334 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[November. 
ferrcd the queens with part of the bees to an 
observing hive containing one comb, in order to 
notice their actions. When not molested, the 
queens moved about the comb apparently un¬ 
concerned. I kept them so for 48 hours, then 
returned one to the hive, and gave them an 
empty comb to ascertain if these queens were 
both fertile. This comb was soon supplied with 
eggs. I then removed this queen and introduced 
the other, but egg laying continued as before. 
I then returned the other queen to the hive. I 
have examined the colony frequently since, and 
always found the queens among the bees, but 
never on the same comb. Whether one of 
these queens was that which I had introduced 
in July, I can not sa}', but it appears likely. 
This verifies the old saying that there are ex¬ 
ceptions to all rules. Has a similar case been 
noticed before? I shall endeavor if possible to 
winter this swarm, to ascertain if these queens 
will remain together a whole season. 
-—— •» o -- 
Bees Working in Two Hives. 
The following remarkable incident is related 
by a correspondent of the London Agricultural 
Gazette: “On the 20th of June this year, I 
hived a very large swarm of bees in a straw 
hive. Before they had been in it many days, 
they discovered an unoccupied hive about two 
feet distant from their own, half filled with clean, 
empty combs. They sagaciously took posses¬ 
sion of it, and used it as a storehouse for honey, 
while combs were being .constructed in their 
new domicile. At night they did not abandon 
their store-house, but left a guard of about 500 
bees, who remained there contentedly, without 
any apparent concern at the absence of the 
queen. This hive was made of wood, with glass 
windows, so that I could examine the interior, 
day and night.. I could see the honey in the 
combs, and the bees clustered between them, 
and coming out by hundreds to the glass, when 
I held a light to it atnight. During the day, the 
bees at the mouth of the storehouse hive buz¬ 
zed and ventilated, just as if the queen had been 
there. At dusk, some of them flew to their own 
home. After using the extra hive for about 
three weeks, the bees removed the honey from 
it to their permanent abode, it being no longer 
required for the harvest which was for the time 
too abundant for their accommodation at home.” 
Things Surprising to a Foreigner. 
Air. Harris, of the Genesee Farmer, says that 
when he first came from England to this 
country many things surprised him : “ I was 
surprised at the excellence of American beef 
and the inferiority of American mutton, and I 
was not surprised that the beef sold for half as 
much again as the mutton, while in London, 
mutton was worth a cent a pound more than 
beef. I was surprised that farmers paid so little 
attention to their gardens. I was surprised to 
find so many farmers with large, handsome 
houses and elegantly furnished parlors that they 
seldom used. In England at that time, we had 
a window tax, and the houses there have few 
windows. One of the first things that struck 
me was the number of windows in American 
houses, and the great effort that was made to 
shut them up and exclude the glorious Ameri¬ 
can sunshine and the invigorating American at¬ 
mosphere. I was surprised that everywhere I 
went, the people thought that particular spot the 
most fertile, the healthiest, and the best place I 
on the whole Continent. I was surprised, nev¬ 
ertheless, that everybody was willing to sell. 
I was surprised at the excellence of the wheat 
and the inferiority of the barley. I was sur¬ 
prised to see the farmers so rough looking, and 
yet so intelligent. I was surprised to sec the 
country ladies so much better looking than the 
men, and withal so interesting and fascinating. 
I was surprised that farmers sowed but one 
kind of grass-seed, and that they paid so little 
attention to their permanent meadows. I was 
surprised to see them plow so wide, and still 
more surprised that under the influence of our 
cold winters, and dry, hot summers, these wide 
furrows tumbled all to pieces and formed, after 
all, a very fair seed-bed. I was surprised that 
farmers raised so few peas and beans, and 
thought so liglitly of clover-hay. I was sur¬ 
prised that farmers could make a living from 
crops of wheat of from ten to twelve bushels 
per acre. I was surprised to hear rotten straw 
called manure. I was surprised at many other 
things—at the great net-worlc of railroads—at 
the magnificent rivers and lakes—at the mar¬ 
velous rapidity with which the country was 
settled, and at the enterprise and practical in¬ 
telligence which has accomplished such aston¬ 
ishing results in so short a time. But I do not 
think that any one thing surprised me more 
than this: the luxuriance of the clover crop in 
Western New-York! Iliad just come from the 
very fountain-head of agricultural science, and 
from the greatest experimenting farm in the 
world; but never had I seen such crops of 
clover as I saw on many farms in this section.” 
The Moon Again. 
