were
none to be seen. I then opened the full
entrance, and went back in three hours
— I had a lot of empty combs, bees all
gone, and no brood. I could not find
even a dead queen, which would have
been the case had robbing been going
on. Now I think they must have had it
all made out, as they did not carry in
any pollen, while the other bees were
just rolling it in for 2 or 3 weeks before.
However, not to be "bluffed," I bought
10 colonies of Italians at an auction for
$30, the very next day. The storm
blew off the covers, and drenched the
outside combs. I took out the wet combs
and packed them in burlap. The next
day I saw hundreds of bees lying
around shaking, shining and black, and
very largo.. I suppose they were bloated.
I have not a single colony of blacks or
hybrids.

2. Now what was the matter with
them ? They were hauled 10 miles
over rough country roads, in a spring
wagon. The hives are 18x30, and 26
inches high. They are the "Crown"
pattern, with 18 closed-end frames,
11x12%.

3. Are not 18 frames too many for
one queen ? Could I put a division-
board in the center, and introduce
another queen, thus having 2 colonies
in one hive ? But I am afraid there
will be " scrappin' " going on up in the
super. At all events, I will experiment
and report my success.

J. C. Wallenmeyer.
Evansville, Ind.

Answers. — 1. Yes, bees often leave
their hives in March, sometimes a num-
ber of hives being deserted at a time.
Usually a hive is deserted for want of
stores, but sometimes a sort of mania
seems to possess them, and a number of
colonies will swarm out and mix up,
with no apparent excuse for it.

2. Possible the drenching the bees got
was enough to account for all. As you
describe it, the appearance is much that
of the " nameless " disease, only you re-
port as though there had been nothing
of the kind before the drenching.

3. Your hives are larger than would
be preferred by many, especially for
comb honey, but some would say they
are none too large for extracting. If
you cut in two with a division-board, it
will be pretty small. Bees of 2 colonies
admitted to the same super have been
known to work together quite peaceably.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— The

second edition of Dr. Tinker's new book
is now ready to send out. It gives his
New Management complete, and three
years of added experience in its use by
himself and other bee-keepers. Several
new illustrations have been added, be-
sides much new matter in regard to the
use of perforated zinc. Price, 25 cents,
postpaid, or clubbed with the Bee Jour-
nal, for one year for $1.15.

Capons and Caponizing:, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1,10

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

587

IIIAI§TER RALPH BENTOW.

Ralph is the youngest regular member
of the North American Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation, being less than nine years of
age, and is also a bee-keeper.

His father, Mr. Frank Benton, the
present Secretary of the Association, it
will be retoembered, accompanied by
Mrs. Benton, was engaged for some

RALPH BENTON.

years in the rearing and exporting of
queen-bees from different countries in
Europe, Asia and Africa. Mr. Benton
is a native of Michigan, and Mrs. Ben-
ton of Western New York, though for
some years previous to her marriage she
was, under her maiden name, Hattie M.
Wheeler, a teacher in the schools of Ft.
Wayne, Ind. It was during their sojourn
abroad that Ralph was born, on Aug.
2, 1884, at Munich, Germany. He
seems to have inherited a natural love
for all things in nature, especially living
things — birds, plants, animals, and in-
sects. He likes to make a garden and
sow seeds, and watch the plants grow ;
to raise chickens, to gather flowers —
particularly wild ones — and to collect
insects.

To bees he flrst introduced himself at
the age of two years — a lively colony of
imported Palestines, into the hive of
which he poked a long stick "to see
dem tum out." This enterprise was
such a signal of success that he got
" the big head " suddenly. Fortunately,
this went down long before he had
learned to open a nucleus, and hunt out
the queen, carry tools about the apiary,
etc.

He owns one colony of bees — Carnio-
lans — and at the last meeting of the
North American Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion it was with money which he earned
himself in the apiary that he paid his
initiation fee and became a regular
member. He regards the wearing of
the red and gold badge of the Associa-
tion, with its big bee, as quite an honor.

Ralph says he thinks he will always
keep bees, and evidently he has his own
ideas about some things, as a remark
shows which he recently made to his
father. They were looking at a hive
made with an inner and outer case, and
with a lot of slides and buttons on each,
when he asked : " Papa, what's the use
of so much trick-track about a hive ?"

This young American bee-keeper
speaks German in addition to English —
in •fact, he almost has two mother
tongues, for he has used them both from
infancy. We hope his interest in the
pursuit may be of much value to himself
and those about him.

Master Ralph has surely shown pluck
and intelligence in one undertaking,
lately. It seems the Evening News, of
Washington, D. C, offered prizes of
bicycles to all who would procure 100
subscribers to their paper. Ralph was
the first to present 100 names, and
claim his bicycle — a fine " Cinch, No. 2,"
whose catalogue price is $35, which he
won in less than three days after the
offer appeared.

The illustration we present is from
the Washington Evening News of April
4th, and represents him as he proudly
rode away from that office with his new
treasure.

Amerikanische Bienenzuclit is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated ; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

588

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAJL.

'■?• , i^'*!.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville^ Texas.

iiXfcA^

Report of the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Convention.

(Continued from page 560).

FIRST DAY — Afteknoon Session.

Promptly at 2 o'clock the meeting was
called to order by Dr. Marshall, Presi-
dent pro tern, and all at once the atten-
tion of the whole body was called by Mr.
Joe Dyer, artist of Greenville, asking
the bee-keepers to scatter about through
the apiary, as he wished to photograph
the entire body of 75 persons, and the
apiary consisting of about 400 colouies.
This was done, and then he wished the
convention to assemble at the conven-
tion stand, which they did, and he then
photographed them in a group. The
pictures are very fine, and every face
recognizable, and even the numbers on
the bee-hives are readable. The pictures
we will try to give to the readers of the
American Bee Journal soon.

THE SWARMING OF BEES.

Then the swarming subject was re-
sumed and finished, and this question
asked, " Is it best to have something
convenient for bees to alight on ?"

T. E. Miller thought it best to have
some trees or shrubery in the apiary for
the bees to cluster on.

SELECTING A HOME BEFORE SWARMING.

" Do bees select a home before swarm-
ing?"

A. M. Tuttle, J. R. Atchley, Mrs. Jen-
nie Atchley, and C. M. Davis said that
bees do not always select a home, as
they have been known to swarm and re-
main settled for two days on the tree,
and at other times they have been
known to travel one day east, and clus-
ter, then next day go west, showing
that they did not always have a home
selected

CARNIOLAN BEES.

There were but few present that bad
any experience with this race of bees.
Mrs. Atchley had tried them, and from
all her observations they were nothing
but a foreign black race of bees, mixed
more or less with Italians.

CYPRIAN BEES.

Only three or four present had reared
the Cyprians, as they called them, and
all gave their experience with them —
that they were good honey-gatherers,
prolific queens, and great swarmers and
cell-builders, but fearful stingers when
properly stirred up.

HOLY-LAND BEES.

In the discussion on these bees It was
decided that the Holy Lands and Cyp-
rians, or Syrians, were about one and
the same thing, only being bred in dif-
ferent countries made a little diflference
in their characteristics ; about the same
contrast made between the imported
Italian and the homebred.

After all the discussion on the differ-
ent races of bees, J. R. Atchley said
that taking everything into considera-
tion, he thought the Italians superior to
any of the races, as they had been tried
side by side, and year after year, with
the blacks and most other races, and, to
be honest, we must give the " blue rib-
bon " to the Italians.

HIVE-ENTRANCE AND FRAMES.

A question was then asked, " Is there
anything gained by having the entrance
to the hives parallel with the frames '?"

W. T. Pryar's observations were that
it did not matter where, or what part of,
the hive the bees entered, just so they
had entrance sufficient for them to go in
and out.

Dr. Howard — I used to use a hive of
the slanting pattern, and the bees en-
tered at the side. My observations go
to prove that bees unload at the first
chance after entering the hive, and it
makes no particular difference where
the bees enter.

A. M. Tuttle — My observations are
that bees that come in unload to the
young bees, and they put the honey
where wanted, so the bees may enter at
any part of the hive with the same re-
sults.

C. M. Davis prefers an end entrance,
and certainly would not like bees to en-
ter at the sides of the hives.

Dr. Howard — I think we may always
get some good comb honey if the bees
enter at the side, as the surplus will

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

589

most likely be stored farthest from the
the entrance.

Dr. Marshall — I prefer bees to enter
at the ends of the frames, as then they
are enabled to deposit their loads sooner.

BEMOVING HONEY FKOM THE BKOOD-NEST
TO THE SECTIONS.

The committee handed in the question,
" What is the best plan to get bees to
move their honey from the brood-nest to
the sections ?"

Dr. Marshall — When bees have their
brood-nest crowded with honey, put on
sections with partly drawn out starters,
if you have them, and uncap the honey
in the brood-nest, and score the combs
pretty hard, and the bees could not well
repair the combs without some place to
store the honey, and they will usually
move the honey to the sections, and re-
pair and clean out the brood-combs, and
the queen will fill them with eggs ; but
we must be sure that we do not get un-
desirable honey in the sections. I have
made considerable money by fooling the
bees in that way.

Dr. Howard offered a suggestion, that
it was pretty sure to start bees into the
sections by causing them to fill them-
selves with honey, especially if there
was a flow of honey, and the colony was
strong, and he thinks we are fooling our
time away, trying to get weak colonies
to store honey in the sections, as it takes
powerful colonieg to pay in producing
such honey.

C. M. Davis — I find it is hard to get
bees to finish up or store honey in the
sections after horse-mint is gone.

HONEY FEOM COTTON.

The difference of opinions on cotton
honey, etc., was as follows :

J. F. Teel said that cotton honey is
perfectly clear, and of very fine quality.
Others agreed with Mr. Teel.

A. M. Tuttle— The best flow of honey
I ever saw was from cotton, and the
honey is almost as clear as water.

W. R. Graham — Fifteen years ago
cotton was not considered any honey-
plant worth naming, but now it is the
honey-plant of North Texas, and the
honey is of fine quality, and granulates
very quickly.

Several others thought that cotton
honey was dark, and of an inferior
quality.

WINTERING AND SPRINGING BEES.

The wintering and springing of bees
in the South was next considered.
J. R. Atchley thinks that moderate

colonies and plenty of stores are best for
the South, as the bees will build up and
swarm as early as any, and be in just as
good condition, or better, for honey
gathering, as the larger colonies are
liable to use their honey sooner, and be
in worse shape than the smaller ones.

W. T. Pryar believes in strong colo-
nies for winter and spring, and all the
time.

J. F. Teel keeps his bees in a cool
place in winter and spring for best re-
sults.

Mrs. Atchley believes in moderately
strong colonies, and plenty of hoaey, as
April and the first part of May is the
time our bees suffer in this locality —
North Texas.

LOCATING AN APIABY.

Another question by the committee
was, "What are the most essential
points to be considered in locating an
apiary ?"

J. R. Atchley — A place where flowers
bloom incessantly ; if possible. Close to
water. Then, a good apiarist.

Dr. Marshall— A place where honey
is known to be plentiful, and water
handy, and shade. Have an apiary as
convenient as possible. I secured 60,-
000 pounds of honey in one season by
locating in a good place. Much depends
upon the location and the apiarist, to
make bees pay.

J. F. Teel had his bees on a hill, and
thinks an apiary should be located
where the high winds, we usually have
here in the spring, will not bother the
beds.

J. A. Wilson — Bees do not do well in
the cross timbers, or where the lands are
poor. Bees should be in a place where
the lands are rich, as the honey-plants
will yield better.

John Robinson keeps his bees near a
pool of water, and in a very rich belt of
country, and they always do well.

THE YIELD OF HONEY-PLANTS.

"What is the cause of some good
honey-plants yielding bountifully in
some seasons, and others yielding none?"
was asked.

Nearly every one present thought it
due to the conditions of the atmosphere.
When the weather is warm and balmy,
honey seems to be plentiful in almost all
honey-producing plants, and when cool
and cloudy no honey is secreted.

Dr. Marshall said that in 1860 there
was no rain from Feb. 14th to Aug.
14th, and everything produced honey.
It would drip from the hickory trees,

590

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

and cover everything below. His theory
is, that honey-dew is a saccharine mat-
ter, oozing from the life or sap of the
plants, and in certain seasons, not too
wet nor too dry, this saccharine matter
is thrown out, as the tree has more sap
than is needed. During that year he
knew a swarm of bees to take up their
abode in a hickory tree, and in the fall
he cut the tree and took 412 pounds of
good honey ; a big story, but true,
nevertheless.

At about 4 o'clock a motion was offered
and carried, to adjourn until 9 o'clock
on the following day. Then the bee-
keepers spread all over the premises,
like bees in quest of stores, as they had
free access to all the apiaries and the
house, and to make themselves at home.
All except those that lived near by
lodged at W. R. Graham's and Mrs.
Jennie Atchley's, and every one was
well pleased so far, and wore a broad
smile, as bee-keepers are the most pleas-
ing people in the world, anyway (so bee-
keepers think) ; and in fact the whole
affair seemed to be a reunion of an old
family, and the enjoyments just as
great.

A great crowd could be seen around
Master Willie Atchley, where he was
grafting queen-cells, andpassersby were
attracted, as they thought it was a
" monkey show," and all were pleased
with what they learned about queen-
rearing from Willie, some saying they
would not take $100 for what they
learned.

(Continued next week.)

Bees Moving Eggs to Rear Q,ueens.

On page 270 Mrs. Atchley controverts
the idea that the bees move eggs into
queen-cells, and asserts that the queen
lays the eggs in the queen-cells just the
same as she does in other cells. If Mrs.
A. intends to affirm that the bees never
move eggs into queen-cells, we will, as
the lawyers say, join issue. My experi-
ence and observations on different occa-
sions are so decidedly the other way,
that I would like to hear more said
about it, and will give one instance as
an introduction :

Last season I had a colony of black
bees that I wished to Italianize, and to
do so I caught out the black queen and
gave it a queen-cell in a cell-protector.
In about three days the cell hatched,
and the bees killed the queen. All of
the queen-cells in the hive were then
cut out, and an Italian queen given the

colony. In about four days she was
found dead at the entrance of the hive.

I then cut out all of the queen-cells
again, and gave them a comb of brood
from a black colony. This I placed in
the upper story between two combs, just
made from foundation, and in which an
egg had never been. As soon as queen-
cells in this comt) were under good head-
way, I grafted three cells with Italian
brood of the proper age, and destroyed
the remaining cells on that comb, and
looked through the lower story or brood-
chamber for cells there to destroy, but
found none.

I waited and watched with patience
for my grafted cells to hatch, but just at
hatching time, to my surprise, I found
them all torn down, as if by a queen,
and, on an examination, I found that a
queen had been hatched from one of the
new combs, and not only this, but that a
number of other queens had been torn
out of their cells from the new comb.

I then found myself, as to this colony,
with a black queen, just where I started,
but I had learned to a certainty that
bees can and do move eggs, not only
from cell to cell, but from comb to
comb, and rear queens from them.

Sneedville, Tenn. H. F. Coleman.

Tlie marketing of Comb Honey
in Paper Cartons.

Query 870.— 1. Can enough more be ob-
tained for white comb honey by enclosing the
sections in paper cartons, to warrant the ex-
tra outlay ? 3. Does it require a deeper ship-
ping-case when these cartons are used ? If so,
how much deeper ? 3. In using these cartons,
should they be left off the row next to the
glass side, for the best results ?— N. Y.

Not in my market. — Mks. J.N.Heatek.

I have never tried them. — Will M.
Baknum.

I have no experience with cartons. —
E. France.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

591

I have had no experience. I doubt if
they pay. — A. J. Cook.

In regard to all these questions, I must
plead ignorance. — M. Mahik.

1. In some markets. 2 and 3. Some
of those New York chaps will tell you. —
C. C. Miller.

I do not want so much " fuss and
feathers " to sell a pound of honey.—
Mrs. L. Harrison.

To all three questions, I will say I
don't know, as I never used cartons. —
Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

I would use cartons for convenience in
handling only. Nice honey looks better
than cartons. — A. B. Mason.

1. It depends upon your market. 2.
Yes. 3. I would leave it off a section
for sample. — J. P. H. Brown.

That depends upon your market. In
some places they might pay. I never
used enough of them to be any authority.
— James A. Green.

1. I think not generally. 2. Yes,
enough larger so the cartons will go in
without "squeezing." 3. I should think
so. — R. L. Taylor.

It all depends upon the class of custo-
mers you have. Get a few and try your
market, then you will know. I would
not advisQ shipping with the sections in
the cartons. — H. D. Cutting.

1. A small percentage of the honey
shipped to the New York market sells
better in paper cartons. 2. Yes ; a
quarter of an inch will be suflScient. 3.
No ; glass one box. — P. H. Elwood.

1. That depends on the market. It
would not bring any more here. It is
my candid opinion that it will not pay
to use them any place. 2. I do not
know. 3. Try it and find out. — Emer-
son T. Abbott.

I have never used them. I doubt if it
will pay. A possible exception might be
retailing to a few rich people, and then
it would seem to me the retailer should
enclose a perfect section in a clean car-
ton at tiTne of sale. — Eugene Secor.

1. Not in our market. 2. Yes, just
enough deeper to make room for the
cartons. 3. I use cartons with a round
hole in the side next to the honey, cov-
ered with mica. This exposes the honey
and shows its quality. — J. E. Pond.

1. I couldn't. I don't know practi-
cally anything about "cartons" for
honey in sections. I have no use for
such traps. 2. The crates would have
to be made to suit the packages. 8. I
don't use them at all. — G. W. Demaree.

1. It does not pay me for the expense
and trouble, as I can get no more for
it. It might pay to ship to distant
markets, as it will ship more safely. 2.
If the sides of the case is glassed, the
honey next to it should be exposed. — C.

H. DiBBERN.

The comb honey men of large experi-
ence are the ones to answer, but on gen-
eral principles I should say No. The
masses want a good article, and want it
cheap, and prefer not to pay for any
extra dressing up that adds nothing to
the quality. — S. I. Freebokn.

Neither cartons nor glass should be
used in putting up sections for the mar-
ket. Neither helps the sale of honey,
and a shipping-case must be used any-
way. The bee-keeper will save time
and money by putting up his honey
neatly but cheaply. — G. L. Tinker.

1. I have never used cartons, but
those using them claim they are war-
ranted in so doing, financially. 2. About
U inch deeper, if I am correctly in-
formed. 3. The Betsinger cartons had
a small piece of glass in one side on pur-
pose to expose the honey in each section
in a tempting way. — G. M. Doolittle.

1. I think in some cases there can.
But where the grocery delivery is had, if
there is any convenience or benefit the
grocer gets it, and should be the one to
pay for the cartons. 2. Proportions
larger every way, according to how
tightly the cartons fit the sections. 3.
Part off and part on — then they will be-
gin to investigate, and the result may be
a sale for the sake of curiosity. — Jas. A.
Stone.

1. Very often it can. I use cartons
for all my home trade where my custo-
mers have confidence in me, but like
to show the honey to strangers. 2.
About 3/16 of an inch deeper, also the
same wider and longer for each section.
3. This method is satisfactory if you
are honest enough to put the same grade
of honey in cartons as is exposed. — J.
H. Larrabee.

The May Neio England Magazine
contains a paper describing the relations
of " Phillips Brooks and Harvard Uni-
versity," written by Alexander McKen-
zie, an old friends of Dr. Brooks. The
article is accompanied with illustrations,
which show the familiar haunts of
Brooks while at Cambridge. A paper
on " Milton as an Educator," by Phillips
Brooks is also in this number. Pub-
lished at 231 Columbus Ave., Boston,
Mass.

592

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Report of the Indiana State
ISee-Keepers' Convention.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY WALTEK S. TOUDEK.

(Continued from page 563.)
SECOND DAY— MoKNiNG Session.

The convention was called to order at
9:30 a.m., with Pres. Russell in the
chair.

The first thing was to appoint a com-
mittee, consisting of Messrs. Muth, Pope,
and Catterson, to wait upon Gov. Mat-
thews, inviting him to visit the conven-
tion some time during the morning.

INDIANA world's FAIR EXHIBIT.

Pres. Russell — The first thing that is
before us this morning, is the question
of our appropriation for the World's
Fair exhibit. I have talked with the
Secretary about the matter, and we
think it would be a good idea to appoint
a committee from this association, to
meet with the committees from other
State associations, to wait upon the
Legislature to get this appropriation.
We will have a resolution drawn up, and
then appoint this committee at once.

The following resolution was pre-
sented by the Secretary, and adopted
unanimously :

Whereas, The committee duly ap-
pointed, and representing the exhibitors
of the State of Indiana at the Columbian
Exposition will need additional funds to
complete the buildings and to make an
exhibit there ; therefore,

Resolved, That it is the sense of the
Indiana Bee-Keepers' Association, now
in convention assembled, that the Legis-
lature should make the appropriation
asked for by the said committee, and for
the purposes above set forth.

The Secretary offered the following,
which was also adopted :

Resolved, That a committee bo ap-
pointed to meet the committees of other
organizations, and petition to the Legis-

lature to make the appropriation asked
for.

Committee, Dr. J. M. Hicks, E. H.
Collins and S. Johnson.

Mr. Catterson — I think we should
adopt some method to get this appro-
priation ; but if there was no honey pro-
duced last year, I would like to know
how we are to make the exhibit there
this year.

Mr. Muth — It is quite true that unless
we get the hoixey this season, we can
make no exhibit this year at the World's
Fair.

INDIANA FAIR PREMIUM LIST.

Pres. Russell — The other matter be-
fore us, deferred until to-day, is in re-
gard to the revision of our premium list
for the State Fair. I think that the
premiums offered to the Indiana bee-
keepers are entirely out of all reason,
for they are not sufficient to further our
interests as bee-keepers. They should
be raised to compare favorably with
other States, and this would then act as
an incentive to bring the honey-pro-
ducers and bee-keepers out and repay
them for their trouble in making an ex-
hibit at the State Fair. We all know
what great interest Mrs. Moore, Mr.
Ponder, and others have taken in mak-
ing exhibits there, and in return for
their time, trouble and expense, they get
ten or fifteen dollars in return as pre-
miums. Is this right ? I would now
suggest that at least three competent
judges be appointed to revise this pre-
mium list, and then to award them in-
telligently at the coming Fair. I would
like to hear other opinions on this sub-
ject.

Mr. Muth — I think the matter of ap-
pointing these judges should be one of
great care. We want men who are di-
rectly interested in bee-culture, and who
will award these premiums in away that
will be satisfactory to all, and a credit
to the association.

Here a list showing the amount of
premiums offered the Indiana bee-keep-
ers last year was read by Mr. Sylvester
Johnson, followed by the reading of a
list by the President, showing the
amount of premiums, as they should be.

The following resolution was then
presented by the Secretary and adopted:

Resolved, That a committee of three
be appointed as competent judges to re-
vise the premium list, and award the
premiums at the State Fair.

Dr. Hicks — I am in favor of appoint-
ing three judges on this committee, and
that the premiums should be awarded
by a majority of that committee. This,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

593

I believe, is the custom in other States.
It Is not to be supposed, however, that
these men will be exhibitors at the State
Fair.

A motion was made by Mr. Pouder
that a committee of three competent
judges be appointed to revise the pre-
mium list, and present it to the Board
of Agriculture, that it may compare
favorably with other States. The mo-
tion was carried, and the following were
appointed : Sylvestor Johnson, Dr. J.
M. Hicks, and E. H. Collins.

A short intermission was taken for the
payment of dues, the enrollment of new
members, and for recreation from the
perplexing questions.

Pres. Russell — We will now proceed
with our regular programme, which is
an essay by Mr. Chas. F. Muth, on '

How to Prevent Swamung to Produce

the Best Results, and. How to

Make a Proper TJse of the

Queen-Excluder.

It appears to me that a full crop of
honey cannot be harvested except when
we prevent our bees from swarming,
because we know that it is the old bees
that are the honey-gatherers, and not
the young ones. cWe know, also, that a
swarm is usually the old bees, and when
they leave the hive, for nearly a week,
or perhaps ten days, no honey-gathering
is done at all. We know that when the
queen has plenty of chances to deposit
her eggs, and plenty of room, she does
not get the swarming fever, and she is
always the very last one to leave the
hive.

For many years I have prevented my
bees from swarming, and have been
producing principally extracted honey.
How to prevent swarming at the honey
season is taught us by our friend G. W.
Demaree, of Kentucky. I heard his
method at the last bee-keepers' conven-
tion, and it struck me as a good thing,
and I gave it a thorough trial.

Our honey season here begins about
the first of June, because then the white
clover commences to yield. I at this
time take all the combs from the brood-
chamber containing brood and honey,
and put them into another box and fill
the brood-chamber with empty combs,
thus the brood-chamber contains a
comb, with a queen, some of the bees,
and the empty combs. After this is
done, the queen-excluder is put on. Put
the upper story on, and then cover the
hive. If you are in favor of producing
comb honey, you can put sections on
that queen-excluder.

In the course of a few hours you will
see that most of the old bees are down
with the queen. You will let them go
that way, as the bees hatch and the
queen has plenty of bees to assist her in
rearing brood, and as the young bees
hatch, they go down.

Last year was a very poor one for
honey, as I suppose we all know, still I
produced some nice comb honey, besides
600 to 700 pounds of extracted honey.
I think the queen-excluder is the most
applicable thing to prevent swarming.
One objection I Ind, however, and that
is that I found a lot of drones upon
raising the honey-boxes, that could not
get out of the queen-excluder ; but you
can brush these off, and it makes no
difference whatever. After a while,
when you are ready, you take the hive
off, and you have no idea of the benefit
to the bees. You can put the bee-escape
on and the honey-boxes on top. I have
had about 20, and put in 10 bee-escapes
in this manner (illustrating), set the
honey-boxes on top, and the next day I
commenced to extract. It is a very easy
way, and scarcely any trouble at all.

Chas. F. Muth.

The entrance of Governor Matthews
at this time interrupted further discus-
sion. Mr. Muth made a short address
of welcome, as follows:

We have taken the liberty of calling
on you to meet with us a littl© while this
morning, not with the intention of
having you address us as bee-keepers
only, but we desire your aid in putting
us on a level with other Associations of
the State. Bee-cHlture is an important
branch, and we want this branch of in-
dustry protected, and although you may
not be thoroughly posted in bee-culture,
we feel sure that you will lend us your
kind aid and co-operation, and would be
glad to have you address us on this sub-
ject.

Gov. Matthews then responded in the
following words :

Mr. Chairman and Oentlemen of the Con-
vention : —
I think the gentleman who has just
spoken has said truly when he suggested
that perhaps I was not thoroughly
posted in the matter of bee-culture ;
but I regard it as one branch properly
belonging to that of agriculture, and I
can safely say that everything pertain-
ing to It even in the slightest degree will
have my cordial and hearty support. I
think, considering the magnitude of this
industry, it has never been thoroughly
apprehended. It is an important indus-

594

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

try, and it needs encouragement as well
as any other department of agriculture.
While I am not, as you might say scien-
tifically posted upon the subject of bees,
nor made them a particular study, yet I
have always found them to be very in-
teresting. They were interesting to me
from the time when I first learned that
couplet,

How doth the little busy bee,
Improve each shining hour ?

It gathers honey every day
From every opening flower ;

and it was held up tu me as an example,
especially when I was inclined to drow-
siness in the afternoon sun.

I always found it very interesting, too,
when a boy, to run after the bumble
bees, and as they alighted on the holly-
hocks, close the flowers up and hold
them prisoners ; and then again, they
were always interesting when we used
to discover bees'-nests in the fall, or
when putting up hay. Aside from all
this, it is a subject that has demanded
the attention of some of our best men,
and it is becoming more and more inter-
esting to those who study into the ways
and habits of the busy bees, for it brings
them into closer contact with nature,
and the closer to nature a man iS; the
better man he is.

I will say this in conclusion, gentle-
men, that in your industry, lam heartily
with you. I do not believe that you
have met with the encouragement that
you should^ and that you deserve. I
will co-operate with you and lend you
all the assistance \m my power to see
that this department reaches the prom-
inence that it deserves. I am very glad
to have had this short talk with you,
and have had the pleasure of meeting
with you.

Mr. Pope — We should like to have a
little assistance about making an exhibit
at the World's Fair, and also to have
the Commissioners of the World's Fair
grant us an appropriation, in order that
we can make an exhibit there that will
be a credit to our State.

Gov. Matthews — Yes, I quite agree
with you, and think thisjs the time that
you siaould put your best foot forward,
I am inclined to think that the Board of
Commissioners has slighted this whole
department. I do not think they are
giving the agricultural department, or
the live stock department, the attention
that it deserves. There has not been
any specific appropriation set aside yet,
although I have urged that this be done.
If you will allow mo to suggest, I think
it would be wise for you to confer with

the Executive Commissioner, and have
him go before them and make a state-
ment of your plans, the amount you
think you should have for this, and to
impress upon them the necessity of set-
ting aside a proper amount for the
exhibition of your industry. I believe
that it would be well to appoint a com-
mittee at once.

Dr. Hicks — I move that we give the
Governor a vote of thanks for his re-
marks in our behalf and interest. We
shall look to him in his oiBcial capacity
in connection with our pursuits, and see
that we get our best deserts in future
operations at our State exhibits.

Mr. Wilson — I am also in favor of
giving the Governor a vote of thanks for
his kind remarks and promises of hearty
co-operation with us.

A vote of thanks was accordingly ex-
tended to the Governor.

[Concluded next week.]

^^^'■'^^^'■^'.^'.^^^'■'

kA4

The Real Cause of Foul Brood
Among; Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY WM. M'EVOY.

Have the scientists been of any value
to bee-keepers on foul brood ? I must,
for the public good, answer this question
with a most positive No, and declare
that they have not been of any benefit,
but often their opinions, when heeded,
have done great damage. And now I
go in for ruling out the whole lock,
stock and barrel of scientists, and Mr.
Larrabee along with them. When the
bee-keepers have failed to agree on
some things about foul brood, and got
the scientists to help to solve the prob-
lem so as to settle, if possible, all dis-
putes for all time to come, it has only
ended in greater confusion than ever,
because the scientists have not only
disputed the discoveries of practical bee-
keepers, but they have actually contra-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

595

dieted each other. What is siicji evi-
dence worth ?

I have discovered the real cause of
foul brood, and from experimental test-
ing of my own I discovered the simplest
and most practical way, with the least
work, of curing that disease ; and I have
had more experience with foul brood
than any other man on earth.

In the Amekican Bee Journal, of
Feb. 16th, page 215, I see that Mr.
Larrabee doesn't agree with me on any-
thing. All right ; he has a perfect right
to his opinions, but I must remind him
that mere guess-work or opinions like
his won't count against discoveries.

I will now give you evidence that
would count in any court of law, and
that any judge on the bench would ac-
cept, and charge a jury to believe, as
they are solid facts. The following is
part of the evidence which no Mr. Lar-
rabee on earth can get over, and is
enough "dictum," I should think, to
convince any man ; but if he wants
more, I shall give him plenty more along
the same line :

One fine day in April, 1875, when my
bees were flying freely, the bees of one
colony all came out, and about two-
thirds of them got into another before I
got the hive closed. I then took the re-
maining third of the bees and the queen,
and returned them to their own hive.

Then about sundown, when the bees
had settled for the day, I examined the
colony that swarmed out and lost two-
thirds of its bees, I found plenty of
honey, a nice lot of brood in all stages,
but too small a cluster of bees to cover or
care for the amount of brood. That col-
ony having lost the most of its bees, the
uncared-for brood died and rotted in the
cells. Then by the middle of June that
colony had developed into a geuine case
of pure foul brood, which gave me many
a day's very bitter experience before I
got rid of it.

In the summer of 1882, Mr. C. J.
Robinson, of Richfield, N. Y., originated
foul brood in his own apiary, by forcing
brood to consume their food mixed with
rotten larvae. Mr. Robinson had some
combs with brood in that were taken out
of the hives at extracting time, and
were not returned to the hives through
mistake. The weather being warm at
the time, and the combs of brood being
piled on top of each other in a building,
the brood heated and soon became very
■ rotten. Mr. Robinson then went to a
colony of bees, took out a comb of .brood,
brushed the bees off, and then put the
matter from the rotten combs into the
cells that had brood in, and to force the

brood to consume it he put a screen on
each side of the comb, and then put it
back into the hive of bees again. The
comb of brood was kept warm by the
heat of the colony, and the screen kept
the bees from feeding the brood. Then
the larvae was forced to consume the
rotten matter, and then it became foul,
brood.

In 1888, the Rev. Mr. Gruetzner, of
New Dundee, Ont., had foul brood origi-
nate in his apiary. In a letter I re-
ceived from him, Mr. Gruetzner says :

"In the spring I placed entirely
healthy combs of brood from other colo-
nies into a weak but healthy colony ;
very soon the young brood died, intense
heat set in, and the whole colony be-
came full of foul brood. In Germany
the opinion seems to be universal that
deceased brood is the cause of foul
brood."

In June, 1889, Mr. Wm. Burkholder,
of Otterville, Ont., had foul brood origi-
nate in his apiary, from starved brood.
Mr. Burkholder had a very strong col-
ony of well-bred Italians, which con-
sumed all their honey just a little before
the honey season opened, and which he
found in a dying state one morning. He
fed them at once, and the majority of
the bees came out all right again. All
the brood in the colony had died at that
time from starvation, and rotted in the
combs. Then warm weather set in, and
the whole colony became full of pure
foul brood.

In June, 1890, Mr. Charles Urlocker,
of Thorold, Ont., had 30 colonies of bees
turned into foul brood from drowned
brood. In June, 1890, Mr. Urlocker
had 40 good colonies with a top story on
each hive, and a queen-excluder on
every brood-chamber. Just then a sud-
den storm started up, and a big cloud
bursted over Thorold, and for a, time
caused a terrible flood. Mr. Urlocker's
apiary was in low land, the water rose
very rapidly, and soon 10 brood-cham-
bers were under water, and as the
queens could not get up through the
queen-excluders, they were drowned, as
well as the brood. The water did not
get quite up to the tops of the brood-
chambers of the other 30 colonies, so
the queens did not drown in them. The
bees in nearly all went up into the top
stories at the time. These colonies were
very strong, and some had swarmed be-
fore that, and were full of brood when
the flood overflowed the apiary. The
water soon went down, extreme heat set
in, and the brood-chambers full of
drowned brood went into a great mass
of corruption, and turned Mr. Urlocker's

596

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

apiary into foul brood with a vengeance.
In the Foul Brood Bulletin, page 14,
Mr. D. A. Jones, of Beeton, Ont., says :

" A man once had a hundred colonies
in an isolated locality, with no other api-
ary within miles of it, and no bees in the
woods, as far as known ; there were no
signs of foul brood in his apiary all sum-
mer, though the colonies were carefully
examined once or twice each week. In
August or September, a flood came and
drowned a large portion of the brood in
some of the hives ; 10 or 15 of them
were so. much injured by the flood that
the bees did not remove the dead brood,
and in most of these colonies nearly all
the combs were full of brood. The
weather, after the flood, was very warm
and muggy, the atmosphere very op-
pressive for days, with frequent showers.
All the colonies from which the dead
brood were removed came out all right,
while the 10 or 16 from which it was
not removed became very badly dis-
eased ; they attempted to rear brood,
but some of it was affected, so much so
that the odor arising from the brood
» dying was very unpleasant. When all
the dead brood was removed, the disease
continued, and it appeared that the
spores of the disease were in the honey,
as many of the larvae were found dead.
Each time brood was reared the disease
continued to increase, in spite of salicylic
acid and other treatments then in vogue.
Honey from the combs when given to a
healthy colony produced the disease. It
appeared in every respect like foul
brood, and I feel satisfied that it was.
Now, if it did not emanate from the de-
caying brood, which was a mass of cor-
ruption, where did it come from?"

Mr. John F. Gates, of Ovid, Erie Co.,
Pa., U. S., had foul brood originate in
his SiPiary from his bees dwindling so
badly one very backward spring that the
bees could not cover or care for and
keep warm the brood they had started
during the early warm spell. When
weather came in earnest, Mr. Gates ex-
amined his colonies and discovered that
the rotting of the uncared-for brood
had developed into foul brood.

Foul brood is a disease that is caused
by the rotting of uncared-for brood. It
usually originates in spring in weak col-
onies that have spring-dwindled so badly
that they have not bees enough left to
cover or care for all the brood, and if
the spring keeps raw and backward the
bees will crowd together to keep each
other warm, leaving the uncared-for
brood to die and rot in the cells. The
brood covered by the bees In time

hatcl^s, Which so increases the force of
the colony that a wider circle of comb is
covered by the bees taking in the space
occupied by the decaying brood. Then
the brood that is fed in these cells where
brood lately rotted down, will have to
consume their food mixed with the re-
mains of decayed brood, and that is the
whole, sole, real, and only cause of foul
brood.

In the bee-yards of beginners, over-
worked farmers, and business men
(whose time was fully occupied in other
things) is where I found many a foul
brood nursery. When brood has rotted
and advanced to the brown-rotten-mat-
ter stage it is then a very dangerous
thing, and if a large quantity of that is
put in a weak colony it will start foul
brood at once. The so-called scientists
have done a terrible lot of damage by
saying that the rotting of uncared-for
brood could not cause foul brood ; that
sort of teaching has caused bee-keepers
to be very careless, and when foul brood
has broken out in their apiaries, it
makes rapid headway because the own-
ers did not take proper care of their
colonies, but depended too much upon
the so-called scientists who are not
practical bee-keepers.

In the summer of 1890 Mr. John F.
Gates wrote up the cause of foul brood,
and had it published in the Canadian
Bee Journal. When I read it I was
greatly pleased to see that Mr. Gates
had discovered in his own apiary that
foul brood was caused by the rotting of
uncared-for brood. I wrote Mr. Gates a
letter at the time, thanking him very
much for his valuable article on the
cause of foul brood. He is just right on
both the cause and cure of foul brood,
and it will be a good thing for all bee-
keepers, that have foul brood in their
bee-yards, if they will follow his instruc-
tions how to cure that disease, and let
the professional guessers carefully alone
until they find out.

In the fall of 1890, I was very much
pleased with an article that Mr. C. J.
Robinson, of Richfield, N. Y., had pub-
lished in the American Bee Journal,
on the cause of foul brood, and as that
was a real test case of his, proving that
foul brood was caused by the rotting of
uncared-for brood, I prized his article
very much, as that was in the same line
of my discovery. I wrote Mr. Robinson
at the time I read his article, and also
thanked him for it.

Some bee-keepers believe that the
empty hives that had foul brood in, will
cause foul brood if not boiled, scalded,
or disinfected, which is the greatest of

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

597

nonsense. An empty hive never, no
never, gave the disease, aod never will.
I always tell the owners not to waste
their time in disinfecting or doing any-
thing with the old hive, but cure the
disease right in the same hive, which
they always do.

Some think that the queens in very
badly diseased colonies will cause foul
brood, which I know is anything but a
fact. I ofteu have to put two, three,
and sometimes four weak colonies into
one, that have been so used up from
foul brood, in order to get a fair colony
to make it pay to cure them of foul
brood. In such cases, if the queens suit
me, I get them for nothing, and bring
them home and do away with some poor
queens, putting these queens from the
foul colonies into my own. I have
proved it in every possible way, and I
know for a fact that the queens never
did cause foul brood.

Comb foundation has been blamed for
helping to spread foul brood, which is
not a fact. I defy any man to cause
foul brood from foundation made from
wax rendered out of the worst of fo^il
broody combs. The disease is spread by
the bees robbing ffoul broody colonies,
and they carry the disease just in pro-
portion to the amount of the diseased
honey they convey to their own hives.

In my next article I will give all my
methods of curing foul brood. I don't
use any drugs, nor starve any bees at
any time, and any man can cure the
worst cases of foul brood by my methods,
from May to November. I am getting
many letters on this business all the
time, and hope that my articles in the
American Bee Journal will serve as
an answer to many of them.

Woodburn, Ont., April 24, 1893.

■-•-^

Ill-Breeding of Bee§ — CoIonle§
in Good Condition.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY C. THEILMANN.

The question asked Mrs. Atchley, on
page 461, is in short answered by Mrs.
A. that she don't know, while at the
same time she knows of 30 colonies kept
in box-hives, 10 miles from any other
bees, and all started from one colony, at
least 15 years ago, and which are still
in the best of health and prosperous
condition. Should not this be evidence
sufficient that " line " breeding does not,
with bees at least, degenerate them in
any wise ?

Mrs. Atchley says that she does know
that in-breeding makes a vast difference
in the animal creation, and that retro-
grading begins just as soon as in-breed-
ing starts ; she doubts whether this
holds good with bees. This view co-
incides with ray own. I would only ask
further, can bees really breed in ? What,
in reality, is in-breeding? If I under-
stand in-breeding correctly, it is the cop-
ulation or connection direct by parents
and children — any other breeding would
be what is called " line breeding." If
I am wrong in this, then I would like to
be set right ; but if I am correct, then
I would further say that when God
created the honey-bee, he put a stop
to the in-breeding part, as you all know,
by subduing every drone in the act of
copulation with the queen, and by the
construction of the queen so that she is
fertilized for her whole life by the one
connection ; this prevents in-breeding
entirely by the bees.

Line breeding is claimed, by our most
experienced breeders of domestic ani-
mals, as not only detrimental, but bene-
ficial, if judicially done.

Whether the human race has made
progress or retrograded in this respect
since Cain had to take his sister to wife,
is beyond my apprehension. I would not
be afraid of my bees degrading if left
entirely to themselves, but I know I
have better bees now, for every purpose,
than I would have had if I had let them
have their own way for the past 20
years, and this was done by selecting
and breeding from the best.

I put my 300 colonies of bees out from
the 5th to the 10th of April. All were
alive except one colony ; but three of
them swarmed out the same day when
put out. They have lost more bees in
the cellar than usual, also considerable
honey in some of the hives is candied.
Some of them are rather weak. The
others are in fair to good condition.

On April 10th soft maple was in full
bloom, and my bees brought in pollen in
less than one hour after being put out.
Since then the weather has been cold
(20° above on the 15th), wet and
cloudy. To-day, at 1 p.m., we have
over one foot of snow, and it is still
snowing hard, with 31° above zero. It
is a sight, seeing a foot of snow on top
of my bee-hives, and the trees loaded
heavily with the snow, instead of blos-
soms. No cleaning out, or anything else
could have been done safely with the
bees since the 10th, on account of the
cold, raw air we have had.

There has been but very little seeding

598

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

done here as yet ; the land is too wet,
and there is no prospect now for a week
or ten days.
Theilmanton, Minn., April 20, 1893.

Bees in Virginia — Experienee in
Wintering Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY CHESTER BELDING.

Perhaps a little "buzzing" from this
part of the Sunny South will be read
with interest. We are here for the mild
winters, our home being in Orange
county, N. Y., where we have kept bees
for the past 30 years. There are quite
a number of bees kept in this locality,
but as far as we can hear they are en-
tirely without profit, for want of any
special honey harvest. They subsist
year after year as the winters are so
mild, and usually swarm frequently,
seemingly getting just about honey
enough to keep them breeding, and
make them self-sustaining ; and what
honey they do get is very poor in quality,
and often unpleasant to taste. I noticed
bees gathering pollen here some two
weeks ago.

At my home in New York I left, last
November, 53 colonies, part in chaflf
hives, part with outside cases packed
between with leaves, and part in single-
walled hives. Friends inform me that
they had a flight on Feb. 20th, also on
March 12th; and a bee-keeper near by
there tells me his bees are seemingly
wintering well.

When I first commenced bee-keeping I
wintered them in cellars, but I was un-
able to do it satisfactorily ; some would
get uneasy and die, others would come
out with moldy combs, some would get
the diarrhea, and succumbed to the first
cold snap after being put out in the
spring ; and then some old farmer near
by, who left his bees out on the summer
stands all winter, in box hives, with
their bottoms up an inch or more for the
air to circulate under, would have earlier
swarms than I could possibly get; there-
fore, I discarded cellar quarters, as it
was more work, and L consider bees
much more safely wintered, and breed
up earlier in the spring when wintered
out-of-doors.

For the last two winters the percent-
age of loss was less in the hives without
any outside protection than in chaff or
packed hives, and we are not as particu-
lar to confine the bees to just what
combs they will occupy or cover, but

often give one swarm two hives, one top
of the other, and place the brood and
store combs about half and half in each
hive, then put a dummy board on each
side, and fill with leaves, if you choose.
We think this narrow and high winter
quarters is a good thing, and insures
warmth and dryness to the cluster dur-
ing the winter confinement. We doubt
not that others have success with bee-
cellars, and where they have such long,
cold winters they may be desirable.
Claremont, Va., March 18, 1893.

Wintry Weather — Using meth-
ods of Others, £tc.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY S. B. SMITH.

Bee-keepers in this part of the coun-
try supposed that spring had come, and
carried their bees from the cellars to the
summer stands the last week in March
and the first of April. I carried mine
out April 3rd. Yesterday it snowed all
day, and to-day we are having a real
winter blizzard. As ^ look out of the
the window I cannot see 20 rods. There
is over one foot of snow now, and it is
still snowing. This will seem rather
chilly to our Southern friends who may
chance to read this.

Farmers have a large amount of wheat
sown, but this storm will cause them to
suspend operations for a few days. It
is not very cold (30° above zero) so I
think it will not injure the bees.

We have had a long, cold, hard win-
ter, but I have not heard of any very
serious loss among bee-keepers. I think
that every bee-keeper ought to take
some bee-paper (I think the Bee Jour-
nal one of the best), as the ideas and
suggestions are a great help to all of us,
whether old in the business or beginners.

I have learned that in order to make a
success in the bee-business it is neces-
sary to adopt some one of the many
methods of our best apiarists. One man
makes a success extracting honey, an-
other with one-pound sections. In this
vicinity comb honey sells better than
extracted, therefore the apiarist should
work for comb honey.

In large apiaries different kinds of
hives may be used to advantage, but in
small apiaries such as farmers have, it
is better to have one kind, and then the
brood-frames will fit any hive, and this
is a great advantage if we wish to
strengthen a weak colony with brood-
comb or honey. Some men succeed by

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

599

dividing colonies ; I can do better to let
them swarm naturally ; so in whatever
method a man can succeed best, let him
stick to that. It is necessary to have
system in bee-keeping, the same as in
all other occupations, in order to suc-
ceed.

Mr. Chas. White, on page 471, tells
how to catch swarms of bees. When I
read it I was inclined to laugh at it, as
being somewhat whimsical, like the old
mullen-stalk for catchers, which I tried
years ago without success; but after
thinking the matter over, I concluded
as there is a scarcity of trees here for
bees to cluster, on, I would try Mr.
White's plan this season, and if I am
successful I will report through the Bee
JouKNAi., and thank Mr. White for giv-
ing the information.

Keeville, Minn., Apr. 20, 1893.

P. S. — The storm still continues. This
is the third day — April 21st. School
closed to-day on account of the blizzard.

IXXXXXXXXZXX)

♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦•♦♦♦♦♦♦•♦"♦■■♦♦♦♦♦

The Lmed ofBzierzoe

conducted by
Oldenburg, Grossherzogthum, Germany.

The Queen is a Hermaphrodite.

Mr. Metzger published another sur-
prising statement. He says :

There Is no parthenogenesis, as the
queen is a hermaphrodite. Those cells
without nucleus referred to in our re-
port on page 330, which are to be found
in the seminal vesicle of the queen, have
the destination to fecundate the drone-
eggs. Some of these cells will always be
found on the surface of drone-eggs.
They are too thin to be detected with
the microscope ; if wanted to be seen
they have first to be washed oflf. There-
fore, all eggs are fecundated. If the
receptaculum seminis could be castrated,
a queen could lay deaf or sterile eggs
only, from which neither drones nor
worker-bees could develop.

Mr. C. J. Robinson is partly compan-
ion of Mr. Metzger, when saying, "It
is the sum of ignorance, that a queen
can receive into her ' sac ' sufficient
spermatic fluid for six or more years."
But we recommend the book by Cowan,
"The Honey-Bee," to this gentleman, in
order to know what is meant by par-

thenogenesis now-a-days. The definition
given by him in the American Bee
JouKNAL is " the sum of ignorance."

If Metzger is right, we cannot speak
any more of parthenogenesis, but I am
deadly sure he is not right, as a kind of
castration of the "sac" has already
been made by Dr. Donhoff (1851-54)
and by Cowan, and the fecundated
queen could lay drone-eggs only after
this. This proves that Metzger is wrong.

Is Honey-Dew Aphidian Honey, or a
Secretion of the Leaves ?

Dzierzon says : Honey-dew is nothing
but a product of the aphis ; but nearly
all other bee-masters in Germany pre-
tend it is sometimes only a secretion of
the tree-lice, and sometimes an exuda-
tion or perspiration of the leaves.

Rain of Honey-Dew.

There was simply a rain of honey-dew
last season in the Black Forests and in
the Vosges Mountains. One prime
swarm of Mr. Veirling, of Hiederhas-
lach, gave the following results :

June 16, 30 pounds of honey-dew.
July

Aug,

7,

53

23,

47

28,

32

5,

52

12,

46

18,

40

25,

45

tal.

345

pounds

Mating of a

Queen.

Dr. C. C. Miller, in his incomparable
"Stray Straws," took notice of three
cases of fecundations of the queen in the
hive as reported in the German Central-
blatt. These three cases are only obser-
vations (?) without scientific value.

The general belief is, that the fecun-
dation takes place high up in the air,
but during the last season some three or
four cases have been reported, showing
that copulation will take place close to
the hive ; even when bees are swarming,
the young queen will be fecundated
amidst the swarm.

I am the happy owner of a couple
which was found in the bee-yard when a
colony had just cast a second swarm.
As the swarm was going back to the

600

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

hive, the bee-keeper looked out for the
queen, and found her on the ground
some 25 yards oflE from the hive, in this
position :

I hope to be able to show this couple
in natura, to visitors of the World's
Fair, as I have been selected as a dele-
gate to the Columbian Exposition for the
Kingdom of Prussia. H. Reepen.

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

The First Swarm on May 1st.

My " Italians, " in dovetailed hives, with
an outside winter-case for protection, win-
tered nicely, and are now in splendid con-
dition. Black bees in box-hives did not
fare so well — many died of cold and starva-
tion. I received my first swarm to-day —
May 1st — and it was a '■ dandy." As I was
fortunate in having the queen's wings
clipped, they were hived without any
trouble. Who can report an earlier swarm
in the same latitude I All my colonies
show indications of swarming early. The
Bee Journal is my most welcome tveekly
visitor. L. Posey.

Torch, Ohio, May 1, 1893.

Bees Starved with. Plenty of Honey.

I will give a short account as to how our
bees have wintered in this locality. All are
not yet taken out of the ground, but those
that were left on the summer stands with-
out an extra amount of protection are
nearly all dead. Some that were wintered
in good chaflf hives are in good condition.
Those wintered in cellars are all right, with
a very small loss. But taking it all around,
there has been an unusually big loss of bees
the past winter, some claiming that they
froze to death, but I think they nearly all
starved, although some of them died with

20 or 30 pounds of honey in the hive. It is
very easily explained. On Dec. 7th we had
a very heavy snow-storm here, and then it
set in cold, and scarcely thawed on the
south side of a house for nearly six weeks,
so it did not get warm enough for the bees
to move their cluster, and when they had
eaten the honey that they were clustered
on, they could not move out to get any
more, and starved with plenty of honey
within" two inches of them. A great many
late swarms did not have enough to carry
them through. Joseph Beeson.

Casey, Iowa, April 1, 1893.

Wintering Bees Upstairs, Etc.

I was born and lived in Otiio until grown
up, when I came to where I now live, 27
years ago. I have tried bee-keeping a good
many times by cellar wintering, and lost
nearly all I had every year with mold.
Four years ago I thought I would try put-
ting them upstairs in a darkened room;
since I have kept them upstairs I have not
lost any that I put in with enough stores of
honey to keep them through the winter.
They always come out dry and in good con-
dition. I put in 22 colonies last fall. I use
the frame hives. I did not get a very large
yield of honey last year, as the spring was
a very late one here. I think all the bees
left out here the past winter have died.

GoodeU, Iowa, Mar. 25. M. L. Wiles.

Hard Winter on Bees.

It has been a very hard winter on bees
here ; 75 per cent, of the bees have died ;
some have lost all they had. I have 10 col-
onies that I have kept for the last two
years, thanks to the Bee Journal. I took
100 pounds of honey from them last faU,
and I sold it all for 20 cents a pound, and
could have sold a good deal more if I had
had it, and at same price. D. R. Calef.

De Kalb, Mo., AprU 17, 1893.

Experiences of an Aged Bee-Keeper.

I am 76 years old, but I have not lost my
interest in bees. I have kept them for 40
years, off and on, in box-hives. Moths
would get in, ants would trouble them ;
cold, long winters, with frost in the hives,
would kill them, and sometimes I would get
run out of bees, and then go without a few
years ; then I would commence again on a
small scale. Five years ago I had 4 colonies
in box-hives. I covered them over with
boards on the summer stands in November,
and closed the entrance with wire screen.
On April 1st I examined them, and found
them all dead. The hives were full of frost,
and the water dripping out of the entrance
— suffocated.

One year ago I had another run of the
bee-fever, and bought 3 colonies of Carnio-
lans in Laugstroth hives. 1 waited for them
to swarm until the middle of July, but they
swarmed not. Then 1 made 3 more by
dividing, taking 4 frames from each of the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

601

old colonies, and putting them into the new
hives, and filling them all up with empty
frames. That gave me 6, all about equal ;
4 of them worked about as usual, 2 of them
never showed their heads for a week — per-
haps they had no queen, and I had no ex-
perience in finding one. so I let them shift
for themselves, then they went to work all
right. On Thanksgiving day I put them all
into the cellar.

My cellar is cemented, and has a furnace
in it. I put them into the coldest part,
where it ranged 40 to 4.5 degrees above zero,
and they were as still as mice all winter.
On March 26th, it being warm, 50 degrees
above zero. I carried them out to their old
stands, and gave them a flight. They had
a fine time, and so did 1. I put on my new
veil, and whilst they were out I took the
frames from the first one and put them into
an empty hive a(jJoining, and cleaned out
the dead, and scraped it clean, then put
them back again, putting the cloths on top,
then the covers. I served them all the same
way. They never offered to fight. They
have plenty of honey, a clean hive, no
moths — why, they were so glad over their
clean quarters and flight, that they would
buzz with their wings in front of the hive en-
trance. Give me the cellar for wintering
bees. George Rackleff.

Woodford, Me., March 30, 1893.

Bees and the Weather.

Bees are all O. K. — what are left. I have
lost 10 colonies out of 15. It snowed here
the 14th 3 inches deep.

John V. Emmert.

Lebanon, Ind., April 17, 1893.

Bees Wintered Nicely.

Bees have come through the winter nicely
in this locality, nearly all being wintered
on the summer stands. On April 3rd my
bees were bringing in pollen in abundance,
but to-day we have six inches of snow.
However, it will all be gone to-morrow,
and the birds will be singing as sweetly as
ever. I am pleased with the American Bee
Journal. M. Beaupre.

Forestville, Ont., April 15, 1893.

Bees in Poor Condition.

Last year was a poor year with us. I got
only about 200 pounds of comb honey from
21 colonies. There was too much rain the
forepart of the season. Bees went into
winter quarters in good condition. I put
them into the cellar on Nov. 15th, and took
them out on April 3rd. Every colony was
alive, but they had the diarrhea badly. I
think I will lose X of them. On March 1st
I examined them, but found no signs of dis-
ease then, but they were confined too long
43^ months in the cellar — without a flight.
It will not do, I don't care how good their
stores are. I don't believe they will stand it.

I am going to move them six miles on a
wagon in a tew days, to a better location.
They will have more fruit-bloom and white

clover, and quite a good deal of Alsike
and basswood. I hope and pray that we
may have a better season this summer. I
shall have to manage the bees all alone
now. One year ago last fall my two young-
est boys died — all the help I had ; now we
are left alone. It is hard to bear, but the
Lord's will, not mine, be done.

L. Reed.
Reed City, Mich., AprU 9, 1893.

Lost Only 3 Colonies.

I took my bees out of the cellar last Tues-
day, and lost only 3 out of 23 colonies in
wintering. B. M. Savage.

Independence, Iowa, April 11, 1893.

Dealing Direct with Producers.

I am especially pleased with the position
of the Bee Journal on the adulteration of
honey. We California bee-keepers feel that
our business is vei-y much injured by com-
mission men in our State, who use glucose
in abundance in the adulteration of ex-
tracted honey, and' then ship it East as
California white-sage honey. If Eastern
dealers desiring California honey would
deal directly with the producer, I think it
would do very much to offset the sales of
adulterated honey from this State by com-
mission men. They might learn who we
are by correspondence with our State Sec-
retary, Mr. J. H. Martin, of Riverside, who,
I believe, was authorized to give us some
assistance on the question of selling our
honey. Allen Barnett.

Whittier, Calif.

COWYENTION DIRECTORY.

Time and place of me&tAng.

1893.

May 18, 19.— South Texas, at Wharton, Tex.
T. H. Mullin, Sec, Eagle Lake, Tex.

May 19.— Lambton, at Sarnia. Ont.

J. R. Kltchin, Sec., Weidmann, Ont.

May 23.— Capital, at Springfield. Ills.

C. E. Tocom, Sec., Sherman, Ills.

Oct. 11. 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicai?o, Ills.
Frank Benton, Sec, Washington, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York.. .Chicago, Ills.

I » < ♦ «

XTational Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

602

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
May 6th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging- from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted. 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

E. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stoclis
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7i/4c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, Ohio.— There is a fair de-
mand for extracted honey at 6®8c. There is
no choice comb honey on our market, and
prices are nominal at 14@16c. for best white.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 24®27c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat. 9@l0c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7}4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16®17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted,fair supply, with good demand at 854 ;
dark, 6®7c. Beeswax— 2 3@2 5c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNE APO LIS.MiNN.— The market is good.
We quote : Fancy white clover 1-lbs. sell fast
at 18c.; 2-lbs. 16®17c. Buckwheat, comb, 13
©I'^c. Extracted, in barrels, 7@8c.; in 5 or
10 lb. kegs., 9@10c. J. A. S. & C.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14@15®16c ;
mixed, 12@13c ; dark. 10®llc. Extracted,
white, 8@8i/^c ; mixed, 7®7'/4c ; dark, 6»4@7c.

Beeswax, 26@30c. H. H. W.

Mrs. J. P. Cookenbacli, whose
advertisement appears on page 579, will
be glad to have you write to her to
secure a good place to stay during your
visit to the World's Fair the coming
summer. The Bee Journal refers its
readers and friends, with much pleas-
ure, to Mrs. C, who will do the right
thing by all who give her an opportunity
to help them.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Chicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway,

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

rainneapolls, minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, If . Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— We

have just issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in aJl, and is illustrated. Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.15.

Wajits or Excjiaiiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each insertion, when specially ordered
Into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

T

O EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17 Atf J . A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

T

O EXCHANGE— Good 6-inch Vandervort
Fdn. Mill, for wax, honey, or offers.
J. H. & A. L.BOYDEN,
18A4t Saline, Mich.

WANTED— To exchange, Extractor, Bight
or Ten Frame Hives, Barnes' Saw, for
Bicycle, Beeswax, Honey or offers.
19A1 O. H. HYATT. Shenandoah, Iowa.

WANTED— To exchange, Warranted Ital-
ian Queens lor a few strong Colonies of
Bees. Write at once to J.F.WOOD,
• 19 Alt North Prescott, Mass

GEORGE W. YORK, I
Editor. i

Devoted Exclusively-

-To Bee-Culture.

I Weekly, $1.00 a Tear.
I Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MAY 18, 1893.

NO. 20.

A Terrible Raiii-Storin swept over
Greenville, Tex., where Mrs. Atchley lives,
and so blew her queen-rearing yards about
as to result in considerable damage. If her
customers, who may read this, are delayed
several days in receiving queens, they will
now understand the cause of it. About 500
fine cells were destroyed, besides much
other loss. There was also great damage to
property in the city of Greenville.

Xlie Illinois Honey Exliil>it at

the World's Fair ought to be a good one.
The amount of the appropriation for that
purpose is $3,500 instead of $3,000 as an-
nounced last week.

Mr. J. M. Hambaugh and Mr. J. A. Stone,
respectively President and Secretary of the
Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Association,
were in Chicago last week to see about
space for the exhibit at the Fair. The Bee
Journal was favored with a call from these
brethren, and they expressed the hope that
the bee-keepers of this State would help to
make the honey exhibit in every way what
it should be.

All who have honey to exhibit, or expect
to have later on, are urgently requested to
correspond at otice with Jas. A. Stone, of
Bradfordton, His., or J. M. Hambaugh, of
Sjpring, Ills. , either of whom will be glad to
furnish you with all necessary information.

]^ot Siire About Stigar Honey. —

The following is one of Bro. Root's editorial
items in 0Iea7dngs for May 1st, and with
the last paragraph we agree most fully :

Since we shut down on the sugar-honey
question in our columns, we have been
asked by adherents on both sides to renew
the discussion, more particularly as some of
the other journals were keeping it alive in
their columns. We do not wish to indicate
any policy for another paper, but we hardly
think it wise for us to open the discussion
for the jyresent. If the production of sugar-
honey is unwise, as we firmly believe it is,
the best way to kill it is to say nothing
about it. To vigorously oppose it is, in a
certain sense, to keep it alive. The thing
that we have to regret is, that it should
have been discussed as much as it has in
our columns, particularly as more exten-
sive experiments should have been made,
and a better knowledge of the product
secured ; for even Prof. Cook, in a card just
received, says:

" I am not sure that sugar-honey is what I
think it is ; that, of course, is to be settled."

How much better to have "settled it"
before saying anything about it, and so in-
curring great risk as to the consequences !

Xlie Bee-Keepers' Revie>v foi

May came right "on time" this month —
May 10th. Bro. Hutchinson has a most
beautiful and valuable number for May,
having added eight extra pages. He says :

I have always rather prided myself on
the small size of the Rei<iew. I have felt
that it should be small but good.

Bro. H., we don't think any one will ob-
ject if you continue to keep it " good " and
also large, instead of " small." It is only
another proof of Bro. Root's statement,
viz.: " Apicultural journalism was never
on a higher plane than now, both in quality
and quantity."

616

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

" ApiCHltiiral Joiirnalisiii," says
Bro. Root in Oleanings for May 1st, "was
never on a higher plane than now, both in
quality and quantity." That is saying a
good deal, but we know of no one who is
better prepared to make the statement than
Bro. Root. It speaks volumes for those
who are writing for the various bee-periodi-
cals, and now if we shall only be able to
say the same of the honey crop this year,
all will be well. Perhaps one of the causes
of the improved " apicultural journalism "
of to-day, is the poor seasons of the past
few years. Now. if the yield of honey will
only catch up with the advanced apiarian
journalistic efforts, the publishers will all
be ready to take another big stride forward.
We are ready for both the large crop, and
the big stride to follow it !

Texas and it.»» Resources will be
written up by Mrs. Atchley, to follow the
report of the Texas State Convention,
whicli is now being published in her depart-
ment of the Bee Journal. She is receiving
many questions regarding Texas, and she
will take this way to answer them.

I<^ai*iii, nel«l aii«l Fireside, pub-
lished here in Chicago, at $1.00 a year, is
one of the most progressive and wide-awake
agricultural periodicals published to-day. It
has been issuing specially artistic and at-
tractive numbers the past few months, and
the "World's Fair Edition," issued for
Saturday, May 6th, is particularly fine, and
contains pictures of all the buildings at the
Fair Grounds. We can club the Farm,
Field and Fireside with the Bee Journal for
one year, for $1.75.

l*reventioii of'SMarmiiig' is a sub

ject that has received much attention at
the hands of bee-keepers with an inventive
turn of mind. The latest, and, we believe,
the most promising of beneficial results is
the device invented by Mr. H. P. Laugdou,
of New York, which Mr. Frank Benton de-
scribes and illustrates on pages 627' to ()3() of
this number of the Bee Journal.

Mr. Benton thinks that Mr. Langdon has
made " one of the most valuable additions
to the list of apiarian inventions that had
appeared for a long time — one that, after
the frame hive, would rank equal with or

ahead of the honey-extractor or comb-
foundation machine."

In the May Be»iew, Bro. Hutchinson says :
" The fundamental principle of shifting
the bees from one hive to another is one
that I believe will eventually settle the
swarming problem."

It will pay you to read very carefully all
of Mr. Benton's article, and thus become
familiar with this great advance movement
in modern progressive bee-keeping.

Xlie Progressive Bee - Keeper

for May came out with a bright and clean
new "face," made up of flowers and scenes
characteristic of bee-culture. It was de-
signed and engraved by the Murray-Heiss
Engraving Co., of Cleveland, O., who are
making quite a rejiutation for artistic work
in the line of bee-keeping. The Leahy Mfg.
Co., the new publishers of the Progressive
£ee-Keepe)\ are making progress very rapidly
with their paper. Again the Bee Journal
wishes them success.

iflr. J. I*. Hiickaltay, who at-
tended the Texas bee-convention at the
home of Mrs. Atchley, handed her 25 cents
toward helping to pay her for reporting
the proceedings of the meeting, and thinks
that it was a mistake not to have voted to
Mrs. A., at the meeting, something to pay
her for her work in their behalf. K all
those who attended would send Mrs. Atch-
ley whatever they feel would be their
share, we are sure it will be well invested,
for Mrs. A. is a very busy woman, and is
doing a grand work for bee-keeping in the
South, as well as laboring in the interest of
the pursuit everywhere.

Propolis as Smolcer Piiel.^Mr.
A. E. Manum, in a recent number of Gleau-
ifigs, says that Mr. J. E. Crane first told
him about burning propolis in his bee-
smoker. Sprinkling it over the fuel in the
smoker-barrel is one way to use it. Mr.
Manum says :

I never tried anything that would just
dn'/'e the bees out of the way as nicely as
this will. I think it would be a good plan
to melt up a lot of propolis and dip pieces
of wood into it, and keep them handy by,
to be used whenever the bees are trouble-
some, for it will quiet them in a moment.

Oreat Premium on page 613

!

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

617

Aiiti-Adiilteration I^a^vs are be-
ing enacted by various States that are con-
scientious enough to care for the morals
and health of their inhabitants. This is
right, and a National law upon the subject
will soon follow these State enactments.

An Act to prevent the adulteration of
honey was introduced into the Pennsylva-
nia State Legislature in March, a copy of
which is given below, which was sent to
us by Mr. G. W. BeU, of Bell's Landing,Pa. :

Section 1. — Be it enacted by the Senate
and House of Representatives of the Com-
monwealth of Pennsylvania in General
Assembly met, and it is hereby enacted by
the authority of the same. That it shall be
unlawful for any person or persons to adul-
terate honey by mixing with it any sweets
of whatsoever kind not gathered from
flowers or blooms, or to mix together any
such sweets whether with or without honey
or cause it to be done by any agency what-
soever, and to ofl'er for sale, or sell without
labeling it with the true name of its com-
ponent parts with the proportion of each,
and with the name and location of the
manufacturer.

Sec. 3. — Any person or persons convicted
of a violation of any of the provisions of
Sec. 1st of this Act shall be deemed by the
court guilty of misdemeanor, and shall be
fined in any sum not less than one hundred
dollars ($100) , and not more than five hun-
dred dollars ($500) , one-half of said fine to
go to the informer, and the other half to
the school fund.

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " BO
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Some Qpuestions on Queen-Kearing-.

1. What is the best way to rear
queens ?

2. How long does it take a capped
queen-cell to hatch ?

3. Do all queen-cells that have been
capped contain live queens ?

4. Would bees cap cells that had no
eggs or larvge ? S. M. Kisisey.

Tesnatee, Ga.

Answers. — 1. It might be somewhat
presumptuous to pretend to say what
was the best way, and in any case there
is hardly room to give here a full an-
swer to such a question. Most of the

text-books give instructions for rearing
queens, and Doolittle's " Scientific
Queen-Rearing " is an exhaustive trea-
tise on the subject, being a book of more
than 160 pages. We can send you one
for $1.00, postpaid.

2. A queen hatches in about a week
after the cell is sealed.

3. No; dead queens are often found
in queen-cells, having died after the
cells were capped.

4. No ; but it is no unusual thing to
find an empty cell that seems to be reg-
ularly sealed. The explanation is that
after the queen hatches out she leaves
the cap attached by a little hinge, the
cap returns to its old place after the
queen emerges, and the bees fasten it
more or less together. It looks just a
little as if they were trying to play a
practical joke on the bee-keeper.

Moving' Bees a Short Distance.

I have 11 colonies of bees on the sum-
mer stands. Can I move them 50 feet
without loss ?

Bees did nothing last year in this
county, but we look for a fine flow this
year from white clover. There has been
too much wind and rain this week for
bees to work. C. J. Bence.

Grand View, Ind., April 22, 1893.

Answee. — There is some danger, but
if all are moved from the old spot there
may be little or no loss. Clean up the
old spot, or change its looks in some
way, and then set up a board or piece of
glass in front of each entrance. Possibly,
if a hive, when moved, is shut up and
then drummed on, the bees might mark
the new location when the hive is open-
ed. They might mark you, too, if you
don't get out of the way when the hive
is opened, but if drummed enough they
feel quite subdued.

When and How to Transfer Bees.

Please tell me through the Bee Jour-
nal how to transfer bees, and when is
the best time for transferring out of
box-hives into frame hives.

Bellevue, Del. W. R. Wood.

Answer. — In time of fruit-bloom, is
the stereotyped answer. Earlier than
that there would be danger from rob-
bing, as the operation of transferring is
likely to cause some demoralization,
leaving the bees in rather poor condition
to defend themselves against robbers
When honey is yielding well, there is

618

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

little danger from robbers, if the oper-
ator is careful not to have a lot of dauby
combs exposed.

The less honey in the combs the bet-
ter for transferring, and at the time of
fruit-bloom the supply on hand gets its
lowest.

Later the combs are fuller ; if not
with honey, at least with brood. The
earlier transferring also gives a chance
for the bees to get in good condition for
harvest, although the transferring may
not materially interfere.

"Driving" Bees Explained.

In the answer to Elmer Bridenstine's
question, on page 489, what is meant
by "drive," and how is it done? How
are the bees united with the former
"drive?" Subscriber.

Answer. — If an empty hive or box is
placed over an inverted box-hive contain-
ing a colony, all openings for the escape
of the bees being fastened up, and the
sides of the box-hive be continuously
pounded or drummed on for some time,
the bees will commence traveling up
into the upper hive or box, and if the
drumming be continued long enough,
nearly all the bees will go up. Such an
operation is called "driving" or "drum-
ming." "The former drive" means the
bees driven out at the former time of
driving.

Amerikanische Bienenzucht is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

Alley's Queen-Rearing: book,
or "Thirty Years Among the Bees,"
gives the result of over a quarter-cen-
tury's experience in rearing queen-bees,
and describing the practical, every-day
work. By Henry Alley. It contains an
"Appendix," showing the improvements
made in queen-rearing the last four
years. Very latest work of the kind.
Nearly 100 pages, with illustrations.
Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.30.

19IR. ALLEX PRISiOLE.

Bees and Honey" — see page 613.

The subject of this sketch and illus-
tration, Mr. Allen Pringle, of Selby,
Ont., is Superintendent of the Ontario
Apiarian Department at the World's
Fair at Chicago. He was born 52 years
ago, on April 1, 1841, in Lennox
County, where he now resides. A por-
tion of the following sketch is from the
Canadian Bee Journal, and the balance
has been written by a friend of Mr.
Pringle's :

At the age of ten, young Pringle might
have been seen on a wood sleigh one fine
morning in April, accompanying his
father to a neighboring house three
miles off to get their first " skep " of
bees. The colony was in what is now
called " the old box-hive," and they got
it home in good condition on the sled.
Thus commenced the young lad's exper-
ience in bee-keeping.

Up to the age of fifteen he attended
the local school in winter and assisted
with the bees and farm work in summer.
By that time he had acquired all the
learning the average country school ped-
agogue could impart, besides quite a
fund of antiquated bee-lore. He now
began to think of doing something for
himself on his own account. Accord-
ingly one morning in May, bright and
early, the self-reliant and ambitious
youth started oflf on foot and alone to a
neighboring town several miles away to
attend an examination of candidates for
teachers' certificates. He was success-
ful, and duly received his certificate of
qualification to teach any common school
in the county.

Soon after, at the age of fifteen, he
took a situation as teacher without as-
sistant, and there ended his own school-
ing with the exception of a subsequent
term or two in a high school. His ed-
ucation has been acquired for the most
part outside of schools and colleges.
For several years the winters were spent

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

619

teaching the "young idea how to shoot,"
in some of the largest and most difficult
schools to manage in the whole county,
and with every success ; while the sum-
mers were mostly spent on the farm and
amongst the bees, which, under skillful
management, had increased from the
original old box-hive to over half a hun-
dred prosperous colonies.

Having readily absorbed the bee-lore
possessed by all the wiseacres of the
neighborhood, and hearing that a great
book had been published on bees, he
sent for it and got it in due course by
mail. It was Quinby's "Mysteries of

management of them, supplemented by
a long experience, Mr. Pringle has be-
come one of the most skillful apiarists
in America, and is looked to as an au-
thority on bee-culture by all who know
him. Though never seeking office, the
office seeks him, and he has served as
President and Director of the Ontario
Bee-Keepers' Association for several
years, doing the Association important
service while its President.

Mr. Pringle is a worker in the fullest
sense of that term — working with both
hands and head with equal facility and
effectiveness. He can turn his hand to

"•■XT?-

ALLEN PRINGLE.

Bee-Keeping Explained." From this he
got new hints and valuable information,
and rapidly came to the front in the
science and art of bee-culture as prac-
ticed in those days. He discarded the
box-hive and used a movable frame,
from which he extracted the honey with
an old-fashioned extractor, getting the
nearest blacksmith to make him an un-
capping knife from an old file, which he
still uses, and which, during a quarter
of a century, has shaved the caps off
many tons of honey.

