THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



483 



THOMAS G. NEWMAN, 



Vol. XIIL Aug, L 1886. No.31. 



— ^ lUmiinn mrr- 



Once^ amid the roses bright, 



Ruby red, honey sweet— 

 You and I, in laughing weather. 

 Sung a lay of lo^e together ; 



Petals falling on our feet. 

 When shall summer be so light ? 



Never more I 



Oh, never more I 



N.TT.ITIcIialn A.I.Root and I>.C. Root 



were appointed a committee by the Detroit 

 Convention to investigate the Chapman 

 Honey-Plant. They are now engaged in 

 that work, Mr. MeLaIn having gone East for 

 the purpose of meeting Mr. Root, and to- 

 gether making the investigation. In due 

 time their report will appear in our columns. 



The Annual Sliow of the Royal Agri- 

 cultural Society of England, was held at 

 Norwich last month, and we notice that 

 Messrs. George Neighbour & Son, of London, 

 England, carried off the first and third prizes 

 on hives for all purposes ; first prize for 

 Cottager's hive, and the first prize for the 

 best collection of hives and Implements for 

 bee-keepers. We congratulate them on the 

 success they so richly deserve. 



The Hancock County Fair will be 

 held at Greenfield, Ind., on Aug. 24 to 27, 

 1886. Those interested should send to the 

 secretary, Charles Downing, Greenfield, Ind., 

 for a copy of the Premium List. The pre- 

 miums for bees and honey amount to $.32, 

 besides diplomas and a queen offered by 

 George Cole for the best display of honey 

 from one colony. 



Toads are sometimes very annoying in 

 the apiary. A correspondent mentions the 

 fact that upon going to the hives one morn- 

 ing during the late drought, he noticed a 

 toad at the entrance of each hive. He says 

 that the toads were apparently asleep, "but 

 every time a bee approached, the tongue of 

 the toad would shoot out like lightning and 

 convey the unsuspecting insect into its 

 capacious mouth. 



Why Is It Mysterious?— From Mr. H. 

 Bauks, Roisterstown, Md., we have received 

 the following Item taken from the Port 

 Tobacco, Md., Independent : 



A correspondent from White Plains 

 writes that several persons in that vicinity 

 were poisoned not long since by eating 

 hone.y taken out of a box in a bee-hive, 

 whereas that taken out of the adjoining 

 hives was absolutely pure and harmless, as 

 is known by its being eaten by two or moi"e 

 that were poisoned by the other. The effect 

 produced was that of an indescribable burn- 

 ing and alternately chilly sensation, with 

 nausea, vomiting and great prostration of 

 vital forces. The persons thus affected were 

 Mrs. George R. Roby and daughter, Mr. John 

 Murray (e.x-sheriff), Mrs. J. T. Davis and Mr. 

 Wm. Davis, to whom Dr. P. W. Hawkins 

 administered, to neutralize the venom that 

 was received into the system, whatever that 

 was. The whole affair seems to be involved 

 in mystery. 



Mr. Banks asks, "Can you fathom the 

 mystery ?" In the human mind there seems 

 to be a great passion for the mysterious I If 

 anything is in the least strange, it is at once 

 set down as a mystery 1 But we can see 

 nothing of the kind in the above item. 



We are well aware that such a good 

 authority as Prof. A. J. Cook claims that 

 there Is no such a thing as "poisonous 

 honey "—but we are compelled to dissent 

 from that view. Xenophon, the Greek 

 historian and general, tells us that his 

 soldiers were poisoned by eating the honey 

 of Trebizond, and that It produced the effect 

 of a temporary Insanity. " In 1704, Tourne- 

 fort, the great French botanist, found that 

 the honey made from the Azalea Pontiflcia 

 produced the same effect as that described 

 by Xenophon. In 1838, Mr. Abbott wrote to 

 the secretary of the Zoological Society that 

 he had himself witnessed the effect of this 

 honey, and confirming all that the Greek 

 general had said. The evidence Is too great 

 to admit of doubt ; at least it seems so to us. 



In the above case the bees might have 

 gathered honey from the "kill-calf" or 

 "mountain laurel ;" and while some hives 

 may have contained considerable of this, 

 others may have had little or none. There 

 is no necessity for a " mystery " in the case 1 

 The honey In the hives was just what remain- 

 ed of that which the bees had gathered. 



