fHE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



197 



'Speots the dynasty of king Log is almost 

 played. 



•JohiiF. (rates has been writing for A. B. 

 K. some articles lately on Successful Bee 

 Keeping. See pages ;5r>, 81 and 117. The 

 npicnltural plan of gettinar swarms, and 

 swarms only, from large box hives, and 

 running these swarms for surplus only in 

 good frame hives is advoc ited. This is an 

 attractive plan. Let us have in the near 

 future some more reports of actual results 

 in different locations, and in the hands of 

 different men. 



Friend Gates thinks it well to cater a 

 little to the interests of those stubborn folk 

 who will winter their bees out doors any way. 

 So. Some practitioners would prescribe 

 extermination for those folks who will not 

 do as well as they can. 



Oh page 83 friend W. J. Davis makes me 

 laugh by his proposed modification of the 

 hive for use in the Gates method. Totally 

 different hiye — might almost as well consider 

 a gasoline motor carriage a modification of 

 the wheelbarrow. Still, on its own merits, 

 the Davis hive may be a good one. 



And here are some ot the nuggets of wis- 

 dom from friend Gates ; 



" Do not disturb the boos in wintor by iHgffing 

 at tlio liive entrance to ke >p it open. * * * If 

 I should say, be careful not to let the entrnnce 

 get cloKKod with ice, some might be a f tor them 

 every day with brooms, shovel, tongs, hammers, 

 kiiive«, etc. " 



'■ Don't always do a thing the first time you 

 think of it, but tliink of it a number of times 

 before you do it ; and if it suits you then do a 

 little of it." A. B. K. 117. 



I hardly think it is worth while to run 

 after the absurd statements about bees that 

 can often be found in newspapers ; but when 

 the like gets into our own journals it is high 

 time to protest, as T do about the following 

 fro'Ti A. B. K. 43. 



•'But it is a still more curious fact that these 

 hrigand bees can be produced artificially by 

 giving working boes a mixture of honey and 

 brandy to drink. Tho bees soon acquire a taste 

 for this beverage, which has the same disastrous 

 effects upon them as ui)on men. They become 

 ill disposed and irritable and lose all desire to 

 work, and fiUHlly, when they bagin to feel hun- 

 gry, they attack and plunder the well supplied 

 hives. " 



What else could a beginner trusting to the 

 guidance of the American Bee Keeper do 

 than believe this nonsense ? There is not a 

 word to indicate that it is aught else than 

 reliable truth. 



On page ."SI of A. B. K. Doolittle gives it 

 as his matured judgement that bees do not 

 do (juite as well in a painted hive as in an 



uiipainted one — not quite so dry in winter ; 

 and interior dryness in winter time is one 

 of the most important considerations that 

 can be. 

 And here is a good " kink ; " 



" To prev(<nt quilts from unraveling roll them 

 up and touch the edges to melted wax " HE 

 Hill, A. B. K. 83. 



Chas. H. Thies. on page 85 A. B. K. just 

 about hits it wheu he advises not to sell a 

 poor grade of honey on one's home market 

 under any circumstances. No matter how 

 honestly the thing may be managed con- 

 sumption of poor honey kills the future de- 

 mand ; and the futuie demand is a bird we 

 can't afordto have killed off. 



W.F. Marks, on page 119 A. B. K., sup- 

 ported by an editorial on page 127, goes for 

 that drooping patient the North American. 

 To bury him, and then raise up one of his 

 boys in his place, seems to be the idea. 



•' Let us organize a National Bee Keepers' 

 Association that is National. " Editor. 



And comrade M., putting C. W. Broadbeck 

 ahead as exemplar, wants to have the mor- 

 ibund county and state societies made over 

 into live ones to begin on, and the new na- 

 tional society a representative body sent up 

 by the societies below. The scheme is quite 

 inspiring; but I fear none of the parties 

 pushing it quite realize the mafjnitude ot 

 the job. D^ad snakes are said .;0 be easily 

 brought to life ; but dead lambs death seems 

 inclined to hang onto. 



The question has been mooted in A. B. K. 

 whether the same lot can properly be utilized 

 for both fowls and bees. C. H. Thies says 

 yes — has doue so himself for some years, 

 spending a great part of his own time in the 

 same yard, queen rearing etc. Practically 

 the bees do n >f. w irry the fowls fcjany exU'it, 

 aud the fowls do not eat the young queens — 

 nor even the dr )ne^. A. B. K 11!(. 



Of the num=)rous methods of fastening 

 comb when transferring, Doolittle hasset- 

 t'el on Pa inch wire nails lhru«t through 

 brad holes in the frames. A. B. K. 116. 



Bessie L Putnam writes very aftractively, 

 on page 113, of the flower garden with refer- 

 ence to bees ; but somehow while I admire I 

 cannot agree. She wants to know why not, 

 in making our fliral selections, select to 

 favor the bees. Good reason why. The 

 most of us want as our stand-bys flowers 

 combining certain desirable qualities— ( 1 ) 

 Beauty ; ( 2 ) A period of bloom covering 

 most of the season ; ( 3 ) Availability for cut- 



