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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



1)0 Bees Injure Sound, Healthy 

 Peaches J— The Massacliusetts Plough- 

 man remarks as follows : 



This question having been put to us 

 some years ago, we iiave very natu- 

 rally watched tlie operations of the 

 bees on the peach trees ever since. 

 The results of this examination have 

 been to draw conclusions different 

 from those entertained by many 

 others. In consequence of this we 

 have been slow to express an opinion, 

 thinking possibly further observation 

 might lead to a different conclusion, 

 but as vear after year only gives ad- 

 ditional evidence of its correctness, 

 we give to our readers the result of 

 our observation, hoping by so doinfj 

 to encourage closer observation and 

 to draw out opinions. 



The first year or two of observation 

 disclosed the fact that the wasp evi- 

 dently commenced the work of punc- 

 turing the fruit and that the honey 

 bee followed. This at first led to tlie 

 belief that the wasp was tlie first 

 cause of the destruction ; but, on 

 further examination, it was observed 

 that some of the trees in the orchard 

 were entirely exempt from injury, 

 and in fact, tliat some whole orchards 

 were perfectly free from injury, not a 

 peach being punctured ; this led to a 

 still more careful examination, when 

 it was found that most, if not all, of 

 the fruit punctured, had on one side 

 a decayed spot before punctured. On 

 some peaches the decayed spot was 

 very small and on others quite large, 

 but whatever tlie size, the wasp would 

 puncture the fruit very nearly in the 

 center of the decayed spot, wliich has 

 led many to believe that the decay is 

 caused by the puncture, when obser- 

 vation seems to prove that the decay 

 invites the wasp to make the punc- 

 ture. Being satisfied of this the" next 

 investigation was in a direction to as- 

 certain the cause of the decay, when 

 it was in every instance found to be 

 the yellows. AVe liave yet to see the 

 peach orchard, the fruit of which has 

 been injured by the bees that has not 

 been struck by the yellows, and, so 

 far as we have observed, the fruit of 

 every tree that has the yellows will be 

 attacked by the bees. 



Knowledge of Bee-Cnlture. — The 



London /ou?->iai!o/i/o?-(ic!4K!()-eremarks 

 as follows on the knowledge of the 

 science of bee-keeping in Great Brit- 

 ain : 



Within the last dozen years greater 

 efforts have been made to spread a 

 knowledge of apiculture than were 

 made for more than half a century be- 

 fore in England and other countries ; 

 and what have been the results V A 

 wider and deeper interest is taken in 

 the subject, and a greater desire for 

 knowledge has been created. In these 

 times of extensive emigration it ap- 

 pears desirable to extend a knowledge 

 of apiculture throughout the country. 

 To know well liow to manage bees 

 profitably is worth very much to work- 

 ing men living in rural districts. 

 Many such men who are versed in 

 bee-keeping would not give the annuai 



average profits from bees tor the rents 

 of 2 or 3 cottages such as they live in. 

 We shall doubtless hear reports of 

 great and wide-spread success, and 

 the story of the value of bees to the 

 community will be better told and 

 confirmed. It is known that in some 

 colonies, and in certain districts of 

 America, bee-keeping is an unfailing 

 source of income to those wlio under- 

 stand and practice it. The thousands 

 of barrels of honey containing from 1 

 to 3 cwts. each that find a market in 

 England every year tell us of busy 

 people in countries rich in honey. 



The bee-keepers' Association and 

 some county associations kindred in 

 character and objects, are making 

 laudable efforts to teach apiculture. 

 These associations are rising in public 

 estimation, and becoming stronger 

 financiallv every year. Much honor 

 is due to the Rev. II. R. Peel, Hon. 

 Secretary of the Bee-Keepers' Asso- 

 ciation, wlio labors indefatigably to 

 awaken public attention to the im- 

 portance of bee-keeping. 



"Open Secrets."— The Farm, Herd 

 and Home very wisely concludes as 

 follows : 



Apiarian humbugs of one kind and 

 another still infest the market, and 

 bee-keepers, or those intending to be- 

 come such, need be put on their guard 

 against them. It should be under- 

 stood that there are now no " myste- 

 ries of bee-keeping," except to the 

 class who do not read publications on 

 apiculture. The secrets of this busi- 

 ness are all " open secrets." Any par- 

 ties who offer by mail or otherwise to 

 make known " new methods," by 

 which fortunes can be speedily made 

 out of bees, merely tradeon the ignor- 

 ance and credulity of the public. 

