1877 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



53 



spirit exists between the one who furnishes 

 the capital and those who furnisii tlie labor? 

 Well, in spite ol' what seemed close economy, 

 expenses seemed every (hiy determined to ex- 

 ceed income. Pajier must be purchased lor 

 another year, materials must be had, or work 

 could not go on at all, and the daily demands 

 for money, for purposes that could not be set 

 aside seemed coming thicker and faster. Fi- 

 nally the source from which money had been 

 furnished me for so many years, with no other 

 condition than that I paid the interest prompt- 

 ly, unexi)ectedly asked security. I have al- 

 ways prided myself on being able to get along 

 without asking anybody to be responsible for 

 me in any w^ay, and on the same grounds, 

 could decline being responsible for the mis- 

 takes of others. I had talked for years of the 

 beauty of having everybody independent, and 

 of going without things rather than run any 

 risk of causing others to suffer by our faults 

 or failures, of going in debt no farther than 

 our property would safely make good under 

 any circumstances. When I looked about to 

 see whex'e the errors had been, to see where I 

 had made bad or injudicious investments, it 

 looked all right, yet the fact stood squarely 

 before us, (my wife and I, for she shares all the 

 trials and triumphs of business, and even 

 when I am headstrong and do not heed her 

 ivisc counsels, she accepts the condition of 

 things precisely as if it were her own work), 

 that we were in debt in a way that we had no 

 business to be, and that it was positively 

 wrong and sinful. Hand in hand, we bowed 

 before that Father who had so often guided us 

 in trouble, and very soon we saw our mis- 

 takes, and the safe path to take in the future. 



A lew illustrations will serve to point out 

 the way in which that path of peace was 

 shown, and disagreeable, humble, toilsome 

 and laborious as it seemed at fust sight, how 

 pleasant and easy it became, after I had once 

 accepted and started out in it. One of the 

 man}' items was the section box ; I felt that I 

 must have a set of saws to groove stuff 2 inch- 

 es wide, but it would cost more money than I 

 — in fact I knew such bills for machinery 

 must be stopped. But our friends must have 

 the section boxes, and they must be made in 

 a way that would be simplest and best for them. 

 I turned to that same Friend for counsel, and 

 then looked to see what could be done with 

 the tools I had. The result was given in the 

 January No., and 1 had not only saved my 

 money, but showed our thousand readers how 

 tliey might save theirs in a similar way ; not 

 only this, but it is really almost the only plan 

 by which this work can be done with foot 

 ]wwer saws, for they have not sufficient power 

 to drive 7 or 8 saws at once. The same ideas 

 will apply to all appliances about the apiary, 

 and if having small meai s at my command 

 will fit me better or make Gr.KANiNcs of more 

 viilue to the masse?, I earnestly pray that I 

 may be spared from much !)rosperity. 



Seventy-five cents each Sabbath, would be 

 .^oO.OO for livery for that Sabbath school ; we 

 decided at once, that such an amount could 

 not be spared, but / very quickly decided in 

 my own mind, that I would go on foot. I did 

 not nieutiaii it, fjr I wished to test my povicrs 

 of walking first, and I really long'al for the 



time, that I might see how much of a task it 

 was going to be. If 1 lacked strength, I felt 

 that it would be given me, and this feeling 

 was strengthened by reading on a scrap of pa- 

 per that fell in my way, that Moody had said 

 (Jod always gave all the strength that was 

 needed, to those \\\\o were willing to work for 

 him. I walked the 10 miles— 5 there and as 

 many back — the first Sabbath very easily, but 

 as the road was (piite snowy I felt the effects 

 of it for a day or two. This I expected, but 

 the next time I felt it much less, and about 

 the third trip, scarcely at all. Now there !s 

 scarcely anything I look forward to with 

 more pleasure, than my Sabbath afternoon's 

 walk. 



$ch§ and imfki. 



=fjfynr?;OW low a temperature will bees endure, safely, 

 J°jfi'|[ with no extra protection ? [Hard to determine, 

 perhaps 20°.] How low, when protected by a 

 house with straw packing six inclies thick all around 

 except in front, so that when the doors of the liouso 

 are opened, the front o; the hive is exposed ? [Unless 

 the packing is close to the bees, ice wunld prefer to have 

 them in the open air.'] How long will bees remain 

 safely dormant, at one time? {Certainly i^ months ; 

 some of our successful ones think they could keep them 

 a year, in a good cellar.] 



One man reports most of liis swarms dead, frozen 

 solid. His hives stand out with no protection. An- 

 other, with a liouse and straw packing, except in 

 front, says several of his colonies have their entran- 

 ces filled solid with ice. But on raising the cap, and 

 canvas on top of tlie comb frames, the bees i)onred 

 out and he was obliged to c^ose them in, at once. lie 

 then left the cap a little ajar for ventilation. I will 

 only say, that my swarm, purchased Aug. 23d, '7G, and 

 pronounced all right, by our professional apiarist, 

 W. M. Kellogg, when placed in winter quarters, 

 (house with six inch straw packing, except in front), 

 seems now all rigbt. E. Child. 



Oneida, Ills., Jan. 10th, 1877. 



A neighbor wanted some logging done last spring, 

 so lather let me take tho oxen and I worked one day, 

 in return for which lie put the Ilrst swarm he had 

 come out, June 15th, into a large box hive for us. 

 Father said I might call them mine, and I tell you 

 they worked busily. They swarmed July 12th, be- 

 sides making 19 lbs. of nice honey for us. In Oct. 

 th2 largo hive weighed 57 lbs. and small one 25 lbs. 

 independent of the hives. For wintering I set them 

 on the east side of a knoll, built a little house 

 around them, packed 6 or 8 inches of chaff and 

 straw around the hives and covered them over to 

 keep out wat3r, leaving a little upward ventilation. 

 I fixed the hives so the bees could fly. They don't 

 carry out any dead ones and seem to be wintering 

 weP. I am going to school, but what spare time I 

 get I work at making hives; am going to use tho 

 Standard frame, think it about right. Now proba- 

 bly I shall have to feed that little swarm before 

 spring and I want to ask you a few questions. Do 

 you think artificial honey woiUd l)e good to feed? 

 It is composcil of syrup made of A sugar with a 

 little cream tartar, and two or three drops of pep- 

 lirrmint essence; they ate this in the fall as quick- 

 ly as lioncy. 'l-4> good as sugar and it\tfer nlone, but 

 iij better.^ Do you think 1 have adopted the w)'ong 



