.>^^ QEORQK W. YORK, Editor. ^^ 



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40th YEAR, 



CHICAGO, ILL,, AUGUST 23, 1900, 



No, 34, 



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The Bee-Hive Incubator and How It Works. 



BY J. G. NORTON. 



THE picture herewith shows only a few of my 55 hives, 

 but will represent ray new incubator in a way. The 



hives, as will be seen, are two-story chatf, that I 

 adopted about 15 years 

 ag-o, and have been a suc- 

 cess for honey and also 

 to hatch chickens. The 

 first story is chaif-packt, 

 four inches back and 

 front, and two inches on 

 the sides. Over the brood- 

 chamber I place a piece 

 of oilcloth or canvas — 

 either will do. I use for 

 the eggs a cushion with 

 hollow center which is 

 the shape of a hen's nest, 

 and will hold from 16 to 

 50 eggs. The cushion is 

 eight inches thick, and 

 fills the top of the second 

 story within two inches 

 of the top. 



After the eggs are 

 placed in the nest, or in- 

 cubator, another small 

 cushion is prest over the 

 eggs, and all are kept 

 warm. The temperature 

 outside may drop 20 to 40 



degrees, but that in the nest is kept about the same. I find 

 in this latitude eggs can be set any time after Feb. IS, and 

 as we very seldom get surplus honey here before June 10. 

 all this time can be used to advantage. The eggs need 

 turning only every two or three days, in this way, so it does 

 not need very close watching. 



I am entirely satisfied with the plan, and to show how 

 sure I am of the results, I have all spring been setting pure 



Mr. J. G. Norton and His Bee-Hive Incubators. 



Buff Cochin eggs worth $5.00 a sitting, and have not lost a 

 fertile egg ; and the chicks are the best and strongest I 

 ever had. 



Be sure to use the strongest colonies as incubators, 

 having at least six combs well filled with brood ; then your 

 test will result satisfactorily. McDonough Co., 111. 



Swarming' of Bees— A Review of the Subject. 



BY PROF. A. J. COOK. 



IN looking over several of the bee-books I have been led to 

 wonder if we had all the wisdom regarding the swarm- 

 ing of bees that was desirable. Before starting on the 



subject proper, I wish to 

 say that I am proud of 

 our bee-books. Dadant's 

 Langstroth is a splendid 

 book. I feel very happy 

 that it is so. Several 

 years ago Mr. Lang- 

 stroth (who may be 

 called most appropriately 

 "the grand old man," 

 for like all great men, he 

 died not with death) hon- 

 ored us, as he did on sev- 

 eral occasions, with a 

 good long visit. He told 

 me that he wisht some 

 one to rewrite his book, 

 and askt me to suggest 

 some one to do the work. 

 I told him that I did not 

 believe that he could do 

 better than to get the 

 Dadants to do it. He fol- 

 lowed my advice, and I 

 am sure that neither he 

 nor any other bee-keeper 

 is sorry for the decision. 

 It is excellently well done. A B C of Bee-Culture is also a 

 splendid work of which we may all feel very proud. I have 

 just given it a very thoro reading', and I feel like congratu- 

 lating the authors and all apiarists the world over for the 

 splendid treatise. 



The third work that I have reviewed is that of Thos. W. 

 Cowan. I am likewise very pleased with Mr. Cowan's work, 

 and do not wonder that it is regarded as the most authorita- 



