1'J2 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



pleted the job, he fished out a bottle 

 containing- a liquid blaclcing, and with 

 a swab, blaclced the edges of the soles, 

 including the lieels. This blacl^ing re- 

 sembled tliat used by shoemakers for 

 blaclving the edges of the soles when 

 tliey are malving boots or shoes. After 

 putting on tliis blacking, tlie young- 

 man polished tlie edges of tlie soles. 

 Usually, the edges of tlie soles receive 

 scant attention from the ))ootl)lacli, 

 perliaps a little daub of the ordinary 

 blaclving, but this man not only did 

 an extra fine job, but put on this extra 

 touch. It was a small thing for me 

 to notice, l>ut it set me to thinking. 

 If I liad occasion to patronize the boot- 

 blacks of Grand Rapids, this man 

 would get my trade, if it was conven- 

 ient for me to give it to him. 



What is true of bootblacks, in this 

 respect, is true of other things. It i- 

 tlie extra, or finishing touch, tnat se- 

 cures and liolds customers. After you 

 have done as well as anyl)ody does. 

 then keep on and do a little better, 

 and it is in this extra toucli that lies 

 the profit. A man only a trifle above 

 tlie ordinary in lieight, is very notice- 

 able in a crowd, so a piece of nier- 

 cliandise, or a job of work, only a 

 trifle better than the ordinary attracts 

 and liolds customers. 



HOW TO KEEP ON A SMOKER COVER. 



O. H. Townsend, of Otsego, Mich., 

 gives tlie following instructions for 

 making a smoker top stay on: 



When a smoker top gets slippery, 

 so it will not sticlv on, do not crow<l 

 it down too hard, thus making it 

 loose and worse than before, but just 

 press the edge of the slippery top in- 

 to the ground, and the grit in the soil 

 will adhere to it so that it Avill stay 

 on. Very simple, isn't itV I ml I used 

 smokers for a long time before I 

 thought of this remedy, and it may be 



that some one else among beginners 

 has not thought of this way to keep 

 the top on. 



If the smoker top is hinged, and 

 bothers, I would dispense with the 

 hinge. 



1 suppose that perfectly dry fupl 

 it also a remedy, but mine don't al- 

 ways stay so dry- 



r«rf1^^»Jr»«^Jr^ 



INTRODUCING YOUNG QUEENS TO 

 PREVENT SWARMING. 



Dr. Miller, in his new book, says 

 it has been said tliat colonies sup- 

 plied with <iueens of the current year 

 would not swarm, and tliat he tried 

 supplying all of his colonies with 

 young queens, but it didn't work. Tlie 

 bees swarmed. The doctor then goes 

 on to say that he once removed a 

 (lueen from a colony tliat liad swarm- 

 ed (and the swarm had returned to 

 its hive) and gave it a queen that had 

 not been laying more than three days, 

 yet within tliree days the (pieen came 

 out with a swarm. 



All of the foregoing I can most read- 

 ily believe. In fact, it is exactly what 

 I should expect. But I fear that my 

 good friend has not quite understood 

 this matter of giving young queens 

 to prevent swarming. Or, rather, he 

 has overlooked one factor. Year af- 

 ter year have I proved the truthful- 

 ness of the theory that the giving of 

 a young queen before the swarming 

 fever has developed, will prevent 

 swarming. Each year for a number 

 of years. I used to sell all of my queens 

 early in the spring, just as early as 

 I could get young queens from the 

 South to replace them, and only once 

 did I have a colony swarm that was 

 given a young (picen early in the 

 si)ring. and, in that case, the queen 

 was imperfect. I do not suppose 

 th.-it this plan is practicable with the 

 ordinary bee-keepei-. I could not, or 



