Or how to Realize the Most Money with the Smallest Expenditure of Capital 
and Labor in the Care of Bees, Rationally Considered. 
PUBLISHED MONTHLY. 
Vol. I. MEDINA, O., JUNE 1, 1873. No. d. 
STARTING A\ Al’I VKY. 
No. (i. 
B Y June 1st, all Colonies should be 
strong and ready for gathering, and 
the skillful Bee Keeper should be able by 
diligence and care, to make them so; 
independent in a measure, of unfavor- 
able weather. That is, if we are un- 
able to make up for bad weather dur- 
ing the yield of honey, we should be 
at least able to get our stocks all in con- 
dition for honey gathering before the hon- 
ey season dues open. To do this, brood 
rearing must bo kept up during March, 
April and May, and this must he done, 
even should a season occur colder and 
more backward than was ever known by 
the "oldest inhabitant,” etc., and in short, 
we shall tell you that if you don’t get hon- 
ey, the fault is in the Apiarist and not the 
season. If colonies get weak as they will 
sometimes, it may be necessary to take 
them to a warm room, and to avoid the 
inconvenience of invading our dwellings, 
we will have a stove in the bee house tem- 
porarily, in the spring if needed. If the 
upper ventilator be made of galvanized 
iron it will answer equally well for a chim- 
ney, and a stove can bo set up with little 
trouble. Warmth and food will always 
induce the queens to lay, but it is another 
thing to get the eggs hatched into larvae, 
(see Problems.) 
Posses in the spring months must, be 
avoided, and after one or two lessons of 
experience, eve shall expect you to keep 
good all stocks having a laying queen aft- 
er they are on their summer stands. Let 
every reverse only make you all the more 
determined to do better in future, and keep 
at this time of the year a constant watch 
over each individual colon}', for you may 
set it down that those colonies that are 
petted, opened and handled most, will 
always be the best; be gentle and careful 
and don't stand before their door-way, nor 
annoy or hurt them in any way, for 
they very soon learn to distinguish your 
attentions from the rude bumps and jars 
that too often fall to the lot of bees be- 
longing to those who seem to think them 
sworn enemies to mankind. 
We are often told to provide hives, etc. 
for new swarms, but we say provide bar- 
rels for your honey, and we should say at 
least one for every live colonies, for you 
may have a Hood of honey without notice 
or warning, that must be taken care of as 
fast as it comes, or it is lost irretrievably. 
Get good, sound, new oak barrels; strong 
and tight, and to be sure they won't leak, 
treat them as follows: Get bungs nicely 
fitted and everything handy and then pour 
into the bung-hole, through a tunnel with 
an opening as large as will go into the 
bung hole, not less than ten lbs melted 
bees-wax made quite hot; drive in the 
bung, twirl it quickly on one end then the 
other, then roll it once over and back to 
the point of starting; knock out the bung, 
which should come out with a “pop," (re- 
member not to hold your head over it,) 
with the help of an assistant pour out the 
wax, and if you have done all “quicker 
than blazes,” you will find your barrel 
nicely coated, every crack and cranny 
filled and not more than 1 lb. of wax used. 
The hot wax heats and expands the air 
inside forcing the wax into the pores of 
the wood and coating the whole as if it 
wore varnished; with a small mirror you 
can reflect the sun on the interior so as to 
examine the quality of the work. 
Place your Extractor on a bench or 
shelf placed at the center of the south 
side of your bee house, and of such a 
height as to allow of rolling a barrel so 
that the bung-hole just comes under the 
molasses gate. Screw the Extractor down 
firmly and make some little bags of cheese 
cloth for strainers, those are to be hung 
in the bung of the barrel with a wire ring 
a little larger than the hole, sewed in the 
top to support it. All the arrangements 
should be used and takon care of by some 
one of the “neater” sex, for it their 
strength is not as great, they more than 
over-balance this by their dexterity and 
cleanliness in the use of such implements. 
A couple of barrels make all the stands 
or tables uceded. (They should be well 
