THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



41 



day. On August 15 she came off with 

 a large swarm, that filled the hive 

 full. 



As there is much said about caging 

 queens, I will state my plan for doing 

 it ; first, prepare a phial of some liind 

 of essence, say, peppermint, and odor- 

 izer on liand. I take tiie frames, all 

 or nearly all, out of the hive; or 

 enough to find the queen, dispatch 

 her, odorize all remaining in the hive, 

 if any ; and as you place the frames 

 with the accompanying bees, back in 

 the hive, spray them with the odorizer 

 thoroughly, until all are returned to 

 the hive, then spray the queen in like 

 manner, and let her crawl down from 

 the top, among the bees ; shut up the 

 hive and put it on the stand, and the 

 job is done. I have never lost one in 

 this way. 



My crop of honey this season, from 

 22 colonies, spring count, is 2,500 lbs.; 

 all comb lioney, and all but about 200 

 pounds in one-pound sections. 



I find I can secure fully one-third 

 more honey from a colony facing the 

 north than if facing the south ; I find, 

 also, that it makes a great difference 

 what kind of a hive I use. With tlie 

 Acme hive (my own invention) I can 

 secure at least three times the amount 

 of surplus that I can in the American 

 hive. My hive is two stories, brood- 

 nest below, surplus directly on the 

 top, fitting the lower story nicely, and 

 holding 36 one-pound sections. 1 have 

 taken as high as 150 one-pound sec- 

 tions of honey from a colony that was 

 a swarm hived as late as June 10 of 

 the same year. Although I am par- 

 tial to the Italian bee, I am sure the 

 hive has more to do with the amount 

 of honey received, than the kind of 

 bees used, especially if faced to tlie 

 north. 



I winter my bees in the cellar only, 

 and seldom lose any ; I give no up- 

 ward ventilation, ail open below, as 

 in the summer. I keep the room as 

 dark as possible, and never disturb 

 them after putting them away in No- 

 vember until the last of March or first 

 of April, as the forwardness of the 

 season may be. 



Galva, 111. 



Prairie Farmer. 



A Few Practical Suggestions. 



MRS. L. HARRISON. 



It is well at the close of the year, to 

 review the past, and investigate the 

 causes that led to success or failure of 

 a project. Before undertaking a new 

 venture, a person should be well posted 

 in theory, and better yet, have some 

 practical knowledge of its routine. In 

 conversing lately with a young man 

 who had been engaged several years 

 in the cattle business in the far West, 

 he remarked, " I have paid so dearly 

 for the knowledge I have gained, that 

 I want now to return, and engage in 

 it again, and profit by what I have 

 learned." 



A lady once said to the writer, " I 

 have spent $600 during the past sum- 

 mer in the bee business, and liave had 

 no returns, and all I have to show for 



it, is hives filled with foundations, a 

 queen and a handful of bees, and they 

 will all be dead before flowers bloom." 

 This lady had read " Blessed Bees," 

 a charming novelette, snd became in- 

 fatuated with the business, and was 

 wiser in her own conceit, than old vet- 

 erans, the recipients of many stings, 

 while engaged in a hotly contested 

 battle with infuriated bees. In Web- 

 ster's spelling-book of our scliool-days, 

 we used to read " experience keeps a 

 dear school, but fools will not learn in 

 any other." 



The hand should be educated as well 

 as the head, and practical lessons 

 should be given in bee-culture, at all 

 the agricultural colleges, as is now 

 done in Michigan. Girls as well as 

 boys, should be the recipients of in- 

 struction in bee-culture, poultry, dairy 

 work, and also in the care of green- 

 houses, and raising small fruits. Let 

 them choose the one they prefer, and 

 then be taught it theoretically and 

 practically, in all its bearings. Girls 

 educated thus, will develop into inde- 

 pendent, self-reliant women, and will 

 never shiver in a city's garret, if mis- 

 fortunes overtake them. 



How often do we meet women, fash- 

 ionably educated, who cannot earn 

 enough to keep soul and body to- 

 gether. They can play on the piano, 

 embroider, paint china, etc., but can- 

 not produce what is in demand in the 

 world's market. Luxuries are en- 

 joyed by the few, while all seek to 

 obaiu necessary comforts, such as 

 honey, butter and small fruits, etc. 

