r>12 VOTJEO TO I53I:E« AIS 33 3rIOZ»f E Y, A.iVI> H03J:JE: IIVTDEKDESTH. 



A. I. ROOT, 



Publisher and Proprietor. 

 Mediua, O. 



luiiin in Ad- 



^ Published Montlily. (TERMS : SI. OO Per Anu 

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Vol. IV. 



AUGUST 1, 1876. 



No. 8. 



NOTES FROM OUR EXCHANGES. 



WE fairly trembled in our shoes, wheu on 

 opening the A. B. J. we noticed their 

 purpose of "poking fun" at some of our weak- 

 nesses, and the way we mentally went over 

 the awfal blunders we had made here and 

 there in a dozen different ways, was enough to 

 make any body draw a long breath of relief 

 on discovering that it was only because we 

 had held up as new offenders some that were 

 old in the humbug and swindle line. It is 

 true Gould & Gillespie have been a long 

 time reported as sharp patent right men, but 

 it was not until this Centennial year, that 

 they were positively reported as having black 

 mailed people by the ridiculous assertion that 

 they had a patent on the two story arrange- 

 ment, and that toe were not using two story 

 hives. 



Friend Butler of Jackson, Mich., gives 

 some very valuable hints on hiving swarms, 

 which we extract from as follows : 



I practice as follows : All my swarms are cunglit in a 

 peach basket on the end of a pole. Take a basket and 

 bore the bottom full of inch holes, and cut away quite a 

 good portion of the staves, so as to make it as open as }X)s- 

 sible ; stick the inside full all around on the staves with 

 small strips of comb, a small leather stra]), six or seven 

 inches lonir, put through the bottom of basket arid nailed 

 on the inside, with a small harness snap on the other end 

 of strap. Then fasten to the other end of pole, a rinr, 

 snap into the rins^ and your Ijasket hangs in the form of a 

 bell. Take a light pole, with hook on the end, and you 

 have all that is required. 



We suppose your hives are already just where you want 

 them to stand, ready to receive the swarm, some 

 brood combs having Ijeen put in the hive. Now then, 

 this hive has a cover or cap after the fashion of a band 

 box. Ju<t as soon as a swarm is on the wing and they 

 have selected an alighting place, take the basket in one 

 hand, hook in the other, and when about a quart has set- 

 lle«l to the tree, shake wth hook and jnit basket in the 

 spot. Just as soon as the bees liegin to gather on the bas- 

 ket, lower the basket down alxjut one foot or so, and keep 

 the branch shaking with the hook, and in less than live 

 minutes you have them all on the basket. Now carry to 

 liive, and one jerk will drop them on top of the frames. 

 Put on the cover and your swarm is hived and out of the 

 way, and not a sTOre of bees will take wing after they are 

 put in. Towards evening you nmst put tliem in whatever 

 shape you want them. If for a honey stock, fill them up 

 with combs and brood, and put on boxes. 



This will lie found much more expeditious than the 

 other way of shaking tliem dowi in tha front of 

 (he hive. We have practiced this for quite a number of 

 yeirs, and could not get along now with the old way. 



We would suggest that an upper story with 

 out combs, be put on the hive before shaking 

 the bees on the frames, for the hive can then 

 be covered without danger of crushing bees, 

 and you should be as careful of every one of 

 the little chaps as you would be of one of your 

 own children. If a peach basket is uo"t at 

 hand a strong basket of any kind will do ; if 

 the swarm is at a distance, you can shoulder 

 your pole and go home at a leisurely gait. 

 That is the way we bring them home on" the 

 rake nowadays. 



P. Miller says on page 189, he has used foun- 

 dations for the past 10 j^ears, for comb honey, 

 and never heard any one speak of its being 

 different from ordinary comb honev. Our ex"- 

 perience exactly tallies with that of the .1. B. 

 J., that the surplus material, if the foundation 

 contains more than is needed to raise the cells, 

 is used for comb building beneath, if the piece 

 does not reach to the bottom, or to either or 

 both the sides. This curious fact renders it 

 unnecessary for us to be very precise about the 

 thickness, providing we are careful to give the 

 bees material enough. If but a small piece is 

 given, thsjr progress is much slower than if 

 they have nearly a section box full. A piece 

 four inches square fastened only at the top, 

 seems to be about the thing fo'r our section 

 boxes which are about S^^ square inside. 



Mr. Isaac Smith, thinks those who gimclso 

 much about the "bee-business" must have sore 

 heads or something. Perhaps he is right ; 

 when we that are so busy, turn round to take 

 a look at those who do the "growling," we find 

 that it all comes from a very few. The great 

 mass of ns look cheerful and couteuted7 and 

 some of us even saucy, but those who do 

 growl, keep so constantly at it that they make 

 considerable noise, even if they are but few in 

 number. Like the juveniles in school, let us 

 all be ready to say "It wasn't me ! " 



The Bee World has a correspondent Avho puts his 

 new swarms in a barrel; he has decided that six i^ a 

 little more than a barrel full, for on putting in that 

 number, one seceded. Can not Mr. Heddon gather 

 some hints from tlie i)Ian, for his old stvle apiary ? 

 The same writer accidentally strikes on a bright idea, 

 new to us at least, in regard to swarming when he is 

 at work on a distant part of the farm. The Vv-omen 

 folks have a "Hag ot truce"' as he terms it, and when 

 swarms are expected lie keeps an eve out for it and 

 when seen, stirs himself accordingly. " 



