AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 433 



disease sometimes. I think I've known some pretty severe cases, both acute 

 and chronic, some incurable. Come to think of it, it's a medicine too, at least some- 

 times. In some cases it has a remarkably stimulating effect. Say, Mr. Editor, 

 never mind speaking to Dr. Peiro. 



Drones and Swarming.— In view of the replies on page 367, it hardly seems 

 that drones or no drones has anything to do with the matter of swarming. As a 

 rule drones are present at swarming, not because they are necessary for swarming, 

 but because the conditions necessary to produce swarming will also secure the 

 presence of drones. 



Mating and Laying of Queens. — Rev. W. P. Faylor is an exasperating sort of 

 individual, when on page 369 he speaks of " the fact that bee-keepers can mate 

 their queens with the very kind of drones desired, right in a country or neighbor- 

 hood surrounded with black bees," and then doesn't say a word about how it's done. 

 Bro. Faylor, tell us who, where and how. 



He also leaves us in some suspense in giving that interesting item about the 

 queen laying, for the very point in the case that we'd like to know about he says 

 nothing about. That queen that lays eggs in new comb before the cells are fully 

 drawn out— does she use this new comb in preference to the old ; that is, are there 

 empty cells that she does not use in old combs on each side of the new comb ? 



Herr Reepen, commenting on this in Centralblatt, thinks my observations ought 

 not to be considered conclusive, as the entrance plays an important part — meaning, 

 I suppose, the position of the combs with regard to the entrance. I can readily see 

 that would be the case where combs hang parallel to the entrance, but my combs 

 are all perpendicular to the entrance. 



Spacing Combs.— What in the world does that man mean in that paragraph on 

 page 370, about brace-combs ? "He says, "But I space 1% from center to center, 

 to IJi." I've read it over and over again, and can't make any sense of that " to 

 13^." Wonder if he doesn't mean " instead of 13^." 



Introducing Queens. — That's an unusual case, I think, mentioned by Lawson 

 Hegler on page 376. I have introduced a great many queens by simply putting 

 them on the combs after queen-cells were sealed, and have met some losses in that 

 way, but in case of loss the queen was always killed without commencing to lay. 



That convention report on page 379 is an improvement. 



Marengo, 111. 



* 



PACKING BHES FOR ^WINTER. 



BY ELMER TODD. 



The wet leaves spoken of by Mr. Chas. Dadant, in his article on page 340 (6th 

 paragraph), can be almost entirely prevented by leaving an empty space of from 4 

 to 6 inches above the, leaves, chaff, or whatever other absorbent is used above the 

 bees. 



In preparing for winter, I put on a 10-inch extension and X story telescope 

 cover, with a %-inch hole in each side of it ; fill the extension full of leaves or chaff 

 In a burlap cushion, having the cushion big enough so the packing will go in loosely 

 and fit down into the corners, then put on the cover. I have yet to see a colony 

 come out in the spring with the absorbents wet when so prepared. I have prepared 

 for winter, as above, for four years in southeastern Nebraska, and never lost a 



