THE BKE-KEBPBRS' REVIEW. 



313 



spring before the bees are taken from 

 their winter quarters; ami after the bees 

 have been taken out they will not require 

 all of one's time and attention in the 

 early part of the season; and after the 

 season has advanced initil the bees re- 

 quire all of the apiarist's attention 

 the sheep may be left in the green 

 fields to feed upon the tender grass, 

 while the little lambs gambol about, 

 filling the owner with pleasure as he 

 sees the demonSLration of new life. 

 The old German adage says: 



"Keep plenty of hees and sheep 

 Then cosily lie down and sleep."' 



The German writer undoubtedly thought 

 the one keeping plenty of bees and sheep 

 had a safe and profitable pursuit; thus 

 realizing a good income, and, consequent- 

 ly, free from worry, he could sleep 

 contentedly. 



Bee-keeping as a pursuit affords great 

 pleasure, as it is a branch of thought and 

 stndy belonging to nature, ever present- 

 ing rare food for the observing faculties 

 to those on the alert to receive them. To 

 be susceptible to this pleasure one must, 

 if not alread}' possessed of it, cultivate a 

 taste and love for the study of nature; as 

 the bees are ever presenting habits and 

 instincts which are marvelous. Then, 

 too, from a moral stand point, bee-keep- 

 ing is a pleasant and profitable pursuit, 

 as it has a tendency to elevate the desires 

 and ennoble manhood. 



No one will dispute that bee-keeping is 

 a profitable pursuit if managed in the 

 proper manner, but I claim it may be 

 made a more safe and profitable occupa- 

 tion if operated with another occupation; 

 one that will not detract too much atten- 

 tion from the bees. 



To be a successful apiarist one must be 

 willing to attend promptly to the varied 

 duties; never "putting off until to-mor- 

 row what ought to be done to-day," and 

 one must be cautious and observing. One 

 must always be willing to look after the 

 little things about the apiary, as many 

 dollars are sometimes lost by carelessne,ss. 

 "Look after the penny and the dollar 



will take care of itself." The weak 

 colonies need the care and special atten- 

 tion. By taking a few frames of hatch- 

 ing brood from a strong colony at the 

 proper time and giving it to the weak one 

 you will have two good colonies for the 

 honey harvest instead of one. Save all 

 of the scrapings and render them into 

 wax, which when saved will amount to 

 many more dollars than one would imag- 

 ine if not accustomed to saving those lit- 

 tle bits. And carefully watch the honey 

 house that mice and moths do not get in 

 and work upon the combs stored away; 

 for many dollars may be lost in a short 

 time by this careless neglect. 



When we consider the comparatively 

 small amount of capital invested, and the 

 relative small amount of labor and ex- 

 pense required to operate an apiary, one 

 is surprised at the abundant reward. I 

 do not wish to be understood here as 

 claiming that labor is not required in the 

 apiary. The apiarist with several hun- 

 dred colonies must, at certain seasons, 

 work vigorously both muscle and brain; 

 yet this hard physical labor will last only 

 about five months; and the balance of the 

 year may be spent in comparative leisure. 



The apiarist with a large apiary, or per 

 haps several apiaries, can certainly oper- 

 ate his apiary with less expense and labor 

 if he produces extracted honey. When 

 once prepared for extracting, there is com- 

 paratively little expense; about the only 

 expense is that of the package for the hon- 

 ey. We have no sections, thin founda- 

 tion, or shipping crates to buy; are free 

 from the expense and worry of changing 

 the shape the honey is to be stored; 

 whether it shall be in tall, or in square 

 sections; round or hexagonal. In pro- 

 ducing extracted honey, one always 

 knows in what style the honey is to ap- 

 pear. Then, I believe, there is more pro- 

 fit, fand less labor) in producing extract- 

 ed honey than comb; because the bees 

 will store more honey. The bees are not 

 obliged to build comb in the honey flow 

 to store their honey in, and use, as it is 

 claimed by some, twenty-one pounds of 



