56 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Day scarcely a wild flower was to be found. 

 We had no rain for months, and no water 

 in the river with which to irrigate ; but all 

 at once down came the river and filled the 

 irrigating ditches, and up came the clouds 

 and gave us a thorough wetting of rain- 

 water. Talk about a "desert blossoming 

 like a rose !" — a rose is no name for it when 

 the alfalfa is in bloom, and the bloom is 

 already beginning to show, but we have 

 already lost one crop of hay by reason of 

 no water. Had the Arkansas river got 

 down as early as usual, we would have 

 secured during the season four crops of 

 hay, or two of seed. James H. Wing. 



Syracuse, Kans. , June 3, 1893. 



Having a Good Honey-Flow. 



We are having a good honey-flow now, 

 and bees are doing well. E. S. Milks. 



Denison, Iowa, July 6, 1893. 



A Beginner's Experience. 



I purchased 7 colonies of bees last winter 

 and lost 3 ; one starved to death, another 

 perished with snow blowing in the hive 

 (bees are left out all winter here) , and the 

 other was weak, and the ants got in and 

 destroyed them before I knew that they 

 could do it. The remaining 4 colonies are 

 doing well. They filled up with bees and 

 honey, and I think they are just waiting 

 for a fine day to swarm. 



I am well pleased with the Bee Journal, 

 and do not know how any beginner could 

 get along with bees without it. I have been 

 one of Mrs. Atchley's pupils, and always 

 glad to read anything from her, and feel 

 myself indebted to her and all the rest of 

 those good people who are so ready to help 

 the beginner, though perfect strangers to 

 each other. J. T. Brown. 



Siunas, Wash., June 14, 1893. 



Bees Doing Better this Year. 



My bees have not done anything to speak 

 of for two years, but are doing better this 

 year. W. A. Harrington. 



Irene, Dls., July 3, 1893. 



Too Much Bain and Swarming. 



Last year I extracted honey the first 

 week in June, and got at least 30 pounds of 

 fine white clover honey per colony. Then 

 the daily rains set in for 00 days, and the 

 nectar was kept washed off the flowers. 

 This year, the late spring retarded the 

 honey-flow, and so far I have had no honey. 

 and the bees have only what little they had 

 stored. Since the 2nd of this month the 

 rains set in again, and now there is little or 

 no honey. 



Can any of the readers tell me whether 

 they are any better off ? and what can I 

 expect later on in the season ? 



I attribute this deficiency in the honey- 

 flow due greatly to so much swarming dur- 

 ing the month of May (I have nearly 



doubled the number of my colonies), as I 

 believe one works to the detriment of the 

 other — the more swarming, the le.ss honey. 

 My 52 colonies of Italians are very strong. 

 I have not had a swarm since May. I hope 

 soon to be able to report better prospects. 



P. E. COTJVILLON. 



Carencro, La., June 24, 1893. 



From Four Increased to Nine. 



I had 4 colonies the first of May, and they 

 have swarmed five times. I now have 9 

 colonies. The first swarm came out on 

 June 6th. I think the Bee Journal is very 

 instructive and interesting to any one who 

 keeps bees. George Racklefp. 



Woodfords, Me., J-une 27, 1893. 



Storing Surplus Honey Fast. 



Bees wintered badly here, the loss being 

 from 30 to 100 per cent. My bees 'are stor- 

 ing surplus honey faster than ever before, 

 from alfalfa. I began taking off sections 

 to-day. Those of us who saved our bees 

 expect to reap a good harvest. Honey will 

 bring a good price this year, if put up well. 

 J. S. Scott. 



Springville, Utah, June 28, 1893. 



Bees Doing Well So Far. 



The bees have been doing quite well so 

 far this season, but the weather is so dry 

 that they cannot gather much honey any 

 longer unless we have some rain. Bees 

 have not been doing well for the last three 

 years, in this locality. They were not able 

 to make a living — I had to make it for them. 

 Last season I did not get a single swarm. I 

 had to feed them sugar syrup to keep them 

 from starving. And of course where there 

 are no swarms there are no young queens. I 

 lost five queens last winter, so my bees 

 were reduced from 6.5 colonies to 60. 



Fred Bott. 



Wabasha, Minn., July 3, 1893. 



He Makes the "Amende Honorable." 



I wish to make the urncnde honordblc to Mr. 

 John McKean, as he thinks (see page 759) 

 that I treated his letter rather severely; 

 but I hardly know how to go about it. I 

 certainly do not wisli to make any one the 

 butt of ridicule, yet I do wish to assist to the 

 extent of my ability to stamp out such 

 errors, bj^ whoever made and wherever 

 found. And where argument cannot be 

 brought against it, as in this, and, I am 

 sorry to say, many other cases, I consider 

 ridicule a fair weapon to be used. I cannot 

 say that I regret having written the article 

 as I did, but I am sorry that Mr. McKean 

 feels hurt over it i)ersonally, and has taken 

 it in the spirit that he seems to have done. 

 In conclusion, I wish to express a regret 

 that we cannot all acknowledge our errors, 

 and make our apologies, as kindly and 

 gracefully as he has done. 



Musson, La. Dr. A. W. Tufts. 



