744 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



My spring count of colonies was 11, 

 which 1 increased to 35, and obtained 

 over .500 pounds of lioiiey, my atten- 

 tion being given for increase rather 

 tlian for houey. The following is my 

 method of getting increase : 



When the season arrives for in- 

 creasing ttie number of colonies, 

 which is about June 1. and all is 

 favorable, I select the colony that is 

 about ready to cast a swarm, and at a 

 time when the bees are working very 

 strong. I remove the hive to a new 

 location, and having another hive 

 ready I place it on the old stand. I 

 then hunt out the queen in the old 

 hive, and by this time there will be a 

 quart or more of bees about the en- 

 trance of the hive. I brush the queen 

 and bees off at the entrance, and see 

 that she enters the hive. The work 

 is now completed. All the bees have 

 visited tlie tields. having marked their 

 location, and will return and make a 

 strong colony, leaving the old colony 

 strong with young bees to rear a 

 queen. 



This is also the method that I 

 practice for getting young queens for 

 my increase. 



I use a hive adapted to the Mitchell 

 frame, and an upper-story hive either 

 for hanging- frames or sections, with 

 a raised lid. I have 2-iuch auger 

 holes on either side of the lid for ven- 

 tilation for winter, just above the 

 frames, with wire-gauze tacked over 

 them. These holes are kept closed in 

 the summer to exclude the light. I 

 take off the upper story, having a 

 porous cloth over the bees, with a 

 cotton-padded mat over that, with the 

 lid fitted on the lower story or brood- 

 chamber, and about 3 inches of dead- 

 air space above this matting, the air 

 passages being open. My bees are 

 ready for the bee-house. My bee- 

 house is double-walled and ))acked 

 with sawdust ; the floor is double, and 

 packed also, as well as overhead. I 

 have tvFo 3-inch ventilators through 

 the ceiling, with one at ttie lower part 

 of the bee-house entrance door, which 

 opens from another room. This en- 

 trance or ventilation is screened and 

 ob.structed when necessary. I hope I 

 will be able to give a favorable report 

 next S))ring. 



i'illiuore,tolnd. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Golden Jubilee of Dzierzon. 



CHAS. DADANT. 



This Jubilee and the 30th Congress 

 of the (Jerman and Austrio-Hun- 

 garian beekeepers was held at 

 Leignitz, Germany, beginning on 

 Sept. 8, 1885, and I have, by request, 

 translated and condensed the fol- 

 lowing report from L'Apicoltore for 

 October, 1885. 



Prof. G. B. Grassi was delegated to 

 the Jubilee of Dzierzon by the Society 

 for the Progress of Bee-Culture, of 

 Milano, Italy. Although the descrip- 

 tion of Mr. Grassi's journey to I>eig- 

 nitz, in Silesia, where the Congress 

 assembled, is very interesting, we 

 will pass it by, so as not to take too 



much space in the American Bee 

 Journal. 



During his journey, Mr. Grassi met 

 a number of bee-keepers who also 

 were going to the Congress. On the 

 eve of Sept. 8, they were welcomed by 

 a commission, which had been dele- 

 gated to escort them to the liotels, 

 and to give them the information 

 indispensable to travelers, on their 

 arrival in a foreign city. Mr. Grassi 

 went to the feast of the evening, 

 which was held in a splendid house 

 that was erected in a beautiful grove, 

 and is named Schiesshaus. 



At 8 p.m. Mr. Grassi entered the 

 room, where about 600 bee-keepers 

 had assembled, notwithstanding it 

 was raining heavily. The beginning 

 of the festival was magnihcent. Every 

 one was in good spirits. Ttie speeches 

 and the songs hel|)ed to increase the 

 pleasure, aiid a band frequently en- 

 livened the occasion with some fine 

 music. 



The mayor of the city delivered an 

 address of welcome in a few well- 

 chosen words. He said that be had 

 endeavored to becomingly receive the 

 guests, a great number of vsrhom liad 

 come a long distance. He added that, 

 as a symbol of the festival, he had 

 prepared a golden bee, printed on a 

 ribbon in the colors of Silesia, which 

 be begged every bee-keeper to accept 

 and to wear on liis breast. "The 

 colors of the city of Leignitz are not 

 the colorsof Silesia, "added the mayor, 

 '• but we have selected the colors of 

 Silesia from a motive wliich we desire 

 to be known by every one. The pres- 

 ent Congress is an especial occasion 

 from the fact that this feast is in 

 honor of the greatest representative 

 of bee-keeping, the Reverend Dr. 

