SQ 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



[Oct, 



sell queens at $2.50, sending them out as soon as 

 they begin to lay eggs, to any number ordered, 

 guaranteeing that all the workers sliall show three 

 yellow bands, when filled with honey. But, if 

 "tested and guaranteed as breeders, I would ask 

 ten dollars each. If I was going to commence 

 Italianizing an apiary, I would send to some re- 

 siumsible man, such as Langstroth, Colvin, 

 Quinb}', Gallup, Mrs. Tupper, or Mr. Alley ; and 

 in the room of sending $2.50, I would say, "fix 

 your own price, luit s^end me the best ciueen you 

 can select !" for I would raiher have such a one 

 than four of average untested queens. And 

 putting the seller upon his honor, I think I should 

 get the best, where all were good. 



Others may differ from me in opinion, yet I 

 have given the public my views honestly. 



Mr. George C. Silsbj' has my thanks for his 

 courteous criticism of my article. Mr. J. E. Pond 

 likewise, though he misappreliends my intention 

 to attack anjr one but sharpers, who sell for pure 

 Italians what no one, qualified to judge, would 

 call even a good hybrid. 1 know nothing of Mr. 

 Alk'}' only through his advertisi'ment, and of 

 course knew nothing of the quality of his bees. 

 But while I know nothing of him, I do know 

 men who sent to where it was m"St convenient 

 and cheapest, and straightway they became 

 queen-breeders, and supplied the country round, 

 in turn, with genuine queens. It would take an 

 expert often, to detect a particle of Italian breed 

 in many such colonies that I know of. 



In such cases, often, the queen-breeder himself 

 did not know that he was selling a spurious 

 article. I may have been foolish, but I did send 

 to Italy for stock that cost me twenty dollars 

 each, when I could have procured stock from 

 Mr Langstroth for five dollars each. Tlie same 

 j'car I procured a queen from Mr. Colvin for 

 fifteen dollars, tested, in preference; and the 

 ver}^ next year I sent fifteen dollars to Mr. Lang- 

 stroth, for a tested and superior queen, when he 

 would have sold me an untested one for half the 

 money. I think still that the money was well 

 invested. 



Two years ago I left the personal supervision 

 of queen raising, and ?i gentleman by the name 

 of J. L. Strong is now conducting the same 

 apiary, at Mount Pleasant, Iowa. He has not 

 been able to supply all his orders this season. 

 My articles were dated from that place ; but my 

 residence is at Ottumwa, Iowa, where I am try- 

 ing to fill the place of pastor of one of the Metho- 

 dist Episcopal Churches of that city. I have 

 raised just fotir queens this season, one of which 

 was a hybrid. These I have used in making 

 new swarms. I have five colonies here, whicli 

 still interest me greatlj'-, although there are not 

 man}' dollars and cents, as income, in the enter- 

 prise, and I take all the profits in honey for my 

 table. So 30U see I am not a very formidable 

 rival in the trade. 



But, in common witli the brotherhood, ^^bee 

 on the brain,'''' is a chronic complaint with me, 

 and I never shall recover from it ; and every man 

 who talks bees, or writes been, or rainen queen bees 

 for $3.50, orany other price, has traits that make 

 me regard him as a brother. And if I write an 

 occasional article, don't think I am "pitching 



into " some one, or writing to " show off." Then, 

 further, if you find my articles only half as in- 

 teresting to you, as 3'ours are to me. I shall be 

 content. In the meantime let us raise no false 

 expectations; but so write that we can put in 

 the hands of the cottager, occupying a few square 

 roods, the means of keeping, in an intelliicent 

 manner, from twenty to one hundred colonies 

 that shall bring him as much profit as the owner 

 of a farm realms from his bioad acres. 



Oltumwa, Iowa. E. L. Bkiggs. 



[For the American Boo Journal.] 



The Economic Hive, and Gallup's. 



Mr. Editor (and some one says that means 

 everybody): — As I receive many letters asking 

 what I think of the Economic Hive, mentioned 

 and described in sev. ral numbers of the last 

 volume of the Journal, suppose you allow me to 

 answer them at once through the pages of the 

 •Journal. It will save me much trouble, and ob- 

 viate the necessity of replying to the same ques- 

 tions asked over and over again, by different in- 

 quirers. Another matter I would like to speak 

 about. I receive a great many inquiries some- 

 what like this — "Mr. Gallup, I am a new sub- 

 scriber to the American Bee Journal." &c., &c., 

 and asking me for information about such and 

 such articles, or what does such or such a writer 

 mean, &c. Now, gentlemen, I am perfectly wil- 

 ling to answ'er your questions, but it appears to 

 me that your very best plan would be to send 

 the money to the pul>li,sher, and get the back 

 numbers of the Journal. You would certainly 

 get the worth of your money ; and then you can 

 understand what the writers mean, better than 

 I can tell you in one short letter. 



Well, here I am off the track, as suie as fate. 

 To return ; in the first place, the Economic Hive 

 and the hive I use, ai-e (with slight variation) 

 substantially the same. Both can be used in the 

 same manner, in every respect. I have used 

 them with from ten to fifteen frames, but for 

 general use, twelve ai-e sufficient. All it needs 

 is to make the hive wider or narrower, to accom- 

 modate more or less frames. In using my hive 

 two story, I make the second story the same 

 depth as the first. My frames hang on small 

 three-cornered cleats instead of on rabbetings ; 

 and to make any hive into a second story box, 

 draw the small fini.shiug nails out of the cleats 

 and nail them on again, low enough down to al- 

 low one-fourth of an inch space between the 

 upper frames and the lower, without the honey- 

 board. Now, all that is necessary to convert this 

 into two hives, is to move those cleats back to 

 their former places again. In placing this top 

 box on and lowering the cleats, it leaves an inch 

 and a quarter space betAveeu the top of the 

 lower frames and the honey-board. Now drive 

 four finishing nails into the sides of the hive, 

 inside, leaving the heads project one-fourth of an 

 inch above the frames. Then fit in an inch 

 board and let it rest on those projecting nails. 

 This will fill up so much of the vacant space 

 under the honey-board. — In puttirig on the third 

 story, I make my boxes so as to fit inside the 



