788 



AMERICAN BEE lOURNAL. 



Dec. 13, 1900. 



tieeu lirouglit about by discussion, or l>efau6B 

 '• there has been so ranch talk on the subject." 

 It tlie discussion has resulted in confirming 

 Ibis view among " all bee-keepers of the bet- 

 ter class,"' then it has been to that extent a 

 good thing. 



Perhaps it may not be far out of the way to 

 say that the present general sentiment is some- 

 thing like this; ''No man has the moral 

 right to encroach upon bee-territory already 

 fully occupied, and this fact is so generally 

 recognized that there is no need of legislation 

 on the subject." It can hardly be a misinter- 

 pretation to quote Mr. Root as saying: 



" While priority of rights is sometimes 

 gi-ossly violated, the feeling is so strong 

 among all bee-keepers of the better clas.s that 

 such rights should be respected, that it is 

 needless to talk about any means for greater 

 security to those already occupying a given 

 territory." 



That sounds well, but Mr. Root might learn 

 that his words have in them very little salve 

 for the sore feelings of those whom he men- 

 tions as having had their rights '• grossly 

 violated." How would it do to apply the same 

 reasoning to the matter of stealing, and para- 

 jihrase Mr. Roofs words after this fashion * 



" While etiquette in the matter of property 

 rights is sometimes grossly violated, yet in my 

 travels over the country I find that it has a 

 larger sway and influence than you would 

 imagine. There has been so much talk on the 

 subject that all citizens of the better class are 

 disinclined to appropriate their neighbors" 

 property." 



In other words. 49 out of every 50 would not 

 steal if there were no law against stealing, 

 therefore, no law against stealing is needed. 

 But the law is not meant for the 49, but for 

 that one out of 50. So Dr. Miller might reply 

 to Mr. Root that legislation was not needed 

 for ■■ bee-keepers of the better class."" but for 

 those who " sometimes grossly violated "" 

 their neighbors' priority rights. 



Admit that a man who is already occupying 

 a certain territory has a moral right to its pos- 

 session, and it seems reasonable to say: 

 " The man who encroaches on territory that 

 belongs to another is stealing, just as much as 

 the man who steals a pound of honey, and if 

 the law protects a man fnmi having his honey 

 stolen, it should also protect him from having 

 his territory stolen." 



The weak part of the whole matter, how- 

 ever, will Ije found to be farther on than has 

 yet been considered. If all bee-keeiiers should 

 agree that it was the proper thing that a bee- 

 keeper's moral rights should be made his legal 

 rights, the real difficulty would come up in 

 trying to decide how such laws shfmld be 

 framed, and how they should be carried out. 

 Before Dr. Miller wastes any more lireath try- 

 ing to make it appear that legislation is neces- 

 sary, let him give us a sample of a law that 

 would commend itself as t)eing at all practi- 

 cable. It is easy to define ])roperty in honey 

 or money, but to define property in the nectar 

 of flowers in a certain territory is quite another 

 thing. 



Grading of Honey by Color.— In this 

 country there has been some discussion as to 

 having colored cards or something of the kind 

 as a standard for the color of extracted honey. 

 The British Bee-Keepers" Association, accord- 

 ing to the British Bee Journal, seems to be 



sending out tinted glass for the jiurpose, with 

 the following instructions: 



One piece of the glass, supplied lierewith, 

 when held up to ordinary daylight (not in 

 sunlight), shows the lightest shade allowable. 

 and the two pieces in juxtaiiositioii ilenutc the 

 darkest shade permitted in classes for medium- 

 colored extracted honey. 



The test of color nuist be made with honey 

 in glass jars similar to those in which it is to 

 be exhibited, and in no other way. 



The following more explicit instruction is 

 given in the British Bee Journal: 



Place one piece of the glass alongside a jar 

 of honey (similar to those in which the latter 

 is to be staged), with a sheet of white paper 

 as a background, and compare the respective 

 colors of honey and glass when lookt at in a 

 good light (not sunlight). If imt lighter in 

 color than the glass it ; is eligible. Then place 

 the two pieces of glass together, and if the 

 color, as seen thru both pieces, is itot clarlrr 

 than the honey, it is also eligible in the me- 

 dium class. Thus the glasses used singly and 

 lioth together represent respectively the ex- 

 treme shades of color (light and dark ) beyond 

 which it must not go. 



Driven Bees, or "naked colonies," as 

 the Germans call them, seem to be almost a 

 staple article in some parts of the Old World. 

 Such things are hardly known in this coun- 

 try, for the custom of "taking up" bees in 

 the fall to get the honey has ainiost entirely 

 died out. Editor J. B. Kellen says in the 

 Luxemburgischen Bieuenzeitung that such 

 colonies, the bare bees with neither combs nor 

 stores, weighing four or five pounds, can be 

 had for 1'3 to 35 cents per pound, and if ob- 

 tained in September or sooner, they may be 

 used to advantage by those who have on hand 

 the proper combs and stores to receive them. 