 Dzierzon, it being the 50th anniver- 

 sary of his beekeeping; and their 

 honored master is a Silesian ; Silesia 

 is proud of him; and it is on that 

 account that you will bear the colors 

 of Silesia on yo\u- breasts. All the 

 beekeepers which are here, without 

 distinction of nationality, are broth- 

 ers ; to all I extend a warm welcome. 

 I shall but voice the general sentiment 

 by saying, long live bee-keeping." 



The honorary President of the Bee- 

 Keepers' Central Society of Hungary, 

 Baron Ambrozy Temesz-Yarmatha, 

 thanked the city of Leignitz. The 

 Count Eberhard saluted the old Dr. 

 Dzierzon, as tlie column of honor of 

 bee-culture. Of course every speech 

 was greeted with shouts of "Long 

 live bee-keeping !" After the speeches 

 the Pastor Schontield, a well-known 

 bee-keeper, invited all these who 

 intended to pay an homage to Dzier- 

 zon, to gather in another room, in 

 order to agree on the order of the day. 

 After listening to music again, ttie 

 bee-keepers sang songs, in wliich the 

 fear of stings and the use of gloves 

 and veils of the beginners was ridi- 

 culed. Speeclies followed, and songs 

 in which the national hymns of Ger- 

 many and Austria were not omitted. 

 The feast lasted till 3 a.m. of the next 

 day. 



According to the programme the 

 Congress met at 9 a.m., on Sept. 9, to 



celebrate the Jubilee of Dzierzon ; 

 sociable banquet at 3 p.m., and a great 

 concert at lip.m. 



Previous to the meeting the bee- 

 keepers repaired to the bee-keeping 

 exhibition, which occupied four 

 rooms. In the first were living bees 

 of several races ; in the second, im- 

 plements ; in the third, products; and 

 in the fourth, bee-literature. In the 

 last room there was a large table 

 upon which was exhibited the anat- 

 omy of the bee, by Prof. Leuckart, 

 and dedicated to Dzierzon. 



Mr. Lortsch had exhibited a very 

 pretty glassed case, showing the suc- 

 cessive stages of the development of 

 the bee and its enemies. Mr. Osterloh, 

 of Berlin, exhibited a very large rep- 

 resentation of a worker-bee, worth 

 S25. This price is not too high, if we 

 consider that the bee is magnified 65 

 times, and can be taken to pieces so 

 as to give a very comprehensive idea 

 of the function of the organs— either 

 internal or external— of a bee. With 

 such an object all may easily under- 

 stand the most complicated parts of 

 a bee. such as the apparatus of the 

 mouth and of the sting. Tliis repre- 

 sentation of tfie bee is already adopted 

 in a great many schools. 



At 9 a. m. the highest officer of 

 Silesia opened the festival by thank- 

 ing the bee-keepers for having hon- 

 ored him with his nomination as 

 Honorary President of their Society. 

 After enumerating the merits of 

 Dzierzon, he presented him with a 

 golden medal, in the name of the 

 royal house of Prussia. Then the 

 representatives of every bee-keepers' 

 society, which were delegated for 

 offering presents to the great master, 

 came forward, according to the order 

 which liad been agreed upon the 

 preceding evening. Mr. Grassi was in 

 front, and offered to Dzierzon a 

 diploma of honor, which was encased 

 in a beautiful case of silken plush. It 

 was sent by the Central Society of 

 Milano. Then came in turn the rep- 

 resentatives of at least 40 societies, 

 offering gold and silver crowns and 

 medals, a clock, albums, a rocking 

 chair, purses well Hlled with gold, 

 diplomas, etc., whicli were from 

 every part of Germany and Austria. 



Dzierzon ascended tlie tribune and 

 seemed very inuch overcome by the 

 hearty applauses. He said that his 

 merits liad been greatly over-esti- 

 mated. He had studied bee-keeping 

 as a pastime, and ttiis amusement had 

 given him much pleasure. He would 

 be careful not to become too proud ia 

 consequence of so many homages. 

 He was especially happy to have so 

 many friends, which were acquired 

 through the study of the small liouey- 

 bee. Previous to the union of Ger- 

 many and Au.stria, made by the Em- 

 peror and the great Chancellor, the 

 small bee had united in friendship all 

 the bee-keepers of that region. " This 

 day," said Dzierzon in concluding, "is 

 the happiest of my life." 



These last words were followed by a 

 shout of applause, when Dzierzon 

 descended from the tribune, every 

 bee-keeper being desirous to shake 

 hands with him. He had a smile and 

 a good word for every one. It is truly 