Through a strong love of bees and a
natural adaptation to the handling and

many things, and his head and pen to
many subjects. He is known as a clear,
cogent and forcible writer, not only in
the daily press but the monthly maga-
zines. Prof. Cavanagh, the expert phren-
ologist of Toronto, in a published work,
speaks of Mr. Pringle as "one of the
ablest writers in America." His style is
clear, critical and logical, and the man
who enters the controversial arena with
him may make up his mind beforehand
to come out with a demoralized quill and
with his feathers flying. In the field of
polemics Mr. Pringle carries the heavi-
est kind of guns. He is one of the few

620

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

men who are thoroughly practical and
utilitarian as well as theoretical and
philosophical.

He makes his bee-culture and farming
pay in dollars and cents ; handles his
large apiary alone, doing all the work;
puts up and markets his honey, works
on his farm, and finds time (at night) to
write for bee-papers, agricultural jour-
nals, magazines and newspapers, besides
conducting a large correspondence in-
cluding in it some of the most eminent
literateurs and scientists of the day.

Mr. Pringle is held in high esteem by
all who know him as a man whose word
is his bond, and whose honor and moral
life are above reproach. Of his appoint-
ment (unsolicited on his part) to his
present position at the World's Fair, the
Canadian Bee Journal said it will " meet
with general approval and give very
general satisfaction."

COWYEIVTION DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time a/ad place of meeting.

May 25.— Capital, at Springfield. Ills.

C. E. rocom, Sec, Sherman, Ills.

Oct. 11, 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicag-Q, Ills.
Frank Benton, Sec. Washington, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting.— The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller.... Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York.. .Chicago, Ills.

» ♦ » ♦ »

National Bee-Keepers' TTniou.

President- Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman. Chicago, 111.

*»A Modern Bee-Farm and Its

Economic Management," is the title of a
splendid book on practical bee-culture, by
%r. S. Simmins, of England. It is 5%x8K
inches in size, and contains 270 pages,
nicely illustrated, and bound in cloth. It
shows " how bees may be cultivated as a
means of livelihood; as a health-giving
pursuit ; and as a source of recreation to
the busy man." It also illustrates how
profits may be " made certain by growing
crops yielding the most honey, having also
other uses; and by judgment in breeding a
good working strain of bees." Price, post-
paid, from this office, $1.00; or clubbed with
the Bee Journal for one year, for $1.70.

conducted by

Greenville. Texas.

Report of the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Convention.

(Continued from page 590).
The following was omitted by mistake
from the report of the first day's pro-
ceedings :

HIVING OF SWAKMS.

Dr. Marshall stated that the labor of
hiving was lessened by having objects,
such as large knots of trees, or some-
thing that resembled a swarm of bees,
and when the bees once settled on an
object, the rest were likely to cluster on
the same object.

Mr. A. M. Tuttle asked, " Which is
best to hive swarms on, combs or start-
ers?" J. A. Meeks uses combs, and one
after another arose and gave their pref-
erence to fully built out combs to any-
thing, as if we have our houses all ready
furnished, it is much better for us than
if we move into them empty.

THE VAJRIETY OF BEES.

This came up as a general question.
Dr. Howard puts blacks and Italians on
an equal footing as mechanics, except
the blacks capped their honey whiter
than Italians.

Dr. Marshall thought we had better
Italian bees in America now than they
had in Italy, as the Italian bees had
been bred and improved upon by our
shrewd American apiarists until he
would take American Italians first.

Now we are ready to begin the report
of the

SECOND DAY — Morning Session.

The convention was called to order at
9 o'clock a.m., with Vice-President Dr.
W. K. Marshall in the chair. President
Wm. R. Graham doing the honors as
host.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

621

The question-box was opened, and the
following discussed :

COMB OK EXTRACTED HONEY ?

" Which is the more profitable, comb
or extracted honey ?"

Dr. Marshall — That depends largely
upon the honey market.

C. J. Cutler — I find no difficulty in
selling comb honey at 20 cents per
pound.

J. D. Givens, of Lisbon — I sell ex-
tracted honey at my door at 10 cents
per pound. Comb honey, at Dallas and
Oak Cliff, readily sells at 15 to 20 cents.
I can produce twice as much extracted
honey. I grade my comb honey ; when
the sections are full one pound it is
classed grade No. 1, when they fall two
ounces short, grade No. 2, and when
more than two ounces short, grade No. 3.

A. M. Tuttle, of Gainesville — Almost
every one In Gainesville wants comb
honey ; the country around buys more
extracted. I can produce more than
double the quantity in extracted honey.
I sell extracted for 10 cents, and comb
honey for from 12J^ to 15 cents per
pound.

George Wilson, of McKinney — I pro-
duce extracted honey exclusively, and
find ready sale at 10 cents per pound,

J. F. Teel — I produce both kinds, can
get more extracted than comb honey,
but I get the best price for comb honey.
The profit will depend largely upon
market demand.

BEST MANAGEMENT FOR PRODUCING
HONEY.

The next question discussed was the
following :

" What is the most practical method
of management of the apiary, for the
production of honey — both extracted
and comb ?"

Dr. Howard, of Fort Worth — Build up
the colonies, and have them strong and
ready for the honey-flow. I would never
take from strong colonies to build up
weak ones, as we might lose the working
strength of more than one colony, at a
time when the production of honey
would be worth more than the produc-
tion of bees. When I had bees I worked
for extracted honey exclusively, except
in one small yard of about two dozen
colonies of black bees, away from home,
which was worked for comb honey. By
always having plenty of extra combs I
never failed in getting the full benefit of
the honey harvest. By extracting all
the honey in the yard the last of July,
the fall honey-flow was devoted to the

production of combs, and as mentioned
in my essay of yesterday, the pungent
honey gathered in the fall was utilized
in breeding up in the spring. To induce
bees to commence in the boxes, a good
way when the brood-chamber is full of
honey, is to drive the bees into the boxes
by smoking them, which causes them to
fill themselves before entering the
supers ; this done at night they will
commence the work of comb-building in
the sections to deposit the honey they
carried with them from the brood-cham-
ber. I have never produced comb
honey to any great extent, and cannot
say what proportion of profit might ob-
tain in the production of comb or ex-
tracted honey, but I believe that I can
produce 3 or 4 times as much extracted
honey.

J. R. Atchley, of Arlington — I believe
in caging the queen during a heavy
honey-flow, unless it should be a gradual
flow. If our colonies are strong, by
caging the queen we stop the production
of bees, and turn the whole force to the
production of honey, and no time is
taken up in rearing young bees, and no
honey is wasted in the nourishment of
them, which is an item worthy our con-
sideration.

J. S. Robinson, of Greenville — I believe
in taking the honey from the upper story
exclusively.

C. M. Davis, of Denison— My plan is
to remove the queen at the onset of the
honey-flow, and immediately after it
closes, release the queen and give her
room by extracting all the honey.

Dr. W. K. Marshall, of Marshall— I
produce mostly comb honey. My plan
of getting bees into boxes is to take a
table fork and scratch the combs con-
taining honey ; in order to repair this
damage, all the honey must be removed,
and to make room for it, it will be car-
ried above and deposited in the sections.
This plan I use when I have toward the
end of the season a lot of partially filled
sections, and have never failed to have
my sections nicely finished, so that car-
rying over half-filled sections to another
season is entirely obviated, besides get-
ting all of my sections in a marketable
condition. I utilize all of the surplus
honey in the brood-chamher. As to the
most practical method of obtaining the
most honey — while I do not altogether
fancy the idea of destroying the little
busy workers that have spent their lives
in industrious honey-fathering — my plan
would be to kill the queen at the com-
mencement of the honey-flow, and at
the close kill the bees. By this method
I save the honey consumed in feeding

622

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

young bees that would be ready for fleld
labor after the honey harvest was over ;
and when we consider that the 20,000
or 30,000 bees in a working colony
must each be given a drop of honey on
hatching, and consume each day several
drops, we realize the enormous expense
of producing bees during a heavy honey-
flow ; and we should have no more con-
scientious scruples in killing them, than
in killing a fatted pig.

(Continued next week.)

Hive-Making by Hand.

When I was studying for a couple of
years, and trying to decide what hive to
adopt, I decided upon one thing, and
that was that I never would invent a
bee-hive. Then I got to where I must
either make a hive or wait, and I didn't
want to wait. Of course I had the "A
B C of Bee-Culture," and could read
what it said, but such things as dum-
mies, T supers and bee-spaces, were like
Greek letters to me — I had to learn what
they were, and what they meant.

It took me half a day to make the
first frame, and then it was not quite
right. I am now making a hive of the
dovetailed pattern and dimensions, with
all dovetails left off from the bodies and
frames. If I mention just three points,
my method, I think, will be plain to all :

1st. Making the body of half-inch
boards, and using two thicknesses for
the ends, the inside end-board forms the
rabbet without cutting a rabbet, and
the sides nail on to it. The outside end-
boards nail on to the ends of the sides,
thus forming a double box, lap-joint,
cross-nailed.

2nd. Top-bar and bottom-bar of
frames nail inside of the end-bars, and
by cutting the end-bars Hoffman style,
they can be hung on a wire-nail driven
into the top-bar, instead of leaving the
top-bar projecting ; this makes the saw-
ing of frame stuff all square.

3rd. The square-cut sawing-box with
one end, and the saw-kerfs properly ar-
ranged, enables me to saw everything
square and true, and of the right length,
without measuring, after the material
has been worked out the proper width
and thickness.

Don't think for one moment that I
recommend making hives by hand, ex-
cept for spare hours, rainy days, or
when a beginner has nothing else to do,
and wants to keep learning. Make
every part entirely interchangeable, and

all standard dimensionss, o that when
you need factory-made hives to keep up
with your increase, all will work to-
gether. E. B. Whipple.
Grasmere, Fla.

Liocating an Apiary on the Side
of a Hountain.

Query 871.— 1. Would it be advisable to
locate an apiary on the east side of a moun-
tain, where it would be shaded after 3 p.m. in
the summer, with an east and south exposure?
2. Would it have any influence regarding the
bees working late in the day ?— Oreg.

I should not think so. — Mrs. L. Hak-

RISON.

You can judge much better than one
3,000 miles away. — R. L. Taylor.

I don't think it would make much
difference, if other things are the same.
—J. P. H. Brown.

In my locality it would be all rights-
just the place I should want, for several
good reasons. — H. D. Cutting.

1. I would risk such a location every
time, if it afforded plenty of bee-forage.
2. I think not. — G. W. Demaree.

1. It might be, if no better could be
had. 2. On some days, at least, they'd
knock off work earlier. — C. C. M xler.

1. I should consider that a first-class
location. 2. I do not think it would
make any serious difference. — C. H. Dib-

BERN.

1. I would put them there if it suited
ray convenience. 2. I don't think it
would, if they had good pasture. — E.
France.

1. Yes, if a due south exposure cannot
be had. 2. Yes, they will stop flying
earlier in the day, but will also begin
earlier. — Dad ant & Son.

1. I think that would be a good loca-
tion. 2. If they lost any time in the
evening, would they not make it up in
the morning ? — Eugene Secor.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

623

This is owing to temperature, condi-
tions, etc. In this climate (Southwest-
ern Illinois), southeast and south slopes
are preferable. — J. M. Hambaugh.

I should suppose it would depend upon
the temperature. The shade might be a
benefit. It all depends upon the tem-
perature of the place. — A. J. Cook.

1. That ought to be a good location.
2. Bees work with us as long as it is
light enough to see the flowers^— if there
is honey in them to gather. — G. L. Tin-
ker.

1. I cannot say. 2. I would think it
would, as the mountainous countries
have cool nights, and the sun would be
needed to the latest hour possible. — Jas.
A. Stone.

I think any real advantage or disad-
vantage of such a location would not be
noticeable after a term of years trial,
between such and an ordinary location.

— G. M. DOOLITTLE.

As to location, I prefer such ; but the
shade might retard afternoon work to a
perceptible amount. I, however, would
not hesitate, as this is simply theory. —
Will M. Baknum.

1. No, not if you can get a better
location. 2. Bees would not work as
well late in the afternoon, but the prin-
cipal loss would be in breeding up in the
spring. — P. H. Elwood.

1. If an apiary must be located on
any side of a mountain, the east and
south sides are to be preferred. 2. Its
influence except in cool weather would
be very small. — M. Mahin.

1. If in a good locality, I think it
would if not too high. 2. Probably they
would not work quite as long, yet I
doubt if there would be any appreciable
difference found. — J. E. Pond.

1. I know nothing about mountains.
2. I should think that it might often
shorten the day's work, but that end of
the day is not often of much value for
honey-gathering. — James A. Green.

1. That depends upon where the
mountain is. It might be an advantage
to have the bees shaded during that part
of the day, but I very much doubt it. 2.
I should think it would. — A. B. Mason.

1. Such a location is better than one
shaded in the morning. 2. Somewhat,
but it has some advantages — gets the
bees home out of the damp, night air
where they might catch cold. — J. H.
Larrabee.

1. I think it would be all right to
locate an apiary on the east side of a

mountain. 2. When bees are gathering
honey, it is usually warm weather, and
it would not make any difference if it
were cloudy all day. It might make a
little difference early in the spring, or
late in the fall.— Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

1. I do not think this would be a very
bad location. 2. If the weather was
clear and warm, I do not think it would
make much difference about the lateness
of their working. If cold and cloudy it
might. — Emerson T. Abbott.

1. If you can give them no other loca-
tion, it would have to do. 2. It would
shorten the day's work from 2 to 3
hours, which is a big item, but I had
rather lose 3 hours in the afternoon
than one in the morning. — Mrs. J. N
Heater.

1. I should prefer a location where
the sun would shine later than 3 p.m.
Still, if you could secure desirable pas-
turage in such a location, not to be ob-
tained elsewhere, it might pay you to
locate there. 2. I think it would, es-
pecially in damp and cool weather.— S
I. Freeborn.

Xlie 'Waslling:ton Convention
Report is now in pamphlet form, and we
shall be pleased to mail a copy to any
one desiring it, for 25 cents. It con-
tains 32 pages. As only a very limited
number were printed, you should order
promptly if you want a copy.

■ « ^m > — m

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— The

second edition of Dr. Tinker's new book
is now ready to send out. It gives his
New Management complete, and three
years of added experience in its use by
himself and other bee-keepers. Several
new illustrations have been added, be-
sides much new matter in regard to the
use of perforated zinc. Price, 25 cents,
postpaid, or clubbed with the Bee Jour-
nal for one year for $1.15.

The IVorld's Fair ^Women

" Souvenir" is the daintiest and prettiest
book issued in connection with the
World's Fair. It is by Josephine D. Hill
—a noted society lady of the West— and
contains superb full-page portraits and
sketches of 31 of the World's Fair
women and wives of prominent officials
connected with the great Fair. It is
printed on enameled paper, with half-
tone engravings, bound in leatherette
We will send it postpaid for 75 cents, or
give it for two new subscribers to the
Bee Journal at $1.00 each.

624

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Report of the Indiana State
15ee-Keeper§' Convention.

Written for the American Bes Journal
BY WALTER S. POUDER.

(Continued from page 594.)
SECOND DAY— Morning Session.

Pres. Russell — We will now listen to an
essay by Dr. J. M. Hicks, of Indianap-
olis, on the subject of

Relation of Bees to Horticulture.

I believe that a very important ques-
tion has been put into very poor hands
for discussion. The subject is one, at
least, that I am unequal to present in
the light that I would like to, but if you
will bear with me in my imperfections, I
will do the best I can.

The relation bees hold in the proper
and successful management of horticul-
ture has never been very well under-
stood in this country, except by a few of
the most successful fruit-growers. Yet,
nevertheless, there is a natural law that
governs and controls those fixed princi-
cles in the economy of nature ; in the
proper fertilization of fruits, both large
and small, in order to carry out her
plans that all may be equally benefited,
both rich and poor alike. How beauti-
fully we see and realize the fact that
bees are the sure messengers in assist-
ing horticulture and the horticulturist
in reaping and gathering a bountiful
crop of fruits, as well as many of the
various grains and seeds of the land.
The intimate connection of bees with
Nature's elegancies — flowers — is an as-
sociation which links them agreeably to
our regard, for each suggests the other,
the vivacity and animation and music
giving variety to that which might
otherwise pall by beautiful but inani-
mate attractions. When combined with
this the services bees perform in their
eager pursuits, our admiration extends
beyond them to their great Originator,
who, by such apparently small means,
accomplished so simply, yet so com-
pletely, a.most important object pf crea-
tion.

That bees were kept and cultivated
by man in the earliest conditions of his
existence, possibly whilst his yet limited
family was still occupying the primitive
cradle of the race at Hindoo Koosh, or
on the fertile slopes of the Himalayas,
or upon the more distant table-land or
plateau of Thibet, or in the more ver-
dant valleys of Cashmere, or wherever
it might have been, somewhere widely
away from the Caspian sea in an east-
ern direction, it is a very probable sup-
position. Thence ensues the fair deduc-
tion that phanerogamous, or flower-bear-
ing, plants existed, and bees conse-
quently necessarily too ; thus partici-
pating in reciprocal advantages, they
receiving from the plants sustenance,
and at the same time giving them fer-
tility. Both to the horticulturist and to
the florist is seen their valuable assist-
ance in procuring remunerative returns.

Thus we see that the Great Architect
of the Universe has given to man the
bees as a valuable co-worker in perfect-
ing his wonderful designs in Nature,
which are for the good of all concerned.
It is also equally true that if it were not
for the valuable aid that the bees and
some other insects perform in fertilizing
many of the blooms of fruit-trees and
garden plants, we should soon be found
wanting in a proper supply of fruit and
seeds, in carrying on the laudable busi-
ness of horticulture, as well as fail in
having seeds of a good quality at plant-
ing time.

Then let me ask, would it not be good
policy for all who wish to succeed in the
one to also at least provide a few colo-
nies of bees to aid in carrying on the
other ? I have no long-spun theories to
offer as to the necessity of all who can
do so to keep a few colonies of bees ;
but it is a well-known fact that many of
our vegetables, such as cucumbers, to-
matoes, and other garden products are
greatly aided by the work of the bees in
visiting each blooming plant, which is
sure to exchange pollen from one to
another, and thus aiding the tiller of
the soil as God's grand work in matur-
ing and furnishing a bountiful crop to
the husbandman as well as much aid to
the horticulturist.

I trust that I have at least mentioned
a few points that may be of some interest
to those of our bee-keepers who may
wish in the future to manage bees in
connection with horticulture, for herein
lies a grand truth that the two are
directly and intimately connected with
and depend largely upon eaih other.

Dr. J. M. Hicks.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

625

Pres. Russell — You have heard the
essay by Dr. Hicks, which is certainly
one of great importance, and a subject
on which all of us perhaps are not very
well posted. Remarks are now in order.

Dr. Hicks — I would like to say a few
words more, and that is, that last year,
in my vicinity right east of the city
about two miles, there is a gentleman
who is largely engaged in growing cu-
cumbers, as well as many other veget-
ables for the market here. He had not
been successful in getting the proper
amount of fruiting ; that is, to have the
cucumbers stick to the vines until of
proper maturity and proper size, until I
moved there. I had with me a few colo-
nies of bees, as it is always my custom to
keep a few bees, and after awhile this
gentleman told me that he had never
raised cucumbers so well until I came.
"I find that the bees are instrumental
in fertilizing the bloom of the cucum-
bers, and that they bear over a half
more than they used to," he added. I,
myself, have always found that plants
and vegetables that are raised in abun-
dance do better where there are bees,
and I am well satisfied that they and a
good many other little insects that we
think very insignificant, are God's
chosen instruments through which man
is greatly benefited, many times, when
he little thinks how it comes about. His
interests are advanced, and he is often
blessed in many ways through the in-
strumentality of these little Insects.

BEES don't INJTTBE GBAPB6.

Mr. Pope — I have heard some people
say that the bees puncture grapes and
destroy them. I want to say that there
is not a bit of truth in that. Some other
insect, or perhaps the action of the
weather, may destroy the grape, and
then the bees will suck the sugar, but I
know it is impossible for the bees to
puncture grapes.

Mr. Raab — I have a neighbor who is a
farmer, and several times I have tried
to convince him that the bees do not
scratch a grape. I have told him that
they will suck the sugar after it is
punctured some other way, and that I
knew this to be true, for I had both
grapes and bees, and they ivere never
injured at all by the bees.

Mr. Simmons — I believe also what has
been said, that it is impossible for the
grapes to be punctured by the bees. I
made a microscopic examination, and
found from their construction that it is
impossible for them to do so.

Mr. Catterson — If you are not already
satisfied on this point, my friends, just

take a healthy bunch of grapes and put
them into the brood-chamber. The bees
will keep it warm all winter, and at the
end of the cold weather, it will be almost
as good as when you put it there. I am
satisfied in my own mind that the grapes
can be kept at the same temperature as
the bees.

Mr. Muth — I know that there are
dealers in Cincinnati who have tried to
create the impression that bees poison
grapes ; but we know that this is not
so, for as we have said before, it is im-
possible for bees to puncture grapes,
and it is of great importance that we
should not deceive these grape dealers.
Again, I know a friend who has in his
yard some TO or 80 colonies of bees, and
he claims that since he put them there,
his grapes have been better than ever
before, and he attributes this to the fact
of his having the bees in his vineyard.

Mr. Pope — If we can only get these
facts known among the farmers of In-
diana, that their bees are their friends
and not their enemies, it will be of the
greatest benefit.

Dr. Hicks — In addition to what I have
already said on behalf of the honey-bees
being the friend of man, I will also
state that about three years ago I sent
out 150 loads of grapes, while my
neighbors got no grapes at all. I also
attributed this to having my bees in my
vineyard, and fertilizing the bloom of
the grape at the proper time. .1 let my
grapes remain until quite late in the
fall, and then finally gathered them,
made one-half a barrel of wine, and had
all we needed for our personal use. I
think had it not been for the bees, we
should have had no grapes at all.

Pres. Russell — I believe that in under-
taking horticulture for the benefit of the
bees, that the bee-keepers have found it
to be the main feature of bee-culture.

Mr. Pope — I want to draw up a reso-
lution that the bees do not injure the
grapes, and if possible, establish this
fact among the bee-keepers and farmers.

At the suggestion of Mr. Pope, the
following was presented and adopted :

Resolved, That it is the sense of the
Indiana bee-keepers that it is an impos-
sibility for bees to puncture grapes or
injure them.

Pres. Russell — The last essay on our
programme is one by Mrs. Rebecca H.
Herr, entitled,

How to Manage Swarms.

This properly includes from spring to
fall, leaving them in good condition for
winter. There are more ways than one,
some shiftless and careless, others or-

626

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL

derly and careful. The ^rst includes
all those who keep their bees in old rot-
ten boxes, or cuts of hollow trees, with
cross-sticks in them. Sometimes all
shapes and sizes of boxes are used, and
put in the weeds, and sheltered by noth-
ing better than a wire fence.

Beginning with a well-regulated fam-
ily or colony, about the first of June
where there are uniform boxes in size
and shape, with movable frames, when
a swarm leaves the parent colony, we
get them to settle on a tree or bush as
soon as possible by throwing water
among them, and the ringing of bells,
and the usual uproar that women and
children can make. When they are well
settled with water, we prepare a hive for
them, putting in two or three frames of
empty combs,1>and some with starters so
that they will deposit the honey they
have carried with them, or if you want
them to store honey in the sections, I
would put in fewer frames in the brood-
chamber, and put on sections at first
that are partly filled with honey, taking
them from the parent colony if I had
them. A good early swarm in a good
honey season will store surplus honey.

When the brood-chamber is contracted
too much in June and July, and the
honey taken away too closely, you will
have to give more room in the brood-
chamber in August for honey and brood.
If the fall is favorable to honey-gather-
ing, the colony will store enough to win-
ter on, but if the fall is not favorable
the colony must be fed. See that there
is a good queen and plenty of bees and
stores, and there will then be a good
prospect for profit the next season.

Mrs. Rebecca H. Herb.

The above essay was read by the Sec-
retary, in the absence of Mrs. Herr.

Mr. Muth — We shall need some one at
the World's Fair to take charge of the
bee-department there, and I recommend
Dr. A. B. Mason, of Auburndale, O., in
this capacity. We could not find a bet-
ter man. I make a motion tnat this
gentleman be appointed as General Su-
perintendent of the bee-department at
the World's Columbian Exposition this
year. Carried.

A motion was made by Mr. Pouder
that the report of the bee-keepers' con-
vention be sent to the American Bee
Journal for publication, and then re-
turned to the Secretary of the State
Board of Agriculture. Carried.

The convention then adjourned until
the afternoon, for the election of oflBcers.

SECOND DAY— Afternoon Session.

The Association was called to order at
1:30 p.m., by President Russell, for the
election of officers, which resulted as
follows :

President — R. S. Russell

Vice-Presidents — John Manford, Mr.
Pope, and A. J. Simmons.

Treasurer — Walter S. Pouder.

Secretary — Geo. P. Wilson.

After kindly wishing all success the
coming year, the Association adjourned
sine die.

A complete exhibit of bee-keepers'
supplies was made by Mr. Walter S.
Pouder and others, which attracted
much favorable comment.

g»XXZZXXSXZZZ»XXXXXZZZZXTT»««TX»Ti

Hard Winter, Bee-Paraly§i§,
Poisonous Honey, Ete.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY G. W. DEMAREE.

I have long been aware of the fact
that in this climate bees can survive a
severe shock of cold with no other pro-
tection than the ordinary hive gives
them, provided the cold does not con-
tinue more than two or three days at a
time. I had a hive robbed of its honey-
boxes several winters ago, leaving the
top-bars of the frames uncovered, except
the hive cover which rested on the
upper story, 10 inches above the top of
the brood-frames. While in the unpro-
tected condition the bees survived a
shock of 20° below zero — the coldest
morning I ever experienced. The cold
lasted but a, few days, and when their
unprotected condition was discovered
they were dry, lively, and in good health.

The cold spell of this winter, which
broke up about Jan. 25th, was the
longest continuous cold-snap of which I
have any memory since I have been
keeping bees. As ray apiary was caught
just as I left it when the last surplus
was removed — which was precious little

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

627

— I gave the bees up as lost ; but, to my
surprise, they came through the ordeal
unscathed. A large number of colonies
in my yard are in hives that have 20
Langstroth frames, and these are as
safe and lively as the rest. I have often
observed that my bees winter best in
roomy hives.

During the extremely cold vi^eather
here the ground was protected with
from 6 to 10 inches of snow, and all bee-
forage is in safe condition, as the
weather has been moderate since the
snow melted away. The prospects are
fairly good for the 1893 honey crop.

BEE-PAKALYSIS — IS IT A DISEASE ?

I think not. My attention was called
to this trouble with bees, in the latter
part of the summer of 1883. Since
that time I have watched its course and
progress, and I am satisfied it is not a
disease, but is caused by a vegetable
(nectar) poison. I have never seen its
effect at any time when bees were gath-
ering nectar from the staple honey-
plants.

I have seen no signs of the so-called
disease at any other time than in the
early spring and in the late summer. At
these times bees may gather both nectar
and pollen of such doubtful wholesome-
ness, that they would not touch it when
the locust, white clover and linden are
supplying their wants. The simple fact
that the trouble occurs only at such
periods of the season makes it look very
suspicious that vegetable poison is at
the bottom of the trouble. Nectar in
flowers, secreted in hot, dry weather, is
more than usually concentrated and
strong, by reason of rapid evaporation,
and when poisonous weeds tempt the
bees at such times, it is not at all strange
that they may find " death in the pot."
It is no uncommon thing to find bees in
a state of stupor on certain wild flowers,
no doubt the result of nectar poison.

If I am correct in my views, the prac-
tical way to deal with the trouble is to
feed sweetened water, as much as the
affected colony will take. This will
allure the bees from the source of dan-
ger, and help to dilute the unwholesome
nectar, and make it less dangerous to
the bees.

I have spent considerable time among
wild flowers and the working bees in the
early spring and late summer and fall,
and I have found no inconsiderable num-
ber of bees on the wild flowers in a state
of stupor, as if under the influence of an
opiate. I have often picked up the
opium-affected bees, placed them on my
hand, and observed the well-described

paralytic symptoms. Nothing of this
sort has ever attracted my attention
when beps were at work on the clovers
and other standard flowers.

I once thought that the time of year
had something to do with the manner in
which bees fall like leaden bullets in
front of the hives in spring, late summer
and fall, both in warm as well as in cool
weather ; but I do not think so now.
Since I have never seen anything like it
when the bees were working under the
greatest strain, in warm as well as in
cool weather, in a time of a rapid flow
In white clover harvest, I think it most
probable that soporiferous nectar being
handled by them causes them to tumble
so clumsily.

IS THERE POISONOUS NECTAR?

The question is often asked if some
plants and trees do not yield poisonous
nectar. I think it is safe to say that
none do habitually. But I am quite
sure that certain conditions of weather,
plant health, or some unknown causes,
do often affect more or less the nectar of
some plants and trees.

Honey is not a simple sugar, in fact, or
inverted. Nectar is a secretion from the
crude juices of plants, highly refined,
and often nearly, if not fully, evapor-
ated, and sugar inverted by normal fer-
mentation, before it is gathered by the
bees. In view of these facts, and what
we know about animal and vegetable
circulation, it is not difficult to see how
that sometimes irregularities may be in-
duced, which may and do, under certain
circumstances, divert unwholesome
qualities of the crude juices into the
flow of nectar. But these causes have
always existed, and I have no fears that
they will be worse.

Christiansburg, Ky.

Description of the Langdon IVon-
Swariiiins: Device.

Written for " In^^ect Life,'' Vol. V., JVo. 4,
BY FRANK BENTON.

Complete control of natural swarming
has long been regarded by apiarists as
one of the most desirable points to ac-
complish in connection with their pur-
suit. Yet, up to the present time, not-
withstanding the improvements which
modern ideas in apiculture have sug-
gested in this direction, they have had
to admit it one of the most puzzling with
which they have had to do.

The advantages in being able to sup-

628

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

press at will aud without detriment to
the colony the desire on the part of the
bees to swarra are numerous. Chief
among these may be mentioned : There
need not then be the great interruption
to honey-storing which the issuance of
swarms brings in the height of the
honey yield. The apiarist could have
all his return in the shape of honey in-
stead of partly in the form of swarms,
clearly an advantage when the number
of his colonies had reached the limit of
his field, or as many as he could well
care for, and remunerative prices could
not be obtained for the surplus stock.
The time and labor expended in watch-
ing for and hiving swarms would be
saved. Losses through the absconding
of swarms would be avoided. Even with
all reasonable care such losses often
occur.

Centuries ago the Greeks recognizing
some of the advantages which the con-
trol of swarming would give to the bee-
keeper, practiced with their basket-
liives furnished with bars across the
tops, the transfer of combs with adher-
ing bees to new hives, thus forming arti-
ficial swarms. This is interesting to
note as being the first recorded attempt
to control swarming. Contardi, who
wrote in 1768, describes these hives,
and says : " When the bees should
swarm, those people do nothing but to
take out some of these bars to which the
bees attach their combs, and they place
them upon another basket or hive. It
is in this manner that the Greeks multi-
ply their hives." The abbot, Delia Rocca,
of Syria, in the Grecian archipelago, in
his Traite complet sur les Abeilles, pub-
lished at Paris in 1790, mentions this
as " a method of the ancient Greeks for
the multiplication of swarms, which is
employed to-day by the inhabitants of
the Island of Candla." And Liger, the
author of La Maison rustiqiie, in the
eighth edition published in 1742, gives
a figure of one of these basket hives.

Most of the systems of preventing or
limiting natural swarming have de-
pended upon the formation of a limited
number of artificial swarms, frequent
destruction of queen-cells by the bee-
keeper, close use of the honey-extractor,
the combining of atter-swarms, chang-
ing places for hives, replacing of all
queens annually, supplying empty space
for comb-building below the brood-nest
or between the brood-nest and flight-
hole, or there has been some combina-
tion of these methods.

From time to time queens have been
advertised as bred from "non-swarming
strains of bees." While it is very rea-

sonable to suppose that the inclination
to swarm might be decreased consider-
ably by long-continued, careful selec-
tion, such as would be given had we bet-
ter control over mating, it is safe to say
that comparatively slight permanent
results have thus far been attained in
this direction. And since swarms would
issue, various devices have been con-
structed to warn the owner, or to pre-
vent loss during his absence. Electric
attachments and telephone lines have
been put up, adjusted entrances to con-
fine queens, traps to catch the latter,
and decoy-hives have been used, and at
last the automatic or self-hiver has been
evolved after many experiments and
much thought on the part of apiarian
inventors. Although the self-hiver in
its more perfected form has scarcely
been subjected to a thorough test, it
promises to do all that has been ex-
pected of it. But it will not

TAKE AWAY THE DESIRE TO SWARM.

This is exactly what Mr. H. P. Lang-
don, of East Constable, N. Y., says he
can do by the use of the non-swarming
attachment invented by him, and now
for the first time made public. More-
over, he keeps all of the field force of
his colonies storing surplus honey under
the most favorable conditions as long as
there is any honey to be obtained in
field or forest, and simplifies to such an
extent the work of the apiary during
this portion of the year that he can at-
tend to several times as many colonies
as under the old way.

The immediate condition which incites
a colony of bees to swarm has been quite
well recognized as its general prosperity
— its populousness, the abundance of
honey secretion, and crowded condition
of the brood-combs, or, in general, such
circumstances as favor the production
of surplus honey, especially surplus
comb honey, and it has of course been
taken for granted that honey could not
be secured if these conditions were
changed. Nor would it, without any
knowledge of the systeii proposed by
Mr. Langdon, be easy for experienced
bee-keepers to believe that all it pro-
poses to do could be accomplished with-
out much manipulation, and perhaps
also the use of some complicated device.

I was, however, agreeably surprised
at the whole simplicity of Mr. Langdon's
plan, when, in December last, he made
it known to me, and sent a non-swarmer
for purposes of illustration ; and in an-
swer to his request as to what I thought
of it, I wrote him at once that I was of
the opinion that he had made one of the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

629

most valuable additions to the list of
apiarian inventions that had appeared
for a long time — one that, after the
frame hive, would rank equal with or
ahead of the honey-extractor and comb-
foundation machine.

Mr. Langdon has applied for letters
patent on his device in this and other
countries, and with the specifications as
a basis, a copy of which he has kindly
sent to me, together with permission to
make the matter public, I have written
the following

DESCRIPTION OF THE DEVICE AND SYSTEM.

At the beginning of the honey season
the non-swarming device, D, shown in

front of the hive. The super cases S of
hive A are then placed on those of hive
B.

The flight-bees of hive A finding their
hive-entrance closed on their return are,,
upon alighting at the entrance e, at-
tracted along the gallery by the buzzing
of the bees at the entrance e', of hive B,
and enter said hive. This withdrawal
of the field-bees from hive A leaves this
hive so depopulated, and so disconcerts
the nurse-bees left therein that they will
not swarm ; meanwhile work is going on
without interruption in the supers on
hive B by the field force of both hives.

At the expiration of eight to ten days,
thus before the bees of hive B have

Bee-hives with Langdon Non-Swarmer attached. A, B, hives ; S, S', supers ; D, non-swarming
device ; e, e', entrances corresponding to hive-entrances ; si, slide for closing en-
trance ; c, c', conical wire-cloth bee-escapes ; ex, ex', exits of same.

the diagram, is placed at the entrances
of contiguous hives, each of which con-
tains a queen and a full colony of bees.
The continuous passage-ways, e and e',
on the underside of the device, corres-
pond to the entrances of the hives A and
B, respectively. The bees will then pass,
quite undisturbed, out of and into their
respective hives through these passage-
ways. By inserting the slide, si, in the
end of the non-swarmer until it occupies
the position indicated by the dotted
horizontal lines the passage-way leading
to hive A will be closed at its juncture
with the hive-entrance, preventing any
bees from entering said hive. The wire-
cloth cone exit, ex, still permits flight-
bees to come out of hive A, as a hole
through the non-swarmer connects the
cone exit with a corresponding hole in

made preparations to swarm, the supers
S and S on this hive are all transferred
to hive A, the slide, si, is withdrawn
from entrance e, thus opening this hive,
and is inserted in the opposite end of
the non-swarming divice, so as to close'
the entrance, e', to hive B. The bees
thus excluded from hive B will be called
along the gallery of the non-swarmer by
the bees at the entrance, e, and with
these bees will enter hive A, thus bring-
ing about in hive B the same conditions-
as were previously induced in hive A by
closing the latter. At the same time the
field-bees of both hives were working
continuously in the supers on the hive
A, the entrance of wkich is open, and
the flight-bees in hive B are escaping
through the cone exit, ex', and joining
those of hive A.

630

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

In about a week the supers are again
placed upon hive B, the entrance to
which is then opened, while that of hive
A is closed. In another week another
transfer is made, and so on alternately
during the flow of honey.

This alternate running of the field-
bees from one hive to another, and back
again, and the simultaneous transfer of
the supers, so disturbs the plans of the
nurse-bees, and temporarily depopulates
the hives successively closed, that or-
ganization for swarming is not effected,
hence, 710 sioarms issue, and the field-bees
of both hives work xinitedly, and without
interruption throxighout the entire gather-
ing season.

ADVANTAGES OF THIS SYSTEM.

The experienced bee-master will not
only readily see that this meets the re-
quirements mentioned in the first part
of this article as advantageous to secure,
but also that in many other ways it is
likely to prove a system of great value
in the apiary. Mr. Langdon has men-
tioned some of these, and I will there-
fore quote from his letter :

1. Two light colonies that would not do
much In sections if working separately,
make one good one by running the field
force of both into the same set of supers.

2. No bait sections are needed, as the bees
can be crowded into the sections without
swarming.

3. The honey will be finished in better
condition, that is, with less travel-stain,
because the union of the field forces enables
them to complete the work in less time.

4. There will be fewer unfinished sections
at the close of the honey harvest, for the
reason just mentioned.

5. Also for the same reason honey can be
taken off by the full case instead of by the
section or holder full.

6. Drones will be fewer in number, as a
double handful will of often be killed off in
the closed hive while the other is storing
honey rapidly.

7. Artificial swarms and nuclei can be
more easily made, as combs of brood and
bees can be taken from the closed hive in
which the queen can be found very quickly.

As there is in carrying out this system
of swarm prevention no caging of
queens, cutting out of queen-cells, ma-
nipulation of brood-combs, or even open-
ing of the brood-chambers at all during
the honey season, and all the vexatious
watching for swarms, and the labor and
time involved in securing these are
done away with, and instead of this a
simple manipulation attended to not
oftener than once a week is substituted,
it is plain that very many more colonies
can be managed by one person, and, in-
deed, Mr. Langdon informs me that he

" can care for 200 colonies with one
day's work in a week with no help, in-
stead of working all the time with 100
colonies." It will, therefore, prove a
great boon to all having numerous out-
apiaries.

One of the greatest advantages over
any plan for the prevention of swarming
yet proposed, which Mr. Langdon's sys-
tem will have, should it prove on further
trial all that it now pi'omises, is that it
will not only prevent more effectually
than any other the actual issuance of
swarms, but, while not requiring any
manipulation antagonistic to the known
instincts of bees, it will prevent all de-
sire to swarm — will completely do away
with the " swarming fever," so fatal to
the hopes of the comb-honey producer.

Another great feature of it will be the
more rigid selection of breeding stock,
which it will facilitate. Intelligent selec-
tion can accomplish for this pursuit as
much as it has done for the breeders of
our larger domestic animalg. Further-
more, a strong natural inclination to-
ward swarming on the part of any race
of bees, otherwise possessed of very de-
sirable traits, will not, under this sys-
tem, oblige the rejection of such race.
Eventually the disposition to swarm
must through constant suppression be-
come less, or, in time it may even dis-
appear, giving us the long-sought non-
swarming strain.

THE SYSTEM TESTED PRACTICALLY.

A brief statement of the success which
has attended Mr. Langdon's practical
test of his system during 1892 will be
of interest in this connection. In a let-
ter dated Dec. 24, 1892, he wrote:

Last season I tried the device on 100
hives. Except in one instance the bees did
no fighting. Why they do not fight when
united in this way I cannot say. It cer-
tainly did not discourage them in honey
gathering, for my yield from the 100 hives
was 6,000 pounds of comb honey, or an
average of 60 pounds per hive, some pairs
yielding 150 pounds, and it has been counted
a poor season for bees in my locality this
year. After one season's trial of the device
and plan, I do not know of a single fault or
objection to it.

Capons and Caponizini^, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.10

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

6sin

Teachers in Bee-Keeping, Fall
Re-Queening, Etc.

Written lor the American Bee Journal

BV DR. ALBERT SAYLER.

" Our School in Bee-Keeping " in the
Sunny Southland department of the Bee
Journal, conducted by the energetic
and intelligent Mrs. Atchley, will, in
many ways, be a help in the future to
thousands of bee-keepers who have been
blundering along in Egyptian darkness
with "fogy" box-hives, on the princi-
ple of ," It's so. 'Paw ' says it's so. It's
so because ' Paw ' says it's so ; and if
' Paw ' says it's so, it's so whether it's so
or not so." The " king bee, how long is
he ?" and all " sich like," ad nauseura.

Like Mr. Doolittle, Mrs. Atchley is
building better than she knows. Both
are superb school-teachers — vigorous in
style of expression, clear and concise.
When Mrs. A. sets out to explain an
operation with the bees, she indulges in
no apostrophes, parenthetic remarks or
side-issues. On this account the tyro
can always understand her. In fact, he
cannot hut understand her. I wish that
Mr. Alley would at all times in his pub-
lications on Queen-Rearing, show these
qualities. He generally does, but when
he fails to do so, it is almost certain to
be at a point fatal to his pupils.

The quality, or faculty — which is it? —
of perspicuity in all composition is the
most important one. Let a writer pos-
sess all the other requisites in however
eminent degree, if he fails in this, he
fails in all. Such writers should study
Shakespeare, Hugo and Byron.

re-queening colonies in the fall.

On page 269, Mrs. Atchley writes as
follows :

"At the close of the season, and yet
before cold weather begins, if we have
been successful and secured a fair honey
crop, we may sell a portion of the honey,
and buy two pure Italian queens from
some reliable breeder, and have our bees
Italianized ready for winter, and to
start next spring with none but the best
bees, etc."

Now ou pages 40 and 41, of the
American Apiculturist for March, the
Edison of Queen-Breeders in the article
on his latest and best method of queen-
rearing, refers to many of his past meth-
ods as follows:

"Those methods necessitated a good
deal of work, and late in the season the
loss or great damage to the colony made
queenless ; in fact, about every colony

that was meddled with after Aug. 10th,
was pretty sure to die before spring ; as
the very act of depriving a colony of its
queen at that season of the year when
the bees should not be molested in any
way — certainly not deprived of their
queen — is sure to result in disaster.

" It is in the month of August that
the foundation is begun for the success-
ful wintering of the colony ; and de-
queening a colony at the time brood-
rearing should be progressing prosper-
ously, is a serious disadvantage to it."

Now " When doctors differ," etc., is a
poor consolation to "Greeny." When
two of our great lights in bee-lore so
pointedly and radically differ on a mat-
ter of such general and sweeping signifi-
cance, to attempt to harmonize or ex-
plain away the matter on the ground of
"difference of latitude and climate," will
be altogether too namby-pamby, daffy-
downdilly — too too-too. " I guess " we'll
have to call on the "inimitable Hasty,"
Doolittle, Hutchinson, R. L. Taylor, B.
Taylor, Manum, Tinker, Green, the ever
genial and scholarly Dr. C. C. Miller,
Demaree, Larrabee, and — the Honey-
Bee, to rise and explain in ways not
dark or peculiar.

fickle and capricious march.

On Friday, March 3rd, bees here were
carrying in pollen by wholesale ; and so
earnestly had they become engaged at
this, that they kept it up on the follow-
ing day until afternoon, when the
weather was "catching cold," and
nearly freezing. They hated to give it
up — this gathering the first fruit of the
year.

Cold, and the ground covered with
snow on Saturday ; and yesterday, Sun-
day, March 5th, and to-day warm again.
Thus it is that fickle and capricious
March marches in in this latitude — lati-
tude of Cincinnati ; like alternate sun-
shine and shadow playing over a waving
meadow.

FLARING-TOP COMB-BASKETS.

All beginners in bee-keeping should
join in giving a vote of thanks to Mr.
Jas. R. Bellamy, of Black Bank, Ont.,
for his superb reply to Query 854. Mr.
B., on page 246, certainly explains this
"flaring comb-basket" idea, in regard
to extractors, more fully and clearly
than any or all of the experts did under
the original question. This answer in
question gives a " tip " to beginners
when they buy a» extractor ; and bee-
editors are here to guide us in the
straight and economic way.

I would recommend that genius and

632

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

startling innovator and iconoclast, Mr.
Heddon, to carefully read Mr. Bellamy's
reply ; then retract his own reply to
Query 854 ; and finally, graciously and
gracefully tip his hat to our neighborly
expert, or possibly " apicultural liter-
arian," residing just over the geographic
rubricated line.
New Palestine, Ohio.

__ Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless It can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Strong Colonies this Spring.

Bees wintered finely here this winter, and
were stronger this spring when put out of
the cellar than when put In ; but this is a bad
spell on them, the mercury being at the
freezing point, and it has been blowing
snow all day. Thomas S. Wallace.

Clayton, Ills., April 31, 1893.

Only 5 Per Cent. Loss.

My bees have wintered pretty well, only
5 per cent. loss. They were packed in leaves
on the summer stands, and were five months
without a flight, and have not gathered any
pollen yet. I appreciate the eff'orts to im-
prove the Bee Journal, and think it splen-
did. Irvin Grover.

Cooperstown. N. Y., AprU 23, 1893.

One of the Worst Winters.

We have had one of the worst winters
that we have ever had, and the bees are
about all dead in Minnesota. I cannot give
any reason for this great loss ; it is not only
the inexperienced that have lost, but the
experienced or professional bee-keepers, the
ones that knew just how to winter. It is
quite interesting to meet one of these latter
bee-keepers, and note how meek and lowly
he seems when you ask him how his bees
wintered.

As I receive letters from all parts of the
West, stating the heavy loss in many api-
aries, and in some instances where they
had a large apiary, and it had become de-
populated. I cannot help but call to memory
all that has been said about the winter
problem in the way of sealed covers, and

upper and lower ventilation, etc. ; how we
thought we had this great question down to
a minimum, and Old Boreas has completely
" done us up." There is one thing about
the season, we have had lots of snow to
protect the clover, and everything seems to
indicate a good crop of honey.

Wm. H. Bright.
Mazeppa, Minn., April 20, 1893.

Extracting Honey in Arkansas.

• My bees at the Arkansas apiary are doing
very well ; we having extracted, up to this
time, from 46 colonies, 1.500 pounds of
honey. Those that have been at Rosedale,
in Mississippi, have done almost nothing
yet : they are run for comb honey. I moved
48 colonies over here to run especially for
comb honey. If they do not Improve, I shall
move them again, or take them back to

Arkansas. R. J. Mathews.

Rosedale, Miss., April 24, 1893.

Fertile Queens and Alley Traps.

On page 471 is a letter from Mr. Arthur
Heiss, and. as it refers directly to my self-
hiver, I feel at liberty to answer it.

Mr. Heiss is certainly mistaken about
fertile queens taking a flight. Some years
ago I used to have all my queens mated
from large hives, and as soon as I found
them laying I would put Alley traps on the
entrances to prevent the bees from abscond-
ing. I have had as high as 75 colonies ar-
ranged in this manner through the entire
season, and I never found a queen in the
trap outside the hive. There are some
100.000 traps in use in this country, but
there has never been any complaint that
they caught fertile queens other than at
swarming time.

The queens that Mr. H. speaks of must
have been virgin. The one he speaks of
" on top of the frames " was simply fright-
ened, that is all. Young laying queens will
often take wing f roni an opened hive,

Beverly. Mass. E. L. Pratt.

Getting Bees from a High Tree.

In August, 1893, one of my neighbors ran
a bee-line by my house and asked me to
help find the tree ; and after cutting it and
taking out the honey, I hived the bees in a
box for a few days. I then transferred
them into a hive, and the next morning
they were working as though nothing had
happened. They were very gentle, and I
think quite good Italians.

Of course, this (my first experience with
bees) made me interested, so I started
another line, and before night had them
located in a large cucumber tree, not far
from where I started them. The bees went
into the tree about 90 feet from the ground,
and it was 75 feet to the first limb. I knew
if the limb was cut I should lose bees, honey
and all. It was a very strong colony, and
I was anxious to save the bees if possible,

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

633

but how to accomplish it was a question
hard to answer.

The next morning I was up " bright and
early." I got a small rope, long enough to
reach over the limb, tied one end of the
rope to an old ram-rod, loaded my shot-gun
with powder, and started.

I shot several times, but it fell short of the
mark. I then climbed a tree about 75 feet
from the bee-tree, and succeeded in getting
the small rope over, after which it was very
little trouble to draw a larger one over and
climb up. The bees went into the tree just
below the fork, so I cut out a portion of
the tree and lowered it to the ground.
Everything was in splendid shape, and the
bees had stored 100 pounds of honey.

I then subscribed for the American Bee
Journal, and I give it the credit of bring-
ing my bees through the winter O. K.

D. A. Holeman:.

Selkirk, Va., April 7, 1893.

Backward Season — Heavy Losses.

The season is backward. My bees were
removed from the cellar on April 18th, and
since that time they have been active only
three or four days. The loss in winter, and
up to date, is about 10 per cent. I have
seen but little pollen brought in. There
was much rain and snow during April, and
vegetation is later in starting than usual.
The loss of bees is quite heavy in this part
of the State. They were wintered generally
in cellars, but perhaps too cold ones in some
cases. Eugene Secob.

Forest City, Iowa, May 8, 1893.

Colonies Came Out Very Strong.

I started in the winter with 43 colonies. I
found one queenless in November, and
united it with another, so that left me 40.
They have come through all right, and are
the strongest this spring that they have
been since I have kept bees. I have been in
the business for nine years. Bees have been
doing well for a month here. The ground
is covered with snow this morning.

Jumping Branch, W. Va., April 33, 1893.

Wintered Poorly — Black Bees.

My bees have wintered poorly, and some
others have lost heavily, ^ having died in
some cases. I have lost 7 out of 23 — 6 Ital-
ian colonies and one black. All had plenty
of nice honey, and were packed alike in
good chaff hives. I think the black bees
stand the winter best. The Italians stick
to the comb best when handling, are not so
cross, and are more inclined to early
swarming, but not so hardy. I shall stick
to the blacks until the Gulf Stream comes
this way again.

It is a backward spring. It snowed two
inches last night, and is still snowing. We
have had but few warm days this spring.
The colonies of bees are building up very
slowly this spring. Why do bees die when
packed nice and warm, with plenty of nice

honey, while others winter nicely in a salt
barrel? I suppose Dr. Miller "don't
know." A neighbor of mine had one in a
barrel, and gave it to me. I transferred it
on April 3rd. It was a nice and strong
colony of black bees, and had stood exposed
all winter. Charles Taret.

Houghton, N. Y., April 15, 1893.

New Honey-House— Fine Weather.

I have just finished a honey-house. It
would do you good to see it. I will put it
up for comparison with any other honey-
house in Tennessee. Of course I will not
bore you with a description of it, but it is a
" daisy."

We are having fine spring weather, and
bees are building up finely, but will have to
" hoove it " to get ready for the honey -flow.

H. F. Coleman.

Sneedville, Tenn., April 8, 1893.

Granulated Sugar that Looked Queer.

I bought 150 pounds of granulated sugar,
supposing it to be the best, and when I came
to use it to feed to my bees, I found it was
mixed with some sort of a mixture resemb-
ling indigo blue. I am afraid to use it, for
my family or my bees, until I find out more
about it. I think it would not be a bad
idea to publish this in the Bee Journal, so
as to put all others on their guard, who
have to use sugar for the same purpose that
I do. Andrew Girard.

Lin wood, Mich., April 25, 1893.

Extremely Backward Spring.

This has been an extremely backward
spring, cold and windy nearly all of this
month. Ice formed here last night. A
part of my bees are still in winter quarters
— no trouble in keeping them quiet this
spring. Those removed came out in fair
condition, and all alive. I hope we shall
have some improvement this year, upon the
past four poor seasons.

I have aU of the volumes of the Ameri-
can Bee Journal, having purchased the
first four, and have been a regular sub-
scriber ever since. W. D. Wright.

Altamont, N. Y., AprU 28, 1893.

Bees Fared Badly —Chilled Brood.

Bees left on the summer stands, without
protection, fared badly last winter ; about
% of all that I have heard of are dead. I
had 24 colonies in the cellar, and took them
out on March 7th ; they are all in good con-
dition at present, and 2 colonies out of 5
wintered out-of-doors are dead. The weath-
er is very unfavorable for bees at present ;
it is cold and rainy, and my bees bring out
a good deal of chilled brood.

Fred Bechlt.

Searsboro, Iowa, April 30, 1893.

Read our great offer on page 613.

634

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
May 13th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted. 6@8e. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7^c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI. O.— A short supply of ex-
tracted honey is the cause of a slow demand.
It forbids an effort on our part to sell. It
brings 6@8c, There is no choice comb honey
on our market, and prices are nominal at 12®
16c., in a small way.

Beeswax— Demand good. at 22@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@10c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted, 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted,fair supply, with good demand at 8^ ;
dark, 6®7c. Beeswax— 2 3@2 5c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNESOTA, MINN.-Honey is in good de-
mand, especially for fancy white clover.
There is considerable of the low grade on the
market. Extracted is also improving in pri-
ces. Beeswax in light demand. Fancy white
clover, in 1 lb. sections, 18c.; choice white
clover, 16c. : golden-rod, 1 lb. sections, 13@14 ;
dark, 12@13c. Extracted, 9®10e.

J. A. S. & Co.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Honey market quiet at
following prices : White comb, 14@15@16c ;
mixed, 12@13c ; dark, 10@llc. Extracted,
white, 8@8'/ic ; mixed, 7@7i4c ; dark, 6Vi@7c.

Beeswax, 26®30c. H. R. W.

Your Neig^libor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked Iiiin or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 611.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cblcago, Ill8.

R. A, BURNKTT & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San FranciiHCo, Caltf.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

Minneapolis, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 &328 Broadwaj

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Obto.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— We

have just issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in all, and is illustrated. 'Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Journal, for one year, for $1.15.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

Wants or Excjiaages.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 cents per Hue,
for each Insertion, when specially ordered
Into this Department, If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

Sy-w-s^'o-S/'W-S-'s.

T

O EXCHANGE- High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

T

O EXCHANGE— Good 6-inch Vandervort
Fdn. Mill, for wax, honey, or offers.
J. H.& A.L.BOYDEN,
18A4t Saline, Mich.

asoBGi: w. YORK, I Devoted exclusively

Editor.

\

To Bee-Culture.

Weekly, $1.00 a Tear.
Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, MAY 25, 1893.

NO. 21.

A?y^%

Mr. W. A. Pryal, of North Ternes-
cal, Calif., is in Chicago, having come with
representatives of the press association. He
brought along some fine samples of both
comb and extracted honey, being of this
year's crop, and taken from the hives the
first week in May, some of which he kindly
left to sweeten "ye editor." Mr. Pryal has
often contributed to the columns of the
Bee Journal interesting articles on Cali-
fornia bee-keeping interests, more of which
we will publish shortly. He made the Bee
Journal office several pleasant calls while
here. He was ' ' taking in ' ' the great Fair
as fast as he could, which is a big job even
for a Californian, who is accustomed to
seeing wonderful things.

XUe JTosli Billiitg!i« of Bee-Ciil-
tiire is what "Jake Smith" is proving
himself to be in his " amoosin' " letters to
" Mr. A. I. Gleenings." What an awful
"spell "comes over him whenever he at-
tempts to write ! After reading his "let-
ter," we almost feel inclined to send him a
spelling-book and a dictionary ; but if we
should, we fear he wouldn't know how to
use them. It's dreadful hard to help some
folks, especially when they are so willfully
ignorant as Jake Smith and a very feiv
others like him! Jake is indeed a " per-
coolyer hunny-perdoosser!"

Fastening- Starters witli Paste.

—Mr. C. G. Looft, of Cochranton, O., gives
the following in Oleanings, as a way to
fasten starters of comb foundation in
grooved brood-frames, using flour paste for
the purpose :

Provide a receptacle a little longer than
the frames, fit to hold the starch paste. The
paste should be quite thick. The proper
consistency can soon be found by trial. The
starters should not be less than an inch or
more in width, unless of heavy brood foun-
dation. When narrow strips of thin foun-
dation were used, the bees, in nearly every
instance, cut it down to the wood. A starter
long enough for a Langstroth frame is
taken up, and one edge dipped into the
starch paste. This edge is pressed down in
the groove, which is about S^'s.%. Then the
frame is set away, starter side up, until the
starch dries.

Tlie Illinois Honey Exliibit.—

Just after closing the forms of last week's
Bee Journal, we received the following
notice, which we hope every one of our
subscribers in this State will read and heed :

interesting to ILLINOIS BEE-KEEPERS.

At last we send greeting and congratula-
tions to the bee-keepers of the State of
Illinois, for the honor conferred by our
present General Assembly, in granting us
an appropriation of $3,500 for the purpose
of making an appropriate exhibit of the
apiarian resources of the State at the Co-
lumbian Exposition ; and we trust that our
bee-keepers will arise to the dignity of the
occasion, and respond promptly and liber-
ally to the call of their Executive Commit-
tee, with their contributions of honey and
wax.

The Premium List and Rules and Regula-
tions will soon be made known by circular,
and through the columns of the American
Bee Journal ; in the meantime, let me en-
join upon you the necessity of prompt prep-
arations to harvest the incoming crop of
honey in the most artistic and fancy forms

648

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

that your skill can dictate. P;-eP«re your
cases with mottoes, designs anclletteis that
the bees can draw and weave into fantastic
forms and rest assured it is the ambition
of your Executive Committee to «ee an api-
arian exhibit from the State of Illinois
that will be in excess of any exhibit ever
before seen in the United States.

This appeal, we are aware comes very
late, but through no fault of JOur State
bee-keepers' officials, who have labored
almost incessantly for over two /ears to
receive recognition and justice from the
hands of their superiors in office iiut tne
goal has been reached, and let us prove
worthy of the occasion, and do honor to
our Jdustry, to the ^Bt^te^-^J^.^.^^

Spring, Brown Co., Ills.

As stated in the Bee Journal of last
week, we trust that every bee-keeper m
this State will do all he can to help in mak-
ing the Illinois honey exhibit one of the
greatest attractions at the World's Fair.
If you think you can do anything at all
towards it, write immediately to Mr. Ham-
baugh, who will give you such information
and assistance as you will likely most need.

Flic i^atiosial Stot'liiuam of Pitts
burg. Pa., in its May Uth issue, had the
following announcement at the head of its
bee-keeping column :

We take pleasure in announcing that this
Department will hereafter I><^ c«i^ducted by
Dr C C. Miller, of Marengo, Ills., which
is equivalent to saying that it will be the
y brightest and best page of its kind to be
found anywhere.

We congratulate our agricultural publish-
ing friends upon their wise selection. Dr.
Miller is in great demand, and must be a
very busy man. But then, he's one of the
right kind-would rather wear out than
rust out.

escape from the lungs, and the sting will
penetrate at once. I have never seen an
exception to this in 25 years' observation.

I have taught young ladies with very
delicate hands to astonish their friends by
the performance of this feat ; and I saw one
so severely stung as to require the services
of a physician, through laughing at a w itty
remark of her sister, forgetting that laugh-
ing required breath. For a theory mex-
pllnatioh, I am led to believe that holding
the breath partially closes the pores of the
skin My experiments in that direction
have not been exact enough to be ot any
scientific value, but I am satisfied that it
very sensibly affects the amount of insensi-
ble perspiration.— ,S'dmce Correapmident.

What a beautiful theory that is ! We
wish the writer of those two paragraphs
had a chance to try his flne-spun theory.
He could afford to be more '^ exact,"' after
a trial. It no doubt would very sensibly
affect his bump of nonsensical ideas, or give
him another bump or lump that would
cause him to feel quite insensible-which
must have been his condition when writing
his "scientific pleasantry." O, great is
Science! We have all heard of her before,
but not as being quite so bmttJiless as in this
case.

Stiiig>» aiitl tJ»e BrealU.— One of

our subscribers has sent the following,
taken from some newspaper called the In-
vestigator. Evidently the '-Investigator"
didn't investigate very closely, or it would
not have put>lished such a foolish item. It
was headed with the attractive words,
'• Wasp Stings," and continued thus:

It is a fact not generally known, that if
on* holds his breath, wasps, bees aiid
hornets can be handled with ">'l>vuiity 1
skin bec-omes sting-proof, and holdi g t e
insect by the feet, and giving hei tiiU ib-
ertv of action, yon can see her drive her
weapon against the impenetrable surface
wfthaforce tluit lifts her body at every
stroke ; but let the smallest quantity ot air

Preveiitiiis After-Swarms is the

subject of an article by Bro. Doolittle in
Gleamngs for May 1st. His method is as
follows, which he says is " the only certain
plan " he knows of:

The morning of the eighth day after a
first swarm has issued, I open the hive,
take out the first frame, and hastily glance
over it for nearly ripe queen-cells; and if
none are found, I shake most of the bees off
near the entrance of the hive, into which
they will immediately run, when the frame
is closely inspected for q^^een-cells peering
into every nook and corner for them, for
should some small or crooked one be missed
swarming would surely result. All cells
frnd^ar^cut off, after a frame has been
shaken to rid it of bee^ for this shaking of
the young queens m their cells is almost
sure to kill them, or cause deformity.

The next frame is treated the same, un-
less ripe cells are found, in which case it is
set outside the hive, awaiting the Andmg of
a cell from which a queen has hatched,
when all are cut off: but should none have
hatched, then the best one of these ripe
cells is saved and put back into the h ve.

In this way we can make sure that no
swaru will issue, after the first from this
hive, and it is the only certain plan I know
of. ^-^^^

nrefer rather than two cent ones. When
sending fractions of a dollar, plea.e send us
the one cent stamps.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

649

In this department will be answered those
questions needing- immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
wno help to make "Queries and Replies" so
interesting on another pag-e. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Transferring" Bees^After-Swarms.

On page 489, in the answer to the
question about the prevention of after-
swarms, I think the editor has the Hed-
don method of a short way of transfer-
ring, and the way of preventing after-
swarms, mixed up. As answered, it will
just start Mr. Bridenstine's bees to
swarming In good earnest.

I have nothing to refer to, but I think
the Heddon method of preventing after-
swarms is as follows :

When a prime swarm issues, hive it in
a new hive on comb foundation starters ;
place this prime swarm on the stand it
formerly occupied, removing the old hive
just to one side, with the entrance re-
versed. Commence turning the old hive
a little each day for eight days, when
its entran e should correspond with the
new prime swarm's hive-entrance.

On the eighth day pick up the old hive
and carry it to the far side of the api-
ary, giving it a new location. The work
is then done, and the bees usually do the
rest. Geo. N. Phillipson.

Merrivale, Tex.

Answer.— Yes, you are right as to the
mixing. That answer was given by an
assistant in whom we had great' confi-
dence, and it went in without close
scrutiny. As soon as your letter was re-
ceived (and we thank you heartily for
calling our attention to the blunder), we
called up the guilty party, stood him up
In a corner, and proceeded to castigate
him in this wise :

"What did you mean by describing a
method of transferring when prevention
of after-swarms was called for ?"

He turned very red in the face, then
looked pale and began to tremble. After
swallowing hard a few times, he stam-
mered, " I thought the Heddon method
was called for."

"Stop letting your teeth chatter that
way," said we, "and tell us whether
you gave a method for preventing after-
swarms."

" Wh — wh — why," said he, and then

he stopped. Then his face brightened,
and he said, " Why, how could there be
any after-swarms after all the bees wore
drummed out of the hive ?"

" That's an evasion," said we, "and
hereafter please don't give transferring
instead of prevention of after-swarms,
unless you want to be transferred your-
self."

By way of apology for our assistant,
we may say that the method of trans-
ferring cfiiginating with Mr. Heddon is
so deserving that it has come into great
prominence, and when the " Heddon
method " is spoken of, it is generally the
Heddon methpd of transferring that is
meant, so there is little excuse for the
careless answer.

The answer given is the " Heddon
method " of transferring, and you are
hardly correct in supposing it would set
the bees to swarming in good earnest,
for surely a plan that has been pnvcticed
so long by Mr. Heddon and othersHvould
hardly have become so popular if it
were open to the objection that it in-
duced swarming. The majority of the
bees are driven out, then the hive is so
placed that all the field bees will desert
the old hive, and the result is that there
is no desire to swarm with such a small
force, especially as it must be remem-
bered that in general there has been no
swarming-fcver, and that cells were not
started until after the removal of the
queen.

Your description of the Heddon meth-
od of preventing after-swarms is not so
very far out of the way. Instead, how-
ever, of reversing the old hive at swarm-
ing, turn it only half way around. If
your hives face east, then let the old
hive face the north or south. Instead
of moving the hive a little each day for
eight days, Mr. Heddon moves it only
once before putting it on its final stand.
That is about two days after swarming,
when the old hive is turned around
parallel with the new one. Three or
four days later, or five or six days after
swarming, at a time in the day when the
bees are well at work in the field, the
old hive is removed to a new lacation.
your plan to move the hive a little every
day for eight days, would be a good deal
more sure to result in swarming than
the plan given by our unfortunate as-
sistant. For, eight days after the issu-
ing of the first swarm is the time Mr.
Heddon says at which second-swarms
may be expected, and it would be of no
use to move the hive after that time.
Still, the weakening of the old colony by
turning its hive around at the time of

650

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

swarming, would do mnch to prevent
further swarming.

To put it in brief, the Heddon method
of preventing after-swarms is this :

Suppose your colony swarms June 1st.
Hive it on full sheets of wired founda-
tion, put the new hive on the old stand,
set the old hive a few inches to one side,
facing at right angles to the position of
the new hive. On June 3rd, turn the
old hive back, facing the same way as
the new one. On June 6th or 7th re-
move the old hive to a new location, at
a time in the day when the bees are
well at work in the fields.

B2

irY^tXTTTX

S3Q^2Z

»gg!tgg»»!

^^^^^'■'

kA^kAJ

EDWIW FRANCE.

The subject of this biographical
sketch is perhaps the oldest among those
who answer questions for our depart-
ment of "Queries and Replies," being
nearly 70 years of age. His experience
as a large honey-producer makes his
bee-writings, though very few, of par-
ticular interest and value. It is with
pleasure then that we present the fol-
lowing short story of his life, which was
written for the " A B C of Bee-Culture,"
by Dr. C. C. Miller:

Edwin France, of Platteville, Wis., is
noted as a producer of extracted honey
on a large scale. He was born in Herki-
Y., on Feb. 4, 1824.
furnace-man, molding
; and, having a large
family to support, had difficulty in mak-
ing both ends meet. At the age of eight
young Edwin was sent to live with his
mother's brother, returning home at 16.
He then served an apprenticeship of
four years at the furnace, when his
father bought forty acres of timber,
which they cleared up as a farm, work-
ing at the furnace winters. At tho. age
of 24 his father died, leaving him the
main stay of the family. He gave up

mer county, N.
His father was
and melting iron

the furnace, and worked part of the time
making salt-barrels in summers, and
cutting sawlogs in winters. About this
time he got, and kept on this little place
in the woods, a few colonies of bees.

At the age of 32 he took the "West-
ern fever," and settled on a 200-acre
prairie farm in Humboldt county, Iowa,
marrying and taking with him a wife,
leaving his mother in care of her older
brother, a single man, amply able to
care for her. Here again he kept a few

TXTTTTT

-T^^TT

EDWIN FRANCE.

bees. He lived here six years, farming
summers and trapping winters, when
the breaking out of the war brought
prices of farm products down to a ruin-
ous point, and he went on a visit to
Platteville, Wis., intending to return
when times brightened. Desiring some
employment, he answered an advertise-
ment, " Agents wanted, to sell patent
bee-hives," and was soon the owner of
the patent for his county. He made the
hives himself ; and as at that time

■<!

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

651

nearly every farmer kept bees, the busi-
ness paid well, and he soon bought two
more counties.

In his trades he got some bees, his
starting-point as a bee-keeper. These
he increased until in 1871, when he
went into winter quarters with 123 col-
onies, bringing out 25 in the spring,
and 14 in the spring following. En-
larging his hives, and studying the
wants of the bees, led to better success,
reaching 500 colonies in the spring of
1888, kept in six apiaries. In 1886,
from 395 colonies, he took 42,489
pounds of honey, increasing to 507. In
1885 his 320 colonies averaged 113
pounds each, and his 410 colonies in
1887 averaged 12 pounds each. He
owns 11 acres in the city limits of
Platteville, devoted to garden truck and
berries.

Mr. France and his son do all the
work, jBxcept during a few weeks in the
busy season, when he hires eight assis-
tants from 12 to 18 years old. The
whole ten go to one of the different api-
aries each day, making a sort of picnic,
and returning at night. Mr. F. has not
written much for the press ; but what
he has written bears the marks of ripe
experience.

tXZXZXZ»X»Xr»»T«XTTXZTT»»XTTT»T«Tl

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville^ Texas.

Report of the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Convention.

(Continued from page 622).

SECOND DAY— Continued.

Dr. W. K. Marshall gave an interest-
ing lecture on the subject of

Primitive Bee-Keeping in Texas.

He described the method of making
straw-hives, and the appearance of
them. There were no lumber mills here
then ; after saw-mills were established,
and box-hives were made of lumber,

every bee-keeper looked upon his pos-
sessions with pride, and the hives were
constructed according to the taste and
mechanical genius and notions of their
maker. «

He was first to attempt an improved
hive in his vicinity ; it was so construct-
ed that he could remove one-half, with
the idea that he could increase his colo-
nies without the natural process of
swarming ; his first experiment was a
success, and he thought he had the hive
— it was perfection ; but he was discour-
aged by the failure of his next experi-
ments to succeed.

His first impression, when he began
the study of bees was, that the queen
was the ruler, and that the drones laid
the eggs ; on this he was about to es-
tablish a beautiful theory, when he dis-
covered that he must be mistaken ; then
he concluded that the workers laid the
eggs. His first movable-frame hives
wei-e made with top-bars, without side
or bottom bars, and he had often won-
dered why he had not discovered the
movable-frame before Mr. Quinby did.

When Quinby had perfected his first
movable-frame hive, soon many inven-
tions made to sell to the unwary, by per-
sons totally ignorant of even the primi-
tive management of the honey-bee ;
these " patent gums " were sold by men
equally as ignorant as their inventor ;
and after the bee-moth made its appear-
ance in the West, which was back in the
'50's, nearly 50 years after it had been
introduced into this country from Eu-
rope, the hive vendor had moth-proof
hives, moth traps and various arrange-
ments to prevent the moth from enter-
ing the hives and " destroying the bees "
(?). This new feature had the effect of
procuring new victims, increasing the
patronage, and bringing forth new in-
ventions fashioned to suit the theory of
the inventor, on moth questions. Mr.
Quinby was the first man to solve this
moth question, and his public assertion
that strong colonies were able to protect
themselves against the ravages of the
moth, was received at first with derision.
Dr. Marshall had used the Quinby
frame seven inches deep, and secured
more honey, and induced the bees to en-
ter the upper chamber with less diflSculty
than with the deeper frames. His ex-
perience is that a shallow frame is the
best. He exhibited a Langstroth frame
six inches deep, which he was willing to
endorse as the most practical frame,
and he was thoroughly convinced that
ten frames of this size was large enough
for the brood-chamber, and if he were
going to engage in the business again,

. 652

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

for either comb or extracted honey, he
would use a Quinby frame, six inches
deep.

The progress that bee-culture has
made since he began the business, has
been greater than it could ever be dur-
ing our time, or that of the present gen-
eration.

On the subject of adulteration he
boldly and severely criticized Mr. Per-
rine to whom he sold 20,000 pounds of
pure honey, which the purchaser adul-
terated and sold.

He explained the method of adulterat-
ing comb honey, and recounted an ex-
periment he had made with glucose. He
took glucose one-third, and extracted
honey two-thirds, put his bees in con-
finement, and soon had all his beautiful
combs filled with nice honey (?). It
killed all his bees within three weeks !
From this he concluded that if it killed
his bees in three weeks, it would kill a
man at once, if he ate it.

He paid a tribute of respect to the
honesty and integrity of the bee-keepers
of Texas, more especially to the mem-
bers of the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Association ; he praised the zeal and
courage exhibited during the bad sea-
sons, and insisted that we must not be-
come discouraged when the seasons
failed. He and Bro. Graham had been
in the habit of selecting new men, who,
in their opinion, would make successful
bee-keepers ; some they would conclude
were in the business for the money —
money without work — others were will-
ing to work, and learn the ways and
nature of the bees, and to study the best
methods of practical management; they
had never been disappointed, as the
former class had long since given up the
pursuit, and drifted into other employ-
ment, while the latter were among the
brightest lights in bee-culture to-day.

To make bee-keeping the most profit-
able, we must curtail expenses, get the
cheapest hive and fixtures, which will
give the easiest access to the hive and
manipulation of the bees, and the best
results.

He has been working for some time to
institute a bee-keepers' experiment sta-
tion at the agricultural college, which
shall provide for a lecturer on practical
and scientific bee-culture, in connection
with a sufficient apiary to illustrate
practical bee-keeping. While he had
been able to accomplish but little toward
it, yet he had received considerable en-
couragement.

A rising vote of thanks was tendered
to Dr. Marshall for his interesting and
able lecture. — {Corwluded next week.)

The Right Time to Transfer Bees.

The question is frequently asked,
" When is the best time to transfer bees
from box to frame hives ?" To this the
usual answer is, "Fruit-blooming time."
The books say so, and we all have been
taking it for granted that it is true,
but my experience now says it is not
true, and that we have all been making
mistakes in transferring at that time.

The reasons given for transferring at
that time are, that there are fewer bees
and less honey then than at any other
time. It is true there are fewer bees,
but it is not true that there is less honey.
My experience is that between fruit-
blooming and clover-blooming, bees con-
sume stores rapidly in brood-rearing,
and that they have less stores at the be-
ginning of clover-blooming than at any
other time ; and the fact that there are
more bees then than at fruit-blooming is
a strong point in favor of transferring
at that time.

The more bees there are when trans-
ferred, the quicker they will build up,
and the better it is for them.

