252 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOUENAL. 



[May, 



on which it was most abundant. The color of 

 the liquid they feathered was dark, somewhat 

 darker than buckwheat honey. 



J. Barber. 

 Canton, N. Y. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Early Swarming. 



Mr. Editor :— I have been for the past year a 

 reader of your valuable Journal, from which I 

 have gathered much information, particularly 

 from the experience of others. As I am but a 

 beginner in the science of bee keeping, I may be 

 pardoned if I say, I have not been much bene- 

 fited by the sharp shooting between the inventors 

 of different hives. I am disposed to give Mr. 

 Langstroth his just dues, and I am also willing 

 that others should have theirs, if they honestly 

 earn them, as he did. 



Our bees, twenty-eight stands in number, came 

 from the cellar in good condition, with the ex- 

 ception of one nucleus colony which was weak in 

 numbers ; and also one black colony which had 

 consumed all their stores. These we commenced 

 feeding with a syrup composed of sugar and 

 honey. On examining them some days ago, we 

 found brood in all stages. AVe then gave them a 

 full sash of honey, and thought them all right. 

 The next morning, to our great surprise, they all 

 left the hive, and after flying around in great 

 confusion for some time, they clustered in front 

 of a hive occupied by Italians, ami commenced 

 entering. Then began a terrible combat — the 

 Italians determined to reject the intruders, and 

 the blacks equally determined to force an en- 

 trance. Seeing there was no way to separate 

 them, I sprinkled them with water rather strong 

 with peppermint, and soon all fighting ceased. 

 Finding the black queen, we destroyed her, and 

 the bees united peaceably, making a very strong 

 colony. 



Only a few days after this occurred, we were 

 informed by a gentleman, that a swarm of bees 

 were clustered on the fence, a short distance 

 from the house. In company with my brother, I 

 proceeded to hive them. At first they entered 

 the hive and seemed contented, but in a short 

 time they rushed out again and clustered on a 

 fence post. We then procured a sash of brood, 

 which being placed in the hive, the bees gladly 

 entered and were carried to the house. As they 

 were strange bees, we knew nothing of their 

 former condition, but found on examination, they 

 were without a queen. They seemed quiet and 

 contented till the afternoon of the second day, 

 when they with one accord came ijouring out and 

 seemed determined to leave. As they were much 

 scattered and flying high, I thought of Igno- 

 ramus's looking-glass, and tried the plan, as the 

 sun was shining bright. It soon confused them, 

 and they again returned to the hive. That even- 

 ing we united them with our weak nucleus col- 

 ony, which has a good Italian queen, and they 

 are now working contentedly together. 



1 should like if some of your more experienced 

 readers would give me the reason for such prema- 

 ture and wholesale swarming, so early in the 



season as the 30th of March and 2d of April.* 

 At this date the bees are working industriously, 

 gathering much pollen, and all the colonies have 

 an abundance of brood. 



Mattie M. Paschal, 

 Pella, Iowa, April 8. 



* Thesfi were don'brles.s ".starvation swarm.s." with which 

 the box and strnw hive bee-men we'-e and aie oftcntime.s un- 

 pleasantly familiar in earl j». spring. — Ed. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Prames of the Bay State Hive. 



The Journal for March was duly received and 

 contents digested. We intend to write an arti- 

 cle for which we have no particular text ; and 

 if we had, we might be tempted to run off the 

 track, for the sake of hitting some one across 

 the knuckles, as some of the correspondents have 

 done in the last number of the Journal. 



We judge that about fifty bee-keepers have 

 written to us to know the dimensions of the 

 frame we use in the Bay State Hive. We took 

 a notion to go to Boston a few days since, and 

 had a cut made of our style of frame. Somehow 

 or other, we blundered into the office of M. M. 

 Tidd, the artist who made the cuts for Mr. 

 Langsfcroth's book, " The Hive and Honey Bee." 

 Of course wo found a man who understood his 

 business. Well, after talking a while about the 

 "King of Bees," as well as of queen bees, we 

 struck a bargain to have a cut made of our style 

 of frame, and now send it to the Journal. 



I will describe it in the best manner I can. 

 The part that I meant to make most conspicu- 

 ous, however, shows the least. I refer to the 

 bottom strip of the frame. Instead of nailing 

 a piece to the bottom ends of the frame, as with 

 the Langstroth frame, 1 use a piece | inch wide 

 by ^ inch in thickness, and cut just long enough 

 that it will rub down into the hive, but not go 

 hard. The ends of the side pieces of frames are 

 I inch thick by | inch wide, and 17^ inches long. 

 In the bottom end a groove is cut with a saw | 

 inch deep by | inch wide, so as to let the thin 

 strip in flush with the bottom ends of the frame. 

 The bottom ends of the frame are made wedging 

 so that they will slip down the little wire staples 

 seen in the cut. The ends of the bottom strip 

 project beyond the ends or sides of the frame, 

 and have the corners cut off, so that they will 



