running order as he says he does. I have said repeatedly, and I will say it again, that the Hoffman frame is all right for such beekeepers. But the average bee-keeper will not trouble himself to go over his hives every spring and scrape off all surplus propolis. In fact, it is almost impossible to get him to do any thing whatever to keep his hives in good working order. I should not enjoy that sort of thing myself. Many of my hives have had bees in them for eighteen years or more, and I have not yet found any necessity for scraping the propolis off the end-bars. The frames separate about as easily as they did on the start. I really should not care to undertake the job of scraping the propolis off the end-bars of the nearly 5000 frames I have in use every spring. But if you like to do it, and have time for it, it is all right. My only contention in regard to the Hoffman frame is that, in the hands of the average bee-keeper, it comes pretty near not being a movable frame.

Doubtless some have felt that Prof. Eaton's comment on the article of W. K. Morrison on "The Comb-honey Lie" was too severe. It was caustic criticism, it is true, but I can not but feel that it was deserved. While the article in question contains much that is good, a part of it is misleading. It makes statements that many persons in the ordinary walks of life, to say nothing of those who have had special training on these subjects, know to be exaggerated and untrue. We should understand, in the first place, that Prof. Eaton's criticism applies only to the paragraph relating to glucose. This paragraph was quoted in the American Bee Journal, and it was against this quoted paragraph that Prof. Eaton's attack was directed. I have felt for a long time like entering a protest against some of the things that have been said in the bee journals about glucose. Some glaring misstatements have been made. At other times, while what has been said was not exactly untrue, the facts have been distorted and given a deceptive coloring. Doubtless this was not intentionally so. When a man wants very much to believe a thing he does not question very closely the evidence in its favor, and he is quite apt to overlook the evidence against it. So we have such statements as Bees can not be made to take glucose;" "glucose is poisonous to bees;" 'they will starve sooner than touch it," etc. We can not afford to make these misrepresentations. We have suffered a great deal from the "scientific pleasantries" and downright romancing in regard to our industry in the newspapers and magazines, but we have no right to complain of it as long as we employ the same tactics. Such arguments, wholly untrue, or containing only half the truth, may seem to serve a temporary purpose; but sooner or later they will work against us. There is plenty of argument against the adulteration of honey by glucose or any other substance without resorting to misrepresentation. We weaken our position and

furnish weapons to our enemies when, in our arguments, we depart from the plain truth. When we can not confine ourselves to that, it would be better to say nothing.

It

With regard to the use of springs for keeping brood-frames pressed together, the idea is original with me. I have experimented somewhat with them for that purpose, but am not yet prepared to say whether I like them as well as screws. can not agree with those who think neither is necessary. I have had abundant opportunity for testing this. Most of my hives have been in use a long time, about eighteen years or more. is but natural that in some the screw feature has become worn out, usually through the failure of the screw-thread cut in the soft pine of the hive side. With these, until I have got around to repairing them, I have had to depend on crowding them closely together with the knife I use in separating the parts of hives. To me, at least, this is not nearly as satisfactory as keeping them crowded up with the screws.

Inexperienced bee-keepers can not be depended on to do any thing properly. My experience in inspecting bees has shown me that not one in ten will keep Hoffman frames crowded together. In employing help to handle my hives, I have found it very difficult to get them to tighten up the screws after they have been loosened for any purpose. It is for this reason I think that springs might be better for the average beekeeper than to use screws or to attempt to get along without any thing of the kind. If they could be induced to put them in place once, they would stay there in full effectiveness until they were removed, which might not be for years. When they are removed, something would have to be done with them. While some of them would doubtless be lost and others purposely dispensed with, I think most of them would find their way back into the hives, and it would be hard to put them into the hives so that they would not do some good. For brood-frames I think it would be advisable to use a heavier spring than is necessary for supers. They should be made of well-tempered material, and should have a sharp backward bend on one end so that they can be readily removed with the ordinary hive-tool. The diagram below shows the only really satisfactory super

spring I have ever used, wide. I will send you a sample if you wish. These came from the G. B. Lewis Co. [This super spring is exactly the shape devised by the Root Co., and adopted by the G. B. Lewis Co., although it is after the general pattern of the one used by Capt. J. E. Hetherington something like thirty years ago. For use in the brood-nest a much stiffer spring undoubtedly would be required, and I am not so sure

but such a device for producing compression would give excellent results in connection with the Hoffman frame. -ED.]

ersations

With DOOLITTLE

SPRING MANAGEMENT.

