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AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



Nov. 8, 1900. 



Pres. Root — I was not expecting- anything- of this kind. 

 I had in mind two or three other gentlemen who would be 

 most worthy of your honor. I had an intention of doing 

 something of this kind, and thought I would be able to do 

 it. but when I get such men as Messrs. Abbott and Mason 

 against me, it is pretty hard work. 



Dr. Mason — We want you to understand you are not 

 running this Association entirely. 



Pres. Root — I want to thank you all for this exhibition 

 of confidence. I am no speech-maker. If I wanted to make 

 a really good, all-around speech I would call on Dr. Mason 

 and Mr. Abbott, and a few of these other friends. We will 

 now listen to nominations for vice-president. 



Dr. Mason— I would like to nominate Mr. R. C. Aikin, 

 of Colorado. 



The nomination was seconded, and on motion the rules 

 were suspended and the secretary instructed to cast the vote 

 of the Association in favor of Mr. Aikin for vice-president. 

 izr Dr. Mason — I don't want anybody to get the impression 

 that I am trying to run this convention, but I do want to 

 nominate Mr. Moore for secretary. 



Mr. Moore — I withdraw absolutely. I could not take it 

 under any circumstances. I move that the rules be sus- 

 pended, and that Pres. Root be instructed to cast the ballot 

 for Dr. Mason for secretary. 



The motion of Mr. Moore prevailed, and Pres. Root cast 

 the ballot for Dr. Mason as secretary. 



Dr. Mason — I want to say in regard to the work that 

 has been done this year, you are largely indebted to Pres. 

 Root for the success of this meeting. I never had so much 

 trouble with a president before in getting up a program as 

 I have had with him ; it was trouble, trouble, all the time. 

 I could do hardly anything with him ; he was bound to 

 have his own way. He has had it, but I have agreed with 

 him every time ; but he has workt faithfully ; he has spent 

 time and money ; he has not spared himself work and 

 trouble. And I want to say another thing, we owe the Chi- 

 cago Bee-Keepers' Association a great, big debt of grati- 

 tude for the way they have treated us. That will come out 

 in the way of resolutions. These nice badges they pre- 

 sented to us free of expense. You know they are somewhat 

 expensive. We have appreciated this, I am sure. Another 

 thing, we have here sample copies of the American Bee 

 Journal, the Bee-Keepers' Review, the American Bee- 

 Keeper, and Gleanings in Bee-Culture— they are here for 

 you to take with you ; take them home and read them, be- 

 cause each and every one of them has some good things 

 in it. 



Pres. Root — Do you wish to make a motion or offer a 

 resolution ? 



Dr. Mason— No, that will come in later. 



' TRIALS OF THE COMMISSION MERCHANT (CONTINUED). 



Pres. Root — I was going to say we had to chop ofi' the 

 discussion we had a little while ago right in the midst of 

 the time it was most interesting, and Mr. Hatch suggested 

 he would like to ask the commission men some more ques- 

 tions. If it is the pleasure of the convention I will turn it 

 over to Mr. Hatch and tell him to "fire away." Silence 

 gives consent. Mr. Hatch will put more questions. 



Mr. Hatch— It is not often that you can get two commis- 

 sion men like Mr. Burnett and Mr. Bishop where we can 

 question them. We have one bone of contention, and that 

 IS, What is the best package for shipping extracted honey ? 

 Now that we have these two commission men here — and 

 they probably handle the biggest part of the crop of this 

 audience— if we can have their opinion on this question as 

 to which is the better, cans or kegs for extracted honey, it 

 will be dollars and cents in our pocket. I would like to 

 have them give their opinion. 



Mr. Moore— This matter will come up on Thursday 

 afternoon in Mr. York's paper, and it seems to me we might 

 pass it over to be discust under that paper. 



Mr. Hatch — These men won't be here then, in all prob- 

 ability ; we want their opinion now. Mr. York's opinion is 

 all right. 



Dr. Mason— Mr. York may want to re-write his paper 

 after he hears what they have to say ! 



Mr. Burnett— I am very much indebted to ray fellow 

 merchant for the kind manner in which he has come to my 

 support this afternoon, and as I have pride in all these 

 things— and especially as this is my home— I desire to ten- 

 der the opening address to Mr. Bishop, and I ask the presi- 

 dent to ask him to make the opening address on this very 

 important matter. 



