1873.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



255 



Then again, when hees are to be wintered in-doors, 

 and the frames made to stand on the bottom board, 

 as we have them, the sides and top can be taken off 

 and piled up somewhere. The frames now consti- 

 tuting the hive take much less room, not more than 

 the old box hive. 1 have wintered two hundred col- 

 onies in that hive, in a room ten by eighteen feet and 

 seven deep. We can put as many in these frames 

 in the same space. We can all comprehend that a 

 space, large or small, well packed with bees, is 

 warmer than one half full. The two past winters 

 have taught us lessons in keeping bees warm that we 

 would do well to heed. 



After all, those with too little experience to know 

 what is wanted in a bee hive, will not be profited by 

 seeing which is cheapest. 



M. QUINBY. 



St. Johmville, N. Y. 



<-»-• 



Eeports, Experiences, and Opinions. 



Rev. L. L. Langstroth, of Oxford, 0., writes : 

 " Bees in this vicinity have wintered badly, — 

 many have lost all their stocks. Owing to sickness 

 in my family, mine were not housed until January 

 27th. On the morning of that day, seeing from the 

 United States weather report, that the temperature 

 at 10:30 P. M., the previous night, was 19° below 

 zero at Breckenridge, Minnesota, I determined to 

 house them. On examination, five colonies were 

 found dead. The others, fifty-eight in all, were 

 carried into a warm kitchen, and from that into a 

 dry cellar. They were set out on the 6th of March, 

 all alive and in good health, one only being queen- 

 less. 



"They were fed in September on sugar syrup, 

 none of which candied. The proportions were 

 about 45 pounds of Coffee A. sugar to two and a 

 half gallons of water — the mixture being brought 

 just to the boiling point." 



A. Hoagland, of Sharon, Mercer County, Penn- 

 sylvania, writes, March 19th, 1873 : 



" I see a brief report, in the March number, by 

 Mr. D. M. Miller, of this county, stating that the 

 bee business had gone up Salt River. It may be so 

 with him, but I think if Mr. Miller would look 

 about him he would find himself mistaken. We do 

 not feel discouraged ; I have seen darker days than 

 the present. I have lost but five swarms in the 

 last two years. My bees pay, even in the poorest 

 seasons. Wake up, bee-keepers ! Don't be discour- 

 aged ; 'there's a good time coming.' " 



E. Cobb, of Cornersville, Tenn., writes : 



"Experience has taught me that young swarms 

 should be well shaded, so as to keep the hive cool ; 

 and if it be a time honey cannot be gathered by the 

 bees, they should be given some honey until they 

 can gather it for themselves. The above is my 

 treatment of young swarms, and I have lost but one 

 swarm in ten years." 



Joseph M. Brooks, of Columbus, Indiana, writes 

 March 24th, 1873 : 



"I would like to ask two questions, to be answered 

 by some of your correspondents : 



First. — I would like to know some sure method of 

 keeping the moth from dry, clean comb. I have 

 about thirty pounds of nice comb, that has been 



exposed all winter to the cold, and is surely free 

 from all moth now. As I cannot use it until I divide 

 my bees this spring, I would like to know how to 

 keep it until needed. 



Next. — I wish to know the best plan to follow in 

 making artificial swarms. Last year the season was 

 a very poor one here. There have been a great 

 many bees starved to death this winter. Mine 

 came through all right, but I had to feed last fall. 

 I wintered mine in my cellar; have them set out 

 and they carrying in rye flour." 



L. James, of Atlanta, Illinois, writes February 

 22d, 1873 : 



" Such fatality among our bees has never been 

 witnessed in this section of Illinois, as the record 

 will show next May. At the present writing, the 

 per cent, of loss is all the way from one-half to all 

 the colonies. Last winter we lost from twenty to 

 twenty-five per cent., and thought this hard. The 

 summer proved a bad one for our favorites, as the 

 clovers, from some cause or other, failed to yield 

 their usual stores, and as the blooms of these plants 

 are our main dependence, little surplus honey was 

 obtained by any'one I know of. Now, in view of 

 the vexatious attention and labor necessary in the 

 preservation of our comb from the ravages of the 

 bee moth, or wax worm, allow me to ask, through the 

 medium of the Journal, for advice as to the most 

 practicable method of keeping it. Such persons as 

 Messrs. Langstroth, Quinby, Grimm, Gallup, Mar- 

 vin, etc., whose experience extends over a long 

 series of years, can perhaps afford us the much 

 desired information. Our request is not confined to- 

 the above-named persons, but answers will be 

 kindly received from any one whose experience has 

 furnished him with facts on this subject. The past 

 two seasons have been so unfavorable for bees in this 

 locality, that most persons are becoming discouraged 

 and indifferent about them ; and the winter which 

 is now passing will show up such a record next 

 spring as to require strong faith in the most faithful 

 to persevere in a business, fraught with so much 

 uncertainty. Yet I think a determination to master 

 the situation will lead to success." 



F. McCulley, of Friendship, Tennessee, under 

 the head of "Information Wanted," writes : 



"1st. What causes bees to die out, having a 

 good supply of honey in both the brood chamber and 

 honey cap ? 2d. Why will bees leave their homes, 

 with abundance of family groceries on hand, and 

 emigrate to parts unknown? 3d. What is the 

 cause of so many deformed bees in a hive ? My 

 best Langstroth hive, I have noticed the bees drag- 

 ging out deformed bees, when that hive to-day con- 

 tains nearly 100 pounds of honey. 4th. Cannot 

 we use comb left by bees dying out. to some advan- 

 tage, by cutting to fit our frames, or would the bees 

 reject such ? 



" I regret to see the rising of discord between some 

 of the best of our bee brothers. Oh, that we could 

 communicate to each other in a harmonious style. 

 It would be more in accordance with the wishes of 

 all bee-keepers. We ought to nip the spirit of dis- 

 cord while in the bud, and not let it diffuse its 

 obnoxious odor in our apiarian element. 



"Now, Mb. Editor, I see you complaining of dues 

 to the A. B. J. All that I have to say is, that there 



