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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Nov. 



" Laying of drone eggs in worker-cells never takes 

 place in the beginning of the season, unless the 

 queen is sick or worthless." The above is an extract 

 from friend Dadaut's article in the Oct. number of 

 Gleanings, 1883; and if true, we have a " ^under " 

 about this worker and drone egg business. In the 

 latter part of February last, I hart a quecnless colo- 

 ny to which I gave a frame of eggs and brood from 

 another colony, all worker comb, on which they 

 started several queen-cells, capped about 50 cells as 

 drones, and the rest as workers. The drone cells 

 were scattered broadcast over the comb. They all 

 hatched out the same as their building and capping 

 Indicated, from the same comb which was drawn 

 out from worker fdn. If a healthy queen does not 

 lay drone eggs in the beginning of the season, then 

 the bees must surely have changed the sex of those 

 eggs, as they were procured from a good healthy 

 queen reared by myself last season. She has issued 

 with three different swarms this summer, and is still 

 thriving. I watched her brood in the early part of 

 the season, to see if there would be any more 

 drones, but there were none until she was prompted 

 by the approach of the swarming season to deposit 

 eggs in drone-cells. 



His eighth proposition, and proof thereof, reads as 

 follows: " Worker bees don't know the sex of the 

 eggs. This proposition is proved by the fact, that 

 a colony having laying workers tries to have queens 

 from drone eggs." Now, my friends, is not the 

 above disproved by the fact, that the bees foretell us 

 what the sex of the inmates of the cells is by the 

 manner of capping them? It is true, they try to 

 rear queens from eggs of laying workers, but they 

 have no choice. Still, after they have their cell 

 capped they plainly tell us what it contains, by its 

 smooth outside surface. The first and fourth prop- 

 ositions in his article contradict each other, as it 

 seems to me. 1. "Queens don't know the sex of the 

 eggs they lay." Extract from the fourth, "Queens 

 find pleasure in impregnating their eggs to change 

 the sex." If Ihefou'th is correct, and impregnat- 

 ing the egg— changing it from male to female ac- 

 cording to his third proposition -gives pleasure to 

 the queen, she would undoubtedly know by this 

 pleasure when she was laying worker eggs, and by 

 its absence when laying drone eggs. Further on, in 

 regard to the change, he says: " For what purpose 

 would such a change be effected? To raise drones 

 which would not be fit for the function before at 

 least 10 days after they are needed." Here he seems 

 to credit the bees with the faculty of reasoning, 

 thus: Now, if we do raise drones from these eggs, 

 they will do us no good, as they will be 10 days be- 

 hind time. I think whenever they need drones or a 

 queen, and have the material to raise them from, 

 they do so without calculating how soon they will 

 be of use to them. 



Now, I " spect " friend D. will give me " shucks " 

 for talking so much about his article; but that will 

 be all right, providing it is in good humor. 



Frank R. Roe. 



Jordan, Jay Co., Ind., Oct. 11, 1883. 



Thank you, friend Roe. I am sure neither 

 friend D. nor anybody else will give you 

 " shucks," so long as you clothe your criti- 

 cisms in the kind words you have this time. 

 This subject is awakening much healthful 

 reasoning, and I am pleased to see it bring 

 out, month by month, what we do know. 

 Those on the negative have tried to explain 



the facts presented by suggesting fertile 

 workers ; but since we have shown them the 

 drones are Italians, when the eggs were put 

 in a colony of black bees, they will have to 

 try again to explain the facts that are com- 

 ing forward thick and fast. 



FKIEXD DAUANT ON HONEY AND KAIL- 

 ROADS. 



EXTRACTED IIONEV. 



f),0 prevent the people from being oheated by 

 unscrupulous dealers, the French law pro- 

 vides that evei-y article of silver or of gold 

 must be stamped as to purity, by assayists appoint- 

 ed for the purpose. If in a jewelry store I were 

 shown two articles exactly alike, one with the 

 French stamp, the other without it, which one, do 

 you think, I would select? The one with the French 

 stamp, of course; for I am sure that it is as repre- 

 sented; while the other may be mixed with more 

 alloy. Now, every bee-keeper knows that the gran- 

 ulating of honey is the best proof of its purity; 

 why, then, deprive our honey of a stamp that no 

 adulterator can imitate? It would be like rubbing 

 out the stamp that the French government puts on 

 the jewel. By creating a market for his liquid hon- 

 ey, Mr. White has worked against his own interests, 

 for he is compelled to warm every pound of his crop. 

 Such work will do for a few hundred pounds; but 

 how great would be the trouble of warming 10 or 15 

 tons of honey! 



We have done exactly the reverse, dispensing with 

 the unpleasant job of boiling our crop, while our 

 granulated article drove all the adulterators out of 

 our markets; for it is impos='ible for them to sell a 

 pound of their liquid honey to our customers, who 

 know by experience that an adulterated article does 

 not granulate. Which one of these practices, sell- 

 ing a natural or an adulterated article, is the better 

 one? I leave the reader to decide. 



We have sold about 75,000 lbs. of granulated honey 

 in tin cans so far, and we know several hundreds of 

 bee-keepers who did as we do, and we would not ad- 

 vise Mr. White to offer his liquid honey in competi- 

 tion with our granulated. It is more manly to look 

 squarely at a false prejudice, and to remove it, than 

 to bow in humble obedience before a popular error, 

 using more energy to comply than would be neces- 

 sary to remove it. 



ABOUT RAIIiROADS. 



I am glad, very glad, to know that you never re- 

 ceived a free pass from the railroads. lam the more 

 glad, because the number of the reporters, editors, 

 judges, and congressmen, who are not bribed by 

 free passes is small. As you never complained of 

 railroad difficulties, I inferred that, like the greater 

 number of public men, you enjoy free passes. 

 Please excuse my suspicion, and forgive it. 



You object to laws like those that they have in 

 France, saying that they are hardly in the spirit of 

 a free and Christian country. I don't see how such 

 laws can be against Christianity. As to liberty, it 

 becomes license, and ought to be regulated, as soon 

 as it tramples the rights of others. The French law 

 provides that the decision of a justice of the peace 

 is without appeal in a lawsuit of $30.00 or under; 

 that the decision of a county court is also without 

 appeal for $200.00 and under. I think that such laws 



