THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



147 



" Sometimes I think the poor seasons when we 

 have to study and work for the benefit of our 

 bees, are the best ones in tlie end." Mrs. Hol- 

 lenbeck. 



Next Franklin Thoru, a New Jersey school 



teacher, keeping some bees for his health, 



rather turns the dial back for us to the time 



wlien it was not unusual to be interested in 



bees. 



"Anything but a desirable race of bees. (Pa- 

 nics. ) * * * Have you ever noticed how 

 nmch quicker a light in the cellar will disturb 

 the Italians than the Carniolans ? * * * a. 

 few years ago 1 noticed that the colonies that 

 had ail buckwheat honey for winter stores came 

 out of winter quarters in better ctmdition than 

 those that had white honey. * * * Buckwheat 

 honey does not become thin and sour when in 

 the cellar nearly as quickly as white honey." 

 F. A. Lockhart. 



The same writer advises asparagus tops 

 slightly wet with kerosene to cover the door- 

 way of a colony that is being robbed. Friend 

 Lockhart seems to be a man of ideas, and a 

 person we shall be willing to hear from any 

 time anywhere. 



C. F. Teel of Elmont, Texas, rather pa- 

 thetically illustrates how not to do things 

 when foul brood is around. But it generates 

 itself, foul brood does. 



The selection of copied articles is Dema- 

 ree's "Outlook," and a chat of H. D. Stew- 

 art's from the Guide, and Jennie Atchley's 

 very excellent transferring article from A. 

 B. J., and a picture and life sketch of John 

 F. Gates from the Canadian. 



The February number swallows the non- 

 sense about a single ounce of . honey repre- 

 senting millions of miles of travel ; but 

 older papers have done the same. 



T. R. Common (page 20) seems to add 

 somewhat to the knowledge of drone play- 

 grounds. He locates them on the lines 

 where workers are passing back and forth. 

 I think he is wrong however in supposing 

 that the fertilization of workers is anything 

 more than an extremely rare occurrence. A 

 worker bee rudely seized by its fellows puts 

 out a tiny drop of honey if it has any, as a 

 ransom for its life perhaps. If it is true that 

 drones habitually seize workers on the wing 

 I suspect it is because they have learned this 

 as an easy way to get refreshments. Per- 

 haps it is only play, or idle wantonness of 

 which they expect nothing. Awaiting final 

 judgment let us have more witnesses as to 

 the exact facts. 



The initial article of the year by C. J. 

 Robinson is an extra good one. And Dr. 

 Tufts, on page .5, gives valuable observations 

 on fertile workers as below. 



" Although I have many times seen them in 

 the act of depositing eggs in the cell, I never 

 could detect that the other bees paid them any 

 particular attention. I have at various times 

 caught and killed a bee when 1 found her de- 

 positing eggs. I could not see, however, that it 

 decreased the egg production in the hive to any 

 extent, which surely ought to be the case if only 

 one was concerned in egg laying." 



Mrs. Henze, on page 7, gives a singular case 

 of the efifect of stings on her baby. Badly 

 stung on Thursday, swelling did not occur 

 to marked extent at the time ; but the next 

 Monday both ears swelled to twice their 

 natural size. 



On page 8 what seems to be very pestilent 

 advice is given to beginners about winter 

 tactics. It is indeed said to disturb as little 

 as possible ; but still the idea is conveyed 

 that to pull the hive up from the bottom 

 board, and to open it and look in at the bees 

 from the top, are proper things to be done 

 every week if desired — just the naughty 

 tricks beginners are too much inclined to do 

 any way. 



The Progressive. 



This is our baby, and it's sold to Higgins- 

 ville : so any comments on the cut of its 

 editorial jib would be out of date. By wait- 

 ing a bit we shall find out how its present 

 master, Mr. R. B. Leahy, sets a jib. Appar- 

 ently its family of correspondents is not to 

 be very much changed and we will sample 

 them as below — 



" Have to pry and pall and sweat to get the 

 first frame or dummy out." Jennie Atchley's 

 compliments to the Hoffman frame, page 3, 



" Two crops of about 100 lbs. as an average per 

 colony, so far this season, * * with prospects 

 for a third one. * * I am the last man located 

 up the St. Lucie river, [Florida] 10 miles from a 

 neigh boi , 50 from a store ; * * baching it. 

 * * 'Tis sweet here among the mosquitoes 

 and sand flies." A. F. Brown, page 4. 



" Plenty of honey and a good tight hive will do 

 more toward getting bees ready to gather the 

 harvest than any other method, and it is per- 

 fectly safe for a beginner.'' Editor Quigley, 

 page 17. 



There, now ! We might have known that 



Mrs. Atchley was a man in disguise, with a 



Jennie glued on to his name. Listen to him 



once. 



" I will just let him have the last lick and quit, 

 rather than argue too far." Pago 18. 



Such disguises are more certain to get out 

 than murder is, Mr. Jennie. 



" You will find there the crank, the bore and 

 the talkative person, the agreeable man, the 

 thinker and the modest person ; but in no other 

 place will you meet such genuine cordiality." 

 Bee convention as seen by E. R. Garrett, page 19. 



