•vmm mimmwi^mM mmm j&'&m.mmi^. 



277 



[These questions were intended for the 

 Query Department, but to save time and 

 space, one reply is deemed sufficient, and is 

 ({iven by the Editor or some other member 

 of that Department to whom he refers it : 1 



Xhe Sections for a Beginner.— 



L. wants to know the following : 



What size of sections would you advise a 

 beginner to use ? 



The most popular sections are those hold- 

 ing a single pound of honey. 



Carniolan and Black Bees.— J. 

 B. A., of Stittville, N. Y., asks the following 

 question : 



Are Carniolan bees as good for all pur- 

 poses as the common black bees ? 



Tes ; and some think that they are even 



superior to the Italians. 



Fonl-Broody Hives & Frames. 



— C.A. S., of Connecticut, propounds this 

 question : 



Can I have the hives and frames, where 

 bees have had foul brood, cleaned so as to 

 render them safe to use again ? If so, how? 



Perhaps so ; but great care should be 

 taken. Boil them in hot water. We should 

 probably bum them all np. That would 

 be safe. 



Robber Bees.— H. L. R., asks this 

 question : 



If a hive containing capped honey, but no 

 bees, be placed on a stand during the spring, 

 will it be molested by robber bees ? 



If the entrance is left open, it would be 

 almost sure to be robbed. Such feeding is 

 demoralizing. 



Diilerf-nt Kinds ofFoundation. 



—J., of New York, desires the following 

 answered : 



1. Is foundation made with a Pelham 

 mill just as good as that made with any 

 other mill, everything else being the same ? 



3. Is it as acceptable to the bees ? 



Upon a test it has proven quite as good, 

 and was as readily accepted by the bees. 



Making' Comb Foundation. — C. 



W. desires information on the following 

 questions : 



1. What causes sheets of wax to crack on 

 the dipping-boards, when the boards have 

 been previously well soaked in water ? 



2. What will prevent it ? 



3. What is the best lubricator to prevent 

 the sheets of wax from sticking to the rolls? 



1 Either the wax is too hot, or the air too 

 cold. 



2. Avoid the above conditions, and have 

 the boards sharp at the edges, so that the 

 wax will first crack there. 



3. Lye is the best lubricant. 



BraM'ing Out Foundation.— T. 



O. asks the following question : 



Di) bees draw the foundation out into 

 cells ? 



Yes ; and they often tMn the base, to 

 do so. 



Arranging Sections in a Case. — 



J. L. C, of Indiana, asks the following : 



1. As there is only a half bee-space, or 

 half an opening in each section, how shall I 

 manage about putting in the first and last 

 rows so that there will be room for the bees 

 to get in and out of the sections next to the 

 sides of the section-case ? 



3. Shall I put the sections up close to the 

 sides of the case, or leave them away about 

 3-16 or ^ of an inch ? 



3. If so, how is it done so that they will 

 be secure in their places ? 



Use sections having % inch openings in- 

 stead of H inch ; then the half of that space 

 at the sides will admit the bees. In the 

 absence of sections with ?^ inch openings, 

 if your " case " is wide enough, place at the 

 sides wood separators 1-16 inch in width. 



Free Trade and Honey.— A cor- 

 respondent from New York asks the fol- 

 lowing : 



What is your opinion in regard to the ef- 

 fect of free trade (in this country) upon the 

 price of lioiiey ? 



It luiuht work adversely at the start on 

 low sirailes, but not so on the best quality. 

 In our business we can compete with any 

 country. 



Separators and MotU-Wornis.— 



J. F. Gile, Basswood, Wis., on April 16, 

 1888, asks these questions : 



1. Can I use sections without separators 

 in the supers of the improved Langstroth- 

 Simplicity hive ? 3. Are separators neces- 

 sary in the brood-chamber, if frames are 

 provided with half or full sheets of founda- 

 tion ? 3. What shall I do with my comb 

 honey in case it becomes Infested with 

 moth-worms ? 



