Part 3

Bees are getting uneasy, and must have a flight soon. Many report heavy losses, even now; others complain that all are sick with dysentery. In my home cellar, out of about 275, 4 are slightly affected, the balance are apparently in good condition. My outside apiaries fare worse. Two weeks ago quite a number had the dysentery slightly; I should judge about 8 or 10 per cent. How they now are I cannot tell; certainly, no better. I believe that they can stand it a month longer, and my home apiary 6 weeks, but that is the limit.

We are all afraid that Vennor's prophecy of 11 feet of snow will yet be realized, unless some one can be found to contradict it. Eleven feet of snow now would last us until all our bees had died a natural death from old age. Help us out of our trouble, if you can.

GEO. GRIMM.

Jefferson, Wis., March 3, 1881.

It was with much pleasure we noticed, in last Thursday's Associated Press dispatches, evidences of Prof. Vennor's reformation. He undoubtedly has become convinced that the realization of the eleven feet of snow attributed to his prophecies, would not only cause much suffering and privation with the majority of humanity, but work serious and permanent injury to the country itself. He has relented, or probably been bribed by Mr. McColm's liberal offer in the BEE JOURNAL of March 2, page 69, and now promises us better weather in the future. His latest prediction is a reasonably early, warm, dry spring, cool, pleasant summer, and late, dry fall, followed by a mild and pleasant winter. Of course, he promises abundant crops, and a satisfactory and remunerative harvest.

But without any further reference to Prof. Vennor, and without laying any claim to the “spirit of prophecy,” we believe the coming season will be a very satisfactory one to those bee-keepers who may be prepared to profit by it, and who have the industry and intelligence to make the most of it. The winter of 1879-80 was very mild and open, the scarcity of snow left the earth's surface exposed alike to the freezing temperature of night, and the pleasant sunshine of the balmy days; spring-like showers were of frequent occurrence, and heavy rains accompanied with thunder were so numerous that they ceased to create surprise; while the weird spring-music of the frogs was a familiar sound every month, and nearly every week, throughout the winter. The alternating cold and heat “threw out” the roots of the perennial plants, breaking off the long, deep-reaching taps and killing the rootlets; hence the frequent expression, “but little white clover in bloom, and no honey in the blossoms.” The honey-producing annuals have done but little better, owing, we presume, to the germination of the seeds in mid-winter, and the frequent frosting of the tender sprouts before spring set in. Thus, the summer and fall bloom was limited, and no provision having been made to supply the short-comings of nature, bees entered upon an unprecedented winter with a poor supply of good—or a good supply of poor—honey. The many empty hives in the country this spring is the result.

The past winter, whatever else may be said of it, has been propitious for the honey plants. Cool weather in this latitude set in during October; vegetation was checked in the perennials and biennials; the ground was frozen in November, and it was overspread with a mantle of snow quite early in the season, which has constantly held the roots of the perennials in position, and prevented the seeds of the annuals from unseasonable germination. The stand of white clover last fall was good, and mostly of quite recent growth, which should bloom profusely this season, and will only need heat and favorable sunshine to develop the nectar. The causes enumerated will also tend to confine the vitality of the linden trees to the roots, to be drawn out in profuse foliage and bloom by the genial rays of the summer sun. The numerous variety of flowers we believe will gratify the eye of every lover of the beautiful in nature, and well reward the labors of the painstaking bee-keeper. That the price of honey will be remunerative next fall no one can doubt, in view of the lessened competition, owing to the heavy losses the past winter and the many who will utilize the bees they have left to refilling their empty hives.

It would take more space than we can give a single article, to explain why we have much confidence in Prof. Vennor's latest prediction, referred to above—though perhaps “the wish is father to the thought.” We feel confident many of our readers will cordially unite with us in welcoming the better time coming.

Migratory Bee-Keeping.

