Nov. (), 1902. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



713 



dealer thus : " Oueen received and introduced, but has not 

 laid an eg'ff," etc. In ')() percent of such ca.ses the queen 

 was all riffht but was ruined in introducinff. I might go 

 on and give hundreds of such cases. 



Essex Co., Mass. 



I Our Bee-HeeDin^ Sisters I 



Conducted by EMMA M, WILSON, 



Salutatory. 



Dear Sister BEK-KEErKKS :— 



Mr. York is kindly giving us a department of our very 

 own, in the American I5ee Journal, in which we may freely 

 give all our experiences, tell all our grievances, etc. It 

 seems to me that there are enough of us to make this depart- 

 ment very helpful, if we all do our part in trying to make it 

 a success ; and remember it depends upon ourselves whether 

 it is a success or not. 



It is not intended for large bee-keepers alone, but for 

 all. No matter if you have only one colony, or may not 

 have any as yet, but are interested in bees, and want to talk 

 with some one else that is interested, too, please remember 

 that this department is for you, 



If there is any little item of information, anything that 

 has helped you, and may be of benefit to some one else, 

 even if you think it hardly worth mentioning, don't hesitate 

 to send it in. It may help some one greatly. I sometimes 

 think the little things are of much more value than we give 

 them credit for. So much of our life is made up of little 

 things. So let us hear from you all. 



Marengo, 111. Emma M. Wilson. 



Bee-Dress for Women— Comments. 



On page .517, Mrs. N. O. Penny suggests the wearing of | 

 bloomers in place of an underskirt ; bloomers to be made of 

 the best blue drill or denim. Also leggings made of the 

 same material to be worn with low shoes. How many have 

 tried them ? How did you like them ? Please report. 



I have worn leggings made of heavy brown linen. They 

 were as good as far as proventing stings was concerned, 

 and cooler than shoes, but not as cool as low shoes without 

 leggings ; and for myself I prefer to take the stings and be 

 a little cooler. I mean in the very warm weather during 

 the honey harvest when bees are good-natured. 



On page 345, Mrs. F. A. S. Snyder says : 



"In advising woolen skirts we lose sight of the fact 

 that the honey-bee has implements on the three little claws 

 of its hind legs shaped like a hoe, a trowel, and a rake, and 

 these delicate little implements catch on the wool and cause 

 no end of unnecessary annoyance to the bees. I know if I 

 wore woolen skirts in the apiary, the back, though ' the 

 apron covers the front,' would be full of struggling, sting- 

 ing little prisoners caught on the fuzzy material." 



Mrs. Snyder evidently supposes that the 

 back of the skirt is unprotected, whereas my 

 aprons are made to cover the whole skirt — back 

 as well as front. I have never had the least 

 trouble with the bees stinging my woolen skirt. 



Mrs. Snyder says she wears black cotton 

 shirt-waists, and also says she rarely gets a 

 sting. Now, I know if I wore black waists I 

 should get many a sting, for if there is any- 

 thing our bees seem to object to it is something 

 black, if they are at all inclined to be cross. I 

 have known at least a dozen cross bees at a 

 time to attack the black head of my hat-pin, 

 that being the only black object in sight. I 

 could not see them on my own head, but it was 

 very amusing to others to see them tumbling 

 and sliding off the smooth surface trying to 

 sting it. 



If they are very cross or excited, anything 

 black seems to enrage them, while they will 

 seldom sting anything white. 



Now, as to wearing gloves : I suspect each 

 one must be governed by her own preference 



in this matter. I certainly can work with much greater 

 despatch with gloves, than without them. They protect 

 my hands from stings, keep the bees from crawling up my 

 sleeves —which I dislike f|ulte aa much as the stings; 

 keep my hands and dress-slcevcs clean. I have a pair of 

 sleeves sewed to my gloves which, of course, are pulled over 

 my dress-sleeves, and that one item of keeping my sleeves 

 clean would count much with me. I never clip a queen 

 with my gloves on, but as they are so easily slipped off 

 and on, it is no trouble to slij) them off when I want to do 

 any work of that kind. 



I decidedly prefer to wear gloves ; but you have just as 

 good a right to object decidedly to them ; as I said, each 

 one must be governed by her own preference in the matter. 



Others may not object to the feeling of propolis on their 

 fingers as I do. I have known persons who could not en- 

 dure the least bit of honey on their fingers, tut could have 

 their fingers covered with propolis. That I never could 

 have endured at all. You see we are not all made alike. 



Smoker-Fuel. 



Mr. Ralph D. Cleveland (page 620) thinks if I would try 

 excelsior as a smoker-fuel I would abandon soaking rags, 

 and hunting good " smoke-wood." 



Well, Mr. Cleveland, I have tried it, and given it up 

 because it did not last long enough ; but perhaps I did not 

 pack it down hard enough. Many thanks for the sugges- 

 tion. I will try again, and give it a good, solid packing 

 next time. 



As to smoker-fuel, however, it is largely a matter of 

 convenience. In this locality there are plentj' of good chips 

 handy; they make a good smoke, last well, and with a little 

 saltpeter or a few live coals to start with, there is no trouble 

 in lighting them, so they are likely to continue the favorite 

 fuel for a time. Just so, others may find other things more 

 convenient. 



Apiary of Mrs. C. R. West. 



We commenced the bee-business six years ago, and I 

 was so enthusiastic that I thought the more colonies I had 

 the more honey I would get I was like some other so- 

 called bee-people — I did not want one or two colonies. 

 When I was at the business a little while it was no trouble 

 for me to see I did not know so much. Two years ago I 

 bought 26 colonies ; they were good and strong, and made 

 it pay me. I am a dear lover of the bee ; I think it is such 

 nice work, and then the little things teach such good 

 lessons. 



In the picture which I send is Mrs. Holoway and little 

 son also. The little girls are Ruth and Mary McFarland. 

 The man is my brother. 



Our honey crop is short in Texas. In the spring we had 

 every prospect of a good yield, but the hot, dry winds dried 

 up the nectar, and also the bloom. I fed our bees for six 

 weeks. Now cotton is blooming and they are storing 

 honey. The cotton honey is pretty and white. 



Last year they had a good honey exhibit at our conven- 

 tion, and this year only one man brought any, so we had to 

 give him the blue ribbon. Oh, well, perhaps we will be 

 more successful another year. I never give up. " 'Tis try, 

 try, trj' again."' 



I now have 35 colonies, and they are doing nicely. I 



R. WEST AND APIiRT, OF ELLIS CO.. TES. 



