306 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ October 17, 1878. 
Show in question in Division 5 for crops of 5 acres of Swedes and 
3 acres of mangold wurtzels close on October 23rd next, whilst 
those for specimen roots, potatoes, vegetables, and cereals (Divi- 
sions 1, 2, 3, and 4) close on November 18th, and that the latest 
day for receiving specimens intended for competition is Noyem- | 
ber 15th, All exhibits must be sent per goods train, carriage paid, 
addressed to Webb & Sons, Curzon Hall, Birmingham. — 
Atv the Kilmarnock Poultry, &c., Show, which is to open 
under distinguished patronage on November 22nd, twenty-one 
mantlepiece timepieces are offered in the poultry classes as special 
prizes, in addition to the money prizes ; eleven timepieces in the 
Pigeon classes, six in the Canary, and two in the Rabbit classes, 
making a total of forty timepieces. The schedule comprises 
eighty-eight classes, exclusive of those for Canaries and Cage 
birds. The entry for money prize in each class is 2s., for money 
prize special 3s. Entries close on November 9th. 
‘Atv the third National Columbarian and Bantam Show 
announced to be held at the Winter Gardens, Southport, on the 
30th and 3lst inst., the following special prizes are offered for 
Pouters :—To the amateur who wins the greatest number of 
points, cup value £3 3s. To the exhibitor of the best Pouter in 
lieu of first prize, cup or money, £2. The Norman Hill Challenge 
Vase, value £15 1ds., presented by Capt. Norman Hill, London, 
to be competed for at Southport and at the Crystal Palace. First, 
this prize to be for the best standard Pied Pouter cock at the 
above Show (any age). Second, to be competed for until the same 
bird receives the highest award on three different (not of necessity 
consecutive) occasions. Third, this prize to be an additional or 
extra one, not intended to take the place or effect of any other 
prize or prizes at the respective shows. _Fourth, birds competing 
to be the bond fide property of the exhibitor, making the entry 
for at least one month prior to each show. Fifth, birds to be 
judged in a judging pen not less than 3 feet square. Sixth, the 
judge or judges who adjudicate for this special prize to be acknow- 
ledged Pouter judges, whose reputation for impartiality shall be 
above suspicion. 
THE STEWARTON SYSTEM. 
Surety “A RENFREWSHIRE BEE-KEEPER” in his letter on 
page 252 is too strong in his condemnation of the straw-skep 
system as distinguished from the bar-frame system. I have kept 
bees on a small scale for the last six years in skeps, and have 
derived much pleasure and some profit in so doing. No doubt the 
Stewarton system has many advantages for bee-keepers who have 
an unlimited amount of time at their disposal to look after and 
manipulate their hives, but there are many people like myself 
who have other occupation fcr the greater part of every day, and 
have very little time to devote to their bees. pater f 
T have always thought from what I have read in “our Journal 
and in other papers that the bar-frame system requires much 
more time and attention than the one I now practise. It would 
be interesting to many of your readers if some apiarian who has 
tried both systems would give us the benefit of his experience on 
is point. 
thts are two great advantages in favour of the straw-skep 
system ; one is that the hives are much cheaper, and the other 
that they are more easily managed. This year has not been par- 
ticularly good for bees in this part of the country, but although 
T have had two misfortunes (one being the loss of my first swarm) 
T am fairly satisfied with the result of my honey harvest. 
‘At the beginning of the season I had two rather weak stocks of 
bees in 16-inch hives. I have taken 71 tbs. of beautiful run honey 
and 21 lbs. of honeycomb, and this is a neighbourhood not par- 
ticularly fayourable for bees —EDwD. THoRP, Sale, Cheshire. 
OLD COMBS AND FOUL BROOD. 
WHILE by no means advocating the employment of combs to 
extreme old age, doing so, it must be borne in mind, does not 
necessarily induce disease. - 1 remember referring to a case in the 
first volume, new series, cf this Journal, of a farmer’s wife pre- 
serving a straw skep which threw a couple of swarms regularly 
for twelve years. 3 
Reeaae brood combs annually as proposed by Mr. Pettigrew 
is an unnecessary waste of time and material to the bees ; the 
combs are perfectly safe and serviceable for many years. The 
skilled gardener to renew his tree does not lop off all its branches 
at once, but removes every alternate first ; and so with the skilled 
apiarian, the removal bemg yet more easily effected with his 
moveable combs. Before the Stewarton hive was fitted with 
moveable bars or frames renewal was effected every two or three 
years by removing the uppermost breeding box with some thirty 
odd pounds of honey, the second taking its place, and a fresh one 
added to the bottom of the pile kept it continually rejuvenated. 
Mr. Pettigrew has, however, evidently another and more press- 
ing motive for the annual renewal of his combs, hoping thereby 
to get rid of a far greater evil—viz., foul brood. It is no disease 
of the combs, I haying seen it in as virulent a form in fresh new 
comb as in old, the infection having been conveyed to both 
through the honey of infected stosk, It has its otigin in the 
unsealed over-heated fermented honey or soured watery unsealed 
sugar syrup, the foul-brood fungi finding a congenial cradle in 
the decomposing matter of both, the larvee fed thereon inevitably 
perishing, the disease gathering intensity as it spreads till the 
stock dwindles away. 
Your readers cannot be sufficiently warned of the risk run in 
accepting condemned bees unless they have an opportunity of 
inspecting thoroughly the combs of the stocks’ from whence they 
were taken. The cottager naturally seeks to put down for honey 
the unprosperous skep, often infected with foul brood. Hach 
driven bee carries with it its honey bag distended with contagion. 
