1889 



ULtA.Ni.NUS IN iiEt CULTURE. 



I am glad to see that our friends as a rule 

 show a charitable disposition toward com- 

 mission men, whether they patronize them 

 or not. It is surely wrong to condemn a 

 whole class of individuals because their line 

 of business is such that bad men may easi- 

 ly take advantage. For instance, it is quite 

 customary to denounce jewelers as a class 

 of cheats ; but it is very foolish, notwith- 

 standing; for we have conscientious, fair, 

 and honorable men— a good many of them — 

 in the jewelry business ; and those who 

 build up a large business are almost invaria- 

 bly of this class. Friend Doolittle suggests 

 Bradstreet and Dun. I think there is an 

 excellent point there, in more respects thau 

 one. The commission man who is rated as a 

 man of means, and one prompt in his pay- 

 ments, would never have built up such a 

 business had he not been straightforward 

 and honorable. C. C. Miller makes a sug- 

 gestion which I think is valuable. If you 

 can rind a commission man who is willing 

 not only to tell what the goods sold for, but 

 give you the address of the purchaser, he is 

 certainly the one to be recommended. And I 

 should say not only in the commission busi- 

 ness, but in every other business in the 

 wide world, the man who has no secrets, 

 and nothing to be kept back from his pat- 

 rons, is the one to deal with. It is like tear- 

 ing away the fences around our dooryards. 

 It gives us glimpses of a better time com- 

 ing; and I think almost every neighbor- 

 hood is beginning to agree that no fence at 

 all gives better results than stone walls 

 eight or ten feet high, with sharp spikes on 

 top of them. 



TlNgWEI^ TO (|aEgTI0N$ 



FROM OUR ABC CLASS. 



This department is designed primarily to cover questions 

 either not already answered in the A B C of Bee Culture (price 

 in cloth $1.25), or, if incorporated in this work, are here dwelt 

 upon more in detail on account of the importance of the 

 question. While these answers are of vital interest to the 

 ABC scholars, they will doubtless be found, in many in- 

 stances, to be of considerable value to the more advanced 

 student. For lack of space, the question itself, instead of be 

 ing directly stated, is omitted, the same being implied in the 

 answer. It is hoped that the class will first consult their 

 text-book before sending in their questions. 



THE SPRAY-DIFFUSER. 



D. L. C, Michigan.— The spray-diffuser is a little 

 small, but with it you can in two minutes spray a 

 whole colony, it' it works clear. We discarded the 

 spray-diffuser altogether in treating' foul brood. 

 Don't waste your time in trying any other plan 

 than the starvation method. You can cure it after 

 a fashion with phenol or carbolic acid; but it is 

 long and uncertain in its results. We have so ad- 

 vised in Gleanings. 



J. A. W., Iowa.— Bees do not gather glucose un- 

 less the same is put within their reach by man. 

 But this would not pay, even at the low price of 

 the article. Glucose can be mixed by man, with ex- 

 tracted honey, but would not pay, and is, we ven- 

 ture to say, rarely if ever practiced. Tell that com- 

 mission man that all the commercial glucose that 

 bees gather from flowers, is in his imagination. 

 Tell him also that the honey you sent him is pure, 

 and was sent just as it was taken from the flowers. 



WHEN TO PUT IN D1VISI 



W. H. M., Pennsylvania— The 

 the brood-lrames from the brood 

 division-boards, should depend upon < 

 If the colony is strong, you might not fT 

 out any frames at all. The general rul 

 bees,' on only as many frames as they will 

 comfortably, and fill up the empty space^with di- 

 vision-boards or chaff. Brood-nests for winter 

 should be contracted about the middle of fall- 

 earlier or later according to circumstances. 



]\[@¥E£ TfjMD Queried 



We solicit for this department short items and questions of 

 a practical nature; but all questions, if accompanied by oth- 

 er matter, must be put upon a separate slip of paper with 

 name and address 



BEES BITING THliOUOH THE TOUCH-ME-NOT. 



The honey-flow still continues. My bees have 

 made a great deal from the large thistle, and are 

 now working on touch-me-not and fireweed. The 

 Italians bite through the tongue of the blossoms, 

 as described in the A B C. S. J. Youngman. 



Lakeview, Mich., Aug. 31, 1889. 



POLLEN FROM MILKWEED. 



I submit some bees for your inspection. Will you 

 undertake to tell me what that is on their feet, and 

 where or what do they get it from? 



Central City, Neb., Aug. 11. W. H. Cagil. 



[Your bees have on their legs the pollen of milk- 

 weed. See the subject of "Pollen," in the ABC 

 book.l 



"FATTENING UP " QUEENS. 



The queens came to hand all right. They seem to 

 be a very diminutive kind of bee, but perhaps after 

 they get over their trip and fatten up they will be 

 all right. G. W. Lechlek. 



Newhall, Cal„ Sept. 1, 1889. 



[Look here, friend L. I guess you would need 

 fattening up a little if you had to go through the 

 mail-bags all the way irom here to California. The 

 trip would surely make you a little thinner than 

 when 1 last saw you; but I do not know who would 

 not fatten up if they had such a pretty ranch as 

 yours to keep bees in.] 



CLOSED-END FRAMES, SPREAD 1| INSTEAD OF VA 

 INCHES. 



I have been reading an article from the pen of H. 

 L. Jeffrey, with a great deal of interest. He writes 

 very positively on the width of the brood-frame, 

 which, he claims, should be \% inches in width. I 

 have used this width of end since 1886, and like it 

 the best of any width that I have used. 



Danbury, Ct, Sept. 1, 1889. H. H. Knapp. 



WHAT IS IT WOHTH TO EXTRACT A MAN'S HONEY? 

 HONEY-KNIFE HANDLE LOOSE; HOW TO FASTEN. 



What would it be worth to extract a man's honey 

 from about 20 hives, using my extractor and all my 

 tools, and with his help? How can I fasten the han- 

 dle to my Novice honey-knife? It came off while 

 cutting some wax from the top of some frames. 



Akron, O, Aug. 12. Chas. W. Frank. 



| It would be impossible to answer your question 

 directly. The best way is to hire a man at so much 

 an hour. A man at #1.50 ought to be able to ex- 

 tract the honey in half a day, provided he has had 

 some experience with bees. A better way. how- 

 ever, would be to use the extractor yourself.— If the 

 handle to your honey-knife is loose, heat the blade 

 shank, dip it into sulphur, and then drive it home 

 into the hapdle.] 