Last spring I transferred a number of
colonies in fruit-blooming time, and
some at the beginning of clover bloom-
ing. None of those transferred in apple-
blooming built up in time for the honey-
flow, but nearly all of those transferred
at the opening of clover bloom stored a
surplus. The reasons for the difference
are apparent. There is always some
loss of brood in transferring, and a
check in the work of the queen. The
brood and eggs at fruit-blooming time
make the workers on white clover, and
if destroyed in transferring at that time,
the loss is felt in the honey crop.

The brood and eggs at the beginning
of clover bloom do not make workers in
time for the honey-flow from that
source ; and their loss is no loss to the
honey crop, but rather a gain, for they
would be consumers and not producers.
If bees and not honey is the object, bet-
ter results can be obtained by transfer-
ring at the beginning of clover bloom.

H. F. Coleman.

Sneedville, Tenn.

Handling the Gentle Hybrids.

Every authority I ever consulted sets
down the hybrid as a vicious bee. I
have not found it so. I have now hand-
led all kinds, from those that the traces
of yellow bands were so slight that I
just called them blacks, up to the light-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

653

est 3-banded, and while the Italians are
the quietest, and blacks the most nerv-
ous, the hybrids sting the least with me.
In fact, I have had one colony of hybrids
that never would, and never did, sting
at all. But after they swarmed and
reared a new queen, I found a different
"breed of cats" in that hive. Now
they know when well used, and can sting
if they want to.

The blacks have a way of stinging
those that go near the hives, especially
strangers, when they are not touched or
molested ; but when the hive is quietly
opened, they are veritable cowards. The
Italians are not frightened by opening
the hive properly, so long as they can
cling to the comb and protect the brood ;
but let the day be cool or cloudy, with
no honey coming in, and these " gentle
butterflies " will get in more stings to
the second than any hybrid or black I
ever struck, as they go straight to the
mark with a perfect abandon. Of course
I have tried to see how far I could go
with them, but any one who would
handle bees at an improper time, or in
an improper way, deserves to be stung.

I now find all so gentle and easily
managed that I wonder that it took me
years of study and months of practice to
get sense enough in my head so that the
• hair thereof would not rise right up at
the thoughts of opening a bee-hive.

I wish some of those who have nice
queens to kill because their workers are
cross, would let me know, and send
them to me ; or that some one who has
Cyprian queens would advertise in the
Bee Jouknal. I do believe that if I
could get some bees that would defend
their hives from thieves here in Florida,
in the summer when I am gone, I should
be enabled to become an extracted
honey specialist in Florida, as well as
comb honey in New Hampshire, and pay
up a life-long subscription to the Ameri-
can Bee Journal.

Grasmere. Fla. E. B. Whipple.

Amerikanische Bienenzucht is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we' now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated ; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 643 ?

The Be§t Position for the En-
trance to a Hive.

Query 872.— 1. Which is the best positiou
for the entrance to a hive— at its side, so the
bees on entering- pass under the middle of the
bottom-bar of the frames, or at the end of the
hive, so the bees pass under the end of the
frames? 2. Why?- J. B.

1. No difference. — J. P. H. Brown.

1. I don't know. — J. H. Larrabee.

1. The end. 2. Reason it out your-
self.— Will M. Barnum.

1. I do not think it makes any differ-
ence.— Mrs. L. Harrison.

1. I have the entrance at the ends of
the frames. — G. M. Doolittle.

1. If there is any difference, I have
not learned it. — P. H. Elwood.

1. It doesn't make any difference.
Our bees work in both ways. — E.
France.

1. Bee-keepers are not agreed on this.
2. Try both ways, and see for yourself.
— A. B. Mason.

1. The bees enter at the end of the
frames, as the passage-way is clearer. —
J. M. Hambaugh.

1. I have tried both kinds, and can
see no difference, yet I prefer the en-
trance at the end of the hive. — H. D.
Gutting.

1. I never could see that it made a bit
of difference, though I have had both
styles of hives side by side for years. —
A. J. Cook.

1. At the end. 2. They can readily
ascend any comb to dispose of the load
brought in, and it affords better ventila-
tion.— Mrs. J. N. Heater.

1. I believe it has been long ago de-
cided that it makes no practical differ-
ence at what point bees enter a hive, so
that the entrance is ample. — G. L.
Tinker.

1. I prefer to have the bees enter at
the ends of the frames. 2. This ar-

654

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

rangement brings the center combs
more directly in range of the entrance.
Another reason is, that in winter the
bees will cluster near the entrance, and
from that position, if the entrance is at
the side of the combs, the stores are not
so accessible from the position of the
cluster. — M. Mahin.

1. I have used a good many both
ways, and I never observed any differ-
ence in the prosperity of the colonies.
2. I prefer, though, the entrance always
at the end of the frames, because I do
not want to level the hive both ways. —
Eugene Secor.

1. At the end. 2. Because the bees,
having a tendency to store their sup-
plies at the opposite side or end from
the entrance, can, in the winter, move
towards their supplies much more con-
veniently along the frames than across
them. — R. L. Taylor.

1. It does not make very much differ-
ence, and perhaps both plans have ad-
vantages. 2. The side-opening is best
in cold, stormy weather, and the end
plan is perhaps the better when bees are
gathering honey. This is, however, an
"open question." — C. H. Dibbern.

1. I do not see why it would be any
difference. But I think the entrance
should extend the full length of the side
or end on which it is, as we have noticed
the bees always enter at the point
nearest opposite to where they expect to
deposit their load. — Jas. A. Stone.

1. I dont think it makes any great
difference. What Gallup hives I have,
the entrance is under the sides of the
frames, and in the Langstroth hives
under the ends. 2. Some claim that the
wind has less effect on colonies where
the entrance is at the side of the frame.
— S. I. Freeborn.

1. We prefer an end entrance. This
question has been much debated in Eu-
rope, the frames with opening on the
end being called "cold frames," while
those with opening on one side are
called "warm frames." 2. There are
arguments pro and con to both methods.
— Dadant & Son.

1. I use the entrance at the end of
the hive ; I don't know that it possesses
any advantages over a side entrance. 2.
As I use a Langstroth hive, I prefer the
entrance in the end ; the hives present a
handsomer appearance, and are more
convenient to handle when the entrance
is so placed. — J. E. Pond.

1. At the end. 2. It is better for
various reasons, that the hive should

have a slight slant toward the entrance.
This is not practicable with the en-
trance at the side. There is better com-
munication between the entrance and
all parts of the hive, and it is much
easier to work with a hive having the
entrance at the end. — James A. Green.

1. I have hives in the yard now that
the bees enter both ways, and I cannot
tell any difference. In fact, I do not
know as it makes any particular differ-
ence when the bees enter, but I have a
notion that I would rather have them
enter at the ends of the frames. — Mrs.
Jennie Atchley.

1. I don't care whether it's at the side
or end of the hive, so it's at the end of
the frames — what's called the cold ar-
rangement. 2. For one thing the bees
get to all parts of the hive more readily,
but enough is that both ways have been
tried, and nearly all agree on the cold
arrangement. You can use just which
y9u like. — C. C. Miller.

1. The end. 2. All hives should slope
toward the entrance, and it would not
be very convenient to have the entrance
in the side. Then it throws the center
of the brood-nest farther away from the
entrance, which is very important in
early spring. The bees also like to build
their comb pointing to the entrance. We
assume that the frames hang lengthwise
of the hive. There are some people who
are content to handle a lot of short
frames. They might disagree with me.
— Emerson T. Abbott.

1. I prefer the entrance at the end of
the frames. 2. That " Why ?" is mighty
short, but the answer must be long to
cover the grounds, and I can't go over
the points here. It is sufficient to point
out the fact that when bees are at work,
passing in and out of the hive, and it
becomes necessary to open the hive — as
it often does at such times — it retards
the work, and bothers the bees more to
open "gaps" in their nest crosswise
than to open them lengthwise. This is
only one point. — G. W. Demaree.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— The
second edition of Dr. Tinker's new book
is now ready to send out. It gives his
New Management complete, and three
years of added experience in its use by
himself and other bee-keepers. Several
new illustrations have been added, be-
sides much new matter in regard to the
use of perforated zinc. Price, 25 cents,
postpaid, or clubbed with the Bee Jour-
nal for one year for $1.15.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

655

kAi

-■^■^■^■^■^■^■^■^^■^^^■^^^■J>..^.^^

iSpriiig Uniting^ of Bees Clearly
Explained.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY O. M. DOOLITTLE.

A correspondent writes: " My bees
are suffering from spring dwindling, so
tliat my colonies are quite weak, and
will not be strong enough to work to ad-
vantage when the honey harvest arrives.
What shall I do with them ? Shall I
unite them now, or what shall I do ?
Please reply through the Amebican Bee

JOUKNAL."

Several years ago, when I wished to
unite bees that were wealj in the spring,
I did so early in the season, as nearly all
the writers of that time said I should do
it then, as two of the weak colonies
would make one strong one. That the
uniting of two weak colonies to make
one strong one would be a profitable un-
dertaking, no one would deny ; still, that
uniting must make the one better than
each of the two would have been when
the honey harvest arrives, or we would
better not touch them.

After practicing the plans as given
for a year or two, I became convinced
that colonies thus formed were no better
at the end of two weeks than each one
would have been if left separate. I have
put as high as seven remnants of colo-
nies together in April, the seven making
a good colony at the time, and in a
month all were dead. After coming to
the -conclusion that I could not unite
bees with profit early in the spring, I
adopted the following plan, which has
proven very successful with me :

About the middle of April, some cool
morning, I looked over all of my bees by
removing the cap and raising the cover-
ing a little, so I can see how strong in
bees the colonies are, and all that do not
occupy four spaces between the combs
are marked, and the first warm day are
shut on as many combs as they have
brood in, and a division-board placed in

hive so as to contract it to suit the size
of th« colony. Honey enough is pro-
vided to keep them amply for two weeks,
and the rest of the combs I store away
for safe keeping. The entrances are
contracted so as to let but one bee pass
at a time, for the smallest colonies,
while the larger ones do not have more
than an inch in length of entrance given
them.

The next work is to increase the brood
as fast as possible in these small colo-
nies. I keep them shut on the combs
first given them, until they are filled
with brood clear down to the bottom,
before they are given more room. As
soon as this is accomplished, I give them
a comb of honey having the cappings to
the cells broken by passing a knife flat-
wise over them, placing this frame of
honey between two full combs of brood.
In about a week this comb will be filled
with brood as full as the others.

I go over them once a week in this
way until I have five frames of brood in
the strongest, when I take a frame of
brood just hatching, from those having
five full frames, and give it to the next
strongest, say one that has four frames,
putting a frame of honey fixed as before
in the place where it came from. Thus
I keep working until all of them contain
five frames of brood, which should occur
from the 10th to the 15th of June, in
this locality.

I now go to hive No. 1 and open it,
looking the frames over until I find the
one the queen is on, when it is set out-
side of the hive, and the four remaining
frames, with all of the adhering bees,
are taken to No. 2. I next spread apart
the frames in hive No. 2, so as to set the
four frames brought from No. 1 in each
alternate space made by spreading the
frames in No. 2, when the hive is closed.
In a few days this colony is ready for
the surplus arrangement, and will event-
ually make as good a colony for storing
section honey as the best of the stronger
ones — at least such has been my experi-
ence so far. I have never known the
bees to quarrel, nor a queen to be
harmed by this plan of uniting, as the
bees and brood are so completely mixed
up that they do not know what to fight
about.

But to return to No. 1, where the
frame with bees, queen and brood were
left standing outside of the hive : I now
place this frame back in the hive, and
put an empty frame with a foundation
starter in it beside the same, adjusting
the division-board, when I have a nucleus
to be used for any purpose I may wish.
Many of the old bees carried to hive No.

656

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

2 will return, thus making the nucleus
a strong one, which will fill the empty
frame with nice, straight worker-comb
in a few days, and still others, if the
queen is left long enough. By the way,
let me say that such colonies will build
at a less expense than is required to pur-
chase and fill frames with comb founda-
tion, thus a saving is made along this
line.

If I wish no increase of colonies dur-
ing the season, I serve the whole apiary
as I did Nos. 1 aud 2, beginning early
enough to be sure that none have brood
in more than five frames. By putting
sections on the strongest just before the
apple-blossoms appear, quite a few sec-
tions are often filled from this source, as
the bees must store honey in the sections
if anywhere when shut on five frames.

It will be seen that I use nine frames
in a hive, but the plan is the same with
any number of frames. This having
every frame in a hive crowded to the
fullest capacity with brood two weeks
before the honey harvest has much to
do with a good yield of honey. This is
the condition all should aim to have
their colonies in, and in the above I
have tried to tell how it can be done
even with the weaker colonies.

Borodino, N. Y.

^ * m

Terrible Experience witli Ant§
in Hives.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY E. S. LOVESY.

Ho, for something to exterminate
those everlasting ants ! I write this
hoping that some of our bee-keeping
friends may know of something that
will exterminate those pests. If any
one has a remedy that will successfully
accomplish this, he will receive the
thanks of many bee-keepers in this sec-
tion. I would be willing to pay liberally
for a recipe that will insure their de-
struction. With me it has been a long
and sore struggle, and many times it
has looked doubtful which would win,
myself or the ants.

Winter losses and the destruction by
those little tormentors have been the
only serious drawbacks we have had in
this locality. They destroyed 8 colonies
for me last season, besides weakening
others. They go all over and all through
the hives. Wo have had them by the
hundred million. I could not take hold
of a hive, box or can, that had honey in,
but I would have them running over me

by the hundred, and sometimes 10 to 15
nipping me at once. The only thing a
person can do is to drop everything and
fight. People may not swear under
such conditions, but they would be more
than human if they did not think it.

In June, 1892, it looked as though
they might destroy every colony in the
apiary. The last two colonies that I
lost ^n" Tuesday, I saw the ants were
working in them, and I washed them off
with coal-oil, and thought possibly the
bees might get along all right ; but on
the Friday morning after, although they
were both strong colonies, there was not
one bee left !

As far as I can discover, the ant bites
the bee, and sometime it dies around the
hive, but the most of them fly off with
the ant, and never return. Sometimes,
when I lift the hive-cap off, there will
be more ants than bees in the hive. The
bees seem to be afraid of them, and
when the ant takes hold of the bee it
usually rises and flies ofif, and thus they
soon clean out the hive.

I have tried everything I could think
of, or hear of — borax, salt, blue vitriol,
green coperas, salt petre, Paris green,
and coal-oil ; of those I found coal-oil to
be the best, but if they once get started
in the hive, it will not keep them off
unless you pour it on two or three times
a day.

But finally I built stands from 12 to
18 inches high, then I got a lot of tar
and painted them with the tar, which
keeps them off. I then went to fighting
them on the outside, but at times I al-
most felt like giving up.

One day I felt very discouraged, when
a friend came along — a friend, oh, dear,
no! "Well," says he, "you need not
worry about those ants. I can teil you
what will kill off every last one of them."
I felt for a moment like shouting,
" Halleluia ! is deliverance so nigh ?"

Says he, " Take a bit of that vitriol,
or some carbolic acid, and pry their
mouths open, and see that they swallow
it, and it will kill them every time !"

Please do not think me ungrateful
when I say that I did not even thank
him !

All are probably aware that here in
Utah we raise our crops by irrigation. I
had a potato patch in my garden last
year, which was one solid ant-bed ; they
seemingly liking the loose soil and the
shade of the potato tops. I took a large
hoe and the irrigation water once a
week, for 3 weeks, and mixed the ants'
eggs and soil like mortar. This process
seems to bo too much for them, for they
cannot get out of it. I believe that I

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

657

destroyed in this way over two bushels
of ants and eggs, and where we could
use it we have destroyed them with boil-
ing water. Chickens also pick up many
of them, but it would be very desirable
to get something that would clean them
out entirely.

They are small, black ants, about
S/IQ of an inch long. It is impossible
to keep them out of a jar or can of any
kind, unless it is tightly corked, or a
cloth tied around it. Ours is the worst
locality known for these ants.

Salt Lake City, Utah.

§oine Suggestions Against Dis.
cussing Honey Adulteration.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY A. C. TYRKEL.

The discussion about the adulteration
of honey, in my opinion, cannot be con-
demned in too severe measures.

The idea of bee-keepers advertising to
the world, through the bee-papers, that
honey is adulterated, is preposterous
and absurd.

How indignant we were when a cer-
tain Professor gave vent to his little
pleasantry (pleasant lie), about the
manufacture of comb honey from par-
afiSn, and language was not forcible
enough to express our contempt for the
author thereof ; but what has already
been published on the above subject
will be more damaging to the pursuit
than all that Prof. Wiley ever said or
published upon the subject of adultera-
tion.

Take a fine selection of pure comb and
extracted honey to your merchant, and
say to him : " In this degenerate age
comb honey is filled with sugar syrup,
and the extracted article is largely glu-
cose— let me sell you some pure honey."
Will he buy ? No. But with a little
modification, that is just what many
illustrious honey-producers are saying
to the world — giving it the widest pub-
licity possible. Is it because they want
to say something f

In the name of common-sense (if there
is such a thing) how can we educate the
"dear people" to eat honey — no, our
manufactured (?) stuff? Give us the
names of the persons or firms putting
the manufactured material on the mar-
ket.

Who ever saw a sign over a church
door bearing this strange device ? — " Do
not enter here, and partake of the bless-
ings of Christianity, for thousands of

so-called professing Christians are base
deceivers, hypocrites." Whoever read
in twelve consecutive numbers of church
periodicals a caption in large head-lines
like this ? — " Another good brother
strayed from the fold." Are the names
and addresses of church members who
have been guilty of selling shoddy goods
and adulterated articles of commerce,
well knowing them to be such, published
to the world ? and do they seek to build
up the churches, to induce sinners to
enter the fold, by continually deploring
the wickedness of the flock ? I think
not. Bee-keepers appear to be trying
to build up a business by cussing the
cussedness of other bee-keepers.

Did you ever notice the weah points of
a mowing-machine brought prominently
before the would-be purchaser by the
manufacturer or agent? Did you ever
see all the large berries put in the bot-
tom of a basket of fruit offered for sale ?
Did you ever see all the wormy apples
placed on top of the measure ? Did you
ever see a farmer put all his best wheat
in the bottom of his wagon-bed, the
small potatoes on top of his load brought
to market ? I guess not. Did you ever
see eggs in a grocery labeled: "These
eggs are not fresh." Nay, verily. Did
you ever see at your green grocers, fruit
labeled, "Picked last week ;" stacks of
pails of gelatine called "raspberry or
strawberry jelly ?" Yea, verily.

I am at a loss to know why at this
time bee-keepers are singled out and set
up as a target to be beaten down and
ruined by the poisoned darts of their
enemies, whilst others guilty of graver
offences are not molested. Granting,
for argument's sake, that syrup is sold
for honey, it is exasperating to us who
have never sold an ounce of honey not
strictUy pure, to be even suspected of
adulterating our honey. I repeat again
that the evil can never be righted, for
prominent bee-keepers have confessed
that honey is adulterated — no more con-
vincing testimony can be produced in
court.

How can we best protect ourselves ?
By placing our bee-papers under lock
and key, and not allow our neighbors to
read them as formerly. We can sell no
more bees, for honest men will not com-
pete with those who can produce an in-
ferior article at half the cost. I think
Eastern producers must feel happy (?)
over the havoc they have wrought, if all
they have heretofore published is true.

Man never has, nor can he ever induce
bees to store any substance in combs in
the least injurious to the system in suffi-
cient volume to pay for the labor of pre-

658

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

paring the decoction. I speak advisedly
when I assert that if bees had free ac-
cess to a barrel of any kind of manu-
factured syrup, so tainted with sulphuric
acid or anything deleterious to our
stomachs, they would not store the stuff
in the brood-chamber or supers. Why
not ? Because the entire apiary would
become diseased and die before half the
barrel had been carried away.

If honey is adulterated, charge the
blame to the extractor ; this has made it
possible ; it is one invention that never
should have been invented.

The Paddock Pure Food Bill is all
right in its intent and purpose, but it
never can be enforced without employ-
ing a horde of salaried officers to carry
out its provisions. We have a law in
Nebraska providing for the inspection
of coal oil, but the vilest oil is sold all
over the State with impunity. Of the
making of laws there is no end ; laws
for the regulation of the liquor traffic,
and to prevent adulteration ; regulating
and stamping out foul brood, and for the
protection of our apiaries. We have
laws for the protection of society, and
certain criminals are speedily punished
(if caught).

In certain cases we can make use of
the damn um writ {Ad quod damnum) ,
if our rights are infringed upon. We
have laws, good, bad, and indifferent,
but they cannot be enforced as intended.
What every State is in need of, is fewer
laws, and the better enforcement thereof.

If the Paddock Bill becomes a law
(and I hope it will), let the provisions of
the Bill cover every article manufac-
tured, imported and sold in this country,
labels attached to such articles at the
producers expense, something like the
following :

" These Eggs have been Set on Two
Weeks."

" This Milk Contains Water."

"This Cow was 12 Years Old at the
Time of Her Demise."

" This Pig was a Hog Once on a Time."

" This Veal was 7 Years Old."

"The Wormy Apples are at the Bot-
tom of this Barrel." t

"This Butter, Now Sold at 50 Cents,
was Worth but 6 Cents Per Pound when
Packed."

" This Pepper is Half P's."

"This 'All Wool' Suit is Half
Shoddy."

"This Undershirt is Half Cotton."

"This Mustard is Mixed with Corn-
Meal."

" This is Glucose Syrup."

" This is Not Cider Vinegar."

"This Baking Powder is Composed of
Ammonia and Other Vile Drugs."
" This Chicken is 5 Years Old."
" This Beer is Made of Aloes, Tobacco,
Burnt Umber, and a Little Malt."

Now, Mr, Editor, I hope you will pub-
lish the foregoing in the interest of
honest bee-keepers.

Madison, Nebr.

[Well, Mr. Tyrrel, we have now pub-
lished your article, but, for the life of
us, we don't see how keeping still when-
ever fraud, corruption and murder are
going on, will help matters any. Some
one has said that "Silence gives con-
sent," and unless we want to be counted
on the side of evil-doers we must speak
out against them and their deviltry.

When some one within the fold has
been pretty clearly suspicioned as guilty
of criminality, we think that at least
those immediately associated with him
should be warned of his character, as
well as the outside world ; especially so
if the world is to be protected, and also
those within the fold. We care not
whether you apply this to chtlrch, or
other organization or fraternity.

We most assuredly believe in denounc-
ing evil at all times, and in all places
whferever found, no matter whether it
strikes friend or foe ; if friend, so much
the worse for his hypocrisy. We don't
care to have any "friends" among evil-
doers. Again we can safely fall back
upon our motto — " Do right and fear no
one " — and hope, and work, and pray
that all others may also adopt it as
their rule in life. — Ed.]

■^^-^■^m.

§oine Profitable Lessons from
«« the Blessed Bees."

Writteit for the ''Iowa Homestead''''
BY EUGENE SECOR.

This is the time iq the year when the
enthusiastic novice in apiculture fondly
listens to the " hum, sweet hum," of the
cheerful, sportive bee, and imagines
that this old world was never quite so
inviting before. The earth, that has
been in icy chains for half a twelve-
month, is emerging from its prison-house
of snow and putting on its emerald gar-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

659

ments. As he watches the business-
like movements and ceaseless activity
of the denizen of the hive, he pictures
to himself large profit from her proverb-
ial industry. He mentally clothes the
earth with flowers, and sees them over-
flowing with nectar for the benefit of
his winged pets, and, therefore, for his
own enrichment.

The music of a well-stocked apiary is,
at this season, in-esistibly fascinating.
After six months of death-like stillness
one must be devoid of the finer emotions
of the soul not to be charmed by the
bursting buds, the singing birds and
humming bees — all evidences of the
earth's resurrected and rejuvenated life-
lessness.

Performing her part in the yearly re-
creation, the bee leaves her home nest
these bright April mornings, as though
born with a will to accomplish some-
thing. She darts up and away as if a
treasure had been discovered that must
be forthwith appropriated or forever
lost. She plunges into the first crocus
blossom she finds, with an apparent de-
termination to carry home all the wealth
of its golden treasury before her ambi-
tious and acquisitive neighbors have
found its tempting morsel.

But her "sisters, her cousins and her
aunts" are equally alert, equally enter-
prising. They did not stay at home to
clean house, nor loaf around a well-filled
larder when the choice of field work in
the blessed April sun was offered them.
So they are all abroad. The whole tribe
of Apis melifica are out for an airing,
except a few trained and trusty nurses
that remained at home to look after the
babies and keep up the spirits of the
mother - bee. (For you know that
neither business nor pleasure must
tempt us away from the cradles — the
hope and stay of future generations.)

My! what music they make! Their
wings seem attuned to heavenly sym-
phonies. Cris-cross through the path-
less air they ride, each on her heaven-
appointed mission, each doing her
mightiest to fulfill the law of her being —
work. What wonder if the observant
student of nature catches inspiration
from her matchless activity, her cheer-
ful blending of labor and enjoyment,
and paints the realities of life a little
brighter hue in consequence of her ex-
ample. What wonder if the grass looks
greener, the skies softer and the flowers
more lovely, as he notes her ready ac-
quiesence in the work assigned her,
whether it be for her own benefit or for
generations yet unborn. Devotion to
the good of her kind is her chief joy.

Sing on, ye happy workers ! There's
no music like the hum of contented in-
dustry. We hail you as evangels of the
doctrine that labor is not necessarily
irksome, nor a curse upon mankind—
that work may be a blessing to the
laborer, and productive of the highest
enjoyment, if we accept it willingly and
cheerfully as you.

May we, like you, do with our might
what our hands find to do.

Forest City, Iowa.

An Experience in Keeping Bum.
ble-Bees, Elc.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY II. F. KEELER.

I am old in bee-experience, and know
but little about the "bird" yet, but
having given my attention extensively
to a variety of bees not mentioned in the
Bee Journal, I feel constrained to give
a brief description of them, and the net
profits of their culture for a term of
years.

About 50 years ago, my father being
an apiarist in a limited way, I, by con-
stant contact with the business, became
interested in a small way, and at that
time (circumstances change) I had suf-
ficient caution to adapt my enterprises
to my age and limited means, being
about 10 or 12 years old.

Father's bee-house was constructed to
contain more hives than he had, so I
appropriated the balance without rent.
This may have contributed somewhat to
my success as an apiarist.

I constructed my hives of 3^-inch
stuff, 4 inches square, and 5 inches
deep, inside measurement, standard
size, with a K-inch hole half way from
top to bottom on the front side, as an
entrance for the bees. After stocking
up the bee-house with 8 or 10 hives —
during my labors in spreading hay — I
made it a point to locate the strongest
and most profitable varieties of bee-
nuclei for transfer at nightfall. I soon
had my apiary complete by transferring
the entire brood-nest to my hive intact,
which was done by lifting the comb with
honey and brood surrounded by an an-
cient mouse-nest, and placing it in my
hive.

It should be remembered that the suc-
cess of this work depends largely upon,
1st, so placing the comb in the hive that
the cells point toward the zenith; 2nd,
to place the bee-entrance as it was con-

660

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

structed, opposite the bee-entrance of
the hive.

I confined myself to three varieties,
to-wit : The large yellow 5-banded bee,
which I found very domestic ; the hybrid
or 3-banded bee, which is smaller, bet-
ter breeder, and much better honey-pro-
ducer, but rather unpleasant to manip-
ulate. I next secured several hives of
the small black bee — great fighters,
good honey-gatherers, and all in all the
most profitable variety of the three. In
my selections I was careful to secure
only such bees as could take the nectar
from red clover.

I kept no diary of my venture, but
from memory I am able to give some of
the many points of superiority in my
bees, which are the " Bombus," or, as^
the unscientific herd would tell you that*
Eupatorium perfaliatiim was Boneset ;
so they would tell you my bees were
bumble-bees, but what's in a name? The
points of superiority that are most
marked in the Bombus and its hybrids
over the Italian and its hybrids are
these :

1st. The Bombus requires no prepara-
tion for winter, which is no small item
of expense.

2nd. You have no old black comb to
begin the next season with, which is un-
doubtedly a fruitful source of " foul
brood."

3rd. The Bombus bee selects its own
winter quarters, consequently you can
extract your entire stock of honey every
fall, as the comb is then free from
young brood.

4th. The Bombus bees are strictly non-
swarming. The time saved to the api-
arist and worker bee in this particular
is a fruitful source of revenue in a large
apiary.

5th. The Bombus bee never gathers
anything but the purest nectar, and
from the choicest bloom.

Query — Would not the total annihila-
tion of that filth gathering Italian, and
the general adoption of the Bombus bee
in its stead, be the most effective way to
rid the bee-journals of that stale subject
of adulterated honey, and of supplying
the markets of the world with the pure
nectar of the gods ?

I have but little charity for the man
of one idea. This trait led me of late
to temporarily lay aside the work of
Bombus bee-culture and substitute the
Italian. The change necessitated a
change in the construction of my hives,
and now in my second boyhood I find
myself trying to perfect a hive for the
better accommodation of the Italian
bee. After putting it to a thorough test

the coming summer, I propose to submit
it to the readers of the Bee Journal
for an opinion.

WINTERING BEES IN A GREEN-HOUSE.

I have converted my green-house,
10x24 feet, into winter quarters for my
bees. I covered the ground floor with
old leaves, then arranged my hives in a
row through the center, put a stove in
one end, and the entrance door in the
other. The ground floor did not freeze
the past winter, even near the door. The
south half of the roof is covered with
glass the same as for plant-raising in
the spring, making it equally as light as
for plants. Contrary to the light-ex-
cluding idea I have thrown on them all
the light they might get if in their native
tree or bee-hive out-of-doors, which I
believe to be the correct theory. When
they would begin to show any uneasi-
ness, I would raise the hive from the
bottom-board, clean it, then build a fire,
dry out the hive and building, and give
the bees a flight. They make the air
thick with their gambols, but go home
at night, after two days, and the hive
and green-house are dry. I then clean
out the litter, and replace it with clean,
dry straw, and shut them up again. I
gave them several flights the past win-
ter, and in my next I will give you the
result of my theory put to practice.

Anamosa, Iowa.

A De§cription of the New Crane
Bee-Smoker.

Writte7t for Oleatdtigs in Bee-Culture

BY ERNEST R. ROOT. ^

In the illustration to be found on page
646, will be seen the outward appear-
ance of the new Crane smoker, which
shows that it is beautiful in design, and
handsomely and well made. Indeed, It
is the most expensive in construction of
any smoker ever before put out. The
bellows, to begin with, is made ample
and substantial, having an Inside spiral
spring, J, Fig. 1. These springs have
been carefully tested : and on an exten-
sive test, with Clark smokers, we find
them to be, to coin a word, unbreakable,
and elastic. The boards are nicely fin-
ished on the outer surface, and the
valves are adjusted with great care,
each one being inspected before going
out.

So far, the smoker presents no new
ideas. The particular feature which
Mr. Crane claims as his Invention is the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

661

check-valve F, in coinbinatiou with C,
Fig. 2, by which smoke is prevented
from going into the bellows, and by
which a strong concentrated blast is
secured. Its details of construction are
shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The particular
valve is shown in F, Fig. 2. A stamped
canal, C, covers the whole, and is per-
forated at C. A pressure on the bellows
opens the valve F, and throws it tightly
against the hole C, leaving no exit for
the air to escape through the smoker-
cup. The moment the pressure is re-
leased fr'om the bellows, F drops down
into position, closing the hole and leav-
ing ventilation through C.
Thus it is that smoke cannot get into

New Crane Bee-Smoker.

the bellows, and thus it is that the full
power of the bellows is fully conserved ;
and so strong is the blast, that, no mat-
ter how much fuel may be crammed into
the cup A, the air has got to go through.
In other smokers of this class, there is
either no tube between the bellows and
fire-cup, or else, if there is one, it has
a sort of ventilating hole that soon be-
comes clogged up in consequence of the
air passing back through the bellows.
In the absence of a connecting tube, the
blast is necessarily very much weakened
when the smoker-cup is much crammed
with fuel, because not all of the air is
compelled to go through the cup.

Another feature is, that the smoker-
cup and nozzle, up to the ring B, in Fig.
1, is lined with asbestos, L, and sheet
steel, K, Figs. 2 and 3. The object of
this is to prevent the bright tin surfaces
from becoming too hot, and radiating
heat. This does away with the use of
projecting shields, that are in the way,
and more or less unsightly. This asbes-
tos and steel lining also prevents the in-
side of the cup from becoming too
thickly coated with creosote ; and it is
needless to say, that the smoker will last
longer thus lined, and that it will be
much easier to remove and to adjust the
cone B. The grate, I, Fig. 1, is secured
in a bead near the bottom of the cup,
and instead of having large perforations
that let hot coals drop through more or
less, the holes are very small — a trifle
larger than that which would be made
by a darning-needle through a piece of
paper. In the old-style smokers, the
grate-holes must be large to let the
weak blast through.

The fire-cup itself is fastened to the
bellows by means of very neat and
strong folded-tin legs. The cup can at
any time be released by means of four
screws ; so also, in a similar manner
can the canal covering the special
check-valve.

The new smoker presents also still
another feature. The bellows is re-
versed, the large end being upward.
But there would be no advantage in re-
versing the bellows were it not for the
fact that the nozzle is curved, as shown
in Figure 1. This makes is neces-
sary to twist the hand out of the natural
and easy position. By always holding
the smoker in an upright position, a
stream of smoke may be sent at right
angles to the plane of the bellows, with-
out disturbing the contents of the fire-
cup, and this will avoid throwing sparks.
A little practice in manipulating this
smoker will show that this combination
of bellows and curved snout is the thing.
We will suppose that the smoker is
standing on the ground. The hand
grasps it in the natural way, brings the
nozzle above the edge of the hive, and a
couple of whiflfs, without twisting the
hand in the least, sends a stream of
smoke over the frames.

This smoker has been submitted, in its
less perfect form, to Dr. Miller and
others. The Doctor was greatly pleased
with it, as were also the others.

■ ^

Bees and Honey" — see page 643.

662

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL,.

Building Up Colonies for
Honey-FIou^.

the

Written for the American Bee Journal
^Y K. F. HOLTERMANN

The late meeting of our county bee-
keepers' association and an address
upon the above subject by the able
President of our Ontario Bee-Keepers'
Association, Mr. F. A. Gemmill, of
Stratford, Ont., has brought several
questions before me. Being in the chair
upon that occasion, I was unable to ex-
press my views ; the subject being sea-
sonable, permit me to say a few words.

There is nothing like natural stores
for bees during the spring of the year —
plenty of honey given the previous au-
tumn is the best way of feeding a colony
in the spring ; but if there is not an
abundance of honey in the hive, ?ind
sealed combs of honey cannot be given,
I should say, give the weak colonies
sealed stores out of the strong, and feed
the strong colonies a syrup made of
equal parts of sugar and water, with the
slight addition of honey. The honey fed
should first be well boiled, particularly
is this advisable if the honey is not your
own, but even if it is, you may have foul
brood in the apiary without knowing it,
and when with a little care risk may be
avoided, do so.

To feed from the top by means of a
Hill or Gem feeder, is probably the bet-
• ter way. Mr. Gemmill cuts a hole in
the quilt, and upon this places a piece
of wire-cloth nailed on, and a rim upon
this ; the feeder is inverted, and the
bees can take the food through the wire-
cloth, but cannot fly up when the feeder
is removed for the purpose of refilling.

No colony can be too strong for the
honey-flow, or too early. If the bees
cannot remain contentedly in the body
of the hive, I put on a super, allowing
the queen full swing in it, and if this is
not sufficient, I add supers. At the be-
ginning of the honey-flow the queen
can, by changing a few combs, be con-
fined below the queen-excluder, in the
body of the hive. Any surplus from
spring blossoms is better consumed in
brood-rearing than to extract it and
throw it upon the market at a low
figure.

Unless one colony is queenless, it is
perhaps not well to unite— sooner build
up weak colonies, and near the honey-
flow unite them, or the brood. To build
up weak colonies at the expense of the
strong, should never be dreamed of.

I would like to have all colonies

packed above during the spring, and
until all danger from cold nights has
passed away ; but it is quite a trouble
and expense, and I cannot always do as
I would like to do. This spring I have
used on top, first the sealed cover, then
one or two thicknesses of paper, finally
a cushion filled with absorbents or min-
eral wool. I have an idea, if the cost is
not too great, and I think not, that this
article has a great future before it, for
the purpose of winter and spring pack-
ing of bees. The above protection, with
a properly regulated entrance, is all I
give a strong colony.

The weaker ones I try to pack in win-
ter cases, and in this way help them to
make the best use of the warmth they
produce. Some would argue that when
a colony is weak in the spring, the in-
dications are that the queen is a poor
one. There can surely be no reason
why this should be the case. There is
no necessity for destroying such a
queen — she may be good, and she may
not, and the question should be tested
before coming to a conclusion.

Many, very many, have failed to make
a success of spreading brood. No novice
should attempt such until settled warm
weather, and even then it should be un-
dertaken with caution. As a rule, the
colony will enlarge the brood-chamber
quickly enough, but there is a time
when, to a certain extent, spreading
brood can be practiced with success.
The best method is to turn the combs
on the outer side of the cluster ; about
that is the sides towards the center of
the hive turned towards the outer side.
By so spreading it is done gradually,
and no great harm can result.

Brantford, Ont.

COWYEKTIOiy DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

May 25.— Capital, at Springfield, Ills.

C. E. yocom, Sec, Sherman, Ills.

June 16, 17.— S. E. Kansas, at Bronson, Kans.
J. C. Balch, Sec, Bronson, Kans.

Oct. 11, 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicago, Ills.
Frank Benton, Sec. Washington, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,

Becretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting.— The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Assoolatlon

President— Dr. C. C. MUler Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury , Vt.

Secretary— -Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

663

The Soldier's Grave.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY C. J. ROBINSON.

Breathe not a whisper here :
The place where thou dost stand is hallowed

ground ;
In silence gather near this upheaved mound-
Around the soldier's bier.

Here liberty may weep.
And freedom pause in her unchecked career,
To pay the sacred tribute of a tear.

O'er the pale warrior's sleep.

That arm now cold in death.
But late on glory's field triumphant bore
Our country's flag ; that marble brow once
bore

The victor's fadeless wreath.

Rest, soldier, sweetly rest ;

Affections gentle hand shall decli thy tomb

With flowers, and chaplets of unfading bloom

Be laid upon thy breast !

Richford, N. Y.

IXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXTXXXXXXXXXXXXXi

. Do not write anything for publication

on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Wintered Without any Loss.

My bees winteted well the past winter
with no loss. The first pollen they got this
spring was on April 3rd. We had a big
snow to day, and the hives are almost cov-
ered up with the snow, which is six inches
deep, on the level. G. W. Nance.

Anthon, Iowa, AprU 26, 1893.

Lost Only One Colony.

The bees here are nearly all blacks, and
mostly in box-hives, so of course they store
very little honey. Mine are Italians in
Simplicity hives. They did not do much
good last season, as it was too wet. A
great many bees have died here the past
winter. I wintered IS colonies with the
loss of only one, on the summer stands,
some in cliaff hives, and others packed in
chaff. I could not keep bees without the
Bee Journal. Winchester Riokel.

Burket, Ind.. April 25, 1893.

No Surplus Honey Last Year.

No surplus honey was obtained here last
summer. With all the best flowers in
bloom, I had to feed to get drones out to
fertilize queens. While clover, basswood
and Alsike were all blooming at the same
time, yet not a colony was in the upper
story. I have been reading the Bee Jour-
nal for 22 years ; here one writes, •' Clover
is all right." Which kind ? Where is the
clover, in his garden lot, in a pasture, or is
it every place ?

Excepp Dodge and Washington counties,
where white clover is grown for seed, the
outlook for this year is that it will take
almost a whole train to take it to market.
It yields from 2 to 11 bushels per acre, and
sells at from f4.50 to $10 per bushel. Fully
a fourth part of all the soil is left with this
clover this year. The fields look snow-
white in June, till July. Alsike is crowded
out on account of spoiling the other seed.
What this will do, is not in our power to
foretell yet.

What kind of bees are the most enduring
in this hard time ? I say of 8 Cyprian colo-
nies, 6 are up with bees and brood, while all
others seem to be losing in strength. I
wintered 44 colonies out of 47 the past win-
ter. John H. Guenther.

Theresa, Wis., AprU 29, 1893.

Stored but Little Surplus.

My bees did not store much surplus honey
last year. Over one-half of the bees died
the past winter in this part of the county.
One of my neighbors, who has been in the
bee-business for a number of years, had 65
colonies that he thought were in good con-
dition for winter, but he lost all but 12 or 14
of them. I put in 30 colonies into the cellar,
and they came out all right. I lost 3 colo-
nies out of 10 in double-hives, that I left on
the summer stands. Winter before last I
put 43 colonies into the cellar, and lost one.

D. B. Blair.

New Providence, Iowa, April 24, 1893.

Mrs. Smith Lends a Helping (?) Hand.

I notice some reports by lady bee-keepers
in the -Bee Journal, and as I come pretty
nearly being a bee-keeper, I thought I
would write for the benefit of some bee-
keepers' wives who may know no more
about bees than I did. Well, what I do
know I have learned by experience.

My husband has been in the bee-business
for four years, and has met with success so
far. He takes the Amsrican Bee Journal.
in which I often read a little, but thinking
there was not much to learn, I thought I
might assist him some. Well, yesterday
(April 12th) in the afternoon I had a
chance to try it.

Mr. Smith carried out on the summer
stands a few colouies, and theu he went
away on business. A very hard wind came
up. and took the cover off from one hive,
also the oil-cloth. Thinking that was not a
very pleasant way for bees to remain, I

664

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

thought I -would uow start to work among
the bees. So I went out. feeliug quite
brave. I walked right up. and tried to put
the cloth on. but. oh. you should have seen
those bees all come out of that hive as if
ready to swarm, and after me! Well. I
can assure you it did not tj\ke me long to
get into the house.

After fighting a while with those that
•were bold enough to foUow me right into
the house. I thought I would not l^ a cow-
ard, but would try it again. So I started,
feeling not quite so brave as liefore. but
better fixed for a fight, having enough
wrappings around me. and a large overcoat
in my hand, thinking that if I could not
cover them with the hiven'over. I would
throw that coat over the whole business,
and have them in safe and comfortable
until Mr. Smith would i-eturn.

Well. I did throw the coat over them, but
the l>ees came after me just the same as
before. For all that I trieii to do them
good. I received nothing but stings as pay :
and that is not all. when Mr. Smith came
laome I thought he would say. " How brave
you were, and how good to keep my pets
warm and comfortable:" but. instead, he
laughed, and went and got the coat. and.
to my surprise, the coat was almost covered
with' bees that had killed themselves by
stinging the coat.

I am unerly discouraged in the l>ee-busi-
ness. It reminds me of religion. I thought
I was doing right to the bees. and. through
ignorance, caused myself lots of pain, and
their death. Many Ivlieve. and think, they
are living right, but through ignorance lie-
cause they do not study the Bible to learn
the right way. they cause their own and
others" destruction : and sometimes if you
want to tell them, and do them good, they
will do just as the bees did unto me.

Plum City. Wis. Mk?. F. C. Smith.

Winter Losses frora Carelessness.

The past winter, in this locality, was one
that will be long remembered by bee-keep-
ers, on account of the heavy loss of bees. I
think that I am sjife in saying that 75 per
per cent, of the l>ees that were wintered
out-doors, in single-walled hives, are dead :
as several winters l>efore the one just past
have l^en very mild, and bees needed little
or no protection, therefore many of the
bee-keepers got a little careless, thinking
that the old-time winters were a thing of
the past, and now they regret the very
moment they alloweii such a thought to en-
ter their minds. I think that l^es will be
better careil for. for awhile, especially un-
til their keepers get careless, and another
Ivick-set that will take them several years
of labor to make up their loss.

I do not consider bees the worst proi>erty
a man can own. therefore I protect them
from the cold, winter storms. It always
looks strange to me to see people care for a
hog or a sheep and let the bees shift for
themselves, rsow. it is right to take good
care of and protect our stock, but while we
do this, let us not forget our little friends —
the honev-bees.

I wintered 11 colonies in the cellar, and

so far (March 14th^ in splendid condition.
I left 14 colonies outniooi-s. of which I lost
4. the cause being as follows :

Last fall I had a sale, and sold quite a
number of colonies. Some parties failed to
come after them, and those did not get any
protection : but the 10 colonies that have
wintered out-doors are in fair condition.
But I shall try a larger per cent, of my bees
in the cellar hereafter.

If those who keep bees, if but a few colo-
nies, would get some good bee-paper, such
as the Amekicax Bee Joirxal or GUttiiings
in Btt-CiiUiirc. it would be a great help to
them. As for me. I would not think of
doing without a good bee-paper to read, as
long as I keep bees.

Pioneer. Ohio. Cuakles E. Falkxer.

Bees Frozen in Tennesee.

The winter has been extremely bad here
in the South, freezing a large number of
bees to death in each colony. I did not lose
a colony, but a good many were queenless
this spring. The queens lost were all
blacks and hybrids, of which I had about
half. Tue Italians came through without
the loss of a single queen, the blacks being
in the l>est condition in the fall, so I am in-
clined to think the Italians will winter the
best here. The spring has been more favor-
able, and bees are breeding up faster than
last spring. We had a frost here on April
'24th ; the timber being green, the tenderest
vegetation was injured slightly.

R."A. Shultz.

Cosby, Tenn.. April 26. 1S93.

Bee-Diarrhea — Hardy Bees.

On page 531. Dr. Miller does not agree
with me about bee-diarrhea, and when he
disagrees with a person he does it in such a
pleasant way that it makes one love him
better. He says if the bees of which I spoke
could have had a flight in time, they might
have l^een saved. Now. all of those bees
were on the summer stands, and had lieen
all winter, and were traijsferred about I'v,
weeks before. They had a flight for nearly
every day for two or three weeks before
they died, it being very warm alx>ut that
time. They might have died of something
else. They had honey when I transferred
them, but they certainly had a terrible case
of the diarrhea, while all other colonies
were all right — all transferred about the
same time.

The most of my l^es are in Illinois. 60
miles from here, yet I have two colonies
here in lK>x-hives that I got in March : one
has a half-inch crevice in the top. front, and
two sides, and the other has a hole rotted
out on top. 5 inches wide across the box,
with nothing over it. It rained and snowed
in on tlie combs and bees all winter, and
sometimes the mercury was V2 degrees l>e-
low zero. Now. May 1st. they are very
strong colonies, and at work witli a vim,
with a few immature bees lying at the front
of the hive for a month or more, which is a

AMERICAN BEii JOURNAL.

665

true sign of a fertile queeu. Now if bees
cau live in that way all winter, they need
no chaft' hives nor cellar.

The Amehican Bee Journal is a welcome
visitor at my home. R. H. Hi mpukies.
Morganfield, Ky., May 1, 1893.

Snow and Bain — Wintered Well.

Bee-keeping has a dark side this spring.
April came with a few nice days, and then
it set in cold and windy. No pollen has
been gathered so far tliis spring, but the
first week in April I put out rye and wheat
flour. The first daj' my bees carried in
about 11 pounds of it, and in two daj-s they
carried in about 35 pounds. I had GO colo-
nies then. I struck the nail on the head
when I fed the flour. The sun has shone
only part of two days in the 14 days of the
last two weeks.

On April 18th it rained heavy for 24
hours and then it snowed for 40 hours — the
snowfell 18 inches deepen the level. The
j_ coldest was 4 degrees below freezing. My
bee-yard was a hard looking sight. A heavy
wind set in, and it drifted the snow badly,
the drifts being 4 to (J feet deep. It rains
every day — it is raining hard while I write
now. '

I put 68 colonies into the cellar last fall ;
one died, and one was weak. My bees
never came through in better condition,
and I have kept bees for 12 years. The
hives were chock-full of Ijees, when put out.
If this rainy weather holds out much longer,
it is going to be awfully hard on the bees.
The fields and low lands are flooded. My
bees were never in better condition for a
crop of honey, but everything looks dark
and gloomy now. C. A. Goouell.

Mankato, Minn., April 25, 1893.

Springing Bees — Stealing- Eggs.

I cannot but observe the many testi-
monials in the Bee Journal, giving their
good luck in wintering bees; how nicely
they came out on April 1st or 5th, with but
little (if any) loss ; and could they but tell
to-day, I fear the tenor would be very much
changed. For me, there is but very little
trouble in wintering. I wintered my bees
with scarcely 2 per cent, loss, but the
'"Springing," if I may use the expression, is
very much more severe for me, and I think
I can safely say the same for others.

I placed in the cellar 110 colonies, appar-
ently in good condition, with plenty of
stores, and all, save two, came out with
sufficient stores; but April has been a
•' stunner "" for me. Good 10 per cent, will
not excuse me at present, and I doubt not
but there will be more to follow, should the
present weather exist very much longer.

Now, I am led to believe that if nearly all
who have given their early testimonies
were privileged to give them to-day, their
tone would be very diff'erent from the
former. I claim we are not "out of the
woods" yet, and will not be before May
loth, to say the least.

One thing more I wish to speak about :
On page 535, Mr. Thos. Johnson, in the lat-
ter part of a paragraph, says : " I removed
all queen-cells," etc. I can corroborate
every word, for I had the same experience,
and found queen-cells— started and larvae
in them — that liad neither eggs nor larva;
in them at the time of placing fresh combs
with both eggs and larvae there. Now I do
not wish to interfere with any one's theory,
not even -with Mrs. Atchley's. but just you
stick right to it, Mr. Johnson, and I will
help hold you up with both hands and
strong aftns, for you are all right. Theory
and practice are twin sisters, and go hand
in hand, but practice pulls theory along,
especially in this case. A. Y. Baldwin.

DeKalb, Ills., April 28, 1893.

Lost No Bees — Good Report.

I wintered all my bees on the summer
stands, no outside cases, single-waUed dove-
tailed hives, no jjacking. but two, which
had on a super with some old carpet over
the bees ; the rest had sealed covers, with
old carpet on top of the covers protected by
a board to keep dry. I had corn-stalks set
along the row of hives for a wind-break.
Although a very hard winter for this lati-
tude (38 degrees), I did not lose any bees —
all came out equally strong in the spring.

The first pollen was brought in on March
7th, from soft maple and elm. The first
swarm issued on April 25th, also on April
29th. Bees did well on fruit-bloom at first
for about three weeks, then a cold spell with
two severe frosts cut off supplies for several
days, from April 14th to about the 23rd.

I had only 8 colonies, spring count, and
have moved my bees one mile out of
town to a better location for pasture and
protection. I shipped the most of my last
years honey to St. Louis, in one-pound
sections, which sold for IG cents.per section,
what I had sold at home for 12i<; cents. The
whole product from 7 colonies brought me,
in cash, f^jo — not so bad for a beginner, I
think.

The future appears promising for a good
crop this season, although it is. at this date,
raining nearly all the time, but not cold as
it was last spring at the same date.

D. A. Cadwallader.

Prairie du Rocher, Ills., April 30, 1893.

** A IHo«lern Bee-Farm and Its

Economic Management," is the title of a
splendid book on practical bee-culture, by
Mr. 8. 8immins, of England. It is 5%x8X
inches in size, and contains 270 page.s",
nicely illustrated, and bound in cloth. It
shows " how bees may be cultivated as a
means of livelihood; as a health-giving
pursuit ; and as a source of recreation to
the busy man." It also illustrates how
profits may be "made certain by growing
crops yielding the most honey, having also
other uses ; and by judgment in breeding a
good working strain of bees." Price, post-
paid, from this office, 81.00; or clubbed with
the Bee Journal for one year, for $1.70.

666

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Honey & Beeswax Market ({uotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
May 20th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as flue comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18c. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@lBc.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. loc; No. 2 amber, lOCgil 2c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7^c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI. O.— A short supply of ex-
tracted honey is the cause of a slow demand.
It forbids an effort on our part to sell. It
brings 6@8c. There is no choice comb honey
on our market, and prices are nominal at 12@
16c., in a small waj'.

Beeswax— Demand good. at 22@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14®15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@10c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 2 6® 28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8^ ;
dark,6®7c. Beeswax— 2 3@2 5c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted. 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

MINNESOTA, MINN.-Honey is in good de-
mand, especially for fancy white clover.
There is considerable of the low grade on the
market. Extracted Is also improving in pri-
ces. Beeswax in light demand. Fancy white
clover, in 1 lb. sections, 18c.; choice white
clover, 16c.; golden-rod, 1 lb. sections, 13@14;
dark, 12®13c. Extracted, 9@10c.

J. A. S. & Co.

ALBAN Y, N. Y. — Honey market is very
quiet now, as between seasons. Beeswax —
at 30®32c. for good color. H. R. W.

Your Xeigflibor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 643.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cblcago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

Sau Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

ininneapolis, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadwaj

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oliio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Bee-Keepingf for Profit.— We

have just issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in all, and is illustrated. Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.15.

Wants or Excliaiiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

T

O EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

T

O EXCHANGE— Good 6-inch Vandervort
Fdn. Mill, for wax, honey, or otters.
J. H. & A. L. BOYDEN,
18A4t Saline, Mich.

Bee-Keepeus. Exchange Pictures.— Send
$1.00 with Cabinet Photograph, to R. B.
Pittman, Grlfton. N. C, and get one dozen
card size photo's ; 54 doz. for 75 cents.

WANTED— 40 Colonies of Italian or hy-
brid Bees on L. frames, combs wired and
free from disease. Write me your price, con-
dition of Bees, etc., at once.
Ward Lamkin, Goodyears, Cayuga Co., N. Y.

OEOBGE W, YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY
Editor. I — '

- J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

To Bee-Culture. ( Sample Free.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JUNE 1, 1893.

NO. 22.

■^.r*V^-^/

CSreat Jfii-itain imported, during the
month of April, 1893, about $17,500 worth
of honey.

Bread a,iicl Honey was the principal
food of the Pythagorians, as stated by
Aristophanes, who says that those who ate
this for their morning meal were free from
disease all their lives.

•fust One Year Ago 'I'o-llay

(June 1st) we assumed the management of
the American Bee Journal. It was with
a feeling of uncertainty as to our ability to
conduct it successfully that we began the
work, and we are not sure yet whether the
" Old Reliable " is doing all it should do to
advance the best interests of the bee-keep-
ers who read it from week to week. We
think we know of ways in which there is
abundant opportunity for still greater im-
provement, and just as soon as we feel
financially able to bring the American Bee
Journal up to the standard we have in
view, we mean to do it.

We desire right here to most earnestly
thank our friends for the cordial support
and very encouraging words they have
given us in our work the past year, and we
trust that the friendships that have been
formed may be lasting, and become deeper

and stronger throughout the coming
months and years.

In view of the past few seasons of failure
in the honey crop, we have been rejoiced to
behold the grit, pluck, and good-nature
with Which so many bee-keepers have held
on to the cause they hold so dear, and we
trust that the dawning season of 1893 may
fully reward them for the heroic faith, en-
durance and fidelity which was necessarily
exercised the past few years. That the
future may bring to our readers the full
fruition of their every goodly hope, is our
sincerest wish.

IVorld's Fair I^otes. — The great
World's Fair, or more properly perhaps,
the Columbian Exposition, has now been
running for nearly one month, and from
20,000 to 50,000 people are daily on the
grounds.

Owing to numerous misleading reports
that have been published in the newspapers
throughout the country, we thought that
our readers might like to know just how
things really are, and would be pleased to
to have it direct from the editor of the Bee
Journal. Wliatever we may say now, or
at any time hereafter regarding the Fair,
will be just as nearly the exact truth as we
may be able to learn while right here at
the " seat of war."

From our office we can go to the Fair all
day, and it need not cost us over 60 cents —
10 cents for round-trip street-car fare, and
50 cents for the admission fee. This, of
course does not include refreshments, which
can be had inside the gates at a slightly ad-
vanced price over provisions outside, where
they are not excessively high. The better
way is to buy a lunch before entering, as

G80

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

YOU can Hiul plenty- of free and comfortable
places to sit down while you eat. aud good,
tiltered water is also free all over the
grounds. As we uever driuk auythiug
stronger than water (except perhaps tea
aud cotfee). we cau get aloug very uicely
and cheaplj- when going to the Fair. A
room with lodging costs i^l.OO per day. with
meals extra, and these accommodations
cau be found all over the city. Of course,
higher-priced rooms cau be had. but we
prefer the plaiu aud home-like to the fancy
or high-toned aud high-priced. Splendid
meals can be had outside the Fair grounds
at from ^5 to .">0 cents each, iu any part of
the city.

Iu the foregoing we have enumerated
simply the tKrc^suri/ expenses ; any one who
has plenty of cash, and wants to get rid of
it, will find ample opportunity to lessen his
••pile" without going very far in any
direction here in Chicago. As to the dan-
ger of being robbed or swindled in any way.
personally we have never had the least oc-
casion to notice it. Of couree we would not
advise any one to carry or exhibit very
much money any^-here. whether in Chicago
or when attending a county fair. We never
have about us over two or three dollars, so
that were we robbed we would not lose
much, neither would the thief be burdened
with what he would get.

During the first three Sundays the Fair
has been closed, just as it should be. There
was not the least disturbance on account of
the closed gates on Sunday — in fact, we
don't think anybody has one good reason
for wanting those gates opened on our
National day of rest. For ourselves, when
we get so we can't earn an honest living
without working on Sunday, we'll get out
of the way so as not to lead others into
wrong doing aud wrong living.

As to reduced railroad fares, we are im-
able to say anything very definite. Of
course, all railroads will have reduced
rates, but whether the percentage of dis-
count will be uniform on all roads, we are
unable to say. All can find out for tliem-
selves just what the round trip will cost, by
applying to the local railroad agent.

We would not advise any one to be in a
great hurry to come to see the Fair, as very
many of the most interesting exhibits are
not yet iu place. We think it is safe to say
that not all will be completed before June
15th. Four or five thousand men are still

at work there, but they are rapidlj' putting
on the finishing touches.

Next week we will have something to say
about the exhibits of honey, beeswax and
apiarian supplies.

%Vlial Itro. Alley Moiil«Iu't l»o.

— A few vweeks ago we quoted some of the
things that Bro. Alley had said he wouldn't
do. but of course we couldn't tell in one
issue «/? that he •• wouldn't do." Here are
a few more of his "I wouldn't " paragraphs
from the May Apiculturifit, that will likely
be interesting to many of our readers :

I wouldn't attempt to keep bees without
subscribing for one or more of the bee-
papers.

I wouldn't make the mistake of cutting
the foundation too large wheu filling the
brood-frames. It should be cut i?i inch
short at the ends and bottom. The comb
will then stretch out so as to touch the
wood.

I wouldn't bother about wiring brood-
frames if I could purchase the Van Deusen
wired brood fouudatiou. This celebrated
foundation is made by placing the wire be-
tween two thin sheets of wax. aud then the
whole is subjected to powerful pressure.
The wire never works out, nor do the bees
ever gnaw the wax off the wire as they do
iu all cases where the frames are wired, in-
stead of the foundation.

I wouldn't cut the limb by any means, if
a swarm of bees settle upon the limb of a
tree. I would wet the bees with a hand
pump, or sprinkler of some kind, then hold
a basket under the cluster, aud with a
quick upward blow against the under side
of the limb, dislodge the bees, and let them
drop into the basket. Descend the ladder
slowly, if one is used, so the bees on the
wing can trace the basket down. Dump
the bees in front of the hive they are to oc-
cupy, and the job is done.

I wouldn't separate the bees, nor even
look for the queens, unless they are valu-
ble ones, if two, or even three, swarms
should issue at the same time, aud all set-
tle on the same limb, or other object. I
would put all the bees in one hive, and give
thom all the sections they could work in to
advantage. Whew I what a pile of section-
honey such a hoard of bees would store. I
have had two swarms that united, fill the
brood-chamber aud UX) one-pound sections
iu less than three weeks.

■8i<'ycl«'s are getting to be very com-
mon now-a-days. We have two for sale,
and any one wanting a bargain in a good
bicycle, should write to the office of the
Bee Jouknwl.

Bees and Honey " — page 675.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

681

Xreniemloiis Money-Flow. — Mr.

H. F. Coleman, of Sneedville, Teun., wrote
us on May 23, 1893, concerning the honey-
flow iu his locality. Here is what he said,
which shows that at least in one place they
are getting some new honey :

The weather here is fine, and we are hav-
ing a tremendous liouey-flow. Poplar is in
its prime, with white clover just coming in.
So far the season has been all that heart
could wish, but owing to the weakened
condition of the bees, by the cold winter,
the honey crop will not be what it other-
wise would have been.

With favorable weather we expect a con-
tinuous honey-flow until the closing of
sour-wood and basswood in July. This
long season may seem strange to our North-
ern friends, but in an ordinary season we
have honey -producing flora in great abun-
dance all the time from May loth until in
July — a period of nearly, or quite. 60 days.
In the fall we have asters and golden-rod
suSicient to produce winter stores, with
frequently a surplus. H. F. Coleman.

Bee-Keeping for Profit. — The

second edition of Dr. Tinker's new book
is now ready to send out. It gives his
New Management complete, and three
years of added experience in its use by
himself and other bee-keepers. Several
new illustrations have been added, be-
sides much new matter in regard to the
use of perforated zinc. Price, 25 cents,
postpaid, or clubbed with the Bkk Jouk-
NAL for one year for $1.15.

Gemerml Ouestioe,

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make "Queries and Replies" so
interesting' on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Getting Moths Out of Hives.

I have a few colonies of bees, and the
moths have got into a couple of them.
How can I get them out the easiest way ?
I have one book on bees, but it does not
say a word as to how to get the moths
out of the hive. My hives have movable
frames. Louis Schwaner.

Pilot Knob, Mo.

Answer. — Perhaps you will not find a
direct answer to your question in any
of the bee-books. They will tell you to
keep your colonies strong, and with

strong colonies you need have no fear of
worms. Even if a few worms have se-
cured a foothold in the hive, no serious
consequences will follow if the colony
be strong, especially if the bees are
Italians.

But if you want, you may do some-
thing to help the bees. Take out the
combs, and you will see on the surface
of the., comb traces of the silken galleries
spun by the worftis. With the point of
your pocket-knife, or something of the
kind, pick a hole into the gallery at one
end. Now if you follow along fast
enough, and tear open the whole length
of the gallery, you may get the worm.
But the worm will hustle to get out of
your way, and there is some chance
that it may bury itself down in the
comb where you cannot easily get at it.

So, instead of following it up, as soon
as you have torn open a hole at one end
of the gallery, do the same thing at the
other end, and then follow it up, digging
into the gallery as you go. You may
crowd so hard upon the worm as to over-
take it and be able to seize it with the
point of the knife, but more likely you
will merely drive it along until it comes
to the hole at the other end of the gal-
lery, out of which it will come, and if
you are not lively it will jump off the
comb and get out of your way. Having
caught it, you can (jhoose your own
method of execution.

Honey, Not Swarms, Wanted.

I would like to ask you if it is possible
not to have any swarms, and have the
bees work on comb honey exclusively ?
I have 16 colonies of bees, some of
which are part Italian, and some are
the black bees ; also some of them have
but 3 frames, and the bees have comb
everyway but straight — it is all mixed
up.

I am a beginner, and never handled
bees before. Shall I transfer them to
hives with frames, or take the comb out
of the mixed-up ones, and put frames in
the hives ? It is a frame hive. I do not
care to have any swarms, as I am
crowded for room, and want to get all
the honey possible, and no swarms.

G. D. LiTTOOY.

Tacoma, Wash., May 13, 1893.

P. S, — I have the Simplicity 8-frame
hive.

Answer. — To work exclusively for
comb hohey, get good crops, and pre-
vent any attempt at swarming, is a
problem over which many a one has

682

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

been puzzling for years. Many a one
has sadly given up the problem as one
impossible of solution. Different plans
have been tried with more or less suc-
cess— generally less — among them the
plan of Simrains, of England. He claims
that bees will not swarm so long as they
have plenty of opportunity to build
comb between the brood-nest and the
entrance. So he puts sections with
starters under the brRod-chamber, and
when sufficiently worked he puts these
sections above, putting fresh ones below.

Mr. H. P. Langdon has patented an
arrangement which is now exciting no
little interest. It was described in the
Bee Journal for May 18th. The prin-
ciple is to have the two hives standing
side by side, alternately throwing the
whole field force into one hive, then into
the other, always shifting the supers to
the hive that has the bees. This weak-
ening at stated times each colony before
preparations can be begun for swarm-
ing, prevents any desire in that direc-
tion. The plan will no doubt have
thorough trial the present season, and
it certainly promises great things.

If you want to handle your combs, you
must certainly have them in frames.
You can transfer, or you can drive out
two-thirds of the bees with the queen
into a hive with frames filled with foun-
dation about the time bees begin to
swarm ; or, as soon as they get strong
enough, put the old hive near by the
new one which is to be placed on the
old stand, then in three weeks drive out
the rest of the bees, and add to the new
hive.

Probably Killed by the Cold.

I had 3 colonies of bees in a row on a
box 8 inches high during the past win-
ter; there was plenty of honey in the
brood-chamber, but I left 6 or 8 sections
in the super that were filled with honey,
so they could have plenty in the spring.
They went into the super and ate all
the honey, and died in the cells, with
plenty of honey below. Some of the
cells had three bees in them, and many
had two. The rabbits worked under
the box. Could that have disturbed the
bees ? There was an oil-cloth over the
hives, fastened down good and close.
A Mr. Tesky here put up his bees in the
same way, and saved all but one colony.

MARV J. DUNKIN.

Lake View, Iowa.

Answer. — The rabbits were hardly to
blame, and if the wint(M- had been mild
so that the bees could have had fre-

quent opportunities to shift their quar-
ters, they probably would have come
through all right. But the winter was
severe, and there were long spells when
bees would not break cluster. It is
natural for bees to work upwards, and
there being very free communication be-
tween the hive and super, the bees
worked up into it, used up all the honey
within reach, and then starved rather
than to try to go below for stores. In-
deed, if a bee had gone down she would
probably have been chilled so she could
not return.

fcaJM^^^fci^^^^^^^fc.^^^^^^ i

♦>♦♦♦♦ ♦•♦.♦♦♦••♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦^*

•■■^^■■^'

tA<fcAi^Aa

R. F. HOLTERMAXW.

Again we find it a pleasure to present
to our readers a Canadian bee-keeper
and apiarian writer — perhaps the young-
est, and at the same time one of the
most experienced, to be found among
our cousins over in the Dominion. Mr.
Holtermann's name is quite well known
to the apicultural world, through his
many interesting and practical contribu-
tions to the literature of apiculture dur-
ing the past perhaps ten years. The
following presents some of the principal
points of interest in his life :

Richard Ferdinand Holtermann was
born in Hamburg, Germany, on June
14, 1860, thus making him exactly 33
years old in about two weeks. The gen-
eral impression is that he is much older,
but he began bee-keeping and his career
as an apiarian writer very young. He
is from Norwegian extraction on his
father's side, the late Ivar S. Young
having been acquainted with many of
his relatives, who hold some of the lead-
ing positions in Norway.

At the age of two years, Mr. H.'s
parents removed with him to Canada,
settling ill the county of Renfrew, in
Ontario. He received a fair education
through a governess, a private school

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

683

near Ottawa, Collegiate Institute at Ot-
tawa, Upper Canada College, and at
Day's Commercial College in Toronto.

Always fond of rural life and occupa-
tions, he went to the Ontario Agricul-
tural College at Guelph, Ont. Besides
making many friends there, he left with
some of the highest prizes, ranked sec-
ond in general proficiency, and took
honors in every subject. When leaving.
President Mills, amongst other state-
ments, says this in a recommendation :
" Honest, honorable and upright, a keen
observer, and a young man who will do
everything in his power to succeed."

Mr. Holtermann has spent the most

^,- .

R. F. HOLTERMANN.

of the time since in the country. He
became interested in bees through
Root's "A B C of Bee-Culture" and
Cook's " Manual of the Apiary" at the
Ontario Agricultural College. He spent
two seasons with Mr. D. A. Jones, of
Beeton, Ont.

In 1882 he was appointed Secretary
of the Ontario Bee-Keepers' Association,
and has also been a director of it. He
attended the North American Bee-Keep-
ers' Conventions at Rochester, Detroit,
Chicago, Columbus, Brantford, Albany
and Washington. He has twice been a
Vice-President of the North American,
and once its Secretary, being instrumen-

tal in bring the convention to Brantford.
At Columbus there was a strong move-
ment to elect liim President, but he de-
clined in favor of another.

He has been President of the Ontario
Agricultural and Experimental Union,
which has been pursuing important in-
vestigations upon the Foul Brood ques-
tion, and for years has been Secretary
of the Union. He is President of the
Brant Bee-Keepers' Association. He
has for two years attended the regular
meeting of Farmers' Institutes, being
appointed lecturer by the Ontario Gov-
.ernment upon bee-keeping. He has just
completed a pamphlet for the Dominion
Government for distribution by the Emi-
gration Department in Europe.

At Brantford he is a member of the
Brant Bee-Keepers' Association, the
Poultry and Pet Stock Association, the
Farrington Debating Society, and the
Y. M. C. A. He belongs to the Ancient
Order of United Workmen, Independent
Order of Odd Fellows, and for this latter
he cheerfully blames Dr. A. B. Mason.

There is, perhaps, no one better
known as a bee-keeper to the general
public ; this is on account of his exten-
sive writings through the general press,
such as the Qlobe, Mail and Empire., at
Toronto ; the Star, in Montreal ; the
Farmers'' Advocate, the Canadian Live
Stock Journal, the Rural Canadian, and
the Canadian Horticulturist, to all of
which he has been a paid contributor.
He is well known as a writer in apicul-
tural journals, and has been a regular
contributor to the British Bee Journal.
He has also written for the Norwegian
Bee Journal. He speaks German, and
is fairly well acquainted with French.

On May 17, 1887, he was married to
Lois, daughter of Mr. S. T. Pettit, of
Belmont, Ont., having met Miss Lois at
the North American Bee-Keepers' Con-
vention at Rochester. They have, be-
sides tvs^o daughters, one son, William
Ivar, named after Thos. Wm. Cowan
and the late Ivar S. Young.

Last year he secured about 43 pounds
of comb and extracted honey per colony,
and reared about 500 queens. He put
into the cellar 83 colonies and 7 nuclei,
and lost only two nuclei in wintering.

G.

Your ^eigflibor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bee Jouknal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey " as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 643.

684

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

conducted by
Greenville. Texas.

Transferring Bees from a Gum-Tree.

As per promise on page 332, I will
now report on transferring a colony of
black bees from a hollow gum-tree, in a
swamp, to two hives.

The tree stood ten feet out in the
water, and the bees had an entrance 12
feet up the tree. Procuring a ladder, I
surveyed the tree, and found it a mere
shell, much of the wood only an inch
thick.

After building a platform in the water
to work on, I smoked the bees from the
bottom, then proceeded to saw down
the old gum-tree, having secured a rope
to the top, and drawing it tight in the
direction it was to fall. The bees were
all in by this time, and down came the
tree. (I had wrapped a tent around the
entrance to keep the bees in.) In fall-
ing it struck the bank just right, six
inches above the water.

Unwrapping the entrance more smoke
was blown in. With a saw I soon cut
half way through the log, in sections of
about two feet, finding comb, honey and
bees for 11 feet in the cavity.

Now began the fun. Splitting one
section open, I found a mass of bees,
honey, and combs, eight combs thick,
so cutting a palmetto leaf for a fan, not
having any bee-smoker, I fanned smoke
in, and drove the bees from my work,
and commenced removing combs, honey
and brood, keeping them separate.

The first day we succeeded in felling
the tree, removing combs and honey for
eight feet, and had the bees all driven
before us. Then packing some of the
southern gray moss in the cavity, we
wrapped the tent all around the bees
and tree, and adjourned for the night.

The next morning it rained a torrent,
until noon, deluging every thing, and
raising the water up to the tree. It
soon cleared away, and by sundown the

bees were all driven out on the log, un-
der the tent, honey and combs all re-
moved, four frames filled with brood-
comb, nicely clamped in, with round
sticks tied at the top and bottom.

Now placing the hive close by the
bees, and brushing a few on the alight-
ing-board, I sat down and watched de-
velopments. It was just fun — a steady
stream of bees soon headed for the hive,
and poured in, apparently glad to find a
home. The hive would not hold them,
and not having another hive, I got one
of Armour's canned-beef boxes, put in
cross-bars, and clamped a few pieces of
brood-comb to them, brushed a few
quarts of bees from hive No. 1 on the
ground, picked up hive No. 1, carried It
away a hundred yards, and set the box
where the hive had stood, and brushed
some bees on the board in front. They
soon ran in, and thus colony No. 2 was
started, and left there to catch those
that would naturally return from hive
No. 1.

Now p'adding the top of my head, I
picked up colony No. 1, and started
home a half mile away, and with my
new pets buzzing loudly at their new
condition, balanced on my head, we soon
reached home, and deposited them care-
fully on the verandah under my bed-
room window.

The next morning I found they had
cleaned house, and gone to work as
natural as though nothing had hap-
pened. In four days I opened the hive,
and was surprised to find all the brood-
combs well built into the frames, and
four frames of guide-comb partially
drawn out, and lots of orange-blossom
honey placed therein. Cutting the strings
to the clamps, on top only, lifting the
frames with the left hand, I peeled off
the clamps, replaced the frames, ad-
justed all, leveled the hive, and not a
cross bee appeared. My colony, in five
days, was as earnestly at work, and as
much at home, as any bees in Florida.

Now as to colony No. 2, that was
formed from remnants : On the fourth
day I visited them, and found them as
earnestly at work as No. 1, but not so
many bees. Removing the cover, I
found six queen-cells started, and all
happy. In ten days more I will give
them a comb of brood from No. 1, and
then have two good colonies from the
old gum-tree, a big dish-pan full of
honey, and several pounds of wax for my
13^ days' work — not a bad investment.

Now to any one trying the experiment,
as I have done, it is necessary to work
systematically, and have great patience
or you will give up in disgust, but it

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

685

can be done — I have done it, and made
a success, under very adverse circum-
stances, and now, w^hile I write these
lines (March 23rd), my pets are busily
at work not four feet from me.

