AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



16J 



keepers in Europe and in the East, who 

 are thoroughly capable of testing the 

 queens which they produce, and as they 

 find that they have obtained superior 

 queens, these will, of course, assist us. 

 My principal opposition is to the impor- 

 tation of queens without regard to 

 quality. The superior stock which we 

 have at the present day, has been pro- 

 duced by this careful method. 



Are bee-keepers less intelligent than 

 the breeders of other stock ? Of course 

 we have not the same opportunities of 

 isolating and of selecting, and it requires 

 more skill and care in the breeding, but 

 if we are careful to carry out all that 

 does lay in our power in this direction, 

 we can in the near future become ex- 

 porters instead of importers. 



I observe that influence is likely to be 

 brought to bear on the United States 

 government, for the purpose of getting 

 an appropriation sufficient to enable 

 American bee-keepers to search and test, 

 races other than those at present within 

 their possession. I hope that some bet- 

 ter ones may be found, but I have no 

 faith in the bees which may be found in 

 Africa. If the Cyprians are cross, the 

 African bees are much crosser. 



I have been subjected to some pretty 

 bad stinging, but I shall never forget 

 the attack which was made on me in the 

 Khedive's garden at Alexandria. These 

 were black bees, and not quite so large 

 as the bee called by the same name in 

 America, but they could sting, and they 

 would follow a person and keep up the 

 fight as long as there were any of them 

 left. I should be very sorry to have any 

 such breed in my apiaries. 



As for Apis dorsata, it might be 

 brought here and tested, but I do not 

 believe it could be crossed with our pres- 

 ent races. It may not be generally 

 known that they have fixed and peculiar 

 habits, which render crossing impossi- 

 ble ; one of these is that the queens go 

 out to mate about sunset, and it is not 

 an unusual thing to have thQ queen and 

 drones return by twilight. 



I have more hope of success with bees 

 brought from a milder climate ; the 

 Philippine Islands might give us some- 

 thing better, and there is also a group 

 of Islands lying north and east of Aus- 

 tralia, where we might find something 

 of value. The hotter the climate the 

 more irritable the bees of that country, 

 without having corresponding advan- 

 tages ; and it is because of this, I antici- 

 pate that bees from the islands I have 

 mentioned, would be of a milder disposi- 

 tion, and would be more apt to meet our 

 views. — Read at the Michigan Convention. 



Profllalile Bee-Keeping, 



T. F. BINGHAM. 



The question, "Is profitable bee-keep- 

 ing a thing of the past ? " seems to indi- 

 cate that the business of apiculture is 

 not at present a paying one, but that in 

 the past it has been remunerative. 



When we call to mind the past prices 

 of honey, and the corresponding prices 

 of other commodities, we do not find 

 that the relative profits have materially 

 changed, neither that the varied chang- 

 ing of methods to suit the changing 

 tastes and circumstances, have materi- 

 ally changed the profits of the pursuit. 

 It is not probable that honey will be 

 relatively lower than at present, neither 

 that its production will relatively change 

 as time rolls on, but there are some 

 features in the pursuit which seem 

 moving steadily to the front. 



The mystery and superstition incident 

 to a limited understanding of the busi- 

 ness, appears to be clearing away ; and 

 bee-keeping, like the raising of pigs and 

 sheep, stands out in bold relief, as a 

 branch of domestic economy, which in 

 the near future will represent a vast 

 aggregate — composed of thousands of 

 littles, each one of which has returned a 

 better profit on the labor and capital 

 employed, than any of the other numer- 

 ous ways by which the limited farmer 

 and mechanic thrives. 



It is true that in the matter of profit, 

 bee-keeping like other pursuits, has its 

 up and downs, its "off years," but that 

 does not imply or demonstrate, that the 

 industry is likely to become less profit- 

 able in the future, than it has been in the 

 past. The proportion of successful bee- 

 keepers to those engaged in the business 

 who do not make money, is greater than 

 in most pursuits, whether mercantile or 

 agricultural, and at present no reason 

 presents itself to show that the same 

 ratio may not continue. 



Of course, no one supposes that a few 

 colonies of bees will support a large 

 family and leave a balance in the bank, 

 neither will a small farm ; but the small 

 farm and small apiary combined, probably 

 would. 



Out-apiaries, so-called, afford practical 

 evidence that bees in small apiaries 

 either do better or are more conveniently 

 handled. If such is the case, and it 

 would be reasonable so to believe, there 

 can be little doubt about the future. 



If I have made this plain, I have 

 shown that bee-keeping has been a 

 profitable pursuit, and that no substan- 

 tial evidence exists to prove that it will 



