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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. IS 



vertisements of this kind in our editorial 

 columns; but I have an idea that carpet 

 grass can be grown in other localities in 

 the United States as a forag-e-plant for bees; 

 for if it can have a hot dry cli- 

 mate it will spread, seeming to 

 prefer lands that are barren and 

 waste, just as sweet clover does 

 in the East. I do not think it 

 is a noxious weed; and those of 

 our friends who wish to try it 

 can, I feel sure, do so without 

 any danger of bringing a pest 

 to their localities. 



I met several prominent bee- 

 keepers in this vicinity, among 

 them being the Wessing Broth- 

 ers; one man who owns 700 col- 

 onies, but did not want his 

 name given in print; J. H. Er- 

 ick, just referred to; George M. 

 Tyler, and a number of others. 



On account of the river over- 

 flowing its banks it became nec- 

 essary for bee-keepers on the 

 lower lands to put their hives 

 up high on benches. I took two 

 or three snap shots, one of the 

 Wessing Brothers' yard and 

 two of J. H. Erick's apiaries, 

 which will serve as a fair sam- 

 ple of other yards in that vicinity. You 

 will note that the hives are set up high, 

 clear above ground, above the highest wa- 

 ter-line, and are located in the shade wher- 

 ever possible; for I understand colonies in 

 the shade do better than those out in the sun. 



He thinks the bee business can never be 

 learned, for every year new and perplexing 

 conditions arise; but in the cattle business 

 all is very simple. All he has to do is to 



RAMBLE 210. 



A Trip to Guines ; Bananas for Shade. 



BY RAMBLER. 



Senior Fred Somerford has much more 

 sweetness about him than the average bee- 

 man. Besides the honey from 700 colonies 

 of bees he has tons and tons of sweetness 

 from thirty acres of sugar-cane. He does 

 not believe in carrying all his eggs in one 

 basket, but has interests in cattle and hogs. 



APIARY OF HEDDON HIVES UNDER THE BANANAS. 



EXAMINING HEDDON FRAMES. 



get 300 or more head of cattle, turn them 

 out to pasture, and in a few months sell 

 them for beef. 



He is not an optimist about the future of 

 the honey business in Cuba, as so much de- 

 pends upon yields, tariffs, and demands. 

 Still, he thinks even at present prices, if a 

 person is willing to leave all social privi- 

 leges, and get back into the remote parts of 

 Cuba, there is money in it. 



Senior Fred has just such a location him- 

 self. He is the only American in Catalina, 

 and depends upon native help for all his 

 work. He can talk Spanish like a native; 

 and as he was a prominent factor in the in- 

 surrection, and on the Cuban side, these 

 people all look up to him with much admi- 

 ration, and come to him for advice upon all 

 topics. This confidence of the natives is 

 not abused for personal gains, and Senior 

 Fred is really the head man in 

 that portion of Cuba. 



In our evening talks he in- 

 formed me that I would be in- 

 terested in an apiary out to- 

 ward Guines; and what partic- 

 ularly interested me was the 

 fact that the Heddon hive was 

 used in the apiary. The next 

 morning W. W. and I made an 

 early start, and in two hours we 

 found the farm of Dr. Carlos des 

 Vernine, where he has an apia- 

 ry of about 150 colonies, in Hed- 

 don hives. The doctor has a 

 large medical practice in Ha- 

 vana, and has plenty of money 

 to spend upon farming and bee- 

 keeping, and every thing on the 

 farm and in the apiary is up- 



