84 



'rmm m^nummi^mm mmM j^^mmmi^. 



Xlie Soiitliweistern Wisconsin 



Bee-Keepers' Association was organized on 

 Jan. 15, 1890. Mr. Edwin Pike, of Bosco- 

 iel, Wis., the President of the new associa- 

 tion, has this to say about it, dated Jan. 23 : 



I send the proceedings of our new bee- 

 keepers organization. We have a goodly 

 number to start with, and many more will 

 join us. We hope to prove ourselves a 

 credit and a help to the International, so 

 that this industry shall be based on a foun- 

 dation that will prove due recognizance 

 with all other industries. Bee-keeping is 

 now one of the pursuits that draws more 

 attention here than almost anything else, 

 from the fact that where five years ago 

 there were only 3 or -t bee-keepers, now 

 there are more than twenty. Such a show- 

 ing gives the industry stability. I intend 

 to encourage the Bee-Keepers' Union with 

 our members all I can. Edwin Pike. 



The following is a condensed report of 

 the proceedings referred to by Mr. Pike, 

 taken from the Boscobel Dial: 



The bee-keepers organization was per- 

 fected on Jan. 15, 1890. Quite a number 

 of our most prominent bee-keepers were 

 present. The organization, the " South- 

 western Bee-Keepers' Association," was 

 perfected by electing the following of33cers 

 for the ensuing year: President, Edwin 

 Pike, of Boscobel ; Secretary, Benj. E. Rice, 

 of Boscobel ; and Treasurer, H. Evins, of 

 Wauzeka. 



It was decided that the association 

 affiliate with with the International Ameri- 

 can Bee-Association, and that a delegate 

 be sent to represent the new society, and 

 that the expenses of the same be defrayed 

 by the affiliating society. 



The dues were placed at SI. 00 per year 

 for each member, excepting ladies, who are 

 to be admitted free. 



} Among the topics discussed were these : 

 " Different varietiesof honey," " Bee-house 

 ventilation," " Feeding bees in winter," 

 and " Italian i)S. black bees on red clover." 

 d It was decided that the next regular 

 meeting of the association be held in Bos- 

 cobel, on Thursday, May 1, 1890, beginning 

 at 10:30 a.m. 



The following letter, addressed to the 

 President, Mr. Edwin Pike, explains itself: 



I am in receipt of J'our favor of Jan. 15, 

 enclosing S5.00 for the affiliation fee of the 

 Southwestern Wisconsin Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation, and I heartily congratulate you 

 upon this step. If I am not mistaken, this 

 is the first association, outside of the On- 

 tario Bee-Keepers' Association, that has 

 yet been affiliated with the International. 



I wiU remind you that this entitles you to 

 the ex-offlcio vice-presidentship of the In- 

 ternational, as president of an affiliated 

 society. C. P. Dadant, Sec. 



Silo and Silaare, by Prof. A. J. Cook, 

 of Agricultural College, Mich., is the title 

 of a pamphlet of 44 pages, lately issued. It 

 contains a plain statement of the method 

 adopted and in successful operation at the 

 College. The Professor says: " My silo 

 has been a surprising success, and in this 

 little brochure I shall teU in a plain, simple 

 ■way, how I grow the corn, build my silo, 

 fill and cover it, and feed the silage." 

 Every farmer should read it. Price 25 

 cents. For sale at this office. 



Preiuinnis on Fair Exliitoifs.— 



The importance of moving early in the 

 matter of securing proper recognition and 

 offers of premiums on products of the api- 

 ary at fairs, is often overlooked by bee- 

 keepers who usually, in other things con- 

 nected with the pursuit, are really wide- 

 awake. It is, no doubt, true that apiarists 

 themselves are much to blame for not be- 

 ing better represented in the premium-lists 

 prepared for the various fairs throughout 

 the country, which are held every autumn. 

 Mrs. L. Harrison, in her inimitably vigor- 

 ous style, recently gave the following ex- 

 cellent suggestions in regard to the subject 

 in the Prairie Farmer: 



Bee-keepers complain that fairs do not 

 give our industry the encouragement that 

 it demands. On the other hand, the officers 

 of these associations retaliate by saying : 

 "It's their own fault." This is no doubt 

 true. We wait until the premium-lists are 

 printed, or the fair is in session, and then 

 set up a "howl." The time to do the "bark- 

 ing" is now; and "bark up the right tree," 

 if we expect to catch "the coon." Make 

 out a good premium-list, and send it to the 

 Superintendent of Farm Products, together 

 with a respectful letter, and request him to 

 bring it before the Board at their meeting. 

 Proceed in this way, and show that we are 

 not ashamed of our calling, and demand 

 justice at State, county or district fairs, 

 if we do not "put up," we should "shut 

 up." 



