584 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOLHINAC. 



Sept. 10, 1903. 



( 



Nasty's Afterrhoughts 





The " Old Reliable " seen through New and Unreliable Glasses. 

 By E. E. Hastt, Sta. B Rural, Toledo, Ohio. 



" NO BND IN SIGHT " TO MANY QUBSTIONS. 



No end in sig^ht to the subject of queen-rearing-, says 

 Mr. Alley. No end in sig-ht to the silver question, says Mr. 

 Bryan. No end in sight to the race question, says Mr. Wash- 

 ington. Good many things in the world not easy to get fin- 

 ished and filed away and ticketed. Page 440. 



THE FOOI,-PROOF FRAME. 



Here's one " feller " who hardly knows how the 



fool-proof frame operates. To be impervious to the fool 

 and keep him from getting into his hive might be one way 



Box-hive under a higher title. If, on the other hand, 



it keeps its manipulators from becoming fools, that's a 

 more important thing. Must have it, some of us. Page 446. 



HONEY-ADUWBRATION DECREASING .IN ILLINOIS. 



It's cheerful and good speed in the right path for three 

 years that they, report in Illinois. Adulterated honey not 

 easy to find now. Three years ago one-third of it was such. 

 This is good of itself, and also good as a sermon. Those 

 weak-hearted brethren elsewhere who always are saying, 

 "You can't do anything about it," should listen to the ser- 

 mon, and brace up to overthrow this evil and others. Paee 

 452. 



FEEDING GLDCOSE NOT A SUCCESS. 



As to the naughtiness of feeding bees glucose to make 

 them fill sections, I suppose we have most of us been de- 

 claring that to be an impossible sin. Still, it's pleasant to 

 have such strong support as Inspector France brings us on 

 page 453. He finds that even famished bees will not take 

 such feed until it is made nearly half honey, and then only 

 enough for present use. 



GETTING BEES OFF COMBS — FORCED SWARMING. 



Ah, Mr. C. Davenport is a hitter also in getting bees 

 off from the combs. We have a tribe of the Hittites same 

 as they had of old. Perhaps it's because we have seldom 

 felt any ?ieed of anything beyond our own practice that has 

 kept some of the rest of us from being hitters. 



And forced swarming not likely to turn the bee-world 

 upside down — is the prophecy of one of its chief prophets. 

 —Page 453. 



LETTING BEST CAPPERS DO THE CAPPING. 



Yes, here's a new kink that can be practiced to some 

 small extent, contributed by Miss Wilson. If you have bees 

 that gather honey well but cap it so as to look abominably, 

 also bees that cap well, something has been done in the 

 line of making the latter do the capping for the former. 

 Page 455. 



RETURNING SWARMS. 



I'm quite interested to see that Dr. Miller thinks that 

 it's practical to return all swarms, prime and all, directly to 

 the hive. I've done that way quite a bit, but only as a sort 

 of dire extremity. More practical with few colonies than 

 with many, I should say. Or, perhaps, many colonies and 

 only a few actually swarming at any one time, would be the 

 most hopeful ; for then you'd expect to be on hand most of 

 the time. You see, it takes so many operations, and the 

 chances of escape become so numerous, that though gen- 

 erous of your time and labor you don't save the bees. If I 

 ran 10 colonies that way, and had three of them actually 

 unbroken at the end, I should think I had done tolerably 

 well. Not that the seven have all sent bees to the woods, 

 but they are not where they should be. Sometimes they 

 will omit swarming for one day ; but infrequently they'll 

 try you twice in a day. And when they fly 20 minutes be- 

 fore doing anything with themselves, it takes one's time in 

 big slices. Page 457. 



THE OLD 4-PIECE A GOOD SECTION. 

 It would be a curious result if the 4-piece section should 

 come back to us willy-nilly on account of the extermination 

 of basswood. Could bear it without groaning, as the 4-piece 

 section was a good section. Page 467. 



can't SWALLOW THE ONION THEORY. 



Is it exactly the thing for a bee-journal to print without 

 protest that the juice of a roasted onion on a sting has been 

 known to save life ? Say rather that it did no harm, pos- 

 sibly a trifle of good — and the person lived. Perhaps I'm 

 hard on onions. My doctrine is that, like the boy's pins, 

 thev save thousands of lives. Same method — by not eating 

 them. Page 468. 





