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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



June 2, 1904. 



bees. Compare the matter of time. A queenbeeis as mature when 

 two weeks old as a heiter at two years. Several generations of queens 

 can be bred in a year, against one generation of cows in several years. 

 There is now a marked difference In the swarming propensities of dif- 

 ferent colonies of bees; why can not that difference be further inten- 

 sified by selection? Suppose A and B start with the same strain of 

 . bees, B breeding constantly from those colonies most given to swarm- 

 ing, while B takes the opposite course; is not A likely to have more 

 swarming at the end of five years than B? 



Miscellaneous items 



Mrs. G. C. Greiner, of Niagara Co., N. Y., died recently after 

 a long illness from an incurable stomach trouble. Mr. Greiner will 

 have the sincerest sympathy of all bee-keepers in his bereavement and 

 loss. .••.-•••- 



The Third Annual Report of the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' 

 Association is ready for delivery. It is an illustrated pamphlet of over 

 16U pages, and will be mailed to any one on receipt of 15 cents. Order 

 ol the secretary, Jas. A. Stone, Route 4, Springfield, 111. 



3Ir. Leo F. Hanegan, the general manager of the St. Croix 

 Valley Honey-Producers' Association, of Wisconsin, wrote us appre- 

 ciatively as follows. May 23 : 



Editor York :— It is hard to get bee-keepers to understand that 

 they must read plenty of current literature on bee-keeping in order to 

 be successful. The main trouble, I think, is that too many of us are 

 too easily satisfied. 



Our Association now represents about 3000 colonies of bees, or, 

 with an average crop, fully two cars of honey. Comb honey is pro- 

 duced here mostly. , , , .. t. 



The American Bee .Journal is to me an absolute necessity. It 

 comes regularly, and is always full of valuable information. The 

 Chicago-Northwestern report was worth to any one fully a year's sub- 

 scriptfon 1 should like very much to see that report in the hands of 

 every one of the 200 bee-keepers in this region. In that report, 

 " What the Retailer of Honey Demands," from page 21? to 238, is, I 

 think worth more to me than all the articles I have read on this 

 subject. .„.„... ^^'^ ^- Hanegan. 



The Apiary of J. S. Haag.— When sending the picture of 

 his apiary (see first page) , Mr. Haag wrote as follows : 



I commenced bee-keeping four years ago with 3 swarms (not col- 

 onies) for which I paid $9 in trade. A greener man than I was in 

 regard to bees never undertook the business. I bought '■ Langstroth 

 on the Honey-Bee," and sul)scribed for the American Bee Journal, and 

 burned midnight oil reading and studying them. The second year I 

 increased by dividing, and rearing my own queens. The last two sea- 

 sons I worked against increase, and quit last tall with 48 colonies, 

 which I reduced to 31, and last season took a crop of 5.525 pounds of 

 honey all extracted. I winter my bees on the summer stands, and 

 and have never lost a colony except by starvation, caused by being 

 robbed light in the fall. ■ . j ..v 



Although the past winter was a hard one, my bees wintered with- 

 out loss, and are in fine shape now. ■ . , ,. , 

 I built a honey-house 16x26 feet, which cost $300, but the bees 



^'" The people in the picture are myself and all my children excepting 



one the oldest boy of 13 years. While we were getting ready for the 



photographer a bee came singing around his head and he lit out. 



Sioux Co., Iowa, April 19. -^ « "'• 



J. S. Haag. 



The Apiary of Charles W. Sager appears on the first page. 

 He wrote as follows, last September: 



I sent a photograph of my bee-yard some days since ; there were 

 111 colonies of bees until Aug. 30, when war commenced. I dis- 

 covered it aliout 9:30 or 10 o'clock. I commenced to close the en- 

 trances and finally got control of the yard, but they had cleaned out 4 

 colonies in the meantime. The dead lay in heaps around 20 different 

 hives Mr. Oilman, who has several apiaries, happened to call, and 

 he said that it lieat all he ever saw, and afterwards said I did well in 

 quieting them and not lose more than I did. 



It has been too cold and wet, still I can not complain, for what 

 honey I have is of the very best quality. I sold over 200 pounds, and 

 have 3020 pounds in the packing oases, and 04 superson the hives that 

 are half full or more, and quite a lot with a few sections, so I felt sure 

 of getting about 320O pounds, or about 57 pounds per colony, spring 

 count (.56 colonies), and have almost doubled my colonies, and they 

 are mostly in very good shape now. ,,.,,. t , o~ t 



Well, I just had a picnic with the bees from May 34 to July 2i. 1 

 had 91 swarms come out, and two absconded the second day. I doubled 

 up and put hack the 91, and made .55 newcolonies. Some clustered on 



the brush, but some went up in the trees that show in the picture^ 

 some as high as 40 freet from the ground, but I got them all. 



