:jo6 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



November 



ordered. For fear of hatching, I re- 

 moved the queen-cells; but being busy 

 with other work, I neglected my now 

 hopelessly queenless colony. When the 

 queen arrived and I started to intro- 

 duce her, what should I find but a lot 

 of laying workers filling every acces- 

 sible cell with from one to six eggs. I 

 was afraid to risk my Italian queen in 

 this colony, so I hunted up the Grossest 

 colony of hybrids in the yard and gave 

 the Italian queen to them and took the 

 hybrid to experiment with. I made a 

 Hutchinson wire-cloth introducing cage, 

 and then took a comb of hatching brood 

 and caged the hybrid queen upon the 

 comb. Soon the cage was full of newly- 

 hatched bees, and the queen had used 

 the cells for eggs, as they were vacated 

 by the young bees. Some of the work- 

 ers were even daring enough to lay on 

 the comb the queen was on. Her 

 chances of reigning supreme in that 

 colony looked slim, indeed. I left her 

 caged for about a week, when I knew 

 that she had the scent of the colony. 

 Toward night I went to the hive very 

 quietly and gently lifted out the comb 

 on which the queen was caged, and as 

 gently removed the cage containing her 

 and her adopted children, using as little 

 smoke in the transaction as possible, so 

 as not to frighten the queen. 



I exp(!cted to see her majesty prompt- 

 ly dethroned; but, lo, and behold, she 

 was at once surrounded by a lot of 

 loyals. This was the last of the laying- 

 workers, asthey closed up business at 

 unce. 



Dr. Miller always advises uniting the 

 volony witli some other one. Now, 

 if this metiiod always cures, it is much 

 h(itter. 



New Coluinbia, 111.. Sei)t. Ki, 1900. 



WHO OWNS THE BEES? 



Mii.i-D.VM. N. I'... Sept. -.1:1. 1900. 

 PiDiToR .Vmekican Hkk-kkki>kk : — If 

 you will decide the following (juestion 

 \ ()u will confer a favoi-: 



First, I would like the readers of your 

 journal to know that I am an amateur 

 in bee-keeping — the season of 19 00 

 being my first. 



About the 20th of June last I lost two 

 swarms of Italian bees in one day which, 

 so far as I have been able to find, nuule 

 an almost direct l^ee-line for McKay's. 

 some thr(^e miles distant, across the St. 

 Croix river, into the United States. 

 Some two weeks previous to this time I 

 had sold to Mr. McKay two first swarms: 

 and upon passing liis place a few days 

 after I had lost the swarms. I called to 

 get the empty hives from which the said 

 swarms werc^ transferred when delivered. 

 Upon going to his yard, I was surprised 

 to see a few Italian bees '•obbing, or 

 removing honey from one of the hives. 

 I watched them until I was satisfied 

 that ihey were coming from the woods, 

 some few hundred yards distant, when 

 I picked up the invaded hives and car- 

 ried them to his barn, which is about 

 twenty-five yard.s from their stands. In 

 a few minutes there was not a bee to be 

 seen. I got into my carriage, and in 

 turning my hor^e around was again 

 surprised to see a swarm — yes, I should 

 say two or three swarms: the air was 

 black with them — coming up the gar- 

 den, and making direct for the hives I 

 was to take. In a few minutes they 

 were all in. or all that could get in, for 

 the swarm was so large the hive would 

 not hold them. I put the hive back on 

 its old stand. In ten days" time this 

 hive sent out a large swarm. Did that 

 swarm have two queens, or did they 

 raise one in that time ? 



There are no Italian bees within 

 twenty miles of this plac(^ but mine. 

 I imported fiv(^ hives last spring. There 

 is no doubt that the swarm evaded the 

 customs and Uncle Sam received no 

 duty. It would be a good thing for the 

 Chinamen if they might as easily do so. 



Now, Mr. Editor, it is for you to de- 

 cide who owns the bees and who pays 

 the duty. I would like to know and ask 

 vou to decide. R. L. Todd. 



