1872.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



271 



position to detract from bis claims as inventor 

 and patentee." 



He says "Mr. William Stratton, of West 

 Troy, whom I visited the same day, gave Mr. 

 llazen credit of having a good hive for box 

 honey. But though he had one hundred and 

 forty stocks in bis apiary, I did not see one of Mr. 

 Hazen's hives among them." "Mr. Ilazeu'shive, 

 (he then called it the Eureka) is nothing more 

 in effect than a common box hive, about the size 

 and shape of one used and recommended by Mr. 

 Quinby, with boxes applied to the top and sides. 



Mr. W. M. Stratton, to whom he refers, be- 

 lieves it to possess advantages over any hive he 

 has ever seen, in the following particulars : 1st. 

 For approaching the sheets of comb at both 

 sides of the hive and removing them latterally, 

 if movable frames are used. 



2d. From the number and arrangement of the 

 surplus boxes securing the greatest amount of 

 surplus honey. 



'3(1 For perfect security of warmth for win- 

 tering upon the stand. 



4th. From the great simplicity of its construc- 

 tion. Wm. iM. Stratton. 



Mr. Quinby writes as follows : 



St. Johksville, N. Y., Sejyt. 7, 1868. 



"I have visited Mr. Hazen's apiary and exam- 

 ined his Eureka Hive. In the arrangement of 

 the large number of surplus boxes in close prox- 

 imity to the main body of the hive, I think it 

 greatly superior to any patent hive with which I 

 am acquainted. And if he would apply the 

 movable combs to which it is adapted, and a de- 

 vice to prevent swarms leaving, the principle 

 would be nearer what I want in a bee hive, than 

 any I ever saw." 



M. Quinby. 



I wish to add, I am not aware of ever ex- 

 pressing an opinion unfavorable to the rights of 

 Mr. Langstroth in my life, as intimated liy Mr. 

 Hunt. I have written that with the Eureka 

 Hive, bars or frames may be used at the pleasure 

 of the operator. I have no patent claim cov- 

 ering either. I think one or the other should be 

 used. For the use of the mel-extractor movable 

 frames are a necessity. If one keeps but a small 

 number of colonies and does not manipulate 

 them, but simply hives them when they swarm, 

 and puts on and removes the boxes when re- 

 quired, bars are probably quite as good as 

 frames. 



.Tasper Hazen. 



Albany, N. T., April 16, 1872. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Malt as Bee Food. 



As the season is approaching for feeding bees, 

 I will I'elate a fact in that connection that may 

 be of some benefit to beekeepers : 



In the spring of 1870 I had occasion to visit a 

 distillery, as a part of my duties as United States 

 Assistant Asses.sor, and knowing that rye was 

 frequently made use of for the purpo.se of distil- 



lation, I applied to the proprietor for a small 

 quantity lo feed my bees on. He informed me 

 that he had no rye, but he could furnisli me 

 with some ground malted barley which he 

 thought would be preferable, as it contained 

 more sacharine matter. I accepted the offer, and 

 as the weather was pleasant and the bees all out 

 hunting for something to do, I immediately pro- 

 cured a large cheese box toj) and sup])lied them 

 with a quart placed convenient to the apiary, 

 and in a few minutes it had disappeared, and in 

 the course of a few hours they had consumed a 

 half gallon more. I had never seen anything to 

 equal it before. They would dive into the flour 

 and roll and tumble until they were filled with 

 it, legs, head, and everything about them, and 

 then crawl to some convenient place, and work 

 it into balls iind return to Iheir hives. It re- 

 minded me more of a flock of wild pigeons flut- 

 tering in water to drink. They will continue 

 to eat it until the fruit blos.soms. They will not 

 notice the rye flour so long as there is any barley 

 within their reach. 



G. B. Long. 

 Ilopkinson, Ky. 



A Bit of Experience. 



Mr. Editor :— The season of 1871 proved to 

 be a poor one in this vicinity. Tire white clover 

 yielded an ordinary amount of honey, but the 

 Linden bloom was injured by the late frost, and 

 yielded but a small amount of honey ; then fol- 

 lowed a month in which the bees gathered noth- 

 ing. About the 20th of August, wliat we call 

 the English Smartweed began yielding honey ; 

 this plant I consider equal to buckwheat. From 

 this plant my bees obtained their winter supply. 

 The continued dry weather prevented the bees 

 from raising their fall brood, thus leaving tlie 

 stocks in a critical condition as regards the 

 young bees. I determined to stimulate them up 

 to brooding in order to have them in a jiroper 

 condition for wintering. Therefore, I com- 

 menced feeding them with the poorest quality of 

 honey, making one part water. I fed them tlius 

 one week. Some refused to raise brood. I find 

 that every one of those colonies are dead that 

 did not use all the honey. 



Out of sixty-eight colonies I have thirty-five 

 good strong colonies. As to the cause of them 

 dying, I attribute it, in a very great degree to 

 the honey. Had I extracted all the unsealed 

 honey I believe they would not all have died, 

 and had I fed the best quality of honey there 

 would have been better results — thus we are all 

 learning dear lessons never to be forgotten. 



J. N. "Walter. 



Winclie'iter, Van Bur en Co., Iowa. 



The mortality among bees has been very great 

 this last winter. Many colonies have starved ; 

 many have frozen from excessive cold and 

 weakened numbers, and thousands have died 

 from dysentery. 



