48 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



and how long would they stay sound, if the 

 disease is established in the neighborhood ? 



The starvation process seems to me also out 

 of the question. After four days or more of 

 starvation, the diseased bees or queens would 

 certainly not be in better health than at the 

 start." 



Knoxville, Tenn.. Dec. 18. 



A Condensed View of Current 



Bee Writings. 



E. E. HASTY. 



nri ND SO friend Taylor is going to have that 

 I\ matter of excessive moisture in winter 

 quarters brought to test. Wet sheet pack, 

 of the Fowler and Wells sort of hydropathy, 

 and the patient put in for all winter. He 

 reminds me of an old crab-tree of a doctor, 

 who used to say to his patients, " You'll 

 surely die — I hope you will." But even if he 

 does wish them to die — those colonies he has 

 got surrounded with a dripping sheet — likely 

 as not they will be out in the spring all right, 

 a little better if anything than their neigh- 

 bors not hydropathically doctored. When 

 bees get wet in winter quarters there are 

 usually other concomitants, foul air, too low 

 temperature, and frosty combs. These are 

 certainly injurious : and yet dampness gets 

 a lion's share of the discredit. It may be 

 that just dampness alone does little harm, or 

 none. At any rate to find out the thing with 

 precision is a very legitimate and useful ex- 

 periment. 



Of course I am interested likewise in that 

 new anti-swarm device of friend Aspinwalls 

 mentioned on page 11 of the Review. Nev- 

 er mind the theory at this stage of affairs. 

 Hardly worth the powder to "hist 'em," 

 anti-swarm theories seem to be at best ; but 

 after the thing is sufficiently tried and found 

 to work, then a discovery of the proper the- 

 ory will be nicely in order. A more swarm- 

 ing season than last season was will be need- 

 ed to give us confidence. Having half-inch 

 dummies, chock full of holes, in each comb- 

 space influences the brood chamber in sever- 

 al ways, and there can thus be quite a variety 

 of theories to choose from. Hardly do to 

 put in such things till the colony gets pretty 

 strong, and the cold snaps safely over. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Listen to this noble and restful direction 



for busy folks — and all folks. 



•' We should do all the good wo can during the 

 day, and at night pillow our heads upon the 



God that made us, and let the cares of the world 

 go by." Jennie Atchley. A. B. J., 653. 



The Australians are getting some ideas in 

 their heads, whether they are on the road to 

 get a full supply of five-banded bees or not. 

 One brother, having received a queen, dead 

 as usual, took it into his head to see how long 

 bees would live in that cage anyhow. Put- 

 ting in a fresh queen and her retinue, the last 

 one kicked the bucket in three days ! A. B. 

 J., 655. Of course it is possible that nothing 

 but starvation from uneatable candy is in- 

 volved ; but is it not worth thinking of 

 whether the cage had not become a little, 

 old, infected cholera hospital ? And they 

 say the candy in nearly every cage received 

 tastes strongly of the pine. Here's a simple 

 experiment which queen shippers certainly 

 ought to try. Provision a cage just as you 

 would for Australia, and keep it in a warm 

 room six weeks. Then eat the candy your- 

 self and see whether turpentine has got 

 through your waxing. 



If you ever have occasion to smoke caged 

 bees with a hot blast smoker (to make them 

 behave toward their queen, for instance) 

 smoke them through your own live and burn- 

 able fingers. Then you'll be careful and will 

 not singe your queen. Jennie Atchley. A. 

 B. J., 714. 



What an optimist is Doolittle ! Thinks 

 the day is coming when one colony will pro- 

 duce as much as two do now — possibly as 

 much as four do A. B. J., 2. But then if 

 your average was two ounces per colony last 

 year, and you get four ounces when the good 

 time arrives, you may think it is hardly 

 worth waiting for. The particular idea G. 

 M. D. has in mind is to reduce the number 

 of colonies, and make the food supply of the 

 suppressed ones appear as surplus in the su- 

 pers of those not suppressed. 



Demaree tliinks too much money in the 

 treasury of the Bee-Keepers' Union is too 

 much of a temptation to needless law suits. 

 A. B. J., 3. Worth thinking of. But then 

 the amount of that " root of all evil " report- 

 ed by the treasurer so far does not look very 

 dangerous. 



A sulphur candle which burns for twelve 

 hours without attention, and leaves no resi- 

 due ; what a boon for bee-keepers, and all 

 others who have difficult jobs of fumigating 

 with sulphur to do ! Providing the whole 

 thing isn't a humbug, that is. No harm if 

 there is something put in the sulphur to 

 make it burn better. The thing to be looked 



