Publislied by Tlie A. I. Root Co., Medina, Ohio. 



H. H. Root, Assistant Editor. E. K. Root, Editor. A. L. Boyden, Advertising Manager. 



A. I. Root, Editor Home Department. J. T. Calvert, Business Manager. 



Entered at the Postoffice, Medina, Ohio, as second-class mutter. 



VOL. XLII. 



APRIL 1, 1914 



NO. 7 



Erditorial 



EDITION OF " THE HONEY-BEE " EXHAUiSTKO. 



We have just learned from Mr. W. D. 

 Wrig'lit that the edition of six thousand 

 copies of Bulletin 49, entitled " The Honey- 

 bee," published by the New York State 

 Department of Agriculture, is entirely ex- 

 hausted, and can not be supplied hereafter. 

 Mr. Wright adds, however, that some time 

 in the future a new edition may be issued. 

 If so, due notice will be given at that time. 



WINTERING REPORTS. 



On account of the late spring, it is still 

 too early (March 23) to get reports on win- 

 tering. It is certain that colonies in cellars 

 are having an extra-long siege, very few 

 having been taken out at this writing. With 

 the warm weather delayed so long, colonies 

 that were not strong in the fall, or that were 

 not 'Supplied with an abundance of good 

 stores,' are certain to suffer. 



Advance reports from New Jersey, Mich- 

 igan, Massachusetts, Colorado, Wisconsin, 

 Iowa, and New York show but little loss. 



Considerable loss has been reported in 

 certain parts of Kentucky where the weath- 

 er has been extremely changeable. Further 

 particulars will be given in our next issue. 



OUR COVER PICTURE. 



The bees shown on the cover of this issue 

 were photographed last fall from life, or, 

 rather, from death, for the bees were kept 

 under water over night, then carefully dried, 

 and brushed with camel's-hair brushes until 

 they assumed as near as possible the ap- 

 pearance of live bees. 



We realize that these pictures are far 

 from perfect — for instance, the drone se- 

 lected appears to be a trifle undersized in 

 respect to length of abdomen. There are 

 several other defects having to do with the 

 arrangement of the legs, wings, etc., all of 

 which we hope to rectify some time when 

 we photogTaph bees again. 



The original queen was just three-quar- 

 ters of an inch long from tip of abdomen 

 to tip of head. The larger view on the 

 cover is 2% inches in length, so that the 

 amount of enlargement of the bees in the 



center of the page is in the proportion of 

 three to eleven; or, in other words, the 

 pictures are nearly four times life size. The 

 side views shown below are of the same 

 bees enlarged only a trifle over two timto. 



THE CHARACTER OP THE MATERIAL USED IN 

 THIS SPECIAL NUMBER. 



Some, after reading the various articles 

 by the queen-breeders in this special num- 

 ber on breeding, may feel that certain 

 articles savor of advertising. In justice to 

 all we should like to explain that it would 

 hardly be possible to publish a special num- 

 ber of this kiiid without using the best 

 ideas from some of our breeders. Some of 

 these breeders, feeling that their remarks 

 might be construed as an attemiDt at gettii'g 

 some free advertising, have suggested that 

 their names be not used, but that a nom (!<- 

 plume be substituted. On reading over this 

 array of splendid material, we have decided 

 that the articles would lose considerable i:i 

 interest if the names of the writers were 

 not known, and we thought best to treat all 

 alike, therefore, by jjublishing the names 

 and addresses as usual. We are convinced 

 that not one of the writers in this issue has 

 tried to advertise his own particular queens, 

 or tliose of anv other breeder. 



BEFORE YOU CONDEMN A QUEEN, BE SURE 

 THAT THE QUEEN IS TO BLAME. 



Frequently colonies are so situated that 

 the bees naturally drift to other hives near 

 by, which are either more prominent or else 

 there are more bees going in and out, which 

 causes the bees of the hive in question to be 

 naturally drawn toward the scene of greater 

 excitement. During a brisk honey-flow, 

 moreover, heavily laden bees falling in the 

 grass are apt to crawl into the first hive 

 they come to, where they are welcomed, of 

 course, because of their load of honey. Un- 

 der such conditions, especially when the 

 hives are located in groups, one or more 

 liives in the group may suffer by the deple- 

 tion in bees because they are located on the 

 side away from the main source of honey, 

 or on the side awav from tlie natural line 



