930 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Nov. 1 



way, which we know was pure honey, and 

 I think it came from raspberry- blossoms. 

 There are many different flavors of pure 

 honey. I think Mr. Wauford. in refj;ard to 

 his honey, is like the man who says king-- 

 birds catch drones only. Let them open a 

 few and see. Every bee- keeper should shoot 

 all the king-birds he can. There will be 

 enough left then. They are the meanest 

 bird that flies, to any other bird they can 

 boss. A. E. Marlow. 



Cape Vincent, N. Y., Aug. 5. 



SKUNKS, HOW TO TRAP THEM. 



We have had some experience the past 

 summer with forced swarms, which maj' be 

 of value in showing the best way to make 

 them. The greater part were made by 

 drumming most of the bees and the queen 

 up into a hive containing empty frames 

 with starters, which was then set upon a 

 bottom-board on the old stand. Out of all 

 so treated, not one attempted to abscond; 

 while the swarms that were brushed gave 

 so much trouble that we gave up that plan 

 altogether. 



I notice that some of your readers have 

 had considerable loss from skunks. I found 

 that they were eating a good many of our 

 bees, keeping seme of the colonies weak, 

 although they were rearing plenty of brood. 

 Poisoning is dangerous at best, so we com- 

 menced trapping. By nearly burying an 

 egg in the ground a short distance from the 

 apiary, and setting a steel trap over it, we 

 caught six or seven in a short time. The 

 trap, of course, should be set only at night. 



Besides scratching on the hives, as your 

 ABC book says, the skunks would comb 

 out the grass around the hive-entrances 

 with their claws, to get the bees that came 

 out of ihe hives, I suppose. The grass was 

 so combed out in front of most of our sixty 

 hives, before we began trapping. I find no 

 signs of any depredations now, and the 

 weak colonies have strengthened up consid- 

 erably. F. H. Harvey. 



Battle Creek, Mich., Sept. 24. 



DOES DISTURBING THE BEES CAUSE THEM 

 TO BALL A OUEEN ? 



In manipulating bees in the fall after 

 the honey season, as setting in sealed stores 

 from the upper story of a swarm that has 

 been used for extracting, is there danger in 

 having the bees ball the queen if the apia- 

 rist uses lots of smoke? M. H. Hill. 



Mattoon, Wis. 



[There will be no danger of causing the 

 bees to ball the queen; indeed, an excess 

 of smoke would have the very opposite ef- 

 fect. Do not get the impression that smoke 

 or disturbing the bees, from any thing that 

 has occurred in Gleanings lately, has a 

 tendency to cause the bees to ball the queen. 

 The instances of this kind are so rare that 

 they are hardly worth taking account of.— 

 Ed.] 



"southern honey" not of POOR QUAL- 

 ITY. 



It gives me special pleasure to see that 

 you are trying to give the Southern bee- 

 keeper's interest due consideration, arrd 

 that you have left off using the term 

 "Southern honey." The name is all right, 

 but you know for what purpose it has been 

 used by some. We passed that stage long 

 ago. The war is over, and the bee-keepers 

 of the South are taking special interest in 

 their product. L. W. Avant. 



Atascosa, Tex., Sept. 19. 



LIGHTING SMOKERS. 



I have read so much about lighting smo- 

 kers, etc., I thought nothing was equal to 

 live coals. I find that, if one will roll a 

 piece of crocus sack, laying a small piece 

 of paper on it before rolling it up, then roll 

 it up tight, and tie a string around it snug; 

 drop a little coal oil on this roll or ball — 

 not too much; light it; drop this ball into 

 the smoker, then put in your wood, your 

 fire is made. It will surprise you to see 

 what a splendid smoke it will make, and 

 the length of time it will keep the smoke. 

 Do not make the roll or ball too large. Roll 

 it up tight. H. BooTON. 



Richmond, Texas. 



THE LEAN AND THE FAT YEARS. 



I am not inclined to be critical, especial- 

 ly in matters that might properly be called 

 non-essentials in this case; but I thought, 

 after reading the editorial notice under one 

 of Dr. C. C. Miller's Straws, page 7^2, I 

 would suggest to you that you read up a 

 little on the history of the children of Isra- 

 el. I think you will find that the "lean 

 years that eat up the fat ones" was a con- 

 dition that occurred in Egj'pt rather than 

 in the wilderness, and was a matter that 

 concerned the Egyptians more directly than 

 the children of Israel. A. J. Kilgore. 



Bowling Green, O., Sept. 23. 



[Your point is well taken, friend K. I 

 had in mind the Israelites just a short time 

 before they left Egypt. — Ed.] 



COVERING THE BROOD-NEST FOR WINTER. 



Which is best to put over a brood-nest for 

 covering in winter — coarse cloth, burlap, 

 or enamel cloth? O. F. Hertzberg. 



Eaton Rapids, Mich., Sept. 1. 



[This is a mooted question. It all de- 

 pends on whether your locality has shown 

 that absorbing cushions are better than 

 sealed covers covered over with packing of 

 some sort. But the general consensus of 

 opinion, I think, is working slowly in favor 

 of sealed covers. In that case we would 

 use either enamel cloths or a plain thin 

 board which the bees could seal down, the 

 same covered with chaff, leaves, shavings, 

 or any porous material that could be readi- 

 ly obtained. — Ed.] 



