1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



479 



natural swarming' a larva intended for a 

 queen from the time it first breaks its shell 

 is nursed all its larval life with a fondness 

 equal to anj' mother's fondness for her 

 child; and in this nursing- we have the part 

 which plays for good or evil in the future 

 queen." 



" What do you mean by that emphasized, 

 ' all its larval life ' ? " 



" I mean that, from the very outset, the 

 larva from an egg laid in a queen-cell by 

 the mother queen is fed with royal food, 

 and nursed for a queen; while with an e.^^ 

 laid in a worker-cell, the larva is fed and 

 cared for a longer or shorter period, as a 

 worker bee, and not for a queen." 



"Yes, I see. But is the food given the 

 queen larva at the outset different from that 

 given the worker larva when it is first 

 hatched from the ^^^1 " 



" I have never been able to discover that 

 it was, and I think that the majority of our 

 best bee-keepers of to-day believe that the 

 food given all larvie for the first 48 hours of 

 their existence is the same." 



*' That being the case, then it would seem 

 to me that the matter rested on the condi- 

 tions rather than in the matter of food." 



" That is the way I look at it; and if by 

 anj' means we can secure a like condition 

 for the just-hatched larva from an egg- laid 

 in a worker-cell, we can secure a like-con- 

 ditioned queen." 



" Do }'ou think that the majority of queen- 

 breeders secure these like conditions? " 



'• I do. I have not had the experience of 

 some in receiving from queen-breeders 

 queens of which 90 per cent turned out poor, 

 or ' as worthless as so many house-flies ' as 

 one writer puts it. I have rarely received 

 any thing but first-class queens in all I 

 have purchased; and from these queens 

 purchased, and from what I know of several 

 of our queen-breeders, I have not a single 

 doubt that thousands of the queens sent out 

 by queen-breeders are every whit as good 

 as those reared under natural swarming, 

 for I am satisfied that the most of our queen- 

 breeders to-day spare no pains to bring 

 about an equally favorable condition to that 

 under which natural swarming is conduct- 

 ed, while rearing their queens. Don't mis- 

 understand me, and think there is no dan- 

 ger of producing poor queens, for there is. 

 Much poorer queens than those reared un- 

 der natural swarming can be produced, and 

 will be, unless the work of queen-rearing 

 is rightly done; and it was because that, in 

 the infancy of the queen-rearing business, 

 very little attention was paid to the condi- 

 tion of the colonies while they were feeding 

 the embr3'o queens, that the subject of 

 where the eggs were laid was advanced." 



" Then you think I can raise good queens 

 when I wish them, do 30U, even should I trj' 

 it outside of the time when the bees are 

 swarming? " 



" Others have done this; and to say oth- 

 erwise in your case would be to say that 

 you were not equal to the general average 

 of our queen-breeders." 



" I suppose 3'ou do not wish to take time 

 now to tell me all about how good queens 

 can be reared at any time of the year? " 



" I am always willing to do almost any 

 thing to accommodate; but to take the time 

 to tell you all about rearing good queens at 

 this busy time of the year would not be 

 reasonable, and would be out of the ques- 

 tion in this department, even were I inclined 

 to spare the time to do so. Nearly all of 

 the bee-books treat on the subject of queen- 

 rearing, and there are two or three books 

 devoted especially to that branch of apicul- 

 ture. Send to the publishers of Gleanings 

 for their book list and then select such as 

 seems good in your sight. After having 

 read the book selected, if there is any thing 

 you do not understand regarding queen- 

 rearing, then I shall be glad to talk with' 

 you on the subject, trying to make it as 

 plain as possible. But before parting, al- 

 low me to say that God placed man at the 

 head of, and gave him control over, all ani- 

 mate nature, and thus it has come to pass 

 that he has been enabled to equal, if not to 

 improve, every thing which he has turned 

 his hand to; and the rearing of queens 

 is no exception to this rule. And if you 

 will study up on this matter by careful 

 reading, I have not the least doubt but you 

 will succeed as well as and perhaps better 

 than those who have come before you in the 

 business." 



Our latest advices from California seem 

 to indicate that the season is not going to 

 be as prosperous there as was at first ex- 

 pected. But there will be enough honey to 

 sweeten up the bee-keepers at the big con- 

 vention that is to be held at Los Angeles. 

 Do not forget to make your calculations to 

 attend that grand meeting. 



We were threatened with a drouth during 

 the fore part and middle of May; in fact, no 

 rain fell from the 3d to the 22d; but on the 

 latter date a good shower arrived just in 

 time, and none too soon, to revive nature. A 

 few light showers have followed since, up 

 to to-daj', the 26th, and the prospects for a 

 good crop of clover were never better. In- 

 deed, I never saw more white clover in the 

 fields than now. The heavy rains of last 

 season developed an enormous growth of 

 the plant, and the beautiful little white 

 heads are dotting the fields everywhere. 



Mis.s LoDEMi.\ Bennett, of Bedford, O., 

 died on the 16th of last April at the resi- 

 dence of J. B. Hains. Miss Bennett was a 



