140 



THi^ mrnnmic-mm mmM jo^RKMEr. 



fcji^A^Aa 



fungus, bacteria, bacillus alvei, and 

 leptothrix. It is, I believe, tlie pop- 

 ular idea that all these ai'e classed to 

 the vegetable kingdom ; but in state- 

 ments about examining foul brood by 

 the use of the microscope, it is said 

 that millions of them are found in dis- 

 eased colonies, and are also seen roll- 

 ing and pushing by and over each 

 other, and swimming much as a lish 

 does, by the use of its fins. 



Leptothrix belongs to vegetables, 

 but Mr. Cheshire, according to his 

 statement, saw them swimming rapidly 

 either backwards or forwards. I once 

 asked a Professor, "Are bacteria 

 plants, or animals ?" The answer 

 was, "Vegetable." 



Now, when bacteria move, as stated, 

 then it would seem that plants had 

 changed into living beings. I do not 

 understand this. I think that plants 

 produce plants, and animals produce 

 animals, and nothing more. 



Now I desire to understand how 

 bacteria, of minute vegetable origin, 

 can change to living beings, and swim 

 backwards and forwards. I want some- 

 one to give me some light on this 

 subject. 



Last season my bees had stored 

 much honey-dew ; I feared disease, 

 but to-day they had a good flight, and 

 I found them all right. 



Marietta, Ohio. 



CONVENTION DIRECTORY. 



1889. Time and Place of Meeting- 



Mar. 30.— Agency, at Agency, Mo. 



T. S. Smith, Sec, Agency, Mo. 



Apr. 23.— DeflMoines County . at Burrington, Iowa. 

 John Man, Sec, Middletown, Iowa. 



May 1, 2.— Texas State, at Greenville, Tex. 



G. A. Wilson, Sec, McKinney, Tex. 



May 4.— Susquehanna County, at Montrose, Pa. 



H. M. Seefey, Sec, Harford, Pa. 



May 21.— Northern Illinois, at Pecatonica, 111. 



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



jy" In order to have this table complete, Secre- 

 taries are requested to forward full particulars of 

 time and place of future meetings.— Bd. 





Cood Outlook for 1SS9 J. A. 



Delamarter, East Meredith, N.Y., says: 



I think that the Union is doing a fine 

 work, and I feel it my duty to pay my 

 fee, not because I need help, for I do 

 not. I have 18 colonies, which were 

 put into winter quarters in good con- 

 dition. I got but very little honey 

 last year, but I think that the outlook 

 is better for tlie coming summer — I 

 hope so, at least. The bees had flights 

 until about three weeks ago, and it has 

 been very cold since then. 



Early Swarm — IHaple Bloom. 



— J. A. Marsh, Scotia, Mo., on Feb. 15, 



1889, writes : 



I began the spring of 1888 with one 

 colony of bees — a present from my 

 father-in-law — which I increased to 3 

 colonies, and took 125 pounds of 

 honey. The bees are in good condi- 

 tion now. The thermometer regis- 

 tered 78^, Fahr., to-day. The bees 

 had a " picnic " on the maple bloom, 

 and about 2 p.m. a swarm issued, or 

 strayed from elsewhere ; I hived it — 

 about IJ pints of bees. Will it pay to 

 try to save them ? The Bee Journal 

 is a regular and highly-prized visitor. 



[It would be better to return the 

 small swarm to the parent colony, if 

 that can be ascertained ; but if not, to 

 unite them with a weak or queenless 

 colony will be the best disposal of 

 them at this time of the year. — Ed.] 



Good Prospects for Honey. — 



T. M. Edwards, Kerrville, Tenn., on 

 Feb. 12, 1889, says : 



It is hard to get the old-fogy notions 

 removed from the minds of many bee- 

 keepers in this part of the country ; 

 yet a few begin to see the light. My 

 bees are doing finely, being strong and 

 healthy. They have a good time out 

 in the air two or three times every 

 week. I have 150 colonies, and pros- 

 pects are good for the next crop of 

 honey, which never fails to be pretty 

 good. My crop, last year, was 43 

 pounds of comb honey per colony. 

 There is no disease among the bees in 

 this country. 



Results of the Past Season. — 



W. H. Miller, Berrien Springs, Mich., 

 on Feb. 14, 1889, says : 



L.ast spring I commenced with 50 

 colonies in just fair condition, increased 

 them by natural swarming to 86, and 

 took about 700 pounds of comb honey, 

 nearly all being white, in one-pound 

 sections. I have 86 colonies packed 

 in sawdust out-doors. All were in 

 good condition when prepared for 

 winter, and seem to be wintering 

 well, as thej' keep very quiet. 



Winterings Carnioian Bees. — 



Andrews & Lockhart, Pattens Mills, N. 

 Y., on Feb. 20, 1889, writes as follows : 



We never had bees winter so well 

 as our Carniolans are doing this win- 

 ter. There is not a handful of dead 

 bees on any of the bottom-boards of 

 the hives. The cellar has been kept 

 at a temperature of 45^ to 48^ all win- 



ter, so far. The bees are in that quiet 

 state in which every bee-keeper likes 

 to see them. Bees are hanging be- 

 low the frames in nearly every hive. 

 Our Carniolans winter remarkably 

 well, and they are more quiet in the 

 cellar than any other strain of bees we 

 ever had. 



Our advertisement in the American 

 Bee Jodrnal has brought more calls 

 than we have had from all the other 

 bee-periodicals put together. As it is 

 brimful of apicultural news every 

 week, we presume others feel as we do 

 — that we would not do without it for 

 five times its cost. It has paid us ten 

 fold the cost of the advertisements. Its 

 large circulation, the world over, gives 

 great advantage to its advertisers. 



Report for 1§§8 — Wm. H. Ford, 

 Marshalltown, Iowa, on Feb. 16, says : 



I commenced the season of 1888 

 with 12 colonies of bees (part hybrids 

 and part Italians), and increased them 

 to 19 colonies. One swarm came to 

 me on Aug. 26, and stored enough to 

 winter on, thus making 20 colonies to 

 begin the winter with. I put all of 

 them into the cellar on Nov. 17, and 

 they are wintering well so far. Last 

 summer I took ofl" about 300 pounds 

 of honey, part extracted and part comb 

 honey. The " old reliable " American 

 Bee Journal makes its visits regularly 

 every week, and is welcomed, for I 

 think that no man who keeps bees can 

 do without it for five times the cost. 



Odors and Bees — Cleaning; the 

 Sections. — Jno. Handel, Savanna, 111., 

 writes as follows : 



Is it not possible that bees arc al- 

 ways attracted to the nectar in flowers 

 by the smell, and that they simply use 

 color as a landmark afterwards ? I 

 have often noticed that when flowers 

 fail to secrete nectar, they also lack in 

 odor. I think that not only bees, but 

 the bee-keeper himself, with a little 

 practice, can tell when there is a 

 honej'-flow, by the odor. Now, then, 

 who can answer these questions : 1. 

 Do the bees drive the odor out of the 

 nectar-distilling cups of the flowers, by 

 fanning it with their wings ? Or, does 

 the evaporation of the nectar release 

 the odor, and the bees are attracted 

 by it ? Or, is it possible that the 

 flowers attract bees, etc., by their 

 colors, and are tickled by them, until 

 they (the flowers) eject the sweet 

 juice, after the fashion of the ant and 

 plant-louse ? 



The best tool for scraping propolis 

 from sections and separators that I 

 have ever tried is, one-half of a pair 

 of shears. Sharpen it occasionally. 



