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1 20 



THIRD ANNUAL REPORT 



and never a carload. There were no questions asked; they 

 always went. 



Mr. Abbott — The rate is double first-class. 



MOVING BEES IN WINTER. 



"Can bees be moved in winter successfully?" 



Dr. Miller— Yes. 



Mr. Thompson — The question came up last winter about 

 a carload, and I am not quite certain but what some were 

 being brought into Wisconsin in the winter, and the results 

 were to be watched, and I would like to know if there is any- 

 thing known of it now? 



Mr. France — I think the party who came from Canada to 

 Wisconsin moved in the winter, in December, when the ther- 

 mometer was below zero, and he had a loss of two combs so 

 far as the shipment of bees was concerned, but there were 

 other things broken. He came to this country, and they held 

 his bees for eight days in transit, and while on the way 

 he caught a serious cold, and could get only as as far as 

 Chicago. The bees were brought on to Wisconsin, unloaded, 

 covered up with straw and hay, and he hurried on here and 

 by the time he got back his 200 colonies of bees had gone 

 down to 50. I had an opportunity to present the man with 

 60 colonies of bees by just going and getting them this 

 season. 



Mr. Wheeler — How was that? 



Mr. France — He came from Ontario, Canada. The bees 

 died from exposure after they were piled up. I knew of two 

 yards, one of 60 and another one of 11, that were diseased, and 

 the owners were disposed to burn up everything, and I had an 

 opportunity to giye this rnan the bees. I took them home, 

 and out of the diseased hives, and put them in his healthy 

 hives. The diseased material was left in the other yard. 



Mr. Thompson — Would it be possible to move them? 

 Under what conditions should the remainder of the winter 

 be spent, and are they in any condition in the spring? 



Mr. Wilcox — Do you mean in good condition instead of 

 any condition? 



Mr. Thompson — I mean in condition to work. 



Mr. Abbott — A customer asked me about moving his bees. 

 He was building a new house, and he asked me what I 

 thought would be the best thing for him to do with his bees. 

 I told him if they were my bees I would wait until it snowed, 

 and I should put them on a sled quietly and set them oflf 

 just as quiet, doing it myself, and then let them alone. I 

 was just wondering if I gave him good advice. 



Mr. Whitney — My first bees were two colonies in 

 Ohio. I bought them and moved them five miles in zero 

 weather on a sled. They came out all right in the spring. 

 Of course, I handled them carefully. 



Mr. Thompson — I was told by a prominent Wisconsin 

 bee-keeper that he would move bees at any time during the 

 winter, and put them in a cellar where the thermometer 

 wasn't lower than 60 for ten days or two weeks, and he had 



