THE AMERICAIJ BEE JOURNAL. 



165 



I have carefully watched this mat- 

 ter, and wish no drones, except 

 enough for use in mating, and these 

 only from best colonies. Of course 

 these should be sufficiently abundant 

 that the queen need not be out long. — 

 A. J. Cook. 



It is possible, but not probable, that 

 we err in curtailing the production of 

 drones. They are never reared unless 

 needed for the fertilization of queens. 

 Five days before swarming bees will 

 rear drones ; after swarming, neither 

 colony will rear them, unless the old 

 queen is quite old and likely to be 

 superseded.— W. Z. Hutchinson. 



No, we are not on the wrong track. 

 We can rear 3 workers where 2 drones 

 are reared, and the 3 workers staying 

 at home during the first 10 days of 

 their life, will generate as much heat 

 as 2 drones. Besides, drones are 

 reared in warm weather, when the 

 hive is sometimes already too warm, 

 and the bees have to ventilate it at 

 great labor. The necessity of drones, 

 as of " setting-hens,'' is imaginary. — 

 Dadant & Son. 



Cfltting Ont Queen-Cells. 



Query, TSo. 220.— Is it necessary to cut 

 out all the queen-cells before introducing 

 a queen, especially when introducing one 

 into a hive whose colony has cast a swarm a 

 few days before ?— D. J. A. 



It is safer to cut out all the queen- 

 cells.— H. R. BOAEDMAN. 



It is safest to do so. If the hive has 

 been moved a day or two before to a 

 new location, so as to lose nearly all 

 its flying force, it is hardly ever nec- 

 essary.— C. C. Miller. 



According to my experience it is 

 essentially necessary as long as the 

 swarming impulse is likely to be pres- 

 ent, and the safest way at all times, 

 and under all circumstances. — G. W. 

 Demareb. 



In swarming time it is not, and 

 especially in the case indicated ; but 

 introducing queens to colonies hav- 

 ing queen-cells is always risky. I 

 never saw a colony that acted as if 

 really queenless until deprived of all 

 unsealed brood. Then there is the 

 smallest risk.— G. L. Tinker. 



I have introduced queens success- 

 fully where queen-cells were not all 

 cut out ; and I have lost them also in 

 the same way. I advise the cutting 

 out of all as a precautionary measure, 

 for no one can foretell what the re- 

 sult will be. I think, as a rule, that 

 colonies having queen-cells will not 

 accept a queen as readily as those 

 that are hopelessly queenless ; that is, 

 that have no queen and no brood 

 from which to rear one.— J. E. Pond, 

 Jr. 



Not always, if the cells are nearlv 

 ready to hatch. Many a time have I 

 successfully introduced virgin queens 

 into colonies with many queen-cells 

 almost ready to hatch. I supposed 

 that the bees thought that one cell 

 had given up its inmate and then 

 vanished.— James Heddon. 



Explanatory.— The figures before the 

 names indicate the number of years that the 

 person has kept bees. Those after, show 

 the number of colonies the writer had in the 

 previous spring and fall, or fall and spring-, 

 as the time of the year may require. 



This mark © indicates that the apiarist is 

 located near the centre of the State named : 

 5 north of the centre ; ? south ; O east ; 

 KJwest; and this 6 northeast; ^ northwest; 

 o» southeast; and P southwest of the centre 

 of the State mentioned. 



For the American Bee JoumaL 



ABicDltural Discussions, 



JAMES HEDDON. 



I have read Dr. Miller's article on 

 page 132, and can say that he is right. 

 While I know that he is not pointing 

 his finger at me, unless in prospec- 

 tive, I will assure him that I, for one, 

 will try to avoid the spirit which he 

 and many so mucli dislike. If I have 

 not done so as much as I should in the 

 past, I am sorry for it ; and now, 

 while so many of our leading bee- 

 keepers are cheering my late efforts 

 to make our pursuit a little easier 

 and more profitable, and according to 

 me all the merit and honor I ask or 

 deserve, it is hardly possible for me 

 to harbor any ill-feeling toward any 

 one. 



I do not think that Dr. Miller nn- 

 derstands Mr. Clarke in coming for- 

 ward in his jolly manner. I take it, 

 that " Come on, MacDuff," has refer- 

 ence only to a good-natured, logical, 

 and well-meant controversy. 



