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AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



had nailed together more than 600 

 boxes before she was 5 years old. This 

 was early in 1891, but for the next two 

 years she did little in this line. 



However, she began again in earnest 

 on Jan. 10, 1893, and in 2 weeks had 

 nailed together 1,000 boxes; by the 

 25th day of February she had made 

 3,000. On April 2, 1893, she was 7 

 years old, and on the 22nd of the same 

 month she had made a total of 5,189 

 boxes since the previous Jan. 10th. On 

 one occasion she nailed together 96 

 boxes in 90 minutes. 



All of these boxes, it should be under- 

 stood, were in 4 pieces, thus making 4 

 joints to be nailed, and 8 nails to the 

 box ; and Elsie drove the 8 nails in every 

 one of the 5,189 boxes which she put 

 together and finished ! 



This shows what a wonderful help 

 even a child can be in doing the work 

 connected with an apiary. Doubtless 

 there are thousands of " little workers" 

 besides the bees in the homes of bee- 

 keepers throughout the land, and in the 

 future they will become the ones who 

 will shoulder the responsibilities incident 

 to the life of a bee-keeper. 



We ought not to forget to call atten- 

 tion to Miss Elsie's little dog, that seems 

 to think itself of so much importance in 

 that big chair. We understand that this 

 dog is Elsie's constant playmate, and so 

 of course it would have grieved greatly 

 had it not been permitted to appear with 

 her in the picture. 



"FohI 1Si*oo<1 ; Its Natural History 

 and Rational Treatment," is the title of an 

 interesting booklet by Dr. Wm. R. Howard, 

 of Texas. It also contains a review of the 

 work of others on the same subject. It is 

 being issued at the office of the Bee Jour- 

 nal, and will be ready to mail about April 

 10th. Price, postpaid, 2.5 cents; or clubbed 

 with the Bee Journal for one year— both 

 ./Ogether for $1.15. Orders received now, 

 and mailed as soon as issued. 



One-Cent Postag^e Ststnips we 



prefer whenever it is necessary to send 

 stamps for fractions of a dollar. By re- 

 membering this, you will greatly oblige us. 



answered by 



Marengo, III. 



In this department will be answered those 

 questions needing immediate attention, and 

 such as are not of suflHcient special interest to 

 require replies from the 'JO or more apiarists 

 who help to make " Queries and Replies " so 

 interesting on another page. In the main, it 

 will contain questions and answers upon mat- 

 ters that particularly interest beginners. — Ed. 



Reversing- to Prevent Swarming'. 



Will reversing the frames, that is, turn- 

 ing them upside down, keep the bees from 

 swarming ? One of our most intelligent 

 bee-keepers here has patented a hive that 

 you just turn the hive itself upside down, 

 and, presto, the hive is so full of bees they 

 have to wait their turn to get in to unload 

 a half section of honey, etc., each one at a 

 lick. L. P. 



Denver, Colo. 



Answer. — A few years ago there was 

 much said about reversing to prevent 

 swarming, but one after another reported 

 that it was not a success, and now I don't 

 know that any one makes any claim for it. 

 When the combs are reversed, sometimes 

 queen-cells that were started are torn down, 

 and sometimes not. So you can't count 

 on it. 



Sour Honey — Unsatisfactory Queens. 



1. I have a quantity of golden-rod honey 

 that has soured. Will it do for stimula- 

 tive feeding, or is it good for anything ? 



2. I have also two Italian queens (mother 

 and daughter) whose bees did not store 

 enough honey last summer for winter 

 stores. Would it be advisable to replace 

 them with queens of another strain ? If so, 

 when ? Novice. 



Minnesota. 



Answers. — 1. Exceeding care should be 

 observed that bees do not get even a very 

 small quantity of improper food in the fall, 

 but it is remarkable how they will appro- 

 priate almost anything that has a little 

 sweet in it, and take no harm therefrom 

 when they can fly out. By all means use 

 the soured honey for feeding. You ask if 

 it's good for anything, evidently with the 

 idea that if it is not good for feeding, it 

 may be good for something else. It will 

 make good vinegar. I suspect there is not 

 as much vinegar made from honey as might 

 be, but remember that the best honey 



