ITH® MMERICaPi Mmm JQlTRJHffii;,. 



279 



MY §WEETHEART. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 



UY EUGENE SKCOR. 



My Love is fair, 



Wit.li jfuhleii hair, 

 And eyes that shame the heavenly blue; 



And I am sure. 



It you but knew her, 

 That you'd admire and love her too. 



Her artless smile 



Doth oft bcsuilo 

 The weary hours of toil and care; 



And bliss is found 



When she's around — 

 My happy dove, so sweet and fair ! 



Her hands are small. 



And i)lump withal, 

 Her feet, as dainty as a flower. 



Her perfect nose 



No envy shows — 

 Her talk, refreshing as a shower. 



Such teeth of pearl 



No other frirl 

 In all the wide, wide world can show; 



Tlie breath of June 



Is hers, and soon 

 Its fragrance-laden warmth I'll know. 



The bee ne'er sips 



From lily lips 

 A sweeter draug'ht tiian I from hers. 



Her merrv lauji:h 



Is better liy half 

 Than any potion the doctor " stirs." 



Fond Hope's bright gleam ! 



A stray sunbeam 

 To cheer my heart when I am sad 1 



A happ.v sprite 



To 'Hume the night 

 Of discontent.and make me glad ! 



I hope some day. 



Some morn in May, 

 ■When tulips plight their faith and wed. 



That slie'll redeem 



My fondest dream. 

 When to Love's willing altar led. 



Who is my Love ? 



My pure, sweet dove 

 That Tempts the Muse her charms to sing ? 



Now you'll not tell. 



But keep it well ? 

 Her name \s—Biihy— our wee thtng. 

 Forest City, Iowa. 



TRANSFERRINQ. 



How to Transfer, Italianize, 

 and Increase Bee§, Etc. 



Written f(/r the American Bee Journal 



BY DK. O. C. MILLER. 



The folio-wing letter was sent to me 

 to answer in the American Bee Jour- 

 nal : 



I have 8 colonies of German bees In box- 

 hives, and have adopted the Iowa tiering- 

 hive. 1 wish to transfer, Italianize, and in- 

 crease ray colonies, and at the same time se- 

 cure all the comb honey that I can. I have 

 no practical experience except with bees in 

 box-hives, and wish to know the best time 

 to begin, and liow to proceed.— J. B., Mis- 

 souri. 



I am not sure what the "Iowa tier- 

 ing hive " is, but I suppose that it is 

 some good liive emiiotlying the princi- 

 ples of the Langstroth. The olcl way 



to transfer is to cut out the conilis 

 about tlie time of fruit-bloom, and 

 fasten tliem in tlie frames. Mr. Hed- 

 den has given us tlic plan of wailing 

 till later, driving out enough bees with 

 the queen to make a good swarm, and 

 then, 21 days later, driving out the 

 balance of tlie bees. As you want to 

 get all the comb hone}'' possible, and, 

 moreover, have no experience with 

 bees in moval^le-frame hives, it may 

 not be the best way for you to try 

 to make an entire change to Italians 

 the tirst season. 



About the time that bees begin to 

 swarm, is a good time to operate. If 

 you could hit upon the time just be- 

 fore queen-cells were started prepara- 

 tory to swarming, that might be best. 

 Turn the box-hive upside down, and 

 over it place almost any kind of a box, 

 so arranged that the bees can pass up 

 into it, closing up any holes out of 

 which the bees might fly. No great 

 harm, however, will come from letting 

 a few bees get out, and, indeed, after 

 the driving has fairly commenced, they 

 will not be likely to fly out, even if the 

 opportunity is given. 



Now with a stick of wood, hammer 

 with some vigor, for a few minutes on 

 the side of the hive. After waiting a 

 few minutes to let the bees fill them- 

 selves, jar the hive again, and continue 

 until most of the bees are in the driv- 

 ing-box, being sure to leave enough to 

 protect the brood left in the old hive. 



This driving will probably be done 

 close by the old stand, upon which may 

 be placed the new hive with movable 

 frames partly or wholly filled with 

 foundation. 



The bees in the driving-box may now 

 be poured down in front of the new 

 hive, and allowed to run in, and the 

 box-hive placed upon a new stand sev- 

 eral feet away. You now have a 

 strong swarm of bees with the old 

 queen in the now hive on the old stand, 

 and this may be counted on for good 

 work on surplus, if the season is favor- 

 able. 



About ten days later, drive out the 

 bees again, as clean as j'ou can, from 

 the box-hive, in the same way as be- 

 fore. Then cut out the combs of the 

 old hive, and save all those that con- 

 tain worker-brood— and you will read- 

 ily distinguish the worker from the 

 drone brood Ijy its smaller size. The 

 worker-brood is also sealed over flatter 

 than the drone-brood, and at this time 

 you will probably find all the brood 

 sealed. Fasten this comb containing 

 brood in the frames, ciUling out all 

 queen-cells, and the balance of the 

 corabs may be melted up, or used as 

 you think best. 



If you care to take the trouble, you 

 fasten in the frames all the straight 

 worker-comb to lie found, although, if 



full i)f honey, it is a mussy job to do 

 anytliing with it. 



Ilaving put these frames into the 

 new hive placed on the stand which 

 the box-hive has occupied for the last 

 ton days, run the bees out of the driv- 

 ing-box into the new hive, and drop 

 among them the Italian queen, as they 

 are running in. This queen you will 

 have ol)tained in advance, and if you 

 think best to have eight Italian queens, 

 you will probablj' get what are called 

 "dollar queens" — that is, fertile 

 queens rciared from pure Italian moth- 

 ers, and you run j-'our own risk as to 

 whether Ihej' are purely mated. 



In this way you have done nothing 

 to lessen your chances for a crop of 

 honey ; half your colonies have Italian 

 queens, and the next season, having 

 all movable frames, you will have no 

 great difficulty in Italianizing the rest. 



Very likely some w-ho have had iiiore 

 experience in this particular line, may 

 make suggestions as to what ma}" be 

 done to improve the plan that I have 

 here given. 



Marengo, Ills. 



A LECTURE. 



Delivered at the Farmers' Insti- 

 tnle at Bliitfton, O. 



B\' JUDGE RICHIE. 



I see by the programme that I am 

 expected to talk on bee-culture. I 

 presume that the committee recognizes 

 the fact that every man has his hobby, 

 or as some put it — every man is insane 

 on some subject — when they selected 

 me to talk on bee-culture. 



The introduction of the movable 

 comb hive and the Italian honey-bee 

 has made apiculture practical, pleas- 

 ant, and profitable. The movable 

 hive enabled the operator to ascertain 

 the exact condition of the colony at 

 any time when the temperature will ad- 

 mit of opening the hive. 



The Italian bee, unlike either of the 

 native varieties, if not naturally so, 

 has become thoroughly domesticated, 

 and m.ay be handled with ease without 

 disturbing their equanimity or ruftiing 

 their temper. Not unfrequently have 

 I taken a comb from a hive in which 

 the queen was depositing eggs, and so 

 little were they disturbed that the 

 queen kept on laying while the comb 

 was outside tlie hive, and the beea 

 seemed not to be disturbed iu the least 

 in their labor. 



* * • * * * • 



There is that in bee-keeping which 

 should make it attractive, aside from 

 the profit derived from its pursuit. 

 ■Who can watch without interest the 

 little pilgrims as they go forth in quest 



