THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



233 



there placed, the honey from such 

 was to be frequently extracted. I 

 tested the hive for extracted honey 

 three seasons. I then arranged it for 

 cooib honey. I contracted the brood 

 department and gave a passage for 

 bees out and in. 1 placed a set of 

 honey-boxes in front of the brood- 

 nest, and one in the rear, and one and 

 two tiers on top. 



But for comb honey I could not run 

 the hive so as to control swarming, 

 and the hive was laid aside. It did 

 not suit me for extracted or comb 

 honey. I have taken the Ameuican 

 Bee Journal for 20 years, and it is 

 a real treat to look over the old num- 

 bers. In those days I could readily 

 get 2o cents per pound for all the 

 comb honey I could produce, and 15 

 to 18 cents for extracted honey. 



Milledgeville,-o Ills. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Tlie Preyention of Increase, 



E. C. L. LARCH, M. D. 



This is a subject of vast importance 

 to bee-keepers generally. When work- 

 ing for extracted honey there is but 

 little difficulty, hence I shall confine 

 myself to the production of comb 

 honey, having 15 years' experience in 

 the management of bees; three years 

 of the time was devoted to the task 

 of learning the instincts, nature and 

 habits of the " busy bee," and I have 

 in a measure succeeded. I usually 

 keep about 120 colonies, have no losses 

 to report during that time, and my 

 bees have a habit of doing just what 

 I expect them to do. 



The first thing to do, is to have no 

 old or decrepit queens; the queen 

 should be one year old, just in her 

 prime. Second, get the bees to work- 

 ing in the boxes as early as possible, 

 ' keep the hive shaded and sufficiently 

 ventilated to get the bees to work in 

 the boxes. Give them some founda- 

 tion in the brood-chamber, and when 

 the larvae is two or three days old, cut 

 this out and fasten a suitable amount 

 in the boxes, and the bees will always 

 commence work above, if strong 

 enough ; but should they resolve on 

 swarming, let them have their way, 

 and as soon as they are clustered. 

 open the hive and brush the bees off 

 of the combs into an empty hive, and 

 give them one comb of brood having 

 the oldest queen-cells. Return the 

 combs to the hive from whence they 

 were taken (first cutting out queen- 

 cells), and supply the place of the 

 comb that was taken out. with an 

 empty comb or foundation, or, what 

 is better still, move the frames to- 

 gether so as to contract the brood- 

 chamber, and place a division-board 

 on the outside of the combs. 



Return the honey-boxes or sections, 

 and hive the swarm and put it in a 

 new location. Thus you have the 

 swarming impulse effectually de- 

 stroyed, and the comb in the new hive 

 must remain on the old stand for a 

 nucleus for queen-rearing; give them 

 empty combs or frames of foundation 

 when needed, or. if preferred, unite 



these nuclei whenever there are 

 enough for a strong colony, and 

 enough bees to work in the sections 

 above ; also give them a good young 

 queen and they will, if rightly man- 

 aged, soon go to storing honey the 

 same as an old colony. 



By this plan the increase is limited 

 to 10 per cent, should they all swarm, 

 which they will nererdo, and, besides, 

 it is the most satisfactory plan that 

 can be adopted for securing comb 

 honey, and getting a moderate in- 

 crease, which may be always utilized 

 by doubling up weak colonies when- 

 ever the apiarist desires no increase 

 of colonies. But success depends 

 upon the knowledge and skill of the 

 apiarist, as well as upon his energy, 

 perseverance and industry. 



Ashland,© Mo. 



For tne Azneiican Uee Juumai. 



Legislation for Bee-Keeners, 



.J. E. POND. 



I had intended to drop the discus- 

 sion of this question entirely with my 

 last article, but Dr. Miller says on 

 page 199, " will Mr. Pond tell us of a 

 single person i"' etc. This question 

 related to the matter of priority. In 

 reply I will say that no one, so far as 

 I have any knowledge, has ever " re- 

 quested or desired legislation on 

 ' priority,' " but it impresses me quite 

 forcibly as a logical proposition, that 

 in order to legislate that some one 

 man shall be the man to keep all the 

 bees in a given locality, a decision as 

 to whom that man should be, must be 

 made, and it would work manifest in- 

 justice to say that the first one who 

 started the business, should give way 

 to a follower. For this reason I can- 

 not see how the question of legisla- 

 tion as desired by Dr. Miller can be 

 divided from that of priority. 



