Nov. 19, 1S03. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



747 



the atmosphere, is caused by chaps who are thinking of 

 themselves as prominent officers of the Grand Universal 

 Besweetenem — very fellows least qualified, perchance. 

 Page 643. 



•'YORK'S honey" and THE EDITOR'S TIME. 



But those good folks who can't eat anything else than 

 " York's Honey," what ever will they do now ? Poor fel- 

 lows ! But their poverty is our riches, I reckon. Apicul- 

 ture is proud enough to think that its leading journal, or 

 journals, deserve pretty much the full time of an editor. 

 Don't expect her servants to live on air, or even on faith ; 

 but she decidedly does like the prospect of having thera live, 

 and give her full service, too. Page 644. 



DIFFERENCE IN HONEY STORED BY DIFFERENT BEES. 



Was Benton bethinking himself, or did he speak 

 thoughtlessly, when he said the honey of one kind of bees 

 was as good as that from another ? There is great differ- 

 ence in different species of honey-storing bees as to the 

 quality of the honey they store, why not some difference 

 between different varieties inside the species ? Page 646. 



HOT KNIFE OR COLD KNIFE FOR EXTRACTING. 



Ah! it's the cold knife that is one approved California 

 style instead of the hot knife I A little wooden keg of cold 

 water and three knives, two to soak while one is being used. 

 Also, some think it can't be done, while some don't think it, 

 but just dp it — do it right along in the biggest kind of work. 

 See, also, on page 712, how the knife-man himself, Bingham, 

 says, cold knife, and decidedly reprobates the hot one. Ex- 

 tracting in small way, I always use the cold knife, without 

 even the cold water, excepting to mop off with a rag once in 

 awhile. If I should try the hot water once (which I never 

 fairly did), perhaps I should flop over. Wonder if cold water 

 would really soak off those small granules of wax that oft 

 stick on the edge. In my practice, they call for the thumb- 

 nail to be carefully drawn along. Tiny lumps of wax allow 

 a keen blade to pass half way through them, and then hang 

 on with great pertinacity. Oft they are so small that two 

 or three are hardly noticed ; but, anon, a lot of them get on 

 until something remedial must be done. I find the tem- 

 perature of the air in which one works makes a great differ- 

 ence. The hotter the day the worse the knife behaves. Have 

 just been doing some extracting a good deal too cold. Bad 

 for the extracting proper, but the knife does its part well — 

 goes right along without any thumb-nailing or soaking. 

 But get down much colder and the honey itself will hug the 

 knife so you can not proceed with any comfort. Page 645. 





Dr. Miller's Answers 





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

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



Transferring— A Colony Half Drones. 



1. How can I transfer a swarm of bees from a grocery 

 box into a hive ? 



2. I have one colony of bees that has about as many 

 drones as worker-bees. What can I do with them ? and 

 what is the cause of there being so many drones ? 



3. How much honey can bees store from one pound of 

 granulated sugar dissolved in water ? Iowa. 



Answers. — 1. The same as your bee-book directs for 

 transferring from a boxhive. But you would probably 

 better not transfer so late in the season as now. One of the 

 best ways is to wait till the bees swarm next year, and three 

 weeks after swarming you can cut out all the combs with 

 no danger of destroying brood. 



2. It is either a case of laying workers or a drone-lay- 

 ing queen. In either case, the best thing is to break up the 

 colony. The bees are probably so old that they are of little 

 or no value to unite with other colonies, and this is one case 

 in which, at this time of year, it may be advisable to kill the 

 bees, as they will soon die anyway, and there is no use in 

 allowing them to consume any more stores. 



3. None that you could sell as honey. But if you feed a 

 pound of sugar for wintering, it will probably be equivalent 

 to about 21 ounces of honey. 



Buckwheat— Raspberrles-^Hlve-Stands-Pall Covering 

 for Hives. 



1. What is buckwheat usually worth per bushel ? 



2. Would it pay me to furnish my neighbor enough for 

 five acres ? 



3. How much seed is required per acre ? 



4. Do bees gather much from raspberries ? 



5. What does the average bee-keeper use as stands for 

 placing the hives on during the summer ? 



6. Is there any need of covering the hives with any- 

 thing during the fall ? Wisconsin. 



Answers. — 1. Varies with locality ; about SI. 00 here. 



2. If no other plant is yielding nectar at the time, it 

 would pay you big. 



3. About three pecks per acre. 



4. Yes, the raspberry is a very important honey-plant. 

 In some localities, notably in northern Michigan, it yields a 

 handsome surplus. 



5. Generally pine boards in some form, the simplest 

 being two pieces of fence-board nailed on the ends of two 

 other pieces. 



6. There should be provision made in someway for bees 

 wintered on the summer stands to be covered warmer in 

 winter than in summer, and this may as well be on in the 

 fall. 



Keeping Comb Honey in Winter. 



I have read your " Forty Years Among the Bees," and 

 note what you say, on page 310, but here goes for a ques- 

 tion — not of bees, but of honey : 



We have a closet in our living room close to the stove, 

 and I have filled it with honey, in small no-drip cases, with 

 15 sections in each. My wife thinks the honey will sour 

 and spoil. I want to keep it from freezing. Will the heat 

 from the stove spoil my honey ? Ohio. 



Answer. — Tell your wife that for once she will prob- 

 ably have to give up in the wrong. That closet, close by 

 the stove, ought to be an ideal place for keeping honey, and 

 would be all the better if it would keep not far from 100 

 degrees. Even a good bit above that would do no hurt. 

 See page 271 of the book you have mentioned. 



Late-Reared Queen. 



I received a queen all right, and put her into a new hive 

 with a frame of brood. I looked for and could not find her, 

 but found five queen-cells capped, and the rest of the brood 

 hatched. I suppose that indicated that she was killed, and 

 they will rear another, but it will be too late to be fertilized 

 this fall. Will she be any good ? And will the bees work 

 in a cucumber-house this winter? The other queen did very 

 well. Massachusetts. 



Answer. — She may and she may not be worth some- 

 thing next spring — chances not greatly in favor. A colony 

 will work in a cucumber-house, and will help the cucum- 

 bers, but it will not help the bees. 



Carnlolans and Italians. 



Please describe through the American Bee Journal, in a 

 strictly "Truthful James kind of way," theCarniolan bees, 

 and compare them with the Italians. In what respect is the 

 one superior, or inferior, to the other? Iow.\. 



Answer. — I don't know enough to do as you desire, hav- 

 ing had no personal experience with Carniolans. Even if I 

 had, you might not have the same experience, for testimony 

 concerning them is very contradictory. Probably Carniolans 

 are not all alike. They are much more given to swarming 

 than Italians, and the general testimony is that they are 

 gentler. A cross between Carniolans and Italians is highly 

 spoken of by some. 



Amerikanische Bienenzucht, by' Hans Buschbauer, is 

 a bee-keeper's handbook of 138 pages, which is just what 

 our German friends will want. It is fully illustrated, and 

 neatly bound in cloth. Price, postpaid, $1.00 ^_or with the 

 American Bee Journal one year — both for $1.75. Address 

 all orders to this office. 



