THE AMERICAN BEE JOUENAL. 



153 



[For tlie Aiuerioau Bee Journal ] 



How to Cleanse Mouldy Comb. 



A mouldy comb, if not rotten, may readily be 

 iung ,t up til It IS thoroughly dry ; then brush 

 off as much of the mould as^possible without cu 

 tu^g or muti ating the cells. When so piipared 



bees in f/^' '"''l^'" '''''''' °^" ^ ''^---S stocL of 

 a t ' /3 *^' ''^n^'"- ''^^^«'^' '^"'1 i" the°course of 

 a week or so the bees will usually cleanse and 

 renovate it so completely that, to all appearance 

 Its f(,rmer mouldiness will be gone. If howeve? 

 a portion of the comb should contain b'eS 

 lat has become hardened and turned white in 

 "ni or win "" ''''' ,r''^ somethnes fen o 

 celKtPnd T "'-n '^"''^"^ """^ ^^=^y "1^ ^"tire 

 cells m stead In either case of failure, such por- 

 ous shouW be cut out and the vacancy fi led 



b di,?'"t"" '""^-'^ 1^^"^^"^^ the beelfrom 

 building drone cells instead 



By the above method I liave had some combs 



cleansed that had been literally covered over w th 



loi the last fifteen years, usually wintered some 



Permit me to correct the following error in i 

 previous communication. The cleats on side So 

 2 ot my common entrance-blocks to tlie Lano.; 

 s, oth hive ai-e three-sixteenths of an inch thicd 

 The types makes me say "the sixteenth of an inch 

 hick." See page 118 of the December numbei of 

 the present volume of the Bee Jodenal 



I^ake P. 0., OMo, Jan. 4, mo^^""''^ ^''''^■ 



winter I put them in my cellar, and thev came 

 out all right next spring. "^la 1808 they nL'a "d 



fit i\ r ?"r''^''"'^ "^^^■'^« f»^- ^vintering. One of 

 a 1 walit T ''■' ^ ^^^^««--'-» their%veaknes 

 IroiS • . ?^^»« s-^^en weak swarms I brought 

 h ough by feeding. On the first of Januarv 

 l.%9, the weight of the eleven stocks, excliAve 

 30 1o'' Jr"?J rr ^f l^tively as follows :lo' 

 ^eshl^;,^t^L^Joli^^'l'b^^-,i;S^^ 



Now for the result. They gave me one thou- 

 sand and twenty-five (1025) pounds of surp] s 

 lioney, and sixteen new swarms. My twe i v- 



a?r,-?oS°'"f "'■' "^'^'^ '^"t ''^^^'''^•>^ "^ '"y cellal 

 all light. I am a regular subscriber to the 

 Amekican Bee Jourkal, and it pa,.. More 



cLUUll, "Vy TXT TT 



MeMota., III., Dec. 1809. ''''''• 



[For the American Bee Journal,] 



Novice. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Experience of Another Beginner. 



fi,?;"^i^' -^^.^^^^^--l will now contribute my 

 first effort for your numerous readers givin- n v 

 experience in bee-keeping, hi 18G0 purciras'ed 

 five colonies (black bees) of one of my i t h 



hiTWinf ;"f '''"^"/f ^""/''^^^- I'^ tl^^^ follow- 

 ing winter two ot them died, leaving me three 

 stocks for a start in 1807. 



Being a novice in apiculture, I was puzzline 

 rny brain how to proceed, for failure was 2 



tire im i,?"^ """^ "\' "^"^' «^' "'°«^ '^'^^^ ^^^^^n 

 the bUMuess, and who were using only the com 

 mon hive, or, worse still, some' woAlliss pa' 

 tented substitute. While in this state of mind I 



nom KuRAL, giving an account of his visit to 

 the apiary of J. M. Marvin, of St. Charles 111 



stioth hive, and the Italian bee. I immedl 



k n [i;"!,nd f'- ''^"""^; ^''" --'-'^ ""v-y 

 T n • 1 ■ I ^ '''™ "'"^^» indebted to him for 

 H 'l '!f'^""^t^°" i» tl'« treatment of bees 



three hnh'l^^'f^'''"^''^ ^^'^^' ^"^^ '^'"l about 

 se ^o. t\ ' colonies, mostly Italians. That 

 en ivi; t1"^'' V '^^'^^V^^'^ the blacks almos 

 n ist time. I purchased from him an Italian 

 queen and six Langstrotli hives; came hone 

 to"S'a7iii'r"^ cohniies-thus inc?"sing t£ 

 to six, all m Langstroth hives. The foirowing 



Dear Journal :-Our bee house is of course 



abited b3^ his time, by half a million or so of 



l.f S f^"'-?'' ^''^'' ^"'^ '^^ ^'^ I>appytosay 



as the li'T "' ^" "•'' -'^"^ «^' November, and 

 wor r1 ITff! ?' ^'''^ '"'^'' ^'"^ ^"^^ ^"'•e that it 

 would have been a great gain to have housed 

 hem about a month sooner. The day we p t 

 hem in happened to be quite cold, and L we d d 



SandT" M'^' f if ""' r ''^' "-"^ -^ thei 

 stands. Most of the stocks behaved quite well • 

 but two of the hybrid colonies marfp 1^; 



se son 7h''? ^'^^ extremely cross all th? 

 season, and that day po^Uimly objected to anv 

 assistance of any kind. Fron/ one of them we 

 removed the hon.y-board, thinking that the? eez- 

 mg air would drive them down amono- the 

 tZ n'i^"' ""'' '"""'?» ^^^^"^ ^""^ till after a? 

 nlLf ♦ T,';T''''^^'^' ^^'^ f^^^'i^^^'^I that they 

 must be treated like refractory children, and put 

 in by main strength. ' ^ ^ 



We are not in the habit of being intimidated 

 by bees, but the battle array on top'of the fn mes 

 was rather fiercedookingf and when we p! 

 oached they came more than half way to meet 

 ihl JT''''^ bailstorm. S^ioke was of no use 

 then, as they seemed to be all out of the hive 

 before we got within ten feet of th.m • y.t we 

 Ik' f.iLTf'^'r'' "^^^^' ^''' "^"^««t t''e ""IV time, 

 fort Im w"^'''"';' ''''''\''^ *" "'^^'^ no-terror; 

 foi them. We might smoke them until they lay 



b^ownT^'''''•;^'"^'}^" "^"•^^^"t ''' stopped 

 fin,Ti °' '^ P'^"^ '"'^ "^ ^'ith fresh vigor, and 

 t, : 1?' '"^^'"^ Y' '°'t ^" patience, and carried 

 the hive in, and let the bees come along or stay 



J rS \'''T' -7', ^''-"'^ ''^^^"t t^^ ^'^"'•^^st exhibition 

 of real hybrid bee fury that perhaps is ever 

 displayed. They buried themselves in our shoes 

 trowsers, coat, vest, hair, collar, waistband, and 

 everywhere else. They did not 'any of theni ge 

 lost, as they were so busily engaged in bestow- 

 tLIVI ^I'^'f .attention to our precious self. 

 Thus Ave all got mto the bee hou.^e ; but instead 