A subscriber in Tuscarawas Co., O., writes : 
“It would please a good many of your readers, 
if in your next issue you would give your views 
as to picking apples, sowing wheat, building 
fence, etc., etc., during certain stages of the 
moon.” We had supposed our views on the 
“moon question” were already well under¬ 
stood. The moon is present above the horizon 
during just about half of every 24 hours, though 
her dark side is towards us part of each month, 
so that we do not see her. The moon passing 
over us affects the tides regularly every day, and 
if she affects vegetation at all, the influence is 
as regular as the tide, and it is doubtless too 
small to be taken into account. A little knowl¬ 
edge of astronomy will dispel this moon farm¬ 
ing. We say, plant, dig, built fences, pick 
apples, etc., when the soil, the season, and other 
things are right; the moon will do her part 
whether her bright or her invisible face be turn¬ 
ed towards us. 
Honey From Italian Bees- 
R. B. Olott, Union Co., Pa., in answer to 
questions in the Sept. Agriculturist , page 269, 
concerning the quality of the honey gathered by 
Italian Bees, writes to the following purport. He 
has kept them two seasons, and considers them 
50 percent more prolific than the common sort. 
The honey this season he thinks superior, which 
he says is due to the fact that in his neighbor¬ 
hood there was a great surplus of cherries, from 
which, as they decayed, the common bees gath¬ 
ered considerable stores, while the Italians were 
busy with red clover. They also worked 
among it while the others were among the buck¬ 
wheat blossoms. He says the Italians will gath¬ 
er almost as much from the second crop of red 
clover, as is usually secured from buckwheat, 
We should like to hear further evidence, partic- 
ularly with regard to their ability to draw honey 
from red clover—a point not yet admitted. 
-♦-<-I m -— 
Obstructions in Drains—Serious Difficulty. 
A correspondent of the N. E. Farmer, states 
that he has found a difficulty, thus far insupera¬ 
ble, in his drains becoming obstructed with a 
deposit from the wafer. The tiles were laid in 
a swamp, the water of which was strongly im¬ 
pregnated with oxide of iron. In a year or two 
this completely filled the tiles with a slimy in¬ 
crustation which stopped the flow of water, and 
rendered the drain worthless. A partial reme¬ 
dy was found for the main drain, as follows: 
A cast iron box with a movable cover was sub¬ 
stituted for a tile, at intervals of about 100 
feet along the whole length of the drain. He 
then took 12 “Brazier’s rods” (1 inch iron, 10 
feet long), linked them together by eyes on the 
ends of each, first drawing the end of the rod a 
little smaller, so as to bend the point around the 
rod, to prevent it coming apart in the drain. 
Two lamp chimney brushes were bound togeth¬ 
er, to make a brush of proper size, and fastened 
with a copper wire on one end; on the other end 
was a swab of ball shape. Then the brush end 
was put into the outlet, and pushed along by 
means of the rod up to the first cast iron box, 
from that to the second, and so on the whole 
length of the drain, and then run back in the 
same manner. The water washed out obstruc¬ 
tions as they were loosened; the ball allow¬ 
ed the brush to slide over any projections in the 
tile. This left the drain clean, and was so far 
satisfactory; but the laterals, he says, could not 
be so reached. This, however, would seem 
practicable by beginning at their commence¬ 
ment, and working along toward their entrance 
into the main drain. 
- - — --- - —- 
Hints on Feeding- and Fattening. 
Animals destined for the shambles are disposed 
of to the butcher to the best advantage, if well 
fattened. The reason is that the flesh of a fat an¬ 
imal is better than that of a lean one, more del¬ 
icate in flavor, tenderer, sweeter, juicier,—this 
aside from the value of the fat itself. A very 
fat animal is not in a natural condition, and on 
this account it is desirable that the feeding 
should be brought as rapidly and steadily as 
possible to a consummation. It is most unde¬ 
sirable to have any check to the steady laj'ing on 
of flesh and fat; positive falling off in flesh is 
with sheep usually fatal to their ever fattening 
well. Fattening animals are peculiarly liable to 
certain obscure disorders, owing to the unnat¬ 
ural circumstances in which they are placed. 
Good farmers therefore exert themselves to keep 
stock stalled for fattening, healthy, by giving 
them the comfort of clean stalls, the tonic of 
fresh air, the increased appetite accompanying 
a variety or change of diet, a healthy skin se¬ 
cured by occasional currying, now and then a 
little salt as an appetizer, and to secure free¬ 
dom from anxiety by quiet surroundings, regu¬ 
lar feeding, and the kindest treatment. 
In feeding swine, which are the most easily 
fattened of our domestic animals, great econo¬ 
my may be exercised by feeding very regularly, 
by cooking the food, by occasionally feeding raw 
roots in small messes as a general corrective, by 
feeding finely broken up charcoal now and then, 
or giving the hogs access to it, and securing 
cleanliness where they are fed in pens. It is 
well to remove from such hogs the inducement 
