“novice’s” cleanings in bee CULTURE. 
*4 
inside a bee hive we never saw, l>’rom ! 
previous experiments we were fully satis- 
fied of this before, anil we are inclined to 
think now that stores of pure sugar are 
healthier than where either cream ol 
tartar, vinegar, or glycerine are used. 
About half of thn twenty feeders were 
empty next morning, but some colonies 
take it so slowly that two days or more 
are required. As we have mentioned, 
with this first barrel everything worked 
beautifully, but the next afternoon another 
one was prepared precisely the same way, 
only that the extra teakettle of water was 
omitted thinking perhaps the first lot of 
syrup was n little loo thin, the conse- 
quence was that more stirring was re- 
quired and the syrup when cold produced 
a thin sheet of sugar on Its surface. 
This has candied somewhat in the cells, 
has daubed the bees to some extent and 
they have been longer it; taking it down, 
hut these difficulties are only temporary as 
will appear further on. 
Our first feeders were kept the proper 
distance, above the frames by ordinary 
“teakettle ears" soldered on in such a 
way that two of them, and the screw cap 
for filling, formed three legs as it were, 
for them to stand on. Now these “ears” 
have a rounded end that forms a very in- 
secure support, unless they are arranged 
very carefully to stand in the centre of a 
top bar to the frame, so insecure, in fact, 
that once or twice they have tilted so 
much that the syrup ran over the combs, 
on the bottom hoard and erystalized or 
hardened there, and to observe the effect J' 
we let it remain so, hut have inund, as we 
had expected, that "our bees' when they 
have finished their feeder go to work and 
work up all this sugar or candy ; in fact 
we have never failed to have them do so, 
and this morning being a damp one we 
were gratified to find the bees busily 
working up quite a sheet of the candy 
that had formed in the portico, the hive 
having been tilted backward when the 
feeder “tilted," to save the syrup. We 
have observed such cases before hut al- 
ways find the hoes, hive, and combs clean 
after n week or two. Still it is a nicer 
and quicker way to feed the syrup moder- 
ately thin, say about five quarts of water 
to 'JO lbs. of sugar, instead of a gallon. 
Mr. Alley and sofiae others who objected 
to our receipt for syrup as being too 
thick, were probably' right about it and we 
hereby thank them for the criticism. Il 
was overlooked perhaps, as we have been 
accustomed to add water to the sugar 
without taking the trouble to weigh or 
measure, nor should we do so now, for 
the matter is uot one requiring exactness, 
ff too thiu the bees will quickly' evaporate 
it, and if too thick it may cause them a 
temporary unuoyance, but by bringing 
water they can soon remedy this fault. 
A barred of sugar contains about 300 
lbs. and costs about $34.00, and divided 
between 20 hives gives 1 j lbs. of sugar, 
worth $1.70, Who would not invest that 
amount per hive if they could fee! sure Jj 
that it, supplied them amply with a food 
at. all times wholesome ? 
Very heavy' stocks, or those wintered 
out of doors, might, require more before 
fruit trees furnished a supply- next May : 
hut we think the amount mentioned, safe 
in the majority of cases. Should any of 
our readers have colonies yet destitute 
when this reaches them, if they ar tsirony 
in bees the.y can yet he fed up ; and ’tis 
our impression that the very best stocks 
in 1874 will he those that were entirely out 
of honey in the fall and had stores sup- 
plied them entirely of sugar. 
'fhe manner of feeding just given we 
consider the quickest, simplest and safest 
of any having come under our notice: 
and Novice now agrees to undertake feed- 
ing 100 colonies their winter food in one 
day, providing the honey has all been pre- 
viously' removed and that, lie can have 
plenty of 
T K . V - K K T- T I . K F E E 1 ) E 1! S . 
Oh, yes — those “cars." Well, our tin- 
smith “run out," of “ears” (for tea-kettles 
we mean,) and before we knew it, had 
made a lot with supports formed of a 
piece of tin 1 )xl inches, folded like a let- 
ter Y, and soldered on in place of cars. 
These, having apoint of support 1 ] inches 
wide, stand firm on any frame or across 
two; and we like I hem so much belter that 
we hope he will never get any more ears. 
Wc have tried a ring of tin for a sup- 
port, but it, “cuts bees in two" when we 
work fast and does not seem to afford 
them the liberty to work that the 4' shap- 
ed feet do. 
ritom.EM no, 18. 
AN NOT those hoe keepers who own 
orchards of sweet apples and a cider 
mill do a thriving business in the fall in 
making cider honey. With very little 
trouble it could he so arranged that no 
bees need he killed or drowned, and we 
think the honey would command a very 
fair price, labeled as “Apple Honey. ’’ 
About six barrels of sweet cider would 
produce one of honey, we have estimated. 
The objection is that such cider stores 
might prove unhealthy and thus depopu- 
late our hives. But we imagine if the 
work were so conducted that no eider was 
allowed to ferment, no injury to their 
health would result,. We have made the 
experiment of feeding a colony' a gallon 
of sweet cider and it was quickly stored 
and produced very pleasant honey, altlio' 
as they were working on sugar at the 
same time we could not well keep the ci- 
der honey pure. Of course the cider 
honey must all he removed before feeding 
for winter, at least until some experiments 
can he shown to the contrary. 
A lady in this vicinity gave her bees a 
mash of boiled sweet apples, last fall to 
make np their winter stores. We gave 
her a caution at the time, hut she was in- 
clined to disagree witli ns. We learned 
in the spring her bees all died, hut 
have not learned t)ie particulars. 
