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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



October Management. 



Honey gathering liaving now ceased, 

 weak colonies should be strengthened 

 by uniting, and all prepared for winter. 

 Colonies should now be strong with 

 young bees and have plenty of stores- 

 say about 30 ft)S. If they have not good 

 honey enough, they must be fed. 

 Enough can be given in two or three 

 days to prevent starvation. Coffee A 

 sugar, reduced to the consistency of 

 honey, is best. We cannot advise the 

 use of the poorer grades of sugar for 

 feeding. A YanDeusen feeder will be 

 found useful, if no other is at hand; it 

 can be used on any style of hive, and 

 does not permit waste, as the atmos- 

 pheric pressure prevents the escape of 

 the feed, except as taken by the bees. 

 Let the central frames contain many 

 empty cells, and see that they have free 

 passages from one comb to another, in 

 order to reach their winter's feed. Use 

 division boards, contract the entrance, 

 and cover well with a quilt. 



That toads will eat bees, would 

 seem to be clearly proved by the ob- 

 servations of M. Brunet. As the bees 

 of a hive were crowding in to escape 

 from a rain-storm, some of them rested 

 on the grass, in the vicinity, awaiting 

 their turn to enter. M. Brunet saw a 

 toad busy in devouring these bees. He 

 carried the toad again and again to a 

 distance of from thirty to fifty metres 

 from the hive, but sooner or later the 

 animal was at his post again, greedily 

 devouring the bees. 



1^ We had a pleasant visit on the 

 26th ult., from Prof. A. J. Cook, of the 

 State' Agricultural College, Lansing, 

 Mich. He was in attendance at the 

 National Agricultm-al Congress then in 

 session here. He is genial, and very 

 companionable, and of course we spent 

 the hours very pleasantly; only regret- 

 ing the narrow limits of his stay with 

 us. In company with Prof. Cook we 

 listened to a very able address by Prof. 

 C. V. Riley of St. Louis, on the Rocky 

 Mountain Locust, made before the 

 Congress. 



How to go to the Convention. 



" What route will you take to the Na- 

 tional Convention?" is a question we 

 have answered by letter many times, 

 and as several such questions are on 

 our desk, let us say to all delegates from 

 the Northwest and others who intend to 

 go to the Convention that we shall take 

 the Lake Shore route to Buffalo, thence 

 to New York over the New York Cen- 

 tral. Tickets by these lines cost no 

 more than by others; and'then wehave 

 the felicity of avoiding all changes of 

 cars, ferries and transfers, as the 

 coaches leaving Chicago over the Lake 

 Shore line run through to New York. 

 These roads are splendidly equipped 

 and the tracks on this great through 

 line, are the finest in the country, be- 

 ing constructed smoothly of steel rails. 

 The 5:15 p. m. train from Chicago, runs 

 to New York in 37* hours, arriving in 

 the latter city at 6:45 A. M. This route 

 is pleasant and very attractive, giving 

 an opportunity for a visit to the mag- 

 nificent Niagara Falls, (which all should 

 see) and affords ample provision for 

 comfort in the line of drawing-room 

 and palace sleeping coaches, etc. So 

 we say to all, take the Lake Shore and 

 New York Central Railways to the 

 Convention. 



1^° Dr. W. B. Rush of New Orleans, 

 La., w^ants a partner. He intends to 

 enlarge his operations next season, and 

 calculates on five apiaries in different 

 parts of the country; three of 75 colo- 

 nies each; one of 65, and one of 200. 

 Any one desiring, can communicate 

 with him as above. 



1^ The honey crop is rather short in 

 various places this year. A few months 

 since it appeared to promise much 

 larger returns, but the drouth of mid- 

 summer blasted many a " good hope.'''' 

 Prices will no doubt soon have a de- 

 cided upward tendency. To all, we 

 say: " Hold on a little." 



It is a remarkable fact that if a col- 

 ony is queenless, drones are allowed to 

 live through the winter, being un- 

 molested by the workers in the fall. 



