THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



^3 



his patent. I have no desire to mis- 

 lead the readers of the Bee Jouunal, 

 nor have I any desire to injure Mr. 

 Forncrook, linancially or otherwise. 

 My only desire is simply to state facts 

 as'I lind them, and without fear or 

 favor from any one. 

 St. Charles, 111. 



[The Bee Journal believes in the 

 old maxim : " Right wrongs no one." 

 In dealing out '■ exact justice to all," 

 it will neither countenance exlorlion 

 on the part of an inventor, nor allow 

 an "'evasion^'' of a legitimate patent, 

 in order to defraud its owner, without 

 an earnest protest. To do so, wonki 

 only impede "progress" and dis- 

 courage " invention." The one-piece 

 section now enjoys a well-earned pop- 

 ularity, and, as its inventor has spent 

 much time and money in bringing it 

 to its present state of perfection — is 

 he not entitled toa?rrt.so)!a&fe reward V 

 We believe that all right-minded per- 

 sons will cheerfully assent to this, but 

 will not, willingly, submit to extortion 

 on the one hand, nor countenance dis- 

 honesty on the other.— Ed.] 



For the American Bee JournaL 



My Bee Cellar and Management. 



REUBEN HAVENS. 



My cellar is 22x44 feet, divided into 

 three rooms. The first room is but 

 half underground, which I use for a 

 shop and store room. , There is a large 

 out-door opening into this room ; also 

 one opening from the kitchen. The 

 other rooms have heavy stone walls, 

 plastered ; it is also lathed and plas- 

 tered overhead. It has a tile run- 

 ning around the bottom, just inside 

 the wall, cement floor; and two four 

 light 12x14 windows in each room. 

 My bee room is the one fartherest 

 from the outer door. 



On the north side, I have a 4-inch 

 pipe 8 feet long ; on the south side, a 

 6-inch pipe with a cross, or T pipe, on 

 the outside for ventilation. Upper 

 ventilation is given by a flue running 

 to the bottom of the cellar ; pipe hole 

 near the ceiling. If the room becomes 

 too warm, which it often does, I ven- 

 tilate by opening the outside door, 

 and letting the fresh air pass in 

 through the other two rooms. In this 

 way I can keep an even temperature. 



In putting the bees away for winter. 

 I place the hives on racks ; tlie tirst 

 tier 2 feet from the floor, and every 

 hi''e is pbieed so that it can be moved 

 ■without disturbing the others. After 

 placing the hives, I remove the tops 

 and leave no covering, except the 

 quilts. 



By the way, I bought a lot of hives 

 last summer with enamel cloth covers, 

 ■which I left on, wlien I put them into 

 winter quarters, and on examination, 

 a few days since, I found the moisture 

 had condensed on the quilts and run 

 down through the combs and out at 

 the entrance of the hives, causing the 



bees to become very uneasy. I im- 

 mediately stripped off the enamel 

 covers and replaced them with covers 

 made of worn ingrain carpet. This 

 is the best material for covers that I 

 have ever used. If worn, then make 

 them double. I think keeping an 

 even temjierature and good upper 

 ventilation, are the main things in 

 successful wintering. 



There seems to be quite a differ- 

 ence of opinion in regard to the right 

 temperature, varying from 32 to 44 

 degrees. I lind when the tempera- 

 ture gets above 40 degrees, the bees 

 become very uneasy. 



Onarga, 111., Jan. IS, 1883. 



For the Americun Bee Journal. 



Sections, Separators, Apprentices,&c. 



JAMES HEDDON, ]7?-500. 



After reading a few more thoughts 

 from others, I wish to say a little 

 more about the half-pound sections. 

 On page 8, Mr. Benedict, in his second 

 paragraph, says " a prime colony will 

 produce ^^ more honey in one-pound 

 than in half-pound sections." Whij 

 they will, he does not say; and, why 

 they will not, is too long a story to tell 

 here. 



Now, I am quite sure that if I could 

 have Mr. Benedict in my yard three 

 days next summer, I could convince 

 him that more comb honey can be pro- 

 cured in pound or half-pound sections, 

 than in any larger receptacles. If he 

 is correct, then I am wrong, and half- 

 pound sections will soon be among the 

 " things that were." I shall use a few 

 of them next season. I think that 

 extra cost and manipulation is the 

 main objection to their use. But, as I 

 can use them on the same hives with 

 my pounds, and in the same size crate, 

 I shall feel bound to make some com- 

 prehensive tests, regarding them, next 

 season. 