A knock at the door! Mrs. D. ushers in a stranger. He sits down by the fire, holding out his hands to the same, and says, "Cold day, this!"'

"Yes, stranger, this is a cold day. Ten below zero when last I looked."

"This, I suppose, is Mr. Doolittle, the bee-man."

"That is what I am called by some."

My name is Weeks, and I should like to talk with you a little time, if agreeable, about what to do with bees in the spring when we commence active operations with them, say from the time they are set out of the cellar till the first flow of nectar which gives a surplus."

"Well, I am agreeable. What is your first flow of nectar, Mr. Weeks?" "That flow is usually from white clover in our section.”

"By your saying 'set out of the cellar' I am led to think that you winter your bees in the cellar."

"Yes. I have not been in the business long, but I think cellar wintering is the best way to winter bees here in the North."

"Undoubtedly that is correct. And the first work that will confront you in the spring will be setting the bees from the cellar, so we will talk about that first. I follow a different plan in setting the bees out from what most apiarists do; and after trying all the different plans for years which have been given I like the one I now use better than any other."

"I did not know that there were different plans for setting out, and I shall be only too glad to hear of yours."

"I always leave a few colonies outdoors during winter, to 'liven up the gloom' a little should a warm day occur; and, beginning with the first day in which these outdoor bees gather any pollen, I commence at about 2:30 P.M. to set out a part of those in the cellar, say from ten to fifteen colonies, as the case may be, scattering them about the bee-yard so that they will be as far apart as possible, and yet be within the limit of what space I wish the yard to occupy

"Why do you do that? I set mine out all at once, and supposed every one did, setting each on the stand it occupied the summer before."

"Yes, that is the way I formerly did; but in setting out as I now do, there is no need

of keeping track of where they formerly stood, and yet not having any mixing of bees, as is the case where all are set out at once and near together. Were all set out at once, as most apiarists do this work, there will be more or less of colonies mixing up, unless each colony is set on the same stand it occupied the fall previous. To set them thus requires a great deal of extra work, numbering hives, stands, etc., which is quite an inconvenience, and even then does not prevent some colonies getting far more than their share of bees."

"I know that the numbering of stands, etc., requires work, but had supposed there was no other way. But go on.

"To set out, I place my spring wheelbarrow and lighted smoker near the door of the bee-cellar, when I carefully open the door, quickly step in, and take the hive nearest the door, placing it on the wheelbarrow, when the door is immediately shut again. The bees in the hive now begin to realize that their long winter nap is at an end; and unless some precaution is used they will fly out of the hive to quite an extent.'

"Yes, and sting like adders - at least mine do. Tell me how you remedy this.

"To avoid this state of affairs I now blow several puffs of smoke in at the entrance or under the hive, when a wet cloth is so placed that it will keep the bees in till they are set where they are to stay, when the cloth is taken off and the bees allowed to fly."

Don't they rush out pell-mell at first?" "No. They come out as leisurely as they would had they not been disturbed; while, had not the smoke been given, they would have all piled out of the hive with a rush, or pell-mell as you put it."

"I am glad to learn about this, as mine have always bothered about coming out and stinging, scattering all about on the road to the apiary, and getting lost."

"Yes, I know of these troubles from former experience. And this going out slowly not only overcomes that part, but it is a great advantage to them in marking their location and repelling robbers. The next pleasant day more are set out in the same way, and at about the same time, scattering them about as before, but paying no attention as to how near they come to those already out, for they are liable to mix only with those set out at the same time.

"There is another new thought to me, and I am led to believe that is right. One time it clouded up while I was setting the bees out, so I had to stop for that day; and I noticed when I set the rest out that they did not mix at all with those set out before. But after setting out, what next?"

66

'The next work after setting out is to know that all have plenty of stores."

"Yes; but how can this be found out should it be too cold for the bees to fly, as is often the case?"

"To find out in this matter I generally look after the honey the first cool morning, when I carefully raise the quilt or cover and look for sealed honey along the top-bars of

"That is a new way to tell about the stores to me, and it appears simple and easy. But suppose you have to feed-what then?"

