33£ 



Fuller's Station, N. Y., May 29, 1880. 



I send to Prof. Cook the contents of 

 a king bird's gizzard, with request to 

 examine with a microscope and report 

 in the American Bee Journal. 



W. S. Ward. 



[This poor king bird, slaughtered for 

 the good of science, had one consola- 

 tion at least— his last meal was rich and 

 bounteous ; fragments of nearly all 

 kinds of insects were to be seen, prin- 

 cipally beetles. There was no sign of 

 any bees— neither drones nor workers. 



I know from actual examination that 

 the king bird does sometimes capture 

 worker bees, but with us the damage is 

 very light. One can never examine the 

 stomach of one of these birds without 

 coming to the conclusion that, as an in»^ 

 sectivorous bird, it ranks even with the 

 beautiful blue bird, as par excellence. 

 —A. J. Cook.] 



Nebo, 111., May 19, 1880. 

 I have 21 colonies ; I wintered 7 colo- 

 nies with good success; have divided 

 this spring and bought 12 more. I am 

 transferring them now. I have in- 

 vented a clamp for fastening comb in 

 frames, that makes quick work. It is 

 as follows : Take a sheet of tin and cut 

 it in strips )i in.; it must be long 

 enough to admit of bending over the 

 top and bottom bars at each end. Punch 

 holes in each end large enough to allow 

 a No. 12 wire to pass through ; lay down 

 the frame on 2 of the clamps, then put 

 in the comb and slip the wire pins 

 through ; it is quickly done and they 

 are easily taken off. If this idea is 

 worth anything please give it in the 

 Journal. I have the same queen yet 

 that I got of you last spring ; she is a 

 good one. E. T. Bogart. 



Otsego, Mich., June 21, 1880. 

 Bees are doing finely since the hood 

 of rains we had. We have had none 

 now since the 15th. We now have 

 bright clear weather, just right for 

 honey. T. F. Bingham. 



llillsboro, 111., June 19, 1880. 



I send you a plant that grows around 

 the town and in the fence corners. 

 When cut the smell is splendid. The 

 bees are working on it from morning 

 till night. Please give me the name of 

 it. My bees are doing nicely now. 



J. H. Shimer. 



[It is motherwort, and is an excellent 

 honey-prod ucer.— Ed.] 



Huntsville, Ala., May 14, 1880. 

 Having been appointed Vice Presi- 

 dent of the National Association for 

 Alabama, I acknowledge the compli- 

 ment, and will do what I can to further 

 the interests of bee-keepers in this 

 State, for I think it one of the finest 

 locations in the country for bees. I have 

 34 colonies of Italian bees, and I expect 

 to double them during the season. I get 

 from 80 to 100 lbs. surplus honey from 

 each colony. Not long ago I had a 

 swarm come off, and in 15 or 20 days 

 every frame was filled with honey. I 

 use a frame 9^x14%, and 19 to the hive. 

 I am charmed with my success in bee 

 culture, and shall do all I can to create 

 an interest in the science of bee-keep- 

 ing in this State. 



James A. Austin. 



Lansing, Mich., June 15, 1880. 

 In my report of the Central Michigan 

 Bee-Keepers' Association last month, 

 on page 277, it says that Mrs. Baker 

 " gave statements of success with the 

 chaff hive. 1 ' This is is a mistake. She 

 is all in favor of the cellar for wintering 

 bees, and has the best of success. She 

 probably has the best cellar in the State. 

 Geo. L. Perry. 



[This mistake was caused by a slight 

 omission. It should have read thus : 

 " Mrs. Baker described her method of 

 cellar wintering, and gave statements 

 of great success that were a comparison 

 with the chaff hive." The words in ital- 

 ics were accidentally omitted.— Ed.] 



Hastings, Minn., June 5, 1880. 

 I have finally saved 13 cononies, 1 of 

 them in fair condition. Rev. A. Telford 

 has only 4 left out of the 84 colonies he 

 had last season. Some reports of foul 

 brood here. Some colonies that were 

 strong last season, and not divided nor 

 extracted, are now sending out swarms. 

 We have had much wind and sudden 

 changes, preventing many bees from 

 returning to their hives, weakening 

 many colonies. The Northern Wiscon- 

 sin liee-Keepers' Association met here 

 on the 20th and 27th ult. It was not 

 well attended but was an interesting 

 meeting, and opened the way for a good 

 meeting this fall at Minneapolis, where 

 the next session is to be held, during 

 the State Fair. Wm. Dyer. 



Chester, S. C, May 24. 1880. 

 I have 14 colonies of bees in Lang- 

 stroth hives and 10 in box hives. I had 

 a swarm April 5. My bees are doing 

 well now. H. S. Hardin. 



