THE AMERICAJSI BEE JOURNAL. 



151 



also a filled wall containing tight- 

 fitting doors. 



As I live (i miles from Glenwood I 

 doubted my ability of controlling the 

 temperature of the bee-house. 1 will 

 describe how I have done it so far. 

 The walls are rather thin, and having 

 no heat to depend upon except that 

 produced by the bees (which is slight 

 when a quiet, healthful condition is 

 maintained), I decided to test the 

 ventilation question, and depend upon 

 tightly-closing the room for the main- 

 tenance of a temperature no less 

 than 450 during our coldest weather. 

 That temperafewre has been main- 

 tained during the protracted cold, 

 and although at one time this room 

 was for over three weeks closed as 

 tightly as good carpenter-work and 

 packing could make it, yet (notwith- 

 standing the large number of bees for 

 the size of the room) no uneasiness 

 nor signs of disease have resulted. 

 The bees always have been very quiet. 



Although we have had some severe 

 weather, there has been several pro- 

 tracted warm periods during the 

 present winter, and notwithstanding 

 this room has been tightly closed, the 

 temperature has not been above .50°, 

 and the bees have not been uneasy. 

 The entrances to the hives are wide 

 open, but the tops are tiglitly sealed. 

 I doubt if this same regularity in 

 temperature and quietude would have 

 existed had there been no sugar syrup 

 in the hives (all other conditions 

 being the same,) with natural stores 

 in its place. Bees seem to maintain 

 greater quietude when their stores are 

 of sugar syrup. 



I have 300 colonies here in two cel- 

 lars, and during all the cold periods 

 these cellars have been " hermetically 

 sealed," as it were, and the same 

 apparently healthy condition exists. 

 The few colonies that I have ex- 

 amined are in the much desired 

 " quiescent " state, which Mr. Clarke 

 has chosen to call " hibernation." 



Here my experiments are conducted 

 differently. I have quite a number of 

 colonies all wintering upon cane- 

 sugar syrup with no honey or bee- 

 bread in the hives ; many more are 

 on all natural stores ; besides other 

 experiments that I am making. 



While I believe that all my colonies 

 will winter well, past experience com- 

 pels the belief that those consuming 

 nothing but sugar syrup will void 

 nothing on their first flight, while 

 those consuming honey will void a 

 thin, yellow excrement which the 

 microscope will show to be composed 

 of pollen-grains and water. As I have 

 previously stated, I believe that bees 

 never touch bee-bread when the tem- 

 perature is kept above that point 

 which induces exertion ; but that they 

 do of necessity consume pollen if such 

 pollen is floating in the honey which 

 they eat. This much I know : Bees 

 may pass a 5 months' confinement on 

 sugar stores only, and accumulate no 

 fecal matter. I have never seen my 

 bees fly, even after Uco montlis con- 

 finement, upon natural stores, without 

 discharging more or less of these ac- 

 cumulations, the solid substance of 

 whicli I believe always to be composed 

 of pollen-grains. 



Whether or not all our minor con- 

 clusions are correct, I am confident 

 that all may now unitedly say that 

 " our great enemy is conquered, and 

 the wintering problem is practically 

 solved." No doubt we. have yet more 

 to learn regarding some of the less 

 important laws— a knowledge of 

 vvliich will aid us in accomplishing 

 our purpose in the simplest and 

 cheapest manner — but I no longer 

 doubt that practical success in winter- 

 ing bees depends upon proper food 

 and temperature. 



DowagiacP Mich., Feb. 15, 1886. 



Oneida County, 1 Y,, Conyention, 



A meeting of the Oneida County, 

 N. Y., Bee-Iveepers' Association was 

 held at Eome, N. Y., on Feb. 24, 

 1886. The attendance was large. 

 Secretary O. J. Evans being absent, 

 W. E. Clark, of Oriskany, was ap- 

 pointed Secretary pro tern. 



Chairman Bacon said that bee-cul- 

 ture was quite a business. It had 

 become an element in the business 

 interests of the country. He said that 

 he had intended preparing a paper on 

 marketing honey, but as tliat ques- 

 tion was made prominent before the 

 late State Convention at Rochester, 

 and as the chairman of that conven- 

 tion was present, he could present the 

 matter much better. He then called 

 on W. E. Clark, of Oriskany. 