1. Yes ; it your super is arranged with 

 reference to it. 



2. Separators are not intended to be used 

 with brood-frames. Wide frames holding 8 

 one-pound sections are sometimes placed at 

 the sides of the brood^jhamber ; in such, 

 separators are necessary. 



3. Fumigate it, by putting it in a closed 

 room, and burning sulphur in it. This will 

 kill the moth-worms. 



"fVhcn fve Consider that pure 

 honey is the very essence of flowers and 

 plants, in which, we are told, there is a 

 remedy for every disease, surely we cannot 

 doubt the happy combination of honey as 

 medicine. The Scripture tells us in many 

 passages of the wonderful efficacy of honey 

 as food and medicine. As the treatment of 

 disease becomes more and more rational, so 

 will the value of honey as a medicine be- 

 come more and more apparent." So says 

 the Ru/ral Canadian. 



Statistics.— Mr. L. J. Stone, Littleton 

 Common, Mass., on March 33, 1888, writes 

 as follows : 



As a volunteer to gather statistics on bees 

 and honey, I offer my services for Middle- 

 sex county. There are not many bees kept 

 here, but I have a team and can and will do 

 the work carefully and thoroughly if 

 desired. 



It seems to me that the only way that we 

 can get correct statistics is to nave some one 

 interested to personally see the different 

 bee-keepers, and fill out the blanks, and 

 not leave or send blanks for them to fill out, 

 for I think that in seven times (if not more) 

 out of ten, tliHy will not fill them out cor- 

 rectly if at all. If we could have two or 

 three in each county to take statistics, we 

 could go and see them with our teams well 

 enough, in this part of the country. Of 

 course if there was but one in a county, so 

 we had to go around on the cars, we ought 

 to have our expenses paid, but that would 

 only be a little. I take the American Bee 

 JouKNAi,, and 1 was never better satisfied 

 with a dollar investment in my life. 



At first we thought the best way to get 

 the statistics would be through the assessors 

 or Statistical Bureau of each State ; but in 

 all probability those gathered by persons in- 

 terested in the pursuit, are of the most im- 

 mediate value. We like the plan inaugurated 

 by Mr. Root, in GteaniTigs, for that purpose; 

 of which we gave a summary on page 343. 

 Those obtained through the United States 

 Statistician will go upon record, and be 

 handed down to posterity in the history of 

 the material resources of the country. We 

 fear that they will not be gathered and pub- 

 lished soon enough to be available to the 

 producer in regulating the market prices,etc. 



A correspondent from Ohio has sent us 

 the regular statistical blank used in that 

 State, and adds : 



The assessors in this State are under oath 

 and bond to ascertain the number of colo- 

 nies of bees, and the number of pounds of 

 honey produced, and I can tell in a few 

 minutes the resnit in this State. I know 

 what 1 am talking about, for 1 am assessor, 

 and have been for the last three years. Of 

 course the result is only approximate. In 

 18a5 there were 79,589 colonies, and 818,060 

 pounds of honey ; in 1886 there were 111,803 

 colonies, and 3,113,479 pounds of honey. 

 With the proper effort we might get much 

 information tlirough the proper officers in 

 the different States. 



Frank I-esUe's Sunday Maga- 

 zine for May is a valuable and interesting 

 number of this favorite family monthly. 

 Both solid and light reading, grave and gay, 

 prose and verse, are found in its pages, and 

 the many beautiful illustrations add to the 

 interest and value of the text. Dr. Tal- 

 mage's sermon is a striking one on " Thirst 

 in a Cavern," and there are many other 

 good things in verse and prose, and a tjne 

 and vigorous hymn tune on the last page 

 by C. Wenham Smith, to the hymn, "Crown 

 Him with Many Crowns." 



A Modern Bee>Farm, and its 



Economic Management ; showing how bees 

 may be cultivated as a means of livelihood ; 

 as a health-giving pursuit ; and as a source 

 of recreation to the busy man. By S. 

 Simmins. For sale at this office. Price, $1. 



