THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



525 



northwestern Bee-Keepers' Society. 



The Northwestern Bee - Keepers' 

 Society metatOvvsley's Hall, Chicago, 

 111., on Wednesday, Oct. 17, at 10 a. 

 m., President C. 0. Miller in the 

 Chair. 



Secretary T. G. Newman read the 

 minutes of the last meeting, which 

 were approved. He also read the 

 Treasurer's report, which was ac- 

 cepted and approved. On motion, 

 the Rev. L. L. Langstroth, who was 

 present, was made an honorary life 

 member. 



The following members then paid 

 their dues: 



James Heddon, Dowagiac, Mich. 

 T. L. Von Dorn, Omaha, Neb. 

 Dr. J. Oren. La Porte, City, Iowa. 

 T. S. Bull, Valparaiso, Ind. 

 H. D. Burrell, Bangor, Mich. 

 F. Wilcox, Mauston, AVis. 

 H. O. Morris, Tiskilwa, 111. 

 A. S. Haskins, Lawrence, Mich. 

 Eobert Cissna, Hageman, lud. 

 •C. L. Sweet, Glenwood, 111. 

 James Kuhles, Howard, 111. 



E. Whittlesey, Pecatonica, 111. 

 . W. D. Angell, Odell, 111. 



J. M. Ilyne, Stewartsville, Ind. 

 P. Morningstar, Wakarusa, Ind. 

 H. W. Lee, Pecatonica, 111. 



F. II. Hannah, Hinsdale, 111. 

 H. Newhaus, Burlington, Wis. 



G. B. Lewis, Watertown, Wis. 



A. B. Miller, Wakarusa, Ind. 



B. J. Miller, Nappanee, Ind. 

 Mark Davis, Lisle, 111. 



E. S. Hovey, Swanton, Iowa. 

 J. E. Hunter, Wyoming, Iowa. 

 Xenophon Caverno, Lombard, 111. 

 A. Wecherts, Mattison, 111. 

 Hugo VoUand, Mattison, Til. 

 John Hodgson, Jr., Penaukee, Wis. 



F. A. Snell, Milledgevili:-. 111. 



J. S. Hooton, New Carii.sle, Ind. 



G. H. Shirley, Richmond, 111. 



D. S. McKinstry, Grant Park, 111. 

 T. F. Bingham, Abronia, Mich. 

 Otis J. tfaudy, Churubusco, Ind. 

 J. Scott, Oelwein, Iowa. 



' Wm. Burns, Buchanan, Mich. 

 S. M. Slade, Elgin, 111. 

 James Forncrook, Watertown, Wis. 

 P. E. Marstou, Beloit, Wis. 

 Wm. Camm, Murrayville, 111. 



E. LucaSj Kirkland, 111. 

 Chas. Vail, Michigan City, Ind. 

 T. D. Ward,Lawton, Mich. 

 Wm. Blake, Buchanan, Mich. 

 J. Marvin, St. Charles, 111. 

 Geo. Thompson, Geneva, 111. 



S. E. Gernon, Waukesha, Wis. 

 T. G. Newman, Chicago, III. 

 Dr. C. C. Miller, Maieugo. 111. 

 M. L. Trester, Lincoln, Neb. 



E. T. Flanagan, Belleville, III. 



W. Z. Hutchinson, Rogersville, Mich. 

 Emil J. Baxter, Nauvoo, 111. 

 Capt. J. E. White, Eiiglewood, 111. 

 Geo. BischofE, Burlington, Iowa. 

 J. S. Harris, Wheeler, lud. 

 W. T. F. Petty, Pittslield, 111. 

 W. A. Carmack, Marengo, 111. 



F. W. S. Brawley, Chicago, 111. 



M. M. Baldridge, St. Charles, III. 

 Richard Hyde, Alderly, Wis. 

 P. J. England, Fancy Prairie, 111. 

 .lohn A. Jensen, Channahon, 111. 

 A. T. Wright, Kokoiuo, Ind. 

 S. N. Black, Clayton, III. 

 A. Wicherts. Mattison, 111. 

 R. G. Ardrey, Oakdale, 111. 

 R. Johnson, Valparaiso, Ind. 

 Hugo Valland, MatUson, 111. 



D. Ryther, Somonauk, 111. 



E. F. Seafer, Chesterton, Ind. 

 Geo. Grimm, .lefferson. Wis. 

 J. C. Giould, Paw Paw, ^Nlich. 



D. G. AVebster, Blaine, 111. 



A. II. Sherman, Bethel, Mich. 

 Frank McNay, Mauston, Wis. 

 L. H. Scudder, New Boston, 111. 



E. J. Oatman, Dundee, 111. 



L. C. Wemple, Rogers Park, 111. 



J. A. Green, Dayton, III. 



Dr. J. A. Walker, Mason City, 111. 



P. P. Nelson, Manteno, III. 



A. AV. Kistenbroker, Oak Park, HI. 



LADY JIEMBERS. 



Mrs. p. J. England, Fancy Prairie, 

 111. 



Miss M. Hall, Sweet AA- ater. III. 



Mrs. Dr. Miller, Marengo, 111. 



Miss Emma AVilson, Marengo, 111. 



