Those whose names appear below agree to furnish Hive Italian queens for $1,00 each, under the following conditions: No guarantee is to be assumed of purity, or anything of the kind, only that the queen be reared from a choice, pure mother, and had commenced to lay when they were shipped. They also agree to return the money at any time when customers become impatient of such delay as may be unavoidable. Bear in mind that he who sends the best queens, put up most neatly and most securely, will probably receive the most orders. Special rates for warranted and tested queens, furnished on application to any of the parties. Names with *, use an imported queen mother. If the queen arrives dead, notify us and we will send you another. Probably none will be sent for $1.00 before July 1st, or after Nov. If wanted sooner, or later, see rates in price list. 3-2 Manufacturers. Who agree to make such hives, and at the prices named, as those described on our circular. A. I. Root, Medina, Ohio. P. L. Viallon, Bayou Goula, Iberville Par., La. 7tfd Bees by the Pound. 7tfd 32 7fid Those whose names appear below agree to furnish bees by the pound, and at the prices given in our circular. S. C. Perry, Portland, Ionia Co., Mich. 7t fd 6t fd 6tfd 7tfd THE Coming Bee has settled at Columbus, Wis. 4-9 7tfd *J. P. Sterritt, Sheakleyville, Mercer Co., Pa. We whose names appear below do not know that we have a single dissatisfled person with whom we have had deal; but if we have, such will confer a favor by writing us kindly, and we will do our best to render satisfaction. 6tfd I. R. Good, Nappanee, Elkhart Co., Ind.; 6tfd 6tfd Byron Walker & Co., Capac, St. Clair Co., Mich.6tfd C. W. Phelps, Tioga Centre, Tioga Co., N. Y. TIN POINTS FOR GLASSING HONEY. Cut by machinery; are much cheaper and better than hand-cut, and perfectly straight; 1,000 to 5,000, 25c; 6,000 to 10,000, 22c; over 10.000, 20c; 6c per 1,000 extra by mail. Samples for 3c stamp. W. C. GILLETTE, 6-10 LeRoy, Genesee Co., N. Y. HEADQUARTERS for the GOLDEN ITALIANS and the ORIGINAL ALBINO BEES and QUEENS. Send for circular. 3tfd J. M. C. TAYLOR, Lewistown, Frederick Co., Md. HEADQUARTERS FOR Italian and Holy-Land QUEENS and BEES. I use the very best of Imported and Home-bred queens to breed from; and all queens warranted to be mated with pure yellow drones. If you want bees that are sure to winter, try our Italian queens. No black bees in the vicinity. Dollar queens, before June 20, $1.25 each; after that date, single queens, $1.00; six queens for $5.00; twelve or more, 75 cents each. Tested queens, before June 20, $2.50; after June 20, $2.00; bees by the pound, in May and June, $1.25 per lb.; after June, $1.00 per lb. 7tfd F. W. HOLMES, 7tfd 4-9d Coopersville, Ottawa Co., Mich. NOTES FROM THE BANNER APIARY. son stood almost alone in saying that he didn't care H NO. 33. ENTHUSIASM IN BEE-KEEPING. if his bees were not extra strong early in the spring. He preferred that they should remain quiet, and not commence breeding much until the weather was fine and settled. He did not favor the plan of stimu POW I did enjoy reading friend Doolittle's arti- lating them to early brood-rearing, using up honey, cle on page 332 of July GLEANINGS, and then and perhaps having brood chilled by a spell of cold there is friend Heddon; he, too, wakes up in weather; or, if this does not happen, having hives the night and thinks. When a man becomes so in- full of bees at a time when there was not much honterested in his work that he can scarcely sleep nights, ey to gather. Others thought that a colony that was we may be pretty certain that something is going to strong early in the spring would also be strong, if be done. I sometimes think that a thorough, go- not stronger, in the honey harvest. The next morn ahead bee-keeper, like a poet, is born, not made; ing after the convention, friend Hunt took me out he loves his business as the engineer loves his en- into the yard and showed me different colonies. gine, the old sailor his vessel, or the artist his art. "Now, then," said he, "which colony would you But this enthusiasm can not be manufactured to take, if you were purchasing, and were given your choice? and which one do you think Mr. Robertson order. Lying on one's back in the shade, reading a bee paper, and now and then giving an upward would take, this one here where the bees 'boil up' glance to see the busy little workers whirling away at any corner of the quilt that you choose to lift, or into the vault of heavenly blue, writing platitudes one where the bees occupy only three or four spaces and "gush" for the papers and bee conventions, between the combs?" Now, then, brother bee-keepetc., will never make of one an enthusiastic