2l6 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



[October. 



plied to 100 colonies it amounts to 

 about five barrels of not only idle 

 capital, but it is an encumbrance to 

 both bees and apiarist. 



After the colonies become strong, 

 it matters little what the shape and 

 dimensions of the frames are. It is 

 not an unusual thing for a few hun- 

 dred bees in a colony in early spring 

 to increase to 25 to 50 thousand bees 

 by the time the honey harvest sets in, 

 but it nearly all depends upon there 

 being a good beginning. Whether we 

 obtain 25 or 225 pounds per colony, 

 it must result from the manipulations 

 at the starting period. 



Chatsworth, Calif. 



THE USE OF BEES. 



What is a bee for? If some bright 

 boy who reads this page were to an- 

 swer the question, he would probably 

 hesitate whether to say, "It's to make 

 honey," or "It's made to sting." Nei- 

 ther of which is the correct answer, 

 the chief purpose of the bee being 

 to fertilize flowers. This is needed 

 in every orchard, farm and garden in 

 the land. If there are no bees within 

 two miles or so, then it will pay 



well to set up one or more colonies, 

 even if never a drop of honey is ob- 

 tained from them. 



On the other hand, if bees perform- 

 ed no service in fertilizing the flow- 

 ers, it would be a paying thing to keep 

 them for their honey alone, for al- 

 though there are years of failure when 

 they give no surplus, the good years 

 make up for that, so that an average 

 of 25 to 30 pounds of honey maybe 

 counted on from each hive, providing 

 bees have the proper care. 



There is no need to multiply words, 

 setting forth the luscious character 

 of honey as the most delicious of all 

 sweets to tickle the palate or tempt 

 the appetite; nor to speak of the de- 

 sirability of a plate of snow-whi|;e 

 comb honey to set off the table when 

 company comes. But there may be 

 need to urge its importance as a 

 wholesome article of food. Every 

 person consumes an average of 65 

 pounds of sugar annually, an amount 

 which' the doctors tell us makes so 

 strong a draft on certain organs to 

 prepare the sugar for proper assimila- 

 tion that there result disorders of 

 the stomach and intestines, and in 

 some cases that dread scourge. 



Where the Delicious Sage Honey Comes From. 



