92 



THE AMEEICAN BEE JOUENAL. 



finding a healthy looking and fertile queen, 

 with some brcod and stores, I removed the rob- 

 hiug colony to the stand of tlie r^ibbed one, and 

 placed the robbed colony on the stand of the 

 robbing one. Alter a fcAV minutes tlie bees be- 

 came quiet, th(( robbing ceased, and both colo- 

 nies did well from that day forward. This ex- 

 pedient in this instance proved to be the very 

 best that I ever tried or ever saw tried to pre- 

 vent robbing. Whether it will prove effectual 

 or not in otiier cases, trial and time alone will 

 determine. 



My further experiments during the past 

 spring, are stated in brief in my ibrmer article. 

 I may remark here, however, tliat in each case 

 where I started an artificial colony, using a 

 sealed queen cell as a basis, I used a full comb 

 containing honey, brood, &c., in which I in- 

 serted the queen cell. I also remark that during 

 the present season, I started and built up from 

 the nine original colonies which I liad on the 1st 

 of April last, eighteen lull colonies of bees, with 

 an abundance of stores for wintering, and have 

 taken surplus, w' hich was deposited in top boxes, 

 about 170 pounds 



All increase of colonies after my expciiment 

 of April 2sth, heretofore alluded to, was effected 

 by us ng a sealed queen cell and one or more 

 full com" s ot honej% brood, etc., placed in an 

 empty liive and giving it the pl.Tce of a full col- 

 ony which was overstocked with bees. In no 

 inistance did I resort to either drumming or the 

 use of smoke. 



I invite no controversy, but do invite infor- 

 mation as heretofore, 'or which see my former 

 article. In other words, if any reader of the 

 JoTJUNAL has succeeded better tlian I have in 

 the increase of full colonies, amount of surplus 

 stores, and above all, in securing uniform 

 straight combs, I should be pleased to learn 

 how it was done. 



Belmont. 



Crystalization of Honey. 



I have several times seen it stated in the 

 Scientific, Amfrkan and elsewhere, tliat the 

 crystalization of honey is caused l)y the action 

 of light. In opposhion to this theory allow me 

 to i)resent two facts. We frequently take up 

 honey late in the season, (in November and 

 December,) place on tin pans and set them on 

 shelves in tlie cellar. Some of the honey, of 

 course, leaks out of tlie cells, and in a few weeks 

 will be found crystalized in the bottom of the 

 pans. Yet no light enters the cellar from the 

 time we bank the house in October till some 

 time in March. 



Again, our strained honey we put in jars, and 

 after replacing the covers, set them in a dark 

 closet where no light enters. In the spring the 

 honey that remains unsold or unused, will be 

 found completely "candied." In my opinion 

 exposni"e to the air and cold have more to do 

 with the crystalization of honey than light. — 

 J. L. W. in Scientific American. 



[For tho American Bee Journal,] 



Several Points Considered. 



IIl:^Si5ND us names of bee-keepers with Post 

 Oftice address. 



1. A writer asks on page 58, volume 3, of the 

 Bee Journal, "Has any one not raising queens 

 for sale ever had bees to work freely on red 

 clover?" I am not raising queens; have none 

 for sale, but have repeatedly seen Italian bees 

 Avorking free 13'^ on red clover. I consider the 

 insinuation contained in the question unjust. 

 1 have a hybrid stock from a black queen that 

 collected light colored honey last August, while 

 ])ure black stocks were gathering freely from 

 buckwheat a very dark colored honey. I do 

 not know the source of the light honej'', but 

 suspect it was from red clover. 



2. Another writer on page 50, volume 3, of 

 the Bee.Touunal, heads an article "A singular 

 case." I think the case a plain one. The col- 

 ony referred to had a superannuated queen; 

 that is, a queen whose stock of spermatozoa 

 was nearly expended, causing her to lay many 

 unimpregnated or drone eggs. The instinct of 

 the bees led them, under these circumstances, 

 to supersede her with a young queen at the 

 earliest moment in the season, which they did 

 by raising a queen from one of lier/«o worker 

 eggs. You will find an account in the last 

 May or June number of the Jouknal of a simi- 

 lar proceeding as early as February 28; but this 

 was in a w'armer latitude, namely, in Kentucky. 

 I am inclined to think from these two observed 

 cases, that aged queens are often thus super- 

 seded, and at so early a period in the season 

 that tlie fertilization of the young queen is dif- 

 ficult and often impossible; and hence the loss 

 ot colonies late in the spring that have passed 

 the wnnter successfully. I think it would be 

 an advantage to allow no queen to remain in 

 an apiary longer than two years. Kill them as 

 soon as the honey harvest is over, or sooner, 

 and let the bees raise new ones while drones 

 are abundant. Of course it would be necessary 

 to watch such hives as are deprived of their 

 queens to prevent rolibing, and to be sure that 

 they obtained feitile young queens. A still 

 better way would be to raise the queens in 

 nucleus boxes. 



3. Mr. A. J. Root, page 53, volume 3, of the 

 Bee Journal, gives a pretty good result from 

 a colony of Italian bees, and calls for more 

 figures in regard to common bees this season, 

 ifere are some A double swarm of black bees 

 hived June 28 in an empty hive; that is, with- 

 out any old comb to assist them, tilled the lower 

 part of a two-story glass Langstrolh hive, hold- 

 ing twelve frames, and deposited about seventy- 

 five pounds of surplus honey in the second 

 story, entirely free from brood and bee-bread, 

 and mostly sealed over. Another double swarm 

 of black bees hived July 1st, gave me thirty-six 

 pounds of honey, besides handsomely filling 

 Jhirteen frames for their own use in the body 

 of the hive. The hybrid swarm mentioned 

 above, aslo hived July 1st, did just as Avell as 

 the last mentioned dou])le blai k swarm, viz: 

 filled thirteen frames and furnished six boxes 

 of surplus honey, weighing thirty-six pounds. 

 Four other black swarms hived the same day, 



