888 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 1. 



pose. Further, no one has ever told us how 

 to put foundation in the tall section, and have 

 it stay where we want it, as easily as can be 

 done with the square section. The best sec- 

 tion ever used by bee-keepers was both tall 

 and wide, and held about \y z lbs. of honey ; 

 and if all had been satisfied with it we could 

 have been using it to-day. If no one had of- 

 fered a smaller section we could have sold the 

 large ones just as well, and have had more to 

 sell with the same amount of labor. There is 

 no question but that consumers would buy the 

 honey if we produced it in that shape ; but if 

 we are so foolish as to introduce something 

 still harder to produce, and more difficult to 

 handle, than the one-pound section, the deal- 

 ers will all want it of course, and we shall get 

 not one cent more for it as soon as it becomes 

 common. 



Browntown, Wis., Oct. 24. 



[This question of a tall versus square sec- 

 tion hinges not so much on what the producer 

 thinks of it, but upon what the consumer or 

 market in a given locality calls for. The aver- 

 age bee-keeper regards with distrust any thing 

 that is likely to require a change in his fix- 

 tures. The consequence is, the real merit of 

 the thing under consideration may be uncon- 

 sciously covered up by prejudice and self-in- 

 terest. My own observation regarding the ex- 

 pressed opinions of others has been quite the 

 reverse of yours; but why this difference ? Is 

 it not true that our friends like to express an 

 opinion that will be likely to agree with our 

 own ? You may think they do not know your 

 preference ; but it is a hard matter to state a 

 question without revealing your own opinion 

 in advance. The tall section is not in much 

 favor in some parts of the West, and we may 

 as well admit that fact first as last. In Colo- 

 rado especially, the bee-keepers are decidedly 

 opposed to it ; and from the few reports we 

 have had from Wisconsin and Minnesota I 

 should judge that it is not very popular in 

 those States. But in the greatest honey mar- 

 kets in the United States, and possibly in the 

 world, the tall section has the general prefer- 

 ence. I refer to the markets of Albany and 

 New York city. 



This preference for tall sections and square 

 ones, it seems to me, is a good deal like the 

 question whether we prefer warm heavy shoes 

 for Canada or light summer shoes for Texas. 

 Local conditions are so very different that, 

 to express an opinion on the merits of the two 

 kinds of shoes, would seem idle. 



As to the matter of fastening foundation, 

 that is no more difficult in the case of the tall 

 box than the square one. Why should it be? 

 The tall section is only % inch higher than 

 i*4 square. 



Again, the Ideal section 3^X5, is condemn- 

 ed by some, while the 4x5 is considered just 

 the thing. — Ed.] 



bees take a contract to outdo one hive that I 

 have, filled with bees from a queen from J. P. 

 Moore, Morgan, Ky. Through an advertise- 

 ment in Gleanings I sent to Mr. Moore and 

 obtained something as near perfection as I 

 have ever seen. No one has ever been stung 

 by her bees, and the hive has been opened re- 

 peatedly in wind (do you know what Dakota 

 wind is?) without smoke or veil. I send you 

 a photo of my little daughter, two years and 

 nine months old, with a frame of them. No- 

 tice the bee on her forehead. She knows they 

 will not hurt her. She has often been stung, 

 but not by that colony; and if any one has 

 " cross or snappy " bees that can beat them 

 hustling, please quote prices. I am open to 

 conviction. D. B. Lynch. 



Watertown, S. Dak. 



[I do not know any bees that will outdo 

 yours, friend L., unless it is those spoken of 

 by A. J. Wright in our previous issue. These 

 gentle bees that are full of business are just 

 the chaps we want. Verily this talk about 

 $100 queens, even if it has ended in nothing 

 but talk, so far as high priced queens are con- 

 cerned, will be productive of a much higher 

 grade of bees for business. — Ed.] 



THE CRANE SMOKER. 



I note a letter from Mr. Callbreath, on page 

 754, regarding the weakness of the Crane 

 smoker. I thought it might not be out of the 

 way to say that the Crane as you have made it 

 is not always thus weak. I have one that I 

 have used for five seasons, and nothing what- 

 ever is the matter with it or ever has been. 

 True, I have not used it as constantly as might 

 be, as the writer referred to uses his ; but I 

 have often been thoughtless, and left it out in 

 the weather all night to get damp, and even 

 wet with rain; and I almost always have open- 

 ed it, when putting in fuel, by hitting the un- 

 der side of the nozzle against any convenient 

 fence, post, or other object. So it seems to 

 me it is pretty well made. A. Norton. 



Monterey, Cal., Oct. 30. 



[We try to give space to the criticisms as 

 well as to the praises of our goods. Of course, 

 we like the latter better; but the others, when 

 honestly and fairly given, are more valuable, 

 both to us and to our customers. — Ed.] 



GENTLE BEES THAT ARE HUSTLERS. 



The editor, page 725, speaks of the extra 

 amount of work " cross or snappy " bees are 

 able to turn out. Now, that may be true; but 

 I'd like to see any " cross or snappy " race of 



TRAVEL-STAIN OR PROPOLIS ; HOW TO PRE- 

 VENT BEES FROM GNAWING THROUGH 



THEIR OUILTS. 

 For years past I have used waxed cloths over 

 brood-frames. The bees propolize the spaces 

 between the frames quite liberally, and ofttimes 

 manage to insert a good deal of the stuff be- 

 tween the cloth and the top-bars. Once in a 

 while I remove the cloths and run a hot laun- 

 dry-iron over them, thus diffusing the propo- 

 lis over and through them. Prior to this oper- 

 ation the bees are somewhat disposed to gnaw 

 the cloth, but never after. Now, I have a 

 number of these cloths that have been in use 

 several years. They are as dark or black as 

 any brood-comb I ever saw. I use propolis 



