THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



331 



Royal Bee Funeral— A Canard. 



The following is found in the Lamar 

 (Mo.) Advocate af Sept. 13th, 1877, and 

 as it asks our opinion of the matter we 

 give it entire: 



On Sept. 1st, I obtained from W. C. 

 Grier in Lamar, an imported Italian 

 Queen which I proposed to introduce 

 into what I considered the best hive I 

 have. On the night of the 2d, I intro- 

 duced her into the hive leaving her 

 over night and in the morning of the 

 3d, I found the old Queen, a black one, 

 and taking her out I cut off her head 

 and threw the body some 15 feet from 

 the hive on the ground. I noticed no 

 particular commotion among the bees 

 until about 2 o'clock in the afternoon 

 when I observed a procession of bees 

 forming at the hive in a solid line and 

 moving toward the body of the dead 

 Queen. They moved on and approach- 

 ing the body surrounded it, and all with 

 one accord, as they approached the 

 body, threw up their wings in a pecul- 

 iar manner and made every sign of 

 grief and mourning. After a time they 

 withdrew and returned to the hive. 

 No further demonstration took place. 

 "Was this the result of instinct or rea- 

 son? Will Novice or The Aivierican 

 Bee Journal answer the question. 

 T. G. Harvey. 



We are frank to say we can regard 

 this funeral business as only a canard, 

 in which Mr. Harvey adroitly " played 

 it " on the editor of the Advocate. 



i^As a rule, farmers are now enjoy- 

 ing unmeasured prosperity. An ex- 

 change aptly remarks that combining 

 in themselves the interests of both 

 capital and labor, they have, unfortu- 

 nately, escaped the effects of the re- 

 cent conflicts which the antagonism of 

 such interests has produced in various 

 parts of the country. They have tilled 

 their fertile acres in peace, and have 

 been blest with an unusully abundant 

 harvest. Their bins are bursting with 

 the golden yield of the grain fields. 

 Plenty sits smiling at their hearths. 

 For the products of their acres there is 

 an active demand. The granaries of 

 the marts of Kussia have been ex- 

 hausted. The war has practically 

 stopped Kussian agriculture. The sur- 

 plus of American grain will find a ready 

 outlet through the channels of exporta- 

 tion. Prices will rule high and farm- 

 ers will roll in wealth. 



Harvest Musings. 



Beneath a shade, upon the grass I lay. 

 In happy thought— for all the scene was 

 bright; 



The brook and field and landscape, all were 

 gay, 



As beamed upon them Heaven's refulgent 

 light. 



I mus'd upon the past— the present fall— 

 And plucked the blades, within my reach 

 around- 

 Thinking how Heaven had blessed my labors 

 ail- 

 So plentiously my " bees and honey " 

 crown'd ! 



Within my reach, I spied a clover flower, 



Whose perfume sweet, attracted there a Bee; 

 With busy hum, and al! its " gathering " 

 power, 



It then and there "extracted" sweets for me. 



I mus'd again— but could not say how long— 

 A sweet voice came, and calmly said to me: 



"Learn from the Bee— send up a joyous song 

 For bounteous "stores" thy Father sends to 

 thee." 



1^ The Queens ordered of D. Tre- 

 montani through this ofiice, were sent 

 at first by mail, as he was unaware of 

 the late ruling of the P. M. General, 

 excluding them from the mails. On 

 their arrival at New York, they were 

 refused by the Post office and returned 

 to Italy. Signor Tremontani then 

 shipped them in bulk by express to this 

 office. They came in good order and 

 were at once sent on to their destina- 

 tions. He will not ship less than eight 

 queens hereafter and then only by ex- 

 press. The prices he names in his ad- 

 vertisement are for them in Italy. The 

 importation fees and express charges 

 make them to cost about $5.00 here. 

 We shall take no more orders for them 

 now till next spring, when orders may 

 be again sent to him through us, if so 

 desired. 



1^" We have received Helmick's Centen- 

 nial Cook Book, containing over 100 valua- 

 ble receipts for cooking, besides other use- 

 ful information. Send a three cent postage 

 stamp to the publisher, F. W. Helmick, 50 

 West Fourth street, Cincinnati, Ohio, and 

 he will send it to you. 



It^" We are in receipt of Vick's Floral 

 Guide, No. 4 for 1877. This is almost an in- 

 dispensable serial for tlie florist. The Guide 

 is to be issued monthly next year at $ 1.25 a 

 year, with the design of making it the 

 "neatest work of the kind in the world." 

 Address James Vick, Rochester, New York. 



