were talking about. Beeswax does not boil until it reaches about 600°.

E. R. Root-What we meant by this was at the boiling point for water2120.

C. P. Dadant-If bee-keepers will keep their wax away from iron, and melt it over water, they will have very little dark wax. For cappings and light combs the solar wax extractor is all right. With old combs the skins of the larvæ soak up the wax.

S. Corneil-Make a solar extractor with double walls and double glass, and when the rays of the sun get in then they are "trapped," and the heat will rise to above that of boiling water.

C. P. Dadant-I do not wish to be understood as saying that heat alone injures wax, but heating it over boiling water does.

Passage-ways.

passage-ways

needed

Query Are through the combs; if so, how shall they be kept open?

J. E. Hetherington-We take refuse tin and cut it into strips about % of an inch in width, and roll it up into small tubes. These tubes are pressed into the comb, the pieces of comb punched out, and the tube left in. The bees do not fill the tube.

The Quinby Hive and Frame.

A member asked the size of the Quinby frame.

J. E. Hetherington-I use the old Quinby. It is 11x17.

How many in a hive ?

J. E. Hetherington-Oh, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 20 or 30, as the case may be. That is the beauty of the Quinby hive, it can be made any size.

J. S. Barb.

1.00

E. Calvert...

1.00

F. A. Hayes..

1.00

Membership Fees at Albany.

84.00

DISBURSEMENTS.

To Rev. L. L. Langstroth..
For Incorporation....

For 25 Medals, dies and cases..
900 Programmes...

Stationery and Postage (C. P. Dadant).. Badges....

Expenses of Thomas Pierce arranging Hotel Rates.....

W. Z. Hutchinson, reporting Proceedings at Albany

Janitor's fee at Albany...

Total..

$50,00

3.00

77.75

6.00

10.00

12.00

2.00

20.00

5.00

$185.75

RECAPITULATION.

honey. One face of each section shall be perfect in appearance, fully sealed, except the line of cells touching the wood. The other side of the section shall be perfect in color and sealing, or nearly so.

The second grade shall be known in the trade as fair to good, white, and be marked "C," and shall be packed to meet the requirements of those desiring a good honey, but who care little for outside appearance. It shall be composed of honey thrown out of the first travel-stained grade, irregular and

combs, sections not perfectly filled, but yet having but little unsealed honey.

White honey, third grade, mixed with inferior honey, including buckwheat and Fall flowers, shall be graded by itself, and marked "M." We desire that combs so badly stained as to have the appearance of saffron, be thrown into this grade.

Buckwheat honey shall be packed by itself, and shall be marked "B."

Those bee-keepers sending to market boxes known as 'pieces," shall put upon them a private mark of their own. This should also apply to honey-dew and other kinds not falling in regular grades.

The chairman of the committee reported that they had labored long and faithfully, and found it well-nigh impossible to agree. This report was offered near the close of the last session, when nearly three-fourths of the members had gone home, and those present were in a hurry to have "the thing over with," and the report was accepted and adopted without comment, and I venture the opinion that the rules were not the sentiment of the majority of the members of the convention.

What Constitutes an Italian Bee ?

The committee, on a standard of excellence for Italian bees, reported as follows:

Italian bees must adhere to the combs when properly handled, and not cluster about or rush around and fall to the ground. They must have three bands, of a color ranging from golden yellow to leather color. They must be quiet when well handled, and in time of scarcity must place their honey in a compact shape.

Schedule of marking, in a schedule of 100 points:

Comb building, 10.

Honey-gathering qualities, 40.

Prolificness, 20.

Wintering, 15.

Gentleness, 10. Color, 5.

The report was accepted and adopted. The Committee on Exhibits reported as follows:

A fine sample of comb-honey in cartons, and extracted-honey in glass jars, by G. H. Knickerbocker.

Exhibit of honey by McKullock & Co., of various styles and qualities, also photographs of different honey exhibits.

S. Corneil exhibited a curiouslyarranged straw hive, with combs pointing from corner to corner.

Hive and clamp, queen-excluder and queen-cages, by N. D. West. We would especially note his exhibit of beautiful and practical queen-cell protectors.

