AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



339 



point, and goes directly where it is most 

 needed, and not into the stomach when 

 ■the foot is afflicted. The good effect is 

 felt almost immediately after the stings 

 have been applied, it seems. 



HOW THE BEES ARE WINTERING. 



Since I last reported (Dec. 2, 1892) 

 the wintering of bees (out-doors) has 

 been very satisfactory. On Dec. 8th we 

 had 8°, Fahr., below zero, and on Dec. 

 26th 24° below zero. 



On Jan. 4, 1893, my bees had a good 

 general, cleansing flight. Then, again, 

 on Jan. 13th we had zero weather, and 

 on the 15th the thermometer registered 

 10° below zero, and kept at zero (at sun- 

 rise) on the 16th, 17th and 18th of 

 January. 



On Jan. 20th and 21st my bees had 

 again a good flight, when the thermom- 

 eter registered 54° above zero in the 

 shade. We have had but very little 

 snow so far (Jan. 21st), and the bees 

 are in the best possible condition. Should 

 they have another good flight in the 

 month of February, then I shall expect 

 them to winter safely, as usual for the 

 last 12 years, that is, without loss. 



Grand Island, Nebr. 



m I * 



IVhat to Do With Bees Affected 

 With Diarrhea. 



Written for the American B«6 Journal 

 BY DR. C. C. MILLER. 



I have received the following letter 

 about bees affected with diarrhea : 



"I write to ask if there is anything 

 I can do to help my bees. I have 13 

 colonies in the cellar, and they all have 

 the diarrhea, are spotting their hives 

 badly, and have a bad odor. I cannot 

 .give them a flight for some time yet. I 

 have your book, ' A Year Among the 

 Bees,' and Newman's ' Bees and Honey,' 

 and take the American Bee Journal, 

 but can't find anything to help me out 

 of my trouble. Austin Reynolds." 



The thing needed above all things is a 

 good flight for your bees, and possibly 

 you can't do much better than to wait 

 patiently, and hope f?arm weather will 

 soon come. Even if it should be warm 

 enough for a day for them to fly now, 

 I'm not sure but I would rather risk 

 them in the cellar than to take them out 

 to stay. And if you take them out on 

 a fine day for a flight, and then put 

 them back again, somehow that doesn't 

 seem to work first-rate. 



I have considerable faith in warmth, 

 and if I were in your place I'd try right 

 hard to raise the temperature of the 

 cellar up to 50° or more. If there is 

 any way you can have a stove in the 

 cellar, especially a hard coal-stove, 

 that's the thing. If the cellar is small, 

 heated stones or jugs of water may do, 

 but don't have hot water without having 

 it corked up tight to prevent steam get- 

 ting out. Possibly hot stones right on 

 the hives would help, only they must not 

 melt the combs in the hive. 



If I couldn't have a fire in the cellar, 

 I think I'd try to get on the good side of 

 the women-folks, a^^d get possession of 

 the kitchen about dark, unless there is 

 some other room more convenient. 

 Manage to have the room very warm, 

 but not light. Bring up the bees (you 

 might try it first on a part) and keep 

 them up to a good heat for several hours. 

 I don't think it would hurt if they should 

 go up to 80°, but mind there must be no 

 light from the stove. 



Likely they will come out of the hives 

 in great numbers, running all over the 

 hives, or else hanging out in great clus- 

 ters. Don't be too badly scared over 

 that; very likely they'll get back again. 



Toward morning, when they have 

 cooled off and quieted down, you can re- 

 turn them to the cellar. But suppose at 

 that time they are largely out of the 

 hives, and not in shape to be handled. 

 Well, commence early enough so that if 

 they have not quieted down, you can 

 open up doors and windows and cool 

 them off before daylight. 



If there comes a time when it is as 

 warm at night out-doors as it is in the 

 cellar, open up the cellar doors and win- 

 dows, and give them a good airing out. 

 Very likely they will roar so as to 

 make you think they are all going to 

 ruin, but by morning they'll be quiet. 



If a good day comes for a flight, I 

 think I'd let them out, and then put 

 them back at dark. Report success. 



Marengo, Ills., March 2, 1893. 



A " Michigander's " Experience 

 in modern Bee-Keeping. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 

 BY S. D. CHAPMAN. 



In the spring of 1881 my brother and 

 I started with a few colonies of bees. At 

 that time northern Michigan was away 

 down near where the Bee-Keepers' Re- 

 view is now printed. We soon heard 

 from it up in Newaygo county, and it 



