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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 1. 



remember that the weight of a whole swarm The late frosts that have prevailed through- 

 hangs from a limb, when but comparatively out the country have done a good deal of dam- 

 few bees touch the limb itself. age; but we hope they have not affected the 

 Medina, O., May 33. K. R. Mathey. nectar-bearing flora that will come on later. 



SOME UNSCIENTIFIC AND INACCURATE TEACH- 

 ING CONCERNING BEES, IN A COLLEGE 

 TEXT-BOOK. 



Mr. Root:— In a book at present used in the 

 State Normal College, in Albany, entitled 

 " Comparative Zoology, Structural and System- 

 atic, for use In Schools and Colleges, by James 

 Orton, A. M., Ph. D.." new edition, revised by 

 Charles Wright Dodge, 1894, Harper Bros, pub- 

 lishers, I find the following statement in rela- 

 tion to the bee: 



"They exhibit three castes — females, or 

 queens: males, or drones, and neuters, or sex- 

 less workers. There is but one queen in a hive, 

 and she is treated with the greatest distinction, 

 even when dead. She dwells in a large pear- 

 shaped cell, opening downward. She lays 

 three kinds of eggs; from the first come forth 

 workers; the second produce males, and the 

 last females." 



I send tbis as a bit of curiosity, showing how 

 the colleges are advancingc?) in bee-knowledge. 



Menards, N. Y. Jacob Kautz. 



[Such scientific (?) teaching is disgusting. 

 If it is a fair sample of the accuracy of the oth- 

 er matter in the book I should be sorry to have 

 my boy use it as a text-book. The authors ev- 

 idently got their knowledge on bees, such as 

 they do have, from a very careless reading. It 

 is very unsafe for any one to write on the 

 subject without a little practical experience to 

 throw light on what he is reading. Prof. Com- 

 stock's book, notice of which appeared on page 

 409, last issue, is in marked contrast. Prof. C. 

 went to the bees himself. — Ed.] 



Eight extra pages as usual. 



After a trial of 30 years. Dr. J. P. H. Brown, 

 in the Southern Department of the A. B. J., 

 says, " I am satisfied it does not pay to culti- 

 vate plants exclusively for the amount of the 

 nectar-secretion." 



The ApicuUurist for March, April, and May 

 Is here, bound in one cover, but not any fatter 

 for the consolidation. Is it a quarterly '? 



" Rev." Is the title in front of Emerson T. 

 Abbott's name, as printed in the A. B. J. That 

 may be a Rev. -elation to some; but it belongs 

 there, and deservedly. 



The new bee-paper, the Southland Queen, is 

 out, issued by the Jennie Atchley Co. It con- 

 tains 22 pages and a cover, and is edited by the 

 Atchley family. Monthly, $1.00 per year. 



The accurate and scholarly typography of 

 the British Bee Journal is a pleasure to those 

 who are pleased in that way. In this respect 

 it presents a marked contrast to — some of us. 



E. B. Weed, in the Canadian Bee Journal, 

 claims that the bleaching of wax in sunlight 

 gives a better result than by the use of acids. 

 We believe that is the position taken by Mr. 

 Mathey, whose articles on wax we are now 

 printing. 



Wm. McEvoy, the foul-brood inspector of 

 Ontario, reports bringing 109 colonies through 

 the winter in good condition, not losing one. 

 That's something on the Boardman style; and 

 several others in Canada report wintering with 

 little or no loss. 



For the first time .since Stray Straws were 

 published, we have failed to receive our in- 

 stallment for the current issue. We have not 

 learned the cause up to the time of going to 

 press. Kind o' suspect the doctor prepared 

 them, put them into an envelope, then into his 

 pocket, and forgot to mail 'em. 



During the preparation of a part of this 

 number I have been somewhat under the 

 weather, but I am now coming around all right. 

 The consequence is, most of the editorials were 

 written by W. P. He prefers to use the edito- 

 rial we, because, he says, it rhymes with P. So 

 you can designate his by the use of "we." 



What shall the harvest be? is a conundrum 

 with bee-keepers all over the land. Indeed, it 

 is a conundrum every year; but it seems to be 

 more so this year than ever. Mr. Harry La- 

 throp, of Wisconsin, writes that the prospect is 

 poor. Last year Wisconsin suffered terribly 

 from the drouth, and many of the bee-keepers 

 obtained little or no honey: but Mr. Lathrop 

 did well. 



We copy the following from the Newaygo 

 Repuhlican of May 9. It fully accounts for 

 the fact that Bro. Hilton has been missing for 

 some time. 



Hon. Geo. E. Hilton returned from a week's stay 

 at his home yesterday. He is receiving many con- 

 gratulations from his colleagues upon tlie fact that 

 he is the proud father of a nice little girl. Time 

 bears out the prediction made in the first of this 

 series of letfcers that Mr. Hilton would prove to be 

 one of the most popular as well as active and xiseful 

 members of the House. No man is more highly re- 

 spected than he, and no man in either House has 

 more friends. He has much influence; and it is 



