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JOURNAL OF HOETICOXTTJEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



[ December 6, 1864. 



the use of forked sticks, or any apparatus whatever except 

 a fumigator, two empty hives, an empty bucket, and (for 

 convenience) a couple of kitchen chairs. 



My mode of operating has been as follows : — The bucket 

 having been firmly planted on the ground, at a short distance 

 from the colony to be operated on, a few puffs of smoke 

 from the fumigator are blown into the entrance. "When the 

 bees retire the hive is slightly raised from its floor-board, 

 and some whiffs of smoke blown under it from all sides. It 

 is well, after doing this, to allow the stock to stand undis- 

 turbed for about a minute, so as to allow the bees to com- 

 mence filling themselves with honey. The hive is then 

 raised altogether from its place, and steadily inverted on 

 the pail, when, having been covered with one of the empty 

 hives, the whole pile, bucket and all, should then be placed 

 on one of the kitchen chairs at a little distance, the other 

 empty hive taking the place of the full one, in order to 

 amuse the retiring bees. A stout carpetpin, or a hairpin, 

 having been stuck into the outside edge of the full hive, 

 opposite the ends of the combs, in order to prevent the 

 empty one from slipping, I seat myself on the second chair, 

 keep one side of the empty hive raised at an angle of 

 nearly 45° with my left hand, whilst I rap the full one with 

 my right, keeping a sharp look-out under the uplifted hive 

 for the ascending queen. 



After practising this system with upwards of a score of 

 condemned stocks, I have come to the conclusion that it is, 

 on the whole, slower than close driving, whilst, on the other 

 hand, it has the advantage of affording a better chance of 

 securing the queen during her ascent. 



It is all very well for an old stager like myself, who 

 experiences no more ill effects from a bee's sting than from 

 the prick of a pin or needle, to practise open driving without 

 protection for either face or hands ; and it is, without doubt, 

 very amusing to witness the admiration and astonishment 

 of the uninitiated spectators ; but to the inexperienced I 

 would offer a word of warning and advice, and that is — 

 never attempt open driving without the protection of an 

 efficient bee-dress and gloves. Most bees are unquestion- 

 ably taken by surprise when the matter is well managed ; 

 but this is not invariably the case, and in one misadventure, 

 with a wide-awake colony, you may chance to receive such 

 punishment as will make you regret neglecting the precau- 

 tions recommended by — A Devonshire Bee-keeper. 



DEATH OP A QUEEN. 



Will you, if possible, answer the following question ? A 

 dead queen has been picked up from before a strong hive 

 (stock). Eearing the consequence, I shall gently smoke 

 them, turn them out, and examine for a queen. If I find 

 one, well and good ; if not, I shall unite them to the next 

 hive. I have taken the precaution to bring the hive into a 

 milder temperature for a day previous to operating. — John 

 Newland. 



[The death of the queen may have occurred from natural 

 Causes, or she may have been killed by her own workers, or 

 may even have fallen a victim in single combat with a 

 young queen, which is sometimes, although very rarely, 

 hatched under the most inexplicable circumstances, as re- 

 lated by Mr. Woodbury in page 157 of Vol. V., New Series. 



In either case it will be advisable to unite the bees to the 

 next stock ; but the utmost care should be taken to remove 

 a young queen should any such chance to exist, and for this 

 reason — she might very possibly be victorious over, and 

 dethrone the prolific and rightful monarch of the hive into 

 which she is introduced, which misfortune would ultimately 

 prove fatal to the entire colony, since, at this season, she 

 could not obtain impregnation, and must, therefore, perforce 

 remain a virgin, and turn out a drone-breeder, should she 

 survive until the spring.] 



active members of society, to cut then- upper eyelashes, which 

 they, or he, affirmed to have done successfully with oxen and 

 steers. Now, we have a cow whose habits are so highly 

 gymnastic, that she not only clears fences with extraordi- 

 nary agility, but attempts to stand on her head on the other 

 side. Of course, the experiment was too easy not to be 

 tried at once, and for a week or ten days we watched the 

 cow and blessed The Journal oe Horticulture. But, 

 alas ! yesterday, finding only an iron-hurdle fence between 

 her and an alluring bit of garden, a promising crop of Brussels 

 sprouts proved too much for her feelings, and — over she went. 



