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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



June 23, 



county said to me as I was viewlnR his alfalfa and Alsike 

 clover fields, " I am going to get three crops from those fields. 

 From the alfalfa [of which he had ten acres, and has for sev- 

 eral years cut three crops] I will get three crops of hay [bees 

 work very little on it here], and from the Alsike I will get a 

 crop of honey — a crop of hay, and one of seed. And any one 

 of the crops will pay the rent of the land." 



In view of these facts I have shown that bee-keeping can 

 be added to any occupation, and cause just that much more 

 to be saved of what is otherwise goiug to waste, and with no 

 loss except the time needed for their care. As an evidence of 

 this, you need only to look at the membership of our Associa- 

 tion, composed of ministers, lawyers, doctors, tailors, mer- 

 chants, farmers and all occupations, as well as some who have 

 retired from busy life, engaging in It for a pastime. The 

 masses do not realize the value of honey from a hygienic 

 standpoint, else it would have more than kept pace with 

 sugar as an article of human consumption. Dr. Vance says: 

 "Honey is a physiological sweet;" In other words, its consti- 

 tuents are such that it is absorbed into the blood without un- 

 dergoing chemical change. " Such Is not the fact in regard 

 to sugar. Let me name the points of difference in ordinary 

 sugars and syrups, and their comparative inferiority to honey 

 as a saccharine food. Honey is an Inverted sugar, consisting 

 of levulose (fruit-sugar) and dextrose (starch-sugar), and 

 readily absorbed into the system without being acted upon by 

 the gastric juice, converting, as it is exprest in chemical lan- 

 guage, inverting. It into dextrose and levulose before It Is sus- 

 ceptible of absorption and assimilation into the blood." 



Honey Is not only a delicious form of sweet, but Is a very 

 healthful and nutritious form of food. It aids the natural 

 functions of the alimentary canal. It is recommended by 

 those who have used it as a refreshing drink, diluted with 

 water in the proportion of from 2 to 5 per cent. 



Mr. Tefft oflers the following: " Sweeten your tea and 

 coffee with extracted honey, and if you are troubled with 

 gravel it will cure you. It is a true brain and nerve food and 

 tonic. It improves the appetite, tones the system, and has 

 proven to be of great value in many diseases, producing a 

 contraction of the muscles, of the digestive organs, and as an 

 aid to digestion it Is wonderful In building up lost power. It 

 is a cheap remedy for the consumptive, and. In fact, should 

 take the place of sugar in many things." 



In view of all the facts and possibilities herein stated, is 

 it wise economy to let the Interests of bee-keepers lag, or 

 stand in the rear of other things not one-halt as beneficial to 

 mankind? I would answer No. Our bee-keepers' interests 

 should be represented in the experimental station (for which 

 we have sought, so far without avail), and we ought to have 

 our pure food law enforced In this State, as we are endeavor- 

 ing to have it. Sangamon Co., 111., Feb. 18. 



CONDnCTBD BY 



DH. O. O. MILLER, MAJEtBNGO, ILL. 



[Questions may be mailed to the Bee Journal, or to Dr. Miller direct. 1 



A Double <iiiartet or Quc§tion$. 



1. If a colony has foul brood, will there be any young 

 bees hatching, and fresh-laid eggs ? 



2. Is there any difference between the color of the blacks 

 and the Italians? 



3. If so, have any of the black bees five bands ? 



4. About what time does the honey harvest come ? 



5. Is the Langstroth frame a self-spacer, or not ? 



6. Which would you prefer, if you were a beginner, the 

 Langstroth or the Hoffman self-spacing frame ? 



7. About what time does the honey harvest begin, and 

 what time does it cease ? 



8. Does a colony ever have worms with foul brood ? 



Virginia. 



Answers. — 1. Yes, the queen will keep right on laying, 

 and some of the brood may mature, some of It dying. 



2. Yes, you'll easily tell the difference when you see the 

 Italians, which have three yellow bands. 



3. No, blacks are not said to have any bands, altho they 

 have the same rings or joints in the abdomen, but there Isn't 

 any yellow color about them. 



