THE 
JOURNAL. 
Vol. I. — No. 10.] 
OCT.— NOV., 188 C. 
[Trice 6d. 
EDITORIAL. 
Australian Bee News. 
We are now fairly landed on the new season, 
and, as a rule, we have promising reports from 
all quarters. The weather about Slelbourne 
ha* not been favourable for swarming, but on 
every tine quiet day lately swarms have issued. 
Our’fricsids in South Australia are quite three 
weeks in advance in this direction, and we 
have received reports of a very busy time 
I there with bees, beekeepers, and hive manu- 
| facturers. One manufacturer, we are informed, 
! has sold over a thousand hive* this season. 
Our own importers and manufacturers of 
apiary appliances are also very busy, and the 
I beekeeping industry in Australia seems to 
have received a marked impulse. 
An effort hosngain been nude to import new- 
stock from Europe, and a large consignment 
of Cyprian queens for Australia arrived in 
Adelaide about a fortnight ago. Those for 
Adelaide beekeepers were delivered on arrival 
of the as. Orient in September, nnd were all 
alive and well. Oue package for Hamilton 
(M. II. Xaveuu) reached its destination about 
five day* later with three nut of right dead. 
Another, for Melbourne, arrived eight day* 
later with three out af four dead An unusual 
and inexcusable delay occurnd in delivery by 
the carriers after arrival in Adelaide, and had 
Mr. Benton made the separate consignment* 
to each colony, instead of all to Adelaide, 
there is every reason to believe all the queens 
would have arrived alive, unless, as may have 
probably been the case, the presence of the 
European bee moth in most of the compart- 
ments, and consequent burrowing of the grub 
1 through the honeycombs, allow the honey to 
trickle out, and so daub and ultimately kill the 
bees. However, a fine lot of Cyprian queens 
are installed at Adelaide, from whence, no 
doubt, the breed will soon be obtainable. The 
failures in this case are not after all great, 
considering the length of voyage and long 
time the bees are imprisoned, and no doubt 
Mr. Benton, of Munich, profiting by this 
experience, will on the next occasion be able 
to avoid what have, in this instance, been 
causes of failure. Some queens were con- 
signed to Queensland, but we have not yet 
beard of their arrival or the mortality among 
them. 
Cyprian bees are very like the Ligurian, and 
only distinguishable by certain markings 
beneath the thorax and abdomen ; the ordinary 
observer can observe no difference in appear- 
ance. This breed is credited with great 
breeding and gathering qualities, being very 
hardy, somewhat vicious, but a grand race of 
bees. Trobabiy the first progeny in Australia 
will be queens — the produce of Cyprian 
mothers mated with Italian drone* — a breed 
that is much extolled in Europe and America ; 
and we hope to hear before very long that our 
friend Mr. Honnoy, of Adelaide, has succeeded 
in rearing good bees of this strain. 
Further misfortune attended the queen* 
sent to Victoria, for some of thooe that 
survived have been lost in introducing to 
qucenlca* hives since their arrival. 
A few Carniolan querns are expected in 
Melbourne, from Europe, very shortly, nnd we 
hope an opportunity will thus be afforded of 
testing this species of bee in Australia. While, 
undoubtedly, the gentlest and moat amiable of 
all tbe races, gaining them the name of the 
** Ladiee bee” excellent honey gatherers, 
