612 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL, 



Sept. 28. 1899. 



for them. Well, do you suppose the bees were willing to 

 have the dirt thrown into their eyes in that way ? Not a 

 bit of it ; but Mr. Skunk moved about in such a quiet and 

 unassuming manner that he was not in the least molested. 



He was there for the same purpose that the chicks 

 were, but he went about his work in an entirely different 

 manner. 



It matters not how white the cock is, nor how long his 

 pedigree, he cannot go tearing around among the bees with- 

 out being told — not in the most polite manner — to please get 

 out ; while even a skunk, black as the blackest, is permitted 

 to roam about to his heart's content. 



Draw your own conclusions. Kankakee Co., 111. 



The "Old Reliable" seen thru New and Unreliable Glasses. 

 By E. E. HASTY, Richards, Ohio. 



ENFORCING ANTI-ADULTERATION LAWS. 



No, it's no great occasion for lamentation (or objurga- 

 tion) that the first grocer arrested got off without a sen- 

 tence. The Lord himself once let off a culprit undisputably 

 guilty of breaking a plain law — and for reasons which some 

 of them apply in this case. Nobody had ever heard of any 

 attempt to enforce the taw, tho broken daily by a multitude 

 of offenders, some of them high up in the world. Chicago 

 offenders have now heard of an attempt to enforce. On a 

 new case, committed since the attempt at enforcement, the 

 same justice would not go hunting for an excuse to acquit. 

 When a justice goes on that sort of a hunt there'll quite 

 surely be a squirrel in his bag when he gets home. 



SELLING HONEY BY LEAVING SAMPLE. 



Glad to hear that Comrade Tj'rrell's plan of selling 

 honey by leaving for inspection a sample jar and circulars 

 works in his locality. It may be capable of large imitation. 

 I tested some 3'ears ago a plan of leaving circulars only — 

 circulars promising to call with honey on a certain day. No 

 good. Our cit}' people have got bej'ond reading circulars 

 left with them. But a short circular left with a jar of 

 honey would probablj' be read in most cases. Page 514. 



KEEP HONEY IN A DRY, W.\RM PLACE. 



Does not Mr. Hutchinson make a serious slip in his ex- 

 cellent Countrj' Gentleman article (page 514), when he 

 directs to put a barrel of honey in a cool place ? That 

 would be taken to mean the cellar by most readers. 



won't be FICKLE ANY MORE ON HIVES. 



"Ten-frame hives, which will be my last change." 

 Page 515. 



From Daisy to sweet little Minnie 

 I changed, then to dear Lenore ; 

 From her to several others 

 (Not numbering- quite a score). 

 And now to large-hearted Polly — 



BUT I'M NOT GOING TO CHANGE ANY MORE. 



How cunningly Miss Minxie Draper-Barnes will smile 

 when she hears this good resolution ! 



WORKING WITH BEES MORNING AND EVENING. 



It seems to me that Mr. Hilton is off the track in intimat- 

 ing that bees never need attention in early morning and at 

 eventide. Far the most precious portions of the day to the 

 bee-keeper, I should say. But the bee-keeping minister 

 don't need to write at eventide — I don't believe. For writ- 

 ing, use all the early morn that ever you choose ; but don't 

 burn your intellectual candle at both ends, unless you are 

 sure that it is a very, very long one. Page 515. 



EXTRACTING FROM WAX-WASTE. 



What W. R. N. thinks well of on page 519 — having 

 cloth without perforated metal hold his wax waste in the 

 extractor, and then throwing it away when clogged — has 

 been my practice for a long time now. Still I'm not happy. 

 There seems to be need of side-drainage in addition to bot- 

 tom-drainage. Perhaps a tilt once in a while, as the bee- 

 keeper goes by, will be needed in addition to the side-chan- 

 nel. 



VALUE OF "HORSE-LIGHTNING." 



You're too kind to me on page 522, Mr. York. Mr. 

 Brown wa>' try his " horse-lightning " current on meat 6 

 a.m. — likewise at 8:15 p.m. Increases value 175 percent. 

 D'ye hear ? 



GETTING RID OF ANTS. 



