THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW, 



279 



bees are forced to occnpy. false positions in 

 the organism. 



Empty combs or sheets of foundation, 

 when used to enlarge the brood nest when 

 there is a flow, should be hung in that posi- 

 tion which is just being occupied by the 

 new brood period, namely, where brood has 

 hatched and eggs show in the center of the 

 comb. Otherwise the added combs will be 

 tirst used for storage, and the uniform de- 

 velopment of the organism disturbed. In 

 early sjiring combs should not be so added 

 until the beginning of a new brood period 

 is on the outside of the brood nest. Later 

 they can be placed at any point in the 

 brood nest where the brood period is begin- 

 ning in the centers of the combs. A similar 

 rule, "like with like," applies to the ad- 

 dition of combs of brood; otherwise they 

 are more or less of a hindrance to the 

 growth of the organism, perhaps during 

 the whole summer. 



Swarming is prevented by removing part 

 of the sealed brood and giving unsealed 

 brood at the same time, in the appropriate 

 position. Thus that " stream of feed-juice " 

 is kept from increasing, and all of it em- 

 ployed. 



Sometimes a newly hived swarm builds 

 queen -cells which afterward disappear. 

 According to this theory, the reason is that 

 the supply of larval food, at first excessive, 

 receives no additions and more employ- 

 ment. A like reason explains why after- 

 swarms, with prolific young queens, which 

 begin work nearer the end of the flow, do 

 not build drone-comb so soon; and only it 

 is that a swarm which has been given sealed 

 brood is thereby incited to build drone- 

 comb. But by hanging one to thre3 combs 

 of quite young brood in the appropriate 

 position in a swarm, drone-comb may be 

 prevented. Drone brood in established 

 colonies may be entirely prevented by 

 giving them enough worker brood from 

 weaken colonies to keep that "stream of 

 feed-juice " employed. It helps to give 

 foundation to draw out at the same time. 



Quite a number appear to have been con- 

 vinced of the truth of Grestung's ideas. 

 What little I have read about them has been 

 mainly expository, not demonstrative. At 

 the Leipzig convention some of his state- 

 ments were sharply criticized by Drierzon 

 and W. Guenther. 



Some of us will be pleased to learn that in 

 controversy he does not refine his strictures, 



hits from the shoulder, etc. Perhaps that 

 is one reason why he is talked about. 

 Here is a specimen : " Boundless foolishness, 

 classic nonsense, soft-brained opinions, 

 worse than Mother Goose, [ paraphrase 1. 

 preversity and senseless." Strangely fa- 

 miliar. 



L' Apiooltoke.— Italian apiculture has 

 met with a serious loss in the death of the 

 Metelli brothers, Federico and Giovanni, 

 both pro.niuent bee - keepers, which 

 occurred within a few days of each other. 

 Dr. Giovanni Metelli was born in 1843. He 

 entered the military service as infantry 

 surgeon in 18GG, in which he remained un- 

 til his death. His teachings were in favor 

 of large hives, very strong colonies, and 

 reserve colonies for reiuforcment. Accord- 

 ing to the President of the Association, he 

 " freed Italian apiculture from the last 

 impediments which attached it to methods, 

 which, however suited to the countries in 

 which they originated, were little adapted 

 to the fertility of the Italian soil and the 

 mildness of the climate, and the different 

 character of the Italian bee. " 



The last letter written by Dr. Metalli to 

 the editor, on the subject of artificial 

 swarming, contained this sentence: " Nature 

 is in so far superior to art, that she has at 

 her disposition an infinite number of ages 

 and the iron law of natural selection; while 

 art has at its disposion merely the brief life 

 of the artist, or in an auxiliary way that of a 

 few successive ones, or only historical periods 

 with all their windings of error and truth. " 

 He preferred artificial increase, which he 

 made by removing the old colony to a new 

 stand, and setting the (jueen with a frame 

 of brood and bees in a new hive on the old 

 stand to catch the flight-bees. In 8 to 12 

 days the old colony was divided. 



On page 153, next to the last line, " Dr. 

 Martin " is an error for " Dr. Metelli. " 

 The name of the Ohio " bee-charmer " re- 

 ferred to in the same passage, was W. A. 

 Flanders. He was quite well known as an 

 authority on bee-keeping, at the time that 

 H. A. King was another authority. He 

 lived in Richland Co. He disappeared 

 about thirty years, supposed to have been 

 drowned in Lake Erie, where he had bought 

 an island for queen-rearing purposes. 

 He gave away or sold samples of his 

 "charming" liquor to various parties. 

 Perhaps some of the older readers will be 

 able to throw some light on this matter. 



