THE AUSTRALIAN BEEKEEPERS’ JOURNAL. 
51 
the ground outside the hive ; hundreds of 
bees were added to the heap of dead every 
morning, till the bees had diminished from a 
ten-comb stock filling sections, to barely three 
frames, which, on examination, showed cells 
of foul brood also. This colony was treated 
with phenol syrup in feeder and on combs ; 
but they still decreased. The queen ceased to 
deposit eggs, and finally died. The remaining 
bees and combs were destroyed. Another 
stock, a nucleus in September, which increased 
very slowly, eventually became affected with 
the swollen bee disease — small heaps of dead 
being found just under the alighting board 
every morning. This case I fed carefully on 
phenol syrup, and this so far improved matters 
that the increasing brood outstripped the 
mortality, and the stock increased to seven 
frames. Then the shiny bee disease set in, and 
from that time the colony dwindled till only a 
few bees, with c mb showing signs of foul 
brood, remained. These were destroyed by 
fire, the bees being first killed with chloroform. 
Three other strong stocks were also Ijadly 
affected with the shiny bee and slightly with 
the swollen bee disease. The latter they quickly 
recovered from without treatment, but the 
Bacillus Gaytoni still remains with them 
in a diminished degree, and the colonies are 
thriving and storing their combs rapidly.” 
The Chairman called the attention of the 
members present to a new Bee Manual, by 
Mr. J. Hopkins, of Matamata Apiary, Auck- 
land, New Zealand, which had just been 
published. He stated he had looked through 
the hook most carefully, and had come to the 
conclusion it was the best manual for Austra- 
lian beekeepers. It was written by one who 
had had a lengthened experience in apiculture 
in this part of the world, and it had special 
reference to beekeeping under the conditions 
existing in Australasia. He advised every 
beekeeper to obtain a copy of this new 
manual. 
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS. 
Beekeeping for Beginners. 
INTRODUCTION. 
The following chapters are written with the 
view of meeting a widely expressed desire for 
some simple directions for the management 
of bees after modern methods, to assist 
beginners, and many others who desire to 
keep a few hives for recreation, amusement or 
profit. Should the reader possess that capital 
little sixpenny book on the subject, entitled 
“ Modern Beekeeping : a Handbook for 
Cottagers, ” published by the British Bee- 
keepers’ Association, he will find but little 
new here, as the following chapters are 
written on much the same lines as the hook 
in question. Indeed, I have availed myself 
freely of the information it contains on 
many points. The articles on Beekeeping, 
by Mr. W. Abram, in the early numbers of 
the journal, will be found very useful, 
especially as regards the habits and natural 
history of the bee, and should be read by all 
beginners. 
Chap. I. — a colont of bees. 
Bees, like some other insects, such as wasps, 
ants, &C-, live only in large families or 
colonies. These colonies always consist of a 
mother (or queen,) and a large number — 
sometimes as many as 100,000 of worker bees, 
and, except in the Winter, of a greater or less 
number of drones, which are the male bees, 
and much larger than the worker. The 
queen is the head of the family, and in olden 
times, before the functions she performed were 
accurately known, was called the “ king ” of 
the colony of bees. 
A full colony of bees, then, contains a 
queen, a number of drones (or male bees,) and 
an immensely larger number of worker bees, 
all of which are females, but sterile, that is, 
unable to perform the functions of a female, 
except sometimes partially, under special 
circumstances. 
The natural habitation of the honey bee is 
in hollow trees, cavities in rocks or old build- 
ings, the roofs of houses, or almost any hollow 
place protected from the weather ; but they 
are easily domesticated and kept in boxes or 
hives. 
The queen (or mother) is the very life of 
the colony, as without her a colony would 
soon dwindle away and perish, for bees are, 
as a rule, short lived. Under ordinary circum- 
stances a queen bee becomes fertilised by the 
male bee before she is twelve days old, and, 
as a rule, commences to lay egys before the 
twentieth day, and from these eggs bees are 
developed and emerge full-grown, twenty-one 
days after the eggs were laid if they are 
worker bees, and twenty-four days after if 
they are drones. If the colony and queen be 
healthy and strong, she will lay an immense 
number of eggs every day ; in the warm weather 
often as many as two or three thousand daily. 
The queen is of a somewhat different size 
and shape to other bees in a colony — she is 
longer in the body, and her wings appear 
shorter, because of her long and. pointed 
abdomen. Her colour is often rather lighter 
than that of the others ; this is particularly 
the case with some varieties of bees, such as 
Italians, Cyprians, &c. It is very desirable 
beginners should make themselves familiar 
with the appearance of the que n as compared 
