March, 1910. 



American Hee Journal 



doors, I will give a short account of my ex- 

 perience, and what I think I have learned 

 from it. 



I have changed my method of packmg hives 

 for winter, at different times. My first win- 

 ter-case was a shallow box or frame, about 3 

 inches widtr than the hive on all sides, which 

 was slipped over the hive. It had muslin 

 tacked to the rim so as to form a kind of 

 sack under and around the hive, and about 6 

 or 8 inches was put on top. Then the muslin 

 was neatly folded over and fastened in place 

 with pins. 



Later I used wooden winter-cases without 

 bottom packing, using them singly, 4 in a 

 case, and in long rows of 10 in a case. Then 

 I began to experiment with tar-papt-r wrapped 

 around the hive, and now I use that method 

 of winter protection altogether. 



Before putting on the paper I examine the 

 top of each hive carefully to see that the 

 cover is sealed down tight, and that here 

 are are no chinks, or crevices for the heat to 

 escape, or for a draught through the hive. 

 If the top is not tightly sealed I close the 

 opening with clay, or paste a newspaper down 

 over and around the top. About 5 inches of 

 planer-shavings are then put over the sealed 

 cover, the hive-cover is put on, and paper 

 wrapped snugly around all. The entrance is 

 left open the full width of the hive. 



It seems to me that with a small hive- 

 entrance bees are more inclined to have dys- 

 entery. 



I like paper protection, for several rea- 

 sons: 



1st. "Roth bees and combs are dry. I think 

 this is because the moisture condenses on the 

 sides of the hives, due to the thinner and 

 colder side- walls, instead of above the bees. 



2d., While it is quite a little work to fix 

 them up properly, the work is not heavy, 

 and therefore it suits me best. 



3d. It does not require so much Storage- 

 room as do wooden winter-cases. 



From my experience I should say that 

 tliere should be no packing below the frames, 

 and not much on the sides; but a good, thick 

 packing of some kind at the upper part, 

 and above the frames, is necessary for out- 

 door wintering of bees. 



Cassville, W"is. Mathilde Candler. 



In the discussion following the fore- 

 going paper, Mr. Allen said that Miss 

 Candler winters her bees in 2-story hives 

 with the bees in the upper story. Mr. 

 France said that her hives were protect- 

 ed under a bluff. 



Extracting Honey. 



"How ought good honey to be heat- 

 ed without injuring its color? 



Mr. York would heat it as high as 

 i6o degrees, but it must be bottled at 

 once, and there will be little granula- 

 tion. It has, however, a tendency to in- 

 jure both color and flavor, if kept for 

 too long a time at i6o degrees or higher. 

 He described a method of blending to 

 make a good basswood flavor, to help 

 to prevent pranulation. 



Getting Old Pollen Out of Combs. 



"What is the best method to get the 

 old pollen out of the combs?" 



Melt the old combs, and render into 

 wax, and then use comb foundation. 



Fastening Foundation in Frames. 



"Which is the best and easiest way 

 to fasten medium brood foundation 

 in a Langstroth triangular top-bar 

 brood - frame, wire or splints ? Is it 

 necessary to use either when founda- 

 tion is re-enforced by brushing melted 

 wax over part of it?" 



The re-enforcement plan had not been 

 tried by any one, but the majority 

 agreed to try it the coming season. It 

 seems to be the opinion of all for ex- 

 tr^icting combs that wire is necessary. 

 The rc-enforccment plan was demon- 

 strated and ex])lained by Mr. France. 



The following paper by Harry La- 

 throp was read by Secretary Uittmer : 



The Bee-Keepers' Need and Enemy. 



What is it that bee-keeper's need more than 

 any other thing? The question is easily an- 

 swered. It is a reliable market for honey. 



What is the greatest enemy of bee-keeping 

 in the United States? Not foul brood. That 

 enemy can he handled by the intelligent bee- 

 keeper. The greatest enemy of bee-keeping 

 in our country is the glucose trust. The in- 

 dividual can tight disease, but he can not, 

 alone, tight organized greed. Only the united 

 effort of all producers can effect desired leg- 

 islation; and we must also enlist the aid of 

 all fair-minded people who want to see the 

 right prevail. 



