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Clark County, 0., Convention. 



The bee-keepers of Clark county, O., met 

 in Convention at Springfield, O., Jan. 18, 

 1879, and adopted a constitution, its object 

 being the promotion and encouragement of 

 bee-culture in this and adjoining counties ; 

 membership fee, 50 cents per year for gen- 

 tlemen, ladies free ; time of meeting, first 

 Saturday in each month, at 2 p. m., at the 

 Lagonda House, Springfield, O. 



The following officers were elected : Presi- 

 dent, W. H. Berger ; Vice President, Dr. A. 

 B. Mason ; Secretary and Treasurer, Samuel 

 G. Brown ; Executive Committee, W. W. 

 Burnett, A. J. Smith and J. Tritt. A. J. 

 Smith, W. W. Burnett and D. O. Frantz were 

 named a committee to prepare questions for 

 discussion. 



At the February meeting there was a good 

 attendance, and every one reported their 

 bees as " wintering well." 



Lancaster County (Pa.) Convention. 



Met at Lancaster, Feb., 10, 1879. The 

 meeting was called to order by Vice Presi- 

 dent J. F. Hershey. 



REPORTS. 



The chairman stated that he wintered 

 some 70 colonies in the house he has pre- 

 pared for that purpose. So far he has lost 

 very few bees, 



I. G. Martin said he had lost very few 

 bees— not half a pint per colony; but as 

 the hardest time is still to come, there is no 

 telling how they shall come out in the end. 



S. H. Musselman. None of his colonies 

 have as yet died. 



J. Hurst has 5 colonies, has lost none 

 during the winter. 



John Huber's colonies are all alive so far, 

 and apparently doing well. 



J. H. Mellinger has wintered 8 colonies on 

 their summer stands, and they are all doing 

 well. 



Jonas H. Shank has wintered 7 colonies, 

 and they are all doing well on their summer 

 stands. 



Elias Hershey began the winter with 20 

 colonies on summer stands. They are all 

 apparently doing well. 



FEEDING GLUCOSE. 



Should glucose be fed to bees ? None of 

 the members having tried the article, it 

 could not be spoken of with any certainty. 



The chairman said it had been fed to bees 

 quite extensively. Some writers advocate 

 it, while others are as strongly against it. 

 The weight of evidence was against it. He 

 advised against its use. It would have a 

 tendency to impair confidence in our honey 

 product. It might be fed before bees begin 

 to store their regular supplies. 



I. G. Martin had never tried glucose, but 

 he is not in favor of it. He advised caution 

 in its use. He favored a law against honey 

 adulterations. 



J. F. Hershey said glucose contains so 

 much acid that it often proves fatal to colo- 

 nies. 



I. G. Martin remarked it fed at all it 

 should be mixed with sugar. 



IS IT ADVISABLE TO BUY DOLLAR QUEENS? 



I. G. Martin had bought some of these 

 queens and some proved very good— as good 

 as the high-priced queens. If they can be 

 had of a reliable breeder, they are worth 

 trying. 



Elias Hershey agreed with Mr. Martin. 

 He bought 5 last year, and got 2 good ones ; 

 the other 3 were impure and worse than 

 those which he displaced with them. 



I. G. Martin had 2 pure ones out of 4 ; the 

 others were rather more than half pure. 



J. F. Hershey does not want any dollar 

 queens. He has raised too many himself to 

 believe in them. You run a risk in buying 

 them. They may be alive when you get 

 them or they may not be ; they may be pure 

 or otherwise. He don't raise dollar queens, 

 but when he sells guaranteed queens they 

 are raised from his best queen. The queen 

 is the strong point in a colony ; if she is 

 pure and good, your colonies will be good. 



COMB FOUNDATION. 



I. G. Martin said he had used foundation 

 without wires. Pure wax was desirable ; 

 that which is impure is not acceptable to 

 the bees ; the combs sag, besides. They 

 should be used only about 7 inches deep ; 

 first press them against the bar and then 

 tack them fast. There are other ways, but 

 the latter is the best. 



J. F. Hershey never used comb foundation 

 but will try it this coming season. He will 

 use the comb containing wire. 



WHAT IS THE BEST MODE OF SPRINGING 

 BEES ? 



J. H. Mellinger's method was to feed them 

 strongly until apple-blossom time, or until 

 flowers come, by which time they would 

 be in good condition and throw good swarms. 



1. G. Martin read the following, which 

 gives his method of preparing colonies for 

 their spring and summer work : It is of 

 great importance to have our bees strong in 

 the spring, before the honey harvest. But 

 how shall we get them and the hive filled 

 with brood so early ? My plan is, as soon 

 as spring opens and the bees begin to gather 

 pollen, to examine every colony by lifting 

 the frames out, and if it is weak, shut the bees 

 to one side of the hive with a close-fitting 

 division board, on as many combs as they 

 can cover, so as to keep up the heat neces- 

 sary for brood-rearing. 



If the colony is very weak, I take all the 

 combs out but two, and if it is so weak that 

 the bees cannot cover two combs, then I 

 unite it with another colony. As soon as 

 the queen has filled these combs with eggs, 

 I spread them apart and insert an empty 

 comb between those with brood. In two or 

 three days this comb will be filled also with 

 eggs, and so I keep on inserting empty 

 combs as fast as the queen fills them with 

 eggs, and always in the middle of the brood 

 nest till it is full. The queen will be laying 

 in the center of the brood nest all the time, 

 instead of on the outside of the cluster, 



