502 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



May 15 



TO GET RID OF ANTS. 



I should like to ask what will drive away 

 ants from hives. I have a few hives that 

 are bothered some with them. 



Stuttgart, Ark. Earl Rhodes. 



[The most satisfactory way to get rid of 

 ants is to hunt up the nests, make holes in 

 them with a crowbar, and drop into each 

 hole so made about a tablespoonful of bisul- 

 phide of carbon. Cover the holes up imme- 

 diately with plugs of earth. The gas aris- 

 ing will penetrate all the galleries of the 

 nests, and destroy the ants. You can buy 

 the bisulphide of carbon at the drugstore. 

 But bear in mind it is very explosive, and 

 must be kept away from a lighted flame or 

 a stove. Enough gas can be generated to 

 blow up a house, and I would advise you to 

 keep it in some outbuilding where it will 

 do no particular damage. By hunting up 

 1he ant-hills and destroying the nests as 

 described, you will, to a great extent, miti- 

 gate the nuisance. — Ed.] 



a two-year-old child stung to death. 

 The two-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. F. 

 W. Metcalf, of Arcadia, Ore., was stung 

 some forty or fifty times by bees, and died 

 in less than 30 minutes from the effects. 

 Now, is there any thing one can do in such 

 a case as this? The child disturbed the 

 hive with a switch, as he had one in his 

 hand when found near the bees unconscious. 



The child was heard to scream, and a man 

 went to him at once. This happened half 

 a mi e from our bee-ranch at Arcadia. 

 Ontario, Ore. Pennington Bros. 



[Cases of this kind are exceedingly rare: 

 and even where death does occur, the sub- 

 ject is usually more susceptible to the ef- 

 fects of the poison than the average person. 

 I believe this child could have been saved 

 if cloths wrung out of water as hot as could 

 be borne had been wrapped around it and 

 renewed every minute or two. Even cold 

 applications seem to bring relief. — Ed.] 



PREVENTING AFTER-SWARMS. 



Last year I had several after-swarms, and 

 I want to prevent after-swarming if there 

 is a way to do it. Is it all right to let bees 

 swarm one time? The idea I have is this: 

 When the first swarm comes out, open the 

 hive that the swarm came out of, and cut 

 out all the queen-cells but one. 



Ephesus, N. C. S. S. Foster. 



[The plan of cutting out all the queen- 

 cells but one has been practiced to a con- 

 siderable extent to prevent after-swarms, 

 and in the majoritiy of cases it works very 

 well; but it sometimes fails, nevertheless. 

 It is usually better to move the parent hive 

 on to another stand at the time the swarm 

 comes out, hiving the swarm in another 

 hive with frames of foundation put in the 

 old location. — Ed.] 



TROUT-BROOK SCENE NEAR RAPID CITY, KALKASKA CO., MICH. 



