146 



JOURNAL OF HOBTIOULTUBE AND COTTAGE GABUENEB. [ August 16, 1877. 



lation by breeding, tbe swarming of bees, the multiplication of 

 stocks, and the signs or prospects of a harvest of honey ! "What 

 real and inexpressible enjoyment have we seen marking the 

 faces of working people, both husbands and wives, at harvest 

 time when they have had a great take of honey ! Good hives 

 and good harvests buy golden nuggets, and golden nuggets help 

 to soften the hardships and sweeten the lives of honest well- 

 behaved working people. 



My sympathies have ever been with working people. Bee- 

 keeping has been commended to their attention, and my- efforts 

 to help them have been well appreciated, and far more influential 

 than I expected at one time. The letters of thanks that I re- 

 ceive amply reward me for past efforts, and encourage me to go 

 on and work while it is day. The profits of bee-keeping are 

 relative. An income of £10, £20, or £40 a-year in addition to 

 that of wages is a great consideration to a working man ; whereas 

 it is but " dust of the balance " to gentlemen of position and 

 ample means. Forty shillings profit per hive annually is, in 

 my opinion, an average and satisfactory return from bees well 

 managed. The old-fashioned bee-keepers who have gone before 

 us, and others who are coming after us, have been satisfied with 

 an average return of £2 per hive yearly. If a working man has 

 time and convenience to manage ten hives of bees and com- 

 mence bee-keeping in earnest, he will find in time that the 

 figures now given will represent approximately the average of 

 his returns, if the price of honey continue at the present rate. 

 We know that hundreds and thousands of working people in 

 the country have both time and convenience for bee-keeping if 

 they had the will and inclination. Any bit of a garden in a 

 country town, or outside the town, will answer for an apiary. 

 Any corner of a plantation, or Wood, or a nest of whins, pro- 

 tected from boys and cattle, will do for bees. I am thankful 

 to pay for the privilege of nestling a few hives underneath a 

 hedge, or sticking them in a thicket anywhere in the neighbour- 

 hood of good pasture. I have not found an unfavourable position 

 for bees, and care nothing for shade or sunshine — east, west, 

 north, or south. 



To those who intend to commence bee-keeping let me first 

 say, Buy your hives as near home as possible. If yon begin 

 with stocks or hives at work they should come from a distance 

 of about two miles. But swarms could be moved with safety 

 on the day of swarming from any place near. If you cannot 

 procure bees in modern hives, buy old-fashioned small English 

 hives and begin with them. Make or buy larger hives for the 

 swarms you obtain from these, for large profits cannot be had 

 from small hives. Secondly, Increase the number of your hives 

 by swarming till you possess the number you intend to keep 

 and manage. Suppose four hives are bought in autumn and 

 doubled in number by swarming next year, and suppose further 

 that by taking the honey from the first swarms £5 or £6 profits 

 could be realised during the first season, what should be done ? 

 If the profits are absolutely necessary in the first year reduce 

 the number of stocks ; but if not it will be better to keep all the 

 stocks, and thus put yourself in possession of the means of gain- 

 ing £15 or £16 a-year. 



While the stocks are being increased in number the owner 

 gains experience and lays his plans for fnture aotion. If a good 

 and successful beginning be made, a bright and successful 

 future lies before him, if weather permit. If he follows the 

 swarming system of management his eight hives will be multi- 

 plied into sixteen or twenty. By taking the honey in autumn 

 from eight or twelve of the best he will pocket a handsome 

 return as his first-fruits of bee-keeping, and have larger and 

 better stocks for the year following. 



In good seasons we have two harvests of honey, as most of 

 the readers of this Journal know. The first one comes from 

 the stocks three weeks after swarms, and the later one from the 

 first swarms at the end of the season. 



On the non-swarming principle both super-comb and run 

 honey may be obtained, but no increase of stocks of course. A 

 hive that gathers 40 lbs. or 50 lbs. of honey into supers generally 

 gathers a great deal in the hive beneath. After removing the 

 super or supers I drive all the bees from a non-awarmer, take 

 its honey and feed the bees into a stock hive. 



Some bee-keepers follow both systems of management, and 

 some swarm all their hives with a view to fill supers. They 

 put their first swarms into small (16-inch) hives, and super them 

 soon after. This is a very commendable and profitable system. 



Both systems, swarming and non-swarming, admit of various 

 modifications. Happy and fortunate are those who begin well 

 and receive encouragement and confidence at every stage of 

 their course. — A. Pettigkew. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Maggots in Chickens' Crops (J. Douglas). — Pour a few drops of spirits 

 of turpentine down their throats. A few drops will do, lettiQg one drop at a 

 time trickle down, and the spirit arising therefrom kills the maggots. Per- 

 haps a little meal saturated with the spirits, given in the form of a pill occa- 

 sionally, might have the desired effect, 



Fottl Brood [Ryecroft). — There is no core for foul brood in hives; no 



known method of preventing it from spreading when once there. We advise 

 you to drive the bees from all your diseased hives into empty hives and feed 

 them into stocks. "When the bees are driven into emptv hives they will form 

 very small swarms, which at this late seasOH should be united in pairs or placed 

 in small hives. The hives containing the foul brood should be emptied, well 

 scraped and cleaned, and thus prepared for nse again. We have used hives 

 that were diseased again and again, bat never found that the hives them- 

 selves contained or carried infection. 