Xop-Bars, Hive-Entrances and 



" Colony."— PhUo S. Dilworth, Bonney, 

 Pa., writes thus on these subjects : 



I wish to unite in the popular clamor for 

 increased thickness of top-bars of brood- 

 frames. I desire them to be made at least 

 ?^ of an inch thick, on account of sagging. 

 I have no doubt that increased thickness 

 will help the burr-comb nuisance. I find 

 bun'-combs where the frames have sagged. 

 The present width of the top-bars, %-inch, 

 suits me very well. I am satisfied to have 

 the width of the top-bars increased beyond 

 one inch. For the present, I prefer the 

 width to remain % of an inch, but increase 

 the thickness to % of an inch. 



The entrances of all chaff hives, or any 

 other kind of hives should have the full 

 width of the brood-chamber. I lost money 

 last summer by using chaff hives with the 

 "regulation" entrance, Jj by 8 inches. 

 As soon as the colonies would get strong 

 enough to go into the supers, they would 

 fret about the entrance, and swarm. Colo- 

 nies that have entrances the full width of 

 the brood-chamber, worked in the supers. 



I want to protest against the word "col- 

 ony" as applied to bees. A colony of peo- 

 ple is a number of families in a settlement. 

 A hive of bees is one family of bees in a 

 small house, hive or box. The queen is a 

 widow — the father is dead. True, there are 

 a lot of old " bachelor " drones liviug in the 

 same house, but still it is but one family. 

 A number of these families, or hives, of 

 bees in a yard or settlement, would be a 

 colony, commonly called an "apiary." 



PniLO S. Dilworth. 



A "hive" is a box or house in which 

 bees reside. The word "colony" is not 

 quite to our liking, but it is preferable to 

 " hive." Webster says a colony is " a com- 

 pany of people transplanted to a remote 

 province." To colonize is "to remove and 

 settle in a distant country." Webster's 



second definition of a colony is a "settle- 

 ment" — that is, an off-shoot from the 

 mother country. A " swarm " of bees, (that 

 is, an off -shoot from the parent colony), 

 seeks a new home ; they locate in a hive or 

 box, and may reasonably be called a col- 

 oyiy. When they have gone to work in 

 their new home, it is manifestly improper 

 to call them a swarm! Their habitation is 

 a hive, and it would be also very confusing 

 to say that you " had hived a hive of bees 

 in a new 7n'tie.'" Either call them a "col- 

 ony," or invent some more appropriate 

 word — but don't call them a hive (i. e., a 

 box). If the bees abscond, how stupid it 

 would be to say that the "hives flew 

 away!" Just fancy the sight of a lot of 

 boxes (hives) flying through the air, when 

 there is no tornado. 



Practical and Practicable. — Mr. 



Geo. F. Robbins, of Mechanicsburg, 111., has 

 this to say about these two words : 



I want to say something on the use of the 

 two words at the head of this letter. I am 

 sorry that I never found it convenient to 

 jot down examples of their use, as I have 

 noticed them in the different bee-papers. 

 I find frequent cases of the misuse of the 

 former word, and I thought that I could 

 keep some of them in mind, but they have 

 all slipped me. The error is in using the 

 former word when the signification of the 

 latter is evidently meant. Practical means 

 pertaining to practice; capable of being 

 turned to use or account, useful, evincing 

 skill, etc. Practicable means, capable of 

 being performed, possible to be accom- 

 plished, admitting of use, etc. These defi- 

 nitions are abridged from Webster. 



Now, I wrote to a certain paper that it 

 was " practicable " to feed bees in winter. 

 Just as I feared, " practicable " was 

 changed to "practical." I meant that to 

 feed bees in winter could be done — it was 

 feasible. By the use of " practical," I am 

 made to mean that it is useful, capable 

 of being turned to account, or being made 

 of benefit. Don't you see? If it is feasible 

 for bees to take food from a certain feeder 

 in winter, it is "practicable" to feed in 

 that way ; and a feeder that will answer 

 that purpose, is a "practical" feeder, i. e., 

 it is good for that use. 



But not everything that is " practicable " 

 is "practical." A scheme, work, method 

 or device that it is possible to perform, is 

 " practicable;" but it may be of so little 

 use or profit as to be " impractical." 



We should look to our English friends, as 

 well as any other class of writers, and re- 

 member that while " trifles make perfec- 

 tion," "perfection itself is no trifle." 



Geo. F. Robbins. 



The "point" mentioned by Mr. Robbins, 

 is very well taken, and is only one in- 

 stance among many that might be noted. 

 The words except and accept, e^ect and 

 o^ect, are also illustrations of cases where 

 care must be exercised when using them, 

 else an entirely different meaning will be 

 conveyed, from that which is really in- 

 tended. Let all who presume to write for 

 publication, select their words with some 

 degree of thought ; then when those who 

 print the compositions thus painstakingly 

 written, use the same amount of considera- 

 tion, we may expect as nearly a perfect 

 production as can be had in such matters. 



