ri04 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



November 



inches. I am not prepared to state just 

 now what I sliould consider a fair rate 

 to pay for "Eggs by Mail." 



I at once began to receive batches of 

 <!ggs from all over — worker and drone 

 —and in a very few weeks I had as 

 good as all the finest breeding queens 

 in the country in my own yard to breed 

 from and to criss-cross as I saw fit — a 

 great advantage to any apiarist who is 

 in for improving the general standard 

 of bees. 



■ Every piece of comb sent arrived in 

 good condition with but few eggs dis- 

 lodged. From each piece I secured 

 from eighteen to thirty fine cells and 

 out of the entire lot only a half dozen 

 were lost in mating and introduction. 

 All the young queens were as strong 

 and vigorous as any I ever reared. 



In this letter I will not go into details 

 of proceeding to obtain the best results 

 r'rom "Eggs by Mail:" will leave that for 

 a future theme. 



With the kind permission of the edi- 

 f.or, I wish to thank Messrs. Pridgen, 

 ijuiran and Laws for their special acts 

 of kindness and their prompt responses 

 Ml actual aid in theexpt^riments. 



I tell you, Mr. Editor, when the facts 

 are all known and it becomes a general 

 practice for queen breeders (and honey- 

 men too, as for that) to exchange eggs 

 /or the betterment of stock, it will be a 

 •MO thing for apiculture in general. 

 Don't you think so, too? 



••Swarthmore." Pa., Sept. 2i). 1900. 



-^ 



THE CARNIOLAN AGAIN. 



Its Superiority Strikingly Shown in a 

 California Apiary. 



HV H. M. .lAMKSON. 



I PROMISED to wiite you something 

 about Carniolan liees. Well, I will 

 say this: VVitliin the last two 

 years I have received Italian queens 

 from six different breeders in the East. 

 These queens were represented in most 

 cases as being very prolific, gn^at honey 

 satheiers etc. Tiiev have all liad a fair 



trial, and so far have proven themselves 

 utterly worthless, as compared with the 

 Carniolons. Some of these Ligurians 

 have built up fairly well and stored a 

 little more than needed for their sub- 

 sistance, while others have remained 

 weak and must be fed for the coming 

 winter. They never leave their hives 

 before sunrise and retire early. In the 

 spring time they are slow to build up in 

 time for orange or other early bloom. 



What are the Carniolans doing while 

 these loafers are asleep? Well, I will 

 tell you. In late winter or early spring 

 they start a strong brood-nest on the 

 north side of the hive, and when early 

 flowers come, they are ready with a 

 good force for work. When orange 

 bloom and other great honey-flowers 

 come, they are there with a grand army. 

 They go forth at break of day and work 

 till night-fall. What Mr. Doolittle and 

 others have written about Carniolans 

 in no sense applies to theses bees. See 

 editorial comments in Review for 

 August, on what C. W. Post, of Canada, 

 has to say about Carniolans. As Mr. 

 Post has it, it is absolutely true of mine. 

 Editor Hutchinson says : "All of this 

 illustrates the great difference there is 

 in stock." Mr. Hutchinson should 

 have used the word race in lieu of stock; 

 but that would not be riding his hobby. 

 Swarming! The bees have shown no 

 more inclination to swarm than have 

 the Italians, though they have stored a 

 surplus of fifty pounds or more to each 

 colony over that of the others. 



Some of these fair daughters of 

 "Eetaly" will luxuriate the coining 

 winter on Carniolan white-capped 

 honey. 



Large hives! Yes. these black bees 

 must hav(» large hives : and perhaps 

 two eight-frame bodies are not too 

 large, though I believe the Draper barn 

 to be about right. Tiiey must have a 

 cool situation. On the 4th of May last, 

 we had a gentle rain throughout the 

 entire day: the Carniolans were out 

 at work the whole day. with not a yel- 