Driving Bees— Feeding {Novice).— Yon may easily drive the bees out of 

 your small hive into a larger one. When the small hive is turned npside 

 down tie a large towel or cloth round the rim, so that the larger hive may 

 rest on it while the bees are btiog driven np. Drum pretty hard and con- 

 stantly for twenty minutes. After the bees have fairlv settled begin feeding 

 them. One pound of sugar boiled in a pint of water should be given every 

 night for four days, then double the quantity every night for ei"ht days 

 thus giving the bees 20 lbs. of sugar in all in about twelve days. Keep the' 

 hive warmly covered, aad contract the door to promote comb-oailding It 

 does not matter much whether the syrup is given at the top or bottom of 

 the hive. 



Chloroform for Taking Honey U. S. C.).~ In taking bees from combs 

 chloroform may be used in various ways. A piece of rag about 6 inches 

 square may be saturated with a teaspoonful of chloroform, placed on a plate, 

 and covered with perforated zinc. Raise the hive and place the plate with 

 its contents on the board, and then close the door for fifteen minutes or less. 

 The bees fall down on the board helpless and prostrate. The hive should be 

 removed and the bees espoBed to the atmosphere. The shorter the time the 

 bees are under the effects of the chloroform the better is the chance of safe 

 recovery. Though we have used chloroform successfully and without aDpa- 

 rent injury to the bees, we do not recommend its use. If your heavy hives 

 have young combs part of their contents may be removed, but if the combs 

 are two years old the bees should b9 driven into empty hives and fed. Su^ar- 

 made stocks cost little and generally do well. 



Supers not Filled (J. Thatcher).— Ton have been very fortunate in 

 having a super nearly filled on your first swarm this very unfavourable season. 

 Your two stocks and the later swarm having had room enongh below never 

 needed the supers. If the seison had been a honey one your bees would have 

 filled all the supers. The casting-out of brood in unfavourable seasons is a 

 common occurrence. It is an indication that the bees are either creatly 

 discouraged by weather or fear the approach of famine. The brood of drones 

 useless members of the community at the close of seasons, is first sacrificed 

 by a marvellously wise and instinctive economy. The heap of young drones 

 now lying beneath the flight board is there because the bees want all the 

 food of the hive for themselves. On examination you will perhaps find that 

 they have hardly enongh for the winter months. As the season for honey- 

 gathering is over we advise yon to remove the super that is nearly fall, other- 

 wise the bees may carry its contents below. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 



Caicden Square, Lon-don. 



Lat. 51=32' 40" N.; Long. 0= S 0" W.;* Altitude, 111 feet. 



Date. 



9 A.JI. 



IS THE DAT. 







1877. 



oaa c3 



Hygrome- 



a . 



°~- 



Shade Tem- 



Radiation 



.9 



!■§=?£ 



ter. 



:3 a 



sit 



perature. 



Temperature. 



s 



sAug. 









In 



On 









Dry. Wet. 



3 = 



EH 



Mas. 



Min. 



son. 



grass- 







Inches. 



deg. ' deg. 





deg. 



deg. 



deg. 







In. 





29 502 



6! 4 59.4 



SE. 



63.4 



70.8 



55.3 



112.0 



51.7 







29.627 



62 6 5S.0 



W. 



62.3 



71.6 



58.1 



12.0 



56 2 



0109 





29 860 



65.9 , 59 4 



S.W. 



62.3 



70.6 



55.2 



117.0 







Sat, 11 



29.972 



63.1 ' 56.1 



N.W. 



61.2 



69.8 





120.8 



494 





Sun. 12 



3 '.069 



62.0 ' 56.5 



Ni 



61.0 



722 



43 S 



123.S 



458 





Mo. 13 



29.912 



66.5 62.3 



N. 



62.0 



74.1 



57.7 



124.6 



54.9 





Tu. 14 



29.796 



69.8 63.9 1 



N. 



63.6 



81.2 

 72.9 



59.1 



130.0 



55.8 



0.010 



Means 



29.S20 



64.8 59.4 | 



! 



62.2 



55.1 



1212 



52.4 



0.459 



RE HARKS. 

 8th. — Very bright early forenoon; cloudy showery afternoon, and very wet 



night. 

 9th.— Dull morning and very showery day, rather better towards the after 



part of the day. 

 10th. — Very fine morning; a very beautiful day throughout, except for a very 



short time about half past sis, when it was very dark and stormlike. 

 11th. — A fair and pleasant day, rather ralnlike about 2 p.m., and cloudy 



though fair during the remainder of the day. 

 12th.— Fine morning and pleasant day, though occasionally close and cloudy. 

 13th.— Grey morning, at times cloudy and stormlike, at other times very fine 



and bright. 

 14th. — A splendid summer day, bright, warm, and almost cloudless. 



A week of moderately equable temperature, and although the mean is 

 slightly in excess of last week, the heat has not been oppressive — 

 G. J. Sraioxs. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— Attoust 15. 



Business remains quiet, 

 vegetables. 



"We have no alteration to make in the price of 



Apples 



Apricots 



Cherries 



Chestnuts 



Currants 



Black 



Fi2S 



Filberts 



Cobs 



Gooseberries .. j 

 Grapes, hothouse 

 Lemons 



i sieve 8 



dozen 1 



lb. 



bushel 



$ sieve 3 



i sieve 4 



dozen 2 



lb. 



lb. 



bushel 8 



lb. 1 



^103 6 



FfiTTIT. 

 d. S d. 

 0tO4 



Melon 3 



' Nectarines .... 



Oranses 



| Peaches 



6 ' Pears, kitchen.. 



I dessert 



! Pine Apple* 



I Plums 



i« ■ Kaspberries .... 

 6 ] Strawberries .. 



| Walnuts 



I ditto 



each 3 



dozen 4 



tf 100 10 



dozen 3 



dozen 



dozen l 



lb. 2 



i sieve 



lb. 



lb. 



bushel 5 



d. s. 

 0to8 

 18 



& 10J 



