THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



215 



The following papers by A. J. Davidson, 

 were read: 



A BEAUTIFUL THEORY. 



One fine summer morning Mr. Nectar, 

 Mr. Blowhard and Mr. Goodwill met near a 

 beautiful live oak tree, which furnished a 

 cool resting place, when the following con- 

 versation ensued: 



Mr. B. — Mr. Nectar, you are just the man 

 that Mr. Goodwill and I wished to see most. 

 We have been planning a bee business on a 

 larger scale than most of you Californians 

 have thought of yet. It is a very profitable 

 business, I miderstand, as it does not re- 

 quire much capital and the labor is easy. 

 "We propose to buy a long canon in the 

 mountains, say ten miles long, in which we 

 could locate six or eight apiaries of .500 

 each, and have each swarm supplied with a 

 new frame that I am about to patent, so ad- 

 justed with a groove that the comb can be 

 uncapped in the hive simply by the use of a 

 lever. This honey will then drop into 

 troughs, which will lead to a large tank, 

 and from this tank at each bee yard an iron 

 pipe would lead out to a main pipe that 

 would run from thence to some seaport 

 town, Santa Monica for instance, where it 

 could be run directly on board a vessel. 



Nectar— 1 would like to sell you what 

 bees I have to spare — (aside to Mr. G., for 

 cash)— as when such stupendous operations 

 as this one are on foot it would be well for 

 small enterprises to veil their heads. 



Mr. G.— What do you think of the rela- 

 tive merits of the Italian and black bees? 



Nectar— It is conceded by almost every 

 intelligent bee-keeper that the Italian is 

 very much superior to the black bee. 



Mr. B.— What do you think of the plan 

 that I have indicated? Would you not be 

 glad to take stock in this undertaking? 



Nectar — If you would get it started and it 

 proved a success in every way, of course. 



Mr. G.— What would one of those apiaries 

 cost without the innovations of which Mr. 

 B. speaks? 



Nectar— First, the grounds and buildings 

 for such an apiary could not well be less 

 than $4,000. The 500 swarms on the ground 

 in condition for making honey, at $10 each 

 would be $5,000. Team, wagon, and con- 

 veniences for a family, $1,000. 



Mr. G. — This would be an investment of 

 1510,000; and would this business pay 1}4 per 

 cent, per month on this investment? 



Nectar — This is an open question. A 

 man of industrious, economical and busi- 

 ness habits of course can succeed in almost 

 any industry. 



Mr. B. — I nave heard that honey could be 

 raised for five cents per pound, and that it 

 did not cost much to run the business, and 

 I had concluded to run it a few years and, 

 retire, but your suggestions have knocked 

 into pi my ideal plans of buying a stone 

 front in the city. 



ITALIAN AND GERMAN BEES. 



The question is asked often "In what do 

 the Italians excel?" 'In and in breeding' 

 has been steadily practiced with the black 

 bee generally from ignorance and frequent- 

 ly by those who knew the advantages of 

 crossing the stock, for lack of time or hav- 

 ing some other industry to occupy part of 

 the time during the breeding season; while 

 with the Italians, queens have been miport- 

 ed generally by good practical breeders and 



in many cases it is thought stock has been 

 improved by home culture. Then it is 

 logical to infer that if both were alike good 

 when first imported that we would have to 

 give our verdict in favor of the Italians. 

 But when we take into account that they 

 have more strength, can fly farther, and 

 that they have the ability to collect honey 

 from certain trumpet-shaped flowers tliat 

 the black bee cannot, that they work earlier 

 and later and are more prolific, these advan- 

 tages no doubt account for the superior 

 condition of Italian swarms in very trying 

 years when bee forage is scarce. The sum- 

 mer of 1875 for example. There are many 

 things admired and esteemed solely for 

 their beauty. And for those of an jesthetic 

 taste our rich, golden colored favorites 

 would certainly be preferred. And finally 

 I would say it is easier for bee-keepers to 

 keep bees that will keep themselves. 



For the American Bee Journal 



My Bees. 



I went out June 12 and spent a few days 

 with my bees. I found they had gained in 

 strength, but the strong ones had gained 

 more in proportion than the weaker ones. 

 The very weak swarm, which was dwind- 

 ling at last report, had succumbed; so, out 

 of 40 put in the cellar last winter, I lost 8 in 

 wintering. I had bought two more colonic s 

 from Mrs. Adam Grimm, which made 34 to 

 commence the season with. I extracted 110 

 lbs. of honey and started 9 new swarms by 

 merely putting in an empty hive a couple 

 of frames of brood with the bees attached, 

 and one or two frames of honey, shaking in 

 some more bees if necessary. Of course all 

 the old bees will fly back to their old home 

 but the young ones will remain and raise a 

 queen. Having the assistance of Dr. H., an 

 intelligent and interested observer, made 

 the work pleasanter. June 28, I visited 

 my bees again but could only spend one day 

 with them and so left the most of them un- 

 touched. I took 160 lbs. of extracted honey 

 and started 10 more new swarms. To each 

 of the new swarms, which I had started on 

 my previous visit, I gave a couple of frames 

 of sealed brood. 



I would have started more new swarms 

 but had no more hives ready. It is strange 

 how difficult it is to get hives made exactly 

 as you want them, unless you make them 

 yourself. Last summer I had some made 

 and by a variation of a quarter of an inch in 

 one of the measurements, I could not put a 

 single frame in the hive. Men seem to 

 think that a variation of an eighth or a 

 quarter of an inch does not matter because 

 it's only for a bee hive. I first thought of 

 having frames made shorter so as to fit 

 these 24 hives, and did try two or three of 

 them, but 1 found myself coming to these 

 hives without thinking, with frames of 

 brood covered with bees from other hives 

 and obliged to whittle off the ends of the 

 top bar ot the frame,before getting them into 

 the hive, so I had the whole 24 hives 

 changed. I should have bought, this sum- 

 mer, material ready to nail together, from 

 Oatman & Sons, but feared that in some 

 way there might be some difficulty, as the 

 size of my hives was a little difi'erent from 

 the ones tney were regularly making. 



The having more than one kind of hive 

 in an apiary is a great inconvenience, much 



