726 



'THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



and admission to all shows through- 

 out the country during the year. 



The catalogue of last year's show 

 of the Central Society (No. 20) dem- 

 onstrates that there were 318 exhibits, 

 and 18 tons of honey staged, all in 

 uniform-sized sections and bottles. 

 No. 23 is the annual report of the 

 Central Society, and No. 24 is the vol- 

 ume of reports of the Branches. 

 Those not included have not complied 

 with the rules. 



This will give an idea of the organi- 

 zation of the British Bee-Keepers' 

 Association, which, by enlisting the 

 co-operation of the wealthier classes, 

 is able to promote bee-keeping much 

 better than it could otherwise do. 

 The Society has done much by issu- 

 ing publications at a cheap rate, and 

 by sending out its experts throughout 

 the length and breadth of the land. 



The Society being ' a '. philanthropic 

 one, aims at inducing as many as 

 possible to keep a few colonies of bees, 

 rather than encouraging specialists in 

 keeping bees on a large scale as a 

 business. 



London, England. 



[When Mr. Cowan was with us in 

 Chicago, we requested him to give us 

 a description of the organization and 

 work of the British Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation. He replied that it would 

 be long and perhaps tedious, but 

 that he would have pleasure in writing 

 it out for us and accompany it with 

 Documents, to more fully illustrate 

 the methods and work of the Asso- 

 ciation. He did so, and just as he 

 was embarking from New York he 

 sent us an express package with the 

 foregoing very interesting descriptive 

 article, with the accompanying Doc- 

 uments. As the contents of some of 

 these Documents are strictly confi- 

 dential, and in no case to be made 

 public, we have of course omitted the 

 detailed contents, when mentioning 

 their character. 



It is very opportune at this time to 

 obtain the foregoing information con- 

 cerning the organization and work of 

 the British Bee-Keepers' Association, 

 for it is doubtless the most thoroughly 

 organized and best managed Society 

 of bee-keepers in the world ! 



At its Central Show of last year it 

 had 18 tons of honey on exhibition, 

 and the exhibits numbered 318. IThen 

 would come the societies of j Conti- 

 nental Europe. But at the bottom of 

 the list (we are ashamed to admit) 

 comes the North American. 



We do not state this in order to 

 make an invidious comparison, but to 

 cause active emulation ! America with 

 its three hundred thousand bee-keep- 

 ers ought not to be behind the other 

 countries of the world in anything— 

 especially not in organization ! 



There is one thing to be said in 

 vindication, however, and that is that 

 our country is so vast— extending 

 from the Equator to the North Pole, 

 and from the Atlantic to the Pacific 

 Oceans— and that the work of or- 

 ganizing thoroughly is a gigantic un- 

 dertaking, and requires the united 

 energies of the ablest and best de- 

 votees of our pursuit. 



As this subject is to come up at the 

 Union Convention which convenes 

 to-day in Chicago, we will refrain 

 from saying more at present, hoping 

 to announce in our next issue that at 

 least some steps have been taken 

 looking towards a more creditable 

 organization .— E d .] 



Youth's CozupanloD. 



Tie Price of SnM_in Bee-Keepii. 



KBBBCCA HARDING DAVIS. 



Eternal vigilance is the price of 

 success in any pursuit, and in none 

 more than in bee-keeping. All who 

 attempt it must remember that it is 

 not only labor, but a science, and will 

 make incessant demands, not only on 

 patience, but on bodily strength and 

 intelligence. 



"I have kept bees for 45 years," 

 said an old French apiarist last sum- 

 mer, " and I was at the business sev- 

 eral years before I felt that I really 

 understood it. I have brought up 18 

 children, and thoroughly started them 

 in life, thanks to my bees. What 

 would you have more ?" What, in- 

 deed y 



Our French friend began with but 

 a single colony ; " one learns In little," 

 and we recommend his example to all 

 beginners. 



