1898. 



THE AMEHICAN BEE JOURNA*« 



551 



but the advantages are overbalanced b; the trouble and the 

 daubing with beeglue. 



3. The " long-idea hive " is what may be called a horizon- 

 tal hive, like the lager hive of the Germans or the Layens hive 

 of the French. Simply make any hive large enough to con- 

 tain 20 frames, more or less, and you have a long-Idea hive. 

 No second story is used, and the surplus frames are at one or 

 both sides of the brood-frames. It was first advocated in this 

 country some years ago by a bee-keeper in Kentucky, and I 

 think Is not listed in catalogs. 



4. J. S. Reese perhaps deserves chief credit for bringing 

 to the notice of the public the bee-escape for clearing supers. 

 He used a cone escape. W. G. Larrabee improved it by making 

 a series of horizontal cones, somewhat after the manner of a 

 set-net for fishing. The editor of Gleanings, desiring to give 

 credit to both men, combined their names, calling it the La- 

 Keese or "Lareese" escape. I don't find it now in the Root 

 catalog. For use under or over a pile of supers it is better, In 

 my opinion, than the ordinary Porter escape, but it may be 

 that the honey-house Porter escape is just as good. 



5. Tin Is generally used, perhaps because cheaper. I don't 

 know that there's any other diflference. 



6. You will find an observatory hive Illustrated in Root's 

 A B C of Bee-Culture, and in Langstroth's book. Simply make 

 a hive of one frame with glass on two sides. 



7. I don't remember to have seen the color of borage honey 

 given. Unless a honey-plant is so abundant that bees work on 

 it almost exclusively, it is very hard to tell -auch about the 

 honey. There are a good many plants that are csnsidered 

 good honey-plants from the fact that bees are seen busily 

 working on them, but no one knows just what the honey is 

 like, because it has not been obtained unmixt with other honey. 

 if your bees have much of It to work on possibly you may be 

 able to tell us about it. 



8. Practically I know nothing about the fuchsia as a 

 honey-plant. I have a plant some six feet high with hundreds 

 of blossoms on It, and altho while in the house in the winter 

 I've seen drops of honey falling from it, I have never seen a 

 bee on it outdoors. What it might do in your California if 

 present on a large scale is another question. At a guess I 

 should say it would be a good hooey-plant, but would not pay 

 for cultivation. Very likely the single variety would be better 

 than the double. Thai's the general rule with any plant. 



9. The bees discharge their excrement In the way men- 

 tioned after being confined for some time, and also sometimes 

 under unusual excitement, the latter probably in the case you 

 mention. 



Demented willi Bee-Fever. 



I have the bee-fever real bad, from hearing my mother- 

 in-law talk about some bees which were once kept by her 

 father, down in Georgia. She says there is money in it, and 

 talkt so about It I soon took the fever, and nothing must do 

 but I must go bee-keeping, for she is awfully fond of all kinds 

 •of sweet things, when ihey are not too sour, like jams and 

 syrups, so I know she will like to eat the honey if I take the 

 fever — and don't get stung up too much by the "king-bee" 

 when the time comes to take the honey off the " gum," so that 

 I won't quit the business from being stung and give up trying 

 to produce honey before I make a success of the business. 

 And so, to know a little more before I embark, I want to ask 

 some questions : 



1. How can I knock out the moth from killing the bees 

 and eating up all the honey before I can get some for my 

 mother-in-law and the balance of the family, and also some to 

 sell at the store ? 



\i. Also, If I wear a red shirt (which I almost always do), 

 will it act on the " king-bee " like a red rag does on a bull, and 

 makes him mad so he will come out and go to fighting and 

 stinging me ? 



8. Mr. Johnson, who is a carpenter and wheelwright, has 

 some bees about three miles from here, and says there Is only 

 one " king " in a "gum," and he starts the fuss and the others 

 follow up, and that's how a person gets stung all up while 

 .taking honey, unless he kills ihem all with sulphur, which 1 

 don't want to do if I can help it. 1 know there are two kinds 

 of honey in a gum — one comb honey and tje other extracted 

 honey. I will try to produce comb honey, as it looks more as 

 if bees made It. But Mr. Johnson says comb honey is apt to 

 break down unless you stick wires through it. 



