GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



well. Being more bashful tlian at the pres- 

 ent time, my name was signed " Jack Ca- 

 nuck, Hoodstown, Out." Hoodstown was 

 the name of a postoftice in the north that 

 I visited once, but which I knew was closed 

 up at the time of writing. I was rather 

 surprised to see the article printed, and to 

 note tliat friend E. R. had appended a nice 

 friendly footnote to the same. This made 

 me bolder, and I immediately sent another 

 article and received the surprise of my life 

 when I got a letter from the publishers 

 with a " credit note " enclosed. Doubtless 

 poor Jack Canuck, of Hoodstown, had re- 

 ceived a " credit note " also, and this on my 

 part was a " mistake," and I have never 

 since signed any name but my own, for 

 fear some " credit note " might go astray. 



To beginners in beekeeping, let me say 

 that the "habit of getting mixed up in the 

 journals is very hard to " get cured off " 

 when once contracted; so my advice is, 

 never start it if you want to be saved a lot 

 of work and the trouble of answering a pile 

 of correspondence. Of course, if you have 

 no objections to the things mentioned, go 

 ahead, and probably you will get a lot of 

 fun for your trouble, to say nothing of the 

 bit of " pin money " that comes with it as 

 a consoling reward. 



The question will naturally be asked hoAV 

 foul brood was avoided when 1 bought bees 

 in so many places. I was fully alive to the 

 danger of this pest; and as I had never 

 seen a case of foul brood I got in touch 

 with friend McEvoy, and he sent me word 

 when he was going to visit an infected api- 

 ary about 25 miles from my home. 1 made 

 the journey of some 50 miles all told, and 

 I think it paid me well, for from that time 

 it has been no trouble for me to tell the dis- 

 ease at a glance — a cell of foul brood look- 

 ing muchlike a blot of ink on a sheet of 

 paper, if I dare make such a comparison. 

 American foul brood has distinctive charac- 

 teristics that can not be mistaken to the 

 practiced eye, and 1 have often wondered 

 at hearing some say that they could not 

 learn to detect it. One thing is certain: 

 The beginner to-day must learn to know 

 bee diseases if he wishes to stay on the job. 

 The trip I have mentioned was worth much 

 to m.e, for shortly after that time I bought 

 some bees at a sale and found they were 

 diseased. They were promptly cleaned up : 

 and although I have twice since that time 

 bought it again (once knowingly, so as to 

 avoid the bees being scattered all over the 

 country), never have T had any difficulty 

 in cleaning up; and at the present, in so 

 far as I know, there is none in any of my 

 vards. 



After getting about 100 colonies in two 

 yards, 1 had rather severe winter losses, 

 and I came to the conclusion that this mat- 

 ter had to be solved if I wished to make a 

 living out of bees. Diagnosing the dead 

 colonies in the spring, I always found that 

 the bees had either starved outright or else 

 part of the cluster had run out of stores, 

 the rest of the bees usually perishing later 

 on in the spring from dysentery. I used 

 to read about giving 25 or 30 pounds of 

 stores for wintering; but gradually I learn- 

 ed that, for outdoor wintering, at least in 

 our climate, it is necessary' to have more 

 than that amount, and that, generally sjaeak- 

 ing, it is a mistake to have a lot of unsealed 

 pollen in the center of the brood-nest for 

 the bees to cluster on. 



I visited some of our most successful 

 winterers, and came awaj^ with the idea that 

 their success was not due to any particular 

 kind of hive, packing, location, or other 

 minor factors, but simply because they gave 

 their bees abundance of good stores. After 

 a number of years' " experience " with many 

 " mistakes " made in the mean time, I have 

 never changed that view, and upon that 

 main principle rests the success of good 

 wintering, all other factors mentioned such 

 as hives, packing, etc., being mere inciden- 

 tals. To the beginner I would urge due at- 

 tention to this matter, especially if living 

 in a cold climate, otherwise he will not only 

 have unpleasant and unprofitable " experi- 

 ence," but in the end will have to pronounce 

 his beekeeping career as a huge " mistake." 



When taking a retrospective view like 

 this, many events come to one's mind which, 

 while interesting to the parties directly con- 

 cerned, are not so to readers in general, so 

 I will close this random article, but I wish 

 to add that, with all my varied ups and 

 downs in the struggle to make a living from 

 bees, never once have I regretted my choice 

 of a life vocation ; and while we have not 

 made so much money, the friends and asso- 

 ciations formed during the time our work 

 has been going on are valued far above 

 monetary considerations. The help received 

 so ungrudgingly from many friends in the 

 past in the way of advice, etc., is remem- 

 bered with pleasure, and it is always a 

 source of pleasure for m.e to help others 

 struggling along, when it is in ray power 

 to do so. Never once do 1 recall asking for 

 any favor from a beekeeper but that it was 

 granted in a spirit showing that the help 

 was given freely. Last, but not least, the 

 best help I have had in the matter of at- 

 taining any little success in life that has 

 come our way is the company of a good 

 u\fe; and let me say that every beginner 



