74 



Tmm ms^mmicMM mmm jowRifsi*.. 



throw it all out to dry ou the cover, 

 which is inverted on the ground. The 

 sun is also allowed to shine full upon 

 the inside cover of the brood-chamber. 

 The eflect of this treatment on the bees 

 in the spring, is very remarkable, and 

 especially upon the laying of the queen 

 aud the rapid extension of the brood. 

 The covers are usually takeu oft' about 

 10 a.m., and returned at 4 p.m. 



Where upward ventilation is given, 

 the entrance is closed to 2 inches b}' f , 

 and no holes are made in the bottom 

 of tlie hive. Over the brood-frames is 

 laid two thicknesses of cheap cotton- 

 cloth, and 4 or 5 inches of packing. I 

 prefer the cloth to lay flat ou the 

 frames without cross-sticks for passage- 

 ways. With this arrangement, after a 

 few weeks of cold weather, the surface 

 of the packing will become quite wet, 

 while it is warm and dry beneath. I 

 use mostly the excelsior sawdust on 

 the brood-ehamber, loose, as it can be 

 handled almost as easily as a cushion, 

 and is readily dried out, while the 

 cushion is not. AVhen ready for the 

 sections, it may be taken out and 

 stored in barrels ; but the packing 

 around the first story is left in place, 

 as a rule, all the year. 



A pi-operly - constructed double- 

 walled hive is simply a winter case for 

 a single-walled hive. It should not be 

 constructed all in one, as the packing, 

 if it becomes damp, cannot be re- 

 moved to dry it out. My winter case 

 is made of thin boards, 9-32 of an inch 

 thick by 20 inches long, nailed up and 

 down to a frame at the top and bottom. 

 The bottom and cover are also lined 

 with the same thin stufl", and the whole, 

 with the flat tin roof, weighs under 25 

 pounds. It is light, easy to handle, 

 and verj' durable. After five years' 

 use, I have yet to lose a colony in 

 them. In summer I take most of the 

 packing away, when they make ex- 

 cellent summer hives. 



In conclusion, allow me again to in- 

 vite the attention of bee-keepers to the 

 matter of bottom ventilation for winter 

 hives. 



New Philadelphia, Ohio. 



QUEEN-CELLS. 



Reply to Que§tion$ About Eggs 

 in Queen.Cclls. 



Written Jor Vie American Bee Journal 

 BY C. P. DADANT. 



In reply to Mr. Latham's questions 

 on page 8, I wish to say at the start, 

 that I do not assert that the queen 

 does not lay eggs in queen-cells, but 

 simply that I do not believe that she 

 does so. 



Mr. Latham asks why the bees never 

 put an egg in an old queen-cell, in- 



stead of tearing down and building 

 around it, when a queen is removed. I 

 believe the answer is in the fact that 

 they do not rear their queens from 

 eggs, in these circumstances, but from 

 already hatched larua:, and I believe 

 the reason of this is, that they are in a 

 hurry — much more so than when they 

 want to swarm, as there is no condition 

 on earth that displeases them so much 

 as to be queenless. I have never yet 

 seen a queenless colony start a queen- 

 cell from the egg ; whether they ever 

 do, I do not know. It is evident that 

 they cannot transport a larva, as they 

 do an egg, and so this would answer 

 Mr. Latham's question. 



In answer to the second que.stion, I 

 will say that whenever the foundation 

 gets so stretched as to be of the same 

 size as drone-cells, the queen does lay 

 drone-eggs in it. That is why so many 

 have imagined that the bees could 

 change worker foundation into drone 

 foundation, which they do not. 



The third question asked by Mr. 

 Latham, is answered by the reply to 

 the first. 



This question is of but little weight, 

 but I certainly do not think that the 

 queen lays eggs in queen-cells, aud my 

 main reason is, that I know how she 

 hates to see others in those queen-cells, 

 and how eagerly she destroys them 

 whenever permitted to do so by the 

 bees. I have seen queens, time and 

 again, working hard, tearing up rival 

 cells, and even if I am mistaken in mj' 

 opinion, and a queen does lay in 

 queen-cells, it is hardly fair to call it 

 "all nonsense" to believe as I do — 

 though I feel satisfied that Mr. Latham 

 does not mean it harshly. 



Hamilton, Ills. 



