THE AMERICAN iihlb] JOURNAL. 



117 



Therefore, uulcss imported Italian queens were 

 raised in Italj-, Germany, or Switzerland, and 

 tested "wiLli a view to iniprecdhilitii of Ifiiiiirr and 

 (UHinclii'C coloving there Ukfirue; and unless after 

 importation, tlu; OAvner of sneli eonfine his ex- 

 clusive, attention to rearing and testing a man- 

 ageable nun\l)er of daughters to he purified and 

 kept pure by an established criterion, the pur- 

 chaser may find that his hhirl--Hreak d and ring- 

 speckled pure Italian queen will produce workers 

 that can stand no test of purity whatever. 



In regard to the remarks of ]\fr. Tliomas upon 

 my Impeccability of Temper, I liave, therefore, 

 at this time nothing to say, further than that in 

 Europe, my test constitutes the rule and not the 

 exception with Italian bees; and that were it not 

 for this fact, I should not have dared to advance 

 it as a reliable test of purity in America. Hence 

 I must again insist that if it be at all desirable to 

 obtain liees possessing this admiiable trait, the 

 honest breeder of Italian queens (without dispos- 

 ing of his Loice-hvcd drones), should test his 

 workers upon tihe scale of impeccability. 



Mr. Thomas, in my opinion, reasons very co- 

 gently. I congratulate him upon what he has 

 advanced, and if the stubbern I'acts above alluded 

 to can be rocked to sleep, and the positlveness of 

 his conclusions thus be converted into truths, I 

 shall be ready to accept and acknowledge them 

 of course. If truth has suiFered on my side, I 

 stand ready at any moment to retract. 



I would also beg your leave, Mr. Editor, to 

 inform Mr. Thomas, in conjunction with what 

 precedes, that I will not sell him any queen at 

 any price; but if he thinks that my impeccability 

 of temper is worthy of preservation, he may give 

 me a friendly call in person, whenever it may 

 please him, with the express purpose of examin- 

 ing my limited number of Italian stocks, and 

 then, if lie can find any one of them "that will 

 not sting him," he may take its queen along, as 

 Prof. Alsatius 'rtrould say, '■[free grniififornotJiinf/ ' 

 at all, except a puff or tico in his covnty paper.'''' 

 If this affectionate tender of generosity does 

 not characterize me in the estimation of j\Ir. ' 

 Thomas as a most singularly true and careful : 

 bee-raiser, I would not risk to send him the i 

 Italian fly; for how can /know that my most j 

 precious effluvia and impeccibility of temper is \ 

 applicable to/i/.f psychical temperament and phy- ! 

 sical constitution. 



In conclusion, permit me to remark that I am i 

 neither a professional physiologist or anatomist; j 

 tliat microscopic observation, however servicoa- i 

 hie in demonstrating lifeless organism, may still 

 fail to assign its appropriate office to the "wheel 

 within the wheel" in animate nature; and that ; 

 there exists on either side of the lens, organic 

 animation which can never be brought within its 

 scope. 



With many respects to all, I remain. 



Prof. F. Vakro. 

 "Washington, Pa., Nov. 13, 1867. 



"A bee," says Dr. Paley, "amongst the flowers 

 in spring, when it is occupied witliout intermis- 

 sion in collecting pollen for its young or lioney 

 for its a.ssociates, is one of the cheerfullest objects 

 that can he looked upon. Its life appears to be 

 all enjoyment— so busj- and ?o pleased. 



[From the Steubcnvillo Herald.] 



Profit of Italian Bees. 



Mu. Editou: Having but four Italian colonies 

 to commence with at the commencement of sum- 

 mer, tliree of whicli were pure and one hybrid, 

 and using the three tbat were genuine to rear 

 queens to supply my apiary, it w-as impossible 

 for me to form a correct estimate of their capa- 

 city to store honey when left alone, as compared 

 with the black bee. But the following state- 

 ment of the j)roduet of a single colony in tiie 

 apiary of T. L. McLean, which came under my 

 observation, and for the truth of which I appeal 

 to Mr. McLean himself, seems to confirm what 

 has already been asserted, that they will accumu- 

 late in the same locality twice the amount of 

 honey that the black bee will. At the commence- 

 ment of spring Mr. T. L. McLean's apiary con- 

 sisted of one Italian colony with some seventeen 

 black colonies. On the 27th of ]\Iay his Italian 

 colony swarmed, beating his black bees two or 

 three weeks and was done swarming before they 

 commenced. It sent off three swarms, and in 

 sixteen days the first swarm swarmed. This 

 swarm with the rest, filled good-sized boxes to 

 the bottom, and together with the parent liive, 

 stored eighty pounds fff surplus lioney. Now 

 the least figure that an Italian colony sells at in 

 the common box hive, at any place where they 

 are sold, that I know of, is twenty dollars. At 

 this price the swarms themselves would amount 

 to eighty dollars, and eighty pounds of surplus 

 honey at twenty-five cents a pound would amount 

 to twenty dollars. This, with the price of the 

 swarms, will foot up the snug little sum of one 

 hundred dollars profit on a single colony of Ital- 

 ianbees. For information concerning the su- 

 periorit}^ of the Italian bee over our common 

 kind, as also, the best method of its safe intro- 

 duction into black colonies. I would refer your 

 readers to the Amekican Bee Journal, pub- 

 lished monthly, at two dollars a year, by Samuel 

 Wagner, Washington, U. C. This journal is a 

 medium through which practical bee-keepers 

 communicate tiieir experience, and its editor is 

 one of the most theoretical as well as practical 

 bee-keepers in this country. To those who are 

 pursuing bee culture for profit, this journal is of 

 inestimable value. John L. McLean. 



Richmond, Ohio. 



-^ 



The cells of the combs as built by the bees 

 have all a slight inclination upwards,' tlie better 

 10 retain the lioney stored in ihem in its liquid 

 state. In attaching guide-eombs to the frames 

 care must therefore be taken, especially when 

 broad pieces of comb are employed, to give 

 these the proper adjustment — that is, to pre- 

 serve the upward inclination of the cells in each 

 piece. This will greatly facilitate the further 

 extension of the combs by the bees. The bees 

 will indeed use combs improperly adjusted in 

 this particular, though with some reluctance 

 evidently; and there is always more or lessten- 

 dencj' to irregularity. 



li^"Send us names of bye-keepers with their 

 post office addres?. 