and ers, which one would you take? Of course, if one successful bee-keeper. The genuine enthusiasm wishes to sell bees by the pound, or make up nuclei must bubble up spontaneously from the "inside;" for queen-rearing, early in the season, strong coloand if it takes the shape of working steadily from nies are to be preferred; but how is it when an apidaylight to dark, disregarding stings and the hot sun-ary is to be run for honey? Let's have this question shine - yes, and perhaps a rack full of tempting agitated; let's have some facts upon the subject. newspapers, then look out for a good report next fall. HIVES FULL OF BEES AT JUST THE RIGHT TIME. Friend Doolittle says: "The great secret of success is in getting a full force of workers ready for the field just when they are needed." Now, this is a point that I think needs "stirring up." Down to the convention last spring, at Detroit, Mr. J. H. Robert FUEL FOR SMOKERS. Friend Heddon, how graphically you can write! Only one who had "been there" would ever have written, "And puff and puff and puff, and see so little smoke issue as to be only just discernible." In reading your article, I watched carefully to see if you had ever tried rags that had been soaked in a solution of saltpeter, and then dried, Friend Hunt told me about them last spring, and I have used them considerably this season. I don't suppose they are so good as "punk," but it is very difficult for some to obtain punk; and to such I would say, try rags soaked in a solution of saltpeter. They light with a match very readily, burn slowly, don't go out, make a good "smudge," and don't stink while burning, like other rags. I dissolve the saltpeter in water, making quite a strong solution, wet the rags thoroughly, wring them out, and then dry them. BASSWOOD LATE IN BLOOMING. To-day is July 18th, and the basswood-honey harvest is usually over by this time; but now the buds have just comme need opening on a few of the trees; basswoods "holding off" so long is giving the bees a "long pull" on white clover. I am very, very busy (I had to get up carly and dash off these few lines in the morning, before breakfast). I have 34 full colonies, and nearly 100 nuclei; and I am making hives, and starting more nuclei every day. W. Z. HUTCHINSON. Rogersville, Genesee Co., Mich., July, 1882. A "MACHINE" TO GET OUT BEE- L AST spring opened up very favorably. From the middle of March until the 10th of April the weather was all that could be desired. Early spring-bloom came on profusely. Brood-rearing began early, and by the first of April my hives were full of bees, and every indication pointed to a successful season. I made preparation for extracting on the 10th of April; but the cool, frosty weather set in, and continued so for nearly two months. Breeding stopped. The bees would fly out and fill ALSO A FEW HINTS" IN REGard to being STUNG. themselves with honey, and become chilled, and perish. My most vigorous colonies fared the worst. By the 1st of June, colonics that had bees enough to cover a dozen frames of brood, could not cover more than four. The prospects were gloomy enough, indeed. The supply of honey gave out, and I had to go to feeding, to keep my queens from perishing. I had reared half a dozen queens. The bees soon began to kill off their drones, and two of my young queons were a month old before they were fertilized. I tell you, I felt badly enough. The farmers were feeling badly too. It was so cold that corn would not grow. The wheat stood still. The cutworm cut down whatever grew in the fields and gardens; and along with the cut-worm came the armyworm, threatening to destroy all vegetation. People nearly all began to croak. "A worse failure of crops," they said, "than last year." Seedtime had come, but the harvest would be a failure. June came in as cool as May had been. But a change came. Bright warm weather set in; a change was soon apparent; vegetation advanced rapidly, and our farmers have harvested the finest crop of small grain ever raised in the country. The earth is just groaning under the load of grain, fruit, and vegetables. I wish you could see the wheatstacks, from some high building or point of land in Hill Prairie, Southern Illinois. This part of it is one vast wheat-field. The people's fears have not been realized. The great bountiful hand of our heavenly Father has showered down upon us an abundance of temporal blessings. What a grand consolation it is that none of his promises fail! Oh if men everywhere could realize that his gracious promises are more certain, free, and complete, than those that relate to temporal blessings! It will work, without a doubt, friend H.; and if it were illustrated in some of our bee catalogues, no