THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



1G9 



[For tlie Aiiieiicau Boo Journal.] 



Wat.r for Bees. 



Water is n prime ucccssily lor bees, as well as 

 for other aniuuil syslenif;— tou.slilutiny- the ma- 

 jor part of tlu'ir weiyhl and substauce, the me- 

 dium of nutrition, secretion and excretion, 'i'he 

 .liris the medium of distribution, holdiug im- 

 mense quantities susj)entled. All creatures im- 

 bil)e water by the breath and absorbents, the 

 (lill'ercnt proportions in the airmakini;' thediffcr- 

 eiiec between the lean and dingy Arab and tlie 

 phnnp and fair-slvinned Englishman. 



Coudenseil vapor is necessary for the bees in 

 winter, for the air is then drier; and when they 

 breathe less they must drink more. TJiis is ob- 

 tained by eating more honey and breathing more 

 •air, generating more heat and water. Upward 

 \ entilation is always and entirely wrong, because 

 it lets oil' the heat— thus compelling the bees to 

 eal and breathe more, generating more water, 

 while the cold cheeks perspiration, f;eces accu- 

 mulate, and dysentery is the result. Two small 

 swarms together consume no more than one, 

 and generate no more water because they are 

 warmer. But, put them in a narrow circular 

 cavity, with solid walls, surrounded with bark 

 and lined with dead wood, and they will gener- 

 ate no more water than they need. 



The bee has existed since the dawn of creation, 

 und under the protection of an unerring instinct 

 has outlived those changes and convulsions that 

 have destroyed other races, and extended its 

 range from the equator to the frozen regions. 

 But man, comparatively a creature of yesterdaj^, 

 comes upon the scene, and though he has the 

 same reason to believe that the bee and the liol- 

 low tree were made for and adai)ted to each other 

 as the bird and the air, or the tisii and the water, 

 he tells us that the bee has been suffering and 

 languishing before the advent of man, tor want 

 of upward ventilation in winter, and a little 

 water on a sponge occasionally; and if they had 

 had the upward ventilation they would not have 

 suffered in the spring. Thus, though he knows 

 nothing of matter except its phenomena, he de- 

 cides in the bloom of his self-conceit, the anti- 

 quated plans of the Deity to be a failure, which 

 ought to be set aside in tliis enlightened age. 



\Vc know that instinct varies with climate, 

 anticipating and providing for irregularities-iu 

 the seasons; and it would seem that the Deily 

 should have discovered these triumphs of human 

 wisdom, and cease to impress on the passing 

 generations of the bee that mul sh obstinai y 

 which causes them lo ny away from the glorious 

 inventions of man to " a miserable home in 

 the woods." 



I dilfer from apiarian writers of ripe experience, 

 eminent for natural and acquired abilities, to 

 which I make no pretensions But upward ven- 

 tilation is inconsistent in theory, expensive and 

 dangerous in practice, condemned liy instinct, 

 at war with facts, and a bald denial of thf wis- 

 dom and goodness of Deity. F. II. Mikeu. 

 Lemont, (III.) 



After a moist spring, when swarms are most 

 plentiful, is robbing most rife; otherwise there 

 is less danger: — Butler. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



The Egyptian Bee. 



Editor Bee Journal : — Many of our cor- 

 respondents are calling our attention to the 

 clause in our c.reular lor la07, in which, speak- 

 oi A2m Fasciaia, commonly termed the Egyi)l- 

 ian bee, we say — "We can speak warmly of 

 their great beauty and will give the public our 

 judgement of their relative value, when wc 

 have subjected their claims lo a thorough test 

 in our climate." It seems to be expected that 

 this report can ?i(?«j be made. Owiug to a pe- 

 culiar combination of circumstances such is net 

 the case. 



We received in November, 18GG, two dittinct 

 importations of these bees. Their coming had 

 been delayed until we had given up all expec- 

 tation of their arrival that season ; and we had 

 consequently no colonies prepared for the re- 

 ception of the queens. They arrived late iu 

 November, and it was several days later when 

 they reached our apiary. The weather was un- 

 usuallyunfavorable, even for December ; ciud 

 some of the queens perished from exhaustion 

 long lieibre they could be introduced. Others 

 were not to be found when the stocks to which 

 they were introduced, were subsequently exam- 

 ined. As our order for another supply of 

 queens raised in 1866, and thoroughly tested, 

 had already gone forward to the Berlin Society 

 of Acciimalization— the queens to be shipped 

 iu April, 18G7 — we still h.oped to be able to 

 breed and test this variety last season, though 

 we returned all monies received by us on order 

 lor Egyptian queens. But we found it impossi- 

 ble, although having a personal agent in Europe, 

 lo expedite matters in the least. Herr Yogel, 

 who breeds these bees for the Society, Avas ab- 

 sent in Egypt during part of the season, and we 

 did )iot succeed in getting our importation of 

 1!:^67 in time to breed from them to any extent 

 last fad. We are therefore able to say little 

 more about Apis Fdsciata, from per.-oual knowl- 

 edge, than we conld have done a year ago. 

 Those apiarians who are expecting a report 

 Irom 7(8, in regard to the merits or demerits of 

 1 this variety in any or all points, must conse- 

 { quently await the results of another season's 

 ] operations. 

 1 L. L. LAKGSTROTn & Son. 



Oxford, Butler Co., Ohio, Jan. 1, 1808. 



Bees may have too much honey to winter well. 

 Mr. Gary says bees will not wimer well in solid 

 honey. 1 here must be a fair number of open 

 cells tor them to cluster in and keep their heat, 

 by being in a compact mass. When the cells 

 are all capped they must necessarily occupy 

 more than double the space, and cannot with- 

 stand extreme cold weather. Mr. Gary also ob- 

 serves that bees do better in a dair)- region than 

 where large numl)ers of sheep are kept. Sheep 

 eat very close and consume clover heads and 

 Howers that cattle would leave; iiius me bee is 

 deprived of food. There is a marked ditference 

 he says, in some parts of the country, where the 

 farmers have changed from cattle to sheep hus- 

 bandry. — E. Parmly, New York. 



