186 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



March 20, 5902 



the ball, or thick pan of the hand at the base 

 of the thumb. As the frame strikes the hand 

 let the hands give a sudden downward motion, 

 which makes the shock still greater. As the 

 frame strikes the fingers it is again thrown 

 back against the hand, and so on until all. or 

 nearly all. the bees are oil. 



The principle is that the bee is on guard all 

 the while to keep from falling off downward, 

 thus holding on tenaciously so as not to be 

 shaken ofl by any downward motion. By a 

 sudden stopping of the upward and quick 

 ■downward motion, the bees are thrown oS their 

 guard and dislodged in an upward direction. 

 In this way I have no trouble of shaking 

 «very black or hybrid bee off ; and if the Ital- 

 ians are disturbed enough to cause them to 

 fill themselves with honey, they can be shaken 

 off the combs about as easily as the black 

 bees. But even if we cannot afford to wait 

 until they are filled with honey, ninteen- 

 twentieths of them can be shaken off, when a 

 bee-brush will easily take off the rest. To 

 any one not used to this way of shaking, it 

 may appear to be a little awkward at first; 

 it will soon become easy, and after once be- 

 coming used to this method none will be will- 

 ing to use any other. 



tiand'Picking Drones. 



^Ir. Doolittle hand-jiicks his drones. In my 

 opinion it is extremely doubtful that any 

 < other) man will be successful in picking out 

 the drones which are superior. Is there any 

 bee-keeper anywhere who can with any de- 

 gree of certainty pick out a superior queen 

 from a batch of them, just by her looks ? 

 She may be yellow; she may be without fault 

 and blemish as to outward appearance; but 

 who can tell what her workers will bef Is it 

 any different with the drone? "By their 

 work ye shall know them.'" But in case of 

 the drone, he is gone when you see his work. 

 It seems improbable that we will gain any- 

 thing by hand-picking. In all probability 

 nature will attend to that part better than 

 man can hope to do. The very best we can do 

 is to select the mother of our drones. — F. 

 <tReiner, in the American Bee-Keeper. 



Apis Dorsata. 



Interest in the introduction of this big bee 

 is not what it was a few years ago, and the 

 present indications are that for utilitarian 

 purposes it will never have any direct interest 

 fur American bee-keepers. B. Hamlyn-Harris, 

 the well-informed correspondent of the British 

 Bee -Journal, has contributed an article to The 

 Entomologist's Record and Journal of Varia- 

 tion, from which the following is clipped: 



About three years ago a special inquiry was 

 set on foot to ascertain whether or not the 

 <iiant Bee of India was a suitable sub- 

 ject for domestication. At that time I was 

 permitted to look over various reports at the 

 India office, and all these agree that A/>ix 

 •hirsiit't, mentioned generally under native 

 names, could not be domesticated on account 

 of its intractable character. The chief points 

 ooted are : 



1. It is said to be exceedingly vicious, often 

 attacking man or beast on the smallest provo- 

 cation. 



2. It preserves the same habits and appear- 

 ance wherever its habitat. 



y. It has never been known to build its 

 nest under shelter, but mostly on isolated 

 lofty trees or overhanging rocks. 



4. After the honey season they will desert 

 their nests, and often travel for long periods 

 and great distances, even cros.sing such moun- 

 tain chains as the Nilgherris in their course. 



h. They build single combs. 



B. And are used to approach from north. 

 south, east or west. 



r. They rarely remain in one locality for 

 more than three weeks. 



s. Emigrating as flowers become scarcer. 



It is well known that one of the greatest 

 obstacles to the domestication of this bee is 

 its natural wildness and its inability to settle 

 jjermanently in one spot. When we consider 

 that .I/"'.v ilurxitta usually makes its nest in 



in lots of 4 cans 

 or more. 



Alfalfa Honey- 7 cents a pound ' 



i unm Honeu For sale i 



■^ ALL IN 60-POUND TIN CANS. ^ 



=BEST= 



Alfalfa 

 Honey^v 



This is the famous 

 White Extracted 

 Honey g-athered in 

 the great Alfalfa 

 regions of the Cent- 

 ral West. It is a 

 splendid honey, and 

 nearly everybody 

 who cares to eat 

 honey at all can't 

 get enong-h of the 

 Alfalfa extracted. 



Basswood 

 HoneyJ^ 



This is the well- 

 known light-colored 

 honey gathered from 

 the rich, nectar- 

 laden basswood blos- 

 soms. It has a 

 stronger Savor than 

 Alfalfa, and is pre- 

 ferred by those who 

 like a distinct flavor 

 io their honey. 



Prices of Alfalfa or Basswood Honey: i 



A sample of either, by mail, 10 cents, to pay for package and post- i 



age. By freight — two 60-pound cans of Alfalfa, 7'/z cents per pound ; \ 



4 cans or more, 7 cents a pound. Basswood Honey, % cent more per ' 



pound than Alfalfa prices. Cash must accompany each order. You : 

 can order half of each kind of honey, if j'ou so desire. The cans are 



two in a box, and freight is not prepaid. Absolutely Pure BeCS' HOIiey. ' 



Order the Above Honey and then Sell It. 



We would suggest that those bee-keepers who did not produce 

 ' enough honey for their home demand this year, just order some of the 

 ; above, and sell it. And others, who want to earn some money, can get 

 this honey and work up a demand for it almost anywhere. 



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We are tlie Largest Manufacturer' of Bee-Keepers' Snplles in tlie Nortliwest \ 



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Please mention Bee Journal -wheJi -writing. 



The MUTH'S SPECIAL dovetail hive is a " Cracker 

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STANDARD BRED QUEENS, none better than our BUCKEYE STRAIN 

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Front an Walnut Sts.. 



CINCINNATI, OHIO. 



Please Mentioii the Bee Journal 



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