1880 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



543 



the professor to be quite proficient; tmt I doubt if 

 he ever saw this plant growing. If you live to see 

 this giant hyssop growing in your garden, you will 

 see a plant nearly Identical, in its early growth, with 

 flgwort— stalk, leaves, general appearance, seed, and 

 also habits of growth. I judge that so many features 

 in common indicate that they are of the same fami- 

 ly and genus. This plant has no resemblance to 

 anything belonging to the mint family. But I may 

 be mistaken theoretically. Your advertisement of 

 the " nice spirit-levels " in Our Homes is aicftillu in- 

 genious, I should think. G. W. Demarke. 

 Christ iansburg, Ky., Oct. 5, 1883. 



Are you not a little rough all around, 

 friend D.V I confess I was inclined to think 

 it strange that two plants should look so 

 much alike, and not be related at all; but I 

 thought, and still think, that our very kind 

 friend Prof. Beal knows a great deal better 

 about his own line of work, than — well, than 

 I do, certainly. As I suggested to him that 

 I thought it must be another ligwort, it is 

 hardly likely that he would be" mistaken. 

 You also think that I chose my illustration, 

 to which you refer, because I wanted to sell 

 levels, do you, friend D.V It came into my 

 mind as I wrote, and I used it; but it was 

 not until it was in print that it occurred to 

 me I might be charged with using the Home 

 Papers for advertising purposes. If I suc- 

 ceed in selling all the levels at retail, I shall 

 make a profit on them of $ 18.1)0. This 

 amount I will most cheerfully remit to you, 

 as soon as you consent to accept it and use it 

 toward making, or fixing up any public wa- 

 ering-place in your vicinity. Are you not 

 in danger, my friend, of seeing evil in oth- 

 ers where it does not exist? 



A QUEEN STORY. 



Those queens you sent me over a year ago came all 

 right. It was a very cold, snowy day here. I had to 

 carry th p m a mile or so. On opening them, all the 

 bees and queens lay on the bottom dead, as I sup- 

 posed. I lighted my lamp and held them over to 

 warm them. The queens all revived, and most of 

 the bees. I discovered that the queens had the 

 greatest powers of endurance. 



I kept them awhile until it came warm weather, 

 and then put them into my swarms. A little incident 

 I will mention: 



When I let loose one of my queens, the bees had 

 not received her, and they immediately balled her. 

 I took her out and slipped her into the cage. Oneof 

 the bees followed. She then slipped out and rose a 

 few feet and disappeared. I had lost my queen! I 

 waited one hour; no queen appeared. I traveled 

 three miles on foot to see some friends, and carried 

 my coat on my arm, changing it from one arm to the 

 other half a dozen times. When I entered my friend's 

 house, and had shaken hands, a child discovered a 

 bug upon the window. 1 looked at it, and there was 

 an Italian queen-bre on the window. Having my 

 little cage in my pocket, I put her in, took her back, 

 and put her into my hive again. How came she up 

 there, three miles away? Well, she must have 

 alighted on my coat some way, and, being frightened, 

 hid away. I lost both swarms by the water-pipes in 

 the cellar freezing and bursting in winter, and 

 molding the combs. I have two very fine Italian 

 swarms in there now. 



BEES CRAWLING INTO THE EAR. 



Last Saturday I put two Italian queens into black 

 swarms. Just before finding the last queen, a bee 

 got under my veil and crawled about on my ear. I 

 tried to pinch him, having a frame of bees in my 

 hand. He got a little frightened and ran into my ear, 

 more than his length— in fact, out of sight. Whether 

 he was after ear-pollen, or to make me dance to the 

 tune of Hail Columbia, I know not; but drumming 

 on the drum of my ear with his two antlers wad what 

 kept me in an anxious state of mind. If any of your 

 Western bee experts would like to try that thing for 

 the sake of listening to some high-keyed music, they 

 may, but give me the music of my calliope, of which 

 1 am the inventor, in preference. Did you ever hear 

 of the like? I went to the house. The lady said at 

 first she could not see him; but on pulling the lower 

 part of my ear down, he was visible. The good lady 

 then picked him out with a darning-needle. He 

 didn't stay, and I don't want any more to go into my 

 ears. You wouldn't, would you? 



J. C. Stoddard. 



Springfield, Mass., July 18, 1880. 



To be sure, I wouldn't; for, to tell the 

 truth, I have had just exactly the experience 

 you mention. It was a year ago last spring, 

 when friend Hill, of the Bee Keepers' 1 Guiclc, 

 was paying us a visit, that we went out into 

 the apiary, after a cool morning, just when 

 the bees were beginning to fly. it was so 

 cool that they seemed to have that unpleasant 

 fancy of alighting on one's clothing; and 

 then, if he should happen to turn them out 

 of the sun, they would dive down out of 

 sight, apparently seeking a warmer place to 

 stay. In a very few minutes, a bee alighted 

 on my ear. Thinking he would fly away 

 when he got ready, I did not even take the 

 trouble to get him off. Pretty soon he be- 

 gan to crawl into my ear. I did not mind it, 

 for I thought I knew there was no passage 

 into the head. To my horror. I was obliged 

 to admit myself mistaken; for, of all the 

 horrible sounds and sensations, I believe I 

 never before experienced any thing like it. 



Of course, I expected every minute he 

 would sting, and I just felt as if I really 

 could not have a sting right in the inside of 

 my head, no kow. I lay right down in the 

 mud, gave Will my knife, small sharp blade 

 open, and told him to get him out. He said 

 there wasn't any bee in my ear; but I told 

 him to cut down into it until he got to him, 

 and, by pulling the ear down as you say, he 

 pried him out without l ary" a cut, or sting 

 either ; and I tell you I felt as happy as a 

 bird after that. 



Moral. — Don't ever let a bee crawl into 

 your ear. 



ORAPE SUGAR AND HONEY; COMPARATIVE VALUE 

 AS BEE FEED, ETC. 



I desire to know whether 5 lbs. of grape sugar will 

 make 5 lbs. of stores or honey. And can we raise a 

 tested queen from a tested one? D. E. Best. 



Hests, Pa., Oct. 8, 1880. 



Five lbs. of grape sugar will make more 

 than five lbs. of stores, because the bees will 

 have to bring some water to put with it be- 

 fore they can store it in the combs. This 

 water will soon evaporate, however, if the 

 sugar is pure grape, and it will be a3 hard in 



