ments are also being made by the Ex- 

 ecutive Committee of the Indiana Bee- 

 Keepers' Association to gather all pos- 

 sible information on the subject in this 

 State. As regards the offering of pre- 

 miums, etc., I would suggest the fol- 

 lowing as a competitive list : 



Best package comb honey, 1 lb. or 

 more. 



Best package extracted honey, 1 lb. or 

 more. 



Best crate of honey in the comb, in 

 the most marketable shape. 



Best display of honey, both comb and 

 extracted. 



Best machine for extracting honey. 



Best display of bee-keepers' supplies 

 and the best display of wax. 



In conclusion, I would ask that you 

 also inquire into the feasibility of the 

 establishment of an apiary in connec- 

 tion with our agricultural college. 

 Other States have gone far ahead of our 

 own in this respect. Michigan has in 

 connection with her agricultural college 

 an apiary, managed by a competent, 

 practical apiculturist, whose observa- 

 tions are recorded and published, and 

 whose methods of treatment are always 

 open to the inspection of learners. Sev- 

 eral other States have followed the 

 worthy example of Michigan. This 

 department, in connection with the ag- 

 ricultural college, should be and will be, 

 if successfully managed, not only self- 

 sustaining financially, but a repository 

 of demonstrated facts and scientific 

 knowledge, to which the public should 

 have full access, and bee-keeping will 

 thereby be raised to the rank of a surely 

 remunerative pursuit, instead of a hap- 

 hazard speculation. 



From the Prairie Farmer. 



Transferring Bees from Box Hives. 



MRS. L. HARRISON. 



When you have bees to transfer 

 choose a warm, still day ; about 10 a.m. 

 is the best time, as many bees will be 

 in the fields at that hour. Get every- 

 thing in readiness for use that you 

 will need before the bees are aware 

 of your intention. If you get the bees 

 stirred up, and have to run to the shop, 

 string-bag, kitchen and pantry for tools, 

 vou will wish that you had never seen 

 a bee, before you get through. You 

 will need a box to drive the bees into, 

 and a smoker to intimidate them. If we 

 were doing the transferring, we should 

 take the hive, after the bees were driven 

 out, to the kitchen, as we should feel 

 more at home working at the kitchen ta- 

 ble having provided there for our use be- 

 forehand a hammer and cold-chisel for 



cutting nails, a small saw for cutting off 

 the supports, and a long knife for cut- 

 ting combs loose from the sides of the 

 hive, and something soft, like folded 

 muslin, for laying the brood upon, so 

 that the baby bees would not bruise their 

 heads. If we were intending to fasten 

 the combs into frames, with spines from 

 the red haw, we would have holes punc- 

 tured all around the frames, and the 

 thorns near at hand ; or, with splints, 

 have them tied in pairs, and a wire or 

 string attached to the other end of one 

 of them, so that they could be readily 

 adjusted, when put over the frame. As 

 some pieces of comb are more readily 

 fastened one way than another, strings, 

 splints and tacks should be at hand. 



When all is ready, and the dog tied 

 up, smoke the bees, and give them a 

 little time to fill their sacs with honey, 

 then invert the hive, and place the driv- 

 ing box on top, wrapping around where 

 they join with cloth to prevent any bees 

 from escaping. Now you can sing 

 "marching along," keeping time by 

 rapping sharply on the hive with a stick 

 for about 20 minutes, when the bees will 

 be clustered, like a new swarm, in the 

 top of the box, and should be placed 

 where the hive formerly stood, leaving 

 an entrance for the bees which return 

 from the fields. 



The hive is now ready for dissection, 

 and may be done in any way best suited 

 for preserving the combs entire. If 

 the pieces of comb are cut a trifle 

 larger than the frame, it may be sprung 

 over it and more easily kept in place. 

 All worker comb should be carefully 

 saved, and drone appropriated for wax. 

 Handle the combs containing worker 

 brood carefully, for the future prosper- 

 ity of the colony depends, in a great 

 measure, upon the safety of the babies. 

 When the frames are put into the hive, 

 those containing brood should be placed 

 together in the center of the hive. 

 When the combs are all in the hive, it 

 should be placed on its stand, and the 

 bees poured out of the box in front of 

 it, when they will readily enter, like a 

 flock of sheep into the fold. In a few 

 days the owner will notice that they are 

 working with greater energy than ever 

 before, and if splints or strings have 

 been used to fasten the combs they may 

 be removed, as the bees will have fas- 

 tened the combs securely. We almost 

 forgot to mention one important item — 

 care should be taken that no honey is 

 running from the transfer hive, to at- 

 tract robbers, when it is placed upon its 

 stand. This spring is a good one for 

 transferring, as most colonies have very 

 little honey. 



Peoria, 111. 



