618 



July 19, 1906 



American Ttee Journal 



queens in a hive ai one time. But soon one of the old 

 queens disappeared, and on my last visit the other old 

 one was also gi me 



SOUTHERN DEPARTMENTS IN NORTHERN BEE-PAPERS. 



We are pleased to note that almost all the leading 

 bee-papers are conducting a Southern Department now. 

 This is as it should be. for we have some good bee- 

 keepers here, the interest is growing in apiculture, and 

 there is as much difference in bee-keeping in the North 

 and the South as there is in the seasons and climates. 

 And the very things that are of the most interest to 

 Northern bee-keepers are of little interest to us here; 

 besides, our honey-plants are all different. 



Rescue. Texas. L. B. Smith. 



A New Race of Bees (?) 



Near one of our out-yards belonging to Prof. R. F. 

 Smith and myself there was found in the cotton-field of 

 the plantation a large "bees'-nest," as shown in the picture. 

 This was built, evidently, by one of the swarms Irom our 

 apiary, as we lost several fii e swarms there last spring. 



The "nest" was taken to a place in one of the depart- 

 ment museums, where it attracted much attention. One 

 of the cadets "sent in" the following "special telegraph" 

 concerning the "discovery," to The Battalion, published 

 at A. & M. College of Texas: 



No More Boll-Weevils 



REMARKABE AND IMPORTANT DISCOVERY ON A BRAZOS "BOTTOM " 

 PLANTATION. 



We take pleasure in reprinting the following from 

 the Texas Daily Cotton Patch: 



A POSSIBLE SOLUTION OF THE BOLL- WEEVIL PROBLEM. 



Our Brazos "Bottom" special correspondent tele- 

 graphs: A tremendous sensation has been caused among 

 the farmers of this vicinity by the discovery of several 

 bee-nests on the large cotton plantation of Messrs. Car- 

 son & Smith. Not that bees are a novelty here, but 

 the average farmer is apt to suspect that his credulitv 

 is being imposed upon, when told the bees have com- 

 menced to build their nests on cotton-staks in the middle 

 of a thousand-acre field. Yet, seeing is believing. 



The Nest of a New Kace of Bees— 

 Beelzibuvius." C. & S. 



important event that has ever happened in the South, 

 from an economic standpoint. According to investiga- 

 tion which he and his junior partner. Prof. Smith, have 

 been making, they have elicited the fact that these bees 

 are of a very peculiar ancestry — apparently a mongrel 

 cross between the ordinary wild bee, a new strain of 

 Italian bees, imported by some "Dago" farmers in the 

 neighborhood, and the common red ant. It seems that 

 ever since the cotton-picking season ended the "niggers" 

 living on the plantation have been wtell supplied with 

 honey from the combs constructed on the cotton-stalks. 

 Prof. Smith exhibited one of the nests in the main build- 

 ing of the A. & M. College, which had had 20 pounds of 

 honey extracted from the comb. It is probable that this 

 estimate, however, is slightly incorrect. 



The question is, How was all this honey made during 

 the winter, the combs being constantly renewed as fast as 

 the darkies took them away? "Very simple," said Mr. Car- 

 son . "This strange race of bees has been feeding on the 

 boll-weevil, which were hibernating, and there ain't nary 

 a one left. Wie expect to make a bale and a half of cot- 

 ton to the acre next year." 



The U. S. Department of Agriculture has given or- 

 ders to stop the importation of Gautemalan ants, as they 

 believe that the mew variety of insect, known already as 

 the Weevillum Beelzibuvius, of Carson & Smith, is the 

 only enemy that can successfully exterminate the boll- 

 weevil. 



Prof. Smith, whose deductive faculties as a profes- 

 sor of mathematics are, naturally, of a very high order, 

 maintains that there is a powerful affinity between these 

 peculiar insects and the superior cotton plants grown on 

 the Carson & Smith 'estate. This contention seems a 

 very plausible one. as we never heard of them previously. 



Many colonies of the Weevillum Beelsibuvius are now 

 in captivity, and orders are already coming in from all 

 parts of the State, for specimens. Messrs. Carson & 

 Smith, however, wish me to say that these insects will 

 build their nests only on cotton-stalks of their own 

 breeding. With every bushel of seed at $10 the}' will 

 send the nucleus of a colony of these predatory insects, 

 which will supply honey all through the winter and de- 

 stroy the boll-weevil on the plantation at the same time. 



r W] 



Canadian 

 ' Beodom 



r#j 



Weevillum 



Prof. Carson, when seen by your correspondent, was 

 filled with enthusiasm by what he regards as the most 



Conducted by Mobley Pettit, Villa Nova, Ont. 



Carbolic Acid in Bee-Keeping 1 



With the increased interest that is being taken in 

 bee-keeping, numerous new methods of quieting bees 

 have been suggested. Amongst the more recent of these 

 is carbolic acid which has long been used as a disinfectant 

 in the treatment of foul brood. Commenting upon the 

 use of carbolic acid, a contributor to the Journal of Hor- 

 ticulture, London, England, makes the following re- 

 marks: 



The introduction of carbolic acid as an intimidator in 

 bee-keeping has been of incalculable value in rendering 

 manipulations easy and operators confident, but either 

 through fear of handling it, or lack of information re- 

 specting its use in such a capacity, it is not used as ex- 

 tensively as its merits demand. It is admitted that the 

 more experienced amongst us use it regularly, and would 

 not on any account be without it in the apiary. Its ad- 

 vancement only need to be more widely known for its 

 use to become general. One of the many uses of this acid 

 is as a preventive of robbbing. A solution composed of 

 two parts water and one acid smeared with a feather over 

 the alighting board of a hive attached by robbers will in 

 most cases, if taken early enough, at once effectually stop 

 the trouble. In obstinate cases the smearing should be 

 carried on at intervals of an hour until the disturbance 



