1881 



GLEA^rnGS IN BEE CULTUKE. 



.501 



find Italians sting just as badly as the blacks, and 

 the hybrids sting worse than either. The Italians 

 are the most hardy, and the best honey-gatherers, 

 and, taking all together, worth as much again as the 

 blacks. Bees in Scriven Co., Ga., will make from 6j 

 to 75 lbs. of honey and their winter stores; that is, if 

 well attended to. J. W. Johnston, M. D. 



Scarborough, Ga., Sept. 7, 1881. 



Now, friend J., the above is rather a back- 

 set on our plans for curing diseases by bee- 

 stings. I wonder if such is not about the 

 case with all kinds of medicines. What 

 cures one man will kill another. Let us 

 have the facts, no matter whose pet theories 

 they spoil. 



MIST.'VKfiS OF POSTMASTERS. 



The smoker, catalogue, and receipt came all right; 

 but I sent 50 cents for a bee veil. You gave a re- 

 ceipt for a veil, but if you sent one it did not come. 

 John McGregor. 



New Eagle Mills, Grant Co., Ky., Sept. 5, 1881. 



Now, friends, it would seem from the 

 above that we must certainly be at fault, for 

 it is almost an unheard-of thing for such an 

 article as a bee veil to fail to reach its des- 

 tination, if properly sent ; and so even I set- 

 tled down to the conclusion that the clerks 

 must be at fault, and would have no doubt 

 told them so had not my eye caught sight of 

 a postscript at the bottom of the letter, in 

 another handwriting. Here it is:— 



p. S.— The bee veil has been overlooked. You 

 need not send it. It was a mistake in myself that 

 they did not get it. P. M. 



I presume postmasters are fallible, like 

 other folks; and in view of it, shall we not 

 be slow in deciding positively who is at 

 fault y 



inserting queen-cells as soon as the queen is 



REMOVED. 



The proportion of cells torn down when inserted 

 among mj' bees iimnrdiatdy, is eleven out of every 

 dozen. M. Frank Taber. 



Salem, O., Sept. 1, 1881. 



This matter, like introducing virgin queens 

 just hatched, seems to be dependent upon 

 the yield of honey, and perhaps some other 

 causes. At time's, scarcely a cell will be 

 torn down, even when put in as soon as the 

 queen is taken out ; at other times, they seem 

 to be destroyed as above. It seems to me 

 we should be governed somewhat by the 

 number of cells M^e have on hand; if a great 

 plenty that must be taken from the hives, 

 put them in at once; and if torn down, try 

 again ; but if you can manage so as to have 

 your hives queenless a couple of days be- 

 fore inserting the cells, by all means do so. 

 The lamp nursery helps us very much in 

 such cases, for we can leave the hive until 

 the queen is really hatched, and by this time 

 they will always accept the young queen. 

 We have introduced young queens by the 

 hundred this season, with excellent success, 

 if we except the few weeks past, while we 

 have had such a drought. 



UPS AND DOWNS IN WISCONSIN. 



As other ABC scholars report from time to time, 

 and as I have not seen any report from Northern 

 Wisconsin,! will modestly say, that In this town there 

 were 50 swarms left on their summer stands last 



fall; only two came through all right; 23 were in a 

 cellar, and had good ventilation; 13 wintered. I had 

 5 on summer stands, packed in sawdust; they came 

 out with one swarm last spring, and I bought one 

 more light one. Now I have from those two swarms 

 7 very heavy ones in good condition for winter. 



The most astonishing fact is, we have taken 500 

 lb3. of honey from them this season, mostly extract- 

 ed, nearly all light colored. Now, friend Root, my 

 bees are all Italians, and from that queen I bought 

 of you ; they are the best race of bees for work in 

 this vicinity, as others gathered only 100 lbs. per 

 swarm. We appreciate Gleanings very much, and 

 especially Our Homes; also Humbugs and Swindles. 

 I should like to see you, and thank you for your 

 prompt and fair dealings. Q. M. Torrey. 



Shiacton, Wis., Sept. 10, 1881. 



Many thanks for your kind words, friend 

 T.; but I hardly deserve them all. I am 

 glad to hear the queens we send out produce 

 good working stocks, but I really do not be- 

 lieve them any better "strain "than other 

 people's bees, aside from the advantage that 

 would probably accrue from importing as 

 many queens as we do. Five hundred 

 pounds from two colonies and their increase 

 is rather '' astonishing." 



INTRODUCING BY FRAMES OF HATCHING BROOD. 



I was unwilling to risk introducing my queen as 

 the cage required, so I put her into a nucleus and 

 gave three frames of capped brood and honey; shut 

 up entrance, and awaited developments. This 

 morning about fifty bees had hatched, and among 

 them, in striking contrast, gleamed the " yellow 

 queen" and her escorts. I am delighted with my 

 success so far, and shall let them fly to-morrow, and 

 begin building up from strong stocks, and feed to 

 start the queen laying. 



I am a " novice" in the business, and have taken 

 full charge of 13 stocks hero; increased to28 and got 

 quite a lot of surplus comb in 1-lb. sections. Isn't 

 that pretty good for one beginning his " t-y-ties "? 



A NOVEL PROCESS FOR MAKING MATS, OR WATER- 

 PROOF CLOTH FOR ANY PURPOSE. 



We are using, for coverings for frames, a cloth 

 prepared by the following recipe, taken from the 

 Scientific American. No insect will molest it, and it 

 is a sufficiently water-proof covering for outside 

 protection: 



Dissolve 8 oz. soap in a gallon of boiling soft wa- 

 ter; thoroughly saturate the cloth; wring out, and 

 soak the cloth over night in a solution of 10 oz. alum 

 in one gal. of water; wring out; rinse in Clearwa- 

 ter, and dry. We find this works well so far. 



A. D. Willis. 



S. St. Louis, Mo., Sept. 8, 1881. 



Your plan of introducing is usually safe, 

 friend W., but it is expensive, because it is 

 slow, and usually considerable trouble. Al- 

 so, a good deal of brood is lost, usually, un- 

 less you can get combs containing no un- 

 sealed brood. A little care is required, also, 

 to see that the queen does not leave the little 

 cluster before enough bees are hatched out. 

 The process you give of making cloth fire and 

 water proof 'is the result of a queer chemical 

 change ; and since you call attention to it, I 

 have no doubt but that it would help to pre- 

 vent the bees gnawing any kind of cloth. I 

 think you are doing very well indeed, for 

 the first season. 



