418 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUKE. 



Juke 



HUNGRY BEES. 



We had a swarm oi' bees about a month ago, but 

 they wcut back in the hive, and the next day they 

 were all dead. Pa said they were hungry. He had 

 a good many bees last fall, but he robbed them so 

 close that about ten of them have died. 



Lizzie Johnson, age 6. 



Thomas Hill, Randolph Co., Mo., May 3, 1884. 



Lizzie, I ratlier tliinlv your pa hit the nail 

 on the head, and I am afiaid tliat a ^ooi^i ti^^^il 

 of tlie unseasonable swanninf>- out and otlier 

 tricks that puzzle us are caused by the bees 

 beino- hungry. The swarm you mention came 

 out because they were starving, and your 

 pa should have taken this as a signal of dis- 

 tress, and fed them l)ef ore they died. Itnever 

 pays to let bees go hungry; and just now, 

 when fruit-blossoms are over in many places, 

 is the time to be on the watch. 



who does like it. There is no Sabbath-school here 

 now, but soon will be. Archie Bamar, age 12. 

 Wartrace, Bedford Co., Tenn., March 11, 1884. 



ONE OF THE JUVENILES FURNISHES A LETTER FOR 

 BLASTED HOPES. 



We noticed in Gleanings you wanted reports of 

 failures. We commenced the spring of 1883 with 

 four hives; they had increased to 8, but they have 

 gone down to 6, and two of them are very weak. 

 The dead bees had closed up the entrance of one 

 hive, and the rest of them had almost all smothered ; 

 the queen is still alive. We bring them into the 

 house at night, to keep them warm. We got no 

 honey, and we fed .50 lbs. of sugar. 



Lizzie B. Paul, age 11. 

 Penn Run, Indiana Co., Pa., April 1, 1884. 



A COUPLE OF LITTLE LETTERS FROM A BROTHER 

 AND SISTER. 



My pa has 52 colonies of bees. They all wintered 

 well but three. I help him make foundation. Pa 

 made a bee-house this spring. I wire frames. We 

 have a little colt and 7 little pigs. Ma has 45 little 

 chickens and 5 little turkeys. I have 3 pigeons. 



Willie Bolton, ageO. 



I am a little girl T years old. I go to school. I 

 read in the First Reader. My sister and I have a 

 playhouse. We have a canary bird. 



Stanley, O., May 22, 1884. Elva Bolton. 



A MINNESOTA LETTER. 



Father has about 150 swarms of bees. He lost a 

 great many last winter, but now he is buying quite 

 a good many more. He made a dovetailing machine 

 last winter, and it works nicely. I am going to put 

 up sections this summer. I do not go to school now. 

 We have a dog, 3 cats, 22 hens, 32 small chickens, a 

 cow, a calf, and 2 horses. Father liad to feed the 

 bees this spring, for this is a cold, backward season, 

 and it is raining all the time now, and they can not 

 gather any thing. Jewell Taylor. 



Forestville, Minn. 



how ARCHIE'S PAPA GOT OVER THE BEE-FEVER. 



My papa is a bee-keeper, and has been tor several 

 years. He took once what many people call bee- 

 fever, and had it about six months; but one day he 

 started to take some honey from the bees, and they 

 came near stinging him to death, and he has never 

 had the bee-fever since. Pa's bees have wintered 

 nicely so far. Last spring I found some bees clean- 

 ing out a tree, and I thought the tree was full of 

 honey till we cut it down, and the bees were just 

 cleaning it out. 1 do not like tobacco, nor anybody 



AN IMPORTANT F.4^CT ON THE TOBACCO QUESTION. 

 BY ONE OF THE JUVENILES. 



Pa had 12 swarms of bees in the fall, and now has 

 only 5. The rest have all died. The bees did not 

 gather much honey last summer, and pa had to feed 

 them all winter. 



Willis Phelps, who used to live in Medina, O., mar- 

 ried my sister. He was very sick this winter, and 

 the doctor told him to quit the use of tobacco, or it 

 would kill him; and since, he has not used it. 



Ella Pauls, age 11. 



Canon City, Col., March 3, 1?84. 



Well, Ella, 1 am very glad indeed to hear 

 from my old friend Willis Phelps. It seems 

 to me that almost anybody would give up 

 tobacco under such circumstances, and I 

 hope his experience may be a warning to the 

 boys who think of commencing. We send 

 you by mail to-day a smoker, which please 

 give to friend Willis, with my respects, and 

 tell him it is his so long as he never uses 

 tobacco. 



a novel METHOD OF STOPPING ROBBING. 



My pa has 12 swarms of bees. He lost all of his 

 bees but two swarms three years ago this winter, 

 and those were so weak that a neighbor's bees rob- 

 bed them. The way to stop robbing is, to mix yeast 

 with honey, and let them carry it into their hive. It 

 will make their honey run so that they will have 

 enough to do at home. My pa does not take Glean- 

 ings, but my uncle Sidney does, and we have it to 

 read. I have read the Story of the Bible through 

 once, and ha\'e got it almost read through again. 

 Lottie Wallace, age 9. 



Cattaraugus, N. Y., March G, 1884. 



Friend Lottie, it seems to me that wovdd 

 be a little risky, would it not V Some years 

 ago I heard it mentioned that you could ruin 

 a colony of bees by feeding them with yeast, 

 for it would set the whole hive into a fer- 

 ment, and make the honey all boil out of the 

 cells. This may be true ; but I am some- 

 wliat inclined to doubt it, because a good 

 colony of bees, when strong and healthy, 

 seem to have the power to stop fermentation. 

 Can anybody tell us any more aV)out this 

 matter V 



bertha, and her home in THE SWAMP. 



My pa commenced this spring with 75 stands of 

 bees; has made 15 new swarms by dividing, which 

 makes CO altogether. He lost 7 swarms before the 

 new hives came. I think the new hives are very 

 nice. I put the frames together while pa nails the 

 hives. I keep house for him, for my ma died when 

 I was 7 months old, so my pa has had to raise me. 

 We live on Little River, in the swamp. Pa says it 

 is the best place for honey he ever saw. The bees 

 make honey from the wampum-bloom and elk-vine 

 in the summer, and from heart's-ease in the fall. I 

 should like to have a play with Blue Eyes and 

 Huber. Bertha E. Bates, age 13. 



New Madrid, Mo., May 2, 1884. 



I am very sorrv indeed to know that any 

 of the friends have lost bees in consequence 

 of tlie delav of hives. We thought tlie great 

 stacks of them that we had put up would 

 surely last during the rush. 1 do not know 



