AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



617 



answered by 

 Marengo, III. 



In this department will be answered those 

 questions needing immediate attention, and 

 such as are not of sufficient special interest to 

 require replies from the 20 or more apiarists 

 who help to malie "Queries and Replies" so 

 interesting on another page. In the main, it 

 will contain questions and answers upon mat- 

 ters that particularly interest beginners.— Ed. 



Does tha Queen Will It ? 



If the queen wills the sex of her eggs, 

 why does she will to lay a male egg, for 

 we know she needs no male herself ; 

 neither is she inclined to accommodate 

 other queens ? F. C. M. 



Answer. — Now you've got to the spot 

 where I don't know. I don't know 

 whether the queen wills the sex of the 

 egg, and if she does I don't know why, 

 and I don't know whether she knows 

 why. " We know she needs no male 

 herself," but I don't know that she 

 knows that. While she may be on 

 friendly terms with other queens, I don't 

 know but what she is " inclined to ac- 

 commodate other queens," provided they 

 are her own daughters. In fact this Is 

 one of the many subjects about which I 

 don't know. 



Why Did the Queens Die ? 



What caused the death of my queens ? 

 I clJDped the wings of all of them. On 

 July 21 one colony cast a swarm, and 

 on July 23 another colony cast a swarm. 

 The queens died in half a minute after 

 they came out of the hive. I was pres- 

 ent the first time the bees came out to 

 swarm, and I saw the queen coming out 

 swiftly, and turning round on the ground 

 a moment, instantly died. Both queens 

 acted the same, and died. First I 

 thought she had jumped down from the 

 frame and struck her head against the 

 hive-bottom, and split her skull. But 

 since then I have thought it came from 



the sun, as it was 103-^, and the ground 

 was warm, and no fresh air. She had 

 no wings to vibrate so she could get 

 some fresh air. What do you think of 

 it? A. P. C. 



Answer. — I don't know what to think. 

 I don't think the queen's wing being 

 clipped would make an appreciable dif- 

 ference as to keeping cool. I never saw 

 one ventilating. The queen's wing be- 

 ing clipped, the swarm might be delayed 

 till a young queen emerged, and the 

 young queen might sting the old one, 

 but in that case she would hardly come 

 out of the hive in such a lively manner. 

 I give it up. If any one knows, let him 

 tell. 



Plan of Uniting Colonies. 



In uniting bees, how would it do to 

 take the queen away from one colony, 

 put a screen on top of the hive the queen 

 is in, then in the evening, when the bees 

 are all in, take the queenless colony and 

 set it on top of the hive with the screen 

 on it, with the bottom-board off the 

 upper story? After they have been 

 there say 24 hours, open a small hole in 

 the screen from Ji to 5/16 inch in di- 

 ameter, then in 24 hours more draw out 

 the screen and let them have the run of 

 both hives. A. P. R. 



Answer. — I think the plan will work 

 satisfactorily, as it is much like what 

 has been advised in the "American Bee 

 Journal." 



Fears Queenlessness. 



I have one colony of bees that has re- 

 jected their new queen. I have given 

 them a frame of brood and eggs every 8 

 or 9 days. I sent to Arkansas for a 

 queen for them, but the breeder cannot 

 send it {his fall, owing to sickness. How 

 would it do to let the colony go as it is 

 till spring ? I suppose they will have a 

 queen, but she won't be mated, as the 

 drones are all gone. Please tell me how 

 to manage such a colony. W. W. P. 



Choctaw City, Okla. T. 



Answer. — It's hard to say what you 

 ought to do without knowing whether 

 your colony has a queen or not. It's 

 quite possible thit you may find next 

 spring that they have a good queen. 



