762 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug 1 



much educational value to me. All queens 

 will now be clipped as soon as they are 

 found laying, and no one will have reason 

 to object. 



Perhaps you would be pleased to know 

 about our season's honey crop. So should 

 we. Nearly all of my honey last year was 

 stored in August, September, and October. 



Modesto, Cal. W. A. H. Gilstrap. 



MILK PAINT ALABASTINE NOT SUITABLE. 



Referring to query on page 608, June 15, 

 concerning alabastine as a hive paint, I 

 used some and was sorry I did. Perhaps 

 I got the indoor kind. I shall trv aext 

 time a "milk paint" given in April JVar/d's 

 Work, quoted from Scientific American ; 

 viz , 1 gallon skim or butter milk (whole 

 milk is better), to 3 pounds Portland ce 

 ment. Color to suit. Keep well stirred 

 while applying, and use on day cf mixing. 

 The alabastine I used peeled off like 

 whitewash. C. G. Dickson. 



Kensington, Md., July 7. 



SHOOK swarming; reducing the labor 



OP HUNTING FOR CELLS. 



In working outyards on the shook swarm 

 plan, the big item of labor is going through 

 each hive every week to look for queen- cells. 

 This labor may be greatly reduced by plac 

 ing a comb in the center of the brood nest, 

 said comb having an opening in its center 

 formed by means of two pieces, /sX^sXb. 

 spaced ^^s or 'i inch apart by being tacked 

 to blocks of that thickness. This little 

 frame is inserted in the comb horizon^^all}', 

 and the t( p bar of the frame is painted red, 

 or otherwise marked. On opening a hive, 

 draw out this comb If no cells appear in 

 this opening, there are none in this hive. 

 All other combs must be perfect (not con- 

 \.\.\n openings), and it is better if they are 

 built solid lo the bottom-bar by having been 

 inverted. 



I have in mind a plan by which the op- 

 erator may detect the presence of cells in 

 these spaces by means of a mirror thrust 

 iato the deep entrance. Of course, the mir- 

 ror is preceded by smoke. 



THE NEW ALIGHTING-BOARD. 



Your new alighting-board and entrance- 

 regulator is open to the serious objection 

 that, as the bottom board swells, it push- 

 es the block away from the hive, thus open- 

 ing the entrance when we d3 not want it 

 open. This may be remedied by cutting 

 the stick which closes the entrance shorter, 

 so it will just slip in between the rails, 

 and nailing it closer to the edge of the 

 alighting-board. George Demuth. 



Peru, Ind., July 2. 



bee-sting poison an article of com- 

 merce. 



Can you tell me anything concerning the 

 formic acid which is said to be collected by 

 bottling bees, agitating them and killing 

 them with alcohol? This product is said to 

 be sold to eastern druggists at a good price. 

 I should like to get the names of such pur- 

 chasers. This bee-sting business looks to 

 me like a hoax, as I have been personally 

 acquainted with parties who have been 

 stung many times, and still have the rheu- 

 matism; but as all such fads have a day it 

 may answer to sell. W. W. Rich. 



Clements, Kan., July 3, 



[The active principle of the bee-sting 

 poison, whatever that may be, said to be 

 formic acid, is used largely by the homeo- 

 pathic school of medicines. Some years 

 ago we used to do quite a little business 

 pulling bee-stings by the thousand. We 

 have supplied Boerick & Taffell, of New 

 York, with stings in lets of ten thousand, 

 the same being dipped in a small vial of su- 

 gar of milk as fast as the stings were re- 

 moved. At other times we have taken bees 

 in lots of five or ten pounds, shaken them 

 up until they became ihoroughlj' angry, 

 and then immediately dumped them into a 

 large vial of alcohol. But because the pull- 

 ing of the stings poisoned the operator pull- 

 ing them, causing a swelling of the face, 

 we refused to accept further orders of the 

 kind. 



We have had some reports, apparently 

 showing quite remarkable cures where one 

 was suffering from rheumatism after he had 





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