April 5, 1906 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



305 



Mr. Holtermann had tried them S or 10 years ago and 

 condemned them, but when he tried them recently wth 

 large hives he found them more successful. 



Mr. Pettit found them gentle to handle, energetic to 

 gather honey, and warm-blooded to build up brood early 

 in spring; but on account of their warm blood they are 

 inveterate swarmers. However, he has a decided strain 

 of Carniolan blood in his bees. 



O. H. Townsend prefers Carniolans. 



Dysentery A mum, Bees. 



The question was asked. "Can bees have dysentery 

 without pollen?" 



Mr. Aspinwall said, "Yes." There are two causes oi 

 dysentery pollen and watery honey. Bees wintering on 

 pure, ripe honey assimilate it nearly all. The hull of the 

 pollen, or the water of thin honey, have to be avoided. 



E. R. Root said that one great cause of dysentery is 

 cold, which causes over-eating. 



R. F. Holtermann said it is largely due to nervousness. 

 Vim can close a hive in summer, shutting the bees in. and 

 bring on dysentery through their worry at being shut in. 



Officers and Exhibits. 



The officers for the ensuing year are: President, W. 

 Z. Hutchinson; Secretary-Treasurer, . Elmore M. Hunt, of 

 Bell Branch. 



Morley Pettit was appointed to judge the exhibits, and 

 awarded prizes as follows: 



Best 10 pounds of Comb-Honey — E. D. Townsend. 



Best 10 pounds of Extracted — Oscar Smith. 



Best 10 pounds of Beeswax— W. H. Every. 



Most Practical New Invention — Mr. Aspinwall's non- 

 swarming hive. 



Best pound Section of Hone} — Oscar Smith. 



Southern 

 * 23eebom -fr 



Conducted by Louis H. Scholl, New Braunfels, Tex. 



An Invitation to the National 



J 



This resolution was adopted, extending a cordial invi- 

 tation to the National Bee-Keepers' Association to meet in 

 Texas this year : 



Whereas, The National Bee-Keepers' Association promises to 

 hold its next annual convention in Texas; therefore, be it 



Resolved, That the Nueces Valley Bee-Keepers' Association will 

 welcome and appreciate the holding of such convention in our 

 State, and we invite the several bee-keepers' associations in Texas to 

 keep that event in view, and make the occasion one worthy of our 

 great State. 



The election of officers takes place at the next meeting, 

 on the first Monday in April, having been postponed as a 

 larger attendance of the members is then expected. 



The Apiarist was adopted as the official organ of the 



Association. 



^ — ■ 



Nueces Valley Bee-Keepers' Convention 



An interesting meeting of this Association of South- 

 west Texas was held in regular session in Beeville, Feb. 5. 

 Not a large number of the members were present, owing to 

 unfavorable weather. 



The veteran bee-keeper, Mr. L. Stachelhausen, was a 

 welcome attendant, and the bee keepers were indeed glad to 

 have him among them. 



Prof. Albert F. Conradi, State Entomologist, and in 

 charge of the apicultural work at the Texas Experiment 

 Station, addressed the convention upon some important 

 matters connected with the work at the State Experimental 

 Apiary. He offered some valuable suggestions, and asked 

 the hearty co-operation of the bee-keepers over the State by 

 offering suggestions as to the most profitable line of experi- 

 ments that are desired. He also stated that the money set 

 apart for this work was limited, and that for this reason 

 not all such experiments could likely be carried on in one 

 season. 



Mr. Conradi asked for the appointment of a committee, 

 by the Association, to outline such experiments as they 

 would like to have carried out at the experimental apiary. 

 This committee are : J. W. Taylor, Will Atchley, C. A. 

 Butts, G. W. Hufstedler, and W. H. Eaws. 



Prices on honey cans were discussed, and a purchasing 

 committee to confer with can dealers was appointed, as fol- 

 lows : Will Atchley, J. W. Taylor, and W. C. Nutt. 



Dr. C. S. Phillips offered suggestions as to making ex- 

 hibits at different places in the State. 



Attend Bee-Keepers' Conventions 



Conventions of bee keepers are good things, and should 

 be more largely attended by our bee-keepers. If we take 

 into consideration the large number of bee-men who keep 

 bees — and most of them keeping them for a livelihood — and 

 then look at the small number generally in attendance at 

 local and district — yea, and even the State and National — 

 meetings, it makes one wonder why it is that not more at- 

 tend such gatherings. 



I have always said, " Attend the bee-keepers' conven- 

 tions. They are of the utmost importance, for much is 

 learned at such meetings that can not be obtained else- 

 where." The more experienced and older members of the 

 the craft are thoroughly familiar with the changes that are 

 brought about in a man who attends such conventions. 

 Take a man who stays at home, who has his own notions, 

 his own views about things; he is generally down in " a 

 rut " — (sometimes quite a narrow one). His views and no- 

 tions border on that of narrow-mindedness. In his mind 

 his apiary is the only one, his methods are better, and his 

 ideas are only worth considering. For just such persons 

 the bee-keepers' conventions are a good place. By rubbing 

 up against some of the better bee-keepers much of this is 

 worn off — the otherwise square corners soon round off — and 

 a change is brought about that makes a better bee-man — 

 better for himself and for the others of the craft. Instead 

 of being a " dread " to his fellowmen — for such these men 

 often are, who will dump their crops on the market and 

 cause the "slump " that so much talk is made about, be- 

 sides doing the many things not quite in accord with the 

 better ideas of the older members — such bee-keepers soon 

 " learn something at the convention that they had never 

 dreamed about." 



For weeks afterward, after that convention, the brain 

 will fairly buzz as " the many things that were talked about 

 at the meeting " are turned over and considered and thought 

 about. " Why, Smith said so and so. Jones told us about 

 such and such. Then there was Brown who gave one of 

 the best talks I ever heard on that subject. And / never 

 knew what the ' Question-Box ' meant. Why, I could have 

 listened to them answering those questions all day. Then 

 that big bee-man I roomed with — he could surely talk bees 

 to perfection. He told me how to keep bees, and how to make 

 money out oj them ! 



" I know that I could do about as well if I would only 

 study the subject like some of those fellows do that I met. 

 I never could see the use of all these things — bee books, 

 bee-papers, and such things as bee-conventions. Now I 

 wouldn't take a hundred dollars for my trip and what I 

 learned, and I am surely going to try to have the nicest 

 apiary in this section, and make some money so I can have 

 a ' say ' at the next meeting. 



" Yes, sir ; I am bound to attend next year's meeting, 

 because what would be missed could not be paid in dollars 

 and cents. 



"Why, I had almost forgotten about our ride home on 

 the train. There were eight of us, and how we did talk ! 

 Even I could tell them something by this time, for I was not 

 afraid any more — in fact, I couldn't keep quiet any longer. 

 It was surely a surprise to me, when I explained my way of 

 doing when I don't want any swarms, and they told me that 

 was indeed the easiest and most practical way out. Of 

 course, they had not tried it, but as it seemed so easy, and 

 because I haven't had a swarm for six years, as I did not 

 want too many bees to keep me out of the field, and I still 

 got a whole lot of honey, they thought my idea worth try- 

 ing, anyway. I surely was proud that I could give even 

 some of those fellows they called 'big lights' a little light 

 on a subject, which they seemed to think was the hardest 

 problem for them to solve. 



" Yes, I surely learned lots, and I'm going to make use 

 of it, too, now. I can hardly wait until the proceedings 

 come out in print. 



" And then we had our picture taken, too. I am won- 



