June 6, 1901. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



361 



2. Perhaps so ; but there is not much difference. 



3. Anything- that allows entrance for more fresh air is 

 a help toward prevention of swarming-, but the same end 

 would be more easily and more fully attained by raising the 

 hive on four blocks. 



4. Some of the hybrids will be better, and some not so 

 good. The pure stock will be more uniform and more 

 permanent in character. The pure stock is better to breed 

 from, and will not run out so easily as the hybrids. 



* The Afterthought. * \ 



The '^Old Reliable" seen through New and Unreliable Glasses. 

 By B. e. HASTY, Sta. B Rural, Toledo, O. 



TALKING BEES 400 B. C. 



One would say that every intelligent bee-man, ancient 

 as well as modern, knew that it took honey to rear drones, 

 as well as more of it to feed them after they were reared. 

 The two different sizes of comb-cells in the hive are too con- 

 spicuous to be ingnored except by pronounced dullards — 

 and it's easy to conclude drones too big to be reared in 

 worker-cells. I would say then that perhaps it's not quite 

 certain that Socrates knew of apiculturists who habitually 

 practiced reducing drones by cutting out drone-comb. It 

 may have been not much more than a dream of his active 

 mind, that if he kept bees he would save honey by cutting 

 out what drone-comb could be got at. Drone-comb is not 

 usually in the heart of a normal colony. All the same, it's 

 interesting to hear a man talk bee-manipulation correctly 

 four centuries before Christ. Page 254. 



MORE ANENT THE SCORE-CARD. 



Mr. Greiner, on page 262, laudably tries to fix things so 

 judges of bees at fairs can not ignore the drones. He 

 hardly " gets there." Drones will still be mostly ignored, 

 except under the fourth item. Suppose we change : 



Color and markings of workers and drones 2.5 



Size of workers and drones 2U 



and make it : 



Color, markings and size of workers (10-10-10) 30 



Color, markings and size of drones (5-5-5) 15 



KEEPING YOUNG QUEENS CONTINUALLY. 



The reform chariot of keeping young queens continually 

 in every hive runs against quite a "hestle," against two 

 hestles, in fact, when Doolittle and J. B. Hall both emphat- 

 ically denounce it. But if you do remove old queens for that 

 purpose, be sure and destroy all cells capped at five days. 

 Page 263. 



HIVING S-^'ARMS A LA GEHRING. 



And so Teacher Gehring would have his class hive bees 

 by placing swarm and limb carefully in front of the en- 

 trance, as close as possible, and then blissfully watch re- 

 sults. I would respectfully put in a pretty strong protest. 

 No doubt that succeeds nicely oftentimes : but, if I am 

 right, a large percentage of swarms will refuse to move in 

 as they ought — will just remain in a provoking-to-patience 

 pile partly on the front of the hive and partly on the limb. 

 What's the use to follow a method that fails half the time, 

 when it's just as easy to succeed all the time? I don't say 

 you can always succeed in making them stay, but you can 

 practically always succeed in making them run in. The 

 full details would be rather long for this department. With 

 a big pot-spoon dose the hive — small doses and often. 

 After awhile increase the dose, and anon fall to shaking 

 instead of spooning. But keep most of the bees on the 

 limb until they are running in lively. Most important of 

 all, keep poking the entrance clear as often as it threatens 

 to get blocked up. Waiting for stationary bees to start up 

 is mostly a humbug. Make 'em "git furder" right straiglit 

 along. To some extent, and with due moderation, the 

 smoker can be used to hustle them ; but too much of it 

 makes them fly badly. A brush of green twigs, to whip 

 them and sweep them and stroke their backs, is better. 

 And always smoke a cluster of bees gently (just what you 

 can without making them lly) before you do anything with 

 them. Just about as bad practice to manipulate swarms 

 without smoke as it would be to open hives without smoke. 

