354 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



This has been the best season I have e\er known in the clover 

 districts. The white clover yielded long and heavily. The color 

 •and quality are better also than usual. In the rest of the State the 

 crop has not been so good, as the dry w^eather has cut otT much of 

 the bloom. The prospect at present is for a light fall l1ow% and in 

 some sections the bees will have to be fed for winter stores. 



Sourwood is one of our best honey plants, although it occurs 

 in rather limited areas, being found mostly nn the uplands and 

 ridges. It is a glossy leaved shrub, blooming in July and August, 

 bearing great clusters of creamy-white blossoms, in vvdiich the bees 

 fairlv revel. The honey is of good body and flavor, and light color, 

 with rather a pinkish tinge. The fact that it is remarkably slow^ to 

 granulate makes it valuable for packing with l)ulk comb honey. 



Massachusetts Bee-Keepers' Meeting. 



Probably the most interesting and 

 successful annual field day meeting ever 

 held by the Massachusetts Society of 

 Bee-Keepers was that which took place 

 last Saturday on the spacious lawn at 

 the residence of Mr. and Mrs. C. L. 

 Stewart, Union street, there being an 

 unusually large attendance of members 

 and those prominent in bee culture, 

 while the exhibits oi bees, honey and 

 equipment was most extensive and in- 

 structive. Every section of Massachu- 

 setts as well as portions of other 

 states, were represented at the meeting 

 by bee culturists, and all were hand- 

 somel}' taken care of by Mr. and Mrs. 

 Stewart from the time of their arrival 

 until their departure. 



Through the kindness of Capt. T. \'>. 

 Crocker, Dr. C. Edson Abbott, Dr. 

 Solon Abbott and Ulysses L. Burns, the 

 visiting members of the society were 

 met at the station in automobiles and 

 given a good view of the town before 

 the time for the meeting. Settees and 

 chairs were placed on the lawn to ac- 

 commodate the 122 members registered. 

 I-Vom 11 a. m. to 12 m. was taken up 

 in sociability, and from 12 to 1 p. m. 

 there was a basket lunch, which in- 

 cluded rolls and honey, coffee and ice 

 cream. 



At 1 p. m. the meeting was called to 

 order by President E. Clinton Brittou 

 of Canton, and at a brief business ses- 

 sion six new members were enrolled. 

 At the close of the session one of the 

 most interesting features of the field 

 day was enacted when President Brit- 

 ton introduced a queen liee to a swarm. 

 The queen, after being liberated, circled 

 about, and then disappeared for five 



minutes or more, when it again came 

 upon the scene and proceeded to unite 

 With a colony of bees. It was indeed a 

 most interesting sight. 



The addresses of the Afternoon be- 

 gan at 1:30. Dr. E. F. PhiUips, eto- 

 mologist, in charge of bee culture inves- 

 tigations at Washington, spoke on the 

 wintering of liees, l)ringing out many 

 valual)le points, and took occasion to 

 tell of successful experiments he had 

 made by the process of etomologj'. 



State Inspector Burton H. Gates of 

 the Massachusetts agricultural college 

 gave an interesting account of the 

 state inspection of bees now going on 

 at the college, and he was followed by 

 Allen Latham, president of the C. B. 

 K. A., who gave an interesting talk on 

 the subject of "Let Alone Hives." Vice- 

 President W. A. Small of Waltham 

 tlien gave an exhibition of some of 

 his recent inventions, and spoke inter- 

 estingly concerning them. 



Others who spoke were J. L. Bayard, 

 deputy state inspector, and who is su- 

 I)erintendent of the apiary at the state 

 agricuUnral college; Arthur C. Miller 

 of Providence, state inspector of Rhode 

 Island, and O. A. Fuller, of Blackstone. 



There were interesting exhibits of 

 comb honey, extracted honey and bees- 

 wax, products from Mrs. Stewart's 

 apiary, as well as exhibits of hive 

 equipment by Ross Bros, of ^^'orcester 

 and H. Jepson of Boston. 



The field day meeting came to an 

 end at 4 :30, all agreeing that it was 

 one of the most pleasant as well as 

 profitable ever held bj- the society. The 

 field day committee included Benjamin 

 P. Sands, chairman; Mrs. L. D. Colby 

 and Fred C. Howard. 



