Feb. 4, 1904. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



85 



of water, is becomingr a serious matter to ranchers, and particularly to 

 owners of livestocli. 



According to a bulletin just issued by the Weather Bureau, this 

 season has been thus far the dryest since the winter of 1863 04, when, 

 according to the records, which were then kept by individuals, no rain 

 fell during the winter. There is water for irrigation, mucli of it from 

 artesian sources, but the artesian plan has been lowered to such an ex- 

 tent that many wells, which have always been llowing wells heretofore, 

 must now be pumped. 



The expense to cattle-owners is enormous because there is no green 

 feed, and the prices of dry feed are accordingly high. In places the 

 absence of water is causing suffering among the cattle. No rain has 

 fallen here since Oct. 1. There have been slight showers in places, but 

 no general downpour of sullicient volume to do any real good. Despite 

 these unfavorable conditions the prospects are most Haltering for an 

 excellent citrus crop. 





Some Expert Opinion 



n the multitude of counsellors there is safety." — Bible. 





What About Reversible Brood-Frames? 



If for some reason you were to start in anew to Iceep bees, and 

 were obliged to get an entirely new outfit — 



Qnes. 5. — Would you use a reversible frame? If so, why* If 

 not, why? 



X. E. France (Wis.) — No. No advantage. 



EiGENE Secor (Iowa) — No. Too much monkey-work. 



Mrs. .1. M. Null (Mo.) — I have no experience with reversible 

 frames. 



P. H. Elwood (N. Y.) — No. The reversible fad has gone by, 

 never to return. 



O. O. PoPi'LETOS (Fla.) — No. Too much labor and bother for 

 the benefit obtained. 



J. M. Hambaugh (Calif.)— No. I do not consider it worth the 

 trouble and expense. 



Mrs. L. Harrison (111.) — No. I'm too old to try new inventions. 

 I do not like changes. 



G. M. DooLiTTLE (N. Y.— No. Because its disadvantages are 

 more than its advantages. 



Geo. W. Brodbeck (Calif.) — No. I can accomplish all that is 

 required without reversing. 



Dr. C. C. Miller (111.) — No. I don't know of any sufficient ad- 

 vantage to make it advisable. 



Adrian Getaz (Tenn.) — No. No advantage whatever. Useless 

 complication in fixing and handling. 



C. P. Dadant (111.)— No. Reversing has never proved practical or 

 advisable, except in very rare instances. 



C. Davenport f.Minn.)— No. I do not believe there are advan- 

 tages enough to offset their disadvantages. 



E. E. Hastt (Ohio)— Think not. Advantages some, but not 

 enough to justify " fussing up " the frame. 



Rev. M. Maiiin (Ind.) — I would not. I can see no advantage in 

 it. It only makes extra trouble for no benefit. 



Wm. RoHRiG (Ariz.)— I think not. I have never used them to 

 any extent. If I had more of them I might like them better. 



Jas. A. Stone (111.)— Because I never had faith enough in such 

 iittiflus opiriindi to give it a second thought, let alone trying it. 



L. Staciielhausen (Tex.) — No. What advantages are claimed 

 for a reversible frame I can obtain in a cheaper and simpler way by a 

 two-story brood-nest. 



E. S. Lovesy (Utah)— No. Because a reversible frame would 

 hardly be practicable in the style and size of hive and frame such as I 

 have given the dimensions of. 



Dr. .1. P. II. BuowN ((ia.) — No. The extra expense in hive-con- 

 struction, the extra labor and the extra " fuss," would cost more than 

 the sceiiiuir/ advantages would amount to. 



C. H. DiBBEKN (III.) — Yes, I have used a reversible frame for the 

 past 20 years, and while I find little use for reversing shallow frames, 

 it is soinetiiiies convenient, and makes a stronger frame to handle. 



G. W. Demaree (Ky.) —After trying reversible frames carefully, 

 I discarded them long ago, and would not use them under any cir- 

 cumstances. Why? Because I have found them impracticable. 



R. L. Taylor '(Mich.) — No. Because reversing frames is un- 

 necessary work. With my hive I can get all the advantages of revers- 

 ing by putting the lower section of the hive above the upper one. 



Prof. A. .1. Cook (Calif.) — I hardly think so. I like simplicity. 

 If I wished to reverse — and it certainly is desirable at limes — I think I 

 should reverse the whole hive. The Heddon reversible hive worked 

 well in my hands. 



