THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



141 



an honr before she is to be released. She is 

 then to be allowed to run down from the top 

 of the hive after darkness has set in, using a 

 lamp to see to do the work. It makes no 

 difference how long or short a time the col- 

 ony has been queenlesa, or if it has brood or 

 not, or queen cells in any stage of develope- 

 ment. The colony must be left undisturbed 

 two days. This method is almost invariably 

 successful. If a queen dies in a cage it is 

 from lack of food or because she has been 

 injured by the bees outside the cage. To 

 remedy the latter fault, have the meshes of 

 the wire cloth not larger than a pin head. 



The Wells system of working two queens 

 in one hive with a division of perforated 

 metal between them, or with a solid division 

 but a union of force in the supers, is not 

 supported by Mr. Simmins. He says that 

 it simply shows that at the right time, viz., 

 at the main harvest, there should be a large 

 force of workers in proportion to the 

 amount of brood. Here he agrees with 

 Gravenhorst. He says that at the close of the 

 season a permanent division must be made 

 between the two colonies or the bees will all 

 join one queen and allow the other to perish. 

 He says that queens once fertilized never 

 fight. He has had as many as a dozen fer- 

 tile queens in one compartment with no 

 injury to any of them. I had always sup- 

 posed that fertile queens would fight, but 

 come to think of it, I do not know as I 

 have seen them fight. It is the workers 

 that get up a row 



EXXRKOXED. 



EflTectiveness of Smoke From Propolis. 



"And out of their mouths issued fire, and 

 smoke, and— propolis." 



When at the Washington convention I 

 heard Mr. J. E. Crane mention the very 

 pungent quality of smoke that comes from 

 the burning of cloths covered with propolis. 

 He covers his bees with burlap, and when 

 the covers become too "stuck up" to be 

 handled with ease, he uses them for fuel. 

 Mr. Manum, in one of his chats with a 

 neighbor, as related in Gleanings, "gets ofif" 

 the following: — 



"What is it you are burning in your smok- 

 er, that smells so strong? 



It is particles of propolis sprinkled over 

 the fuel in the smoker-barrel. Mr. J. E. 



Crane told me of this when he was here a few 

 days ago; and I tell you, Charles, it is worth 

 knowing. I never tried any thing that 

 would just drive the bees out of the way as 

 nicely as this will. I think it would be a 

 good plan to melt up a lot of propolis and 

 dip pieces of wood into it, and keep them 

 handy by, to be used whenever the bees are 

 troublesome, for it will quiet them in a 

 moment." 



A Novel and Inexpensive Feeder. 



Many bee-keepers would probably try 

 feeding bees in spring, before the beginning 

 of the regular honey flow, were it not for 

 the trouble and expense of getting feeders. 

 Those who wish to give it a trial need not be 

 deterred for this reason, as here is a feeder, 

 described by Mr. F. S. Comstock, in Glean- 

 ings, that costs almost nothing. Here is 

 what Mr. Comstock says: — 



"Having 70 colonies we bought 70 one- 

 quart tin cans. In the bottom of these cans, 

 with a smooth awl, and from inside out, we 

 punched a hole large enough to drop a % 

 inch, flat, smooth-headed wire nail in easily, 

 but leaving a good catch for the head. All 

 our hive boards have a two-inch hole in the 

 center, covered with a block which becomes 

 glued, and these give us no trouble when 

 not in use. We place these cans over these 

 holes; carry a faucet can of 70 lbs. of honey 

 to the center of the yard, and, by the use 

 of a cofl'ee-pot, we have, in 20 minutes, fed 70 

 colonies a pound each, more or less, as 

 desired, and not seen a bee, nor chilled one 

 either. The wire nail makes the feeder work 

 automatically. By looking into the can 

 after feeding, you will see the head of the 

 nail shaking about. This is caused by the 

 bees. It regulates the flow, and keeps any 

 sediment from clogging the feeder." 



Around many houses may be found empty 

 tin cans in which fruit or vegetables have 

 been bought, that could be used for this 

 kind of feeders. 



An Artificial Watering-Place After Nature's 



Ways. 



" The very law which moulds the tear, 

 And bids it trickle from its source." 



My old apiary at Rogersville was near a 

 small stream. On warm days in early 

 spring, and again in August after the honey 

 flow from basswood was past, I have seen 

 the sand along the edges of this stream fair- 

 ly alive with bees sucking water. I am 

 reminded of this by reading the following 

 in Gleanings, 



"Observant people will notice that bees, 

 while drinking at a branch or pool, never sip 

 the water, but abstract it from the sand 

 close by, through which, by the way, it has 



