230 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOUKNAL. 



a coarse cloth tacked over the open end of each 

 hive. The jarriug and jolting caused the hees 

 to fill themselves with honey, and I suppose to 

 feed the queen, for they commenced breeding 

 at once, as upon examining the hives about 

 three weeks afterwards, I discovered young 

 bees just emerging from their cells. 



I do not like Mr. Quinby's plan of wintering 

 bees in box hives, by turning them bottom up- 

 ward; as I think bees should always cluster be- 

 low their stores — which they cannot do in 

 that position. The necessary ventilation is 

 easily given, by a few holes in the top of the 

 hive; through one or more of which, also, the 

 bees if short of stores, are easily fed by in- 

 verting a bottle of syrup or honey over one or 

 more of them. 



Although this communication is much longer 

 than I intended it should be when I commenced 

 writing, I cannot refrain from saying a few 

 words in regard to 



Ventilation, 



which is one of the most important things in 

 bee-culture, especially in wintering bees. A 

 strong colony cannot be wintered in a room or 

 cellar, the temperature of which is above the 

 freezing point, without upward ventilation; and 

 if in a close, well-made, painted hive, it will re- 

 quire the honey -board to be removed altogether 

 • — Mr. Miner to the contrary notwithstanding. 

 He would have us believe that it is upward ven- 

 tilation and eating cold honey that causes dys- 

 entery. I do not believe one word of it. Con- 

 fine bees to a close hive, where they have no 

 upward ventilation, and their warmth creates 

 restlessness, they roam over the combs, eating 

 enormous quantities of honey, become distend- 

 ed by accumulated faeces, and die by scores. 



Mr. M. says look at the bees in nature's hive, 

 the hollow tree, where they do well without uo- 

 ward ventilation. As if the hollow tree, with 

 its porous lining of rotten wood, was not a very 

 different thing from a close painted hive, which 

 does not absorb dampness like the rotten wood. 

 The hollow trees in Mr. Miner's country must 

 be different from those here, if they have the 

 cavity always closed at the top, and the entrance 

 for bees always at the bottom of the hollow. Is 

 it not as often at the top ? 



Now, Mr. Editor, this following after nature 

 for patterns for bee-hives, or anything else, is 

 all stuff. Where else, in the name of common 

 sense, would bees in a state of nature go but to 

 a hollow of a tree, stump, rock, or something 

 of that sort, whether it be suitable or not ? 

 Nature gives us crab apples, choke pears, fox 

 grapes, &c. , to the end of the chapter ; aud it is 

 man's province and duty to improve these 

 things — which he has done by hybridizing, &c. 

 The strong man, Samson, once found a colony 

 of bees, with plenty of honey, in the carcass of 

 a dead lion, where they were apparently doing 

 well. They doubtless had ventilation enough, and 

 would probably have done as well, or better, in 

 the carcass ot a df ad jackass, it being smaller and 

 more compact. But it does not follow from this 

 that we should all turn out and kill lions or 

 jackasses, to get their carcasses for bee-hives 

 and their skulls for surplus honey receptacles. 



I hope Mr. Miner will not carry out his plan or" 

 copying after nature to such an extent as to ad- 

 vise anything of that sort; for while we have 

 not many lions in this part of the country, we 

 have a description or variety < f the latter-named 

 animal, having but two legs however, and 

 should be sorry to see their carcasses filled with 

 anything as sweet as honey. 



With best wishes for the success of the Bee 

 Journal, I am truly yours, 



J. R. Gardner. 

 Fancy Farm, near 

 Christiansburg, Va., April 12, 18G9. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Feeding Rye Meal Broadcast. 



Mr. Editor : — I saw a notice in the April 

 number of the Bee Journal, that the Bee- 

 keepers were going to hold a Convention in 

 Jackson CMich ), I accordingly packed a few 

 greenbacks in my wallet, and started for the 

 scene of operations ; where we had a very plea- 

 sant time, and everything passed off harmo- 

 niously. I suppose you have the proceedings 

 of the Convention ; and I shall therefore leave 

 you to judge of the merits of the discussions on 

 the various topics. After we got through with 

 the business of the Convention, finding we 

 were only twelve miles from Mr. J. H. Town- 

 ley's, Mr. O. E. Wolcott, of Byron, a very ex- 

 tensive and experienced beekeeper, and myself, 

 concluded to take a drive out there and see if 

 there was anything more to be learned about 

 bees. When we arrived there, we found his 

 apiary to consist of about fifty stocks of very 

 fine Italians. The morniug air was rather 

 chilly, but it bid fair to be a pleasant day. Mr. 

 Townley informed us, if it came off warm 

 enough for bees to fly, he intended to feed them 

 some rye meal which he had prepared for them. 

 Accordingly, about 11 o'clock, the bees began 

 to fly, and tbe order was to prepare the meal. 

 We arranged a small platform on the ground, 

 laid on a few pieces of empty comb, then scat- 

 tered on some meal, and Mr. Townley took some 

 of it and dusted the workers at the entrance of 

 all the hives, to let them know that all things 

 were ready. It was not long before the bees 

 concluded to hold a convention on the rye-meal 

 platform ; and it soon became evident that the 

 platform was too small to accommodate all par- 

 ties. Mr. Townley then commenced scattering 

 meal on the grass. At first it looked as though 

 there would be a great deal of waste attending 

 that mode of feeding. But the bees very soon 

 commenced leaving the platform and confined 

 their labors entirely to the meal on the grass. 

 As the bees became crowded, he gave them 

 more space, until he had covered about twelve 

 feet square; and in all my experience I never 

 saw bees work more diligently on anything. 

 Mr. Townley carried out and gave them by ac- 

 tual weight 22 pounds, aud by four o'clock, 

 when they quit work, I do not tlnnk there 



