128 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



April 



to the chaff entirely. Yesterday, we found 

 a colony that h;ul been skipped, in the fall 

 chaff piicking ; nothing was over the cluster, 

 except a sheet of duck, and that had several 

 holes through it. The outside combs were 

 full of ilead bees, and the bottom board was 

 covered with heaps of them. More than half 

 the colony, which was quite strong, had per- 

 ished, and yet the chaff packed ones all 

 round them,' many of them quite weak, had 

 lost scarcelj"^ a bee. No bees were found 

 dead in the cells, among those that were 

 closed down to a few combs, although some 

 were so weak that they wintered on but 3 

 combs. I am inclined to think the trouble 

 you have mentioned, friend S. would not 

 have occurred, had j^our bees been similarly 

 packed. 



PITRCHASIXQ "RIGHTS." 



What do you a?k for the rig-ht to manufacture Sim- 

 plicity hives, to sell? I think I ean make wood work 

 as cheaply here or cheaper than it can be done any- 

 where, and can ship also at low f reig'hts by river to 

 many points. Of course, friend. Root 1 know you are 

 not a patent man, but I am willing' to pay you some- 

 thing-. Reinhard Stehle. 



Marietta, Ohio, March 6th, 1878. 



Thank you my friend, for your kind offer. 

 You, and everjHt)ody else, are perfectly wel- 

 come to copy every thing I have made or in- 

 vented, and the satisfaction of knowing I 

 have helped my fellows, is all the pay I shall 

 ever want. I hope. Even if I should not get 

 all the credit I deserve, it matt^ei-s very little, 

 for I have full faith that He who careth for 

 the sparrows, will take care of and provide 

 for His children, who are of more value than 

 many sparrows. Do not be afraid I shall 

 ever consider your business an opposition 

 one, for I am learning now, if I did not know 

 it before, that the world is amply wide for us 

 all. Do good work, and at a low price, and 

 I will give you all the aid I possibly can; 

 whenever I have done this with a pure un- 

 selfish spirit, I have always found plenty of 

 kind friends to com3 forward voluntarily, 

 and I have had plenty and to spare. It is in 

 this way that God shows His care and love 

 for those who are deserving, as I understand 

 Him, and I have no fear, my friends, of your 

 not giving me all the credit, aye and money 

 too, that I deserve, for I am sure you have, 

 so far, given me more of both. 



THIN FOU>fDATION. 



I think you say, fdn. will measure from 4 to 9 

 square feet per lb. Can you send me 100 lbs. of fdn. 

 (worker) that will measure 800 square feet? If so, at 

 what price? Bees had a good fly to-day. One stock 

 didn't fly worth a cent, — honey on one side, bees on 

 the other — dead. Looked in a few hives — brood in 

 one — no brood, no poJUn in the others — bad shape 

 — with one or two warm still days, we'll flx 'em. 

 Carried in a few lbs. of flour to-day. 



J. H. TOWNLEY. 



Tompkins, Mich. March 2nd, '78. 



We can make fdn. with very slight walls, 

 as thin as 9 square feet to the lb., but it would 

 be very difficult to get the hands to put up a 

 hundred lbs. so thin as to cover even 800 ft. 

 With our present methods of working, we 

 cannot make sheets roll of a uniform thick- 

 ness, and I cannot see that it is at all impor- 

 tant. We tried rolling the sheets of wax 

 through plain rolls, to give tliem an even 

 thickness, more than two years ago, but 

 those who undertake the task, will probably 



find where the trouble comes in. If you had 

 put your bees on as few combs as they could 

 cover, friend T.. I do not see how the honey 

 could get on one side, and the bees on the 

 other. You should understand how to work 

 chaff hives, if any one does. 



YELLOW QUEENS, AND BLACK QUEENS THAT HAVE- 

 MATED ■SVITH ITALIAN DRONES. 



Which do you consider best to rear queens from, 

 a dark, or a deep yellow Italian queen? If there be 

 any difference, please explain. How far apart should 

 Blacks and Italians be to prevent crossing-? Did you 

 ever have a black queen mate with an Italian drone? 

 I bought a stand of Blacks last summer,(the nearest 

 Italians being- six miles awayi, the queen of which 

 mated with an Italian drone. How are they for hon- 

 ey gathering, &c. ? Bees have been wintered so far 

 without loss. Queens commenced laying Feb. 14th, 

 three weeks later than last year. I now have almost 

 all kinds of bees,— blacks, Italians and hybrids. I 

 think I will Italianize most of them next season. I 

 have two black queens which I do not think can be 

 outstripped by any race of bees, as far as bees and 

 honey are concerned. R, H. A. 



March 4th., 1878. 



I do not know which is best, a dark queen 

 or a light one, but these eager questioning 

 new beginners, will very soon ttnd out, at 

 the rate they are now pushing their research- 

 es. I am inclined to think color has but lit- 

 tle to with their value. I have had black 

 queens that have met Italian drones, and 

 have reported in regard to them. I can- 

 not see that the workers differ, either in 

 looks or "zeal,'' from ordinary hybrids, 

 being very much ahead of common black 

 bees. I think bees as far apart as the dis- 

 tance you have named, rarely mix, yet the 

 Italians seem to spread very rapidly. Last 

 summer, in hunting bees 10 miles from our 

 apiary, I found beautifully marked Italians, 

 and could not iind that anV were kept within 

 at least, 5 or 6 miles from the spot. Of 

 com'se, we have occasionally black queens 

 equal to the average Italians* and we have, 

 also, Italians not up to the average of the 

 blacks; but taking the genenil run of the 

 two races, the Italians are almost immeasur- 

 ably ahead. In regard to yellow queens, I 

 believe they are more likely to produce yel- 

 low bees, and bees that are more gentle to 

 handle; but as a rule, these gentle bees are 

 not as good honey gatherers. 



VARNISHING HIVES INSIDE. 



Would it be any advantage to give new hives a 

 coat of varnish inside, as bees collect around furni- 

 ture and carriage bodies on the platforms in the 

 spring of the year when they are put out-doors to 

 dry; would it hot save them the gumming over the' 

 sides of the hives, or help them a good deal? If not, 

 would it annoy or hurt them? 



Sam'l R. Lippincott. 



Indianapolis, Ind., Mar. 4th, 1878. 



It would doubtless save the bees some 

 trouble, but the hives would be more liable 

 to dampness, because the dry wood absorbs 

 moisture in a way the varnished surface 



j Avould not. I do not think it would do any 



I perceptible harm. 



! I feel like a "burnt child" in this "bee business" as 



i I bought a farm right and sample gum for $18.00 of 



i N. C. Mitchell. I paid 50 cts. for the first lessons in 



I Bee Culture or "Bee-Keeper's Guide" and I don't 



consider that I made much in that deal with him, so 



I I will move slowly after this. I am 63 years old and 



I served three years in the federal army. I had three 



wounds and can not use my right hand; I write with 



mv left. James E. Skeen. 



1 Witts' Foundry, Tenn., Feb. 26th, 1878. 



