890 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 1.5. 



you may escape such an experience. I started 

 to visit my apiary, 7 miles away. In dis- 

 mounting in a spot too rough to ride I stepped 

 on the edge of a rut and thought I had sprain- 

 ed my ankle. Now, here is something to tell 

 your friends. In dismounting, never step off 

 backward, as you can't see where your foot 

 will alight; but let the wheel tip over after 

 slowing up, when you can see where you are 

 stepping After doctoring a sprained ankle 

 for four months I found I hadn't sprained my 

 ankle, but had injured my foot. Now, after 

 having my foot in plaster of Paris for two 

 months, the doctor told me to-day to begin 

 walking. The result is, instead of the nice 

 start in bees I thought I should have, the bees 

 are gone and I shall be in debt when I get so 

 I can work again. I have had a long six 

 months of it. I saw in a back number of 

 Gleanings that Mr. Calvert had some of 

 this kind of fun. Three years ago to-day I 

 cut my other ankle with an ax while cutting 

 limbs away from hives. 



I am glad to see you using the section 

 without a margin, as some here call them. 

 Doubtless they are the coming section. I 

 don't see how you are going to make them, 

 but some around here made with one piece an 

 exact duplicate of the other three, with a pe- 

 culiar dovetail. Your italics at the bottom of 

 page 817, first column, are right to the point. 

 Irving Kinvon. 



Camillus, N. Y., Nov. 26. 



[There is no difficulty whatever making one- 

 piece plain sections. — Ed.] 



A SPECIAL SCRAPER FOR SECTIONS. 



I think scraping sections with a common 

 knife is hard and dangerous (for the honey), 

 especially in the fall, when they put so much 

 propolis on. I inclose a scraper which I made, 



A REPORT ENCOURAGING FROM THE GREAT 

 NORTHWEST. 



I have just returned from a long excursion 

 to Eastern Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, 

 with other merchants from Portland, who 

 were out making the acquaintance of numer- 

 ous customers, many of whom the}' had never 

 seen. 1 had been over the country before, 

 and so knew something of the extent and va- 

 riety of resources; but to many of our mer- 

 chants it was a revelation. It is indeed an 

 " inland empire," and in all our traveling of 

 1700 miles we did not see a discontented or 

 dissatisfied merchant. The crops were simply 

 immense. The prices were good. The farm- 

 ers have paid up old indebtedness, and have 

 money to lend. BuELL LambersON. 



Portland, Or., Nov. 23. 



F0UND.\TI0N for shallow BROOD -cham- 

 bers. 



If two Dovetailed eight- frame hive-supers, 

 each containing eight shallow well - wired 

 brood-frames, were used for a brood - nest, 

 could not extra thin surplus foundation be 

 used in these frames in full sheets, and secure 

 straight brood-combs comparatively free from 

 drone-cells? If not, what is the lightest 

 foundation that could be used with success ? 



Browning, 111., Nov. 17. G. A. Dyer. 



[Extra thin would be a little too light; but 

 what is styled thin super might answer very 

 nicely. — Ed.] 



^1 



which is quicker, and with it you can't jab 

 the honey. You can see how it works. It 

 scrapes the edge and top of the section at 

 once. Jno. N. ProThero. 



Du Bois, Pa., Sept. 18. 



[If we adopt the new (old) plain sec'.ions 

 with no bee- ways, a common case-knife will 

 be the best scraper after all. For the old-style 

 section I have no doubt that your scraper is 

 better.— Ed.] 



how to winter bees in a warm room ; 

 partridge-hunting. 



I have learned something aboiit -w-intering 

 bees that is new to me. I have taken GLEAN- 

 INGS for 20 years, and have not seen my way 

 mentioned. I have been testing the method 

 for three winters, with good results; now for 

 the way. 



I put them in a wire cage 30 in. long, as 

 wide as the hive, and as high; that leaves a 

 plavground in front of entrance. Then I set 

 them on a tight floor, so there is no possible 

 chance for them to get out; then put them in 

 a warm room and give them water. I have a 

 house made on purpose, and have a stove in 

 it. I burn wood, and keep the temperature 

 from 45 to 90. You will think, when I say 90, 

 that they would die. Try one and see. Do 

 not keep them that warm all the time. When 

 I build a good fire the temperature goes up 

 that high quite often. The reason they die in 

 a room like a living-room is because of a want 

 of water. I keep mine in darkness till the 

 loth of Februar}- ; then give them all the 

 light I can, so they start raising young bees; 

 then there is no spring dwindling. 



I should like to have you come and hunt 

 partridges about a week. It will cost you 

 nothing for bed and board. You would need 

 a trained dog if vou wanted ^o kill many. I 

 see as many^ as 40 some days when I am going 

 round my bear-pens. There are some bears 

 and a few deer left here yet. I am 63 y-ears 

 old. I have killed .59 bears and 81 deer. If 

 you would come for a hunt you could go with 

 me to the traps, three miles out. If we failed 

 to get a bear we could get some birds. I have 

 found lots of bee-trees — some good ones and 

 some poor ones. I found one this fall in Potter. 

 Co. in a basswood. The hollow was 12 in. at 

 top and 14 in. at the bottom, or an average of 

 13 in., filled 11 feet — more comb honey than a 

 barrel would hold. If you could see the 

 chance they had you would not think they had 

 done any thing extra. Isaac Wykoff. 



Cameron, Pa., Nov. 12. 



[Your plan may work very successfully, but 

 if carried out on a large scale it might be 



