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Christmas Bells. 



O bells ! sweet bells ! across the years 

 Half gay, half sad, your chiming; 



Old joys ye tell; old sorrows swell 

 Throughout your tender rhyming. 



O merry bells! this Christmas day 

 How loud and clear your ringing ! 



Such love and mirth o'er all the earth 

 Your lusty voices flinging ! „ 



nifalfa for Honey.— A correspou 

 dent sends us the following letter contain- 

 ing many questions which he wishes to 

 have answered in the Bee ;Joukxai, for the 

 information of not only himself, but many 

 others. He says : 



A gentleman here wishes to sow 50 acres 

 of land to grass within two miles of my 

 bees, and I have been talking of alfalfa to 

 him. Who can furnish the seed i At what 

 price i Please give some directions as 

 when and how.to sow it, and what quantity 

 per acre. Also state its relative merits for 

 pasturage, or to the common red clover. 

 What can white-clover seed be bought for 

 per bushel ? How many acres will one 

 bushel sow ? Myself and one of my neigh- 

 bors wish to join the Bee Keepers'^Union ; 

 how will we proceed ; »,t ,-, c _ 



Greenfield, Ills. 



W. G. Secor. 



will be as good as ever it will, and stand 

 that way for ten years. 



Some seed stores keep it. If not conven- 

 ient to get it near home, we can supply 

 you, but its market quotations vary like 

 white clover. It will very likely be adver- 

 tised for sale in the Bee Jouksal next 

 Spring. The following from a correspon- 

 dent in Utah will answer the questions 

 propounded : 



Lucerne will grow on any land that will 

 produce wheat, corn or potatoes, and will 

 thrive on many lands that none of these 

 will grow on, especially very light sand or 

 gravel, though it does well on clay. But it 

 does not grow on any land that the water 

 stands within one foot of the surface, and 

 there is no use in sowing it in an alkali 

 strong enough to keep wheat from growing. 

 Though particular about wet land, it will 

 stand any amount of wet in the summer, as 

 long as there is plenty of drainage. It will 

 also stand all of the water in the Winter 

 that may fall in the shape of rain, or snow 

 that may melt. 



It is a very quick grower, and will mature 

 the first crop in about two months from 

 the time that growth commences. The sec- 

 ond crop will mature in about six weeks 

 from cutting, and the third in about five 

 weeks from cutting of the second. The 

 second crop is the heaviest, but the first is 

 a little the best feed, as it grows a little 

 longer than the others. It will yield about 

 on an average of six tons per acre, and I 

 have known it to produce double that 

 quantity. 



SowiNi;.— The best method is to sow 

 broadcast about 15 pounds per acre, where 

 the land is in good condition, but on very 

 weedy land, or clear gravel or sand that is 

 very poor, put about H pounds more. You 

 cannot get any crop from it the first year, 

 but do not get discouraged if the plants are 

 on an average of 10 inches apart,little,slim 

 single stems about 4 or 6 inches high. 

 Your prospect is good that you will get 4 

 tons per acre next year, and the next it 



fact it does better to have it shaded when 

 young. Sow at the same time that you do 

 Spring grain. 



Cultivation.— Where there is plenty of 

 rain, there is no cultivation needed, for it 

 would be unwise to manure it, as it thrives 

 fully as well on washed sand as it will on 

 the best garden-spot, but in a few years 

 it will make clear sand a rich land, owing 

 to the decay of the root. The roots will 

 sink themselves for a distance of 10 to 20 

 feet straight down. They are about 1}.^ 

 inches in diameter, and fully one-half of 

 that root cut, it will not be worth more 

 than one-half for feed, and will be entirely 

 worthless for market. Heavy dews are not 

 good either. 



Rake into windrows, if cut with a mow- 

 ing machine, and let it dry until it begins 

 to let the leaves fall when handled roughly, 

 then pick it up and lay it in piles, just one 

 forkful in a pile, to cure. Do not roll it 

 together, or it will not load easily, then 

 you will have to pull it to pieces, thus los- 

 ing one-half of the leaves. 



In order to join the National Bee-Keep- 

 ers' Union, send to the General Manager, 

 in care of this ofiice, the Entrance Fee 

 ($1.00), and that pays for the Dues of any 

 portion of the unexpired current year, 

 ending Dec. 31. Any sent after this date 

 pays for the year 1S91. 



Then it costs only one dollar for Annual 

 Dues, which are payable every New Year's 

 day, and must be paid within six mouths, 

 in order to retain membership in the Union. 



If membership ceases, all claims against 

 former members also cease ; and all claims 

 to the protection of the Union are dissolved. 



Alfalfa, showing Us long Roots. 



It is best to sow with grain. Oats are the 

 best ; thus you will lose no time, bxit can 

 have a crop from your land every year. In 



Northwestern Convention.— A 



correspondent sends us the following ques- 

 tion : 



What has become of the Northwestern, 

 Bee-Keepers' Associati^on ? The C'°°ven- 

 tion met in Chicago early in October, 1889. 

 Please answer through the Bee Joornal. 



E. P. GiBBS. 



By referring to page 659, it will be seen 

 that the officers consulted upon the advisa- 

 bility of not holding a Convention this 

 year, and concluded not to do sa. The time 

 for holding it came so near to that of the 

 International, that it was doubtful, in a 

 poor season for honey like the present, 

 whether the two could be made a success in 

 the same territory. The Northwestern, 

 therefore, gave way to the International. 



Handlin;; Bees — This is the title of 

 a nice pamphlet, contaiping 28 pages and a 

 cover, published by Chas. Dadant & Son 

 It is a chapter from their book, Langstroth 

 Revised, and is an excellent thing .for be- 

 ginners. Price, 8 cts. For sale at this office. 



4;oiiventi«m Notices. 



a^- The Annual Meeting of theOntHrlo Bee-Keep- 



r^- The Annual McetinK ot the Indiana State 



B??Keepe™' A^suciitmn, will be held ni the Asn- 



,. ,.„i HnnmB 'itate House. Indianapolis, Jan. 16, 



?? ISgt ^°°'^"- ' UEO. C. THOMPSON, Sec. 



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