THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL AND GAZETTE. 



211 



[From the Bienenzeitung.] 



Mixed Oviposition. 



The abnormal condition of some qiteens is 

 such that, from the time they become fertile, 

 thej' continually lay worker and drone eggs in- 

 termingled. Seldom does a year pass that I do 

 not find among the great multitude of my 

 queens one or more thus affected, and produc- 

 ing from 25 to Toper cent, of drone brood among 

 their worker brood. When the drones thus 

 produced are handsome, I gladly use such 

 queens in the spring to secure an early supply 

 of Italian drones. Thus I preserved one last 

 fall, which, during the whole of the previous 

 Slimmer, had laid about three-fourths drone- 

 eggs and one-fourth worker-eggs. Both woik- 

 ers and drones are exceedingly fine specimens 

 of Italian coloring and marking; and this in- 

 duced me to retain her. 



If colonies having such queens are left to 

 themselves, they will of course rapidly decrease 

 in population, destroy drone-brood occasionally, 

 start royal cells, and sometimes assail and expel 

 the queen. In this way, probably such and 

 similar abnormal conditions are removed, with- 

 out having been observed or investigated. If 

 it be desirable to preserve such a colony, 

 worker-brood must be introduced from time to 

 time, and feeding resorted to when pasturage 

 is scarce, Avhereby the bees are induced to re- 

 gard their queen as not defective, and the con- 

 stantly accruing drone-brood as appropriate to 

 the season. 



But what is the cause of this phenomenon? 

 Does it result from some organic defect ? Docs 

 it arise from imperfect fertilization, or is it the 

 effect of some injury sustained ? It would be 

 gratifying to have the mystery elucidated. 



Dathe. 



Eystkup. 



In time the combs in the hive get old and 

 black, because bees store up more bee-bread 

 when it is plentiful than they can use; and they 

 never entirely clean out the cells in which the 

 young bees are bred, but leave a sort of cloak 

 which the larvpe spin around themselves before 

 undergoing their change, and this remains at- 

 tachecl to the sides of the cell. In very old 

 hives these two things help to make them very 

 heavy, so that in weighing them an allowance 

 of several pounds should always be made on 

 this account, if you want to know whether they 

 have honey enough for the winter. In this 

 way, too, after many years, the cells become 

 too small for breeding, and the stock dwindles 

 away and dies a natural death, if not properly 

 treated. 



Bees in their excursions furnish themselves 

 with three different materials : the nectar of 

 flowers, from which they elaborate honey and 

 wax; the pollen or fertilizing dust of anthers, 

 of which they make what is called bee-bread, 

 serving as food both for old and young; and 

 the resinous substance, called propolis by the 

 ancients, with whicli they close up cracks and 

 crannies in the interior of their hive. 



Timely Care. 



Most people know that Avhcn they are hungry 

 they must ha.ve something to eat. But they 

 judge otherwise of their poor bees. For if one 

 of the strong winter stocks, ««fZ<?r the old cot- 

 tage plan, is left to itself in a rich houej' coun- 

 try, it AviJl, in the course of May, June, July, 

 and sometimes in August, throw off its super- 

 abundant population to seek storeroom in some 

 new home away from the parent hive. Hence 

 it is plain that the stearin in June will have more 

 time to establish itself than the cai^t thrown off 

 in July, and the July cast will have more than 

 that of August. Yet so regardless of their in- 

 terest are many people in this matter, that, 

 sooner than give the latest weak stocks some 

 little food to aid them, they will allow them all 

 to starve with hunger. Bees can bear cold, 

 however intense, if they are kept dry and have 

 plenty of food. — Bagstek. 



For the Americau Bee Jmirnal aud Gazette. 



Artificial Corab Foundations. 



I notice an inquiry in regard to artificial 

 comb foundations in the April Journal, which, 

 with your permission, I will answer. 



In February or March, 1866, I called upon 

 Mr. Henry Steele, of Jersey City, as I had pre- 

 viously learned that he manufactured artificial 

 comb foundations. At that time he told me, 

 if I rememlier correctly, that he procured the 

 apparatus for manufaciuring it in London, and 

 that it came originally from Switzerland. 



He showed me some foundations manufac- 

 tured in Switzerland, and kindly presented me 

 with a box of the article to experiment with. 



I have not heard from him since then, and 

 do not know whether he manufactures it now 

 or not. 



Last summer I used the comb, and found that 

 the bees work on it readily and build out the 

 cells. It can only be used to start a small part 

 of the combs, and my impression is that it will 

 not come into general use fortius purpose. We 

 want something strong enough to furnish the 

 foundations for an entire comb Avithout break- 

 ing; and I think we ought to have it, and that 

 we shall have it. • 



Wax alone is so brittle that it can be used 

 only in small sheets; but I have a ])lan by 

 which I think this difficulty may be overcome. 



It may not succeed, but I would like to pre- 

 sent it to the readers of the Journal for a start- 

 ing point, as I believe this to be the next great 

 reform in apiculture. 



I hope in a few years to see hives with tlie 

 foundation combs complete, so tliat the bees 

 will only have to build out the cells aud use 

 them. I propose to use some fabric which is 

 thin, cheap, and free from nap. Saturate this 

 thoroughly with melted max, and when cool 

 enough, impress the foundations. Perliaps 

 light cotton-cloth will do. To fasten this in 

 place, make the comb-frames in two parts, each 

 part half the ordinary witltli of the frame. Lay 

 one-half on a bench, then lay on a piece of 

 foundation, aud then lay on the other half, and 



