106 



FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 



colony to store for another. One of those times came in 

 the year 1902. The second week in June, at the time 

 when in a good season there ought to be Hvely work 

 piling on supers, I found nearly every colony on the point 

 of starvation. If there was any difference, the strongest 

 colonies w^ere the worst. The combs were filled with 

 brood, requiring large daily consumption, stores in the 



f'ig- 33 — Combs of Brood. 



hive were exhausted, and not enough for daily supplies 

 coming in. It would hardly be proper economy to have 

 combs filled with honey saved up for such emergencies, 

 seeing that they are not expected to come often, so the 

 w^hole force of feeders, some fifty, were put into action. 



Part were put in the home apiary and part taken to 

 the out-apiaries. When going to an out-apiary a bag of 

 sugar was taken along. Water was put in the wash- 

 boiler on the cook-stove and a good fire built under it. 

 A good-sized tin pail was filled half full or more with the 

 heated water, then sugar was poured' in till the pail was 

 nearly full, and it was stirred with a stick till fairly well 



