THE AMERICAN BEE' JOURNAL. 



105 



ally if they are young bees. Bees taken from 

 three or four different swarms, in sufficient 

 numbers to make" a good stock, and put in a 

 hive with a queen, will work nearly as well 

 again as the same number taken exclusively 

 from one swarm, with their own queen. 

 Drumming out a swarm and putting it back 

 again in the same hive, sets tbebees to feeding 

 the queen. A person who has never tried the 

 experiment of stimulating, and regularly giving 

 the queen all the room she can occupy with 

 brood throughout the season, will be astonished 

 at the amount of bees that can be raised in one 

 swarm from one queen." 



This is all very correct. I have often been 

 upbraided by my friends for disturbing my 

 hives, by removing the frames, &c, but I have 

 generally found that such disturbance, so far 

 from operating injuriously as regards the bees' 

 industry, really had the effect of exciting them 

 to increased diligence. I have occasionally 

 been quite astonished at the enormous quantity 

 of eggs which a queen can, under favorable 

 circumstances and with judicious stimulation, 

 be induced to lay, filling an immense expanse 

 of comb. 



A correspondent, H. Faul, recommends a 

 method of safely introducing strange queens, 

 which may be useful to many, and particularly 

 those who are desirous of Liguriauizing their 

 apiaries. He says: — "I see by your Journal 

 that bee-keepers still use the wire cage for in- 

 troducing queens in deprived colonies. I have 

 a better plan." (See Bee Journal, volume 

 4, number 1, page 1G). I have tried this plan 

 of introducing queens, with success, but not 

 invariably so. I am not disposed to give up the 

 precautionary use of the wire queen cage, 

 which I consider a safer and more reliable 

 method, though I am bound to confess that, 

 even with its use the lives of valuable queens 

 are occasionally sacrificed. 



Here is an account of what the writer consi- 

 ders to be "the finest bee country in the world" 

 —Tennessee ; "White clover is becoming the 

 spontaneous growth of our bottom lands. Be- 

 sides, we have an abundance of other bee pas- 

 turage, which lasts all the time that bees can be 

 out. Forked Ueer River Bottom abounds with 

 wild bees. You can not place honey out any- 

 where in it, without its being in a few minutes 

 covered with bees." 



Wild bees being in many districts so very 

 abundant, there is some discussion as to the 

 best method of tracing them to their haunts, 

 and effecting the capture of themselves or their 

 sweets. 



America must be a much superior honey 

 country to ours. Mr. R. Wilkin states that he 

 has sold a colony "to a neighbor, which yielded 

 him last season four swarms. The first swarm 

 swarmed twice ; and two of the casts sw r armed 

 also— making in all seven from one. Tavo of 

 these went to the w T oods. The remaining five 

 became strong and rich for winter. The old 

 colony and the swarms yielded, besides, eighty 

 pounds of surplus honey." 



The "Kohler process" for insuring the pure 

 fertilization of Italian queens, excites, as may 

 be supposed, considerable interest among bee- 



keepers who are so anxious to establish the 

 Italian bees as our American brethren. I have 

 not tried the plan recommended by Mr. Kohler 

 for combining natural and artificial swarming, 

 but have great faith in its efficiency, and hope 

 to have an opportunity of trying it. Also his 

 method of ensuring pure fertilization appears 

 likely to be extremely useful to all apiarians 

 desirous of Liguriauizing their apiaries. 



There are many other articles in the Ameri- 

 can Bee Journal worthy of notice, and I 

 hope to resume their consideration. 



S. Bevan Fox. 



August 29, 1868. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



The Bee Feeders. 



Mr. Editor : — The object of this communica- 

 tion is to call attention to the subject of bee- 

 feeding in this section of the countiy. 



We find the production of honey here, this 

 year, has been so light that one-half the bees in 

 the country will die during the coming winter, 

 if they are not fed. Many have already died. 

 This has compelled us to use, or invent for use, 

 the best means within our reach for the purpose 

 of feeding them. I mean the vehicles by or 

 through which we can safely feed them without 

 attracting the attention of robbers. 



I have used a common tumbler or quinine 

 bottle, with a thin piece of muslin over the 

 mouth of each, held in place by gum elastic 

 bands. I fill the vessel full, put on the muslin 

 and band, turn it bottom upwards over a hole 

 in the honey-board or openings betw T een the 

 frames. If the syrup is of proper consistence, 

 they will soon empty the vessel ; if it is too 

 thick, it will granulate into sugar again, and 

 will not pass through the muslin. This, how r - 

 ever, makes a pretty good feeder, and is a con- 

 venient way to feed bees. 



I have also used a better one recently. It is 

 made as follows : Take a pint or quart tin can, 

 air tight, cut a hole in one end large enough so 

 that the screw top for an oil can will cover it 

 sufficiently to admit of soldering the top fast to 

 the can, over the hole ; then punch a number of 

 small holes in the cap and screw it on to the 

 top, fast to Ihe can, and your feeder is done. 

 This make the best feeder I have used. I be- 

 lieve that Mr. John M. Price of Buffalo Grove, 

 Iowa, deserves much credit for this feeder. 



The screw top to this feeder may be of various 

 sizes ; but one that receives an inch cap is gen- 

 erally to be preferred. I have also the same 

 kind of a can as above described, with an opeu • 

 ing cut in one end three inches long and one- 

 fourtliofan inch wide, with a tube one inch 

 deep soldered into it, and a slide or hoop of the 

 same form, to slip ou this tube, to hold in, place 

 the thin muslin that closes the end of the tube. 

 This likewise makes a good feeder, to use in 

 those hives that have long narrow opening* 

 through the top of the frames. These feeders 

 may compel us to pay particular attention to the 

 density of the syrup used in them. Experience 

 will soon determine this for us. 



Charleston, Ills. J. Davis. 



