1878 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CTLTURE. 



415 



I notice friend Wolcott's tool grinder in last issue, 

 and allow me to thank him and you forthe same. Mr. 

 W. says he has used it 27 years. I have a similar 

 one that I have had since 1803. Mine i-? a trianj^le; 

 sides 4 ft. Ions', I's in- snuare, l)a="' \'Z in., and a spur 

 in the other end; 12 inches from th" base there is a 

 cross bar which earrie-* a clamp wiih 2 thumb n\its, 

 that will hold the widest plane iron or the smallest 

 chisel. 



But this don't fill the contract, although it answers 

 verj' well where the stone is in g-ood order: where 

 tlie grindstone is of all diameters as our machinist's 

 is, I do not like it so well, and especially when the 

 thing is going like a fiddler's elbow at that. 



I send you a design of one, cut from a catalogue 

 of wood working miichinery, and which I think is on 

 the right p'inciple; but it costs S20. Can we get a 

 cheaper one? With one of this sort, it matters not 

 if the stone is not e.xactlv level, as v(hi can use the 

 hitrher part and improve stone and the tool you 

 grind at the same time. AVm. II. Kihk. 



Waterbury, Conn,, Nov. 1">, 1878. 



Yoli are right, friend K.; the jn-^per way 

 to have a tcxil "'riiKler is to hav(^ tiie tool car- 

 ried tirmly back and forth, in a line parallel 

 with the axis of the grindstone, but to have 

 no movement in any other way. This will 

 make the stone wear trne. even if it is not 

 trne in the first place. If some one else can- 

 not make one for So or less, I think I shall 

 have to do it. 



GETTING SUnPLUS HONEY, TRANSFKKUING, ETC. 



I have often heard the "old style" bee-keepers say 

 that where the bees had filled one box or "cap" of 

 honey, if you would lift that box or "cap" and place 

 another empty one in its place on the hive, and put 

 the "cap" already filled on top of that, the bees 

 would hasten to till the empty rme, would even make 

 greater effort to do so than if the full one was not 

 left on top of the empty one. 



They say the bees do not like an empty space be- 

 tween the brood chamber and their stores, and, if 

 possible, they rectify the matter by filling the space 

 between with honey. 



Now, what I want to ask is, has your experience 

 erer shown that there is any truth in this'? Is the 

 empty space an.v incentive to make bees work when 

 thfy otherwise would not with as much diligence? 



From what little experience I have had in trans- 

 ferring, I would suggest to the ABC "child," E. A. 

 Morgan {I am one also), that he would find it much 

 better not to stop driving the bees out of the old hive 

 as soon as he sees the (jueen go up, but continue 

 pulHng the smoke in below until nil the bees have 

 gone out of the hive: then he will have only the 

 combs to handle, with no bees In his way to be killed 

 or to bother him. T. C. Hunt. 



Kichmond, Ind., Nov. 15, 1878. 



To be snre, the "old style" bee-keepers are 

 right, and I believe onr experience all agrees 

 with tlie idea. This is one great element in 

 using the sections. As yon take out the fin- 

 ished ones, one at a time as fast as 

 filled, the bees keep right on at work 

 on those around them, and commence at 

 once to fill the space left by those removed, 

 and we have no stojiping while the season 

 lasts. This is a very important advantage 

 over a single large box, which is taken off 

 the hive all at once. 



GALLUP IN CALIFORNIA. 



The following came from friend Wilkin, 

 after he had started for Europe : 



Elisha Gallup, being overtaxed with labor in the 

 healing art, at Osage, Iowa, has come to California 

 to practice bee culture. He takes charge of my bees 

 in my absence in Europe. 



R. Wilkin. 



San Buenaventura, Cal. 



So you see Gallup has got back to bee- 

 keeping again, after all? What a world of 

 changes this isV 



QUEEN'S STING.S, AND QUEENS GOING HOME. 



You ask in the last No. of Gleanings why I killed 

 the queen which stung me. In the first place, she 

 was almost black; in the second place, I took her 

 out of a nucleus hive, and introduced her to a full, 

 queenless colony, in order to keep it up until I had 

 one with yellow l)unds to give them; she staid only 

 one day and night, but long enough to plant a lot of 

 eggs for them to raise black (lueens from, and then 

 returned to the nucleus from which I had taken her, 

 and destroj'cd a nice queen cell that w:is almost ma- 

 tured. 



I was provoked at her, and caught her to kill her, 

 when she stung me on the finger. I then put her 

 back in the nucleus to see if she would die. I left 

 her until I was satisfied that she would not die, and 

 that she laid after she stung me. 



FiiKOEUiciv Meyehs. 



St. Thomas, Pa., Nov., U, 1878. 



So queens do sometimes sting, after all, 

 and don't die either. But, friend Frederick, 

 are you sure this (jueen was not one of the 

 half queen and half workers whicli I have 

 been telling you about? I know queens 

 sometimes go home, for I have had them do 

 the very trick you mention. 



SMOKER;;, AND A REVORT FROM AN .4 B C CHILD. 



Please tell the man that is bothered about getting 

 the top off from your smoker, to dash a little cold 

 water on it and he can take it off without any trou- 

 ble, with his bare hand. 900 lbs. of honey and 8 new 

 swarms saved from 17. H(niey all sold; 10c. forext., 

 and 15c. for comb. This is niy first summer with 

 bees. C. M. Sl.4Yton. 



Grattan, Mich., Nov. 15th, 1878. 



HOW TO KEEP SECTION HONEY. 



Please tell us in Dec. No. of Gleanings, if possi- 

 ble, how we can best winter honey in sections. Pri- 

 ces are so low that some of us wish to hold it for a 

 while. Will exposure to severe cold injure it? 



G. W. Haven. 



Blooraingdale, Mich., Nov. 12, 1878. 



Keep your honey in the cases just as you 

 send it "to market. It should be kept in a 

 dry room, where water will not freeze ; dry, 

 because dampness collecting on the caps in- 

 jures the looks of the honey, and may cause 

 "it to sour at the month of the uncapped cells. 

 Free from frost, because freezing is apt to 

 make the combs crack, and let the honey 

 drij). We keep it over winter e^'ery season, 

 without any injury whatever. 



The 3 queens I ordered through Mr. Stehle came 

 Oct. 29, in good condition, and I think they are safely 

 introduced. I will tell you something about it. 

 Nov. 12th, I found a queen in front of a hive, stark 

 and stiff (before sun up). That queen could have 

 been bought cheap. I breathed on her, and thought 

 I saw a twitch of the leg; with more warmth, came 

 more kicks, and now that stock is "above par," for 

 just before dark she was the nicest looking queen I 

 have. 



I use a 5 inch tin saw, teeth ''sX'^i, for grooving 

 boards for roof of Chaff hive. So far, it works nice- 

 ly; the mandrel has a 3 inch collar. 



C. G. Knowles. 



Portland, O., Nov. 13, 1878. 



AVe often find queens apparently dead, and 

 revive them in the way you mention. It 

 may help others. A tin biizz sawJ When I 

 was a boy, I used always to make my buzz 

 saws of tin. They might do considerable 

 cutting, on thin work, but I fear it would be 

 a task to sharpen them so often. 



I started with 3 swarms in old hives, which I trans- 

 ferred and increased to 10, by artificial swarming. 

 I did not get any honey though. Some of the swarms 

 are rather small, but they have stored honey enough 

 to last them. If they were 3 times as many. I am go- 

 ing to fix them up warm, and feed them candy, to 

 see if they will increase. Wm. J. Wright. 



Pilot Center, III., Oct. 18, 1878. 