May be I have loafed sooie, but I made 75 hives and 200 supers 

 while watching the yard, and perhaps you think 1 shall do the same 

 next summer. Not much, for 1 have now .50 supers all ready to put 

 on the hives, and shall have 200 filled before it is time to use them, 

 and all the hives that I expect to want, so that I can give more atten- 

 tion to the care of the bees. 



I have '• A B C of Bee-Culture," and shall get Dr. Miller's and 

 Mr. Doolittle's books; with them, and probably Mr. Alley's, I think I 

 can by sharp work and close attention commence to leain a little about 

 the honey-bee; but if anyone thinks it is a lazy man's job, just let 

 him try it. CHARLES W. Sagbr. 



Benton Co., Minn., Sept. 2, 1903. 



The foregoing with picture should have been used long ago. It 

 was delayed from time to time, but its value is not lessened on that 

 account. 



Western Illinois Convention.— The beekeepers' society, 

 which was organized in Galesburg last January, held an interesting 

 and instructive meeting recently. A business session was first held, 

 and to broaden the scope of the organization the name was changed 

 to the Western Illinois Bee-Keepers' Association. 



The question-box was the principal feature of the meeting, it 

 being the best way to bring all present into the discussions. 



Mr. Reynolds, who has had experience with foul brood, that dread 

 disease of the honey-bee, gave a very interesting talk on its symptoms 

 and cure at both the forenoon and afternoon sessions. His talks were 

 full of interest and instruction, and the bee-keepers of the vicinity 

 who did not hear him missed a good thing. The meeting adjourned 

 to the third Tuesday in September next. 



Mr. E. D. Woods, who sent us the foregoing information, wrote 

 May 12, as follows: 



"Winter losses, through this part of the country, are much 

 greater than reported six weeks ago. There was a good deal of spring 

 dwindling." 



Too Much Maple-Sugary Sweetness.— We have received 

 the following from H. D. Tallady, of Emmet Co., Mich. : 



Editor York: — Enclosed flndaelipping from a Glens Falls, N. Y., 

 paper If maple syrup would affect cattle in such a manner, what, 

 in your judgment, would the effect be to the human family? And 

 still many people insist upon eating the " deadly " maple syrup when 

 honey, nice and pure, can be had equally cheap ! We do some '• insist- 

 ing '' ourselves. H. D. Talladt. 



The clipping referred to reads thus : 



'■ Last Sunday, while Mrs. Ellen Gillingham was away from home, 

 her cattle got into the sugar-orchard and drank a quantity of syrup. 

 As the result two cows are dead, and one other is not expected to live." 



You know the old proverb, " One man's meat is another cow's 

 poison." That may not be the exact wording, but something to that 

 effect. Besides, those cows probably took an immoderate quantity. 

 A pint or so at a time might be a good thing for them, while several 

 gallons might result disastrously. If our good friend who sent the 

 clipping will swallow at a sitting several gallons of either maple 

 syrup or honey, he will probably find that one member of " the human 

 family " will "insist" on feeling rather uncomfortable. 



( 



Sketches of Beedomites 





J. W. TUCKER. 



We received recently the following lettter concerning Mr. J. W. 

 Tucker, a bee-keeper of Jefferson Co., Pa., who departed this life in 

 April : 



Editor Y'ork : — It is with sorrow that 1 write to tell you of the 

 death of Mr. J. W. Tucker, who passed away April ti, at 12:30 p.m. 

 He became seriously ill in January, and after being treated some time 

 by home physicians, and failing to improvi-. he made a trip to Jeffer- 

 son Hospital, Phiadelphia, where he came under the care of eminent 

 medical authority. It was found that, as decided by his home physi 

 cian, he was suffering from diabetes. However, after two weeks' 

 treatment he returned home somewhat improved, only in a short time 

 to grow worse, and the culmination of the disease resulted in his 

 death as stated. 



Mr. Tucker was a well-known apiarist, and possibly the best au- 

 thority on bee-culture in this part of our .State. He began five years 

 ago, and, in connection with his trade as a carpenter, built up a nice 



