ILLINOIS STATE BEE-KEEPERS' ASSOCIATION 



37 



Mr. F. Eric Millen, 



East Lansing, Mich. 

 Dear Sir: 



The matter of medals, that you 

 named in your letter of the 13th, will 

 need the action of our convention, 

 which meets in the Senate Chamber of 

 the State House on the 15th and 16th 

 of November, so we will be unable to 

 act for this year's convention. In case 

 the action is favorable, I will be pleased 

 to write you later. 



Very truly yours, 



(Signed) JAS. A. STONE. 



President Baxter — I believe, gentle- 

 men, this is a matter worthy of con- 

 sideration, and we will take it up later 

 and see what we want to do about it; 

 I believe it is a good thing. 



Mr. Stone — Mr. President, as he 

 named there, they have been giving 

 medals, gold and silver, and the object 

 is to make the best display of honey 

 at their meeting; they only hold the 

 medal for one year, but, if they win it 

 three times, it is theirs. 



President Baxter — That matter was 

 thoroughly discussed last winter at the 

 Chicago-Northwestern by Michigan 

 parties, and it seemed to be a big 

 drawing card. 



Mr. Coppin — Mr. President, where 

 would this exhibit be? 



President Baxter — It would be right 

 here at Springfield at our meeting. We 

 could prepare for it somewhere. 



Dr. Baxter — It would probably take 

 the meeting away from the State 

 House; have the meeting in the City 

 Hall or somewhere else. 



President Baxter — Are there any 

 questions? 



Question — I have a colony in a box 

 hive. How will I, and what is the 

 best way to get them into a modern 

 hive? 



President Baxter — This man has a 

 box with bees in it and wants to know 

 the best way to get them in a modern 

 hive, and how. 



Mr. Coppin — Transfer them in the 

 spring of the year, the best I know of. 



President Baxter — The directions for 

 that are given in most all of the bee 

 papers, very explicit directions. 



Mr. Stone — I suggest that the Chair 

 name a man to answer that; that has 



been asked by some man who is be- 

 ginning; he is here to learn and we 

 are here to tell him what he wants to 

 know. 



President Baxter — Mr. Coppin can 

 answer that, I expect. 



Mr. Coppin — There are a number of 

 ways it could be done; the way I had 

 good success the last spring was, I 

 drummed the bees out of the box hive 

 instead of tearing it up and tearing 

 the old combs out, which is a disagree- 

 able job. I don't follow that method 

 any more. I drum the bees out and 

 put them on foundation. I place the 

 new hive where the old one stood and 

 place another box about the same size 

 as the old box hive on top; take two 

 hammers and drum with both hands 

 on both • sides of the hives and all 

 around and by that time most Of the 

 bees are up in the old box. A good 

 method is to lay a cloth down under 

 the new hive and drum the bees down; 

 see if you have the queen, and the job 

 is done. The question is to get the 

 queen from the old hive; if you don't 

 see her, play another tune by drum- 

 ming. If you can't find her, put the 

 old hive on top and look in a day or 

 two and you can tell if she is there. 

 If you miss the queen, put on a queen 

 excluder. 



Mr. Kildow — If you are new in the 

 business, don't go to drumming with- 

 out using some smoke. 



Mr. Coppin — Use a little smoke; the 

 bees don't think about stinging. Fruit 

 blooming is about the best time to do 

 that. Then you get your colony ready 

 for the honey flow — white clover. 



Mr. Pyles — If I wished to transfer 

 bees or get them out of the box hive 

 I would simply let the bees get strong 

 enough or make them strong enough 

 to swarm — and they will always go to 

 work after they have swarmed with- 

 out sulking. I think, however, a cloth 

 with carbolic acid will get them out 

 faster than drumming. 



Mr. Coppin — Any bee-keeper can 

 spare a comb of honey necessary to 

 put in the lower hive and there will 

 be no sulking at all. Have a box hive 

 running above and they will go right 

 to work. I have transferred hundreds 

 by all kinds of methods and I find that 

 is the easiest way out of it I can get. 

 By waiting, getting them to swarm. 



^ii»i*..4_ !Swir._^»iv,*^' 



.w^^N..-^r_ o_.*__ _ys;^.xZ^ 



__-^T*i-J?>RSt»_r^ jV_i?«_:*; . 



