1594 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 15 



In one other hive, after the division-board 

 had been in place two days I put the old 

 queen on one side. Cells had been started 

 on the other side, and these I removed and 

 allowed a newly hatched virgin to run in. 

 After she became fertile I took out the board 

 and put in the queen-excluder. I notice that 

 the old queen is now missing, but both of 

 them worked together all summer. 



On Sept. 15th I divided three of the ten- 

 frame colonies and made six, each having a 

 queen. 



Fruita, Colo. 



[The plan here described is one that we 

 have worked in our queen-rearing yards a 

 good many times. The same principle has 

 been used by Mr. Alexander, and is, in fact, 

 used by several others; but instead of a per- 

 forated zinc division-board in one brood- 

 nest, two stories are used with a perforated 

 honey-board between. There is no trouble 

 in working the two-queen system in connec- 

 tion with perforated zinc; but the problem 

 is not so easy of solution when it is not used. 

 —Ed.] 



GOVERNMENT CONTROL OF BEE TERRITORY. 



Dr. Miller's Stray Straw on control of ter- 

 ritory, in Gleanings for Sept. 15, it seems 

 to me, is a stray Straw indeed. The case of 

 the stock-raiser, which he instances, is not a 

 parallel one. The stock-raiser either owns 

 the pasturage, rents it, or is a trespasser, and 

 liable to ejectment. He does not by legisla- 

 tive enactment occupy territory owned by 

 another without the owner's consent. If the 

 doctor can manage in some way to hopple 

 his bees, by clipping their wings or other- 

 wise, so that they may be kept within his 

 own boundary, or if he can manage in some 

 way to grow wings on the stock-raiser's cat- 

 tle, so they may roam indefinitely, he will 

 have produced a parallelism. 



Looking at the " bread and butter " side of 

 the question, how about the poultry specialist 

 and fruit-grower specialist, as well as every 

 other specialist? Let us have a "square 

 deal," and ask for legislative protection for 

 Mrs. Wigg's cabbage-patch, Pat's potato- 

 patch, and every other special patch for the 

 production of ' ' bread and butter ' ' which 

 may be. in some way, adversely affected by 

 the farm production of the same article of 

 commerce. Why not? On reflection, there 

 are so many objections to thus paternalizing 

 the government that I believe after all we'd 

 better not do it. 



Just one thing more which I can not allow 

 to pass unnoticed; viz., "pastime bee-keep- 



ing." I can not think (or, rather, may I not 

 say I know7) that brother Miller does not 

 mean to insinuate that my conclusions on the 

 subject of control of territory are the result 

 of "pastime bee-keeping;" but if "bread and 

 butter" were the object I'd reason different- 

 ly. It may be that that's the way of the 

 world; but it suits me to be a little odd in 

 that respect. Wm. M. Whitney. 



Lake Geneva, Wis. 



the MASSACHUSETTS BEE-KEEPERS' ASSOCI- 

 ATION; THE FIRST MEETING OF THE 

 SEASON. 



We held our first meeting for this season 

 in the Ford Building, Boston, Nov. 21. Pres- 

 ident Farmer presided. Our secretary read 

 the reports from the former secretary, Mr. 

 Fogg, which were very pleasant to hear, giv- 

 ing an account of the field meeting which 

 was held at Mr. Adams' place in Byfield last 

 August, at which there was a good atten- 

 dance, and which was enjoyed by all present. 

 Mr. Farmer was chosen president of the so- 

 ciety for the ensuing year at this field meet- 

 ing, and a new lady secretary was also 

 chosen. Our next regular meeting will be 

 the first Saturday in December in the cven- 

 ing. As there are to be only six meetings, 

 the society, or its members, voted to have 

 half of them in the evening. This society has 

 quite a number of members; and, with its 

 good constitution, it is hoped there will be 

 an increase. There were fifteen present at 

 our first meeting, and the time passed very 

 pleasantly, sevei'al members relating their ex- 

 perience the past summer. This was interest- 

 ing, as it takes in all parts of the State dur- 

 ing the honey season. A nice collation was 

 served by our president, and the meeting 

 closed at about 5 o'clock. 



Belmont, Mass. X. A. Reed. 



ALEXANDER'S SCHEME OF EXTRACTING AND 

 FEEDING BACK TO STIMULATE BROOD- 

 REARING. 



In Gleanings, p. 1377, Mr. E. W. Alexan- 

 der says: "We commenced to extract all 

 capped honey from the brood-nest about May 

 1, and in its place, tvhen necessary, we feed 

 a little thin honey or sugar syrup daily for 

 about a month. This is, no doubt, a sound 

 theory; but what puzzles me is the phrase 

 when necessary. Surely it is necessary to re- 

 place the food when taken out, especially at 

 such time of the season. By such word must 

 we understand that we have to feed a little 

 every day until the colony finding nectar 

 ceases to go to the feeder? Frs. Benoit. 



Notre-Dame-des-Neiges, Q., Can. 



[Mr. Alexander feeds practically all of his 

 colonies; that is to say, he takes away their 

 stores and then feeds them back to them. 

 This may seem like a queer procedure; but 

 he is working on the theory that stores that 

 the bees manipulate cause them to rear 

 brood when they would not rear it if it were 

 sealed in the combs. If you leave out the 

 words "when necessary" you will be able to 

 understand better what is meant. 



