November, 1910. 



American ^ee Journal 



the hives. Day and iiiglit they hung out. I 

 thought they were prcpariiie to swarm. 

 They didn't do that last year. When I found 

 bees haneine out I put on anotlier super, 

 and that settled that part of it last year. Hut 

 it didn't make any difference this year. 1 

 tried everythini; 1 could think of to make 

 them go in— smoke, ventilation, and even 

 made artificial swarms, to in>' sorrow. 



The 7.S colonies of bees I had in one place 

 (runninirfor comb honeyj just would not to 

 to work. I went to pinch out the queen- 

 cells, but found none. I read " A B C and X 

 YZ of Bee Culture." Finally I saw them 

 killinsroff drones, so I read up on that, and 

 came to the conclusion that there was no 

 honey in the field, and so I let them alone 

 for a few days to see what they would do. f 

 found they were using up the surplus honey 

 in the supers, and in a few more days there 

 were no more larvaj to speak of. A friend of 

 mine who came to look at them, said that 

 those he looked at were Queenless. as there 

 were no eggs, but I gave them brood and 

 they built no queen-cells. So I looked for 

 the queens, and found them all at home. 



The bees ate all the surplus honey they 

 had. They became so weak that I had to 

 double up a lot of them, and moved them to 

 where the carpet-grass grows, and they went 

 to work and filled everything full of the 

 nicest honey I ever saw or ate. I am ex- 

 tracting it now, and have sold some to the 

 local stores for cents per pound. But it is 

 getting so late now that the carpet-grass is 

 going to seed, and the bees are working on 

 the "turpentine-weed." as we call it. It is 

 a small bush with blue flowers and is in full 

 bloom now. It is the last of the honey-flow, 

 the honey candies very quickly, and must 

 be out of the combs not later than Nov. 15th. 

 I couldn't get it out last year. 



It is too late to do much this year, but I ex- 

 pect to do better next year. The old bee-men 

 say they never knew a honey crop to fail, 

 although some years are not as good as 

 others: but this is "the limit." I guess I 

 am a hoodoo. From my 150 colonies I got 

 only i; swarms, and they issued the latter 

 part of .March. 



I could tell a lot more of mv troubles, but 

 as I am not much of a writer I will sit back 

 and read what other bee-men have to say. 



, , „ K. A. Howard. 



Yuba City. Cal., .Sept. 22. 



An Old Bee-Keeper's Report 



October 3d I will be 71 years old. I can do 

 a fairly good day's work, and get from $1.50 

 to Sj 00 per day. I wish I could have gotten 

 this when I was young, and able to work: 

 but Ml-// I had to work for 5" cents a day, and 

 take that in corn at $1.00 per bushel. Well, 

 1 am getting away from my subject, I want to 

 write about my bees. 



We had a later spring here this year than 

 we have had in many years. I had to feed 

 my bees until the last of May. I had 12 colo- 

 nies, but lost Q. which left me ^ to start with, 

 and I have u now. all in good condition. They 

 didn't gather honey until July is. It was so 

 cold and wet they couldn't work. Most of 

 my bees froze to death. I think: I didn't pro- 

 tect them from the cold. They had plenty 

 of honey and bee-bread. A man has to learn. 

 I thought they would winter in a frame hive 

 just as they did in the old log-gum. I am 

 going to make a box and put over every one 

 of them, leaving a 2-inch space around in- 

 side, and fill in with shavings; then put 2 

 feed sacks on top in an empty super. 



We had a good How of honey here from 

 Aug, I until .Sept. 20, from fall blossoms. 



T, J. COGAR. 



Lane s Bottom, W. Va., Sept. 26. 



Removing Honey Rapidly from Hives 



On page 285, Mr. Scholl describes his 

 method of procedure in takingoff bulk comb 

 honey by the ton in an hour. He is a very up- 

 to-date and progressive bee-keeper, and 

 puts in use only methods whereby he can 

 accomplish the most for the time invested : 

 still, in that respect, he doesn't practice the 

 Quickest way. Some might say that taking 

 a ton of honey off the hive and freeing it of 

 bees in an hour is over the limit. It is mani- 

 fest to me that it can be done, and more yet. 

