THE AMERICAN BEE JUURNAL. 



tioiis, and in Mr. Root's locality it has 

 weight, but in our locality the bees do not 

 put ))ropolis upon smooth surfaces unless 

 they are in contact, hence the top an<l 

 bottom bars of the sections reniain nii- 

 soiled. If tlie sections touched each 

 other, bees would be killed when one case 

 is placed over the otiier. 



M. S. West: I have used both wiile 

 frames and cases, and I prefer the wide 

 frames. 



K. L. Taylor: 1 have used wide frames, 

 the Deaue system, and the Heddon case; 

 and after using the latter for two years, I 

 conkl not think of givins it up for any- 

 thinR else. 



Secretary Cutting: I can see one objec- 

 tion to the Jleddoncase; it has no outer 

 case, and tlie bees in the surplus depart- 

 ment are more likely to be affected by 

 changes of temperature. The hives can 

 be shaded, hut I should think that the cool 

 nights would drive the bees from the 

 sections. 



President Hutchinson: We shade the 

 hives. Mr. Cutting should also remember 

 that there is a " heat within " as well as 

 " without," and that this heat can escape 

 more readily when there is no outer case. 

 Mr. C. would not put on an overcoat to 

 keep himself cool, would he ? The bees 

 do not leave the sections in the coolest 

 nights that occur during the honey season. 

 It is doubtful it they could, unless they 

 went out of the hive. 



J. II. Robertson: I have used every 

 crate or case that has been introduced 

 into Michigan, and I have never found 

 anything yet equal to the Ileddon case. 

 It is cheap, handy, and substantial, and 

 keeps the sections neat and clean, and 

 they are easy of removal. 



QUEKN-EXOMIDraCi IIONEY-BOAKDS. 



It wasasked if aqueen-excluding honey- 

 board was needed with the Ileddon sys- 

 tem. 



R. L. Taylor: No, it is not; but a honey- 

 board of some kind is necessary or tlie 

 bees will hnild brace-combs between the 

 sections and the brood-frames. When a 

 swarm is hived, at least one frame of couih 

 should be given it, if sections are given 

 it at once hlled with comb foundation 

 drawn out, otlierwise the queen will in- 

 vade the sections. 



President Hutcliinson: My experience 

 agrees with Mr. Taylor's, but 1 cut short 

 all these troubles with a queen-excluding 

 honey-board. 



TIERINO-UP SECTIONS. 



President Hutchinson: When the first 

 case is one-half Hnished, I raise it and put 

 another case under it, when the second 

 case is one-half finished, another case is 

 added next the hive, and by the time the 

 last added cas0*is one-lialf finished, the 

 top case is ready to come off ; and unless 

 separator are used, it is necessary to re- 

 move a whole case at once. 



Geo. E. Hilton: I do not use separators, 

 yet I can remove part of the sections as 

 soon as they are finished, and by shoving 

 the unfinished sections all to one side, and 

 placing a finished side next to the empty 

 sections, I have no troutile. 



rUTTINd FOUNDATION INTO SECTIONS. 



Mr. II. L. Taylor explained the working 

 of a Parker foundation fastener. .Secre- 

 tary Cutting can put in the foundation 

 more rapidly with a fastener worked by 

 the foot. Dr. Kezartee used water in- 

 stea<l of honey as a lubricant when put- 

 ting in foundation. One lot of foundation 

 fell down, and he could give no reason. 

 A. I. Root said that it might have been 

 caused by the sections being damp. Mr. 

 Taylor agreed. 



SECKETION OP W.\X. 



Prof. Cook: There is no doubt in my 

 mind that bees do not secrete wax when 

 they liave no use for it. I have hived 



swarms upon empty frames, and those 

 having cond)-i stored the most honey. 



Pres. Hutihinson: Was it comb or ex- 

 tracted honey ? 



Prof. Cook: Extracted. 



Pres. Hutcliin.son: Have you compared 

 the results of hiving l)ees upon founda- 

 tion (not coinhs) ami upon empty frames ? 



Prof. Cook: Nil, 1 have not. 



Pres. Hutchinson: Yo\i have probably 

 read of my expiTinientsupon this subject. 

 Now, had your hrood-trames been empty, 

 your surplus department filled with foun- 

 dation wr condi, and the two apartments 

 sejiarated with a ciueen-excluding honey- 

 board, do you think you would have 

 secured anv less honey ? 



Prof. Cook: I do not know. Perhaps 

 nuire honey would have been stored had 

 the whole hive been filled with comb, but 

 more of it would have been stored in the 

 brood-nest instead of in the surplus de- 

 partment. 



Pres. Hutchinson: Well, if the non-use 

 of fouiulation in tlie brood-frames will 

 secure the storing of the honey in the 

 sections instead of in the brood-nest, I am 

 in favor of tlie plan. I shall conduct 

 some more conclusive experiments during 

 another season. 



Adjourned to meet at7:.30p. m. 



EVENING SESSION. 



The evening session was called to order 

 at 7:30 by Vice-President Taylor, and an 

 essay on Carniolan bees from A. J. King 

 was read. 



Pres. Hutchinson read a private com- 

 munication from Prof. Hashrouck. His 

 views in regard to the Carniolan bees 

 agreed witli those of Mr. King. The 

 Carniolans build and cap their honey 

 similar to the old-fashioned grey bees. 

 They are very prolilic, and if allowed to 

 do so, would swarm a great deal. He con- 

 sidered them the best bees that he had 

 ever tried. 



A letter from Mr. Shuck, of Iowa, was 

 also read, in which lie agreed with Messrs. 

