38 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Feb. 2, 



Indiana State Convention. 



kind of hive UBedaud such other inform- Mr. Belman.the meeting adjourned till 



ation as would lie useful to the State 9 o'clock the next day. 



; and to this end that the The meeting Oi the second day was 



u-y draw his warrant on the treas- called to order at Oo'clock, with Eresi- 



„,,.,■ countersigned by the president, dent Orear in the chair. After 



, sums .is will procure primed usual preliminaries, allowing Of 

 circulars, postage, papers, etc., neces 



bil 



The Indiana State Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation met at Indianapolis on Jan. 13, 

 t pi a. in. 



President Belman in thechair. Many 

 members being absent, the regular or- 

 der of busin postponed until the 

 afternoon, and after friendly greetings, 

 adjourned till - o'clock p. m. 



On reassembling, the regular order ot 

 business was proceeded with. The sec- 

 retary's report being the Hrst thing in 

 order, was read and approved. The 

 treasurer's report showed the total 

 amount of receipts to be $27.50; expen- 

 ditures for advertising, postage, etc., 

 $12.18; leaving a balance in the treas- 

 ury oi $15.32. 



PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 



Since our last meeting but little has 

 transpired among apiarists throughout 

 the Slate, except what is patent to all— 



a general regret that the honey bar 

 m si lias been, in commercial parlance, 

 ■• short." Everyone present is fully ad- 

 vised as in the causes which produced 

 this failure, and thai against such a re- 

 sult there was no possible remedy, 

 many colonies failed to secure a 

 sufficient quantum for their winter 

 stores, and feeding became necessary. 

 The product for the market was exceed- 

 ingly limited, and instead of the choice 



white clover or apple blossom honey. 

 there was sold the fall flower or wild 

 exotic boney, not as palatable nor as 

 marketable as the former, close up to 

 the hist working daysof the industrious 

 bee, came a cold wave in October from 

 the polar regions, which found verj 

 many of our bee-keepers asleep, and 



the sequel was. the Weakening and loss 

 Of scores Of colonies. Ill view of this 

 unusual state of apieiiltural affairs. 

 there cannot be expected at this session 

 an\ encouraging reports as to the finan- 

 cial results of the year 1880. Such a 

 condition of discouraging surroundings 

 in apiarianism may not occur again in 



a lifetime, while the probabilities arc 



that the approaching season will be 

 grandly successful and productive. 

 Therefore. I give you good cheer and 

 urge you to delve down dee], into the 

 fields of apiculture, an I, as von develop 

 the mysterious instinct of the bee and 

 its many but certain workings, lei it be 



your highest pleasure to impart all in- 

 formation von may possess to your fel- 

 lows, mil if the bee-keepers of Indiana 

 .!, recen e I he plauditsof sister states 



—'•Well done, g I and faithful ser- 

 vants." Tins may be our triumph, pro- 

 vided we invoke the ordering and guid 



am f an all-wise Providence. 



While then- is a possibility of too 

 much care in the housing and winter- 

 ing of i in- bee from what it would re 



Ceive in the trunk of a tree or a hole in 



the ground, there is undoubtedly much 

 to he apprehended in the carelessness 

 and indifference ami inc impel mcy, on 



account of which many colonies are lost, 



and I in' imateur, and, indeed, the more 

 experienced, attribute the fault of their 



mishap and failure to the bees, to the 

 hive, and even Hie ways of Divine l'ro- 



vidence. when to themselves and none 

 oilier tbey should charge the misman- 

 agement ami unwise, indolent and inju- 

 dicious handling. . . . 



