474 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Jalij 29, 



CONDDCTED BY 

 JDH. C..C. MILLBR, Af^REJVGO, ILL, 



[QuestionB may be mailed to the Bee Journal, or to Dr. Miller direct. 1 



Two EgS!* ill a Cell — ^Biller Honoy. 



1. In transferring a colony of bees from a box-hive into a 

 Doolittle hive, I noticed in the brood-comb two eggs in a cell. 

 I thought of a laying-worker, but I found a very large, nice- 

 looking queen. She was not crowded for room. What was 

 the cause ? and what ought I to have done with her ? 



2. I took off some section honey, with combs white and 

 nice, tut the honey was so bitter I could not eat it. What can 

 I do with it to make it good ? Tennessee. 



Answers. — 1. It is nothing so very unusual for a queen 

 to lay eggs in a cell, especially when she first commences to 

 lay. Only this week I had a young queen which laid two eggs 

 in a cell, altho there were plenty of empty cells adjacent. 

 There is nothing to be done in such a case but to let the 

 queen alone. 



2. I don't know from what source the honey came, but I 

 doubt if you can do anything to improve it. Possibly, how- 

 ever, it may improve with age. Honey from onions is said to 

 be very rank at first, but to grow better afterward, and some 

 say that linden honey is too strong at first. But I'm afraid 

 the bitter taste will remain. 



Fastening Foundation in Sections. 



How can I fasten foundation in sections so that it will 

 stay ? I use the thin, but it falls down when In the hive. 



Nkbk. 



Answer. — The method of fastening has much to do with 

 it. If you will get one of the Daisy foundation fasteners you 

 will probably have no trouble. With this machine a hot plate 

 melts the wax, which is quickly prest against the surface of 

 the wood, and is then held so firmly that the foundation pulls 

 apart rather than to leave the wood. With the machine the 

 work can also be done very rapidly, 500 starters having been 

 reported in Gleanings as put in per hour by one who made a 

 specialty of it. But if you do half of that you need not be 

 discouraged. 



M I ^ 



Swarms and Tlieir Managcincnt. 



1. On page 438, you tell "Illinois" that 16 days after 

 the first swarm issues he need not look for any more swarms. 

 Correct, generally speaking ; but you can put mo on record as 

 having the second swarm issue as late as the 19th day. Col- 

 ony No. 81t swarmed June 17, and sent out a second swarm 

 July 5 — making I'.t days including the first and last day, or, 

 In law, counting the last but not the first day, IS days. 



2. I had three second swarms como off this morning, and 

 alight together. Usually I cut out queen-cells and return sec- 

 ond swarms, but two of these issued early, while I was absent 

 from the yard, and I was not sure where they came from, so I 

 took the queens away and let them return. Not desiring in- 

 crea!«e, but to secure all the honey possible, which wouid bo 

 the most advantageous, to return them in that way, or to have 

 hived them — made a new colony — and then doubled up some 

 of the light colonies in the fall? The three swarms united 

 made a pretty large swarm. Minnesota. 



. Anhwkhs. — 1. Yes, such an exception may occasionally 

 occur. From the time the egg is laid until the young queen 

 emerges from the cell is 15 to 16 days, so 16 days after the 

 old queeu has left the hive all the young queens should be out 



of their cells, .and there should be no further swarming. If 

 weather should not allow swarming at this time, of course 

 the bees could be held back, and the swarm might issue, as in 

 your case, 18 days after the prime swarm. It is just possible, 

 too, that in some cases there might be some delay in the ma- 

 turing of the young queen. Again, it may happen that the 

 bees swarm out at the time the young queen takes her wed- 

 ding flight. To make the list of exceptions complete, it might 

 be said that in rare instances the mother colony may build up 

 so strong as to send out a swarm in the fall harvest, say two- 

 months after the first swarm, but I'm not sure whether this 

 ever took place. It possibly might, however. If by some 

 means the queen were killed and a new batch of queens 

 reared, for, at such time, a strong colony in a good harvest 

 would not be so unlikely to swarm. 



2. I feel pretty sure the plan you pursued will give you 

 more honey than to hive separately. The case might be dif- 

 ferent in the South, or in any place where there is a heavy 

 flow late in the season, in which case each colony might have 

 time to build up strong for this late harvest. 



Taxins Bees. 



1. Is it constitutional to tax honey-bees? 



2. If so, what States levy a tax on them ? 

 'S. At what value are they assest ? 



4. Has this question been in litigation ? 



5. If so, what has been the decision of the courts ? 

 Please do me the favor to answer these questions the best 



you can, so that I can go before the county commissioners 

 somewhat informed. We are assest .'i>2.50 per colony — the 

 only county in the State that taxes the honey-bee. 



Washington. 



Answer. — In answer to these several questions, which 

 have come up at different times, I can only repeat that they 

 are questions for a lawyer, not for a bee-keeper to answer. 

 Each State has its own laws, and any lawyer or justice of the 

 peace ought to be able to give the laws of his own State. Un- 

 less there is special provision made for the exemption of bees, 

 they should bo taxt in all States. I pay taxes on my bees as 

 well as my horses, and at the same rate according to their 

 value, and I see no reason why I should not. Taxes are paid 

 to keep the machinery running that secures us protection of 

 our property, and if a man should steal one of my colonies 1 

 would appeal to the law just as promptly as if he stole a horse. 

 If I should refuse to pay the tax, the courts would promptly 

 decide against me. Even if assessors in other counties failed 

 to assess bees, that would make no difference — I would have 

 to pay the tax all the same. 



Wliite-Eyed Urones. 



I mail you to-day samples of white-eyed drones. About 

 half the drones in one colony are like these. What do you 

 think of them ? Indiana. 



Answer. — It is nothing unusual to see occasional specimens 

 of drones with heads of different colors — more strictly speak- 

 ing, with eyes of difTerent colors — but it is unusual to find 

 them in a colony in such large numbers, and especially so 

 strikingly different as these white ones. They present a very 

 curious appearance, and the question arises whether they or 

 the colony to which they belong are as vigorous as others. 

 The deficiency of coloring-matter in the eyes is usually con- 

 sidered more or less a sign of constitutional weakness. 



Xlie RIcKvoy Foul Brood Xreatiiient is 



given in Dr. Howard's pamphlet on "Foul Brood; its Natural 

 History and Rational Treatment." It is the latest publication 

 on the subject, and should bo in the hands of every bee-keeper. 

 Price, 25 cents ; or clubbed with the Itee Journal for one year 

 —both for $1.10. 



