Owen Co., Ky., Dec. 11, 1877. 

 " I liave received the Bee Journal reg- 

 ularly for the past 3 or 4 years, not a number 

 niissnig. I prize it very highly, and if it 

 should fail to come at the proper time, I 

 sliould feel as though a dear friend was 

 absent. I have been taking papers since 

 1840. but never have patronized one con- 

 ducted in a more commendable way than 

 The American Bee Journal. 1 com- 

 menced the season with Ki colonies, 

 increased by natural swarming to 41, and 

 got about 100 lbs. of comb honey. They 

 now look well. I would be glad of many 

 things I see advertised in The Journal, 

 but the Express companies have so little 

 mercy, in charges, that I am compelled to 

 do without them. " G. W. Jenkins. 



Fabius, N. Y., Dec. 10, 1877. 



" I notice on page 36.5 that teasel is men- 

 tioned as producing the whitest, and nicest 

 honey. I have had experience with all 

 kinds of honey-producing bloom, (the teasel 

 included), and find nothing quite equal to 

 basswood honey for flavor or whiteness. — 

 For 2 years past no teasel has been raised in 

 this vicinity, but our honey has been nice 

 and white. When teasel was raised here, 

 some lumey was dark; caused by the small 

 teasel blossoms drying and becoming color- 

 ed by the rain. Teasel produces a large 

 crop of honey of good quality, but I think 

 not quite equal to basswood. " 



H. D. Mason. 



[The past season was dry, and perhaps 

 that accounts for the teasel honey being so 

 good. There being but little rain, the small 

 blossoms did not become colored and stain it. 

 In other years this might have been other- 

 wise, and both contradictory experiences 

 may be perfectly correct and harmonious.— 

 Whatever may have been the result in other 

 years, in the past season it certainly gave a 

 large yield of good honey. — Ed.J 



Maysville, Ky., Dec. 9, 1877. 

 " I commenced the spring with 3 colonies, 

 in Langstroth hives; all are in fair condi- 

 tion. 1 commenced feeding, March 10; 

 increased, by artificial swarming, to 10 

 colonies. One swarmed and went to the 

 woods, led by an imported queen. I sold 

 one colony; from the remaining 9 I took 

 .'jOO lbs. of honey— all extracted, except about 

 50 lbs. of comb. The season was the best 

 that we have had for years. My 9 hives are 

 packed in straw on their sunnner stands, 

 under a shed 8 ft. wide, and 32 ft. long. — 

 When extracting, the washings of the arti- 

 cles used about the Extractor was put in a 

 stone jar, and set out in the sun to ferment, 

 to be poured into the vinegar barrel. I 

 neglected to cover it up, and flies got into it, 

 and it was ruined. In a day or two, I 

 noticed that it was covered with millers. I 

 skimmed them out, and at night set the jar 

 with the same water near the bee hives. — 

 I examined it next morning, and skimmed 

 out .52 millers. 1 removed it during the 

 day, and set out again at night, and caught 

 31. The following night, I caught 5. 1 

 frequently i)laced the jar near the hives, 

 during the summer, at intervals, but never 

 succeeded iu catching more than 4 or 5 at a 

 time." Wm. W. Lynch. 



Keokuk Co., Iowa, Dec. 15. 1877. 

 " My bees did well this season. We had 

 nearly 2,000 lbs. of honey from thein. They 

 are in winter quarters, iu better condition 

 than usual." Selmira L. Vail. 



Opelousas, La., Nov. 30, 1877. 



"What is the best way to handle queens 

 when cutting their wings? I am fearful of 

 injuring them, when holding them with the 

 fingers. I have an idea that a drop or two 

 of honey from a small oil can would so 

 retard a queen that her wings could be cut 

 without touching the body." 



J. W. Jackson. 



[The queen should be handled by the 

 wings or upper portion of the body — never 

 by the abdomen. The queen may . be 

 retarded as you suggest.— Ed.] 



Davis. Mich., Dec. 11, 1877. 

 "A wax cond) guide may be no new 

 thing. I have read The American Bee 

 Journal for 2 years, during which time 

 much has been said in regard to frame 

 guides. The wax guide can be made by 

 placing a straight edge on the top bar, wet- 

 ting the straightedge lightly with a sponge, 

 so that the wax will not stick to it; keep 

 the bar dry. Hold it on an incline, so that 

 the wax niay be jioured on with a spoon. — 

 You can tip it, so that it will run fast or 

 slow, making a light or heavy guide, as 

 desired. With a little practice, this can 

 be done rapidly. I use this guide; the bees 

 accei)t it readily. I can jmt in the wax 

 guide in one-halt of the time required for 

 the wooden guide, and it is nuich better. — 

 I prefer it to comb foundation as a guide 

 only." Wm. P. Everitt. 



Noble Co., Ind., Dec. 10, 1877. 

 " In the spring, I had 60 colonies out of 75 

 put up in the fall. I increased to 107; got 

 no surplus; I worked against increase all I 

 could, and tried for box-honey, but got 

 none. Cause, poor season, — the worst in 25 

 years. Fed in May. Bees gathered honey 

 briskly in June. In July and August they 

 consumed what they gathered in June; but 

 increased their stores sometime in Sep- 

 tember. I have some 45 stands with about 

 25 lbs. of honey; the rest very light. Isold 

 some, and took 26 stands of bees to feed oth- 

 ers with. I got only 50 lbs. of honey from 

 them. I have 20 colonies that I think will 

 starve before spring. Such is the condition 

 of most of bees in this county. I anticipate 

 great loss of bees by starvation this winter. 

 I had 3 swarms of black bees, with soriie 

 trace of Italian blood among them, to come 

 and settle in my bee yard. One had a beauti- 

 ful yellow queen with them. I hived 

 them; they went to work July olst. Young 

 bees hatched in due time, all pure Italian. 

 Query: Are those bees pure Italians when 

 their queen came with black and hybrid 

 bees? Why did this swarm come and clus- 

 ter in my bee yard? Please answer. Are 

 there black bees in Italy?" F. R. Davis. 



[If the queen was pure and purely mated, 

 her progeny is pure, no matter in what 

 company she may be. Most likely, she had 

 been recently introduced to the colony, and 

 led off the swarm. Not finding any better 

 place to cluster, they favored j'ou with a 

 call. There are black bees in Italy.— Ed.] 