doubt it would meet with a ready sale; but for all that, I hardly believe I should use one, even if it were all the time right in a handy pocket. The last time I was stung, I remember wondering if I should use such a machine if I had one, but conIcluded I would not care to wait until it could be got out of my pocket, and opened. I usually escape stings by being about as quick as the bee is; and as it usually takes them a fraction of a second to get their "machinery" in place and "start up," I almost always interrupt proceedings about as soon as I feel a slight pricking. I rarely kill the little chaps, however, for we need them all in our apiary to gather honey, or to sell by the pound. I just give them a loving pinch, just enough to make their little "ribs crack, and then lay them down in some place where they can rise up on one" elbow" after a while and look at me, and in a wiser as well as sadder frame of mind, conclude to let me "boss the ranche," instead of trying to do it themselves. I have never known one to sting me, after this kind of disci-bloom. My bees have advanced to about the condition they would have been by the middle of April, if it had not turned cold. I am enabled to increase my stock enough to supply orders for bees. I make a specialty of 5-frame colonies with young fertile Italian queen. My bees will be in good condition for fall work. We have a splendid prospect for fall MISTAKES. I made two of them this spring that I know of. The first was removing winter protection too soon, and the second was in not beginning to feed soon enough and in large enough quantities. If I had expended twenty dollars more for feed, I am satisfied that it would have been one hundred dollars in my pocket. It pays to feed bees when they can not gather food. The much-condemned grape sugar helped me greatly, so far as I used it. WATER FOR BEES IN WARM WEATHER. During the hot period last summer I was very much surprised at the amount of water consumed by bees in warm weather. I made a shallow box 10 feet long, 1 foot wide, and 11⁄2 inches deep, with two strips as high as the sides of the box, running lengthwise of the box; this I set close to the pump, under the shade of a box-elder. I filled it whenever it was empty. It held something over three gallons when full. The bees would alight on the edges of the box and strips, and fill themselves. It was a pretty sight to see the nice large Ita'ian bees ranged along in rows as close as they could stand. When the water needed replenishing, I would dash in a pail full right on top of them. They would swim out to the edges, climb out, and shake their wings as though they enjoyed the bath. On the 25th of July last, I put in the box 45 gallons of water. Of course, a large quantity of this evaporated - probably not more than one-third, as the box sat in a very close shade. I had then about 25 colonies. The box with the water in it served a double purpose. It furnished pure water, which they always prefer, and kept them from my neighbors' pumps and watering-troughs, which is often an annoyance to the people. I do not think that bees will ever starve if they have plenty of water and pollen accessible. Marissa, Ill, July 11, 1882. WM. LITTLE. HOLY-LAND BEES. SOME OF THE WAYS IN WHICH WE MAKE USE OF T may seem strange to some, that I, occupying so favorable surroundings, should hold aloof from the general contribution in common with our many bee friends; but deeming it better to " go slow," and give our older and wiser heads the field, I have thus far stood back, thereby correcting a few of my hasty conclusions and immature opinions. Lately my attention has been so greatly drawn toward the Holy-Land bees that 1 can not refrain from saying a few things in their favor, although they are surrounded by some prejudices. That they are very prolific, all who have handled them will admit; from whence it would naturally follow that their generative qualities would tend especially toward raising cells; this, in our experience, has been decidedly the case. I will mention one or two instances, not because they are remarkable in themselves, but to show that this is one of the characteristics of the race. On the 5th of July we were somewhat short of cells; and in taking my usual rounds through the apiary, I came to a Holy-Land colony from which the queen had been sold. The slate indicated that the bees had killed a dollar queen caged there, and had served two just hatched in the same manner. In consequence of this determination to build cells, the colony had been queenless about ten or twelve days. On picking up one of the frames I found a young hatched queen; and on another, I counted upward of 25 cells. As we were at this date short, and