1906 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



1271 



Special Notices by A. I. Root. 



BATTERY-TESTERS FOR TESTING THE STRENGTH OF 

 DRY BATTERIES. 



After my Special Notice on pagre 1137 was printed, a 

 lot of orders came in. In fact, we were soon sold out. 

 but we now have a frood supply. There was some 

 complaint because I did not tell how to use them, and 

 no instructions came with the instruments. The ap- 

 paratus is so simple I hardly thoufrht any instruc- 

 tions would be necessary. I would say, however, 

 that the metal pluK is to be removed from its socket. 

 This plug is placed on one pole of the battery, and 

 the open end of the metal tube on the other pole. If 

 the battery is in grood order the little coil of wire, or 

 lamp, will glow like an incandescent slobe. If the 

 battery is partly exhausted the coil will show only 

 redhot. This testing should be done in a rather dark 

 place— that is, if possible, not under the full light of 

 the sun. If this little coil shows redhot at all, the 

 battery is of some value. 



Caution. — Be careful about submitting this little in- 

 strument to the test of several batteries combined, as 

 that would probably result in burning out the coil. It 

 is intended to be used on a single cell, and not on a 

 battery made up of a group of cells. Price by mail, 

 postpaid, $1.00. 



UNCOOKED FOOD, PURE WATER, ETC. 



In my recent trip out west the uncooked food was 

 all right until I got dysentery, probably by being 

 obliged to drink water containing alkali or other 

 minerals. After that the uncooked food did not an- 

 swer worth a cent. I first came down to milk toast: 

 but for three or four days I left out the toast and 

 lived on scalded milk and nothing else. After my di- 

 gestive apparatus got so I could take solid food, a 

 good old-fashioned beefsteak seemed to stand the 

 racket while traveling better than almost any thing 

 else. I wrote home to our folks to keep back the ar- 

 ticle on page 1196, but it was too late. I want to be 

 honest and fair in this matter of diet, even if it 

 obliges me to change my mind and take back some 

 things I have said. 



Now a word in regard to pure water to drink. Some 

 of our large cities furnish distilled water at a moder- 

 ate price to people who can not stand, especially 

 while traveling, the drinking-water containing va- 

 rious minerals. At one time in my travels I went to 

 a druggist and paid 50 cts. per gallon for distilled wa- 

 ter, and it was a good investment, because I got relief 

 immediately. This distilled water, the druggist told 

 me, was shipped in from Mihrcni'.ee. I suppose, how- 

 ever, it was not "the drink that made Milwaukee 

 famous." Now, would it not be a big step in the way 

 of assisting the health of the great public, especially 

 the traveling public, if the United States would 

 make some arrangement whereby people who have 

 discovered the importance of distilled water could 

 get it in any considerable town, say at a nickel a 

 glass or less ? It would be a very great boon indeed 

 to me if I could get a drink of pure water as easily as 

 I can a glass of lemonade wherever I happen to be. 



Convention Notices. 



The annual meeting of the Southern Bee-keepers' 

 Association will be held in Atlanta, at the State Fair 

 grounds, October 11 and 12. All interested are invited 

 to attend. Further i^articulars may be had of the 

 president. J. J. Wilder, Cordele, Ga. 



The annual meeting of the Northern Illinois and 

 Southern Wisconsin Bee-keepers' As.sociation will be 

 held at the court house in Rockford, 111,, on Tuesday, 

 October 16, 1906. Meeting begins at 9 A. M. and lasts 

 all day. All interested in bees are invited to attend. 



Cherry Valley, 111. B. Kennedy, Sec. 



The fifteenth fall convention of the Connecticut 

 Bee-keepers' Association will be held in the Connect- 

 icut State Capitol, Hartford, room 50, on Friday, Oc- 

 tober 12, 1906, beginning at 10:30 A. M. 



The Association is not only seeking to promote sci- 

 entific and practical bee culture, but is aiming to ad- 

 vance the interests of both producers and consumers 

 of honey by spreading truths of general interest, and 

 correcting false impressions concerning apiculture. 