On page 18, the editor tells Dr. Tin- 

 ker that this section " requires extra 

 capping, and comb foundation ; per- 

 haps too much to be profitable." My 

 experience \\\i\\ combs, down as thin 

 as % in. has convinced me that (some 

 how or other) the bees finish sealing 

 the thinnest combs tirst, and apparent- 

 ly easiest. Also, I have demonstrated 

 that the more foundation I can crowd 

 into use, the better for my yield of 

 comb honey, to an amount far exceed- 

 ing the extra cost. 



Dr. Miller (one of those who " get 

 there") can imagine the queen mak- 

 ing her home and " nest " in the sec- 

 tions, if they are so thin as would be 

 needed for half-pounds, of 4}4x4i4 

 square. I would tell the Doctor to go 

 ahead, and fear no brood in the sec- 

 tions, of any thickness ; but I oliject 

 to sucli thin comb, fbr reasons I iiave 

 already given on pages 5 and 27. I 

 wish I was as sure of a good crop in 

 1883, as that, with any thing like rea- 

 sonable management, we shall have 

 no brood troubles. 



Let me say to Dr. L. C. Whiting 

 (see page 42) that if he will try the 

 process of putting up honey in large 

 frames, and then cutting up and tit- 

 ting into sections to be properly fin- 



ished up by the bees, he will want to 

 forget the day the thought first entered 

 his mind. Try it, Doctor, (justa little) 

 and report. 



Mr. Caldvi'ell (p. 8) says, that in some 

 seasons bees were reluctant to work 

 among separators, and wonders if as 

 much honey will be stored with, as 

 without them, and yet the same arti- 

 cle is headed " Separators a Necessi- 

 ty." Dr. Miller and Capt. Scudder, 

 (page 20) are of the same opinion. I 

 have no fears about straight combs, 

 but two bee-keepers (who also "get 

 there," and in whom I place great con- 

 fidence,) assure me that my fears of 

 their damaging my crop, is groundless. 

 One of them presents the best argu- 

 ments [ have ever heard, and presents 

 a little different manner of their use 

 and manipulation ; and, while I am 

 putting considerable money into such 

 experiments, as I deem essential to 

 the proper instruction of my class of 

 students for 1883, 1 shall add $10 for 

 tin for separators, and make one more 

 test on a broad and improved scale. 

 If I find my former views changed in 

 any way, I shall be (mly too glad to 

 tell all about it. If not, I shall con- 

 sider a $10 box of tin, a solid perch 

 upon which to crow, "I— told — you — 

 so." 



On page 36 Dr. Miller tells us some t 

 thing about " Who should Keep Bees." 

 When I read that, " I threw" up my 

 hat," and shouted. My wife asked 

 " What fs upV" I replied, " A pen 

 picture of real life ; an article worth 

 twice the price of the Bee Journal 

 for a year, to every reader ; an antidote 

 for Blessed Bees." Every one should 

 read that article and not get discour- 

 aged, for the article is the best of en- 

 couragement to all who should embark 

 in the business, and who understand 

 the article rightly. 



On page 6, Dr. Besse points out 

 " another advance step," as one very 

 desirable to be taken. That there is 

 a great demand for the services of 

 competent apiarists, I very well 

 know, from the numerous applica- 

 tions which come to me. All are will- 

 ing to pay high wages, if they can get 

 the right sort of a man. The Doctor 

 maps t)ut a plan by which he thinks 

 the right man can be detected from 

 the wrong one. From all that I know 

 of the apiarian student-apprentice 

 business, together with diplomas and 

 seals of presidents, secretaries and 

 whole societies, committees and all 

 included — all these seals arid signa- 

 tures, with all the expense and 

 trouble of the red tape circumlocu- 

 tion, mentioned by the correspondent, 

 would only throw suspicion upon any 

 one who might apply tome. I should 

 say. Where did you practice, honey- 

 producing y With Mr. G. T. Success. 

 Good. What recommendations can 

 you giveV This paper. It reads: 

 " The bearer, Mr. Henry Goodwin, 

 has spent five months in my apiary of 

 200 colonies, having passed through 

 the season's operations, from unpack- 

 ing the bees in the spring to repack- 

 ing them for winter quarters. I have 

 found Mr. G. a young man of integrity 

 and tact. lie has studied the theory 

 of apiculture under my supervision, 

 and has been with me in practice 



