GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



[BEEKEEPING IN THE SOUTHWEST 



jclioIL New Braiiiffifels., Texas. 



Roy S. Weaver, of Courtney, Texas, has 

 been one of our faithful assistants in the 

 apiary work this season. He left a good 

 position in Uncle Sam's mail service, with 

 the intention of " making a beekeeper of 

 himself." While he was not a " new begin- 

 ner " when he came to us, since his father is 

 one of our progressive beekeepers, there 

 were many things with which he was not 

 acquainted. His experience here has made 

 an enthusiastic young beekeeper out of him, 

 and he goes from here to Cuba, where he 

 will join his uncles, the Somerfords. 

 * * * 



The writer has just helped " the boys '' 

 extract honey for an afternoon. It had been 

 some time since I had done this, as my 

 other duties have always prevented my do- 

 ing the work in the honey-house. The men 

 were using the modern crook-neck uncap- 

 ping-knives; and as the knives were sharp 

 and in fine trim I started out with them. 

 It was not long, however, before that old 

 butcher-knife that I used to write about 

 was put into play again for an uncapping- 

 knife. Then the 'lifferent kinds were tried 

 alternately for a while; but the butcher- 

 knife won out in the race for superiority 

 as the most suitable uncapping-knife for 

 our oivn use, and especially for uncapping 

 the shallow combs that we use. I go at it 

 as a butcher goes at cutting ofl a fine thin 

 steak from a quarter on the meat-block, 

 and I use the same downward stroke. 



A GOOD LAW BUT NO MONEY. 



Texas has been without funds with which 

 to carry out its foul-brood-insp^^ction work 

 for the last two years. We have a splendid 

 law; but what is the best law worth with- 

 out money to pay for its enforcement? It 

 is to be hoped that the next legislature 

 will provide sufficient funds for this pur- 

 pose. Our hope is strengthened by the fact 

 that the beekeepers discussed this matter 

 very thoroughly at the last State meeting 

 in Juljf, and selected a committee to look 

 aftfer such legislative matters as may be 

 necessary in order to get the appropriation. 

 Horace E. Graham, of Cause, was selected 

 as chairman of this committee. To serve 

 with him, T. P. Robinson, Bartlett; F. L. 

 Aten, Round Rock; and AV. H. Laws, Bee- 

 ville, were named. This legislative commit- 

 tee will act in conjunction with Prof. Wil- 

 raon Newell, Entomologist of the Agricul- 

 tural and Mechanical College and State 

 Experiment Stations, College Station, who 



has this work in charge in this State. In 

 the legislature the beekeepers can depend 

 upon the writer, who will be a member of 

 the House of Representatives, to do all in 

 his power to obtain for the beekeepers of 

 this State such funds as will be needed 

 to carry on the foul-brood-inspection work. 

 I have given the names of all these parties 

 with their addresses, so that any person 

 interested in this matter may address any 

 or all of them properly. Let us hope that 

 foul brood will be cheeked, at least so that 

 it can not do us any harm if it can not be 

 stamped out altogether. 



ARMY-WORMS IN CLOVER AND IN COTTON. 



Mr. Editor, it was gratifying to learn, p. 

 745, Oct. 1, that army-worms do not do any 

 damage to the clover, although they do such 

 immense damage to other crops. We have 

 here what is known as the cotton-leaf army- 

 caterpillars, which destroy the tender 

 gTowth, the leaves, and often the younger 

 cotton boUs, of the cotton-plants. When 

 these armies of worms pass over our cotton- 

 fields they leave them stripped of every 

 thing except the tough stalks of the plants 

 and the full-grown bolls. We had the cater- 

 pillars in the cotton-fields this fall; and, 

 although the bees were gathering consider- 

 able cotton honey until they made their 

 appearance, this soon ceased. We feel that 

 we might otherwise have obtained a much 

 larger yield from this source. 

 * * * 



SUPER DRIPPING-PANS. 



Until recently we have had more or less 

 trouble with the floor of the honey-house 

 becoming soiled with honey that leaked from 

 the supers of honey that had been brought 

 from the apiaries and piled up to be packed 

 up later. It is well known to those who 

 have had the experience that it is quite dis- 

 agreeable to work on a sticky floor. To keep 

 this leakage from reaching the floor we have 

 adopted galvanized-iron drip-pans, about 

 two inches deep, and large enough to allow 

 two supers to be set in them side by side as 

 the foundation of two stacks of honey-su- 

 pers. The first two supers are set on two 

 strips about II/2 inches thick so as to have 

 tliem raised up and out of the honey that 

 may accumulate in the drip-pans. Since 

 using them we have had a nice clean floor; 

 and Mr. Heywood, our senior assistant in 

 the work, declares these the best "invention" 

 that the writer has yet made. 