 I have struck an idea, and have put it in 

 practice, whereby I can take off 100 pounds 

 and free it of bees in one minute. This is 

 not unreasonable. 1 have done it time and 

 time a^ain <iuring the last twp seasons. It 

 workssoquickly that the robber-bees hardly 

 have an occasion to get started, which is 

 quite an advantage over the brushing 

 method, or any other that has come to my 

 knowledge. Although can't say that my 



way is practical with the deep supers, on 

 account of their being so heavy and clumsy, 

 but it certainly is with the shallow super, 

 which is my favorite. Here is the way in 

 which I approach the matter: 



Have the smoker in good smoking order: 

 hold it in the right hand and the hive-tool in 

 the left, then pry loose the cover and remove 

 it; give the bees a good smoking, which 

 causes most of them to leave the super. 

 Then go to the next hive and proceed in the 

 same manner until you have 3 hives uncov- 

 ered, for 3 is the number I find the most 

 satisfactory. Return to the first hive again 

 and give the bees another smoke. and jerk off 

 the super. After the super is off the hive 

 hold it in a slanting position and jerk the 

 lower end to the ground, keep on reversing 

 and jerking, and in 5 or 6 jerks the super 

 \yill be free from bees. .^11 this is done in a 

 " jiffy." It is done quicker than it is told. I 

 have to move backward a little at every jerk 

 so the super will not smash and kill the bees 

 that have fallen from the last jerk. 



Alfred L. Hartl. 



Elmendorf. Tex.. Oct. 7, 



Dry Summer and Short Crop 



My bees are doing well at tliis time. They 

 are all strong. But the honey crop has been 

 short on account of the dry summer. It was 

 dry for 30 days, and the bees did nothing. 

 They are in good shape for the winter, and 

 I hope we will have a prosperous season 

 next year. J. R. Furlong. 



Belcher, Iowa. Oct. 0. 



Prices of Bulk-Comb Honey in Texas 



Mr. L. H. Scholl writes about bulk-comb 

 honey in the October .American Bee Journal 

 as if its price in fao-pound cans had been to 

 to II cents all these years, which is a mis- 

 statement of facts. While it is true that 

 some of the large producers sell direct and 

 realize more, the large majority of the bee- 

 keepers received, the last few years. 8 cents 

 for bulk-comb honey in 60-pound cans. "This 

 year the price paid for bulk-comb honey in 

 60-pound cans was cents; and 0/2, 10. and 

 io>i cents for the smaller sizes. 



Otto Sueltenfuss. 



San ."Antonio. Tex., Oct. 24. 



What's the Matter With Texas ? 



Mr. Editor:— Mr. Scholl, in the Septem- 

 ber number, wants to know where I'exas 

 stands, and thinks that because reports are 

 seldom seen from that State it must either 

 be that Texas is not needed, or else that it 

 stands entirely alone. 



To an outsider it hardly seems that either 

 of those things accounts for so few reports 

 from that great commonwealth, but rather 

 that there is nothing to report, or else that 

 there is not enterprise enough in its bee- 

 keepers to send in reports. Instead of his 

 asking we-uns up here why there are no re- 

 ports, it is more like the right thing 'or we- 

 uns up htre to ask. "Why don't you-uns 

 down there send in reports ?" I. Densv. 



A Surprising Season 



We have kept bees for 8 seasons, and have 

 seen but little difference in the honey crop, 

 each year being about the same. A cool 

 spell of weather the latter part of August 

 and the forepart of .September suddenly 

 stopped the bees from working for a \\'liile. 

 Aug. 24th we had a snowstorm, and the 25th 

 the bees swarmed. The snowstorm and the 

 bees swarming the next day was a new one 

 on me, but my whole life has been a I'ound 

 of surprises, and I have always found the un- 

 expected the surest thing on earth. The 

 bees here need less care than anywhere else 

 I have been. We have now about 38 colo- 

 nies, and I pay no attention to them what- 

 ever. All I do is to empty the supers and 

 put them on again, J, U. Kaufman. 



Cody. Wyo,, Oct. iq. 



A Beginner's Experience 



I bought one colony of bees .lune 13, iot8. 