Why do not the enterprising bee-keepers of these parts go South with their bees, and wait till the March “blizzards” are over? Seems to me the bees and honey saved would about pay the expenses of the trip. How much does a colony need in those parts to winter on? Would there be any prospect of obtaining any surplus down there before the season opens here? These and a dozen other questions I am vainly speculating upon. Are Messrs. Bingham and Perrine the only ones that have tried the migratory plan? I believe neither of them was successful; at any rate, they have abandoned it. Probably they could not give it the necessary attention. The loss of larvæ in shipping seems but trifling compared to the gain in young bees. Considerable damage may be done by combs breaking down, but wired frames would obviate that difficulty. Is not wired foundation (wired in frames) the only kind that can be depended on under all circumstances? You report in the October number, 1880, page 468, that the Northwestern Convention disapproved of wired foundation. There were but few present that had given wired foundation a fair trial, and if I am not mistaken, they were strongly in favor of it.

H. W. FUNK.

Bloomington, Ill., March 5, 1881.

The first question is difficult to answer, as enterprising bee-keepers, like the balance of humanity, are generally governed by motives of convenience or profit. There are very few but have other business connected with bee-keeping, and this would suffer if close attention was given the migratory system. The amount of honey required to winter in the South is much less than in the North, but the quantity is governed by contingencies, as would be the question, How much honey will a colony obtain in the South in a season? Usually bees obtain considerable surplus in April and May, in some localities. Mr. Bingham, we believe, abandoned the migratory system on account of excessive freights, while Mr. Perrine met with a series of disasters from the first which would have discouraged any one. Mr. W. O. Abbott was engaged last season with a floating apiary on the Mississippi river, from which large returns were anticipated; but as nothing definite has been made public since the close of the season, we suppose it was not a success. Others have tried Southern wintering, but we have no data upon which to base conclusions, except the fact of its abandonment. The trouble has not been so much from destruction of combs, as the expense attending the removal.

A private letter from a gentleman with several hundred colonies of bees, located a short distance below Memphis, Tenn., dated March 5, says: “My colonies are mostly very strong; they are bringing in 5 kinds of pollen; many are clustering in front of their hives; most of them had large quantities of honey left over, and I could extract an average of 15 lbs. per colony with profit to the bees. Bees here are given no attention in the fall, but are left on the summer stands, sometimes with the second story over them, and often with only a honey-board. Frequently there are entrances at front and rear, and wide cracks in the sides from which bees pour out, but disaster never overtakes them except from starvation.”

If a necessity exists for wires in foundation, then perhaps the wired frames are best. That but few of those in attendance at the Northwestern Convention “had given wired foundation a fair trial,” was undoubtedly owing to the fact that the great majority of those present had never experienced the necessity for using wires; and it might be difficult to convince a considerable minority of the bee-keepers in the country that wired foundation is even desirable for general use. Of course, for special purposes, such as migratory bee-keeping, shipping in summer, etc., where not to be transferred from the frames, wired-frames might be very desirable.

Interesting Letter from Ceylon.

Through the courtesy of Mr. D. A. Jones, we are permitted to publish the following letter. Anything relating to the peregrinations of Mr. Benton in the far East, and any discoveries of new races of bees he may effect, will possess a great attraction for our readers. His next letter, from Singapore, will be awaited with interest.

I found on examination that every queen was alive upon my arrival in Pointe de Galle, though some of the nuclei were greatly depopulated, owing to the death of many bees, and would not have lived to reach Java had I not gotten off in Ceylon. By the next steamer I go to Singapore. I have made every effort to secure bees here, but none are kept in hives in those ports I have visited, and I do not think in any port of the Island.

Of those found in trees few can be secured, because the trees are valuable cocoanut palms, and the entrance holes are in the trunk of course, and are very small. I have obtained three hives only of the small bees, having also spent some time fixing up the bees I brought with me, and trying to find the large bees, to say nothing of searching for some place where bees could be purchased in hives or pots. The natives are far worse than Cypriotes to get along with and accomplish anything. They seem to tell lies simply for the sake of giving an answer, where no pecuniary gain could come to them. Again, they seem to wish to avoid saying “I do not know,” when the Lord knows it would be the most appropriate thing for them to say in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred. The result is that it is hard work to sift the statements made by the natives, and Europeans—nearly all English—know absolutely nothing of value to us.

