392 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



For the American Bee JoumaL 



The Naughty Hybrid. 



JAMBS IIEDDON. 



I will venture to say, had it not 

 been for the sharp and business end 

 of bees, there would have been more 

 failures in our business than we can 

 now boast of, which is no small num- 

 ber. Almost everybody would keep 

 some bees, " just a few for their own 

 use," were it not fi)r their poisonous 

 little javlins. This is an established 

 and well-known law in human nature. 

 This same law applies forcibly to the 

 " naughty hybrid." 



Had it not been for the fact that 

 hybrids, crosses between the German 

 and Italian bees, were far more irasci- 

 ble than either of the races from 

 ■which they sprung, these bees would 

 long ago have been the bee of present 

 apiculture. Now it seems a little 

 peculiar that a tolerably good-natured 

 German bee, and a better-behaved 

 Italian should produce offspring 

 meaner than either race ; but such is 

 ■well known to have been a fact. I 

 have told you several times before, 

 that I had crosses between the brown 

 German and leather-colored Italian, 

 that were as well, or better behaved, 

 and I think 1 may well say " better " 

 than any other bees 1 liave ever seen. 

 In this short article I wish to point 

 out the reason for tliese two different 

 conditions of affairs, and how I ex- 

 changed one for the other. I began 

 my crossings as I have said before, 

 from not only I lie best honey gather- 

 ing strains of each race, but likewise 

 the best behaved, viz. : the leather- 

 colored Italians, and the larger brown, 

 or gray variety of Germans. I took, 

 and still take the ground, that the 

 German bee is much better-iiatured 

 than the Italians. The reverse of this 

 has been supposed to be the case by 

 bee-keepers who have used both, and 

 from the quite reasonable reason that 

 they have received more slings from 

 handling German bees. 



Now let us see if such results come 

 about because the Germans have the 

 meanest disposition. Bees seldom 

 craw'l on the hand.s to sting. We re- 

 ceive almost entirely all of our stings 

 (except where bees are pinched, in 

 ■which case all bees sting alike) from 

 bees that take wing while being 

 handled when opening hives, etc. 

 Now one marked difference between 

 Germans and Italians is that German 

 bees tly into the air, and roll and 

 tumble oft' the combs, falling into the 

 air, and then taking; wing very much 

 more than do Italians. Considering 

 the number they put into the air, we 

 do not receive half as many stings 

 from Germans as from Italians, 

 though at the sam« time we may re- 

 ceive as many or more. Evidences of 

 the innate mean disposition of the 

 Italian bee are numerous. Their ob- 

 stinancy in heeding the admonitions 



of the smoker, on being driven from 

 one point to another, when hiving or 

 forcing swarms ; their readiness to all 

 tip up their abdomen and stick out 

 their stings when the hive is opened 

 during cool weather and many others. 

 Now, if this more irascible Italian 

 bee is crossed with Germans, and the 

 offspring inherit the mean, surly dis- 

 position of the Italians, at the same 

 time the loose footed, and very ready 

 tendency to take wing of the Ger- 

 mans, their product will be nearly 

 as mean as Cyprians or Syrians are 

 reported to be, and you have the old- 

 fashioned " naughty hybrid." But 

 on the other hand, if in our crossings 

 we carefully foster that valuable pro- 

 pensity of tlie Italian of crawling 

 about the combs, keeping themselves 

 quiet and evenly distributed over 

 tnem while being handled, in the 

 point of gentleness you gain vihatever 

 your bees inherit of the really more 

 amiable disposition of the Germans. 

 Upon tliis plan I have worked, and in 

 this way I have produced the strain 

 of bees I now possess — one which sur- 

 prises visitors and students when 

 they see hybrids more gentle than 

 any other bees they are used to 

 handling. 



Whenever any of tlie disposition to 

 fly into the air or tumble off combs 

 crops out among our stock, we make 

 haste to weed it out, replacing it with 

 the best in the apiary. All the above 

 points are simple, and I think well 

 known facts and deductions. 



Dowagiac, Mich., July 26, 1883. 



Howard, Secretary, Kingston ; D. W. 

 Yeager, Treasurer, Kingston. 



The constitution and by-laws of the 

 State, with the necessary changes, 

 were adopted. 



