1909 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



253 



out in warm weather during the past 35 years I 

 don't believe I will ever be caught doing it again. 

 Try it and see how nicely they will ijuiet down, 

 and wait until the weather is propitious for a 

 good riy. F. H. C^RENius. 



Oswego, N. Y. , March 3. 



[We think it is the general practice to take 

 bees out of the cellar when the temperature is at 

 or near the freezing-point, rather than when it is 

 warm enough for the bees to Hy We find a 

 cool atmosphere much better. — Li).] 



MUCH OK THE HONIV AND WAX COMING IN TO 

 NEW YORK IS IN ROUTE FOR EUROt^E. 



Mr. Root: — In your March 1st issue, page 125, 

 there is an extract, presumably from Thomas' 

 H'eelly Re-'vif-iv, showing the arriva's of foreign 

 honey at New York fiom Dec. 17, 1908, to Jan. 

 21, 1909. The article gives the arrivals as fol- 

 lows: 



2520 barrels, 236 casks, 290 tierces, or 3046 

 pkgs. in all. 



The writer of the article assumes that the en- 

 tire quantity was entered for consumption in the 

 United States, which, however, is not so; and as 

 I have for yeais kept an accurate record of all ar- 

 livals of honey and beeswax at New York I am 

 in position to give you reliable information as to 

 the exact arrivals and their ultimate destination. 



From Dec. 17 to Jan. 21, the exact arrivals at 

 New York were 2492 barrels and 212 tierces, or 

 2704 pkgs. in all. Of this, 2090 barrels and 212 

 tierces were in transit for hurope, so that only 

 402 barrels remained for consumption in the 

 United States; and of this quantity, <he greater 

 part was taken by one concern. 1 hese figures 

 are absolutely correct. 



At least three-fourths, if not more, of the hon- 

 ey entered at New York is in transit for Europe, 

 and it would no doubt surprise your correspon- 

 dent to know how little of the foreign honey ac- 

 tually remains in this country. 



As to beeswax, more than half the arrivals at 

 Ne"^ York are in transit for Europe. 



New York, March 11. D. Stfengrafe. 



AN INTERESTING TIME DURING TRANSFERRING. 



I undertook to transfer a colony from a sugar- 

 bucket to a hive last July. It was very interest- 

 ing until I proi ured a veil and smoker; and even 

 then it was rather interesting, and it remained 

 interesting for several days; but I got them trans- 

 ft-rred. As the hive was rather close to our well 

 we had to borrow water for a week. I got used 

 to being stung, and didn't mind it at all after a 

 lime; but when a noisy bee gets in one's hair it's 

 quite annoying, especially to a rather high-strung 

 sort of fellow. Matt. W. Baldwin. 



bioux City, Iowa. 



WILL NEVER USE COLD KNIVES AGAIN. 



For years my neighbor and I used cold knives 

 for uncapping honey. The past season we tried 

 the hot knives, and we wish to say that we like 

 them so well that we never want to use the cold 

 knives again. It is surprising to see how easily 

 a hot knife will g'ide over the combs, especially 

 when the honev is thick and well ripened. 



I.a Ciescent, Minn. (i. A. I'.JiRBiSH. 



A FORM FOR NAILING SECTION-HOLDERS. 



For three years I have used a form for nailing 

 up my section-holders, and 1 would not be with- 

 out one now. The engraving shows the con- 

 struction that I prefer. 1 use the 1/^-inch plain 

 section; and, being handy with tools, and famil- 

 iar with wood-working machinery, I make my 

 oin supers and section-holders. 



The block that I use for the forms is the same 

 length, width, and thickness as four 4ji(-inch 

 sections; that is, it is 17 inches long, \% wide, 

 and 1 '2 thick. The two cleats at each end of 

 this block are arranged in such a way, as shown 

 by the engraving, that the different pieces of the 

 section-holder are always held just right, so that, 

 when they are nailed together, the finished hold- 

 er must always be exactly the same size. 



Rathbone, N. Y. Leroy Lloyd. 



SecC/o/i J^/o/c/er: 



[This form is essentially what we are using at 

 Medina. Something of this kind is almost a ne- 

 cessity to insure accuracy as well as speed in 

 nailing. — En.] 



WOULD A CONCRETE HONEY-HOUSE BE TOO DAMP.' 



I am planning to build a honey-house; and if 

 it is practicable I should like to make it of con- 

 crete. A concrete building would be more near- 

 ly fireproof than a wooden building. It would 

 be durable, and I don't think the cost would be 

 excessive. 



On the other hand, I am afraid it will be too 

 damp if it is made with solid walls. Lumber is 

 becoming scarce, and concrete is coming into 

 general use for many kinds of buildings. 



McNabb, 111. Edwin O. Gunn. 



[Some of our factory buildings are made of 

 solid concrete, floors and all. The only fault 

 we find is that they are too dry. If the building 

 you propose building can be ventilated, or (bet- 

 ter still) have artificial heat occasionally, you will 

 have no trouble about dampness. — Ed.] 



A COLONY THAT DE'^ERTED THE HIVE IN WIN- 

 TER. 



On the 24th of January one of my colonies de- 

 serted the hive for good. The hive was in good 

 condition, and I should like to know why the 

 bees went away. There were both honey and 

 brood in the combs. R\y Popts. 



Dor, Ark. 



[Impending starvation is the most common 

 cause of driving a colony out of its hive in win- 

 ter. As you say the "hive was in good condi- 

 tion," we assume there were sufficient stores. In 

 that case field mice might have taken up their 

 abode there; and as the house wasn't big enough 

 for two families, one of them deserted. — Ed.] 



