1872.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



123 



2. I thank you for the translated articles on 

 the varieties of the Linden. Besides those men- 

 tioned, there is still another variety, known as 

 Stone-lime or Linden, peculiar to the forests of 

 Lithuania (in Russian Poland) from which the 

 celehrated honey known as Liepic is gathered. 

 This honey readily commands (from crowned 

 heads and the nobility) two ducats, or say two 

 dollars a pound. The wax is of peculiar white- 

 ness, the flavor is exquisite (described as uniting 

 vanilla, thyme, and mint), and is not so heating 

 as ordinary honey, this makes it especially valu- 

 able as a vehicle in pharmacy. How mentions 

 that in the neighborhood of Kovmo (where this 

 honey is produced) the inhabitants have no reg- 

 ular bee-hives, every peasant is at liberty to go 

 into the forest, even without the direct permission 

 of his chief, and select the trees for his bees ; 

 the tree is hollowed out to the proper size, the 

 bees are put in and left without much fear of any 

 I'obbers, except the bear ; for the law is so severe 

 that few have the temerity to expose themselves 

 to its penalty, for any one detected in robbing a 

 hive is liable to have the omphalos (let us call it) 

 taken out, and his entrails wrapped round and 

 round the very ti'ee he has robbed. 



3. These cool evenings in October make the 

 necessity for Novice's alighting boards particu- 

 larly manifest. The bees tempted out by the 

 warmth of the mid-day sun, and the attractions 

 of the Golden Rod and the countless fall flow- 

 ers, are very apt to keep up their work until after 

 sunset, and becoming somewhat chilled as they 

 return "heavy laden," are liable to fall in front 

 of the hive if they miss the entrance, and unless 

 this alighting board is there to receive them, 

 hundreds, perhaps, in a large apiary, we might 

 say thousands, "fall to rise no more." 



4. Coming back to the Linden, shall not every 

 one of us who has the time and opportunity, be 

 assimilated by the example of Novice, to com- 

 mence at once to have a Linden orchard. How 

 small the trouble compared with the grand re- 

 sults for ourselves, and for our children after us. 

 When we think of the countless tons of honey 

 that might be produced through many genera- 

 tions from these beautiful trees, a double signifi- 

 cance is given to the exclamation that Sir Walter 

 Scott puts in the mouth of an old Scotch laird : 

 "Be aye sticking in a tree, Jock ! it'll be 

 growing while ye abe sleeping." 



5. I have read carefully all that has been said 

 (not only in the last number, but throughout 

 the year) in reference to the wintering of bees, 

 and whilst I have no practical experience in this 

 matter, it is very evident to me, that the great 

 mortality among the bees is mainly due to over- 

 kindness ; the bee, like the rest of God's crea- 

 tures, needs a certain amount of freedom, and 

 this shutting up in cellars and other winter 

 quarters, is entirely at war with the nature and 

 habits of our little friends. Even in the coldest 

 climates, a day comes now and then during win- 

 ter, when they might and would take a "purify- 

 ing flight ; " but, shut up in close quarters, they 

 are obliged either to "resist the call of nature," 

 or else to do what is so opposite to all cleanly 

 creatures, "foul their own nests,'" and then dys- 

 entery is the obvious result. I firmly believe 



that if bees were treated as Gallup advises (.4. 

 B. J., October, 1872, pp. 74, 75), they would win- 

 ter well, even in Siberia ! but you must be care- 

 ful to follow Gallup's advice fully and entirely, 

 for, depend upon it, if you fill the top of your 

 hive with an absorbent material, without provi- 

 ding openings above for the escape of the redun- 

 dant moisture, you are only giving additional 

 point to the wit and wisdom of the old doctor, 

 who, in denouncing the administration of opium 

 for colic, said it was like locking the thief up in 

 the house to do all possible mischief ! B. 



Chataucpua County Beekeepers in Council. 



The Chatauqua County, N. Y., Beekeepers 1 

 Association convened at Mayville, September 3d. 

 President J. M. Beebe, of Casadaga, in the 

 chair. In the absence of the secretary, Mr. O. 

 C. Blodgett, of Pomfret, was appointed secre- 

 tary pro tern. 



Mr. Beebe opened the meeting with a few ap- 

 propriate remarks. "He hoped the speakers 

 would confine their remarks to the points in 

 question ; rambling discussions are idle, and 

 our time is too limited to-day to admit of them." 

 He then read a paper that went to show the 

 amount of honey accumulated each day by a 

 swarm of bees : 



At twelve o'clock on the 27th day of June 

 I hived a young swarm of bees and immedi- 

 ately placed them upon scales, and found their 

 weight to be $h pounds. My object in weighing 

 them was to ascertain how much a medium 

 swarm, would weigh, and to know how much 

 honey they gathered from day to day. 



I have kept them on the scales since the 27th 

 of June up to the first of the present month, in 

 order that I might more fully understand to what 

 extent the wind influences the production of 

 honey. I have for years noticed that when the 

 wind was in some directions the bees were in- 

 active, and upon examining clover blossoms, I 

 found they were nearly destitute of honey, while, 

 when the wind was in other directions and the 

 general weather the same, the clover yielded 

 honey, and was freely visited by bees. I find all 

 honey-yielding plants are in a like manner af- 

 fected by the wind. 



Not feeling satisfied with near observations, I 

 determined to try old Fairbank's platform, and 

 have accordingly kept a record from day to day, 

 of the direction of the wind, state of the weather, 

 and amount of honey gathered each day, which 

 is as follows : 



June 27. >» day, wind south, rainy ; honey gath- 

 ered \i pound. 



June 28. Very warm, wind south ; honey gathered 

 1)4 pounds. 



June 29. Very warm, wind south ; honey gathered 

 1% pounds. 



June 30. Warm and clear, wind southwest; honey 

 gathered 2>o pounds. v 



July 1. Warm and clear with high west winds ; 

 honey gathered 2 pounds. 



July 2. Warm and clear, wind southwest ; honey 

 gathered 2% pounds. 