Now, Mr. Editor, will the want of eyelashes make her proof 

 against every other temptation except Brussels sprouts ? 

 Or can you suggest any more successful mode of bringing 

 active and greedy cows to reason ? If so, you will oblige your 

 constant reader and some time correspondent. — Cochin. 



[Well do we know the temptations held out by Brussels 

 sprouts, and well do we know a gardener's feelings when he 

 finds a cow ruthlessly stripping the stems. So when we 

 read in an American journal that the preventive of such 

 raids was so simple, we hastened to reveal it to our readers. 

 (Ah, "Cochin," "Brahma Pootra" will say, it is only like 

 that other Yankee tale about myself.) However, our corre- 

 spondent may effectually restrain the gymnastics of her 

 cow within permissible bounds by either hanging a piece of 

 sacking before the eyes of the cow so as to prevent her 

 seeing directly before her, but not to prevent her looking on 

 the ground, or a tether may be strapped from the fore foot 

 to the hind foot ore the same side.'] 



JUMPING COWS. 



Lookino over the index to The Journal op Horticul- 

 ture of the day, two or three weeks ago, I saw with delight 

 a reference entitled " Jumping Cows," and following it up 

 found that some farmers' club or other great authority, pro- 

 posed as a tried and successful method of taming these over- 



PRESEEYING BACON. 



What are the requisites for keeping bacon and hams ? 

 Are they best kept sown up in bags, hung up, or on racks — 

 where there is much air or little ? What degree of heat ? 

 Is it a good plan to put them in boxes filled up with malt 

 combs ? — E. B. 



[I can best reply to these questions by drawing upon our 

 seven years' experience in this house, upon the subject of 

 bacon. The only time the fly troubled us, was when the 

 flitches were put into bags ; hence we have never used 

 bags again. We hang the flitches on hooks built into the 

 wall, on the side of the kitchen on which is the fire. It is 

 an airy kitchen, having three doors in it. We put a piece 

 of stick an inch or more in diameter between the flitch and 

 the wall, this secures a current of air at the back. The heat 

 though much tempered by the airiness of the kitchen, must 

 be considerable in a place where cooking is daily done for a 

 large family. By the way, in summer the flitches are hung 

 up n the entrance to the kitchen, for there the temperature 

 is lower. I dine occasionally with a friend who has his 

 bacon kept in a box filled up with malt combs, but although 

 I eat his fowls, I shun the bacon that accompanies them on 

 the table, for it is always bad. — Wiltshire Eectoe.] 



OUE LETTEE BOX. 



Eiemixghak Peize List.— Captain W. Hornby took the second prize in 

 adult Dorkings, and not Sir J. D. Wauehope, as stated in our list of last 

 week. 



Hess Eating Each Other's Feathees (J. C. £.).— It usually arises 

 either from improper food, as flesh, which gives an unnatural appetite, and 

 if withheld causes them to eat feathers as the nearest substitute ; or irom 

 dry, hot, stimulating food, which produces a fevered state of the inside. 

 The treatment is the same in both instances. Ground food slaked with cold 

 ■water, plenty of grass and lettuces if to be had. Rub the bare spots with 

 compound sulphur ointment. 



Choice of Poultry (Yorkshire).— Continue to keep your Dorkings 

 running about, and have some Spanish, Cochins, or Brahmas to shut up as 

 layers. They will do well in a very small space. 



Black Indian Duces {Cochin).— The bill of the Duck should be black. 

 That of the drake dark, nearly black, with a yellowish tinge underneath. 

 The legs should be as nearly black as possible, the only deviation being an 

 orange tinge. The latter is not deeirab le. 



Asthmatic Canary (P. M., Nottingham).— Tour Canary is evidently 

 suffering from asthma. Tar water has been found beneficial. One geDtle- 

 man strongly recommends rice water. The last case I had was cured by 

 giving Spanish liquorice in the bird's drinking water, and the bird is now 

 as healthy and vigorous as ever. Flowers of 6ulphur is not injurious to the 

 birds. The little work on the Canary and British Finches has been pub- 

 lished some time, and can be had free by post from the office of this Journal 

 for nineteen stamps. — B. P. B. 



The Times Bee- master (Crilo). — We are obliged by the note on his 

 classical errors in other publications, but they are such as we must avoid 

 in oar columns. 