Now I will ask Di;. Miller a ques- 

 tion ; not a legal one, but a common- 

 sense one, viz : Why should some 

 one man's bees have the sole right to 

 gather the free offerings of nature, 

 even if in the form of nectar from all 

 the surface in a given locality, any 

 more than this same man should 

 have the sole right to sell the honey 

 his bees gather in the same neighbor- 

 hood y or again, why, if A and B have 

 adjoining estates, each owning large 

 tracts of land, should A have legis- 

 lated to him the right to gather honey 

 from B's land, and B be debarred ? 



Individually I do not care a snap 

 about the question, but as a man who 

 strongly opposes monopolies, and be- 

 lieves in equal rights to all before the 

 law, I must insist that under the con- 

 stitution of the United States no leg- 

 islation can take from me the right to 

 enter upon and engage in any busi- 

 ness or occupation that I may choose, 

 provided I conduct a legal business in 

 a legal manner. Legislation is re- 

 strictive and necessarily so ; the very 

 first thing that is implied in law is re- 

 straint ; the advocates of bee-legisla- 

 tion, and I fear Dr. Miller 'with the 

 others, have the idea, judging from 

 their words, that the legislature can 



make or unmake, can allow or sup- 

 press. This is not so. In order to 

 suppress any business, etc., it must be 

 declared a nuisance, and if not so 

 declared no law can be constitutional 

 that prevents each and every man 

 that may choose from engaging in it. 



Political economy is the science that 

 all legislatures strive to employ. Sup- 

 ply and demand will invariably regu- 

 late matters, and this same law will 

 regulate the business of bee-keeping 

 as well as any other. 



One thing more I will ask of Dr. 

 Miller, and then I will drop the dis- 

 cussion. Will lie give us an idea of 

 the form of legislation that would 

 suit him, and then if the form is in 

 anywise restrictive of the rights of 

 any other person, will he show us how 

 he would harmonize such legislation 

 without " bill of rights V" 



Foxboro,o Mass. 



For the American Bee JoumaL 



Mr. Hutcliinson's New Book, 



PKOF. A. J. COOK. 



One of the first things that Mr. A. 

 I. Root said to me the other day, as 

 we met at my farm in Owosso, Mich., 

 was this : ''I have read Mr. Hutch- 

 inson's new book on comb honey, as I 

 came here. It is so good that I have 

 only one criticism : It is too short." 

 I have, since that, read the brochure 

 myself, and I agree with Mr. Root, 

 except in the criticism. 



I like what an English scientist re- 

 cently said in " Nature," to-wit : 

 "Now in these days, and in the in- 

 terest of readers, if there is one thing 

 against which more than anything 

 else a resolute stand ought to be 

 made, it is unnecessary printing. 

 The day is yet far distant when every 

 page of printed matter shall contain 

 something that is new, and nothing 

 not new ; but this is the impossible 

 ideal which all writers should keep 

 prominently in view." How well Mr. 

 Hutchinson has done this. 



I need not say to the readers of the 

 American Bee Journal that Mr. 

 H. is second to no American writer 

 on apiculture, in practical common- 

 sense, and in directness and pre- 

 cision. This book shows him at his 

 best. Honey — especially extracted 

 honey — is now down to bed-rock 

 prices. How opportune, then, the 

 direction which shall lead to the 

 maximum yield of that — and that is 

 comb honey— which shall bring the 

 maximum price. Just this is Mr. 

 H's aim ; and I doubt if any bee- 

 keeper among us could do it better. 

 Mr. H. has boiled this recipe right 

 down, and made all so clear that 

 most, if not all, can at once profit by 

 the advice. 



The mechanical part of the work is 

 good ; especially to be commended is 

 the beautiful cover — yellow paper 

 stamped by the comb foundation mill. 

 It is surely a good foundation for the 

 excellent matter within. It is as ex- 

 quisite as it is unique. 



I am the more happy to praise this 

 book, as I have personally proved the 



