212 



JOtTRSAI, OF HORTICXJLTDRB AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



{ Much 13, IcM. 



death of Mr. Hermimn. Allow me to assure him the report is 

 fflToneous : Henninn Btiil lives and is working amoDR bees 

 *or several years he kept a cigar shop in a snbnrb of Phila- 

 delphia, and attended to the bees of amateur apiarians One 

 of my neighbours sent him to Europe for Ligiirians He 

 secured many stocks, but had e long return passage and lost 

 everybee In the spring of the present year he removed to the 

 oomitay, hopmg to improve his fortunes by going more largely 

 into bee-keepinc than he could do in the city ^ ^ 



To return to the bees. I very soon found the progeny of the 

 ^gunan queen among the workers, and hoped aJeo to find 

 Hermann mistaken. Next spring, however, the number of 

 Itahans was stationary, and all the young bees were black I 

 frequently watched the return of the workers, counting them 

 to ascertain the proportion of Italians, and arrived at the coT 

 elusion that they were about the thirtieth of tWorki^g po^u! 



pother Lignnan queen, which was introduced by Mr. Hermann 

 ?,l<r' received, and six weeks afterwards I found her 



progeny veiy numerous. The number of black workers rauidlv 

 decreased. All the drones were killed ; and longT,efore winter 

 there were no black bees left in the hive 



Thinking this rapid disappearance extraordinary, I wrote to 

 Mr. Langstroth. asking him if my black bees had not been 

 „i^7 v.o-'' *''• *°^«*^«"- *Iv friend replied that the ItaUans 

 were doubtless innocent of apicide : but added, "the life of a 

 bee m the working season is very short." As regards the black 

 It^in,'«~ t^'v-" ''^V.^'^K'^Verience satisfies me that the 

 iTTrnZ f r ^i"^?T^ ^"'"^^^ ^l"*" ^^^" black brethren, 

 the progeny of the first Ligurian queen having maintained 

 theirposition inth^s hivefor nearly twelve months, in numbers 

 lessening with time, it is true, but bv no means rapidly wMe 

 m less than one-fourth of that time every black bee perilhed! 



FICKLENESS OF BUTTER. 

 FoK the last seven or eight weeks I have been unable to eat 

 any butter from the cream from one cow, all I have, which has 

 been treated in every respect as she has usuaUy been, when I 

 have had no difliculty in the matter. The cow is the same 

 and appears in perfect health. Her food consists of mangolds 

 and brM and chaJI Before chnmiug, the chum is scalded 

 out, and thus made warm, and the cream is warmed by 

 leing placed m hot water. WTien churned it thickens to "a 

 certam extent, and butter seems nearly formed • then of a 

 sudden It seems to dilute, as it were, and no amount of churn- 

 ing can alter it again. What makes it more extraordinary is 

 that twice since this has happened the butter came all ri""ht 

 (and once in five minutes), the treatment being in every else 

 the same, as was the food.— A. L. o j c 



_ [We pnbUsh the foregoing, because we have heard of similar 

 uistajices, and we shaU be obUged by any explicatory or reme- 

 dial information. To obtain butter with the greatest'cei-tainty 

 and m perfection, the cream should be churned daily This 

 cannot be done where only one cow is kept. A temperature of 

 6b m the dairy causes aU the cream in the milk to rise There 

 are times when a eoWs milk differs very much from its ordi- 

 nary state.] 



OUK LETTER BOX. 



Tr,Ii^*'i? ^^•■/- £'' ■''-'— Tie address of the Hon. Mis. .^bnthnott i"; 

 tochmartlBe, Inchtnre. N. B. Mr. Pigeon, of Lvmpslone, Devon. «as 

 vary BncceBsIoJ mth La Flcche Ust year. Bar of some who advertise in 

 ^^rv"?^"- ,P"^* '^ " •'"o'' «^«"«1 tie •■'Standard of ExceU^nce,- 

 pnbhshcd by the Pooltry CTnb. We believe the price is 5*. 



oihTi^lv T" ™'',/'o™.(^iJ'''«).-We hove nothing to add to or to 



filtc^g for U^infhens.""' "'''''"^- '" °" ^'^^"'"'« ^' '^'' " '*° 



tJ^^^' ?" ^™"c' ConN '7<.V7n),-We are opposed to a maize diet, it is 

 MO lattening, and hr.s not stay eiiouKh in it, nor are we friendly to glazed 

 ion«es and such luiuriM. They keep birds clean, but thev neith'r pro- 

 ^nZ 'fei^Df.Proflt- U you will lot your fowls live Uke fbwls they will 

 ™ T •. .J' '' ^''. ^\ ""^ '■^"y ^I he nnprofltable, as pets mostly 

 Me. L*t them ont m all weathers, give them oat or barley meal mixed 

 with water m tne morning, a feed of maize at mid-dav, meal again in the 

 evemng, and they will be less trouble and more profit". 

