PUBLISHED EVERY WEEK 



AT $1.00 PER ANNUM. 



35th Year. 



CHICAGO, ILL., OCT. 3, 1895. 



No.. 40. 



Report of the Proceedings 



OF THE 



Twenty-Sixth Annual Convention 



OF THE 



North American Bee-Reepers' Association, 



HELD AT 



TORONTO, Ont., Sept. 4, 5 and 6, 1895. 



W. Z. HUTCHINSON, SEC. 



(Continued from page 615.) 



Xhe First Importation of Italian Bees into 

 America. 



At this point, Father Langstroth entered the hall, when 

 the members all rose to their feet, and, greeting him with 

 three rousing cheers, remained standing until he had reached 

 his seat on the platform. He very feelingly thanked the con- 

 vention, saying that the respect and good-will of so many good 

 men and women were more to him than gold and silver. 



He then gave a brief history of the first importation of 

 Italian bees iuto this country. Mr. S. B. Parsons was the 

 man who made the first importation. His bees were brought 

 in the original hives. They had stood the packing on mules' 

 backs and the ocean voyage, and then were badly damaged by 

 being loaded into wagons and driven over rough stone pave- 

 ments. Mr. Parsons knew but little about bee-keeping, and 

 followed the advice of those who told him that bees must be 

 shut in or they would fly away. The hives were put into a 

 shed, and netting put up to keep the bees in. He was told to 

 feed them, and platters filled with sweets were put out, and at- 

 tracted other bees, and robbing was soon the order of the day. 

 Father Langstroth was invited to come and examine the bees. 

 He found them all dead except one queen and a handful of 

 bees. This queen he introduced to a strong colony, and in 

 this manner she was saved. 



In the second shipment were three lots — one for Mr. Par- 

 sons, one for the Government Patent Office and one for Mr. 

 Mahan. Those for the Patent Office and for Mr. Mahan were 

 all dead, and of the Parsons lot only two queens remained 

 alive. One of these queens was placed in the hands of Mr. 

 Wm. Gary and the other entrusted to Father Langstroth. 



Mr. Gary was very successful, rearing all the queens for 

 which there was any demand. In those days a black queen 

 and a bright yellow one was seen to hatch from the same 

 comb. The drones were dark and mixed in color. Thinking 

 that they had impure stock, these men went to work to get 

 other stock, but, as Father Langstroth remarked, " We now 

 know that color in queens and drones is not an indication of 

 impurity, but this question is decided by the workers." 



The first person to think of importing Italian bees was Sato- 

 uel Wagner. He sent for some of them, and money was fur- 

 nished the mate of the vessel to buy feed for them, but he 

 thinks that the mate ate the honey and let the bees starve. 



Mr. Thos. G. Newman told how well known Mr. Langstroth 

 was in Europe. When Mr. Newman was traveling there in 

 1879, and told some of the prominent bee-keepers the story of 

 Father Langstroth^how he had been cheated and robbed, and 

 that he was now in need of assistance — those gentlemen went 

 down deep In their pockets and made up a generous purse to 



send to him. Mr. Newman hoped that we would be none the 

 less generous. ^^-^ 



Next came an essay by Mr. V. A. Gemniill, of Stratford, 

 Ont., on 



■Who Shall Winter Bees in the Cellar; W^ho 

 Out-of-Doors? 



The above is indeed a poser, and just why I should have 

 been selected to contribute an essay on such a comprehensive 

 subject, rather baffles me. Having, however, undertaken the 

 task, I am, as a matter of course, expected to make some 

 statements, even if they do not harmonize in trjto with the ex- 

 perience of others. 



The fact is, that seasons, conditions and surroundings 

 really seem to differ, even in the same localities, one year with 

 another, that we frequently find tiiose who at one time strong- 

 ly advocate one particular kind of wintering, changing their 

 methods, and just as strongly recommending and practicing 

 another. Without, therefore, attempting to lay down a gen- 

 eral rule for all to follow, I will take the more discreet plan of 

 asserting, that the safest method for each individual to follow, 

 is the one which, after a thorough trial, has been found most 

 successful with himself. 



Now, although such advice is both sound and rational, it 

 is nevertheless more applicable to those who are already quite 

 satisfied with the plan they have been following, and who 

 have no intention of again changing. I therefore assume, 

 that some suggestions or reasons are to be outlined, in order to 

 assist those who may yet be in doubt as to what course to pur- 

 sue in the future. 



As time, labor, and expense, are fractions which, on ac- 

 count of the low price of honey, enter largely into modern api- 

 culture, any method or system which will assist in reducing 

 such to a minimum, by securing the best returns at the least 

 expense, is the method sought for, and the wintering problem 

 in the Northern States and Ganada, may rightfully be consid- 

 ered as the primary one in securing the end in view, as prop- 

 erly wintered bees are, as a matter of fact, a necessity, conse- 

 quently too much experimenting in this direction, especially 

 on a large scale, is to be avoided, except by those who can af- 

 ford to indulge in such a luxury, if such it can be termed. 



On the other hand, I am not quite certain that the majority 

 of those who practice either one or the .other of the methods 

 herein outlined, are thoroughly satisfied that the acme of per- 

 fection has yet been attained, and as "an open confession is 

 good for the soul," I must also admit my doubts in this respect, 

 but until some more perfect manner is found, we can only con- 

 tinue doing the best we know how, which, even with our pres- 

 ent knowledge, if always properly carried out, would give far 

 more satisfactory results. 



To those, therefore, who have the facilities for wintering 

 inside — such as a good cellar, or repository built especially for 

 the purpose — and can succeed in bringing the bees through so 

 perfectly that spring packing of the hives is not a necessity, 

 when removed from their winter quarters, on account of the 

 exposed location of the apiary — to those I would say, continue 

 to winter in the cellar. My own experience in this direction 

 so far, has proved that the quality of the stores, in this as 

 with outside wintering, is the first consideration, with the ex- 

 ception that a less quantity will suffice, with a still less neces- 

 sity of it being concentrated in one particular portion of the 

 hive. 



The humidity of the repository is not to be ignored, al- 

 though dampness is not detrimental, if the other conditions 



