1880 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



531 



he, "My bees are all spoiled. There is not a handful 

 in a bive." 



Mr. Root, my object in writing to you is to ascer- 

 tain whether there is any law for the protection of 

 bees. If so, let me know immediately. It is claimed 

 around here that there is no law for the protection 

 of bees. That being- the ease, we, the bee-keepers of 

 this section, might as well resort to brimstone im- 

 mediately, and keep the poison out of the honey. 

 We have already done so, for our business is at the 

 disposal of our neighbors, who forget to "let live," 

 but never forget to live. 



Mr. Hoot, since I began this letter I have been out 

 to look over my bees, and found that they also have 

 been to taste of the poisoned sweets. Four out of 13 

 have found it, and a few sunny hours may lay the 

 rest in piles, dead, before their hives. Bee-keepers, 

 is it not enough that our bark of industry be tossed 

 on nature's troubled sea? It seems not; for art, in 

 the hands of men, has the power to lay its hand on 

 the frail craft and sink it for ever. 



It would hardly be fair to place this under the 

 head of Blasted Hope3. and yet you see how we are 

 situated. I can stand my loss, even if I lose them 

 all, as I probably shall, if the weather does not pre- 

 vent them from flying. But as for Klasen, I leave 

 you to imagine for yourselves. He has quite a fam- 

 ily, and has depended on his bees for a support. 

 They are destroyed, and he has 1000 lbs. of honey 

 that the people won't buy, for fear there is poison 

 in it. 



My years deny me the privilege of advising you, 

 who are older in the business; and yet, would it not 

 be well for us, a class having the same interests, to 

 support this man in his attempt to crush this evil 

 in its infancy, for is it not an inroad that may lead 

 to your homes and apiaries? Advice and informa- 

 tion will be gratefully received from you or any of 

 your correspondents. Geo. Rosekelly. 



Huron, Erie Co., O., Sept. 29, 1880. 



It is possible, friend R., that the bees were 

 harming the grapes, and it may be, too, that 

 the owner of the grapes could have obliged 

 friend Klasen to move his bees away, by 

 taking proper measures ; but I am sure he 

 could by no manner of means make it appear 

 that he had any right, legally or morally, to 

 poison the bees. As bees are now taxable 

 property, 1 should suppose the penalty for 

 killing ihem, even if they are on your neigh- 

 bor's premises, would be the same as for kill- 

 ing a horse or cow. Another point should 

 be taken into consideration : The bees that 

 came for the grapes were not the only ones 

 killed, but the sweetened water attracted 

 great numbers that would not have come 

 otherwise, and the poison carried into the 

 hives killed greater numbers still. I think, 

 friend R., you are the one to go and remon- 

 strate with Mr. Krock. lie probably got 

 somewhat irritated by thinking he was 

 wronged— much more than was really the 

 case, and a friendly talk will perhaps be the 

 means of having the whole matter settled 

 amicably. Our attorney has furnished us 

 the following copy of the law, which it may 

 lie well to read- to him, to let him see the 

 enormity of the offense he has been commit- 

 ting. 



There is no special law reaching the ease, but 

 your friend's remedy will come under the following 

 section of the Revised Statutes, t<> wit: 



Sec. 6863. Whoever maliciously destroys or injures 

 any property not his own, shall, if the value of the 

 thing destroyed, or the injury done, is one hundred 

 dollars or more, be imprisoned in the penitentiary 

 not more than seven years nor less than one year; 

 or if the value is less than that sum, be fined not 

 more than live hundred dollars, or imprisoned not 

 more than thirty days, or both. 



We think the above will reach the case of Peter 

 Klasen. Woodward & Andrew. 



Medina, O , Sept , 1880. 



HOW I ;t IliMl KOOT WENT DOWN, AND 

 CAME UP AGAIN. 



GOOD FOR YORK STATE, AND GOOD FOR BUCKWHEAT. 



ONE year ago last spring I found myself without 

 I bees, though I attempted to winter 60 swarms. 

 I did not write then, because I knew you 

 would put me in Blasted Hopes, and I was not ready- 

 to go there; for I had some hopes left that were not 

 blasted. I found 8 swarms then, which I bought at 

 $4.00 per swarm, and transferred from box to Sim- 

 plicity hives; and, by using combs on hand, increas- 

 ed to 30, and had about 400 lbs. surplus comb honey, 

 which more than paid the $32.00 for the bees. One 

 swarm died last winter, leaving me 23 swarms to be- 

 gin business with this spring. 



Now for this season's work. I have extracted 5 

 bbls., of 360 lbs. each, of white-clover and basswood 

 honey, and 5 bbls. of buckwheat and fall honej r , mak- 

 ing 3600 lbs. of extracted honey, and I have some- 

 thing over 400 lbs. of comb honey. My experience 

 with comb honey is not satisfactory, for the bees 

 irmihl swarm and leave it every time, this year; and, 

 though I moved some of it to the new swarms, giv- 

 ing them a full set of combs in the lower story, I got 

 very little finished white comb. 



My expense out, this year, is $16.00 for barrels, and 

 $3.00 for queens. Product from the 29 swarms, 4000 

 lbs. of honey, and 28 natural swarms, all strong. 



I extracted 1 bbl. of buckwheat honey from 5 hives 

 in one day. Wm. H. Root. 



Port Byron, N. Y., Oct. 6, 1880. 



Thanks, friend R., but we would very 

 much like to know how it was that you lost 

 GO colonies in one season. Your yield from 

 buckwheat is perhaps the largest one we 

 have ever had reported. It seems to me you 

 must surely have been able to see and taste 

 the honey in the flowers, when it came in 

 such a flood. Can anybody tell us about 

 this? Do you know where you were wrong 

 when you lost so badly, and why it was you 

 succeeded so well the winter after? Your 

 report tells us another thing, too,— that there 

 were localities where honey came in great 

 quantities, even this year; nearly 140 lbs. to 

 the colony, besides almost doubling the 

 number of colonies. 



MOTH-WORMS, ETC. 



fi HAVE 9 stands of bees. 1 had 4 in the spring, 

 and increased them to 9. This year has been 

 ' a very poor one for bees. I think I shall have 

 to feed them some to make sure that the> r will have 

 plenty to winter on. I find there is more to learn 

 than just to divide them. One man here had one 

 stand in the spring, divided them into three, lost 

 two, ami will lose that one if he does not look well 



