562 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Sept. 3. 



best equipped apiaries in the West. Tiiere may be -larger 

 apiaries, but perhaps none so complete. There is everything 

 with which to do, and harmony and cleanliness go hand in 

 hand. It is a most lovely spot, nestling at the foot of the hill 

 on the Forestville road, and surrounded on three sides by fine, 

 old trees, not forgetting the massive pines which fringe the 

 road leading to the place. From the apiary can be seen the 

 north branch of Root river, winding in and out, leaping 

 onward over the stones and through the willows. 



Here, endowed with Nature's best gifts to man — grass, 

 wood and water — is situated the Taylor apiary. Scattered 

 upon the hillside are to be seen hundreds of Mr. Taylor's 

 hives. One can see the handsome machine shop complete with 

 steam power and cunning machinery; the wintering cellar, 

 built upon honor, thoroughly painted, and strong as a castle ; 

 also the curing house, and the much-talked-of apiary, all 

 thoroughly painted and kept in excellent order. This order 

 and harmony pervades everywhere and everything, even to 

 his swarm-catcher. 



His handiwork is to be seen in everything, including a 

 bee-escape. We spoke of the cunning machinery. This was 

 all invented and made by his own hands, and is so perfect in 

 workmanship and finish as to cause remark by all who ex- 

 amine it. 



Across from the apiary on the left are acres of as fine 

 fruit as is grown in the great State of Minnesota. Apples 

 there are many varieties, and the evergreens and flowers go 

 to prove that Mr. Taylor was an enthusiastic horticulturist, 

 as well as a scientific bee-keeper, and did much to advance the 

 growing of fruit and the adorning of homes in his section with 

 ornamental trees. 



Mr. Taylor was one of the assistants to Hon. O. C. Gregg, 

 in preparing the "Farmers' Institute Annual," issued once a 

 year, and was the editor of the bee-department, as also the 

 "Apiary" in Farm, Stock and Home, and for years con- 

 tributed valuable information to several bee-periodicals. 



In conclusion, Mr. Barnett Taylor was a good, plain, 

 everyday man, honest from the ground up, and thoroughly 

 trusted by all who knew him. He would scorn to do a wrong, 

 and had a pure heart and clean hands, honored by all, and 

 admired by many. 



The Observing Bee-Hive as au Educator. 



BT CHAS. DADANT & SON. 



One of the best educators of beginners is the observing 

 hive. Yet the many questions often asked by them through 

 the bee-papers show that very few use the observing hive as a 

 means of acquiring a fair knowledge of the habits of the bee. 

 Books are good, but what you read is easily forgotten, and 

 nothing will impress facts upon your mind as readily as wit- 

 nessing them. Not only does the bee-keeper gain much from 

 his observing hive, but he also interests his neighbors and all 

 who visit him, for very few sciences are as old and as little 

 known as bee-culture. 



The rearing of a queen from a worker, her development, 

 the different stages of the metamTphorsis of bees, from the 

 egg to the perfect-winged insect, the difference in drone and 

 worker combs, the shape of the cells, the harvesting of pollen, 

 the production of wax, the difference in appearance between 



old and young bees, their behavior towards robbers — a thou- 

 sand little things which are absolutely needed to be known if 

 one desires to succeed — all this can be made clear, by the use 

 of an observing hive. 



Such a hive is inexpensive. One bottom-board 6 inches 

 wide and of the length of the hives in your apiary ; two up- 

 right pieces for the ends, 2 inches wide and of the same 

 height as the brood-chamber of your hives, with a rabbet in 

 each for the shoulder of the frame ; one glass on each side, 

 fastened by a light frame, two tight blinds made of light 

 wood, and a narrow board for the top, and your hive is com- 

 plete. Make a small auger-hole for the entrance. Then take 

 a frame of brood and bees, young brood mixed with hatching 

 brood, so you may have hatching bees and young larvffi to 

 rear a queen. Take this from your best colony, Italians if 

 possible, as they are so much quieter than other races. A 

 hive like this may be kept even in an apartment by a window 

 all summer. The bees become used to seeing you, and never 

 sting, if the proper precautions are taken to handle them with 

 the greatest care at first. The blinds should be so arranged 

 that they may be put on and removed without jar. Some peo- 

 ple, instead of blinds, use only a black cloth thrown over the 

 hive. 



It is indispensable that there be but one frame in such a 

 hive, for every part of the hive must be so placed as to be sub- 

 ject to our inspection, otherwise we may lose the sight of the 

 most interesting of their performances when we most desire 

 it. One has no idea of the pleasure that such a hive will give, 

 when you can exhibit the bees rearing a queen, or the queen 

 in the act of laying, or ihe respectful behavior of the little 

 workers towards their mother. There is no end to the dis- 

 coveries that are made, many of which you will think are 

 original with you, and of which you will be very proud, as a 

 new addition to the world's knowledge, until you find out that 

 some one had already discovered it two hundred years ago. 

 But, nevertheless, it is quite a good thing for you, for prob- 

 ably you would never have heard of it, had you not seen it 

 yourself. 



Outside of its advantage as a means of education, the 

 observing hive may be made to pay its way, yes, twice over, if 

 properly managed. Its actual cost, if you are, as usual, some- 

 what of a carpenter (all bee-keepers are carpenters, jacks of 

 all trades), will be only a few cents, the glass being the most 

 expensive part of it, but even if you have to have your hive 

 made by a mechanic, it will not cost you to exceed a dollar. 

 The frame of brood and bees taken in June from one of your 

 good colonies will hardly be noticed. With this you may, if 

 successful, rear three or four queens during the summer, and 

 these can be used to make artificial swarms or replace missing 

 queens in an apiary, or they may be sold and repay the cost of 

 the hive several times over. At the end of the season, the 

 comb and the bees may be united to a weak colony of bees, 

 and help to strengthen it, and the observing hive laid away 

 for another summer. 



To those who keep bees in the city, this hive is a source 

 of endless amusement. One cannot conceive the lack of 

 knowledge on the subject of bee-culture among the masses 

 till one shows the observing hive to all comers. The most 

 startling question we ever heard was by an old maid: "Do 

 all those little bees go to bed in those little holes every night ?" 



Hamilton, 111. 



Honey as Food and Medicine. — A new and revised 

 edition of this 32-page pamphlet is now issued. It has 5 blank 

 pages on which to write or paste recipes taken from other sources. 

 It Is just what its name indicates, and should be liberally dis- 

 tributed among the people everywhere to create a demand for 

 honey. It contains a number of recipes on the use of hor'^'' as 

 food and as medicine, besides much other interesting and vh.uable 

 information. Prices, postpaid, are: Single copy, 5 cts. ; 10 copies 

 30 cts. ; 50 for $1.00 ; 100 for $1.75. Better give them a trial. Send 

 all orders to the Bee Journal office. 



