1871.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



161 



in-oper nuinagement of oiir improved styles of 

 the Langstroth hive. The two-story hive, with 

 frames in the upper story for surplus honey, is 

 rapidly coming iuto general use. The one-story 

 hive, with boxes for surplus honey, is behind 

 the age ; although we still make them for a 

 certain class of our customers. The past sea- 

 son we have made about as many of the one 

 kind as of the other ; but the coming year we 

 shall make in the proportion of four two-story 

 hives to one of one-story. More honey can be 

 secured from frames, than from boxes, and it is 

 in better shape for extracting, for feeding, and 

 for the market. Honey in frames will sell for as 

 much per pound in the Chicago market, as in 

 small boxes. Perhaps the advocates of 1 ft. and 

 8 ft. boxes will dispute this statement, but we 

 ha])pen to be posted in this matter. 



The two-story hive requires more tact and 

 experience to manage it properly, than the sin- 

 gle hive with boxes ; but it will not be long 

 before our largest honey raisers will discover 

 the right way. 



M. M. Baldkidge. 



St. Charles, Illinois, Nov. 3, 1870. 



[For the American Bee .Tournal.] 



Two Queens in a Hive. Anotlier Instance. 



Mr. Editor :— I send you a little matter for 

 insertion in the Journal, if it is worthy— another 

 instance of two queens being found in one hive. 



I see in the October number of the Journal 

 that Mr. A. Green, of Amesbury, Mass., had a 

 case of two queens in one hive. I had a similar 

 experience this season. About the first of July 

 I removed the queen from a native stock and in- 

 troduced an Italian queen that I had received 

 from W. W. Gary, July 16, 1869. I examined 

 this stock frequently after introducing the queen, 

 and soon found queen-cells started and contain- 

 ing eggs. I removed these cells, as I also did 

 others twice afterwards. On the last occasion 

 one of them contained a larva nearly ready to 

 be sealed over. About the lirst of September I 

 found two large cells sealed over, and allowed 

 them to remain, as I now thought that the bees 

 were probably trying to supersede the queen on 

 account of advanced age or some other failiu-e, 

 though she did not seem to decrease in fertility, 

 as the colony were now all Italians. On the six- 

 teenth of September, I made another examina- 

 tion, found the cells hatched, and saw the old 

 queen, but did not see the young one. The next 

 day I re-exam ned them, saw the old qiieen, and 

 a very large young one on the opposite comb. 

 She was fertile and laying eggs. On the eigh- 

 teenth, I found the old queen dead in front of the 

 hive. She had apparently not been strong, but 

 had probably dropped upon the bottom board 

 and been dragged out by the bees. 



I had another singular queen case in Septem- 

 ber. I removed the queen from a new swarm 

 and placed her in a nucleus. One day I opened 

 the nucleus and the queen took wing and flew 

 back to the hive from which she had been re- 

 moved, which was about fifty feet distant, and 



about the same distance from where the swarm 

 was hived. .' 



This queen was reared and fertilized about five 

 miles frem here, in 1868. She had been very pro- 

 lific, and produced well-marked workers. When 

 removed from the swarm, she had ceased laying, 

 but commenced again in the nucleus and pro- 

 duced hybrids. Does not this show that the old 

 queen was fertilized after the swarm was hived '? 



I agree with Novice' as to the value of the 

 Journal, and believe it to be the best Bee Journal 

 extant. 



W. D. Wkight. 



Knowersville, A^. ¥., Nov. 1, 1870. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Again Two Queens in a Hive. 



On the 23d of July I opened a hive containing 

 a choice colony of Italians, for the purpose of 

 getting brood for rearing queens. To my sur- 

 l^rise, as the season had been very unfavorable, 

 I found four queen-cells sealed, and the combs 

 full of brood. I removed all the cells and one 

 frame of honey, giving an emjity one in its place, 

 and let the old queen remain. 



On the 8th of August, I had occasion to open 

 the same hive for the same purpo.se. I then 

 found two qvieens on the same comb, all quiet 

 and peaceable, with the combs full of brood and 

 eggs. I called for my better half to come and 

 witness it ; this was the first case of the kind I 

 had ever seen. I removed the young queen— a 

 very fine one, and gave her to a nucleus, with- 

 out clipping her wing, as I feared she and not 

 mated with a drone. I also removed one frame 

 of brood from another nucleus. On the 11th and 

 12th of August, I examined the nucleus, and 

 found the queen was missing, with no signs of 

 her remaining in or near the nucleus. The bees 

 in it had begun to build queen cells by this time. 



On the 20th of August, I examined the colony 

 again, and found a young queen a.pparently fer- 

 tile. I did not see the old queen, and concluded 

 the bees had removed her. August 24th, I ex- 

 amined the hive again, in company with two 

 friends, and found two {2) fertile queens. 



Now, Mr. Editor, perhaps you or others would 

 ask how I' know they were fertile '? I answer, 

 from the fact that I i-emoved the old queen whose 

 wing was clipped, and clipped the wing of the 

 young one immediately, leaving her in the colony. 

 She is now laying, and her brood prove to be 

 workers. The old queen was raised in May, 

 1869, so that it is not from old age that .she was 

 superseded ; and again she was very prolific — 

 her combs, as I have stated, being full of brood. 



Will you give us the cause of two (2J fertile 

 queens being found in one colony? 



Could they have raised a queen and she become 

 fertile from August 9th to August 20th? 



Remember, that the young queen found with 

 the colony on August 30th was apparently fertile ; 

 and the one found on the 24tli proved to be fertile. 



Now, is it not ]>robable that the young queen 

 tliat was removed and introduced in a nucleus 

 on August 20th, and mated with a drone before 