The organization shall be known as 

 the Hunt County (Texas) Bee-Keeji- 

 ers' Association, and shall hold its 

 meetings semi-annually. 



Several important subjects were 

 discussed with interest to all present, 

 and a general good time prevailed. 



Dr. Howard exhibited all kinds of 

 improved appliances used in modern 

 bee-keeping, as well as line Italian 

 bees, which were remarkable for the 

 gentle and quiet manner in which 

 they moved about upon the combs, 

 when handled without smoke or pro- 

 tection. 



A general expression of thanks was 

 tendered Mrs. Howard for her kind 

 hospitality in entertaining her guests, 

 and to the Doctor for his efforts to 

 make the meeting pleasant. 



The Convention adjourned to meet 

 on Thursday, Oct. 2.5, 1883. 



Wm. R. Howard, Sec. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Hunt Co., Texas, Convention. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Use of Broad Frames, etc. 



W. Z. HUTCHINSON. 



Pursuant to a call published by the 

 leading bee-keepers in Hunt County, 

 Texas, a convention was held at Dr. 

 Wm. R. Howard's residence, on the 

 19th day of July, 1SS3, for the purpose 

 of effecting a permanent organization. 

 I. II. Ilightower was called to the 

 chair, and D. W. Yeager \yas chosen 

 secretary pro tern. 



The object of the convention was 

 explained by the cliairman, and a few 

 timely remarks on the importance of 

 thus associating ourselves together 

 were made by several persons. 



The convention went into perma- 

 nent organization with the following 

 named members : 



Wm. R. Graham, Rev. C. A. Rus- 

 sell, Greenville; Rev. I. H. High- 

 tower, Rev. D. W. Yeager, L. J. 

 Green, J. E. Spoonemore, Wm. M. 

 Matthews, Jasper McCuUough, R. N. 

 Guest, Rev. W. H.Fitz.J. W. Farmer, 

 J. H.Maxwell. Wm. T. Hodges, Dr. 

 Wm. R. Howard, Kingston ; Wm. E. 

 Lowry, White Rock ; S. E. Smith, 

 Leonard, Fannin County. Lady mem- 

 bers: Mrs. W. R. (Traham, "Green- 

 ville; Mrs. S. E.Smith, Mrs. J. H. 

 Manlove, Leonard ; Mrs. Wm. R. 

 Howard, Kingston. 



The organization then proceeded 

 to the election of officers with the 

 following result : 



William R. Graham, President, 

 Greenville ; I. H. Ilightower, Vice- 

 President, Kingston ; William R. 



Please allow me to thank Mr. W. 

 H. Ilarraer for his article on page 3.57. 

 I now see that my article copied from 

 the Coimiry Gentleman, might give the 

 impression that I advocated the use 

 of broad frames for holding sections. 

 Such is not the case, and, if obliged to 

 use them, I should give up the pro- 

 duction of comb hoiiey. It was that 

 very " Heddon section rack," or 

 rather case, that converted me to a 

 comb-honey man. " Eight sections in 

 a broad frame," is an argument often 

 used in favor of frames IT^g inches 

 loifg, and at present it has weight, 

 but it will " grow smaller by degrees 

 and beautifully less." I have used 

 broad frames "just a little," just 

 enough to know what they will do. 

 They will give the bees too much sur- 

 plus room at once ; they will allow the 

 bees to linish the lower tier of sec- 

 tions first, and then "tramp" over 

 them while hlling the upper tier; they 

 will bother the bee-keeper when try- 

 ing to reverse the sections. Why, I 

 can take the whole 28 sections from 

 the Heddon case while somebody else 

 is getting out the Hrst section from a 

 broad frame ! Broad frames may 

 hang on quite a while, but they are 

 doomed. Separators ditto. When 

 the Heddon case and sections 1?i 

 inches wide, tilled with foundation, 

 are used, separators are entirely use- 

 less. 



Just a few words more in regard to 

 the standard Langstroth frame. 

 Webster defines the word standard as 

 "that which is established by au- 

 thority." If ;Mr. Langstroth is not 

 authority upon this subject, who is V 

 If he cannot change the standai'd, 

 who can ? We all know that stan- 

 dards can be changed. France 

 changed her standard of weights and 

 measures to the metric system ; our 

 school boards often change the stan- 



