566 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



etc. Yes, apricots in Michigan. If you 

 sat where I now do, you could look out 

 on a bearing apricot orchard, and I 

 shall not be surprised if at our conven- 

 tien we may sometimes drift into horti- 

 culture. I think it will not hurt us, if 

 we do. There are .a great many around 

 here that are interested in both. 



Geo. E. Hilton. 

 Grand Rapids, Mich., Oct. 21, 1891. 



One-Fourth, of an Average. 



This is my fourth year in bee-keeping, 

 and in that time I have had two poor 

 seasons, and this is one of them. The 

 honey crop in this county will be about 

 one-fourth of an average. One cause of 

 the poor crop was continued rains dur- 

 ing white clover bloom. 



John W. Polsley. 



Wahoo, Nebr. 



Bees in Good Condition for Winter. 



I bought a colony of bees one year 

 ago. They were in the American hive, 

 and wintered well. They increased to 

 4, and gave me a surplus of 90 pounds 

 of comb-honey. They are in good con- 

 dition for Winter, with plenty of stores. 

 The Summer has been very cool here, 

 especially the nights. Golden-rod was 

 the principal honey plant here this year. 

 The American Bee Jouenal is a regu- 

 lar and welcome visitor every Friday 

 morning. J. W. Peterson. 



Grand Island, Nebr., Oct. 22, 1891. 



ConLTeiition I^otices. 



iW The Northwestern Bee-Keepers' Society will 

 hold its annual convention at the Commercial 

 Hotel, corner ot Lake and Dearborn Streets, in 

 Chicago, Ills., on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 19 

 and 20, at 9 a.m. Arrangements bave been made 

 with the Hotel tor back room, one bed, two persons, 

 $1.75 per day, each ; front room, $2.(Kjper day for 

 each person. This date occurs during the Exposi- 

 tion, when excursion rates on the railroads will be 

 one fare for the round-trip. 



W. Z. Hutchinson, sec, Flint, Mich. 



The Executive Committee have fixed the date of 

 the next session ot the North American Bee-Keep- 

 ers' Association, Dec. 8 to 1 1, at Albany. There will 

 be an inlormal njeeiing on the evening of Tuesday, 

 Dec. 8, for getting acquainted, etc. The real work 

 of the convention will commence Wednesday morn- 

 ing, and extend through two full days, ending 

 Friday morning, giving distant delegates time to get 

 home before Sunday. We want all to get there if 

 possible on Tuesday, if they have a few hours of 

 daylight it will give an opportunity to look around 

 the city, view the capitol building, etc. Reduced 

 rates have already been secured in all trunk-line 

 territory, and the same is expected over other 

 railroads The programme is now under way, and 

 other arrangements are nearly completed. If you 

 have decided to take a vacation thai will, we trust, 

 be profitable, don't fail to attend this convention. 

 P. H. Elwood, Pres., Starkville, N. Y. 



C. P. Dadant, Sec, Hamilton, Ills. 



Wavelets of News. 



House Apiaries. 



The last Bee-Keepers' Revieiv is an 

 excellent number. It discusses the sub- 

 ject of house arpiaries. In our judgment, 

 the best article on the topic is from the 

 pen of James Heddon, and it covers every 

 point. Among other good things, he says: 

 "Never let any one advocate the use of 

 any hives, frames, cases, or brood- 

 chambers that are fixed within the 

 building." 



You are quite correct, Mr. Heddon; 

 and you might have added that they 

 prevent the bees from escaping into the 

 room, for all outside hives are supposed 

 to be bee-tight. One great reason why 

 the house apiary was abandoned, was 

 because the hives or compartments for 

 holding the frames are fixed to the sides 

 of the building, and it is not easy to 

 make these so they are bee-tight. 



Again he adds: " The annoyance from 

 robbers is the one great cause of irrita- 

 bility among the bees of an apiary; and 

 I want to tell yoa that, if you have a 

 colony that is so confoundedly mean that 

 you expect to be stung, even when using 

 the smoker, put them in the house apiary 

 and the bees will behave perfectly." I 

 have noticed this very thing myself; and, 

 in fact, it is a very rare thing indeed for 

 bees to sting inside of a building. To 

 suddenly find themselves indoors takes 

 all the fight out of them. 



In winding up, Mr. Heddon concludes: 

 " On the whole, I think the house apiary, 

 when rightly made and managed, is, in 

 many localities, a thing of comfort and 

 profit. It is an easy thing to pack colo- 

 nies in for Winter; and after being 

 packed, I can see what splendid advan- 

 tages can be gained from stove heat dur- 

 ing extremely cold weather." — Gleaninqs. 



Cheap Ice House. 



Ice in Summer is both a luxury and a 

 necessity, and the ice-crop is one that 

 many farmers allow to go to waste. 



Use 2x6 sills and plates, with 12 foot 

 posts, with three courses 2x4 ribbing 

 all around three feet apart, put in edge- 

 wise. Ceil with culls put on vertically, 

 and make it a point to always get out of 

 lumber when you get to the eaves, so 

 the gable end will be sure to be left open. 

 Fill up the ground inside a little higher 

 than the outside, then put down any old 

 old chunks of rails or joist, a little dis- 

 tance apart, and fill in between and 