The new bees, which I think are also found in India and many of the East India Islands (in which case East India bees would seem to me an appropriate name), are real beauties. The workers are 3/8 of an inch long, and build worker comb 5/8 of an inch thick, 36 cells to the square inch. The drone comb is exactly the size, and like worker comb made by the bees already in Europe and America. The workers are brown with a very ringed abdomen, the bands to the tip of the body being broadly marked with yellow, and thorax very fuzzy, with a large shield between the wings; the drones are black, inclining to a blue-black, and are ½ of an inch long; the queens are leather-colored, and large compared with the workers. These bees are very active, wonderful breeders, regular little beauties, and can be handled without the least smoke, scarcely ever offering to sting. It is a pity I cannot get more of them during my stay.

I am determined to find out whether _Apis dorsata_ is to be found here, if time will permit, and if two more races I have heard of here really do exist. I am now where a few shillings of railway fare will bring me to the interior of the Island. More by next mail, with samples of bees and comb.

I have had a horrible time getting stung with large hornets while in the jungles. It laid me up for one whole day. These are fearful fellows, worse than those in Cyprus.

F. BENTON.

Colombo, Ceylon, Jan. 24, 1881.

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☞ There are five Wednesdays in March—hence, the next number sent to Semi-Monthly subscribers will be No. 14.

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☞ We can supply but a few more of the back numbers to new subscribers. If any want them, they must be sent for soon.

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☞ One letter sometimes makes quite a difference in the meaning of a sentence. Mr. L. James calls attention to an error in his article on page 34, in the 4th line from the bottom—the word hiving is there given as “hiding.” As the sense indicated the word required, perhaps it was not generally noticed.

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☞ The past week has been noted for snow storms, not only in America but also in Europe, where a winter of unusual severity is reported, with deep snows and steady frosts for months together. This winter will have a place in history, as being among the most severe as well as of the longest duration. Not alone have the bees suffered by it, but cattle, sheep, hogs, etc., have perished by the thousand from the prevalence of blizzards and deep snows.

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☞ Several bee-keepers in this vicinity are considering the feasibility of holding a convention in Detroit this spring. The law in regard to foul brood, which is about to be passed, makes an organization necessary. It is desirable to know how many would favor the enterprise. Will such please send me their address.

A. B. WEED.

No. 75 Bagg street, Detroit, Mich.

=Wintered Well.=—I have wintered 40 colonies of Italians on the summer stands; they have wintered well.

JAMES H. DAVIS.

New Holland, Pa., March 8, 1881.

=Mortality Reports.=—It seems to me that the only way of profiting by the experience of bee-keepers throughout the country, this exceptionally severe winter, is to reduce their reports to a tabular statement. If they could be induced to send in these reports, in the form of brief answers, to questions like the following, we could read the history of the past winter on a single page of the BEE JOURNAL, and learn from it lessons of scientific value. I mean such questions as these:

1. How many colonies did you winter?

2. Where? (out doors or in cellar.)

3. What hive did you use?

4. How did you prepare it?

5. What entrance was left open, bottom, top, or both?

6. How late did the bees breed?

7. How many lbs. of honey were they allowed to keep?

8. When did they have their first flight?

9. How many colonies did you lose?

C. F. KROEH.

Hoboken, N. J., Mar. 5, 1881.

[It would be difficult to get up a reliable report of this kind for many reasons, chiefly, perhaps, the following: 1st. Spring does not open simultaneously all over the country, and by the time the last were heard from, the table would have lost its interest; 2d. Many are sensitive, and prefer not to give their experience; 3d. Many have partially reported already, and would scarcely care to do so again. We agree with Mr. Kroeh, a table of that description would be invaluable for reference; but it is difficult to obtain.—ED.]

