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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



British Bee Journal. 



History of Bees-Interesting Facts. 



WILLIAM BIATT. 



The ancieiits are known to have 

 kept bees in a domesticated state 

 more than 2,000 years ago, and that 

 probably much in the same fashion as 

 is common in Eastern countries to 

 this day. Hives were made out of 

 hollowed logs, or, where the timber 

 was scarce, of cylinders of clay or of 

 wicker-work plastered with clay. 

 Such hives are still used in the East, 

 where it never has been the practice 

 to kill the bees in order to get their 

 honey. These logs or cylinders are 

 placed in a horizontal position, and 

 the honey taken from the end most 

 distant from the entrance. The 

 natural tendency of bees to store their 

 surplus at a distance from the en- 

 trance is thus taken advantage of. 

 In the Kussiaa log-hive another ad- 

 vance is made, based on the tendency 

 of the bees to store above as well as 

 beyond the brood-nest. The hives 

 are raised a little on the back, and 

 thus the certainty of finding virgin 

 comb at the further end is increased. 



There is evidence in ancient chroni- 

 cles, and among the laws of our 

 Anglo-Saxon forefathers, that bees 

 were at one time altogether wild in 

 this country. Previous to the eighth 

 century they were classed with foxes 

 and others as incapable of private 

 ownership. Whoever found them in 

 the woods was entitled to their honey 

 and wax. The honey was highly es- 

 teemed as an article of food, and was 

 largely used in making mead and in 

 medicine. 



The wax was in great demand by 

 the clergy, who taught that bees had 

 been sent from heaven because the 

 mass could not be celebrated without 

 wax, and under their influence they 

 were gradually domesticated, being 

 kept in hollow logs or hives of bark 

 (Lat., Eusca). Hence, a hive of bees 

 was called a " rusca " of bees, a word 

 surviving to this day as a name for a 

 straw-skep. As bees now come to be 

 looked on as a property, the law rec- 

 ognizing the right to a wild swarm as 

 belonging to the person on whose 

 land it had settled for three consecu- 

 tive nights. If he failed to discover 

 it within that time, the finder had a 

 right to id., and if that sum were not 

 paid he might claim the sum. At 

 that lime a " rusca " of domesticated 

 bees was valued at 24cl. 



Under the stimulus of a demand for 

 honey and wax we find great lords, 

 about the middle of the tenth century, 

 having beo ceorls specially detached to 

 attend on the bees, and the slaves 



fradually becoming serfs who paid 

 heir feudal lord a fixed amount of 

 the produce of their hives. About 

 this time also the name " rusca " often 

 gives place to the Anglo-Saxon word 

 heo cest (bee chest), or the Latin word 

 alvearia, which marks an advance 

 from mere shells of bark to more 

 regular hives. Domesday Book men- 

 tions them repeatedly, and they were 

 even tithed as valuable property. 



Comparatively little progress was 

 made in bee-keeping until the close of 

 the last century, when the discov- 

 eries of Francis Huber afforded the 

 ground for a great advance. Previous 

 to this, the natural history of the 

 bees, and especially of the queen, was 

 very imperfectly understood. Huber 

 was the fiist to announce the true 

 nature of the three classes of bees 

 found in a hive— the queen, workers 

 and drones. The German Shirach 

 and the Scotisli Bonner discovered 

 the method of causing bees to rear 

 queens at pleasure. At a latter date 

 Dr. Dzierzon and Baron Berlepsch es- 

 tablished the fact of the parthenogen- 

 esis of queens— that is, of the power 

 they have of producing male progeny 

 while still in a virgin state. They 

 also proved that queens mate in the 

 open air, and that within from 2 to 20 

 days of their birth. The impetus thus 

 given to bee-keeping was followed, as 

 has already been mentioned by those 

 welcome mechanical aids, the frame 

 hive, comb foundation, etc.. which 

 have brought bee-keeping to the posi- 

 tion of a science. 



This sketch would be imperfect 

 without at least a mention of those 

 agencies of the present time for the 

 diffusion of knowledge in bee-mat- 

 ters, viz., bee-papers and associations. 

