1871.] 



THE A xM ERIC AN BEE JOUENAL. 



derstood you in that matter, we are most heartily 

 happy to liear it, and hope you will correct the 

 erroneous view of your position they have 

 taken from your writings. 



We, among others, certainly did think, on 

 reading that same appendix, that the obligation 

 you were under to Mr. Langstroth, for the inven- 

 tion there mentioned, was but faintly felt or 

 recognized by you. 



And in your later edition, where you mention 

 the hive that embodies nearly all that is valuable 

 of the Langstroth hive, do you anywhere give 

 him credit for what ?ie did do ? And when you 

 say, in a note, that no one need write you asking 

 if the hive you advise infringes on Mr. Lang- 

 stroth's patent, are we not right in presuming 

 that you do not consider or care whether it does 

 so or not T In short, whenever or wherever you 

 speak of movable comb hives, is it not to be 

 inferred that you do not feel any friendly interest 

 in Mr. Langstroth's success in disposing of his 

 invention ? We need not tell you that your posi- 

 tion in the matter has jierhaps greater weight 

 with the bee-keeping community than that of 

 any other apiarian. 



We owe to you, too, a great debt of gratitude 

 for your "Mysteries Explained," when we were 

 all in the dark ; and, oh, how very happy we 

 should be to see our two great pioneers in our 

 favorite science, Langstroth and Quinby, labor- 

 ing side by side towards one common end. Even 

 now we need your help. Vainly have we looked 

 for something from Quinby on non-flying fertili- 

 zation. Cannot his practical common sense 

 aid us ? 



If we have quoted anything amiss or wrong 

 from Mr. Q.'s last book, we hope it will be ex- 

 cused, as it was burned with the Quinby hive ; 

 but the general impression that the public have 

 received, is too often mentioned and quoted to 

 be a mistake. 



On page 227, something is said of the yield of 

 honey from the 5.051 hives of the bee-keepers at 

 the Convention in Cincinnati. We then thought, 

 from what we could learn, that perhaps the 

 greater part of those hives were old box hives 

 that had much better been left out of the state- 

 ment. The yield, Mr. Quinby mentious, was 

 less than seventy-five pounds to the hive ; and 

 we have several apiaries here in Ohio, of consid- 

 erable size, that gave last year twice that 

 amount — that is, with the melextractor. 



Two queens in one lave reminds us of a little 

 incident. We have sometimes told our assistant 

 that she would see queens where there were 

 none ; and one day she declai-ed she had found 

 the queen of a hive when we had her on another 

 frame ; we were about laughing at her, when a 

 glance for ourselves convinced us that she 

 really had a queen too, and a laying one. The 

 frame this queen was on was carefully set in the 

 upper story of the hive, and placed, perhaps, a 

 yard or two from the old hive, while we occupied 

 ourselves, about ten minutes, in preparing a 

 cage for the young one. A lady visitor just then 

 coming in, we mentioned the circumstance, and 

 proposed to show her tlie young queen. As the 

 stock were pure Italians, no bees had left the 

 frame, and on looking on both sides and seeing 



no que6n, another laugh came in, for sure enough 

 no queen was there. We suggested that our 

 glance had been so hasty we were both mistaken, 

 for if there had been a queen, where was she ? So 

 the hive was closed up, but it was no use arguing 

 with a woman ; she saw her, she knew she 

 did. We suppose our lady readers know that 

 settled it. 



It was so near dark then, that we did not look 

 again (just to please her) until next day, when 

 lo, behold there indeed was her "ladyship," 

 close beside her royal mother (one of Grimm's 

 best), assisting in that highly important and ma- 

 ternal duty of laying eggs, as a dutiful daughter 

 should do. We were so much pleased with tlie 

 idea of an extra laying queen (it was in April) 

 that we did not hear distinctly some remarks 

 about "being positive," "theory," and "jH-ac- 

 tice." 



Well, the young queen "just fitted" a queen- 

 less hive, and after proper ceremonies was re- 

 ceived very graciously. Next day, on looking 

 for Q'^^i^, we were much chagrined to find that 

 our volatile young majesty was off again, leaving 

 no clue (nor eggs). In answer to the suggestion 

 that she had "gone to see her mother again," 

 we with sage wisdom replied that "laying 

 queens never left their hives only under the 

 swarming impulse." 



"Just look and see, for the fun of it I" Like 

 a woman for all the world ! But, as we found 

 her there, on the same comb with her mother 

 again, we shall be oblige' I to be less positive, 

 in future, in regard to laying down rules in 

 bee-culture. This time we put the old queen in 

 our queenless hive, where she sedately dispenses 

 ju.stice (or eggs), much to the satisfaction of 

 all parties, especially 



Notice. 



P. S. — We are now reminded that there may 

 be two laying queens in every hive we open, in 

 spite of all the arguments and theories wo can 

 bring forward. 



P. S. No. 2.— Why was the extra queen raised ? 

 The old one is all right. She came from Mr. 

 Grimm last fall. Cannot some Yankee study u]) 

 the conditions, so that we can make them do it 

 at pleasure? 



About one year ago, we found an extra queen 

 in a hive, which we used elsewhere ; and the old 

 one did not fail, nor was she replaced until late 

 in the fall. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Tomato Honey. 



To each pound of tomatoes allow the grated 

 peel of a lemon and six fresh peach leave's. Boil 

 them slowly till they are all to pieces, then 

 squeeze them through a bag. To each pound 

 of liquid allow a pound of sugar and the juice of 

 one lemon. Boil them together half an hour, or 

 till they become a thick jelly. Then put it into 

 glasses, and lay double tissue paper over the top. 

 It will scarcely be distinguished from real 

 honey. 