The Silver Linden is reported in Revue 

 Internationale as being disastrously destruc- 

 tive to bees, thousands of their dead bodies 

 being found on the ground under such trees, 

 while no dead bees were found under the 

 conunon linden. The silver linden is a superb 

 tree, growing rapidly, but colonies in its 

 neighborhood are so depopulated that if is 

 advisable to move them to another locality as 

 soon as the common linden is thru blooming, 

 the silver blooming a little later than the 



conunon. 



». 



Settling Swarms. — According to an 

 item in Lcipz. Bztg., a swarm that begins to 

 settle in an unfavoralile place, or does not set- 

 tle at all, can be induced to settle where de- 

 sired tiy the smell of burning wax. Throw- 

 some crumbs of old comb upon biwning coals, 

 and hold in such position that the ascending 

 smoke will strike the bees, and they will as a 

 rule turn toward the odor and luompfly set- 

 tle. It may be questioned whether liees in 

 this country are so docile. 



To Improve Stock Thru Drones, J. 



S. C'allbreath reconmiends in Gleanings in 

 Bee-Culture the following ; 



Each year select a number of colonies with 

 l)ure queens, purely mated, that have stored 

 a lot of honey and capt it white, and that 

 have not swarmed. The next year rear an 

 unmense lot of drones from these colonies, 

 and limit or entirely prevent drone-producfion 

 in all others. In a very few years there will 

 be a noticeable decrease in swarming — at least 

 that is my experience. 



I Weekly Budget \ 



Mr. O. O. Poppletos. of Dade Co., Fla., 

 writing us Dec. 3d, said : 



" My bees are very strong for the time of 

 year, with plenty of stores, and tor the first 

 "time in years not a trace of bee-paralysis 

 among them. Pennyroyal is just commenc- 

 ing to open its bloom." 



Mr. a. E. WiLi.cfTT, of Hampshire Co., 

 Mass. .oilers the following chapter of proverbs: 



1. " Keep all colonies strong."" 

 •2. He that keepeth his bees protected dur- 

 ing winter is wise. 



3. He that readeth the bee-papers shall ob- 

 tain knowledge. 



4. He that uniteth all weak colonies in the 

 fall is also considered wise. 



5. Leave no sweets exposed about the api- 

 ary, and by so doing prevent much robbing. 



6. Watch, lest thy swarms go to the woods. 



7. He that is slow about putting on supers 

 may lose his reward. 



8. Bees with long tongues make their 

 owner to rejoice. 



9. Be not too wise in thine own conceit. 



10. He that loveth his bees ought surely to 

 succeed. 



When Renewing Your Subscription 

 why not send along the name of a new sub- 

 scriber for the American Bee Journal ; We 

 oiler a number of premiums for doing this, 

 and also clubbing offers. This is the best time 

 of year for new readers to begin, as by reading 

 all winter they will be more ready to do some- 

 thing with bees next spring. There must be 

 quite a large uumber of bee-keepers within 

 ca.sy distance of nearly all the present readers 

 of the Bee Journal, who do not now get it, 

 but who would subscribe if they were askt liy 

 one who knows just what the Bee Journal 

 contains from week to week. 



We would like to send sample copies to any 

 bee-keejiers you think would be inclined to 

 subscribe, if you will kindly send us their 

 names and addresses. 



Prices on Bee-Supplies for 1901. — We 

 find the following paragraph in Gleanings in 

 Bee-Cnlture for Dec. 1st. which will be of in- 

 terest to intending purchasers of bee-keepers' 

 supplies, as it indicates about what the prices 

 will be for next year, at least so far as The 

 A. I. Root Co. is concerned, and all who 

 handle their goods: 



" We have decided to continue the prices in 

 effect last season on hives and sections for the 

 coming season, or until conditions warrant a 

 further change. While the cost of lumber 

 would warrant the advance proposed two 

 months ago. we have concluded not to make 

 it. but to be content with a narrower margin of 

 profit. Bee-keepers have had two iiuite un- 

 favorable years, which we have also felt in a 

 reduced demand for supplies. We trust that, 

 with the high prices jirevailing fin- honey, and 

 the favorable outhxik for a clover crop the 

 coming year, the demand will increase, and we 

 shall be rewarded liy increast liusiness at the 

 old price. The beeswax market is such that 

 we shidl have to advance comb foundation 2 

 cents a pound above last season"s price. We 

 are able to make lower prices on some other 

 items."" 



We presume then tlie prices of bee-keepers" 

 supplies next season may safely be relied upon 

 as being practically the same as during the 

 past season. There was an apparent tendency 

 to raise prices again, but we are glad that it 

 has been found uimecessary to do so, except 

 in the case of comb foundation. 