 These are now established in Ger- 

 many. Italy, France, Switzerland, 

 America and England. In England 

 nearly every county has its associa- 

 tion, and Scotland and Ireland have 

 several, most of these being affiliated 

 with the great central association of 

 British bee-keepers, whose head- 

 quarters are in London. 



Simultaneously with the establish- 

 ment of associations have come those 

 interesting and instuctive exhibitions 

 of honey and appliances, now the or- 

 der of the day, by a visit to which a 

 beginner will learn more in an hour 

 than he could formerly have done by 

 reading and practice for a season. 



Haliiinianil, Ont, Coniention, 



The Haldimand Bee-Keepers' Asso- 

 ciation met at Nelles' Corners, Ont., 

 on Tuesday, May 31, 1887. with Presi- 

 dent Kindree in the chair. The min- 

 utes of the previous meeting were 

 read by the Secretary, George Best, 

 and approved. 



MARKETING HONEY. 



The first question discussed was the 

 marketing of honey. The President 

 thought the best way of marketing 

 honey was to put it up in small parcels 

 in an attractive shape, and to offer 

 none but the best quality. 



Mr. Jack gave his views, saying 

 that until honey was bought by large 

 dealers, the same as cheese and other 

 produce, the price would be low. 



Mr. Armstrong said that marketing 

 honey was like anything else— the 

 best article sold more readily and 

 brought the best price. The best 

 packages for the local market were 

 pint and quart sealers, and for ship- 

 ping, the 60-pound tin vessels cased 

 in wood are the best. Comb honey 



should be put in cases holding not 

 more than 24 sections. 



BEE-PASTURAGB. 



The President advocated the plant- 

 ing of Alsike clover for bee-pasfur- 

 age ; it was our best honey-plant, and 

 was excellent for cattle. He did not 

 think it paid to plant anything es- 

 pecially for bees. Buckwheat was 

 good for fall feeding. 



Mr. Armstrong said that according 

 to the report of the commissioners 

 appointed to report on the Chapman 

 honey-plant, it was the plant we 

 needed. It was the best hooey-plant 

 known for yielding honey. 



The Secretary advocated the plant- 

 ing of sweet clover in waste places, 

 and on the roadside ; it was an ex- 

 cellent honey plant, and was decidedly 

 nicer looking than thistles and muUen 

 stalks. 



Mr. Vanderburgh advocated the 

 planting of basswood for shade in- 

 stead of maple ; it was a good shade- 

 tree, and one of the best for honey. 



Several members expressed them- 

 selves in a similar way. 



PREPARING BEES FOR WINTER. 



The President had prepared his 

 bees for winter in one way tor several 

 years, and had been generally success- 

 ful, but the past winter he had not 

 been so successful, and he thought he 

 would have to change his plan. He 

 thought he would have to resort to 

 cellar-wintering, or some such plan. 



Mr. F. Eose said one cause of loss 

 in wintering bees, was in putting the 

 packing too close on top, so that the 

 bees could not pass over the tops of 

 the frames to their stores. 



Mr. Armstrong said the first mis- 

 take in preparing bees for winter was 

 in beginning preparations too late. 

 When bees are disturbed late in the 

 fall they fill themselves with honey, 

 and are very liable to be troubled with 

 diarrhea. If bees are prepared early, 

 have sufficient stores, and properly 

 protected, they will generally come 

 through all right. The bees should 

 be put as close together as possible ; 

 if the colony was weak the bees should 

 be crowded on as few frames as pos- 

 sible ; they should be provided with 

 good stores, and well protected from 

 the cold. He put some in a clamp, 

 packed with sawdust, and others were 

 wintered in double-walled hives, and 

 he did not lose a single colony last 

 winter. 



Twenty members present reported 

 47.5 colonies in the fall of 1886, and 300 

 colonies on May 31, 1887. 



Mr. Jack said he had a lot of old 

 combs with sour honey, and moldy, 

 and wished to know what to do with 

 them. Mr. Armstrong said he would 

 give one frame at a time to a strong 

 colony, and in 24 hours the frame 

 would be as good as new. 



Mr. Jack also asked how to put in 

 foundation so as to keep it straight. 

 He fastened it at the top of the frame 

 and one side, and the combs were 

 crooked. Mr. Armstrong said it 

 should be fastened only at the top, 

 and the bees would fix it all right. 



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