lay'i 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



503 



CONDUCTED BY 



OR. O. O. MILLER, MARETiGO, ILL. 



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



Swarming — Queen " Fainting:." 



About a week ago I had a swarm come out very early in the 

 morning, and the queen did not come out. The wind was 

 commencing to blow hard, and they went right back. The 

 wind blew hard all day — sort of a Nebraska zephyr — and as it 

 went down about seven in the evening, they tried it again 

 with the same result. While they were on a tree I opened the 

 hive and found the queen (her wing was dipt), and waited for 

 them to try it again the next morning, which they did about 

 seven ; and they surprised me by coming out with a young 

 queen. She came out with the first handful of bees ; I caught 

 her and hung the cage on a bush right in front of the hive, 

 and they never lookt at her, but immediately stopt coming 

 out, and those that were out went back. Then I divided 

 them, but could not find the old queen. I carefully cut out 

 all queen-cells, and used them in starting nuclei. 



In four days I examined them, and found no signs of a 

 laying-queen in either hive, and no queen-cells started. I 

 gave them laying queens, and now everything is lovely. 



1. Why did they kill their queen ? 



2. Why did they not start queen-cells ? 



During those four days they stored honey to " beat the 

 band." 



3. Twice in clipping queens this season, the queen has 

 fainted, or " played possum," once before and once after the 

 wing was dipt. I placed their cage upon the frames, and 

 they seemed to '• come to " and be all right inside of an hour. 

 In each case she had not been laying more than a day or two, 

 and while they were lying apparently dead, there would be a 

 slight twitching of the abdomen, and eggs would appear. I 

 handled them very carefully in the clipping device. There 

 happened to be a worker in with them each time. How do 

 you account for this singular performance. 



Nebraska. 



Answers. — 1. When a prime swarm issues, If the colony 

 is strong and circumstances favorable a second swarm may be 

 expected in a week or ten days later. If the queen cannot 

 accompany the swarm, the bees will continue the attempt to 

 swarm, sometimes every day, sometimes not so often, but 

 when a young queen emerges then the " old lady " is disposed 

 of, and the bees go with the one that has flying powers. You 

 will probably find that what your bees did will be the regular 

 program in all cases with dipt queens, if the bees are left to 

 themselves. 



2. "Bees do nothing invariably," and perhaps without 

 any reason they sometimes fail to start queen-cells when you 

 think they should. In the present case there may have been 

 no need to start cells for young queens may have been present. 

 Four days from the time of emerging, these young queens 

 would not yet be laying, but the bees would work with vigor, 

 and having no larvae to feed would store with unusual rapidity. 

 It is possible that the queens you gave to the two colonies 

 were retained, but It is probable that they were killed and the 

 young queens commenced to lay eight or ten days after the 

 last swarming. 



3. From what others say, it seems this " fainting " of the 

 queen is not a very unusual occurrence, altho I never saw a 

 case of the kind in the hundreds of queens I have dipt. Pos- 

 sibly the manner in which the queen is held at the time of 

 clipping may have something to do with the case. I have 

 never seen but one •explanation suggested, and I don't know 

 whether that is the right one. It is that the queen in her 



struggles gets her foot caught in the terminal opening of the 

 abdomen, and being held fast in that position either does not 

 or cannot make any further struggle. When the foot is re- 

 least by relaxation, then she is all right again. 



Xhe BuflTalo Cun-vention Notice has been 

 sent us by Secretary Mason, and reads as follows ; 



Sta. B, Toledo, Ohio, July 5, 1897. 



Mr. Editor:— Will you please say in the next Issue of 

 the American Bee Journal that the next annual convention of 

 the United States Bee-Keepers' Union will be held in the Main 

 Hall of Caton's Business College, corner of Main and Huron 

 Streets, in Buffalo, N. Y., commencing at 10 o'clock, a.m., of 

 Aug. 24 next, and dosing on the afternoon of the 26lh ? 



Papers are to be read by W. Z. Hutchinson, R. F. Holter- 

 mann, E. Whitcomb, Hon. R. L. Taylor, Mrs. L. Harrison, R. 

 C. Aikin, G. M. Doolittle, Dr. J. P. H. Brown. Hon. Eugene 

 Secor, Geo. W. Brodbeck, M. B. Holmes, A. E. Manum, E. 

 Kretchmer and P. H. Elwood ; to which will be added the 

 President's Address, and perhaps the General Manager and 

 the Secretary may have something of interest to present. 



The programs are now printed and in the hands of the 

 Secretary. There are six bee-keepers' songs, with music. In 

 the program, and abundance of time is allotted to the discus- 

 sion of all papers, and for the asking and answering of ques- 

 tions. 



Any one not a member of the Union can have a program 

 sent them by mail on receipt of 5 cents in postage stamps by 

 the Secretary. 



Several of our well known beekeepers, such as A. I. Root, 

 Dr. Miller, S. T. Pettit and others who are not on the pro- 

 gram, will be present to help make the convention interesting 

 and instructive. 



It is probable that suggestions will be made at this con- 

 vention in the line of so amending the constitution of the 

 Union as to remove its objectionable features and add such 

 other provisions as may seem desirable, and suggestions in 

 this line by those not able to be at the convention can be sent 

 to the Secretary, to be brought before it. Some suggestions 

 have already been received by the Secretary, and others have 

 been made in the bee-papers. 



Those going to the convention should buy round-trip 

 tickets to the Grand Army of the Republic encampment (not 

 to the United States Bee-Keepers' convention), which meets 

 at Buffalo during the last week of August. The G. A. R. 

 have secured a rate of one cent a mile each w.ty in the terri- 

 tory of the Central Passenger Committee, which is included 

 by Toronto, Canada, thence on a line to Port Huron, Mich., 

 all of the southern peninsula of Michigan; Chicago, Peoria 

 and Quincy, III., St. Louis, Mo., Louisville, Ky., and Pitts- 

 burg, Pa. The Western Passenger Association and the Trunk 

 Line Association make a rate of one fare for the round-trip 

 in their territory to places in the Central Passenger Associa- 

 tion, from which points the fare will be one cent a mile each 

 way, but tickets must be purchast to Buffalo from the start- 

 ing point. Enquire of your ticket or station agent in all ter- 

 ritory outside of the above-named for rates and the time the 

 tickets are good for, for I have been unable to learn the rates 

 in such territory, but presume it will be the same as that of 

 the Western Passenger and the Trunk Line Association; but 

 be sure to inquire of your ticket agent as above suggested. 



In the Central Passenger and Trunk Line territory tickets 

 will be good going on the 2 Ist, 22nd and 23rd, and if vised 

 at Buffalo will be good, returning, for 30 days. 



Mr. O. L. Hershiser, of Buffalo, has charge of arrange- 

 ments at Buffalo, and will attend to the matter of hotel rates. 

 He writes : " I purpose obtaining accommodations in private 

 families for all bee-keepers who prefer such to hotels." Mem- 

 bers of the Union can learn in regard to hotel rates by apply- 

 ing to the Secretary at the place of meeting. If known in 

 time, hotel rates will be given in the bee-periodicals. 



A. B. Mason, Sec. 



A IStcw Binder for holding a year's numbers of the 

 American Bee Journal, we propose to mail, postpaid, to every 

 subscriber who sends us '20 cents. It is called "The Wood 

 Binder," is patented, and is an entirely new and very simple 

 arrangement. Full printed directions accompany each Binder. 

 Every reader should get it, and preserve the copies of the Bee 

 Journal as fast as they are received. They are invaluable for 

 reference, and at the low price of the Binder you can afford to 

 get It yearly. 



