252 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



[May, 



[For the Araeiican Bee Journal.] 



Doctors' Differences— Swarms and Strong Stocks. 



The beginner in beekeeping meets with much 

 to perplex him in the contradictory statements 

 of those looked upon as " masters." I had con- 

 cluded that on hiving a swarm, it was desirable 

 to have it on its stand as soon as possible, other- 

 wise the bees wovdd mark the new location and 

 adheie to it. In February number J. Butler re- 

 commends that swarms intended to be returned 

 should be kept hived until after sunset. Will he 

 oblige us by stating why this is necessary, and 

 what is done with them from the time of hiving 

 until they are returned? Will he also state 

 what basket hives are ? I have also thought 

 that the great desideratum for safe wintering is 

 strong stocks, but now comes Mr. Hosmer, at 

 the Cleveland Convention, with the theory that 

 all stocks should be reduced to one-quart, pre- 

 paratory to going into winter quarters. To suc- 

 ceed, I presume this small quantity of bees must 

 have peculiar management. 



Enquirer. 



Carlton, Ontario, March, 1873. 



Glycerine as Bee Feed and to Prevent Candying. 



Mr. Editor :— In December number you state 

 that glycerine is useful for the above purposes. 

 What should be its price? In one town, I am 

 told, 40 to 7.5 cents per pound, and am assured 

 that both samples are pure" If glycerine will 

 prevent sugar syrup from candying, might it not 

 be added to the honey for the same purpose? I 

 lind that honey heated by being kept in boiling 

 water, does not candy as long as it is kept in a 

 dark vessel, but on its being drawn in glass ves- 

 sels it candies directly. 



Enquirer. 



Ontario, Canada, February, 1872. 



Fertilizing Queens in Confinement, 



Messrs. Editors : — You will allow me through 

 the columns of your May number to answer the 

 queries of brothers Nesbit and Gardner, in re- 

 gard to fertilizing queens in confinement. I 

 would have done so througli the April number, 

 but my Mai'ch number did not come to hand in 

 time, not having received it until the 14th, and 

 you require all communications to be sent in by 

 the 1.5tli. loth brothers Nesbit and Gardner 

 ask about the same questions in substance. 

 1st. Why do you place sweetened water in old 

 combs on a shelf in the lop end of the fertilizing 

 room, if the workers are not allowed to fly ? 

 Answer : The drones become weary of flying, 

 and very many of them will alight on this shelf, 

 and there find something to refresh them ; we 

 are apprized of the fact that dronts are not in 

 the habit of taking refreshments from home. 

 2d. Wiiy do I plank or board up the sides of the 

 house two feet ? Answer : We do not think a 

 house six feet high is high enough ; does not 



give sufficient height for them to fly, unless you 

 run your tent pole high in the centre. A smooth 

 dirt floor might do as well as boards ; we prefer 

 the boards. 3d. Why do we put the dark calico 

 over the top? Answer : To prevent the direct 

 rays of the sun from creating too great heat upon 

 the nucleus boxes. If the house could be ar- 

 ranged in the shade (not loo much) of a tree or 

 trees, common brown cotton may be used. 

 4th. Is there no chances of queens entering the 

 wrong nucleus, and destroying each other? 

 Answer : We never had one killed in this way ; 

 we mark our boxes differently, by painting, or 

 by pieces of different colored paper. Now, Mr. 

 Editor, we have, we believe, answered the En- 

 quirers satisfactorily, and will simply add, that 

 all apiarians who decide to buihl a fertilizer ac- 

 cording to my plan, must carry out the ichole plan 

 as I have attempted to fully describe it through 

 the journals. There is no doubt but some will 

 fail, as I have before stated. Men love to add to 

 or take fi-oni what they read ; my motto is to 

 fully carry out what I read, and if I fail at first, 

 I consider all the circumstances, and fi-equently 

 find that 1 was to blame. We are aware that 

 there are a few doubting Thomas's We are 

 aware tliat there are men who will donbt even 

 what their eyes see. Such men are presump- 

 tuous, and do not like to admit the fact that 

 other men can experiment and bring new things 

 to light. The world is full of such. 



Will. R. King. 

 Franldin, Ky. 



• [For the Aiueiican Bee Journal.] 



On Sugar Syrup for Wintering Bees. 



In March number, pagj 212, Mr. L. L. Lang- 

 stroth says : Novice's observation shown to me 

 by Mr. Wagner, that bees when wintered on 

 sugar syrup, in their first flight do not discharge 

 their faeces like tliose fed on honey, is entirely 

 new to me, &c. Novice, in his article on page 

 198, says : "'We have read in the .Journal of some 

 such occurrence, but have always had a little 

 doubt about their first flight in spring not show- 

 ing some discolored spots on the clean snow, but 

 now we iiave verified it sure." We were the one 

 that Novice did not believe, or, in other words, 

 the writer that he somewhat doubted. When 

 we made such a statement in the American Bee 

 Journ.al (we think it was in the American Bee 

 Journal, but are not sure), we expected that but 

 very few would believe us ; but it was a fact, and 

 belief or unbelief does not alter facts. The cry 

 now comes up from any quantity of correspon- 

 dents, that their bees are all dead, or have the bee 

 cholera, &c., &c. The reader is already aware, 

 if he has followed us in the American Bee Jour- 

 nal, that we do not believe that bee cholera, or 

 dysentery as it is called, is a contagious disease. 

 It is caused by improper food and improper ven- 

 tilation. Remove the cau.se ; allow the bees a 

 jjurifying flight, and there is no more disease. 

 Last spring was very dry in some localities, and 

 there was large quantities of insect honey dew. 

 In the absence of other forage, the bees stored 