The difficulty of destroying ants (Question-Box, page 

 523) is plainly related to the difficulty of cooking a hare. 

 Locating him may be the worst part of it — and getting hold 

 of him nearly as bad. Moreover, respondents living in the 

 South and far West are decidedly fainter than the others 

 in their shouts of victorj' — if not inclined to wring their 

 hands in something that looks like agony. Most of us are 

 bothered by ants a little at times, but not quite enough to 

 make us keep our powder dry. 



OrT-DOOR FEEDING OK BEES. 



On page 525. Mrs. Axtell's out-door feeding seems to be 

 one of the most instructive things in the number. To feed 

 140 colonies effectively in a box of three-pail capacity is 

 quite a triumph. We think out-door feeding as easy as 

 rolling off a log until we try it — try it a few times, with 

 failure, and then quit. My last failure was owing to the 

 excitement of the bees. More than half of them wouldn't 

 hold still a second — into the honey, and out of it again, in 

 endless succession, till too well plastered and too cold to 

 fly, then on the ground footing it in the sand till thej' 

 couldn't walk any more. Reckon her success was partly in 

 that frame of lath nailed together, partly hot weather, and 

 most of all in having the bees used to the business. 



POINTS ON BEE-HUNTING. 



John Piddington's bee-hunting ideas seem good — page 

 541. Don't be in such a hurry to move off on your line. Catch 

 more bees at the first station. Humor the shy ones by ex- 

 posing a section outside any box. Prospect your lines a 

 good way before making any move of the bait. 



YELLOW AND GREEN FLOWERS AS HONEY-VIELDERS. 



That " Britisher," page 538, who in effect brands yel- 

 low and green flowers poor honey-yielders, would have to 

 readjust his rules for this country. Spanish-needle and 

 golden-rod and Helianthus yield quite a percentage of all 

 American honey. Mustard and rape and white root and 

 dandelion are bee-favorites. The most profuse yielding I 

 ever saw was from j-ellow flowers (tulip tree). Basswood, 

 our greatest yielder, is a compound of yellow and green — 

 two of the branded colors. Corn and the grasses and 

 grains, which bees visit very much for pollen, nearly all. 

 have j'ellow or yellow-green inflorescence. As for scarlet 

 flowers being never visited bj- bees, I don't even believe he 

 sees straight for England. Believe I can go to England 

 and see bees just as wildly enthusiastic over scarlet poppies 

 as they are here, and catch just as many bees in the red 

 hollyhocks as he can in the white ones. Hear an impudent 

 Yankee shouting, Mr. Hamlyn-Harris. 



TH.\T UNCAPPING-FORK. 



An uncapping-fork, eh ? Well, some of us are eminent 

 at working witli a knife and fork, and perhaps we need it to 

 complete our outfit. And possibly, indeed, it may be a very 

 valuable addition to work uneven combs. Don't believe it 

 will whisk off smooth combs like a good knife. And most 

 of us will want to " see it go " before taking much stock in 

 it. Page 538. 



HERE'S A .aS" TO EX-EDITOR HOLTERMANN. 



And so we are to lose, and Christian evangelism is to 

 gain, one of our editors — Mr. Holtermann. Should have 

 extended my hand and " God bless him "' sooner, only I did 

 not see the item till just now. Page 537. 



ARRANGING HFVES IN THE CELLAR. 



Mr. Davenport's opening article, page 529, is a worthy 

 one. He is rather unique in placing cellar bees six or seven 

 hives high. Still, as he keeps the lowest ones well up from 

 the ground, and don't let them topple over, what's the 

 odds ? And so the out-door colonies in his vicinity last 

 winter perisht, every one — fearful cold, and no good flight 

 for nearlj' five months. Glad I don't live in Minnesota. 

 My observation to some extent agrees with his, that bees 

 (except when from cold the3- cannot move around) share in 

 true brotherly heroism their last drops of honej', and all 

 perish at once if it comes to that. But (if I'm right) when 

 a swarm is shut up in a pit some individuals drop, appar- 

 ently starving, quite awhile before all are overcome. 

 Wonder if these are not outsiders that joined the swarm 



