AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



631 



In the first place, I will say that I never lose a swarm when I take all the pre- 

 cautions that appear necessary at the time. I am governed more or Jess by the sea- 

 son—whether early or late — the kind of weather, the size of the swarm, etc. When 

 swarming-time approaches, my hives — 10-frame dovetailed — are prepared, ready at 

 a moment's notice, and at once I proceed to business when the swarm settles. If 

 two or three come out near the same time, and do not cluster together, I first hive 

 those most exposed to the sunshine, after giving each swarm a good drenching with 

 cool water sweetened with granulated sugar. I always put one or two frames of 

 unsealed worker-hrood into the hive, being sure there is no queen-cell on either of 

 them. 



Give the bees a large entrance, sprinkle them well with sweetened water, and, 

 if a hot day, give the outside of the hive a generous dose of the same. As soon as 

 they have about all entered, remove the hive to a shady place some distance away. 

 Be sure of abundance of ventilation at the bottom, having the hive much more 

 elevated from the bottom-board than you intend it to remain permanently. Have 

 the hive-cover to fit well, so there shall be no light from any place except the bottom. 



Another important consideration is to have abundant room, especially if the 

 swarm is large, or the weather warm. This you can provide by empty supers, or 

 one or two empty brood-chambers without combs, on top of the hive you intend them 

 to occupy permanently. After a few days you can regulate the room as required. 

 Abundance of room, shade, ventilation, sweet water, etc., always save them for me, 

 and I would be glad to hear whether they charm Mr. Lusk's bees from their inclina- 

 tion to hie away to the swamps. Gainesboro, Tenn. 



^P~ Do not write anything for publication 

 on the same sheet of paper witn business 

 matters, unless it can be torn apart withou 

 interfering with either part of the letter. 



Dr. Gallup and "Business." 



Mr. Editor : — What has become of 

 our old friend that wrote such charming 

 letters from Santa Ana, California? I 

 hope he does not intend to keep mum all 

 the rest of his life I Say, Doctor, you 

 are too old a man to be squelched by one 

 nervous man's growling. I don't believe 

 one other reader of the "American Bee 

 Journal " feels just as thatawful "busy" 

 man did. I believe he is so very terribly 

 busy that he eats concentrated foods, 

 and — well, it don't seem to agree with 

 him very well. You see, he does not eat 

 soups, vegetables, fruits, etc. — it takes 

 too much time, so he uses them dessi- 

 cated. I believe all the other bee-keep- 



ers are interested in the surroundings 

 and the families of the contributors who 

 do so much to help us on to success. 



Mrs. B. J. Livingston. 

 Center Chain, Minn., Nov. 1. 



[Why, dear Mrs. Livingston, it takes 

 more than "Business" to "squelch" 

 Dr. Gallup. He's not the squelching 

 kind. We had a personal letter from 

 Dr. G. a few weeks ago, saying he had 

 been so very busy that he didn't have 

 time to write, but thought he would soon 

 get around to it again. Oh, no, Dr. Gal- 

 lup don't "go down" so easily as one 

 might think, for he's not quite 75 years 

 young yet! We say "young," for in 

 heart he'll never grow " old." — Editor.] 



A Kind of Flies. 



Enclosed please find insects, and if 

 agreeable, please inform me what they 

 are. I have noticed quite a number fly- 

 ing about my yard, and upon the flowers. 

 Their appearance resembles bees, to 

 some extent, and they appear to gather 

 the nectar from the flowers. On open- 

 ing my hives a few weeks ago, just at 

 the close of the honey-flow, several flew 

 immediately on the frames. One that I 



