768 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



July 15 



veils, gloves, jackets, etc., and rushed out to 

 the hive about 9 o'clock one morniny. My 

 faithful " pardner " cautiously lifted the 

 hive-cover, and I stealthily lifted out the 

 cage, and, lo! our queen was still therein, 

 and not more than three or four bees pay- 

 ing any attention to her, and not even the 

 pasteboard over the candy-hole was nibbled 

 a bit. Such hateful bees! I felt that I de- 

 spised them. I commanded my husband to 

 put the cage back and come away, which he 

 did somewhat sulkily, for, be it known, he 

 has a great fondness for poking around in 

 and out of a hive (not shared by me). 



We retired, and meditated over the con- 

 trariness of bees, and finally my husband 

 said, "Let's take out our new queen and 

 see if the bees have started queen-cells." 



I hooted the idea, with this queen prac- 

 tically in the hive, but consented, and we 

 removed the "Dago," as we called our new 

 queen, and waded in. We found and cut 

 out one queen-cell, unsealed, and then the 

 bees got so wrathy we retired to give them 

 time to cool off. After an hour or so we 

 went at them again, and cut out five more 

 queen-cells. One was sealed over. That 

 did disgust us, and the bees seemed to go 

 crazy, and a dozen, more or less, got up un- 

 der my veil; and, by the way I moved and 

 felt, I am convinced bee-stings will cure 

 rheumatism, old age, or any old thing. I 

 haven't moved so lively, nor, I may say, so 

 gracefully, in all my life before— went over 

 pea fences, potatoes, strawberry-beds, and 

 raspberry-vines like a bird. They stung me 

 in my hair, on my neck, chin, hands, wher- 

 ever they could get a toe-grip, and wept be- 

 cause I wasn't larger. I nearly lifted my 

 scalp in my haste to shed veil and hat. My 

 "pardner" nobly stayed with them, and 

 got every thing in ship shape before he left; 

 but then, he wasn't being stung. 



After cutting out the queen-cells we wait- 

 ed until night, and, putting some long wires 

 around the queen- cage, we spread two brood- 

 frames and lowered the cage down among 

 the brood. This was the night of the sixth 

 day since we started to "introduce" her. 

 We waited two days more, and then attack- 

 ed the fort again to see wh&thad been done. 



On drawing out the cage we found it cov- 

 ered with and as full of bees as it could 

 stick; and, after brushing some off, there 

 was the queen yet in the cage! 



Is she a hoodoo? I almost believe so. I 

 advised my long-suffering husband to pry off 

 the screen and let the poor thing out, even 

 if they ate her up. He did so, and she flew 

 against the inside of the hive and hopped on 

 a partly empty foundation and hid from our 

 view. Only two or three bees took after 

 her, and none acted as if they meant to hurt 

 her. Can it be she is finally introduced? or 

 is there more agony in store for her? 



My husband said she looked larger and 

 thicker and yellower. But isn't " introduc- 

 ing," as practiced by us, exciting work? 



When I get my colony (we have engaged 

 two swarms from a neighbor) I think I will 

 buy a nice young three-banded Italian (if 



Mr. Root has any warranted to feed out of 

 my hand, and her bees never bite, he's made 

 a sale), pick out the old queen, wait half an 

 hour, and then just open the hive and let my 

 new queen run out of her cage into the hive. 

 If they ball her I'll put them to soak in a tub 

 of water; and if they let her alone, well and 

 good. It is not so harrowing on the nerves. 



My husband disapproves of my frivolous 

 attitude regarding bee-keeping; but when 

 one is such a favorite with them as I. I 

 must have some fun to repay me for a stiff 

 neck, worse than rheumatism, and a large 

 aggressive jaw that causes my most inti- 

 mate friends to look apprehensively at me, 

 and the good man himself to keep a wary 

 eye on me. My appearance is fierce with 

 it, and, all together, I am a very swell affair, 



I've written this yard or two of letter 

 merely to ask if some kind bee-keeper won't 

 tell me how old larvge can be, and the bees 

 yet create a queen from it. I'd like to 

 know, for our warriors may yet have a 

 queen of their own making up their sleeve. 

 Nothing would surprise me in these bees. 

 They even enthusiastically fly indoors for 

 one nip more at me. 



In three days more, if I am nerved up to 

 it, I will hint to my wayward "pardner" 

 that we take a still hunt for the Dago. I 

 think I'll get more nibbles, but it's all in a 

 lifetime. 



Ladue, Mo., May 15, 1905. 



[When younger larv£e are not available 

 the bees may take any thing unsealed and 

 try to make a queen of it. — Ed.] 



««»««»• ' ■ ■ 



HOW TO KNOW FOUL BROOD. 



BY E. R, ROOT. 



A short time ago we received a pamphlet 

 issued by the Irish Bee-keepers' Associa- 

 tion, entitled "How to Know and How to 

 Cure Foul Brood." There were two excel- 

 lent half-tone plates in it that I have taken 

 the Hberty to reproduce and present to our 

 readers. I was intending to make some ex- 

 tracts, but just now I am unable to lay my 

 hands on it. However, Fig. 1 I take to rep- 

 resent a sample of healthy brood. The 

 cappings are rounding, and the unsealed 

 cells probably contain larvae in various 

 stages of growth, but which, owing to the 

 darkness of the recess, did not show to the 

 camera. HL appears to be two specimens 

 that have been raised up to view, or they 

 might be specimens of starved brood which 

 will sometimes work its way near to the 

 opening of the cell. DD possibly may show 

 early stages of foul brood. Without seeing 

 the comb from which it is taken it would be 

 impossible for me to say. But the portion 

 in the upper right-hand corner gives every 

 appearance of being perfectly healthy. 



Fig. 2 shows a specimen comb in an ad- 

 vanced stage of the disease. The cappings 

 are flat or sunken, with ragged perfora- 

 tions. Sometimes there will be two open- 

 ings in a cell; the cappings will not only be 