\, io i he cbaractei and comeliness ol 

 ..,,,,, pad ;es, permit me to urge your 



closes! attention, that they maj be 



neatly ami carefullj prepared, ami so 

 presentable for i lie customer as to com- 

 mand Hi coi mdation and 



the besl market price. Various methods 

 have been given in the bee journals 

 and yet much depends upon the apia 

 risi as to how far these maj be a 



.•ess. TO my II ght there is no table 



, i mi so delightful to the eye and 



palatable to the teste, as honej in uni- 

 form and roundly-foi med c rpped | 



ages. I would recommend that i 



secretary he i d to obtain I be 



n; s and poStOlltce address of 6V61 5 



bee-keeper in the State of Indian. i N - 

 questing from them the number Of then 



colonies, amount of honey produced, 



to carry out this purpose — 



As to the present status of the Asso- 

 ciation financially. 1 refer you to the 

 annual report of Hon. Isaac X. Cotton. 

 treasurer, and also the report of your 

 distinguished secretary. Mr. Frank 

 Dougherty. The society is not in debt 

 and has a small 



in the treaaurj 



etc., the convention proceeded to the 

 discussion of yariOUS subjects. Alhino 



bees being the first, Mr. Brown believed 



them to be a distinct race, while the 

 voice of the convention decided them 



to be a cross from the Italians 



weighed, showed S3 lbs. The honey 

 left over was pungent mid not fit for 

 tin- market, or any other purpose, unless 

 it was for some medical virtue it might 



possess. He had extracted a few pounds 

 of it. found that it granulated readily, 

 but did not lose Its pungency. He had 

 obtained 1506 lbs. of extracted and 800 

 lbs. of comb honey. He sold the ex- 

 tracted at Hi* cents' per pound and the 

 comb honey at 20 cents. The comb 

 honey was all in boxes, which were 



Introducing virgin queens, came next emptied and returned, lie sold his 



A majority of the members seemed to 



balance to their credit think the best plan was to let them run 



There is. in the opin- in at the entrance, taking theirchances 



ion of some of the members, a necessity 



lor a change in the price Ol initiation, 

 or rather an increase from ."ill cents to 



$1 per annum. It is urged that a need 

 will arise for additional funds to pay 

 expenses of new projects that may be 



oi dered bj you, ami which are deemed 

 necessary for the augmentation and 



furtherance of the interests of the soci- 



elv. 1 trust such aetion will be taken 



in this regard as will facilitate this end. 



I am also impressed that profitable 

 advantages would he obtained by the 

 organization of county societies in every 

 part of the State, from which auxiliar- 

 ies the State organization would receive 

 valuable statistics and other matter 

 beneficial to the apieiiltural interests of 

 Indiana. May I lie permitted to urge 

 upon you the propriety .of taking such 

 steps iis will bring about these results V 



In closing this hastily prepared ad- 

 dress. I must refer with pleasure to the 

 very valuable services rendered the api- 

 ary interests by your secretary. Mr. 

 Prank Dougherty. His time has been 

 largely contributed to the advancement 

 ami development of the busy bee in In- 

 diana, and I cordially recommend his 

 re-election to the trust he has so com- 

 mendably and ably filled during the 

 past year. 



With many thanks for the honor I 

 have enjoyed at your hands. I earnestly 

 invoke your continuity and faithfulness 

 in a profession which should he. as I 



believe it is. the pride of our lives. 



After the reading of the address, the 

 convention proceeded to the election of 

 Officers for the ensuing year, resulting 

 as follows : President, -I. II. < >rear, Liz- 

 ton; Secretary. Frank L. Dougherty, 

 Indianapolis: Treasurer, I. N.Cotton, 

 Trader's Point. 



An essay on "Moving Bees by Rail- 

 road," prepared by Rev. M. Malum. 

 Huntington. Indiana, was read by the 

 s eretary. It contained some valuable 

 suggestions in regard to preparing bees 

 lor safe shipment. The paper was dis- 

 cussed by several members. 



•• WinteringUees," the next question, 



was then taken up. 



Mr. Ilelinan packed in straw; did not 

 think they could be too well protected. 



Mr. Fells used large boxes around 

 the hives, well tilled with dry leaves, 

 and had sueo eded beyond his expecta- 

 tions. 



The secretary, in wintering, removed 

 all combs that the bees did not cover; 



thought Ave or six combs a plenty where 



care was taken to give those containing 



sufficient stores. Placed slicks across 



i he lop of the frames to keep the cloth 



from settling down, to allow the bees 



lo cross from one frame fo another. 