Mr. Clark said that the subject of 

 marketing honey was the most promi- 

 nent before the convention. It had 

 been decided to send a committee- 

 man to Thnrber's, in New York, 

 where the resources for selling honey 

 are five times as large as any other 

 place in the United States, and see if 

 they would not put a practical honey- 

 man at the head of their department. 

 Honey must be produced so as to be 

 sold cheaper in order that it may 

 compete with other sweets. It should 

 compete with cane-sugar, that it may 

 be more extensively used for table 

 purposes. There seems to be an im- 

 pression that old women, broken 

 down men, and those who have been 

 unsuccessful in almost every other 

 business can conduct a bee-business. 

 This is all wrong. It is hard work to 

 do it properly', and requires strong 

 men. There are too many middle- 

 men between the producer and the 

 consumer. He had known honey to 

 be bought at 11 cents and sold as high 

 as 30 cents per pound. We must get 

 rid of these middle parties, then 

 honey will be cheaper and more gen- 

 erally used. 



At this point Secretary Evans ar- 

 rived and read the proceedings of the 

 last meeting. 



Mr. Bacon said that when he stated 

 at the last meeting that his bees only 

 consumed from 5 to 10 pounds of 

 lioney in wintering, it was only for 

 tlie time that they were shut in — 

 about 120 days. 



M. D. Parkhurst. of Boonville, said 

 that he kept his bees in the cellar 

 with the temperature at about 3o°, 

 and that they consumed from 18 to 24 

 pounds of honey. If it was warmer 



they would be livelier and consume 

 more. 



Mr. Clark continued : It is a good 

 idea to dispose of honey at home, by 

 peddling it around. When people 

 come to your place try and sell them 

 some honey. Why, some time ago 

 the tax-gatherer came to my house, 

 and before he went away I had a 10- 

 pound pail of honey sold to him. 

 Honey is at present a drug in the 

 market, on account of hard times. In 

 selling it at home you get accustomed 

 to using it. There is one thing that 

 is injuring the business, and particu- 

 larly prices, and that is the custom of 

 fanners who produce a little honey, 

 coming in and exchanging it for gro- 

 ceries. They do not get what it is 

 worth, but they establish a price and 

 then it is hard for us to sell our article 

 for its value. 



Mr. Smith, of Chittenango, urged 

 the producers to stand by each other 

 and keep prices where they belong. 



At the afternoon session the ques- 

 tion of frames was taken up. Mr. 

 Smith said that no one could tell 

 what frame was the best to use. 

 Locality is a question to be considered 

 in this connection. He uses a 9x14- 

 inch frame. The question is a broad 

 one, and will bear much study. 



Secretary Evans said that the size 

 of the frame for extracting should be 

 in accordance with the size of the 

 sections. We should avoid extremes 

 in the matter of frames. 



W. E. Clark said he did not believe 

 that they could agree upon any one 

 size of frame. 



The question of comb foundation 

 was brought up and discussed. 



Secretary Jones said that too heavy 

 foundation should not be used, as the 

 bees cannot draw it out properly. 



Mr. Clark said that sometimes 

 foundation is put in too early. If the 

 foundation is heavy it will not be 

 drawn out. He recommended the 

 thin foundation. 



Mr. Warriner said that he had 

 found that the thinner he could use 

 the foundation and retain the side- 

 walls tlie better. 



Mr. Smith said that a yellow foun- 

 dation could be bleached white in the 

 sun, but it became hardened at the 

 same time. 



Mr. Clark said that wax bleached 

 was hard and not satisfactory. Use 

 yellow wax in preference to bleached. 



Mr. Smith read an interesting essay 

 on the production of comb honey. 



President Bacon suggested that, as 

 one day was too short a time in which 

 to transact the necessary business, 

 subsequent meetings be held for two 

 days. 



It was decided that meetings be 

 held semi-annually for two days each, 

 and that the next meeting be held in 

 Utica, N. Y. ; all subsequent meet- 

 ings alternately in Borne and Utica. 



A committee of thj-ee was ap- 

 pointed to answer such questions at 

 the next meeting that may be sub- 

 mitted in the meantime. The com- 

 mittee is Messrs. Clark, of Oriskany, 

 Evans, of Camroden, and Smith, of 

 Chittenago. 



The committee appointed at the 

 last meeting to confer with the 



