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AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



of honey, and the colonies had increased 

 to 51, which had plenty to live on until 

 next spring. I have sold all my honey 

 at 123^ cents per pound. 



There are many here that have lost 

 all their bees — some lost one-half, and 

 others two-thirds of what bees they had, 

 while I only lost 2 out of 53 colonies, 

 and 9 swarms I doubled, so I believe the 

 cellar is the best place to winter bees. 



As my bees are black and hybrid, I 

 expect to get a good queen-bee of the 

 best 5-banded Italian, if possible to im- 

 prove my bees, though I believe the 

 black bee winters the best. I think that 

 hybrid queens breed the fastest in the 

 spring. The hybrid bees are generally 

 the ugliest, but I have no trouble in 

 handling them. I use neither veil nor 

 gloves, and I go right in amongst them 

 with my sleeves rolled up, and no pro- 

 tection of any kind. 



J. E. Thokstad. 



Blair, Wis., Jan. 26, 1893. 



Visionary Bee-Keeping, Etc. 



I saw the advertisement of Mrs. Lizzie 

 E. Cotton in the Topeka Capital, also in 

 the Lawrence Journal, wherein she 

 stated that one person from her new 

 system of bee-keeping started with one 

 colony, and the third year sold $800 

 worth of honey, and increased to 26 

 colonies ! Can it be that she is as big a 

 humbug as she used to be a few years 

 ago? 



Bee-keeping has been a poor business 

 in Kansas for the past two years. There 

 was no surplus honey. I have 49 colo- 

 nies wintering on the summer stands, 

 and all seem to be in good condition. 

 Some are in double-walled hives, and 

 the rest in single-walled hives. I never 

 could see any difference in their winter- 

 ing. A. L. Williams. 



Lawrence, Kans., Jan. 27, 1893. 



Virgin Queens — Comb-Baskets. 



I notice in Gleanings, page 53, that 

 some reviewing has been done, and some 

 valuable knowledge given in the matter 

 of virgin queens being fertilized beyond 

 21 days old. My rule has been to kill 

 them after 21 days, if no appearance of 

 laying or fertilization was noticed. Now 

 I think I will wait 31 days. 



I have read Query 854 in the Bee 

 Journal about sloping comb-baskets in 

 extractors, and would say that the slope 

 is far the best for all combs that hang 

 in a basket the same as in a hive ; for 

 two reasons, viz. : 1st, the brood will 



receive less centrifugal force, it being 

 near the center shaft, and if no brood, 

 the bottom honey will be the last stored, 

 and thinnest, and go out easily. 2nd, 

 honey-cells are sloping upwards when 

 the combs are plumb, but when sloping 

 the comb brings the cells level, other- 

 wise the honey would have to be raised 

 up before going out of the comb. But 

 for Langstroth combs, or any that stand 

 in the basket on an end, I want them to 

 stand plumb, because the honey is as 

 ripe at the bottom as at the top, and 

 needs as much force to throw it out. 



One more "kink" I will tell about: 

 There is a right and wrong way to put 

 Langstroth combs into the extractor, on 

 account of cells of comb sloping upward. 

 Always make the bottom-bar of the 

 frame go ahead when turning, then 

 the cells will be sloying backward a 

 little, and the honey flows out easily. 

 For illustration, see how a scoop shovel 

 can be loaded or unloaded by this slop- 

 ing either forward or backward. I have 

 my bees in the cellar this cold winter. 

 •J At. R. Bellamy. 



Black Bank, Ont., Jan. 23, 1893. 



What the Black Bees Did. 



I have a colony of black bees which 

 cast a prime swarm on May 30, 1892, 

 and one on June 10, which were both 

 hived separately. The first swarm 

 swarmed again on July 20, and the sec- 

 ond swarm gathered 50 pounds of comb 

 honey, besides 55 pounds for winter 

 stores. I call that pretty good for last 

 season, as we had so much rain here 

 that bees could work only half the time. 



Aug. Bartz. 



Chippewa Falls, Wis., Jan. 30, 1893. 



Beginner's Experience and Troubles. 



I desire to report my success in honey- 

 production, and also my troubles, and 

 see if any one can help me with advice. 



On July 8th I procured a colony of 

 black bees ; in three weeks they filled 

 28 one-pound sections, and later filled 

 the hive full to overflowing with honey 

 of No. 1 quality. 



On Aug. 16th they cast a fine swarm, 

 which stored about 40 pounds of honey 

 before frost came. The hive was a 

 home-made affair, hastily constructed ; 

 the tops of the frames were not beveled, 

 and no starters were used. The bees 

 built their combs crosswise of the 

 frames, so they cannot be removed. 

 They were a strong, vigorous colony, 