.J. A. Green (Colo.) — Yes. A reversible frame can be entirely 

 filled with comb, giving more surface for brood or honey. Sometimea 



reversing a frame will aid materially in getting honey transformed 

 into brood, or getting honey moved from the brood-chamber into the 

 sections. 



S. T. Pettit (Ont.)— No. The advantages, if any, would not 

 compensate for the extras. Bees build the cells of their combs with 

 an upward angle, for very good reasons. When the comb is reversed 

 the angle of the cells with its advantages are reversed. 



E. WniTCOMB (Nebr.) — No. Ueversing frames in the bee-hive 

 seems, in a measure, to disarrange their manner of housekeeping, and 

 to keep them working their former arrangements over again. For 

 ourselves we would not care to have some person come along occa- 

 sionally and turn our home upside down by turning the house over, 

 or reversing it, as the saying goes. Bees appreciate about the same 

 conditions in the hive, and generally we like to place every frame just 

 where we took it out when looking the colony over. ' • 



R. C. AiKiN (Colo.) — I would not use a reversible frame; at least 

 I feel that way now. Such would have slight advantages in deep 

 frames. But, say, my shallow frames «)■' reversible; they are exactly 

 alike either side up, but I do not practice reversing, generally. Be- 

 cause when I " alternate," putting the bottom part of my divisible 

 brood-chamber hive to the top, or in the middle if there be 3 or 4 sec- 

 tions as there often are, the combs that are toward tlie top will be built 

 solid to the bottom-bars. Split such a hive in the middle, putting the 

 lower half to the top, and the upper to the bottom, and you have 

 brood to the very last row of cells next the top-bar, so if they store 

 honey above the brood it nuist go above the brood-chamber. I do not 

 think reversing will pay with deep frames, and it is not necessary with 

 shallow ones. I do, however, when manipulating the little frames, 

 often turn them upside down, sometimes to get the comb built to the 

 bottom-bar, which now becomes the top, and sometimes to make the 

 combs fit better when changing the order in which I found them. 



[siietclies of Beedomites j 



C. H. W. YVEBER. 



Mr. Weber, whose excellent likeness appears on the first page, 

 was born in Hanover, Germany. After a good schooling he secured 

 employment in a dry goods house, and remained there from eight to 

 nine years. In 1860 he came to America, and upon reaching this 

 country started for Cincinnati, where he found work in the same line. 



In 1808 he was employed as clerk by the late Chas. F. Muth, whom 

 he now succeeds. At that time Mr. Muth had just started in the bee- 

 business. Upon making his visits to bee-keepers, he would take Mr. 

 Weber along for company. 



In 1872 Mr. Weber went into the grocery and seed business for 

 himself, and continued many years with success. After Mr. Muth's 

 death, the heirs asked Mr. Weber to be his successor. With the aid 

 of his ambitious son, Mr. Weber undertook the business, and he has 

 built up a large trade, handling from six to seven cars of bee-supplies 

 in a season. He also has bought and sold, this season, five cars of 

 comb honey, which was mostly received from the West. He has a 

 large honey-trade, as he handles nothing but the pure article. His 

 sales of extracted honey for manufacturing purposes amount to about 

 60,000 pounds per month. His honey-bottling department is greatly 

 improved, and he can now bottle 1.500 pounds per day. Before taking 

 any honey into his place, Mr. Weber makes a chemical analysis, as he 

 can detect any adulteration of even ;") percent. 



Mr. Weber is a great bee-lover, and has a roof-apiary of hO colo- 

 nies, five stories high, used mainly for rearing queens. He has 

 another apiary 5 miles from Cincinnati, and still two other apiaries 

 in different places near Cincinnati. 



Mr. Weber is treasurer of the Hamilton County Bee-Keepers' 

 Aseociation, and is doing all in his power to have a county inspector 

 appointed in order that the dreadful malady, foul brood, may be 

 wiped out of the country. Mr. Weber is satisfied that in one or two 

 years formaldehyde will be the extinguisher. 



We had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Weber when attending the 

 Denver convention of the National, a year ago last September. He is 

 a sturdy, honorable (ierman, as his picture indicates. He is also one 

 of the American Bee .lournai's reliable advertisers. 



Los Angeles Convention Report. — We find we have 

 left some complete sets of the American Bee Journal con- 

 taining the full report of the proceedings of the convention 

 of the National Bee- Keepers' Association, held at Los An- 

 geles, Calif., in August, l')03. There are 14 copies in a set. 



n order to close them out quickly, we will send them, post- 

 paid, for only 10 cents a set, in stamps or silver. Better 



order ai once if you want them. 