 Patent hives, moth-traps, and all such 

 devices for money getting, have had 

 tlieir day. and bee-keeping has been 

 reduced to a business, the principles 

 of which are the common property of 

 all intelligent and well-informed 

 apiarists. 



Untested Clieap ({ueens.— The Bee- 

 Keepers^ Magazine is now discussing 

 tlie matter of the utility of cheap un- 

 tested queens. The editor remarks 

 as follows : 



We think all queen breeders will 

 agree that no one, whose time is of 

 any value, can afford to properly rear 

 queens and send them out, on indi- 

 vidual orders, at $1. We do believe 

 that the vast majority of the so-called 

 dollar queens are reared in nuclei, 

 and some of them by the aid of arti- 

 ficial lieat. In the South where hot 

 weather prevails for so great a portion 

 of the year the case is different, and 

 the quality for endurance, of queens 

 reared there by these loose metliods is 

 uniloubtedly "far superior to those 

 reared in tliis climate. Queens exactly 

 alike in all other respects should not 

 differ in price S2.00, simply because 

 one has to be kept 21 days in order to 

 see her progeny. Rather dear board 

 for even a queen. 



Bee-Keepiug in California in 1873, 



— The Semi-Tropic California gives 

 the following as a scrap of history on 

 bee-keeping in that State : 



In November, 1S73, forty members 

 of the Los Angeles County Bee-Keep- 

 ers' Association owned 1,406 hives of 

 bees, which produced for the season," 

 68,268 pounds of honey. The average 

 price for the product of that year was 

 22J-2 cents, wliether sold in San 

 Francisco or otiier markets. The 

 largest apiary was owned by Maloy & 

 Stone, and numbered 257 hives, and 

 the smallest number reported was 

 one hive owned by Mr. Orick. At 

 that time but few of the bee-keepers 

 of the county were acquainted with 

 the better implements now in use by 

 the bee-keeper of to-day, yet the re- 

 sults of the year's work was more 

 satisfactory than in any subsequent 

 year, so far as the financial result was 

 concerned. At that time large tracts 

 of land were lying uncultivated, and 

 covered with honey-producing shrubs 

 and plants, to-day tliose tracts are 

 mainly under cultivation, eitlier in 

 orchard, vineyard or grain. The grain 

 field, except corn, yields no nectar, 

 and the bee-keeper," if he wishes to 

 succeed, must plant or cultivate such 

 crops as will produce honey, if he ex- 

 pects to do as well as was done in 

 1873. The new markets opened up 

 by recently constructed lines of rail- 

 ways, give promise of greater demand 

 for our.unrivaled honey. So far as 

 quality is concerned, we can fairly 

 compete with the world, and nature 

 has given to Southern California the 

 climatic conditions for successful 

 bee-keeping. If thoughtful, careful in- 

 dustry is turned toward tlie business, 

 there is every reason to believe tliat 

 better results may be obtained than 

 was achieved by the bee-keepers of 

 this country in 1873. It would be well 

 for every bee owuer to keep a careful 

 account of this year's product of 

 honey, the number of hives of bees 

 owned by them, and the price ob- 

 tained per pound for honey this year, 

 and report the results to the Associa- 

 tion at our November meeting. 



The Objects of Fairs.— An exchange 

 makes the following remarks on this 

 subject : 



The true position of fairs is schools 

 of instruction. It is not enough that 

 one may grow a better crop tlian an- 

 other, but that he may instruct others 

 liow to obtain similar results. The 

 object of exhibition is not merely to 

 get a prize, but to incite others to 

 good works. If one has grown a fine 

 animal, a large crop, or made a valu- 

 able piece of machinery, he has had 

 his reward already, and the object of 

 exhibition is to sliow others wliat may 

 be done and teach them how to do it. 

 Especially can fairs become schools 

 for the instruction of youtli ; they 

 there learn to observe, and at sight to 

 classify the various breeds of animals, 

 becoming familiar with the charac- 

 teristics of each, and their valuable 

 qualities. 