This is an eye-opener to the " Florida
cracker," and many explanations of sur-
prise and wonder we hear as they pass
our door, and see my bees all around
me, in a cloud. As one colored man
said to-day, " Seems to me these Yanks
can do 'most anything they sets their
hands on."

In transferring I received a dozen
stings, and being a sufiferer from sciatic
rheumatism, this will be a good test as

Report of the Texas State Bee-Keepers'
Convention.

(Continued from page 632).

SECOND DAY— Concluded.

A general Invoice was taken of the
number of colonies, spring count, in
1892, honey produced, and the number
of colonies now owned, spring of 1893.

Dr. Marshall stated that he took the
first premium at the Dallas Fair, and
had one colony. Dr. Howard, through
the kindness of Bro. Graham, had one
colony of the best bees he had ever seen;

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to its being a "sure cure." No. benefit
has so far appeared as the result.

I have to-day put on supers with 21
sections, IX pounds each, and will soon
surprise the " crackers" with some sec-
tion honey from orange blossoms, which
they have never seen. Bee-keeping in
Florida seems to be a kind of "go-as-
you-please " business.

C. F. Gbeening.

Orange Park, Fla,

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Jouknal, we mail for
only 50 cents ; or clubbed with the
Journal for $1.40.

they were uniformly 5-banded Italians.
The others reported as in the table.

A call was made for the charter mem-
bers present, and Dr. W. K. Marshall,
W. R. Graham, Dr. Wm. R. Howard^
George Wilson, and I. H. Hightower re-
sponded.

The election of officers for the ensuine
year was next held, which resulted as
follows :

President— Dr. W. K.

Marshall.

1st Vice-President— W. E. Graham of

Greenville. '

2nd Vice-President— A. M. Tuttle of
Gainsville. '

Marshall, of

686

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Treasurer — George Wilson, of McKin-
ney.

Secretary — Mrs. Jennie Atchley, of
Greenville.

Greenville was selected as the next
place of meeting. The convention was
closed with prayer by Dr. W. K. Mar-
shall, having adjourned to meet on the
first Wednesday and Thursday in April,
1894.

After the adjournment, the visitors
were invited to go through the supply
factory of Wm. R. Graham & Son, and
queen-rearing apiary of Mrs. Jennie
Atchley. After viewing the machinery,
and seeing the interesting methods of
rearing queens, and the fine queens and
beautiful 5-banded workers, a sort of
general "love feast" was manifested,
hand-shaking and adieiis before parting,
all departed carrying with them happy
remembrances of the enjoyment of the
meeting, stimulated with a new and
stronger courage and zeal, each one
feeling that he was benefited by what he
had seen and heard, and declaring with-
in himself to try to attend each suc-
ceeding meeting, and make the Texas
State Bee-Keepers' Association the best
in the South. E. J. Atchley, Sec.

Comparison of Iii-I>oor and Ont-
Door Wintering; of Bees.

Query 873.— Suppose I put 50 colonies In
the cellar and leave 50 colonies out, keeping
the cellar at 45°, and taking: the bees out of
the cellar for a flight whenever those out-
doors have a flight, the temnerature outside
generally varying from 30° to 50°. Which
ought to winter best, supposing those outside
are put in the best shape for out-door winter-
ing ? And if not too much trouble, please tell
why?-P. N.

I cannot speak from experience — J.
P. H. Bkown.

You can tell by trying. We leave all
of ours out. — E. Fkance.

I would not carry them out of the cel-
lar for a flight. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

In Missouri, the ones you loft out-
doors, every time. — Emerson T. Abbott.

Those in the cellar ought to do the
best, under such condition. — Will M.
Barnum.

I don't know, but I think I'd chance
those out-doors, because they'd have
better air. — C. C. Miller.

I presume the cellar-wintered bees,
from the fact that they will not have to
endure the sharp changes of tempera-
ture.— J. M. Hambaugh.

Bees winter best out-of-doors where
the climate permits them to fly out fre-
quently. Bees kept in a cellar should
not be carried out for a flight. — P. H.
Elwood.

Those out-doors will winter the best.
Putting those in the cellar out every
time the weather was warm enough to
fly, would be very likely to kill them. —
M. Mahin.

If the temperature outside ranges
from 30^ to 50^, I see no use in bother-
ing with in-door protection. I should
want those inside to winter a good deal
better before I would practice it. —
Eugene Secor.

I should prefer to have the bees out-
doors, under the above conditions, for
the reason that J would be sure of pure
air and flights without the labor of tak-
ing them out and returning to the cellar.
— J. H. Larrabee.

In a warm winter, like those of 1889,
1890 and 1891, those out-doors. In a
cold winter, like the last one, I should
like the cellar. I think good cellars will
be at a premium for a while after this
winter. — A. J. Cook.

I have no experience in wintering bees
in the cellar. I should think that the
50 put into the cellar and taken out on
warm days, would indnce them to rear
brood and use honey unnecessarily. —
Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

Those out-of-doors, if they are let
alone. By moving those in the cellar
from time to time, as mentioned, they
will be greatly disturbed and suffer
therefrom. I should much prefer not
to take them out at all. — J. E. Pond.

I would not take them out at all until
spring came for good. But to your
question, I should say both ought to
winter about equally well. But where,
oh, where, can you be sui"e of a uniform
temperature of 30^ to 50>^ ?— C. H. Dib-

BERN.

Those out-doors. Why ? The dis-
turbance caused by moving out and in,
with the temperature not above 50°,
would be quite detrimental. Leave
them in the cellar until the time to put

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

687

them out in the spring, and those in the
cellar will winter best. Of course, I'm
presuming that those put into the cellar
have been prepared for winter with the
same care that those out-of-doors have,
and that the cellar is all right, too. — A.
B. Mason.

The colonies wintered out-of-doors
will winter best at the temperatures
named, every time. There are many
reasons why they would winter better,
but pure air and freedom from damp-
ness has as much to do with it as any-
thing.— G. L. TiNKEK.

If I had such a temperature out-doors,
during winter, as that quoted, I should
not try for cellar-wintering at all. In a
case of cellJlr -wintering, it does not pay
to carry the bees out for a flight, but on
the whole it is a damage to the bees
being thus wintered. — G. M. Doolittle.

If the winter is mild, they will winter
equally well, but those out-of-doors will
consume the most honey, because they
have to eat to keep warm. If the win-
ter is hard, those in the cellar will win-
ter best, because their intestines will be
less loaded with feces. — Dadant & Son.

See recent articles bearing on the sub-
ject. With the circumstances as you
give them, thpse outside would almost
certainly winter better in nearly all
localities. Those inside would probably
get along better without being taken out
at all until it was time to leave them
out. — James A. Green.

Those left outside, to be sure. Be-
cause wintering in the cellar is a choice
of evils in places where the temperature
is generally from 20^ below zero to 20^
above. With your temperature you
have no evil to provide against. Besides,
so much shifting of those in the cellar
would be detrimental. — R. L. Taylor.

I do not think that any one could an-
swer this question without trying it.
But it is my opinion that they had bet-
ter remain outside than to be handled
so often. And I think they winter bet-
ter in the cellar (without so many
changes) than outside ■ under the condi-
tion named ; so that ends it, with me.-^
Jas. a. Stone.

In my locality I should expect to
bring fully 95 per cent, through all
right, if they were all right in the fall.
If I could keep the cellar at 38- to 40-',
they would be better off without any
flight until about April 8th to 10th.
When you say those out-doors are in the
best possible condition for wintering,
"you say a great deal." — H. D. Cutting.

I think the bees outside would do the
best, but I might answer with more cer-
tainty if I knew your locality. Making
all things equal, it is easy to see that
the necessary disturbance that the cellar
bees must submit to in being carried in
and out of the cellar must give the ad-
vantage to the outside bees. But it
would certainly depend upon the severity
or openness of the winter. — G. W. Dem-

AREE.

If you mean that it gets no colder
than 30^ above zero out-of-doors, I will
take the chance on the 50 left out. The
reason would be that, in the climate you
indicate you are in, you might have to
take the cellar lot out once a week or
more. If you took them out every time
the others had a flight, so much moving
would be a damage to the bees, and a
great bother to you. Here in Wisconsin
I would give the preference to the cellar
lot, especially the past winter, as we
have had 100 days of continuous good
sleighing, and no day in the hundred
that bees could fly safely. — S. I. Free-
born.

As you state it, they ought all to come
out bright and nice in the spring. Mine
do, both from the chaff hives out-of-
doors and from the cellar. But after
they have been taken out of the cellar to
stay, you will notice in about three
weeks that those wintered out-of-doors
have a decided advantage over the
others — they having begun to rear more
brood in the cellar than they are able
to protect from the cold in the yard,
much of it chills, and the bees in their
endeavor to supply so much brood with
water and pollen, venture out in in-
clement weather, and are lost ; hence,
your loss from spring dwindling is much
greater with the cellar-wintered bees. —
Mrs. J. N Heater.

*'A jflotlerii Bee-Fai-in and Its

Economic Management." is the title of a
splendid book on practical bee-culture, by
Mr. S. Simmins, of England. It is 5§{x.8J4
inclies in size, and contains 270 pages"
nicely illustrated, and bound in cloth. It
shows " how bees may be cultivated as a
means of livelihood; as a health -giving
pursuit ; and as a source of recreation to
the busy man." It also illustrates how
profits may be " made certain by growing
crops yielding the most honey, having also
other uses ; and by judgment in breeding a
good working strain of bees." Price, post-
paid, from this office, -SI. 00; or clubbed with
the "Bee Journal for one year, for .$1.70.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 675 ?

688

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Methods Used for the Prevenlioii
of Swarming.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY R. F. HOLTERMANN.

At this time of the year there is per-
haps no more important subject than
the one of swarming. Until I saw Mr.
Pratt's latest self-hiver, I had no faith
in the utility of this invention, but upon
studying it I felt, and feel still, that by
means of it we are going to reach those
who keep only a few colonies, and can-
not watch their bees for swarms. Again,
there are others who, for various rea-
sons, do not find it desirable to hive the
swarms; these will, I have no doubt,
find the self-hiver very useful.

That the self-hivers can be improved
upon, I have no doubt — in fact, I think
I could improve on them already, but
even as they are to-day they are useful.
The prevention of swarming has en-
gaged my attention every since Mr. L.
C. Root spoke upon that question at the
convention of the North American Bee-
Keepers' Association held iit Rochester,
N. Y.

I have, for comb or extracted honey,
been able to largely prevent increase by
means of shade, ventilation, and the
judicious giving of room, and by so doing
I have been able to have an increase of
as low as 5 per cent., and in no case
greater than 20 per cent., for the last
six years.

In producing comb honey it has been
the aim to secure honey not alone for
the market, but also for exhibition pur-
poses, and the product has compared
very favorably with the best shown at
our leading exhibitions. Many begin-
ners have made shipwreck because they
attempted to increase too fast ; if they
would have prevented increase all they
could, thus securing more honey, 'and
having their bees in better condition,
then buying n\ore bees in the spring,
they would have done better. This is
the advice I would give every beginner.

When the bees begin to whiten out the
combs along the top-bars in the brood-
chamber, unless the honey-flow stops,
supers are given. I have an entrance
the entire width of the hive, and as the
weather gets warm I raise the back of
the lid to allow a current of air to pass
between the quilt and lid. As the
weather gets still warmer, a broad board
is laid on the lid for shade, this board to
better shade is moved once a day, thus
not only shading the tops of the hive,
but also the sides. If the nights are
unusually warm, the lids are left up all
night, if not, they are put down towards
evening. More than once, after a sultry
evening, we have had to jump up in the
night and let down the lids, to prevent
rain from getting in, but" it pays well.
Better yields of honey are secured,
and I have had three full Langstroth
supers to advantage on one hive.

I am too lazy to hunt out queen-cells
and destroy them ; if the bees will
swarm, I let them, and then put the
new swarm on the old stand; this in 95
cases out of 100 it prevents any after-
swarms, and gives us all the worker
force with the new swarm. Swarms are
hived on starters, and put to storing
comb honey, as a rule.

The method of changing the hive for
the worker-bees I have never tried, and
here let me say it appears to me it has
been forgotten that this system is not a
new one brought before bee-keepers,
but was brought out in a bee-paper pub-
lished in Canada some years ago. Mr.
C. W. Post, of Murray, Ont. — a very
successful bee-keeper, running between
300 and 400 colonies — gave his plan.
In brief, it was this :

Upon a post rested two pieces of tim-
ber, the pieces crossing one another over
the post, the whole forming four arms
which could be revolved upon the post.
At the end of each arm, and upon the
arm, was a colony of bees, and from the
first day the bees could fly the stand was
given one-quarter turn. In this way the
flying bees, every day they flew, went
into a new home, and the swarming im-
pulse was kept down.

Mr. Post is known as a quiet and un-
assuming, yet successful, bee-keeper
with wide experience. I mentioned Mr.
Post's method at the Albany convention,
and I think the article I refer to was
copied into the American Bee Journal,
at the time.

I certainly think we should aim at
keeping down swarming as much as we
can — thercMn lies one of the secrets to
success. To do so by means of cutting

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

689

out queen-cells would be of no use to
me — it means too much work.

Some years aRO 1 received a letter
from some one, stating he had a method
to prevent swarming ; he was getting a
few to test it, and upon their recom-
mendation he would sell the secret ;
would I promise not to tell his method ?
I wrote back saying, " Yes, under two
conditions — it must not be something I
knew of already, and it must have noth-
ing to do with cutting out queen-cells."
He answered that swarming was not
prevented by cutting out queen-cells. I
answered, "All right; send the method."

Finally I had a letter saying part of
the plan was removing queen-cells, so I
refused to try the plan.

It is wonderful, however, to note the
effect of shade and ventilation to prevent
swarming. The work must, however,
be done regularly, and without fail. I
may say the Ontario Agricultural and
Experimental Union is undertaking the
testing of Mr. Pratt's latest self-hiver,
and I should like to hear reports from
those who test it this season.

Brantford, Ont.

A Question About the I^angdoii
]\[on-SAvarining; Deviec.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY JNO. M. DAVIS.

I am greatly interested in this device,
as described in the Bee Jouenal for
May 18th, and I think it will prove to
be an important invention, provided the
continual loss of bees through the es-
cape, with no possible chance for the
young bees or brood to be supplied with
water, will not cause a serious loss to
the colony. It is a well established fact
that bees rearing brood consume large
quantities of water daily. Can they be
deprived of this without loss ?

I bought a few colonies of bees in box-
hives too late to transfer conveniently,
and in order to have them store honey in
frames I have been " jumping " them as
fast as they show a working-force, so as
to strengthen colonies in Langstroth
hives. I find that for a few days the
"jumped" colonies take water eagerly,
showing very clearly that they need it
when deprived of the working-force.

To be sure, we could water them when
using the Langdon device, except in out-
appiaries, just where it would be most
valuable.

Please give us light on this point.

Spring Hill, Tenn.

Why Do Some Suft'er from Bee-
Stings and Others Xot t

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY EMM DEE.

" Well, I'd like to know " why some
people suffer so much from bee-stings,
and others are scarcely affected ? Now,
how do you account for such difference ?

Pretty hard to tell, but as I've given
the matter considerable attention, I may
state what I believe, and let you judge
for yourself.

You see everybody is differently con-
stituted, in mind, body, and its various
functions, as you, of course, well know.
Your face, general form, voice and
physical activity is unlike that of any
other person. The system, doctors say,
is constantly undergoing changes of
waste and repair. The waste is dis-
posed by excretions of various parts of
the general economy, the lungs, kidneys
and skin doing a larger part of this im-
portant work.

Well, now, this waste product — we'll
say of your skin, when perspiring — is
unlike that of any other person. There
is a peculiar odor to it not possessed by
any other individual. It is by your scent
that your dog is able to track your foot-
steps at long distance, or through a
crowd. The odor may be pleasant or
otherwise, according to natural causes
uo one can change. If unpleasant, it by
no means argues that the person is un-
clean ; the most scrupulous neatness
could not change this odor inherent in
the sweat-glands.

Not long since I asked a good old
"uncle," a negro of irreproachable
habits, why it was that the odor from
their bodies was so — so — rank ! " Well,
sah, don't know 'bout dat, sah, but I
reckons 'taint no stronger in we black
folks den the smell of white people is to
us !"

Then, too, the exhalations from our
bodies, like our voices and temper, may
be soothing or irritating, and it is to
this peculiarity I attribute the friendli-
ness or enmity of bees. If, when they
come in contact with you, the odor ema-
nating from your body is soothing to
them, they will linger on your skin or
clothing in contentment, but if your
secretions are irritating, they at once
become vicious, and a hasty retreat is
your safest course.

From childhood I have been interested
In bees (with no present claim to ex-
tended knowledge concerning them),
and have observed their peculiarities

690

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

with great interest. I have surprised
some apiarists by the temerity with
which I could, unprotected, even in
swarming-time, approach them without
receiving punishment ; the only time
they would sting being when squeezed
by accident, as by my shirt-collar against
my neck, and then their sting would feel
like the pricking from a cambric needle,
with no appreciable trouble following.
I have never experienced a particle of
irritation or swelling resulting from a
bee-sting. Whether the fact that I
speak to them in a quiet, caressing tone
enhances my immunity from their ven-
geance, I am uncertain, but I believe it
best to do so.
Sunnyside, Ills.

Experiment in Ceiiar'Tf^interin;;
of Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY W. J. CULLINAN.

On Dec. 3, 1892, I placed 4 colonies
of bees in my cellar for an experiment.
They had been fed about 12 pounds of
sugar syrup each, which, together with
10 pounds of natural stores, gathered
from fall flowers, gave them about 22
pounds each, on Oct. 1st.

The cellar was under my dwelling —
size, 18x40 feet — and I knew that if we
got much cold weather, the temperature
would reach the freezing point, or lower;
still I made no provisions for heating
artificially, as it was my intention to
demonstrate for myself the effect of a
low temperature upon the bees while in
the cellar.

Well, we got the cold weather all
right, and lots of it, and the mercury in
the thermometer marked 28° above
zero, by the last of December, and re-
mained at about that point for two
weeks, then raised to about 32° for a
week or ten days, and then came a day
when it got up to 45° outside, and I set
them out for a flight, fully expecting to
find them victims to intestinal derange-
ment. To my surprise they showed no
diarrhetic symptoms whatever, and
seemed perfectly healthy.

After returning them to the cellar
another cold wave struck us, and the
mercury promptly descended to about
the point reached before, and hovered
between that and the freezing point
until the last of February. About this
time water got into the cellar, which
loft it very damp, and altliough over a
month too early, I thought it best to set
them out for good. They had a flight

the day they were taken out, showed no
signs of diarrhea, and a pint measure
would have held all the dead bees from
the 4 colonies.

The next day after putting them out
the thermometer marked 8°, and a
friend who called said I would lose
them. But they seemed proof against
all kinds of treatment, for at this date
(April 3rd) they are in good condition,
except the loss of one queen.

My cellar was reasonably dry up to
the time of taking the bees out. The
bees were in 8-frame Simplicity hives,
with flat sealed covers, and three inches
of sawdust over the same. The bottom-
boards were left on, and the entrances,
% inch by width of the hive, were left
wide open while in the cellar, but con-
tracted to about five inches when placed
upon the summer stands.

Quincy, Ills.

The Prophecy of the Honey-
Flow for Iowa in 1§92.

Written for the Amerino.n Bee Journal
BY SAM WILSON.

I have read Mr. Thomas Johnson's
article on page 533. Ho tries to prove
that my predictions resulted entirely
different to what I said they would. He
tries to prove that western Iowa had ah
extra good yield of honey — double the
amount of the eastern part. He first
reported that he had taken 40 pounds
of white clover honey per colony up to
July 18th, and that the bees were going
like rain to linden, but later he writes
that linden only produced honey for two
days ; that a hot wind from the south
dried it up, so from that the flow of
white honey stopped, and he had only
one or two days to get any more than
the 40 pounds per colony, so you can see
that was no good yield, and that was
two-thirds of his crop, that would make
50 or 60 pounds per colony.

Mr. Frank Coverdale, of Welton,
Iowa, did that well, or better, when he
says his bees did not get to work more
than three days out of a week on ac-
count of wet weather, and I have letters
from bee-keepers that show that it did
rain as much or more than I said it did
all over the larger part of the middle
and eastern Iowa, and was fine weather
in the west, but now he tries to show
that the honey-flow was not as good in
Jaeksou county and southwest to Tipton,
wh(^ro I said it would be the best. He
says if his informer is correct, the flow
was not as good there as in the adjoin-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

691

ing county, and far behind his locality.
If all who read Oleanings will turn to
page 310 of April 15th, present volume,
and read Mr. Oliver Foster's account of
his visit to Mr. Staininger, who lives at
Tipton, they will see whether I missed
it or not. Tipton is the place I es-
pecially named, saying they would have
the best honey-flow from the northeast
through Jackson county, of anywhere in
the State. Mr. Staininger, from 170
colonies, spring count, secured 12,700
pounds of honey. Here is one para-
graph of what Mr. Foster says of his
honey :

" This was in his large and very neat
and clean honey-room and shop, with a
large and well-equipped work bench in
one end, an extractor and other honey-
utensils in the other, a foot-power saw
at one side, and the whole middle of the
room occupied by a huge pyramid of
glassed cases of comb honey of snowy
whiteness. Several other piles of nice
fall honey stood at the sides ; through
the back window and screen door I could
see a neat apiary of about 230 colonies."

Who can show a larger crop in the
whole State, or a better average from
that number of colonies? And it must
not be forgotten that it was the "off
year " for linden, that is, it never
bloomed in eastern Iowa to amount to
anything. He don't know what the edi-
tors of Oleanings based their opinions
on to make them think the honey-flow
of 1892 was better than the few years
previous. Their opinions were based on
the reports, all that could be got by the
aid of the Amekican Bee Journal and
Oleanings combined. What few reports
he could get, would not amount to any-
thing compared to these.

Mr. Johnson warns me to be careful
or I will jump into a field where clover
and linden don't abound. It is the con-
dition that it takes to produce a crop of
honey that I claim to know about, and
of course I would not suppose linden
and clover honey could be got from any-
thing but linden and clover, but Mr.
Johnson's bees may be bred, up to such
a high pitch of intelligence that they
can get honey from prairie-grass. I
would think they could do that about as
soon as I would think they would steal
eggs, one colony from another. I guess
Mrs. Atchley will want to go up there
to take lessons of Mr. Johnson on queen-
rearing^nd also bring down to Texas
some of nis bees, that are acquainted
with such clever tricks ; but they might
not retain those qualities down here in
"Dixey Land."

Cosby, Tenn.

Are Hybrid and Black Bees
Worth Improving ?

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY JAS. A. GKEEN.

I was greatly surprised to see, in the
answers to Query 867, how many there
were who said, in eflecb as well as in
words, "Let well enough alone." I
would have little fault to find with those
who take the drift of the inquiry to be
whether or not the bees have degener-
ated, or are likely to degenerate or " run
out," through close in-breeding.

Although in-and-in often produces bad
effects with other animals, I do not
think it probable that bees under ordi-
nary circumstances will breed so closely
within a certain strain that deteriora-
tion will result. Nature has guarded
against this by providing that the malt-
ing of the queen and drone shall take
place in the air at a distance from the
hive.

I think it is an entirely unwarranted
assumption that the bees in question
have re-queened themselves for years
from their own progeny. All of the
queens might have been reared by the
bees themselves, but the drones with
which they mated may have come from
several miles away. It is for this rea-
son that I would not apprehend any de-
generacy from in-and-in breeding. Still,
it is often the case with bees, as with
other animals, that an infusion of new
blood gives renewed vigor. This is es-
pecially the case when different varieties
are crossed.

What I specially deplore in these an-
swers, is the advice to " let well enough
alone." Where would the world be if
men had been satisfied to work on this
principle? There is scarcely an animal
or plant that man makes use of for his
pleasure or profit that has not been
greatly improved by breeding or selec-
tion. Within the memory of the pres-
ent generation, careful selection, cross-
ing and breeding have greatly improved
our domestic animals, and added mill-
ions of dollars to our national wealth.

The long, lean, slab-sided, razor-
backed hog of a few years ago was con-
sidered good enough by his owner, but
the modern hog is a far more valuable
and profitable animal.

See how the cow has been improved
as a producer of milk and butter as well
as beef.

Witness how the standard of horses
has been raised, both for speed and
draught animals.

692

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

The same improvement may be noticed
all along the line of our domestic ani-
mals, to say nothing of fruits, grains,
and vegetables. Are we to conclude
that any mongrel breed of bees are
" good enough '?"

It would seem, from the language of
the querist, that he has paid little or no
attention to the breeding of his bees. It
is a fair inference that he has had no
bees of improved strains with which to
compare them. How, then, is he to
know that his bees are as good, com-
paratively speaking, as he thinks they
are ? He says they are prolific, healthy,
and good workers. This might truth-
fully be said of almost any lot of bees,
but a trial of them in comparison with
the best bred strains might show that
as compared with these they were very
inferior.

"Every crow thinks his own crowling
whitest," and the owner of live stock of
any kind, if it is only a yellow dog, is
very apt to consider it about as good as
there is. The men who are wedded to
such ideas as that, must expect to be
left behind in the march of progress.

The bee-keeper has the advantage
over the breeder of stock of almost any
other kind, in that he may make a com-
parative test for himself of the different
varieties, at only a trifling cost. If the
breeder of horses or cattle should wish
to make a complete change in the breed
of his stock, he must go to a great deal
of expense in disposing of every animal
and getting others in their place. If he
adopts the usual plan of " grading up,"
he must still go to considerable expense
for pure-bred sires.

The bee-keeper can make a complete
change in his stock at comparatively
small expense, and have every bee of the
new variety within less than three
months. With a money outlay that is
really insignificant, he can have all of
his bees reared from superior stock, and
having nearly all the good qualities of
the improved race. For two or three
dollars, or less, he may test improved
varieties for himself alongside of his old
ones. In this way he may gain knowl-
edge from practical experience, which is
always the best of teachers.

The best way for the inquirer to do,
would be to procure from some reliable
breeder one of his best breeding queens,
and rear queens from this. It is almost
certain that this stock would be an im-
provement on what he has, so he would
probably be safe in rearing from them
enough queens to supply his whole api-
ary. Unless he is certain that his breed-

ing stock is desirable in every way, it
might be safer for him to buy two or
three queens of each of several breeders,
and, after a thorough test, get a good
breeding queen of the stock that suited
him best.

If he can afford the money better than
the time required to rear the queens, let
him get. from reliable breeders several
dozen queens, which, at the proper sea-
son, may be procured at very low rates.
Then let him rear all queens from se-
lected colonies, or, if he prefers to let
the bees rear their own, keep drone-
traps on all undesirable colonies, which
will somewhat reduce the chances of
impure mating. To keep an apiary pure
when there are other races within bee-
flight, requires a constant struggle, but
the bees of almost any apiary may be
very much improved by a very little
trouble in the way of selection and re-
jection.

As to race, there is really but little
question. The Italians have fairly won
the right to be considered the best va-
riety of bees cultivated. Although a
few good bee-keepers think very highly
of the Carniolans, all the other races
that have been introduced, some oi them
with much blowing of trumpets and
highly imaginative recommendations,
have proven undesirable, and have been
discarded. In this connection be it ob-
served that the so-called " Golden Car-
niolans" are not Carniolans at all.

The beginner is specially warned
against spending his money for any
novelties in bees unless he wishes to test
them in comparison with what are rec-
ognized as the best, and can afford to
spend money for that purpose.

The Punic bee fiasco should be a suffi-
cient warning to go slow in this direc-
tion. It might be a great misfortune to
bee-keepers at large to have an inferior
race of bees scattered broadcast over
the country, especially if they were put
into the hands of those who knew noth-
ing of better races, or who would be-
come disgusted with the unsuccessful
experiment of improvement, and make
no effort to repair its evil effects.

In selecting that which all recognized
as good, there is little opportunity to go
astray. To replace or cross the bees in
question with Italians could hardly fail
to improve them, and the advantages
would be great as compared ©"ith the
cost.

Ottawa, Ills.

Bees and'Honey" — see page 675.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

693

Those Foul Br<»04l Gx|>crinieiiil§
— Parlliciiogcnesis.

Written for the A^mei-ican Bee Journal
BY C. J. KOBINSON.

On page 215, Mr. J. H. Larrabee re-
cords his " review of a Canadian report
of foul brood experiiueiits." Referring
to my record on page 56, he says : " Mr.
C. J. Robinson states that a glass can-
not aid the eye to distinguish foul brood
virus from other germs !" He offers no
evidence nor argument to invalidate my
" statement," yet edicts it grossly false.
He quotes Prof. J. J. Mackenzie as au-
thority to "directly contradict" my
quoted statement. Mr. Mackenzie, It
seems, has no knowledge of foul brood,
for he says : "I certainly would not be
prepared to spot foul brood in an apiary,
though I certainly thinU I can under the
the microscope." Not prepared to iden-
tify a case of seething foul brood in a
colony, yet Mr. Larrabee assumes to
contradict my statement because another
has " a new idea" — thinks he can dis-
tinguish, pick out, foul brood germs
from many other kinds always present
in decomposing brood.

Mr. Cheshire recorded in the British
Bee Journal in 1884: "I have been
able to make out no less than five, or
possibly 24 distinct disorders (including
foul brood), arising from that number of
specifically different germs, all of which
will require prolonged attention if any-
thing very definite is to be arrived at re-
specting them." This English authority,
Mr. Larrabee says "cannot be weighed
against" his and Prof. M.'s guess,
" when we consider the sources from
which they came."

The facts are, in all cases of rotting
bee-brood, there are present not less
than five different kinds of germs,
among them, if the brood has been taken
from that which is so-called /ouf, will be
foul brood virus — germs. Mr. Cheshire
says he has discovered two distinct
families of foul brood germs. I don't
dispute him, but I am confident he is
mistaken — as to identifying foul brood
germs among others present in decom-
posing brood.

In Rochester, N. Y., we have an in-
stitution giving "new light" on the
science of microscopy, wherein are
scienced bacteriologists and equipage,
all of which is reputed equal to any in
the world. I am " prepared " to, and
do, challenge Mr. Larrabee, who con-
troverts my statements, to demonstrate
that foul brood virus may be distin-

guished from other germs present in
rotting bee-brood. I wrote: "Germs
pervade all rotting brood, but only such
as feed upon aiiimate larvie are foul-
brood virus. A glass," etc. No reader
could infer therefrom that I had refer-
ence to such— " other germs "—as those
germs frisking in sauer-kraut, etc.

THEORY OF PARTHENOGENESIS.

On page 599, Mr. H. Reepen, the cor-
respondent in Germany, refers to my
controverting the absurd claim that the
term parthenogenesis may properly be
applied to the production of drone-bees,
and says my definition is " the sum of
ignorance."

Mr. Reepen refers me to " the book
by Cowan, ' The Honey-Bee.' " It ap-
pears that he takes his belief from that
work. I have been a student in bee-
lore beginning anterior to Mr. Cowan's
writings, which I have read, and also
the criticisms on his excellent book. Mr.
Reepen would fain be " partly compan-
ion " of Mr. Cowan, but, unlike him,
Mr. R. controverts by weak diction,
while Mr. Cowan argues in a logical
sense. Mr. Reepen quotes Mr. Metzger,
and controverts his " statements," not
by offering any evidence or reasons, but
says /i-e is " deadly sure he (Mr. M.) is
not right." It does not appear that Mr.
R. is at all competent to speak on the
subject, yet he submits Ms " dead sure"
as a setting of the issue against the
proof and arguments of many who are
shown to be competent to handle the
case.

Mr. Reepen attempts to teach me
"what is meant by parthenogenesis
woif-a-days," from which it is to be in-
ferred that lie knows that the meaning
of the term has undergone a change, or
changes. The term is not susceptible
of an issue being had as to its meaning,
nor rendered doubly in any way, but its
misapplication may be,' and has been,
very erroneously applied.

The reproduction of certain species of
injects is absolutely different by reason
of a difference in the law of Nattjire gov-
erning the production. The reproduction
of drone-bees is in nowise the same as
that of certain other families of insects.
There is no such thing as " the successive
reproduction of procreating " drones
from unfertilized ovum, but such is the
case with certain species, to a limited
extent ; but all reproduction is depend-
ent upon semen. Some species repro-
duce for a time without renewal, or first
fertilization, but semen is Nature's law
of reproduction. The fact that the re-
production of drone-bees is governed by

' 694

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

a law radically different from that gov-
erning the reproduction of insects with-
out a first comx)lete fertilization, proves
that parthenogenesis cannot be properly
applied to the reproduction of both of
the distinct species of insects.

If " what is meant by parthenogene-
sis now-a-days," as per Mr. Reepen, de-
fined by Mr. Cowan, was not made legiti-
mate until his rendering, then it is easy
to explain the misapplication of the
term as used in the " Dzierzon Theory."
The Germans jumped to the conclusion
that because drone-bees, as it appeared
to them, are procreated without a first
fertilization, the term — parthenogenesis
— applied equally propter to both distinct
species. So now-a-days there are disci-
ples of the old school parthenogenesists,
and if Mr. Reepen is correct, there is
at least one disciple of the new advent.

Richford, N. Y.

t«XZTTZia:TTTXZZXTTZTXX»ZZ»»T»»XrX3

Do not write anything' for publication

on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Rolling in the Honey.

Bees came out of winter quarters here in
fine condition, and are now rolling in the
honey from white clover.

T. J. Henderson.

Poplar Bluff, Mo., May 18, 1893.

Hard Winter and. Backward Spring.

Bees did not winter very well in this
locality. It was a hard winter, over four
months without a flight. To make it still
worse, we have had a very backward
spring. Israel Overuolt.

South Cayuga, Ont., May 13, 1893.

Six Months in the Cellar.

This is the 3rd of May, and our bees are
not all taken from the cellar yet. I put my
bees into the cellar about Nov. lOtb, and
none of them have been out since, and
there has not been a suitable day to put
them out for the last three weeks. This
makes about six months' confinement.

Mauston, Wis. Frank McNay.

Good Record for a Hard Winter.

I have added another winter's experience
with absorbents and sealed covers. My bees
were packed last fall on the summer stands,
with an outer case over each hive, packed
with dry planer shavings, with a pine board
% of an inch thick, covered with a dry
cushion, on part of them. The balance
were covered with a thick, porous cushion,
as described on page 402.

I have just completed my '' spring exami-
nation," removing every frame from every
hive, and noting carefully the condition of
each colony. A careful comparison of the
results showed but little difference, with a
sliglit balance in favor of absorbents.

I packed 26 colonies last fall, and have
the same 26 colonies now, with a laying
queen in each one of the hives. Isn't this a
pretty good record for such a long, cold
winter as the last, in latitude of 433^ de-
grees ? Not so with all my neighbors' bees ;
some sustained a loss of 67 per cent. It pays
to pack bees well in the fall.

J. P. Smith.

Sunapee, N. H., May 1, 1893.

Bees in Good Condition.

My bees are in good condition this spring.
I have a way of wintering bees on the sum-
mer stands that I never have seen de-
scribed. I put the hives on four bricks, put
old boards or bricks up close around the
hive, dig a trench around, and bank the
earth up around the hive, sloping it so as to
run the water off. I fill in 6 inches of chaff
over the brood-chamber. I have followed
this practice for several years, and have
not lost a colony yet. W. H. Soule.

St. Joseph, Mo., May 3, 1893.

Conditions for Successful Wintering.

I think I have hit upon the right plan for
successful wintering bees in my locality.
In the fall of 1891 I put 4 light colonies of
bees into the cellar under the house. I had
given them young Italian queens in Sep-
tember, and as they had very little honey,
I fed them about 15 pounds of granulated
sugar made into syrup, per colony.

My cellar was infested with rats, so I
drove stakes in the floor — which is sandy —
so that they stood 2 feet high ; on the top
of these I inverted some old tin pans, and
then laid two 2x4's, 16 inches apart, and I
nailed them fast. I placed the hives across
them, removed the oil-cloth above the
frames, and raised the hives an inch from
the bottom-boards, by putting blocks under
the corners.

The bees came out in the spring in fine
condition, and no spring dwindling. I fed
them a little to stimulate brood-rearing,
and increased to 15 good, strong colonies
(all natural swarms but two), and they
gave me over 200 pounds of nice comb
honey in one-pound sections.

When I put them into the cellar on Nov.
15, 1892, three of them were light in stores,
and I put on ).<-story supers, and laid some
partly -filled sections on the frames. One

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

695

of these colonies failed to get their feed,
and starved. I lost one other colony which
was queenless. but had six frames nearly
full of sealed honey. The temperature in
my cellar did not range above 45 degrees,
Fahr., nor below 3S degrees. I took the bees
out on March olst — 13 good colonies in fine
condition. To sum up for successful win-
tering :

1st. Young or vigorous queens.

2nd. Feed before cold weather, if neces-
sary.

3rd. The above conditions will give plenty
of young bees.

4th. Moderate-sized colonies — not too
many bees.

5th. Plenty of room between the bottom
and hive, or use no bottoms in the cellar.

*ith. Even temperature — 40 to 45 degrees,
Fahr. B. H. Newland.

Melrose, Wis., April 3, 1893.

Lioes from Wet Fall and Damp Cellar.

Of the 32 colonies which I put into the
cellar on Nov. 20, 1892, only 17 came out
alive. They had plenty of stores, but I lay
the cause to the wet fall of 1892, and the
dampness of the cellar on that account.

Alex. F. Kopplin.

Zumbrota, Minn.. May 3, 1893.

Good Report for 1892.

Last spring I bought 4 colonies of Italian
bees, and put 13 into winter quarters last
fall; this spring I have 13 colonies that win-
tered. I got 300 pounds of honey last year,
besides the 9 colonies increase. I under-
stand that 50 per cent, of the bees died in
winter in this part of the country. Mine
were wintered in cases on the summer
stands. I think Mr. Johnson is mistaken
about all the bees dying that were left out.

Jerry Bartlett.

Audubon, Iowa, May 7, 1893.

Big Snow-Storm — Bottom-Boards.

We are now (April 21st) having the
heaviest fall of snow, in the last 48 hours,
that Minnesota has ever witnessed at this
time of the year. There is frem 18 to 24
inches of beautiful white snow on the
ground this morning. If the snow had been
light and dry, it would have measured 36
inches deep, but it is not going to last long.
It will retard seeding until about May 1st.

I put 24 colonies of bees into the cellar
last fall, and all are alive but one, and
they died for want of food. I put them out
about April 10th, and the most of them had
a good flight, and that night it rained and
snowed and froze up, so I took all of my
light ones into the cellar again, and am
feeding them, but I have 13 still out under
the snow.

On page 489 this question is asked : " Will
the colony swarm ?" I sent to Illinois last
June and got two frames of bees and brood,
and put one frame in each hive with a
queen, and I see they are as heavy as any
of my old colonies this spring. They don't

often swarm, but usually fill the hive in
fair season.

I have but one tight bottom-board, and
as soon as the weather gets warm I shall
loosen that. I like the bottom-boards so
that I can change them when I think a new
one is better. For wintering, some of my
neighbors tier up the hives, with the top
tight, and bottom-board off, piling them up
three hives high, in pyramid shape, leaving
a space between the hives of the two lower
tiers. Mark D. Judkins.

Osakis, Minn.

The Origin of Foul Brood.

I have discovered the origin of foul brood.
If any of the readers of the Bee Journal
know what it is, I will give them four
weeks to reply through this paper, after
the publication of this article, then I will
give it to the public. C. P. Hewett.

Kingston, Wis., May 5, 1893.

The Blast and Draft in Bee-Smokers.

Of course I have read with great interest
Mr. Cornell's experiments with smokers.
He states that I " do not deny the assertion
in regard to blast." I will say that I have
never denied, or compared either the honey-
knife or smoker. In the 14 years we have
been making them, we have received but
one complaining letter, and that came in-
directly and through interested parties.

What Mr. Cornell calls " indirect cur-
rent," we demonstrated before bee-keepers
heard of a Bingham bee-smoker or Direct
Draft.

Direct Draft in bee-smokers is Bingham's
invention, and the more direct it is, the
better the smoker.

The "blast" is another thing, and old
bee-keepers have regarded ours as sufficient
and reliable.

I have had many letters suggesting differ-
ent '• blasts, ■■ and read of "continuous
blasts," etc., in bee-papers. It would be
easy to show why they were not adapted
to the special needs of bee-keepers.

It is proper for me to express my grati-
tude to bee-keepers, to Mr. Cornell, and the
licitie.w. T. F. Bingham.

Abronia, Mich., May 33, 1893.

A Cold Place, but Bees Wintered.

I put 14 colonies of bees into the the cellar
on Nov. 13, 1893. and on March 28, 1893, I
took out 10 of them. They had a good
flight, and I put them back into the cellar
again that evening. On April 30th we had
a snow-storm of 16 inches, so that made the
season very late. We had nearly three feet
of snow during the winter, and very cold — it
got down to 33 degrees below zero. How
would that do for wintering bees on the
summer stands ?

On April 29th I took out 7 colonies, 4 of
them did not have a flight since Nov. 13th,
or 136 days — more than that, as they did
not fly for a few days before I put them into

696

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

the cellar. The other 7 I took out to-day.
Those I took out on April 29th gathered the
first pollen to-day from willows. Seven of
the 14 are very strong, 4 are medium, and
3 are weak.

The sun has not been shining all day at a
time for over a month. It rains or snows
about four days in a week. Some of the
snow of April 20th is with us still. The
mercury hovers between 30 and 40 degrees
above, but to-day it got up to 52 degrees,
with prospects of better weather.

I like the American Bee Journal, but
there are some things in it that won't fit
this climate. When the mercury shrinks
to from zero to over 30 degrees below, and
stays below for a month at a time, and the
wind blowing a gale for three or four days
at a time. I think it would take a pretty
tough bee, with good flannel clothes on. to
stand it packed on the summer stands. But
as a whole, the Bee Journal is a good
paper. Long may it prosper !

John M. Seiler.

©hanhassen. Minn., May 2, 1892.

Large Yield from Clover Expected.

We have had a very hard winter on bees,
and the loss has been very heavy. I have
lost 8 out of 52 colonies. They were in poor
condition this spring, but are building up
fast. The strongest are making prepara-
tions for swarming. I think I will have
some swarms by another week. The clover
looks fine, and I expect a large yield from
that source. Wm. Housel.

Wertsville, N. J., May 22, 1893.

Quite Heavy Losses — Rainy Weather.

Reports from bee-keepers around here
indicate quite heavy losses the past winter.
Some lost J4, some Vo, and some all. My
own loss is but one colony. The bees came
out for a flight the latter part of February,
and one entire colony left the hive and en-
tered another close by. that was the same
color. That was all the loss I had in 10 col-
onies. They left about 25 or 30 pounds of
honey. We are having very rainy weather,
and fruit-trees are not yet in blossom.

J. R. Common.

Angelica, N. Y., May 17, 1893.

Uses Common-Sense Principles.

I have been working with bees for the
past ten years. I keep about 30 colonies in
''Modest" hives, and work for extracted
honey. I winter my bees on the summer
stands without much loss, without extra
packing. 1 am not a specialist, but try to
run them on common-sense principles, and
they have given fair returns for my trouble.

We have a Mr. Shirley traveling the
country over, transferring bees and selling
a hive which he claims works wonders. He
transfers all winter, and claims that is the
right time for transferring! He says bees
will build comb every month in the year in
his hive! T. C. Mooun.

Green Hill, Ind., May 7, 1893.

Wintered in Fine Condition.

My bees came through in fine condition.
They commenced gathering natural pollen
May 1st. They had been working on bran
since March 10th. I bought 75 pounds of
extracted honey last week for 9 cents per
pound. I hauled it 10 miles, and then sold
it for 12 cents per pound. Comb honey is
selling at 15 cents per pound.

My neighbors lost from .'.j to % of their
bees the jiast winter. It is snowing to-day.
We have had a very dry winter. There
has not been more than "three weeks at a
time but what I have seen bees out.

In regard to that horse-blanket mentioned
by Mr. Reynolds, on page 405, I would say
that it was the sweat on the blanket. You
may drive a dry horse right through the
apiary, and the bees will not notice it ; but
drive a sweaty one within a few rods of a
hive, and the bees will go for it at once.

C. C. ZiNN.

New Windsor, Colo., May 8, 1893.

No Swarming in Four Years.

I have many queens that are doing excel-
lent work, but I have one that I know to be
four years old, that I wish to tell about.
Her colony has never swarmed, but gives
200 pounds of honey each year. She is now
occupying 32 Langstroth frames, and the
last given them is nearly ready for the ex-
tractor. Now, don't everybody go to or-
dering non-swarming queens. If you knew
as well as I do the cause of swarming, you
would not want non-swarmers. Bees have
been swarming all around me for two
weeks. F. C. Morrow.

Wallaceburg, Ark., May 2, 1893.

COWVENTIOW DIRECTORY.

Time and place of meeting.

1893.
June 16, 17.— S. E. Kansas, at Brouson. Kans.
J. C. Balch, Sec. Bronson. Kans.

Oct. 11, 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicago, Tils.
Frank Benton, Sec. Washing-ton, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,

Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President- Dr. C. C. Miller.... Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt

Secretary— Frank Benton. Washington, D C.
Treasurer— George W. York. . .Chicago, Ills.

National Bee-Keepers' ITnlon.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapoer. Mich.
Gen'l, Manager— T. G. Newman. Chicago, 111.

■ ^m I

C«reat Preniiuiu on page 675 !

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

697

lldiiey & Beeswax Market (juotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
May 27th, 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as line comb is concerned. Quite a
j^ood deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
rang'ing- from 13 to 15e. Fancy would bring'
18c. Extracted, G@8c. Beeswax, 25e.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@I5c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. loc; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7i4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI. O.— A short supply of ex-
tracted honey is the cause of a slow demand.
It forbids an effort on our part to sell. It
brings 6@8e. There is no choice comb honey
on our market, and prices are nominal at 12@
16e., in a small way.

Beeswax— Demand good. at 22®25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@10c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif,— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22@23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb. 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
traeted.fair supply, with good demand at 8»4 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & B.

MINNESOTA, MINN.-Honey is in good de-
mand, especially for fancy white clover.
There is considerable of the low grade on the
market. Extracted is also improving in pri-
ces. Beeswax in light demand. Fancy white
clover, in 1 lb. sections, 18c.; choice white
clover, 16c.; golden-rod, 1 lb. sections, 13®14;
dark, 12@13c. Extracted, 9@10c.

J. A. S. &Co.

ALBANY, N. Y. —Honey market is very
quiet now, as between seasons. Beeswax —
at 30@32c. for good color. H. R. W.

Capons and Caponizing:, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizlng fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.10.

List of Houey and Beeswax Healers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Clilcago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.
New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiiDBETH Bros. & Seqelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway.

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steineb, 10 Drumm St.

Minneapolis, Minn.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo. '

Hamblin & Beakss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, IV.Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

« Cincinnati, Olilo.

C. F. Muth & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— We

have just Issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in all, and is illustrated. Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Jouknal for one year, for $1.15.

Xlie "Washingfton Convention
Report is now in pamphlet form, and we
shall be pleased to mail a copy to any
one desiring it, for 25 cents. It con-
tains 32 pages. As only a very limited
number were printed, yoa should order
promptly if you want a copy.

Wants or Excbaiiges.

'*^\.~sy\.'>^\.'>^

Under this heading. Notices of 5 Imes, or
less, will be Inserted at lO cents per line,

for each Insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

TO EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

TO EXCHANGE — New Cowan Extractor
for choice extracted honey.
22A2 J. H. & A. L. BOYDEN, Saline, Mich.

BARGAINS— Harbaugh stock. Lang. Brood
Frames, 50c. per hundred in 500 lots. Imp.
L. S. Supers, $3 for a crate of 25. Only a few
at these prices. E. T. ABBOTT. St. Joe, Mo.

698

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Contention IVotices.

KANSAS.— There will be a meeting ol' the
Southeastern Kansas Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion on June 16 and 17, 1893, one mile west
of Bronson. All are cordially invited to be
present J. C. Balch, Sec.

Bronson, Kans.

INTERNATIONAL.— The North American
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its 24th
annual convention on Oct. 11. 12 and 13. 1893,
in Chicago, Ills. Not only is every bee-lseeper
in America, whether a member of the society
or not, invited to be present, but a special in-
vitation is extended to friends of apiculture
it every foreign land, Frank Benton. Sec.

Washington, D. C.

Amerikanische Bienenzucht is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated ; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the Bee
JouBNAL. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

Advertisemeiits.

50 Seeond-Hand Hives.

IWJIaIa sell 30 New Heddon and 20 L. Sim-
plicity hives. Frames filled with good
straight combs, mostly wired, containing from
5 to 15 lbs. of honey to the hive. Price, of
Heddon. $3.50, and L. Simplicity, $2.50 each.
A discount of 5 per cent on orders for 20 hives
and upwards. Will exchange for First-Class
Incubator; Eggs for Hatching, of B. Leghorn
and B. Plymouth Rock fowls; Italian queens,
or a Spraying pump, as part pay for hives.
A. WOKTHAN,
22A2t SEAFIELD, White Co., IND.

Mention the American Bee Ja-jj-niaL

COMBS &SEGOND-HAND HIVES,

OpT 2-story 9-Fraiiie liangstroth HItcs,

•*-^«J ill first class condition. Also, between
400 and 500 good Combs (worth at least
10 cts. each) in wliich the Bees died the past
winter. Tne outfit is well worth over $75.00.
Will sell the whole for only $50.00. Speak
quick, if you want them. "Will be put on
board cars at Wilmette, Ills., 14 miles uorth
of Chicago. We are offering them for a friend
of ours who lives there. Address,

GEORGE W. YORK & CO.,

- CHICAGO, ILLS.

Original, Unimproved

BINGHAM

BEE-SMOKERS

ii@iiiiiis«iiiiieriii'""o 'a. 0 i'Si«iit(5lSMi6.wiii^iiiiii|e"i

C/5C1 ?

The perfect or improved series of Bing,
ham Smokers, consisting of the 3 larger sizes
with all improvements, will be sent by mail
postpaid, as follows:

liarsce, $1.50; Conqueror, $1.75 ;

Doctor, the largest smoker made, $2.00.

More than 100,000
BINGHAM & HETHERINGTON

HoneyRnives

AND

Bee-Smokers

IN" D-A.ILi'X' XJSEJ.

Illustrations sent free.

Bliigliam & Hetiierington,

14Atf

ABRONIA, MICH.

Morris Cross-Roads, Pa., May 15, '93.
T. F. BINGHAM:—

Dear Sir— I received the Smoker in good
order. The wire-handle and bent-tube are a
great improvement. The wire-handle is a
great convenience in removing the cone, en-
tirely prevents burning of the fingers, and the
bent-tube enables the bee-keeper to use the
smoke just where he needs it, without any
danger of soot, ashes or fire. It entirely does
away with spoilt sections or the dropping of
fire. I thought the old Bingham Smoker was
good, and cannot see what the new one leaves
to be desired. Yours truly,

R. W. HiGINBOTHAM.

Fine Italian Queens.

Tested, $1.00 each ; Untested, 60c.

Prom Best Imported Mothers Only.

AIiLi young, and for Gentleness. Industry
and Uniformity of Color, their Bees are
unsurpassed. Safe delivery. Must send P.O.
Money Order on Decatur, or remit by regis-
tered letter. CL.EVK1.AIN1> BRON.,

DECATUR, Newton Co., MISS.

Mention the American Bee Journal.

GEOBGE W. YORK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. f To Bee-Culture> | Sample Pree.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL. JUNE 8, 1893.

NO. 23.

Woi-lrt's Fail* Apiitria-ii l']vliil>it.

— On Saturday, May 20th, accompanied by
Mr. W. A. Pi'yal, our jovial California cor-
respondent, we visited the great Fair, and
spent considerable time in the Agricultural
Building, wherein are located the apiarian
exhibits. After walking for a long dis-
tance on the first floor of the mammoth
building whose area Is a little over nine
acres, we ascended to the second floor, at
the eastern end of which is located the ex-
hibits that will most interest bee-keepers.

Upon reaching the row of perhaps a
dozen large glass cases built especially for
the honey and wax exhibits, we found Mr.
Allen Pringle and Mr. E. Whitcomb, the
former having charge of the Ontario dis-
play, and the latter representing the pro-
gressive State of Nebraska.

At this time we will not attempt to give
a minute description of the various api-
arian exhibits already iu place, but will re-
serve that for future numbers of the Bee
Journal. During the summer we will en-
deavor to give many interesting details of
all the displays of honey, wax, and bee-
appliances, and if possible to arrange, pub-
lish illustrations of them, which will aid
those who may not be able to attend the
Fair, as well as form a record for preserva-
tion.

We may say now, however, that the

States of Nebraska, Wisconsin, New York,
Iowa and Ohio have their exhibits of honey
and wax either wholly or partially com-
pleted. Mr. Pringle was at work arrang-
ing a series of long tables, one above the
other, within Canada's glass case, each
table or stand being narrower as the tier
neared the top of the case.

The cases are made of sliding glass doors,
built upon a box elevation of perhaps three
feet. All is made tight, so that no dust can
get in where the honey and wax are placed.
The glass doors can also be locked up, so
that none of the exhibits may be carried
off", or be handled in any way by those who
view them. The cases are each 25 feet
long, 1 feet high, and 4)<j feet wide, inside
measurement, and, with their contents of
tempting sweets, pi'esent a most pleasing
appearance.

Bro. A. I. Root had his exhibit of bee-
supplies all in place. It is an instructive
display, showing every implement and arti-
cle used in a complete modern apiary, all
arranged in such a way as to be seen at the
best advantage. This exhibit is enclosed iu
a three-sided glass case, built against the
outer wall of the main structure.

Among other exhibits of bee-supplies
were those of Messrs. E. Kretchmer, of
Iowa ; Chas. F. Muth & Son, of Ohio ; C.
H. Putman, of Wisconsin ; Lester L. Price,
of Nebraska: A. G. Hill and G. K. Hub-
bard, of Indiana ; and The Falconer Mfg.
Co., of New York. As before mentioned,
we will give detailed description of these
and other apiarian exhibits later.

One CeMt Postage Ntainps we

prefer rather than two cent ones. , When
sending fractions of a dollar, please send us
the one cent stamps.

712

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Xlie Illinois* Apiiii°iau Kxliibit

at the World's Fair is now being arranged
for. We have received a circular from Mr.
Jas. A. Stone, Secretary of the State Bee-
Keepers' Association, in which are given
the Rules and Regulations for the Apiarian
Exhibit of the Illinois State Bee-Keepers'
Association, to be made at the World's
Columbian Exposition, May 1 to Oct. 31,
1893.

The following is a copy of the circular
sent out by Mr. Stone, and should be read
by every subscriber to the Bee Journal in
Illinois :

To the Bee-Keepers of lUinois :

By an Act of the Illinois Legislature a
sufficient sum of money has been appro-
priated to enable the Executive Committee
of the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion to make a creditable exhibit of the
apiarian products of the State of Illinois,
in the National Agricultural .Building of
the World's Columbian Exposition.

The rules of the Department of Agricul-
ture are given below.

It will be the aim of the Executive Com-
mittee to conduct the exhibit in such a
manner that it will result in the greatest
good to the apiarian industry of the State.

The rules of the Board of Control of the
World's Columbian Exposition require all
exhibits to be made in the names of the in-
dividuals exhibiting, and all awards must
follow the decision of the national judges.

The committee propose to forward ship-
ping-tags to all exhibitors, requiring them
to carefully pack, prepay freight, and for-
ward duplicate receipts to the Secretary of
the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Association,
care of W. I. Buchanan, Chief of the De-
partment of Agriculture, World's Fair
Grounds, Chicago, Ills.

The Committee will pay all freight and
expenses incurred in connection with the
said exhibit, and will dispose of all the api-
ai-ian products consigned to them to the
best advantage, and return the proceeds to
the exhibitor ; or they will, on his choice,
be returned to the owner at his expense.

In case a shipment should not reach the
Exposition in presentable condition, the
Committee will dispose of the same to best
advantage, and return the proceeds to the
owner — which will not prevent him from
sending another shipment in the same line.

liec-Keepern of I/Unoia ! Nevnr before have we
had xuch an opportumty to show our products to
the world.

We must have the best the State can pro-
duce, and plenty of it, that we may main-
tain our reputation, and receive a large
share of tlie awards.

We urge upon yoii the importance of the
occasion, and ask you to send application
for entry, and your assistance in (listribut-
ing this circular, that a large proportion of
the bee-keepers of the State may be repre-
sented. Either the President or Secretary
of the Illinois Bee-Keepers' Association will
be in charge of the exhibit.

^special Rules and Information Governing the
Exhibit of Bees, Beeswax and Bee- Appliances.

I . Exhibits of Honey will be classified as
follows :

Class 1 — Clover and Basswood.

Class 2— White Sage.

Class 3 — Buckwheat.

Class 4 — All light honey, other than
enumerated in Classes 1 and 2.

Class a — All dark honey, other than
enum'erated in Class 3.

3. Exhibits of honey produced in 1892, or
earlier, must be sent in as soon as possible.

3. Exhibits of Honey in Classes 1. 2, and
4, produced during 1893, will be received
between July 15th and Aug. 15th ; and in
Classes 3 and 5, between Aug. luth and
Sept. 1st, 1893.

4. The following information should ac-
company 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 in nearest
home market.

5. The dimensions of cases in which ex-
hibits will be made are as follows : Inside
measurement — width of case, 5 feet ; height,
6}.;^ feet; total height of case, including
base, 8 feet.

G. Individual exhibits of comb honey will
be limited to lUO pounds, aud may be made
in any manner the exhibitor may desire,
subject to the approval of the chief of the
department.

7. Individual exhibits of extracted honey
must be made in glass, and must not exceed
50 pounds.

8. Individual exhibits of beeswax must
not exceed 50 pounds, and should be pre-
pared in such a manner as will add to the
attractiveness of the exhibit.

9. Exhibits of primitive and modern ap-
pliances used in bee-culture, both in this
country and abroad, will be received, sub-
ject to the approval of the chief of the de-
partment.

10. Special arrangements will be made by
the chief of the department for a limited
exhibit of bees.

II. Collections of honey -producing plants,
suitably mounted and labeled, will be ac-
cepted if satisfactory to the chief of the
department.

Please make your application immediateli/,
that shipping-tags may be sent you, and
full directions given.

For fui'ther particulars address,

J.V8. A. Stone, Sec.

Bradfordton, Ills.

All Aliuoriiial Nea^!•oll is what they
have had so far this jear in England. It
has been unusually dry, and rain was needed
very badly in May.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

713

Preventing- Aft er-SM'arms. — Bro.
Hutchinson, in the Review, gives the follow-
ing plan, by the use of the bee-escape :

Frank Coverdale writes me that he has
prevented after-swarming by hiving the
swarm on the old stand, then placing the
old hive by its side with its entrance near
that of the newly-hived swarm. The old
hive is then closed, except that a bee-escape
is placed in the entrance on the side next
to the new hive. Of course, every bee that
leaves the old hive never gets back, but
finds its way into the new swarm. All of
the working force, and all of the young
bees when they come out to play, are
thrown into the new swarm.

In seven or eight days the old hive can be
given a new stand, the same as in the Hed-
don plan, but it will be completely robbed
of all the bees except the young, downy,
just-hatched ones, which is not the case
with the Heddon plan, and after-swarming
will positively be prevented in every case.

If no increase is desired, the escape can
be left in place for a longer period, 21 days
if the weather is warm, or, if it is cool, it
may be taken away at the end of two
weeks.

When the bees have all hatched out, the
few remaining may be shaken off in front
of the new swarm, and the honey extracted
from the Combs, or they can be used in any
way thought best. Or the matter may sim-
ply be carried to such an extent that the
old colony will be so weakened that not
only will it not swarm, but it will not be
sufficiently populous for winter, but will
still be able to care for and protect the
combs until fall, when the two colonies may
be united, the better queen being preserved.

Inti*o<1iieing- Queens.— The follow-
ing directions for introducing queens we
found printed on a queen-shipping cage re-
cently :

After removing the cover, note the condi-
tion of the queen, and if she is all right,
proceed to introduce her. First remove the
slip of card from the end of the cage con-
taining the candy. Lay the cage on the
frames directly over the cluster, wire-cloth
down, so the bees can become acquainted
with the queen ; cover the cage with the en-
ameled cloth, or quilt, put on the cover,
and do not molest the hive under any cir-
cumstances for five days, at which time
you will likely find her out and laying. If
you have a flat cover on your hive, just
tack a thin strip of wood across the back
of the cage, spread the frames, and hang
the cage, face down, between the frames.
Before introducing, be sure your colony is
queenless.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journai. we mail for
only 50 cents; or clubbed with the
Journal for $1.40.

Gbsersl

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 'Zo or more apiarists
who help to make " Queries and Replies " so
interesting on another pag'e. In the main, it
■will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed.

Just a Word with You.

We mean with the readers of "Gen-
eral Questions." This department is
meant for the benefit of all who may
wish to avail themselves of it, and we
wish our readers to feel the utmost liber-
ty in sending in any questions to which
answers are desired. Don't feel that
you are Intruding — we desire the ques-
tions as much as you desire the answers.
This department lays no claim to infal-
libility, and it is possible that some of
your questions may be too hard for it,
but it does desire to be honestly helpful
just as far as its ability goes.

Now a word as to the manner of send-
ing your questions : Before us lie ques-
tions from two different persons. One of
them is scribbled in pencil on what ap-
pears a scrap of waste-paper, somewhat
crowded for room, and so hard to de-
cipher that some words cannot be made
out at all only as they may be guessed
at from the connection. It is a real re-
lief to turn from that to the other, which
is written with some appearance of care,
the writing being so plain that any
schoolboy could read it. Now all can-
not write like copper-plate, all cannot
avoid mistakes in spelling, but please do
what all can do, and that is, to make
your questions just as plain as you can.

If you specially desire that your ques-
tions shall be answered in this depart-
ment, just say "For General Questions."
Also, please do not get in a hurry for
the reply, as questions must take their
turn, unless it be those that will not be-
come worthless by a short delay, and
thus can be put aside a time for such as
are necessary to be answered at once in
order that the reply be seasonable.

Drones and Swarming — Dead Bees.

1. Do bees ever swarm after they be-
gin to drive off the drones ? " A B C of
Bee-Culture" says for the time being,
but mine are at it now, and I had
swarms in June, in 1892.

2. What was the matter with my bees ?
In February we had some warm days,

714

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

and I had one colony to bring out lots of
dead bees, more than was usual. It was
a small colony, and there were 1 50 bees
dead with their heads to the bottom of
the cells, and sealed honey around them.
Their combs were clean, and the queen
was dead. M. W. Gakdnek.

Bankston, Ala., May 20, 1893.

Answers — 1. Yes, if there comes a
dearth after drones appear, the workers
may kill them off, and swarm when a
new lot is reared.

2. It is nothing unusual for bees to
carry out their dead when a warm day
comes in winter. An unusually long
spell of confinement would make an un-
usual number. Sometimes a small clus-
ter gets separated from the main cluster
and are found dead. In the case you
mention, the number of bees may have
been so small that they could not keep
up sufficient heat.

Keeping' Bees on Shares.

I have taken four colonies of bees on
shares. The agreement is that they are
to swarm once, and are to be worked for
comb honey. The question is, would
you, under these circumstances, put on
any sections before they swarm, or wait
until afterward ?

The share that each gets is half the
swarms and half the surplus honey.

Waupaca, Wis. Samuel, Taylok.

Answer — One of the hard things to
answer is a question about bees on
shares. Unless everything is definitely
agreed upon in advance, and put down
in black and white, with such a variable
factor as a colony of bees there is likely
to be misunderstanding and trouble.

Your agreement seems to be an origi-
nal one, that the bees " are to swarm
once," and one would conclude that you
are expected to make them swarm once,
but you say nothing about the penalty
in case you fail to make them swarm,
nor what is to be done in case the little
creatures take it into their heads to
swarm more than once. Doubtless all
second swarms can be prevented, but
there do happen cases — would that they
might happen oftener — in which bees
stubbornly refuse to swarm. Suppose
there comes one of those bad seasons
when bees do not make a living, to say
nothing about swarniing, at th(i end of
the season you are bound to return the
four colonies together with four addi-
tional, and not one has swarmed, where
are you V Wo know of a certain enthu-
siastic beginner in Iowa who took bees

on shares with a somewhat similar
agreement, and he actually had to give
up all the bees he had and buy more to
make good his agreement.

So you see it's a hard matter to answer
your question without knowing what is
to happen if you don't succeed in making
the bees swarm. But the probability is
that they will swarm more than you
desire, and it may be your safest plan to
put on supers before swarming.

Getting Rid of Black Drones.

How do the bees get rid of black
drones, old and young, when Italianiz-
ing an apiary ? R. C. Fowke.

Baldock, S. C.

Answer. — The easiest answer to your
question is to say, "They don't." That
is probably the true answer in most
cases. Even if you get rid of all objec-
tionable drones in your own apiary, they
may come from other apiaries about you.
But with enough care it may be possible
to control the matter entirely in your
own apiary.

In the first place, prevention is better
than cure. See that no drone-brood is
allowed to hatch out. Slice off the
heads of all sealed drone-brood. While
you are at it, it may be well to cut out
all drone-comb, putting in its place
patches of worker comb.

But bees are very persistent in rearing
drones, and if you leave them no drone-
comb they will rear a few drones here
and there in a very troublesome way.
Doolittle's plan is to leave about an inch
square of drone-comb in the hive to sat-
isfy them, then you will know right
where to look for drone-brood, and can
shave off the sealed brood about every
three weeks. To get rid of what are al-
ready hatched out, use the Alley drone-
trap.

*»A Mo*!*"!'!! ISee-Fariii and Its

Economic Management," is the title of a
splendid book on practical bee-culture, by
Mr. S. Simmins, of England. It is Tj^xS}-^
inches in size, and contains 270 pages,
nicely iUustrated. and bound in cloth. It
shows " how bees may be cultivated as a
means of livelihood; as a health-giving
pursuit ; and as a source of recreation to
the busy man." It also illustrates how
profits may be " made certain by growing
crops yielding the most honey, having also
other uses; and by judgment in breeding a
good working strtiin of bees." Price, post-
jjaid. from this oHice, ^^1 ,00 ; or clubbed with
the Bice J()iiii;<iAi. tor one j'ear, for $1.70.

"Bees and Honey" — see page 707

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

T15

J. H. L.ARRABEE.

Mr. Larrabee, the subject of our
sketch and picture this week, is one of
the newest additions to our corps of
query answerers. We had the very
great pleasure of making his acquaint-

J. H. LARRABEE.

ance in October, 1892, at the meeting
of the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Con-
vention here in Chicago. We had quite
a visit with Mr. L., and felt that in him
we had indeed found a good friend.

Mr. Larrabee has written perhaps
more for the Bee-Keepers'' Review than
for any other bee-periodical, though the
Bee Journal has often been favored

pen

with contributions from his graceful
and brilliant mind.

He was born at Niles, Mich., on Sept.
14, 1862. At an early age his parents
removed to Vermont, where "J. H."
went through the usual experiences of
boyhood on the farm. At 14 years of
age^e was sent away to school, where
he remained in academy and college for
four years. After about three years of
teaching school, chancing to be at home
one spring he became interested in the
bees and their intelligent management.
With regard to his early experiences,
Mr. L. writes :

"Well do I remember the first copy of
the American Bee Journal I ever saw.
I carried it to the field one day, to read
when resting the horses at the end of
the furrow, and accidentally dropped it
in the mud. I can still find the marks
of the fall upon this first copy."

His progress was rapid, as he adopted
the chafl-hive system of wintering bees,
and lost few bees in winter, while the
excellent white clover and linden forage
gave ample encouragement, from a
worldly view.

During the past five years of general
depression in the bee-business, his bees
have not only paid all expenses, but
wages of at least $50 per month for all
the time spent with them. This fact
proves not only that the Champlain
Valley is worthy of the reputation it
bears as an excellent locality for bees,
but that proper care at the right time,
and with a system that has something of
system in it, are large factors contribut-
ing to success in bee-culture.

He has explained his system several
times, wholly or in part, in the bee-
papers, and, as he himself says, the only
thing specially meritorious about it is
that it is a system for the whole year,
and that it is carried out practically,
and all short-cuts to lessen work are
thus taken advantage of.

For the past six years Mr. L.'s apiary
has contained from 80 to 130 colonies
of bees ; and for the past four years he

T16

AMERICAN BKK JOURNAL.

has run an out-apiary of about 30 colo-
nies for extracted honey.

In August, 1890, he became ac-
quainted, personally, with the junior
editor of Oleaniiuis in Bee-Culttire, Mr.
Ernest R. Root, and in November of
that year, when Prof. Cook was search-
ing for an assistant in conductiugVthe
experiments in bee-culture that were
undertaken by the authorities of the
Department of Agri ulture at Washing-
ton, Mr. Root referred him to Mr. Lar-
rabee, and after inquiries, he was asked
to fill the position, which he did to the
best of his ability for two years, when
the station was discontinued. The re-
port of his experiments for 1892 will be
printed, we think, in Bulletin No, 28 of
the Department of Agriculture, soon to

be issued.

Mr. L.'s present home is in Lansing,
Mich. Although he is not, the present
season, engaged in bee-culture, he re-
tains his interest in the pursuit, and
reads all the principal apiarian periodi-
cals, so far as time will permit. His
younger brother, Wallace, at Larrabee's
Point, Vt., has charge of his bees, and
he considers himself very fortunate in
having a brother who can be depended
upon to carefully care for his pets. W.
G. Larrabee follows his brother in his
love of the bees, and owns about 60 col-
onies himself.

Mr. Larrabee bears an untarnished
record wherever known. He is unmar-
ried, which, we think, must be wholly
from choice. More will be heard from
him bye-and-bye, we are led to expect,
and we also sincerely hope.

Mrs. Jennie Atchley will at-
tend the meeting of the horticultural
society at Rockport, Tex., on June 20th.
Bee-keepers will unite in the meeting,
and a grand time is expected. A steamer
will be placed at the command of the
meeting, to be used on the Ocean as they
may choose. Belter go if you can, and
have a good time, as well as get intel-
lectual profit.

conducted by
Greenville. Texas.

Texas State Bee-Keepers' Convention.

For the first time in many years I at-
tended the Texas Bee-Keepers' Conven-
tion, its last meeting being held at the
apiaries of W. R. Graham and Mrs. Jen-
nie Atchley, in Greenville, Tex. There,
in a beautiful grove of large oaks, sur-
rounded by the busy bees, we went on
April 5th and 6th, 1893. The weather
was like summer, and the hum of the
millions of workers was encouraging
music to our ears. It filled me with the
happiness and zeal of former days. The
meeting was in the neighborhood in
which I had lived for ten years, and the
meeting of old friends and neighbors
made it doubly interesting to me, since
all evinced a real and undisguised pleas-
ure in welcoming me. The days of our
early acquaintance were gone over
again, and it seemed more like a family
reunion for pleasure than for the discus-
sion of the subjects, for which we have
assembled.

While Time had removed from us
many of our most zealous workers, and
wrought changes in the appearances of
persons and places, yet that same confi-
dence and affection existed, such as no
calling or profession recognizes with that
mutual feeling of friendship, like that
of bee-keepers, more especially in our
beautiful Southern home— our own be-
loved Texas. Too much cannot be said
for our host, Wm. R. Graham, and hos-
tess, Mrs. Jennie Atchley, who had
taken careful pains to see that every
arrangement for our accommodation
and pleasure was complete, and to them
we owe, in a great measure, the success
of our meeting.

Bro. Graham is one of our oldest and
most successful bee-keepers in the
South, he is always "at home" to bee-
keepers, naturally generous, and is in
the zenith of his glory at a " bee-meet-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

717

in'." He showed us throush his supply
factory, which he told us must be run
day and night to keep up with the or-
ders, and while it appeared to one who
knew little of the demands of bee-keep-
ers, that the stock on hand would sup-
ply every bee-keeper in the State for
years, yet he assured us that he would,
owing to the increasing demand, be com-
I pelled to put in a larger engine and in-
crease his facilities in every direction;
clearly illustrating the fact that these
conventions have been the means of de-
veloping some of the best bee-keepers
and most extensive apiaries in the South.

Through the kindness of Mrs. Atchley
and her interesting family of queen-
breeders, for every child from the oldest
to the youngest handles bees like profes-
sionals, we were shown through the api-
ary ; the beautiful queens from which are
bred annually thousands of fine queens,
the bright 5-banded workers, their gen-
tle manners, being manipulated without
smoke, all tended to prove the value of
this strain.

While these little kindnesses shown us
by the "out-door department," had
their effect toward making the meeting
a success, yet they bear only a passing
interest when compared with the "bill
of fare," and the manner in which it
was served. In the announcements
published, the passwoi'd was, "No hotel
bills," and be assured that Delmonico
could not have served a menu that
would have been appreciated by bee-
keepers with such a relish. We are
nothing if not chivalrous, and many of
our lady friends showed their apprecia-
tion, in accompanying their husbands
and sharing in their enjoyments.

(Dr.) Wm. R. Howard.

Fort Worth, Texas.

Mutual Aid, or Helping Each Other.

The following essay was read at the
Texas State Convention held on April
5th and 6th, at Greenville :

It is with pleasure and great joy to me
to be blessed with the privilege of meet-
lug so many bright bee-keepers' faces.
Let us endeavor to help each other, es-
pecially in this our loving pursuit — bee-
keeping— and may we each and every
one ever be ready to assist each other,
and to bear one another's burdens in
this great cause of apiculture in the
South.

Let us all remember that our Sunny
Southland is the paradise of the honey-
bee, and I ask the co-operation of all

present to assist me in this grand work
of building up bee-keeping in the South.
Let us know no North, no South, but
may we work together as a band of
brothers and sisters, and by our mutual
assistance may we ever be made to re-
joice that we have been the means of
helping others along in this work.

In conclusion I ask the assistance of
all present to help me in making the de-
partment of " Sunny Southland " in the
American Bee Journal what it ought
to be — a prize and a help to further the
cause of bee-keeping in the South.

