898 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



November, 1917 



paragraphs, each paragraph arranged under 

 appropriate headings. A few of the head- 

 lines will serve to show the order of treat- 

 ment, which is chronological. For instance, 

 the first topic is "The Importation of the 

 Hive-bee into New Zealand;" then "Primi- 

 tive Beekeeping;" "The Honey Market in 

 Those Days;" "Beekeeping in Other Coun- 

 tries;" "The First Stage of Progress in 

 New Zealand;" "The First Movable-frame 

 hive in New Zealand;" "The First Honey 

 Raised Under the New System, ' ' etc. In 

 fact, a list of all the headlines would give a 

 fairly good idea of the entire work. 



There were no honey-bees (Apis mellifica) 

 in New Zealand previous to 1838. Only two 

 species of native bees existed, neither of 

 them being of any use as honey-gatherers. 

 The first honeybees came from England, 

 March 1.3, 1839. 



The methods used in the first apiaries 

 were primitive, following the crude methods 

 of the cottagers of England. The hives 

 were common boxes with cross-sticks to sup- 

 port the combs — a form of hive common in 

 the United States a half a century ago. 

 Straw skeps were also used. Sulphuring 

 the bees in pits was the common way to take 

 off honey. 



Read what the author says on page 5 un- 

 der the title "The Honey Market in Those 

 Days. ' ' 



For some years after I came to New Zealand, 51 

 years ago [he is writing from Auckland, New Zea- 

 land, March, 1916], the only honey I saw for sale 

 was what the Maoris (the Maori was the native New 

 Zealander) hawked about in old kerosene-cans or 

 some other old tins — a conglomeration of honey, 

 wax, and bee-grubs. The latter was considered a 

 delicacy by the older Maoris. All was mixed to- 

 gether, and was usually obtained from bee-nests in 

 the "Bush," plentiful in those days. Occasionally 

 strained honey, free from wax, etc., would be of- 

 fered ; but as it was generally believed, with good 

 reason, that the straining cloths used by the Maoris 

 were parts of discarded blankets that had served as 

 body-wrappers in the hey-day of their usefulness, 

 the venders found very few customers. 



Early in 1874 Mr. Hopkins became deeply 

 interested in practical beekeeping. No one 

 previous to that time in all New Zealand 

 knew anything about the progress of apicul- 

 ture or modern methods in other countries. 

 The flora of New Zealand was wonderful, 

 and beefarming impressed the author as a 

 great possibility if modern methods could be 

 employed. 



Now note the role that the United States 

 played in New Zealand apicultural develop- 

 ments. In 1878 Mr. Hopkins learned from 

 an English journal something of the doings 

 and writings of A. I. Root in this country. 

 He wrote to Mr. Root at once and received 

 in reply a copy of Gleanings and a price list 

 of fixtures. At the same time he obtained 

 from London a copy of "Langstroth on the 

 Hive and Honeybee. ' ' He then ordered from 

 Mr. Root a comb-foundation machine, a 

 honey-extractor, a smoker, and some other 

 appliances, in the meantime making several 

 L. hives from the instructions he had re- 



ceived. The comb-foundation machine was 

 the second one to leave the United States — • 

 the first one going to North Scotland. It 

 cost Mr. Hopkins $70 in New Zealand. The 

 honey secured by Mr. Hopkins under the 

 new methods was from the Bush, and was 

 too thick to extract; and so he produced for 

 a time only comb honey in one-pound sec- 

 tions — which, by the way, were in four 

 pieces and had to be nailed together with 

 great labor. 



In 1880 Mr. Hopkins began writing on 

 beekeeping topics for the "Thames Adver- 

 tiser" and the "Auckland Weekly News." 

 His writings led him into a supply business. 

 Then came the introduction of the Italian 

 bee in 1879 by Mr. Harrison, of Coromondel, 

 New Zealand, and Mr. Hopkins, the former 

 gentleman receiving his bees first, altho Mr. 

 Hopkins had ordered his first. They came 

 from Mr. R. Wilkin, of San Buenaventura, 

 California. Mr. Hopkins had ordered his 

 Italian bees from Mr. Root, and was told 

 that California was nearer to New Zealand 

 than New York, and was advised to order 

 from California accordingly. 



The growth of modern beekeeping in New 

 Zealand was wonderful. While few inven- 

 tions were made there, the beemen utilized 

 the best that was then known in the United 

 States and England, and thus all develop- 

 ments were along scientific lines. It is 

 interesting to note that the progress of bee- 

 keeping methods of Nev/ Zealand kept very 

 nearly apace with the industry in America 

 and other English-speaking countries. 



In 1882 the first queen-rearing was started, 

 and that same year official permission was 

 obtained to send queens thru the mails. In 

 1883 out-apiaries were begun. In 1883 Mr. 

 Hopkins began ' * The New Zealand and Aus- 

 tralian Bee Journal. ' ' In 1884 occurred the 

 first general bee and honey show in New 

 Zealand, and at a special meeting called dur- 

 ing this exhibition was formed the first Na- 

 tional New Zealand Beekeepers ' Association. 

 This new association adopted the ten-frame 

 Langstroth hive as a national standard. 

 Early in 1880 foul brood had appeared in New 

 Zealand, and for 20 or more years the bee- 

 men of the country had a hard fight with the 

 disease. The box-hive man was the great 

 menace and obstacle to the conquest of the 

 pest, there as elsewhere. On April 28, 1888, 

 the government of New Zealand passed a 

 foul-brood and disease-in-bees prevention 

 act. As a result, tho the disease still lingers 

 in places, it is in a fair way to be suppressed 

 altogether, as the author says on page 35. 



In the introduction the author makes a 

 boast that seems a little sweeping. He says: 

 "I have no hesitation in saying that we lead 

 the world in beekeeping. I am aware it is a 

 big claim; but when we consider that no 

 country has such an effective apiaries' act 

 for controlling diseases, and such compulsory 

 regulations for government trading of all 

 honey leaving the country, annual registra- 

 tions of apiaries and supervision of all im- 

 ported bees, besides permanent inspectors of 