Miss S. Shibley, Richmond, 111. 



Mrs. L. Harrison, Peoria, III. 



Mrs. AA^hite, Englewood, 111. 



Mrs. Bischoff, Burlington, Iowa. 



Mary A. Davis, Lisle, III. 



Miss Jennie Ilayner.M. D.,Cliicago. 



Mrs. A. C. Starkweather, AVilming- 

 ton. 111. 



Mrs. F. AVilcox, Mauston, Wis. 



Mrs. E. H. AAMiitney, Chicago. 



Mrs. J. Heddon, Dowagiac, Mich. 



President Miller started the ball to 

 rolling by reading from the question 

 box, " AA'hat kind of bees are best V" 



Geo. Thompson, Geneva, 111., 

 thought that the Syrians, in their 

 purity, undesirable, but considered 

 a judicious cross between them and 

 the Italians an excellent bee. Syrians 

 are very prolitic, breed up quickly, 

 and, hence, are very desirable in 

 localities where the main honey har- 

 vest comes eirly in the season. 



T. F. Biii'4iiam: You speak of a 

 judicious cross, will you please tell 

 us what vnu mean? 



Geo. Thompson : Oae-third Syrian, 

 thf- remainder Italian. 



Rev. L. L. Langstroth : I have 

 uoLiced that the Italians stop breed- 

 ing early in the season. Mr. D. A. 

 Jones told me that he preferred a 

 cross between the Italians and Syrians. 



James Heddon : If you were going 

 into bee-keeping again, is it your 

 opinion, Mr. Langstroth, that you 

 would have a pure variety or a cross ? 



Rev. L. L. Langstroth : It is my 

 opinion that I should prefer a cross. 



F. AVilcox : I cannot get the Ital- 

 ians into boxes so readily as I can the 

 blacks. 



James Heddon : I have never had 

 a Syrian or Cyprian queen in or near 

 my apiary, and, until we can get bet- 

 ter reports from them than we have, 

 I never shall. I see no advantage in 

 very early or late breeding. My bees 

 do not die any more in winters when 

 they cease breeding early in the sea- 

 son. Neither do I consider extra pro- 

 liQcness of the queen anything of 



which to boast. Large colonies of 

 young bees, in the fall, winter no bet- 

 ter ; sometimes not so well. 



AA'^m. Camm : I prefer pure Ital- 

 ians. The Syrians do not proi)erly 

 ripen and seal the honey, and in no 

 manner do they show a superiority 

 over the Italians. Have tried crossing 

 them with the Italians. A Syrian 

 queen mated with a black drone pro- 

 duces a more amiable bee than au 

 Italian queen mated with a Syrian 

 drone, but I never saw a gentle Syrian 

 with any system of management. 



E. J. Baxter: AVith me the Cyp- 

 rians have no advantages over the 

 Italians, while they are very viscious, 

 even after the hive is closed, they will 

 follow a long distance to sting. I pre- 

 fer pure Italians. I have tried blacks, 

 but do not like them. I like to have 

 bees breed late in the season, but 

 think extra proliticuess of no account. 



James Marvin : I prefer the Italians. 



James Heddon : If there is a mem- 

 ber present who has gentle Syrians or 

 Cyprians, I should be glad to hear 

 from him. 



J. A. Green : I have Syrians bred 

 from a queen obtained from A. I. 

 Root, and they are gentle. 



James Heddon : There is one dif- 

 ficulty in deciding this question, and 

 that is, all breeders are not honest. 

 And then all bee-keepers cannot dis- 

 tinguish one variety of bees from 

 another. For instance, in 1881, a noted 

 breeder sent me a Syrian queen, and 

 wished me to send him in return a 

 queen of my strain of bees. Now, I 

 did not want the queen in my yard, 

 and I hardly knew what to tell the 

 breeder, but I finally decjded, for the 

 benefit of the fraternity, to lay aside 

 my conscientious scruples. AVhat did 

 I do y AA^ell, I will tell you. I took 

 the Syrian queen and put her into one 

 of rav shipping cages and returned 

 her, together with a long letter, asking 

 the breeder to give my strain of bees 

 a careful trial, and see if they did not 

 compare favorably in marking, in- 

 dustry, general character, etc., with 

 other bees. He reported a care- 

 ful examination, and never once 

 suspected they came from him. 

 If I were producing extracted 

 honey, and nothing else, I should be 

 satisfied with the dark, leather-col- 

 ored Italians, but for the production 

 of comb honey I prefer a cross be- 

 tween this variety and the brown 

 German bee. 



J. A. Green : I see no difference in 

 the appearance of Italians and Syrians, 

 but the Syrian queen that I had was 

 one of Mr. Boot's selected tested 

 queens. 



J. C. Gould : Mv experience has 

 been that pure Syrians are not so 

 irritable as a cross between Italians 

 and blacks. Queens in Italian colo- 

 nies are more readily found. 



James Heddon : 1 have no trouble 

 in finding queens in my hybrid colo- 

 nies. 



T. F. Bingham: The purer my 

 Italians are, the least liable are they 

 to swarm. My hybrids swarm most. 



James Iledclon : The same colony 

 does not behave the same, nor store 

 honey with the same industry each 

 season ; why is it V 