For feed at this time, I prefer combs of sealed honey set in next to the cluster. If none such can be had we must feed sugar syrup, or liquid honey if we have it: but the latter tends to promote excessive robbing.'

"I have the combs of honey, so I will be all right here. What about the three weeks later looking after, which you spoke about?"

"Three weeks after setting out, the hives are to be opened generally, for the first time, as no good can come in making a general opening when the weather is cold. At this opening we look after the queen, clip her wing, ascertain the amount of stores on hand, and reverse the brood-nest by placing the two center frames of brood on the outside, and the outside ones in the center." Do you think this pays?"

64

"I certainly do or I would not do it. A great gain is made by so doing, as all the older brood is in the central combs, which are generally filled to the outside of the frames, while only small patches of eggs and larvæ are in the outer ones. This reversion causes the now inside frames to be filled entirely with brood in the shortest space of time, while there is little danger of chilling the brood in this way."

"Well, I shall be tempted to try this on a few this next season, and see how near right you are."

"That is right. Go slow on any thing new to you, and in thus going you always go sure. At this time I also see to it that each colony has plenty of stores to last two or three weeks; for at no time should the bees feel that they must economize in stores, if broodrearing is to go on rapidly, which it now must if we are to secure a good harvest of white honey from the clover bloom."

"I am well aware that a large amount of brood at the right time before the honey harvest insures a good surplus, and the securing of this brood at the right time has been one of the puzzling parts of apiculture to me. I think this talk will help me much. Tell me what further you do."

"In about ten days take one of your frames of honey which you say you have on hand, and, after breaking the sealing of the cells, insert it in the center of the brood-nest. In the removing of the honey from this comb the bees are greatly stimulated, and broodrearing accelerated. In a few days more the brood-nest is again reversed; when, if all has worked well, there will be brood in all but the two outside combs, right along, and in these also in a few days more, owing to the full sheets of brood coming next to them."

"I had supposed from what I read that the spreading of brood was an awful job; but

as you tell it there seems no more work to it than the feeding, equalizing, etc., given by others."

"When you get used to this way of working you will fall in love with it, if you are any thing like me. When the hive is full of brood the surplus arrangement is to be put on, and this generally brings us to the time of the honey-flow from white clover, and covers the ground you wanted covered. "Thank you. I shall try something of what you have told me.

APICULTURE RECOGNIZED BY UNCLE SAM.

THE reader's attention is directed especially to " Sidelights from the St. Louis Convention," p. 16. The experimental work that is already begun by the United States and by Texas, as well as some other States, is certainly a cause for rejoicing. The fact that Mr. Benton has been in the Department of Agriculture some thirteen years has led some to wonder that we have not heard more from him than we have. When it is understood that a good part of the time his labors were confined to general entomological work, we can understand why he could not devote more attention to our favorite pursuit, apiculture. But now that Uncle Sam has given it a distinct recognition by an appropriation of $5000, established an experimental apiary, and has four salaried employees who will devote their time exclusively to investigations and experimental work on bees, a new era has opened, and I think we may expect some important results.

SIDELIGHTS FROM THE ST. LOUIS CONVENTION; TEXAS AS A BEE COUNTRY. FOLLOWING the address of General Manager France we listened to one by Mr. Louis Scholl, of College Station, Texas, who now occupies the position of Assistant Entomologist and Apiculturist at the station, and, naturally enough, he had been in position to gather facts and data of value to this convention in St. Louis. He said they had a State down there, a great big piece of land, and some of the apiaries were of pretty good size, not only in the number of colonies, but they grow big too.

From estimates arrived at from sources

secured in the State, Texas had something like 400,000 colonies of bees within her borders, and produced something like 5,000,000 lbs. of honey, or an average of only about 12 lbs. per colony, as there are so many small beekeepers in the State. But even at that low average he thought that Texas was in the lead in the annual output of honey. But in this I believe he was mistaken. This 5,000,000 lbs. of honey in cars would make an aggregate of from 100 to 150 carloads. California will equal that in any of its years, and in a good year it will produce all of 500 carloads. But Texas, while it may not yet be in the lead, is quite likely to step clear to the forefront. Large in size, it has vast areas of honey-producing plants-plants that will never be used for any thing but forage for cattle and forage for bees. He would divide the State as follows: In Northern Texas-north of Fort Worth-there would be but very few bees, for cattle-raising was the principal business. In the eastern part there were very large pine forests and rice lands, and a good deal of basswood. But the trouble was, that that part of the State was not yet settled, and there were but very few bees to gather the honey. Central Texas was the great cotton belt where large quantities of cotton honey were produced, and some horsemint. Western Texas was a somewhat mountainous portion, and only some localities there produced honey like sumac. Southern Texas, below Houston, was a low swampy plain where grows the ratan that yields a large lot of honey but of poor quality.