Fortunately, that kind of honey Is found 

 In but few places, where bees are kept In 

 log-gums and bo.x-hi%'es, and only when 

 there Is a scarcity. Like glucose, bees will 

 not touch it if anything else is available. It 

 is never shipped to market, and the cases of 

 poisoning always occur in remote places, 

 backwoods, etc. It is a fact that though 

 some cases of poisoning have been reported, 

 but very few deaths are recorded from its 

 effects. 



A Contemporary says" carefully lay up 

 the honey crop." The best place to lay up a 

 honey crop is in the stomach of buyers as 

 quickly as it can be gotten there.— Farm, 

 Field and Stockman. 



Nonr Is the Time to Join the Union. 



—Let every bee-keeper send for a copy of 

 the Annual Report and Member's Blank— fill 

 it up, and become a member. It is to the 

 Interest of every one to do so. The dues are 

 only 2.5 cents a year ; and It is Intended only 

 to call for one assessment (of Sl.OO) each 

 year. Send to this offlce for the Report and 

 Membership Blank. 



Another liawsiilt has been begun. On 

 page 491, Mr. M. Darling remarks that bis 

 case has been tried, and the Judge withholds 

 his verdict for the present. 



Now comes Mr. S. W. Rich, of Hobart, N. 

 Y., who has been sued by his rich neighbor 

 for $1,500 damages, and also to compel him 

 to move his apiary. 



It seems that his neighbor Is more troubled 

 In mind over the alleged nuieanee than In 

 reality. He boasts that he will do all that 

 money can get done to compel the removal 

 of the bees. The apiary Is In a small village, 

 but there never has been a case reported of 

 either a manor beast being stung; neither 

 has there been any trouble caused by them. 

 It seems to be a real case of disagreeable 

 fault-finding. 



Mr. C. H. Dibbern, in the Plowman, sensi- 

 bly suggests the following : 



I can easily Imagine cases where bees 

 would become a nulBance,and the continued 

 keeping of them would be an imposition, to 

 say the least. Yet I am satisfied that most 

 of such complaints have but slight founda- 

 tions. There are some people who cannot 

 see others prosper, and such are usually the 

 complaining ones. Of course every bee- 

 keeper should do everything possible to 

 prevent his bees annoying any one. He 

 should select such a location for the apiary 

 that will be least objectionable to neighbors. 

 It his apiary adjoins another man's land, 

 plant a row of rapidly growing trees near 

 such line, and train the branches to form a 

 sort of hedge. This is also a good plan near 

 a public road, where bees might Interfere 

 with teams passing. It Is a good plan to 

 have the apiary in a grove of small trees, 

 and compel the bees to fly straight up, for 

 when they are once high up In the air they 

 will never bother to come down to annoy 

 anything. 



The National Convention will be 



held In Indianapolis on Oct. 12, 13 and 14, 



1886. Bays of Light remarks as follows 

 concerning that meeting : 



We urge especially all Indiana bee-keepers 

 to begin now to arrange to attend this 

 meeting ; it Is a rare opportunity for us, 

 and we should show by our attendance our 

 appreciation of the favor conferred by 

 holding it in our State, and that we are not 

 lacking In enthusiasm and energy In our 

 beloved enterprise, bee-culture. We hope 

 and expect this to be the largest and most 

 interesting meeting yet held by the asso- 

 ciation. 



Foster's adjustable case for comb honey 

 has been received and placed in our 

 Museum. It was described and illustrated 

 on page 377, in an article by Mr. Foster, and 

 further description now is unnecessary. Its 

 use Is fully described In his pamphlet on 

 " How to Raise Comb Honey," which can be 

 obtained at this oflice for 5 cents. 



The Trl-State Fair will be held at To- 

 ledo, O., on Sept. 6 to 11, 1886. Dr. A. B. Ma- 

 son, of Wagon Works, O., is the Supt. of the 

 Apiary Department again this year. The 

 premiums amount to about $135 in cash, 

 besides diplomas, etc. 



Frank Cheshire's new book on Bees 

 and Bee-Keeping, can be had at this oflSce. — 

 Vol. I, bound in cloth, $2.50, postpaid. 



Italian Queens.— We have a few un- 

 tested queens which we can send by return 

 mall. Three for $3.75 j six for $5.00 ; twelve 

 for $9.00. » 



