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AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



8th. That in this locality it makes but 

 little difference whether a single or 

 double walled hive is used, having air 

 space or chaff packed, just so the ab- 

 sorbents are placed over the cluster. 



9th. That unless you " sun " and air 

 the packing frequently during the win- 

 ter, your bees will suffer from dampness. 



10th. That the absorbents are of 

 much benefit in the late spring to protect 

 the brood from the sudden changes we 

 have here. 



Londonderry, Ohio. 



_ Do not write anything for publication 

 on the same sheet of paper witn business 

 matters, unless it can be torn apart without 

 interfering with either part of the letter. 



Bees are All O. K. 



My bees are all O. K. at this writing, 

 in the cellar. I had 5 colonies, and 

 bought 4 more of Italians at an auction 

 for $21. Jno. H. Rupp. 



Washington, Kan., Feb. 4, 1893. 



Skunks in the Apiary, Etc. 



There are a great many skunks where 

 I live. Mr. H. C. Farnum says that they 

 dig at the front of the hive. He did not 

 say where it was — in the dirt, or whether 

 they dug at the hive-entrance. We are 

 now having some cold weather, but the 

 bees have begun to rear considerable 

 brood. T. W. Wheeler. 



Menardville, Texas, Feb. 3, 1893. 



Cold Weather Long Continued. 



I have just looked my bees over after 

 our unusually long spell of cold weather, 

 ranging from 13" below zero to a few 

 degrees above, and I find those with 

 sealed covers in bad condition, and sev- 

 eral colonies dead, that had plenty of 

 bees and an abundance of stores. The 

 hives were nearly full of frost and ice, 

 while those with cushions on top so far 

 are all right, with little frost in the 

 hives. My hives are double, with so- 



called dead-air space, and with cushions 

 on ; last winter they wintered nicely. I 

 do not think I shall care to try the 

 Root's sealed covers any more. 



Bees have not had a chance to fly 

 here since the first of November, and I 

 fear if this cold weather lasts much 

 longer without a chance for them to 

 have a cleansing flight, there will be 

 few colonies left in the spring. What 

 bees are kept in this vicinity are win- 

 tered out-of-doors. We do not get the 

 large amounts of honey herein southern 

 New Hampshire that they do in many 

 places. Last year my surplus averaged 

 about 25 pounds per colony, spring 

 count, about half extracted, with about 

 25 per cent, increase of colonies. 



Geo. S. Wheeler. 



New Ipswich, N. H., Feb. 8, 1893. 



Did Well for a Poor Season. 



I have been keeping a few colonies of 

 bees several years, and concluded to in- 

 crease the number last spring. Last 

 summer I had 6 old colonies, and 6 first 

 swarms, which stored 320 pounds of 

 honey, and it was a poor season. I have 

 16 colonies in the cellar now. 



S. M. Robertson. 



Grey Eagle, Minn., Jan. 28, 1893. 



Bees in Fine Condition. 



My bees, at present, are in fine condi- 

 tion on the summer stands, packed in 

 fine hay, and a roof over to keep all dry. 

 5 got about 50 pounds of comb honey to 

 the colony, spring count, last year. All 

 have plenty of honey to winter on, and 

 of a good quality. Bees are not so 

 plentiful now as they were 18 months 

 ago. We have had plenty of zero 

 weather for the last two months. 



Lee Powelson. 



Batavia, Iowa, Jan. 31, 1893. 



Bees Tryiug to Get Out of the Hives. 



I started last spring with 3 colonies 

 of bees, and of course I wanted to in- 

 crease the number, so I did not put on 

 the surplus cases until late, and, to my 

 surprise, they did not swarm, and did 

 not store one ounce of surplus honey. 

 But they have plenty of stores for win- 

 ter. I bought 9 colonies more last fall, 

 of my neighbors, which I think will give 

 me a good start for next spring, if I 

 have success in wintering. 



They are all packed In straw, with 

 chaff cushions on top. But the 9 colo- 

 nies I bought last fall do not act right — 