the queen a very fine tested HolyLand, I determined to avail myself of this fine lot of cells. After cutting out perhaps half a dozen, and laying them on the side of the hive, I was about to proceed further, when, looking down, I discovered that three of the six had hatched. I immediately set was in turn brought there, as I feared they, too, would hatch on my hands, as did the others. Nor was I mistaken in this. After resuming my work, John told me that the queens were running loose in the lamp nursery in every direction. I hastily cut out the cells yet remaining in the hive, and once I thank you for the spirit of your letter, friend L., for it is what I need, and what we back the frame, and disposed of my young queens all need, to have a bright, vivid sense of wherever most needed. I again commenced at the God's care and love, and a loving faith and cells, and after having cut out three or four, found trust in him when we have done all we can, two more queens hatched, and another fast gnawand feel ourselves dependent upon him. I ing out. I placed my ear near the comb containing agree with you in regard to feeding, and I the cells, and could distinctly hear the nibbling of am sure that our little friends suffer for both the queens within. This indicated very plainly that food and water, a great many times, when they would soon all be out. I therefore hastened to we could very easily give it, in a way that put the remaining cells along with the two batched would give them comfort and ourselves prof-queens, into the nursery; soon after, another lot it. I can not quite agree, that water and pollen would keep them, with nothing more; but it may be so, after all. I believe in pure water; and if we had a feeder that would give the bees pure sugar and pure water, and let them mix it only so fast as they use it, I believe I should like it better than any we now have. Syrup should contain a good deal of water, to do the most good; and with this large quantity of water, it soon sours in warm weather. The thin basswood honey, that they seem to thrive so wonderfully on just at this writing, is, if I am correct, mixed during the night, and gathered and carried into their hives with the first daylight in the morning. Can we not fixing them to queenless colonies; but, unfortunately, their sugar and water in something the same way, or let them mix it themselves at their own pleasure? Sour or brackish syrup may not do them any harm, but I do not believe it answers as well as the fresh nectar from the basswood-blossoms. more started for the nursery. Sure enough, on ar. riving there my eyes were greeted with a sight that really made me feel happy for once, as they were just in time to supply the demand of the colonies. These queens, with a single exception, all hatched within thirty minutes; and were so remarkably strong and healthy that some attempted to fly, and one did succeed partially. No time was lost in giv we were not as successful in rearing them all. This date (5th of July) in our locality was about the intermission of the flow of honey between clover and basswood; in consequence of which, the bees, not having much else to do but mischief, killed a part of them. Out of the number that were accepted, a few, could be introduced only by vigorously smoking their colonies at the entrance. The queens are now laying, and are so exceedingly large and fertile that my honored pater pronounced them to be some of the finest queens he ever saw. At another time, John and I counted in four HolyLand colonies, 82 cells: this number is only their fair average yield. Whenever we are in need of a "raft of celle," as we term it, the brood of a Holy-Land colony is exchanged for that of an imported stock. may not all have got a clear idea of the invention the boys have made for getting large quantities of queen-cells, I will explain that it is to furnish brood from any queen you choose, but to let Holy-Land bees raise the cells. That queens are not as good where the bees build a great number of cells, does not accord with my experience at all, where the colony is strong, and the hive well supplied with plenty of new honey and pollen. SEVEN HUNDRED POUNDS OF HONEY By that means we can obtain as many cells as we need; whereas the imported stock, left to itself, probably would not raise over 6 or 8 cells, and it is not uncommon for them to have only three or four. Now, in summing up a few of the good features of ALL FROM A DAUGHTER OF A DOLLAR QUEEN, IN A the Holy-Lands, we find, from the above facts, first, they raise a great abundance of cells at one rearing; secondly, the cells are started so that they hatch at or nearly the same time; lastly, if the cells are not too much