The extracted honey that is sold in the 

 country districts at the present time, amounts 

 to only a drop in the bucket as compared 

 with the glucose syrup that is sold under dif- 

 ferent names, usually as corn syrup. What- 

 ever it is, it is not a natural product, and, 

 by reliable information, is detrimental to 

 health. Vet the trust magnates have the 

 "gall" to advertise it as being "better than 

 honey." 



I will say here, parenthetically, that I 

 have talked with some who have worked in 

 glucose factories, and they declared that they 

 would not eat the product that they had 

 helped to manufacture. It seems, from what 

 they told me, that hoofs and other refuse 

 from packing houses are used to give "body" 

 to ihe stuff! 



The future of our industry depends largely 

 upon the sort of fight that we can put up 

 against this" insidious foe. Considering so- 

 ciety as a family, what sense is there in de- 

 stroying large amounts of grain to produce 

 an artificial product, when real health-giving 

 nectar is going to waste all over the land, 

 and the saving of which for the use of hu- 

 manity needs only the encouragement of the 

 workers (bee-keepers.) 



The manufacture of glucose is on a level 

 with the making of whiskey. It is not done 

 for the benefit of humanity, or for the com- 

 mon good, but for greed. If things were 

 made for use instead of profit, how much of 

 those poisons would be manufactured and 

 sold ? Greed of gain is at the bottom, and 

 bee-keepers, I hail you as a class of work- 

 ers who would not have to give up your oc- 

 cupation if the reign of righteousness should 

 actually come on earth — the federation of the 

 world, the brotherhood of man, under the 

 Golden Rule. 



Bee-keeping will ever be an occupation of 

 the people, available to the man or woman 

 of small means. Industrial slavery of the 

 masses is the aim, consciously or uncon- 

 sciously, of organized wealth. If there is 

 anything that the glucose trust would like 

 to do today, it is to crush out bee-keeping as 

 an industry. 



Fifteen years ago the dairy interest of 

 this State was fighting for its life against the 

 great packing houses. The dairy interests 

 were strong, and they won the fight. You of 

 Southern Wisconsin know the result. See the 

 wealth that has been added to our State, and 

 the happy homes of comfort and prosperity, 

 because organized greed was not allowed to sell 

 something "better than butter," and manufac- 

 tured from nobody knows what. 



Our cause is as just as that of the dairy- 

 men, and more urgent, as the product being 

 put out to displace boney is not as fit for 

 luiman food as oleomargarine, no matter how 

 liiphly the latter is colored. 



There is important work for us to do. The 

 bee-keepers are in the fore- front of a battle, 

 Irlie result of which may mean liberty and 

 prosperity for the masses, or it may mean 

 serfdom, witli all the machinery of govern- 

 ment, standing army, navy, etc., in the con- 

 trol of the money-power. I,et the bee-keep- 

 ers' contingent do their duty in the struggle. 

 Rridgeport. Wis. Harry Lathrop. 



The nature of glucose and Karo Corn 

 Syrup was discussed, and the use of 

 both condemned. 



The following paper by H. H. Moe 

 was then read by the secretary : 



Bee-Keepers as I have Known Them. 



Bce-kfcpcrs themselves are an interesting 

 class of people. By way of acquaintance, or 

 an introduction, I shall present here in a brief 

 paper my impression of some bee-keepers. Of 

 course, I had read of some of the big men, 

 and read something from some of them. It 

 was my pleasure and privilege to attend the 

 National Convention at Los Angeles, Calif., in 

 in03, and the Harrisburg Convention in 1907. 

 These two conventions, at the extremes of our 



country, brought me into contact with some of 

 the big kee-keepers in various parts of our 

 country. A photograph of the Los Angeles 

 Convention is especially valued. It is an art 

 work in itself, where such men as Prof. A. J. 

