AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



TOT 



Yet this scale is entirely " too slow," 

 and for the judging of a nuclei of bees 

 on exhibition, that you have for the first 

 time seen, it is ustdess. 



To offer a scale of points that would 

 be practical, would be to call down on 

 the offerer's head a fire from all along 

 the line. 



Bees at the time these exhibits usually 

 occur (the last week of August to the 

 middle of October), have but very little 

 brood ; but if exhibited, they should be 

 put in the best possible condition, and, 

 if possible, have some brood in all 

 stages, drones, etc. 



The amount of hair on a worker-bee 

 is an indication of its hardiness and 

 honey-gathering qualities. Who knows 

 how much of an indication this is ? 



The breeders generally are no more 

 anxious to have a scale of points for 

 bees than they are to have a system of 

 grading honey ; because, if there was, 

 they would have to breed to it or quit. 

 The way it is now, is like' the man who 

 was on the jury. He said : " It was no 

 trouble at all for him to arrive at a ver- 

 dict ; but the others were the eleven 

 stubbornest men he ever saw !" 



There should bo no competition be- 

 tween the three-banded and the five- 

 banded Italians. Any association in 

 any State, could have the State Fair 

 premium list changed so as to admit the 

 five-banded bees, in a separate class by 

 themselves. 



Present it in a proper manner, and at 

 the right time, and without a doubt the 

 request would be granted. But this 

 must be done before the Board of Direc- 

 tors meet, which is usually in January." 

 So it is too late for this year now, and as 

 there will not be any State Fair in many 

 of the States next season, it is too late 

 for two years. (Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, 

 Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, etc., will 

 have no State Fairs in 1893.) 



My own private opinion is, the time is 

 far distant when a scale of points will 

 be adopted for the Italian bee. Look at 

 the advertising columns of any bee- 

 periodical, and see what the breeders 

 say of their own bees. One has " leather- 

 colored bee ;" the next has " five- 

 banded golden ;" another has a strain 

 of " non-swarmers ;" while his next 

 neighbor has a strain of "red clover" 

 bees. The next determined not to be 

 beaten, has " a strain made up of all 

 the good qualities of all the other 

 strains." If the five-banded golden bees 

 were 50 per cent, the best bees on earth, 

 a few years of such work as has been 

 done with them in the past would kill 

 them out. * 



I know men who have purchased half 

 a dozen of the untested queens at a time, 

 and not one queen showed bees with 

 more than three bands. I never re- 

 ceived, or heard of any one who did 

 receive, an untested queen of some of 

 the breeders of "five-banded goldens," 

 that did show five-banded bees. 



I could not find a breeder who would 

 guarantee to send me a breeding queen 

 which he would guarantee to show all 

 five-banded bees, for less than .$5.00 or 

 .$6.00 ; while I can buy untested queens 

 of five-banded stock in any quantity for 

 from 60 to 75 cents. Nqw, I do not 

 wish to convey the impression that all 

 who advertise five-banded bees, have 

 poor stock — far from it ; but a person 

 investing in them for the first time, is 

 nearly sure to purchase of one of those 

 whose bees (we will put it mild) do not 

 test out well. 



Suppose you would purchase six un- 

 tested queens of five-banded stock ; you 

 would expect to get some five-banded 

 bees. Now, if these would all test out 

 to give three-banded bees, and nothing 

 more, what would you think ? Would 

 you not be a little cautious where you 

 invested again ? 



BLACK vs. ITALIAN BEES. 



The discussion of blacks against Ital- 

 ians still goes on — perhaps always will. 

 If a man wishes bees to shift for them- 

 selves, he cannot do better than to have 

 blacks, or do a worse thing than to get 

 Italians. 



The Italians, like ail other breeds of 

 fine stock, require extra care. That is 

 wherein their excellence lies. 



The Shorthorn or Hereford cattle, 

 turned loose upon the plains of Texas, 

 would be a very poor investment ; but 

 stall-feed them, and the Texas steer is 

 nowhere in comparison. Just so with 

 the Italian bee. It is capable of man- 

 agement and manipulation, which could 

 never bo accomplished with the black 

 bees. 



Atlantic, Iowa. 



A Very Bactwaril Sprliii. 



BENJ. E. RICE. 



The Winter of 1891 and Spring of 

 1892 is now and has been one of the 

 most destructive to bees that was ever 

 known in Southwestern Wisconsin, by 

 its oldest bee-keepei's (possibly with the 

 exception of the year so many were lost 

 by disease). It has been now almost 10 



