198 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



hatch in 10, 12, or 14, and the longest will 

 require 16 days. 8o we will count the long- 

 est time and will count 300 queens on May 

 1st, and in 8 days more tliey have been 

 fertilized and are" depositing eggs, and are 

 then SI queens, and are removed. This 

 brings us to May 9th. 



We will now go back and tell you that on 

 May 1st we removed from the remauiing 30 

 hives of Mrs. Grimm's pure Italians the 

 queens from 1.5 of the most populous, and by 

 cutting holes through and scarifying the 

 comb, about the eggs, we get an average of 

 15 cells to the hive, which is 2.5 more than 

 we need for our nuclei. On May 10th we 

 remove one cell each to our nuclei that we 

 removed queens from, and leave our 15 full 

 colonies also to rear a queen. Now, giving 

 the It) days for the perfect queen and 8 days 

 for fertilization and depositing eggs, brings 

 us to May 25th. when we have 215 queens 

 ready for "shipment; they are removed. On 

 May 16th we made the remaining 15 of our 

 Grimm purchase queenless, and on May 

 26th we cut out cells for our 200 nuclei and 

 also for the 15 full queenless colonies, leav- 

 ing 15 cells in those last made queenless. 

 Now, giving the same time as heretofore, 

 brings us to June 9th, with 230 more queens. 

 How does the account stand ? 



Twenty pure Italian, tested, queens, 

 bought of Mrs. Grinnii, removed April 15th, 

 and counted at $1, S20; 200 untested queens 

 removed from nuclei, May 9th, $200; 15 

 tested queens bought of Mrs. G., removed 

 May 1st, and counted at 'SI, $15; 215 untest- 

 ed queens, removed from nuclei, May 25th, 

 $215; making $450, with 230 queens on hand. 

 We will dispose of only 180 of them, at $1, 

 $180; making a total of $630. We retain .50 

 young queens, and instead of multiplication 

 and division, that we have heretofore prac- 

 tised, we will try addition and snbstraction, 

 and unite 4, 6, and 8 nuclei into one colony, 

 and when judiciously handled and managed 

 the 50 colonies can be ordinarily, in our sec- 

 tion of country, made strong and healthy 

 stocks long before the honey-producing sea- 

 son is over. 



Let us now recapitulate. What have we 

 sold and what have we on hand? On hand, 

 Oct. 1st, .50 colonies, as good as they were in 

 April, at $6..50, $325; 200 nuclei hives, good 

 as new, at .50c., $100; 400 extra frames, good 

 as new, at 5c., $20; sold .50 queens, of 

 original purchase, at $1 each, $50; sold 595 

 queens, reared in season, at $1 each, $595; 

 total $1,090. 



Our worlf commenced say April 10th and 

 ended June 10th. We will give the $90 for 

 advertisements, stamps, cages, pens, ink and 



Eaper, and get in cash, hives, honey, and 

 ees $1,000, less $469— our original outlay— 

 for 2 months work. Does not that look as 

 though a bee-keeper can get a living by pro- 

 ducing good, unwarranted queens for $1 ? 



There is but one question about the busi- 

 ness, and that is purchasers. The queens 

 can be reared as we have stated. Although 

 in our queen rearing we pursue not exactly 

 the plan laid down. We use hives con- 

 taining 21 and 32 frames to rear cells in and 

 bi'eak up at the proper time, with nuclei, 

 admitting the same size frame, some 2, 3, 4, 

 and 5 frames. 



For queens getting lost in their bridal ex- 

 cursions, we make an allowance of 10 per 

 cent., as we obtain a greater average of 

 cells than given. Cages and nurseries can 

 be used for the superfluous virgin queens 



and they retained without detriment until 

 their sisters have taken their bridal flight, 

 and if unsuccessful in returning, take their 

 place, and only 2 or 3 days are lost. The $1 

 queen-rearer does not, like the bee, " work 

 for nothing and find themselves." Imported 

 queens costing you $5 or $7, are no better 

 tlian a good home-bred queen costing $1 or 

 $2. We have queens removed not less than 

 40 generations from imported mothers, that 

 will compare favorably as to color, size, 

 docility, and energetic workers with any 

 imported Italians, whether there be black 

 bees in Italy or not. W. P. Hf.xdersox. 

 Murfreesboro, Tenn., May 8, 1877. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Deborah Hive. 



The writer has had in use the following 

 hives: the Bay State, Langstroth, Quinby, 

 and the German hive. They are all good 

 hives, but, like sewing machines, they have 

 certain merits and defects. It may be safe- 

 ly asserted, without particularizing any of 

 the above hives, that a broad flat hive is 

 not suited to Northern climates. Large 

 combs are liable to inelt; long, deep combs 

 are difficult to remove and many bees are 

 crushed, and intricate hives are expensive. 



The following hive, I believe, has none 

 of these defects. It is called the Deborah 

 hive, simply to distinguish it from others. 

 It is not patented; easily made; cheap; 

 portable; can be carried by one person; 

 gives ready access to the combs; the combs 

 are movable; are not large enough to melt, 

 and the bees are not irritated in the neces- 

 sary operations. For northern latitudes it 

 is the best shape; it is the right size; can 

 be inspected at all times; can be enlarged 

 or reduced to suit large or small colonies; 

 the overplus of drone comb can be remov- 

 ed; the bottom board can be changed for a 

 clean one; rain cannot wet the floor; the 

 size of entrance is easily changed, and the 

 surplus honey removed with ease. In 

 recommending this hive, it is to be under- 

 stood that the writer has no pecuniary in- 

 terest in it. No one has it for sale, but any 

 person who can handle a saw and hammer 

 can make one for himself. This hive re- 

 ceived a medal and diploma at the Centen- 

 nial. The criticisms of apiarists are asked 

 for. 



The main hive is composed of two boxes 

 placed one upon the other. Each box is a 

 loot square in the clear, and 9 inches high. 

 Placed together you have a hive 18 in. high, 

 and containing 1)4 cubic feet— say 2,592 

 cubic inches. The front and back of each 

 box is rabbited out at the top }4 in. to allow 

 the frames to set in, of which tliere are 8 in 

 each box. The frames are made of stuff 1 

 in. wide, o}4 iu- thick, and 8x11 in the clear. 

 Supposing the hive is made of board 1 in. 

 thick, then the top and bottom will be 14 in. 

 square. 



Handles are placed on each side of the 

 box, and by taking out one screw the 

 handle can be turned up vertically and 

 screwed to the box above, this holds them 

 tight together. King screws are very con- 

 venient for this purpose. For a stand on 

 which to place the hive in winter, take a 

 board say 2 ft. long and 14 in. wide; nail it 

 on cross pieces at eacli end. These cleats 

 are 2x3 stuff, and the hive is made to stand 

 close to tlie ground. For the entrance the 