 ^J'-°" J.S<'l"<-rihcr).—V:itb the ndvant.iges your chickens hsve thev 

 Should have no sickness. -We think that yon'allowthe ben herlibertV 

 joo soon ; she wiU drag her chickens to death at this time of year. In 

 the winter and early spring tho hen should be under the rip till the 

 chiclicns are at least ten weeks old. Add choppea egg and bVead and 

 milk to TOUT chickens' food, and give your Bantams bread end ale, and 

 camphor in their wat«r. ' 



an^t^h^Jo,?!'^'; ^:;.™^i'„i-\f::?"r.r;',r.^f-''™«?..'=»<'° ."".i.yi-.. 



rubbish (or tho fowls to pick up 

 arrn'^Ir.n,f,r"v"Li'°''?.'- '^"""■'i '*• ^- '^i-We are afraid v, „r bena 

 scales otXl^.?fV.v"'''','r°'"' "«'' '" nlmort every bird when the 



Cochin! are snI?W« / .°..° "".""^ "',?"" •"''"'^ «'"■>• «■•'• ««' ^Ong 



Lochms are subject to this at an earUer age than any ether breed. 

 «i.h,!;,'(^.h?,-,;^i: '^' ^iT^, ""■" "P'oion, no breed can be rar.intaincd 

 o lo c c„s?o «nJ n'lr,'?'""'."''' "? "/ ^""^ """d- To breed in-aS^iS is 

 s^"becans„ .b. /^.f iJ- " ^n "ifenor cross som<.time6 Locomes nece.- 

 Bar> oecausc the inferior bird poSECSaes the quality its sunerior lacks 



l^Z^Tu'S.:;'^ r ""■ """' "' '"« PriJe H.Ts Sl-em'lhoiseut- 

 6uccessf!il. " ""^ ^ '^OP''"''^" ""»* » Web has h«en already 



Black CoCBras fZrffrn).— Those birds were first bred in Cambrid-esbire 

 Id by a cross between Whitj< .n,l T!n(r ki.j. %iiu._ _._ ™? 'j: .? ._ 



I cross between White and BalT birds. 



They were 8ho-.\-n at an 



men, a 



u.ilified. 



being 



N-o?hmr?fi,^.w., ''■".,""'"'''' "•'■■""^•''i- «o»l<l certainly be di.-, 

 honesU^sw'" "'^^'' '° "-'ongly in favour of a l-ri as i't 



ihfifr,7% ^".iV^- S- -Two day. or even three days, hrforo hatofaing. 

 Si St hf^^-^" "?' '? »»>?''»™ "■»£«' i-r ten niL-iates or rn^^li 

 ^e^on- chickens in them an oarecring and tUting ia all 



Mck has a 



• a milky 



s you can 



e vou may 



PowTEn Cock Ir.r, (.5u6i<T.7.tr).— I am -'-' - 



cancer In bis crop, a:;d the dischnrce 'rci. 



kind of pap." If such is the case you had 1 



feel from the out.8ide that the cancer is deu.,,.;, „ u il 



open the crop, cut the cancer clean out, wash tLc- crop . 



S; Jii .J^r"' ^°" "^^ .""'" ■' ''■'' "=<=" '"'•'' !t i' < "' ■■ indigestion, 



Sd^.l/^ T ""f^S ^;° "' ™'™" """ I'tmate d.vs fori week 



^een c n, ?, ■"''■ ""f ^"' ^K' »""' »!«>.» "ttle sulphate of iron or 



green copperas in nis drink.^B. P. B. 



in^tbf«'''iy?,rJ'^T';'''-~f ^ f "" ''«" Erindley-s Incubator, a-lverti«ed 

 c^mni.. ,;,.?.' '■\^'.r'"l'. It is v.ry simple, easily m^.agcd, and so 

 compact that it mignt stand by (Le Sreside. The cover is of glan, eo 

 that the whole process of natehing may be witnessed. 

 Cakabies Dvmo (Canan, Lorcru-l have examined the teed neat. 



