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Hosts ot Sweet (■Iiosts. — No doubt 

 at first thought, many will consider this a 

 rather " haunting " and hobgoblinlike 

 item, judging only from the heading. The 

 definition of the word "ghost" is, "a 

 spirit; an apparition," and when connected 

 with bees, or when a colony of bees are 

 considered as ghosts, then the "spirited" 

 part of the definition may become more 

 than a mere " apparition," it is liable to be 

 quite realistic, especially if the "sweet 

 ghosts" are very closely inspected. We 

 find the item below, in the Youth's Com- 

 panion of recent date. If all ghostly 

 stories would end as " sweetly " as does the 

 following, they might be less objectionable: 



Our house was closed for three years 

 while we were in Europe ; and soon after 

 our return, last June, we began to hear 

 mysterious noises. The house was hip- 

 roofed, and the chambers were low, with 

 sloping ceilings. It was in the chambers 

 that we heard the noises. 



The sounds varied. Sometimes we heard 

 a low, heavy rumbling like distant thunder; 

 at other times we heard, or seemed to hear, 

 broken murmurs, like hoarse voices in con- 

 versation ; but usually the noise suggested 

 distant whispering and groanings. 



We were not superstitious, but it was not 

 pleasant to have such things going on in the 

 house. For four weeks we sought vainly 

 for an explanation of the mystery. Rats 

 and mice never made such noises, nor bats 

 nor birds. So far as we could think, noth- 

 ing that files, nothing that runs, could pro- 

 duce such sounds as came from our haunted 

 chambers. 



We had many curious visitors, but pretty 

 soon some of our more ignorant neighbors 

 began to shun the house. The whole afliair 

 was greatly exaggerated, of course, and 

 disagreeable rumors were speedily noised 

 about. 



This had been going on for about four 

 weeks, when father came into the house 

 one morning, in a state of evident excite- 

 ment. 



" Well, I've solved the mystery!" he ex- 

 claimed. "Its bees!" 



"Bees!" we cried; "what do you mean?" 



"I've seen a thousand bees, at least, 

 going out and in at that small hole in the 

 gable roof," he said. " They've swarmed 

 there, and that explains the whole thing." 



We laughed at the idea; but father called 

 a carpenter, and had the small hole in the 

 gable enlarged. The inside of the roof was 

 found to be one immense bee-hive. Over 

 fifty pounds of delicious honey were taken 

 out, and, with the removal of the bees, the 

 mysterious sounds came to an end. 



Honey and Beeswax Recipes.— 



It should be the endeavor of all producers 

 of honey and beeswax, to discover the 

 various ways in which their products may 

 be employed, and communicate them, thus 

 aiding in the effort to popularize the use 

 of honey and beeswax among their neigh- 

 bors everywhere. By so doing, apiarists 

 will not only be liestowing a lasting benefit 

 upon their friends and the public in general, 

 but they will be helping to establish ave- 

 nues that will eventually demand all that 

 their apiaries will be able to produce. We 

 offer the following recipes, that may be 

 useful to our readers : 



Chapped Hands. — Take fresh tallow and 

 honey in equal parts, and add one tea- 

 spoonful of camphor ; warm and stir before 

 using. Keep this in a small tin can for coil- 

 venience in warming. 



Cough Medicine.— Boil one ounce of flax- 

 seed in a pint of water; strain it, and put 

 in an ounce of rock-candy, some honey, and 

 the juice of three lemons; boil it again. 

 This makes a nice, old-fashioned cough 

 medicine. Drink it hot as you can bear it. 



Grakting-Wax. — The following is recom- 

 mended as making good grafting-wax : One 

 pound of white resin; 3i pound of beeswax; 

 linseed oil enough to make good chewing- 

 gum ; heat and test a portion by cooling. If 

 it does not break, but sticks, it is all right; 

 if it does break, heat it more. 



Fonl-Uroody Hives Used Aenin. 



The past season was a bad one for me in 

 the bee-business. Foul brood was the 

 cause. Will it be safe to use bee-hives that 

 have had foul brood in them, after scraping, 

 scalding and painting the inside of each 

 hive? Bees are now flying almost every 

 day. J. Seibold. 



Homer, Ills., Dec. 23, 1889. 



It will probably be quite safe to use the 

 hives so cleansed, but it requires careful 

 and thorough work, and may cost all that 

 they are worth, if your time is worth any- 

 thing. 



Colden-Rod and Sqnaw-Weed. 



