JUNE 15, 1916 



which ha\ e been treated without shaking. 

 And as a furtlier argument in the favor of 

 the milder method? of treatment, I will say 

 that the diseas? has reappeared in colonies 

 which had been shaken the year before in 

 the same proportion as there were strictly 

 new eases. The shaking method is urged 

 upon us on the strength of its certainty as 

 a cure. Personally I believe it would be 

 certain provided there was no disease in the 

 neighborhood by means of which new out- 

 breaks will surely come. So long as the 

 disease is in a neighborhood it is foolish to 

 practice the shaking method; but after the 

 neighborliood is cleaned up, then I would 

 advocate the renewal of all combs. Until 

 the neighborhood is freed of disease, then I 



say use the milder methods, inasmuch as 

 they are much clieaper, entailing, n? they 

 do, less labor and financial outlay, and 

 yielding as certain results. 



It is evident that it would be well to 

 requeen all colonies which have contracted 

 the disease with stock which has shown 

 resisting powers. By this, one can more 

 certainly forestall fresh outbreaks of the 

 disease. 



All the foregoing relates to European 

 foul brood. I have not yet been given an 

 opportunity to test curative treatment to a 

 colony infested with American foul brood. 

 Will those who have the opportunity try the 

 lemonade treatment and report? 



Norwichtown, Ct. 



NOTES FROM HOLLAND; OUR BEE-HOMES 



P.Y J. H. .T. HAMELBERG 



Having noticed that black bees prevail in 

 this country, the reader will not be aston- 

 ished to hear that the bee-home most com- 

 monly found in Holland is the old-fashion- 

 ed straw skep. We have them in all shapes 

 ■ — square, rounded off at the top, conical, 

 round, with a fiat head, etc. In some of 

 them, as in the Gravenhorst skep, movable 

 frames can be put ; but in most of them the 

 comb-building is left entirely to the fancy 

 of the bees, some sticks being put inside for 

 the support of the combs. A good many 

 skeps now have an opening at the top, cov- 

 ered with a felt stopper for feeding pur- 

 poses, and for obtaining a few pounds of 

 comb honey in small wooden boxes which 

 are put over this opening in a good season. 

 But the primitive, conical-shaped skep with- 

 out any improvement is as yet most com- 

 monly seen. 



These skeps, altho altogether unfit for 

 modern beekeeping, still offer some advan- 

 tages. Bees winter exceedingly well in them, 

 especially in the so-called thick-walled ones, 

 and in hot weather they keep the bees much 

 cooler than wooden hives, it being hardly 

 possible for the brightest sun to penetrate 

 these straw walls, nearly 11/2 inches thick. 

 Most beekeepers can make these skeps them- 

 selves, and, during their leisure hours in 

 winter, they so spend their time, thus saving 

 the outlay for new hives, having the straw 

 for the "taking. Besides, no bee-home is 

 handier for migratory beekeeping. A bee- 

 proof cloth is fastened around the bottom 

 with a few nails. In the evening the en- 

 trance is closed with a plug of grass, and 

 the skep is ready to be taken any distance. 

 For wintering, the beekeeper, once being 

 sure of a colony having sufficient stores (to 



ascertain which he uses a steel bar (Roman 

 balance), or, if he has sufficient experience, 

 he simply lifts the skep), does not take any 

 other precaution than to fill the entrance 

 with some mortar, and, while this is yet soft, 

 bores a hole in it with a stout lead-pencil. 

 Often even this filling with mortar can be 

 dispensed with, when the bees plug up the 

 entrance to a convenient size with propolis. 

 Being always kept under cover (on scaffolds 

 in sheds), skeps will last for years; and. 

 when showing any signs of decay, they can 

 often be repaired with a handful of straw 

 and some binding material, or by plastering 

 them with some adhesive substance, as, for 

 instance, lime mixed with loam. New ones 

 can be bought for about half a dollar apiece. 



All these advantages, however, do not 

 make the skep a fit bee-home for the mod- 

 ern beekeeper, and I rejoice to be able to 

 say that hives are coming in use in this 

 country more and more. We have some 

 large apiaries, in which the skep figures 

 only as a curiosity. Some prints of these 

 have appeared in Gleanings from time to 

 time. But apiaries in which hives figure by 

 way of exception are much more nTU'r- 

 ous, the best evidence of this being given 

 by our bee-markets at Veenendaal and Ben- 

 nekom. At the last market at Veenendaal 

 more than 3000 colonies were offered for 

 sale, but not a single hive was to be seen, all 

 the colonies being in skeps. 



The fact that there is no standard frame 

 will prove a great hindrance to hives be- 

 coming more popular. Many dealers in 

 beekeepers' supplies have their own patent 

 hive, and each of them considers his make 

 the best, of course. Besides, there are yet 

 some German makes on our markets, which 



