1906 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



296 



brood, at the same time returning a host of 

 well-fed young bees back to the lower hive. 

 These conditions, with plenty of drone comb 

 in the lower hive, and abundant feeding, al- 

 ways insure a good supply of drones, which 

 is of the utmost importance to the queen- 

 breeder. Meantime the colonies are kept at 

 normal strength, and during the past year 

 such colonies gathered nearly as much hon- 

 ey as any others in my yards, and the quali- 

 ty of the cells thus produced I consider fully 

 equal to any that I ever saw, not even ex- 

 cepting swarm cells. Moreover, there is 

 this very important advantage — no colonies 

 have to be torn up or remain long queenless. 

 Only one colony is disturbed at a time, and 

 the work is all done in such a short space of 

 time, and the bees are so well protected, 

 and exposed for so short a space of time, 

 that robbers do not have much of a chance 

 at them in a bad season. 



After the colony is once prepared it is 

 just fun to raise queens; whereas by the use 

 of other systems I always considered it a 

 very tiresome job at best. However, there 

 are some things to be constantly kept in 

 mind when using this device and system. 

 One of the most important is that, when 

 used to its full capacity, the constant draw- 

 ing-away of open brood may induce superse- 

 dure of the queens, as the same conditions 

 prevail as when a queen if^ failing. At the 

 same time this is the prime reason why 

 drones are reared so abundantly, yet still 

 another can be found in the returning of the 

 large number of well-fed young bees to the 

 lower hive directly on to the queen and 

 brood. The surfeit of feed also has much 

 to do with these results. 



In this article I have but barely outlined 

 the possibilities of this simple device; neither 

 have I laid claim to any thing but what I 

 have actually accomplished. However, I 

 think there are several improvements possi- 

 ble; but as it is, I know it is vastly superior 

 to many of the complicated systems now so 

 extensively used, and to the novice it is sim- 

 ple and sure of results. I am not one to 

 court notoriety, neither do I care a cent for 

 what this or that one may think or say; but 

 to those who want something easier and 

 simpler than the systems now in use I es- 

 pecially recommend this. It will not disap- 

 point you. 



Vigo, Texas. 



«»t« »t. • . 



POULTRY. 



Some Recent Misleading Statements Concern- 

 ing it Corrected ; Eggs Sold by the Pound. 



BY BARNARD CUMMINGS. 



As an introduction I wish to say that I am 

 a bee- enthusiast as well as a poultry- fanci- 

 er. I wish to do the bee fraternity as much 

 good as possible, but I feel the same inter- 

 est in the poultry industry. This interest 

 leads me to correct a few errors concerning 

 poultry which Gleaj^ings has been publish- 

 ing. The first one that I noticed was by the 

 editor, page 1029, 1905: "Bees will yield a 



great deal more money than the poultry 

 business, on the average. ' ' Next came the 

 defense of the above statement in an ans- 

 wer to a Straw, page 1062. Then the editor 

 again, in the same issue, says, " But no one; 

 would think of buying eggs by the pound." 



Inverting the order I will answer the last 

 one first. Eggs are sold by weight, in parts 

 of Minneapolis at least. Without doubt, if 

 you will write to the Reliable Poidtry Jour- 

 nal, at Quincy. Ill , they will furnish you 

 any number of localities where eggs are 

 sold by the pound. This is the only fair 

 way when the eggs are to be consumed. 



The defense offered to Dr. Miller's Straw, 

 * ' Several young men who have gone into the 

 poultry business quite extensively and simk 

 every cent that they had," can be given as 

 a very good reason for a failure. Think of 

 a beginner sinking every cent in the bee 

 business! The idea is prevalent that any- 

 body can succeed with poultry while the re- 

 verse is the case with bees. This difference 

 causes the plunging into the poultry indus- 

 try, only to lose most of the property; and 

 the slowly accumulating beginning and in- 

 vestments in bees, the way of sure success. 



If I may digress I will state that it took 

 me four years— between the ages of 14 and 

 18— to be able to keep a flock of chickens 

 during winter just the way that I wanted 

 them. That way calls for all the chickens 

 in good condition, and eggs just when want- 

 ed. The last is very important in raising 

 prize-winners. Did any of these young men 

 have practical knowledge of poultry? 



Now to go back to the first statement. 

 The editor has thoroughly intrenched him- 

 self with that word "average." I do not 

 purpose to deal with that word. Were I to 

 get a7i average I should have to consult rec- 

 ords for weeks; nor do I purpose to give 

 records of what an average man can do 

 with each. When we consider a bee-keeper 

 who uses modernmethods— the only ones en- 

 titled to that name— we must consider a 

 poultry-man who does succeed, and does 

 more than to provide himself with delica- 

 cies; for assuredly bee-keeping is skilled la- 

 bor, while merely to keep fowls does not re- 

 quire such skill. As we have taken a bee- 

 keeper whose profits are the minimum— 

 practically nothing— and contrasted him with 

 a man employing the same intelligence in 

 raising poultry, and as we have agreed that 

 such a man does obtain profits, and remu- 

 nerative ones, we can not but admit that in 

 in this case there is more money in poultry. 



We will present the matter in another 

 case. What can and is to be obtained from 

 each? Here, again, I am unable to offer a 

 table of facts, as much as I desire to do so. 

 On page 1020 Mr. Quirin admits $8000 to ex- 

 ceed his income. Mr. Quirin's income is the 

 only bee-keeper's income I can put in fig- 

 ures; but I am enough of a bee enthusiast 

 to know approximately what our greatest 

 bee-keepers clear on the average each year; 

 and, as I stated, I am a poultry - fancier 

 enough to know much the same regarding 

 our lights in poultry culture. I am prepared 



