1<)2 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Ma J!. 1. 



fa use it was quickly and easily made than for 

 any other reason. I found it so very cool and 

 comfortable that I made several and "wore them 

 tiie rest of tiie season. They are very easily 

 laundried, which is quite an item, so you can 

 afford a clean one evei-y day if necessary. I do 

 not imagine they would be very becoming to 

 stout people: biit for slender ladies they do 

 verv well. At least, try one and see how yo\i 

 like it. 



I nearly always wear a worsted skirt of some 

 kind with mine, having it made perfectly plain, 

 without lining, Hnished at the bottom with a 

 deep hem. Then they can be laundried if nec- 

 essary: but you will find they do not need it 

 very often if made of some good serviceable 

 color. If you get a spot or two of honey on. just 

 sponge them off, and it is all right. I find the 

 blouse waists very economical, as I can wear 

 out so many old di'esses in that way. 



I am very anxious to know why we failed 

 with Mr. Doolittle's artificial cups, t can hardly 

 think it was because we did not handle the lar- 

 va? carefully enough, for Dr. Miller has success- 

 fully practiced for years the transferring of 

 larvie to queen-cells of the bees' own making, 

 when he wished them to rear from imported 

 stock. We tried as many as five colonies at a 

 time, giving to each from ten to twelve cups, 

 after they had been made queenless and broodless 

 for 24 hoiirs. The only two we did succeed with 

 were reared over a qneen-e.xclnder. with a good 

 laying queen below. We tried to follow direc- 

 tions minutely, and they certainly did look 

 nice enough, when ready for the hive, for the 

 most fastidious bees to use. But for some rea- 

 son they preferred not to use them. These 

 same bees started cells quite readily on the 

 Alley plan. Now, I have an idea that it was 

 either the cups or the royal jelly that was not 

 quite right: but what the ti'onble was, I am 

 sure I don't know. We used tiie jelly from cells 

 nearly ready to seal, and carefully stirred it 

 with a toothpick as directed, being very careful 

 to get about the amount in each cell that is giv- 

 en in Mr. Dooli tile's book. The cells were 

 carefully prepaicd according to directions; still, 

 there may have been something about them not 

 quite right. It sometimes takes very little to 

 throw things all wrong. I never for an instant 

 doubted that Mr. Doolittle made a perfect suc- 

 cess of it. The thing that bothered me was 

 that we couldn't, and we did try hard too. 



Marengo, 111., Feb. 3. Emma Wilson. 



[The picture which Miss Wilson sends us was 

 taken from J}utterick"s Delineator; and as it 

 seems to be just the thing, wt^ are glad to re- 

 engrave it. Any lady who desires to make it 

 needs only to call for uattern No. 3(596, at any of 

 the stores when^ Butterick's patterns are sold. 

 If they can not beobtain(>d in your village, write 

 to the Butterick Pub'g Co.. New York. The 

 price will be only nominal. We shall be glad 

 to have our lady bee-keepers try it, and report 

 what they think of it. The apron provides for 

 no sleeves, it is true; but I believe it is more 

 convenient to have detachable sleeves— if this is 

 what you call them— as described by Miss Wil- 

 son ina former article, page 10, Jan. 1. 



No, Miss Wilson, we will not make fun of you. 

 even if you do make an apron of bed-ticking, of 

 such a neat pattern. Those large pockets will 

 be very handy for small tools, bee-brushes, 

 handkerchiefs, etc. 



In regard to those artificial cell-cups, we shall 

 be glad to hear from those who have made them 

 a, success; and perhaps by discussing the matter 

 a little, we shall find where the ti'ouble lies with 

 some of us. Even our boys here at the Home 

 of the Honey-bees were not entirely successful 

 with them.] 



THE HUBBARD SECTION-FORMER. 



-VX EXCEI-I.KXT DEVK K. 



A few days ago we received a letter from Mr. 

 G. K. Hubbard, of Ft. Wayne, Ind.. to the ef- 

 fect that he had sent us one of his section- 

 formers by express, prepaid. He also expressed 

 the conviction that we would be well pleased 

 with it, and desired us to give it a thorougli and 

 most careful trial. The machine came to hand, 

 and subsequent testing showed that Mr. H. 

 was not far from right. 



HUBHAHD S SECTION -FOKMEK. 



The engraving shows the manner of operat- 

 ing the device. The operatoi' should have an 

 empty basket on his light-hand side: and on a 

 stool at the left should be placed a box of sec- 

 tions ready to be folded. Both basket and box 

 should be near at hand, so that all unnecessary 

 reaching may be avoided. To opei'ate. pick up 

 a section, draw the two ends together, insert it 

 in the section-former, and with a quick, gentle 

 push, against the bridge, as it were, the corners 

 will be crowded together quickly, easily, and 

 neatly. Throw the section into the basket, and 

 pick up another blank from the basket. The 

 levers are so long that but very little power is 

 required: and we find, by operating it in our 

 establishment, that it is the best and easiest 

 machine we have ever used: and, besides, it 

 does the nicest work. Why. it is such a pretty 

 thing to operate that I could not resist the 

 temptation to fold up half a box of sections, 

 just for the fun of the thing. The machine is 

 so constructed that it is adjustable, so as to be 

 made to squeeze the sections hard or easy. P''or 

 particulars, apply to Mr. Hubbard, as above, or 

 it can be obtained of us. See Special Notices. 



E. R. R. 



