386 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Dec. 7, 



view of the corner bricks removed, 

 exposing the air-spaces in the wall. 

 The outer air space completely envel- 

 opes the middle and inner brick wall, 

 and is intended tor a circulating air 

 chamber. The inner space is a dead 

 air chamber, completely enveloping 

 the inner wall, and entirely discon- 

 nected from the outer air chamber. 

 E is a flue connecting with the body 

 of the room, for the purpose of draw- 

 ing off the heat and permitting the es- 

 cape of noxious gases generated by 

 the bees. It will be observed the flues 

 or dampers connected with the outer 

 or circulating air chamber can be 

 opened or closed at will, to regulate 

 the temperature in the outer space, 

 and this again can be discharged in 

 the main room by means of flues 

 piercing through and independent of 

 the dead air or second space. The 

 floor and ceiling are each double, air- 

 tight, and connected with the dead- 

 air space. The outer or front door is 

 a double battened door, with an inner 

 or sash door. 



Fig. 2 gives a ground plan of a build- 

 ing 12x18 feet, with partition contain- 

 ing air-space, and showing arrange- 



^+ 



:— 



g£ 



-J 1 ' ' i±T 



I F 



Fig. 2.— Oround Plan of Building. 



ment of hives in the rear or bee de- 

 partment, which gives ample room 

 for about 150 colonies in Langstroth 

 hives. The front division can be used 

 for a root and fruit house, or for any 

 desirable purpose requiring a modified 

 and even temperature ; it can also be 

 used for a bee repository when they 

 require more room. II is a double-sash 

 door dividing the two apartments. 



The inventor claims the following 

 advantages for his building : 1. An 

 even, controllable temperature at any 

 desired point; 2. Complete exclusion 

 of dampness from the room, and ab- 

 sorption of moisture from the bees ; 3. 

 Perfect seclusion from outward dis- 

 turbances; 4. Freedom from atmos- 

 pheric changes ; 5. Protection of stores 

 from mold or frost; 6. Absolute ex- 

 clusion of light; 7. Economy in the 

 consumption of winter stores; 8. 

 Avoidance of spring dwindling ; 9. A 

 saving in stores and chaff-packing in 

 one season, with 100 colonies of bees, 

 to pay costof building; 10. A perfect 

 refrigerator and dairy house for sum- 

 mer use; 11. Cheaper construction 

 than an ordinary 12-inch brick, or a 

 stone-wall cellar of same dimensions. 



Apiary Record Book. 



Since publishing the item requesting 

 bee-keepers desiring an apiary record 

 to send in their names, we have re- 

 ceived many orders for the book, but 

 each one has suggested some specialty 

 he desired embraced in the book, as, 

 for example, Dr. L. C. Whiting, of 

 East Saginaw, Mich., writes : 



I see in the Bek Journal to-day 

 that you are about to get up an apiary 

 record. I want such a book, and I 

 want it so arranged that I can see at a 

 glance the color of the queen, whether 

 dark or light, also whether the bees are 

 quiet or cross. 



We have received some valuable 

 hints, and after much study and time 

 spent in getting up a form, think we 

 have one that will suit nearly all. It 

 will devote two pages to each colony, 

 embracing between twenty and thirty 

 headings, neatly ruled and printed, 

 with space at bottom for remarks, and 

 so arranged that a single glance will 

 give a complete history of the colony. 

 Each book will also contain printed 

 rules for the apiary, and twelve pages 

 ruled and printed for an apiary cash 

 account. As each book is intended 

 for a several years' record, it is gotten 

 up on first class paper, and strongly 

 bound in full leather covers. There 

 will be three sizes, sent postpaid, at 

 the following prices : 



For 50 colonies (120 pages) §1 00 



" 100 colonies (220 pages) 1 50 



" 200 colonies (420 pages) 2 00 



Send in your orders at once, and the 

 books will be forwarded as soon as 

 completed. 



Binders for 1882.— We have had a 

 lot of Emerson binders made espe- 

 cially for the Bee Journal for iss2. 

