Augnst 11, 1863. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOETICHLTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



119 



driving, described by Mr. Payne in page 59 of the enlarged 

 edition, which is the only unobjectionable mode of imiting 

 bees in common hives.— A Devonshire Bee-ke3?ee.] 



UNITING SWAEMS. 



ToTJ inserted my letter at page 483 of your last Volume. 

 The mismanaged second swarm was made right by the 

 union of another cast with it, which was accomplished by 

 turning up the first tenanted box, and, after weU sprinkling 

 with syrup and a whiff of smoke, dashing the new comers 

 into their midst. The union was successful without any 

 fighting, bvit the strengthened stock became very irritable. 



The strong stock, which was weakened by transposing, 

 was strengthened again by the union of a good swarm. It 

 was too heavy to handle readily, but the junction was effected 

 by sprinkUng the swarm v.-ith syrup an hour or two before- 

 hand, and at the time of union dashing out the bees and 

 gently lifting the old stock over, having first given a whiff 

 of smoke. The union was peaceable, and I have since 

 obtained some fine lioney ; but for several days the bees 

 clustered largely outside the hive. These unions were of 

 bees in common close-top hives. Another union I made 

 much more easily with a stock in a bar-box by moving the 

 crown-board, and, after sprinkling both stock and swarm, 

 dashing the bees on the top of the exposed bars. I have 

 resolved to renew my apiiiry and substitute frame or bar 

 straw hives for the old close-topped ones. Having purchased 

 of Messrs. Neighbour a Woodbury straw frame-hive, I felt 

 <Us appointed there was no window. Are windows useless 

 in such hives ? 



I hare used this season a little contrivance for emptying 

 supers of the bees, and have found it exceedingly convenient 



3D 



Mr. Payne, particularly in his latter years, than I had ; and 

 I think there is some mistake, if it is to be inferred that he 

 advocated the employment of any such agent, for I know 

 well how much he was opposed to it, notwithstanding the 

 words following attributed to Mr. Payne at page 18 of " Bee- 

 keeping." 



" This plan (chloroforming) possesses a great superiority 

 over the usual mode of brimstoning, as none of the bees 

 are killed ; and over the more modern plan of fumigation 

 by fungus or puff-ball, inasmuch as it is far less trouble." 

 It seems odd enough that the expression " more modern 

 plan" shovdd here be applied to puff-bail, used for centuries, 

 probably before chlorofoi-m was known at all for any purpose. 



With the pen in my hand allow me to commiserate our 

 friend Mr. Woodbury on the lamentable account he gives of 

 his apiary. Though the pai-ticular disease (which I believe 

 to be an entirely artificial one) under which it is suffering 

 never came within my own observation, I feel inclined to 

 endorse every word at page 08 from the pen of your excel- 

 lent correspondent J. Lowe. There is an old saying among 

 schoolboys, "We cannot eat our cake and have it too." — 

 H. Taylok, London. 



H 



A. The "lass trap, n vape with the font broken off, leavinc a balf-inch hole 

 ivbere the been descend at c. The ^lass a 19 ahout 5 inches lonp. 



n. A block of wood in taro piecef;, hollowed out to fit the bulb of the glas?, 

 and held to^elher by an plaj^tie band. 



D D. Thin adapring-honrds with four-incb h^lea. 



E. The super to be emptied. 



K. Empty bos placed on a floor-board, or on the deprived hive n n. 



and perfectly effectual. It is made of a broken vase of 

 glass, and is used by fixing it in a block of wood and placing 

 it, mouth downwards, in an empty box, which may be placed 

 over the deprived hive if convenient, so that the bees as 

 they drop out of the trap fall into their own hive, and at last 

 leave the spoil at the bee-master's pleasure. The apparatus 

 may, perhaps, be best described by giving a sectional outline 

 of the whole as in use for emptying a super. — A. B. C. 



CHLOEOFOEM FOE STirpiFYING BEES. 



Ceetain of your subscribers have desired information 



relative to chloroform, and have been referred to " Payne's 



Bee-keeping " for directions as to its use in stupifying bees. 



Few person.:;, perhaps, had more int.erco".Tr3e with the la,te 



FAILFEES IN BEE-KEEPING. 



The scientific apiary of " A Devonshike Bse-keepee " 

 has come to grief, and " An Old-pashioned Bee-masteb," 

 of Finchley, rejoices accordingly, congratulating himself that 

 he has never advanced one step beyond the wisdom of his 

 forefathers. Let him do so, and welcome. I can at any 

 time, if I feel so disposed, retaliate by crowing over one of 

 the many old-fashioned bee-masters who come to me to pour 

 out their tale of woe, and look for sympathy and assistance 

 at my hands. What I wish to point out is that his quota- 

 tions from Golding and Taylor are quite beside the mark. 

 I have never urged any man to attempt scientific bee-keeping 

 who has not the inclination and ample leisure to attend to 

 it, nor am I one of those charlatans who, from interested 

 motives, attribute success to any particular kind of hive. 

 I have contrived a hive which offers, as I believe, peculiar 

 facilities for scientific bee-keeping, but I have at once made 

 it public for the benefit of others, without the slightest 

 thought of either fee or reward for so doing. I publish my 

 experience for the information of all, and should take shame 

 to myself if I concealed my faUtu-es and blazoned forth only 

 my successes. Had oiu- forefathers been of the same stamp 

 as " A_N Old-fashioned Bee-master" bees would never 

 have been domesticated at all, nor would even the wild 

 honey have been appropriated by man, since probably the 

 first would-be robber of a bee's nest got well stung for his 

 pains, and was crowed over by aU the do-nothings of his 

 acquaintance. — A Devonshiee Bee-keepbe. 



"A DWINDLING APIAEY." 



With much sympathising interest I have read the lament- 

 able account given of his apiary by your esteemed corre- 

 spondent, "A Devonshire Bee-keepek." Can there be 

 any other way of accounting for the disappointment which 

 he has exj^erienced except on the supposition that some 

 epidemic has visited his apiary? Why should not bees be 

 subject to some such occasional visitation of disease as weU 

 as other animals, including man himself? And is it not 

 possible that the continued use of artificial food in his apiary 

 yeai- after year, deficient in some important particular of 

 nourishment or stimulant, may have induceda state of 

 weakness in the bees themselves, or have occasioned some 

 ill smell about the hives or combs which has tended to the 

 same result ? If our Devonshire friend's and Mr. Fan-brother's 

 experiences had not been (yet are they ?) exceptional, one 

 mio-ht have attributed the evil to the wretched seasons for 

 bees which have recently prevailed. Till quite the middle 

 or end of June, this year has proved Uttle better than those 

 immecUately preceding it. At that time I was almost m 

 dc^spair, few of my hives appearing to thrive, while I met 

 with continual disappointment (as your pages have ab-eaay 

 told) in regard to queen-reai-ing. Since then a decided im- 

 p-ovement has set in ; my bees have raised several Itahan 

 qneens, while others have swarmed naturally— rather too 