When we see such statements as 

 are made by Dr. Tinker, on page 1.54, 

 wherein he describes my hive with 

 some of its valuable features omitted, 

 and makes an effort to persuade bee- 

 keepers that I have no right of in- 

 vention, and finally claims the inven- 

 tion for himself, and tries to give my 

 hive to the public, we see that which 

 is apt to cause ill-feeling in the minds 

 of many ; but I feel sure that time and 

 the good judgment of bee-keepers will 

 see the matter in its true light, and 

 act accordingly. 



I do not desire to mention my new 

 hive or system of management in the 

 reading columns of the Bee Journal 

 (I can do all my advertising in the 

 space I pay for) ; but if I am called 

 upon to answer questions, giving the 

 results of two seasons' experiments 

 with the hive and its management, I 

 will cheerfully comply with the re- 

 quests to any extent which the Bee 

 Journal thinks its readers demand. 



Dr. Miller asks if the new hive is 

 not " fussy V" No ; not in its manipu- 

 lation. It is, in that, the simplest 

 and best hive that I have ever used. 

 The space between the two tiers of 

 brood-frames is too low down to be 

 troubled much with brace-combs. 



Again, my opinion is, and my 

 experience proves that the space 



between the two sets of combs is an 

 advantage in wintering if two sets of 

 combs were to be used ; but again, 

 experience and observation satisfies 

 me that one case is best to winter in. 

 Without any direct experience, Dr. 

 Tinker " fearlessly " asserts favorable 

 answers to Dr. Miller's queries. From 

 experience with the new sectional 

 brood-chumber hive, I will state the 

 following in refutation to the mis- 

 takes in Dr. Tinker's conceptions 

 after reading my book mailed to him 

 on Jan. 8 : 



1. My hive, made as he describes it, 

 is fully covered by my invention. 



2. The way in which he proposes to 

 place the tin-rests, is a practice of 

 Mr. Manum's, and was discussed by 

 him and myself last December. I 

 prefer it as I have it. 



3. The screws in my hive press the 

 frames tightly, giving much better 

 control of the cases when handling 

 the frames by cases, and do away 

 with nearly all of the objectionable 

 gluing. 



4. As to the preferable size and 

 number of the frames and cases con- 

 stituting either the brood or surplus 

 department, that is merely optional 

 with the peculiar taste of each bee- 

 keeper, as is stated in my book and 

 patent specifications ; but experiment 

 has taught that it is best to use two 

 brood-cases (and rarely more) 8 frames 

 wide, both having the combined comb 

 capacity of 10 standard Langstroth 

 frames. Four years' experience in 

 contracting hives compels me to be- 

 lieve that one of the brood-cases gives 

 the right capacity during the period 

 of contraction ; all of which is fully 

 explained in my book. 



5. As stated in the chapter on the 

 new hive, my double-interchangeable 

 brood-chamber, while two or more brood- 

 cases are used, admits of keeping the 

 brood always up close to the surplus 

 receptacles, besides accomplishing 

 almost all the advantages hitherto ex- 

 pected reversing to accomplish, but 

 when the hive was contracted to one 

 brood-case, I found advantages in re- 

 versing that case, and so we did in 

 some instances when two and more 

 brood-cases were united. It is little 

 trouble to make all the cases iuverti- 

 ble, and it has many advantages, with 

 no disadvantages, as far as all experi- 

 ments have yet discovered. 



In Dr. Tinker's description of my 

 inventions, experience compels me to 

 say that he has left out many good 

 and valuable features, and in describ- 

 ing and detailing other meritorious 

 points, he has repeated the descrip- 

 tions given in the chapter on the 

 subject, on pages 88 to 106 of my book. 

 In some instances almost my very 

 words are used. He may have done 

 this inadvertently, but that he has 

 done it, no one who has read the 

 chapter will deny. 



The new hive is not without fault, 

 though I now think of but one. It 

 costs more than single brood-chamber 

 hives, and requires very accurate 

 workmanship and material that is 

 perfectly seasoned. I believe that 

 this hive and its new and peculiar 

 system of management will undergo 

 a reaction, and tlien a re-reaction in 