 VVe were at a church fair lately, and 

 looked over the articles for sale, hop- 

 ing to find something that we needed, 

 but discovered nothing but an iron 

 holder— all fancy, fancy. " All is 

 vanity, saith the preacher." There 

 was plenty of darned lace, and a few 

 mittens, but the backs of them and 

 wrists, were all open work, and would 

 be of little use on a cold day. 



One zero day last week, we met on 

 the sidewalk a lady and a little girl, 

 who was a foundling left at her door 

 some five years ago. The lady said, 

 " this child is not old enough to go to 

 school, and I want to give her a chance, 

 so I am taking her to the dancing 

 academy to learn to appear well, for 

 it is all in appearance now-a-days you 

 know." 



Peoria, 111. 



Convention Notices. 



1^ The annual meeting of the 

 Northwestern Illinois and South- 

 western Wisconsin Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation will be held in Temperance 

 Hall, Freeport, Stephenson county, 

 111., on January 16 and 17, 1883. 



Jonathan Stewart, Sec. 



Rock City, 111. 



1^ The Northeastern Ohio and 

 Northwestern Pennsylvania Bee- 

 Keepers' Association will meet at 

 Andover, Ohio, to hold their annual 

 convention, on the second Wednes- 

 day and Thursday of February, 1883. 

 C. T. Leonard. .Sec. 



^" The Texas State Bee-Keepers'" 

 Association will hold its Fifth Annual 

 Convention at McKinney, Collin Co., 

 on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 

 17th and 18th, 1883; at the residence of 

 Hon. W. H. Andrews. 



The following committees have been 

 appointed, and the programme arrang- 

 ed for the next meeting, by the execu- 

 tive committee; viz : on Resolutions; 

 Apiarian Supplies and Exhibits ; 

 Subjects for Discussion ; and Arrange- 

 ments, to receive and entertain those 

 in attendance from abroad. 



Programme. — President's Address. 

 Subject— State and National Conven- 

 tions. 



Subjects for general discussion : 



Essays.— The "Coming Bee," W. H. 

 Andrews. Honey plants. Native- 

 Horsemints, different varieties, Wm. 

 R. Howard. "Extracted vs. Comb 

 Honey," W. K. Marshall, D. D. 

 "Bee-Moth," W. H. Andrews. " The 

 Queen Bee. lier nature and habits, 

 Wm. R. Howard. "The diffeient 

 races of bees in America; their relative 

 value to apiculture," W. K. Marshall, 

 D. D. 



Other essays are promised, and a 

 general good time is anticipated. 

 Ample arrangements are made to ac- 

 commodate those from a distance. 

 Those wishing to place anything on 

 exhibition or correspond with the com- 

 mittee of arrangements, will be 

 promptly attended to, by addressing, 

 W. H. Andrews, President, McKinney, 

 Collin Co ,Texas. All othercorrespon- 

 dence to the Secretary. We would be- 

 pleased to have any one propound 

 questions of interest for discussion, 

 as we have found great interest, as 

 well as valuable intorraation gained 

 by the discussion of questions con- 

 tributed to our " Question Box." 



Wm. R. Howard, Sec. 



Kingston, Texas. 



le annual meeting of the Ma- 

 honing Valley Bee-Keepers' Associa- 

 tion will be held at Berlin Center, 

 Mahoning Co. ,0., in the Town Hall on 

 Friday and Saturday the 19th and 20th 

 of January, 1883. All bee-keepers are 

 invited to attend and send essays, ija- 

 pers, implements, or any thing of in- 

 terest to tlie fraternity. A full at- 

 tendance is requested of all who are 

 interested. In fact, the meetings will 

 be so interesting that you cannot 

 afford to miss them. We expect a 

 lecturer from abroad on the evening 

 of the 19th. L. Cakson, I'res. 



1^- The annual meeting of the 

 Champlain Valley Bee-Keepers" Asso- 

 ciation will be held at Middleburg, 

 Vt., on Thursday, January 18, 1883, at 

 10 a. m. T. Brookins, Sec. 



.^ The Southeastern Michigan 

 Bee- Keepers' Association will hold 

 their annual meeting in the court- 

 house at Ann Arbor, Jan. 20, 1883. AH 

 are invited. H. D. Cutting, Pres. 



G. J. Pease, -Sec, Ann Arbor. 



t^ Articles for publication must be- 

 written on a separate piece of paper 

 from items of business. 



