1893 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



317 



Latest reports show that winter losses from 

 colonies outdoors will not be as great as has 

 been anticipated. Indeed, in most sections the 

 mortality will be no greater than usual; while 

 those colonies in the cellar fared much better 

 than in former winters. The beautiful spring 

 weather is a rather pleasant surprise to most of 

 us. It means lots of biood, and this, of course, 

 means a big working force when the honey 

 harvest opens up. 



"Outdoors" is a book of SO pp.. nicely bound 

 and printed, covering the subject of yachting, 

 cycling, football, baseball, horsemanship, row- 

 lug, and canoeing. If you wish to see what it 

 is, send five two-cent stamps to the Pope Man- 

 ufacturing Co., Boston, Mass., and you will be 

 pleased. This may sound a little like gratui- 

 tous advertising; but it is preaching the gospel 

 of outdoors, and we are glad to encourage any 

 such noble enterprise. We feel also as if these 

 sports had a place right alongside of our favor- 

 ite pursuit— for by some our industry is regard- 

 ed as a pastime. 



It seems that the Evening News, of Wash- 

 ington, D. C, has been offering prizes of a bi- 

 cycle to agents who secure 100 new subscribers. 

 Master Frank Benton was the one to secure the 

 first wheel, and he did it in 72 hours, and is now 

 at work securing another for his sister. As he 

 is a boy only eight years old, the feat is quite 

 remarkable. But then, he is unusually bright, 

 and, if his parents will pardon us, handsome. 

 Master Ralph will be better known if we state 

 that he is the youngest member of the N. A. B. 

 K. A., and is the son of Frank Benton, now in 

 the Department of Agriculture, Washington, 

 D. C. We are always glad to know that any- 

 body has come in possession of a wheel, for we 

 know that he is adding greatly to the joys of 

 life, besides driving away disease and perhaps 

 escaping premature death. This remark ap- 

 plies not especially to boys, but to indoor 

 middle-aged people, who get very little fresh air. 



Present indications seem to show that this 

 season springing is not going to be so bad as 

 ivintering, although in average seasons these 

 conditions are reversed. Our spring weather so 

 far has been most beautiful. So far as we can 

 ascertain from reports, the same conditions 

 have existed nearly everywhere. Colonies that 

 were very weak, and would, in ordinary springs, 

 have spring-dwindled to nothing, are beginning 

 to build up. Young bees are beginning to 

 hatch, as the result of the warm balmy weath- 

 er, and natural pollen is coming in. No one 

 knows what the mortality of wintering and 

 springing would have been with our usual cold 

 and wet Aprils. As it is, the cellar-wintered 

 colonies, coming out into such beautiful weath- 

 er, will build up amazingly fast; and those 

 that have been wintered outdoors, even though 

 they have dwindled down, will make good use 

 of the weather. 



In tliis issue we start a new department under 

 the heading "Trade Notes." It follows Edito- 

 rials: and hereafter, when there is appropriate 

 material on hand, it will be found under that 

 head. We intend that this department shall 

 keep track of and descrilie all recent useful im- 

 provements, whether of. our own or of others; 

 and we shall be obliged to manufacturers and 

 others if they will furnish us material for this 

 department. So many devices, ideas, and 

 methods that have been submitted to us in the 

 past have been found to be either worthless or 

 abandoned, thai our "editorial we" will have 

 to sit on the judgment-seat. That functionary 

 will endeavor to be as impartial as possible; 

 and if he considers the device or idea not worth 



noticing, he will not describe it, as our subscrib- 

 ers will not care to wade through descriptions of 

 no practical value^ 



THE MAINE STATE BEE-HIVE. 



Several have written us, furnishing us facts 

 in regard to the Maine State bee-hive, by R. S. 

 Torrcy. as mentioned on p. 27.'5. It seems that it 

 was but a slight improvement over the old box 

 hive, and very much the same shape. Its inven- 

 tor was the most prominent bee-keeper and sup- 

 ply-dealer in the State before the introduction 

 of the Langstroth hive and system in 1870. 

 Along about that time, the Aniericnn Bee Jour- 

 nal began to be taken, and progressive ideas, 

 including father Langstroth's hives, shoved 

 the Maine State hive to the wall. Mr. Torrey 

 was also a seller of secrets for "making honey 

 as good asbe(!s' honey." 



SEALED covers VS. ABSORBING CUSHIONS 

 FOR OUTDOOR WINTERING. 



On page 273 we asked our subscribers to 

 "overwhelm" us with reports showing the 

 comparative tests between colonies under seal- 

 ed covers packed in chaff', and colonies packed 

 in chaff without the sealed cover, or on the ab- 

 sorbing-cushion plan. Well, we did not get del- 

 uged nor even overwhelmed; but a few reports 

 came in that were so conflicting that we are 

 unable to tell which way the wind blows. Some 

 are greatly pleased with the sealed cover, and 

 will use no other method in the future. Others 

 are decidedly disgusted, and somewhat blame 

 us for giving as much prominence to the idea as 

 we have; others can detect no difference be- 

 tween the two methods. In our own apiary, 

 we are not entirely decided, although the ad- 

 vantage seems a little in favor of the absorbing 

 cushion. It is proper to remark, however, that 

 our sealed-cover colonies, although nominally 

 so, were not so actually. They were prepared 

 so late in the season, that little or no sealing 

 was done. The sealing, if 'tis done atall, must 

 be done by the bees before cold weather sets in, 

 along in September or in the early part of Oc- 

 tober. 



As to the position of the other bee-journals, 

 the editor of the Nebraska Bee-keeper reports 

 bad results for sealed covers. The editor of 

 the Bee-keepers' Ouide, on the other hand, pub- 

 lishes a splendid testimonial for it, saying that 

 he has used the plan for the past 20 years, and 

 that he has always wintered successfully. 



Now is the time to send in reports, when the 

 discussion is fairly before us. and our interest, 

 if we ever had any, has not died out. Don't be 

 afraid to deluge us, for the truth is what we are 

 after, and we can get it only by comparative 

 tests in many and varied localities. 



Later. — Since writing the above, reports are 

 coming in, though a little tardily, more in the 

 " overwhelming" style. The great mass of 

 them show that there is no difference between 

 colonies under sealed covers protected by pack- 

 ing, and similar colonies equally protected un- 

 der absorbing cushions. If these set forth the 

 correct status of tlie case, it will account for 

 the conflicting reports mentioned above; for we 

 know that colonies, under precisely the same 

 conditions, in the same apiary, will winter very 

 differently. If a colony happened to be under a 

 sealed cover, and died, and another under an alj- 

 sorbing cushion, and lived, it would prove 

 nothing. We are not entirely satisfied yet, and 

 desire to be deluged with reports. Let them 

 pour in by the hundreds. 



Still fater.— Hold on ! Another big pile of re- 

 ports are coming in, and the evidence seems to 

 be turning more in favor of the absorbents. At 

 this rate the sealed covers will have another 

 "black eye," 