3. How do you stick the wires throuifh the comb honey 

 before you sell it? And must It be galvanized wire ? What 

 is the right size to stick through ? 



4. I heard there are two kinds of bees — the honoy-bee and 

 the Italian bee — which Is the best kind forstoring sweethoney 

 from the flowers ? 



I will wear heavy gloves and thick overcoat, and a wire 

 hat over my face, when I take the honey in the fall of the 

 year, so the "king-bee" can't get his stinger through and 

 start a fuss in the " gum." I am very anxious to start bee- 

 keeping, but want to know how to manage the bee-moth be- 

 fore he eats up the honey and I get ready to take it. 



Virginia. 



Answers. — 1. One way Is to catch the moths, cut off all 

 their wings on one side, carry them three miles from the 

 apiary, and then they can't find the way back. But that's too 

 much trouble. A better way is to have very strong colonies. 

 It's the weak colonies that give a foot-hold for moths. If you 

 have Italian bees, even a rather weak colony will keep the 

 moth at bay. I've seen woolen cloth that was moth-eaten, but 

 never honey. I think the larvae of the bee-moth never eat 

 honey, only wax. 



2. I wouldn't advise you to take off your red shirt. The 

 bees might sting you a good deal worse If you had no shirt on. 

 I think a white shirt would be better than a red one, and black 

 is the worst. 



3. Mr. Johnson has got mixt up about sticking wires 

 through honey. Its rock candy he's thinking of, which 

 doesn't have wire, but thread stuck through It. I wouldn't 

 stick wire in the honey, but try to find some other way to kill 

 off the mother-in-law without feeding her on wire. If yoii 

 must use wire, pieces an inch long would be about the right 

 size. She's more likely to strangle on them than on pieces of 

 smaller size. 



4. Get the combined article, the Italian honey-bee. 



If there's anything more I can do to help you, don't hesi- 

 tate to write. 



Bee-Keeping in Puerto Rieo. 



We will have scarcely any surplus honey here this year, 

 but bees are in good condition. 



Can you give any information in regard to bee-keeping in 

 Puerto Rico ? I see it stated that there Is exported from there 

 one million dollars' worth of honey per year. What effect will 

 it have on our market if Puerto Rico becomes a part of the 

 United States ? Would their honey come to the United States 

 free of duty ? Virginia. 



Answer. — I know nothing about bee-keeping in Puerto 

 Rico, but it is likely somewhat the same as in Cuba. When 

 Puerto Rico becomes a part of the Uuited States, undoubtedly 

 the rest of the United States must stand the competition of its 

 honey without any duty. If honey can be produced there 

 cheaper than elsewhere, by all means that production should 

 be encouraged, just as we should encourage its production in 

 Wisconsin or California. If Puerto Rico becomes part of the 

 United States, it will be because we started out to give Spain 

 a thrashing for bullying Cuba, and we mustn't go back on that 

 unselfish spirit by doing anything to handicap Puerto Rico. 



Colony on Crost Combs. 



What shall a beginner do with a colony of bees that is in 

 a frame-hive, but the combs crost and warpt every way, only 

 one straight comb in the whole hive. Should I transfer them ? 

 1 have a new hive on top with three good frames of honey ; 

 the five I took out and put in empty frames with starters, and 

 they have them workt almost down. I had them last year but 

 didn't have the American Bee Journal, and so didn't get a 

 pound of surplus honey. This year I got 100 pounds. Since 

 I have the Bee Journal I am learning more than I did last 

 year. Beginner. 



Answer. — Better leave them right where they are till next 

 year. It is possible that if transferred now they might come 

 out all right, but if there's little fall honey they would per- 

 haps not be in good shape to stand the winter, and in any case 

 they will likely winter better where they are than to be 

 changed so late In the season. Very likely you did better for 

 having the Bee Journal, but the season may have had some- 

 thing to do with your getting 100 pounds more than last year. 

 You are fortunate, as most bee-keepers are complaining of 

 poor yields this year. 



Tlie Xanies and Addresses of all your bee- 

 friends, who are not now fikiug the Bee Journal, are wanted 

 at this office. Send them in, please, when sample copies will 

 be mailed to them. Then you can secure their subscriptions, 

 and earn some of the premiums we are offering. The 

 next few months will be just the lime to easily get new sub- 

 scribers. Try it earnestly, at least. 



