136 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Italian Bees and Red Clover. 



Mr. Editor : — Having read, with great plea- 

 sure and profit, the Bee Journal, for the last 

 two years, and also the first volume in 18G1, I 

 will give you a report of my bees for the benefit 

 of your readers, and because I am very much 

 interested in the success of apiarian science. 



I sent to Mr. Quinby, or rather went to see 

 him at St. Johnsville two years ago, and pur- 

 chased one full-blood Italian stock and several 

 nice queens to introduce to my native stock. I 

 introduced them successfully in July and Au- 

 gust — living then in the suburbs of the city of 

 Syracuse, N. Y. In the month of September 

 and October I had five or six stocks of Italians. 

 I was particularly pleased with their disposition. 

 They allowed me to take out the frames of 

 brood aud bees repeatedly in warm and even in 

 hot weather without smoke, though I invariably 

 use the fumigating pipe for all natives. I had 

 some transferring to do in the robbing season, 

 and proved to my satisfaction that they did not 

 attempt to rob so much as the natives, and still 

 they improved their time well in the field. 



But my especial test came in 1867. I kept 

 four swarms of Italians and sixteen swarms of 

 natives in the country. I transferred all my 

 bees into frame hives in May. In June I found 

 my mild Italians of the preceding year were 

 up and dressed for business, working for dear 

 life in the fields. When I went to their hives 

 for comb and brood for rearing young queens I 

 found the fumigating pipe of great advantage. 

 They would meet me halfway unless I did busi- 

 ness in a scientific way. I found the Italians 

 always ready to resist robbers. It was really 

 amusing to see them catch the honey-hunters 

 and dress them out on the alighting board. 



I took three sets of combs aud brood from 

 each of my Italian stocks for building up new 

 stocks during the month of July and August. 

 In August the buckwheat and seed crop of red 

 clover were very plenty in this vicinity. I had 

 read all the statements and arguments, pro and 

 con, in the Country Gentleman, the American 

 Agriculturist, and the American Bee Journal, 

 alleging that the Italian bees would work on 

 red clover, and that they would not. I took 

 three or four cards of honey and brood comb 

 from each of my Italian stocks, shaking and 

 winging off the bees .into their hives, building 

 up new stock with the brood; and served several 

 of my native stocks in the same way in August 

 while the buckwheat and seed crop of red 

 clover were in blossom. No white clover was 

 then in bloom. On the 10th of September I 

 found the Italians had refilled their hives with 

 white honey and comb, and each a set of boxes 

 with white honey. The natives had all stored 

 red buckwheat honey — which is rather unsale- 

 able in first class market. I called my neigh- 

 bors' attention and observation to the facts — 

 they being previously very sceptical of the abil- 

 ity of the Italians to get honey where the na- 

 tive could not; but finally acknowledged the 

 great point of superiority. 



My Italian stocks have yielded me a profit of 



from $75 to $100 each last summer, in increase 

 and surplus honey. Last spring I was offered 

 fifty dollars each for two hives of Italians, but 

 did not accept it, as I was bound to give them a 

 fair trial myself. I have increased my stock 

 and Italianized my natives on Mr. Quinby's 

 plan the past season, so that my bees are now 

 worth $1,000. They are all in good condition in 

 winter quarters, in a dry, dark cellar, with the 

 covers off and the honey-boards removed from 

 the hives and plenty of upward ventilation. 



I sold a few Italian stocks last fall to neigh- 

 bors at $25 each. I purchased twenty swarms 

 of full-blood Italians from Mr. House, ot 

 Oneida, in January, to stock another yard. 

 They are very nicely marked ; bred from Mr. 

 Quinby's stock. I like the natives A r ery much; 

 but appreciate the Italians for the Avhite honey 

 they yield, and their uniform business qualities. 

 H. Wellington. 



Syracuse, K Y. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



On page 107 of the present volume of your 

 Journal, E. Gallup makes assertions to which 

 I desire to call the attention of your readers, and 

 challenge him to prove as true. Healleges'that 

 Flanders has been selling impure "one-striped 

 queens" to bee-keepers in the West, a9 pure, 

 &c. That I deny, and hereby demand the proof, 

 as the above is an infamous falsehood. The 

 queens sold by W. A. Flan-dcrs & Co., have 

 been carefully bred and Avarranted to give per- 

 fect satisfaction, and, as far as we knoAV, our 

 patrons have been pleased with them. They 

 have been sold to popular breeders as "queen 

 mothers," and we have their letters which show 

 the very high estimation they put upon our 

 stock. We can give scores of such references, 

 if necessary. Our business has increased to 

 such an extent the past season, that we have 

 had no occasion to resort to the common prac- 

 tice of advertising in the papers, in order to sell 

 all the queens we have been able to groAV for 

 the market. At present our terms are as high 

 as market rates. We would inform all inter- 

 ested parties that, in body and business "we 

 still live," and enjoy a very comfortable degree 

 of health ; and that the present weight of one of 

 the firm (Flanders) by Fairbank's standard 

 scales, is just 257^ pounds avoirdupois. If we 

 had belonged to the medical profession and put 

 M. D. to our name, it is probable Mr. Gallup 

 would have interpreted it Mule Driver. "Where 

 ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise." We 

 take the Bee Journal and can recommend it as 

 "good to take,'" having taktn it from the begin- 

 ning, and shall coniinue to do so as long as it 

 has for its object the promotion of truth and 

 light in bee-culture. W. A. Flanders. 



Shelby, Ohio, Dec. 9, 1868. 



Chamber's Encyclopedia states that the Apis 

 unicolor — the species of honey bee found na- 

 tive in Madagascar and the Isle of France — 

 yield an esteemed honey of a green color. 



■ ■ I LL— 



Hives should not be placed where the water 

 from the eves of houses, or from trees or 

 hedges, may drop on them. — Wildmar. 



