1879 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



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[This department is to be kept for the benefit of 

 those who are dissatisfied; and when anything is 

 amiss, I hope you will "talk right out." As a rule 

 we will omit names and addresses, to avoid being 

 too personal.] 



/.N'lIE following explains how easily we 

 _^ may be blaming somebody who is not 

 "' to blame at all: 



1 take the liberty of writing you this morning, to 

 inform you that 1 signed, and also paid my money, 

 for Gleanings, and have received 2 Nos. only. Our 

 postmaster said there had been none received at his 

 office since the first two. You will please forward 

 immediately, as i am dealing in bees and wish for 

 full information. J. It. Knightlin. 



Corunna, Mich., Nov. 5, 1878. 



Of course, we sent the missing Nos. again, 

 and supposed it was all right, as the P. M. 

 said none had been received, carefully ex- 

 amining bis address on the list to see if all 

 was right. Imagine our surprise on receiv- 

 ing the following : 



Feeling somewhat anxious about my books, I 

 thought f would say to you that this is the second 

 time I have written you, and have heard nothing 

 from you. I failed to get the Oct. number, and also 

 March and Feb. Nos.; that is 3 books out, and you 

 will please attend to it at once, or refund the mon- 

 ey, i was pleased with the books, and should in all 

 probability have subscribed again after the expira- 

 tion of the time, had all been light. You will please 

 oblige J. R. Knightlin. 



Corunna, Mich., Feb. 19, 1879. 



Well, this is a muddle anyway. The whole 

 matter was handed over to the "muddle 

 clerk," and, after awhile, she produced the 

 following. We all felt as the woman did 

 when the bottom fell out of her tub ; she 

 said, "I can see through it now, as plain as 

 can be." 



I am in receipt of your bee journal under the name 

 of J. R. Knightlin. 1 think a great deal of it, and 

 mean to take it as soon as I can. It is a mistake of 

 the postmaster. We have been building a meeting 

 house, and it takes nearly all the loose change I can 

 muster to help along, or I would send for Glean- 

 ings now. I have 20 swarms of bees, and would like 

 all the information I can get. At any rate, I will 

 send for ABC of Bee Culture all three parts. Ad- 

 dress J. R. Knight. 



Corunna, Mich., Jan. 13, 1879. 



Now, brothers Knight and Knightlin, please 



allow me the liberty of a little pleasant 

 growl. If you two get mail at the same post 

 office, with names so nearly alike, and in- 

 itials exactly alike, it seems to me you must 

 have had the same trouble before ; I should 

 suppose, too, that the P. M. would have 

 known there were "two of you." And you, 

 friend Knight, when you were building that 

 meeting house — I am very glad indeed you 

 are doing it, for I think it is the nicest thing 

 to do in the world — when you were building 

 that meeting house did it never occur to you 

 that your name was not Knightlin, and that 

 somebody else's name might be? Especial- 

 ly, as you bad not subscribed for any bee pa- 

 per? It is really funny, when we think that 

 you both happened to be bee men too. If 

 you will shake hands and promise to be good 

 friends, I will forgive you both, but please 

 do not be so hasty in deciding that we are 

 purposely withholding your "bee books." 



I received my smoker O K; but I do not think it 

 will be worth anything to me. I am afraid to put 

 fire into it for I know it would come to pieces; and 

 as it is so pretty 1 do not want to spoil it. I tried it 

 very slightly, but kept pouring water on it all the 

 time to keep the solder from melting. There is no 

 joking about this; I tell you, sir, for a fact, I know 

 it will not stand tire. I wish I had got one of the old 

 patented ones, for this one can't stand Are. I shall 

 send the pieces back to vou as soon as they melt. 



Cabot, Ark., Mar. 19, '79. B. F. Cathey. 



Our smokers are not put together with sol- 

 der; they are soldered simply that they may 

 better stand the rough handling by mail. 



Have you not borrowed trouble needlessly, 

 my friend? If it comes to pieces, send me 

 them together with your bill of damages; 

 but don't pour any more water on it. 



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A WOMAN'S CHAFF HIVE. 



SEE in Gleanings many chaff hives mentioned, 

 but none like mine. Mine is very simple, and 

 was at first a necessity. When I first began to 

 keep bees, I determined to make them pay their 

 way. So with plenty of increase and no money, the 

 only things that would answer for Simplicity hives 

 were boxes from dry goods stores, some holding 

 eight, and some ten frames, but at least eight inches 

 longer than the Langstroth frame. 



I nailed rabbets four iuches (more or less) from 

 each end, and put in chaff cushions: by removing 

 one outside frame from each side, and putting in 

 chaff cushions, I have a complete chaff hive, and a 

 very successful one too. 



This winter makes the sixth year that I am using 

 such hives. I have never lost a colony, although 

 some of my boxes are scarcely half an inch thick. 

 Not being all of one size, and looking pretty rough, 

 they are not as pretty as your Simplicity hives, but 

 my bees are bright as a new dollar, and the hives 

 are full. Mrs. C. C. Rozieb. 



St. Genevieve, Mo. 



We got our first hive (a two story Langstroth) in 

 San Francisco. It is very roughly made and mi- 

 painted, and cost $3.00. My husband, who has a 

 great liking for neat work, wishes we were nearer 

 to your supplies. Our almond trees are in bloom, 

 and all day long they are full of bees. The sight 

 and the sound of them makes us long to have our 

 own little workers busy amongst them. 



Isabella Harrison. 



Walnut Creek, Cal., March 6tb, '79. 



Friend Novice: You may regret opening the col- 

 umns of Gleanings to us "womenfolks;" for we 

 are famous talkers, you know, and must have our 

 say. So I will say my say quick, lest you make the 

 discovery that we are not lords of creation. 



We, i.e., husband and self, came here in the fall of 

 '73, intending to make bee culture a special study 

 and life business. We brought 21 swarms here, but 

 on account of being moved so late (the first of Nov.), 

 and having no chance to fly until the 6th of Jan., 

 they became diseased, and we lost all but two, and 

 those came through with not more than a good 

 handful of bees. But we had no idea of going into 

 "Blasted Hopes," so we sent to t he late Adam Grimm, 

 and got two more. From these we took 100 lbs. of 

 honey and 10 new swarms. Six of these died during 

 the winter, but iu the summer of '75 we increased to 

 22 swarms, and took about 500 lbs. surplus. 



The next winter we suffered more losses, coming 

 out in the spring with nine very weak colonies. 

 These mishaps led us to study more closely, and the 

 spring of '77 found us with 19 good stocks, and much 

 practical knowledge of the business, which last 

 seems to be good stock in trade to insure suc- 

 cess. That summer, we increased to 36 fair colonies, 

 with 900 lbs. of honey, and wintered 22. 



My husband was all the time experimenting, and 

 reading Gleanings. Last spring, he built a Bee- 

 House or House Apiary, with all the hives packed 

 with cut straw. He had made great calculations 

 about experimenting largely during the summer, 

 for he was truly enthusiastic in the study of the hab- 



