124 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mar. 



from which to start cells, and your queens will not 

 hatch in 6 or 7 days, but you can look for them in 

 about 10 or 12 days. So far a? my experience goes, 

 these queens are as good as those from natural cells; 

 at least, I have had them live 3 years and continue 

 prolific too. I think the artificial cells that trouble 

 us are those which are started with larvsp 3 or 4 days 

 old, and hence produce seven-day and short-lived 

 queens. 1 have also had queens of the late Mr. 

 Quinby's artificial rearing, which were a3 prolific as 

 could be wished, for 3 years. 



TO PREVENT COVERS FROM LEAKING. 



If Mr. Frank Taber will use covers having a slight 

 slant, and a ridge board about 2 in. wide, with nails 

 long enough to clinch, driving about 3 on each edge, 

 and then paint, ho will have no farther trouble. 

 This is preferable to using screws, and not one-tenth 

 the cost. 



WABBLING SAWS, AND HOW TO " WABBLE " THEM 

 WITHOUT COLLARS. 



If friend Scovell's saw (page 29, Jan. No.) has 

 proper rapidity, and if, for a long board, he uses a 

 gauge on both sides, or firmly holds it to the one 

 side and does not crowd his saw, he will find one saw 

 all that is needed so far as the wabbling of the board 

 is concerned. I have grooved nearly or quite y 3 in. 

 wide by ?.| in. deep, in hard wood (cherry), with \% in. 

 saw and only one gauge, without the least trouble. 

 It is not necessary to have collars to wabble a saw. 

 Take a piece of rubber or leather of the proper 

 thickness and }i in. square, put one piece between 

 the saw and collar on one side, and another on the 

 opposite side of the arbor and saw, both pieces, of 

 course, near the edge of the collar. If your saw cuts 

 too wide, you can tighten the nut a little, which will 

 straighten the saw, and the small bit of rubber or 

 leather will "give" so you can get the desirable 

 wabble quicker than by using a collar. 



Scriba, N. Y., Feb. 1, 1880. F. II. CvnENirs. 



FDN. MACHINE WITH WOOD ROLLS. 



There now I I have gone and done it ; I have con- 

 structed a fdn. machine with wooden rolls; in fact, 

 the whole machine is wood, with no metal about it, 

 not even a nail. The rolls are 5 in. long, and 4 1-5 in. 

 in circumfei-ence. I believe it would be equal to 

 metal rolls, if the rolls were 9 or 10 in. in circumfer- 

 ence. The timber I selected for the rolls and boxes 

 is known here by two names, Sarvess Berry, and 

 May Cherry. I do not know its true name. The 

 wood is very hard and compact. When seasoned, it 

 is harder than apple tree, very fine grained, and 

 tough. lean make fdn. thick or thin, as I like. I 

 will send you a sample, and I think you will say it is 

 pretty well done for one who never saw a machine, 

 or even the fdn., except a small piece sent me as a 

 sample. 



The sample of fdn., although some of the 

 cells are a little irregular, is extremely well 

 done, and, without doubt, will answer as 

 well as any flat bottomed fdn. Yon must be 

 a genius inrleed, friend C, to have engraved 

 all those walls by hand, as I suppose you did. 



My 10 colonies of bees are wintering finely so far, 

 all packed snugly in chaff, and I hope for a good 

 season. I transferred 3 stocks (all I had) last spring, 

 and got about 65fl>. of surplus, and 7 swarms. 



HONEY FROM BLACK GUM. 



The most of my surplus was from the Black Gum. 

 This is a honey bearing tree that I have seen by the 

 thousands, but never saw it mentioned In the journ- 



al. The honey is not fit for table use, because of its 

 bitter, pungent taste, and peculiar smell; but it is 

 very valuable, as it comes in after apple and just be- 

 fore white clover bloom. 



HOME-MADE SAW MANDRELS. 



I would advise those who have more money than 

 time, to purchase their saw mandrels, saws, etc. of 

 the manufactures; for the time it takes to get a 

 home-made mandrel to run right and true, as it 

 should, will buy a new one, counting time at $1.00 

 per 10 hours. I know this by experience with my 

 mandrel (see p. 189, May Gleanings, '79). Although 

 it runs well and true now, it took time, and patience 

 too, to get it so; but for those who have plenty of 

 time it will pay; for the knowledge gained, and the 

 skill acquired, are worth a great deal. 



T. J. COOK. 



Mewpoint, Ind.. Feb. 7, 1880. 



DARK VERSUS LIGHT ITALIANS. 



My dark Italians are decidedly the best honey 

 gatherers, and the best fighters, and the best to de- 

 fend themselves and stores. Give me the dark ones. 

 I have one stock of these dark bees which, if you 

 open the hive to examine them, will, apparently, 

 take sight at your face, and go for you 10 feet away, 

 but they arc good workers, no better, however, than 

 the other dark ones. I have to subdue them with 

 smoke before I open the hive. My Italians are more 

 belligerent than my blacks. 



I believe your experience is that of others, 

 in regard to' light and dark colored Italians, 

 but when we say dark Italians, we by no 

 means mean hybrids. 



GRAPE-SUGAR AND SYRUP. 



What is the difference between the syrup of com- 

 merce, and glucose or grape-sugar? If I understand 

 it rightly, the starch is first made into glucose or 

 grape-sugar, then thinned and made into syrup. 

 My bees will not touch the syrup. I cannot see the 

 reason why, unless it is because there is more acid 

 retained in the syrup than in the sugar or glucose. 



Geo. II. Forman. 



Ripley, O., Feb. 6, 1880. 



Grape sugar cannot be melted so as to 

 make glucose, by any chemist or anybody 

 else, so far as I have been able to discover, 

 although the two substances are both made 

 at the same factory, and are nearly identical 

 in composition. 



SPRING DWINDLING. 



Is spring dwindling a disease to which bees are 

 subject, oris it a natural result from the bee-keep- 

 er's carelessness? Has it ever been in accordance 

 with your experience or observations, that a colony 

 of bees which were encouarged to rear brood late in 

 the fall, and entered the winter with plenty of young 

 and active bees, a full supply of stores, and a suita- 

 ble hive sufficiently protected from cold, have ever 

 had dwindling? If this question can be answered 

 negatively, can we not say that, by careful atten- 

 tion, we no longer fear a loss from that cause? My 

 idea is, should the season be an unfavorable one for 

 bees to roar brood late, we should stimulate the 

 queens, in this latitude, say from Sept. 25th, until 

 the last of Oct., with plenty of good stores in the 

 hive, and properly tucked up on their summer 

 stands. I think, in that case, I would be willing to 

 take the risk. 



I now have 128 colonies in gums and box hives, 

 booked to be transferred in the spring. They are 