Dr. Miller's Answers 





Send Questions either to the office of the American Bee Journal, 

 or to Dr. C. C. Miller, Marengo, 111. 



After Effects of Too Many Bee-Stings. 



ture: 



On page 500, the following is copied from Gleanings in Bee-Cul- 



" It behooves us all to be careful not to get any more stings than 

 is absolutely necessary, for the effect of the accumulated poison may 

 be serious in its effects in after years, as it was in the case of Lang- 

 stroth and some others." 



Now, 1 would like to know what were those after effects of which 

 Mr. Root speaks. 



When I began keeping bees, l.S years ago, a sting in oue of my 

 fingers would make my whole hand and arm swell, while now I can 

 stand a dozen stings without much discomfort. I am working with 

 my bees now without gloves, and have not tried particularly to avoid 

 stings, as I have been desirous of becoming immune as much as pos- 

 sible; so if it should happen that I should get a large number of stings 

 they would not affect me too much. 



If there are possible effects, of which I had not heard before, then 

 it would he better for me to be more careful to avoid stings than I 

 have been. 



It may' be there are other bee-keepers who are as ignorant as I am 

 of the after effects of bee-stings, and will be interested in your an- 

 swer. MlSSOCRI. 



Answer. — Mr. Langstroth was subject to fits of mental depression, 

 when, for days, he would scarcely speak to any oue, and didn't want 

 to touch or even think of bees. My private opinion is, that bee-stings 

 had nothing whatever to do with the case, and I don't believe you 

 need feel unnecessarily alarmed. I've been accumulating stings for 

 the past 43 years, and if the effect is ever to be serious it ought soon 

 to be apparent. But except when I'm dead tired from overwork I'm 

 yet about as cheerful a youth as you generally meet. 



Top and Bottom Section-Starters— Feeding for Winter. 



1. Why do you use top and bottom starters? (See page 142 of 

 your book). Would one that almost filled the section do just as well 

 for home market? Time would be saved in cutting and putting in. 



2. Will bees cap and finish supers any quicker if there are two on 

 the hive instead of three? That is, if you had three on — two they had 

 just started to cap, and one on top they had begun in? Now, if you 

 take off the top oue will they finish the others sooner? 



3. Will bees put dark and light honey iu the same cell? I have 

 been told they would not. I mean, if they were working on white 

 clover, and did not get enough to fill the cells, and buckwheat came 

 on, would they put it on top of the clover honey? 



4. In feeding for winter we are told ( A B C of Bee-Culture) to find 

 out how much the bees need, and feed them that amount of sugar and 

 water. If I feed 20 pounds of sugar and water will it make 20 pounds 

 of stores for winter; If a 10-frame hive were without any honey, 

 how much sugar would it take to carry them through the winter? 



5. I have one super that has a tew cells of pollen in every section. 

 What is the cause, and how can I prevent it '. 



«. Can a super (that is, on top of ahivet full of young bees be 

 given to another colony without any fighting? Would it be a good 

 idea to take from a strong one and give to a weak one? 



7. How would it work to use the same depth of bottom-board 

 under frames ("3) in winter, and close the entrance down to ^^ inch 

 by a strip of wood tor out-door wintering? What size entrance would 

 you use here? Massachusetts. 



Answers. — 1. Even for the home market I should prefer the bot- 

 tom starter. It makes a nicer looking section. I'nless a single starter 

 comes down so far that it is likely to sag, some of the sections, espe- 

 cially when honey is coming in slowly, will uot be built down to the 

 bottom. Although the bottom starter is original with me, I don't be- 

 lieve I'm sufUciently prejudiced in its favor to stand the extra trouble 

 unless there were a sufficient gain to pay for it. 



2. Yes, if you take off that top one they will be likely to cap the 

 other two sooner. But if honey is yielding, and there are bees enough 

 to crowd the three, you may find bad work from crowding in the two. 

 I had some experience in that line this year, having only three or four 

 supers on when these were so nearly filled that the bees had not room 

 enough (although an empty super was on tup, but they don't get so 



