natural selection, should be able to stamp their 

 characteristics on the progeny produced by 

 crossing with another race — one less highly 

 developed. 



I must repeat, that I fully believe our next 

 progressive step is to introduce and commence 

 the dissemination! of the beautiful, valuable 

 bees of Cyprus. I have presented you with 

 the views of the prominent apiculturists who 

 have tested these bees on a large scale and for 

 a number of years — some as many as seven 

 years, and you see they are very generally 

 agreed on all points but one, and that the 

 majority report favorably regarding that point, 

 while from our own experience with Italians 

 we can easily understand how such a diversity 

 of opinion might exist when in reality there 

 existed no serious objection to the race of bees. 



Perhaps we cannot, as that enthusiastic Ger- 

 man, Herr von Natzmer, suggested to his 

 countrymen, "annex Cyprus," yet I think 

 when American bee-culturists fully realize 

 how great is the benefit likely to result from 

 the introduction of this race of bees, they will 

 not be slow in turning to account all practical 

 means at hand to aid in the work. 



Lansing, Mich. Frank Benton. 



Mr. Rice said his neighbors had pro- 

 cured some of the Cyprians from Mr. 

 King, and his inquiries from time to 

 time had convinced him they were very 

 cross, and not in favor with his neigh- 

 bors ; but Mr. King may give further 

 light on the subject. 



Mr. Hulman, Indiana, thought Cy- 

 prian bees were better and handsomer 

 than the Italians, but worse in dispo- 

 sition. 



Charles Dadant, Illinois, doubted 

 there being any pure Cyprian bees in 

 this country. Only two Cyprian queens 

 had yet been brought here. 



D. A. Jones, Ontario, suggested that 

 the members of the Society take meas- 

 to get some pure Cyprians imported. 

 He was desirous to head a list of mem- 

 bers of the Society who would agree to 

 take enough queens to make it pay for 

 some one to import them direct from 

 the Island of Cyprus. 



President Newman stated arrange- 

 ments had been perfected to import 

 pure Cyprians through Mr. Pometta, 

 of Swiss-Italy. Several gentlemen 

 pledged themselves to take one or more 

 Cyprian queens next season, if assured 

 of their purity. 



Prof. Cook remarked that as Mr. Po- 

 metta had promised Mr. Newman to 

 go to the island of Cyprus in the spring 

 and procure queens, no other efforts 

 were now necessary. 



The matter was then laid on the ta- 

 ble till Mr. King (who was not then in) 

 should be able to make some explana- 

 tion as to his Cyprian queens. 



The Secretary read the following 

 paper : 



Wintering Bees, Theoretically and Practi- 

 cally Considered. 



Another year has rolled away since we 

 last exchanged our views at the National 

 Convention at New York ; but in the short 

 space of one year many changes have been 

 wrought ; many lessons learned and many 

 sorrows borne. Another season of rest and 

 of toil of our busy bees has passed along 

 the panorama of time, and its successes and 

 reverses are now recorded on the page of 

 history. Another severe winter has laid 

 lifeless many thousand colonies of our lively 

 insects that were gaily humming at the last 

 National Bee Convention. Bee-keepers who 

 counted their colonies by hundreds last fall, 

 could in the spring find life only in a few 

 solitary hives. The millions of busy work- 

 ers that were so full of vigor and activity, 

 had all succumbed to the hideous monster — 

 death. And ever since, speculation has 

 been rife finding a cause for this high car- 

 nival of death. 



Various causes have been assigned for 

 this dreadful malady : Too few young bees 

 in the fall, bad honey, too much honey, 

 improper ventilation, extreme cold, and 

 long confiement. 



All these theories are somewhat aged, and 

 the two latter, in my judgment, destroy 

 more bees than all the rest combined. Bees 

 can endure very severe cold for a short time ; 

 but when cold after cold spell follows, and 

 continues for weeks and even months, un- 

 less bees have the best protection, it tells 

 upon their condition and dysentery ends the 

 case. You may say, those wintered in-doors 

 do not feel such effects. I say they do. The 

 long continued cold affects the electricity of 

 the atmosphere, and in some way — perhaps 

 unknown to man— other changes take place 

 and our bees suffer. In proof of this theory, 

 I cite the numberless colonies of bees that 

 perished the past winter, that were properly 

 housed. If it was not an atmospheric effect, 

 what was it ? 



In the by-gone days of scientific bee-cul- 

 ture, various plans for successful wintering 

 had been devised ; cellar wintering ; win- 

 tering on stand or in bee-shed with plenty 

 of air ; hiding them in caves and burying 

 in the earth ; wintering under glass, and at 

 last the impracticable and wild plan of sum- 

 mering North and wintering South, which 

 sunk beneath its own weight of impossi- 

 bilities at once. 



Amusing cases also occur, for example : 

 When a man uses a quilt and chaff covering 

 to pass away moisture, and places a tarred 

 paper direct on the quilt ! What good does 

 the chaff do in that case ? He might as 

 well have covered his quilts with a solid 

 board, and a cake of ice would just as well 

 answer then as chaff. Let us use reason 

 and common sense with bees as we do in 

 our other work, and they will fare better. 

 Let us apply principles that are well under- 

 stood, and we will secure the result desired. 



Imagine yourself on a cold winter-night 

 denuded of your clothing and stored away 

 in a wooden box nearly air-tight, would not 

 the moisture emanating from your body 

 condense and form frost on the box, and 