THE BEE PARADISE OF TEXAS.

But Southwest Texas was a land of milk and honey-a locality that could not be surpassed anywhere in the world-where there was an almost unlimited amount of bee pasturage such as mesquite, guajilla, catclaw, and many other plants too numerous to mention. In this part of the country there were many good available bee locations, but they were too remote from railroads and civilization. One would have to push out in the woods and draw his crop to the railroads some fifty miles.

It is this country I visited myself some three or four years ago, and which I thought was the bee paradise of all America.

Regarding his experimental work at the college, Mr. Scholl stated that at College Station, Texas, there was an apiary of forty colonies with a bee-house, and a full equipment kept there for show and for the use of students, and to carry on experimental work. He thought it was the best experiment apiary in the United States. It was established in 1902, with an appropriation of $750 to start with. Later on the appropriation was increased, so that the station has been able to improve its facilities and usefulness. Many different kinds of plants for honey had been tested-as many as forty; but there were found only a few adapted to the conditions in Texas.

Mr. Scholl also said they had tested several races of bees; and when the results

were fully collected they would be published. He outlined a number of experiments that he had in mind, and hoped to give the bee-keepers the result of them later on.

Following the address of Mr. Scholl was an exhaustive paper by Frank Benton, Apicultural Investigator of the Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., on the subject of

WORK IN APICULTURE AT THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

He paid a glowing tribute to the late Dr. C. V. Riley, his old chief, who, although not a bee-keeper himself, was very much interested in the general subject of bees; and if some of his plans could have been carried might have been put forward several years. into effect, apiculture at the Department He quoted from the doctor's address made at the North American Bee-keepers' convention at Washington in 1892, in which Dr. Riley had said that some of the most beneficent and far-reaching work of the Department was done during its early history, when its means were limited, and when the field was fresh. Beginning about the first edition of Langstroth's celebrated work, or nearly a decade before a bee periodical had been printed in the English language, the Department reports from year to year gave publishing statistics of honey, and on seversome notice of progress in bee culture by

al occasions excellent little treatises on bees and bee management. Probably but very few knew that the Department of Agriculture had any thing to do with the introduction of Italian bees into the United States. The fact was, the first successful importation of Italian bees from their native land to America was made by the Department, and it was almost wholly from this importation that such successful apiarists as Langstroth, Carey, and Quinby bred and disseminated the race during the early 60's. Dr. Riley, while not a successful bee-keeper, nor, in fact, could ever be classed as a bee-keeper, was very much interested in having apiculture recognized by Congress. It is not surprising that he was disposed to view favorably the establishing of an apicultural station in 1885 in connection with his entomological work in the Department. In this he was ably supported by Mr. N. W. McLain, an old-time friend and an enthusiastic beekeeper. This was at a time when there was no special appropriation for apiculture, nor, indeed, any thing during the whole of Dr. Riley's administration; but in spite of this he had been instrumental in getting the station started, the funds being drawn from the general appropriation for the Division of Entomology, for he believed that he was fulfilling both the spirit and the letter of the law which authorized the expenditure of certain sums for the promotion of economic entomology.

At this point Mr. Benton, lest those familiar with what had been printed on the subject should call him to account for the foregoing, digressed to correct a mistake made by W. K. Morrison in GLEANINGS for

July 15, 1898, page 554, to the effect that he (Morrison) had been instrumental in procuring an appropriation of $5000 for the benefit of bee culture, and that Mr. Morrison himself was to be the first appointee. Nothing could be further from the facts. There was no appropriation of $5000 nor any other sum for bee culture at the time indicated-1885 to 1887; nor was there ever a special appropriation for apiculture previous to 1901, as he proceeded to show by tables taken from the records in the Department.

