1902 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



51 



C. Ferris wax-bucket, illustrated and de- 

 scribed on pag"e 277 of our issue for April 

 1, 1901. The principle, ho^Yever, is not 

 quite the same, or rather, perhaps I should 

 sa}% j'ou have improved on the Ferris plan 

 by providing" two outlets — one for wax and 

 one for honey; and in this connection it 

 should be stated that you use your appara- 

 tus in a little different manner. Mr. P^er- 

 ris aims to clarify the wax, while you go 

 still further, separating- the honey from the 

 wax in such a way that both of them, after 

 being" separated, are free of impurities. 



While you do not say any thing" about it 

 in your article, I should imagine the same 

 outfit would be very handy during extract- 

 ing time. Suppose, for instance, the honey 

 from the honey-extractors ran direct into 

 compartment A; wax cappings, dead bees, 

 refuse dirt of every description, would re- 

 main in A until the surplus would overflow 

 at the wax-outlet, while the clear nice hon- 

 ey would pass under the partition C, and 

 flow out of the honey-outlet as shown in the 

 diagram. 



In our next issue Mr. Aikin will describe 

 his combination solar and artificitil-heat 

 wax-extractor. He probably has the larg- 

 est as well as most elaborate extractor of 

 the kind in the world. — Ed.] 



RAMBLE 197. 



Bee-keeping in Southern California ; Co^-operation 



for the Formation of a Trust of Honey=produc= 



ers ; Advantages and Benefits Explained. 



BV RAMBLER. 



I found the bee-keepers of Southern Cali- 

 fornia very enthusiastic over the fair yield 

 of honey secured. There is nothing like 

 prosperity to cheer a man up and make 

 him hopeful; and having justemerg"ed from 

 a three-years' drouth it is nothing strangle 

 that the reaction should be rather feverish. 



During the poor seasons, bee-keepers when 

 in the city were in the habit of browsing 

 for a stray meal now and then in 10 and 'iS 

 cent restaurants; but now it was 25 and 50 

 cent eating-houses. Mr. Brod- 

 beck had dropped his oil busi- 

 ness and returned to his first 

 love — had secured a fine yield 

 of honej', and, under the pro- 

 tecting care of a capitalist, wjis 

 buying whole apiaries. I be- 

 lieve they now have 1000 colo- 

 nies. Several new men have 

 appeared in the ranks; and if 

 the seasons would change for 

 good ones the future for South- 

 ern California would be bright. 



I found the Pacific Bcc Jour- 

 nal blowing its horn lustily 

 again. It even goes so far as 

 to corral the weather for the 

 next decade; but I think the 

 bee-men will continue to look to 

 the Weather Bureau for a good 

 share of their information. 



As stated in the previous Ramble, the 

 Shafl^ner Brothers were managing my bees 

 and their own with success. I herewith 

 present a photo of these enterprising young 

 men in their cosy camp at the Ramblers 

 apiar3% with dog, gun, and horse. Arthur 

 is contemplating a slice of bread and hon- 

 ey, while Earl has anticipations toward an 

 apple. The horse also had the same mind, 

 and moved his head. Although this re- 

 treat is only ten miles from Los Angeles, 

 there are coyotes, mountain lions, and now 

 and then a deer seen here. Some of the 

 night adventures here would make the av- 

 erage man's hair stand on end. 



I found the bee-men also ready to pro- 

 mote an}' enterprise for the increase of their 

 honey pasturage, and for the irrigation of 

 arid places. A new invention lias recently 

 been tried successfully that may work a 

 revolution in irrigation matters in Southern 

 California. This portion of the State has 

 no large rivers to draw from ; but there is 

 plenty of water if they dig for it. When 

 found b}' digging, the next operation is to 

 pump it to the surface, and that is where 

 the new solar engine will play an impor- 

 tant part. This engine is run entirely by 

 solar heat — no expense for fuel, and, dur- 

 ing the season for irrigating, we have con- 

 tinuous sunshine ; and what wonders are 

 performed in this country with water and 

 sunshine I 



On page 472 I gave you a photo of an im- 

 mense eucalyptus-tree of only eleven years' 

 growth. Let ine show you one of our beau- 

 tiful pepper-trees that is also making a 

 rapid growth. This tree was planted in 

 October, 1899. It was then two inches in 

 height, and a mere thread. This photo 

 was taken in November, or a trifle over two 

 years after, and, note the growth! Mrs. 

 Maj' and daughter are very proud of their 

 pepper-tree, and the bees were busy upon 

 those little flowers when the photo was 

 taken. 



The hopefulness of the bee-men here has 

 a sort of contagious influence, and I began 

 to be hopeful with the rest; but I have 

 learned that we are not sure of a honev 



SHAFKNKR BROS. IN CAMP AT RAMBLKR'S APIARY. 



