7 74 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Dec. 3, 



other colonies that gave over 100 pounds. I then reared 

 nearly all of my queens from this old one, as long as she lived, 

 and found the majority of them very prolific layers, and their 

 workers great honey-gatherers After she died I began get- 

 ting queens from other parties who reported good honey-yields 

 through our bee-papers, to cross with mine, asin-aud-iu breed- 

 ing is generally considered injurious to bees. Many of these 

 queens did not prove to be equal to my own, and were soon 

 superseded. Some proved to be good, and were used iu con- 

 nection with the above strain, which I have kept largely in the 

 majority every since. 



By this mode of crossing I have bred up a strain of bees 

 which pleases me ; and after years of trial I believe them to be 

 second to none as honey-gatherers, although for their purity 

 I can give i;o guarantee, neither do I think it necessary to 

 guarantee any positive purity of any stock, except that it bo 

 good in every spot and place where you wish goodness. I am 

 still striving to advance further along the honey-gathering 

 line, so each year finds me securing queens from the most 

 approved sources, although it is seldom I find one I care to use 

 as a breeder ; but as this "seldom one" is of great value, 1 

 consider myself well paid for all my trouble. 



There is nothing in all the realm of bee-keeping that gives 

 me more pleasure than does this work of improvement of stock 

 for its honey-gathering qualities ; and as we have several of our 

 most p'-ominent apiarists at work along this line, if perfection 

 can be attained with bees I doubt not that America will stand 

 at the head one of these days. But I doubt about that stand- 

 ing "at the head " being for purlin "f itock. — Gleanings. 



Southwestern Wisconsin Convention Report. 



BY F. L. MURRAY. 



The southwestern Wisconsin bee-keepers held their an- 

 nual convention at Wauzeka, Oct. 7 and 8, 1S96. There was 

 not a very large attendance, but one good feature about it was, 

 there were no drones there — they were all " workers." 



The convention was called to order by Pres. N. E. France, 

 of Platteville. Prayer was offered by Rev. J. C. Hoffman, and 

 H. Lathrop was then appointed Assistant Secretary. 



"What is the best method of obtaining comb honey," was 

 asked. 



Mr. Evans said the question was too long to answer there. 

 He did not think he would be in Wauzeka long enough to tell 

 what he knew about it. He advised the questioner to procure 

 some standard works and study them. 



Mr. Lathrop said it was better to work for both comb and 

 extracted honey. 



Mr. Evans uses the comb leveler, and got much more 

 honey from sections containing leveled combs than he did 

 from those containing full sheets of foundation. 



Mr. Lathrop advised not to put on sections until the bees 

 are very strong, and the harvest has opened, or they will 

 tear down the foundation. 



Mr. France — A foundation mill adapted to making one 

 kind of foundation will not make a good foundation of another 

 kind. 



WIDTH OF SECTIONS— SCPBR BEST. 



"What width of sections sell best on the city market '?" 

 Mr. Evans — T-to-the-foot. 

 Mr. Murray— 1%, with separators. 



" What is best, wide frame or super for comb honey?" 

 The majority answered iu favor of the super. 



PRICE or HONEY — MARKETING. 



"What should be the price of prime white comb honey 

 when prime white extracted sells at 7 cts. a pound wholesale?" 

 The general opinion was that it ought to be double. 



The Association discussed the advisability of organizing 

 some kind of a honey exchange. Mr. Van Allen asked why 

 all the members of the Association couldn't ship their honey 

 to one member, who is well informed, and let him handle it on 

 5 per cent, commission ? It came out in the remarks of differ- 



ent members that commission houses charged some members 

 5 per cent, commission and others 10 per cent. 



Mr. France related an experience of one bee keeper who 

 shipped several barrels of prime extracted honey. The honey 

 was reported in a leaky condition, and would have to be trans- 

 ferred into other barrels. The bee-keeper knowing that the 

 honey was shipped in giod condition took the train for the 

 city, called at the commission house, made enquiry for ex- 

 tracted honey, as though he were wishing to buy. He was 

 shown his own honey in the original barrels, and all in good 

 order. He made himself known, and the result was that the 

 commission house paid him for his honey, and also paid his 

 railroad fare both ways. 



One member said he thought it would be a good thing to 

 have one of the members to handle the honey, but he feared 

 the members might all want their money at the same time, 

 and would not be willing to wait. 



Mr. Prance spoke of an association of fruit men who sent 

 a salesman out to take orders, and he sold more than the 

 association produced. 



AFTERNOON SESSION, OCT. 7. 



First was the following 



President's Annual Address. 



With much pleasure we meet once more for the better 

 acquaintance of our brother bee-keepers, that we may in 

 mutual exchange of thought and methods in bee-cuituro all be 

 able tu take home with us something well worth our efforts to 

 attend. 



We gladly welcome these strange faces to our ranks, and 

 invite you to become a prominent cog of this convention 

 wheel, that has done so much good for its members in the past 

 years of its turning. 



We are all banded workers — without any lazy drones. 

 Our society is, however, in mourning, for the broken ranks of 

 its first great leaders — E. Pike, as President, and B Rice, as 

 Secretary. Their example to us, by earnest, honest, living, 

 together with that of our bees, so industrious and savine io 

 times of prosperity, should bo valued. Are we, dear brother 

 and sister bee-keepers, so living in the age of wisdom that we 

 may sweeten the way of our future ? 



By their fruits we shall know them. The past dry seasons 

 have not allowed our faithful workers to show the fruits of 

 their labor Did we get discouraged when last fail our 600 

 colonies had only stores enough for half that number, and a 

 prospect well established of a very little harvest the next 

 season? By no means. We carefully studied our situation, 

 decided better seasons were sure to come; so swept IbOof 

 our weakest colonies from their homes into their grave, and 

 fed their stores, together with 12 barrels of the best sugar, to 

 the rest. Let our failures teach us a lesson, even if at a great 

 cost — why these failures, and how to overcome them in our 

 locations and management. 



The time of this convention is yours, and I hope you will 

 so use it, that time to adjourn will find us warmed up iu our 

 work to a white heat. Besides the topics assigned on the 

 program I ask you to be free to keep the question-box in con- 

 stant use. 



A report for July, 1896, showed 30,000 colonies of bees 

 in Wisconsin; l,5i)0,000 pounds of honey for the 1896 

 harvest; which at 8 cents per pound, makes $120,000; and 

 .$5,000 worth of beeswax. A total of .$125,000, which by a 

 later report made was increased to §150,000. There was 

 foul brood in nine counties. 



I feel that our industry in this State is of enough impor- 

 tance that we owe a duty to our brother bee-keepers, and that 

 we in union should command legislative respect, and have 

 sweet clover stricken from the noxious weed roll, and a law to 

 protect our bees from the dangers of the dreaded disease — 

 foul brood. N. E. France. 



REARING QUEENS. 



Mr. Van Allen, on the best method of queen-rearing, said 

 he rears queens from cells built under the swarming impulse 

 in natural cells. He has had queens live five years and do 

 good service. He takes the cells out at about the 8th day. 

 One cell is placed in a nucleus, or if more are put in they are 

 protected by putting them in cages. He claimed that he 

 could winter queens in nuclei if the bees could cover three 

 frames. 



REARING OR BUYING QUEENS — WHICH ? 



" Which is the best method, to rear queens or buy them ?" 

 A Member — Rear your own queens, and only buy when 



you want to infuse new blood into your bee-yard. 



Pres. France — We ought to rear our own queens from our 



best honey-gatherers 