=Nineteen Weeks' Confinement.=—Bees have at last had a purifying flight after 19 weeks' confinement. I find 28 dead from 153, I packed in chaff. Temperature has been below zero 7 times, and as low as 17° below, this winter. A few of the remaining colonies are weak and may die yet, but nearly all are strong for this season of the year. One has had dysentery since Dec. 15, but is alive yet, with a fair prospect of getting through.

H. D. BURRELL.

Bangor, Mich., March 10, 1881.

=Wintered Safely.=—We had a very poor season last year and the winter has been very severe. I began the last season with 18 colonies, increased to 34 and obtained about 500 lbs. of surplus. I wintered in the cellar, and lost 3 colonies with dysentery. My bees had a cleansing flight about 2 weeks ago and I think we will have no more losses this winter. There are quite a number of bee-keepers in this vicinity, but most of them report very heavy losses, some having over 100 colonies and losing nearly all. We are very much pleased with the Weekly BEE JOURNAL, and think it far superior to any Monthly.

L. E. WELCH.

Linden, Mich., March 8, 1881.

=A Slim Living.=—I prepared 21 colonies on Dec. 1st, for wintering on summer stands. Hives were sitting on 4 inch blocks, and the colonies were all strong. I placed woolen blankets over the tops of the frames, then the honey-boards and covers, and left them for the winter—my usual way. Always heretofore they have come out bright. Feb. 22nd I felt uneasy about them, and being a bright day, I opened the hives to find 11 dead out or 21 colonies, and the remaining 10 weak. The hives were filled with frost and ice, and blankets wet with water; 5 out of the 11 dead had Italian queens, which I purchased from Mr. A. H. Newman last summer. I am not discouraged. If I had to make a living from bees it would be slim. I can learn more in 1 week about taking care of bees from the BEE JOURNAL, than I could in 1 year without it.

EDMUND DELAIR.

Oketo, Kan., March 1, 1881.

=Honey Sections.=—In the BEE JOURNAL of March 2d Mr. Heddon says he prefers a section that he can press to any angle and have it solid, but I fail to see that any other angle than square is of any advantage. Again, Mr. H. asks, “Is it not better to wait and see which goes into general use?” Perhaps the following figures may show which has gone into general use, at least with our customers. I make any kind that are wanted, and therefore the figures will show which are the most desirable. In 1879, the first year that the one piece sections were put upon the market, and at a higher price than other kinds, my sales were:

104,578 one piece sections. 124,058 dovetailed. 38,270 nailed.

In 1880, the following are the figures:

233,898 one-piece sections. 47,980 dovetailed. 50,950 nailed.

According to Mr. Heddon's test, therefore, the one-piece sections are the most desirable, because they have gone into general use.

G. B. LEWIS.

Watertown, Wis., March 8, 1881.

=Bees in Good Condition.=—The Weekly BEE JOURNAL is a welcome visitor and is the first paper I read when I return home on Friday evening. It is a friend that introduces me to my fellow bee-keepers, and their manner of manipulating our pets. My bees are in good spirits, yet they had but 2 flights this winter. I have them packed in a shed in new Langstroth hives, manipulating sides. They are 6 inches apart and packed all around with straw, excepting the fronts. They face the south, with a division board on each side of the frames, leaving a dead air space.

JOHN W. STURWOLD.

Haymond, Ind., Feb. 7, 1881.

=Wintered Without Loss.=—I have kept bees for 7 years and my greatest trouble has been wintering them, but I think I have that perfect now. I winter on summer stands packed in chaff. Last fall I had 72 colonies, and on Feb. 9 all were right. I think I shall have to feed them. Last fall some had 15 lbs. and others 25 lbs of honey; that is if bees and comb weighed 10 lbs. The combs were all new, and it may be that 10 lbs. was allowing too much.

GEORGE WICKWIRE.

Weston Mills, N. Y., March 4, 1881.

