THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



313 



will do it. It's no easy task to sit down 

 and pen u newspapi-r aitick' when one has 

 his head and hands full of business; if 

 somebody tiiinks it is, wliy just let them 

 try their hand at it. 



The honey season is over for '76, and we 

 may safely say that the eentennial year has 

 been a failure with us, so far as honey is 

 concerned. Tlie si)rinf; was coUl, back- 

 ward and wet, which wasn't at all condu- 

 cive to strenjithenin^ up our decimated 

 stocks very early in the season. The "June 

 roses" (or something (!ls(0 brougiit warmer 



weather, ai'.d rain, rain. rain. For more 



than two weeks it rained almost incessant- 

 ly, which of course delayed the advent of 

 the basswood bloom. Finally it cleared np 

 and then came a period of intense heat. 

 Day after day the mercury wandered among 

 the nineties, and when the linden blossoms 

 came it was only to nuike a call, and a brief 

 one too. It usually yields honey about 

 twenty davs. but this season could only af- 

 ford us ten". Even during this brief period 

 the flow of nectar was very moderate. 



The scorching heat still continued,though 

 the bees obtained a little honey from some 

 early sown buckwheat, enough to prevent 

 robbing and to stimulate brood rearing. 



The fall harvest commenced about the 

 lOth of August and continued for some 15 

 days; bone-set, fire weed, and buckwheat be- 

 ing the chief sources of supply. The yield 

 01 honey was only moderate, not so good as 

 in former seasons. August is usually the 

 best honey month of the whole season with 

 us; and even this season we would have 

 obtained a fair amount of surplus, had it 

 not been for an unfortunate investment 

 in the comb foundations, about which 

 we may Imve something to tell the Jour- 

 nal one of these days. The season has 

 been quite poor throughout our entire State, 

 but we learn from our Illinois correspon- 

 dents that it has been an unusually good 

 one in the "Sucker State," and right glad 

 are we to hear it. We are pleased to learn 

 of tiie success of our brother apiarists 

 everywhere. We know from experience 

 and observation in this particular field of 

 rural industry, that a man fairly earns all 

 that he obtains, and in too many cases much 

 more than that amount. 



We started out with the full intention, 

 Mr. Editor, of giving you our experience 

 with the house apiary, but as it is getting 

 late and we are getting sleepy, will defer it 

 until next montli, when we will tell what 

 we know about that particular item, which 

 goes to make up the sum total of modern 

 apiculture. When we take a retrospective 

 glance over these past twelve years, we are 

 led to exclaim with that good old lady, Mrs. 

 Partington, " bless my stars, how our 

 American people do take to new-fangled 

 fixins." We wonder if her son Ike wasn't 

 a bee-keeper? Good night. 



Herbert A. Burch. 



South Haven, Mich., Oct. 19, 1876. 



For tne American Bee .Tournal. 



A Chip from Sweet Home. 



In August my wife and the " old block" 

 from which the chips fly, gave Dr. Derr— 

 living 13 miles distant, near Keithsburg — a 

 fraternal call. The Doctor's apiary num- 

 bers nearly 100 hives. He runs them for 

 profit; movable frames (Langstroth), slinger 



and black bees. He had 100 fVft. boxes 

 piled in ids kitchen, also a quantity of 

 slung honey. A number of his hives are 

 close by his honey. We wen; surprised to 

 se(! "nary a bee" prying into those boxes; 

 the doors and windows being open. 



My house is 10 rods distant from the 

 apiary, and a little lumey on the table 

 covered will attract our Italians, so that we 

 have to close the door. His blacks and my 

 Italians were neither gathering any honey. 

 Italians will find honey or any sweets u\ 

 more secret or distant places than blacks; 

 this fact we have noticed several times. 

 The Doctor lacked shade; for a few he had 

 tried some corn hills, which he said gave 

 him all the shade he wanted. He has 

 adopted the slates, as well as some other 

 neighbors. Bee-keepers try the slates! they 

 cost but one cent each, and report. 



D. D. Palmer. 



Eliza, 111., Oct. 16, 1876. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Southwestern B. K. Association. 



Persuant to a call issued at the prelimin- 

 ary meeting here on Aug. 17th, a number of 

 bee-keepers met and effected a permanent 

 organization by electing the Rev. Dr. 

 Marshall, of Marshall, Texas, president; 

 Wm. L. Gordon, of Shreveport, secretary; 

 and J. M. Bowles, of Shreveport, treasurer. 



On motion, resolved, that the name of 

 this association shall be called "The South- 

 western Bee-Keepers' Association." 



On motion, resolved, that the chair ap- 

 point a committee to draft a constitution 

 and by-laws, and report the same at our 

 next meeting. The following gentlemen 

 were appointed: Wm. L. Gordeu, J. M. 

 Bowles, Col. L, L. Tompkins, and W. D. 

 Wylie. 



On motion, resolved, that the reading of 

 essays, etc., asked at the preliminary meet- 

 ing to be read to-day, be deferred until our 

 next meeting. 



On motion, resolved, that any person 

 wishing to become members can do so by 

 enrolling their names. The following 

 names were enrolled: Rev. Dr. W. K. 

 Marshall, and J. E. Jones, of Marshall, 

 Tex.; Geo. W. Stoner, Wm. L. Gorden, J. 

 M. Foster, Dr. J. F. Davis, J. M. Bowles, 

 W. E. Paxton, Rainey Carter, and W. D. 

 Wylie, of Shreveport, La.; Capt. O. L. Dur- 

 ham, Keachi, La.; W. C. Hill, of Jefferson, 

 Tex. ; G. W. Jefferson, Kingston, La. ; and 

 John R. Williams. 



On motion, the meeting then adjourned 

 to meet in Shreveport on the second Wed- 

 nesday in March, 1877, at 10::iO a. m. 



Wm. L. Gorden, Secy. 



p'or the American Bee Journal 



How to Increase the List. 



I notice that several persons have offered 

 to give premiums to the one who sends the 

 largest number of subscribers to the Jour- 

 nal before Jan. 1, 1876. All this is good 

 and just right, but it strikes me that we can 

 increase the number of subscribers in 

 another w^ay. My plan is this: Let each 

 subscriber and reader of the Jol'rnal 

 make up his mind to send one new name at 

 least. Now let us go to work and do this 

 before the 1st of January, so tliat when the 



