Vol. XXXIV. 



MARCH U J 906. 



No. 5 



Prof. Cook thinks our nice section honey 

 "would go like wildfire " on the European 

 markets, p. 207. Pity we can't get a little 

 wildfire into our own markets. 



Mr. Aspinwall is a conspicuous example 

 of persistent endeavor in one direction. If 

 he ever reaches the goal of the non-swarm- 

 ing hive— and let us earnestly hope that he 

 may— he will have richly earned the prize. 



Philippine BEES, presumably ^pisdorsaf a, 

 are said, p. 215, to build cells 2J in. deep. 

 If these are in combs with the usual midrib, 

 the combs would be 5 in. thick. Is there 

 not some mistake about this? Surely a cell 

 2 J in. deep would hardly be used to rear 

 brood in. 



Hybrids are spoken of, p. 201, as worse 

 gluers than Italians. I don't remember 

 ever seeing that mentioned before. Is it a 

 fact? [I had always supposed it was gener- 

 ally conceded that hybrids were more inclin- 

 ed to propolize than pure Italians. I know 

 ours used to be. If I am mistaken I shall 

 be glad to be corrected. — Ed.] 



Carniolaj^S, according to Muenchener 

 Bztg., excel all others in working on red 

 clover. The dry weather of the past season 

 favored work on red clover, and the Carnio- 

 lans appeared on it in full force, while the 

 American red-clover stock did not visit it at 

 all. [I should be inclined to think that there 

 would be no difference between Camiolans 

 and Italians. But this is sure: There are 

 strains of either that greatly excel others of 

 their own race on red clover. — Ed.] 



Honey-comb, says Dr. Bohrer, p. 220, "is 

 of no value as food; and in man/ cases of 

 stomach ailment it is a positive irritant." 

 But say, doctor, is it not true that it is some- 

 times well to have things in food which have 

 no nutritive value? and are not irritants 

 sometimes a benefit in the intestinal tract? 

 [It has been said that a shipload of horses 

 out at sea ran out of hay. The^e were oats 

 enough, but the horses did not d ) well. The 

 captain finally ordered the carpenters to 

 plane up some plank into fine shivno-?. ^r^d 

 these were soaked in water and mixed with 

 the oats and fed to the animals? The story 

 goes that the horses from that time on be- 

 gan to thrive. Perhaps in this sense wax 

 would not be an irritant.— Ed.] 



Freezing is said to have killed a frog and 

 some bees, p. 202. Are you sure it wasn't 

 the thawing? A neighbor, one winter, had 

 200 bushels of apples in our cellar. They 

 were frozen, and the freezing seemed to im- 

 prove them. But they were thawed out 

 very gradually. If thawed out rapidly they 

 would have been ruined. [There is some- 

 thing in what you say. Two or three have 

 told me since, that frogs frozen in ice will 

 come to all right in the spring. In the case 

 of the frog referred to by Mr. Pritchard, the 

 animal in a solid cake of ice was brought in- 

 to a warm room. The ice was melted as 

 quickly as possible. I know what you say is 

 true concerning apples, because I have seen 

 this fact proven before my own eyes.- Ed.] 



G, M. DOOLITTLE, page 209, recommends 

 farmer Jones to use the regular Langstroth 

 hive. I wonder if farmer Jones knows what 

 that IS. He will hardly find it listed in any 

 catalog. I am frank to say that I don't 

 know just what is included in and excluded 

 by the term "regular Langstroth hive," al- 

 though it is a term in frequent use. Please 

 tell me, Mr. Editor, what I would get from 

 a manufacturer if I should order a "regular 

 Langstroth hive. ' ' [When a customer spec- 

 ifies a Langstroth hive we make it a rule to 