Used chaff division boards on the sides, 



With pi sol carpet, blankets or cpiilts. 



and chaff cushions on top. Thought al- 

 most as much depended on the fall man- 

 agement of bees for safe wintering, as 

 packing. Was satisfied that young 



b es were almost a necessity ; they were 

 better able to withstand the cold and 

 confinement than old, half worn-out 



fees. 



Mr. Davis said his bees had been fly- 

 ing out. leaving Ihe hives a low at a 

 lime, all winter, until soineof the lines 



had become entirely depopulated, with 

 very few dead bees around the entrance. 



Mr. fells thought old bees the cause. 



with which the president and Mr. 



Brown agreed. The secretary did not 

 think that this trouble could be entirely 



attributed to old bees ; In- believed that 



t here was disease, somet hing which we 



wen- not yet able to discuss. Mr.Baab 



thought old bees the principal cause. 

 I.ul believed, with the secretary, that 

 there was still a disease at work also. 



The discussion was further indulged 

 in until quite late, when, on motion of 



believing the loss would lie no greater 

 than in introducing queen cells. 



Hiving swarms was discussed at some 

 length. 



The secretary was then called on to 

 describe his mode of making candy for 



bees, some samples of which seemed to 

 please the liee-meii as well as bees, 

 from the manner in which it disap- 

 peared. 



Various other interesting subjects 

 were then discussed at some length, 

 when the question ofvice-president was 

 culled up. After some discussion it 

 was decided to nominate a vice-presi- 

 dent for each county, instead of each 

 Congressional district, as heretofore. 

 The list not being completed, the exe- 

 cutive committee was instructed to fill 

 vacancies and notify the appointees. 



G. J. Brown, Anderson, Intl., read an 

 essay on " Bees and Bee-keeping." 



The secretary was instructed to have 

 constitution aiid by-laws printed, send- 

 ing one copy to each member of the so- 

 ciety. 



The Association, bv resolution, re- 

 turned a vote of thanks to Secretary 

 Heron, of the State Hoard, the Hoard of 

 Agriculture, and the daily papers, for 

 favors received. 



There were on exhibition many sam- 

 ples Of implements used in modern bee- 

 culture, among which were two extrac- 

 tors and knives from C. F. Muth, Cin- 

 cinnati. Ohio, and <;. F. McDougall. In- 

 dianapolis; honey-knife and smokers, 

 from Bingham & Betherington, ( Hseg '. 

 Mich. ; Quinby's New Smoker and book, 

 from L. C. Root & Bro., Mohawk, N. 

 ST.; A BCof Bee-CUlture, and Cook's 

 Manual Of Hie Apiary, from the Indiana 

 Farmer office. 



The secretary also had two hives, 

 showing the different styles of sections. 

 queen cages, candy, etc., all of which 

 were much admired by the members. 



The convention adjourned to meet at 

 the call of the executive committee. 

 Frank L. Dougherty, Sec'y. 



Texas Convention. 



The Texas Bee Keepers' Association 



convened at ( . reenville. Hunt county, 

 Jan, 11, 1881, at 1 p. m. 



Judge W. II. Andrews, president, de- 

 livered a brief address. He was well 

 pleased with the interest, taken in bee- 

 culture by the few who were engaged 

 in the pursuit. He said that to be suc- 

 cessful in bee-culture one must take an 

 interest in the study of the habits and 

 natural history of the honey bee; that 

 bee-keeping was a progressive science, 

 that there was much to be learned ; and 



that by an interchange of ideas, such as 



was to he had in our conventions, was 



both useful ami instructive as well as 

 pleasant and interesting. He had har- 



\ ested an unusual crop of honey during 



the past season, lie commenced Ihe 



season with 125 colonies and increased gather it 



to 200, which wen! oito winter quarters 



in good condition ; after having pro- 

 duced between 7,000 and .s.nnn lbs. of 

 boney, mostly in the comb. He had 

 hitherto believed the blacks to be the 

 easiest to induce lo work in boxes, but 



honey at home. His honey was the best 

 he had ever obtained, and the harvest 



bad been all Unit could be wished. 

