THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



547 



MISCELLANEOUS. 



Honey and Bee Shows. — The Ameri- 

 can Ayricultin-ht gives tlie following 

 on Honey and Bee Shows in EuroiJe 

 and America : 



One of the features of the apiculture 

 of Europe is the holding of large ex- 

 hibitions of bee products and apiarian 

 implements. The bee journals of 

 Great Britain. France, and Germany 

 are full of accounts of these large and 

 interesting Honey Shows. So great is 

 the skill displayed in making the ex- 

 hibits, and so attractive are the dis- 

 plays, that it is no rare thing for tlie 

 Shows to be visited by kings and 

 queens. Surely tlie European apiarists 

 find it advantageous to make tliese 

 exhibitions, or they would not con- 

 tinue them year after year at great 

 expense of tinie and labor. Not only 

 are these meetings noted for their 

 beautiful honey shows, but numerous 

 essays, lectures, and discussions in 

 connection with them, serve as edu- 

 cators in apicultural science and art. 

 Heretofore the honey exhibits in 

 America have consisted of a few 

 pounds of second-rate honey and a lit- 

 tle beeswax, tucked away in some ob- 

 scure corner, and sandwiched in be- 

 tween maple-sugar and syrup and 

 sorghum-molasses. The premiums 

 have ranged among the cents, and oc- 

 casionally, in some unusual cases, have 

 even reached a dollar. There was 

 nothing to induce producers of honey 

 to make exhibits, and still less to ex- 

 cite the interest orattention of visitors. 

 Of course bee-keepers are to blame for 

 this state of things, as no business 

 demonstrates its importance at expo- 

 sitions unless its patrons possess sutli- 

 cient enterprise to push it forward. 

 Itis very strange that American apiar- 

 ists who have gone to the front in 

 every other line of agricultural pro- 

 gress, have been so slow to recognize 

 the great oi)portunity to advance the 

 interest of their pursuit by encourag- 

 ing and patronizing these exhibitions 

 of bees, honey, etc. Owi"g to the fact 

 that some of our leading bee-keepers 

 had visited Europe, and witnessed the 

 substantial advantages that resulted 

 from these Honey Sliows, there were 

 two successful exhibitions of this kind 

 held in America last year. These 

 were at St. Joseph, Mo., and at To- 

 ronto, (^anada, and so attractive were 

 they, that no other part of the Fairs 

 received so favorable comment from 

 tlie press. Tonsof honey were on exhi- 

 bition at Toronto, and thousands of 

 pounds were sold there. Bees were 

 also exhibited and manipulated at the 

 Fair, and the exhibit was further 

 aided by the display of all the numer- 

 ous and valuable implements and ap- 

 pliauces that aid the bee-keeper in his 

 work. 



Tlie place to hold these exhibitions 

 is in connection vpith the several State 



and County Fairs of the country. The 

 requisites to success are generally 

 premiums, in keeping with tlie im- 

 portance of apieullure, a separate 

 building in which to hold the display, 

 a room htted with gauze, so that the 

 bees can be maiiiiiulated each day, 

 witli no fear from stings, even by the 

 most timid person. The honey should 

 be taken in quantities, both comb in 

 sections and extracted honey in jars 

 and tin pails. This should be put up i 

 with tlie greatest neatness, and la- 

 beled in an attractive manner. Some 

 of it should be put in glass crates, so 

 as to teach visitors how to present the 

 honey for sale at the groceries. There 

 should also be a large exhibition of 

 wax, foundation, implements, and ex- 

 tractors, so that the decision of the 

 judges, who should be experts, may 

 carry weight with it. The best colony 

 of bees should be taken, so ventilated 

 that the bees will not suffer, and ar- 

 ranged that they enn be so shown that 

 every visitor may see how easy it is to 

 handle bees without harm. Wire 



fauze may be so arranged around the 

 ive that there need be no danger of 

 exciting the fears even of the visitors. 

 If the bees are properly ventilated, 

 and fed a little every day, they will 

 not suffer by being taken to the Fairs. 



the ants, and after a few days trial 

 neither grasslioppers nor anything 

 else attracted tliem. They appear to 

 have been tlioroughly exterminated, 

 nor has the house since been Infested 

 with them. 



