18SG 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



729 



hair or fuzz, and are soon worn oil', so that an old 

 bee does not look nearly as showy as a young: one, 

 when the color ol' said fuzz is new and brig-ht. The 

 head and thorax of all the races of bees are very 

 much alike, except as the color ol' this fuzz gives 

 then a lighter or darker apijcarancc. Tol)esnre, 

 the Cyprians have a bright spot, or shield, as it is 

 called, at the back of the thorax between the wings; 

 but as I find this same spot on the best-marked 

 Syrian and Italians, 1 do not sec how it can be used 

 as a test for purity of the Cyprian race, as some 

 claim for it. Hence the abdomen of the bee is the 

 place we are to look for the markings of the differ- 

 ent races. With me, the markings of the Cyprian 

 and Syrian queens are very much alike, except that 

 the strips or rings on the Cyprian queen have more 

 yellow on them than do the Syrians; and said yel- 

 low is of a bright orange color, while that on the 

 Syrians is less bright, and often dusky. Every seg- 

 ment to the abdomen has both yellow and black 

 upon it, unless it be the last one at the tip, which 

 generally is nearly or quite all black, or very dark 

 brown. The <iueens to these two races of bees are 

 next in constancy of color to the German queens. 

 The few Carniolan queens which I have reared run 

 from a jet black to a light brown, one of which was 

 fairly a blue-black, like a crow, or a crow blackbird, 

 as we call them here. However, I did not keep this 

 variety of bees long enough to give a decided opin- 

 ion of the color of either bees or queen. 



We next come to the Italians; and, without wish- 

 ing to injure anybody's feelings or business, I am 

 compelled to say that I can consider them as only a 

 hybrid or mongrel race. There is no constancy of 

 color, either in the queens or bees. Furthermore, 

 I believe that it is this mongrel (luality which gives 

 them their good qualities as honey-gatherers. Sure- 

 ly no race of bees can be said to be pure whose 

 queens vary in color from that of a German queen 

 to a bright golden-orange color the whole length of 

 the abdomen, some of the best specimens not even 

 having a particle of black on the extreme tip, or 

 point. Again, the workers vary from a dark chest- 

 nut color, so nearly like Iho German bees that only 

 an expert can tell the difference, to those showing 

 the fourth and a few even the fifth band of golden 

 yellow. I used to think that (jueei's of the Italian 

 variety could be found that would dujjlicate them- 

 selves; but 1 have long ago given that up. However, 

 the queen which I prefer for a breeder is one which 

 will give the larger share of her young queens of a 

 bright orange color. Such queens, mated with 

 drones from a like mother as to markings, though 

 in no way related as to blood, give me the best re- 

 sults in honey f)f any bees I have evei- tried. Jn 

 fact, I believe they have no etpial as honey-gathci- 

 ers; and with our present mode of management, 

 together with comb foundation in our sections, they 

 are all I could desire as comb-builders. I again re- 

 peat what I said In the A B C, several years ago, 

 that $500 would not tempt me to exchange my i)rcs- 

 ent stock of home-bred Italians for those impoi'ted, 

 or for any other bee which I am accjuainted with. 



(/UALITV OF IJUEENS. 



Next comes (lUality of queens reared by natural 

 swarming as compared with those reared " artifi- 

 cially" at it is termed. All, without doubt, know 

 that I pvefer (jueens reared under the swarming 

 impulse: and about the only reason I can give for 

 such a iirefcrcnce is, that such qu'cns prnviv on an 

 average, to be of opcthirc) more value to mo Ihm 



do those not so reared, with the excei)tion of such 

 ((ueens as are reared to supersede an old, queen, if 

 reared while the old queen is still in the hive. In 

 both of these eases the bees are not compelled to 

 rear a (jueen in haste for fear that they will not 

 have brooil of the right age to rear another for any 

 length of time, as is the case when the queen is tak- 

 en away, but, on the contrary, they take all the 

 time needed, knowing that they still have a queen 

 to fall back on should they fail from any cause in 

 their first attempt. Now, when a colony swarms, 

 as the Italians frc(]uently do liefore queen-cells are 

 started,! do not like queens reared in such a case 

 any better than I do when the apiarist takes the 

 queen away. It is the presence of the queen in the 

 hive at the time the young queens are being reared 

 that causes the bees to give the best of a cradle, 

 care, and food, to the royal occupant. This cradle, 

 care, and food, make all the difference in the world 

 in the future usefulness of a queen, the same as 

 does a mother's nursing, teaching, and love, to the 

 child over that of a stranger who cares naught for 

 it except that, in some way. It lives till it can help 

 itself. 



I could go on at length and tell of the food left in 

 the cell after the queen hatched; of how all the 

 requisites are jiresent to rear good queens, etc.; 

 but that would not help any. It is sufficient for me 

 to know that, on an average, queens reared while 

 the old queen is in the hive prove to live one-third 

 longer and do one-third more work than do those 

 not so reared. G. M. Doolittle. 



Borodino, N. Y., Aug. 31, 1886. 



Friend 1)., I do not know whether it 

 makes any dilferenoe whether \\e call our 

 Italians hybrids or something else, so long 

 as we all agree that they are, all things con- 

 sidered, the best bees to be found ; but I do 

 not quite see the force of your reasoning, 

 that they can not be a pure race because the 

 queens vary so greatly in color. We have 

 plants and animals of all colors, unless we 

 take pains by careful selection to fix the 

 colors.— Now, in regard to cells made under 

 the impulse of natural swarming, do not 

 Italians, as a rule, or, at least, a greater part 

 of the time, send out a swarm before they 

 start queen - cells? I have, a good many 

 times, tried to prove by experiment, that 

 queens reared while the old queen was in the 

 hive, were superior ; but so far it has not 

 seemed to turn out that way. My experi- 

 ments, however, in that direction, have 

 been somewhat limited. 



HONEY NOT SUITABLE FOR COOKERY. 



.Mils. CHADDOCK'S IDEAS IN ISEGAHD TO IT. 



[tiTcT E were not to thrash till next Saturday; but 



j-esterday Mr. Chaddock came in and asked 



me if I could get ready for them to thcash 



to-day. I said, " No." 



" Well," said he, " Mr. EUisoii is here, and 



they have no other job; and if you can get ready I 



guess I will try to thrash to-morrow." 



"But we have not a spoonful of sugar in the 

 house," 1 demurred, "and thrashers always, expept 

 gooil things— cakes ami puddings and pies." 

 But Mr. Chaddock kept on. 

 "Couldn't you stai-t a new fashion," said hg -^ 



"get up uU tUe ptbt'f gopi] things that j-ou can 