 Fruit-growers, farmers, horticulturists, and, in fact, 

 all of us, are debtors to the honey-bee to an extent 

 that would be amazing if there were statistics to 



show, or if it were possible to measure, the value of 

 the service of these little creatures in fertilizing the 

 bloom of the plants and flowers, their work being 

 always beneficial and never injurious. 



SOME OF THE TOPICS FOR DISCU.SSION. 



1. Which is the better place to winter bees— on the 

 summer stands or in the cellar ? 



2. How large an entrance is best for colonies win- 

 tered outdoors ':" 



3. What is the best way to increase in large hives y 

 in small hives ? 



4. What is the best method for uniting weak col- 

 onies V 



5. Will cutting out all queen-cells but one prevent 

 after-swarming ? 



6. When shall we requeen, and what is the best 

 method of introducing new queens y What, if colony 

 has been long queenless ? 



7. Is there any positive proof that any one ever 

 overstocked a locality with bees ? If so, what is the 

 proof ': 



8. What hive is best for both summer and winter— 

 a large, medium, or small one V 



9. Have the blacks any good qualities lacking in 

 Italians 'f 



10. The relative merits of blacks and Italians. 



11. What is the best race of bees to keep for profit V 



12. How shall we manage colonies in order to get 

 the largest amount of completed section honey'r 



13. How shall we market this comb honey y 



14. Is it more profitable to run for comb than ex- 

 tracted honey in this section '/ 



15. What can Connecticut bees be made to do 

 toward paying off farm mortgages V 



16. To what shall we charge the poor season — to 

 bad weather or to failui-eof fiowers to produce nectary 



17. Sale of adulterated honey in Connecticut and 

 its prevention. 



18. Advisability of joining the National Association 

 in a body. 



19. What can we do to advance the Connecticut 

 Bee-keepers' Association this coming year '- 



J. Arthur Smith, Sec. 

 Box 38, Hartford, Conn. 



The Southwestern Ohio and Hamilton County Bee- 

 keepers' A.ssociation held its annual meeting August 

 27, and elected the following officers for the ensuing 

 year: President, John H. Kroger; Vice-president, H. 

 Shaffer: Secretary. Henry Reddert: Treasurer, C. H. 

 W. Weber. Executive Committee. John H. Som- 

 mers, Wm. Shmees, Charles Weber, Frank Hemmes- 

 le, John Hoffmann. 



The following " committee on law " was appointed 

 by the President, to serve one year: John H. Kroger, 

 Cincinnati: C. H. W. Weber, Cincinnati; John Hoff- 

 mann, Mt. Healthy, O. ; John Sommers, Fairmount, 

 O.; Henry Shaffer, Westwood, O.; J. Q. Creighton. 

 Harrison, O.; E. R. Root, Medina, O.: George Rost, 

 Cincinnati: Frank Hemmesle. Hamilton, O., and Mr. 

 Christ Bruner, Hamilton, O. 



The work of this committee will not be an easy task 

 in the future, as the bills to be brought before the 

 next legislature now in the process of formation, in 

 the interests of the bee-keepers of this State will 

 show. Mr. Gustave R. Werner, the attorney for this 

 association, a very well-known jurist of this city, will 

 be requested to draw up the various enactments to be 

 presented to the next general assembly. 



All bee-keepers not members of this asssociation 

 are kindly requested to become members thereof by 

 sending their names and addresses to the Secretary, 

 who in turn will send an application-blank to each. 

 This society is gi-owing fast, and we want the bee- 

 keepers of the entire State, both male and female. 

 The more heads, the more opinions and better conclu- 

 sions. Henry Reddert, Sec, 

 1628 Tremont St., Cincinnati, O. 



Golden Queens. 



My goldens are yellow from tip to tip. Every queen 

 is worth a dollar, but I have a large number of them 

 and offer them cheap. One, 65 cts. ; 3 for $1.95 ; 6 for 

 $3.75; 12 for $7.50. No finer or better queens can be 

 had at any price. They are reared right. Have had 

 35 years' experience in rearing queens. I insure sat- 

 isfaction in every particular. Try at least one of my 

 all-golden queens, and see how promptly I can serve 

 you. Send for circular. It's free. 

 Daniel Wurth, 1111 North Smith St.. San Antonio,:Texas - 