I wish to state that I would be glad
to make the personal acquaintance of
every bee-keeper here, and ask you be-
fore you leave, to come into my office
and give me a shake of your hand. If
there are any here that wish to sub-
scribe for the " Old Reliable," I am
ready and willing to take your names,
and count you one of our band, and for
an inducement I am prepared to give
you the weekly American Bee Journal
for one year for $1.00, and also a 200-
page bee-book as a premium. I would
be very proud, indeed, if every bee-
keeper here would take it, as through
its columns I hope to become more and
more acquainted with you, and assist
you all in my power to make your bees
pay, and to give you value received
when you read the American Bee Jour-
nal. Jennie Atchley.

A Report from Tennessee.

The past winter was unusually severe,
and as the fall crop was remarkably
short, many bees died in this locality. I
went into the winter with 78 colonies —
some of them were nuclei — and have
come so far with a loss of only 12. I
need not have lost any if I had fed at
the proper time, and in sufficient quan-
tity. Several colonies that appeared
good and strong last year, and from
which I took no surplus, starved out
before I knew of their necessities. •

Feeding can be done here almost any
time, if proper judgment is exercised.
As an illustration : When the mercury
was dancing around about 6° above
zero at night, I knew some of my weak
colonies were about gone up, so when
the sun came out in the middle of the
day, I examined them, and finding one
in which more than half of the bees had
starved, I gave them a frame of sealed
honey, pushing it close up to the cluster.
I think there was not more than a quart
of bees living at the time. By abundant

718

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

feeding of syrup as soon as the weather
would permit, they have prospered, and
are coming on exceUontly.

FEEDING BEES.

I have tried putting syrup in empty
combs, and hanging in the hive, but
this is entirely too much trouble. The
easiest and quickest way to feed with
no special expense for feeders, is to set
three or four cheap wooden dishes —
such as grocers have to put butter in —
upon the top of the brood-frames, put in
some grass or weeds for " foot logs " for
the bees, and pour in the syrup.

Ordinary porcelain bowls will do if
you are sure to press the grass down
well, and put in enough for it to fill up
and hang over somewhat, for the little
" ladies " to climb by. On pouring in a
second time, use care not to drown the
bees in the bottom of the dishes or bowls.

SYRUP FOK FEEDING.

My experience is that to put a lot of
granulated white sugar into a tin bucket,
and pour in enough warm water to dis-
solve it when stirred, makes it a first-
class syrup for bees. I have been feed-
ing considerable for nearly a year, and
I have never known of its granulating
yet. If I am in a hurry, I do not even
heat the water.

THIS SEASON — PROSPECTS, ETC.

We had ten days of good weather dur-
ing fruit-bloom, from about the 1st to
the 10th of April ; then cold, rainy,
windy, and but little chance for work.
Two days now bees have done some
good work. Locust is beginning to
bloom, and I think poplar also, but I
have not been to the woods to investi-
gate. T have had only one swarm so
far — on the 18th. It weighed 4:}4
pounds.

Several cold days coming on, I had to
feed. On examination this evening I
found 3 colonies in destitute circum-
stances, and ministered to their wants.

I am a bachelor, and somewhat bash-
ful in the presence of ladies, but I must
thank the editor for assigning rae to the
care of Mrs. Atchley. Many perhaps
will recall the fact that I was given an
introduction to "Sunny Southland"
when I wrote some months since.

Lewis K. Smith.

Gainesboro, Tenn., April 25, 1893.

Honey an Animal or Vegetable
ISubstance.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 707 ?

Query 874.— Is honey an animal or veg-
etable substance ?— W. D.

Both. — S. I. Freeborn.

Vegetable.— M. Mahin.

Vegetable — E. France.

Vegetable. — P. H. Elwood.

Vegetable. — Dadant & Son.

I don't know. — C. C. Miller.

Vegetable. — J. H. Larrabee.

Vegetable. — Will M. Barnum.

Vegetable. — Mrs. J. N. Heater.

First, vegetable. — J. M. Hambaugh.

Vegetable, andiiot ^^ digested nectar."
—J. P. H. Brown.

It certainly isn't animal, unless bees
mo/ce honey. — Eugene Secor.

Largely vegetable, with a small trace
of animal substance. — H. D. Gutting.

The nectar used in producing honey is
from a vegetable source. — G. M. Doolit-

TLE.

Vegetable. It is the product of a
plant, gathered by a bee. — Mrs. L. Har-
rison.

In so far as it Is gathered from
flowers, of course it Is vegetable. — R. L.
Taylor.

We will believe it is vegetable until
we have evidence to the contrary. — J as.
A. Stone.

A vegetable substance, more or les
modified by animal secretions and diges
tive processes.— James A. Green.

Honey is the inspissated nectar of
flowers, and though gathered by bees its
origin is vegetable. — G. L. Tinker.

Like the sugar which comes from the
starch in our own digestion, I should
call it a digested vegetable. — A. J. Cook.

If honey is digested nectar, I guess it's
an animal substance. When I have
digested food it becomes most thoroughly
animal. — A. B. Mason.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

719

Honey is in no sense an animal sub-
stance. It is principally vegetable glu-
cose. The water and some minor salts
are mineral. — C. H. Dibbern.

Honey from flowers is purely vegeta-
ble. Honey that exudes through the
leaves of plants, caused by lice, or other
insects, may be called "insect honey." —
Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

Neither. Honey no doubt is of a veg-
etable nature. It is secreted by vegeta-
bles, and gathered by animals, passing
through some changes in the process.
Exactly what these changes are is not
fully known. Some of us think we
know what they are not. — Emerson T.
Abbott.

Vegetable. It the natural secretion
of flowers, gathered by the bees.
Whether any chemical change takes
place or not in the stomach of the bees
while conveying it from the field to the
hive, is a mooted question. In no case,
however, can it be an animal substance.
—J. E. Pond.

It is vegetable, pure and simple.
Honey is nectar secreted by nectar-bear-
ing plants and trees, collected by bees
and evaporated and cured by them. It
takes on by absorption more or less of
formic acid by reason of being in con-
tact with the heat generated by the
bees. This can be proven by evaporat-
ing sugar syrup over a strong colony of
bees with wire-cloth between the bees
and the syrup. — G. W. Demaree.

CONVENTION DIRECTORY.

Time and place of meeting.

1893.

June 16, 17.— S. E. Kansas, at Bronson, Kans.
J. C. Balch, Sec, Bronson, Kans.

Oct. 11, 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicago, Ills.
Frank Benton. Sec. Washington, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlehury, Vt.

Secretary- Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York.. .Chicago, Ills.

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

Progression in Bec-Culturc-
Hivc-Invcntion.

Written ior the American Bee Journal
BY JOS. E. pond.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Prior to the introduction of the mov-
able-frame principle, the science of bee-
culture, although at the hands of the late
Quinby, of Langstroth, and a few others
in the United States, and of Dzierzon
and Huber on the other side of the
water, had been decidedly advanced
from its prior position, yet so far as the
general public is concerned, it was but
little understood or appreciated.

The difficulties attending scientific in-
vestigation and research were so great,
that the large majority had neither the
time nor the means of accomplishing
anything of lasting value. It is true
that some of the principles that lie at
the bottom of, and form the foundation
to, the business, were partially under-
stood,, and to some extent were promul-
gated, but superstition, prejudice and
ignorance on the part of the masses,
fostered by a few humbug bee-quacks,
had taken so strong a hold upon the
minds of the majority, that even a slight
step forward was looked upon with dis-
trust ; and this is so true, that even
when movable-frames were first intro-
duced by our own prince of apiarists,
Langstroth, they were looked upon with
the same suspicion that they are viewed
by the few, who, it would seem, prefer
remaining in ignorance, rather than to
become educated as they might.

This ignorance and prejudice was fos-
tered, to a great extent, by the fact
that every " new thing " in the way of a
hive, or of a fancied improvement, was
at once covered by a patent, and " farm
rights" were hawked around the coun-
try, to be found, on investigation after
sale, of no value whatever, thus causing
the purchasers to lose faith in invention,
and their fellow men.

Now, while I myself, as I have many
times stated, am in favor of patents,

720

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

and believe fully that every one should
be as much protected in the labor of his
brain, as in that of his hands, still I also
believe that the application of the pat-
ent law as made to apicultural imple-
ments, has done much toward prevent-
ing advancement in the science of api-
culture ; and further, I believe that so
long as the public are constantly threat-
ened with suits for damages, by those
who have secured patents on combina-
tions of old principles of value, in con-
nection with some new feature of no
practical value whatsoever, that ad-
vancement will be slow, and real prog-
ress retarded.

What gave the impetus to bee-keeping
as a science ? Was it not the introduc-
tion of the movable-frame principle ?
And what really valuable step in that
direction has been taken since that in-
troduction ? At least what so-called im-
provement has been made, that has been
of any real, positive benefit ? I confess
I am unable to learn of any. It is true
that in some minor points, improve-
ments have been made, but those im-
provements have not been the result of
the working of any one particular mind,
but are the aggregation of the workings
of many, each contributing a small share
in producing the grand result.

The arguments and claims that are
being made at the present time, in re-
gard to the actual ownership of this or
that feature, seem to be overshadowed
in the minds of the people by the query
of. What do they amount to, after all ?
Great claims are made for them, and
great results promised by their use; but
let us inquire if any better results have
ever been accomplished by the use of
these much-lauded "patented things,"
than in the use of the frame hives that
have been before the public since the
original was introduced by Father Lang-
stroth. If they have, where is the rec-
ord ? I am anxiously looking for it ; it
has been promised frequently, but the
promise is not yet redeemed by fulfil-
ment.

All I can say is, there are now in use
many unpatented hives that have re-
corded better results than I know of
being made by those patented of late,
and from which we were promised such
immense gains. These old hives are the
very ones that have been the means of
giving the general public that enliglit-
ment it now possesses ; and until somci-
tiiing is offered in their place, with a
proved record of superiority, it looks to
me like the height of foolishness to dis-
card them for the new, simply because

they bear the magic imprint — "Pat-
ented."

I write in the interest of no one ; I
assail no one ; I stand on the broad
ground of historical fact, and ask — In
what have I stated an untruth, or been
guilty of endeavoring an error ? If I
am right in my position, my work is a
public benefit ; if I am wrong, show me
the proofs, and I will retract. Till such
proof is offered, I consider that I am
but doing a duty in presenting my views
to an intelligent public, and am ready
to stand by its verdict.

North Attleboro, Mass.

Soinctliiiig About tlic White
Sag^c of California.

Written for the American Be-e, Journal
BY C. W. DAYTON.

That renowned California white sage
is now (May 20th) approaching an end-
less sea of bloom, and why the bees do
not gather honey from it is a most pro-
found mystery to me. I examined it
this morning, yesterday, day before yes-
terday, and several other times before
that, and honey is so abundant in the
flowers that I could plainly see and taste
it — in fact, there is a small drop in each
blossom, and from three to five blossoms
would make a good load for a bee.

In all I have only seen two bees at
work on it, while this morning, in ten
minutes time, I saw four humming-birds
and two very large jet-black bumble-
bees, and they were very busy, so busy
that the humming-birds continued to
visit the blossoms right close by me.
Ants are also busy on it.

The bees are gathering honey -yery
slowly from wild alfalfa, which is about
like heart's-ease in quality, and amber
in color. Black or burr sage has been
in bloom for sonie time. The bees work
on it considerably, but I can see or taste
no honey by examination of the tubes.
I belie-ve if my bees were in a location
where there was nothing but white sage
(and such locations are hard to find),
perhaps- they would work on it, and
they would be able to fill the hives rap-
idly where it is more a matter of waiting
and hoping than anything else to see
them fill up from wild alfalfa, hore-
hound, orauges, etc.

If white sage is so beneath the notice
of our common honey-bees, and so at-
tractive to humming-birds, bumble-bees
and ants, I wonder what Apis dorsnta
would think of it. Several colonies of

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

721

Punic bees I know in this neighborhood
have the reputation of storing more
honey than other bees last season, and I
suspect it was from white sage.

That nameless disease, or bee-para-
lysis, has attacked about 15 of my colo-
nies. In the colonies attacked, the bees
all wear yellow stripes, while out of 6U
colonies that show no yellow stripes at
all, all are healthy and vigorous.

Pasadena, Calif.

Puzzled on Reproduction in
Iloney-lSecs.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY DAVID K. BRIGGS, M. D.

Having lately caught the "bee-fever,"
I have read everything in reference to
bees with a great deal of enthusiasm,
but I have recently run across a state-
ment that sets all the accepted laws of
reproduction at variance, that I write
for further information and enlighten-
ment on the subject.

On page 16 of "Bees and Honey," in
speaking of the egg-production of the
queen, the author says: "Each egg.
which receives one of the seminal fila-
ments in passing, will produce a worker
or queen, while an unimpregnated egg
will produce only a drone. The sperma-
theca of an unfecundated queen contains
only a transparent liquid with no semi-
nal filaments, and the eggs of such a
queen produce only drones."

Again, on page 462 of the American
Bee Journal for April 13th, Mrs. Jen-
nie Atchley says: "I noticed that
every single queen that became stimu-
lated for egg-laying, never became im-
pregnated, but was always a drone-
layer."

It has been generally accepted as a
fact that it requires impregnation from
the opposite sex before reproduction can
take place, be it flowers, insects, ani-
mals, etc., and I did not think that bees
were an exception to this rule. While
intercourse is not necessary for egg-
laying, it is absolutely necessary for
fecundation. If some one should tell
Mrs. Atchley that if she kept no rooster
with her hens, that if she would set the
eggs they would hatch out all roosters,
she would laugh at the idea.

I think that where a queen was stim-
ulated for egg-laying before mating with
a drone, that after she had mated her
eggs woul(3 be more likely to hatch out
drones, than in a queen which had
mated before becoming stimulated for

egg-laying, as suggested by a theory
lately advanced, "that the greater the
passion of one of the parents, the off-
spring would be of the opposite sex."
Blackville, S. C.

[The fact that a queen that has never
met a drone may lay eggs which will
hatch, was fully established by the
great bee-master Dzierzen 40 years ago.
It was bitterly opposed for a time, but
the introduction of the Italian bee gave
opportunity to settle some of the chief
points at issue in the Dzierzon theory,
and all intelligent apiarists soon gave in
their assent. Other points of great in-
terest are involved, and whoever wants
to have an intelligent understanding of
the subject should not fail to invest 15
cents in the little book containing the
" Dzierzon Theory," which can be had
at the Bee Journal office. — Ed.]

Report of Experiments in W^in-
tering: Bec!^.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY B. TAYLOR.

Nearly all apiarists agree that suc-
cessful wintering is one of the most im-
portant questions connected with bee-
keeping. There is more loss from fail-
ure in wintering than from all other
causes combined. There has always
been much difference of opinion among
leading lights as to the real cause of
bad wintering. Some apiarists laid the
cause to lack of ventilation in wintering-
cellars ; others, to the over-abundant
supply of pollen ; others, to poor food —
honey-dew, late fall honey ; too much
ventilation of hives ; too little ventila-
tion ; and many other fancies have been
brought forward.

Lately sealed covers have been
brought forward as a great remedy for
winter troubles. Books have been print-
ed and widely advertised recommending
this new discovery. This new theory
was from the first, to my mind, contrary
to both theory and practical experience,
yet I gave it a thorough trial, only to
meet with severe loss.

In the fall of 1892 I resolved to begin
a series of more careful experiments in
regard to the part the preparation of
hives themselves played in wintering. I
had, what I have now reason to believe

722

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

to be a fact, a wintering-cellar as nearly
perfect as present knowledge permits,
hence any cause of loss would be in the
condition of the colonies and hives them-
selves, and not in the place they were
kept. So I resolved to try several plans
of preparing the hives for winter.

No. 1. — I prepared 25 hives as fol-
lows, and placed them in one division of
my new cellar : I gave each colony two
sections of my double hive, removing
two combs from each section, and leav-
ing eight combs in each. These eight
combs were spread to fill the 10-frame
hive. The hives were raised two inches
from the bottom-board ; when all was
quiet, a piece of light cotton cloth was
spread over each hive, and on top of
this was placed a shallow box (3 inches
deep) full of sawdust. The entrances
at the bottom were left open the entire
width of the hive, front and rear. Now,
remember these colonies were each left
on 16 combs in two sections of a shallow
hive, thus making very roomy quarters.
Each had large stores of sealed honey,
mostly in upper sections. The tempera-
ture was about 42^, without 2^ of varia-
tion.

No. 2. — I next prepared 25 hives ex-
actly as in No. 1, except that the solid
hive covers were left on, and then four
strips of wood 1/25 of an inch thick
were used, one under each corner of the
cover, raising it slightly from the hive
top, and leaving a little ventilating
crevice on all sides of the top of the
hives. They were placed in the same
apartment of the cellar as No. 1.

In the other apartment of the cellar
20 hives were placed with sealed covers
on, just as the bees had left them. The
covers were %-inch boards, and the
hives were full brood-chambers, hold-
ing 10 frames, 8x133^ inches, inside.
They were raised 2 inches from the bot-
tom-board, were good colonies with
plenty of honey, were put in at the same
time as the others, and kept at the
same temperature (42^) as the others.

On April 6th, in an article for the
Revieio, I wrote this in regard to the
groups Nos. 1 and 2 :

" These bees have remained quieter
the entire winter than any like quantity
I ever knew, and I examined them to-
day, and they are all alive, and abso-
lutely quiet. There is not a speck of
diarrhea on one of the white hives, and
there has been loss dead bees on the
cellar bottom than I have ever had from
a like number of cok)nies. These bees
are still in the cellar, and at present
it looks like a case of perfect wintering,
lint it does not prove that they might

not have wintered equally well without
covers of any kind, and with less work
in preparing."

At the time of writing the above,
there was a day or so of fine weather,
and I commenced to move my bees from
the cellar to the summer stands, but had
the good luck to only get out 10 colo-
nies the first afternoon ; the next morn-
ing the weather turned cold and stormy,
and continued so until April 20th, when
snow fell to the depth of 15 inches, and
from that day until May 8th there was
not a day in which I could safely put
out the bees.

Let me here say that in my article of
April 6th I reported, in mentioning the
20 colonies with sealed covers, "They
have been more restless than those cov-
ered with porous covers, the hives are
damp and and unsatisfactory, and more
bees have flown to the cellar floor."

Early in May I became alarmed for
the safety of my bees, the weather con-
tinued so cold that I dared not put them
out, and I found several dead, but they
continued very quiet, without the least
sign of diarrhea, and on May 6th I be-
gan to put them out. As those lots Nos.
1 and 2 were very quiet, I began in the
south half of my cellar in which the 20
colonies were. There were also some
50 colonies in this part in double hives,
of my old double brood-chamber style,
with combs only 43^ inches deep ; the
covers on these were raised slightly with
thin strips of wood like group No. 2.
We found these bees in good condition,
but about 10 per cent, were dead from
starvation.

We next went to the hives with sealed
covers, and 19 out of the 20 were dead.
The hives contained stores in plenty,
but the hives and stores were soaked
with water, and combs nearly rotten
with mold — nearly the whole colony of
dead bees were on the bottom-boards, in
a stinking, disgusting mass.

The weather continued fair, and on
May 8th we began to remove group No.
1 to the new house-apiary. These colo-
nies had about 5 per cent, loss by star-
vation, but the bulk of % them, seeing
they had been confined without a flight
for six months and four days, were all
that any one could wish ; the hives and
combs were dry and clean, many of the
bottom-boards were nearly as clean as in
summer, the bees were so bright and so
still that we carried all of the 24 colo-
nics that 1 pnt into the house-apiary
without closing the wide entrance in
either front or rear, and I believe with-
out a single bee taking wing, and some

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

T23

colonies remained several hours before
they found that they were at liberty.

We found group No. 2 with board
covers slightly raised, in about the same
condition as No. 1, except I must con-
fess, in just a little better condition
taken as a whole. The hives, combs
and bees were all one could ask, and
speaks volumes for top ventilation. I
never removed all these hives from the
cellar until May 12th, but found the
colonies all right at that date.

This seems too late in the season to '
expect good results, but as the willows,
boxwoods and soft maples are just com-
ing into bloom, and as clover is booming
on every hand, the people at the Forest-
ville apiary are cheerful and full of con-
fidence for the future of the honey-
business. The 12 colonies in the small
house-apiary had 2 dead that were en-
tirely out of stores. The colonies with
enough honey wintered in the past most
trying of winters (in which they never
flew from the hives for 4K months) in a
more perfect condition than colonies in
the cellar ; the hives, combs and bees
were without dampness or mold, and
some of the bottom-boards entirely clean
of dead bees.

I can say I believe truly that I lost 19
colonies the past winter in farther test-
ing sealed covers. I first thought they
had starved, but we have just finished
cleaning up the hives and combs, and
found every hive with an abundance of
sealed stores.

I have long believed that the proper
preparation of the hives for winter is
the key to safe wintering In a good cel-
lar, and I am thoroughly convinced that
except to keep out mice and other in-
truders, hives with the covers entirely
removed, or with a single thickness of
burlap or cotton sheeting spread over
the hives, is better than any cushion or
cover of any kind. My next choice is
building paper ; with this I have not a
single fault to find, except the trouble
of putting it on, and if I were going to
use tight covers, I would perfer it to the
best absorbent cushion you could make,
with any material that I am acquainted
with.

I visited a bee-keeper at Dover, Minn.,
last March, who has been very success-
ful In wintering bees. He leaves the
hives entirely without covers. For full
particulars of this visit, please see the
Bee-Keepers' Review for May, 1893,
page 129.

I saw in a late number of Gleanings
that Mr. Foster, of Mt. Vernon, Iowa,
has been visiting an Iowa bee-keeper
that has been very successful in winter-

ing bees with a single thickness of cot-
ton sheeting spread over the hives ; and
those that have read the early writings
of Mr. Quinby, remember that before
he adopted the movable frame he win-
tered his bees in box-hives in a dark
room, the hives being turned upside
down, and left entirely uncovered, and
I do not believe there is a better plan
to-day.

This may seem a long report on winter-
ing, to make at this time of the year,
but I have just received a letter from a
Minnesota bee-keeper who has lost all
his bees — 253 colonies — this winter,
and I am convinced that 75 per cent, of
all the bees in this section are dead to-
day, so you see wintering is a vital
question, and there is no better time to
impress people with it, than when they
are feeling their heavy losses.

Forestville, Minn., May 13, 1893.

Destroying Moth-lWi Hers -Quack
Bee-Keepers Described.

Written Jor the American Bee Journal
BY K. C. HATCH.

I think I can positively say from ex-
perience that the Italian bee is moth-
proof, after having kept Italian bees in
Illinois for five years, and never had the
least particle of trouble with moths,
even in weak or queenless colonies. It
is natural to suppose that moths should
be more prevalent in certain localities,
considering the surroundings, that is,
whether bees are kept for profit by api-
arists, as in Illinois, or as they are kept
here in Iowa by Tom, Dick and Harry,
in the back garden, where one to six
empty hives are left to breed moths
every summer.

Black bees arti kept almost entirely
here, and although they are good honey-
gatherers, it is one continual source of
trouble to keep the moths out ; whether
it is the negligent surroundings or the
black bee, I have as yet been unable to
ascertain.

There are a number of ways of en-
snaring the moth-millers about the api-
ary. Although they may not be very
practical, large numbers of them can be
exterminated in the following way with
but little trouble :

Fill a jar about two-thirds full of
water, and sweeten it with a little sugar,
or maple sugar is better ; set it out
among your bees after dark. It will
attract them, and when once in the jar
of water they are yours.

724

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Another way is to set a torch among
your bees after dark, in such a position
that it will shine on the back of the
hives. This will also attract the millers.

Still another way is to set two boards
up edgewise, half an inch apart at the
bottom, and tight together at the top.
Set it in some shady place near the api-
ary, and if old boards are scarce about
the apiary, you will find the pests se-
creted in the trap.

But those apiarists having Italian
bees I think will not have to try these
methods of exterminating moths, as the
bees will take care of them. I hardly
think it worth while, in my case, to at-
tempt to ensnare the millers, as for
every one I would trap my neighbors
would rear five, which looks discourag-
ing in the beginning, and would likely
turn out so in the end. There are quite
a number of old bee-keepers in this
vicinity, and they really are old bee-
keepers indeed, they being old-fashioned
as well as behind the times. Most of
them are thoroughly versed in bee-keep-
ing (in their estimation), and they can
tell their theories and experiences, but
don't care to hear yours. They use the
same kind of hives their grandfathers
used, which everybody knows is a com-
mon box with sticks through the center ;
for, as my neighboring apiarist said,
"They have been thoroughly tried and
proved a success."

My neighbor had three times as many
bees as I last spring, and I got more
honey from one colony than he did from
his entire apiary. His management of
bees is about this :

He makes not less than three raids on
them during the season, his first adven-
ture being to sneak upon them some
warm day in the spring, when they are
having a flight, in order to count them,
which he generally succeeds in doing.
He then lets them alone until they have
nearly swarmed to death, and the honey
season is about over. He then concludes
it is about time to put on surplus boxes,
which he generally succeeds in doing
with more or less stings. I can generally
tell when he has been putting on the
surplus boxes, by his disfigured counte-
nance. Much depends upon how his
smudge of sulphur and rags works.

His last, but not least, grand final
raid is to harvest the crop, which is
quite a peaceful affair. He makes it
an object to wait until it has frozen up,
and then his bees are quite gentle and
harmless. I never heard of his selling
any honey, there being two pretty good
reasons why — first, his honey was not
put up in salable packages ; and, second,

he seldom found enough to pay to try to
sell. But nevertheless I will take mine
in scientific bee-keeping, with the rest
of my apiarian friends.
Central City, Iowa.

]Vuc!eH!<( Method of Replacing
^'V«"t<i»* liOsses of Bees.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY C. E. MEAD.

The eggs hatch by heat of the bees,
therefore the warmer you can pack
them the more eggs they can care for.
Colonies of only two or three frames of
bees may be made to increase rapidly by
placing a division-board in confining
them on the number of frames they
cover, leaving the other frames in the
hive, and allowing space under the
division-board for the bees to pass un-
der and get the honey. If there is no
honey, put in some sugar syrup, and
keep the entrance small. Place an oil-
cloth on top of the frames and division-
board, so the heat cannot go over the
top of the division-board. You will
have to move the division-board as often
as once a week.

My Langstroth frames average about
8x12 inches of brood, which will aver-
age about 50 bees to the square inch, or
4,800 bees to the comb. That number
will more than care for two combs, so
they double as often as every ten days,
in geometrical progression, until the
capacity of the queen is reached.

In an average season, with the above
treatment, a two-frame nucleus put into
a hive of combs will have it full of bees
by linden bloom, if put in on June 1st,
in this locality.

I had, one year, two one-frame nuclei,
each one of which filled a two-story hive,
and one swarmed three times, and the
other twice.

Do not be discouraged ; work for a big
yield this year, as it should be a linden
year in Illinois.

I like wide frames best to get bait
sections early. In a 10-frame hive
seven brood-frames and two wide-frames,
the two wide-framos give 16 sections;
when well started, place in the super
above, and put in their place empty
frames, foundation, combs, or dummies,
according to the strength of the colony.

Wide-frames should be put on the out-
side, with a frame of capped brood next
to them, the combs of young larvie and
some empty ones to be put in the center.

Chicago, Ills.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

725

All Experience Exteii«liii;j[ Ovei*
Several Years.

Written for tlie Amej-ican Bee Journal
BY MATH. RADER.

Ill tlie spring of 1887 I received a
colony of bees in an 8-frarae Langstroth
hive from a friend of mine. Tlie colony
cast two swarms during the summer, of
which I kept the first, or prime swarm,
only ; the second swarm being returned
after the queen-cells had been cut out
of the parent colony, as directed by my
friend.

By fall the two colonies had gathered
about 50 pounds of surplus honey, and
had plenty to winter on. I then bought
6 colonies more, all of which I wintered,
and commenced in the spring of 1888
with 8 colonies in good condition. I in-
creased them to IT during the season,
and secured over 800 pounds of very
nice comb honey in one-pound sections,
as basswood, or linden, had lots of
honey that year, and, besides, the bees
had enough winter stores to carry them
through without any feeding. After
this the dark side turned towards me, in
regard to basswood giving honey.

In the spring of 1889, I took the 17
colonies out of the cellar in good condi-
tion except one, which was queenless. I
at once ordered a queen from Texas,
and strengthened the colony with brood
from others, until the queen arrived.
That year was the first poor honey-flow,
white clover was very scarce, and
worms, or caterpillars, commenced that
summer to destroy the forest leaves and
blossoms on basswood trees, and the 17
colonies gave me only 6 prime swarms,
and about 600 pounds of honey, which
was mostly dark or fall honey, and th,ey
were short of stores the next spring, so
that I had to do some feeding.

In the spring of 1890 I took the 23
colonies out of the cellar in good condi-
tion, but one being queenless, which I
united with another. I then started
with 22 colonies, and with good courage.
The beginning of the honey-flow from
fruit-bloom was good, but white clover
was scarce yet, and the basswood a
total failure, as that w^as the first year
that the caterpillars destroyed all the
leaves on basswood, and also the blos-
soms, so that not an ounce of basswood
honey could be expected in this neigh-
borhood ; but the bees had swarmed
quite early, and I increased them to 36
colonies, but received only about 350
pounds of comb honey from the 36 colo-
nies, fall count, and had to do some feed-

ing to some colonies to carry them
through the winter, and had to do lots
of feeding in the spring to keep them in
good condition, as I thought that the
poor years would be over, and had
learned from my books and journal that
this was an important thing to have the
bees strong when the honey harvest
opened.

I took out the 30 colonies in the
spring of 1891 in good condition, not
having lost a single colony, and started
again with good hopes. I increased my
apiary to 53 colonies, as fruit-bloom
and clover was quite good for the begin-
ning, but as our main honey-source
should commence to come into bloom
(the basswood) — alas, there was no pros-
pect at all to get one pound of basswood
honey, as the leaves were all destroyed
by the worms, so that our woods looked
a good deal as in the fall, with hardly
any leaves on any kind of trees, and I
was cruel enough to take all the honey I
could get from the bees — about 700
pounds in all — which they gathered in
the fall, and when the honey-flow was
over, my bees were short of stores for
the coming winter, and I had to feed
over 250 pounds of granulated sugar
syrup to get them through the winter,
but had to see that I had not supplied
all of them to carry through the winter,
and found, on putting them out of the
cellar in the spring of 1892, that four
had starved, and two were queenless,
which I united.

I will now try to tell how I managed
the 48 colonies that I had left, in the
season of 1892, which was a better
year for me than the three foregoing,
but I did not want any increase on ac-
count of the previous year, when the
caterpillars destroyed the basswood blos-
soms.

Those colonies that swarmed at the
beginning of the clover honey-flow (which
was quite late on account of the rainy
weather we had last spring) I took out
four frames of the parent colony, which
were mostly sealed brood, and put into
a hive with some bee's, and put the hive
with the four frames on a new place,
then all queen-cells were cut out of the
four frames that were left to the parent
colony, and I placed four frames full of
foundation in place of the four removed,
and the swarm was returned to the par-
ent hive.

Later on I tried several swarms by
taking only two or three frames of brood
from the parent' colony, cutting out all
remaining queen-cells and filling the
vacant places with frames that were
wired and filled full of foundation, and

726

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

the swarm was returned to the parent
hive, and most of them also went to
work and did not swarm any more that
season.

Others I hived in a new hive, gave
them one frame of brood and eggs in all
stages, 2 or 3 drawn-out combs which I
had from previous swarms that I had
kept queenless after they had swarmed,
and the young bees shaken off the
frames every few days, wherever they
were needed the most, the remaining
places filled with frames full of founda-
tion, the surplus sections removed from
the parent colony, and put on the new
swarm with two or three sections with
drawn-out comb, which I had saved
from the previous year, and also a
queen-excluding honey-board between
the hive and the sections, especially
where no empty combs were in the hive
by hiving the new swarm ; and the new
swarm was hived in the new hive so pre-
pared, then the parent colony removed
from its stand about two feet towards
one side, and the new swarm put on the
old stand. The parent colony was kept
queenless by cutting out all queea-cells
the fourth or fifth day after they had
swarmed, and removed the hive towards
the new swarm on the old stand so that
they stood close together ; after some
days then put to the other side of the
new swarm, and kept up moving from
one side to another until the bees were
all hatched and in the hive with the new
swarm, and the bees worked very hard
as far as I could see.

The empty combs were used to hive
other swarms on, but not more than two
or three empty combs were given to a
new swarm.

At other times I hived two prime
swarms in an empty hive with the sec-
tions on from parent colony and then put
it on one of the parent stands where one
of the swarms had come from. Those
hived that way also staid without
swarming again, but I doubt whether
all these plans will work as well every
year as they did last year, as the clover
honey-flow was quite late here, although
we had lots of white clover in bloom, but
the weather being so rainy the bees
could not work much the first part of
the season. There was honey in the
bloom, as the bees were just booming on
it when we had a few nice days, and.it
kept in bloom until late in the fall, so
that we got quite a lot of white honey
last year. Basswood had not been dam-
aged much by the worms, but did not
bloom as nicely as years ago. Bees did
not work on it more than two or three
days, when it became very rainy, cloudy

and cold for a few days, so that bees did
not leave their hive, except a few hours
in the middle of the day, and did not
gather much honey from basswood.

However, I will not complain, as wo
got about 50 pounds per colony, spring
count, of which 500 pounds was ex-
tracted, and the balance nice, white
comb honey in one-pound sections. Our
bees were very heavy with stores when
put into the cellar last fall — some of
them heavier than I wanted to have
them. Some of them had over 35
pounds of honey when put into the cel-
lar on Nov. 17th.

In regard to wintering bees in the cel-
lar, I may say that I have never had the
least trouble to get them through the
winter in that way, as I have not lost
one colony in wintering, except having
a colony or two queenless, and four
starved last spring. We keep the bees
in the cellar under the house, and have
potatoes, sauer-kraut, salt-pork and
vegetables right beside the bees in the
cellar. The only ventilation is a 3-inch
pipe through the floor into the chimney.
We keep a stove in the cellar, but have
never been very particular to keep the
temperature always the same, and not
nearly as high as recommended in bee-
books, although it is kept as near 40^
as possible. The bees wintered very
nicely the past winter, although we had
very cold weather.

I would like to hear from the promi-
nent and experienced bee-keepers as to
what they think of my plan of handling
bees the last season, especially hiving
two prime swarms in one hive on the old
stand. Does it really pay better, all
other things considered, than to hive
them separately, and take the comb
honey, if only a little, extract from the
brood-nest in the fall, and destroy the
bees if not needed or wanted ?

I would also be glad to hear from
some Minnesota bee-keepers, whether
they have had the same trouble with the
worms destroying the basswood blos-
soms, and whether they have kept it up
for many years. People in this vicinity
claim that the worms wore moving, and
would be gone, while others claim that
the wet and rainy weather kept them
back last year. Probably bee-keepers
in other States have had the same
trouble, and could inform us how they
got rid of the worms, as we have an
abundance of basswood in this neighbor-
hood, and I would be willing to increase
my apiary a good deal if I could be sure
the worms would leave us.

Raven Stream, Minn.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

T2T

Do not write anything- for publication
on the same sheet of paper with husiness
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

After-Swarms — Preventing Them.

On page 648, in an item on " Preventing
After-Swarms," by Mr. Doolittle, is this
statement :

" In this way we can make sure that no
swarm will issue after the first from this
hive, and it is the only certain plan I know ■
of."

, Now, my experience of 25 years as a
specialist in the bee-business will not admit
of my endorsing that statement. I will ad-
mit that it is the rule, but there are so
many exceptions to the rule, especially in a
good swarming season, that it cannot be
depended upon.

In seasons when the swarming fever runs
high, I would go a little farther than Mr.
D. does, and destroy every queen-cell, thus
making them hopelessly queenless for two
days ; then give them a ripe cell or virgin
queen. The rule given by Mr. D. has no ex-
ceptions, I think, with the black bees ; but
the Italians are not so easily controlled.

Independence, Mo. A. A. Baldwin.

A Trip to New Mexico, Etc.

The weather has been very bad for bees
here, rainy, cold, and windy ; but there is
a prospect for white clover, which is be-
ginning to bloom, if we don't have too
many hard rains that will wash all the
honey out. I have three new sw^arms. I
expect to take a trip to New Mexico this
fall, and would like to hear from some of
the readers of the Bee Journal who live on
the Texas Pacific, as I might give them a
call. Edw. Smith.

Carpenter, Ills., May 26, 1893.

Late Season — Strengthening' Bees.

I fully believe that bees are one month
behind of what might be called an early
season. Mr. Doolittle need not think he is
located in < ae coldest locality on earth.

I am onl tending six colonies, and they
are far behind an average season, so far as
strength is concerned. One of them would
have died from spring dwindling if it had
not been strengthened by giving it young
bees from other colonies.

I have mentioned this subject in the Bee
Journal in the past, but deem it of such

great importance that I wish to do so again :
Smoke each colony, and remove a frame of
hatching brood from the strong one, taking
care not to get the queen (if you have no
queen-excluder to place at the entrance of
the weak colony), and shake the bees at the
entrance of the weak colony. The old bees
wdll return to the colony taken from, but
the young ones will remain with the weak
colony.

Colonies that have but a handful of bees,
and are too weak to care for brood if given
them, may be saved by this treatment.

I am pleased to see so much interest taken
in //('How Italians. They are the kind for
me. and not only yellow, but Ci'cii.h/ rolurcd
to ihc (iji. I prefer a very dark one, if evenly
colored, than a yellow one with a black tip.

J. H. Andre.

Lockwood, N. Y., May 15, 1893.

The Sugar was All Right.

I sent some of the sugar mentioned on
page 633, to Prof. Cook for analysis, and
received the answer, which I enclose.

Linwood, Mich. Andrew Girard.

Here is Prof. Cook's report on the analy-
sis of the sample of granulated sugar sent
him by Mr. Girard:

The color is due to marine blue, which is
added to make the sugar white. All our
granulated sugar contains it. It is entirely
harmless. A. J. Cook.

Fine Weather — Season Promising.

We are now having fine May weather,
and the honey-flow from poplar and white
clover is just beginning. From some cause
poplar and white clover came together this
year — something a little unusual in this
locality. Poplar usually precedes white
clover, but Dr. Miller's explanation as to
the early blooming of dandelion will per-
haps apply to white clover ; that is, that
the snows in the winter protected, or rather
encouraged clover, which makes blooming
earlier.

The season promises fine, but as predicted
by me some time since, bees have failed to
get as strong as they should be at the open-
ing of the honey-flow. H. F. Coleman.

Sneedville, Tenn., May 13, 1893.

Q,ueen-Cells Over Drone-Eggs.

I am going to contradict some of the
•' big guns " just to see how it goes to get
under the fire of a whole battery of them
at once. I

In reply to Query 868, Dr. Miller says
bees will not use drone-eggs to start
" queen-cells " if they have others. Now,
Doctor, just you get a queenless colony
right anxious to build cells, tlien give them
some frames of eggs, among which are
some drone-eggs in new comb, and if they
do not build cells over some of them, I will
admit that I "don't know " anything about
queen-rearing.

T28

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

At the bottom of the column Mr. Doolit-
tle says : "A queen-cell is never built over
anything but a larva. ' ' Now, Mr. Dooljttle,
do you remember of sending me a queen in
1891 ? Well, after she got to laying, I put
a frame of foundation iu the middle of the
brood-nest, and kept watch of it, and in 34
hours after she began to lay in it, I took it
out and gave it to a hopelessly queenless
nucleus to save until the larvae would
hatch : 21r hours later there were over 40 cell-
cups built on that sheet of foundation, and
each contained an. nj(j ; but by the time the
larvae had hatched, the bees had destroyed
all but about a dozen ; this was probably
because there were only a quart of bees in
the hive.

Now, I want to know what kind of comb
Mrs. Atchley's bees built in that empty
frame that she put in the brood-nest when
the bees were working in the sections ? See
page 525. Such an operation here would
surely result in a drone-comb, unless it was
a newly-hived swarm not over three weeks
old. S. F. Tbego.

Swedona, Ills., May 4, 1893.

Hiving Swarms in Full Hives.

Last November I packed away 49 colo-
nies, and on April 1, 1893, I put out 48, all
in good condition. Being a beginner of
three years' experience, I thought I had the
bee-business to perfection ; but, alas, on
May 1st I changed my mind. I looked them
over, and found 18 dwindled down, so I
united them, putting as high as seven into
one, then not having a good colony. Some
of my neighbors did not unite theirs, and
have lost all they had.

April was very changeable in this locality ;
bees would start out in search of stores and
never return. To-day is fair weather for
them to fly, and they are carrying in pol-
len. I have 30 colonies left, and 18 hives
full of honey and pollen without bees.

Now will some one be kind enough to tell
me what the result will be if I hive my new
swarms in those hives, just as they are,
leaving the hive full of honey and pollen ?

J. W. Miller.

Rodney, Mich., May 15, 1893.

Lost All but One Colony.

We had a very long and cold winter. A
good many of the bees died. I started iu
the winter with 13 colonies, and I now have
one. They had plenty of honey — from T to
40 pounds — except one. They "kept dying
from the middle of January to the middle
of March. On April 1st I had two good,
strong colonies that commenced to carry in
pollen on March 30th, and did well until
about the middle of April, when it turned
cold and snowed, and we have had bad
weather ever since, only a day now and
then that bees could get out.

On May 9th tliey began to carry in pollen
again, and I iu)tice(l one colony was not as
strong as it was before the cold spell, and
yesterday (May 11th) tliere were no bees
flying in one hive. I opened it, and there

was not more than 8 or 10 bees in it, and no
brood. The hive was clean, no dirt or dead
bees in it, and I judge about 35 pounds of
honey. Where they went I don't know.
Bees died in chaff hives here as well as in
single-walled hives.

The Bee Journal never fails to come on
time, and I will say without fear of contra-
diction, that it is the best bee-paper printed
in the United States. H. T. Laturop

Bidwell, Iowa, May 12, 1893.

How the Bees Wintered.

I notice on page 598 is published the arti-
cle I wrote about two months ago from
Virginia. On my return home, April 13th,
I found 4 of my 53 colonies dead— one from
starvation, with honey in the hive; the bees
were separated from their stores, and prob-
ably died during a long cold spell. One
died of diarrhea, and two of dwindling.
Since that I have lost three more by dwind-
ling ; thus I have lost 7 out of 53, which is
not bad, I think, as we had a long, cold
winter.

Of the seven that died, six were in double-
cased packed hives, and one in a single-
walled hive. Thus my loss was far the
greatest in packed hives, and this has been
the result of my experience for the past
few years, and now my strongest colonies
are those that were wintered in tiered-up
hives two high, each with combs in, and no
outside protection.

Bees are promising well here at present.
No fast-bottom hives, and no chaff-hives
for me. I have tried them.

Chester Beldixg.

Middletown, N. Y., May 15, 1893.

Bees Booming- — Doubling Colonies.

The bees are booming lately. One splen-
did swarm, after Nature's method, and one
different from any plan yet named. I was
a month getting this swarm. If the thing
doesn't die in the borning — if it '• pans out"
well— then sometime I'll tell what kind of
a caper I perpetrated on the bees.

How's this I Doolittle and R. L. Taylor
are so near the top of the apiarian ladder
that if they were to be pushed any higher
they'd slip off the top. And yet the one
(the latter) says double-up wea"k colonies in
the spring about ten days before the ex-
pected honey-flow; and the other looks
upon this practice Avith hesitancy and mis-
givings. Which is right ? Wliieh shall we
follow ? It is plain to me that Mr. Taylor's
plan will work here ^in this hot locality —
near Cincinnati. But as to doing so at
Lapeer, must give us pause.

Has any one ever peeped it that bees
(iJwKJ/K prefer to enter their hive at the right
hand as you face tlie hive ? So Mr. Alley's
drone and queen traps should all be made
with a left-hemd slide for portico hives.

Dr. Alukkt Sayler.

New Palestine. O.. May 33, 1893.

Great Pretuiuiu on page 709 !

AMERICAN BEii JOURNAL.

729

Uoiiey & Beeswax Market (juotatious.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
June 3rd, 1893 :

CHICAGO, Ills.— Honey is about cleaned
up so far as fine comb is concerned. Quite a
good deal of poor to fair is on sale, prices
ranging from 13 to 15c. Fancy would bring
18e. Extracted, 6@8c. Beeswax, 25c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@754c. ; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, O.— A short supply of ex-
tracted honey is the cause of a slow demand.
It forbids an effort on our part to sell. It
brings 6@8c. There is no choice comb honey
on our market, and prices are nominal at 12®
16c., in a small way.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 22®25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— Comb honey is well
cleaned up. Fancy white is selling at 14@15c.
Off grades, 12@13c., and buckwheat, 9@10c.
Extracted is dull, and the market well stocked
with West India honey, which sells at from
68@75c per gallon. Beeswax, 26@28c,

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif,— Choice extracted
Is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c..

according to quality. 1-lbs.
lected at 22@23c.

Beeswax is neg-
S., L. &S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6@
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B,

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8i4 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23@25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted, 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand B. & R.

ALBANY, N. Y. — Honey market is very
quiet now, as between seasons. Beeswax —
at 30@32c. for good color. H. R. W.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.— There is quite an
active demand this week for honey, especially
white comb honey in 1-lb. sections. Dark is
very slow sale. Stock on hand in this market
is very light. Receipts have not been enough
to supply trade during the past 10 days. Fan-
cy white conb honey, 18@20c, ; No. 1 white,
17c.; fancy amber, 16c. ; No. 1 amber. 14c.;
fancy dark, 12c.; No. 1 dark, 10c. Extracted
California 60-lb. kegs, 9c. Beeswax, unsal-
able. J. A. S. & Co.

Bicycle!"* are getting to be very com-
mon now-a-days. We have two for sale,
and any one wanting a bargain in a good
bicycle, should write to the olliee of the
Bee Jouknal.

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Clilcago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiLDBETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway

Sau Franclisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

niiuueapolis, RIliiu.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. R. WltiGHT, 326 & 328 Broadwa7

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Ohio.

C. F. MUTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit. — We

have just issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in all, and is illustrated. Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Jouknal for one year, for !^1.15.

Wants or Exdiapges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be Inserted at 10 cents per line,

for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

WANTED to sell eggs from fine laying poul-
try. 50 cts. sitting. Write me.

G. E. SMITH, Longmont, Colo.

TO EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

TO EXCHANGE — New Cowan Extractor
for choice extracted honey.
22A2 J. H. & A. L. BOYDBN, Saline, Mich.

BARGAINS— Harbaugh stock. Lang. Brood
Frames, 50c. per hundred in 500 lots. Imp.
L. S. Supers, $3 for a crate of 25. Only a few
' at these prices. E. T. ABBOTT. St. Joe, Mo.

780

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Speaking of Family Story Papers, a

well-known writer once said that the
Family Ledger published in Los Angeles,
Calif., is, without question, the cheapest
and best printed Illustrated family
weekly in the world. Over 60 complete
serials are run in a year's issue. The
paper has many copyrighted features,
and is illustrated each week. To those
who are unacquainted with this remark-
able periodical, a special offer is made
of 10 weeks for 10 cents. Few that
read story papers will allow an oppor-
tunity to pass whereby they can secure
so unique a paper for such a small sum.
18C3t

i;onveutioii rVotice^.

KANSAS.— There will be a meeting of the
Southeastern Kansas Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion on June 16 and 17. 1893, one mile west
of Bronson. All are cordially Invited to be
present. J. O. Balch, Sec.

Bronson, Kans.

INTERNATIONAL.-The North American
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its 24th
annual convention on Oct. 11, 13 and 13, 1893.
in Chicag-o, Ills. Not only is every bee-keeper
in America, whether a member of the society
or not, invited to be present, but a special in-
vitation is extended to friends of apiculture
it every foreign land, Frank Benton. Sec.

Washington, D. C.

**Xlie 'Winter Protolem in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Journal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
i|1.30. Send to us for a copy.

Amerikanische Bienenzucht is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated ; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

Please Send Us the Names of your
neighbors who keep bees, and we will
send them sample copies of the -Bee
Journal. Then please call upon them
and get them to subscribe with you, and
secure some of the premiums we offer.

Circulars have been received as fol-
lows;

H. P. Langdon. East Constable, N. Y.—
Non-Swarming Arrangement.

S. L. Watkins, Grizzly Flats, Calif.—
Strawberries.

C. H. Hare, Pawnee City, Nebr.— Bee-
Keepers' Supplies and Italian Bees and
Queens.

G. H. . Grimm, Rutland, Vt.— Maple
Syrup.

^^ Bees and Honey" — page 707

Advertiscinents.

-CROSSMAN HAS THEM-

Tiiose Beautiful Golden Queens

Reared from the best 5-Banded stock. Un-
excelled for Businesii^, Beauty and C^en-
tleness. Satisfaction guaranteed.

Warranted Queens, after June 1, 90c. each;
$9.00 per doz. Tested, $1.50 each: Sec. Test.,
$2.50. Safe arrival insured. Send for Circular.

W. P. CROSSOTAN, Ballinger, Tex.

8 A 2 6 1 Men tionthe American Bee Journal.

50 Second-Hand Hives.

IWILIi sell 30 New Heddon and 20 L. Sim-
plicity hives. Frames filled with good
straight combs, mostly wired, containing- from
5 to 15 lbs. of honey to the hive. Price, of
Heddon. $3.50, and L. Simplicity, $2.50 each.
A discount of 5 per cent on orders for 20 hives
and upwards. Will exchange for First-Class
Incubator; Eggs for Hatching, of B. Leghorn
and B. Plymouth Rock fowls; Italian queens,
or a Spraying pump, as part pay for hives.
A. WOK THAN,
22A2t SEAFIELD, White Co., IND.

Mcntimi the American Bee J<r,!inuxl.

It's nard Work

To keep up with
orders tliis spring.
The last three days
have brought Orders
for 'AS of tliose

5-I>iiih](m1

Italian Queens

And 20 of them go
to i^arties who liave
tried them before.
Get your order in
soon, if you want
Queens this month.
After tliis muuili 1 inu shij) promptly. I
guarantee entire satisfaction, as described in
mv Price-List.
One Warranted Queen, $1.00; 6 for $5.00.
Reference— G. W. Vork & Co. Money Order
ollice. Cable, 111.

S. F. Trego, Swedona, III.
Mention the Amencaii BecJuivniai.

GEORGE W. YOKK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY
Editor. f —

- J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

To Bee-Culture. I Sample Free .

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JUNE 15, 1893.

NO. 24.

^■^■^■^^■^^■■^^■■^■^^^■^^■■^^^■^^^ ^ A ^A J^ A^ A i

^JkM

'I'lie L.oiis° I>roiitli that continued
in England this spring has finally been dis-
pelled by refreshing and welcome showers.
A bountiful crop of honey is now looked
for by our English cousins. We hope they
will not be disappointed, and also that
American bee-keepers may be able to re-
joice with them ere the white flakes again
may fall.

TTlie rii'St I%iiinl>er of the Bee-Keep-
ers'' Enterprise, the new bee-paper, is on our
desk. It contains 14 pages and tinted
cover, is neatly printed, and looks as if it
might be a success. We trust its sagely
editor and publisher, Mr. Burton L. Sage,
may And in it the realization of his fondest
hopes.

Bro. A. I. Root's* picture with con-
densed biographical sketch, appears in the
beautiful Maryhmd Farmer for -June, pub-
lished in Baltimore, Md. We were glad we
had the opportunity to present Bro. Root to
our readers a few weeks ago, for we believe
that the study of such a noble life and
character is one of the best sources for self-
improvement and incentive to higher and
better living. May Bro. Root live long to
bless the world with his useful and helpful
efforts.

Micliigsin Bee-Keepers, ever in
the lead, are ^^o have an experiment apiary,
to be conducted by the State Experiment
Station. Hon. R. L. Taylor has been wisely
selected as the apiarist in charge. This is
indeed an important work, and Michigan
bee-keepers are to be congratulated upon
the happy outcome of their efforts in secur-
ing an experiment apiary.

Bro. Hutchinson, in a letter just received,
quite naturally feels elated over the success
in getting it established. We will likely
have more to say about it later. In the
meantime, what are the other States doing
in this line ? Where is Illinois ? Vermont
and Michigan are now ahead.

*' I'lie IVoi-st Spring" in 30 years,"
is what Dr. Miller says it has been. As a
consequence, his loss is about 40 per cent.,
the loss in cellar-wintering being light. As
the Doctor has been fearfully overworked
this spring, he wnll have a chance to rest up
if he has only 60 per cent, of his bees to
work. He can spend more time at the
World's Pair, as he says in (ileauuigs for
June 1st, that to spend the summer at the
Fair, ' ' would be as good as a summer in
Europe, and at much less expense."

Xlie Vermont Bee-Keepers have
been allowed a small sum with which to
conduct experiments at their State Agricul-
tural College and Experiment Station. A
practical apiarist will be put in charge, and
the apiary 'increased. It is hoped that the
bee-keepers of the State will take an active
interest in suggesting experiments. It
should be made a permanent feature of the
College, as it must prove of great benefit to
every bee-keeper in the State.

744

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAU

Voice i>rsaiis of tl«e «ee.— An ex-
change says that the bee has threefold voice
organs, which are the vibrating wings, the
vibrating rings of the abdomen, and a true
vocal apparatus in the breathing aperture
or spiracle. The buzz is produced by the
first two, and the hum. which may be
"surly, cheerful, or colloquially signifi-
cant," by the vocal membrane. A number
of the bee's notes have been interpreted.
"Hum-m," is the cry of contentment;
" wuh-nuh-nuh " glorifies the egg-laying of
the queen; " shu-u-u " is the note of the
young bees at play; " s-s-s-s " means the
muster of a swarm; "b-r-r-r" the slaugh-
ter or expulsion of the drones; and the
" tu-tu-tu " of the newly -hatched young
queen is answered by the '• qua-qua-qua "
of the queens still imprisoned in their cells.

Tlie Progressive Bee-Keeper

for June is a bright, newsy number. Sel-
dom does so young a bee-paper take such
strides forward as has the Progressive during
the past few months. We are indebted to
it for exceedingly complimentary references
to the American Bee Journal found among
some "Wayside Fragments," written by
"Somnambulist." If a fellow can see so
much in his sleep as does Mr. Somnambulist,
we wonder what he would find with his
eyes wide open. We wouldn't try to wake
him, though, so long as he writes so well
while promenading in his slumber robe.
Sleep on ; write on, Sommy, and call again.

Xlie Texas Ilorticiiltiirists hold
their annual meeting at Rockport, Tex., on
June 20th to 22nd, and all societies and in-
dividuals are invited to meet with them.
The following very fraternal letter was re-
ceived by Mrs. Atchley from Mr. E. L.
Hufi'man, the wide-awake Secretary of the
Texas State Horticultural Society :

Fort Worth, Tex.. June 3, 1898.

Mrs. Jennie Atchley — Dear JlKihiin .•—
Our Programme is now in print, but due
notice will be given of your bee society,
and the essays to be submitted and by
whom, and time set apai-t to the use of
your society, etc.

In tlie Report of this meeting .to be pub-
lished by the State, space will be set aside
to the society, and the essays furnished by
the same, and at the Rockport meeting
your society will have eveiy right, privi-
lege, etc., that you desire.

The M. R. & T. railroad, and the Aransas
Pass railroad give a one fare rate, or 8

cents a mile, for the round trip. All other
roads give a 1)4 rate, or 4 cents a mile for
the round trip. Express companies carry
all exhibit matter at one-half merchandise
rate, so you see we have been given low
rates both by the railroads and express
companies.

I am exceedingly obliged to you for the
interest you have" manifested in this mat-
ter. For some time I have traveled over
Texas, and have a fair idea of a Texas
home," and I humbly trust that our meeting
at Rockport may be the means of placing
honey, flowers, fruits, vegetables and poul-
try on many tables that now look desolate
on account of their absence.

From what I now see, I am firmly con-
vinced that it will be the grandest meeting
ever held in Texas. Every industry will
be represented, including the County, Dis-
trict and State Fairs. The people of Rock-
port have provided twenty yachts, and the
usual grand free entertainment programme
has been made.

Thanking you again for your appreciated
kindness in this matter, I am.

Very respectfully,

E. L. Huffman.

Mrs. Atchley will be at the big meeting
at Rockport, and she wants to see every
bee-keeper there that can possibly arrange
to attend. Let there be a grand rally of
the representatives of every rural pursuit,
and thus make it a memorable as well as a
profitable gathering of the best eleinents
found in our country.

June 20th to 22nd, at Rockport, Tex.
Don't forget the date or place.

Honey from AlsiUe Clover.— Mr.

B. Taylor, in an article written for the
lieview, says that a Mr. Hitt, of Dover,
Minn., lived within four miles of 40 acres
of Alsike clover a few years ago, and that
his bees stored 30 pounds of fine honey, per
colony, from it in two weeks. He is quite
positive the honey was from that field, for
at daylight the bees would fly in immense
numbers in that direction, would keep re-
turning from the same direction until dark,
the clover was full of bees, and there were
no other colonies of any account in the
neighborhood; the honey flow stopped
when the clover was cut, and it seemed
reasonable that they got the honey from
that fleld of Alsike. as there was no other
visible supply.

■«ieycles are getting to be very com-
mon uow-a-days. We have two for sale,
and any one wanting a bargain in a good
bicycle, should write to the oftice of the
Bee Journal.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

745

Xlie liifiiior Bii!*>iiieM»» and the Gov-
ernment have recently been receiving some
deserved attention in recent numbers of
GUaidnyx. We are glad Bro. Root is taking
up the subject of intemperance. Of course
our glorious (?) Government is in the liquor
business, but the saloons and their damning
influence are a thousand times more in the
Government.

We have been rejoiced at the good work
Bro. Root was doing in the way of getting
people to stop using tobacco ; but he will
find a greater field for his best efforts when
he begins to help destroy the liquor demon
— the most stupendous curse of our modern
civilization.

We have read, and truly believe, that
bee-keepers, as a class, are the cleanest,
brightest, and soberest people on this earth,
and for that reason we believe they are all
the time, and in every possible way, as one
man against the infernal liquor traffic in
its every form. Oh, when all the good peo-
ple of this ''land of the free and home of
the brave," once mate in their efforts to
overthrow the evils that are now rampant,
what a great house-cleaning our beloved
Columbia will have! And how much
sweeter she will be to us all thereafter!
May that " happy day '" be hastened !

One <^'eiit Postage Stamps we

prefer rather than two cent ones. When
sending fractions of a dollar, please send us
the one cent stamps.

4'onTeiitioii i^otices.

KANSAS.— There will be a meeting of the
Southeastern Kansas Bee-Keepers' Associa-
tion on June 16 and 17, 1893, one mile west
of Bronson. All are cordially invited to be
present J. C. Balch, Sec.

Bronson, Kans.

INTERNATIONAL.-The North American
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its 24th
annual convention on Oct. 11, 12 and 13, 1893,
in Chicago, Ills. Not only is every bee-keeper
In America, whether a member of the society
or not, invited to be present, but a special in-
vitation is extended to friends of apiculture
it every foreign land, Frank Benton. Sec.

Washington, D. C.

f ii-calars have been received as fol-
lows:

J. D. Givens. Lisbon, Tex. — Queens.

Aspinwall Mfg. Co., Jackson, Mich. —
Aspinwall Bee-Hive.

Mi's. Jennie Atchlej-. Greenville. Tex. —
Honey-Extractors and Queens.

Geeeml OmsTim,

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immkdiatk attention, and
such as are not of suflicient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make "'Queries and Replies" so
interesting on another page. In the main.it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed

When to Italianize Bees.

I have a colony of bees that I would
like to Italianize. When would it be
the right time to introduce a queen, be-
fore or after swarming ?

Prairie Home, Mo. P. N. Blank.

Answer. — Perhaps the best time to
Italianize is when you have the Italian
queen to introduce. There may be cir-
cumstances that make it much more
convenient to get an Italian queen one
time than another. It may be a little
more convenient, other things being
equal, to Italianize at or just after
swarming, but if you want to rear
queens from your Italian stock, then
you may prefer to get your Italian stock
in shape before swarming. In any case,
avoid in general a time when bees are
not storing.

Destroying Moth- Worms in Combs.

The Bee Joubnai, states that 21
days after bees swarm there will not be
any young bees in the way. Now, I have
4 colonies that I wish to transfer. Their
combs have some moth-worms in them,
and I don't want to lose the combs, nor
put worms into new hives. After the
bees are drummed out, can the hives be
set over some brimstone, and thus kill
the worms'? Or would you use comb
foundation, and not use the combs at
all '? J. C. Dill.

Morganville, N. J.

Answer. — A few worms in a hive can
be taken care of by the bees themselves,
especially if they are Italians. But if a
colony is very weak, and of black bees,
the worms may get the start of them.

You can do as you suggest, brimstone
the combs after the bees are all out, but
remember that when worms have grown
to considerable size it takes a great deal
of smoking to kill them. Give therp
twice as much smoke as you think they
need.

But while you are transferring the
combs, why not pick out the worms
yourself ? You can do so with the point

T'A()

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

of a iMMiUnlfo, iuiri losvvo v.M-y lIlMo
cloaniiiK out fof M><^ l)t'•^s.

Probably soint« \vo\iUi pn^liM- t.o nst^
liMiiHlatlon and ii><>lt. >il> <''"' "'<' «'oiubs.
Tho rharartor of ttu^ combs l,ll.^ms.^lvcs
would luivo somoMiiiiK 1" •!<» '» <lt-fi(liiiK.
NitM'. straiKlit,. all worker foinb inlKhl.
bo b(>t.l.i>r Mian fonmlallon, wliilo crooUt'tl
combs with a Kood proporUon of dron(>-
comb tulRhl, boUcr b»^ moltod ui>.

|'loas(> boar in mind thai pnl.tln^'
wormy i'oml)s into a n(^w hivo doos not,
liisuH' llio .•onMnuam-o of worms. Tlio
wornis do not, n\nlUply, only as moths
ontor t,ho hivo and lay nioro oK«s. So il
a slrouK colony is put. upon wormy
i'oml)s. st.rouK (MioiikIi to pnwonfc nuitUs
cn(,«>rlnK, Just, as soon as the worms
prcsont como t,o mat,urit,y, t,lu' Ironl) c
will bo at, an ond, ovon if tlio boi«s sl\ould
not, s>icco(>d in toarlnR out Uio Intnulors.

What. Caused the DwiudliuK 1*

NYliat ia tho roason my l»ocs arc
dwindliutf away? Thoy arc dying ono
by ono. I had 15 colonics of bees on
MarcJi 1st, in tfood condition, wit,l\ plenty
of stores and iirood. To-day 1 have lost
about IT) colonics. They l<eep dyiuR
away until at last thoy have only the
(Mioon. four or iWo boos, and sonvtN brood
loft, and tln^y have plenty of honey.
Half of thon\ were wintered in tho col-
lar, ai\d halt on the snmn\er stands in
chalT hives. 1 have handled bees for
the last ton years, and never bad any
oxperi<>nce lil<e this.

Omaha, Nebr. A- 0. David.son.

Answku. Spriutf dwindlinir seems to
hv i>ne of the thlnits for which no ono
has any satisfactory explanation. ^ oars
a«o there soiMued to be nothing of tho
iv'ind Son\e hav<> thonitht that now
plans of management, the extractor, or
something of tho Uiiui might be thc
causo, but apiaries of box-luvos have
sniTorod as well as others. , , , ^

There soru\s to be no tixed rnlo abinit
it One n\an may say it never troubles
his be.>s. and with his n\anagen\ent no
ono over need sntTtM- fnnnit. Init perhaps
the very next spring it swoops down on
him, and he has nothing more to say.

As to cure, none is Known. At least
none that YOU can app^"- "^Vhon con-
tinnous good weather comes, allowing
the boos to bring in fresh h.niey and
p,»11eu. then spring dwindling ceases.
Perhaps it might be said that you can
prevent it by iiaving your colonies very
strong. l?vit sometimes the strong col-
ony of th.- fait is the weak colony of tho
spring.

Torhaps spring dwindling Is ono of
t,he n^snlts, or at least one of tho things
liUely to follow, bad wintering. Aft,or a
very hard wint(\r boos sooiu weak and
really for dwindling in cold spring
w(>a.tlH<r. Th.^ past winter has boon
severe, and tli»> spring one of the very
worst ever known. Some who brought
Iheir boos out of tho collar with trilling
loss, hav(> (Mit,or«>d tln^ month of .luno
with a fourth, half, or more, gone whoro
tho woodbine twinoth.

There is one comfort for you, if this is
your lirst experienc(> with spring dwind-
iing. It will iiev«>r trouiih> yon so much
again. Yon will loam to take it philo-
sophically, and boar it patiently, oxpoct-
iiig loss from it as a part of tho busiuoss. i

Workor-Brood in Drone-Comb.

Mr. .1. r. Ralston has a colony of boes
that have workor-brood sealed over in
drone-comb, on both sidt>s of tho conib.
I noticed it, and showed it to him in
looking over t,ho colony. 1 think he will
scud a part of it to Mr. A. 1. Root in a
few days. 1 think that "busts" tho
comprossion-of-tho-(iuoon's-abdomon tho-
^),.y_ .1. C. Hai.cu.

Hronson, Kans.

Anhwj<;u.— Thoro Is nothing n«>w in
this, and tho advocates of tho compres-
sion thtMiry do not admit that It has any
" busting" power, for they claim that
before a fecundated tineen lays worker-
eggs in drono-colls tho boos alw.ays nar-
row the mouths of tho colls with wax.
Somctlung like lit) years ago Mr. R. R.
]\lurphy sent to the Ameuican Hkk
.loutvN.M, a tino sample of hatching
workers in drono-colls. Perhaps Dr.
Milh>r is the only one who has lately
said anything in favor of tho compres-
sion thoorv, and he has mn'or protended
that it could be proven true, only that
il had not yot been disproved. Hut Mr.
Keepon's bringing in Apis ikimiia with
only one size of brood-colls for drones
ami workers proved too much for the
Doctor, and he lias given up all defense
of tho compression theory.

C apous and CaponiriiiR, by

Kdward Warren vSawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
1-vngnage and illustrations all about
c".-\poni/.ing fowls: and thus how to
make tho most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have It.
Price, postpaid, :U> cents : or chibbed
with Ukk .lovuN.M. one year, for !^l.lO.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

74T

.^^i

l»K. A. IS. IVIAS4»I\.

Several roquosta liuvo come to us for
('(trt/iiin notorious ajiiiirian facos to Ixt
placod in this (ifpartinniit, and anions

l>li. A. II. MASON.

tluiin Dr. Mason was asl<c,(i for. So we,
arc. suro of fdcasiriK soino folios tiiis
w()ol<, and find viu-y ('(irtain that sovcira!
thousand poopic* will l)i) unuHually intor-
ested in this number of the Bek Jouknai,.

For many years we have been very
fortunate in hciriK p(u-initt(!d to count Dr.
Mason among wur very best friends, so

our ('.\treni(i pIc;i,Muri> in prcsdiitiiiK hlni
to our iKiw rr^a.dfirs will \)t\ (piitn pardon-
ii,l)ln. We liav() always admirtul him,
iuid esteemed him most highly as a true
I'rieud and Christian brother.

The bloKriLphlcal sl<etc.h of tim Doctor
was written several years agij for iUain-
in^H by Mrs. Mason, so we ani safe In
sayitiK thiU, it is a, truthful portrayal of
Dr. Mason and liis "erratic life," for his
wif(i (ni,{ihl to he fairly w(dl aciiualnted
with him, oapceially after "endnrliif?"
him for about !JD years I

Tim followhiK Is what Mrs. Mason has
to say of h(5r " licst Doctor:"

'{'he siil)J(!ct (d' this sl<(d,ch was born
-jr, imII(!S south<^:ist of HulTalo, in tlic
town of Walfis, lOrie county, N. Y., Nov.
IH, 1H;j:{. Ills father was born in
Massachuscti/S, and was of KukHsIi,
Hcotcdi, and Irisli descent; was ii> soldier
in th<( war of 1 K I LJ, and assisted in the
capture of Fort lOrle. IFIs maternal
Krandfatlnu' was Uillcd by the Indian
alli(!S of (Jreat IJritain, in the sam<^ war.
liis maternal K>'!i'ndmotlicr was of the
(lid K'nickerbcxdcer or Dutch anci^stry.

Mr. Ma,son had six l)rotliers older than
liimsrdf, two younger, and two sisters.
All w()rt) raised on a farm, and the
brothers are all farmers. 'I'lin only
livin>^ sister is th(! wife of a farmer, and
lives at lOmporia, Kans. Ills mother
and Ki'andparcnts all died In their H:>rd
yc^ar, and his fatlier was about liO at his
death.

in Deiv'alb county. Ills., when altont
IT years old, Dr. Mason tauKht his lirst
school, forifJId p<ir month, iin<i " boa.rded
round." In ndatitiK some of l,he incl-
dmits In (;onnecl/ioii with tliat scliool, he
says: "The last three teachers pre-
(•(idiiiK me wer(! turned out by th(! ' 1)!^
boys,' the last belnj^ tlirown throuKh the
window witli the window shut. Of this
I knew notliiuK until the morning I went
to boKln school. I made up my mind to
teach that school or somebody would Ket
hurt, and so 1 told the director. I was
hired for threat months, but ta.u^ht four,
and was olfiired .*f>4() per month t,o teach
tin) same school l,h(! next winter. A
majority of tiu) scholars were older than
I was."

At the (dose* of this school youuK
Mason went to r.eloit(JolleKe, Wisconsin,
and attended two terms, his chum and
friend beinK the now w(dI-known (Jen.
Warner, of Warner "Sliver Ulli" noto-
riety. With the exception of the above,
and a fc^w terms attendance at an acad-

748

AMERICAN BKK JOURNAL.

emy in Wyoming, N. Y., when he was
either at or near the head in all his
classes except grammar, his school edu-
cation was obtained in the common dis-
trict school.

In his 19th year Mr. Mason joined
the Baptist church of his native town,
and has ever since been proud to be
known as a Christian. Just previous to
his 22nd birthday, at the earnest solici-
tation of his parents, he commenced the
study of medicine with the family physi-
cian, working, as opportunity offered, to
earn money to help pay expenses.

During the winter of 1857 Dr. Mason
attended medical lectures at the Univer-
sity of Michigan, at Ann Arbor. . At the
close of the lecture course, he went to
Illinois to spend the summer, and to
complete his medical studies. The fol-
lowing autumn he returned to the old
home in New York, and on his 25th
birthday he was married to a Miss Clark.
In the spring of 1859, in company with
several families from New York and
Illinois, the newly married couple went
West and located at Irviugton, Kossuth
county, Iowa, 40 miles west of the pres-
ent home of Mr. Eugene Secor. The
colony with which they went having
broken up, in 1862 they moved to
Waterloo, Iowa. Here Mr. Mason com-
menced the practice of denistry, which
he has followed to the present time. He
was Secretary and Treasurer of the
Iowa State Dental Society, and President
of the Northern Iowa Dental Association
for two years. For four terms he was
Secretary and a member of the School
Board of the city in which he lived, and
was one of the originators of the city
library, and librarian for several years.

For years Dr. Mason was an active,
if not the most active, member of the
church to which he belonged, being at
one time superintendent of the Sabbath
school, church clei'k, a trustee, and
clerk of the board of trustees. He was
a leader in Sabbath-school work at home
and in adjoining counties. One year he
was secretary of eight different organi-
zations, four of them religious.

Dr. Mason has always been known as
an earnest temperance worker, and has
had his life threatened twice by saloon-
keepers. He still delights in being a
thorn to them.

He has two sons and a daughter. His
children, like himself, i>se no tea, coffee,
tobacco, or liquor in any form.

In 1869, a brother, in moving, left
two colonies of bees with him until a
more favorable time for moving them.
He soon became interested in them, and,
seeing an article in a newspaper that

year about Mrs. Tupper's success with
bees, wrote to her, making some in-
quiries, which were kindly answered.
He at once became a subscriber to the
American Bee Journal, which he has
taken until the present time.

The same year Mr. Mason became a
member of the Central Iowa Bee-Keep-
ers' Association, and the next year was
elected secretary, which position he held
until he left the State.

In 1873, owing to frequent attacks of
rheumatism, and an increasing desire to
make bee-keeping more of a specialty.
Dr. Mason quit the office practice of
denistry, and the proceeds of the apiary
have materially aided in furnishing
" bread and butter " for wife and chil-
dren.

In 1874, the family residence, a large
new house, with all its contents, was
consumed by fire. There were 18 first-
class Italian colonies of bees in the cel-
lar. On learning of the loss, some mem-
bers of the Central Iowa Bee-Keepers'
Association offered to make him a pres-
ent of 14 colonies as a starter.

The same year we moved to Ohio,
which has since been our home. In the
summer of 1875 we lived in a suburb of
Cincinnati, and made and sold the
Murphy honey extractor, most of them
going to Southern States.

In 1876 Dr. M. was chosen secretary
of the Buckeye Union Poultry Associa-
tion, and held the position for four
years.

In the winter of 1879 he tried what
has since been known as the "Pollen
Theory," and, with the experience of
that and succeeding winters, he has
been made a firm believer in that theory.
This was several years before anything
was said about it in the bee-periodicals.

In 1881 Mr. Mason succeeded in get-
ting the Tri-State Fair Association at
Toledo to offer Fair premiums for the
display of the products of the apiary,
and the display has increased in attrac-
tiveness each year ; and last fall it was
said the display was the most attractive
of any on the grounds. He was ap-
pointed superintendent of the depart-
ment the first year, and still holds the
position.

During the year 1882 and 188o,
when but little was generally known
about foul brood, his apiary of 75 colo-
nies was badly infected, nearly every
colony having it in 1883, and he has
frequently stated the loss was from
$300 to $500; but he cured it that
year, and has had none since.

For several years he has been a mem-
ber of the Michigan State Bee-Keepers'

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

T49

Association, and in 1886 was made an
honorary member.

At Chicago, in November, 1887, on
his 54th birthday, Mr. M. was chosen
president of the North American Bee-
Keepers' Society.

Since the foregoing was written by
Mrs. Mason, we may say further that
the Doctor was re-elected President of
the North American the following year,
at Columbus, Ohio. For the past nearly
four years he has been postmaster at his
home — Auburndale, Ohio — and although
thus engaged he has not lost his interest
in bee-keeping. This is shown in his
activity in the Ohio State Apiarian Ex-
hibit at the World's Fair, which he has
in charge.