 They are lettered in gold on the back, 

 and make a nice and convenient way 

 to preserve the Journal as fast as 

 received. They will be sent postpaid 

 by mail for 75 cents. To all who send 

 during this month (December) for the 

 Journal and binder for 1882, we will 

 send both for $2.50. We do this to 

 encourage all to get the binder and 

 preserve the Bee Journal for refer- 

 ence, and to save us the expense of 

 removing the name from our type 

 mailing machine, and then resetting 

 it in January or February. 



Comb Honey.— Mr. G. M. Doolittle, 

 who was awarded the celebrated 

 Thurber " gold medal" in 1877, for 

 •' the best honey put up in the most 

 marketable shape," will write a series 

 of articles for the Weekly Bee Jour- 

 nal during 1882, on " the production, 

 care and sale of comb honey." Mr. 

 Doolittle is well known to our readers 

 as a practical and successful bee-mas- 

 ter, and puts his comb honey up in 

 such excellent style as to command 

 more than the regular market price 

 for it. His articles will be worth much 

 more than the price of the Weekly to 

 any comb honey producer. 



n this number we inclose a blank 

 for all whose subscriptions end with 

 1881. Fill it up witli name, postoffice, 

 county and State, when you remit. 

 If not convenient to send the money 

 now, send us a postal card saying you 

 want the Journal, and it will not be 

 discontinued. We hope all will renew 

 their subscriptions at once. 



MISCELLANEOUS. 



The Prollts of Bee-Keeping. — A cor- 

 respondent of the Ohio Farmer gives 

 his experience as follows : 



In 1868 1 commenced with 1 colony 

 of Italians in an American hive. I 

 was a " raw hand," but liked to work 

 with bees, and one year's experience 

 gave me conlidence. That year the 1 

 increased to 3, and I sold 40 lbs. of 

 honey at 55 cts per lb. The following 

 year, with the help of an experienced 

 bee man, from whom I bought the 

 bees, 1 divided and increased to 7, but 

 1 only sold $5 worth of honey. Through 

 mismanagement I lost 3 colonies that 

 winter, and commenced with 4 in the 

 spring of 1870. It was a good year 

 and I increased to 15 colonies, and 

 sold $65 worth of honey. The next 

 year I sold honey and bees to the 

 amount of $100 and had 20 colonies 

 left. I 1873 I increased my apiary to 

 40 colonies, all Italians, and sold $150 

 worth of honey and bees. In 1874 I 

 maintained the original number, and 

 sold $123 worth of honey and bees. 

 For the 6 years the account stands as 

 follows : 



DEBTOR. 



First colony $ 20.00 



52 hives with right 130.00 



Total $150.00 



CREDIT. 



By bees and honey sold $453.00 



By 40 colonies at $10 400.00 



$853.00 

 Balance in favor of bees $703.00 



Helling Honey to Best Advantage.— 



Mrs. L. Harrison, in the Prairie Far- 

 mer, talks very wiseiy on this subject. 

 She says : 



Some persons are better producers 

 than sellers of their productions. Our 

 success as apiarists depends, in a large 

 degree, upon our ability to dispose of 

 the product at paying rates. If we 

 are amateur bee-keepers or farmers, 

 and have but little to sell, we should 

 endeavor to get a fair price for what 

 we do, knowing that if we take a low 

 price for what we have, it may wrong 

 another person who depends for his 

 livelihood upon this " business," al- 

 ways remembering, 



" To do unto others, as you would 

 Tliut they should do to you. 

 What e'er I* honest. Just and good, 

 With all your might pursue." 



An article to sell well should please 

 the eye, and if for food, should be 

 toothsome and agreeable to the palate. 

 To meet the demand of large cities, 

 comb honey should be stored in small 

 sections, weighing from 1 to 2 pounds. 



Some apiarists insist that these 

 should be glassed. We have read in 

 history that Cleopatra dissolved pearls 

 and drank them, but we have never 

 known of any one using glass as vict- 

 uals and drink. 



