64 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



i» 



For the Americau Bee Journal. 



"Eccentric." 



Didn't friend "Argo" go for us right 

 lively, tliough, in the February number of 

 the Amekic'an Bee Journal ? Notwith- 

 standing his vigorous assault we "still 

 live," and if nothing serious occurs to 

 frustrate our intentions or mar the even 

 tenor of our way we shall continue to re- 

 tain the name of "Eccentric ?" Are we 

 timid or cowardly ? Methinks friend 

 "Argo" would hardly have said that had 

 he known us personally. But we had a 

 good, hearty laugh when we had conclu- 

 ded the perusal of "Argo's" article, ^o 

 think that he should skip clear over "us 

 little folks" and read us last of all. Yet 

 we could not help thinking of a private 

 letter in Mr. A.'s own handwriting, stat- 

 ing that he valued our writings and prized 

 them very highly. Ah! friend A., did you 

 but know that "Eccentric" has ai^peared 

 in these pages often, (over his own name, 

 too,) very often before, had often had 

 right lively scuffles with "Novice,'' "Gal- 

 lup" and the other "big boys" who used 

 to box one another's ears so soundly in 

 these columns, you would never have 

 called us cowardly. Many thanks, how- 

 ever, for saying our "article was good." 



We begin to receive reports again of 

 the destroying w^ork of that fell "l#ee dis- 

 ease," and the indications are that large 

 numbers of our little pets will, ere the re- 

 turn of April showers and balmy spring, 

 "go where the woodbine twineth." Are 

 these things always to continue to baffle 

 our endeavors and thwart our designs? 

 Is sticcessful apiculture to forever remain 

 a thing of the past only, to tantalize us 

 with the sweet remembrance of those hal- 

 cyon days of the long ago ? It may be 

 so, but we are too hopeful yet to indulge 

 the thought. Even now, through the 

 dark and somber clouds which veil the 

 horizon of our vision do we catch a 

 glimpse of the happy, prosperous future 

 that awaits us if we with patience but 

 persevere yet a little while. Success, com- 

 plete and triumphant, can but be the re- 

 ward of patient waiting, thorough inves- 

 tigation and tireless industry. It may not 

 be out of place to state, in connection with 

 the foregoing, that we are anxiously 

 awaiting the arrival of a cojty of "Money 

 in the Apiary," which we see is advertised 

 in another column of tlie good, old Amek- 

 ICAN Bke Journal. We arc assured by 

 the author that it contain.s instructions for 

 wintering which will, if put in i)racti('e, 

 enable us to bid defiance to that "bee dis- 

 ease" which has produced such fatal results 

 during tiie reign of old Boreas and Jack 

 Frost. Knowing Mr. Burch has no patent 



hive to sell, and that he has been a suc- 

 cessful apiculturist, we have indulged the 

 hope that his investigations may give us 

 the key to success, and if this be the case 

 we say "long may he wave." 



We are glad to note that our bee con- 

 ventions are making it lively for those 

 dealers in a conglomeration of honey and 

 glucose. We smcerely trust that they 

 may persevere in the good work , until 

 these dealers shall abandon "the ways 

 that are dark and the tricks that are vain" 

 and engage in some more legitimate oc- 

 cupation. 



When we shall have attained complete 

 success in wintering our "little pets," and 

 shall have secured a sure and reliable 

 market for our honey, (which we can do 

 by having it stored in small glass boxes,) 

 then may we hope to make apiculture a 

 pursuit at once "sure, safe and highly re- 

 munerative." That this may be fully 

 realized in the near future is the earnest 



wish of "ECCEKTIUC." 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Swarmers and Non-Swarmers. 



In the issue of the A. B. J. for Febru- 

 ary, I observe a communication from N. 

 Cameron. lie tells us he has no faith in 

 the non-swarming hive, "for we have 

 known them to swarm when the hive was 

 not half full of comb." Mr. Quinby tells 

 us he took four hives of bees full of comb 

 and placed each upon another empty hive; 

 they each neglected to occupy the added 

 room and sent out a swarm. Probably 

 any bee in the exercise of common sense 

 would have done the same. Bees will 

 issue from any hive from"want of accept- 

 able room, from excessive heat, from the 

 presence of enemies, or from lack of food. 



Indeed in the home apiary it would be 

 less objectionable to have enough swarms 

 to sustain the working forces for the field. 



My experience has been, that with ac- 

 ceptable room for the whole colony the 

 whole season, secured from excessive heat 

 from the sun, or want of ventilation, they 

 will not swarm. A few facts, resulting 

 from the use of the non-swarmer hive. 



1. An apiary in nonswarmer hives will 

 secure four times the amount of surplus, 

 from the same field that would be secured 

 by an apiary of swarmer hives, in the 

 same field. 



3. An apiary in swarmer hives will 

 consume from two to four times the 

 amount of honey gathered from their 

 field, that would be consumed by the 

 apiary of nou-swarmers. 



3. The surplus honey gathered by the 

 swarmers costs from two to four times as 