Having quite recently been relieved of
his duties as postmaster, he will now
have ample time and opportunity to do
more for the cause of bee-culture, both
practically and in a literary way, than
he has been permitted to do for several
years. We hope soon to have some-
thing from his ready pen, which always
writes pleasingly and profitably.

Samantlia at Saratogfa.— One

of the richest books in genuine humor
that has been published for many years,
in the English language, is "Samantha
at Saratoga," by Miss Marietta Holley.
Rev. Dr. Newman, the Bishop of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, says of this
book :

" I commend ' Samantha at Saratoga '
as an antidote for the blues, a cure-all
for any kind of imaginary woe, a recrea-
tion from mental taxation, a provoca-
tion for wholesome laughter, and an in-
spiration to godliness. It is the bitter-
est satire sugar-coated with the sweet-
ness of exhilarating fun ; it is irony
laughing at fashionable folly ; it is ex-
alted wit with the scalpel in one hand
and the Balm of Gilead in the other.
Her personality is intense, her genius
immense, her art perfect. She stands
alone in her chosen sphere without a
rival."

Read our great offer of this book free,
on page 741 of this copy of the Bee

JOUKNAL.

Bees and Honey" — see page 739.

'"^ , w«^■*s;

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

How to Rear Queen-Bees.

As I have so often been requested to
repeat the "Queen-Rearing Dialogue"
that was published in this department
last September and October, I will en-
deavor to do so in as condensed a form
as possible. It is as follows :

" What are you going to do with those
wax-cups you are dipping there ?" These
are the Doolittle queen-cell cups we
read about.

" What are you putting them on that
comb for, when Doolittle says put them
on sticks ?" You see the weather is
cooler now, and we find by sticking
these cell-cups right on the sealed brood,
the bees accept and finish them up
better.

" How do you make them stick on the
brood ?" You see the cups are dipped
stout at the base, or dipped times
enough to form a Qood lump of wax, so
I can handle them without injury. I
then press them down firm on the sealed
brood, with the tip of the cell standing
a little oflf from the comb. I put into
these cell-cups royal jelly, or food pre-
pared by the bees to rear a queen with.
To get the royal jelly, we let nuclei re-
main queenless for three days before we
give them another cell, and then they
are sure not to tear the cell down. By
this time these nuclei have all started
queen-cells.

I then take out the larvae from the
cells the nuclei have started, and with a
little spoon made for the purpose, I call
a " royal jelly spoon," I dip the jelly
from the cells in the nuclei, and put it
into little boxes. That is where we get
most of our royal jelly. You can take
the jelly from any place where the bees
have started cells.

"Are you having your cells built in
upper stories over colonies having a lay-
ing queen, as Doolittle does ?" No ; I

750

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

have cells all built iii queenless colonies,
in lower stories, as the other is too slow,
and rather more uncertain than having
them built in queenless colonies. We
know that these queenless colonies will
accept and finish up a good lot every
time, for they are very strong.

" Where do you get these strong
queenless colonies all the time ? Don't
they keep running down, and become
weak and 'no good?'" No, no. You
see 1 have selected ten good, prolific
queens whose progeny are good cell-
builders. And you see those twenty
hives yonder by themselves ? Well, that
is my "cell-building apiary." On first
starting I made ten of them queenless,
letting the other ten lay on until my first
batch of cells comes off : then I take
those ten select cell-building queens out,
and just turn them loose in the queen-
less ten that have just completed cells,
and they never stop laying ; by this
time the brood is beginning to hatch out,
and these queens at once fill the hives
full of brood again. Then I give to the
queenless ten about twenty cell-cups
after three days, and they usually finish
up about a dozen each, on an average.
Then when these get "ripe," as we call
it, we take them out and give them
their laying queens back, and start cells
again as before, and vice versa. If at
any time we see these colonies giving
way, we slip in a frame of hatching
bees from other colonies, and I tell you
this works like a charm, and our cells
are all built in full colonies.

" Where do you get the larvte you are
putting into those queen-cups ?" I will
show you by opening "Old Pet's " hive
here. (That is the name of one of the
five-banded breeders.) It is a very
strong colony ; but you see this queen-
excluding division-board? Well, Old
Pet is kept over on this side with only
three frames, and this side is kept up
with brood from other sources. Old Pet
is very prolific, and a fine select breeder,
and should I let her have her own way,
and full access to the whole hive, she
would soon lay herself to death, or lay
her eggs all out; and by keeping her
penned off here, I let her lay only about
enough for my needs; hence, she will
live four or five years. Now you see
this middle frame on her side is a frame
of new foundation. Do you see how nice
the bees are drawing it out ? And do
you see how full of eggs it is? Here I
get the young larvte. I cut out a piece
of this new comb that contains larvae
about one day old from the egg, and
shave the cells down close so that I can
get the larvEe out easily. Now this is

ivherc and Jiow I get my queen-larvae,
and there will be reared about 2,000
queens from "Pet" this year.

I tried keeping my breeder in a small
nucleus, but the bees did not seem to
take hold and draw out the foundation
fast enough to suit me, and I just keep
my breeders in full colonies, and then
everything works like a charm. Where
we must have lots of queens, we cannot
depend upon any slow, uncertain pro-
cess. But, as A. I. Root says about his
force gardening, we have to force things,
and we must have full colonies to do it,
that's all.

"How do you know when these cells
will hatch that you are grafting there ?"
Why, you see, they were eggs three days
and larva?, one day, making four days,
and as the queen hatches in 16 days,
you see they will hatch in 12 days more.
So, to be sure of things, I work them to
hatch 11 days hence, and on the tenth
day I remove them to nuclei prepared to
receive them.

" What are you going to do with all
these cells in this thing ?" You see now
my cells are nearly all reared here at
home, and these are placed in this little
rack with their points all down. Well,
the boys have fixed them that way to
carry to an out-yard several miles away,
and you see these cells hang in this rack
just like they did in the hive, and by
being careful we can carry them with-
out injury four or five miles, and put
them into nuclei prepared for them.

To insert them, I just go along the
rows about as fast as I can walk, and by
the records on top of the hives I know
when I come to one that needs a cell ; I
just open it, and place the cell down on
the comb near the brood, and gently
bring the next comb up just so that it
will touch the cell enough to hold it. I
do it so quickly that neither a smoker
nor veil is needed. I do not stay long
enough at a hive to sit down at all.

Now, here you see the record on this
hive — queen sent out to Geo. Smith, Aug.
26th ? This is Aug. 29th, so you see
the queen has been out three days, and
I know that the colony needs a cell.

"Why do you say "out to Geo.
Smith?" You see by that I know ex-
actly who gets the queens from each
nucleus, and I can tell long before Mr.
Smith can, what kind of a queen he has,
whether she was pure, and all about her
brood, etc.

" What have you got a big shade over
that one hive for, and none over the
rest?" That is a powerful colony where
I keep my drones. Don't you see them
flying thick ? I usually keep this drone-

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

751

hive queenless, too, for it might swarm
away out hero on this prairie, and carry
ofif all my fine drones.

" Why don't you keep the drones in
nuclei, too, and then they would not
swarm ?" Oh, drones do not seem to
fly nearly so active and constant from
nuclei as they do from a strong colony.

"Oh, yes; I now see you believe in
'powerful colonies,' as you call them."
That's what I do. I can do more with
one good, strong colony than with a half
dozen weak ones.

To keep my nuclei strong, 1 let my
queens lay a frame or two of brood be-
fore shipping them, if I am not crowded
too much with orders. But, if I can't
do this, and I am compelled to ship as
soon as they begin to lay, I bring frames
of brood from other yards, and keep
them up, and I tell you it is a good
thing to have a yard with laying queens
all the time to draw brood from in this
queen-business.

When I have more cells than I have
nuclei to take them, I always have a
few strong, queenless colonies in some
of my yards, and I draw frames of brood
and bees enough from them to take all
my surplus cells, which increases my
number of nuclei a little every once in a
while.

I don't fool any time away introducing
virgins, for I find that a virgin is nearly
always a few days longer in beginning
to lay, than one that is not moved at all.

" Yes, but don't you lose more time
when you give cells, than if you had vir-
gins to put in ?" No. You see my nu-
clei are only queenless three days when
I give the cell, and the cell usually
hatches the next day after I put it in, so
ray nuclei are queenless only about 5
days, and it is best for them to be queen-
less awhile when we introduce virgins.
So the cell will hatch out and its queen
lay just about as quick as my introduced
virgin ; and I like it better. It is less
trouble, and somehow I like the queen
better, too.

In the queen-rearing business, one
must have some system about it to make
a success of it. Every one must know
his post of duty, like taking down a cir-
cus tent, if we wish to get along fast.

We have gone over all this " pre-
amble," and only shown the" good work-
ing side of it all. Now, to show you
that it is not all sweet and no bitter, I
must tell you that all the cells do not
hatch, and we often lose queens in mat-
ing, and for these reasons some of our
nuclei go without queens so long that
they take a laying worker, and a great
many other things go wrong.

But I have learned to do just like the
bees do when the sun melts their combs
all down, and just go to work and repair
the loss as quickly as I can, and I am
here to tell you that queen-breeders have
their ups and downs just as much, or a
little more, than honey-producers do.
Now I hope I have made this all plain.
Jennie Atchley.

C!«MVEMTIO»f DIRECTORY.

1893.

"Plme and place of meeting.

June 16, 17.— S. E. Kansas, at Bronson. Kans.
J. C. Balch, Sec, Bronson, Kans.

Oct. 11, 12, 1:5.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicago, Ills.
Frank Benton, Sec. Washington, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North Aiuericau Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller.... Mareng-o, Ills

Vice-Pbes.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Fi-aiiois K. Al»1>ot contributes to the
June 2iew Eutjhmd Mugazlne an article, fully
illustrated, dealing with " The Boston Tea
Party." and the men and events of that
time; Prof. Julins E. Olson, of the Univer-
sity of Wisconsin, gives an extended and
judicial review of " Norway's Struggles for
Political Liberty "—it is an article which
will interest all students of the histoiy of
popular constitutional government; Price
Collier describes " The Old Meeting House
in Hingham, Mass.," said to be the oldest
church organization in the country, and
Charles Frederick Danfortli gives a timely
travelers' guide to the ••Trout Fishing in
New England." the season for which opens
this current mouth.

Dr. Miller's "A Year Among the
Bees " is a book of over 100 pages. It
commences with the necessary work in
the spring, and runs through the entire
year, detailing the methods of doing, as
well as telling when to do, all that
should be done in the apiary. Bound in
cloth. Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or
clubbed with the Bee Journal for one
year, for $1.35.

752

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

VMJUMI^iliiii

Digesting Food and Storing It
for Future Use.

Query 875.— Is there any other animal or
insect except the honey-bee that digests its
food, and stores it for future use after it is
digested 7— P. W.

Yes. — Will M. Baknum.
Yes. — Mks. J. N Heater.
I don't know. — E. France.

Please ask me something I know. — J.
M. Hambaugh.

No ; and further, the bees do no such
thing. — G. W. Demaree.

I don't think of any unless it is the
bumble-bee.— S. I. Freeborn.

I know of none, and do not except
the honey-bee. — Jas. A. Stone.

I'm only a bee-keeper, not a naturalist
or entomologist. — C. C. Miller.

I do not know whether the bee digests
its food or not. — Mrs. L. Harrison.

Some other bees do it. I think some
birds do something akin to it. — A. J.
Cook.

The honey-bee does not do it. Honey
has never been "digested." — Emerson
T. Abbott.

Ask Prof. Cook. I do not know any-
thing about this " digested matter." — G.
M. Doolittle.

Is P. W. a mistake for W. D. ? See
Query 874. I'll resign in favor of Prof.
Cook.— R. L. Taylor.

Look at Dr. Miller's answer. I dislike
to say "I don't know," for he might
accuse me of plagiarism. — A. B. Mason.

I am not aware that any animal, not
excepting the honey-bee, does digest its
food, and then stores for future use. —
J. P. H. Brown.

Bees only partially digest their food
before storing it, according to our best
authorities. It is quite likely that other
insects practices the same sort of econ-
omy. Bees are not " animals." — C. H.
Dibbern.

Your question suggests the inference
that bees do digest the nectar which
they gather before storing it. I cannot
accept that as true. I do not believe it
is true. — Eugene Secor.

Now, my friend, do you believe that
the bees "fully digest" the honey as
you state in your query? If they fully
digested it, would they have any to
store? — H. D. Cutting.

We do not believe that even the
honey-bee digests its food previous to
storing it in the cells. The honey which
they stored has been kept in the honey-
sac, and has not entered the digesting
stomach proper. — Dadant & Son.

In the sense in which the word " di-
gest " is popularly understood, the honey-
bee does not digest its food. " Digested
nectar" may be scientific, but to the
majority of readers it is misleading. I
do not like the word in connection with
honey. — M. Mahin.

The humble or "bumble" bee so-
called, gathers nectar and stores it in
small quantities. Prof. Cook should be
able to give a complete answer to the
above, if it is desired to know the species
that do so store, as well as whether any
others do store or not. — J. E. Pond.

Yes, the bear and other hibernating
animals. No one claims that the food
(honey) of the bee is wholly digested
before storage. All that is claimed is
that the digestive process is commenced
by the conversion of the cane-sugar of
nectar into honey-sugar. — P. H.Elwood.

No, nor does the honey-bee store di-
gested food. Not even man, with all
his knowledge of chemistry, can per-
fectly digest food to be stored up for
future use. The digestion of food is a
vital process, and no honey ever goes
through it and gets back into the combs.
— G. L. Tinker.

Friend P. W., I do not think your trap
is baited right. I do not know as to
other animals, but my observations say
that bees do not digest the honey they
store for future use. Sweet cider fed to
bees and stored in the combs for future
use is sweet cider still, until it sours, as
I have tried it. — Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

It is probable that all insects that
store the nectar of flowers change it to
a greater or less degree by digestion.
All animals that hibernate, as well as
many that do not, store up food for
future use after it is digested, in the
shape of fat. In fact, in this sense it
might be said that nearly all animals
store up digested food for future use. —
James A. Green.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

753

Can the Qiiecn-Bcc Establish the
Sex of Her Offspring; at Wiil ?

Written for the American Bee Joumxxl

BY J. F. LATHAM.

What constitutes "will power" ap-
pears to be the basis on which problems
like the above depend for a solution,
and the question seems barren of indi-
cators that would lead the investigator
to grasp the subject firmly, unless he
can, at the onset, decide that point —
what the implied "will power" is, in
fact.

If the queen-bee can determine the
sex of her progeny in embryo, while de-
positing her ova, would it not be rea-
sonable to infer that all ovaviporous
animals possess a corresponding faculty?

The sexes in fowls of all kinds are
more or less intermingled. The same
principle of analogy is characterized in
the bisexual distribution of the progeny
of the viviparous species. It is seldom
that a litter of pups, kittens or pigs are
of one gender. Twin calves, or lambs,
are often of both sexes. In instances of
the quadrupeds named, can an obvious
reason exist on which to base an opin-
ion, that the "will power" is less potent
in the distribution of the sexual qualifi-
cations than what may be exercised by
the queen-bee 9

The molecular influences, which are
stimulated to activity during the act of
deposition by the queen-bee, seem to be
uniform in their specialty in all stages
of organic life, whether displayed in the
cosmic elements which surround our
planet, the flowers of the fields and
groves, the finny tribes, or man. The
strongest desires predominate. That
the forces that generate the sexes, so
termed, are not mechanical, and there-
fore undefinable in the present state of
knowledge, is evident. "With this point
in view, it would be rational to assume
the partially metaphysical position that
thought, or will power, must be a result
of the molecular action of the brain.

Holding this view of the subject. It
would seem a reasonable extension of
the supposition that the impetus result-
ing from a concentration of the positive
and negative forces (the true propagat-
ing agencies in nature) would exercise
its relative strength like an electric
flash, and stamp its offspring with its
dominant desires, so to speak.

There appears to exist no perceptible
evidence that a queen-bee exercises fore-
thought preparatory to a change from
fecundated to unfecundated ova, as she
will change from worker-cells to drone-
cells, and vice -uersa, on the same comb
when she meets them, without percepti-
ble hesitation, or being in the least re-
tarded in her avocation.

Often a drone-cell containing a live
drone in the imago stage of develop-
ment, may be found in the body of a
comb, isolated from its kind, and sur-
rounded by a compact mass of capped
worker-brood. Although what has just
been said may not perhaps be a strictly
conclusive demonstration of " will
power," still it presents very strong evi-
dence that would tend to support an ad-
mission that the queen, while depositing
the isolated ovum from which the drone
hatched, had absolute control of the
spermatozoon.

It further evinces that the generative
mechanism of the queen must be very
nicely adjusted to operate with such a
degree of certainty. But notwithstand-
ing the delicacy of the act, an opening
is presented for the entrance of a mild
protest ; for, with all the certainty with
which acts of the denizens of the hive,
and especially the progenitor, are cred-
ited, the lone son of the mother may
have been the result of a deranged ef-
fort. But whatever may have been the
ruling cause of the phenomenon, if such
it may be termed, it presents a rich
theme for thoughtful observation.

So infinitesimal are the seminal fila-
ments that, on contemplation, one
would be led to doubt the accomplish-
ment of a separation so complete in its
requirements as the sexual change de-
mands. That it is accomplished, with
its qualifying degree of certainty, there
is no chance for a doubt.

Here, although the question is a much-
mooted one, it may be asked, may not
the nurse-bees have something to do
with the sexual qualifications by operat-
ing on the ova after they are deposited
in the cells ? Although the query may be
barred the decision of positive science,
still there appears to be a reasonable
chance for believing that they do possess
the pow-er to change the sex in the ,

754

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL..

ovum, aud can exercise it when neces-
sity prompts them to do so.

If the nurse-bees do ever perfo^m an
operation of the kind inferred it must
be subtile in its nature as to place it be-
yond the grasp of the most acute obser-
vation, unless, eventually, w. h the aid
of a powerful lense. But, without, it is
very doubtful that the bees «^f .^«
change the sex of the ova, and as the
Iroslnd cons relative to the process are
^settled, it must remain a theoiT unti
a more reliable investigation than has
heretofore been made may confirm its

truth or fallacy. .^lativp tn

Whatever the facts may be relative to
a change of sex in the ovum, a nice dis-
crimination is displayed by the nurse-
bees in their care of the brood-a single
Srone-larva, surrounded by hundreds o
the opposite sex, is fed, and its cell
capped with unvariable precision.

Much stress has been given to the
" pressure theory " in attempts to eluci-
date the sex qualifications; but as It IS
usually explained, there is but a slight
chance for its realization. When it is
known to a certainty that the queen-bee
will deposit ova, worker or drone regu-
larly in new combs with cells J^, and
often less than 1/16 inch deep bui
on foundation sheets, the assumption is
totally destitute of support, unless the
pressure is exercised telescopically by
the ovapositor on the bottom of the cells
—the act being accompanied by an ex-
ertion that secures the ova m their
places. Here, again, uncertainty of
observation relegates the whole matter
to the realms of conjecture.

It is very doubtful if a system of re-
search can be instituted that will dis-
close the modus operandi to the satis-
faction of the most expert scientist ; tor,
iudging from the many attempts that
have been made to elucidate the mys-
teries that surround the known fact,
that the queen-bee can alternate the sex
of her ova with a precision that admits
of no mistakes, there is certainly but a
very slight opening for the most acute
investigator to exercise his talents in
attempts to solve the secrets that are in-
volved in the results.
Cumberland, Me.

Hiving Swarms on Drawn
Combs— Bail Sections.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY J. K. COMMON.

Your Neighbor Bee-Keeper

—have you asked him or her to subscribe
for the Bek Jouknai. ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, bo-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
"Bees and lioney " as a premium, tor
sending us two new subscribers. Don t
neglect your neighbor I See page < cSJ.

On page 823 of the Bee Journal for
1892, is an article from Mr. Hutchin-
son in regard to hiving swarms on
drawn combs in producing comb honey.
Having tried it to my entire satisfaction,
I am convinced that the bees will give
double the surplus honey if hived on
drawn combs, if rightly managed.

When the first swarm issues, I hive it
in a hive filled with drawn combs, and
give them the section-case that was on
the old hive, or one with a few un-
finished sections, and I never had any
trouble in getting the bees to fill them.
I go to the old hive the seventh or
eighth day after the swarm issues, and
cut out all the queen-cells but one, and
enclose that one in a queen-cell protec-
tor, giving them a case of sections with
a few unfinished sections in the center,
then I am not troubled with any more
increase, and frequently I get from 80
to 100 pounds of surplus honey after
the swarm issues.

Last year I was so careless as to neg-
lect to give one of my colonies the
proper attention, and a second swarm
issued. I hived it on drawn combs, and
about 15 minutes after it was hived a
stray swarm came along and alighted on
a bush ; I put it in with the new swarm,
and gave them a section-case baited with
a few unfinished sections ; they gave me
over 20 pounds of surplus honey, besides
filling their hive in less than three
weeks, and making a rousingly strong
colony that has wintered safely.

There is no better way to get the bees
to work in sections than to give them a
few unfinished ones in the center of the
case for bait. When the white honey
harvest is over, give the bees more
frames, and when they are filled, if not
needed, put them away in a warm room
where they will not spoil, and they can
be used for spring feeding. This will
give you a lot of drawn combs if you are
careful of them, and it is better than
feeding sugar syrup to get the bees
through. I never fed sugar syrup but
once, and that was one year ago, when I
did not happen to have a lot of drawn
combs fillt'd with honey. I found a few
of my bees on the verge of starvation.

Save the dark honey for feeding,
market the white, and let the sugar-
honey business severely alone.
Angelica, N. Y., May IT, 189b.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

755

Cure for Bcc-Diarrliea, Winter-
ing; Bees, Ete.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY "MONTREAL, SUBSCRIBER."

As somebody in the American Bee
Journal inquires about a remedy for
bee-diarrhea, I beg to state some facts
of past experience.

■ Last year, in February, I noticed that
some of my bees in tlie cellar were suf-
fering badly from diarrhea ; the weather
being not favorable for a cleansing
flight (which is the best of all remedies),
I simply cleaned the bottom-boards,
which are movable, and placed under
the frames a piece of brown paper on
which a few drops of spirits of pepper-,
mint had been previously spilled. That
seemed^to stop the disease for two or
three weeks, when I had to repeat the
same process. I would like to see others
try it next winter, and report. I should
think that peppermint, which has the
effect of helping digestion in human
beings, might have the same good result
on the bowels of the bees.

OUTSIDE WINTERING IN LOWER CANADA.

Last fall, seeing that my cellar is
altogether too cold in winter, I resolved
to try the "summer stands" system;
and notwithstanding the extreme and
continuous cold of this past winter, I
succeeded to the best ; for, the 10 colo-
nies I had in November, 1892, are to-
day (April 23rd) all in excellent condi-
tion. Of course, I was fully prepared
for it, my hives (Simplicity style) being
lodged in large, square wooden boxes,
well packed with straw some 10 inches
all around; the winter stores also were
abundant, and the colonies strong.

The first general cleansing flight took
place as late as March 8, 1893, when I
closely examined the 10 colonies. Of
course the bottom-boards were covered
about }4 inch with dead bees, which is
not surprising after such a long confine-
ment (since Nov. 17th). But 5 colonies
were pretty heavy still with stores, the
5 others more or less short of stores, and
all with plenty bees. To the weaker
ones I gave that day two thin cakes of
maple sugar between the frames, which
I found all gone on April 8th, when the
bees had their second general cleansing
flight.

One of the 10 colonies was a nucleus
of Italian bees in five Langstroth frames
with plenty of stores ; it went through
the winter O. K., and to my surprise, on
March 8th, it was still heavy with

stores. I really should think that with
outside wintering, bees properly pre-
pared, would consume less than in the
cellar. Now, last year I had 6 colonies
in the cellar, and besides suffering with
diarrhea, in the spring they were all
short of stores. But the reason is per-
haps that my cellar is too cold for win-
tering bees.

VERY EASY AND COMFORTABLE OUTSIDE
WINTERING OF BEES.

Here is my method of wintering bees
on the summer stands ; each hive is at
all times provided with a large platform,
say 3x4 feet, raised from the ground
about 4 inches in front, and 6 inches in
the rear, so as to make a gentle slope.
On this large platform rests the hive on
its movable bottom-board, also raised
about 8 inches from the platform — a
perfect ventilation and neatness, as you
may see.

Now when cold weather is coming on
each hive is well packed with chaff or
straw in a wooden case made of two
stories, with a movable cover made
tight against rain or thawing, by gal-
vanized or painted iron.

Mark that the whole case is large
enough to allow 6 or 7 inches of straw
packing on the sides, and 10 or 12 on
top of the hive. (It also receives a coat
of coal-tar on the outside only.) Mark
also that the same case rests exactly on
the edge of the large summer stand
platform, so that the underside may be
allowed free circulation of air whenever
desirable.

Now, to make it still better rat or
mice proof, only a narrow entrance is
provided on the outer case, say Kx4
inches ; also a sort of wooden bridge is
provided for the bees between the two
entrances (the entrance of the case and
that of the hive). Should any rats
make their appearance, "Rough on
Rats " will soon get rid of them — it Is
the best article I ever saw for the pur-
pose.

But you might think that with such a
packing the bees are left very little
ventilation ; that they are in danger of
smothering if the entrance becomes
clogged with dead bees, or shut up with
ice. The danger is averted in this way :
The bottom-board is at all times pro-
vided with two or four holes covered
with perforated tin, and the large plat-
form underneath is not air-tight, so that
bees can get enough ventilation from
the holes of the bottom-board.

But as I had some trouble the past
winter in cleaning the bottom-boards, I
intend to improve my wintering process

756

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

in this way: I will raise the hive 3
inches above the bottom-board by means
of a frame 3x2 inches, on which the
hive will rest. The front side of that
frame will be a movable board only )i
inch thick, having the usual hive en-
trance ; that board being made fast to
the hive by means of the straw packed
against it. The bottom-board inside the
hive will have a piece of brown or blot-
ting paper to receive dead bees and any
dirt falling from the frames. The lower
story of the outer case will also have
part of the front movable, say 3 feet by
6 to 7 inches in width.

Now here is the beauty of the whole
arrangement : Whenever a fine day
comes, allowing a general cleansing
flight of the bees, or whenever you want
to clean the bottom-boards, you first put
aside the movable part of the front case,
then draw the packing out of the way,
and lastly the movable board of the
aforesaid frame on which the hive is
standing. Now gently draw the brown
or blotting paper of the bottom-board
(it will be more or less dirty), and im-
mediately replace it with a neat and dry
one, on which you may spill a few drops
of peppermint. If necessary you may
also feed the bees under the frames,
with the ordinary cautions not to daub
the bees. If the weather is very fine,
you may also uncover the outer cases,
so that in a few hours all the colonies
will get a thorough cleaning and drying,
with but very little trouble for the bee-
keeper.

I tried, last year, in the cellar the
brown paper and the movable-board
system, and it proved a success. I don't
see why I could not not use it in con-
nection with the wintering-case system.

Montreal, Canada.

Employment in Colorado and
California Apiaries.

Written fot the American Bee Journal
BY C. W. DAYTON.

Several different parties in the East
have written me about obtaining employ-
ment in apiaries in Colorado and Califor-
nia, and ask my advice, etc.

I would say that my experience is
limited, so that they should go and ex-
periment as I have done. But I have
done with this kind of experimenting
now.

First, I answered a " Want " advertise-
ment in the Amkjucan Bke Journal or
Gleanings, and secured a position during

last season with Mr. Chas. Adams, in
Colorado, and a most agreeable position
it turned out to be ; but since respond-
ing to another "Want," I concluded that
all are not Adamses, or believe and do
as Adams does.

Mr. Tefft, sometime ago, stated that
on answering a "Want" advertisement
for a skillful apiarist, he received the
answer that when they noted his age
they had to smile, as they "wanted a
young man to handle the bees and knock
around the farm." This smiling may be
fun for one party, but to the one who
pays his money in railroad fares for a
thousand miles and misses a job, it is
less fun, so I say to those seeking jobs,
beware of the "Wants" where such
smiles come in. These smiling folks
had best experiment near home by em-
ploying a skillful carpenter, and then
set him at " knocking around " the wood
pile.

In reaching the last position men-
tioned, I traveled 1,100 miles by rail,
and arrived just as the family were de-
parting on a visit to relatives. Bound
not to interrupt their plans, I agreed to
keep "bachelor's hall," and do the
chores until their return, beginning
about 11 o'clock in the forenoon. The
rest of the day passed off smoothly, and
I was beginning to settle my thoughts
down most comfortably after taking a
survey of the farm, surrounding country,
and 150 colonies of neglected but well
populated colonies of bees that I was to-
manage. There was plenty of good bee-
country, and no bees nearer than six
miles.

About an hour after retiring, there
came a nibble from behind my ear, and
I sent something about the shape and
size of a gold dollar whizzing against
the farther wall, with the exclamation,
"That's the first interruption I ever
had from one of those varmints !" On
striking a light, a whole assemblage
went scrambling seven ways from Sun-
day off the pillow. I had about con-
cluded to start for a hotel, when the
thought struck me to experiment a little,
so I spread over the bed about 12 to 15
thicknesses of newspapers, and allowed
them to project over the edge. I don't
think I was molested until morning, ex-
cept by a dreaming, half-awake kind of
sleep.

I thought the varmints always nested
in the wall, so the next morning all the
clothing was hung on the fence all day.
The next night I camped on the floor in
th(! opposite part of the room, and I felt
nothing, and hoard nothing, but on
striking a light I was equally surprised

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

757

to see them scramble off the clothing
full fourteen ways from Sunday, and
disappear in the cracks of the floor.

On undoing my grip, some had gotten
inside, but I shook some garments, put
on an extra amount of clothing, and
went out and slept well in a wheat-
shock.

The next day, when I took up a paper
or book, I looked well on all its sides,
even the supers and honey cans were
suspected, and not unnecessarily, either,
for I found the varmints entrapped in
the oowls in the pantry, and swimming
in dishes of cooked food. Some had
fallen in the muzzle of the shot-gun that
stood in the corner, and in the shaving
mug on the corner bracket, and if I
pulled a sliver from the gate-post I
looked to see what was under it.

Now, this one particular fault is all I
could make out against this job, but this
one was so weighty that a day after,
and some time before the return of the
family, I put another thousand-mile
ticket well down into my vest-pocket,
leaving no explanation whatever. So I
say to those who want a job, do not go
to a job unless you can afford to pay
your fare both ways, and lose it.

Pasadena, Calif.

Self-Hivers vs. Queen-Traps in
Controlling; Swarin§.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY ADKIAN GETAZ.

On page 401, our old friend Henry
Alley argues that a queen-trap will
catch a swarm as well as a self-hiver,
all we have to do is to return the queen
to the hive two or three days after the
swarm has issued — so he claims.

In a foot-note of a similar article writ-
ten by Mr. Alley for Gleanings (April
1st, pages 257 and 274), Mr. E. R.
Root says: "The bees have been
thwarted in their efforts to carry out
the instinct of nature, remaining in the
hive, frittered away their time doing
nothing, and finally ended up by killing
the queen." This was in reference to
using queen-traps as advised by Mr.
Alley.

Well, it is simply this: With a queen-
trap the swarm returns to the old hive,
the swarming fever not satisfied, and
the whole thing will work in nearly
every case as described above by Mr.
Root. But with a self-hiver that would
hive the whole swarm, the case would
be entirely different, because then

swarming would actually take place, the
swarming fever be satisfied, and the
swarm go to work with all the vim and
energy always displayed by new swarms
(at least I think so).

The supers should be put on the hive
of the new swarm, and at least part of
the brood-combs and young bees also
transferred to the new hive, and the
whole made a rousing colony.

I am afraid Messrs. Pratt and Root
have made a mistake in placing the
new hive under the old one. Lifting
the old hive, and perhaps two or three
supers, or even turning them, as they
say, " cat-a-cornered," to ascertain
which hives have been swarming, is too
much work. Better have the hiver in
front, and only a cover to lift. I some-
what suspect that they have done it,
and also adopted a peculiar queen-es-
cape instead of a cone, in order to avoid
infringing on Mr. Alley's queen-trap
patent, but I don't know positively.

In case the self-hiver and new hive
should be left under the old hive for
several weeks or months, the probability
is that the work in the sections would
cease, and the bees fill both new and old
hives, with or without swarming. If
working for comb honey, our aim would
be defeated ; if extracted honey is the
object, better put the two hives one
upon the other, without any self-hiver
or honey-board ; or, better still, adopt a
large hive such as used by the Dadants,
and most of the European apiarists.

Knoxville, Tenn.

The Proper Time to Put on tiie
ISurplu§ €ase§.

Written for Farm^ Field and Stockman
BY S. E. MILLER.

The question is often asked, " When
is the proper time to put on surplus
cases?" or, as they are more commonly
called, supers. The question is gener-
ally answered by saying, When the bees
begin to whiten the combs along next to
the top-bar of the frame. This, how-
ever, is not alv/ays the best rule to fol-
low, if, in fact, there is any particular
rule at all.

I have seen the combs whitened as
spoken of above early in the season
when fruit-trees were in bloom, and this
flow of nectar would last for only a few
days. Then cool to cold and rainy
weather set in and the bees actually had
to be fed to keep them from starving.
To have the supers on at such a time

758

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

would be worse than useless, yet there
Is an exact time when supers should be
put on, and this time, as a rule, is rather
short, for if put on before the colony is
in a condition to commence work on
them it will take considerable heat from
the bees to warm up this extra space,
and at this time all of the warmth that
the colony can generate is needed to
carry on brood-rearing advantageously.
Often, too, the bees will tear down or
gnaw holes in the comb-foundation star-
ters if they are not in a condition to go
to work building the starters out into
full depth combs.

The starters, also, if allowed to remain
too long unused, become hard and
brittle, and are not so acceptable or so
easily worked by the bees.

On the other hand, if we wait too long
there are other conditions equally objec-
tionable For, should the bees be gath-
ering nectar quite freely, and have no
room to store it above, they will com-
mence storing it in brood-combs : soon
every available cell is filled with honey,
and the queen has no empty cells in
which to deposit eggs, thus brood-rearing
is curtailed, the hive becomes crowded,
and the bees become possessed with a
desire to swarm when it is very difficult
to induce them to enter the supers, for
where bees once commence storing their
sweets, there they will persist in contin-
uing their work, and when they have
once got the idea of swarming in their
little heads, they seem to think of noth-
ing else, and will enter the supers very
reluctantly if at all, and if they carry
into effect their desire to swarm our
best chances for a full crop of honey
are past.

Thus we see that the time for putting
on the supers is generally very short,
and should be improved while it lasts.
Therefore, each individual'should study
this subject for himself. Acquaint your-
self with the condition of your colonies
by making frequent examinations ; note
which are the strongest and give them
supers first, for a few of the strongest
may be in a condition to commence stor-
ing surplus while weaker ones may not
get ready at all, for a colony that is not
populous should not be expected to store
comb honey, and can usually be worked
to better advantage by running them
for extracted honey.

Post yourself on the flora of your lo-
cality, that you may know just where to
expect the greatest yield of sweets from
field and forest, and you will soon be
able to master the problem. Here in
our locality the time varies according to
the earliness of the season, from the

latter part of May to the first week or
ten days in June.

Where white clover is plentiful we
may note when the bees first commence
work on the bloom and consider that
the time is at hand, for in a short time,
if everything is favorable, we may ex-
pect strong colonies to be storing consid-
erable quantities of the sweet nectar.

Bluft'ton, Mo.

CXTZZZXX«XXX«XXXXXXXgXXXXXXTXTXltX1

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Called "Lucky" -A Friendly Feeling-.

Tlie bees are '' hustling." I lost 4 colonies
out of 11, and people call me "lucky.''

I enjoy the visits of the Bee Journal
very much. There is such a friendly feel-
ing among the bee-papers, that the influence
is worth the cost of the paper. My students
enjoyed " Wung Lung's Experience," as
they did the biograpliy of Mr. A. I. Root — a
rival editor. Surely, the devil finds poor
picking among such men.

F. F. Main, B. S.

Newton Falls, O., May 23, 1893.

Age When Virgin Q,ueens Mate.

1 have read the article on page 461, on
the age when virgin queens mate. J. A.
refers to Mr. Wilder Graham's saying that
a quedb must mate within 21 days, or she
never mates. 1 say the same. Of course
there are exceptions to all rules, so there
might be one out of a hundred tliat mates
after she is 21 days old. I had one last
spring to mate when she was about tliat
age, but tliat was the only one in 22 years'
experience — tliat is, I mean to lay worker
eggs. J. A.'s queens must have been rather
slim and poor, and got througli the ex-
cluder and mated some time in the winter,
or else they must have been some new kind
of bees — may be they were Funics !

My experience in queen-rearing is, that
a young queen will usually mate in from .5
to 7 or 8 days after hatching, if the weather
is favorable, and usually lays eggs on the
nth; and if the weather should be so cold
tliat she could not get out in about 21 days,
she would be a drone-egg layer, and I con-
sider h«r worthless. 1 want my queens

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

759

mated with pure drones. I want no drones
from unfertilized queens. Some will say
that the impregnation has no effect on the
drone-egg, but I don't care for that, I will
take mine fertilized, every time. It is the
nature of the young queens to mate in
early '' girlhood," or not at all.
Clayton, Ills. Thos. S. Wallace.

New Comb Built Out of Old.

Do bees utilize old comb to build new out
of ? I think I have proof positive that they
do. I transferred a colony the other day
for a neighbor, from a very old hive to a
new frame hive. As the combs were very
old and black, I did not use them, but put
the bees on full drawn combs from my own
apiary. As there were a few small patches
of brood I wished to save, I cut it out and
laid it on some sticks in the super for them
to take cai'e of, which they are doing very
nicely. I examined them three days later,
when I found a piece of comb suspended
from the hive-cover as large as my hand.
Directly over the patches of brood, lying in
the bottom of the super, and the new comb
and the brood-comb was exactly of the
same color, very dark.

RuFus Williams.

Crescent, Okla. Ter., May 15, 1893.

Bees Wintered All Right.

My 17 colonies came through the winter
all right, and are in prime condition,
although the season so far has been exces-
sively wet and cool, but, notwithstanding
all this, my colonies are strong in numbers,
and are storing honey very rapidly from
black locust bloom and red willow. White
clover is beginning to bloom, but owing to
the recent overflow of the Ohio river, the
most of the clovey crop has been destroyed.
I had 2 swarms issue on May 10th. These
being my first this year, makes the swarm-
ing season some 30 days later this year
than last. I now have 19 colonies of bees of
the Italian strain, which has given me
great satisfaction in their care and man-
agement, and a fair return in good honey
for the amount of labor performed.

I began bee-keeping some six years ago,
and I am under more obligations to the
American Bee Journal for the practical
information regarding bee-culture than to
all other sources combined. I am looking-
for a good honey-flow here this year, there-
fore I am ready for it.

B. F. Boultinghouse.

Rockport, Ind., May 15, 1893.

Can Bees Puncture Fruit ?

In the convention of the Indiana bee-
keepers, according to the published report,
several members of the convention said
they kn.ew that bees could not puncture
grapes, and this resolution was adopted :

Besolvt'd, That it is the sense of the In-
diana bee-keepers that it is an impossibility
for bees to puncture grapes or injure them.

Either the Indiana bee-keepers have
studied bees wrongly, or the bees in In-
diana are a weak and shiftless race. I fast-
ened a surplus comb into a section with
hard-wood tooth-picks. A grating sound
led me to examine, to find out what was
going on in that hive. The bees had car-
ried away bit by bit nearly all of one pick,
and part of the other, and it was diminish-
ing fast. If bees can bite off hard wood,
they may enter ripe fruit.

Bees do not, however, puncture fruit, be-
cause no fruit has any attraction for bees —
no more attraction than a stone or a piece
of wood — when it is sound ; but when the
fruit begins to leak, from various causes,
then the bees are drawn to it, tear away
the skin, and carry off the contents. But
bees can puncture fruit, that is, it is a
physical possibility, as they can puncture
and tear away or bite off hard wood.

Geo. A. Stockwell.

Providence, R. I.

Report from Eastern Kentucky.

The winter in Eastern Kentucky is said
to have been the coldest for 60 years. All
the apiarists winter their bees on the sum-
mer stands, the consequence last winter
was, that nearly all the bees froze to death.
When the temperature got down to zero, I
covered my hives with hay. Six colonies
pulled through with a few bees. The last
of February and the first of March we had
three weeks of warm weather, and I gave
my bees free access to all the honey they
wanted from other hives where the bees
had died, and they commenced rearing
brood. Though we have a late spring, my
hives are full of bees, and they have com-
menced whitening their combs. Our best
honey season is just commencing now — the
poplar and white clover. Most of the bee-
men are discouraged, and say they are
going to quit the business. That will give
a better field for me.

I wish much success to the old American
Bee Journal. I am well pleased with the
pictures of our brother and sister bee-keep-
ers, and biographical sketches. I am glad
to know that they are Christians ; that
makes us believe one must control himself
before he can control his bees.

(Rev.) Miller Pairchild.

Sip, Ky., May 12, 1893.

Perhaps Not Fertilized in the Hive.

I would like to say a few words on Dr.
Tufts' article on page 340, in regard to the
laying queen that I found in an upper story.
I asked Mr. Doolittle about it, and he re-
plied thus :

' • Unbeknown to you, or otherswise, there
was a crack or hole in or about one of those
upper stories large enough for the queen to
go out and return to meet the drone, and
she was fertilized without doubt on the
wing, as all queens are."

I was nettled by Mr. Doolittle's answer,
for the reason that he thought that I tol-
erated holes in my hives, and also his ap-

760

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

plying the word otherwise, for by that it just
seemed to me that he distrusted me, and
that I was trying to " work " him (as the
boys call it) . Now. if Mr. D. thought so,
he was mistaken, for nothing could be more
remote from my mind.

I was hasty, and did jump to the conclu-
sion, as there was a queen-excluder below
the super that she was fertilized in, and not
considering at that time that a virgin
queen beting so much smaller than a laying
queen, she could possibly squeeze through
a perforation of an excluder, and that is
just the way she got out if she mated on
the wing. Now, here is where I made the
error — I said she had not been out of the
hive, and I ask the pardon of the Bee Jour-
nal readers for the same. Now that is my
iniquity, and as the crime is no greater, it
seems unjust in my honored friend of the
Sunny Southland to make me the butt of
ridicule.

I take a great interest in bee-keeping —
greater even than in the business that I
chose in my younger days, and worked at
for 35 years (that of a blacksmith), yet I
never got so much comfort in all those
years as I have in less than ten years of
keeping bees. I am delighted with it, and
that feeling grows all the time.

Some years ago a writer in frlea)dti(j.s, un-
der the noni de p/unie ot '"Ole Fogy," was
morally certain that a swarm never ab-
sconded without first settling, and con-
tinued to assert it. So. Doctor, I am not
the only sinner. Well, "Ole Fogy," was
converted, as he had a swarm come out and
start for parts unknown without as much
as saying, "By your leave, Ole Fogy." So
the friend just took off his paint and
feathers, and acknowledged his error. So
I think that the (j/o(n.iii<js family forgave
him, and said, " Go and sin no more."

John McKeon.

Dryden, N. Y., March 24, 1893.

Disastrous Year for Bees.

The past year has been the most disas-
trous for bees that I have experienced. Of
73 colonies one year ago, I can now count
but 30, and the majority of these are in
poor condition. J. P. Latham.

West Cumberland, Me., May 30, 1893.

A Letter of Appreciation.

I wish to congratulate you on the con-
tinued success of the Amekican Bee Jour-
nal. I have been a regular subscriber for
the last eleven years, and have always
thought the American Bee Journal one of
our ablest, best conducted, and richest in
news for bee-keepers, of all our apicultural
journals.

Your biographical sketches and portraits
are very interesting, and especially so to
those of us in Eur()j)e who cannot make the
personal iicipiaintance of suc-h men as Doo-
little, Tinker, etc. Tlie sketches are very
pithy, and tell us ' all ab»ut the fads and
hobbies of those wo have a deep respect for.

Your editorials and poetical selections have
a high moral and elevating tone, and all
together I value most highly the weekly
visits of the " Old Reliable."'
Newtownards, Ireland. Wm. Ditty.

gXXXSXXTSXXXXxxxxxxxrxxxxzxxxxxrx;

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
June 10th, 1893 :

CHICAGO. III.— There is not much move-
ment in comb honey. Prices ran^e at from
12@16 and 17c., all g'ood grades bainging 15®
17c. A few eases of the new crop have ar-
rived and brought the top prices. Beeswax is
very steady at about 25c. Extracted honey is
moving very slowly at from 6@8c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c.; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white, 7@7i4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, O.— A short supply of ex-
tracted honey is the cause of a slow demand.
It forbids an effort on our part to sell. It
brings 6@8c, There is no choice comb honey
on our market, and prices are nominal at 12®
16c., in a small way.

Beeswax— Demand good, at 22@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW YORK, N. Y.— New crop of extracted
is arriving freely. Market is quiet and de-
mand limited. Fancy grades sell at from 7®
8c. ; common to fair, at from 60@70c., as to
body, color and flavor. Beeswax, 26®27c.

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif— Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7}4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. . S.. L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mc— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c. ; No. 1
comb, 16®17c, Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand at 8J4 ;
dark, 6@7c. Beeswax— 23®25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted. 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

ALBANY^, N. Y. — Honey market is very
quiet now, as between seasons. Beeswax—
at 30®32c. for good color. H. R. W.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.— There is quite an
active demand this week for honey, especially
white comb honey in 1-lb. sections. Dark is
very slow sale. Stock on hand in this market
is very light. Receipts have not been enough
i'O supply trade during the past 10 days. Fan-
cy white conb honey, 18®20c.; No. 1 white,
17c.; fancy amber, Kic; No. 1 amber, 14c. ;
lancy dark, 12c. ; No. 1 dark, 10c. Extracted
Culil'oruia GO-lb. kegs, 9c. nccswax, uusnl-
alde. J. A. S. \- Co.

AMERICAN BEK JOURNAL.

761

List of Honey and Heeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote In this Journal.

Cbicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

New York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Keade Street.
HiLDKETH Bros. & Segelken.

•28 & 30 West Broadway

San FranciMco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

lainneapolis, ITIiuii.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas* City, Mo.

Hamblin & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, IV. Y.

H. R. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadwaj

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oblo.

C. F. MnTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

Bee-Keeping: for Profit.— We

have just issued a revised and enlarged
edition of Dr. Tinker's boolf, called
"Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details
his most excellent " new system, or how
to get the largest yields of comb and
extracted honey." The book contains
80 pages in all, and is illustrated. Price,
postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the
Bee Journal for one year, for .$1.15.

Wants or Excbajiges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

s /■ .irf -s ^ w -s y t_

WANTED- 2nd-Hand Barnes' Foot-Power
Saw. J. A. BALMER, Vlncennes, Ind.

T

O EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. GREEN, Ottawa, 111.

WANTED TO EXCHANGE— A nice 8-tune
Music Box, for a Barnes' Foot-Power
Saw or a good Scroll Saw. Address,
H. L. VON LIENEN.

Somerset, Saline Co., Ills.

WANTED TO EXCHANGE— Love and aff-
ections and a good home, for a lady part-
ner as a wife and some money to go into a
paying business; between the ages of 40 and
50 years. All letters answered. Address,
R. MILLER, Compton, Lee Co., Ills.

WE OFFER

COMB FOUNDATION

Wholesale and Retail,
AT VERY LOW PRICES.

I^~ Satisfaction and All Work Guaranteed.

Part of our Machines are here, and we will
be able to flU a few orders nextweels at prices
ranging from 36 to 56 cents per pound.

Remember, we are pui!«ltiug matters as
fast as possible, and will not be undersold

Send j'our name and address, for we do not
know you and we will keep you posted.

BEESWAX WANTED. Write for Prices

W. J. FINCH, JR.,

9.31 E. Monroe St., - SPRINGFIELD, ILLS.
Mention the American Bee Journal.

Sometliing Entirely New.

ONLY PERFECT AUTOMATIC

Honey-Extractor

BES'U." uf Testimonials can be given as to
the perfect*working of the above Honey-
Extractor. Simple in Construction. With-
out Band or Chain. Price moderate. We
are prepared to ship from the United States.
The 4-frame Langstroth, can diameter 24 in-
ches; 8-frame 27 inches.

Goold, Shapley & Muir Co., Ltd.

BBANTFOKD, CANADA.

Patent for above. Either State or larger
territory may be purchased from us.

Manufacturers and Dealers in
All Kinds of

Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

Mention the American Bea JmLvnal.

762

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAJ

Pure Italian (jiieeiis !

BKED from Imported Mother. 75 cents
each; 3 for 12 00. Can ship promptlj' af-
ter June 15th. These Queens are Beauties.
Safe arrival g-uaranteed.

STEWART SRO.S.,

24E2t SPARTA, TENN.

Mention the A.nierican Bee Journnl.

TAKE NOTICE!

BEFORE placing- your orders for SUP-
PLIES, write for prices on 1-Piece Bass-
wood Sections. Bee-Hives, Shipping- -Crates.
Frames. Foundation, Smokers, etc.

PAGE & KEITH, New Iioudon, Wis.

or tbts Journal wbo
write to any of our
advertisers, either lo
ordering, or asking about tbe Goods
offered, -will please state tbat tbey saw
tbe AdTertisement in this paper.

READERS

SPECIAL OFFER.

IAI:ECIX0 the month of July, LEINIWGEB
-^ BSOS. are going to boom their Queen.s
bj- sending one "W^arranted Queen lor
only 50 centiti. We do this to introduce our
Queens in your locality.
24Atf PT. JSNTSflTSfOS, OHIO.

References— A. I. Root, the A.mekic.^n Bee
JouuxAL, or W. Z. Hutchinscn.

Mention ttie American Bee Journal

HIGH
ARM

FREE TRIAL

lor ten davs in vour own home.

{GO Keawood machine for • $21.50

ihO Arlingtoa SlaeblDe for • $20.50

Slaodard Singers. $9.50, $15.50,

$li,50, and 27 other styles. We

I ship firstclas? machines anywhere

3-1 to anyone in anyquantit5- atwhole-

Z i sale prices. All altaebment* FREE.

-- -j^^ .J v,z Latest improvements. Send for

*=" ^'sJJ laajj free catalogue and s.ave money.

WB Pay the freight. XO money REQriRKD \S AOVANtB.

Address nnfuil) CASH BUYERS' UNION,
158-164 W. Van Buren St., Oept. 55, Chicago, III.

24E5t Mentifm the American Bee Journal.

DOVETAILED AND SIMPLICITY HIVES!

Sections. Extractors, etc. 60-p. Catalog-.
A Full Line of Bee - Keepers' Supplies.

J. M. JENKINS, WETUMPKA, ALABAMA.

24El0t Mention the American Bee Joumau

WEEKLY $1.00 A YEAR.

Fotmded by the late Orange Judd, and now Edited by his Son,

JAMES STRONG JUDD,

And Many Practical Men and Women.

BecogniziDg the fact that our Readers want Special Accommodations at the World's Fair— safe from
fire— and not high-priced , we have rented 6 acres within 7 blocks of t he Exposition , to be known as the

• ••

Orange Judd Farmer World's Fair Gamp.

1^ "PFMT MAY 1st, 1893-CLOSES NOV. 1st, 1893. • • •

Tlie Best Tenting Accommodations neax the Gronnds— A Choice (1) of a Cot in a

Practlcaliy Water- Proof Tent on a Board Floor— (3> Of Tenting Ground

only if You have your Own Tent,— (3) Of liOdgiug Under Cover in

the Annex, or (4) Lodging in a Room in the House.

Prices for a single Cot in a Tent on Board Floor 13.00, or including a Year's Subscription to
the ORANGE JDDU FABIVIEK 13.26. Circulars giving full particulars about all the different
Accommodations named mailed to any address free uvon request, together with Sample Copies
of the ORANGE JUDD FARMER. ^

Coupo

ne QhniilH ho QoPiiPoH Nnvu so that all may be provided for. Each Coupon is good
nS OnOUlU Ue oeuureu riUWyfojaeertainspecifiedweekifromMondayt '

f to Monday).

TUC DRANRP llinn PARMFR has always been acknowledged to be the I)e.st Farm and
inc unHI^Ut JUUU rHnmtn Home Weekly journal in the united States.-Fourteen De-
partments. lOvuriDK the entire Home and Farm, under the direct supervision of as many Special
lYactical Editors and Editresses, aided by a large number of Special Writers on aU topics. Better
Illustrated than any other Weekly Journal of it.s kind in tixe coimtry.

Address ORANGE JUDD FARMER CO., 358 Dearborn St., Chicago, II!.. ^

(ircat Preuiiuui to h\i Subscribers on page W) !

GEORGE W. VOBE. I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY J Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. f To Bee-Culture. I Sample Free.

VOL XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JUNE 22, 1893.

NO. 25.

■\^i>^^P^i>^0^>^ -

Iflicltigan Apini-i»^t!^ are to make an
exhibit at the World's Fair. The State has
finally appropriated $500 for making the
apiarian display, and Mr. H. D. Cutting, of
Tecumseh, Mich., has charge of it. Any
Michigan bee-keeper that can furnish auj'-
thing for exhibition should correspond with
Mr. Cutting at once.

Xlie Centi*ull>latt, for June 1st. con-
tains a communication from Dr. C. C.
Miller, written in as fine German language
as any one could wish for. In the latter
part of his letter the Doctor urgently in-
vites all German bee-keepers to be present
at the North American bee-convention in
Chicago. Oct. 11th, 12th and 13th. Every
American bee-keeper will heartily second
that invitation.

State Kxpei-iment Apiaries are

now receiving some very much deserved
attention. On page 787 of this number of
the Bee Journal Bro. Hutchinson tells how
they succeeded in securing such an apiary
in Michigan ; and on page 784 Dr. Miller
writes on the needs of such an apiary. The
bee-keepers in several other States besides
Michigan have finally realized their hopes
in this line, and we trust that the apiarists
in the rest of the States will bestir them-

selves at once. Bro. Hutchinson describes
so clearly just how to go about getting ex-
periment apiaries, and Dr. Miller gives
some 'good arguments as to their impor-
tance to bee-keepers, and to the State in
general. In a private letter to the Secre-
tary of the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' As-
sociation, accompanying his essay, the
Doctor said :

I have no excuse to offer that my essay
has been hastily prepared. That it is not
better is because I have not the ability to
make it better, for I deem it a matter of
great importance, and have given it my
best thought. I hope earnest action may
be taken, and that good results may follow.

C. C. Miller.

We hope the subject wiU now be thor-
oughly discussed, its supreme importance
be faithfully impressed upon the Boards of
Agriculture of the various States, and the
evident justice be accorded the long and
much neglected bee-keeping industry. Bee-
culture is too intimately connected with
horticulture and other branches of agricul-
ture to be longer neglected or slighted. Let
us kindly, but clearly and firmly, present
our case, and then see how readily the gen-
erous Boards of Agriculture will help us as
well as themselves.

Bro. llitteliiiisott says: "As agri-
culture is at the foundation of all other
kinds of business, so everything connected
with bee-culture rests upon honey-produc-
tion. When that ceases to be profitable,
queen-rearing, the manufacturing and sale
of supplies, and the publication of apicul-
tural literature, will be dropped. Profitable
honey-production is the basis."

"Bees and Honey" — see page 7T1.

776

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

!!»oiii4>^ Supply i>eal«'r!>i are having
good trade this season, as is shown by the
following, which we take from the Ameri-
cmb Bee-Keeper for June, written by one of
the largest dealers in this country :

Although doubtless there is a much less
number of bees in the country this spring
than for several years before (owing to the
past two or three poor seasons and hard
winters), the demand for supplies is better
than it has been since 1S90. If this season
proves to be a good one for the bee-keepers
throughout the country, we think a new
impetus will be given the pursuit, and
many former bee-keepers will go to keep-
ing bees again. Of course it is hardly prob-
able, or to be expected, that over so large
an area as our whole country represents,
there would extend a successful season.
There will always be some places where
drouth or flood, heat or frost, will prevent
a bountiful flow of nectar.

'I'lie lo-na Apiarian ]<X]ii1>it at

the World's Fair is in charge of Mr. E.
Kretchmer. of Red Oak, Iowa. He is very
anxious that the honey and wax exhibit of
that State shall be unexcelled, and desires
the co-operation of every bee-keeper that
can aid in making the display. In view of
this, Mr. K. wishes the following letter not
only published, but read and acted upon by
apiarists of Iowa:

I have recently returned from the World's
Fair grounds, where I arranged the first
installment of the Iowa honey exhibit.

Owing to the poor season in many locali-
ties the past year, the flr^t installation of
fiHe honey was somewhat limited, and the
uniform size of the cases in which the dif-
ferent State exhibits are made is about 800
cubic feet each ; we desire some more comb
and extracted honey of this year's crop, as
soon as it can be obtained. We especially
desire white clover and nice Ixusswood honey,
both in comb and extracted ; and if the
bee-keepers of Iowa will make an efi'ort to
have something nice, Iowa will have an ex-
hibit not excelled by any — one that every
citizen of the State can be proud of.

We have alreadj^ several flattering prom-
ises, but we desire y(»ir co-operation. Will
yon get us some nice honey, also some honey
in fancy forms, such as letters, hearts,
stars, crosses, or other attractive designs ;
also some nice bright wax in fancy forms,
such as columns, globes, arches, letters,
(your name for instance) , some figures of
wax worked into flowers, wreaths, etc. ?
Would you not feel proud if a Medal or
Diploma were awarded you by the largest
World's Fair ever held ?

Such contributed parcels of honey, wax,
etc., will be sold at the close of the Exposi-
tion (or sooner, if necessary to replenish
it), for the benefit of the exhibitor, or dis-
posed of as lie may direct. Honey from the
World's Fair will bi-ing the hi^jlimt price.

and, please observe, the Iowa Cohuul)ian
Commission pays the freight to take it to
Chicago, and the Fair Grounds also pro-
vides the glassware for extracted honey.

Extracted honey may be shipped us in
60-pound tin cans, but great care should be
used in packing comb honey. Pack only in
single-tier cases holding from 12 to 24 sec-
tions (glass is not needed), and in order to
guard against damage from a broken or
leaky comb, the case should be nearly a
half inch deeper than the height of the sec-
tion ; place a sheet of paper (manilla pre-
ferred) on the bottom, let the edge turn up
a little, lay some three-cornered pieces
across this paper in such a manner that
each section sets on two of these strips,
thus forming a space with a paper pan un-
der the sections for the leakage, without
contaminating the adjoining wood. Wedge
the sections up, place the several cases in a
box with several inches of straw under it ;
wedge them up so they cannot shake about ;
on the top mark in a conspicuous manner:
'•Handle with care — this side up." Direct
it to E. Kretchmer, Red Oak. Iowa, and
ship by fmijhi. We shall keep suitable
shipping-cases, packing boxes, or crates
wherein to pack the cases, and labels on
hand, so that if these cannot be had near
you, they may be obtained from here.

Please write me at once, stating what you
think you can do. We should also be
pleased to learn from time to time how you
are succeeding in getting something nice.

If we can assist you by way of sugges-
tions, or information concerning the above,
write me at any time, and it shall give me
pleasure to answer. E. Kretcumek.

Axs't ill chnrcje of Apiary JJept.

Red Oak, Iowa.

Saiiiaiitlia at !>^aratog-a is one of

the best books ever written. See page 773
of this number of the Bee Jouknal. We
oifer it free to those sending us three new
subscribers, and also give to each of the
three subscribers a free copy of the pre-
mium edition of •' Bees and Honey." This
is a most liberal offer, and should be taken
advantage of now. It expires Aug. 1st.

Bioycle.*! are getting to be very com-
mon uow-a-days. \\'e have two for sale,
and any one wanting a bargain in a good
bicycle, should write to the oflice of the
Bee Jouknal.

-^Ir. .foliii .lIoAi-lliiir, of Toronto.
Canaila. reports half the bees dead in Can-
ada, and that ho has a carload on the way
from Tennessee.

ICro. B>o4>lilll«' reports the bees in
poor condition.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAU

7T7

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufHcient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to malie "Queries and Replies" so
interesting on another page. In the main, it
will contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed

Yellow Sweet Clover.

I send a specimen of a flower that has
come to my notice within the last two
years. I don't know what it is called.
Will you please tell what it is ? It looks
like sweet clover, only it has a yellow
bloom instead of white ; and it blooms
earlier than sweet clover, which makes
it a great honey-plant in this locality,
coming into bloom, as it does, between
fruit-bloom and the general clover
bloom. H. C. White.

Jewell, Kans.

Answer. — The clover is the yellow
sweet clover — Melilotus officinalis, re-
ferred to in Prof. Cook's " Bee-Keeper's
Guide," page 354. All melilot clover is
excellent for honey.

Questions on Queen-Rearing.

1. Is it best to rear queens in the
brood-chamber, or above in the supers,
using queen-excluding zinc ?

2. What is Alley's new method of
rearing queens ?

3. Is it best to use some kind of a pro-
tection for the queen-cells ?

4. If so, what, how and when ?

5. Is it necessary to have bees with
the capped queen-cells in order to en-
able the queens to emerge from their
cells? Or what benefit are bees to
capped queen-cells except to keep them
warm ?

6. Can they be hatched by incubation,
and how ?

7. Should the colonies of bees be
divided before the queen-cells are sealed?

8. How long is it after they are sealed
until they issue from their cells ?

9. Can they emerge without aid from
the bees ? Dk. S. M. Kimsey.

Tesnatee, Ga.

Answers. — 1. Queens may be reared
in supers, among sections of honey, but
the practice is not considered advisable.
Perhaps you mean in vxpper stories of
brood-combs. This plan is considered

desirable by some, because the queen
may be allowed to continue laying below
while queen-cells continue to completion
above.

2. Space will hardly permit to give
Alley's method in full, which may be
found in his book, which we can send for
50 cents; but a special feature of it is
that the cells are reared so as to be
easily detached by having them reared
on little strips of comb, taken with very
young larva-, every other cell having its
larva destroyed.

3. That depends. Perhaps it can do
no harm in any case to have something
like West's protectors, and if cells are
left in the same place until one of the
young queens hatches out, something of
the kind is absolutely necessary.

4. Put the cells in West's protectors,
after they are sealed over.

5. No, queen-nurseries have been ex-
tensively used containing no bees, and
depending entirely on artificial heat.
We have known queens to hatch out in
good shape lying for several days on the
shelf of a kitchen cupboard. After the
queen-cells are sealed, bees seem to be
of no further use except to keep up the
heat.

6. After being sealed over, you can
have them hatched out anywhere you
like, providing you keep them warm
enough.

7. It is not necessary to have nuclei
formed more than a day or two before
time for queens to hatch.

8. About a week.

9. Yes.

Bees Died with. Plenty of Honey.

Why did bees die the past winter when
they had plenty of honey in the hive ? I
lost 5 colonies, and some of them had
50 pounds of honey each, while others
having not more than 10 pounds each,
wintered all right. My bees were in
Simplicity hives. It was the first bees I
have lost in six years. I have had as
high as 40 colonies, and did not lose
one. For three years I have been fol-
lowing the directions found in Mr.
Root's book. E. W. Brooks.

Hoop, Tenn., May 15, 1893.

Answer. — Not a few colonies died
from starvation last winter with abun-
dant stores in the hive. There might be
50 pounds of honey in a hive, and not a
very strong force of bees. In some
places — although one would hardly think
in Tennessee — the cold spell continued
so long that all the stores within imme-

YT8

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

diate reach were consumed, and it was
too cold for the bees of a weak colony to
break cluster to get a new supply. In
that case the remaining 50 pounds
could not prevent starvation. Possibly
queenlessness may have been the trouble,
the bees dying off from old age.

Barrels for Extracted Honey.

Please give me some advice in regard
to the use of barrels for storage of ex-
tracted honey. I cannot obtain new
barrels, but have the usual choice of
empty ones from grocery or liquor stores.
I greatly injured the flavor of a quantity
of nice clover honey last season, by
storing in wine-casks, though the same
had been carefully waxed in accordance
with instructions in the " A B C of Bee-
Culture." I am inclined to favor high
wine or syrup casks, thoroughly sealed
and waxed, but would like advice from
some one having experience.

Hull, Quebec. Subscribeb.

Chas. Dadaut & Son, of Hamilton, Ills.,
whose wide experience gives weight to
whatever they say in bee-keeping, an-
swer the above as follows :

We have always used second-hand
barrels for extracted honey. Those that
we prefer are barrels that have con-
tained pure alcohol. Such barrels are
not charred inside, but are gummed in-
stead with a preparation of glue which
honey does not dissolve, and they do not
leak, unless they have been exposed to
the weather, or filled with water.

We have also used, without unpleasant
effects, whisky barrels, but these are
often charred on the inside, and this
must be ascertained before they are
used, as it is of great importance. The
little pieces of charcoal which become
loosened from the walls of the barrel
mix with the honey, and are very diffi-
cult to remove, as they float about in the
honey, after having become soaked with
it. Charred barrels should be discarded.

We would not advise the use of any
other barrels, unless they are new. We
will say, however, that a barrel that
has contained wine, molasses or syrup,
may be used if it has been thoroughly
cleansed.

To cleanse a barrel thoroughly, it is
best to remove one head, and some care
must be exercnsed in order to replace it
in the same position, or the barrel might
leak. Follow these precautions:

First mark the head and the chime, or
end of staves, with a chisel or some

sharp instrument, so that you may find
the exact position occupied by the head,
when putting it back. Mark two places
so as to make sure. Then take a large
gimlet and screw it into the middle of
the head for a handle, taking care not
to pierce the head through. Then re-
move all the hoops except the top one.
They may also be marked, if necessary,
so as to be returned to the same position.
When all are removed but one, have
some one hold the head by help of the
gimlet until the last hoop is off. When
the barrel has been cleaned, put the head
back in the same position.'

, We would not advise any one to use
barrels with any sour or smutty smell,
but such barrels, in a case of necessity,
may be cleaned by washing them after
removing the head, with a pint of oil of
vitriol mixed with about two gallons of
water, or with a little caustic lime di-
luted in water. But after cleaning a
barrel in this way, it should be again
washed with water, and scalded if need
be. A few days of exposure to the air
will help.

Old barrels, the wood of which has be-
come soaked with water, are very ob-
jectionable, the more so as they will dry
when filled with honey, and in drying
will shrink to such an extent as to be
unable to hold their contents. The
right kind of barrels to use should not
leak when very dry, and that is why we
prefer the alcohol barrels to any others,
as the very dryest timber is used in their
manafacture.

We used to wax barrels years ago, but
abandoned the practice, as we found it
rather expensive and inefficient.

After emptying honey-barrels, we
place them in a dry shed. We do not
wash them until ready to fill them again,
and then only use a small quantity of
hot water. We use iron-bound barrels
exclusively, as the hoops may be tight-
ened much more efficiently than wooden
hoops. We have never experienced any
difficulty in procuring all the barrels we
needed at from ^1.00 to $1.50 each,
even in the season of 1889 when we
harvested some 85 barrels of nice clover
honey. Chas. Dadant & Son.

Capons and Caponi;Kins:, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponiziiig fowls; and thus how to
make the; most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed
with Bee Jouknal one year, for $1.10.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

7T9

CHARLES H. 1>IBBER]V.

We are pleased to show our readers
another new face this week, but the
name is quite familiar. Mr. Dibbern
has for years been one of the "Old
Guard "in our department of "Queries

C. H. DIBBERN.

and Replies ;" and on account of other
of his many and valuable contributions
to the literature of bee-culture, he is
well known in apiarian circles. The
following will give some facts regarding
Mr. Dibbern and his life on both sides
of the " big pond :"

The subject of this sketch was born
near Kiel, Holstien, Germany, on Oct.

15, 1840. Ills father was a wagon-
iiiakor and a bee-keeper in a small way.
His earliest recollections are of a row of
old-fashioned straw hives, and watching
his father secure the honey by drum-
ming in September. So interested was
he in bees while yet a little fellow of five
or six years, that he secured the help of
his older brother in constructing small
clay hives, and placing bumble-bees'
nests in them, and watching the big,
clumsy fellows come and go, with great
glee.

In 1847 the clouds of war began to
darken his native land, and fortunately
the family decided to try to better their
condition in that new land — America.

At that time there were no railroads
west of Chicago, and for that reason the
best route to reach the then far West
was via New Orleans. In June, 1847,
they reached Davenport, Iowa, and soon
settled on a farm near that place.

In 1851 the family removed to
Moline, Ills., where Charles received
such an education as the High School
there at that time afforded. Hardly had
he finished the course, when the Civil
War broke out, and with thousands of
others he went to the War. He served
for three years in the 66th Illinois, and
was present at the battles of Donnelson,
Shiloh, Corinth and Atlanta, together
with what seemed innumerable skir-
mishes. When his time was out he re-
turned to Moline, to take up the avoca-
tions of peace.

After securing a commercial college
education, he for six years was book-
keeper for a large milling firm. In 1871
he concluded that he could do business
on his own hook, and bought out a run-
down hardware business at Milan, Ills.
To this he added agricultural imple-
ments, and other branches, and by in-
dustry and perseverance he soon worked
up a good business, which he still con-
tinues in connection with his son,
Henry S.

In 1865 he secured his first colony
of bees from an Iowa farmer, who
brought them over the Mississippi river
on the ice, in February, on a bobsled.
That season he increased to 3 colonies,
and secured about 50 pounds of surplus
honey. This greatly encouraged him,
and that year he bought two more colo-
nies. From such a start he has had bees
ever since, at one time running up to
250 colonies, and securing very nearly
20,000 pounds of comb honey. That
mas in 1889, and the past three poor
years have reduced his apiaries to about
150 colonies.

The tin T super was original with

780

AMERICAN BKJ£ JOURNAL..

him, and at the time, about 1884, he
had some discussion with James Heddon
about it, in the American Bee Journal.

In 1889 he invented the horizontal
bee-escape, and although others have
claimed previous invention, it cannot bo
denied that the modern bee-escape, as a
practical implement of the apiary, dates
from the time he published his device in
the American Bee Journal, Nov. 15,
1889. Of late years he has devoted a
good deal of time to experimenting, to
make the device more rapid and more
perfect. He has also done much to
make the self-hiv-er a perfect success,
which he believes he has now about at-
tained. He has never rested entirely
satisfled with existing implements and
fixtures. His hives, supers, and other
fixtures, are nearly all of his own inven-
tion. He has never patented any of his
inventions, but has freely published,
and given them to the fraternity.

During the 27 years of his bee-keep-
ing experience, he has been an occa-
sional correspondent for nearly all the
bee-periodicals. For seven or eight years
he was the apiary editor of the Western
Plowman. Of late years he has given
over the management of his hardware
business mostly to his son, he preferring
to stick to the bees. In his earlier bee-
keeping he was greatly assisted by his
wife and son, who did most of the hiv-
ing, etc. He is still young in bee-enthu-
siasm, and new inventions. It is not
likely that bee-keepers have yet heard
the last of C. H. Dibbern.

A Friend.

Amerikanische Bienenzucht is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated ; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

■ ^ — ^'4»-^ *

Dr. Miller^s "A Year Among the
Bees " is a book of over 100 pages. It
commences with the necessary work in
the spring, and runs through the entire
year, detailing the methods of doing, as
well as telling when to do, all that
should be done in the apiary. Bound in
cloth. Price, postpaid, 50 cents ; or
clubbed with the Bee Journal for one
year, for $1.35.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.

Introducing: Queens Safely.

Mrs. Atchley, please tell me a safe
way to introduce queens.

Theodore Verhaalrn.
Saukville, Wis.

Friend V., I do not know of an abso-
lutely safe plan, only by placing the
queen on the frames of hatching brood,
and that is a stale plan, and about out
of date. The best way is by the candy
plan, but be sure you have plenty of
candy and a small hole for the bees to
eat into where the queen is, and if other
conditions are right, you will find it a
success.

No. 1. — Texas and Her Resources.

** Bees and Honey"— page 771.

Dear readers, as it has been an-
nounced that I would give the resources,
the best localities for bees and for farm-
ing, etc., of Texas, I now proceed to do
the best I can for you. I do not wish to
be sensational in any direction, but will
be conservative, and relate to you the
exact truth of everything just as I
know it and as I see it. I am very much
crowded with my work, but as there are
nearly one hundred of our readers wish-
ing to know of Texas, I take time
enough to give you a brief outline.

First, we will begin with Northwest
Texas, or what is known as the "Pan
Handle " country. This is a narrow
strip lying between New Mexico and the
Indian Territory, being a small-grain
country, especially wheat. Corn does
fairly well when it rains enough, but
this portion is a little subject to drouth,
but seems to be more seasonable, as the
land is settled up. This section is pretty
cold in winter, about like Southern Kan-
sas. Land is worth from $'2.00 an acre
to $10.00, owing to how close you get
to a railroad. You can buy land and

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

781

get your own time to pay for it. Almost
all kinds of fruit grows in the Pan Han-
dle— apples, peaches, blackberries, straw-
berries, dewberries, and nearly all kinds
of fruit grow well.

This is a fine stock country, and bees
do well in most counties, as borsemint is
plentiful, and there is an abundance of
wild flowers, but cotton does not do well,
and the bees get no cotton honey like we
do here in the more eastern portion.
Timber is plentiful along the little
creeks, but rather scarce on the prairies.
Water is plentiful in most places, and
rather easily obtainable by digging wells
from 20 to 100 feet deep. Horses are
worth from $10 to $100, according to
size and disposition ; milk cows range
from $10 to $30 ; and labor on the farm
is about $15 to $20 per month.

The land in the Pan Handle produces
from 10 bushels to 40 bushels of wheat
per acre. These Pan Handle counties
are settling up rapidly with a progres-
sive class of farmers from Kansas, Ne-
braska, and some from almost all
States. Good churches and schools are
scattered all over these parts, so that
every family has easy access to them.
Everything raised on the farm has a
ready sale, and usually at remunerative
prices.