 King and Ilasbrouek, unless it was in re- 

 gard to tlieir swarming propensities;but he 

 said that he wa not the proper person to 

 judge ot them in this respect, as bees 

 seldom swarm when under his care. He 

 thought it quite probable that they were 

 a cross between the German and Italian 

 varieties, wliich had become fixed from 

 long years of breeding. 



Pres. Hutchinson: 1 obtained the daugh- 

 ter of an imported Carniolan queen about 

 the middle of last summer. The bees are 

 very gentle ; but after they were old 

 enough to gather honey, there was none 

 to gather, so I know nothing of their 

 honey-gathering qualities. 



A. 1. Root: I havenevertried tlie Carnio- 

 lans, but Mr. Benton has said so much in 

 favor of them that I shall give them a trial. 



now TO flET liEES OUT OF THE SECTIONS. 



Pres. Hutchinson: lean smoke most of 

 tlie bees from the case, then I take it off 

 and shake out nearly all of the remaining 

 ones, after which I carry it into tlie honey- 

 house, ami set it up on end. The few 

 straggling lices soon leave the case for the 

 windi>\vs, where they crawl to the top and 

 escape through a small space under the 

 wire clot h that is tacked over the outside 

 of the window. 



R. I>. Taylor: I raise one end of a cas», 

 smoke the bees, and most of them will 

 crawl from the raised case into tlie one 

 below it. I then carry the case into a 

 tent, and the bees escape through a hole 

 in the to)) of the tent. 



.). H. Robertson: I drive down what 

 bees 1 can with smoke, then set the case 

 up on end in front ot the hive, and witli 

 smok(! and a hunch of .June grass I can 

 drive out the rest of them in 2}.^ miuntes. 



I'UEVKNTION OF AFTEIt-SWAKMINO. 



Pres. Hutchinson <lescribed the Heddon 



the old hive to the end of the row, when 

 giving it a new location, but few queens 

 were lost. 



Prof. Cook read communications from 

 Mr. Krank lienton ami Mr. S. M. Locke, 

 for which a vote of thanks was tendered. 



Adjourned to meet at '.I a. m. 



MORNI.NG SESSION. 



The meeting was called to order at a. 

 m., ViC(vPresident Taylor in tlie chair. 

 Secretary Cutting read the minutes of the 

 last uuHUing, which were accepted. Treas- 

 urer (Jolib read his reiioit which was also 

 accepted. Mr. Cutting also gave a graphi- 

 cal report <if the aiiiarian exhibit at the 

 Michigan State Fair, and atlvised a few 

 changes in the premium list. A commit- 

 tee consisting of II. I). Cutting, R. L. 

 Taylor, W. Z. Hutchinson and M. H. 

 Hunt were appointed to meet with the 

 Executive Board of the Agricultural 

 Society, and work for the advancement of 

 apicultural interests. 



The election of ofiicers resulted as fol- 

 lows: President, Prof. A. J. Cook, Lans- 

 ing ; first Vice-President, R. L. Taylor, 

 Lapeer ; second. Dr. Kerzartee, Ceresco ; 

 third, L. 0. Whiting, East Saginaw ; Sec- 

 retary, H. D. Cutting, Clinton ; Treasurer, 

 M. II. Hunt, Bell Branch. 



As a compliment to the North American 

 Bee-Keepers' Society, it was decided to 

 hold no State meeting next year, but to 

 meet in conjunction with tlie North Amer- 

 ican Society when it holds its next annual 

 meeting at'Detroit. It was also ilecided 

 that all members of the State Association 

 and all otficers of the local societies be 

 considered delegates to the next meeting 

 of the North American Society. 



THE rol.I.EN THEORY. 



Prof. Cook: We liave, for several years, 

 tried preiiaring some of our colonies 

 witliout jiollen, and some with pollen, and 

 those without pollen have wintered much 

 the best. The pollen theory looks to me 

 about like this: If the bees are quiet they 

 eat little or no pollen, but if the lieat or 

 anything disturbs them, they then eat 

 pollen, and bee-diarrhoea is the result. 

 The pollen theory is unscientific. Bees 

 are natives of warm climates, and so long 

 as they can enjoy frequent flights all goes 

 well ; hut when long confined, and com- 

 pelled to subsist uiion a food largely nitro- 

 geneous in cliaracter, their intestines be- 

 come overloaded. It is folly to say that 

 mature bees do not eat )iollen unless they 

 are breeding. 1 liave dissciti'd bee after 

 bee at a time when no brood-rearing was 

 going on, and found the r intestmes 

 loaded with grains of pollen. Prof. Beal 

 even pointed out the plants from which 

 some of the grains were gathered. It is 

 also just as foolish to say that bees ever 

 void their f;eces in a dry state. 



W. Z. Hutchinson: It is generally ad- 

 mitted that bees do winter well sometimes 

 with pollen in their hives, i. e., when they 

 settle down into tliat(iuiet state in which 

 they consume but little food ; now, which 

 is the primary cause of diarrhcea, pollen or 

 "inability to hibernate?" Do the bees 

 hibernate because they consume no pollen, 

 or do they consume no pollen because 

 they hibernate ? Which comes first in 

 the line of causes '? 



Prof. Cook: I think it is eating pollen 

 that nuikes them uneasy, but our unsuit- 

 able temperature may start them to eating 

 pollen. 



.J. H. Robertson: I do not think pollen 

 causes hee-diarrluea. 



Prof. Cook: You keep your bees in a 

 cellar in which there is a stream of water 

 wliich equalizes the temperature, hence 

 the bees are qnlet and consume no pollen, 

 wliicli only substantiates the pollen 

 theory. 



Dr. Whiting: When the honey is some- 

 times largely impregnated with pollen. 



method, and said that by always carrying I the remedy is sugar syrup. 



