AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



485 



able, and hence you can easily post me 

 In this matter. 

 Anamosa, Iowa. 



[Perhaps the nearest to the idea pre- 

 sented above is the " queen-restrictor " 

 invented by C. W. Dayton, which is fully 

 described on gage 790 of the Bee Jour- 

 nal for 1890. It is a queen-includer, 

 by confining the queen upon several 

 frames to fill them with brood, leaving 

 the other combs to be filled with honey 

 by the workers. — Ed.] 



Keesing an Accomt witli Bees, Etc, 



J. A. MARSH. 



The season of 1890 was a failure in 

 Crawford county, and bees will be in 

 demand the coming Spring. 



The moss-back, box-hive man is about 

 weeded out. He went after the honey, 

 and helped himself freely, last June — 

 carved everything out, down to the cross- 

 sticks — and the poor bees starved. 



We have had three poor seasons in 

 succession, and the last one was about 

 as bad as it could be. Still, I do not feel 

 discouraged, because, looking over my 

 account with the bees, I find that I be- 

 gan April 1, 1888, witli one colony, 

 which increased to three, and gave me 

 100 pounds of honey. 



In 1889, they increased to 13 colo- 

 nies, and gave me 195 pounds of honey, 

 and owed me on May 12, 1890, $34.40, 

 cash, which had been expended for tools, 

 hives, lumber, sections, etc. Have given 

 them no credit for honey used on my 

 own table since last date, because I 

 wanted pay for time and attention. 



They now owe me $2.85, and I have 

 on hand $30 worth of tools, nails, lum- 

 ber, hives, foundation, etc., honey enough 

 to last till the new crop is gathered, and 

 a few pounds to spare, besides 20 out of 

 24 colonies strong in bees, and heavy 

 with stores. 



To be sure, I do not make this showing 

 through the sale of honey alone. Now, 

 if a good season comes I will surely 

 profit a little through the sale of honey. 



TRADE -MARK. 



Wliat is the use of a trade-mark ? 

 Why not pass laws to make consumers 

 take our honey whether it is watery, 

 sour, bitter, yellow or white ? A man's 

 name and reputation should be his trade- 

 mark. I should bitterly oppose the use 



of my trade-mark by some people I have 

 known. 



DETECTING QUEENLESSNESS. 



Dr. Miller seems inclined to reconsider 

 the question of detecting queenlessness. 

 I am only a beginner. Have had three 

 cases, and discovered each from outside 

 demonstrations before the bees had been 

 in that condition more than 3 or 4 days. 

 I hope the Doctor will gain courage in 

 his convictions. 



A. I. Root might explain Brother Doo- 

 little's experience by saying that the 

 bees remembered how the big queen- 

 breeder had been taking their queens 

 away for the last 20 years, but, always 

 being kind enough to replace them with 

 queen-cells, the bees are not greatly 

 alarmed at their loss, knowing the good 

 intentions of their master by the way he 

 had treated their ancestors. 



ABSORBENT PACKING. 



I notice that the absorbent man is not 

 dead yet. He would have beginners 

 believe that it is good to have packing 

 over the bees which has affinity for the 

 moisture arising from the cluster, ab- 

 sorbing it, and thereby keeping the air 

 dry. He should be put to bed on a Win- 

 ter night, under a wet blanket. As long 

 as he could not raise heat enough to 

 keep the blanket from freezing, he would 

 be comparatively comfortable, but if the 

 weather moderated, or he generated too 

 much heat, the cold water would begin to 

 trickle down upon him. Then imagine 

 his condition. 



I should prefer no packing. Why not 

 put enameled cloth over the frames, and 

 the packing on top of that ? Then, the 

 moisture would pass out at the open en- 

 trance, and be absorbed by all out-doors, 

 where it can do the bees no harm. 



Scotia, Mo. 



Progressive Knowledge. 



Some one says : At ten years of age a 

 boy thinks his father knows a great 

 deal, at fifteen he knows as much as his 

 father, at twenty he knows twice as 

 much, at thirty he is willing to take his 

 advice, at forty he begins to think his 

 father knows something after all, at 

 fifty he begins to seek his advice, and at 

 sixty — after his father is dead — he 

 thinks he was the smartest man that 

 ever lived. — Exchange. 



Clubs of 5 New Subscriptions for $4.00, 

 to any addresses. Ten for $7.50. 



