Austro-German Exhibition. 



Herr E. Mayerhoeffer, editor of the 

 Austrian Bienen-Zeitung, writes con- 

 cerning the meeting of " The Society 

 of Bee Friends," as follows : 



Onr society intends to hold a general, 

 universal apicultural exhibition, on the 

 occasion of the meeting of the German- 

 Austrian bee-keepers. This exhibition 

 will contain, (1) living bees, (2) bee- 

 hives, apiarian implements and tools ; 

 (3) antiquated bee-hives : not now in 

 use, for the historical section ; (4) honey 

 and wax, and divers preparations of 

 them, likewise honey-cakes of all kinds, 

 honey-wine, etc. ; (5) bee-papers, and 

 bee-literature generally. 



All to be addressed to "the Society of 

 the Bee Friends in Bohemia," in the 

 German language, as follows : 



2ln bte ©efellfcfyctft ber SSienens freunbe 

 in £fl|men, $rag, SRcuftabt 5fto. 747. 



The exhibitors are requested to give 

 their full address, because a catalogue 

 is to be printed in three languages — 

 English, German and French. 



I hope that the bee-keepers of Amer- 

 ica will show their progress in bee- 

 keeping and prove to us that they have 

 widely surpassed the old world in mod- 

 ern apiculture. 



For the exhibition, prizes are fixed 

 by the Austrian government, consist- 

 ing of silver and gold medals. The So- 

 ciety of Bee-Friends will also award 

 medals of gold, silver and bronze, as 

 well as diplomas. R. Mayerhoeffer. 

 »»«■»« 



igl°As correct statistical information 

 concerning the apicultural industry of 

 the United States is very desirable, the 

 President of the Xorth American Bee- 

 Keepers' Society wrote to Gen. LeDuc, 

 Commissioner of the Agricultural Bu- 

 reau at Washington, to induce him to 

 have it fully reported through the com- 

 ing general census-taking. The follow- 

 ing is Gen. LeDuc's reply : 



Washington, May 16, 1879. 

 Thos. G. Newman, Esq. : 



Bear Sir : I have your letter of the 

 13th inst. referring to bee-culture, and 

 am entirely in sympathy with this, as 

 all other matters pertaining to agricul- 

 tural advancement of the country. I 

 will refer your letter with appropriate 

 remarks to the Chairman of the Com- 

 mittee on Census, in the hope that it 

 may receive proper attention. If in 

 any way I can promote the interest of 

 bee-culture I shall be glad to assistyou. 

 Wm. G. LeDuc, Commissioner. 



Moving Bees by Railroad. 



Garafraxa, Ontario, May 12, 1879. 



1. How many colonies of bees will an or- 

 dinary freight car contain ; hives being of 

 usual size for movable frames. 



2. During a journey of say three days, is 

 it necessary to supply them water ? 



3. How much ventilation is it necessary 

 to give them, and how ought the combs to 

 be fixed to insure safe transportation in the 

 fall with winter supplies ? 



Many bees are dead in this part of Canada. 

 My 65 colonies were wintered in the cellar 

 as well as usual, with a loss of one from 

 starvation. The cellar was damp, so 1 agree 

 with your correspondent, Ira Barber, on 

 that point in May No. April 18th they were 

 set out, as they were getting uneasy after 

 nearly six months' confinement. I rather 

 think "chaff" has met with a check, as be- 

 ing the thing for wintering, from accounts 

 in last Gleanings. Query. — Why can't we 

 here in Canada have a Bee-Keepers' Associ- 

 ation ? Where is Rev. W. F. Clarke, of 

 Guelph, D. A. Jones, I. McKay, Tench, 

 Walton, and many others ? Surely material 

 and talent is not wanting to form the nucleus 

 of a good society. 1. C. Thorn, M. D. 



[As Mr. T. F. Bingham has had consider- 

 able experience in shipping bees by rail, we 

 have procured his views on these questions 

 and give them entire, as follows:] 



1. About 70 Langstroth hives will set on 

 the floor of a common freight car. They 

 should fill the car tight from end to end and 

 be firmly wedged, so the car only will re- 

 ceive the jar incident to coupling, stopDing, 

 starting, etc., which are beyond the control 

 of the shipper. If the car is not filled from 

 side to side, something must be nailed to 

 the floor so as to prevent the hives from 

 working out of line. Snaking, either end- 

 wise or side, is to be avoided at all hazards. 

 The frames are to run lengthwise of the car 

 in all cases. The tops of the frames should 

 be nailed or secured firmly in place, and so 

 fastened at the ends or bottom as to prevent 

 side motion. A wire cloth (No. 10 or 12), 

 covering the hive across the top, is a safe 

 plan; the cover being left off entirely. But 

 if two story Langstroth hives are used, the 

 honey-board may be removed and the cover 

 or upper half fastened on tightly, after be- 

 ing provided with eight or ten two-inch 

 holes, where the air will reach them from 

 all sides, and covered with wire cloth. The 

 latter plan does not furnish as much venti- 

 lation, but gives the bees more room to 

 scatter about the sides of the hive and keep 

 cool, and is the plan usually adopted. Air 

 should be supplied at the entrance and 

 through two or three two-inch holes in the 

 bottom of each hive. 



2. It is very difficult to supply water to 

 bees in transit, and not essential if they can 

 be kept cool. 



3. In cool weather, in October, if they 

 were not going south of the Ohio river, 

 much less ventilation would be needed than 

 if going further south. 



An open or stock car is best for shipping 

 bees, as it is cooler. Such a car in motion 

 is very cool. T. F. Bingham. 



