370 



December, 1912. 



American Vae Jonrnal 



It is not a question of creating a new 

 organ, or of radically changing the 

 size or shape of the bee, but a question 

 of combining all the good traits and 

 leaving out the bad. 



We speak of good honey-gatherers 

 as if such bees possessed physical 

 characteristics which were responsible 

 for their work. It is more probable 

 that the good results are due rather to 

 a nervous energy. That some races 

 are better honey-producers than others 

 is pretty well known, and is evidenced 

 by the widespread use of the Italians 

 instead of blacks, Carniolans, etc. 



That some strains of the same race 

 are superior to others in honey getting 

 is disputed, and superior results are at- 

 tributed to " manipulation " or "man- 

 agement." In the opinion of the 

 writer this view is erroneous, and his 

 opinion is based on many years of 

 careful observation and comparison. 

 In support of this contention, I would 

 cite my system of bee-keeping and the 

 results. With few exceptions, all colo- 

 nies are requeened in August of each 

 year with queens which have just be- 

 gun to lay. This ensures uniformity 

 of colonies the following season. The 

 occasional colony which may be below 

 normal size in August is brought up to 

 the average when the queen is put in, 

 so that all start evenly. The following 

 spring, save for a cursory examination 

 at the entrance and across the tops of 

 frames, the bees are not manipulated— 

 they don't have to be. Supers are put 

 on before fruit bloom, and the bees left 

 to go it alone, save for getting honey 

 off and putting on more supers. 



With such a uniform start, and such 

 a "let alone" management, every col- 

 ony shows what it is good for. To be 

 sure, whenever the hives are close to- 

 gether considerable mixing of bees oc- 

 curs during a good flow, but not 

 enough to materially affect the results. 

 Under the above conditions, when all 

 colonies of a certain strain, regularly 

 on every flow, show greater amount 

 stored than any other strain, we must 

 assume that they are superior workers 

 to the rest. And when this occurs, 

 season after season, the assumption be- 

 comes a certainty. 



I chance to have in one apiary three 

 strains of bees, and several colonies 

 headed by daughters of one of these 

 strains mated to still another strain. 

 One .strain is especially commended 

 for vigor and hardiness, another for 

 gentleness, and the third for wonderful 

 work, and the daughters referred to 

 are from this latter. Every colony of 

 this strain, and of these daughters also, 

 has kept well ahead of the others. Is it 

 not right to consider them superior 

 honey gatherers ? 



Granting that bees can be "im- 

 proved," the objection is made that 

 few bee-keepers are so located that 

 they can get pure matings, and. furth- 

 ermore, that because the individual 

 male cannot be selected, progress is 

 impossible, or, at best, uncertain. Re- 

 sults belie this. Some bee-keepers 

 have achieved marked results in the 

 work of their bees, others in gentle- 

 ness, and others in color. 



It was the settled conviction of the 

 late Henry Alley that queens mate 

 within a very few rods of their hive, 

 and that it is the drones that wander 



afar. My own experience supports 

 this view, and, furthermore, I believe 

 that the flight of the drones is largely 

 controlled by the prevailing winds and 

 the contour of the country. 



One apiary which I maintained for 

 over 2i» years lay close to the west 

 shore of a large sheet of water. The 

 prevailing winds were southwest. Black 

 bees were abundant one-half mile north. 

 No bees west or southwest, and a few 



some strains are better than others on 

 certain flowers. I may be wrong, but 

 I propose to find out. 



I have no bees or queens to sell, for 

 if I produce any "infant prodigies" in 

 the bee-line, I do not want them to 

 cause worry and loss of sleep to those 

 who doubt. But it's well to be "from 

 Missouri " sometimes. 



Providence, R. I. 



A Practical Demonstration at Toronto. 



a mile due south. Year after year I 

 reared queens there, and mismating 

 was so exceedingly rare that when it 

 did occur it was a genuine surprise. 



So mobile is the bee in my hands 

 that I have gone about the work of 

 building up a series of apiaries of dif- 

 ferent strains with as much confidence 

 as if I were handling cattle. 



Demonstrating Bees at Exhi- 

 bitions 



BY F. E. MILLEN. 



One of the portions of the Apiarian 

 exhibit at the Canadian National Ex- 

 hibit, held at Toronto a short time 

 ago, was the demonstration of the 



I'. I.. Mii.i.KN ToiNiiNii Out the Dreaded Euroi'Ean Foui, Brood to Two Young 



l.ADY BEE-KeEI'ERS — SYMI'TOMS AN[) TREArMENT ARE Al.WAVS FuLLV EXI'I.AINED. 



It may be asked why I care for sev- 

 eral strains ? I want pure stock for 

 crossing, and also I want to try out 

 pure stock of my own rearing on the 

 different fields, as I have a notion that 



handling of live bees which was con- 

 ducted by the Ontario Agricultural 

 College authorities. 



A large screen cage for the purpose 

 was built, and a colony of bees pro- 



