Feb. 8, 1906 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



119 



years. About Dec. 20 the bees began to bring in a yellow 

 pollen from a variety of little blossoms that did not seem to 

 contain much else. About Jan. 1 the writer noticed the 

 pollen on the bees' baskets turn white, on a close observa- 

 tion. I saw the bees were getting it almost exclusively 

 from pennyroyal, of which there are acres in bloom in all 

 directions, and about Jan. 10 followed a light flow of nectar 

 from the same source. On the 18th a very heavy flow set 

 in. At this time the field-bees were not so strong as they 

 should have been to get the best results, but the hives were 

 fairly full of bees under IS days old. 



I carefully timed one colony, and found 105 bees ladened 

 with nectar enter the hive in 30 seconds. In this time not 

 one bee came out. All my hives are one story, containing 

 24 frames— Poppleton style, entrance in the center. Plac- 

 ing my ear to a hive, I found it a delight to hear the bees 

 evaporating the honey in every different part of the long 

 hive, a fact quite new to me, as honey seemed to be stored 

 in almost every one of the 24 frames. I notice that the bees 

 here start to whiten the dark combs that have been in use 

 20 years just about the time they commence on the nectar in 

 the North. Our flow is such that it comes in a rush, not 

 giving much time to observe this practice. 



I will close to don my bathing suit for " a dip " in the 

 St. Lucie, 40 feet from my house, the temperature of the 

 water being 74 degrees. Wm. A. Selser. 



The Standard Committee of the National Association 

 of the State, Dairy, and Food Deparments will hold a meet- 

 ing in Chicago, Feb. 19 to Feb. 24, 1906. There will be re- 

 duced rates on the railroads on account of the Nationa 

 Dairy and Food Show, which is to be held here the same 

 week. East of Chicago a rate of 1 ' j fare is made, and west 

 of Chicago a rate of 1 fare plus $2. Certificates must be 

 obtained with the ticket to Chicago, and tickets must be 

 validated in Chicago for return. 



The afternoon session of Feb. 22, to be held in the Great 

 Northern Hotel, will be devoted to a discussion of the fol- 

 lowing : " Sugar, glucose, honey, vinegar, and food acces- 

 sories — baking-powder, yeast, etc." An invitation is ex- 

 tended to any bee-keepers who may desire to attend, and, in 

 case it is impossible to be present, those interested are re- 

 quested to submit in writing any evidence, facts and argu- 

 ments they may desire to present to the meeting. For any 

 further information, address E. N. Eaton, State Analyst, 

 1628 Manhattan Bldg., 315 Dearborn St., Chicago, Ills. 



Mr. James A. Stone, Secretary of the Illinois State 

 Bee-Keepers' Association, is not only an extensive bee- 

 keeper, but is a carload raiser of hogs. He brought a car 

 to Chicago during the National convention, last month, and 

 won two cash prizes, amounting to $175. The $100 prize was 

 for the best carload of hogs numbering from 150 to 200. The 

 breed was Berkshire, from spring pigs. The lots that Mr. 

 Stone beat were of Poland, and also mixed hogs. 



Honey and hogs seem a strange combination ; but if 

 they are not mixed too closely, perhaps the delicious flavor 

 of the former will not be affected by the sometimes peculiar 

 porky odors of the latter. Knowing Mr. Stone as well as 

 we do, we have no fears of his ever becoming " hoggish," 

 no matter how much he has to do with hogs. 



Binding Volumes of Bee-Papers.— On this page is an 

 article from R. B. Ross, Jr., telling how to bind volumes of 

 magazines in a way to preserve them in permanent and con- 

 venient form. His method is also inexpensive. Almost 

 anybody can follow his directions and do a good job. The 

 details are described so carefully, in addition to the illus- 

 trations, that it ought to be an easy matter to bind maga- 

 zines like the American Bee Journal and others. Mr. Ross 

 says that he has never had papers bound in that way 

 loosen or break away, and that it is the cheapest method 

 he knows of, consistent with good work. 



* (Eontributeb -f 

 Special Ctrticles 



Binding Bee-Papers— Cheap, Effective Method 



BY R. B. ROSS, JR. 



IN looking over some old copies of the American Bee Jour- 

 nal I find that the earliest volumes which I have (back 

 as far as 1890) are still in as good condition as the day 

 they were bound, making due allowance, of course, for wear 

 and tear; for I might as well confess here and now that 

 these old bee-papers have been a source of immense pleas- 

 ure and satisfaction to me. 



My purpose is to urge all bee-keepers to preserve the 

 various periodicals appertaining to their pursuit, as the 

 winter evenings will give great opportunities for re-reading 

 and digesting what perhaps they have been forced to lay 

 aside, or merely skim through, during the busy rush of sum- 

 mer work. In this way very many valuable suggestions 

 are gleaned, which, if put into practise, will add to the prof- 

 its as well as the pleasures of our work. One such idea 



(which I had missed previously) helped me to get a fair 

 crop of honey the past season, while my neighbors had but 

 indifferent success. 



There are doubtless some good binders on the market, 

 and if one is disposed to use these they will answer the pur- 

 pose very well ; but if you wish to put your papers into 

 solid book form at a minimum of expense, nothing, it 

 seems to me, can excel the following method for durability 

 and cheapness : 



Remove, as far as practicable, all the creases which 

 your papers have received in mailing, so as to get them to 

 lie nearly flat. If the papers have been kept under a weight 

 as fast as received and read, no trouble will be experienced 

 on this score. 



Get together the following materials : A pot of good 

 flour-paste; a ball of common cotton grocery- twine — (a 

 strongertwine is, of course, better if not too large); a few 

 small strips of old cotton or flannelette ; a putty-knife, or 

 stick of soft wood whittled down to a similar shape — the 

 end-bar of a Langstroth frame will furnish the material. 



Now get out two boards of 1 inch or % stuff ahout 8 

 inches wide, and 4 inches longer than the paper you wish 

 to bind. 



Place one of the boards before you on a bench or table, 

 and lay a year's papers on it, being sure that they are prop- 

 erly arranged as to dates, and not upside down. Let the 