 This was the first movable-fi'ame hive of 

 Italian bees I had ever seen, and had never 

 been within 2 feet of a colony of bees of any 

 kind I bought an "A B C and X Y Z of 

 Bee Culture " and Gleanings, and later sub- 

 scribed for the American Bee .lournal, 

 which I am now taking. I got one swarm 

 and iij sections of honey that fall. My bees 

 wintered well. In I'loo I increased to? colo- 



nies, and got '131 sections of honey. I sold 

 my bees last fall, and bought some again in 

 the spring, beginning with 11 colonies, 2 of 

 which gave me no honey or increase, or any- 

 thing except a case of American foul brood, 

 which I did not dream of being within 100 

 miles of me (Dr. Phillips says I was the first 

 to report foul brood from Oklahoma . till I 

 had it in 12 colonies. I tried to build up the 

 weak colonies by giving them frames of 

 sealed brood from others. I have treated 

 successfully, I think, the 12 colonies have 

 increased to 33, and have secured sbu sec- 

 tions of the finest alfalfa and sweet clover 

 honey on earth, without exception. If you 

 are from Missouri, come down and be con- 

 vinced. When you consider that I have had 

 no teacher, had to learn everything from my 

 text-books and papers, and am continually 

 making mistakes, and this, too, in a locality 

 where my neighbors warned me against try- 

 ing bees, saying they positively could not 

 live here, you will pardon me for feeling 

 proud of results. I believe an experienced 

 bee-man (as I expect to be) could have 

 doubled results this year. 



I like Mr. D. M, Macdonald's articles on 

 swarming, but was just a little bit stunned 

 to see Mr. Metcalf's statement that bees 

 never swarm on account of the heat, and 

 that ventilation only retards swarming as it 

 retards brood-rearing. If this is true, then 

 all this talk about ventilation is wrong. I 

 think when he reads that good letter from 

 Mr. J. P. Blunk (the ex-miner bee-keeper), 

 he will think differently. I agree with Mr. 

 Metcalf. that when a man advises you to un- 

 cap brood to prevent swarming, you should 

 hit him if he is nottoo big. G. E. Le.'MON. 



Nashville, Okla.. Sept. 24. 



Pretty Good Year — Honey-Dew 



I think it has been a pretty good year for 

 bees in this part of Iowa. I had 34 colonies, 

 spring count, increased to 4,. look off 5100 

 pounds of honey (or 150 pounds per colony, 

 spring count , and have on hand about 30 

 brood-combs full for spring if I should need 

 them, although the hives are brimful now, 

 just as they were last fall, and I did not need 

 any feed last spring. 



I noticed in swarming-time. when taking a 

 swarm from a box-elder tree, the upper side 

 of the leaves were covered with a sticky 

 substance, and that the grass under the 

 tree was quite sticky. I took particular no- 

 tice, but could not find any bugs or lice, and 

 never saw a bee working on it. Was that 

 honey-dew, or isn't it honey-dew until the 

 bees gather it ? White clover was in abun- 

 dance at the same time. 



We have had heavy rains lately. Although 

 the summer was a dry one, I have never 

 seen so much white clover. The prospect 

 looks good for next year. 



The American Bee Journal is a dandy. 



Hull. Iowa, Oct. 7. Chas. Doan. 



lit doubtless was honey-dew. all right.— 

 Editor.] ^^^^__^^^ 



Season's Report — Hot and Dry Now 



My bees have given me very little trouble 

 the past season (fortunately for my physical 

 condition), about 500 pounds of hoEiey from 

 33 colonies, springcount, and have increased 

 to 35. I had only 3 swarms, and one went 

 back and staid. A year ago last summer I 

 had. at one time, over 70 colonies, sold 12, 

 and my winter and spring losses reduced 

 the number to 33. Honey is worth 18 cents 

 per pound here now; at least it is bringing 

 that amount to the producer, whether it is 

 worth it or not. 



It is very dry here now, and hot for the 

 time of the year. Yesterday and the day 

 before it was 84 degrees in the shade, and 

 today it is nearly the same. The prospect 

 for a honey crop next season is very good, as 

 white clover is very plentiful, 



I wish success to the "old reliable" .Ameri- 

 can Bee Journal. A. !•'. Foo'i'K. 



Riceville, Iowa, Oct. 17. 



Can't Do Without the Bee Journal. 



Messrs. George W, York & Co, 



Gciitlcmeii: — li^ncloscd yovi will find my re- 

 newal for another year to the "Old Reliable." 

 1 simply cannot do without your paper, and I 

 believe if I could not get it I would certainly 

 have to give up keeping bees, so closely is it 

 linked with my bee-keeping life. You can 

 certainly count on me for life, as I get more 

 pleasure and profit out of a single number of 

 your paper than a whole year costs. 



Walter E. .'\tkinson. 



Baltimore Co., Md,, Sept. H, 1910. 