^'„5 J^*^^™'-'",';*'''' '^e*''-'-;'''"'»'0"> o' "sot seeds; but the re- 

 mainder, though small, were fresh and good. The Canary seed looked 

 !? ;t^ '^,' i°1 ""'" ^""^ '""''y whitish seeds among it. On tasting, 

 the third seed had a hot nnpleasant flavour, not r.nhke bad nuts, and a 

 large proportion of the seed was so iJ.ivonred. There was a grain of rye 

 among that sent, .ind that had a malted taste. I am inclined to think that 

 nnZfMT^'f^r" ;, ■''''■' " ^^"^ '"•'■^ damaged and kilc-di-ied, and coDse- 

 ?< fhi -.1 ^5, 7'" ^"^ '^=°^* "' f <""' "''■^^ '1>''"»- I "°> •■•'^ «OTr\ to bear 

 of the death of so many nice birds, but it does occasionally h.\pi)en to 

 others besides •• c.vxaby Lovek," .ind we are M liable lo lose oni- pets, 

 {"."^iT" ?. !"'■ P""'™.?? ™-S'ilves by other |.eop!e-6 ign .ranee or care- 

 lessness. It IS impossible for me to Bay where immunity from ^och acci- 

 dents can be lusnreu against. I cannot recommend ..ny dealer in parti- 

 cular, nor do I know anything about foreign birds.— B. P. BuESx. 



u-?'"^^^>' I^'^'^'O THE WiEEs 0,-one).— The trick yc.r.r bird has fcf 

 biting his wire cage, I think, is merely a habit and not a sign of illness : 

 but It thcwu-es are brass they may make him ill: therefore it would be 

 adTisaUe to put him in a cage with iron wires.— B. P. B. 



PvEDBREASTsWoWa 7Jtd4rt<w;;..— They arc often kept in cages, and I 

 do not thmk they are difficult to keep. London fanciers keep them ia a 

 Nightingale s cage ; but I think such cares arc scar«!y large enough. I 

 prefer a common breeding c.ge. Feed on chooptd breed and cheese, a 

 little cooked meat shred line, suet pudding, boiled carrct or hard-boiled 

 egg as a change, and with cleanliness and the use of :he bath I have no 

 doubt you will find them haiUy enough. — B. P. BKEsr. 



Tamixg axd Teachixg a Paerot U. S. A.j.— The bird should be kept 

 m the room mth you as much as possiWe, and frequently spoken to. 

 Give it occasionally any little eatable vou think that it may fancy, such 

 as a piece of loaf sugar, apple, nuts. ftc. but no meat, fat, or 'bones'; every 

 time you approach tlie cage speak kindlv to tho bird, and be oareinl not 

 to aUow any one to frighten, tease, or effe-nd it. It will be very sensitive 

 lo anythmg of the kind, and would not soon forget it. TMieu gi^-lng it 

 fresh food or cleaning it out continue to speak to ft. and we have no doubt 

 that the bird will shortly lose its wildness. Some are Ulie chihlren, more 

 easily managed than others, much depending on the temper of both, but 

 great kindnos and affection \t;11 in time tame the most fractious. Any 

 words you \n.-h the bird to say repeat lo it as often as possible, taking 

 care always to repeat the same words. 



■a!^^^^'^ AMATEiTE-s BEEHIVE (2?).- It U high-priced. Write to Mr. 

 w. J. Pettitt, Hive Manufacturer, Dover; or to Mecars. Neighbour 

 Holbom, London. 



TRAXsrEBRixei Bees {CI. J/.i.— Transferring bets ;r,.a acommon old- 

 fashioned straw hive to a hive with supers, m.iy be rerformed in April, 

 and the middle of a line day is the best time for doing so. 



LiouRiAX Bees— WooBEunv Hives (W. C>.— Mr. Woodbury, of Momt 

 liadford, Exeter, will supply .veiu with a stock of Liguriuns, and will state 

 their price upon appUcation being made to him liirett. The month of 

 April is about the best time f,.r obtaining them, fnthrashed rye straw 

 IS the best materia] for straw, and yellow pine for wooden, hives. Full 

 working instrncfous for making Woodhur\' fcime-hives are given in the 

 hfth edition of " Bee-keeping lor the ilanv, ' published at this office, and 

 sent free by post for five stamps. 



Common axd Ugikiax Bees »• Oxe Apiaev M. B., Sirm.n(,ii<i«i).— 

 It IS of no use to attempt isolating the Ligiuians unless von could keep 

 them some miles distant from all other bees. Tho ori'glnel Ligurian 

 queen will breed pure It-Jians under any circnmstances as long ma she 

 hves. The month of April is about the best time for transferring bees to 

 framehivcs, and it will be well in so doing to remove surplus drone 

 combs. You will find moch valuable information bearing upon the 

 subiect ol your letter in page 61 of our eighth Volume. 



