126 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUHE. 



Feb. 



fortable; and when I call the household, two hours 

 later, the whole house is warmed. As I said be- 

 fore, we think it economy to keep our whole house 

 as warm and cosy as possible. If we can make 

 this the most delightful place in the world to our 

 children, we shall have solved the problem of their 

 habits in a most agreeable manner. Now, Mr. 

 Editor, I am rejoicing in the hope of a visit from 

 both you and friend Terry this spring; and if this 

 article does not convert you both, I believe a per- 

 sonal examination on the spot will. A. J. Cook. 

 Agricultural College, Mich. 



I am converted already, friend Cook ; but 

 I want to add, that steam is used quite ex- 

 tensively for warming a current of air 

 brought inffrom outdoors, exactly as you do. 

 We have outdoor pipes which bring in the 

 fresh air, and pass it around the coil of 

 steam-pipes ; and just the air, and not the 

 ungainly-looking coils you speak of, passes 

 into the' room above, as does the lieat from 

 your furnace. We have used furnaces on 

 the plan you mention, for a good many years, 

 but my objection is the expense of warming 

 up this" outer air, especially when the tem- 

 peratui-e is below zero. It takes a heap of 

 coal or wood either to warm a large building 

 in that way. I greatly prefer a wood-burn- 

 ing furnace ; bvit in our locality it is much 

 more expensive than soft coal, although I 

 believe with you I would willingly pay the 

 extra expense to get rid of the dust and 

 smoke from any kind of coal. Our new fac- 

 tory is warmed by still another device. A 

 blower run by machinery sends a blast of 

 air (taken from outdoors) through an ar- 

 rangement something like a common steam- 

 boiler, only the steam passes through the 

 flues, while the blast of air circulates around 

 them. With suitable pipes we can send the 

 hot air into any room, and it warms it very 

 quickly.— When Dr. Miller was here he took 

 me to task because I assumed so many re- 

 sponsibilities, and did so much choring 

 about, for otners. Now, if I understand it, 

 a large part of your strength, perhaps both 

 of mind and body, is consumed in building 

 tires, pumping water, and taking care of the 

 horse and cow, etc. As you get up two 

 hours before the rest of the family, 1 con- 

 clude you have this two hours of hard work, 

 down cellar and upstairs, as a regular rou- 

 tine each morning. If you had steam in yoiir 

 household, it might do every bit of this, if 

 you except making friends with the domes- 

 tic animals. Your wife could have hot or 

 cold water taken from the well or cistern, 

 by turning a single valve, and it has some- 

 times seemed to me as if the steam rejoiced 

 in being permitted to do such service. I 

 know all about the recreation these duties 

 give you, but I don't believe it is good for 

 me to be obliged to have too much exercise, 

 day after day, whether I feel like it or not. 

 Very likely, "Bertie is beginning to ease his 

 papa a little in these every-day duties, just 

 as Ernest is now relieving me. I presume 

 your wood-burning finnace will be most 

 feasible for the greater part of the readers 

 of (iLEANiNGS, and friend Terry's arrange- 

 ment is not so very much different from it, 

 after all. In many homes, perhaps his plan 

 would be the best. 



OUR P. BENSON LETTER. 



ROOLS OF HOW TO SWARM BEES.— KONTIN YUDE. 



TN ml last discoarse I left you dun up in a over- 

 j^f coat & three (3) vales & the fokes a makin a 

 ^i outrajis noise. If the racket has binkep a goin 

 "*■ lively, it has fetoht the bees down by this tilne, 

 and by this time you ar pirty warm. 

 The bees will be pirty shure to settel on a sour 

 appel tree, but moar likely thay will settel onto a 

 oke tree, pirty well up. Git a ladder & set agen the 

 oke tree & tell the fokes to stop thair outrajis racket. 

 Klime up to whair the swarm is hangin on a lim of 

 the tree & shake them down onto a sheet whitch 

 you lied plaist the sheet under the hive, & as kwick 

 as you shake them off of the lim hurry down sose to 

 git them in the hive. By the time you git i4 way 

 down the tree, sumbuddy will holler "The bees is 

 goin back on the lim," but you needent pay enny 

 atlOshun to it; klime down &seefor yureself. Then 

 you ken klime up agen & shake them off as be4. 

 Repeat this a phue times and it will inkrease your 



PROF. Bf^NSOX TAKEING UOUN A SWORM. 



temperreightyure. Then you ken git a saugh and 

 saugh off the lim & thay will lite onto a appel tree 

 whair you ken shaik them down & swarm them into 

 the hive. By this time you will be warm. The bee 

 is a nativ of a warm climait and likes to hev things 

 warm. Keep on yure overcoat & things till sundown 

 sose yule be reddy if they cum out agen. It will 

 save the trubbel of warmin up agen. Besides you 

 mite ketch coald if you talk them off too suddent. 



If the hive is shaded poot it out whair the sun ken 

 shine on it all day long. This will maik them shure 

 to stay bekoz thay will see its a good warm place for 

 winter. In a phue days, move the bees to the place 

 whair you want them to stay. It woont do to move 

 them the 1st day or 3 till they hev lernd to reckog- 

 nize thair hive, and then thay will find it whairever 

 you poot it. 



Drive staiks in the ground 3 feet hi to set the hive 

 onto the staiks, soze the wurms will fall & braik 

 thair ne.x hwen thay cum out of the hive for exer- 

 sighs. Besides, the moth miller, whitch gits into 

 the hives and eats up the yung bees, woont hev so 

 good a chants to find it if its up hi. 



P. Benson, A. B. S. 



(Whitch is Apiculturistical Beekeepin Slghentist.) 



