158 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



tions, pending the arrival of the 

 Secretary, and other expected mem- 

 bers of the Association. The first 

 asked was the most desirable thick- 

 ness of comb foiinlUition for section 

 boxes. Prof. Coolv, Dr. Miller, 

 Messrs. Vandervoort. Taylor, Jones,' 

 and several others gave their views, 

 which were pretty unanimous as to 

 about 7 square feet per pound being- 

 the most desirable size. "What is 

 the cause of f<rtile workers being de- 

 veloped?" was next discussed, and 

 some diflerence of opinion made it 

 lively. Prof. Cook thought the desire 

 for eggs in the absence of a queen, 

 stimulated the laying propensity in 

 the workers. Dr. Brown was of the 

 opinion that food had much to do with 

 the matter, and read a brief paper 

 giving his observations concerning 

 fertile workers for two or three years 

 past, confirmatory of that opinion. 



President Jones said, he had seen 

 abundant proof in his apiary, that 

 feeding had nothing whatever to do 

 with developing the laying instinct in 

 workers. After a free interchange of 

 opinions the subject was dropped, 

 whereupon the question of bee forage 

 was introduced. This created much 

 interest, many of the members pres- 

 ent giving their observation and ex- 

 perience in relation to honey-produc- 

 ing plants. The general feeling 

 seemed to be that this matter was one 

 of great practical importance, to 

 which bee-keepers must give more 

 attention hereafter. The next ques- 

 tion propounded was, "What precau- 

 tion.s are necessary to prevent young 

 queens mistaking their hives on re- 

 turning from their bridal tour?" Dr. 

 Andrews would set his hives at vary- 

 ing angles. President Jones thought 

 no precautions were necessary pro- 

 vided the hives were not too close to 

 eacii other. They should be fully six 

 feet apart. One member suggested 

 the use of a narrow board in front of 

 hives, from which young queens 

 miglit issue. "What is the most de- 

 sirable width for section boxes?" 

 was the next question. Mr. Pettit 

 said the best comb honey at the 

 Toronto Exhibition was in sections 

 about an inch and a half in width. 

 The President and a number of the 

 members of the Northeastern Bee- 

 Keepers having entered the meeting, 

 they were introduced by the Presi- 

 dent, and asked to participate freely 

 In the discussions. The subject of 

 sections was then resumed and took 

 a wide latitude, including the ques- 



tion of separators, the comparative 

 advantage of half-pound and one- 

 pound sections, and the demands of ' 

 tlie niarket. Mr. Muthwent strongly 

 against the half-pound sections, which 

 he thought were ridiculously small. 

 Speaking as a dealer, there was no 

 demand for any thing so small. Prof. 

 Cook rather mildly defended the half- 

 pound section, and referred to Mr. 

 Heddon's experience with it, and 

 especially to his doing without sep- 

 arators. Dr. Miller had been experi- 

 menting with the half-pound sections 

 without separators, but had been 

 troubled with irregularity of building 

 to an extent that interfered with 

 packing. Mr Pringle thought it ad- 

 visable to have sections of different 

 sizes to meet the varied demands of 

 the market. Several others took part 

 in the discussion, and the weight of 

 opinion was evidently on the side of 

 one and two-pound sections. 



At this stage of the meeting, Mr. 

 A. I. Root arrived, and a resolution 

 was adopted arranging for a visit to 

 the Exhibition early to-morrow morn- 

 ing, when the meeting adjourned 

 until 7.80 p. m., to give opportunity 

 for the enrollment of members and 

 payment of annual subscriptions. 



EVEJJING SESSION. 



The Association resumed business 

 about 8 p. m., with greatly increased 

 attendance. Prof. Cook, at the re- 

 quest of President Jones, exhibited 

 and explained the use of a brush 

 devised by T. J. Cook, of New Point, 

 Ind., for brushing bees off combs". 

 The Professor prefaced his remarks 

 by stating that the inventor of this 

 brush was no relation of his, and that 

 he had no interest in the matter, ex- 

 cept to call the attention of bee- 

 keepers to wliat was a much better 

 device than a goose feather, bunch of 

 grass, or asparagus, for brushing off 

 bees. Three samples had been sent 

 to the Convention, and were on the 

 table for inspection. Having used 

 the brusii with much satisfaction, he 

 was pleased to recommend it to other 

 beekeepers. Dr. Miller and Mr. 

 Cornell joined in the recommendation. 



The discussion of questions was then 

 resumed by considering the best 

 method of getting the bees out of sec- 

 tion boxes, at the close of the honey 

 season. Dr Miller's plan was to raise 

 the section case a little, lay a cloth 

 between it and the hive, leaving one 

 corner open so that tiie bees can go 



