562 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Creek, from which the apiary took its 

 name. It is all pure spring water, from 

 the mountains in the background. 



The rain falling on the mountains in 

 the Winter passes down through 'them 

 and runs out at the base all through the 

 long dry Summer, and thus the mount- 

 ains act as reservoirs on a gigantic 

 scale. — Oleanings. 



Fillmore, Calif. 



[Friend Mclntyre has sent us two 

 photographs of his apiaries in the 

 mountains, and we have had engravings 

 made of them, and will present them to 

 our readers. The first one is given on 

 the preceding page, and shows the 

 apiary looking eastward. Another will 

 be given next week, showing the view 

 from the west. — Ed.I 



Tlie fiolden Carniolan Bees. 



F. GREINER. 



Since Prof. Cook recommended Car- 

 niolan bees, a few years ago, this race 

 has gained favor with the Arherican 

 honey-producers. Our observations and 

 experience with these bees seems to 

 corroborate the opiaion held by some 

 that the Carniolan bees are only a strain 

 or variety of the- common black or 

 German bee. 



Mr. Henry Alley appears now to have 

 discovered that the Carniolan bees are 

 the original yellow bees. If this be true, 

 we want it to be known as quickly as 

 possible, as friend J. A. Green observes 

 in the American Bee Journal. 



Mr. Alley's discovery, it seems to me, 

 is a pretty strong dose for us American 

 bee-keepers to swallow. For my part, I 

 cannot comprehend how it can be pos- 

 sible, within four generations, to breed 

 black bees into yellow ones. Black bees 

 have for years reproduced themselves, 

 even in this country. 



Comparatively, it is only a few years 

 since the Carniolan bees made their 

 appearance in this country. Our litera- 

 ture and our experience with them can- 

 not be so very extensive ; for this reason 

 I ask bee-keepers to listen to a practical 

 bee-keeper, who lives near the home of 

 the Carniolan bees. He is a scientist, a 

 prominent writer, and an authority on 

 fundamental questions pertaining to our 

 pursuit. It is Mr. W. Vogel, editor of 

 the Nordlinger Bienen Zeitung, Germany. 

 The following is an extract from his 

 letter, dated Sept. 18, 1891 : 



"There can be no doubt that Mr. 

 Alley's golden Carniolan bees were pro- 

 duced by his Carniolan queens- mating 

 with drones from the Italian or Cyprian 

 race. The assertion that the Carniolan 

 bees are the original yellow bees has not 

 the shadow of a foundation. 



"I have watched the Carniolan bees in 

 their native land, and there piey are not 

 golden ! I have also kept the Carniolan 

 bees for years. 



"It is true that some Carniolan queens 

 produce worker-bees (one in 50 per- 

 haps) that show a reddish spot on their 

 first band : but this is not a peculiarity 

 of the Carniolan bees only. The same 

 occurs with our black bees, and did 

 occur before any Italian blood was in- 

 troduced here. I regard the Carniolan 

 bee as beii^g a strain of the common- 

 Jt)lack or German bee." 



The original of Vogel's letter is in my 

 hands for inspection, and can be pub- 

 lished if desired by permission of the 

 author. 



Naples, N. Y. 



Some Facts Aliont Punic Bees. 



E. L. PRATT. 



On page -124 it is said that " Punic 

 bees are getting some hard blows from 

 good apiarists." Well, this was ex- 

 pected. 



As soon as I made it known that I had 

 imported these bees into America, the 

 blows started from all quarters, just as 

 they always have when anything new is 

 introduced, mostly from persons who 

 have never seen a Punic bee. 



What effect will this have on the real 

 value of the bee» in question ? Will it in 

 the least injure their valuable traits ? 



I will admit that it may influence a 

 few would-be-customers for one or more 

 queens, and that is all. That the' Punic 

 bees are entirely different from any bees 

 ever brought to this country is unques- 

 tionable, and for that reason, taken 

 with the valuable traits they possess, 

 Punic queens will be In demand another 

 season. 



Mr. W. Johnson Wrote to a brother 

 who lives near Sheffield, England, and 

 was told that Punic bees were " nothing 

 but small black bees ; have no wonder- 

 ful traits," and he wonders why "Ameri- 

 cans are so gullible." 



Perhaps I can explain this, as I was 

 the so-called " gulled (?) American." I 

 was so "gullible" because the Punic 

 bees were far ahead of any bees ever 



