THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



Ill 



many cases when they do so, it is 

 nothing move or less than hyhrids 

 that they are chissing as pure Ital- 

 ian bees. This pemdiarity is not 

 alone confined to southern bee- 

 keepers, but is as often applicable 

 to nortliern and western beekeepers 

 and more so, compared to tiie num- 

 ber there are in the two different 

 localities who claim to have pure 

 Italian bees. 



I think Mr. Heddon's pet ( ?) 

 hybrids are and according to liis 

 own classing of them, well worthy 

 to go along with his Revolutionary 

 Hive ( ?) and bettor suited to his 

 own purposes than to those of any 

 other person. 



CkMshoro, Wayne Co., N. C 



For the American ApicuUurist. 



NOTES FROM ENGLAND. 



Samuel Simmins. 



In your comments upon Mr. S. 

 Cushman's review of my pamphlet, 

 you state that there are many 

 points upon which you do not agree 

 with myself. Well, sir, that is as 

 it should be, and I am glad to 

 know that it is so. How little 

 progress would be made in this 

 world did we all think alike ; in 

 fact we should have come to a 

 "dead lock" long since. Neverthe- 

 less, I earnestly hope that any 

 difference of opinion among our- 

 selves may not be the result of any 

 misunderstanding or prejudice ; but 

 rather let it be caused by varying 

 experiences carried out upon differ- 

 ent lines, and so resulting in con- 

 clusions being drawn by each, ac- 

 cording to his own capabilities, his 

 surroundings, or powers of obser- 

 vation. 



PREVENTION OF SWARMING. 



Here, allow rae to say you have 

 somehow got upon the wrong 

 track. You. cousidcr that I "pre- 

 vent swarming by often remov- 



ing some of the combs near the 

 entrance of the hive, and com- 

 j)eUi7ig the bees to fill the space 

 with new combs." The fact is that 

 the beekeeper's skill is shown, not 

 by often meddling witli the stock 

 chamber, but by managing that the 

 V)ees are kept so busy in the sec- 

 tions above that the combs between 

 brood-nest and entrance are never 

 finished. At the same time hav- 

 ing in mind the many long hives 

 in use in this country, with our 

 small standard frame, it will be 

 found on referring to my pamphlet, 

 p. 12, that I state, "if the bees are 

 kept busy in the sections, very 

 little comb will be built in the 

 empty frames at front." At the 

 same time I add this caution, " on 

 no account should any of such l)o 

 allowed to become fully wor!;ed 

 out." I am quite aware that the 

 small empty frames on the same 

 level as the brood-nest, would be 

 more likely to get filled than deeper 

 frames so arranged, or any frames 

 where the whole set with starters 

 can be worked under the brood 

 nest. 



For the treatment of hives such 

 as are in general use in America, 

 turn to p. 15, There you will ob- 

 serve that the empty chamber is to 

 be placed under the brood-nest be- 

 fore the bees get the desire to 

 swarm, and then " as soon as the 

 weather is favorable, put on sec- 

 tions all filled with new combs ; 

 remove as fast as completed, add 

 others, and the lower combs will 

 not be completed all the season." 

 Yes, sir, this is solid fact, as proved 

 by my own experience and tliat of 

 many others who have given their 

 unsolicited testimony in favor of 

 the plan. 



Your largest producers of ex- 

 tracted honey will tell you they 

 liave little difficulty in preventing 

 the issue of swarms, by giving the 

 bees plenty of store combs in ad- 

 vance. By so doing they have been 



