THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 131 



Four weeks after that ^Fr. Bostwick noticed those six hives had 

 but very few bees flying, and looking into the tops of the hives saw 

 they w^ere very weak in numbers. He started for me again. I liad 

 noticed the same thing with my bees. \\ e examined his bees very 

 closely. The whole six were very strong ^^■ith young, just hatched, 

 bees, and quite short of stores again, thus showing that the young- 

 bees had very nearly replaced the old wintered ones in numbers. 



About this time G. !M. Doolittle and some others wrote that they 

 had been making some record tests on the age of bees leaving the 

 hive as field workers, and that the average age was IG da}-s. For a 

 worker to l)e ready to gather honey from any particular flower, the 

 egg for that worker must he laid oT days ( 21 -j-lO — .37 ) before that 

 flower opens to yield. In both cases these six hives beat the record 

 in yield of honey from apple bloom, which was extra that spring. 



That accidental chance was strongly noticed, and was tried by 

 both of us the next spring with half of each yard. Apple bloom 

 opening Alay l"2th. we subtracted 37, giving April 5th as the time 

 for feeding. For years after that ]\Ir. Bostwick and I shut down 

 half our bees onto as few combs as they could cover, and fed sugar 

 syrup to fill them, or all the bees would take, and each and every 

 time with the same result. This cured us of slow, steadv feeding to 

 get them to build up. As long as Curl Bostwick lived and kept bees 

 (over ■?<) years) he would make fun of slow and steady feeding to 

 make a colony build up strong. 



^ly favorite time to pack my bees is the last of March and first 

 of April. That has 1)een mv favorite time for 30 years past, l)Ut it 

 won't do everywhere, although, the heavy feeding for two or three 

 days. 37 days before the honey flow, may possibly cause some to 

 think T Iiave stumbled onto somethins'- 



Transferring Bees. 



By A. H GUERNSEY, Ionia, Mich. 

 ' "Jl X the Ri:\ii-:w of January. V.H2: page "H. I notice an article on 

 ^ transferring bees, by ]3r. James W. Cowan, of Xew York, 

 in which he refers to his method of transferring as that of 

 Mr. Townsend, of Michigan. I claim to be the sole inventor of 

 this method. Some two years ago or more I gave this new metliod 

 to Air. Townsend for publication in the Revikw by request. X^ov/ 

 as I have perfected this method in e\er}- detail, perhaps it would be 

 well to repeat it as I have used it for four or five years with perfect 

 satisfaction in every case, and I have had no little experience along 

 this line. It don't matter how manv I have to transfer, I hardly 

 know as I have spent extra time, and l)esides tliis I get wax enough 

 to pay well for it all. 