They may be put together en masse and shaken out as recom- 
mended by Mr. Pettigrew like corn or peas, who all the while 
may be inoculating his fresh-combed stocks with the virus of the 
disease he is at such pains to try to eradicate—A RENFREWSHIRE 
BEE-KEEPER, 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
CANARY MUTE SINCE MOULTING (1. IW. Eyres)—He will resume his 
song, but the delay much depends on the weather. 
Loss OF HIVES (R. Wathen).—The loss of hives last winter was remark- 
able and pretty general throughout Great Britain. They were lost from 
want of young bees to take the place of those that died of old age. Last 
year bees ceased breeding at an unusually early period, and did not com- 
mence early this spring, hence the loss of thousands of hives, and probably 
yours amongst them. Hives this year are better stored with bees, and there 
fore more likely to live and do well. The supers on your three stocks should 
be removed, and the hives well covered with straw or other material to pro- 
tect them from cold and wet. Contract their doors so that mice cannot enter. 
WAX GUIDE-MAKING MACHINES (Zeno).—Write to Mr. Frank Cheshire, 
Acton, Middlesex, for one. Straw hives to be worked on the Stewarton 
principle should have their crown holes considerably wider than they usually 
are,and bars across these holes for the combs to be fastened to and built down- 
wards, and thin boards to cover them till supering commences. The supers 
to be used should be 4 inches deep, and wider of course than the crown 
openings. The bees would and should have free access to the supers, and if 
tiers of supers be used all the bottom ones should have cross bars on their 
tops wider or broader than those on the hives below. You will see by look- 
ing at Mr. Briscoe’s latest communication that in supering the Stewarton 
hive all the slides are removed, giving both bees and queens perfect freedom 
from bottom to top. If your straw hives are now peopled with bees let them 
remain as they are till they are full of bees in spring and require supers. 
Before using the supers cut out with a penknife three holes outside the 
central hole in the crown of the hives, say 4 inches long and 1 inch wide, 
then take the lid from the central hole and super as now suggested. If you 
want to run no risk take a wing from the queen before the supers are pnt on. 
Wax guides will help much, and may be easily fastened to frames of any size 
and single bars. With strong hives of any kind and free access to capacious 
supers furnished with guide combs you will not be disappointed with the 
results, 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
CAMDEN SQUARE, LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 32/40" N.; Long. 0° 8’ 0" W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
DATE 9 A.M. IN THE Day. 
1o a E=; arn | 
hi one_-| Hygrome- Sa |S#.-|Shade Tem-|_ Radiation a 
1878 Baa 2 ter. Ba g=8 perature. (peamation s 
Oct. |25E8 EE |Bax In | On 
iwc | Dry.| Wet.| AS | {Max.| Min.| sun. | grass 
Inches.| deg. | deg. deg. | deg.| deg. | deg. | deg.| In. 
We. 9 | 99.013 | Sos | ssa | ssa. | se2 | oss |529 | ‘ost | s85°| oats 
Th. 10 | 29.265 | 588 | 558] S. | 560 | 632 | 557) 906 | 512 | O15L 
Fri. 11 | 29.862 | 523 | 4871 W. | 551 | 60.0 | 47.6 | 1060 | 460 | — 
Sat. 12 | 30.258 | 473 | 454) W. | 532 | 6127) 413 | 101s | 370] — 
Sun.13 | 30.343 | 440 | 438] N. | 520 | 61.7 | 36.7 | 972 | 328 | — 
Mo. 14 | 30.193 | 485 | 47.7] E. | 511 | 600] 392] 900 | 330] — 
Tu. 15 | 29.990 | 529 | 51.0] N. | 507] 593] 492] 732 | 362) — 
Means| 29.956 | 52.0 | 49.7 | 53.5 | 61.3 | 40.2 93.1 | 40.3 | 0.086 
REMARKS. 
$th.—Fine bright morning, very high wind, rather cloudy after 11 Aw, 
slight showers, heavy rain at 4.50 P.M.: fairevening ; moonlight night. 
10th.—Rain and high wind in night, heavy showers during the day, with 
intervals of sunshine ; fine evening. 
11th.—High wind all the morning, fine bright day ; calm moonlight evening. 
Lunar halo 11.30 P.M. 
12th.—Fine bright day throughout; rather misty in evening. 
13th.—Misty morning ; fine autumnal day, bright and calm. 
14th.—Misty morning, fine sunny day; gusty afternoon; calm moonlight 
15th.—Calm cloudy morning ; fair but dull all day. [evening. 
The night of the 9th very warm, otherwise temperature generally much 
cooler than the previous week.—G. J. SYMONS. 
COVENT GARDEN MARKET.—OCTOBER 16. 
WE haye no alteration to quote, prices remain the same and trade quiet. 
FRUIT. 
‘ S-d. 08.) @ ‘ s.d. s. @ 
es. Sieve 2 Oto4 O| Melons ........ each 1 0to4 0 
dozen 0 0 0 0| Nectarines - dozen 00 00 
bushel 0 0 O 0} Oranges. #100 8 0 16 O 
dozen 0 0 0O 0} Peaches dozen 8 0 12 0 
tb. 0 8 1 0} Pears, kit dozen 00 00 
Cobs. E tbh. 0 8 1 0} _ dessert... dozen 20 6 0 
Grapes, hothouse # tb. @ 9 6 0O/| Pine Apples pib 3 0 60 
Lemons ......- » #100 6 0 18 0| Walnuts . bushel 5 0 8 0 