disturbed, the queen will hatch out strong and healthy. Now, a word in regard to the Holy-Lands as honeygatherers: My experience has led me to think that they are equally as good as the Italians, and some say a little superior. Being originally reared in a hot dry country, they have necessarily been obliged to gather honey at every opportunity available, or the race could never have existed. In this country, they of course manifest the same energetic disposition; and hence, as far as my observation goes, gather some honey after the basswood flow, even when the other bees are apparently inactive. After what has been said, I would not have it un H SIMPLICITY HIVE. URRAH for D. A. Jones and our noble Frank Benton! Hurrah for the Cyprians! Hurrah for Texas, the land that flows with milk and honey! The Lone-Star Apiary takes the lead. A barrel of honey from one hive! Never, since the war-hoop of the savage Indians ceased to reverberate across our boundless prairies, has there been such a flow of honey and such an increase of bees. have taken as high as 48 lbs. of honey from a threeIt was impossible to keep them from swarming; I frame nucleus hive in 10 days. It was impossible for me to get over one-fourth of the honey, as I did not have hives and fixtures, and I had my wheat and oat crop to see to. But I was determined to get as much as friend Atchley, of Dallas, Texas, did last year. I had a Cyprian queen that was raised in De the daughter of that dollar Cyprian I bought of you derstood that I have any the less regard for the Ital-cember, 1880, in my yard, a regular dollar queen, and fans than before; but, on the contrary, all things considered, I think they possess many qualities far superior to other races of bees, and will probably always retain the front rank. in August, 1880. I saw she was extra prolific, and I thought I would run this colony for extracted hon ey. In March, I put on a 2d story with ten frames of My object in writing this is not to give the Holy-empty combs; April 20 I extracted 6 lbs., and put on Lands undue praise, to the exclusion of the Italians, but to bring forth a few of the good qualities which 3d story, with five frames of fdn. and five frames of empty combs. These were soon filled with eggs. are justly their due. I do not deny, that the Holy- May 10 I added the 4th story, with wired fdn. The Lands have a few bad features; but these, I think, have been fully discussed before. E. R. ROOT. Medina, O., July 24, 1882. The queens hatched from the lot of cells Ernest has mentioned, pleased me because they were so exceedingly large and strong, and because of the comical ringed appearance they presented as they passed over the combs, with long strides. The groundwork of their bodies is a fine yellow; but at every section they have a dark, or almost black band. This queer marking is probably because the Holy-Land queen was fertilized by an Italian drone. I made the expression, that I would give a hundred dollars for 100 just such queens, and I haven't changed my mind in regard to the matter either. The best honey-gatherers in our whole apiary of over four hundred colonies are the bees from a nice queen of just this cross. After all the rest of the bees have stopped work, these bees come into the hive in great numbers, and drop on the white sand, and then crawl in, panting; and they are getting honey, and building fan., while many of the others are rather losing. We have been watching the colony some time, and have now decided to rear queens from her. The price will be the same as our others. If you want one, just say from our "honey queen. Lest you following table shows the amount extracted: Apr. 20 and 30, June 1, extracted 3 upper stories, 115% " 49%" 681%** This is the greatest amount of honey ever produced from one colony of bees - not a particle of brood or help from other hives; no extra care, more than to furnish room and empty combs; no feed in the spring. I think I am entitled to a grand gift premium from every bee-keeper in the land, as the great est honey-producer in the country, from a single colony; $2.50, $2.00, or even $1.00, will do; and when ever you beat it I will be ready to return the gift. I presume friend D. A. Jones will give us a pure imported Cyprian queen for his part of the premium; but the noble fellow has had such bad luck in importing queens, that we bee-keepers should help him all we can. The Cyprian bee is THE BEE, and don't you forget it. By examining my report you will see the daily yield from June 1st to the 7th was 10 5-7 lbs.; from 7th to 14th, 16 lbs.; from 14th to 21st, a trifle over 18 lbs.; from 21st to 28th, a little over 24 lbs.; from 28ch to 30th, nearly 29 lbs. This makes an average of 20 |