=Mourning for the Bees.=—It is lamentable to hear the reports throughout this country. Some have lost all; others all but 1 or 2. I think about four-fifths of the bees are dead through this country; as nearly all left their bees unprotected, they had to suffer losses. But I think the present winter will in part decide the best methods of wintering. I started last spring with 4 colonies, increased to 6, but obtained no surplus. In Sept. I bought 2 Italian colonies which are doing well. I packed 2 in chaff and 6 I put into the cellar, but 2 of these died, 1 starved, and the other had the dysentery. Those packed in chaff had a good flight on Feb. 26. Those in the cellar had no flight since Nov. 1. The weather is now breaking up, the snow has nearly all gone, and the roads are muddy. I am highly pleased with the Weekly BEE JOURNAL. I could not be persuaded to do without it.

H. CRIPE.

North Manchester, Ind., Mar., 8, 1881.

=Wintering.=—My experience of over 25 years in trying all modes of wintering is as follows: On summer stands, and in the cellar for 10 years; I then built a house to winter in, used that 2 years and then abandoned it. The last 3 years I have been using the chaff hive and winter on summer stands, with the least loss of any way I have tried. My bees had a splendid fly on the 11th, it being the first chance for them since the 8th of Nov. I think they will go through all right now unless we have a very late spring. I prepared 148 colonies for winter, (123 in chaff hives and 25 in the common box hive.) I have lost but one in chaff hive yet, and 10 in the box hive already, and doubt if one-half of what are left will see the middle of April. I wish to congratulate our editor on the success of the BEE JOURNAL. I have received it regular since assuming its new form, and think it just splendid, and if I had but 1 colony of bees I would try to take the Weekly BEE JOURNAL to aid me to make a success of that 1. I hope the editor may be liberally supported by the bee-keepers of America, for I believe with his experience and that of his able contributors, he can give us a paper that we cannot afford to do without.

J. M. FRANCE.

Auburn, Pa. Feb. 24, 1881.

=Vexatious to Sell Honey.=—I only realized $300 last year from my bees. I put 50 colonies in winter quarters in the fall of 1879; lost none, but doubled up on account of queenlessness, weakness, etc., to 45, all in first class order. I bought 50 colonies in old-fashioned Langstroth hives; they were wintered in a good cellar, and were, with a few exceptions, weak in bees, combs in bad order, short of stores, and badly managed the preceding season. I united them down to 27 before I moved them. At the beginning of honey harvest (basswood bloom) I doubled up to 15, so that when the honey season opened I had 60 first class colonies, and obtained 3,500 lbs. of summer honey. I extracted only once. I increased by natural swarming to 88, and at the close of the season doubled up to 74. I have lost 1 this winter through my own fault. I winter out-doors, but would winter indoors if I had a proper place. I sell nearly all my honey to the consumers, but confess this is a vexatious way of disposing of it; it is the most annoying part of the business; in fact, I feel disgusted when I think of it. People cry fraud, fraud, when there is no fraud; but when a spurious article is offered, they swallow it as quietly as desired.

GEORGE W. HORNER.

Dubuque, Iowa, Feb. 15, 1881.

=Prospects Better.=—This has been a fine day; my bees had a cleansing flight to-day. They are all alive and strong, and seem to be in splendid condition, with plenty of honey and perfectly dry. I think all the danger is over with them now. I am in favor of double-walled hives, but not packed with chaff, for I have noticed that where there is chaff there is frost on the inside wall. I prefer a dead air space, for then it is always dry. What is the use of changing black bees for Italians, if Mr. Loucks, of California, can get so much honey from the black bees, they surely must be the “boss” bees? I think we had better take our bees to California, where milk and honey flows.

DAVID HOHENSHELL.

Collins, Ill., March 6, 1881.

=All Alive.=—My bees are all alive and in fine condition. They were wintered out of doors, in shed, packed around with straw, but open to the east.

J. R. MEAD.

Wichita, Kas., March 7, 1881.

=Winter yet in Kentucky.=—Bees are wintering very badly here, and 2 of my neighbors have lost all they had. The ground is covered with snow, and looks as much like winter as it did a month ago.

A. E. FOSTER.

Covington, Ky., March 5, 1881.