THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



247 



culture. Tlic hcc is capalile of hcin.i;- 

 cliangcd in its haliits and al)ilitios, and 

 the efficacy of thoughtful selection has 

 in our own yards, which are devoted 

 exclusively to honey production, been 

 repeatedly and clearly demonstrated. 



CONTROLLING THE MATING. 



As young queens invarial)ly mate on 

 the wing, without the hive, there is 

 small ch.ance, if other bees are kept 

 near, of preventing a cross with some 

 inferior strain. Certain colonies can, 

 of course, through elaborate stimulation, 

 be rushed to the drone-rearing stage 

 ahead of other bees; but only at great 

 expense, which frequently proves most 

 unsatisfactory. If few or no other bees 

 are kept within a radius of two or 

 three miles, a desirable male parentage 

 is practically insured if only selected 

 drones are permitted to fly. Our sur- 

 roundings are, fortunately, of such de- 

 scription and are, undoubtedly, a prime 

 factor in the success wdiich has attended 

 our efforts. For the past fifteen years 

 we h.a\-e been working toward impro\e- 

 ment and as a direct result, actually se- 

 cure paying crops during years when 

 others are resorting to the sugar barrel 

 to keep their scrub bees from starva- 

 tion. What we have done, others 

 can do. 



AlUilNG NEW ELOOD. 



I'nlike most stock, bringing new 

 blood into the apiary need never be- 

 come ari expensive or tediotis proceed- 

 ing. Two or three queens from some 

 improved and reliable strain, introduced 

 in spring or the preceding autimm, 

 should afford a suitable foundation up- 

 on which, in the course of a single 

 \ear, may be reared a uniform and 

 hustling strain. 



In maintaining an improved strain, 

 bear in mind the essential point that 

 any stock of bees, without an occasional 

 addition of fresh blood, will quickly 

 deteriorate. This is true of all animals 

 and plants having life; being, perhaps, 

 most strongly manifested in the human 

 family, and bees are no exception to the 

 ride. After an apiary has been skill- 

 ful'y bred along certain lines, it would, 

 of course, be bad policy to l)ring un- 

 tried blood into that stock to such an 

 extent as to undo the progress attained. 

 An occasional queen, however, will put 

 new life into any apiary, and need not 

 be extensively utilized until thoroughly 

 tested. We are constantly on the watch 

 for something better than we now have, 

 and firmly believe that the possibilities 

 in breeding a better liee are without 

 bounds. 



Germania, Ark., Jan. ?,(). 1911. 



"Anticipate your opportunities, and 

 they will not pass you by." 



If a man falls into a well it is much 

 better for him to begin figuring on 

 how to get out than to spend the time 

 worrving because he is in there. 



"Do not attempt to knock the ball 

 over the fence when a single is all that 

 is needed to bring in the winning run." 



Do You Want an Automobile? 



I am satisfied there are a good many 

 of my subscril)ers wIk^ are thinking of 

 bu\-ing an automobile or gasoline en- 

 gine. I want each one who is, to just 

 drop me a postal card saying which 

 they want to buy, and aliout when. It 

 will help the Review if you will do 

 this, although I have neither of the 



