240 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



S. M. Locke & Co. : 



I niij:ht report my experience in bee- 

 keeping-. 



I bought June 2(i, 1885, four colonies 

 of blacirbees in old box liives, and on 

 July 11.^10 very light colony of Ital- 

 ians in ^^jvable comb hive 12 X 12. 



When transferring, I got 100 lbs. of 

 strained honey, after which 75 lbs. of 

 surplus section comb houey from three 

 colonies (no surplus has been taken 

 this year in this section of any ac- 

 count). 



I now have nine fidl colonies, five 

 more 4-frame nuclei (2 bees* and 

 brood and 2 honey) with young laying 

 queens, three with virgin queens and 

 four more with queens not hatched, 

 making in all 21. 



The 12 4-frame nucleus, I put three 

 in one hive (three five frame depart- 

 ments). 



I am the greenest of beginners, as I 

 never handled a bee in my life, and had 

 never read anything of their manage- 

 ment until this last spring. 



If I come out alive next spring, I 

 want to Italianize all my bees and had 

 intended to try the cross with the Holy 

 Laud queen I had from you. 

 Respectfully, 



I. S. HUCKINS. 



Poitghkecpsie, Sept. 10, 1885. 



S. M. Locke & Co. : 



The Syrian queen arrived safely, 

 on the 8th, I am well pleased with her. 

 I placed her over the frames as di- 

 rected, with a small colony of black 

 bees, whose queen isabout three years 

 old. I went out to take in the hive to 

 find the old queen, and found them in 

 a high state of excitement, and a crowd 

 of iloly Land bees at the entrance. 

 Being called away, I returned in half 

 an hour, and found the old queen dead 

 on the ground before the hive. 



This was quite surprising to me, as 

 I did not know that bees would kill 

 their own queen to make room for a 

 stranger, and one also of another race. 

 I took out the caged queen and found 

 them feeding her, but fixed the cage 

 as directed with sugar in the opening, 

 and they are now happy and peaceful. 

 I am very grateful to the bees for giv- 

 ing her the " happy despatch," for she 

 isone that I have looked for twice in 

 vain. I thought it remarkable the bees 

 in the entrance of the hive were all 

 Holy Land bees, as I have but few 

 workers of that race. They seemed 

 very much interested ; knowing seem- 



ingly the old queen to be black, and 

 the new queen of their race. 



I had given a favorable report of the 

 other queen received of you, true so 

 far as it went, but disastrous in the 

 end. This old black queen I had 

 looked for in vain during one whole 

 afternoon (yoti see what a novice I am) 

 and in order to keep my queen safe and 

 happy, I put her in the small fertilizing 

 hive, with young bees, brood and 

 honey, confining them two or three 

 days; this hive I placed in an open 

 window in the second story, but on 

 going to them one morning, found the 

 whole hive in possession of large 

 black ants. I saw one ant the evening 

 before ; so you see it was the work of 

 one night. 



I am thankful for the very plain and 

 valuable directions given with the last 

 queen, as I shall now know how to 

 keep queens in future, safely. I was 

 ashamed to report this before it seemed 

 so careless. 



Respectfully yours, 



S. E. Wiley. 



Wadestoimi, W. Va., Aug. 22, 1S85. 

 Mk. S. M. Lockk. 



Deaii Sir : The honey season is over 

 here and one of the poorest that was 

 ever known in this section of country. 

 Bees almost failed to swarm and those 

 that did secure a few swarms failed to 

 store enough honey to winter them. 

 The season has been so dry the white 

 clover almost failed to bloom and it is 

 our principal honey plant here. I 

 shall renew my subscription and se- 

 cure one of your queens the first of 

 next month. 



C. L. Eakin. 



Pottstown, Sept. 14, 1885, 

 Messrs. S. M. Locke & Co. : 



Sent you a postal on the 12th inst. in 

 the morning, and at noon I received a 

 queen which had been already safely 

 introduced, ^i'he other queen I got 

 could do no better. I have got queens 

 from difierent breeders, but none to 

 compare with yours. 



Wm. H. DeWitt. 



Baltimore, July 2, 1885. 

 Erienu Locke : 



Your beautiful book Vols. I and 

 II received and contents noted. It is 

 very handsomely bound and I have no 

 hesitancy in pronouncing it fully up to 

 any bee journal published, 



H, Winsixgek, 