(Continued next week.l 



Contributed Articles. 



One ©f the Borers A Bee-Killer— Swarming. 



BY PROF. A. J. COOK. 



UNDER a separate cover, in a little box, I send you a 

 singular insect which I captured in the act of working 

 its ovipositor in the seams of a water-cask between the 

 staves. The cask is kept standing near my well. If you 

 will kindly tell the American Bee Journal about it you will 

 greatly oblige me. — A. R. Seaman, Pennsylvania. 



Answer. — The insect came safely, tho it was a wonder 

 that it did so, as the slight pasteboard box was crusht as 

 flat as a griddle-cake. I know the insect well, as I have 

 seen and taken many in Michigan, and some of the same 

 genus here. This one — Tremex columba — is very common 

 in Michigan, and is a borer. It is a Hymenopteron, and so 

 belongs to the same order as do our pets of the hive. The 

 bees, however, are the highest of the order, while these 

 " horntails," as they are called, are the very lowest. They 

 are very large, often more than one and one-half inches 

 long, are a smoky-brown in hue, with an abdomen whose 

 black is lined with yellow after the fashion of many wasps. 

 Very likely this color arose, thru natural selection, to mimic 

 bee and wasp so these would be past by a ravenous bird in 

 quest of savory insect. The bird has learned to respect 

 wasp and bee because of previous experience, and has now 

 a wholesome dread of any insect in stripes. Thus our horn- 

 tail may thank his ringed dress for escape from many a 

 bird banquet. 



At the tip of the body -is the large ovipositor, referred 

 to by Mr. Seaman. This is triple in its make up, like that of 

 the bee. It, however, can not sting. It uses this to bore 

 into wood, as this is one of the great family of borers, and 

 the larvK do very much harm by thus boring into trees. 

 They often bore into the hardest, like the maple, to find a 

 safe place to lay their eggs. As they do this in the bright 

 sunlight, and are often a long time doing it, we see that 

 they would be greatly exposed were they not guarded by 

 their stripes. 



I say that maple is a common tree for them to bore. I 

 have given a fine picture of this pigeon Tremex, as it is 

 often called in my "Maple Sugar and the Sugar-Bush." It 

 often gets its large auger in so far and tight that it can not 

 get out. I have caught them in this dilemma, and one now 

 is in the museum of the Michigan Agricultural College that 

 I captured thus fastened, and he, or she, I should say, now 

 is pinned with a chip of the wood where it was impaled, 

 if that is a proper way to state it. Very likely it gets so 

 weary boring in the hard wood that it is too weary to extri- 

 cate its auger. 



The Tremex is not very common, or else it would work 

 great harm in the timber of our forests. They work on not 

 only maple, but beech as well. While, as I have shown, 

 they are safe largely from the birds, they are not so from a 

 large, fine Ichneumon fly. This great fly, longer even 

 than the horntail, and with an ovipositor three itiches long, 

 finds the place of the boring larval horntail, and bores in 

 and lays the fatal egg — fatal to the latter. These also get 

 caught, as I have frequently seen them and taken them 

 apparently fixt to the wood where they were boring for the 

 Tremex. Isn't it curious that they can tell just where the 

 borer is, tho the latter is deep in hardest wood ? They 

 doubtless have sense-organs that we could not begin to 

 equal. 



THE PHYMATA OR BEE-KII,I,ER. 



The other day some goldenrod came to me in a box, 

 while I was busy with my large laboratory class. I opened 

 it enough to see what it was, and to read a word in a note 

 that an insect was in the flower of the plant, and thus hid 

 could kill bees %vhich it was quick to capture and kill. I did 

 not see where the letter, which was lost, or box came from, 

 nor who sent it, but I am of the opinion that it came from 

 the American Bee Journal office. 



The insect was one of the bee-killers, Phymata erosa. 

 It has strong, jaw-like front legs. By use of these it can 

 grasp and hold even the strong, stout bee until it sucks its 

 blood and life from it. It is strange that the Phymata is 

 colored like the flowers, so it is hid in its own color, and, 

 like the horntail, it is saved or helpt by its strange mim- 



