T92 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



later become extinct. What are the 

 blossoms most visited by bees ? White 

 clover, knot-weed — better known as 

 smart-weed — Spanish-needle, asters, etc. 

 The pests of your fields are the bees' 

 favorites. Tlien you had best keep bees 

 to help destroy those pests ; but if the 

 bees cannot destroy them, you must ac- 

 knowledge that they are not injurious 

 to flowers, especially if you find that 

 those plants are the most numerous 

 after the largest honey crops have been 

 harvested from them. 



But there is another stumbling-block. 

 Are not bees injurious to sound ripe 

 fruit ? Do they not damage sound fruit 

 in years of honey scarcity? During the 

 fall of 187y there was great complaint 

 made of the bees on that score, in this 

 vicinity, especially in the matter of 

 grapes. These complaints induced us 

 to make careful experiments on the mat- 

 ter, and I ascertained and will say now, 

 not that I believe that bees cannot in- 

 jure sound fruit, but that I know that 

 they cannot, and that they may be 

 starved to death upon it. 



Some four or five years ago, a doubt 

 of this assertion having been expressed 

 in our public high school on this ques- 

 tion, by the lady principal of the school, 

 I offered to make a public test of this 

 matter before the pupils, and this offer 

 was accepted. The bees were attracted 

 from neighboring hives to a table in the 

 school-yard, and damaged fruit offered 

 them. After they got fairly to work 

 upon it, the damaged fruit was removed 

 and sound fruit put in its place, and in 

 the course of 15 minutes the bees had 

 all abandoned the spot. I earnestly re- 

 quest those who doubt my assertions on 

 this question, to make such a test for 

 themselves. It is not difficult, and is 

 conclusive. 



Most of the damage charged to bees is 

 done by birds, ants, wasps, and hornets 

 do their share, but as the little honey- 

 bee sometimes gathers the remnants so 

 nothing may be lost, she is often ac- 

 cused as the leading perpetrator of the 

 offence. 



Let us, then, give full credit to these 

 honest toilers, and let us remember that 

 aside from their usefulness as plant fer- 

 tilizers, we have great use for them as 

 honey-producers. 



Hamilton, 111. 



Reprls from Memliers of 111. B.-K. A. 



Written for tlie American Bee Journal 

 BY JAS. A. STONE. 



One-Cent Postag°e Stamps we 



prefer whenever it is necessary to send 

 stamps for fractions of a dollar. By re- 

 membering this, you will greatly oblige us. 



I send herewith the condensed reports 

 from members of the Illinois State Bee- 

 Keepers' Association, on the condition 

 of bees, and prospects of a honey crop 

 for 1894. The reports are supposed to 

 contain information in response to these 

 four questions : 



1. How many colonies have you ? 



2. What are the prospects of a honey 

 crop ? 



3. What is the amount of honey gath- 

 ered to date ? 



4. Is the honey No. 1 or not ? 



Here are the reports so far as heard 

 from, May 15th to June 1st : 



A. B. Anthony, Coleta— 26 cols. Pros- 

 pects very good. No surplus yet. 



Frank H. Arnold, Deer Plain— 86 cols. 

 Prospects good for a spring crop. No 

 honey. Bees in a starving condition. 



Thos. B. Allen, Stirrup Grove— 33 cols. 

 Prospects very poor. No white clover. No 

 honey so far. 



James Bertram, Bristol — 12 cols. ; hives 

 crowded with bees. Prospects not very 

 good. White clover injured by drouth last 

 fall. 



M. Bevier, Bradford — 43 cols. Prospects 

 good. No honey. 



5. M. Black, Clayton— 30 cols. Prospects 

 poor. No white clover, and very little to 

 gather from. No surplus honey. 



Frank Blecka, Elgin — 18 cols. Prospects 

 good — hope. Bees working in the sections. 

 Honey No. 1. 



Peter Blunier, Roanoke — 51 cols., and all 

 in good condition. Prospects not good; 

 white clover thin. No honey except in 

 the brood-chamber, and it looks to be good. 



D. A. Cadwallader, Pi-airiedu Rocher — 22 

 cols. Prospects good. White clover abun- 

 dant. No surplus honey yet, and no cases 

 on. Bees swarming. 



Dadant & Son, Hamilton — 350 cols. Pros- 

 pects poor. No honey. 



Peter Dahl, Granville— 128 cols. Prospects 

 fair. No surplus honey. Some honey -dew. 



Daniel E. Robbins, Payson— 30 cols. The 

 prospects very poor. No white clover, and 

 a dry spring insures clean corn-fields, so no 

 fall blooms. Honey enough to keep brood- 

 rearing brisk. Honey-dew. 



P. J. England, Fancy Prairie — 26 cols. 

 Prospects good, but no honey taken yet. 



J. D. Everett, Oak Park— 14 cols. Pros- 

 pects very good. I do not know whether 

 any honey. 



W. J. Finch, Jr., Springfield— 13 cols. 

 Prospects very poor, and little white clover. 

 Not any honey. 



E. T. Flanagan, Belleville— 375 cols. Pros- 

 pects only fair. Not one pound of honey. 



J. A. Green, Ottawa — 118 cols. Prospects 

 fair, and bees in first-rate condition. No 

 surplus honey. Some honey-dew. 



