1908 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



929 



market candied and has a slow sale. This is 

 most unfortunate just now. 



Along in last October and November there 

 was a crying demand for honey; but it could 

 not be had for love or money. After the demand 

 was well nigh over, and hard times were begin- 

 ning to come on, along came this honey. If it 

 had all been cleaned up it would be much better 

 for the market. 



.■\ BEE-ESCAPE BOARD IN TWO PIECES TO SA\E 

 LIFTING OF HEAVY SUPERS. 



Mr. F. G. Marbach, foreman of our machine- 

 shop, suggests making a honey-board in two 

 pieces. With a hive-tool pry up one end of the 

 supers and slip under the narrow piece. The 

 other end of the super may now be lifted up just 

 enough to provide proper clearance for the other 

 piece, which is now inserted far enough to meet 

 the first piece. His idea is to save all lifting by 

 prying one end of the super at a time with a hive- 

 tool. Any old honey-board may be fixed in this 

 way by sawing off one end, the small one not 

 being more than one inch or so wide. Some of 

 our bee-keeping friends can try it and see how 

 they like it. 



FEEDERS NOT WORTH PATENTING. 



We are constantly receiving designs for some 

 new style of feeder on which the sender has ap- 

 plied for a patent, adding that he would like to 

 know how much royalty we would be willing to 

 pay. As we have said repeatedly we say again. 

 we would not give one cent for a patent on any 

 kind of feeder, because there are too many good 

 unpatented feeders, and any one who gets out a 

 patent on a feeder is wasting his good money for 

 nothing. We believe in patents, own a number, 

 and are paying royalties on others. Hundreds of 

 patents have been granted on feeders; but we do 

 not know of one that has earned its owner a cent. 



CAUCASIANS HARDY. 



In setting forth some of the desirable and un- 

 desirable traits of these bees in our last issue, 

 page 869, we failed to mention one point in their 

 favor; and that is, their ability to stand wear 

 and tear. Some time ago we made up a colony 

 of pure Italians and pure Caucasians, mixing the 

 two races in one hive. For the first month or 

 two there was about an equal number of both 

 races in the colony. After that, the old yellow 

 bees began to disappear, while the old Cauca- 

 sians continued to remain in strong force. They 

 are good for springing and wintering. Our ex- 

 perience has abundantly shown that; but we 

 couldn't and wouldn't stand their excessive 

 swarming and bee-glue. 



SENDING DISEASED BROOD THROUGH THE MAILS. 



We desire to caution our readers again when 

 sending samples of suspected diseased brood to 

 this office for diagnosis to wrap the specimen in 

 paraffine paper, not in cotton batting, and put it 

 in a stout wooden or tin box. Mark on the out- 

 side of the package the full name and address of 

 the sender, and in the same mail be sure to send 

 a letter giving full particulars. Specimens not 

 having the mark and name of the sender will be 

 burned without examination, and likewise all 

 other specimens loosely or carelessly packed. 



Another thing, do not use perfumery-boxes, 



spice-boxes, or, last of all, tobacco or cigar box- 

 es, to send brood in, because the odor so scents 

 up the brood that satisfactory diagnosis is made 

 difficult if not impossible. 



We are perfectly willing to furnish informa- 

 tion to our subscribers, but they in turn must 

 observe proper precautions. 



" WAX CRAFT." 



This is the title of a new work in the hands 

 of the printers, taking up fully its history, pro- 

 duction, adulteration, and commercial value, by 

 Thomas William Cowan, editor of the British 

 Bee Journal, and author of the British Bee-keep- 

 ers' Guide; and numerous other apicultural 

 works. 



Chapter I. is historical; chapter III. treats on 

 wax-rendering, taking up all the various methods 

 for accomplishing this by the aid of the sun, by 

 artificial heat, through the medium of steam and 

 hot water. Chapter V. has to do with the sub- 

 ject of refining and bleaching wax, removing im- 

 purities caused by the introduction of either 

 mineral or vegetable waxes; commercial waxes, 

 refining, etc. Chapter VI. deals with the adul- 

 teration of wax, the extent of it, the adulterants, 

 with a list of the various kinds of waxes other 

 than that made by the bees. Chapter VII. deals 

 with the manufacture of comb foundation; chap- 

 ter IX. with wax candles and tapers. Chapter 

 XI. treats of the technical uses of wax. 



No work of this kind has been published be- 

 fore, and we are of the opinion that it will fill a 

 long-felt want without question. The size of 

 the work is crown octavo. The price in paper 

 covers is 2 shillings; in cloth, 3 shillings. 



THE CHICAGO DRAINAGE CANAL AND THE SWEET 

 CLOVER NOW GROWING ON ITS BANKS. 



On p. 940 is an article with engravings in re- 

 gard to sweet clover on the banks of this great 

 drainage canal. This reminds me that, on my 

 return from California in the fall of 1903, I was 

 greatly impressed with the piece of engineering 

 as planned and carried out for that great canal. 

 At the close of the article referred to above, we 

 are told that they expended ,$53,000,000. Well, 

 there are places where the soil, stones, and grav- 

 el are piled up, to get it out of the way, in heaps 

 that almost rival in size the mountains of Califor- 

 nia. At the time of my trip, railroads were 

 constructed for the purpose of carrying this ref- 

 use material wherever it was wanted for filling in 

 for railroading and other work. But I suppose 

 it will be many years before these " hills and 

 mountains " are entirely removed out of the 

 way. The fact that sweet clo\ er will take root 

 and grow, and get sustenance from the air on 

 such miscellaneous soils as those taken out at a 

 great dgpth in the ground, is an additional proof 

 of the great worth that it may have in making 

 the most unpromising soil productive. This re- 

 minds me that the growth of sweet clover in the 

 suburbs of Toledo is this year just wonderful. 

 When the farming community all get to under- 

 stand the way in which this plant does " mission- 

 ary work " in restoring poor soils, we shall rec- 

 ognize what a wonderful gift to agriculture is 

 this luxuriant sweet clover that has been so many 

 times called by thoughtless people a " noxious 

 weed." A. I. R. 