Now we will drop down to the first
and second tiers of counties, bordering
on Red river. Here we strike a rich
farming belt of country. It is said by
the farmers in these rich, black-land
belts that a farruer can grow three
times as much as he can gather. Wheat,
oats, corn, cotton and potatoes do
well, as it often transpires that 400
bushels of sweet potatoes are harvested
from a single acre, and if the land is
properly prepared, they grow with but
little work. Corn usually makes from
25 to 75 bushels per acre, wheat 10 to
30 bushels, oats 50 to 100 bushels.

Most kinds of cereals and vegetables
grow luxuriantly, and through this black-
land belt there has never been a failure
of.crops since it was put into cultivation.

Now, for the other side : As we have
all learned that there is no rose without
its thorns, I will say that in this rich
belt every one is a land-holder in wet
weather, as you cannot make a track,
as you pick up your tracks and carry
them with you, and to be a little laugh-
able I will tell you that I have seen our
folks stall right in our fields within two
hundred yards of the house, with four
mules to an empty wagon, every wheel
becoming so clogged with mud as to stop
them from turning, and you, could not
tell what the wagon was made of. But

this mud is mostly during the winter
and early spring, and the farmers are
learning to do their hauling during the
summer and dry seasons, for when it is
dry here you can draw all you can get
on a wagon, and it is said you must only
load the wagon to its capacity as the
load is nothing to draw, as the roads are
like a pike in dry weather.

The next grand objection to these rich
lands is the chiggers, or red-bugs. I
have often picked up a piece of earth as
large as a hen's egg, and counted more
than 100 red-bugs on it, and they are
all over the black lands this way ; some
people they do not hurt, and others can't
stand them. But if you will make up
your mind to take the rose and the thorn
together, there is no reason why any one
cannot make money here.

Land in this black farming belt is now
pretty high, ranging from $20 to $40
per acre. Bees do well all through this
last described country, as all kinds of
honey-producing plants thrive and do
well, the land being very rich.

Timber is plentiful, and water, too,
and good markets for all farm products.
Corn, cotton, wheat, oats, potatoes,
melons, rye, barley, millet, and nearly
all other farm products and garden veg-
etables do well, that are grown in the
United States, and find ready markets.
Fruits, such as peaches, pears, plums,
grapes, strawberries, and almost all
small fruits grow well except apples,
which only grow to do much good on
sandy soil.

The people here are law-abiding citi-
zens, and when you come among them
you are treated kindly, and you usually
find people just such as you leave, as
they come here from all parts of the
country. Jennie Atchley.

(To be continued.)

The Honey-Plants of Northern Texas,
and How to Utilize Them.

Read at tlie late Texas State Conventmi
BY DR. WM. R. HOWARD.

In the consideration of honey-plants
of Northern Texas, it will be necessary
to draw largely from an essay on this
subject, written by me thirteen years
ago, and published In the American
Bee Journal.

Honey-plants include those which are
visited for pollen, as well as those which
furnish honey ; and will be mentioned
here commencing with those which are
first to bloom, calling attention to their

'/

782

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

products and their value to the bee-
keeper.

Without going into detail of the micro-
scopical appearance of the various pol-
len-grains, and the process of Nature's
chemical laboratory in the production
of honey, or the wisdom of purpose in
the fertilization of plants, I will men-
tion that, though all plants blossom in
their seasons, yet the best honey-plants
do not at all times yield honey. We all
know that during warm weather, with
a humid atmosphere, which must obtain
during the unfolding of the flower, we
have the peculiar conditions necessary
for the greatest production of honey ;
and the absence of these conditions, but
for a few hours, will limit, and some-
times entirely suspend, the elaboration
of honey for a whole day. As a rule,
the flowers which open to-day, are gone,
or do not produce honey, to-morrow.
Thus, those of us who may be working
every bee and every inch of comb for
honey, may be found revolving in our
minds, on retiring at night, and during
our short waking moments, and almost
dreaming, even, while we sleep, of the
possibilities of to-morrow.

In the following list of honey-plants
the seasons must be considered, as when
spring opens early, the weather favor-
able, both pollen and honey will be gath-
ered earlier, more abundant, and of bet-
ter quality ; while In the late, cold and
wet springs, there will be little of either
collected, and that of inferior quality ;
making swarming later, and at a time
when we can little afford the division.

Red elm (Ulmus) furnishes an abun-
dance of pollen, and of good quality, and
commences to bloom early in January,
with a succession of blooms for about a
month. Slippery elm blooms the last of
February, furnishing rich pollen for
about two weeks.

Wild plum (Prunus) is next to red
elm, commencing early in February,
about the time the elm ceases ; with a
succession of about 15 days, furnishes
both honey and pollen. The honey,
though, of inferior quality, is eagerly
sought by the bees, new honey giving,
as it were, new life and vigor to whole
colony.

Peach and pear commence to blossom
about the first of March, giving a suc-
cession of about 20 days, connecting
with the apple, which gives a succession
of from 10 to 20 days, owing to the
varieties. Fruit trees, generally, yield
a fair quality of honey and pollen, the
former being sometimes somewhat bit-
ter.

Judas tree or red-bud (cercis) blooms
from the first of March to the last of
the month, furnishing principally honey,
which is of good quality. Early swarms
are frequently thrown off from the
abundance of this harvest.

Black haw {Viburmmi prurifolium) .
This shrub or small tree blooms about
March 20th, with a succession of blos-
soms for a month, and some times
longer. It" yields honey and pollen.

Eatan vine (smilax) blooms from April
10th to the last of the month ; furnish-
ing an inexhaustible quantity, and a
very fair quality, of honey. In localities
where this vine abounds, our spring
yield is from it, and our main swarming
is thrown off from the abundance of this
crop.

Black locust and honey locust (robinia)
flower in March, commencing about the
midddle of the month, and giving a suc-
cession of flowers for rather more than
20 days ; furnishing both honey and
pollen of excellent quality.

Pepperwood, angelica tree {aralia
spinosa, Linn) furnishes both honey and
pollen ; honey of inferior quality on
account of its pungency. It blooms
April 20th, with a succession of from
15 to 20 days. It is visited mostly for
its poilen, which is abundant.

Poison ivy {rMis toxicodendron) fur-
nishes an abundance of pollen and some
honey. It blooms in April, throughout
the month.

(Continued next week.)

CONYEIVTION DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

Oct. 11, 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicago, Ills.
J* rank Benton, Sec, Washing-ton, D. C.

I[^~ In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Mareng-o, Ills.

Vice-Pkes.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Seciietary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer— George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

National Bee-Keepers' Union.

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G . Newman, Chicago, 111.

Read our great offer on page 773.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

783

strong Colonics for Coinb Honey
or for Extracted 2

Query 876.— If you wore going to run one-
half: of you apiary for extracted honey, would
you take the strongest colonies for comb or
for extracted honey ?— Georgia.

Comb. — C. C. Miller.

For comb honey. — M. Mahin.

For extracted honey. — G. M. Doolit-

TLE.

The strongest for comb honey. — R. L.
Taylor.

The strongest for comb honey. — Mrs.
L. Harrison.

I would take the strongest for comb
honey. — E. France.

I would take the strongest colonies for
comb honey. — J. P. H. Brown.

I would take the strong colonies for
comb honey. — J. H. Larrabee.

Better make the two divisions equal
as to strength. — P. H. Elwood.

"I dunno." It must depend upon the
demands of our customers. — Will M.
Barnum.

It is of no importance. The strong
colonies will yield the most surplus of
either grade. — Dadant & Son.

Usually the strongest, though not
necessarily, as the swarming tendency
complicates matters. — A. J. Cook.

I would take the strongest colonies for
the honey that had the best demand in
my home market. — J as. A. Stone.

Each apiarist should settle this mat-
ter to his own satisfaction. I would
take the strongest ones for extracting.
— J. M. Hambaugh.

Only strong colonies produce flrst-class
comb honey. Neither will it pay to ex-
tract from anything but strong colonies.
— Emerson T. Abbott.

That would depend upon the charac-
ter of the honey-flow. Usually I would
use the strongest colonies for comb
honey.-- -James A. Green.

For comb honey, as you may extract
from a one-frame nucleus, but it takes
strong colonies to do much at storing
section honey. — Mrs. Jennie Atchley.

I should run all the strong colonies
for comb honey. Weak colonies will
often store considerable honey in comb
provided for them, that would do noth-
ing at all in sections. — C. H. Dibbern.

I would run the strongest for extracted,
especially when the season was likely to
be a short one, for in such a locality one
would likely have many unfinished sec-
tions at the close of the season. — S. I.
Freeborn.

Neither. I run for comb honey as a
rule first, then as I secure what I think
will be a fair proportion, I keep uniting
unfinished sections, and putting on ex-
tracting supers. This gives me com-
paratively few cull sections at the close
of the honey-flow. — R. F. Holtermann.

As a rule, I would use the strongest
colonies for storing comb honey. If
swarms are permitted to issue, I put the
swarms at work on comb honey, and the
parent colonies on extracting combs. In
short, I use my best judgment in work-
ing my bees, without being bound to any
rule. — G. W. Demaree.

I should start ray strongest colonies
on comb honey, but should take two or
three of the weakest, and use them in
brood-rearing until all were brought up
strong and active. It doesn't pay to
run weak colonies, anyhow, except as
feeders for the purpose of strengthening
fairly strong colonies, or as queen-
breeders. — J. E. Pond.

That depends. If I wanted no swarms,
and did not know any better way to pre-
vent them, I would use the strongest for
extracted honey until the swarraing-
fever was over. If I liked the produc-
tion of comb honey better, I would use
the strong ones for that. If I wanted
to make a trial for comparison, I would
divide them equally. — Eugene Secor.

Xhe World's Fair Women

" Souvenir " is the daintiest and prettiest
book issued in connection with the
World's Fair. It is by Josephine D. Hill
—a noted society lady of the West — and
contains superb full-page portraits and
sketches of 31 of the World's Fair
women and wives of prominent ofScials
connected with the great Fair. It is
printed on enameled paper, with half-
tone engravings, bound in leatherette.
We will send it postpaid for 60 cents, or
give it for two new subscribers to the
Bee Journal at $1.00 each.

784

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Do Bee-Keepers IVeed an Exper-
imental Station ?

Written for tJie Illinois State Bee-Conventiwt
BY DK. C. C. MILLER.

Many thousands of dollars are annu-
ally spent in agricultural experiments,
the money therefor being taken from
public funds. To prove the wisdom of
this, needs no very extended argument.
Only by actual experiment can a farmer
ascertain many things necessary for the
profitable prosecution of his calling. If
in each township one farmer should
make experiments for all the rest, the
cost would thereby be greatly reduced ;
and if a single set of men at one place,
having all the requisite appliances, with
the power to command the most favor-
able surroundings, make the experiments
for all the farmers in the State, then
the cost is reduced to a minimum per
capita.

Perhaps, however, the simple fact
that in the different States these experi-
ment stations are continued year after
year, funds being freely voted for such
purpose, is the strongest proof of the
wisdom and economy of such outlay.

It is a notorious fact that with very
few exceptions the interests of bee-keep-
ing are utterly ignored in all the experi-
mental stations. In our own great
State of Illinois, I do not know that a
single dollar of public money has ever
been spent in apicultural experiments.

The utter neglect of this branch of
agriculture can only be justified, if it
can be justified at all, on one of two
grounds. First, on the ground that the
products of bee-keeping are too insignifi-
cant to warrant an outlay for experi-
ments. Let us look at this.

Suppose that throughout the 55,000
square miles of the State all the various
vocations are nicely adjusted, so that all
are full, just the right number of far-
mers, merchants, blacksmiths, etc., for
the highest welfare of the State, only
there are are no bee-keepers. Now sup-

pose a bee-keeper be dropped on each
10 square miles of territory with 100
colonies of bees. Then suppose an aver-
age crop of 50 pounds per colony, at an
average price of 123^ cents per pound.
The 5,500 bee-keepers would produce
2T>2 million pounds of honey, worth in
round numbers $3,500,000. Is that
amount of clean-cut addition to the total
resources of the State not worth consid-
ering ?

The census of 1880 shows the potato
crop of that year in the. State of Illinois
to be 10,365,707 bushels. At 25 cents
per bushel, the value is $2,591,427.
Our estimated honey crop is worth about
a third more than this. Of buckwheat
there were raised 178,859 bushels. At
75 cents per bushel, $lo-4,143 — not
one-twenty-fifth the value of our esti-
mated honey crop. Were there no ex-
periments on behalf of potatoes and
buckwheat? Of cheese, in 1880, Illi-
nois produced 1,035,069 pounds. Fig-
ured at the same price as honey, that
makes $129,384. Multiply by 26, and
it does not come up to honey. Do the
cheese-makers have no attention at the
experimental station ?

Add together potatoes, buckwheat
and cheese, and you must increase the
combined value by half a million dollars
to make it equal the honey. In view of
the outlay made, and very properly
made, for experiments relating to the
three articles mentioned, it can hardly
be said that the products of bee-keeping
are too insignificant to warrant any out-
lay for experiments.

If it be objected that the products
mentioned — potatoes, etc. — are the actual
products of a year, while the amount of
honey mentioned is only a possible prod-
uct, please remember that experiments
are made on the basis of possibilities,
with the view of something different
from what has been.

Or, it may be said, "If possibilities
are to be figured on, then estimate pota-
toes not by the actual but the possible,
and the crop will assume one hundred
times its present importance, for 100
times the number of bushels viight be
raised." Please go back to our supposi-
tion, and that was that all the vocations
were nicely adjusted so as to secure the
greatest good to the greatest number,
and in that case there will be just the
right number of potatoes raised for the
general good. If you increase the num-
ber of potatoes raised, it must be at the
expense of some other crop, the addi-
tional potatoes raised will take the
ground otherwise occupied with corn or
something else. So there will only be a

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

785

change of products, and as we have sup-
posed a perfect adjustment, any disar-
rangement of this adjustment will make
a decrease instead of an increase of
wealth. But in the case of the honey,
it will be quite different. An increase
in the honey crop will not mean a de-
crease in any other crop, but as before
said, will be a clean-cut addition to the
total resources. Indeed, it will be more
than the addition of the honey crop, for
according to good authorities, honey is
only a by-product of the bee, its chief
use being the fertilization of flowers.
The value of the beeswax produced is
also an item worth considering.

It seems, then, pretty clear that the
neglect of the bee-keeping interests does
not arise from the fact that the prod-
ucts are too insignificant to warrant any
outlay for experiments.

The second ground on which the neg-
lect might seem to be justified, is the
fact, if it be a fact, that everything per-
taining to bee-keeping is already so ful-
ly understood that there is no room for
experiment. The very suggestion of
such a thing will bring a smile to the
lips of any practical bee-keeper. If
there is any set of men that are excep-
tionally noted to be always on the strain
in the investigation of some unsettled
point, lying awake nights over some un-
finished problem, losing every year con-
siderable parts of the crop in seeking
some better way, surely they may be
found among bee-keepers. It is idle to
pursue further such a thought.

What, then, is the reason that so far
nearly all that has been done has been
a matter entirely of private enterprise ?
Is it not because those who have in
charge surh matters have not been fully
awake to the importance to the public
interest of bee-keeping, and that bee-
keepers have been too modest to assert
their claims ?

In view, then, of the importance of an
industry that adds to the general wealth
in a double way without detracting from
anything else, and in view of the fact
that bee-keepers are largely engaged
everywhere in experiments that could be
more economically and more satisfacto-
rily carried out at a place fully equipped
for the purpose, there seems only one
answer to the question whether bee-
keepers need an experiment station.

As to the details of carrying out any-
thing of the kind, I will make no sug-
gestion except the single one, that
whoever is at the head of such an exper-
imental station should be a bee-keeper
through and through — one in touch with

the mass of bee-kedpers, knowing their
needs and in entire sympathy at all
points with th(! work. To such a one
they will look hopefully for light, and
cheerfully render all the aid in their
power.
Marengo, 111.

Winter Losses of Bees in Xorlli-
eastern Iowa.

Written for the A.me7-ican Bee Journal
BY KEV. W. 1'. FAYLOR.

Bees have wintered very poorly in
this part of the State. I have recently
moved from the central part of the State
to Clayton county, and have been
through a large part of the State. I
think at least 50 per cent, of all the
bees in this State have died since last
fall, taking the State as a whole.

In the northern counties that I have
visited not more than two colonies out
of 100 are alive. The best report I
found in the east part was 9 colonies
wintered out of 18. These were kept
in a double-walled bee-house, whose
sides are packed with 12 inches of saw-
dust.

In one village a man wintered 6 colo-
nies of bees in the cellar — these were all
in box-hive#. He told me he had 60
colonies last summer. The strangest
thing of all was, that two colonies in
salt-barrels that were left on the sum-
mer stands with no protection what-
ever, are strong and booming now.
These stood high up from the ground
on platforms resting upon four stakes
driven into the ground. One barrel had
a crevice about an inch wide, and fully
20 inches long. I could hardly believe
that it was possible that a colony of bees
could ever survive such a winter as the
past in such a house. If bees will win-
ter more safely in large hives high up in
the air, it is time bee-keepers were find-
ing it out.

I brought with me two colonies of
very yellow Italians, and about 20
empty hives with nice combs, thinking
that I could buy bees to fill them up
when I got here ; but bees cannot be
purchased here for love nor money. A
blacksmith near the parsonage proposed
to go with me to where he was sure I
could get all the bees I wanted. Off we
went to the home of the " Bee-King," as
he is known in the county in which he
lives. In a few hours' drive we found
ourselves on the banks of Turkey river.
Mr. King had left his bees on the

786

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAi..

summer stands (about 100 colonies).
He had but 4 colonies alive, and these
he declared would yet dwindle and die.
All his hives were turned over on their
sides, leaving the tops and bottoms ex-
posed to the atmosphere. Although a
nice sunny day no bee could be seen
stealing honey from these open hives,
and some of them were half full of
honey. One weak colony living had
brood in three combs, and were about
out of honey. I tried to make him be-
lieve that it would pay to put a few good
combs of honey in place of empty ones,
but he insisted that if they could not
take the honey into the hive when it
was all about them, they might fizzle.

He had a good cellar and an extra
cave, and left every hive out. He said
that for the last five years he had win-
tered bees out-of-doors successfully, and
had given up any special preparation for
wintering bees.

It is a very common thing to see a
stack of empty bee-hives in a yard in
Iowa, and not a live colony in the yard.
In one county in the north central part
of the State, I found one bee-keeper
who had wintered his bees in long, deep
troughs, packing eight hives in a box
with six inches of chopped straw on each
side, and about 12 inches on top. He
simply bored a two-inch auger-hole for
the entrance of each colony, correspond-
ing to the entrance of the \Aves. This
man lost one colony in springing, caused,
he said, by a large mouse going into one
of the auger-holes and entering into the
hives.

I believe for wintering, springing and
building up in the spring, no method is
so nearly perfect as the trough-packing
method.

Colesburgh, Iowa, May 30, 1893.

^^■^

Sugar Syrup vs. Honey for Win-
tering Bees.

Written for tfie American Bee Journal
BY M. W. TUBES.

After three years of unprecedented
failure in both increase and surplus, the
silver lining of the dark cloud began to
be discernible, and soon came forth in
all its radiance and splendor. After a
decrease in the preceding years of 48
colonies, the spring of 1892 found me
with only 17, in a light and unpromising
onditiou ; however, spring feeding and
favorable turn of wind is all that
oavedthem from complete annihilation,

and brought them up to a fair standard
of excellence for the honey harvest.

In the continuing processes of time,
Nature's laboratory of pollen and nectar
began to unfold, each in its turn pro-
ducing abundantly, and before the snow
had entirely disappeared, the bees were
briskly gathering pollen, which was
soon followed by an encouraging flow of
nectar from the pussy-willow.

The se'ason continued favorable, and
after the harvest was gathered we found,
by comparing our stock with the unit of
measure, the pound, we had obtained
1,450 pounds of nice comb and ex-
tracted honey, an average of a trifle
over 85 pounds per colony, spring count;
besides increasing to 33 colonies for
winter, which were in fine condition
numerically, but not " financially," as
their stores had been reduced by the ex
tractor to the minimum in view of feed"
ing sugar syrup for wintering, leaving-
only 3 colonies with natural stores ; the
result of which I am about to report.

By a careful estimate of the require-
ments of each colony, averaging 20
pounds of sugar syrup, we began feed-
ing for winter the first of September,
which was completed the forepart of
October, and the mats, etc., put on pre-
paratory for wintering, which was done
on the summer stands in chaflf and
Chautauqua hives. Their last flight
occurred on Nov. 24, 1892, and they
were not out again until March 8, 1893
— 104 days ; the intervening time going
on record as the coldest winter in 25
years. The mercury reached as low as
24P below zero.

Had it not been for the " Old Reliable"
— the American Bee Journal, — we
would have given up in despair of suc-
cessfully wintering the bees without a
flight, on sugar syrup ; more successful,
however, than with honey. But just as
the gloom of another week's confine-
ment would begin to settle upon us, our
welcome guest would drop in, bringing
consolation from those who were older
in the experience of sugar-syrup winter-
ing.

However, when at last the flight did
come on the 8th of March, and bees
from every hive sallied forth in the open
air, enjoying the little while of sunshine,
and shaking off the tediousness of their
long confinement, our surprise was
kindled to amazement, at the small
amount of excrement which was ejected
on the snow, much less than is often
seen after a much shorter confinement
on natural stores. There was no show
of diarrhea from any of those fed on
sugar syrup, while the three that were

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

787

wintered on honey were badly affected,
spotting up hives, combs and snow more
than all the others together.

Experience is said to be a dear school,
but when theory is practically applied,
and good results obtained, it is as good
proof as can be had of the merit or de-
merit of the untested. For us it has
proven that sugar syrup is the best for
wintering bees, especially on the sum-
mer stands. It is surely the cheapest,
and does not Infringe on the rights of
the honey market or consumer, as does
feeding sugar for an increase of surplus,
which should not be contemplated.

As a matter of safety, economy and
convenience, we henceforth and here-
after will winter our bees on sugar
syrup, made of pure granulated sugar
and water, in preference to the finest
honey.

Portville, N. Y.

Ho^v Michigan Secured its
periinental Apiary.

Ex-

Wnttcnfor the. Bee-Keepers' lievieio
BY W. Z. HUTCHINSON.

At several of the bee-conventions that
I have attended there have been resolu-
tions passed asking that the general
government, or that the State Experi-
ment Stations, do some experimental
work in the bee-keeping line. At one
or two of them a committee was ap-
pointed to try and secure the desired
action. If this is all that is done, no
experimental apiary will be established.

At the last meeting of the Michigan
State Bee-Keepers' Association this sub-
ject was discussed, and a committee ap-
pointed to try and induce the State
Board of Agriculture to secure the ser-
vices of a competent bee-keeper for
managing the State apiary in an experi-
mental way, for, be it known, Michigan
was already the possessor of an apiary.
The Hon. R. L. Taylor, the Hon. Geo.
E. Hilton and myself were the members
of the committee. As chairman of the
committee, I addressed a letter to each
member of the State Board of Agricul-
ture.

I called their attention to the fact that
of the $15,000 received by each State
from the general government for experi-
mental work, almost nothing was de-
voted to apiarian research ; I pointed
out the fact that each State ought to
conduct experiments in the lines that
would benefit the industries of that
State. Experiments in cotton-growing

would not be appropriate in Michigan.
Experiments in bee-keeping would. Not
only is bee-keeping important for the
wax and honey produced, but for its
benefit to the fruit-grower and horticul-
turist. "Without bees, these two indus-
tries would languish.

I then called attention to the different
experiments that ought to be made, and
in the name of the bee-keepers of Michi-
gan, I most respectfully, but most earn-
estly, urged that they give the matter
an early consideration.

I then had circulars printed, showing
what I had done, and urging the re-
cipient to write to the members of the
Board, and ask that bee-keeping be
recognized by the appointment of any
apiarist for doing experimental work.
These were sent to about 100 of the
most prominent bee-keepers of the
State. I also wrote about 20 personal
letters, urging these friends to write.
Mr. Hilton also wrote and sent out cir-
culars. All this was done shortly before
a Board meeting, and when the Board
met, Mr. Taylor and myself went before
it, and urged our case. The matter was
urged almost solely upon the ground
that bees were a benefit to other pur-
suits ; that the honey and wax were of
less consequence than the benefits de-
rived from the bees by other pursuits.
Mr. Taylor said that bee-keeping was
looked upon by many as a small busi-
ness, as one beneath the dignity of a
man — a bee-keeper was looked upon as
a sort of a "hen-wife." If the State
would recognize and encourage it, it
would add dignity to the pursuit, and
lead to more extensive keeping of bees.

The Board then wanted to know what
were the experiments that bee-keeping
so much needed. Said one member :
"The sheep and dairy men, and those
from other industries, come before us
just as you have done, and say, ' Do
something for us,' and when we ask
what, they are at a loss to answer. Tell
us what experiments you want done,
and we will try and see that a man is
found to do the work."

I then went to work and prepared a
list of perhaps a dozen different experi-
ments that I considered the most impor-
tant, and, as none of the members were
practical bee-keepers, I went into de-
tails and explained each point, so that
the importance of the work could be
understood even by one not a bee-keeper.

It was then asked if a bee-keeper
could not do this work cheaper in his
own apiary, than he could come to the
college and do the work. I replied that
he could. I thought he could do the

788

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

work for half the money that he would
need if he were obliged to move to Lan-
sing and pay rent. The next question
was, "How much pay ought a man to
receive for conducting experiments in
his own apiary ?" I thought $500 a
year a fair compensation.

To make a long story short, $500 a
year has been appropriated for paying
a man to conduct experiments in apicul-
ture, and the Hon. R. L. Taylor, of
Lapeer, has been appointed to do the
work. He has had experience, he is
careful, methodical and conscientious,
and it is no disparagement to other bee-
keepers to say that probably no better
man could have been chosen for the
work.

Bee-keepers will be invited to say
what experiments they would like con-
ducted, or how they would like particu-
lar experiments conducted, to criticise,
commend and encourage. Mr. Taylor
would be thankful for suggestions of
any kind by letter at once, touching
work that can be done to advantage
only during the swarming season.

I have been explicit as to the methods
employed in securing the appropriation,
because I thought it might help bee-
keepers in other States in their efforts
to secure recognition at the hands of the
State Board. Somebody has got to go
ahead and do some hard, earnest work,
and there will be some expenses for
printing, postage, car-fare and hotel
bills in going to visit the Board ; but
these expenses ought to be borne by the
bee-keepers of the State — perhaps be
paid out of the funds of the Association.
There is no use in trying to avoid this
expense ; for, as one of the board wrote
me after the meeting was over, "All of
the talk and writing would have
amounted to nothing, had not you and
Mr. Taylor come before us in the proper
spirit ; then the thing went through like
a charm, without a dissenting voice, and
with the most hearty good feeling."

Flint, Mich.

^Vlnter I^osse§ and Oilier Bce-
Keepiiig Matters.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY THOS. .TOHNSON.

Spring rains are continuing, and if it
doesn't stop soon, we will have some
spring dwindling in these parts. Loss
of bees here is at least 50 per cent, more
than it was last year. As far as I can
learn, the loss will be about 60 to 75

per cent, in and around Coon Rapids. S.
Parker has 2 left out of 30 colonies,
and J. Umbaugh, 4 left out of his
famous apiary. L. Scott and O. D.
Houghton wintered their bees in cellars,
and their loss is not more than 10 per
cent.

Levering Bros., of Wiota, wrote me
that out-door wintering in their locality
would be almost a total loss. I was at
Guthrie Center a few weeks ago, and
they complained of the same result.
Four weeks ago I was at Manning, and
saw Mr. Lee, who said that he wintered
his bees in a repository, and his loss will
be small. He said that all bees left out
by his neighbors were almost a total loss.

The snow preserved the white clover,
and the ground is well soaked with the
rains, and should we have fair weather
for bees to work in June and July, I
look for a heavy flow of nectar from
summer flowers.

On page 536, Mr. A. Bartz, in mixing
the two nuclei together, excited the bees,
and the Italians went at it by sight, and
not be scent, and fought as long as they
saw a black bee.

Some years ago I had a nucleus of
Italians, and went to a colony of blacks
where I had introduced a queen, and the
Italians just beginning to hatch I took
three combs from them and shook the
bees off. In doing so I left on a few
black bees. I put them in the nucleus,
and went on with my work, and in less
than an hour I passed the hive and saw
the ground covered with dead bees.

On opening the hive I saw that the
Italians had cleaned out every black
bee. In their excitement they couldn't
have been looking for queens, but for
black bees, and by the time they had
finished their job they would naturally
settle down to peaceable business. Na-
ture teaches them that they cannot sub-
sist long without a mother, and they just
took her as they had no access to their
Italian mother, and likely as not they
kept up killing the black bees for sev-
eral days as soon as they were hatched.

On page 370, Dr. Miller, on the
"sting-trowel theory," puts it at Mr.
Clarke in a pretty positive way. Some
years ago when Clarke was a boy, while
out duck-hunting, he heard a splashing
in the water. He crept up and dis-
covered a lot of beavers working, pre-
paring for the winter, cutting down
trees, placing them in the water, and
putting on the last finishing touches
with their tails. Since then Mr. Clarke
has been studying bee-ology, knowing
that bees had "tails," for he had felt
one stop against his ear once. All at

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

789

once his boyhood days caiue back to
hiiu, and he sat down and wrote the
article the Doctor tells about.

On page 492 Mr. D. L. Nelson speaks
of queens laying in queen-cells, etc. Has
Mr. Nelson any evidence of queens lay-
ing in cells prepared by workers to rear
queens? Bee-keepers of any experience
know that a queen is death to any
queen-cell that has a larva, sealed or
otherwise, unless guarded.

Sometimes bees will swarm without
any preparation, workers start queens
over worker larviB, and also when the
queens suddenly die. For proof of the
above fact, if one will watch a colony
preparing for natural swarming after
they complete the cell and prepare it for
the egg, they put a thin coating in the
bottom resembling honey, then in a short
time you will find the egg deposited — Mr.
Nelson says by the queen, I say by the
bees. Now, who is correct? After bee-
keepers experiment on that point, I
think they will agree with me.

Coon Rapids, Iowa, May 1, 1893.

ISu^arms Occupying' Empty Hivei
Put Up in Trees.

Writte7i for the American Bee Joumdl
BY C. H. ECKLES.

I would like to give a little of my experi-
ence on the matter of bees occupying
empty hives. Having often seen the
statement that bees would come to
empty hives put in trees, I determined
to try the experiment. In May, 1892,
I had 11 empty hives that I had no use
for, also a number of old empty combs.
I took these hives, putting in five combs
in each, a space of two inches being left
between each to prevent the moths
working.

Ten of the hives were put in trees,
most of them fastened to the lower
branches of pines and elms. The bees
soon found them, and before night of
the day the hives wfere placed in the
trees, two of them contained large
swarms, and during the next few weeks
four more of the hives were filled with
fairly good swarms.

In each case it was noticed several
hours before the swarm arrived, that
the hive was occupied by a few bees,
perhaps a large handful, that were
working industriously carrying out the
dirt from the combs, and cleaning the
hive in general. By the time the swarm
arrived, the hive would be all prepared,
and the scouts be hanging in a cluster

hives put up were
by a few bees that
from the combs as

on one of the combs. In each case the
swarm immediately went to work, and
all stored sufficient honey to keep them
over winter.

Three of the other
taken possession of
cleaned out the dirt

those did where the swarms came.
These few bees usually stayed about the
hive for two weeks or more, being very
cross to any one who molested them. The
supposition is that these were scouting
parties sent out by the swarm which,
however, was captured and hived before
reaching its destination.

These all, as far as were known, came
from neighbors' apiaries. We had at
that time 20 colonies of hybrids, which
were near the trees containing the hives.
The swarms which occupied the hives
were all blacks, and thus we were able
to distinguish them from our hybrids.

One reason why hives are filled so
readily by escaping swarms, is the lack
of hollow trees in which they could find
a home. Here in the center of Iowa are
but very few trees that would afford a
lodging place for a swarm, and conse-
quently they must find homes in the
sides of houses, or in empty hives.

Ames, Iowa.

Samaiitba at Saratoga.— One

of the richest books in genuine humor
that has been published for many years,
in the English language, is "Samantha
at Saratoga," by Miss Marietta Holley.
Rev. Dr. Newman, the Bishop of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, says of this
book :

" I commend ' Samantha at Saratoga'
as an antidote for the blues, a cure-all
for any kind of imaginary woe, a recrea-
tion from mental taxation, a provoca-
tion for wholesome laughter, and an in-
spiration to godliness. It is the bitter-
est satire sugar-coated with the sweet-
ness of exhilarating fun ; it is irony
laughing at fashionable folly ; it is ex-
alted wit with the scalpel in one hand
and the Balm of Gilead in the other.
Her personality is intense, her genius
immense, her art perfect. She stands
alone in her chosen sphere without a
rival."

Read our great offer of this book free,
on page 773 of this copy of the Bee
Journal.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journal we mail for
only 50 cents ; or clubbed with the
Journal for $1.40.

790

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Do not write anything for publication
on the same sheet of paper with business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

Booming- on White Clover.

Bees are just booming on white clover. I
never saw such a bloom in all directions, of
white clover, as at the present time, and it
seems as if every blossom is filled with nec-
tar. Basswood will be filled with bloom iu
this locality. Chauncey Reynolds.

Fremont, Ohio, June 8, 1893.

Ground Bark for Winter Packing.

I have been reading about packing, or
filling, for vacant space in building bee-
houses, also hives for wintering out-doors
and spring packing. The articles proposed
and used are many, even to the most costly
and extravagant outlay of money iu filling
in with cork ground up fine.

First, we do not pack in our climate, our
only packing needed is plenty of honey ;
but I want to advance a thought on pack-
ing bee-hives, and filling or packing for
space between walls of bee-houses, where
bees are wintered above ground, and I
think it is according to Nature's own way,
provided the inside space is not too large.
Well, the article to be used is ground bark,
as it is prepared by the tanner for making
ooze for tanning hides into leather. Bark
once used by the tanner can be bought
cheaply, but it must be dried again, per-
fectly dry. I could give many reasons for
its use. I want to hear from those that
must prepare for winter, and use out-door
repositories for bees.

Geo. N. Phillipson.

Merrivale, Tex.

The Season in California.

Some bee-keepers have extracted a little
green honey to catch the early prices.

As this is my flr.st season in California. I
can only guess at what the future will be.
White sage is beginning to "give down"
slowly now, but wild alfalfa is holding out
well. About half of the colonies seem to
prefer sage, and the other half alfalfa,
which makes a poorer quality of honey
than clear sage, and better than all alfalfa,
and I have extracted some 20 or 30 pounds
to the hive to make room for something
better.

It was impossible to get any surplus from

orange bloom. It all went into brood. I
think that orange bloom is a swindle. There
is about enough to secure fertilization, and
that is all.

Fruit-bloom here does not yield as in
Iowa, but in Iowa it is nearly always cold
and cloudy. Horehound also gets mixed
in with the fruit-bloom honey, and has re-
mained to make the earliest sage bitter. I
believe the horehound is what causes bee-
paralysis here. It affects most of the bees
more like St. Vitus' dance than paralysis,
because they shake and shiver, and cannot
stand still. It uses a colony up as far as
surplus is concerned. C. W. Dayton.

Five-Banded Bees — White Clover.

The past winter has been the hardest one
for this locality that we have had for
years. My bees came through with a loss
of about 15 per cent., wintered out-doors,
with outside winter cases. My neighbors,
who are principally box-hive advocates,
have lost heavily.

My bees now are fairly booming on fruit-
bloom, and contrary to the experience of
some of the "veterans," the five-banded
bees are far ahead of the darker ones, the
hybrids being behind all, as far as building
up is concerned. But this does not prove
definitely that they are superior to the
darker Italians, so far as actual value is
concerned. Their honey-gathering quali-
ties have to be tested yet, and if those
qualities prove to be equal to their prolific-
ness, they are certainly the more valuable
kind, that is, for me. They will certainly
have a fair chance to show themselves, for
"white clover is very plentiful, and is look-
ing well. Jake Everman.

North Middletown, Ky., April 28, 1893.

Granulation of Honey.

Let me say a word in the matter of the
granulation of honey. I speak from the
experience of having kept bees in all parts
of the globe.

Almost any kind of honey will granulate
by cold, but not quite every kind. In
Malta, very early honey from Trifofiiuu
iiirurnatiim and orange blossom does not ; it
is vei"y light colored, almost transparent.
Fruit-bloom and wild thyme honey is much
darker, and does granulate very easily.

In Honolulu, very little honey is gathered
that does not do so, but I failed to find out
what it was gathered from. The main
source of supply there is cocoanut and
other palms, and algaroba; even in the
sections it granulates almost at once, and
there isn't any cold to speak of there.

In this I differ from J. H. Hill (see page
493). Granulation is due not only to
''weather, rain, atmosphere," etc., but also
to the nature of the blossom the honey is
gathered from, and capped and uncapped
matters little. I have some sections of
honey from California, and although they
have been exposed to a good deal of cold
they are still liquid. Mai.ia

AMERICAN i5E.E: JOURNAL-.

791

Tight-End Frames and Moths.

• In 1890 I bouglit 3 colonies of bees in por-
tico hives and hanging frames. The next
spring I bouglit 5 more colonies in the same
make of hives, and in 181)0 and 1891 I made
hives for what swarms that came out, with
hanging, loose-end frames, just the same as
the hives I bought with the bees, but I saw
the moths were troubling my bees in behind
the end-bars, so I decided that tight-end
frames would give the moth less chance for
nesting, and all of my hives since 1891 1
have made 13 inches wide inside by 18 long,
and 91.2 deep, giving the hive about 3,600
cubic inches.

In 1893 I lost every old colony, and all the
new colonies that I put into the loose-end
frame hives, by the moth, and out of 35
tight-end frame hives I have never seen a
sign of a moth, and the tight and loose end
frame hives were standing in the same
yard within 3 feet of each other. On April
24th I took my bees back into the cellar,
and on April 26th it snowed hard again.
On the 2?th there was about 16 inches of
beautiful white snow, and I hauled saw-
logs to the mill. It was good sleighing.
Osakis, Minn. Mark D. Judkins.

First Swarm on June 12th.

I had my first swarm of bees yesterday.
June 13th. It was a pure Carniolan. I have
150 colonies in all. G. G. Baldwin.

Port Huron, Mich., June 13, 1893.

Short Honey-Flow Expected.

Bees did not do very well in this locality
last year. From 8 colonies we only took
150 pounds of comb honey.

Bees wintered all right last winter, but
this spring was very cold and trying. Out
of 12 colonies we lost 3 from starvation.

I think our honey-flow will be short this
year. Bees could work on fruit-bloom but
a day or two, as the weather was so cold. I
will try to report later on in the season as
to our honey-flow this year. I like the Bee
Journal. F. N. Blank.

Prairie Home, Mo., May 31, 1893.

"Rough on Rats" for Killing Ants.

On page 656 is a request for something
that will exterminate ants. As I have had
some experience with them, I venture to
tell how I dispose of them.

Mix a small quantity of " Rough on Rats"
in some sweetened wa,ter or honej', and
place it where the ants can get it, but
where the bees will not find it. I have
never known this to fail to exterminate
them.

This spring I discovered that the ants
were working in one of my hives, and on
making an examination 1 found they had
taken possession of the top of the hive, had
covered the quilt and filled every crack
with eggs. I had no "Rough on Rats " on
hand, but as something must be done, I

bui'ned that quilt and destroyed what I
could ; then taking a piece of common
school crayon, I drew a heavy line of chalk
entirely around the hive. The ants would
come up to that line by the hundred, but
not one went over. I examined the hive
the next day, but there was not an ant to
be seen, nor has it been troubled since.

I wish that all bee-keepers who are both-
ered with them would try these two reme-
dies together, and report their success in
the Bee Journal. I shall watch for a re-
port of Mr. Lovesy's experience. Be sure
that there are no breaks in the chalk-line,
and that your bees cannot get at the
poison. D. L. McKean.

Cobham, Pa.

Poor Honey Caused the Loss.

Bees wintered poorly in this locality,
most bee-keepers losing from 50 to 75 per
cent, on account of poor honey, and not
being capped, as the only honey we did get
was in the fall, which soured and gave the
bees the diarrhea, and many died either be-
fore they came out of the cellar or soon
after. My bee-house was dry, and I lost
only 3 out of 30 colonies. The 18 are doing
nicely now. C. P. Lang.

La Crosse, Wis., June 7, 1893.

Apple-Bloom and Locust Honey.

My 18 colonies of bees, on the summer
stands, wintered well, and have gathered
about 20 pounds per colony from apple-
bloom and locust, and are now waiting for
the white clover, which is looking finely,
and promises to yield abundantly. Bees in
box-hives, In this locality, nearly all died,
and perhaps ^{ of those in movable frames,
where they were not properly attended to
in the fall.

The American Bee Journal is always a
welcome guest, and we could hardly keep
bees without it. Robt. B. Woodward.

Somerset, O., June 9, 1893.

Terrible Storm in Missouri.

On the evening of Thursday, May 25th,
our section of country was visited by a ter-
rible wind and hail storm. Many houses
and barns were scattered to the four winds
of heaven, and hail as large as walnuts fell
in torrents in places to a depth of 6 inches.
Although the home bee-yard was I4 mile
south of the hardest of the storm, the hives
were all turned over, and some of them en-
tirely emptied of all combs and bees. My
damage is very heavy ; many queens were
lost, most of the old bees were shaken out
and drowned, and pounded into the earth
by the hail. Should a clover harvest come
uiy Avay, I would be badly left.

Mr. P. P. Collier, who lives at Rush Hill,
and had an apiary of some 70 or 80 colonies,
I understand sufl'ered almost if not quite a
total loss of bees, brood and combs. This
has been a very wet spring here, bees and
clover are both away behind time, and I

792

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

can't tell how it will be for those that have
bees that are in shape for the harvest.

I have 35 colonies 7 miles north, that are
all right, and are working on the clover
some now. I had 65 colonies at home.

Btkon Iiams.

Worcester, Mo., June 5, 1893.

Honey & Beeswax Market Quotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
June 17th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, III.— There is not much move-
ment in comb honey. Prices ransre at from
r2@16 and 17c., all good grades b.iinging 15®
17c. A few cases of the new crop have ar-
rived and brought the top prices. Beeswax is
very steady at about '25c. Extracted honey is
moving very slowly at from 6@8c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; No. 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 3 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7i4c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20@23c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, O.— A short supply of ex-
tracted honey Is the cause of a slow demand.
It forbids an effort on our part to sell. It
brings 6@8c. There is no choice comb honey
on our market, and prices are nominal at 12®
16c., in a small way.

Beeswax— Demand good, at 22@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW Y'ORK, N. Y.— New crop of extracted
is arriving freely. Market is quiet and de-
mand limited. Fancy grades sell at from 7®
8c.; common to fair, at from 60@70c., as to
body, color and flavor. Beeswax, 26@27c.

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif —Choice extracted
Is scarce at 7@7i4c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10®12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S., L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

CHICAGO, III.— Fancy stock is very scarce,
with plenty of inquiry, with good prices of-
fered for same. It sells readily at 18c.; No. 1
comb, 16@17c. Dark sells slow. White ex-
tracted.fair supply, with good demand ntSYi ;
dark, 6®7c. Beeswax— 23®25c. J. A. L.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16®17c.—
Extracted. 8@10c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

ALBANY, N. Y. — Honey market is very
quiet now, as between seasons. Beeswax—
at 30@32c. for good color. H. R. W.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.— There is quite an
active demand this week for honey, especially
white comb honey in 1-lb. sections. Dark is
very slow sale. Stock on hand in this market
is very light. Receipts have not been enough
to supply trade during tlie past 10 days. Fan-
cy white conb honey, 18®20c.; No. 1 white.
17c.; fancy amber, Kic; No. 1 amber, 14c. ;
fancy dark, 12c.; No. 1 dark, 10c. F.Atrac^ted
C'aliloriiia (JO-lb. kegs, Dc, iJeeswa.x, unsal-
able. J.A.S. &0o.

"We Club the American Bee Journal
for a year, with any of the following papers
or books, at the prices quoted in the LAS'F
column. The regular price of both is given
n the first column. One year's subscription
for the American Bee Journal must be sent
with each order for another paper or book :

Price of both. Club.
The American Bee Journal 81 00

and Gleanings In Bee-Culture 2 00 175

Bee-Reeners' Review 2 00 175

The Apiculturist 1 75. . . . 1 65

American Bee- Keeper 150 140

Canadian Bee Journal 2 00 ... 175

Nebraska Bee-Keeper 150 135

The 7 above-named papers 5 75 5 00

and Langstroth Revised (Dadant) 2 40 ... . 225

Cook's Manual of the Apiary 2 00 1 75

Doollttle on Queen-Rearing. 2 00.... 165

Bees and Honey (Newman). . 2 00 1 65

Advanced Bee-Culture 150 135

Dzierzon's Bee-Book (cloth). 2 25 2 00

Root's A B C of Bee-Culture 2 25 ... . 2 10

A Year Among the Bees 1 50 1 35

Convention Hand-Book 125 115

Illustrated Home Journal . . 1 50 1 35

"A Motlei-ii Bee-riirm and Its

Economic Management," is the title of a
splendid book on practical bee-culture, by
Mr. S. Simmins. of England. It is 5%x8>^
inches in size, and contains 370 pages,
nicely illustrated, and bound in cloth. It
shows •' how bees may be cultivated as a
means of livelihood; as a health-giving
pursuit ; and as a source of recreation to
the busy man.'' It also illustrates how
profits may be "made certain by growing
crops yielding the most honey, having also
other uses; and by judgment in breeding a
good working strain of bees." Price, post-
paid, from this office, .fl.OO; or clubbed with
the Bee Journal for one year, for $1.70.

*'Xlie ^Winter Protoleni in

Bee-Keeping" is the title of a splendid
pamphlet by Mr. G. R. Pierce, of Iowa,
a bee-keeper of 26 years' experience. It
is 6x9 inches in size, has 76 pages and
is a clear exposition of the conditions
essential to success in the winter and
spring management of the apiary. Price,
postpaid, 50 cents ; or given as a pre-
mium for getting one new subscriber to
the Bee Journal for a year. Clubbed
with the Bee Journal one year for
$1.30. Send to us for a copy.

Your Neighbor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked }iim or licr to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, yoio can have Newman's book on
" Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 771.

AMERICAN B^K JOURNAL.

793

List of Honey and Beeswax Dealers,

Most of whom Quote in this Journal.

Cliicago, Ills.

R. A. Burnett & Co., 161 South Water Street.

NeAV York, N. Y.

F. I. Sage & Son, 183 Reade Street.
HiiiDRETH Bros. & Segelken.

28 & 30 West Broadway

San Francisco, Calif.

SCHACHT, Lemcke & Steiner, 10 Drumm St.

niinneapolis, Mluu.

J. A. Shea & Co., 14 & 16 Hennepin Avenue.

Kansas City, Mo.

HAMBiiiN & Bearss, 514 Walnut Street.
Clemoms-Mason Com. Co., 521 Walnut St.

Albany, N.Y.

H. K. Wright, 326 & 328 Broadway

Hamilton, Ills.

Chas. Dadant & Son.

Cincinnati, Oliio.

C. F. MuTH & Son, cor. Freeman & Central avs.

CJouTention IVotices.

INTERNATIONAL.— The North American
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its 24th
annual convention on Oct. 11, 12 and 13, 1893,
in Chicago, Ills. Not only is every bee-keeper
in America, whether a member of the society
or not, invited to be present, but a special in-
vitation is extended to friends of apiculture
it every foreign land, Frank Benton. Sec.

Washington, D. C.

Ahnost Every Bee-Book that is now
published we mention on the third
pa^e of this issue of the Bee Journal.
Look over the list and select what you
want. For every new yearly subscriber
that you secure for us at $1.00, we will
allow you 25 cents, to apply on the
purchase of any book we have for sale.
This is a rare chance to get some valua-
able apicultural reading-matter, and at
the same time aid in spreading helpful
apiarian knowledge among your friends.

Wauts or Exdiapges.

Under this heading. Notices of 5 lines, or
less, will be inserted at 10 cents per line,
for each insertion, when specially ordered
into this Department. If over 5 lines, the
additional lines will cost 20 cents each.

TO EXCHANGE — High Grade Safety Bi-
cycle, for Honey or Wax.
17Atf J. A. G REEN, Ottawa, III.

Have You Bead that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 773 ?

AdvErtlsemeuts.

For Sale, Ten Strong Colonies

Of Italian and Carniolan Bees, in good 10-
frame portico Hives. Price. $4.00 per colony.
For further information, address.

JOSEPH EIBEi;,
711 E. Orange St., LANCASTER, PA.

25A3t

When Answering Mention this journai..

Golden Queens fi'^elo^'^Z'

low to the tip, 75c. Pure Young Tested, 75c.
40 cts. per framo. 8x8 inches; 10 frames
35 cts. each. lOO lbs. Tliin Fouu-

Bees

dation, $85.

24Atf

F. C. MOKROW,

WALLACEBURG,

ARK.
AIe7iUo7i the American Bee Journal.

HONEY-QUEENS

FROM Imported Mother, warranted purely
mated, after June 10th, at $1.00 each; six
at one time, $5.00. Untested Queens, 75 cents
each. Address, C. A. BUNCH,

25Atl NYE, Marshall Co., IND.

Root's Goods at Root's Prices.

WE have received another car of Bee-
Keepers' Supplies from A. L Root, and
they are A No. 1. The Hives are made of the
best lumber I ever saw used for that purpose
— sound and almost clear. The dovetails are
cut smooth and fit exactly when nailed. You
cannot buy any better hives. We have Cowan
Extractors, Crane Smokers, Comb Foundation
and nearly everything used in the apiary.

Send for sample Hive. We guarantee every

Hive we send out to be a.s good as the sample.

H. G. ACKIilN,

1024 Miss. St., ST. PAUL, MINN.

Northwestern Agent for A. I. Boot's

Bee-Keepers' Supplies.

Mention the American Bee Jtr. r^oA.

Are YOU Coming to the ^ ^

WORLD'S FAIR 9

If so, you should secure Accommodation
in advance of coming to Chicago

YouiiE Lalles Specially CareJ For

You are invited to correspond at once with

MRS. J. P. COOKENBACH,
987 Tl'ilcox Ave., CHICAGO, IL.Ii.,

Who will be pleased to help all desiring to
have a comfortable and pleasant place to stay
while visiting the World's Fair, and at very
reafiionable rates.

Reference : By permission, '* American
Ree Journal."

Mention the American Bee Journal.

794 AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Fanny Field's Poultry Books

Here is Your Chanee

TAKE \OIIR CHOICE OF TWO

Of the following 40-page booklets. We offer two as a Premium for sending
us $1.00 for One New Subscriber to the Bee Jouknal for one year.

rivo of them for sending us One New Subscribe? > or we will mail tlie 3 for 50 cts.

Poultry for Market and Poultry for Profit.— It
is written for tliose wisbiiig' to malse poultry profitable.

Contents— Clears $4.49 on each fowl. Cost of'keepiug'
adult fowls per year. Cost of raising- chicks to 6 mo. old. ,
Spring- management. 12,480 egg's from 100 hens a year.
Feeding for eggs in winter. Hatching-houses. Cleanli-I
ness. No sickness among the fowls. A word to farmers''
wives, sons, daughters, and others interested in poultry.
60-acre poultry farm that yields a clear profit of $1,500 a
year. 81 chicks out of 100 eggs with incubator. Raisingf
broilers. Food for chicks. Turkey raising. Keeping eggs.'
Cause of death of young turkeys. Keeping poultry on a village lot. Feed
in winter. Mechanic's wife clears $300 annually on broilers. Artificial rais-
ing of chicks. Incubators. Capons. Caponizlng. Tells everything about
the poultry business. Sent postpaid, for 25 cents. ,

Our Poultry Doctor, or Health in the Poultry Yard and How to Cure Sick Fowls.
—It tells how to cure— Chicken Cholera, Roup, Lice, Gapes, Leg Weakness, Scaly Legs. Chills.
Cramp, Cough, Canker, Diarrhea, Crop Bound, Sore Eyes, Break Down, Soft-Shell Eggs, Bum-
ble Foot, Chicken-Pox, Apoplexy, White Comb, Frost-Bites, Moulting; Breaking Sitting Hens,
Feather-Eating, Egg-Eating; Chiggers. Diseases of Turkeys and Ducks. Recipe for Douglas
Mixture. Everything about Poultry Diseases and their Cure. Price. 30 cents.

Turkeys for Market and Turkeys for Profit.-The author reared in one year 150
Turkeys, and did the work for a family of 5, netting her $:500. No farming pays like Turkeys.
Contents— Age of breeding stock, about the Gobbler. Best and most profitable breeds. Set-
ting the eggs. Care while hatching. Profit per head. Care until fully feathered. Food for
the young. Save the feathers, they bring good prices. Number of hens to a Gobbler. Narra-
gansett Turkeys. White Turkeys. Bronze Turkeys. Common Turkeys. To restore chilled
Turkeys. Diseases of Turkeys. Leg weakness. Killing a'ld dressing. Mark your Turkeys,
Marketing. Capital and number to begin with. All about Turkey-Raising. Price, 25 cents.

GEOKG-E W. YORK <fe CO.,

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

FRUIT-GROWERS' LIBRARY FOR $1.00.

The following 5 Books (price. $1.25) will be sent postpaid for only $1.00,

or we will give " Rural Life " with your choice of any one of the other

four (making two books) for sending us One New Subscriber to the

Amekican Bee Journal for a year. Read the descriptious.

How We Made the Old Farm Pay. is the title of a book (64 pages) by Chas. A.
Green, giving liis personal fxperieuce on a fruit farm which he made yield a generous fortune.
It is bound in elegant liihtjgiaphed cover, printed on fine paper and beautifully illustrated. It
gives much practical information in regard to fruit-growing, and also gives the author's expe-
rience as a Nurseryman. Price, 25 cents.

Green's Five Books on Fruit-Culture- Devoted 1st. to Apple and Pear
Culture; :^nd, Plum and Cherry Culture, 3rd, Raspberry and Blackberry Culture; 4th, Grape
Culture; 5th. Strawberry Culture. It is a book of 129 pages, giving the practical experience
of Chas. A. Green in growing all kinds of fruit. It is profusely illustrated and cannot fail to
be of interest to every lover of fruit gardens. Price, 25 cents.

Garden and Orchard is the title of a new book ty Chas. A Green ; 94 pages, illus-
trated. This is Mr. Green's latest book on fruit culture. It gives full instructions in regard
to Thinning and Marketing Fruits ; also Pruning, Planting and Cultivating. It contains the
latest experience in Spraying, Evaporation and Cold Storage. It has a long chapter on Berry-
Growing of all kinds, besides other valuable information, which cannot be found in any other
book. Price, 25 cents.

Rural Life.— its scope is as broad as its title, and the matter is presented in a con-
cise, "boiled-down " manner, giving the experience of many in few words. Among the sub
jects treated are these: Economy; Pi-osperity and Adversity; Character; Health; Remedies;
Mistakes of life; Domestic and Household Affairs; Planting and Culture of Vegetables, Plan-
ting, Culture. Trimming and Training Vines, Trees and Plants, Bees, Poultry, Live-Stock and
Farm Topics, etc., with comprehensive Index. 100 i)ages. Price, 25 cents.

How TO Propagate and Grow Fruit.— This book (72 pages) gives brief in-
structions in budding, grafting and layering. It also gives almost every method known for

the propagation of fruit trees, vines and plants. There are many people who could increase
their .stock of valuable varieties if they (;ouId secure information on this subject. Money can
fiade bj' purchasing rare and valuable varieties, and increasing them rapidly by layerin
ding or otherwise. This little book by Chas -V. Green tells how to do It. Price, 25 cents

Address, GEORGE W. YORK & CO., 56 Fifth Ave., CHICAGO, ILIa.

GEOBGZ: W. TOBK, I DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY i Weekly, $1.00 a Year.

Editor. i To Bee-Culture. ( Sample Pree.

VOL. XXXI. CHICAGO, ILL, JUNE 29, 1893.

NO. 26.

Please JDou^t send to us for bee-sup-
plies, as we do not deal in them, and your
order, if sent to us, must necessarily be de-
layed in filling. Just patronize those sup-
ply dealers who advertise in our columns,
and you will thus please us most. We shall
be glad to furnish you any bee-book and
the Bee Joubnal, but when it comes to
supplies — well, we are not "in it."

Volume XXXI is completed with this
number of the Bee Journal. Another
milestone on the way to higher usefulness
and greater excellence in progressive bee-
literature is thus attained. In all of its
departments in the volume just finished we
have endeavored to advance at least a little
over the standard already reached in the
previous volumes. Whether or not our
object has been fully gained can only be
answered by those who from week to week
have perused its pages.

In the future, as in the past, we shall en-
deavor to press onward, ever striving to
present to our appreciative readers those
things which shall most aid them to make
the greatest possible success of the keeping
of bees.

With gratitude to all for their hearty co-
operation ; with the earnest hope that this
year we may yet have a splendid honey

crop ; and with an eye single to the highest
interest of all deserving bee-keepers the
world over, we close the present volume,
and turn with feelings of pleasure and en-
couragement to the fair and unsullied
pages of Volume XXXII.

Iflr. II. I>. Cutting', of Tecumseh,
Mich., called at the Bee Journal office on
Wednesday, June 21st. He was in Chicago
looking after the apiarian exhibit to be
made at the World's Fair by the State of
Michigan. If any man can get up a credit-
able display for the small sum of $500, Bro.
Cutting is just that man. What a pity that
the great State of Michigan couldn't have
done better for the horticulturist's best
friends — the honey-bees ! It shows that bee-
keepers have not as yet sufficiently insisted
upon the great value bee-culture is to the
world. It is high time that each bee-keeper
appoint himself a committee of one on edu-
cation, and then see to it that everybody
he meets shall understand something of the
value of bees to the farmer, gardener and
fruit-grower.

Xlie Foul Brood Cure, as practiced
by Mr. Wm. McEvoy, the Foul Brood In-
spector for Ontai'io, Canada, will be given
in the Bee Journal for next week. Mr.
McEvoy has been unavoidably delayed in
preparing it for publication. He is a very
busy man, indeed, and those who have so
long waited for the description of his
method of curing foul brood, will kindly
excuse him. The article came just a little
too late for this issue, or we would have
given it this week.

Bees and Honey" — see page 803.

808

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Bi'o. l>ooIittle''s picture we notice is
in the F<irm <md Home for June loth. It is
a nice likeness, and the biographical sketch
accompanying it is " short and sweet " — it
couldn't well help being " sweet " when it
is about a honeyman. It says that besides
producing honey, Bro. D. "has a garden
and a small farm of 29 acres to care for,
and runs a shop and steam-engine, making
sections, hives and honey-crates." It
shouldn't have been DooUttle, but DoomueJi,
or something equally as consistent, for Bro.
D. does a great amount of liard work, both
physical and literary.

A Complete Index will be found in
this number of the Bee Journal, to which
we call your attention. It contains the
subjects written upon, the names of the
writers, and a list of the illustrations of
Volume XXXI. The index, as we present
it, serves as a key to unlock the treasures
contained in another volume of the old
American Bee Journal which is now
closed. We trust that all have preserved
the numbers from week to week, as they
will form a valuable book of reference upon
the subject of bee-culture.

l>r. l^Iiller's Face is shown in that
great agricultural weekly, the American
Farmer, for June 15th, published at Wash-
ington, D. C. We are glad to see our
famous bee-keepers receiving the attention
due them at the hands of the publishers of
farm papers ; and no one is more deserving
than our own Dr. C. C. Miller. Living in
Illinois, as he does, we are going to claim
the biggest share of the Doctor, though no
doubt the whole continent will say he be-
longs to them. But then, he is big-hearted
enough to go all around, so there won't be
any chance to differ much over him.

Xlie Biograpliies and portraits of
bee-keepers have been kept up during the
whole of the present volume of the Bee
Journal. That they have been appreciated
by our readers is fully shown by numerous
letters of approval received the past six
months. We hope to continue the biograph-
ical department throughout the year, if not
longer, in order that we all may become
better acquainted with those who have
helped to place the industry of beo-keeping
on the high plain which it occupies to-day.

ISi'o. ix. E. Seelnian, of Westbury
Station, N. Y., we are very sorry to learn,
has suffered the loss of his loved wife. In
reply to a letter written by him to a sympa-
thetic friend, she says: "Weep not, Bro.
Seelman ; she is waiting and watching for
you over there." Here is the letter re-
ferred to :

I have just been sorely afflicted. It has
pleased our Heavenly Father to take from
me and this world my companion and help-
mate— as good a wife as man ever was
blessed with. It has nearly broken me up,
and, I must admit, my faith has been at its
lowest ebb. But I must bow to the will of
the Almighty, and remember that those He
loves He chastises. It came unexpected,
and unlooked for.

But I don't know why I should pour out
my heart into the ears of a stranger. Yet
I can hardly call you a stranger — the kindly
words received from you even at the most
trifling occasion, have made me look on you
as an old acquaintance and friend. In sor-
row we seek sympathy ; it is but human, so
please forgive. G. E. Seelman.

We wish to add our word of sympathy for
our bereaved brother. How dark and mys-
terious are God's dealings with his children ;
and yet many times if we could but com-
prehend the lessons involved, how it would
help us to bear up under trials and afflic-
tions. Let us all remember in prayer those
who are bereaved, invoking upon them
divine grace and comfort.

Yes, 'tis sad to part with loved ones,
With those we hold most dear;

And yet their lives are bettered
While ours seem left most drear.

But while we mourn and sorrow —
Can scarcely trust God more —

We'll bow in humble waiting
For blessings yet in store.

While those we love are taken.

And we are left to sigh.
We still may live rejoicing —

We'll meet them bye-and-bye.

'I'Ue Ilaiidi^oiHei^t, as well as the
ugliest looking, bee-keeper received a
queen-bee as a prize at the late meeting of
the South Texas Bee-Keepers' Association,
as shown in its repoi't on page 812 of this
number of the Bee Journal. We hardly
know which to congratulate the more, see-
ing each got a queen. Perhaps it would be
just as well to " call it even."

It's a I*if y that a man cannot eat good
advice ; he gets so much of it free.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

809

In this department will be answered those
questions needing immediate attention, and
such as are not of sufficient special interest to
require replies from the 25 or more apiarists
who help to make "Queries and Replies" so
Interesting on another page. In the main, it
win contain questions and answers upon mat-
ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed

Why Did the Bees Swarm Out ?

I had a colony of bees to leave for the
woods on March 22nd. I opened the
hive after they left, and found two
frames partly filled with brood, three
filled with capped honey, and two frames
partly filled with honey. The hive was
clean and nice, and there was no moth
to be seen. Will Mr. Doolittle please
tell why they left ? C. L. Bowen.

Louella, Mo.

The question was referred to Mr. Doo-
little, who answers thus :

Such swarming out as the above is
something that has baffled our best api-
arists for years, and the question has
often been raised why bees thus swarm
out in early spring, and so far as I have
ever seen, always unsatisfactorily an-
swered. The prevailing opinion is that
the bees become dissatisfied with their
surroundings for some reason, and
swarm out, hoping to better their con-
dition. G. M. Doolittle.

Nine or 10 Frames ? — Button-Willow,

1. I use the Langstroth hive with 10
frames in the brood-chamber, and 9
frames in the upper story. Could I get
more honey if I should use 10 frames
above ?

2. Is button-willow a good honey-
plant ? T. W. Wheeler.

Menardville, Texas.

Answers — 1. If the two stories are of
the same size, then 9 frames will give
a little more room for each frame than
10, and as the spaces left between the
combs will probably be of the same size
whether 9 or 10 frames be used, having
one less space with 9 frames ought to
allow room for a little more honey.
That doesn't say that the same number
of bees will put more honey in a season
in the 9 frames simply because there is
more room there, but if you wait till the
story is full each time before extracting,
you are sure that you will have less
labor in extracting 9 than ten, with the

possibility of more honey. So far as the
work of the bees is concerned, when left
to themselves they seem to prefer to
have the outside combs, which are used
solely for storing, a little thicker than
the brood-combs, and they will have less
capping to do on the 9 than the ten.
Some of this is theory, but you will
probably find in actual practice that
those who have tried the 9 above and
10 below, have not gone back to 10
above.

2. Ignorance prevents an answer as
to the value of button-willow, but it is
pretty safe to say that any of the wil-
lows are good for both honey and
pollen. Perhaps some of our readers
will tell us about button-willow.

Why Was the Queen "Balled?"

Will you please tell me why my bees
" balled " their queen ? I opened a hive
of my best Italians, and found the queen
in a ball of bees as large as a teacup.
The queen was a young and prolific one.
I found two queen-cells started. I
caged the queen and laid the cage on
top of the frames, and the bees clustered
on the cage in hard knots.

Bishop Hill, Ills. G. E. Nelson.

Answer — It is no easy matter to tell
why bees do many things. This balling
a queen sometimes, when there seems to
be no occasion for it, is one of the puz-
zles. Sometimes a queen will be balled
after you have handled her, especially if
you drop her near the entrance. The
smell of your fingers left upon the queen
may have something to do with it.

When a queen is about played out,
the bees may ball her, seeming to be dis-
satisfied with a queen which does not do
better work.

Sometimes the bees ball a queen to
protect her, when they are disturbed.
This might be the solution of your prob-
lem, but those two queen-cells rather
look as if they were getting ready to
supersede her. Although she might be
" young and prolific," yet for some
reason her prolificness might be about
at an end, and the bees seem to fore-
know this, preparing queen-cells and
maltreating the queen. All things con-
sidered, this seems the most plausible
answer to your question, After all, it
is only a guess, and it is doubtful if you
can have a positive answer.

Have You Read that wonderful book
Premium offer on page 803 ?

810

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

J. W. ROUISE.

Perhaps among all the Missouri bee-
keepers none is so prominent as Mr. J.
W. Rouse, in the town of Mexico.

In the June Proqressive Bee-Keeper
(which, by the way, is quite consistent
with the front part of its name) we find
a good portrait and biographical sketch
of Mr. Rouse, the latter of which we
have this week taken the liberty to copy
for the benefit of our readers. It was
written by Mr. W. S. Dornblaser, who
writes as one very intimately acquainted
with Mr. R. Here is the sketch referred
to:

Mr. J. W. Rouse was born in Monroe
county, Mo., on Jan. 9, 1852, and is,
therefore, in his 42nd year. When
quite young he exhibited and developed
a mechanical genius, and in after life
took up a pursuit in which he could
make some use of what seemed to him
to be a natural talent.

He was married to Miss Williamson,
in his native county, at the age of 20
years, and after his marriage he settled
down to conducting a general repair
shop on wood and iron work. As this
business increased, it naturally led him
into the manufacture of wagons, bug-
gies, etc., finishing them complete, as be
was an adept in all branches of mechani-
cal skill necessary for this work.

While engaged in this business a nat-
ural fondness for honey led him into
keeping a few bees. Once started in
this industry, he very soon became an
enthusiast. His enthusiasm was of that
kind which " sticks," and in all the
years that he has devoted to this pro-
fession, it has never lagged, but has led
him on, on, on, step by step, until now
he stands among the foremost bee-keep-
ers in the State of Missouri. It led him
gradually to abandon his old business,
and more and more into the manufacture
of various apiarian supplies. It led him

to observe closely the necessities of his
new pets, the best methods of supplying
these needs, and then the result. It led
him fully to abandon his old business,
and embark wholly in and devote his
whole time to the development of his
apiary, and the industry he loved so
well.

Such enthusiasm as Mr. Rouse dis-
played is commendable, provided it is
not allowed to sway the individual of
whom it has possession, instead of simply
firing him with an energy to delve to the
bottom, and climb to the top on the
knowledge the delving revealed. In
him it was happily held in check by a
disposition to observe closely all things
that presented themselves, to argue
from cause to effect, and profit by the
results of the argument. Thus his en-
thusiasm became a benefit, instead of a
curse, as it often does, if, as above
stated, it is allowed to sway the individ-
ual of whom it has possession. But, in
Mr. Rouse, it was not satisfied with
bringing benefits to him solely. If any-
thing, Mr. R. is not selfish, and all the
knowledge gained, the facts gleaned, the
causes revealed, and effects pointed out,
must be given to the world.

One of the things that early presented
themselves to his mind was the fact that
outside of those who actually kept bees,
practically little or absolutely nothing
was known of the profession. Not only
this, but that much of what the world
was supposed to know, was entirely
erroneous, absolutely unfounded, and
often actually ludicrous.

Another condition also presented itself
to him. It was that many who were
actually engaged in keeping bees, were
bound by old methods, and knew noth-
ing of movable-frame hives, or any of
the advanced methods of handling them.

It has been his aim to correct, as far
as in his power, the mistaken impres-
sions upon the minds of those who were
held by old, worn-out and impractical
methods. He believes, and in a great
measure, very truly, that many of the
drawbacks, and much of the opposition
to the industry, came from a lack of
knowledge, not among bee-keepers, but
among non-bee-keepers ; that literature
is wanted, not so much to educate and en-
lighten practical bee-keepers, but to in-
struct the mass of people who do not,
and possibly never expect to, keep bees,
as well as the novice, and the box-hive,
hollow-log and nail-keg man. This con-
viction was always prominently before
him, and in the several years in which
he was engaged to lecture on apiculture
in the farmers' institutes held by the

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

811

state Board of Agriculture, he devoted
himself almost entirely to this issue.

He has contributed considerable to the
literature of his profession. Quite a
number of his articles found their way
into the various bee-papers, as weU as
the agricultural papers, but the v/ork
that brings him most prominently before
the people, is " The Amateur Bee-
Keeper," a neat and tasty little volume
intended especially for the novice, the
amateur and beginner, as well as those
who are not engaged in bee-keeping. All
this writing bears the stamp of one who
is thoroughly conversant on what he is
talking about, and at the same time

J. W. ROUSE.

bears that modest, unassuming style
characteristic of the man.

He was one of the organizers and pro-
moters of the Missouri State Bee-Keep-
ers' Association, and served as its Secre-
tary during the first two years of its ex-
istence. It is in convention work that
the innate modesty of the man, coupled
with his natural social geniality, as well
as his quiet conviction of knowing what
he knows, and being able to establish
his knowledge, that makes him a "wheel
hoss " in the work. His re-election to
the oflSce of Secretary was a deserved
compliment to his first year's service.

A man of earnest Christian principles
and thorough religious convictions, he

takes his Christianity with him wherever
he goes, uses it as a factor in his busi-
ness, and at all times lets his light shine
that the world may know what he is,
and where he stands.

CONDUCTED BY

Greenville. Texas.
Good Report of the New Crop.

Mrs. Atchley : — My report for the
spring crop is only 67 pounds per colony.
I have 800 colonies. But the quality is
as fine as I ever saw.

D. M. Edwards.

Uvalde, Tex., June 12, 1893.

Report of the South Texas Bee-Eeep-
ers' Convention.

Mrs. Atchley : — Prospects in South
Texas are favorable for a large yield of
honey this year, especially from the
river-bottom apiaries. Our convention
report is short, but we hope to have a
better programme at our next meeting.

T. H. MULLIN.

Oakland, Tex., June 6, 1893.

The report referred to by Mr. Mullin
is as follows :

SOUTH TEXAS BEE-CONVENTION.

The second regular meeting of the
South Texas Bee-Keepers' Association
was held at Wharton, Tex., on May 18,
1893. The convention was called to
order by Pres. W. O. Victor. As T. H.
Mullin, the Secretary, was absent, Mr.
H. J. Moses was appointed Secretary
pro tern.

Owing to the Inclemency of the
weather previous to the meeting, there
was not a full attendance.

The minutes of last meeting were read
and approved. The roll call showed 16
present. Several new members were

812

AMERICAN BEK JOURNAL.

enrolled. A communication was read
from Mrs. Jennie Atchley, of Greenville,
Texas. Letters were read from Messrs.
J. H. Mullin & Son, of Oakland, Mr. J.
W. Eckman, of Richmond, and Messrs.
W. R. Graham & Son, of Greenville,
wishing success to the Association, and
tendering their regrets for not being
able to attend.

A five-banded untested queen was
donated by Mrs. Jennie Atchley, to be
presented to the most handsome bee-
keeper present ; upon ballot the honor
fell to Mr. R. A. Armstrong, Jr.

Mr. W. O. Victor also donated a three-
banded untested queen for the ugliest
bee-keeper present ; upon ballot, Judge
M. H. Sanders was awarded the prize.

There were on exhibition two patterns
of improved bee-hives, one made by W.
R. Graham, and the other is called the
"Root dovetailed hive," presented by
W. O. Victor. The preference was
given to the last-named.

The opinion was in general discussion,
that the season had been unfavorable to
bee-culture — the weather too cool, and
too much rain for a full out-put of the
honey product. A return of dry weather
induces the hope of abetter prospect for
a large yield.

The convention adjourned to meet
again at the apiary of Mr. W. O. Victor,
of Wharton, on the first Tuesday in
May, 1894. All bee-keepers are invited
to attend and become members of the
Association.

H. J. Moses, Sec. pro tern.

The Honey-Plants of Northern Texas,
and How to Utilize Them.

Bead at the late Texas State Convention
BY DB. WM. K. HOWABD.

(Continued from page 782.)
Milkweed {anantherlx connivens,
Feay), commences flowering early in
May, with a succession of flowers up to
the middle of June, and sometimes later.
It furnishes an abundance of honey of
an inferior quality, being strong and
pungent. It yields no pollen ; its pollen
cohering in masses, called pollinia, are
suspended by a thread-like beak, in the
sides of the connate mass of anthers,
which are five-angled, truncate, opening
by five longitudinal fissures, which,
when the flower opens and comes to
maturity, release the pollinia, throwing
them out, and being furnished with
wings, so to speak, and a heavy viscid
beak will scarcely escape the cup-like

flower without coming in contact with
the stigma.

These pollen-masses are of great in-
convenience to the bees, as in visiting
the flower for the nectar, their feet come
in contact with these pollinia, and by
the viscid fluid they become firmly at-
tached ; and in going from flower to
flower, every pair that touches, sticks.
As soon as the viscid liquid dries, it be-
comes brittle, and soon falls off. They
do not kill the bees, as asserted by some,
but I am satisfied that bees are consid-
erably disabled for the time being, by
these unnatural and clumsy appendages,
and I am of the opinion that bees would
do as well, or perhaps better, without
this plant; but where it is to be found,
bees will invariably visit it, notwith-
standing the deleterious consequences ;
but, were it not for this plant, some sea-
sons, many apiaries would starve out,
as it stands the drouth well, and is often
the only honey-plant we have.

