THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



99 



gardens we went, across several streets, pre- 

 sentiup: rather a queer sight to the pjood pcoi)le 

 on their way to churcli, and only stopi)C(l at a 

 friend's apiary, some twenty rods or more off 

 (the very one before mentioned), wlio was just 

 hiving a swarm of black bees, witli whicli my 

 miniature swarm seemed desirous of forming a 

 partnership. (.Query — CouUl my bees have 

 heard the swarm coming out at that distance, 

 or was it merely accidental?) I stationed my- 

 self at the entrance of the new hive, and as her 

 majesty made her appearance, I prevailed on 

 her to enter the queen-cage, and carried her back 

 home — a part of her subjects being loyal enough 

 to follow. Ou the way home, I bethought me 

 of an expedient to make her stay — strange I 

 had not thought of it before — "clipping her 

 Aviugs," namely. I had tried the seven-sixteenths 

 of an inch arrangement, but where the bees 

 passed through, the queen had managed to go 

 also, as had been the case that very morning. 

 I accordingly got the scissors and clipped one 

 wing; and to make assurance doubly sure, 

 thought I would clip the other wing also. This 

 seemed to cut rather hard, but I did make it 

 come; when, behold, I had cut off a foreleg too, 

 which sh(! had thrust between the blades iu the 

 insane atten)pt to save her wing. She was put 

 back, and staid at home at least until the open- 

 ing of our story. When I found that the deserted 

 hive had no queen-cell, I went immediately for 

 the clipped queen; but she too had caught the 

 fever and gone. If she had no wings she had 

 • feet, at least a part of them, and as she could 

 do no better, had gone on foot. By Avatchiug 

 the few remaining bees that remained around 

 the small hive or box, I actually saw them fol- 

 low on her track, when I found her nearly half 

 way across the garden, surrounded by her re- 

 maining subjects. From the manner in which 

 they followed her trail, I think that she must 

 have left a peculiar scent along the ground she 

 had traversed. 



She was caged again and given to the swarm, 

 or rather the hive where the swarm was; and 

 as the few bees left did not seem hostile at all, 

 she was released after a short time, and I sup- 

 posed all was right. But after a week or more, 

 finding them queenless, with a large number of 

 queen-cells started, I concluded that cither they 

 had killed her, thinking they could raise a bet- 

 ter looking one, or that she had taken another 

 fancy to a pedestrian exploiatiou. My wife 

 Buggested that if I had not clipped her wings 

 on Sunday, she might have proved more profit- 

 able. 



I am really afraid that that truant swarm will 

 have to stay away until another month, or 

 sometliing valuable may be crowded out of the 

 Bee JouiiXAL, to give room for the long article 

 from Novice. 



It^In the article in the Journal for last 

 mcmth, page 65, second column, in the 18th 

 line from the bottom, the w^ord "improve" 

 should be "impure." 



To unite Bees in the Fall. 



I alarm the bees in both hives which I wish 

 to unite, then leave them a few movements to 



fill themselves Avith honey, I then put one of 

 them over an empty hive, (my hives have mov- 

 able bottoms), take each frame out, and shake 

 or brush the bees into the hive below. When 

 all are out, set the other in its pla(;e, and pro- 

 ceed in the same way. The bees all brushed to- 

 gether thus in an empty hive, are too much 

 frightened to quarrel. I then arrange all my 

 frames containing honey in one liive, and set it 

 over the one in which the bees are. They all 

 go up rapidy and take possession of the frames 

 like the coloiy. One of the queens will, of 

 course, be killed; and hence, if jou have any 

 choice between them, search for the one you 

 least care for, and destroy lier. 



Every empty comb should be saved. Indeed 

 no piece of good Avorker-comb should ever be 

 melted for Avax. It is Avorth five dollars a 

 pound in honey boxes, or fastened into the 

 frames for the use of the bees. — Mrs. E. S. 

 TUPPER, in loica Homestead. 



[For tlie American Bee Journal.] 



A Profitable Apiary. 



Silas "Way, of this county, is one of our best 

 bee-keepers. He has noAV tAvo hundred and 

 thirty hives of bees — all natives. He Avintered 

 over one hundred and twenty-five colonies, 

 and from them had nearly tAVO hundred natural 

 sAvarms. Many Avere consolidated, and the 

 whole number of swarms were put into one 

 hundred and five hives. His crop of honey in 

 small boxes amounts to nearly two tons, which 

 he is selling at thirty cents per pound. He has 

 one hundred and twenty-five colonies iu the 

 the improved Langstroth hive; the remainder 

 iu box hives. The shalloAV form of this hive 

 is his preference, as he claims that he can get 

 more surplus honey from Ioav broad hives than 

 from tall ones. From eighteen Langstroth 

 hives that did not swarm, he has secured 1,080 

 pounds box honey — sixty pounds, worth eigh- 

 teen dollars, per hive. Mr. Way loses no bees in 

 winter. They are Avintered in a dry dark cel- 

 lar, directly under the living room of his house. 

 His greatest difficulty has been to find room 

 enough in the tops of his hives for the accom- 

 modation of the bees that store surplus honey. 

 He has a plan now that he thinks will obviate 

 this difficulty. The inside depth of the comb- 

 frame that he uses is 9^ inches; but he purposes 

 to make one hundred more this Avinter, with 

 frames only 8 j inches in the clear. This change 

 will give him more room for boxes, and Avith 

 tAVO sets he thinks he may be able to give his 

 bees all the room they can use to advantage. 

 He thinks he can get by this arrangement, 

 coupled Avith good management, 100 pounds 

 surplus honey from any good hive of bees that 

 is kept from SAvarming, provided the season is 

 an average one for this latitude. On his box 

 hives he uses two honej''-boxes; but on the 

 Langstroth hive lie can use three of the same 

 size. He claims that the three boxes on frame 

 hives are filled Avith honey as soon as the tAvo 

 on box hives. Mr. Way does not tcork the 

 fra7ues&t all; in fact, pays no more attention to 

 frame hives than to box hives. Still, he finds 



