ISS 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



July 



above, will depend entirely upon the 

 pre-potency of the parent furnishing 

 the blood, or, to speak more correctly, 

 the germ which produces the tendency 

 to the color predominating. This law 

 of herdity, as previously suggested, is 

 just as applicable to bees as to any 

 other animal. I have no doubt but 

 what we can take Carniolan bees 

 showing a tendency to yellow and 

 breed out every trace of gray : or, if 

 he choose, he can breed out every 

 trace of yellow, that is, if he can con- 

 trol the matings. This, of course, 

 will take time, but it can be done. 

 The doing ^of it, however, would not 

 prove anything as to the original col- 

 or of the Carniolans. 



Which strain of these bees would 

 prove to be the best I am not prepar- 

 ed to say. From what little exper- 

 ience I have had along this line at 

 the present writing I would select the 

 yellow. As to ^vhich strain would 

 come the nearer being like the bee 

 which was tirst given the name Carn- 

 iolan, I do not know this, either. In 

 fact, I doubt if anyone knows, or 

 could demonstrate it beyond success- 

 ful contradition. It would require a 

 long and careful investigation in the 

 native laud of these bees to come any 

 where near settling the matter, and 

 even then the chances are the ques- 

 tion might remain unsettled. It is 

 my opinion that steel-gray is the 

 original color, but I may not be cor- 

 rect. There is one point that is fully 

 settled in my mind, and that is, that 

 the Carniolans are much more valu- 

 able than the mass of bee-keepers at 

 the present time seem to think. I am 

 thoroughly convinced that all that is 

 needed is to put them to the test in 

 order to demonstrate their superior 



qualities. I think, too, that the 

 mixture of yellow blood improves 

 them. Here is a field for some of our 

 workers at the experiment stations. 

 Will not some one take it up who has 

 no financial interests in the result, 

 and see what can be developed out of 

 it? 



Let me say in conclusion that I do 

 not have any of these bees for sale, 

 and have no interest in the business 

 of any who has. 



St. Joseph, Mo. 



(From American Bee Journal). 



BEE-KEEPERS NOT SUPFERING 



FROM OVER-PRODUOTION OF 



THE HONEY PRODUCT. 



BY H. F COLEMAN. 



I have read with much interest the 

 article of Mr. Doolittle on page 163, 

 with reference to over-production, but 

 I cannot say that I was greatly sur- 

 prised at the range of prices of honey 

 from the year 1874 to the present — a 

 period of 22 years. It it true that 

 the difference between 28 to 30 cents 

 per pound obtained in 1874, and 13 

 to 15 cents per pound obtained at 

 present, is very large, but in my opin- 

 ion the trouble is not in the over-pro- 

 duction of honey, but in the increased 

 production of other luxuries and 

 necessaries of life, combined with a 

 contraction of the currency of the 

 country. It is perhaps true that there 

 is more honey produced now, than in 

 the year 1874, but not to a greater 

 extent than the increase in the popu- 

 lation of the country, and this being 

 true, everything else being equal, 

 there should be no very great differ- 

 ence in the prices or demand for hon- 

 ey. But everything else is not equal. 

 There has been a great increase in the 



