82 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



and would, could easily find more profit- 

 able employment than eoing through ev- 

 ery colony in a considerable apiary, guess- 

 ing at the weight of honey in each comb; 

 and others still are born with enough of 

 the tired feeling to decide them to choose 

 "inner lines" even if there is a little 

 risk in it. But in this case there would 

 be no more risk. 



The plan, then, which Doolittle con- 

 demns as a "careless procedure, " is a 

 good one; indeed, with single-wall hives 

 that may be readily handled, it is un- 

 doubtedly the best. I proceed in this way: 

 My hive with empty combs weighs, say, 

 18 pounds, and, allowing 7 pounds as the 

 weight of bees and bee-bread, which 

 makes 25 pounds, and adding to that the 

 weight of the necessary amount, of honey, 

 25 pounds, I have 50 pounds as the weight 

 necessary for each full colony to put it in 

 good condition for winter, so far as stores 

 a»'e concerned. I now weigh a few col- 

 onies till I find one that weighs the 50 

 'pounds required. This hive I " heft, " 

 carefully, till I have a good conception 

 of its weight, and, if I lose that concep- 

 tion, I come back and lift it again. 

 Having a good idea of this weight. I go 

 rapidly over the apiary, lifting each colo- 

 ny just clear of the ground, always tak- 

 ing^the same position in the operation, 

 and marking with an apple or a pel)ble 

 each one that is doubtful or too light. 

 If there has been the usual light fall hon- 

 ey-flow, most of the colonies will be over 

 50 pounds in weight,, some running to 70 

 and 7.5 pounds, and all such require 

 scarcely more than a touch to determine 

 their satisfactory condition. I then 

 weigh each of the doubtful and too light 

 ones, placing the scales on an adjacent 

 hive for that purpose, and mark the 

 weight on the same part of each hive. 

 After the weights are determined, it only 

 remains to put the light ones in condition 

 for winter by uniting, by supplying 

 them with the needed combs of honey, 

 or with sugar syrup. 



In a subsequent paragraph, in giving 

 directions for making syrup for the uec- 



essary feeding, Doolittle advises the ad 

 dition of about 10 per cent, of extracted 

 honey to the syrup to prevent crystalliz- 

 ing, and says he should have the honey 

 if he had to send to another State for it, 

 and give an extra price. For myself I 

 should not use either acid or honey; for 

 I have found no necessity for either of 

 them. I am inclined to think that the 

 trouble from cr3-stallizing comes from ag- 

 .itating it by stirring to cool it or other- 

 wise after it is sufficiently heated, thus 

 admitting the air to it. I make the syrup 

 in a large vessel, on the stove, being care- 

 ful to use light fuel towards the comple- 

 tion of the batch, and when done leave it 

 undisturbed on the stove to cool, and have 

 yet to feel the need of either honey or 

 acid. 



Lapekr, Mich , Feb. 22, 1900. 



EDITORIAL 



fferings. 



" .\n thin'"-- CO IIP to him who waits; " 



But here's a rule that's slicker, 

 The mail who gaes for what he wants, 



Will gel ii.cre all the quicker. 



T. F. BiNGH.'VM has sent me one of his 

 brass, smoke-engines. It is the finest 

 thing in the .smoker line that I have ever 

 seen. 



Combs that have continued brood give 

 hone}' a darker color, was the report of 

 Edward Ochsner at the Wisconsin con- 

 vention, but he stood alone in this belief. 



Officers elected at the Wisconsin 

 State Bee-Keepers' Association are as 

 follows: President, N. E. France, Platte- 

 ville; Vice President, J. Huffman, Mon- 

 roe; Secretary, Miss Ada L. Pickard, 

 Richland Center; Treasurer, Harry Lath- 

 rop, Browutown, 



