538 



JOURNAL OF HORTICOLTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. ( Dccombor 30, ISO. 



the same day the bees again swarmed all right. On the 3rd of 

 June, two days afterwards, another swarm came o£f, went back, 

 and finally swarmed all right on the 4th. 



In another case the old queen accompanied the swarm, but 

 no young queen ever appeared in the old hive, while in the 

 Bwarm itself a sort of neoine war occurred, whereby one-third 

 of the bees were sacrificed, and the poor queen herself narrowly 

 escaped with her life. So much as to swarming anomalies. 



In early localities I think bees both swarmed well and stored 

 well; but, nevertheless, I am inclined to think that pasturage 

 was neither so rich nor so long-continued or productive as in 

 other years. Where the white clover was plentiful strong 

 hives made considerable weight, and in several localities some 

 beautiful supers were taken ; but oven in regard tn this, one of 

 the best of honey-yielding flowers, it suddenly gave way, and 

 the bees ceased to gather much from it even after it appeared 

 in good condition. The same remark applies also, and more 

 particularly, to the heather. The blossom appeared abundant 

 enough, but notwithstanding the good weather which prevailed 

 in August, the honey collected from this source was not corre- 

 spondingly good. There seemed to be a deficiency of nectar 

 secretion in the flowers, owing to the previous dry weather, and 

 altogether the amount stored was unsatisfactory. From the 

 15th to the '27th of August only did my bees obtain much 

 honey from the heath. During this period they stored at an 

 average from lOlbs. to ITilbs. each, but the greater part was 

 deposited, not in the supers, but below. In some parts of 

 Scotland, rich generally in heath pasturage, little or no honey 

 was collected from the heath this season. Still, on the whole, 

 most apiaries, I believe, were found at the close of the bee 

 season in pretty fair circumstances ; and speaking for myself, 

 my stock both as to stores and population commenced the 

 winter campaign in excellent condition, well prepared to brave 

 the few bleak and stormy months which lie before them. So 

 far, however, the weather has been very trying, and unless 

 some mild and favourable days occur soon I anticipate dy- ■ 

 sentery will be more prevalent in our apiaries this winter than 

 during the previous one. i 



I take this opportunity of adverting to two subjects referred | 

 to by your correspondents, Mr. G. Raynor, and "R. S.," of , 

 dates November 25th and December 0th, on " queen encase- 

 ments," and "late-bred drones." In the former Mr. Raynor 

 has been pleased to refer to my articles and views on the very 

 interesting and curious phenomena of queen encasements, 

 and details with much distinctness and accuracy the case and 

 consequences of a Ligurian queen introduced by him into a 

 hive deprived of its own some forty-eight hours previously. 

 My theory, as summed up in the three conclusions quoted by 

 Mr. Raynor, had, however, no reference to such a case as he 

 describes — viz., that of a stranger queen introduced into an 

 aUen hive. It had exclusive reference to reigning queens being 

 encased in their own hives, and among their own bees. Mr. 

 Raynor has, I have no doubt, inadvertently overlooked this fact. 

 In my concluding article on this subject, February 7th, 1865, 

 page lOi, he will find a description of the kind of encasements 

 to which he refers, together with my views, fully stated, of the 

 various effects which follow from the introduction of stranger 

 queens into queenless hives. I believe there is no uniform 

 rule which obtains in such cases, for that which suits to-day 

 may not answer to-morrow. I congratulate Mr. Raynor on his 

 success in introducing his stranger queen without the aid of a 

 queen cage. With it, I can only say, there would be less risk, 

 and the lengthened encasement to which his queen was sub- 

 jected would in all likelihood have been prevented. 



In regard to the unusually late appearance of drones in one 

 of the hives of your esteemed correspondent, "R. S.," it cer- 

 tainly very much resembles the case referred to as having oc- 

 curred in my own apiary; but if I should now venture to pro- 

 phesy as to the fate of Ibis late drone-breeding hive, drawing 

 my inferences from the fate of my own, I regret to say that 

 that prophecy would be the very reverse of favourable. In the 

 following spring my Egyptian hive alluded to produced drones 

 Tery easily, those detestable small drones, too, bred in worker 

 cells, which at any season are always the precursors of coming 

 ruin. In this case also, they proved to be so. Exhausted fer- 

 tiUty continued thus to manifest itself till June, the queen gra- 

 dually decreasing in her productive power so far as workers 

 were concerned, but continuing to produce both small and large 

 drones, until the bees, instinctively foreseeing their impending 

 late, set to work, as long as materials were in their power, in 

 constructing royal cells, and thus the old queen was in the 

 beginning of June superseded, she having quitted the hive 



when the bees apparently ceased to care for her, and when rival 

 thrones were cropping up aronnd her. I have frequently had 

 occasion to notice and admire this instinctive foresight of im- 

 pending ruin manifested, and the benignant arrangements of 

 Nature, whereby under such circumBtances, when exhausted 

 fertility of the queen arrives, drone-breeding as of necessity 

 takes place — an arrangement this, so beneficent, that in nu- 

 merous instances it becomes, I believe, the very salvation of 

 the colony. 



