22 



GLEAKINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Jan. 



would cheapen the price so much it would add to 

 the consumption very much. After a number of 

 pails or glass jars have accumulated on the gro- 

 ceryman's hands, he could; refill from your 60-lb. 

 tins, and they could be sold back to the bee-keeper, 

 who could use them again. My idea of a glass for 

 retailing extracted honey is one holding 3 lbs., self- 

 sealing, like the Mason, as large a mouth as the 

 quart Mason jar, but not so tall that, when a tea- 

 spoon is in it it gets daubed with honey to the top 

 of the handle. The only trouble with the li^-lb. 

 glass pails is, you can not seal with rubber, and 

 there is some daubing if shipped. A small glass 

 ships safely. I have shipped honey without break- 

 age in the Ija-lb. glass i>ails. J. B. Colton. 

 Waverly, Iowa. 



FROM DIFFERENT FIELDS. 



THE STANLiEY REVERSIBLE EXTRACTOR; A SPLEN- 

 DID TESTIMONIAL. 



Mr. Root:— We have used the Stanley reversible 

 extractor for six years in two apiaries. For the 

 first three years we also used a non-reversible ex- 

 tractor, because of mechanical defects in the Stan- 

 ley as first sent out. For three years we have used 

 the Stanley exclusively. My father says he would 

 almost as soon think of returning to bo.x hives as to 

 non-reversible extractors. This year we took out 

 1I,(»KI pounds; last year 5000, and in 1887 not less 

 than 8000 pounds. We are extracting now, since 

 cold weather began. The honey is as thick as the 

 traditional " molasses in January," but the extract- 

 or does the work well. We use two extractors— one 

 holding four frames, and the other two. Both have 

 gearing. I prefer the four- frame one. Most of our 

 extracting is done by girU. Since I was twelve 

 years old I have done a share of the extracting each 

 year, with a Staidey four-frame extractor. Does 

 that look as though the Stanley were a "7/ian-kill- 

 er " ? Turning the machine is the poetry of ex- 

 tracting; lifting the combs, the iveiijhtkst prose. 

 Hurrah for Stanley and his Automatic extractor ! 

 He deserves a place with Watt, Arkwright, Whitney, 

 and Howe. Clara Jones. 



West Bend, Wis., Dec. 10, 1889. 



JAPAN clover; something THAT THREATENS TO 

 RUN OtIT, IN CERTAIN LOCALITIES, BEE CLO- 

 VER AND OTHER USEFUL GRASSES. 



Some time ago I wrote an article for Gleanings, 

 calling the attention of beekeepers to the north- 

 ward march of Japan clover, and Its destructive in- 

 liuence on bee-pasturage. In a foot-note under 

 that article, you claim to have consulted the au- 

 thorities, and found that it was considered a useful 

 plant — useful, I suppose, in killing out briers, 

 weeds, etc. ; useful where the land is tilled continu- 

 ally, and such things as meadows are unknown. 

 As I could not believe that I was mistaken, I have, 

 since that time, watched for some other mention of 

 it in the agricultural or bee journals, and have at 

 last been rewarded by finding at least one high au- 

 thority that takes the same view that I do. The 

 editor of the Home and Farm, of Louisville, Ky., in 

 the Issue of Nov. 15, has this to say: "Bermuda 

 grass and Japan clover are on the march, and each 

 and all will be sure to usurp the domain previously 

 held by blue grass, timothy, and red and white clo- 



ver, just as soon as a sulHcient decrease of fertility 

 in the soil weakens them below the measure of the 

 strength of the invaders." 



My observation agrees with the above, only I fail 

 to see that a decrease in the fertility of the soil is 

 necessary; The invading plants will grow on the 

 best of land. I should be glad to hear from others 

 on the subject. Perhaps friend Jenkins can tell 

 something about it, as I should suppose that Japan 

 clover has had a foothold In his locality for years. 



Paris, Tenn., Nov. 37, 1889. W. H. Greer. 



ALFALFA, THE PRICE OF; THE GOPFTEU AND ITS 

 DEPREDATIONS. 



Alfalfa seed is now held in our markets at from 

 9 to 11 cents per pound, and sold by the hundred 

 weight, and not by the bushel; but I suppose a 

 bushel would weigh 60 pounds, hence a bushel 

 would average us $6.00. This, in the way we sow, 

 would be sufficient to plant 2'/4 acres. Tn this local- 

 ity irrigation on alfalfa is more to keep out the 

 gophers than any thing else. Of course, you know 

 that this little fellow, who is second cousin to the 

 somewhat troublesome mole of the Eastern States, 

 is the greatest enemy of the alfalfa root; and my 

 remembrance of the summer seasons in Northern 

 Ohio leads me to belie\ e that no watering would be 

 necessary with alfalfa. I am not so sure, though, 

 that the plant would stand the zi-ro w*^ather, ex- 

 cept in localities where there is a heavy and contin- 

 uous snow to act as a mulch. A mulch, also, of 

 straw and manure, put on before the snow, would 

 undoubtedly help it through the winter. 



St. Helena, Cal., Dec. U. Wili- C. Aiken. 



CALIFORNIA HONEY — HOLDING IT OVER AND 

 "GETTING LEFT." 



Friend Rnot:—! have sold but a few tons of my 

 honey yet. Isold it early in the season ai (lets.; 

 and since that, honey has been dropping otf in this 

 market, from some cause that I can not account 

 for. We can get only 5 cents for nice white honey 

 now. We do not like to sell for that, it we can 

 help it. This is the first time that I ever got left by 

 holding my honey until fall. We have left about 

 two tons of honey In the second supers in one of 

 our apiaries. It is so thick that we can not get it 

 out of the combs with our eight-frame extractors. 

 They, of course, are not geared. L. E. Mercer. 



San Buena Ventura, Cal., Oct. 12. 



BEES FIGHTING AMONG THEMSELVES ; WHAT WAS 



THE CAUSE ? 



July 3d I bought 1 lb. of bees and queen of you, 

 through R. K. Herriman. I put them in a four- 

 frame hive, one of brood. They did well until 

 about Sept. 1. At that time I saw the queen. I 

 went away for four weeks, then I discovered they 

 were apparently fighting. I kept watch of them, 

 and in that time they had decreased about half in 

 number. In a week longer I united them with 

 another. At that time there was not over half a 

 pint of bees, and no queen, with plenty of sealed 

 honey. I have inquired of a number of local bee- 

 keepers, and they never heard of such a thing as 

 bees fighting among themselves. As you can see, 

 I have lost bees, queen, and all. 



Newburg, O., Nov. 1, 1889. D. D. Burrows. 



If your four-frame nucleus did well until 

 Sept. 1, 1 can not very well conjecture what 

 should have made them act as they, did. If 

 your entrance is very large, your bees may 



