(^^ OLDEST BEE PAPERYi)'^ ^ 



.<». 



VOL. XIX. 



CHICAGO, ILL., APRIL 18, 1883. 



No. 16. 



Published every Wednesday, by 



THOMAS G. NEWMAN, 



Editor and Proprietor, 



New Book on Queen Rearing. 



Mr. Henry Alley's new book on 

 Queen Rearing is received, and we 

 are very well pleased, not only with 

 its contents, but also with its typo- 

 graphy and binding. It is a hand- 

 some octavo of 200 pages, and contains 

 20 illustrations. 



This is one of the subjects upon 

 which "more light" has been de- 

 manded for some time past, by pro- 

 gressive apiculture, and we are glad 

 to welcome this work of Mr. Alley on 

 the subject, because he is a successful 

 and experienced queen rearer, and 

 also because he gives details of the 

 methods he now practices, after many 

 experiments covering a period of 22 

 years, during which time he has, per- 

 haps, produced and reared more 

 queens than any other breeder. 



Of course, there are many things 

 stated in the book which we cannot 

 endorse, and also much that we think 

 needs confirmation — still it is a valua- 

 ble addition to the sparse literature 

 on " Queen Rearing " now extant. 

 Considerable of the repetition will no 

 doubt be eliminated from the next 

 edition. 



In the Preface, Mr. Alley remarks 

 as follows : 



I need not state that this work was 

 not intended as a literary effort, as 

 indeed I make no pretentions in this 

 respect. I have endeavored to present 

 to my readers a work that will be ben- 

 eficial and advantageous to them and 

 have tried to avoid all that is super- 

 fluous or ambiguous, believing that 

 plain, practical common sense is far 

 preferable ; and if it meets with gen- 

 eral approval I shall rest content. I 

 claim that my method of rearing 

 queens is new and original, being the 



results of my long experience in queen 

 rearing and practical apiculture. 



Hy the careful study of ttiis work, 

 and by puttiug into practice the direc- 

 tions herein given, one will experience 

 no difficulty in rearing queens of a 

 superior quality. Let it ever be our 

 aim to rear better not cheaper queens. 



We have waited long for the appear- 

 ance of the work, but have lost nothing 

 by the delay. Mr. Alley says : "The 

 long delay in the publication of the 

 Bee-Keepers" Handy Book, was una- 

 voidable, and was caused mainly by 

 the addition of nearly 75 pag6s to the 

 work more than was originally intend- 

 ed. My readers will profit by this 

 gain, which is a loss to me of over 

 $100.00." Now that it has been issued, 

 we can cheerfully forget the delay, 

 and attribute it to the author's inex- 

 perience in the business of publishing. 



In his Introduction the author re- 

 marks as follows : 



The present and future interests of 

 apiculture demand a more thorough 

 and practical method of rearing 

 queens, and I shall endeavor in this 

 work to give my readers such inform- 

 ation as shall tend to give a new im- 

 petus to this branch of bee-keeping, 

 and also aid, if possible, in doing away 

 with the cheap and worthless queens 

 produced under the lamp nursery sys- 

 tem ; and to offer to the bee-keeping 

 public, for their careful consideration 

 and adoption, a thorough, practical 

 and scientific method of queen-rear- 

 ing, which is the result of many long 

 years of practical experience, and 

 much hard study. 



In order to become a successful in- 

 structor one must first attain a com- 

 plete knowledge of the subject to be 

 taught, and unless it has been thor- 

 oughly and fully mastered in all its 

 details, failures only cau result. 



In presenting this work to the bee- 

 keeping fraternity, I do not wish to 

 assume the position of teacher, but 

 rather to place before its readers in as 

 plain and practical a manner as possi- 

 ble my method of rearing queens, 

 leaving to their judgment the careful 

 study, and candid criticism of its con- 

 tents, feeling assured of a favorable 

 decision regarding its merits and 

 value ; knowing that if its instructions 

 are carefully studied in all their de- 

 tails, and put to a practical test, the 

 result will be successful. By careful 



attention to all the rules laid down 

 herein, I hope better queens will be 

 produced, a matter of great import- 

 ance to the bee-keeper whether he 

 keeps bees for pleasure or profit ; and 

 of vastly more importance to the bee- 

 master who follows it as a vocation 

 and depends upon the same for a 

 living. 



He then enters into details of the 

 modus operandi,%y which these " bet- 

 ter queens " are produced, and de- 

 scribes his methods and management. 

 A chapter is also devoted to each of 

 the following subjects : Transferring 

 Bees ; Spring and Fall Feeding ; Win- 

 tering Bees ; Keeping Bees for Pleas- 

 ure and Profit, and General Remarks, 

 which includes a multitude of sub- 

 jects. 



Two essays are also incorporated 

 into the work, the first being on 

 " Management of the Apiary ; or, the 

 Production and Marketing of Honey," 

 by G. W. House ; the other is on "The 

 New Races of Bees," by S. M. Locke. 

 Both of these are very interesting and 

 instructive. 



This new work should be in the 

 hands of every practical apiarist, and 

 is worth many times its cost to any 

 one having the care and management 

 of bees. It can be obtained of the 

 author, at Wenharn, Mass, or at this 

 oflice. 



W Quite a number of the new sub- 

 scribers, who have begun to take the 

 Journal this month, ask if we can 

 supply the numbers from Jan. 1, 1883. 

 We would say that we can supply a 

 few more sets, and if any want them 

 they must be sent for soon, or they 

 cannot be obtained. We can supply 

 no more numbers of 1882. They are 

 aU gone. 



^^ The 23d annual St. Louis Fair 

 will be held Monday, Oct. 1, to Satur- 

 day, Oct. 6, 1883, both days inclusive. 



(^ Articles for publication must be 

 written on a separate piece of paper 

 from items of business. 



