706 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



put onto it, is the most profitable thing 

 to do. 



Friends, did you ever see such a con- 

 dition of affairs ? Perhaps I have de- 

 scribed it so minutely that you con- 

 clude I have had such experience. Well, 

 I have had some experience of this kind, 

 and I have tried to profit by it, perhaps 

 as much as any man in Wisconsin, and I 

 can assure you I have profited by it 

 materially. 



Spring dwindling is a great source of 

 annoyance, and it tries the patience, no 

 doubt, of any bee-keeper who has been 

 troubled by it. Then, should we not turn 

 our attention to more care in the breed- 

 ing of our queens? Assuredly that is 

 the remedy. It should be done .when- 

 ever needed, and remember that the 

 breeding season is the time to attend 

 to it. 



But there are evils that cause spring 

 dwindling, that for this occasion we do 

 not intend to overlook. It has been, 

 and to some extent now is, the practice 

 of some bee-men, after taking a goodly 

 surplus from the upper stories, to be 

 greedy enough to ransack the brood- 

 chamber for all white honey, depending 

 on their filling up with late, dark honey. 



It is a trite saying, that bees will 

 thrive on any pure honey ; but I tell you 

 this is a grand mistake ; a mistake that 

 has brought recorded sorrows to many 

 bee-keepers. 



Note carefully what I now tell you : 

 Early honey, such as white clover and 

 basswood, always has a healthful and 

 pleasant odor, while most of our late 

 honey js dark, and of strong odor, which 

 is unhealthful for the bees ; and es- 

 pecially if such honey is unsealed, it is 

 more apt to remain liquid, and this con- 

 dition induces disease. 



I would not say that white clover and 

 basswood honey is absolutely safe food 

 for bees to winter on, but I will say that 

 either, or both, is the safest food for 

 them that I know of, and I have had a 

 long and extensive experience, by which 

 I am convinced of this fact. And while 

 I would not say that bees cannot thrive 

 in exceptional cases on dark, late honey; 

 yet I do say that, as a rule, our late, 

 dark honey is not to be depended on ; 

 neither is it healthy for the bees to win- 

 ter on. 



Honey-dew, which forms on the leaves 

 of oak and hickory in August,by a pecul- 

 iar state of the atmosphere, has been 

 known to a certainty to be the cause of 

 great fatality among bees, and such 

 should be taken from them as fast as 

 they store it. I do not class this as a 

 real honey, because it is not produced 



by any plant, but is simply an atmos- 

 pheric production, 



I think buckwheat and other late 

 honey is all right for stimulating pur- 

 poses. We generally stimulate in the 

 Spring, and it is immediately consumed, 

 and its odor does no harm. 



Successful wintering of bees includes 

 their going through the Spring all right, 

 and to attain this result certain rules are 

 observed. They should be quilted in 

 such a way that the dampness of their 

 breath will be absorbed, and their nor- 

 mal heat retained. 



Dampness is the cause of moldy combs, 

 and mold is a source of disease ; there- 

 fore guard against such things, and save 

 loss. Do not permit the air of the bee- 

 room to become foul, or dead bees to 

 accumulate on the floor, or at the en- 

 trances to the hives. 



Before closing, permit me to arouse 

 your mental faculties a little : I have 

 pointed out many practical methods for 

 the wintering of our bees, and a few 

 literary suggestions, perhaps, will not 

 come amiss. 



By expanding our thoughts in making 

 our calculations for the future, we will 

 be very likely to improve in many things 

 pertaining to successful bee-keeping. 



Experience is what we all need ; and 

 it takes time to acquire experience. 

 You may ask, " What is the first thing 

 to be done ?" Do considerable thinking 

 about your bee-prospects, and if you 

 have not already secured some good bee- 

 books, and a good bee-periodical, then 

 get them at once, study them well, do 

 some mere thinking, and then, I believe, 

 you will be inclined to settle, down to 

 good rules, and adopt the methods that 

 will lead you to success. 



Remember, that study always takes 

 precedence in such matters. That is an 

 essential law of man's nature, and he 

 who sets himself up before the world as 

 being master of a profession that he 

 never studied, would be a very sure 

 victim to failure, and he would not only 

 be a'laughable, but a pitiable object. 



Men of marked success in the world 

 never relinquish the power of thought 

 or study, because this is the essential 

 part of man. Power of thought places 

 us pre-eminently above the lower beings 

 of the earth. Then, again, I ask. Why 

 not avail ourselves of these rich gifts 

 and put them into practice. 



Some of you may ask, " What books 

 and periodicals do you advise us to 

 obtain ?" 



Well, there are many good books and 

 periodicals on bee-culture, Look over 

 the list and choose for yourselves. See 



