146 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



up late here, quite as well as in June. 

 They may need care," but it is quite easy 

 to give it. 



Sow buckwheat, or have it sown for 

 you, at different times. It always pays to 

 have it, though there is great difference in 

 swarms as to its yield of honey. 



ed bees must, therefore, in some way or 

 other, have made the other bees under- 

 stand the fate which awaited them." 



Bees Communicating Ideas. 



The following illustration of the pow- 

 ers possessed by insects to communicate 

 their experiences to one another is given 

 by a lady correspondent of the London 

 Spectator : — "I was staying in the house 

 of a gentleman who was fond of trying 

 experiments, and who was a bee-keeper. 

 Having read in some book on bees that 

 the best and most humane way of taking 

 the honey without destroying the bees 

 was to immerse the hive for a few minutes 

 in a tub of cold water, when the bees, 

 being half drowned, could not sting, 

 while the honey is uninjured, since the 

 water could not penetrate the closely 

 waxed cells, he resolved on trying the 

 plan. I saw the experiment tried. The 

 bees, according to the reci^ie, were fished 

 out of the water after the hive had been 

 immersed a few minutes, and with those 

 remaining in the hive laid on a sieve in 

 the sun to dry. But, by bad management 

 the experiment had been tried loo late in 

 the. day, and on the sun going down, 

 they were removed into the kitchen, to 

 the great indignation of the cook, on 

 whom they revenged their sufferings as 

 soon as the warm rays of the fire before 

 which they were placed revived them. As 

 she insisted on their being taken away, 

 they were put back into their old hive, 

 which had been dried, together with a 

 portion of their honey, and placed on one 

 of the shelves of the apiary, in which 

 were five or six other strong hives full of 

 bees, and left for the night. Early the 

 next morning my friend went to look at 

 hive on which he experimented the night 

 before, but, to his amazement, not only 

 the bees from the hive were gone, but the 

 other hives were also deserted— not a bee 

 remained in any of tliem. The half-drowu- 



Death of M. Quinby. 



As we go to press, the sad news comes 

 to us that jVIr. Quinby is dead. This will 

 be to most of the bee-keepers a personal 

 loss. No other among those who are 

 eminent in this business has been so 

 loved and honored. He was the pioneer 

 of progress in the work, and to him more 

 than all others, we are indebted for the 

 light thrown upon the bee-hive, explain- 

 ing all mysteries and making the man- 

 agement of these little workers easy and 

 simple. To us he has been a guide and 

 friend. When first interested in bee-keep- 

 ing his book was our guide, and when we 

 went to him for advice the long cordial 

 letters received in answer were full of en- 

 couragement. Mr. Quinby was singular- 

 ly free from any jealousy or self-seeking 

 in the business which he first elevated to 

 the rank of a profession. lie never had 

 any selfish ends to gain, but wuis ready at 

 all times to aid a beginner, by sympathy 

 and advice. He was to the end of his 

 life making new experiments and testing 

 the inventions of others. The last letter 

 we received from him was in relation to 

 some comb foundations newly invented 

 and which he was testing with success. 

 This letter was as full of life and interest 

 as any one that he wrote us eighteen years 

 ago. An obituary notice may be found 

 in another column. 



Don't Violate the Postal Law. 



However bad the laws regulating the 

 rates of postage may be, they ought to be 

 obeyed. Negelecting to do this often 

 makes the party violating the law liable 

 to a fine, often prevents the party address- 

 ed receiving the matter mailed or makes 

 him pay extra postage. 



Everybody ought to know that it is 

 illegal to put any writing whatever, on a 

 paper or circular sent at "third class" post- 

 age rate. So doing makes the sender 



