342 



THE BEE-KEBPERS* REVIEW. 



men who had tried thick top-bars, 

 and who said that while the thick 

 top-bars did away with the majority 

 of the brace combs, enough will still 

 be built to make their presence a 

 nuisance. If I were starting an apiary 

 I should certainly give thick top-bars 

 a trial and see the results with my 

 own eyes. 



Dr. Miller speaks of brace combs 

 that are built between honey board 

 and the top-bars, and he is correct 

 aV)Out that, but I opened the brood 

 nests of my hives so seldom that this 

 was not a serious objection. If we 

 get to making "shook" swarms, it 

 would be more pleasant to avoid these 

 brace combs. 



CO-OPERATION. 



On this Point, Even Little Ireland is 

 Ahead of us. 



If bee-keeping in this country is to 

 hold the high place of which we are 

 so proud, it must soon take another 

 step; that of co-operation in the mat- 

 ter of marketing. Even little Ireland 

 is ahead of us in this respect. A read- 

 able letter from the editor of the Irish 

 Bee Journal, appearing recently in the 

 American Bee Keeper, contains the 

 following: 



"A great development of the indus- 

 try is taking place in Ireland this 

 year. The principle of co-operation 

 has been introduced and has done a 

 great deal to improve the prospects of 

 bee-keepers. Co-operative societies are 

 being formed all over the country and 

 these are federated in the metropolis, 

 where a depot has been organized for 

 the purpose of marketing the honey and 

 of supplying all requisites at co-opera- 

 tive prices." 



And here is another item from the 

 same issue of the American Bee Keep- 

 er: 



"As will be seen by referring to the 

 department of bee-keeping news In 

 this number, Jamaica has scored sever- 

 al points along the line of solving the 

 market problem. The little island in 

 the sea, having an area considerably 

 less than the state of Massadhusetts, 

 now has a corporation with an author- 

 ized capital of about $50,000 to look 

 after its honey crops, and their profit- 

 able disposition. The new organiza- 

 tion, we are pleased to note, has 

 chosen Mr. H. G. Burnet, of Kingston, 

 an old and esteemed friend of the 

 American Bee-Keeper, for its busi- 

 ness manager. We trust the company 

 may meet with the success which the 

 enterprise deserves, in floating its 

 stock." 



SHOOK SWARMS. 



They don't have to be Watched for, and 

 Produce White Combs. 



Gleanings has seldom published 

 more valuable articles in one number 

 than it did in the issue of October 13. 

 Most of them were devoted to the 

 shook-swarm-method. There is not 

 room to copy all of them in this issue, 

 hut here is one of them that gives a 

 lot of good points and advice. It was 

 written by Mr. J. T. Hairston, of In- 

 dian Territory. Mr. Hairston says: 



"I find that brushed or "shook" 

 swarming has several advantages over 

 natural swarming. In the first place, 

 you don't have to watch for swarms 

 a greater part of the time; and where 

 out-apiarios are run, a great saving is 

 the result; and more honey is obtain- 

 ed, because the swarming is done at 

 the commencement of the flow, the 

 bees being brushed on wired frames 

 with half-inch starters with excluder 

 on. Supers filled with drawn combs, 

 the bees simply have to store in the 

 super— nowhere else to put the honey. 