Toads and Bees.— The Canadian 



Furmet- says: 



Those who keep bees need to look 

 out sharply for toads. Go among the 

 hives in the " gloamin'." and ten to 

 one you will see a solemn toad beside 

 each of tliem, w'ith face upturned 

 heavenward, as though praying. So 

 he is, phonetically speaking ; but pho- 

 nography, with all its advantages, 

 fails here, for you must spell that 

 word with an "e." He is preying on 

 your bees, and if you watch him 

 closely you will see him, every now 

 and then, dart out his long, slimy 

 tongue, and gather them in with a 

 celerity and gusto perfectly marvel- 

 lous. Toads are valuable in a garden, 

 but destructive in an apiary. 



Driving away Red Ants.— In Our 



Home nnd Science Gossip, the following 

 experiment is given : 



Professor Leidly states that when 

 he purchased his present residence, 

 while it was undergoing repairs, he 

 noticed a fragment of bread left by 

 the workmen in one of the second 

 story rooms swarming with little red 

 ants. Apprehending that the house 

 was seriously infested, to ascertain 

 whether it was so he placed a piece 

 of cake in every room from cellar to 

 attic. At noon every piece was found 

 covered with ants. 



Having provided a cup of turpentine 

 oil, each piece was picked up with for- 

 ceps and the ants tapped into the oil. 

 The cake was then replaced and in 

 the evening was found covered with 

 ants. The same process was gone 

 through the following two days, morn- 

 ing, noon and night. 



The third day the number of ants 

 was greatly diminished and on the 

 fourth there were none. He at once 

 concluded that they were all destroyed, 

 but in the attic he found a few feed- 

 ing on the dead house flies, which led 

 him to suppose that the remainder 

 had become suspicions of sweet cake. 



He accordingly distributed through 

 the house pieces of bacon, which were 

 afterwards found swarming with ants. 

 This was repeated with the same re- 

 sult for several days, when in a like 

 manner with the cake, the ants finally 

 ceased to visit the bacon. 



Pieces of cheese were next tried 

 with the same results, but with an un- 

 doubted thinning in the multitude of 

 the ants. When the cheese proved no 

 longer attractive, recollecting the 

 feast on dead flies in the attic, dead 

 grasshoppers were supplied from the 

 garden. 



These again proved too much for 



Manufacturing Supplies. — A corres- 

 pondent of tlie Canadian Farmer takes 

 exception to the views of the editor in 

 the following language : 



You say every bee-keeper should 

 make his own hives (which advice is 

 good), and I suppose make his own 

 extractor, make his own comb foun- 

 dation, and everything he uses, rear 

 his own bees and gueens. Now the 

 same might be said of the farmer. 

 He should make his own wagon, mow- 

 ing machine and horse rake, ploughs, 

 and all other implements, rear all his 

 own stock. But how is he to get 

 started, besides most of the above ar- 

 ticles could not be made without 

 proper machinery. It would not pay 

 every bee-keeper or farmer to get 

 such machinery, therefore, one gets it 

 and manufactures for his neighbors, 

 hence a supply dealer. 



^"The Northwestern Bee-Keepers' 

 Convention will meet at Chicago, 111., 

 on Tuesday and Wednesday, Oct. 17 

 and IS, 18S2. The oflSce of the Ameri- 

 can Bee Journal has been kindly ten- 

 dered as a place of meeting. A cordial 

 invitation is extended to all bee-keep- 

 ers, and especially those of the North- 

 western States, to be present. The 

 meeting takes place during the last 

 week of the Inter-State Industrial 

 Exposition, to enable all to obtain re- 

 duced railroad rates. First session at 

 10 a. m. C. C. Miller, Pres. 



C. C. COFFINBERUY, SeC. 



^^ Those who may wish to change 

 from other editions to the Weekly,can 

 do so by paying the difference. 



1^ We will send Cook's Manual 

 in cloth, or an Apiary Register for 100 

 colonies, and AVeekly Bee Journal 

 for one year, for S3. 00 ; or with King's 

 Text-Book, in cloth, for $2.7.5 ; or with 

 Bees and Honey, in cloth, $2..50. 



