ISl 



GLEANINGS m BEE CULTUEE. 



June 



lieve most of your readers, espe3ially those who 

 have other hives, other frames, and less steady 

 hiiiids, would by some slip or jar apprise her ma^is- 

 ty of (lans^'er, 09 times in a 100. Then, by following- 

 your lulvii-e to close the hive and be more careful 

 lU'xt time, I believe they would still fail 98 times in 

 100. At this rate of progress, how many times 

 would 100 hives need to be opened to clip 100 queens. 



After the queen has taken alarm, she can be clip- 

 pert, by following- her with the open scissors all 

 about the comb, all over your lap, all up your sleeve 

 &c., till, in some favorable instant, you dare to close 

 the scissors upon the coveted lace wing'. But this 

 operation is the most trying to the nerves, of any 

 that ever I did, and 1 could not advise beginners to 

 practice it. Because. my queens must be clipped, I 

 had to tind a better way; and because I pinched and 

 manned my first <iucen, while clipping her, so that 

 she was useless and had to be replaced, I have nev- 

 er foi/r'(«J another. How many queens have been 

 injured by handling no one knows. I like to Iniow 

 that mine are not thus injured because absolutely 

 untouched. I set a small wire cage over the queen 

 on the comb; when she runs up it -sooner up a 

 small cage than a large one— I lift it, pick off two or 

 three bees by the wing- and put in for company, 

 carry them into the house, and let them loose on a 

 clean window. She can be clipped here in motion 

 better than on the comb; but after allowing them 

 to ruh awhile, guide them near each other and the 

 bees will feed the queen, when the work can be 

 easily done. I hhve since found out a more expe- 

 ditious way; while the (jueen is passing from the 

 cage to the window let her back or wing gently 

 brush^a drop of honey on the end of the finger, and 

 she will soon stop" to clean it off. I have had 

 queens fly after being clipped, but -when I cut off 

 the largo wing on only one side, just deep enough 

 to take the tip of the small one in the same clip, she 

 never flies again. It wounds her but little, as 1 give 

 a slanting cut, taking more of the lace than of the 

 fleshy part. Set the cage over her as before, ciarry 

 her to the hive 'at once and let her run down among 

 the combs, not in at the entrance. If all the mum 

 old bee keepers have known all about this, all these 

 years, you are not the only man that onaht to have 

 a tfoubled conscience. A.L.Gould. 



Kidgeville, Iroquois Co., 111., April 13, 187^. 



IMaiiy thanks for your very kind opinion 

 of my humble self, "Mrs. G. This world is 

 full of care and worry, and mistakes, and 

 iiiisunderstandings, to'say notliing of care- 

 less and wilful wrong. '"Forgive our debts, 

 as we forgive our debtors." Just at this 

 minute, we are about returning 3 separate 

 l)ieces that belong to our engine, and al- 

 though their value is but a few cents, a shop 

 full of workmen are very much disconnnod- 

 ed, and a heavy loss falls on my shoulders, 

 because the manufacturers sent us an old 

 worthless piece, instead of the new one that 

 I ordered. Very likely, some boy or care- 

 less clerk did the business, but,— steady — 

 steady — boys and careless clerks are, at this 

 very minute, tilling your orders, and it may 

 be in the sauie way. Why do we not employ 

 more skill and pay higher prices? We can- 

 not afford to do it, unless we charge you so 

 much for goods tliat we should be ashamed 

 ofourselves ; and very often the high priced 

 labor makes almost as many ridiculous and 

 luuuiliating mistakes, as the cheaper. When 

 a business assumes a considerable magni- 

 tude, the li.ibilities l)ecome still pTi'^ater. 

 .Vre there no large firms who send jusi the 

 right tlung, and at the right priqe, and never 

 make a body feel like shaking them for their 

 awkwardnessV J scarcely know of one, and I 

 am buying supplies and raw material from 

 almost all over the — 1 was going to say 

 world, Itut I am afraid it would sound too 

 l)retentioiis. Well, now I am inclined to 

 thhik it is the same with the railroads ; they 

 are great and unwieldy, and even thougli 



Christian men have them in charge, a great 

 part of the evils you mention, seem unavoid- 

 able. You may never know how mucli some 

 kind and gentle hearts deplore the evils of 

 the very Express business they have charge 

 of, but tind themselves, in this great sea of 

 business, almost helpless. Do not be dis- 

 lieaitened, for I think we are gaining ground 

 day by day. and that the facilities for get- 

 ting things from a distance are being con- 

 stantly improved and cheapened. Losses 

 occur, in all kinds of business, and while I 

 stand willing to pay, as far as I can, for all 

 the blunders I make, I also try to feel to- 

 ward those who so severely try and worry 

 me, almost out of my senses sometimes, 

 ''Father, forgive them, they know not what 

 they do." I do not believe, by any means, 

 in letting every thing go, for this is not 

 right, not justice to either party ; but when 

 you make out your bill for damages, do, my 

 friends, be lenient, and do it with the spirit, 

 "forgive our debts, as we forgive our debt- 

 ors." Both the companies referred to above, 

 have many times made me feel that they 

 were human after all. Do not be troubled 

 about my tender conscience, for I am not 

 sweet tempered toward them all the time, by 

 any means, but may (lOd give me grace to 

 do my part better, and should it ever be in 

 my power to do any thing to right these 

 wrongs, may He give me strength to do it 

 well and feiirlessly. 



I am very glad of your experience with 

 comb honey and fumigating, and your hints 

 in regard to clipping queens wings are so 

 sensible, that I think I shall embody the 

 main i)oints in the A B C book. 



>*0*< 



COITIB FDN.; SAGGING AND BULGING. 



"KEEP IT BEFORE THE PEOPLE." 



S' DO not remember seeing my remedy given b.v 

 yoii or others who make fdn., for the bulgln/f 

 I and sagging of same when being built out. 



I received 25 lbs. of you this spring, and now 



have a number of cards full of brood and eggs, and 



as nice as one could ask for. On the 4th day after 



they were placed in the hive, I made an examina- 



; tion, and found a part of them just right; they 



' could be no better; while another portion were dis- 



I torted, twisted and bulged. I used some of it last 



season, and had no such experience. One piece, 



in particular, was in such a horrid shape, that I at 



I first thought it utterly ruined; and if I had felt any 



'■ ways sceptical in regard to the success of fdn., I 



i would certainly have "tucked" it back into the hive, 



and rushed for my pen, to tell somebody what a 



I failure it had been "with me. But mn faith was not 



I so easily shaken, and instead of becoming demoral- 



t ized over the matter, I set about devising a remed.v 



' for their uncouth shape. I will first give the shape 



j 1 found them in, that the remedy may be the more 



1 intelligible. 



The bees alwaj's begin at the top to build them 

 out, and, with me, always complete one side ahead 

 , of the other. This will cause the sheet, sometimes, 

 i to balance over toward the imcompleted side, and 

 I as soon as the corner touches, or nearly touches 

 the side bar, just so soon will it be fastened. Now 

 1 as the bees go on finishing- this side, of course it 

 I stretches, (ind as the corner is fastened* a bulge 

 will occur just above. 1 found mine not onl.v bulg- 

 ed as stated, but the opposite side was stretched 

 too long, causing another large bulge. My remedy 

 was, to cut it loose from Uie bottom bar and takf 

 i out about '2 inch; also to cut the corner loose and 

 take out ^4, inch of the comb. This lets it swing- 

 clear until completion. Then, with my hands, 1 

 I carefully stnrightend the comb, and now every one 

 of thctn is a perfect specimen of brood cards. 