When you have a good article and 

 know that there is no mouse hidden 

 in the meal, such as glucose, etc., and 

 can then look a person in the eye 

 without flinching, you are in the right 

 condition to demand a good price and 

 get it too; and the next season the 

 buyer will seek for you, instead of 

 your hunting for him. Extracted 

 hone; put up in glass jars and tumb- 

 lers is too dead to bury — glass jars was 

 the murderer. A farmer's wife came 

 iiiln the grange store in this city with 

 several gallons of extracted honey for 

 sale. A number of persons were in 

 the store at the time, and judging the 

 lady to be honest, immediately pur- 

 chased all her honey ; while at the 

 same time there were jars and tumb- 

 lers, labelled honey in attractive form, 

 that had become old settlers. We 

 know a farmer who lives 5 miles from 

 any town, and has an apiary of 50 col- 



onies which he runs exclusively for 

 extracted honey, and is not able to 

 supply the home demand. 



Honey as Food. — The Michigan Far- 

 mer advises the daily use of honey, 

 on account of its beneficial effect on 

 health. It says : 



We desire to commend its daily use 

 to every family in the land. We be- 

 lieve it to be one of the most health- 

 ful sweets that can be found, and well 

 adapted to common use. It seems to 

 us very desirable that Michigan should 

 produce a large share of her own ta- 

 ble sweets. Could honey be brought 

 into general use, thereby creating an 

 extensive home market for it, we be- 

 lieve it would tend to encourage the 

 culture and production of honey. 

 Prof. Cook, our own State apiarist, of 

 whom we are so proud, says Michigan 

 is naturally adapted to the production 

 of honey. Let Michigan people use 

 it — put it on the table every day. It 

 is a healthy sweet for children, and 

 children must have sweets just as the 

 Irishman must have potatoes. The 

 honey bee feeds upon the healthy 

 juices of healthy plants, and honey 

 must partake of the quality of the 

 blossoms of the plants and trees from 

 which it is gathered. The use of this 

 article should become so common and 

 general that a honey store or depot 

 would be found profitable in every 

 large town. We believe in encourag- 

 ing the bee-men and women, and if 

 every family in the land would make 

 honey an article of daily use, in place 

 of the unhealthy syrups, then all con- 

 cerned would be benefited. 



The Poppy and the Bee.— The fol- 

 lowing amusing dialogue illustrates 

 the advantage of bees to flowers. It 

 is from an exchange : 



A wild bee, which had flown far 

 without having breakfasted, at length 

 entered a garden, the first he had seen. 



" What a Paradise !" he exclaimed. 



The first thing that attracted his at- 

 tention was a full-blown poppy ; but, 

 accustomed only to mint, wild thyme 

 and such like fare, he approached the 

 gaudy beauty with some diffidence. 



"A little pollen, please," he at 

 length ventured to say, in the hum- 

 blest manner. 



" Be off ! be off I" was the ill-natured 

 reply. 



The poor bee was almost fainting 

 with hunger and fatigue, and asked 

 leave to rest himself for a little. 



"Be off!" returned the haughty 

 flower; " I don't encourage idle vag- 

 rants like you. Stay at home, and you 

 will not have to complain of being 

 tired; sit upon your own stalk, and 

 you won't have to support yourself by 

 begging. Be off." 



Did the silly poppy imagine that 

 butterflies, bees and such-like crea- 

 tures, were nothing else than wander- 

 ing blossoms ? However this may be, 

 it was overheard one day talking to 

 itself after this fashion : 



" What is a flower born for, I should 

 like to know, but to see and be seen 

 and admired V These pansies, with 

 all their pretensions, are such a set of 

 flats I so low-born and ill-bred I" 



With the gardener, the great judge 

 of plants and the arbiter of their for- 

 tunes, the pansies were especial favor- 

 ites; and he took great pains and no 

 small pleasure in rearing them. 



It so happened that he passed just 

 as the poppy was exclaiming her last 

 " be off !" and scornfully shaking her 

 glowing petals after the retreating 

 bee. 



Looking angrily at the flower, he 

 said : " What is sweeter than honey? 

 and how should we have honey with- 

 out bees V and how should bees live if 

 all flowers were as vain and empty- 

 headed as you ?" 



So saying, he plucked it up by the 

 root and threw it over the garden 

 wall. 



The bee cheerfully resumed its 

 flight and soon alighted in the midst 

 of a plot of mignonette, where it was 

 regaled with the sweetest nectar. 



