" stock" lumber, at a cost of about 50 

 cents eacb. and make them from 4 to (> 

 inches larger on every side than the 

 hive, with a slanting roof that will not 

 leak, and a spout about 4 inches square 

 and 1 foot long, leading from the en- 

 trance of hive through the packing box, 

 a la Cook (see "Cook's Manual, page 

 250). Then fill all the space around, 

 above and below the hive with chaff, 

 and we are done with them until the fol- 

 lowing April. 



The advantages of this mode of win- 

 tering are, that bees are enabled to fly 

 at any time when the weather will per- 

 mit, and the combs will never be moldy, 

 whether they are covered by the bees or 

 not. 



I also claim advantage over the chaff 

 hive, in that I have a double chaff cov- 

 ering, and that the chaff comes in di- 

 rect contact with the bees on 3 sides in- 

 stead of 1, thus more readily absorbing 

 the moisture. I also do not have the 

 extra trouble of manipulating such 

 large and heavy hives in the summer. 



Cellar wintering has been practiced 

 successfully by many experienced bee- 

 keepers, who have cellars sufficiently 

 dry and properly ventilated ; but such 

 conditions many of us have not. The 

 past winter has been so warm and wet 

 that many bees were lost in the cellars 

 in this vicinity. 



I will not at this time attempt to give 

 any directions for cellar wintering, but 

 will leave it for some one who has had 

 experience in that direction, and con- 

 sequently will be more competent than 

 myself to do the subject justice. 



Howell, May 1, 1880. 



From the Beinen Zeitung. 



Discussion on the Caucasian Bee. 



AUSTRO-GEEMAN CONVENTION. 



IIerrVogel : In commencing, let me 

 give you some incidents in the history 

 of tliis race of bees. It is surprising 

 that its qualities should have been so 

 long untested, since German apiarists 

 were long ago informed of its existence 

 through men of science. 



The famous naturalist, Pallas, trav- 

 eling in the mountainous regions of the 

 Caucasus, by order of the late Empress, 

 Katharina II., noticed the native bee of 

 that country, and sent a specimen to 

 Berlin, under the name of apis remipes, 

 which may now be found in the ento- 

 mological collection, where I first saw 

 it in the year 1862. 



Last year the Councillor-of-State,Dr. 

 Buttlerow, of St. Petersburg, published 

 in the Bienen Zeitung a dissertation on 

 the subject of the " Caucasian Bee and 



335 



its Culture." In this article lie says: 

 " The Caucasian bee is a special race, 

 which has many variations in regard to 

 the color of the first segment of the 

 abdomen, and partially like the hybrids 

 of the German and Italian bee found in 

 the neighborhood of Wladikawkas, in 

 the same bright yellow color, which we 

 esteem so much in the Italian bee." 

 This gentleman says that the Cauca- 

 sian bee produces a good number of 

 queen cells, and also much honey. 



I came into possession of the first 

 Caucasian bees in May, 1879, and will 

 now enumerate my observations rela- 

 tive to the subject : 



1. Is the Caucasian bee really a special 

 race, as Dr. Buttlerow says in the 

 Bienen Zeitung for 1878? Though there 

 is a great variation in the color, I de- 

 clare this bee to be a special race ; first, 

 look at the type of race, and it is not 

 much smaller than other races. 



2. Does this bee possess that " extra- 

 ordinary gentleness " of which Dr. 

 Buttlerow speaks ? I could hardly be- 

 lieve it, and I reasoned as follows : Dr. 

 Buttlerow came from St. Petersburg to 

 the Caucasus, and, visiting several bee- 

 keepers, became prejudiced in favor of 

 that much-praised bee; but now I be- 

 lieve in it, for I have had the proof of 

 its gentleness in my own apiary. While 

 manipulating this race of bees it is not 

 necessary to apply smoke at all ; if I 

 want the bees to' move away from a 

 comb, I blow on them to insure success, 

 but there is no reason to get them an- 

 gry by blowing or striking them, and 

 there is no probability of provoking 

 them to stinging. I will add, that these 

 bees also preserve their amiable dispo- 

 sition in increased temperature, and 

 even in the hot period of fulinination 

 or the changes of meteorological influ- 

 ence. But it is a noted fact the Cau- 

 casian bee is very belligerent toward 

 strange or robber bees, and millers and 

 robbers never leave the Caucasian hive 

 except as they are carried out dead. 



3. The prolificness of the Caucasian 

 is very great, and also the disposition to 

 rear drones, which shows their tendency 

 to swarm. This is also stated by Dr. 

 Buttlerow, who says that an apiary of 

 5 colonies in a year has increased to 15. 



4. It is not strange to find 100 queen 

 cells in a moderately large colony. As 

 the Caucasian bee is a special race, it 

 does not follow that the queens pro- 

 duced will be weak and inferior because 

 of the great number of cells built. 

 About the natural qualities of the Cau- 

 casian bee, I will give them at some fu- 

 ture time in the Bienen Zeitung. 



5. I cannot, of course, state this sea- 

 son Avhether the Caucasian bees are the 



