1896. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



honeyed banquet for the bees ; or if some of each cutting was 

 held for seed, there might be still another considerable in- 

 crease in the honey-product. How few, too, realize at present 

 from the extensive bean-flora of Santa Barbara and Ventura 

 counties. Mr. Mendleson, the past season, secured a fine crop 

 of bean-honey after the regular season was over. I sampled 

 the honey, both comb and extracted, and cac speak truly of 

 its excellence. Here, then, is a farther opportunity to in- 

 crease the honey-reaources of our section. 



There seems, then, but one serious obstacle in the way of 

 exceptional success in apiculture in Southern California. I 

 refer to the poor market for the honey. Prices range away 

 below what is reasonable and right. Finest grades of ex- 

 tracted honey sell for 3 cents to 4}.^, when 6 cents is the 

 minimum that should ever be paid for first-class extracted 

 honey. It is not that the consumer gets it at these figures — 

 the low price is due to the system of marketing. Impecunious 

 producers, to secure ready and needy funds, sell at starvation 

 rates, and Qx the price. The producers do not propose to 

 suffer this system to continue. They are organizing to con- 

 trol the output as the orange-men are now controlling their 

 product by aid of the Fruit Exchanges. The bee-keepers seem 

 unanimous in the desire to form a honey-exchange. We be- 

 lieve they have the intelligence, the energy, and the wisdom 

 to make a success of the undertaking. 



Pomona College, Claremont, Calif., Dec. 12, 1895. 



Some Subjects Reviewed and Commented Upon 



BY DR. C. C. MILLER. 



Sweet Clover. — Many thanks to Mr. Stolley for such a 

 satisfactory reply, given on page 805, and I know of only 

 one question I should ask just now if he were within ear-shot. 

 That is as to the quality of sweet clover honey as compared 

 with alfalfa. I know what alfalfa tastes like, but I never 

 tasted anything that was called sweet clover honey without 

 just a little uneasiness as to whether it was the genuine article. 



For the sake of those who say that if sweet clover is cut 

 for fodder, it must be while young, and that spoils the chance 

 of the bee-keeper, I want to call attention to the advice of Mr. 

 Stolley, to cut while young for the sake of making it sprout 

 vigorously. In this part of the country I think I'd much 

 rather have it cut while young, for then it blooms a little 

 later, and where white clover yields well, the early blooming 

 of sweet clover is not so desirable as that which comes after 

 white clover is gone. 



Amalgamation. — The discussion seems to be on. With 

 some of the views expressed by Geo. W. Brodbeck, on page 

 807, Vm in accord, but as toothers I'm decidedly " forenenst " 

 him. He says the North American Bee-Keepers' Association 

 is an " admitted failure." As I think of the many delightful 

 meetings held by it, I, for one, am not willing to admit that 

 it was a failure, and I see no indication that it is not now as 

 good' as ever. 



But say, Geo. W., what ever put it into your head to op- 

 pose consolidation because "you cannot combine business 

 with pleasure ?" Look at the grand successes of the German 

 societies with their thousands of members, where they com- 

 bine business with pleasure with a vengeance. 



As to some other points, I'll turn you over to the tender 

 mercies of the other brethren, merely saying that I'm with 

 you in thinking there's no need of any assessment clause. 



T Supers. — Referring to page 808, let me suggest a 

 change that I think Mr. Schartz would like: Instead of nail- 

 ing a T tin on the bottom of each end of the super, merely 

 nail on a plain strip of tin }i inch or so wide, letting it project 

 about a quarter of an inch for the sections to rest on. The 

 sections will go in easier, and I think he'll like it better. 

 Then instead of using T tins on top, just use little pieces of 

 wood 11 inches long, M inch wide, and nearly Jg thick. .Tust 

 push these down between the sections, and it will do the busi- 

 ness nicely. 



A Free Show. — It may be all very well to attend a con- 

 vention without paying anything to get in, but suppose every 

 one does that thing, how are the bills to be paid? 



of any value, but I've always felt we owed a debt of gratitude 

 to Heddon for telling us a way to manage when we didn't 

 know of anything better. 



