584 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



11th, 12th aud 13th— which will probably 

 accommodate more than would auy other 

 time. 



There is promise of a large and interest- 

 ing meeting, and the presence of many 

 whom we all want to see. Due notice will 

 be given of programme, local arrange- 

 ments, etc., and the names of famous bee- 

 masters who promise to be present, will be 

 announced. There will be no lack of ac- 

 commodations at moderate rates, so let 

 every bee-keeper come who possibly can do 

 so. It is an occasion the like of which this 

 generation will not again see. 



Frank Bentox, 

 Sechj Xorth Am. Bee-Keepers' Ass'n. 



Washington, D. C, April 29, 1892. 



We can only second the cordial invitation 

 extended by Mr. Benton, and hope that 

 all who possibly can do so will arrange to 

 attend what promises to be one of the most 

 interesting meetings held in Chicago this 

 century. Let it be a general '• swarming 

 time " among bee-keepers themselves, hav- 

 ing '' selected " a place •' in advance," and 

 proper " scouts "' will now do their best to 

 find a suitable "hive" in which the 

 "swarm" may bring their "stores" for 

 the benefit of all. 



IVliat Bro. Alley 1* oiildu't I>o. 



^In the May Apiculturisit Editor Alley tells 

 some of the things that he " wouldn't do," 

 and among them we find the following, 

 that have been crystallized from his over 30 

 years' experience : 



I wouldn't feed in the spring to stimulate 

 brood-rearing. If feeding must be resorted 

 to, let it be to prevent starvation only. 



I wouldn't spread combs of brood and 

 place empty ones between before June 10th. 

 It will injure any colony to do such work 

 before the date named. 



I wouldn't use a hive that has a brood 

 capacity of over 1,800 cubic inches, or say 

 eight standard Langstroth frames. There 

 are over .50.000 bee-keepers who think* as I 

 do on this point. 



I wouldn't feed bees rye-meal, wheat- 

 flour, or anything else in the spring. Any- 

 thing that induces bees to leave their hives 

 when the weather is cool, is wrong, and an 

 injury to the colony. 



I wouldn't introduce a new queen for the 

 sake of changing the race of any prosper- 

 ous colony of bees. Those who do so will 

 be the losers in the end. After the swarm- 

 ing and honey seasons are over, then 

 change queens if necessary. 



I wouldn't wait for the honey to be cap- 

 ped before extracting, if I were running an 

 apiary for extracted honey. As soon as 

 the cells are full of nectar, and capping has 

 been commenced at the top of the combs, I 

 would commence to extract. I would put 

 the honey in barrels from which one head ' 



had been removed, and there let it remain 

 in a well ventilated room until fall. You 

 can rest assured of the fact that the honey 

 will not ferment, but will be ripened in the 

 very best possible manner. I have tried it, 

 and know what I am talking about. 



I wouldn't use a section-case that is non- 

 reversible. When sections are half full, or 

 even quite full, if reversed the bees will at- 

 tach the combs solidly to all sides of the 

 section. Honey so stored can be shipped a 

 long distance without breaking or leaking. 



I wouldn't put sections on a hive no mat- 

 ter how populous the colony, until I could 

 see that the bees are gathering some honey, 

 and had started to build brace-combs be- 

 tween the top-bars of the frames. Then I 

 would put a few sections on, but not over 

 one set of 24 sections at a time. 



I wouldn't climb 40 feet into a tree for a 

 swarm of bees when one issues, thus run- 

 ning the risk of breaking my neck. Nor 

 would I permit a swarm to issue before a 

 queen-trap was placed upon the hive. Use 

 the trap, and the necessity for climbing 

 trees for bees is wholly obviated. 



I wouldn't stay at home from chui-ch on 

 Sunday watching bees, fearing a swarm 

 might issue and decamp. I'd rather use a 

 queen-trap, and thus force the bees to re- 

 turn and issue again when more convenient 

 for me to care for them. No. sir, I don't 

 allow bees to keep me away from church or 

 any other place. I always feel easy when 

 away from home, if queen-traps are on all 

 my hives. 



Mr. E. Jt. Ba^xter, of Nauvoo, Ills., 

 (who is a son-in-law of our friend Chas. 

 Dadant), called on us last week. Mr. B. 

 reports his 300 colonies of bees as having 

 wintered with a loss of only about 8 per 

 cent. Last year his crop was between 10 

 and 12 thousand pounds of extracted honey. 

 In 1883, he secured about 10,000 pounds 

 from 41 colonies, one colony alone gather- 

 ing over GOO pounds. He has never had a 

 total failure of the honey crop, and ships 

 the major portion of his honey to distant 

 markets, always guaranteeing its purity. 



Illinois Bec-Keepers have finally 

 succeeded in securing an appropriation of 

 13,000 from the State, for the purpose of 

 making a honey exhibit at the World's 

 Fair. We doubt not those having the matter 

 in charge, will soon have something to say 

 to the bee-keepers of this State on the sub- 

 ject of an exhibit. Other States are now 

 placing their exhibits, and our grand State 

 must not fall short, though it was very late 

 in getting the necessary funds. 



"Bees and Honey" — see page 581. 



