754 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Oct. 



porting the comb, which was too flue. The yield is a 

 fair indication of the average yield in this locality 

 for this year. Mr. B. makes his own hives and sec- 

 tions, and uses a hor.se-power for the purpose. His 

 apiary is located in a little village of about a dozen 

 houses, and no one is ever molested by the bees. 

 There have been only 20 new swarms this season, 

 but in a good swarming-season Mr. B. has had seven 

 swarms all alight together. Wasn't that lovely? 

 Let us all drop the bee-journals and adopt the 

 clam-shell method I 



KEEPING BEES ON SHARES, AND HOW IT USUALLY 

 TURNS OUT. 



Mr. B. has altogether about 2.50 colonies— 160, as 

 before stated, in the home yard, and the rest let out 

 to various individuals in his own and adjoining 

 towns. His plan for letting out bees is as follows: 

 Any person desiring bees on shares must comply 

 with the old-time regulation— furnish all material, 

 hives, sections, etc., and give one-half of the honey 

 and one-half the new swarms, and the bees are usu- 

 ally let out for a teroi of five years. My investi- 

 gations revealed the following facts: The first .50 

 swarms that were put out in this way were to a 

 man who owned a grist-mill, a cider-mill, a blacK- 

 smith shop, a potato-hook factory, a trip-hammer, 

 a saw-mill, and a bee-keepers' supply shop. This 

 man hired but little help; and as he did not make 

 $1000 the first year from the 50 colonies of bees, he 

 wanted to return them. This fact, and the unprofit- 

 able fact that but little honey was realized to the 

 owner of the bees, made him feel, as he forcibly ex- 

 pressed it, like kicking the lessee's coat-tails. The 

 owner didn't want the bees back again, and found 

 another man to tak(> them. This man had a poor 

 season, and lost nearly all during the winter. An- 

 other young man to whom he let 75 colonies had 

 bad seasons and wintering troubles, and at the ex- 

 piration of the term a misunderstanding to the 

 amount of 15 swarms resulted, and, I suppose, 

 thoughts of kicking again predominated. 



To another man, about ten miles away, twenty 

 colonies were let; and every time the owner called 

 for honey there was none to be found; every sea- 

 son was bad, and the lessee was blue- every thing 

 was going to the dogs. Still, the neighbors say he 

 has sold honey. This man has also had disastrous 

 wintering troubles; and when the final settlement 

 comes there will be imaginary kicking again. 



Others who have taken bees have made returns 

 every year; but when the bees were returned, most 

 of them would die the following spring. The par- 

 ties were probably honest, but removing them at a 

 wrong time might have had an influence toward 



spring dwindling. In all of these cases the parties 

 were inexperienced, and the object in taking the 

 bees was to get started in the business by allowing 

 them to swarm freely; if there was no loss in win- 

 tering, a large number of colonies could be obtain- 

 ed. In the flve years, the original stock and many 

 new swarms would be returned, for the lessee has 

 the start he wanted and would give up running bees 

 on shares. The method is, in my estimation, full of 

 faults, and a source of much trouble. The Rambler 

 advises (every time he is asked about taking bees 

 on shares) the would-be lessee to buy one or more 

 swarms of bees, according as he is able, and 

 build up, and let " on shares " alone as a dangerous 

 thing. Any one so inclined will be wise if he 

 heeds— The Rambler. 



Well done, friend Rambler. The clam- 

 shell idea is, so far as I can see, an excellent 

 one ; and the moral you point us, both in 

 the picture and in the description, is a good 

 hit on a point that sorely needs it. I have 

 known two friends, just like those in the 

 picture, talk al)0ut some sort of partnership 

 in the way of bee-keeping, with the best 

 feeling imaginable, and with perfect confi- 

 dence and faith iit each other. In fact, this 

 confidence in each other is one of the 

 sources of trouble. A great deal of talking 

 is done, but neither one of them thinks it 

 best to put it in writing. In your case I no- 

 tice they did have several documents ; and 

 especially were these documents produced 

 when settling-up time came. Almost every 

 instance I remember, there was dissatisfac- 

 tion on both sides. The man who had the 

 bees went to planning and figuring so as to 

 come out without loss. The mnn who own- 

 ed the bees planned and figured also ; that 

 is, he planned and figured what his neighbor 

 ought to do. When they got tlu'ough, each 

 one had found the otlier out. This whole 

 matter reminds me of our Wants and Ex- 

 change column. I do think, dear friends, it 

 would save a world of trouble, and perhaps 

 a world of unfriendly feeling, if we were all 

 of us in the habit of paying cash down for 

 what we want, and have it done with. If it 

 is not possible to pay cash down, have it 

 charged on a book, in plain dollars and 

 cents, and let both parties look at the book 

 if possible, and see that it is right. One 

 trouble about taking bees on shares is, that, 

 even where there is writing, there will be 

 many points that writing does not cover. 

 But after what I liave said, if you do find it 

 advisable to let out bees, or to rent them, 

 make up yoiu- mind beforehand that you 

 will itot quarrel with your friend, even if it 

 takes every bee and every drop of honey to 

 keep peace. The trouble is, Ave are all hu- 

 man, and bee culture needs a good deal of 

 brains. Well, the one who has the bees in 

 charge is pretty sure to do the brain woik in 

 such a way as to favor himself. Xow, if he 

 lias bought the bees right out it is perfectly 

 right and i)roper to figure so as to get the 

 very best possible result for himself only. 

 He is not to keep in mind constantly that 

 part of every thing is to be divided. "If you 

 want to know how a Christian should "be- 

 have in partnership matters, read the ac- 

 count of Jacob and Lal»an, in Genesis, 

 chapters 30 and 31. 



