1891 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Now, how will those two items affect me? 

 The first topic just stirs me all up. the second I 

 don't care any thing about. Hut the first topic 

 is discussed by a young man of scarcely any 

 experience, and withal somewhat visionary, 

 and I doubt whether it will be worth hearing. 

 The second topic — I know how to nail hives 

 well enough, and I don't care a great deal about 

 it any way; but Doolittle will be sure to give 

 some bright hints, no matter what he talks 

 about, so 1 should really like to hear it. After 

 all, that doesn't get to "the bottom of it. I care 

 more to know the names of the men who will 

 be there than the topics. If the right men are 

 there. I'm pretty sure the right topics will come 

 up, and I'm very sure the discussions will be 

 interesting and useful, whatever the topics. So 

 if a program were to be gotten up to make me 

 almost crazy to go. it would read something 

 like this: "'Among the topics to be discussed 

 are. Closed-end frames; Spring management; 

 Cultivated honey-plants, etc. The following 

 persons have notified the secretary that they 

 intend to be present: Adams, John; Baker. 

 Mrs. B. F.; Cook. Prof. A. J.,"' and so on 

 through the alphabet, giving a full list of all to 

 be there, so far as known. Some have already 

 acted on this plan, so far as to mention the 

 names of one or more prominent men expected; 

 but a full list would be better on more than one 

 account. Such an entire innovation as I have 

 suggested might not do. but I merely give it as 

 a hint in the right direction. 



From what I said in a former article, it may 

 easily be inferred that I would give the ques- 

 tion-box a prominent place, mentioning on the 

 program that all were requested to contribute 

 to it. Indeed, this box might very easily fur- 

 nish material to occupy the whole time. Lately 

 I saw in the SUickmmi a)id Fttriner the advice 

 to avoid having too many topics on the program 

 of a farmers' institute, and it will apply with 

 equal force here. Always leave room for plen- 

 ty of time to discuss live topics that will be 

 pretty sure to present themselves, and which 

 may not have occurred to you. A president's 

 address, giving, tersely, suggestions as to things 

 needed, new things to be considered, etc.. is a 

 good thing. I've known a few such. But a 

 "Again, brother bee-keepers, the seasons have 

 rolled around, bringing their usual allotment of 

 successes and failures." and so on through a 

 quarter of an hour of platitudes, without a sin- 

 gle new idea — such an address is better left un- 

 spoken. Let the seasons roll if they want to. 

 and you get down to business. For the same 

 reason I would have no essay on any subject 

 that requires no discussion. The proper place 

 for such essays is in the columns of the bee- 

 journals. About the only use for an essay at a 

 convention is to i/ifro(/i(ce a subject, and you 

 ought to do all in your power to keep those es- 

 says from going beyond five to eight minutes. 

 An exception should be made in case some spe- 

 cial subject needing something in the line of 

 illustration that could not so well be given in 

 the l)ee-iournals. . Prof. Cook once gave us 

 such a talk at Chicago on the bee's leg. 



Neither is it a good plan to have time taken 

 up with an address of welcome from the post- 

 m'aster or mayor, with a reply thereto. What 

 matters it to us to be told of the many natural 

 advantages of the growing city of Podunk. 

 with a detailed statement of the number of 

 pounds of cheese shipped from that poi't dur- 

 ing the last twelve months ending Feb. 31"? 

 We come there to talk about bees. Nor should 

 a place be left on the program for a visit to 

 the principal point of interest in Podunk, un- 

 less it be a visit to a foundation-factory or 

 something in whicli we all have an interest. 

 If any want to visit the slaughter-houses or the 



rolling-mill, they can stay and do so after the 

 convention is over. A. I. Root will be sure to 

 find a big cabbage a mile and a half away; and 

 if he finds a greenhouse full of loses he may 

 coax me to go with him; but let him go be- 

 tween times, and not break in on the sessions. 

 There should be a recess of ten or fifteen min- 

 utes in each session; and as there is danger of 

 this vei-y important matter being forgotten, it 

 ought by all means to be down on the program. 

 Marengo. 111. C. C. Mii.i.kk. 



[I am glad, doctor, you would leave out the 

 address of welcome from the mayor or some 

 other important functionary. Whe'n bee-keep- 

 ers go a good many miles to attend a conven- 

 tion, they go to get acquainted with bee-keep- 

 ers and not with mayors, and to get down to 

 solid business as soon as possible. The address 

 of welcome and the reply take up a great deal 

 of time; and after all with the majority of them 

 what is there of real value for bee-keepers to 

 carry home"? There is one thing, however, that 

 you have omitted, and I am a little surprised at 

 it; and that is. a place for music on the pro- 

 gram. Whenever we have good music we al- 

 ways agree that it helps to enliven us and to 

 relieve the tedium that follows on prolonged 

 sessions; and surely who is there who is more 

 capable of giving us really good music of the 

 enlivening kind than Dr. Miller himself ? The 

 doctor need not read this last sentence.] E. R. 



A MODEL CALIFORNIA APIARY. 



THE SESPE APIART; SOME OF THp: MODERX 



COXVENIENCES OF A WELI.-HEGUI-AT- 



ED APIARY. 



My first glimpse of the Sespe apiary was in 

 the A B C book years ago. when yet an ABC 

 scholar. Mr. Wilkin's reports of the wonderful 

 honey yields, and the hundreds of colonies of 

 bees comprising single apiaries, to me at that 

 time seemed incomprehensible. We sometimes 

 change with time, so with place; thus the past 

 four years on this coast have passed as pleas- 

 antly as one season here glides into the other. 

 It has been my good foi'tune during this time 

 to form the acquaintance of J. F. Mclntyre, the 

 present owner of the famous .Sespe apiary. 



To an oft-longed-for and pleasantly consum- 

 mated visit, your readers are indebted for a few 

 facts and some untold history of this apiary. 

 It is located three miles from Fillmore, Ventu- 

 ra Co., on the Big Sespe River, and at present 

 contains .500 colonies, arranged as you see above, 

 in pai-allel rows, one row fronting" one way and 

 one the other, and so on to the end. This meth- 

 od permits a passageway for the comb-cart, 

 and. 'd< you will notice, the growing of grape- 

 vines for shade. 



In numbering for his record-book. Mr. M. 

 begins with the first row. calling that A; the 

 second row B, the third C. and so on to the end. 

 Beginning at A he has a stake number for each 

 colony from one to the number composing it, 

 repeating the same with every row. While 

 this method is not new, it undoubtedly is a very 

 simple method of keeping a record of each col- 

 ony and location, and this reminds me that Mr. 

 M. relies entirely on his record-book, conse- 

 quently makes use of no unsightly stones as 

 signs to indicate the condition of things. Every 

 hive is painted white, and spaced, so that in 

 appearance the apiary is a miniature city. 



In the background, to the left, are some large 

 orange-trees under which are nuclei for queen- 

 rearing. Four 4i4x4i.i'xiyg sections compose the 

 brood -frames for each nucleus. The loose bot- 

 tom-board has rabbeted strips to hold frames 



