1883 



JUVENILE GLEANINGS. 



285 



4000 LBS. OF HONEY FROM 40 COLONIES. 



Papa had 40 colonies of bees to begin the season 

 with last year. He got 4000 lbs. of honey - 1000 lbs. 

 extracted and 3000 lbs. of comb. Papa packs his 

 bees in dry sawdust, on their summer stands. In 

 January he got 25 colonies of one of our neighbors. 

 He lost 4 out of the 25 colonies; and one weak, 

 queenless colony of those he had last fall. Papa has 

 kept bees for four years, and this is the first winter 

 he has lost any. This is my first letter. 



Inez Chapman, age 10. 



Millbury, Wood Co., Ohio, April, 1883. 



DECOY HIVES, AGAIN. 



I see in the last Juvenile that you ask who can 

 tell you about swarms of bees going Into empty 

 hives. I can tell you a little about it. T»vo or three 

 years ago we had some hives in the shop, that had 

 frames and comb in them. One day we found a lot 

 of bees flying through the shop, and the next day 

 the swarm came in through the open window and in- 

 to one of the hives. That evening my pa and uncle 

 took them to the apiary. 



Frank McCullough, age 9. 



Mercer, Mercer Co., Pa., April 26, 1883. 



Very good, I rank. The fact you give is a 

 valuable one. 



anna's papa, and his log-gum hive. 



Pa has one stand of bees this spring. He bought 

 two stands last winter. They both died. He bought 

 another this spring. It is working nicely; they are 

 in a round log gum. He thinks they are much bet- 

 ter than any other way. Anna B. Butt, age 11. 



Sherman ville, Casey Co., Ky., May 1, 1883. 



Now, Anna, I don't think your papa will 

 think keeping bees in log gums is better 

 than any other way, very long ; especially if 

 he reads the juvenile bee journal. I am 

 sure we can get him over that. Do you not 

 think so, children V 



clipping queens' wings, again. 



I want to give your 7-year-old bee-man credit for 

 giving the best plan for clipping queens' wings that 

 I ever heard of. My pa has improved a little on it, I 

 think. He overhauled 9 hives, and clipped all the 

 queens in less than half an hour. The greatest ad- 

 vantage to him is catching with the right hand. He 

 uses a small knife, and with the queen's fore feet 

 between his thumb and fore finger, he slips her 

 wings over the top edge of the hive, and runs the 

 knife right across her wings, which does the work 

 nicely. Julia A. Griffith, ago 12. 



Shadwell, Va., April 23, 1883. 



Pa has 60 swarms of bees, but I don't help him 

 tend them very much, as they sting me so badly 

 every time I go near them. Pa has got Mr. Novice 

 and Blue Eyes' picture in his album. I should like 

 to see Blue Eyes, and have a visit with her. I think 

 she looks so "cute" sitting on her pa's lap, but I 

 suppose she is too big now to sit there. I think I 

 should like some of the little cards to give away to 

 those who swear. I have an uncle who swears, aud 

 his little girl, only four years old, has learned it of 

 him. Rachel C. King. 



Newtonville, Iowa, April 22, 1883. 



You are right, Rachel, in thinking that 

 Blue Eyes has grown to be quite a large 

 girl ; but for all that she sits on her pa's lap 

 yet, and I hope she will for a good many 

 years to come.— It certainly is awful to think 



of a little girl four years old learning to 

 swear. We gladly send you some of the 

 cards, with a prayer with them that they 

 may be the means of awakening thought oh 

 the subject. 



Willis Phelps works for us, and he said that he 

 knew you quite well. He drives the 'bus for papa. 

 He has 2 swarms of bees in our garden. 



A short story about imported queens. 

 Willis sent to Italy for some Italian bees and a 

 queen. 1 can hardly tell the queen from the others. 

 Gertie McKissick, age 10. 

 Canon City, Colo., April 21, 1883. 



My little friend Gertie, your story reminds 

 me of the "story " of the man and the calf. 

 It was just this : — 



There was a man who had a calf, 



And that is half. 



He took it out of the stall, 



And tied it to the wall, and that is all. 



SIMEON (NOT "SIME") AND THE BEES. 



My pa has 10 stands of bees; they are doing very 

 well. Pa had 8 queen-cells. He put two into a nu- 

 cleus, and one into a large gum. The bees did not 

 like to have us work with them. They tried to sting 

 me and pa. I was smoking them, and I kept them 

 away. Every time pa would raise up the cloth they 

 would take after him. He would tell me to come 

 away. I would go away, and about half a dozen bees 

 would "foUer" me out. They would not get to sting 

 me, for I would smoke them away. I never got 

 stung more than once in my life. Mr. Root, don't 

 call me "Sime" any more. That is not my name. 

 My name is Simmeon Benjamin Carr. If you please, 

 send me Ten Nights in a Bar-Room. 



Simmeon B. Carr, age 11. 



Maysfleld, Texas, April 6, 1883. 



Why, Simmeon, I only called you " Sime " 

 because I thought you wrote it that way. 

 After all, isn't your name ISimeon with one m f 

 I am very glad you can use the smoker so as 

 not to get stung ; but I think I would give 

 those bees so much smoke to start with that 

 they wouldn't be '' follering " folks about 

 in that way. 



look out for the mice, etc. 

 Papa lost 2 stands in March. One of them the 

 field mice destroyed. Papa said he would give me 5 

 cents for every two I could catch. I caught 4 out of 

 one hive, and 2 out of another. The other 22 hives 

 are doing well. They stayed all winter where they 

 were last summer. Papa bought an albino queen 

 last summer. He was not at home when it came. 

 We fed her and the few bees with her, by dropping 

 honey on the wires over the cage for two days. 

 When papa came he put her in a hive that had no 

 queen. She disappeared, and we have not seen her 

 since. Papa gave me a swarm last year. They died 

 this spring, but I have got some more now. 



the RUNAWAY SWARM. 



Last week a swarm came from the woods, and 

 tried to get into one of papa's hives. Our bees 

 killed a heap of them; the others went back to the 

 woods, and settled on a low bunch of ivy. I followed 

 them and brought them back. I am feeding them 

 and will have a good hive of bees yet. Papa thinks 

 they are a swarm that went from here last summer. 

 They are half Italians. 



Chalcedony means a precious stone. Revelation 

 21:19. Wesley L. White. 



Broad Run Station, Va., April 17, 1883. 