In answer to the question, "Do bees 

 gather nectar from golden-rod?" I would 

 say that during the past season, they did, 

 but only a very little, although hundreds of 

 acres were covered with it. There is a 

 plant here that resembles golden-rod, that 

 bees work on as freely as they do on buck- 

 wheat. Its stalk and leaves are very much 

 like golden-rod ; its blossoms branch out on 

 each aide equally, while golden-rod blos- 

 soms turn to one side, giving it an arched 

 appearance. Its root is covered with small 

 fibres, about one-half or three-quarters of 

 an inch long, and when it is shaken out, it 

 looks like a cat's tail ; while the golden-rod 

 sends out smooth, white roots, about as 

 large as a wheat-straw. Perhaps some 

 have taken it for goldeu-rod. because its 

 blossoms look so much like it. There is 

 another plant here on the New York side of 

 the Berkshire hills, that is a good honey- 

 plant; it grows from one to two feet high, 

 and the stalks and leaves are covered with 

 a. white down. Its blossoms are about 

 three-eighths of an inch wide, and are a 

 pure white, with a brown centre that is 

 covered with pollen. It yields amber honey, 

 that, to my taste, is superior to white 

 clover. Some call it " everlasting " or 

 "squaw-weed." Will the Editor please to 

 give its correct name > Ariel Wellman. 

 South Berlin, N. Y. 



The botanical names of Squaw-weed are 

 Eucrigeroii Philadclphwus, and Senecia 

 cnireiis. It is an excellent honey -producer. 



Honey Almanac. 



Its 32 pages are filled with interesting 

 facts, figures and suggestions concerning 

 the uses of Honey for Food, Beverages, 

 Cooking, Medicines, Cosmetics, Vinegar, 

 etc. Also, its effects on the human system 

 are tersely noted ; a brief refutation is given 

 of the Wiley lie about manufactured comb 

 honey ; a short dissertation sets forth the 

 mission of bees in fertilizing the fiowers, 

 and increasing the fruit product. Instead 

 of being an injury to fruit, bees are the 

 fruit-gi'owers' best friends. 



Here is what is said of it by those who 

 have seen the Honey Almanac : 



It is satisfactorily proved to me that the 

 Almanacs will do their work in selling 

 honey, judging from the effect it had on a 

 lady in this neighborhood. She had never 

 used honey to any amount before, but after 

 reading the Almanacs she at once ordered 

 50 pounds of honey from me. — C. Theil- 

 mann, Theilmantou, Minn. 



Prices: — 25 copies for SI. 00; 50 copies 

 for $1.50; 100 for $2.50; 500 copies for 

 $10.00; 1,000 copies for $15.00, delivered 

 at the freight or express oflice here. The 

 bee-keeper's Card will be printed upon the 

 first page, without extra cost, when 25 or 

 more are ordered at one time. Postage, 40 

 cents per 100 extra. All orders can now be 

 filled as soon as received. 



I^" One of our social leaders of St. 

 Louis society, Mrs. Mortimer Taylor, is 

 pictured in "Frank Leslie's Illustrated 

 Newspaper " this week. The paper is full 

 ot excellent Olustrations. The leading edi- 

 torial contribution is from the pen of the 

 Hon. Alberto. Shaw, and is on "Sneering 

 at Subsidies." 



I[^" The Berlin, N. H., Independent of 

 last week contains a nice notice of the api- 

 aries of that locality. Of one, mentioned 

 particularly, in Milan, N. H., it says: 



A. D. Ellingwood has one of the largest, 

 and best regulated and equipped apiaries 

 in the State. With some 75 colonies of 

 bees, a house built expressly for their ac- 

 commodation, and all the modern conven- 

 iences and appliances, he will doubtless 

 make a success of his enterprise. 



Our Preniinni-I..ist Snpplement 



describes many articles of great merit, and 

 that are useful in every family. We have 

 carefully selected them to offer as premiums 

 for getting up clubs for our Jocrkals. We 

 do this to induce our friends to devote a 

 few hours of labor for us. Our Journals 

 are first-class in their lines, and are needed 

 everywhere. We do not want any one's 

 labor withoutremuneration,and the articles 

 offered will pay for the labor of getting up 

 clubs, and thus the arrangement will prove 

 to be for our mutual advantage. 



Our Clubing' List.— We have now made 

 arrangements with publishers ot metropolitan 

 Weekly Newspapers, by which we can club 

 them at the very low prices quoted in the 

 IiAST column, without premiums. The regu- 

 lar price of both is given in the first column. 

 One year's subscription for this Journal. 

 must" be sent with each order for another 



V^ve^- Price of both. Club. 



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