about one-half ; thought style of hive of but 

 little consequence. 



Mr. Lewis Coe thought that in winter 

 quarters, whether cellars or houses, it all 

 depended upon a proper regulation of the 

 temperature. 



Rev. E. L. Briggs had studied bees for 

 about 30 years, and in 20 years of cellar win- 

 tering did not think he had lost to exceed 1 

 per cent.; he never lost a colony in a cellar, 

 when they were in good condition when 

 placed there ; always placed them in the 

 cellar when dry and before cold weather set 

 in; never let cellar get below 32°, and never 

 left it at that ; let it average 35° to 40°, and 

 if bees are healthy none will be lost. He 

 described the manner of ventilating hives 

 and cellars; favored the Langstroth hive, 

 and considered bees a very profitable in- 

 vestment. 



Mr. Clement thought a double-walled hive 

 could be made with as little expense as a 

 Langstroth. 



Marshall Farnsworth did not put his 40 

 colonies in the cellar until the first part of 

 January, and as a result now has only l left 

 and that only about a handful. 



Major Allen said that he was a new hand 

 in the bee-keeping business, but what expe- 

 rience he had had led him to favor cellar 

 wintering. 



On motion, adjourned to 1:30 p. m. 



AFTERNOON SESSION. 



Comb Foundation and Its Uses. 



Mr. Win. Clement never thought bee- 

 keeping an assured success until he com- 

 menced using foundation; at first it sagged, 

 but he had obviated trouble on that score by 

 manner of putting on ; would not recom- 

 mend filling an empty hive in readiness for 

 a young swarm coming off naturally, on ac- 

 count of the bees clustering upon it and 

 either sagging or pulling it entirely down; 

 thought 75 cent's worth to each hive a very 

 paying investment. 



Extracted vs. Comb Honey. 



Mr. A. N. VanCamp preferred the ex- 

 tracted to comb honey, for the reason that 

 he did not like to be compelled to chew and 

 digest beeswax ; thought it the most profit- 

 able way to run an apiary for a large yield, 

 and on the score of profit it had been satis- 

 factorily demonstrated; great caution, how- 

 ever, was required to be used in not ex- 

 tracting unripe or uncapped honey, and by 

 extracting so much as to rob the bees of 

 their supply. 



Mr. D. D. Palmer thought it best to con- 

 sider the market and produce honey in 

 the shape the place of sale demands ; was 

 certain that there was more money in ex- 

 tracted than in comb honey. 



Artificial and Natural Swarming;. 



Mr. W. T. Kirk advocated dividing early, 

 before queen cells are started. 



Mr. D. U. Palmer said the wish of the 

 owner must be considered. He would not 

 divide until he had a queen raised, then 

 make the division and introduce the queen. 



Rev. Mr. Briggs and Mr. Win. Clement 

 each favored the convention wfth their way 

 of dividing. 



Mr. J. K. Brown preferred natural to arti- 



ficial swarming ; started last season with 50 

 colonies, permitted them to swarm once 

 each only, and from each new colony got 

 from 38 to 40 lbs. of surplus honey, and from 

 each old one 2 or 3 timesJthat quantity. 



Process of Queen Rearing;. 



Rev. Mr. Briggs recommended rearing 

 queens for the purpose of having them 

 ready to introduce when dividing, and gave 

 his plan of raising them. 



Feeding in Early Spring. 



Major Allen had had but little experience 

 in that line ; had seen Shuck's boss bee- 

 feeder advertised, and sent for 4 to try them, 

 but they set every other colony in his apiary 

 on a " boss " robbing expedition. On being 

 interrogated, he stated that he had placed 

 them on the hive in the morning; he still 

 believed in feeding, and the robbing might 

 not have been the fault of the feeder. He 

 used for feeding rye meal' and honey. 



Mr. Geo. Parks had done a good deal of 

 feeding, but lacked sufficient experience to 

 give any recommendations. 



Mr. D. D. Palmer would not feed at all in 

 spring, bis locality did not require it, but 

 what experience he had led him to the be- 

 lief that his bees were Grahainites. 



Mr. J. K. Brown had fed both honey and 

 unbolted flour, and believed it beneficial. 



Rev. Mr. Briggs would use Shuck's or 

 any other bee-feeder in the night time ; he 

 believed in supplying pollen early artifi- 

 cially, to force breeding, which can be done 

 by feeding a few pounds of flour daily ; he 

 recommended placing it behind the apiary 

 and at a little distance, so as not to attract 

 the attention of strange or robber bees in 

 front of the hives in the apiary. 



Does Bee-Keeping Pay Financially 1 



Mr. Marshall Farnsworth, on being called 

 for, said he did not think it had with him, 

 owing to his having lost 38 out of 40 colonies 

 the past winter. 



Mr. G. F. Brayton said that while he had 

 lost 23 out of 30 colonies the past winter, he 

 had still been the gainer, and did not feel 

 like having the "blues" about it. In the 

 way of gain, after the death of the bees, he 

 had hives, honey and comb left him, which 

 would sell for nearly as much as a live 

 colony. 



Rev. Mr. Briggs believed that they would 

 pay not less than 100 per cent, annually on 

 the amount invested. 



Mr. D. D. Palmer, notwithstanding his 

 unfavorable experience the past winter, 

 considered bee-keeping profitable. Other 

 members expressed the same opinion. 



Adjourned to 8 o'clock p. m. 



EVENING SESSION. 



On reconvening, Rev. E. L. Briggs was 

 introduced, and favored the convention 

 with a very able address. (The address was 

 published on page 318 in the June number 

 of the American Bee Journal.— Ed.) 



After which Mr. Thos. G. Newman, of 

 Chicago, editor of the American Bee 

 Journal, was called upon for a few re- 

 marks. He said that if we were going to be 

 successful in bee-keeping we must prepare 

 ourselves therefor, as we would for any- 