 Both can often be done ; but what's the sense of it ? Our - 



smoker dog doesn't charge anything for barking, and why 

 should we bark ourselves — or go barkless, with three thou- 

 sand thistles thrust through our bark ? Took me about 

 half mj' bee-keeping life to get this much of horse-sense 

 through ray noddle. 



GIVING CELLAR-BEES A FLIGHT. 



Whether it is profitable or unprofitable to give cellar- 

 bees a winter flight is an important question. It is regarded 

 by some, it would seem, as one of the unsolved questions. 

 My impression is that the heavy old chaps are mostly in the 

 negative. May be I count 'em wrong. F. W. Hall's experi- 

 ence, page 268, seems quite decidedly in the affirmative — 

 and with this quite healthy Irish bull I'll rest a bit from my 

 afterthinking. 



I ^ The Home Circle. ^ 



Conducted bu Prof. ft. J. Cook, Claremont, Calif. 



SOUL-GROWTH FROM READING. 



There was one advantage — the greatest one — which comes, 

 from reading that space crowded out of our last "chat" in 

 " The Home Circle." I refer to the moral uplift — the soul- 

 growth. We all agree that valuable as is bodily vigor, and 

 desirable as is mental growth and power, both pale be- 

 fore spiritaal development and influence. The outcome of 

 Samson's colossal muscle was to pull down ; Shakespeare's in- 

 comparable mental grasp which so enriches our literature and 

 quickens thought, did not lift the whole world to a higher 

 plane. Christ's life, which touched the spiritual that is in 

 man, raised the whole world to better thought and purpose. 

 It is the transcendent glory of any soul to be able to lift 

 spiritually a brother soul. It is the most blessed gift that any 

 of us can receive, to gain inspiration tovyards a more Christ- 

 like life. The reading of good books is the mightiest force in. 

 moral development and spiritual uplift. May I speak of our 

 own college '? 



We have about 200 students. A majority of these (61 

 gentlemen and 4"2 ladies) are engaged in voluntary Bible 

 study. Many of these not only meet with one of their number, 

 selected for special fitness as leader, for an hour each week, 

 but all study the lesson for a half-hour each day, many taking 

 the time just before breakfast. I believe that there is no one 

 thing that promises more for the real success of our College 

 than does this fact— nothing that so surely bespeaks a useful 

 future for our students. 



To spend an hour each day in close mental touch with 

 Elijah, with Paul, with Christ, gives an equipment for life 

 that is beyond estimation. The inspiration that comes from 

 reading good books secures to the world such nobility of soul 

 as was in Lincoln ; such purity, sweetness, and such wealth of 

 vital, moving spiritual force, as came to us in Longfellow and 

 Whittier. 



Soul-culture is the richest adornment that any person can 

 possess. Soul-culture makes a great people, a worthy 

 nationality. Soul-culture alone can rightly solve the China 

 and Philippine problems. The reading and study of good 

 books will bo the greatest force to bring to us this priceless 

 soul-culture. Mr. Coggshall, none of us can overestimate the 

 value that ever comes itrom the reading and study of our best 

 literature. Whatever wo do, let ns not neglect the matter of 

 reading in the homo circle. 



BOOK AND MAQAZINE^CLUBS. 



It is good to have several of our best books, magazines, 

 and papers — more than many of us can afford to subscribe for. 

 May I tell how wo manage this? I like the daily paper, 

 which usually takes about ten minutes of my attention each 

 noon-time. I cut the price in two by taking it with my next 

 neighbor. Do all in our home circles know how much tliey 

 lose by not joining in friendly co-operation with the good 

 neighbors? We all have tho very best neighbors in the 

 world. Many of us do not know it because we do not know 

 them. 



To digress : Three of my neighbors and I own a cow 

 together. Such friendly partnerships make a pleasanter 

 n(Ughborho<id atmosphere, and I believe brighter home circles. 

 Eight of us neighbors each take a magazine. Thus, we have 

 the Century, Atlantic, Scribnor. Popular Science Monthly, 