4. The honey harvest comes at different times, owing to 



the source. White clover comes In May or June, buckwheat 

 in August or September, and other plants at different times, 

 whenever the plants are in full bloom. 



5. Properly speaking, every movable frame Is a Lang- 

 stroth frame, altho the name Is sometimes restricted to the 

 loose-hanging frame, which is not a self-spacer. 



6. If the frames are not to be handled it doesn't make 

 any difference to the bees which they have. For the bee- 

 keeper it doesn't make a very great deal of difference. The 

 Hoffman is a self-spacer, and has the advantage that it will 

 always be properly spaced, while on the other hand it gets so 

 badly glued that one might prefer the loose frame. 



7. Referring to No. 4, you will see that it depends on cir- 

 cumstances. White clover, which is the chief crop with me, 

 commences somewhere about the first to the middle of June, 

 sometimes closing very early In July, and sometimes contlnu- 

 tng well along In August. 



8. A weak colony suffers more from worms than a strong 

 one, and as foul brood weakens a colony it invites attacks of 

 the moth. 



^ I » 



U§ing; Empty Combs with S%varni$. 



What is the best way to use a lot of empty combs ? I have 

 a fine lot of them, too nice to melt up for wax. If a new 

 swarm comes from a hive working In a super, and the super is 

 put over the new swarm at once, giving the new swarm the 

 place of the old one, will the work be continued in the super 

 while the lower part is full of empty combs ? How much dif- 

 ferent would It be from having the room below filled with 

 foundation ? 



It seems that the two could be made much alike if with a 

 sharp honey-knife the cells were cut down nearly to the base, 

 and the bees compelled to work out the combs before they could 

 deposit much honey. Wisconsin. 



Answers.— Opinions differ somewhat as to the advisa- 

 bility of giving full combs to a swarm, some thinking that a 

 mere starter is better than a full comb, but perhaps more 

 think it an advantage to have the full combs. Some good 

 authorities believe it best to have only foundation for the first 

 half of the combs, adding full combs at the end of ten days or 

 so. As to the matter of the super, the bees are likely to fill 

 the combs in the brood-chamber first, but that may not make 

 any difference in the long run. If at the end there is just as 

 much honey in the brood-chamber in one case as in the other, 

 it matters little whether It is put there first or last, so long as 

 the same amount of surplus may be secured by the end of the 

 season. 



Yes, if you cut down the cells you will have the same as 

 foundation. Perhaps you will do better to use the combs 

 without cutting down. 



Securing Increase — Other Questions. 



One of my friends left three colonies of bees with me to 

 be taken care of, and only asks that I return him three 

 colonies. I have never handled bees, but I am anxious to 

 learn, for I have an idea that if I can learn it and accomplish 

 the work it will be a better business for me than trying to run 

 a 200-acre farm. The work now is too hard for me, and I must 

 try something that will not draw on my vital forces so 

 strongly. 



I purchast five Hilton chaff hives, and have them all ready 

 for occupation — foundition and all. Now I want to work for 

 increase as much as I can, and yet have what honey I want 

 for family use. 



1. How many colonies can I make out of the three I have, 

 and have them strong? 



2. I prefer to have the increase come by the latest ap- 

 proved and successful method, for when I am learning it is 

 just as easy to learn the new way as the old. So what Is the 

 best way to obtain my increase? Please describe the process 

 plainly. If I tier up supers for honey I get no natural 

 swarms to speak of, so the book says. Is it a good plan to 

 divide ? And if I take a swarm, and take the frame that has 

 the queen on, and another one with it, and put it with the 

 bees into a new hive on the old stand, can I take the remain- 

 ing six frames and divide it in twp parts, and will they rear 

 themselves a queeu, or would I have to introduce a queen, or 

 how would I manage? 



3. When should dividing be done. If it is the best way ? 



4. When do you put on supers? 



If there is any other information you can give me that 

 will assist me I assure you It will be very thankfully received. 



I may not be in as good a location for bee-keeping as I 

 might be, but I can soon go where it is good, when I learn the 