 Cook, Dr. C. C. Miller, A. L Root, George 

 \\. York, W. Z. Hutchinson, N. E. France, 

 and a large number of other noted bee-keepers, 

 were assembled. For this convention a special 

 car for bee-keepers from Chicago to Los An- 

 geles was chartered. This car the party of 

 bee-keepers occupied for six nights, and the 

 pleasure of this trip will long be remembered. 

 The delightful visits, the beautiful songs, and 

 wonderful scenery, are not soon forgotten. 

 Tlie only thing that marred the dignity of the 

 party was the appearance of a deck of cards, t 



one day, that tumbled on the floor. Some. said, ^ 



jokingly, that it was Dr. Miller's; some said 

 it was Mr. Root's; but if any one claimed the 

 deck, I failed to find out who it was. 



One day, while our train stopped for a 

 short time for dinner along the route in West- 

 ern Kansas, many of us were hurrying to din- 

 ner at the hotel. Mr. Hutchinson and myself 

 were together. Right in front of him was a 

 very prettv girl who had just pulled a chair back 

 from the' table, which she no doubt intended 

 to occupy. But Mr. Hutchinson was too quick 

 for her, and squatted himself right down in 

 her chair, and proceeded to do justice to the 

 dinner. He was perfectly unconscious of the 

 beauty of the girl, or that he had in any way 

 been impolite. 



As for our memorable visit to the Grand 

 Canyon of the Colorado, that would be de- 

 serving alone of a longer paper than I in- 

 tend to weary you with here. How our mid- 

 night sleep was disturbed by the yip, yip! and 

 bow, wow! of the coyotes. Mr. Hutchinson 

 and Mr. France are big bee-men, but a trip 

 down into the Canyon scared them out. They 

 " remained on top and described us as little ants 

 crawling along the mountain side. Wonderful 

 scenery, indeed! The interesting gospel serv- 

 ice Sunday morning, by the bee-keepers, in 

 the hotel — a place unused to such services — 

 will no doubt long be remembered. And were 

 they not appropriate ? The beautiful song, 

 "Not Ashamed of Jesus," by Mr. and Mrs. 

 York, (the latter now deceased), will not be 

 forgotten. Dr. C. C. Miller's resonant tenor 

 voice in "The Rock That is Higher Than I,** 

 sounded especially inspiring in that region. 

 A. I. Root, one of the best known bee-keep- 

 ers in all the world, spoke on the text, "In 

 all thy ways acknowledge Him," and his ad- 

 dress also seemed very appropriate. 



But I set out to write a brief paper, and 

 not one to put you to sleep. You wish to 

 know my impression of some of these bee- 

 keepers? Being a school-teacher, my fellow 

 laborers I would generally recognize as clean 

 and intelligent. The typical leading bee-keep- 

 ers I have met I can also characterize as 

 clean and intelligent — two very high accom- 

 plishments, and not as common as I wish they 

 might be. Nor are these characteristics pos- 

 sessed in so high a degree as they might be 

 in certain quarters. But the typical bee-keeper 

 is also a pure-bred Prohibitionist, and when I 

 say that. I am paying them a high compli- 

 ment. -My first personal acquaintance with the 

 Editor of the American Bee Journal was to 

 learn that he had refused to publish a recipe 

 for making wine out of honey. I immediately 

 made up my mind that the Editor was in- 

 deed worthy of being at the head of a great 

 bee-paper. 



A. I. Root's attempt to curtail the tobacco 

 habit by offering a bee-smoker to any one who 

 would discontinue the use of the poisonous 

 weed, (and if resumed, to pay for the bee- 

 smoker), was, I believe, quite generally known. 

 Let all such good work go on. 



Should anything of what I have here said 

 make any of the big bee-keepers sort of stuck 

 up, you would better empower the president to | 



take them down a notch or two! 



Woodford, Wis. H. IL Moe. 



The discussion and reminiscences 

 which followed developed some facts 

 that Mr. Moe, naturally, W(nild not 

 mention in liis paper. 



Sugar Syrup for Winter Stores. 



"What is the best method to make su- 

 gar syrup for winter bee-food?" 



Two parts sugar to one part water, 

 thoroughly mixed by churning it 



Sealed Covers in Winter. 



"Are sealed covers preferable to bur- 