 Mr. Wm. R. Graham was well pleased 



with what his bees had done during the 

 past season ; he thought it had been the 

 Best, in this locality, for years; he had 

 10 colonies in the Spring, and increased 

 to bin. He noticed that, late in the fall. 

 some of his bees had no brood, but had 



plenty of honey. He obtained 2,000 lbs. 

 of extracted honey, which he sold at 

 15 cents per lb., at home. 



I). W. x eager, commenced the season 

 with 8 colonies and had an increase of 

 14, making in all 22. He had 360 lbs. of 

 extracted honey. The nicest he had 

 ever seen. His" increase was by artifi- 

 cial swarming entirely. His bees were 

 shaded by his vineyard. 



Dr. Wm. R. Howard commenced the 

 season with lid colonies, after having 

 lost 2 from dysentery, early in the 

 spring; had increased by natural swarm- 

 ing toll!, which were all alive the last 

 warm day, when they had a fly. He 

 had taken I'M lbs. of extracted honey, 

 of fine quality, which he sold at 15 cents 

 per pound, mostly at home. What was 

 put on the market, was put up in i gal. 

 glass fruit jars. He had spent a good 

 deal of time in Italianizing his apiary, 

 and breeding a good strain of bees. The 

 year 1878, he thought, was as good a 

 honey season as 1880, and that the rea- 

 son that such enormous yields had been 



harvested, the past season, was that all 

 hands had plenty of comb to give to 



swarms, comb left over from the serious 

 losses in 1879. That neither Mr. Gra- 

 ham. Mr. Mason or Judge Andrews had 

 made up in numbers, the colonies for 

 1879. 



All agreed that that was a great help, 

 but thought that last year was the best 

 for several past. 



Dr. Duff -aid that he commenced the 

 season with 1 colonv. and had increased 



to .v. he received about 30 lbs. extracted 



honev. and was well satisfied with his 

 success, considering the capital in- 

 Nested. 



Dr. D. J. Jernigan wanted to know 

 if any one had tried the Spider plant 

 and Simpson's honey-plant; he had 



raised a few plants and bail seed of the 

 spider plant to give to any one who 

 wished to try it. 



No one had any experience with 

 either of the plants, but from what some 



had seen of their honev producing qual- 

 ities, were satisfied that they were val- 

 uable and would be made useful, if it 

 were not lor the difficulty in starting 

 the plants. 



Dr. Howard had planted an acre in 

 buckwheat in 1880, and, though the 



bees visited it every morning, he re- 

 ceived no honey from that source. lie 

 had tried buckwheat in ls7>< and 1880, 



and had succeeded in getting a good 

 crop of seed and straw, growing as high 



as i; ft., both years, ami a considerable 

 amount of honey from it in IsTs. consid- 

 ering the number of bees he had to 

 He had plants enough to set 

 n acre of sweet elo\ er or luelilot. which 

 he would try the coining season ; some 

 of if blossomed the lust year from the 

 seed. lie thought the acreage of horse- 



mint was steadily increasing; as the 



grass was being eaten out on Ihe prai- 



Ihepasl season demonstrated that his lies and rapidly giving away horse 



best Italians wer mal, if notsuperior mint was taking its place. All agreed 



toanyihe assigned as a cause, in Ihe that horsc-inint was the plant ol all 



plants for honev. 



On motion, a vote of thanks was ten- 

 dered to Messrs. Matthews and Marshall 

 lor I hi' use of their spacious and com- 

 fortable room in which to hold our con- 

 vention: alter which the meeting ad- 

 journed, to hold its 8d annual conven- 

 tion at the apiary of Judge W. II. An- 

 drews, at McKiunev. Collins county, on 

 the 12th and hull of May. 1881. 



W. II. Andrews, Pres. 



Wm. R. Howard, A'ec'j/. 



past, Of failure to induce his I laliaus to 



commence in boxes, disturbances acca- 



sioneil bj queen rearing. 



Mr. John Mason, on a recent visit to 

 Arkansas, had discovered I hat "black 

 gum" yielded an abundance of honey, 

 of excellent quality. He commenced 

 the season with •'.:: colonics, and had in- 

 creased to Ml; all of which were in good 

 condition, some of them Inning over 

 7.5 lbs. of honey in the upper story. 

 above the brood chamber. Uue that he 