Choose a place for your hives on 

 sandy, airy ground, at a distance 

 from the barn-yard or any drains. 

 They should be shaded by trees or 

 thick vines, and should be placed 

 facing the east, about 3 or 4 inches 

 from the ground. The old box -hive 

 is used by few apiarists now. 



The Italian bees are hardy, work 

 harder than the ordinary German 

 black bee, are more prolific, and, like 

 industrious people, are apt to be 

 amiable. I do not know of any suc- 

 cessful apiarist who now prefers the 

 black bee to the Italian. 



Food, your bees will find for them- 

 selves in any fertile country where 

 there are fruit trees, flower gardens, 

 and late wild blooms, such as golden- 

 rod, thistles and other flowers. But 

 they should have a special provision 

 for them in fields of the Dutch white 

 and Alsike clover (both in the best 

 pasturage), and beds of mignonette, 

 asters, and borage. Buckwheat gives 

 a rank flavor to the honey, and injures 

 its sale in the Eastern markets. 



In winter they should be protected 

 either by chafE hives, in stowing in a 

 cellar, or by being covered in close 

 boxes. The method of course varies 

 with the latitude. In States where 



the cold is intense, the bees should be 

 removed to a dry, dark, perfectly 

 quiet cellar, which should be well 

 ventilated. 



In such papers as this, of course, 

 only the briefest directions can be 

 given. Indeed, they are meant to be 

 only suggestions of work, not rules 

 for it. The beginner should send for 

 a manual which will give instructions 

 in transferring, swarming, feeding 

 bees, preparing honey for the mar- 

 ket, etc. Make the acquaintance of 

 practical bee-keepers, and above all 

 do not be afraid to ask questions. 

 Apiarists, like all other naturalists, 

 are usually enthusiastic in their pro- 

 fession, and glad to impart knowledge. 



The great objection to this business 

 is the danger of being stung. There 

 are some persons to whom the sting 

 of a bee is actual poison ; but they are 

 not likely to undertake the work. 

 Bees undoubtedly do dislike any 

 offensive odor, and promptly punish 

 uncleanliness of person in their at- 

 tendants. They are irritated, too, by 

 any fright or uncertain handling in 

 their attendants. But there is no 

 reason why a cleanly, tranquil person, 

 who moves quietly and betrays no 

 nervous sign of fear, should ever be 

 stung even while handling full hives. 

 For protection, however, wear a veil 

 tied over the hat and around the 

 throat, and close-fitting, long rubber- 

 gloves. 



One apiarist, in a neighborhood 

 where honey brought but 16 cents per 

 pound, wholesale, told me that he 

 gave his daughter, when she was 12 

 years of age, a colony for her own. 

 The first year the colony brought her 

 $17 clear profit, and the second, with 

 the increase of a colony, $12. She 

 married at twenty, taking 50 colonies 

 and a comfortable little fortune as a 

 dower to her husband. 



Mr. Cowan's Report of Ms Visit. 



The quarterly meeting of the 

 British Bee-Keepers' Association was 

 held on Oct. 19, 1887. By request Mr. 

 Cowan gave the following account of 

 his visit to America : 



When I came here to-day I was not 

 prepared to make any lengthened 

 statement respecting my journeys in 

 North America, but as it seems to be 

 the general wish that I should say 

 something on this matter, I shall be 

 very pleased to give you an outline of 

 what I have been doing over there. 

 It is just three months ago since we 

 (my wife and I) started for New 

 York. After a fair passage we landed 

 in that city, where the thermometer 

 registered 99°, which seemed a very 

 high temperature on coming off the 

 ocean. We could not, therefore, stay 

 in New York, but journeyed north up 

 the Hudson river to Albany. 



From there the first establishment 

 we visited was that of Messrs. Aspin- 

 wall & Tread well. These gentlemen 

 are in business together as hive-man- 

 ufacturers, queeu-breeders, and deal- 

 ers in bees. Their trade is not on a 

 very large scale, but tbey do a fair 