Notwithstanding the work of N. W. McLain had been criticised by bee-keepers and by the bee-papers at the time, Dr. Riley felt that a good deal of that work was valuable, especially the part relating to the experiments to test whether bees could be made to puncture sound fruit. The results showed that they could not do so, and have been since quoted very widely as authoritative. Following the work of Mr. McLain there was a lull in apicultural work; but in 1891 a series of experiments was conducted at the Michigan State Experiment Station, under the direction of Prof. A. J. Cook, assisted by John H. Larrabee. This was discontinued shortly after. In the mean time it had been Dr. Riley's desire to secure the giant bees of India; and he had already addressed a letter to the speaker, offering him a commission to proceed to India and secure those bees; but before the letter reached him he was back to his native land after an absence of eleven years. Owing to some technicalities, however, Dr. Riley was unable to secure the authorization to send to Mr. Benton, and he appears instead to have been employed in the general work of the Division of Entomology.

The untimely death of Dr. Riley somewhat changed the aspect of affairs, and it was only gradually that the importance of practical apicultural work could be sufficiently impressed on the authorities to result in a more liberal policy toward this industry. Meanwhile thousands of letters relating to apiculture had been answered by the speaker, and many thousands of bulletins had been sent out to all parts of the country. Teachers in the Normal College in the District of Columbia, and of the public schools of Washington, as well as teachers in nature study in other cities, have been furnished with information concerning bees for use in class work.

During the thirteen years Mr. Benton had been connected with the United States Department of Agriculture, he had never, he said, permitted to pass unutilized an opportunity to create in the minds of those in authority a favorable impression concerning the dignity of apiculture. All along he had noticed a growing interest in the Department; at last he had the satisfaction of seeing the matter duly appreciated, and proper steps taken to insure investigations which were so much needed. Prior to this time the title borne by himself was "Investigator in the Division of Entomology," and, later, "Assistant Entomologist.' Finally,

in 1901, there was set apart a special appropriation for apiculture of $2000, the first and only special appropriation which had been made for that branch. His own title was

changed to that of " 'Apicultural Investigator, and his own salary, together with that of a temporary assistant for a few weeks on salary, was charged to this fund. This amount left only a small sum for investigation. He did the best he could, however, placing at the disposal of the Department his own bees, for experimental work. But in July, 1904, after a long effort and repeated representation to the authorities at the Department, and the legislators themselves, the "Division of Entomology" was raised to the rank of a "bureau,' "with what was practically a Division of Apiculture, with a definite sum of $5000 for apiculture. Mr. Benton was now allowed two assistants, each bearing the title of "Special Agent in Apiculture, and the other whose title was that of "Apicultural Clerk." He had been able to secure Mr. John M. Rankin, of Michigan, a trained student in experimental work in apiculture, for first assistant, and with whom the bee-keepers of the country were already well acquainted. The second assistant was Mr. Leslie Martin, of Tennessee, an enthusiastic student of apiculture, but one who had had several years of experience in practical work with bees. A civil-service examination had been held, and since the reading of Mr. Benton's paper I note with much pleasure that Miss Jessie E. Marks, the daughter of W. F. Marks, of Clifton Springs, N. Y., has secured the appointment.

Mr. Benton went on to say that an apiary of fifty colonies had been located at Arlington Experimental Farm, on the Virginia side of the Potomac, directly across from the Department grounds. The location was ideal for testing new races of bees and their crosses with other races. Numbers of queens of valuable races were already being imported and tested. These included the gentle Caucasian bees from the shores of the Black and Caspian Seas in Russia; Cyprians from Cyprus: Dalmatians from Dalmatia, Austria; Italians from the foothills of the Alps; and, lastly, Carniolans from Austria. Nor were the giant bees of India and of the Philippines to be overlooked.

In closing he desired to express his high regard for the present Chief of the Bureau of Entomology, Dr. L. O. Howard. No man was more widely known among the galaxy of distinguished scientists whose homes were in the capital city, and no one was more highly esteemed. Like Dr. Riley, not a beekeeper, he had come in the course of the years in which he had been associated with Mr. Benton to know something of the status of this industry.

This paper was listened to with much interest, for it gave a detailed report of the work of the Department, especially a report of the work that was being done and had been accomplished by the Apicultural Investigator, Mr. Frank Benton.