A Special Club Rate. 



A Magazine of the choice literary charac- 

 ter which the Illustrated Home Journal 

 sustains, will add many, pleasures to any 

 " family circle." Its beautiful illustrations 

 and interesting reading-matter will make it 

 heartily welcomed at every " fu-eside " in 

 the land. 



We desire that every one of our readers 

 should secure its regular visits during the 

 year 1890, and in order to induce them to 

 do so, we will make this tempting offer : 



We will Club the American Bee Journal 

 and the Illustrated Home Journal, and 

 mail both periodicals during the whole year 

 1890 for $1.C0, if the order is received at 

 this office by March 31, 1890— when this 

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COIVVEMTION DIRECTORY. 



1890. Time and place of meeting. 



Feb. 5.~Nonheastern Michigan, at Lapeer, Mich. 

 W. Z, Hutcliinsun, Sec, Flint, Mich. 



Feb. 5.— Wisconsin State, at Madison. Wis. 



Dr. J. W. Vance, Sec, Madison, Wis. 



Feb. 5-7.— New York State, at Rochester, N. Y. 



G. H. Knickerbocker, Sec, Pine Plains, N. Y. 



Feb. I9-20.-Ohlo State, at Cleveland, O. 



Miss Dema Bennett, Sec, Bedford, O. 



Feb. 19-20.— N. E. Ohio, N. W. Pa., and Western New- 

 York, at Cleveland, Ohio. 



Geo. Spitler, Sec, Mosiertown, Pa. 



May 3.— Susquehanna Co.. at Hopbottom, Pa. 



H. M. Seeley, Sec, Harford, Pa. 



May 19.— Northern Illinois, at Rockford, Ills. 



D. A. Puller, Sec, Cherry Valley, Ills. 



Its" In order to have this table complete. 

 Secretaries are requested to forward full 

 particulars of the time and the place of 

 each future meeting. — TuE Editor. 



Xemperaliire of Ueceniber, etc. 



The mean temperature of December, in 

 1886, was 22 degrees above zero; in 1887, 

 30 ?4^ degrees above zero; in 1888, 33 1-10 

 degrees above zero ; in 1889, 48 J4; degrees 

 above zero. I am wintering 12 colonies of 

 bees on the summer stands, mostly in the 

 new Heddon hive, without any protection; 

 some have a section-case on top of the 

 brood-chamber, without any cloth or quilt 

 over the brood-chamber. So far there have 

 been less dead bees than any winter since 

 I commenced the business. What the re- 

 sult may be in the spring, time will prove. 

 Possibly I may give the result at the proper 

 time. P. J. Bates. 



White Hall, Ills., Jan. 10, 1890. 



■ I <^ » * ■ — . 



IVo Winter in Xexas. 



We have had no winter here yet. Mus- 

 tard is four feet high, and in bloom. 

 Peaches, plums, tomatoes and many other 

 plants are also in bloom. Corn and cotton 

 are growing in the fields. The bees are on 

 the wing every day. My bees did but little 

 last season — only made a living. Out of 40 

 hives, I extracted about 200 pounds of 

 honey. J. C. Bell. 



Belton, Tex., Jan. 9, 1890. 



l^arm Weather— Bees all Rifflit. 



I read with great interest the report of 

 the Michigan Bee-Keepers' Convention, and 

 I feel especially proud of the closing part — 

 those bee-keepers came together for busi- 

 ness ! The weather here is. very, very mild 

 this winter — in fact, we have had no winter 

 at all so far. Christmas day was as warm 

 and lovely as a beautiful day in the middle 

 of May. This was a great day for the bees, 

 as they flew in great numbers. Bees are 

 flying some almost every day. Fruit-trees 

 are budding, dandelions are blooming, and 

 hyacinths and other bulbous plants are 

 pushing their flower-buds above ground. 

 Old settlers say that from Dec. 1 to the 

 middle of January, never in their recollec- 

 tion has the weather been so warm. My 

 24 colonies of bees are all, apparently, in 

 the best condition, with plenty of honey. 

 To work with ' my bees occasionally, is a 

 scource of pleasure aud recreation from my 

 regular work ; also the reading of the valu- 

 able American Bee Journal gives the 

 monotony of my business a cheerful turn. 



New Philadelphia, O. Daniel Wvss. 



