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AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Rough on Rats and sprinkle a little 

 on some bread, spreading it thinly with 

 butter to hold the poison on the bread ; 

 also take some pumpkin seeds, split one 

 end and put in a little of the poison and 

 place the bread and seeds where the rats 

 and mice come into tlie house and cellar, 

 and in 3 days' timie it will be hard to find 

 even a track, for it most effectually 

 exterminates them. I keep this bait in 

 my cellar constantly while my bees are 

 there for the Winter. This has been a 

 discouraging season to many bee-keepers 

 in this locality, but I say "hold the 

 fort " there are better days coming. My 

 honey sold at 16 and 18 cents per pound. 

 As I desired to make bee-keeping a 

 specialty, it was very disappointing to me 

 in not securing the usual increase of 

 swarms. G. N. Benham. 



Red Wing, Minn., Dec. 29, 1890. 



Prevention of After-Swarms. 



In the Bee Journal for Dec. 27, 

 1890, I find an article on the prevention 

 of after-swarming by R. Dart. I have 

 practiced the method he recommends, 

 and I will cheerfully say with him, "it 

 is simple, and it never fails to accom- 

 plish its work," but it brings me a later 

 and more serious trouble. Generally, in 

 August, at the commencement of the 

 golden-rod harvest (for in this location 

 we generally have a good harvest from 

 the National Flower), these first or 

 prime-swarms send out a large swarm. 

 The weather at that time is generally 

 very warm, and it is not very pleasant 

 to have such swarms to deal with then. 

 Any one who will tell us how to prevent 

 these swarms, will confer a great favor 

 on at least one of your constant readers. 



Sunapee, N. H. J. P. Smith. 



Italian Bees Ahead. 



During the Spring of 1890 I started 

 with 32 colonies of bees, which were in 

 splendid condition ; these increased, by 

 natural swarming, to 44. The season 

 was very unfavorable for gathering 

 honey until the latter part of August, 

 when the golden-rod commenced to yield, 

 and as a natural result, the weight of 

 the hives were increased from 2 to 3 

 pounds per day. Although we had an 

 abundance of white clover throughout 

 the season, it did not yield any honey in 

 this vicinity. About the latter part of 

 September I had to feed my bees for 

 Winter storage, and this took more than 

 one barrel of granulated sugar. I will 

 also send an account of a friend's bees 



which are under my care. His 35 colo- 

 nies. Spring count, increased to 43, by 

 natural swarming. They were in very 

 poor condition in the Spring, yet I think 

 they have done much better than mine, 

 probably because they were Italians. As 

 a rule, I use the Simplicity hives, but I 

 have a few colonies in box-hives. I 

 hope that the coming season will be a 

 more productive one than the past has 

 been. J. A. Holmbeeg. 



St. Paul, Minn., Dec. 18, 1890. 



Fair Honey Crop. 



I prize the Bee Joukxal very highly. 

 Any one would be the loser to be with- 

 out it, if it should cost ten times the 

 price. It contains many practical and 

 appropriate facts, which would add to 

 the store of any man's knowledge. This 

 has been a fair year for bees, although 

 as a general thing it has been rather a 

 poor year in this part of the Province. 

 My honey average has been 40 pounds. 

 Spring count. I am often surprised 

 when I read of Western bee-keepers 

 being obliged to feed the bees in the 

 honey season, to keep them from starv- 

 ing. That is a thing I never haye known 

 during my 19 years of bee-keeping ex- 

 perience in this Province of Quebec, 

 although it is so much further north than 

 the Western States. There has been 

 but one year in 19, but that I received 

 some surplus, more or less, from my 

 bees. H. S. Ball. 



Granby, Quebec, Dec. 29, 1890. 



Only Enough Honey for Stores. 



The past year has been a poor one for 

 bees. There was not much more honey 

 gathered than was needed to Winter the 

 bees. I extracted about 50 or 60 pounds 

 per colony, from 18 colonies. Six of 

 these were the increase from 12 colo- 

 nies. Spring count. As far as I am able 

 to learn, this is considered very good in 

 this vicinity. We are looking forward 

 to, and hoping for a better season in 

 1891. John L. Hawser. 



Van Home, Iowa, Dec. 29, 1890. 



No Honey and no Increase. 



The honey crop in this locality has 

 been a failure during the past season. 

 There has been no honey and no in- 

 crease. The result is : Spring count, 

 100 colonies ; Fall count, 100 colonies. 

 Bees are in good condition for Winter. 

 The weather is very dry. S. H. Moss. 



Colchester, Ills., Dec. 31, 1890. 



