1884 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



131 



ANNIE'S FIRST LETTER. 



My brother has 29 colonies in the cellar, and one 

 outside. I help him to put frames and section box- 

 es together. Annie S. Grinskll, age 9. 



Baden, St. Louis Co., Mo., Jan. 16, 1884. 



FANNIE, AND THE QUEEN SHE FOUND "TWO TIMES." 



Pa has 9 swarms of bees. He found one swarm in 

 the woods. They were Italians. We had 3 swarms 

 to commence with last spring. I helped look for the 

 queen, and I found her 2 times. I like to look tor 

 queens. I put on a veil, and go out. One skip made 

 30 lbs. of comb honey. Fannie B. Mathews. 



Katonah, N. Y. 



lizzie's report. 



Papa has 5 swarms of bees. He had 7, but 3 went 

 away this summer. He has them in Simplicity 

 hives, surrounded with rough boxes packed with 

 leaves; he has been taking Gleanings for two or 

 three years; he says if he don't get more honey next 

 year than this you must give him a corner in Blast- 

 ed Hopes. Lizzie Battles. 



Blairsville, Indiana Co., Pa., Dec, 1883. 



5000 LBS. op comb honey. 

 My father has about 100 hives of bees at our place, 

 and about 30 at a place five miles from here, that a 

 man works for extracted honey. Father works for 

 comb honey; he got 5000 lbs. last year. He built a 

 new shop last fall. He has a horse-power for his 

 shop. He is making a sawlng-machine now. 



Jewell Taylor, age 10. 

 Forestville, Minn., Jan. 10, 1884. 



I am the little girl to whom you sent the nice book 

 called the Roby Family. It was a good book. We 

 all read it, and send many thanks to you. I can not 

 tell you about bees, as you wish little boys and girls 

 to, but pa says he will get some next summer. Per- 

 haps I can say some thing about the busy little bees, 

 but I do want another one of your books. Will you 

 send me Kescurd from Egypt? 



Amy C. McKesson, age 13. 



Brccksville, O., Jan. 31, 1884. 



sub-earth ventilation; by one of the juven- 

 iles. 



My pa keeps about 60 swarms of bees. I am almost 

 a bee-keeper myself. I manage the honey-gate 

 when pa is weighing honey. He has made a venti- 

 lator for getting fresh air. The air comes through 

 the ventilator 4 feet below the top of the ground, 

 and the air from the ventilator is not much warmer 

 or colder than the air in the cellar. 



Bruce Colton, ago 9. 



Waverly, Iowa, Dec. 30, 1883. 



the BEES that ABSCONDED, AND THE OTHERS 

 THAT DIED. 



We have 13 swarms of black bees. Last summer 

 the first swarm we had was a big one, and it came 

 out about ten o'clock, and it commenced to make 

 comb; in the afternoon it came out and went off. 

 We have not had much surplus honey this year, for 

 it was a bad year. Last spring four of our skops 

 died. Will you tell me what made them die? 



Walter L. Morris, age 13. 



Youngstown, N. Y., Dec. 39. 1883. 



Why, Walter, it would be a pretty hard 

 matter to tell why your bees died, without 

 more facts in the case, unless I should say 

 it was for want of breath. Was it not for 

 lackof food, Walter? 



MOLASSES FOR WINTER FOOD. 



I received Silver Keys in safety, but have not got 

 it read through, as I go to school and do not have 

 much time to read. My brother has got his bees 

 packed in chaff hives for winter, and he feeds them 

 molasses every day. Katie M. Briqgs. 



Deposit, N. Y., Nov. 27, 1883. 



Friend Katie, unless your brother has bet- 

 ter molasses than I have ever found under 

 that name, I am afraid he will have trouble 

 in wintering. I wish you would let us know 

 in spring whether they come through all 



right or not. 



3000 LBS. OF honey; the black pony, and the 



WHITE-CRESTED BLACK POLANDS. 



My father keeps 50 stands of bees, and took out 

 3000 lbs. of honey. I have one stand. My father 

 packed them late in the season, and I did not get any 

 honey. My bees are Italians. I found one great big 

 swarm of bees in the grove. I have a little black 

 pony, and I rode at our fair, and got first premium 

 when I was 9 years old. I have a yard of white-crest- 

 ed black Polish chickens, and sell eggs at $3.00 per 

 13. Sarah Connelly, age 13. 



Ogden, Iowa, Jan. 13, 1884. 



BEES THAT WERE PUT UP STAIRS, AND HOW THEY 

 TURNED OUT. 



My papa caught a swarm of bees in the corn-fleld; 

 and when cold weather came he put them in the cel- 

 lar, and up stairs, and in the house. They would 

 come out, and papa would have to catch them and 

 put them back; and when spring came he had no 

 bees at all. Now, my papa bought a stand of Italians 

 last spring; he swarmed them twice last summer; 

 thinks he will have better success this summer. He 

 sent for 500 of your pound sashes. 



William Hasenyager. 



Tecumseh, Johnson Co., Neb., Jan. 18, 1884. 



1 presume, William, your pa did not put 

 the bees up stairs after that, l^nless you 

 have a good dry dark frost-proof cellar I 

 think they had better be outdoors, packed 

 in chaff. I have never heard of very good 

 success with bees up stairs. Light gets in 

 during warm days ; and when the winter is 

 verv cold, it is apt to freeze. 



I thought I would tell you how pa is getting along 

 with his bees. We started in to winter 9 colonies 

 last winter; doubled to 7 in the spring, and had 31 

 this fall; doubled to 18. We got about 40Q lbs. this 

 fall. Pa hasn't any extractor yet, but thinks he will 

 have to have one. I will tell you how pa winters his 

 bees. He leaves them on their summer stand, and 

 cuts coarse slough grass, ties it in small bunches, 

 sets it up nicely around the hives, like shocks of rye 

 or wheat, and ties a cord around near the bottom, 

 and around the top. He has very good luck getting 

 through the winter. This was a very poor season 

 for honey, as it was so wet and cold and windy. Pa 

 has bought 50 new Simplicity hives. He has not got 

 frames enough for them. He thinks he will have to 

 order some for them from you. Pa is well pleased 

 with the A B C book and the smoker you sent him. 

 We are going to school this winter, and we like our 

 teacher very much. I say we; 1 mean myself and 

 my twin sister Louisiana. I have a little sister 8 

 years old. She says it seems we get so many books 

 from you we ought to know you. 



Alabama Allison, age 14. 



Beaver Crossing, Seward Co., Neb., Dec, 31, 1883. 