Persimmon {diospyros virginiana) com-
mences to bloom early in May, with a
succession of flowers for rather more
than a month, early varieties sometimes
have half-grown fruit by the time the
later varieties are in bloom. It affords
an excellent quality of honey ; in locali-
ties where there are a few acres of these
trees, bees will become rich in stores in
a very short time.

Black sumac [rhiis) commences to
bloom about the first of June, with a
succession of flowers for one month ;
white sumac 10 or 15 days later, both
furnishing honey and pollen of fair
quality.

Cottton-plant {gossypium herbacum)
commences to bloom about June 15th,
with a succession of flowers until frost,
furnishing both pollen and honey. The
blossom expands its petals of rich
creamy-white, about 10 o'clock a.m.
As soon as the flower is open enough,
the bees visit it, gathering both pollen
and honey ; prior to the opening of new
flowers, early in the morning, the bees
seek the flowers of the day before, which
have closed, and are of a pale-red color ;
diving down outside at the base, and
lapping up the delicious nectar, which
is no longer necessary for the develop-
ment of floral organs. Bees gather
more honey from this flower after it be-
gins to close, say after 11 o'clock a.m.
until 9 a.m. next day, than from the
freshly-opened flower, which furnishes
mostly pollen. The honey from this
plant is dark, like that of buckwheat,
but of good flavor, very thick, and
granulating shortly after it is extracted.

Jamestown weed {datura stramonium).

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

813

commonly called "jimsoa," is visited
late in the evening, and very early in
the morning, but the bee is unable to
procure any honey except from the
largest flowers. Several species of wild
bees (solitary) enter it, and some species
gnaw into the flower at the base, for
the purpose of obtaining the abundant
supply of nectar which this flower
evolves.

Corn (zea mays, Linn) tassel yields
pollen early, and some honey later on.
If the weather is favorable for the re-
production of plant-lice, we may expect
them to attack the tassel, making the
top leaves sticky and discolored by
their dejections. I have seen bees
"pile" on the tassel until you could
scarcely have seen anything but the
bees gathering this " honey-dew." The
honey thus obtained is dark, but of very
fair flavor.

The entomological history of these
plant-lice (aphids) is very interesting to
the student of nature, and to those who
are interested I will refer you to the
original article, written by me, in the
May number of the American Bee
Journal, 1880, from which I have
drawn largely for the production of this
essay. I will mention here that there is
another product denominated "honey-
dew," which is observable on plants
after very dry weather, and consists of
extravasation or oozing of the sap from
the leaves.

Horsemint {vi07iarda). This plant
furnishes an excellent quality of honey,
equal to white clover, finely flavored ; it
is the best honey-plant we have ; it
grows on all our prairies, stands the
drouth well, and comes into bloom just
when our bees are in their working
strength ; it blooms rather after the
middle of June, and gives a succession
of flowers for 1^4 months, or rather
more than 40 days. We all rejoice
when our bees are safely through to the
horsemint.

There are several species of this plant
here which furnish more or less honey;
the most valuable are M. ciliata and if.
punctata. The first mentioned is nearly
a month earlier in flowering, though
both are valuable honey-plants, and de-
serve attention in the way of cultivation.
I believe some of our apiarists have cul-
tivated horsemint for its honey qualities.
It yields no pollen worth mentioning ;
the anthers project in a direct line with
the upper cleft of the flower, dusting its
pollen-grains over the body of the visit-
ing bee. Too much cannot be said for
horsemint as as honey-plant.

Although I have had no bees for the

past nine years, and have had little
opportunity to converse with honey-pro-
ducers in the region where this plant
abounds, from general observation I am
led to believe that this plant has for
years at a time been very scarce, and
has not yielded the abundance of honey
it once did, and that some seasons it has
failed almost entirely.

Pigweed {chenopodium album, Linn).
This very common weed in fields and
gardens, blooms about the first of Au-
gust, and furnishes an excellent quality
of pollen ; unimportant as a honey-
plant.

(Concluded next week.)

Bees in Florida and Minnesota.

I had much fun with the " Crackers "
of Florida the past winter, handling bees
in the swamps, and surprised every one
by taking a colonyout of a gum tree, and
in 60 days they filled the hive, stored
60 pounds of nice orange-blossom honey
in IJ^-pound boxes ; and the day before
I left (May 5th) they cast a fine swarm.
I hived them in a 3-story hive, with
room for 60 pounds of comb honey, and
expect to find themO. K. on my veranda
in front of the house, in November,
when I return.

A bee-keeper with 30 colonies there
did not get 10 pounds of honey. He says
that my bees took all the honey ! There
is a difference in handling bees properly,
or letting them go it alone.

My bees wintered poorly here ; 135
days in the cellar. I lost 40 per cent. ;
the balance hard at work now. Dande-
lions are the only flowers yet.

C. F. Greening,

Grand Meadow, Minn., June 10.

Convention I\otices.

NORTH CAROLINA.— The Carolina Bee-
Keepers' Association will hold its sixth semi-
annual meeting- on July 20, in Charlotte, N.
C, at the Court House, at 10 o'clock a.m. All
persons interested in bee-keeping are invited.

Steel Creek, N. C. A. L. Beach, Sec.

INTERNATIONAL.— The North American
Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its 24th
annual convention on Oct. 11, 12 and 13, 1893,
in Chicago, Ills. Not only is every bee-keeper
In America, whether a member of the society
or not, invited to be present, but a special in-
vitation is extended to friends of apiculture
it every foreign land, Frank Benton. Sec.

Washington, D. C.

A Binder for holding a year's num-
bers of the Bee Journal we mail for
only 50 cents ; or clubbed with the
Journal, for $1.40.

814

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Comb Honey at 10c. a Pound, or
Extracted at $1 Per Gallon ?

Query 877.— Which will pay the better il
sold in the home market, comb honey at 10
cents a pound, or extracted honey at $1.00
per gallon ?— Georgia.

Extracted. — E. Fkance.
Extracted. — Eugene Secor.
Extracted —S. I. Freeborn.
The extracted. — R. L. Taylor.
Extracted. — Mrs. L. Harrison.
Extracted honey. — P. H. Elwood.
The extracted honey. — M. Mahin.

I should say extracted, decidedly. — A.
J. Cook.

I should think extracted. — C. C.
Miller.

Extracted at $1.00 per gallon. — Jas.
A. Stone.

Extracted honey, decidedly. — James
A. Green.

Extracted, at the price named. — J. H.
Larrabee.

Extracted at $1.00 per gallon. — G. M.

DOOLITTLE.

Extracted at $1.00 per gallon. — J. M.
Hambaugh.

Extracted honey, every time. — Emer-
son T. Abbott.

Extracted honey, even at 75 cents per
gallon. — Dadant & Son.

The extracted article will pay the best
at the figures given. — G. W. Demaree.

If the bees are well managed, comb
honey will pay the best. — J. P. H.Brown.

Extracted honey, every time ; but
such are not the conditions in Canada. —
R. F. Holtermann.

The extracted. Work your market by
giving small bottles of your choicest to
prospective customers. — W. M. Barnum.

A gallon of extracted honey will
weigh 12 pounds, and at $1.00 per
gallon would be 83< cents per pound.
With only 1% cents difference, I should
produce only extracted. — C. H. Dibbern.

Extracted will pay the best at $1.00
per gallon, or 8 cents per pound, as you
get more honey, and if you can sell your
extracted as readily at 8 cents as your
comb honey at 10 cents, by all means
produce extracted. — Mrs. Jennie Atch-

LEY.

Extracted. Honey weighs about 12
pounds to the gallon, and if sold for
$1.00 per gallon it would be equal to
about 8 cents per pound. Your bees
should produce one-half more extracted
than comb honey, or, in other words,
they would store 12 cents worth of ex-
tracted to 10 cents worth of comb
honey, at the price you mention. — Mrs.
J. N Heater.

Extracted, by all means, as there is
only about 2 cents per pound difference
in price. In my own locality I could
make it pay better to sell extracted at 6
cents per pound than comb honey at 10
cents. Localities differ, though, in re-
gard to honey-gathering. Some bee-
keepers have told me that, taking it
all in all, they can do better producing
comb honey where both sell at the same
price. — J. E. Pond.

CONVEIVTIOX DIRECTORY.

1893.

Time and place of meeting.

July 20.— Carolina, at Charlotte, N. C.

A. L. Beach, Sec, Steel Creels, N. C.

Oct. 11, 12, 13.— North American (Interna-
tional), at Chicago, Ills.
Franli Benton. Sec, Washington, D. C.

In order to have this table complete,
Secretaries are requested to forward full
particulars of the time and the place of
each future meeting. — The Editor.

North American Bee-Keepers' Association

President— Dr. C. C. Miller Marengo, Ills.

Vice-Pres.— J. E. Crane Middlebury, Vt.

Secretary— Frank Benton, Washington, D. C.
Treasurer- George W. York... Chicago, Ills.

National Bee-Keepers' Union,

President— Hon. R. L. Taylor.. Lapeer, Mich.
Gen'l Manager— T. G. Newman, Chicago, 111.

Your ^eig^hbor Bee-Keeper

— have you asked him. or her to subscribe
for the Bee Journal ? Only $1.00 will
pay for it for a whole year. And, be-
sides, you can have Newman's book on
"Bees and Honey" as a premium, for
sending us two new subscribers. Don't
neglect your neighbor ! See page 803.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

815

Successful -Bee-Keeping Wot All
in Hives.

Written for the American Be-e Journal
BY G. M. DOOLITTLE.

" Which hive had I best use in order
to secure a large yield of houey ?" is a*
question often asked me, just as though
the houey crop was entirely dependent
upon the hive used, while an hour's talk
with beginners will show that many
seem to think that large yields of honey
are owing entirely to the style of hive
used, but this is not so. Hives have
something to do with the yield of honey,
of course, but nothing as compared with
a thorough knowledge of the location
we are in, and an understanding of how
to apply that knowledge so as to secure
the bees at the right time, that the yield
of honey may be gathered to the best
advantage when it comes.

The securing of the maximum number
of bees just at the time the honey har-
vest is at its best, counts more toward a
paying crop than all else combined in
apiculture, and explains why one colony
in the yard will give a large yield of
honey while many of the others which
we supposed were better than this, give
very little.

Again, the manipulation of hives has
more to do with the surplus crop than
the hives themselves, for no matter how
good the hive is, if the combs are never
touched or the surplus room put on at
the right time, all may count for naught
to the would-be bee-keeper, and the
flowers bloom in vain as far as any profit
to us is concerned. In order that others
should not get the idea that the hives
used and recommended by our best and
most successful apiarists would give
them thousands of pounds of honey
without work, I have often said that if
any one could not spend the time on the
bees which they required, they had bet-
ter keep out of the business.

I know of no hive with which a man
can secure large results by simply fold-

ing his hands and letting the bees work.
Such is not the economy of nature, and
in order to succeed in any calling in life
we must put energy, industry and per-
severance into our work, if we would
reap a harvest worth the gathering.
To work hard from twelve to sixteen
hours each day, at mere physical labor,
is not all that is required, either, as
many assert by their actions, if not by
words ; but there must be an energy
and push, mentally, sufficient to grapple
with all of the unsolved problems which
are in the way of our success. If these
are all combined, there is no reason
why bee-keeping will not give as good
results for what is expended upon it as
any other calling in life, even though it
is not so supposed by the majority of the
world.

I wish to leave the impression on the
minds of the readers of the American
Bee Journal that large yields of honey
can only be secured where there are
large numbers of bees in time for the
honey harvest, and the securing of the
bees at that time is the secret of suc-
cess. That more bees can be obtained
at the right time by the use of the Gal-
lup frame, together with a proper ma-
nipulation of the same, is my belief, and
is the only reason that I adopted that
style of hive, for other hives give many
good points not obtained in the Gallup,
but none of which are really great
enough to make good their loss on this
one point of preference this hive gives.

However, I have done nearly as well
with the Langstroth hive and frame,
and did I have 40 or more colonies on
that style of frame, or in many good
hives of the present day, I should hesi-
tate some time before I made a change,
trying first to see if a thorough knowl-
edge regarding their manipulation and
adapting this to my field, would not give
success. If it should prove that the
hive was not at all adapted to my local-
ity, then of course I would make a
change ; but to change hives every time
something new comes along, with the
thought that with this I should succeed,
is not the proper thing to do.

"Prove all things, and hold fast to
that which is good," is as trite a saying
to-day as it ever was.

Borodino, N. Y.

m I m

«ifycles" are getting to be very com-
mon uow-a-days. We have two for sale,
and any one wanting a bargain in a good
bicycle, should write to the office of the
Bee Journal.

816

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

IVotes from the '' Oak JLeaf Api-
aries" in California.

Written for the American Bee Journal
BY S. L. WATKINS.

We have had a great abundance of
late spring rains, and these, in the
southern part of the State, are the fore-
runners of a heavy secretion of nectar.
Bee-lieeping during these late spring
rains is a time for vi'atchfulness, and
bees must be watched very carefully, as
they may starve. It is not the winter-
ing of bees that is difBcult in this climate,
but in bringing them safely through the
spring months, during the rainy spells.
As they are all breeding very heavily at
this season of the year, they consume
honey with great rapidity, and a colony
running short, will starve in a few
hours. Almost every spring I have oc-
casion to feed part of my bees for a few
days, and sometimes all of them. But
it pays well, for the honey that they
consume at this time of the year is
simply a drop in the bucket compared to
what they gather later on.

In a late letter from my friend, G. W.
Cover, of Downieville, Sierra county,
Calif., he furnishes the following inter-
esting items :

" There are probably as many honey-
plants in this section as any place in the
State ; the madrona does not grow here,
it is too high for it. The mountain ash
grows in abundance, and I have ob-
served the bees working on it ; it is
usually in the heads of canyons. Among
the late honey-plants that flourish here,
may be mentioned the spignard, horse-
mint, one-eyed daisy, golden-rod, and
several varieties of asters. The Oregon
grass flourishes here, and is a very good
honey-yielder ; it is a very early plant ;
the wild morning-glory yields quite a lot
of honey ; swamp hellebore is an excel-
lent late honey-plant ; black hellebore is
a very beautiful plant, and a honey-
yielder. The bees are working on maple,
wild plum, and many other shrubs and
various wild flowers. There will be no
swarming here for sometime yet.

" In your letter you speak of the non-
swarming plan ; we are not bothered
with much swarming here. If you go
high enough up in the mountains, bees
will not swarm enough to build up an
apiary.

" The Carniolans are the best bees for
this section.

"Yes, I think that the bee-business is
looking up ; the new converts will find
that it will take care and work to make

money at the bee-business. I expect the
Sierras will be a grand bee-ranch some
day.

"I have not tried the fixed frames ; I
have just made a hive to try them this
year. I shall run for comb honey alto-
gether this season. I took the premium
on honey last season, at the Sierra and
Plumas Fair, and ran against the cele-
brated Reno honey. G. W. Cover."

As friend Cover mentions, it would in-
deed be hard to find any section of coun-
try in the world, where there is such a
diversity of nectar-secreting plants ; the
beautiful and exquisite manzanitas are
wonderful nectar secreters, and did they
bloom in July instead of in early spring,
the yield from this source would be im-
mense; as it is, they bloom during the
rainy season, and bees have only a par-
tial show in gathering honey from this
source.

The Sierra bee-pastures are of un-
rivalled and wondrous beauty during
their blooming season ; on all sides every
hue and color imaginable is presented,
while the air is spiced with the pungent
odor of myriads of blooming plants and
trees ; at these locations can be seen
vast stretches of lupines of various col-
ors, larkspurs, callinsia, mountain mint,
paradise plant, falocio, violets, several
species of wild clover, roses, and several
species of clanathus ; the clanathus in
certain seasons are great nectar-yielders;
the Sierra Mountain lilies can hardly be
termed nectar-secreting plants, still I
think that they furnish an abundance of
pollen ; these wild lilies are of such
wondrous and surpassing beauty that a
slight description will not come amiss.

The Sierra white lily possesses very
large flowers of a dazzling snowy white-
ness, which are spiced with a delicous
fragrance. The Sierra red lily is also
large in size, with a glowing caffery red
blossom, which is extremely beautiful.
The Sierra snow-plant is also worthy of
mention. In its flowering season it
throws up a spike of deep, brilliant red
flowers, which are so intense in color as
to almost glisten and sparkle in the
light ; this plant is undoudtedly the
most beautiful in the floral kingdom. It
has been my experience that almost all
plants possessing a fragrance, are great
nectar-yielders.

I have found that by giving bees at
least two frames of combs to build out in
the upper story of a hive, and by ex-
tracting frequently, swarming can be
kept down to a great extent. As I am
now working for honey instead of in-
crease of bees, so far I have been very

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

817

successful, and my colonies are all now
vigorous, powerful colonies, and I think
that I can easily manage them without
the issue of a single swarm. Too much
swarming means very little honey, un-
less they secure a large fall crop.
Grizzly Flats, Calif., May 20, 1893.

■^-•--^

Why Farmer§ and Horticultur-
ists Siiouid be Bee-Keepers.

Head at the Illinois Utate Gmwention
BY C. P. DADAHT.

In order to succeed in apiculture, it is
not altogether necessary to. be a special-
ist, and a farmer can keep a few hives
of bees as well as he can successfully
grow a small orchard or cultivate a
truck-garden. The fact is, we usually
find that the most successful farmers do
not neglect any of the smaller branches
of their industry, though some are more
proficient in one line than in another.

The greatest draw-back to the keep-
ing of bees by farmers, horticulturists,
and country people in general, is the
fear of stings. The majority of them
imagine that the handling of bees is a
difficult feat, and can only be performed
by those who have a special gift in that
direction. The recent progress in -the
management and handling of bees is un-
known to the masses. Yet it is a fact
that with all the latest improvements at
our command — improved bee-smokers,
bee-veils, movable frames, and the latest
implement, the bee-escape — there is so
little danger of being stung that it takes
only a little determination to success-
fully handle a limited number of colo-
nies.

Instead of saying, Why should farmers
keep bees, we ought to say, Why should
they not keep bees ? There is probably
not one farmer's family in fifty that get
all the honey they can consume, and on
every farm there are thousands of
pounds of honey going to waste annually
for want of bees to harvest it. Ten col-
onies of bees and an outlay of imple-
ments not exceeding $25.00, with
ordinary management, will be sufficient
to gather all the honey a family can
consume. According to our own experi-
ence, the product of 10 colonies of bees
in this State, is, on an average, 50
pounds each annually.

Very little time is required for the
manipulations of this number of hives.
With large hives, and the extracting
method, the actual labor is reduced to a
few hours. When the bees have been

properly put into winter quarters, they
need no attention till the first days of
March. Then one short visit, each
month, during the Spring, to ascertain
whether they have queens, and whether
the stores are sufficient to permit them
to rear brood plentifully, and they will
be safely carried to the time of harvest.

With extracting supers, the job of
putting on the honey-boxes is a matter
of less than an hour. Then the extrac-
tion of the crop will require perhaps
a half day. The rest of the manipula-
tion, including putting the hives in
proper shape for winter, need not re-
quire more than a couple of hours at
every visit.

The labor is indeed very light. To
know what is wanted, and to do it in
time, is the secret of success. To this
we might add that the bee-business is a
business of details, and that he who suc-
ceeds best is he who studies it most, and
does not rely more on his own ideas than
on the advice of experienced writers.
More blunders have been made by ig-
norance, or by too much self-reliance, in
this business, than in any branch of
farming that I know of.

It is perhaps well to add that the bees
are a useful factor in the fertilization of
many blossoms. Their help is invalu-
able to the horticulturist, and it is a
known fact to all observers that the
season in which the fruit-trees bear the
most plentiful harvest, are those in
which the bees have worked on them
with the most diligence. The fact is
easily explained, and is in accordance
with what the naturalists tell us of the
structure of the blossoms, and of the
fertilization of the pistils. To fertilize
the flowers and make them bear fruit it
is necessary that a little of the pollen be
scattered on the pistil, and it is proven
that this pollen is more efficient when
not furnished by the same blossom or
even by the same tree. So the bee is a
natural agent in the reproduction of
many trees and plants, and prevents in-
and-in breeding from being carried to
excess in all the blossoms on which it
works.

The assertion of many people, that
the bees are injurious to sound fruit is a
gross error, and if more people kept
bees they would soon ascertain that the
bees feed on fruit only when it is already
damaged, and when no other and better
sweet is to be found. They aim to save
that which goes to waste, but always
save the best first.

The location of an apiary, on a farm,
is an easily solved problem. There is
always some corner, in which stock does

818

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL-.

not go, sheltered by trees, or orchard,
or along some hedge, and on every farm
this corner might as well be occupied by
bees as by weeds ; and if a season comes
when the corn-field or the stubble are
are overrun by weeds, owing to too much
rain or other unfavorable circumstances,
the farmer may rejoice in the fact that
these same weeds will increase his
honey-crop.
Hamilton, Ills.

Xoii-Swarming —House-Apiaries
— Bees in Minnesota.

Written for the American Bee Journal

BY BARNETT TAYLOR.

FoRESTViLLE, Minn., June 14.

Friend York : — I have several of my
non-swarming hives filled with bees. I
wish you could be here and see two
swarms with two queens working peace-
ably and indiscriminately together as
one family. I know you would be as
much pleased as I am. If the working
of two swarms by alternating the work-
ing bees from hive to hive every six days
to prevent swarming proves profitable,
then the plan that has no traps, that
uses a hive cheaper than common hives,
will " take the cakes."

My new house-apiary is proving even
better than expected. The bees in it
are far stronger than equally good colo-
nies when put out in the open yard.

The outlook for a good honey crop
here, where there are any bees to gather
it, is first-class ; but the destruction of
bees in Minnesota last winter and spring
was terrible.

I inclose a letter from my friend Mr.
J, L. Gray, of St. Cloud, Minn., which
gives an idea of the feeling of bee-keep-
ers here. Perhaps a portion of Mr.
Gray's letter would be a valuable lesson
to bee-keepers, if published. Mr. Gray
is an extensive bee-keeper of long ex-
perience. Yours truly,

Barnett Taylor.

As suggested by Mr. Taylor, we pub-
lish portions of Mr. Gray's letter:

St. Cloud, Minn., June 12, 1893.
Friend Taylor : — I have read your
reports in OleaninQS and the American
Bee Journal, and have been much in-
terested in their perusal. I agree with
you in all your suggestions. Sealed
covers did the mischief for me the same
as for you, only to a larger extent. I
lost 40 colonies out of 46 with sealed
covers, and not more than 3 out of the

remaining 6 are worth counting ; 30
colonies with cloths with much propolis
did not fare much better in this apiary,
as there are not more than 6 or 7 that
will build up.

In my " Farm apiary," as I call it, I
did not lose a single colony out of 66 ;
only 3 were queenless, which I success-
fully united with others, and the whole
apiary is in fine condition.

I have bought 18 colonies in fair con-
dition, at an average cost of $6 each,
and can buy more — but I think I had
better not, as the prospects for a honey
crop are very poor indeed. There is
some sort of a caterpillar stripping the
basswood of all its foliage, I am told,
which, if true, will leave us without
much surplus. I shall build up this api-
ary by hiving many of my first swarms
at the Farm apiary in full hives of nice
combs, which I have moved up there.

Now, friend Taylor, I think we are
about old enough to quit following any
suggestions in bee-papers that are con-
trary to common-sense — like wintering
bees without any ventilators, or using
sealed covers to condense all the vapor
and steam from the bees, to sour the
unsealed honey, and give them the
diarrhea.

My bees on the farm were put into
the cellar on Nov. 12th, as I have
always put them in, with simply a clean
cloth over the top, and entrance wide
open ; top and sub-ventilators to the cel-
lar open all winter, and quite a portion
of the time one, and sometimes two, of
the three doors to the entrance. They
were taken out the evening of May 3rd,
and had their first flight on the 4th,
after a confinement of nearly six months.

I am quite well posted on the condi-
tion of bees within a radius of 20 miles,
and can safely say that 75 per cent, are
dead or worthless. The apiary from
which I bought my bees is owned by one
of the most slovenly of bee-keepers — did
not put the bees into his excuse for a
cellar until December, and many of the
hives were full of ice and frost. He
stripped off the old cloths, put on 7-cent
sheeting, a rim 3 inches high filled with
oat chaff, and set them in, one on top of
the other, three hives high, and took
them out the first of April, and had
never looked them over till the last of
May when I bought mine. There was only
one colony dead when he put them out,
out of 143 put in.

The combs are as bright as a new
cent, and the bees healthy, with no sign
of diarrhea on any of the hives.

Very truly yours,
J. L. Gray.

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

819

Perliai>§ a Case of BecDJarrlica
- -" Pollen Theory."

Writteyi for the American Bee Journal
BY C. W. DAYTON.

On page 586 Mr. J. C. Wallenmeyer
asks what was the matter with his bees
in the case cited, viz : " The storm blew
off the covers, and drenched the outside
combs. The next day I saw hundreds of
bees dying around, shaking, shining and
black, and very large. I suppose they
were bloated." In the answer it is sug-
gested that the "shaking" is a symp-
tom of the nameless bee-disease. In my
mind this is a genuine case of bee-diar-
rhea. If the bees had been confined six
months, they might have died the same
way. I have described this same thing
at least four times in the Amekican Bee
Journal in the last ten years, and the
general class of bee-keepers know just
as little about it as if it had not been
described at all.

At first the intestines of the bees con-
tained a substance nearly like what is
called "dry feces." When the rain
came into the hives the bees sipped it
up — filled themselves up, or loaded up,
rather, with water. This water was
cold, the whole hive was cold, in fact
just like a man with wet clothing. Did
you ever over eat of anything that was
easy to ferment. Too large a load is
more than the stomach can manage. If
you started for the honey-house with
400 pounds of honey on your shoulder,
I doubt whether you would ever get
there. Much water, a little honey, and
a low temperature are bad things. If it
happens to operate as a physic, they
would not become bloated, but it as
often operates upon the former contents
of the intestines in exactly the opposite
way. Water and honey in a fermenting
state are expansive, and if the cork is
not firmly driven, it will help itself out.

I once read that fruit canned up cold
with honey would keep, so I put up a
few cans of strawberries well mixed
with honey. In a few days the fruit
and honey separated, and fermentation
began, and one morning I found the
screw cap forced off and driven into the
ceiling overhead, and the fruit distributed
about the honey-room.

It may be asked why bees sip up this
water. It probably ran upon the combs
of brood. The instinct of the bees is to
keep the hives clean, especially where
the brood is reared. Every one wants it
neat and clean where they eat and
sleep.

a " POLLEN THEOKY " I'ROP.

One of the insurmountable questions
in connection with the "pollen theory"
was, why the bees did not have diarrhea
when they had sugar for food and no
pollen. Now I will tell you something
you can do, and something you cannot
do. You can pour water on a cluster of
bees in front of the hive, or into the
hive of a new swarm for a week and it
will not have a bad effect. Let a swarm
be away from their brood ten hours and
they can be handled much more peace-
ably than if they have a little brood.

I have found out this season that I
can take a whole load of new swarms a
distance of seven or eight miles over
rough roads with the entrances all open,
and not a dozen bees will come out ; but
if there is one colony in the load that
has one frame of brood, they will come
out and run all over all the hives, seat
or wagon-box, and make matters very
disagreeable in the night, and in the
daytime they will hold matters entirely
in their own hands. Pollen is nearly as
good as brood to make bees protect — it
is the wherewith to rear brood. Take
the brood and pollen away, and they
care very little what to do as soon as
their brood is forgotten. In which case
they have nothing to protect, and no
reason to sip up water. This was the
one little prop in the "pollen theory"
that held out so well.

Pasadena, Calif.

Samantlia at Saratogfa.— One

of the richest books in genuine humor
that has been published for many years,
in the English language, is "Samantha
at Saratoga," by Miss Marietta Holley.
Rev. Dr. Newman, the Bishop of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, says of this
book :

" I commend ' Samantha at Saratoga '
as an antidote for the blues, a cure-all
for any kind of imaginary woe, a recrea-
tion from mental taxation, a provoca-
tion for wholesome laughter, and an in-
spiration to godliness. It is the bitter-
est satire sugar-coated with the sweet-
ness of exhilarating fun ; it is irony
laughing at fashionable folly ; it is ex-
alted wit with the scalpel in one hand
and the Balm of Gilead in the other.
Her personality is intense, her genius
immense, her art perfect. She stands
alone in her chosen sphere without a
rival."

Read our great offer of this book free,
on page 773 of last copy of the Bee
Journal.

820

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

. Do not write anything for Publication

on the same sheet of paper witn business
matters, unless it can be torn apart without
interfering with either part of the letter.

One Hundred Pounds Per Colony.

I started in the spring of 1892 with 24 col-
onies in box-hives. I transferred them in
March to movable-frame hives, and for my
trouble I received 2,400 pounds of nice
honey by Oct. 1st.

I have taken off this spring 850 pounds up
to date, and have a honey-flow at this
writing. T. W. Whkeler.

Menardville, Tex., June 1, 1893.

Gathering Honey Fast.

Bees are on a big run of linden, after six
weeks of starvation, until no brood was in
one hive out of every ten, and after feeding
five or six hundred pounds of granulated
honey. I lost only a few strong colonies,
but had entirely empty hives at harvest
time. Prime swarms were hived on full
drawn combs the first week in April, and
up to the 15th ; the same had no brood up
to June 1st, when basswood opened, and
since which I have never seen bees gather
honey as fast, or fill with brood. Those
that had bees enough to do so are now full,
and many in the sections. I was in doubt,
as the bees were too old, and may not hold
out, or the honey-flow may continue three
to four weeks or more. We will see what
all old bees can do.

It would be diflicult keeping up with bee-
keeping without the " old reliable " Ameri-
can Bee Journal. G. W. Bistline.

Bly, Tex., June 12, 1893.

Packing Bees for "Winter, Etc.

After experimenting with sealed covers
and upward ventilation of bee-hives for the
last seven winters, I have come to the con-
clusion that to succeessfully winter bees
out-doors, or on the summer stands, the
bees must be packed above the brood-nest
with some kind of jjacking material, such
as chaff, planer-shavings, or sawdust will
do.

The fall of 1893 I packed nearly all of my
bees, which was 51 colonies in good condi-
tion witli sealed covers, with six or eight
inches of packing above the sealed covers,
to keep out the cold from above, which I
was sure it would do, and now for my pay
I have 25 empty hives with soiled and

moldy combs. Six of the 51 colonies were
packed with about six inches of chaff above
the brood-nest, with only a cloth between
the packing and the frames. These were in
12-frame Langstroth hives, which came
through in good condition.

My opinion of the two methods of pre-
paring bees for winter, and the result, is as
follows :

Hives with sealed covers will become
damp and moldy, the bees will become
swollen up with diarrhea, and death will
follow, providing the bees do not get fre-
quent flights, but should the bees fly often,
they may winter well ; and, on the other
hand, hives that are packed above the
brood-nest with wheat chaff keep dry, and
the chaff does not get wet and soggy as
does clover and buckwheat chaff.

Do bees injure fruit and grain ? A good
neighbor has argued that bees do injure
fruit-blossoms and buckwheat when in
bloom, and so far I have been unable to
convince him that he is laboring under a
false idea. C. A. Bunch.

Nye, Ind., June 7, 1893.

Watering Brood in the Non-Swarmer.

About the " Langdon non-swarming de-
vice," Mr. J. M. Davis asks on page 689 how
the brood left in the closed hive will be
supplied with water. The answer might
be: Close the entrance of the front, but
have a hole bored on the back of the hive ;
which hole will be easily plugged when re-
quired. In that way the working force
will still go to the other hive, while the
young bees will be able to care for the
brood. " Montreal Subscriber."

Results of Wintering in Iowa, Etc.

Bees, on the average, are doing well in
this part of Iowa. White clover is just be-
ginning to bloom, and about half of the
colonies are in good condition for the
honey-flow from clover. We have had a
splendid rain, and should the weather con-
tinue favorable, I think this part of Iowa
will get a good honey-flow from prairie-
grass, as Mr. Wilson says that white clover
and linden will be nearly a failure this
year.

On page 685 is a letter from Jerry Bart-
lett, of Audubon, Iowa. He says that he
was mistaken about all bees dying that
were left out. Out of 150 colonies left out,
in and around Coon Rapids, on the summer
stands, there were less than 10 colonies
alive. C. Johnson, Mr. Bartlett's neighbor,
had 6 or 8 colonies left out, and he told me
last week there w^as one left, and that was ,
very weak. G. W. Dewey, of Bayard, Iowa,
had 15 colonies, and lost all. Levering
Bros., of Wiota, Iowa, left out 40 colonies,
and wrote me they had lost all but 6, one-
third being in chaff hives. J. Matz, of
Guthrie Centre, lost 15 colonies. Wm Luck-
inbill had a total loss.

I left out 35, and have 7 left. I put 63
colonies in a cave, and took them out in the
spring, and found four drone-layers. I

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

821

killed the queens, and doubled up the four
with the other colonies, which left me 59
good colonies from the cave. Others that
wintered their bees in repositories, as far as
I can learn, wintered with small loss. This
does not include those colonies cased with
a 10-bushel box stuffed with straw and chaff
to absorb the moisture and keep away the
frost.

Reading Sam Wilson's predictions re-
minds me of an occurrence away back in
the '60's, when about 40 miles southeast of
Knoxville, Tenn. We were marching along
one day, and passed a farm-house where
the family were out viewing us. I was
lurking behind the regiment, and passed a
boy astride the fence. He turned to his
mother and said, " Mam, them there Yan-
kees ain't got any horns." " Hush, Sam-
my," his mother replied, "there is another
Yankee coming there." " I don't care if
there is." retorted Sammy, "he's no

Erophet like I is." I would like to know if
e is the same Sam, of Cosby, Tenn.

Thos. Johnson.
Coon Rapids, Iowa, June 5, 1893.

White Clover Blossoming Scantily.

Judging by the indications at present,
here in Central Illinois, our apicultural
" cake " is dough again for this year.
White clover, our standard source of supply,
is blossoming very scantily, while there is
a copious honey-dew. The upper side of
the oak leaves is plastered with the sticky
stuff, while the under side fairly breathes
with aphides. All that is needed to enable
the bees to carry immense quantities of it
is damp weather.

The rains, last year, started a magnifi-
cent crop of clover, and I looked forward to
a good honey harvest this year. A great
deal of the clover was heaved out by the
frost last winter, especially where it was
not well protected by blue-grass.

We had a better bloom of white clover in
July than in June last year. I hope it will
be so this year. Geo. P. Robbins.

Mechanicsburg, Els., June 9, 1893.

A Few Bee-Notes from Utah.

Reports and bee-notes from Utah have
of late been conspicuous by their seeming
absence; possibly the exceeding heavy
winter losses have something to do with
the spirits of the bee-men ; the fact is that
we are in the position that friend Root
would call " blasted hopes," as we have lost
from 3^ to %^ of what bees were put into
winter quarters, notwithstanding the fact
that one of the correspondents in the " Bee-
Keepers' Guide," during last season, made
the statement that the wintering of bees
was no problem here in this region.

Wintering is a subject that I, for one,
would be pleased to have more light on. If
any of the correspondents of the Bee Jour-
NAX, can furnish suggestions, that come
from experience, on the cheapest and most
successful way of wintering bees on the
summer stands, in my Opinion they will .
thus confer a favor on hundreds of bee-men I

who have been unsuccessful in wintering,
because such is a very serious matter with
numbers of us.

Our new foul brood law was tried in dif-
ferent sections last season, with varied suc-
cess. The law itself is one that can be made
to prove effective, providing inspectors are
careful in performing their duties, but I
notice that some are a little too careless, if
I may use the term, in the way they go
from apiary to apiary, and in my opinion
at least, there is considerable danger of
doing more harm than good in spreading
the contagion. My point is that most of
them in inspecting a diseased apiary are
too liable to go to one not diseased without
taking any, or but very little, precaution in
dismfecting tools, etc.. used in handling.

What bees we have left are beginning to
breed up very well, considering the back-
ward spring we have had, and prospects
are favorable. Jno. C. Swaner.

Lehi, Utah, May 30, 1893.

Not Much Fruit-Bloom.

Almost everybody around here lost all
the bees they had the past winter. I put
12 colonies into the cellar, and they came
out all right, but it has been a long, cold,
wet spring, and I lost one colony from
spring dwindling. I have had no increase
yet, but it looks as if they would swarm in
a few days. There has not been much
fruit-bloom here, and when fruit was in
bloom, it was so cold the bees could not
gather anything. Henry Bushbaum.

Aredale, Iowa, June 12, 1893.

Bee-Keeping in New Hampshire,Etc.

Bee-keepers find that bees of late years
don't begin to collect the honey they did 30
and 40 years ago. I think it is due in a
measure, to a lack of white clover. I sow
buckwheat, but I find but few bees on it.
I asked a man who kept bees, why my bees
did not feed on the buckwheat, and he said
it was too near their hives. If it was a mile
off, they would be there in great numbers.

Now, the question is, How far will bees
go for their food ? Mine have been baited
by bee-hunters six miles off. Six years
ago mine fought with a man's who kept
several colonies of Italian bees. It was
three miles to his place, and yet my old-
fashioned black bees captured one of his
colonies, and in two years my bees were
many of them Italians, but now they are
all blacks again. You ask if they were
better than my old bees ? No ; only they
were awfully ugly.

How far will a swarm of bees go to get
into a tree ? Mine have gone five miles,
two miles of the way across the waters of
Lake Winnipissaukee to an island. I ob-
serve that bees generally find a home near
the water — low land — and why is it ?

Why do bees like hogs, but can't bear
sheep or horses ? And some persons they
will sting, while others can do anything
with them and not get stung. Will some
one please explain? J. L. Hersey.

Centre Tuftonborough, N. H., June 5,1893.

822

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Index to Vol. XXXI.

SUBJECTS,

Absorbents 272, 402

Adulteration of honey 17,80,85, 114, 176, 184,

263, 305, 360, 399, 402, 408, 525, 617 657

Advice to bee-keepers 88

After swarms— preventing of. . 4X9, 648, 649, 713, 727

Age of queen wtien beginning to lay 565

Age when virgin queens mate 758

Albino bees 107

Alcoholized wax 268

Alfalfa 408. 437

Alley wants war 108

Alsike clover for honey 120, 183, 396,466, 744

Analyses of honey 175

Ants and bees 656

Ants in the apiary 791

Apiary for April 456

Apiary of F. A. Gemmill 391

Apicultural journalism 616

" Apicultural literarians " 181

Apicultural outlook 15

Apis dorsata 147. 308, 554

Apis Florea 147

Apis Indlca 147

Are drones from unfecundated queens virile ?.. 309
Attic or bees of Hymettus 146

Bad mess 1 67

Bait sections 754

Balling the queen 809

Barrels for extracted honey 778

Basswood for bees 338

Bee-diarrhea and its treatment

395, 439, 489, 503, 531, 664 759

Bee-escapes 49, 336, 519

Bee-feeders 399, 429

"Bee Journal" at the head 392

Bee-keepers' congress in 1893 81

" Bee-Keepers' Review " 295

Bee-Keepers' Union 9, 74, 167, 214, 263, 305

Bee-keeping and the home 12

Bee-keeping as a specialty 89

Bek-Keeping in—

California 5^, 84. 296, 396, 438, 462

Florida 427, 525

Kansas 77

Minnesota 217, 310

Mississippi 269

North Carolina 407

Oklahoma Territory 531

Tennessee 119, 376, 717

Texas 77

Virginia 437, 598

Bee-notes and comments 117

Bee-paralysis 302, 392,399, 626

Bees affected with diarrhea 339

Bees and horticulture 624

Bees and fruit 305, 436, 759

Bees and peaches 41

Bees and red clover 76

Bees as weather prophets 37i

Bees clustering at swarming time 559

Bees don't injure grapes 625

Bees leaving in March 586

Bee-smokers 695

Bees starving on pollen 181

Bees stealing eggs 665

Bees stealing honey 270

Bee-stings 689

Bee-stings and rheumatism .16, 338

Beginners and the market 367

Best management for producing honey 621

Biographical—

Benton, Master Ralph 587

Badant, Chas 425

Demaree,G. W 329

Dibbern, C. H 779

Doolittle. G. M 203

Elwood, P. H 43

France, Edwin 650

Green, J. A 171

Orimm, Adam 138

Harrison, Mrs. L 458

Holtermann, H. F 683

Larrabee, J. 11 715

Mason, Dr. A. B 747

McEvoy, Wm 393

Miller, Dr. C.C 105

Muth, Chas. F 234

Pond, Jos. E 523

Pringle, Allen 619

Quinby, Moses 266

Root, Amos Ives .555

Root, Ernest R 298

Rouse, J. W 810

Secor, Hon. Eugene 75

Taylor, Barnett ii

Tinker, Dr. G. L 490

Wilson, Emma 361

Bottom-boards 429,488, 695

Brood-chamber for comb honey produci ion 497

Building up colonies in spring 367, 437, 537, 662

Burr-combs on brood-frames 435

Button willow 8 9

California apiarian exhibit 488, 500

California bee-legislation 391, 488

California climate 311

Can bees hear ? 53

Can bees puncture fruit 7 759

Candy for spring feeding 532

Can the queen establish the sex of her offspring

at will 753

Carelessness in wintering 664

Caring f6r honey 239

Carniolan bees 145, 333, 405, 588

Cellar spring feeding of bees 403

Cellar wintering of bees 342, 690

Cell protectors 537

Changing the air in cellars 170

Chilled queens 489

Closed-end brood-frames 372

Cold place, but bees wintered 695

Comb baskets 246

Comb honey at 10 cents a pound, or extracted

at $1.00 per gallon 814

Comb honey for market 367

Comb leveler 567

Comb or extracted honey ? 621

Compression theory as to queens 408

Convention reports 180

Conventions—

California

Central 33?

Cortland Union 336

Eastern Iowa 367

Illinois 239

Indiana 431, 464, 495, 527, 560, 592, 624

Mich igan 15, 47, 142, 175

New Hampshire 821

North American 79,111, 199,206,423, 583

Nova Scotia 2I6

Ontario 149

South Texas , 369. 811

Southwestern Wisconsin 400

Texas 559, 589, 620, 651, 685, 716

Utah 821

Vermont 272

Wisconsin 399

Crane bee-smoker 661

Crooked combs 332, 438

Cure for bee-diarrhea 755

Cure for blues 152

Cyprian bees 77, 146, 588

Dalmatian bees 146

Dampness and bee-diarrhea 439, 371

Dark Italians or golden Italians 184

Darkness, dryness, dormancy— three wintering

essentials 502

Dead bees 713

Dealing direct with producers 601

Death Notices—

Hambaugh, Mrs. Blmina 42

Harbaugh, R. E 423

Mott, Mrs. Dr. Geo 456

Seelman, Mrs. G. B 808

Wilson, Mrs. D. C 456

Department of Agriculture and apiculture.. 207, 208

Died with plenty of honey 777

Digesting food and storing it for future use 752

Divided colonies as good as from natural

swarming 1 16, 371, 524

Divided colonies vs. natural swarming 371

Do bee-keepers need an experiment apiary ? 784

Doubling colonies 728

" Driving" bees explained 618

Drone mating with a worker 268

Drones and swarming 713

Drones for breeding purposes 713

Editorial assistance 520

Bggs In queen-cells 270

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

823

Employment in Colorado and California api-
aries 756

Empty combs 240

ICnd of the rope 552

Exhibits at fairs 457

Experiment apiaries 775, 784, 787

Experience with bees.. 339, 374,409, 469, 504.6f)0, 725

Experiments in apiculture 47, 742

Experiments in wintering bees 721

Extracted honey .247, 269

Extracted honey padiages 240

E.Ytractlng pieces of comb 521

Fastening comb starters 434,647

Feeding baclc extracted honey 274

Feeding bees 137, 1 82. 274, 333, 363, 429, 563, 718

Feeding inferior honey 296

Fertile queens and Alley traps 632

Few bees and much attention vs. many bees and

little attention 49

Filtering daric honey to improve its color 463

Five-banded bees 790

Flaring-top comb rack for extractors 78, 631

Flight temperature 459

Floating bee-houses on the Nile 89

Formic acid and pain 522

Foul brood 215. 268, 399, 594, 693, 695

Foul-broody hives— how to disinfect 206

Foundation starters with separators 521

Frames of honey for new swarms 585

Freight rates on honey 104

Full sheets of foundation 367

Gettiing bees from a high tree 632

Getting bees to empty a super 553

Getting rid of black drones 715

Glucose mixtures 50

Glucosing dark honeys 168

Grading of honey Ill, 423

Granulation of honey 493, 790

Green-house for wintering bees 660

Ground bark for packing bees 790

Handling gentle hybrids 652

Hasty conclusions of some apiarian writers 340

Hive entrance and frames 588, 653

Hive invention 719

Hive making bv hand 622

Hive that had diseased bees 553

Hiving swarms 62 /, 728

Hiving swarms on drawn combs 754

Hiving swarms on starters or empty frames. .44, 184

Hives— a new one 276

Hives for comb honey 428

Holder for sections 407

Holy Land bees 588

Honey an animal or vegetable substance 718

Honey caramels 170

Honey-dew aphidian honey or secretion of

leaves 599

Honey from cotton 589

Honey from golden-rod and Alsike 87

Honey, not swarms wanted 681

Honey or sugar syrup tor breeding 553

Honey-plants of Indiana 527

Honey-plants of Northern Texas 781. 812

Honey-producing trees and plants .369

Honey prophet and prophecies 534

Horse-blanket and bees 405, .504

Horse-mint 302

House-apiaries 272, 395, 567, 818

House-top bee-keeping 365

How far bees fly for honey 45, 376. 404, 470

How Michigan secured its experiment apiary... 787
Hybrid and black bees— are they worth improv-
ing ? 691

Hybrids vs. Italians for honey 270, 312, 435

Illinois bee-keepers 297

Illinois bee-legislation 169, 328

Illinois World's Fair apiarian exiiibit 71, 615,

647 712

Importance of the honey-bee 80

In-breeding of bees 461, 597

Incorporation 213

Indiana bee-keepers 359, 520

Indiana World's Fair exhibit 592

In-door and out-door wintering compared 686

International bee-conventions 583

Introducing queens 44,332.364,427.713, 780

Inventions in apiculture 80

Iowa World's Fair apiarian exhibit 103, 776

Italian bees 145

Italianizing bees 745

Jumping plan of working colonies 529

Keeping bees near a railroad 563

Keeping bees on shares 714

Keeping bumble-bees 659

Keeping combs from moth 336

Keeping Italian bees pure 74

Keep the cellar dark 460

Land of Dzierzon 330, 468

Land of flowers 332

Langdon non-swarming device 627, 689

Large hives 586

Late queens 280

Laying workers 108, 244

Lessons from " the blessed bees" 658

Liquor business and the Government '745

Locating an apiary on a mountain side 622

Location for bee-keeping 433, 589

Loose bottom-boards 429, 488, 695

Making comb from wax 85

Making short honey seasons profitable 304

Mailing queens 308

Managing swarms 625

Manum bee-feeder 296

Maple sugar for winter feeding 429

Marketing honey 301, 304, 337, 470

Marketing honey in paper cartons 590

Mating of queen and drone 407, ,599

Mating of virgin queens 461

Mesquite as a honey-plant 280

Mice in bee-cellars 265

Michigan e.xperiment apiary 787

Michigan World's Fair apiarian exhibit 50

Milkweed and buckwheat honey 120

Moisture— perhaps it was 521

Mold in cellars 296

Mongrel bees 343

Mortality of bees in winter 568

Moth-miller 723

Moths— getting them out of hives 681

Moth-worms in combs 745

Moving bees a long or short distance 365, 617

Moving bees in winter 202, 249, 333, 377

Mrs. Smith lends a helping (?) hand 663

Mutual aid, or helping each other 717

Nameless bee-disease 140, 265, 468, 536

Natural swarming 426

New bee-hives 456

New comb built out of old 759

New era in the production of honey 179

Nine or ten frames ? 809

Noise at swarming-time 559

Non-swarming 818

North and the South 492

Notes from the "Oak Leaf Apiaries" of Cali-
fornia 816

Nuclei 489

Nucleus method of replacing winter losses 725

Number of colonies for comb and extracted

honey 110, 370

Number of cubic inches in a brood-chamber 1'74

Old combs 362

Old hybrids and blacks— would ne^ blood im-
prove them ? 494

Old queens with first swarms 560

Old subscriber* 201

One or two rowed zinc 553

One-pound sections of honey 489

Opening hive-entrances in winter 336

Over-production and overstocking 503

Overstocking a locality with bees 433, 503

Origin of the honey-bee 553

Outside wintering in Lower Canada 755

Packing as an absorbent 532

Packing bees for winter 820

Packing case method of wintering bees

22, 151,242, 275,503 532

Paddock Pure Food Bill 39,52,41-6, 510

Painting hives 406

Parthenogenesis 693

Partly-fllled sections 295, 337

Pennsylvania World's Fair apiarian exhibit 71

Perforated zinc 272

Perhaps bee-diarrhea 819

Perhaps not fertilized in conflnement 759

Pioneer bee-ktepers of Texas 172

Planting for honey 365

Poisonous honey 201, 428, 554, 627

Pollen in frames 585

" Pollen theory " prop 819

Predictions for the honey-flow of 1893 375

Preparing for the honey-How or season .237, 269, 302

Preparing for the next season 21

Prevention of swarming .593, 616, 688

Price of extracted honey in years of scarcity 499

Primitive bee-keeping in Texas «5l

Probably killed by cold 682

Producing honey on a large scale 331

Profitable reading 408

Progression in bee-culture 719

824

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Proper time to put on surplus cases 757

Prophecy of the honey-flow for 1892 690

Propolis as a smoker fuel 616

Punic bees 53, 424

Purity of queens 521

Purple or Italian clover 182

Pursuit to combine with bee-keeping 303

Putting bees out of the cellar 459

Quack bee-keepers 723

Queen 523

Queen a hermaphrodite 599

Queen and spermatic cells 330

Queen-bee experience 23, 87

Queen-bees— difference in size 334

■ Jueen-breeding 167

Jueen-cell built over a drone-egg 526, 727

Jueen-excluders 593

Jueen-excluding honey-boards 465

Jueenless colony in winter 237, 363

Jueen or worker 7 565

>ueen questions 2^6,429, 777

Jueen-rearing 617, 777

Queen-rearing frame size 552

Queen records 434

Queens cramping 564

Queens injured by being chilled 489

Queens mating in the air 76

Queens— test for purity 521

Queens with 2nd and 3rd swarms 560

Queer actions of a colony 554

Questions and answers 327

Quilts in summer 489

Rain of honey-dew 599

Rearing queens 273, 495, 749

Reason why bees don't pay sometimes 150

Records of queens 434

Reducing bees 100 per cent 565

Relative profit of comb and extracted honey 274

Removing dead bees from combs 460

Removing eggs from cells 532, 535, 590

Removing honey from brood-combs to the sec-
tions 558, 589

Re-q ueen ing 375, 63 1

Reproduction in bees 82, 721

Reversing frames— questions on 533

Rheumatism cured by bee-stings 307, 312

Robber bees 521

" Rough on Rats " for killing ants 791

Sawdust for packing bees 459

Sawdust gathered by bees 439

Scale record of a colony 438

Sealed covers 402, 566

Section holders 148

Selecting a home before swarming 588

Self-hivers 142, 471, 757

Self-hivers and the drone and queen-trap.... 401, 757

Selling the honey 301

Sense of smell in bees 53

Separators . 264

Separators and unfinished combs 397

Severe winter in New York 152

Shall we go out of the bee-business ? 49

"Shake-out" function of hives 585

Skunks in the apiary 115, 462

Something very funny 170

Southern queens 297

Spermatic animalcules in bee-eggs 330

Spraying of fruit-trees 113

Spraying potatoes 273

Spreading the brood-frames unnecessary and

cruel 566

Standards for judging Italian bees 240

Starting queen-cells 185

State experiment apiaries 775

Still thinks it a queen 505

Stimulative spring feeding 522

Stings and the breath 648

Sting-trowel theory 137, 330, 370. 467

Stock or Beveridge willow for bees 337

Straw-board separators ,521

Stray straws 88

Strengthening bees 727

Strong colonies for comb or for extracted honey? 783
Successes and discouragements in bee-keeping.. 373

Successful bee-keeping not all in hives 815

Successful wintering conditions 695

Sugar-cane- gathering honev from 504

Sugar-cane syrup for wintering bees 139

Sugar-honey 18, 71. 13.5, 181. 199, 231,295, 615

Sugar syrup or honey for wintering .366, 786

Summerland of Florida 331

Swarm-catchers made from broom-handles 471

Swarming of bees .'">88

Swarming out 809

Swarm scattered all over a tree 553

Swarms liived on starters 310, 312

Swarms occupying empty hives put up in trees. 789
Syrup for feeding 718

Taxing bees 233

Teachers in bee-keeping '...'.'.'.'.".'.'.!".'.*. 631

Telling old queens 45

Temperature reports 24, 248,' 343

Texas and her resources 730

Texas horticultural meeting 744

" That bee with the glands " '.',', isi

Th umb-screws „ 430

Tight-end frames and moths '." 791

Transferring bees 74, 204, 438, 461, 490, 521.

617,649,652 684

Treatment of swarming queens 435

Tremendous honey-flow 681

Tunisian or " Punic " bees 147

Unfinished combs and separators 397

Union of bee-keepers 368

Uniting colonies 54, 306, 333. 655

Utah bee-notes 821

"Value of a good colony in fall and In spring 238

Value of bee-literature i84

Varieties of bees and their characteristics . . 144, 620

Vermont exhibit 273

Vermont law against adulteration 424

Virgin queens 246,461, 758

Voice organs of the bee 744

Wagner and Langstroth 525

Watering bees in the non-s warmer 820

Watering troughs and bees S52

What Bio. Alley wouldn't do 584, 680

What caused the dwindling? 746

White sage of California 720

Why did the bees die ? 297

Why did the bees swarm out ? 809

Why farmers and horticulturists should be bee-
keepers 817

Why some people suffer from stings and others

not 689

Why was the queen balled 7 809

Wide frames 297

Wild peach of Texas 312

Will of the queen and sex of the egg 51, 108,

244,402,492,505,565,711,753 755

Will the colony swarm ? 489

Will the nucleus swarm ? .585

Wintering and springing bees 589

Wintering bees 118, 277. 369, 598, 721

Wintering bees in io wa 820

Wintering bees in the South 45

Wintering bees out-doors 375

Wintering bees under ground 434

Wintering bees under snow 336

Wintering bees up-stairs 600

Winter losses and other bee-keeping matters 788

Winter losses of bees in Northeastern Iowa 785

Winter problem in bee-culture 560

Wisconsin honey exhibit 231, 280

Worker-brood in drone-comb 746

Worker-eggs laid in drone-cells 330

Working for increase 364

Working qualities of bees 564

World's Fair apiarian exhibit 81, 399

World's Fair notes 679

yellow jessamine 428

Yellow sweet clover 777

Yield of honey-plants 589

ILLUSTRATIONS,

Alslke clover 467

Crane bee-smoker 661

Benton, Master Ralph 587

Dadant, Charles 425

Demaree,G. W 329

Dibbern,C. H 779

Doollttle, G. M 203

Blwood.P.H 43

France, K QUO

Green,J.A 171

Grimm, Adam 138

Harrison, Mrs. L, 458

Holtermann, R. F ... 683

lyangdon non-swarming device 629

Larrabee, J. H 715

Mason, Dr.A. B 747

Mating of queen and drone 600

McEvOT, Wm 393

Miller, Dr. C. C 105

Muth, Ohas. F 235

Pond, Joseph B .523

Pringle, Allen 619

Qulnby, Moses < 267

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

825

Root, A.I 5'^g

Root.BrnestR 2??

Rouse, J. W "11

Secor. Hon. Bugene ^^

Taylor. Barnett '•

Taylor's comb -leveler 5Si

Tinker, Dr. G. L *%}

Wilson. Miss Emma •**>»

CORRESPONDENTS.

Aaron.Mrs.C. B. 343
Abbott, L. F. 466, 535
Adamson.lra, 119
Alldritt. Wm. 377
Allen, Chas. 536
Alley, Henry, 401
Andes, M. D. 297, 371
Andre, J. H. 727
Andrews, Jno. 405
Arms, A. A, 400
Arnold, F. X. 404, 470
Aspinwall.N. P. 72
Atchley, K. J. 686
Atchley. Mrs. J. 23, 456
Atkins. F.B. 86
Axtell, Mrs.L. C. 152

Babb, A. C. 119, 376
Bagshaw, Jno. 521
Baird, A. B. 312
Balch, J. C. 371. 746
Baldwin, A. A. 727
Baldwin, A. Y. 665
Baldwin, G. G. 791
Bankston. C. B. 77
Barb.J. 8. 423
Barnell. J. 376
Barnett. Allen. 601
Barnwell, B. A. 307
Barrlnger. J. W. 343
Barrows, O. B. 406
Bartlett, Jerry, 695
Bartz, Aug. 246, 537
Beardsley, Bdw. H. 119
Beaupre, M. 489. 601
Bechly. Fred. 633
Heeler. B. F. 217
Beeson. Jos. 600
Beheler, B. F. 633
Belding. C, 265, 598. 728
Bell. G. W. 118.536
Bellamy. Jas. R. 246
Bence. C. J.617
Benton. Frank, 145, 308,

584, 585, 627
Biesemeier, F. 185
Bingham, T. F. 695
Bistline, G. W. 820
Blair, D. B. 663
Blakley, C. W. 110
Blank, F. N. 745, 791
Blodgett, J. W.310
Boardman, H. R. 466
Boggs, Jno. 184
Bohlmann, H. 279
Boultinghouse, B. F. 759
Bowen, C. L. 809
Bradford, A. B. 373
Brldenstine, B. 297, 489
Briggs, A. A. 377
Briggs, D. K. 721
Bright, Wm. H. 632
Brooks, B. W. 777
Brown, H. H. 151
Brown, M. D., O. S. 277
Bruning, W. F. 536
Buckley, A, D. 408
Bunch, C. A. 820
Burnett, R. A. 104
Bushbaum, Henry, 821
Butts, S. S. 504
Byer, David, 87

Cadwallader, D. A. 665
Calef, D. R. 600
Oarlzen.S. M. 310, 364
Gary, Elisha, 503
Catterson, J. B. 562
Chamberlin, Chas. C.279
Chandler, L. 87
Chapman, S. D. 339
Clarke, Wm. F. 214, 330

Coleman, H. F. 279, 521.

537. 590, 633, 652, 681,

727
Collins, Jno. 396, 462
Common, J. B. 52,471,696
Conrad, J. 245
Cook, Prof. A. J. 9, 48,

82, 176,201.429,727
Couvillon, P. B. 505
Cover, G.W. 816
Coverdale, F. 183. 367
Crary, Jno. W. 248
Creasy, G. A. 438
Crosby, A. F. 88
Cullinan, W. J. 276, 437,

690
Cutting. H. D. 424

Dadant. Chas. 426
Dadant, C. P. 817
Dadant, Chas. & Son,778
Davenport, F. J. R. 437,

585

Davenport, Mrs.S. A.343
Davidson. A. C. 746
Davis, Jno. M. 689
Davis, W. J. I8t. 310
Dayton. C. W. 720, 756,

790, 819
Dee, Emm, 689
Demaree, G. W. 626
Dill,J. C. 554, 745
Ditty, Wm. 760
DooUttle, G. M. 20, 148,

152,297. 306. 433. 563.

568,655, 809, 815
Dornblaser, W. S. 810
Douglas, "W. S. 313
Duff, A. H. 456
Dunkin, Mary J. 682
Dunlap, J. B. 407

Eastwood, L. 120
Eckles, C. H. 789
Edwards, D.M. 811
Eflrd, F. B. 395
Ehret. Jos. 88
Ellis, E. B. 107, 522
Ely.L. S. 472
Emmert. Jno. V. 377, 601
Eskew, J.R. 182
Everman, Jake, 790

Fairchild,Rev.Miller,759
Falkner, C.B. 150,664
Farnum, H. C. 115
Faylor. Rev. W. P. 372,

785

Feathers, P. 569
Finch, F. 334
Finney, A. 536
Fisher, Jno. D. A. 408
Fisk, A. M. 54
Flory, Samuel, 183
Foreacre, Thos. 396
Foster, Geo. J. 337
Fowke, R. C. 714
Eraser, D. J. 279

Gale, Geo. 87
Gardiner, F. A. 332
Gardner, M.W. 714
Gardner, W. W. 344
George. L. 23
Getaz. A. 439, 757
Girard. A. 490. 633, 727
Golden, J. A. 393
Goodeli, C. A. 152, 665
Goodrich, J.D. 310
Gordon, Mrs. M. W. 493,

525
Gray, J. L. 818
Greeley. E. 536 ■

Green, J. A. 21,242,275,

691
Greening. C. F. 332. 428.

461.685,813
Gresh. Abel. 505
Grover, irvin, 632
Guentber, Jos. 459, 663
Gfnn, Geo. T. 342

Haas. M. 407
Hachenberg, Dr. G.P. 53
Hall, Jos P. 436
Hallett, B. H. 248. 460
Hambaugh, J. M. 42, 648
Hammond. D. D. 368
Hammons, Chas. 297
Handel. Jno. 23
Marmer. W. 120, 184,408,

504, 568
Harrington, F. F. 119
Harrison, Mrs. L. 9, 280.

332, 427, 583
Hart, Fred M. 468
Haskins, Jno. 311
Hatch, B.C. 311,723
Hauser, Jno. 438
Havens, B. F. 520
Heddon, James. 18
Heise, A. 472
Heise, D. W. 46i, 504
Henderson, T. J. 694
Herr, Mrs. R. H. 626
Hersey, J. L.. 821
Hewett, C. P. 695
Hicks, Dr. J. M. 624
Highbarger, L. 408
Higgins, J. T. 216
Higgins, Levi, 24
Hill, J. H. 493
Hines, T. O. 312
Holeman, D. A. 633
Hollingsworth. T. 469
Holtermann, B. F. 662,

688
Housel, Wm. 696
Howard, Dr. Wm.B.717,

781,812
Howell, B. 535
Huffman, B. L. 744
Humphries. B. H. 439,

665
Hutchinson, Edwin, 279
Hutchinson, W. Z. 15, 20

47,79.111, 142,175,215,

465, 787

liams, Byron, 792

Jackson, L. L. 217
Jacobs, J. M. 85
Johnson, Lowry, 438
Johnson, Thos. 533,788,

821

Jones, Orville, 184
Judkins, Mark D. 695,791

Keady, Thos. 241
Keeler, H. F. 659
Kelly, Thos. C. 342
Kerr, John, 87
Keyes, O. U. 521
Klldow, A L. 107
Kimsey, Dr. S. M.G17,777
King, Jas. A. 537
Kittinger, W. 533
Knight, H. 42
Koenler, Louis, C. 55
Kopplin, Alex F. 695
Kretchmer, E. 776
Kropp, Jno. C. 396

Lamkin, A. W. 311
Lang, C. F. 791
Larrabee, J. H. 215
Latham. J. P.179,753,760
Lathrop, H. 399. 728
Laws, Mrs. W. H. 362
Laws, W. H. 302
Leah, Chas. W. 332
Learned C. W. 503
Leers, Ph. D., Wm. 182,

501

Leveling, H. 364
Lewis, B. F. 269
Lewis, C. 8. 461
Lewis, Jesse B. 118
Lillibridge. J. C. 437
Lindbeck. D. 403, 505,

553, 586
Littooy, G. D. 681
Lockhart, & Co.,F. A.333

Looft, C. G. 647
Losee, B. 569
Lovesv, B. 8. 6.56
Lyon, J. E. 337

McCabe, O. E. 183
McCormick, Wm. B. 56
Mccormick, W. H. 553
McDonald, F. H. 118
McEvoy. Wm. 24.149,594
McGulre. G. W. 438
McKean. D. L. 791
McKeon, Jno. 760
McKinney, Dr. J. W. 181
McNay, Frank, 694
Main, B. S.. P. F. 758
Malta. 790

Manchester. J. H. 343
Manum. A. E. 616
Marden. Mrs. C. 118
Marsh, J. A. 302. 531
Marshall, Dr. W. K. 45
Martin, Jno. H. 54, 306
Martin, W. B. 120
Martin, W. W. 489
Mathews, R. J. 632
Matth ias. M. D., A.C. 53
Maximilian, 270
Mead, C. K. 434, 724
Meador,W. 8.86
Mendleson, M. H. 151
Mercer. N. 312
Michael. J.F.496
Miles. B. 8. 265, 537
Miller, Dr. C. C. .51, 88,
112, 114, 136, 180, 200,
213,244, 301, 309, 339.
362,370, 402, 435, 467,
531,551, 557, 565, 775,
784
Miller, J. W. 728
Miller, O. P. 117
Miller. S. E. 434, 757
Millard, D. 569
Montague, C. A. 120,435,

536
" Montreal Subscriber,"

755, 820

Moore, Alice S. 528
Moore, Jacob. 24,248,364
Moore, J. F.72
Moore, T. C. 696
Morrow, F. C. 696
Morton, W. E. 536
Moses, H. J. 812
Mott, Geo. 45, 270
Mullin,T. H.369,811
Muth, Chas. F. 104. 360
407, 499, 593

Nance, G. W. 182,249,663
Nelson, C.L. 438
Nelson, D. L. 364, 492
Nelson, G. E. 809
Newland, B. H.695
Newman, Thos. G. 10,73
167, 264

O'Connell. D. 310
Ofmstead, O. K. 409
Overholt, Israel, 694

Packard, O. L. 234
Paige, 8. A. 535
Pearce, J. A. 41, 502
Pedelty, Jr., Jno. 429
Pederson, A. J. 535
Peterson. Jno. 343
Phillips. D. T. 333
Phillipson, Geo. N. 649,

790
Pizer, C. S. .553
Pollock & Sons. Jas. C.

408
Pond, Jos. E. 719
Posey, L. ROO
Pouder, W. S. 359, 431,

464,495, 527, 560, 592,

624

Powelson, Lee, 278

Pratt, E. L. 529, 632
Pringle, Allen, 72
Prus8ing,C. F, 119
Pryal,W. A. 84, 311,397.
438. 500

Quimby, W. R. 377

Rader, Math. 725
Rackleff, Geo. 601
Reed. L. 601

826

AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL.

Reed, L. G. 566
Reepen, H. 268, 330. 5S4,

6(KI
Reger, J. K. r>03
Renk, VV. F. r>36
Ressler, J. B. 460
Reynolds, A. 56
Reynolds, C. 405, 489, 790
Rhees. R. T. 118
Rice, B. E. 42
Richard8on, F. H. 202
Rickel, W. 663
Riley, C. V.213
Robbins, Geo. F. 497. 821
Robertson, S. M. 278
Robinson, O. J.56,406,693
Rockwell, F. F. 585
Rogers, A. H. 535
Rollins, I. W. 120
Root, E. R. 51, 143, 660
Rupp, Jno. H. 278
Russell, Ira W. 532
Russell. R. S. 431
Ryan, Jno. M. 152

Sanford. A. C. 247
Sayler. Dr. Albert, 631,

728
Schumacher, A. 87
Schwaner, L. 681
Scott, H. W. 274, 424
Scratch, H. N. 86,217,363
Secor, Eugene, 81, 234,

633, 658
Seeley, H. M. 376
Seller, John M. 696
Seelman, G. E. 808
Shaffer, J. 375
Shank, Mrs. A. M. 247
Shaw, Thos. 394
Shigley, D. P. 216
Shiver, W. 374
Shultz, R. A. 664
Simpson, A. A. 375
Smith, Edw. E. 36.5, 727
Smith, E. J. 5t)4
Smith, Mrs. F. C. 664
Smith, J. P. 402, 694
Smith, U B. 141
Smith, L. K. 718
Smith, S. A. 266
Smith, S. B. 311, 598
Snow, M.S. 217
Soule, W. H. 694
Spitler, Geo. 183
Springer, Allen, 280, 503,

554
Staininger, N. 184
Stephens, F. 377
Stewart, J. G. 280
Stickney, L. A. 279
Stockwell, Geo, A. 759
Stolley, Wm. 338, 471
Stone, Jas. A. 86, 169,

239, 298, 328, 712
Stoner, W. E. 312
Stout, S. 537
Strehle, F. 120
Strickland, Chas. L. 77

Sturtevant, E. H. 249
Subscriber, 618, 778
Sundermann, John, 88
Swaner, Jno. C. 821

'I'arey, Chas. 23, 633
Taylor, B. 566, 721, 818
Taylor, R. L. 16, 89
Taylor, Ham'l. 714
Taylor, VV. P. 344
Templin,L,.J.436
Theilmann, C. 73, 217,

407, 597
Thies, Chas. H. 280
Thompson, A. M. 409
Thompson, F. L. 533
Thompson, R. W.205,396
Thorstad, J. E. 246
Trego, S. F. 728
Tubbs, M. W. 786
Tufts, Dr. A. W. 340
Tyrrel, A. C. 657

Utz, Sam'l. 185
Unterkircher, A. 536

Vance, M. D., J. W. 280
Verhaalen, Theo. 780

Walker, F. N. 403
"Wallace, Thos. S.632,759
Wallenmeyer, J. C. 333,

586

Ward, Jno. A. 459
Ware, S. C. 471
Watkins, S. L. 89, 816
Wayman, L. 248
Wheeler, Geo. S. 278
Wheeler, T. W. 278, 809,

820
Whipple, E. B. 622, 653
White, Chas. 471
White, H. C. 777
White, W. H. 395
Whiteside, R. F. 151
Whiting, Telah C. 55
Whitmer, Dan'l, ^5
Wiedemann, F. W. 342
Wilcox, F. 231
Wilcox, L,. 521
Wiles, M. L.600
Wiley, H. W. 179
Wilkins, C. W. 336
Williams, A. L. 246, 439
Williams, Rul'us, 759
Willis, Wm. 344
Wilson, D. C. 457
Wilson, Emma, 107
Wilson, Sam. 375, 690
Winters. Geo. L..504, 553
Wood, W. R. 428,617
Woodward, Robt. B. 791
Wooldridge, J. Ij. 116
Wright, C. A. 87
Wright, E. R. 437
Wright, W. D. 633

Zillmer, F. F. 437
Zinn,C- C. 57,696

Capons and Caponizing:, by

Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny
Field, and others. It shows in clear
language and illustrations all about
caponizing fowls ; and thus how to
make the most money in poultry-raising.
Every poultry-keeper should have it.
Price, postpaid, 30 cents;, or clubbed
with Bee Journal one year, for $1.10.

NaiiiaiitUti at $$ai*atog°a is cue of

the best books ever writteii. !See page 773
of last number of the Bee Joukxal. We
offer it free to those sending us three new
subscribers, and also give to each of tlie
three subscribers a free copy of the pre-
mium edition of " Bees and Honey." This
is a most liberal offer, and should be taken
advantage of now. It expires Aug. 1st.

Honey & Beeswax Market ((uotations.

The following Quotations are for Saturday,
June 24th. 1893 :

CHICAGO, III. — There is not much move-
ment in comb honey. Prices range at from
12@16 and 17c., all good grades bainging 15®
17c. A few cases of the new crop have ar-
rh'ed and brought the top prices. Beeswax is
very steady at about 25c. Extracted honey Is
moving very slowly at from 6@8c.

R. A. B. & Co.

KANSAS CITY. Mc— Receipts and stocks
very light, demand good. We quote: No. 1
white 1-lbs. 16@17c.; No. 2, 14@15c.; Nq^ 1
amber 1-lbs. 15c. ; No. 2 amber, 10@12c. Ex-
tracted, white. 7@7^c.; amber, 5@6.

Beeswax— 20®2 3c. C -M. C. C.

CINCINNATI, O.— New extracted has com-
menced to arrive lively, and is in fair demand
at 5®8c. There is a slow demand for comb-
honey, and no choice ou our market; prices
nominal.

Beeswax— Demand good.at 22@25c for good
to choice yellow. Supply good. C. F. M. & S.

NEW rOKK, N. Y.— New crop of extracted
is arriving freely. Market is quiet aod de-
mand limited. Fancy grades sell at from 7®
8c. ; common to fair, at from 60®70c., as to
body, color and flavor. Beeswax, 26@27c.

H. B. &S.

SAN FRANCISCO. Calif —Choice extracted
is scarce at 7@7^c., and demand heavier than
supply. Choice comb is not scarce at 10@12c.,
according to quality, 1-lbs. Beeswax is neg-
lected at 22®23c. S.. L. & S.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Demand good, supply
very light. White 1-lbs., 16c. Extracted. 6®
7c. No beeswax on the market. H. & B.

BOSTON, Mass.— Honey is selling slow and
pries are lower. Best 1-lb. comb, 16@17c.—
Extracted. 8®10c.

Beeswax— None on hand. B. & R.

ALBANY, N. Y.— Our honey market is dull
at present. There are some receipts of new
extracted, but no reliable price established
yet. Beeswax is more plenty, at 27@28c. for
good color. H. R. W.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.— There is quite an
active demand tiiis week for honej. especially
white comb honey in 1-lb. sections. Dark is
very slow sale. Stock on hand in this market
is very light. Receipts have not been enough
to supply trade during the past 10 days. Fan-
cy white conb honey, 18@20c. ; No. 1 white,
17c.; fancy amber, Itjc; No. 1 amber, 14c.;
fancy dark, 12c.; No. 1 dai-k, 10c. Extracted
California 60-lb. kegs, 9c. Beeswax, unsal-
able. J. A. S. & Co.

Amerikanische Bienenzucht is the
name of a bee-book printed in the Ger-
man language, which we now have for
sale. It is a hand-book on bee-keeping,
giving the methods in use by the best
American and German apiarists. Illus-
trated ; 138 pages; price, postpaid,
$1.00. It is just the book for our Ger-
man bee-keepers. We club it with the
Bee Journal for one year, for $1.75.

fj

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