That Horbi-ble Affair. — The relation of that Horri-ble 

 affair on page 807 is breaking away a little from established 

 usage, but I believe the established usage of hushing up every 

 wrong is itself a great wrong. If one finds out a man is a 

 rogue, let him warn others. 



Wintering. — You may be right, Mr. Sage, in thinking as 

 you do on page 818, that a colony in a good hive kept dry 

 with plenty of stores will come out all right with you, but 

 please remember that all places are not like Linton. But I'm 

 with you in thinking that, as a rule, bees will winter better in 

 a box-hive. 



An Ax to Grind.— Easy, easy, Bro. Kelly, in making 

 charges of ax-grinding against hive-makers — page 817. Sup- 

 pose they do try as much as they can to have all goods of 

 standard kinds, and to have as few kinds as possible, as they 

 can manufacture at less cost ; isn't that also for the benefit of 

 the consumer? If each one of us had hives and sections of 

 such patterns as were used by no others, it would cost us a 

 round sum for our " fixins." 



BuRR-CoMBS. — The answers on page 819 show a change 

 of opinion. Only five think the Heddon slat honey-board the 

 best thing to prevent burr-combs, and In strictness hardly 

 that, for one of them has never tried anything else, and the 

 others do not say they have tried the same means that have 

 succeeded elsewhere. I don't think the break-joint feature 



The New Constitution. — The candid remarks of Mr. 

 Newman, on page 822, throw an entirely different light upon 

 the whole matter. Of the major part of the work, as detailed 

 in his second paragraph, I knew nothing, and can hardly be 

 blimed for supposing there was nothing of the kind, as I was 

 a member of the Union. Nothing of the first sending out 

 reached me, nor of the second, and I feel sure the omission 

 was not intentional, but all the same it left me so that I never 

 dreamed anything of the kind had been done. 



I cannot agree, however, with Mr. Newman, that " the 

 suggestions about Canada, given on page 793, are quite in 

 order." Unless I have some misunderstanding of the case, 

 they are utterly out of order. If there is a single thing that 

 shows any more recognition of the United States than of Can- 

 ada, I have failed to discover it. The charge is, "the entire 

 absence of all recognition of Canada, except so far as it is part 

 of North America." The complainant could hardly have read 

 carefully Art. I, or he would not have said "entire absence." 

 In that article occur the words "United States and Canada." 

 There's no other mention of eitljer Canada or the United 

 States throughout, and I don't see any need of further men- 

 tion. Half the committee were Canadians, and Canada had 

 exactly the same recognition the United States had. Won't it 

 be "quite in order," Mr. Newman, for you to reconsider your 

 opinion as to the suggestions about Canada ? 



A word as to the manner of voting: Mr. Mewman does 

 not agree with my views. Now, Mr. Newman, admitting all 

 you say to be correct for the present, it isn't a sure thing that 

 you'll live always. Then a new Manager will come into office, 

 and after he has been tried a year he may be found wanting, 

 or at least it may be thought some other would do better. 

 Each member sends him an open ballot, and the probability 

 is that many who do not feel very strongly in the matter will 

 send a vote in his favor that they would not send if the vote 

 were sent elsewhere. If this were not so, why is it that it is 

 so common a thing in deliberative bodies to take the more 

 tedious way of voting by ballot instead of the much shorter 

 way of counting noses ? And I'd rather have the change 

 made now when you're in office, than to wait till the necessity 

 arises. Marengo, 111. 



1^" How to winter bees successfully has been to bee- 

 keepers their most vexatious problem, and it may be safely 

 asserted that failure in bee-keeping is chiefly attributable to 

 defective wintering. — Quinbv. 



Large Hives ; Size and Shape of Hives ; and 

 Conditions Necessary to Safe Winter- 

 ing of Bees. 



BY CHAS. DADANT. 



(Continued from page 822.) 

 In my last article, I have granted that the small hives, in 

 a bad season, will give a little more surplus honey than the 

 large hives, because there is more room in the large hive-body 

 and the quantity stored in the upper story of the small hive 

 will be easily stored in the brood apartment of the large hive. 



