20 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



than to those who in theory "know it 

 all" but who never demonstrated a sin- 

 gle statement, so flir as is actually known. 

 Let any unprejudiced person read friend 

 Deniaree's experience, as given in a late 

 issue of the Api, and Bro. D. surely has 

 no axe to grind, and he will certainly 

 conclude that friend Alley has as good 

 backing in the position he takes in re- 

 gard to "golden Carniolans," as the 

 ones who so vigorously oppose him, and 

 who in all probability never saw, or at- 

 tempted to raise a single bee or queen 

 of the strain they have so much to say 

 about. 



Belleville, III. E. T. Flanagan. 



WINTERING »EES. 



Last fall I had a very weak swarm 

 little more than a nucleus, which I de- 

 sired to keep through the winter, as it 

 contained a queen worth taking some 

 trouble to preserve. I furnished it suf- 

 ficient storage, moved it a few inches at 

 a time to a suitable location, where the 

 land sloped, and then dug a hole to 

 j)lace it in so as to let the hive down 

 about a third of its height below the sur- 

 face of the ground, removing the eaith 

 from below the entrance. Afterward a 

 board eight or ten inches wide was 

 placed horizontally just above the en- 

 trance so as to keep that clear. Then 

 I heaped the earth around and over 

 the hive, much after the old-fash'oned 

 method of covering a potato hole, and 

 spatted down the loose earth with the 

 spade so as to shed water. A few loose 

 boards were laid on the top to aid in 

 protecting it from snow and rain. Final- 

 ly a trench was dug around the mound, 

 so that by no possibility could any water 

 stand in or around the hive. The tem- 

 perature about the bees will not proba- 

 bly fall much below freezing all winter, 

 and madam, the queen, will pass the 

 cold season as "snug as a bug in a rug." 

 This method has proved very success- 

 ful in other years. 



\\\ another part of the yard I had 

 several colonies which I desired to give 

 special ]M-otection. I moved them grad- 

 ually together, arranged them with the 



fronts in a line, and treated them as I 

 did the single one. It is a very conve- 

 nient and inexpensive method of secur- 

 ing the safety through the wi nter of weak 

 colonies of bees. I prefer it to the plan 

 of wintering in a cellar, because the bees 

 can fly freely when it is warm enough, 

 and the hives are so covered that a little 

 sunshine will not bring out the bees 

 when there is such a chill in the air that 

 they get low. 



Trinidad, Col. F. O. Blair. 



SHALL I SUBSCRIBE FOR A BEE 

 PAPER? 



This is one of those questions that 

 will not down. It keei)s coming up, 

 and especially at this season of the year. 

 During these long dreary months, of so 

 much darkness, how shall we occupy 

 our time to the best advantage is a mat- 

 ter worthy of some consideration. 



The dense ignorant man, and he who 

 knows it all will give themselves no con- 

 cern about it, but to the thoughtful man 

 of active brain it is quite otherwise. 

 He must have something that is instruc- 

 tive and interesting to engage his atten- 

 tion, and since the bees — so fascinating 

 to the true lover of nature — have ceased 

 from their labors and are now tranquil- 

 ly enjoying the fruits of their industry, 

 the question arises what shall take their 

 place. 



When we are compelled to be absent 

 from home and loved ones, are we not 

 anxious for letters from those we have 

 left behind? is not even the most trivial 

 scrap of news read with avidity? Such 

 being the case, I have no hesitation in 

 saying, that nothing will so effectively 

 bridge over the long vacant months of 

 winter as the meaty and suggestive con- 

 tents of a vigorous progressive bee pa- 

 per. 



As the old soldiers shoulder their 

 crutches and show how battles were 

 won, so the veterans in apicuUural sci- 

 ence, with their pens give us the rich 

 fruits of their experience and observa- 

 tion, and what they have to communi- 

 cate is valuable and well worth knowing. 