It will be obliging if " R. S." would note the proceedings of 

 the hive referred to, and detail for the benefit of us all its 

 future history. — John Lowe. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Brahma PoriTRAS Vn.TunE-nocKED (rr{tnn).—Vk'o consider r voltoro 

 hock to be ii disqunliticiitiou for n Brahma Pootra rock. We can (fivo no 

 (iI>inion about deciaions at any show. We can only htnto that which is 

 atlmittfd, wo believe universally, thiit given two cocks of equal merit in 

 (vory other point, a vulture liock in one. while tbo other had it not, would 

 certainly decide in favour of the latter. Your drawing shows a decided 

 vulture hock— the only approach to one thiit the partiality ol a judge can 

 overlook. We advise you by all means to breed from the clear-hocked 

 bird.— B. 



French Fowxs (H. A'.).— The article yon Bpeak of appeared at groat 

 leuk'th some time since, with woodcuts'ol the birds. Aa it seems to be 

 forcotten. we will take an early opportunity of rotuming to the subject. 



pREsEiiviNo Eggs for Sittiso (.If. A. s'.j.—W'e do not believe any eggs 

 can be kept HJx months and then hatched. We do not say it has never 

 been done, but the productive will be " few and Inr between." Our own 

 practice and experience are so opposed to it, thi»t wo not only never Bet 

 any egg a month old. but we choose the freshest wo can. When eggs arc 

 plentiful we prefer those that are not nii>ro than twenty-four hours old. 

 A kept egg, even if it hatch, produces a weak and sickly chicken. 



West of England Poui^tuy Show.— Mr. J. H. NichoUs, Lostwitbiel, 

 Cornwall, took cup and first prize for Prtrtridce Cochins. 



QUAURELsouE PiGEoNs [W. .■l;);)/.?/flr(( ).— We feiir thoro 18 no en re for 

 a regular Tartar of a Pigeon ; ho seems only to live to make all the others 

 unhappy, so bis proper fate is a broken neck. The eccentric Eaton used 

 to box such a bird's ears, half drown him. liU his mouth with bitter aloes, 

 give him bad water, and rub his food with bitter aloes. All this seems to 

 ns gre»t nonsense. The right thing is that a tyrant should die. The 

 onl^ euro would be to get a bird who would master him, but he would in 

 his tnru be worse. Some time since we saw a beautiful white Dragoon 

 cock in a common bird shop, and were surprised to see so good a bird in 

 such a place. At once we bought him, but he was one of the tyrants. 

 He would follow a bird over the whole loft, and from slate to slate of the 

 roof of a large house, giving the birds no rest ; and being armed with 

 such a dagger of a bill as Dragoons have, bo was most formidable. Alter 

 trying every plan, pulling his wing, Ac, wc returned him to the shop. 

 The man laughed and said, " He's a little fortune to me, he's sure to 

 come back, and I dare not keep him with any other Pigeon ; he's beeo 

 bought over and over again." Happily these tyrants are not vory common, 

 bat we have known a Tumbler to bo as bad, but less capable of injory 

 than a Dragoon. Fantails nre usually peaceable. 



TuRBiTS (Iilftn). — The produce will be some point-heads and others 

 shell-heads. Small beans or old tares are the best food for all Pigeons. 

 Good Indian com may be given as a change, and peas. Hempseed is 

 very bad for Pigeons, and ought never to be given except to make them 

 mate, or a little to tame them, as they will come on your feet or to yonr 

 band to get it. 



German Paste— Food for NioHTrNOALES {J. //.).— Take two table- 

 spoonfuls of melted lard, free from all salt, and heat it in a saucepan till 

 nearly boiling ; add four tablespoonfuls of treacle, keeping the pan near 

 the fire, but not putting it on again, and stir the treacle well in gradually, 

 keeping the mixture still near the fire, but not near enough to do more 

 than keep it hot ; Stir in pea meal till the whole is a stiff, crumbly paste. 

 About three pints and a half of meal go to the above .luantity. A little 

 mawseed should be finally strewn among it. Nightingales cannot be 

 kept on German paste. The proper food for Nightingales is the yolk of 

 hard-boiled egg chopped fine, with a few bread crumbs, and scraped or 

 finely-chopped raw meat added, meal worms, and ants' eggs. 



White Linnet.— « M'Dou;iaU would be obliged by Mr. Witherspoon 

 stating what species or variety ho means. 



Bath-heating (A Constant JtcaJcr).— We have not sufficient experience 

 to be able to enter into details respecting the bath, but enough to say 

 that, provided you have plenty of 8-inch piping at the bottom yon wUl 

 have no ditficulty in heating tbe water to 16(P. 



POULTRY MARKET.— December 20. 



We had the nsaal appearances of a Christmas market— an immense 

 show, hampers piled one on the other, great hurry and crowding, no small 

 confusion, buyers complaining everything was too dear, selleis declaring 

 their goods did not make enough to satisfy the senders. This has been 

 the history of flftv past years, and it was again that of the present 

 year. The supply 'of good poultry was small, and the prices were good; 

 but as usual, there was much of an inferior quality that found a market 

 with difficulty at a great reduction. We abstain from any quotation of 

 Turkeys, as they are, if of good quality, valuable in proportion to their 

 weight. If we were asked to speak more plainly, we should bo compelled 

 to give cock Turkeys from l'2x. to SOs., and hens from 6«. 6<^ to 16.«. The 

 value of a cock Turkey is greatly increased by every pound he weighs 

 over 18, and that of a hen by all over 9. 



Large Fowls . , 

 Smaller ditto . 



Chickens 



Geese 



Cock Turkeys. 

 Ducks 



Partridges 1 



Pheasants '-^ 



Pigeons 



Hares '-^ 



Rabbits 1 



Wild ditto 



