218 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



a RKMINISCENCE. 



ELI. A WHEELER WILCOX. 



I saw the wild honey-bee kissing- a rose, 



A wee one, that grows 

 Down low on the bush.where her sisters above 



Cannot see all that's done 



As the moments roll on, 

 Nor hear all the whispers and murmurs of love. 



They flaunt out their beautiful leaves in the sun 

 And thev flirt, every one, 



With the wild bees who pass, and the gay 

 butterflies. 

 And that wee thing in pink- 

 Why, they never once think 



That she's won a lover right under their eyes. 



It reminded me,Kate,of a time, you know when. 



You were so petite then. 

 Your dresses were short, and your feet were 

 so small. 



Your sisters, Maud, Belle 



And Madeline— well. 

 They both set their caps for me,after that ball. 



How the blue eyes and black eyes smiled up 

 in my face I 

 'Twas a neck and neck race. 

 Till the day when you opened the door in the 

 hall. 

 And looked up and looked down. 

 With your sweet eyes of brown. 

 And you seemed so tiny, and I felt so tall. 



Your sisters had sent you to keep me my dear, 



Till they should appear. 

 Then you were dismis'd,like a child in disg-race, 



How meekly you went ! 



But your brown eyes, they sent 

 A thrill to my heart and a flush to my face. 



We always were meeting some way, after that. 



You hung up my hat. 

 And got it again when I finished my call. 



Sixteen, and so SAveet ! 



O those cute little feet ! 

 Shall I ever forget how they tripped down the 

 hall? 



Shall I ever forget the first kiss by tl»e door. 



Or the voAvs murmured o'er. 

 Or the rage and surprise of Maud-Belle ? Well- 

 a-day. 



How swiftly time flows I 



And who would suppose 

 That a bee could have carried me so far away ? 



Hueries ajid Replies. 



CoTering for Frames, 



Query 752.— What is the best covering 

 for brood-frames ? — Mich. 



I like a pine board.— C. C. Mlllek. 

 The hive cover, made of a single board. 

 — R. L. Taylor. 



A board cover with a bee-space under 



it. — C. H. DiBBERN. 



A plain board with bee-space be- 

 tween. — EUGEXE Secor. 



I prefer the enameled cloth for this 

 ( limate.— P. L. Viai.lox. 



I use burlap, and consider it the best 

 covering. — J. M. Hambaugh. 



I use common burlap. This answers 

 every purpose.— J. P. H. Brown. 



A plain, flat board, well cleated on the 

 upper side to prevent warping. — James 

 Heddox. 



I prefer heavy muslin; putting on new 

 when preparing for Winter.— Mrs, L. 

 Harrison. 



I do not know ; but 1 use enameled 

 cloth, and I like it the best of anything I 

 have ever tried.— A. B. Mason. 



In Summer we use an oil-cloth and 

 straw mat. In Winter we \tse a straw 

 mat or cushion.— DAdant & Son. 



Enameled cloth is the best thing with 

 which to cover brood-frames ; if you use 

 a cover besides the roof .— H. D. Cutting. 



If you mean for Spring, Summer and 

 Fall, a pine board not less than % of an 

 inch thick. In Winter, some sort of 

 cushion.— M. Maihn. 



I use a piece of burlap or old carpet, 

 and then 6 or 8 inches of forest leaves, 

 pressed lightly down. I assume the 

 question refers to wintering.— J. E. Pond. 



Sections, with the bees just capping 

 the nice, white honey in them. Oh ! 

 Excuse me. Perhaps you meant in Win- 

 ter. If so, then a sawdust cushion is 



good.— G. M. DOOLITTLE. 



A board, except in Spring. Then a 

 chaff cushion made of common sheeting 

 and filled with chaff, sawdust, etc. A 

 piece of sheeting, burlap, or old carpet 

 between the frames and cushion keeps 

 the latter neat.— A. J. Cook. 



A thin board, say 5/32 of an inch 

 thick, cleated at the ends. The boards 

 that 1 use are made up of two or more 

 thin boards cleated at the ends. With 

 very strong colonies, it is best to raise 

 these boards up a little at one end, to 

 give good Winter ventilation ; the pack- 

 ing to be put on top. This applies to the 

 use of Winter cases in out-door winter- 

 ing.— G. L. Tinker. 



If you mean for the year around I 

 should sav twilled cotton cloth. If for 

 Summer use, I say enameled cloth. For 

 Winter, I would prefer a piece of woolen 

 carpet. Some good bee-keepers simply 

 use the hive cover, arranged so as to just 

 leave a bee-space above the tops of the 

 frames. I do not like this arrangement, 

 because the bees are sure to glue the 

 cover fast, and make it come off with a 

 snap : besides bees are a nuisance when 

 sticking to the underside of a hive-cover. 

 Still the plan has some advantages of its 

 own.— G. AV. Demaree. 



