THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



57 



From numerous observations the 

 writer advances tentatively the theo- 

 ry that, on the approach of thunder 

 storms, bees, otherwise gentle and 

 harmless, become excited, and ex- 

 ceedingly irritable, and will at once 

 attack any one, even their usual at- 

 tendant, approaching their hives. 



A succession of instances are giv- 

 en in which the barometer and hy- 

 drometer foretold a sto«m, the bees 

 remaining quiet, and no storm oc- 

 curred ; or the instruments gave no 

 intimation of a storm, but the bees 

 for hours before were irritable, and 

 the storm came. He concluded 

 therefore that the conduct of the bees 

 is a trustworthy indication whether a 

 storm is impending over a certain 

 district, or not ; and that whatever 

 the appearances, if bees are still, one 

 need not fear a storm. 



During the recent meeting of the 

 Italian beekeepers at Milan, a ma- 

 chine was exhibited which Monsieur 

 Bertrand (of the Swiss Bee Journal) 

 considers an absolute novelty. 



This was an automatic uncapping 

 knife invented by Count Zorzi. It 

 is composed of a blade mounted on 

 a pivot and put in motion horizontal- 

 ly by a cog wheel arrangement 

 moved by a handle. To uncap the 

 combs, they are placed up against 

 the blade, so that as it moves it un- 

 caps. 



The jury tested its merits in act- 

 ion, and awarded it a gold medal, 

 and stated that it worked well and 

 was capable of doing good service. 

 To large producers of honey who do 

 not hesitate to spend money to buy 

 time- and labor-saving machinery 

 this may be of importance. 



Mr. Tartuferi the owner of looo 

 hives and the largest honey produ- 

 cer in Italy expressed himself as 

 greatly pleased at its workings. 



While Mr. Bertrand and Mr. Co- 

 wan were in Italy they visited several 

 of the noted queen breeders es- 



pecially those in the region of Bel- 

 linzona. Among others they visited 

 Mr. Pometta, a breeder known 

 to many in the U. S. A. Mr. Ber- 

 trand in his Journal makes certain 

 remarks upon the yellow band of 

 the Italian bees, their number etc., 

 that I think are important for my 

 readers to see. 



Mr. Bertrand writes : 



"It is well known that all the bees 

 of the Italian race have not got the 

 three yellow bands of the abdomen 

 equally distinctly marked. This I 

 have substantiated on several differ- 

 ent journeys. 



At Ornavasso, at Golasecca, and at 

 Milan there are colonies only show- 

 ing /7£/(? bands. In 1881 at Milan, 

 at the Sartori establishment, I saw 

 drones as destitute of any yellow 

 bands as any drones bred by our 

 black bees.- But abroad, three 

 bright yellow bands are considered an 

 indispensable sign of purity, hence 

 the reason why Italian breeders, 

 while attaching no real value in work 

 to the color of the rings, endeavor to 

 have no bees in their apiaries that 

 will not show three bright bands." 



It may interest readers to know 

 the opinion held abroad upon the 

 value of the Cyprian Bee. I there- 

 fore give you what Monsieur Maur- 

 ice Bellot, one of the most careful 

 and obser\'ant bee men I know, in 

 France, says of that race. 



For several years he kept Cyprian 

 bees obtained through Mr. Fiorini 

 in Italy, and of them he says, "I can 

 certify that they have always given 

 me a greater return than the Italians 

 and what is more than that they are 

 just as gentle." 



Later on he got Mr. Benton to 

 send him queens direct from Cyprus 

 and having carefully worked with 

 them he writes : 



'T believe myself authorized, by 

 my own experiences to say with Mr, 

 Benton that the Cyprian bee is cer- 

 tainly the most beautiful in the world 