The Hasting's feeder and bee-escapes, said to work nicely, were also on exhibit, but the committee has no knowledge of either.

Dadant's foundation with natural base, both heavy and light, by C. P. Dadant, of Illinois; also, "Langstroth on the Honey Bee," and samples of bee veiling, which were very nice.

J. Van Deusen exhibited the nice flatbottomed foundation, both heavy and light.

Chaff hives, complete, with drone and queen-trap, were exhibited by W. W. Cary; also bee feeders and comb-foundation.

We also note in Mr. Cary's exhibit the Porter bee-escape and Alley drone-trap. All of the foundation in these exhibits was very nice.

E. R. Root exhibited a dovetailed hive with Hoffman frames.

Samples of Dadant foundation drawn out in sections was exhibited from the Ontario Agricultural and Experimental Union, by Mr. R. F. Holtermann, of Brantford, Canada, showing that it was not wise to use comb-foundation in sections heavier than 12 feet to the pound.

E. L. Goold & Co., of Ontario, exhibited a model of a two-frame reversible extractor.

An improved Quinby smoker was exhibited by W. E. Clark.

A 4-frame honey-extractor was exhibited by W. L. Coggshall, and was said to be very practical.

W. Connor exhibited a deep frame hive, contracted, on the principle that a deep frame will winter the bees better than a shallow one.

The question of the bee's rationality has been ably discussed, pro and con, in the columns of the BEE JOURNAL, and I have read with the keenest interest all that has been published. I am not one of those who believe that bees are endowed with reason, and will here briefly state my views on the subject.

Reason is man's distinctive attribute, which being superadded to those that he shares with the animals below him in the scale of excellence, constitutes him a distinct class. Without reason, man would be but an animal like the rest, destitute of all motives of action except the promptings of appetite and selfpropagation.

The animal is governed by instinct, and by instinct I understand reflected reason, or the impress of the Creator's purpose upon the functions of a creature not endowed with free-will. Instinct may also be defined as a kind or quality of mentality whose operations are confined to the mere conciousness of physical wants and a perception of the best and readiest means of satisfying them. It is always true, implying absolute uniformity of action as long as the environment remains the same, and illustrating the infinite wisdom of that Being whose purpose it reflects. In the domain of instinct, self-determination is inconceivable, and self-improvement impossible. The animal cannot rise above its natural condition nor sink below it, simply because it is subject to a law that holds it inevitably to a fixed course. That law is instinct.

Under the benign sway of reason, there is freedom of will as a sense of the moral quality of every action, and intellectual advancement becomes an abso

lute necessity. Progress is both the evidence and the result of rational activity.

In the light of these truths it is clear that the bee is governed entirely by instinct. Man, endowed with reason, is constantly expanding the powers within him, and ever enlarging the sphere of his usefulness; while the bee has remained essentially the same since its creation, and will always remain the same until the day of doom. Instinct has ever guided and will ever guide the latter in an unchanging orbit of existence; while reason has gradually elevated the former to a plane of morality and civilization, undreamed of by the earlier generations of the race, and will continue to exalt him throughout endless ages yet to come.

Although adumbrations of rationality, or so-called mental operations analogous to ratiocination, are manifest in many animals showing that their functions are founded on divine purpose, there is only one being in the natural world that enjoys the gift of reason, and that is man. The numerous instances in which bees and other insects and animals have been known to exhibit something closely akin to rationality, prove nothing except that instinct is always equal to the demands of certain complications of environment. Reason would enable the bee to escape from the tyranny of circumstances to which instinct holds it subject, and to preserve its life where instinct impels it to self-destruction, as in the case of stinging. Reason would

render the bee man's co-ordinate, whereas instinct makes it his servant. Shaefferstown, Pa.

editorial reply to "What kind of a bee is the Punic ?" When it first states that a Hallamshire bee-keeper says "the Punic bee comes from North Africa," then Mr. Carr goes on and states "it is dark in color, and from our limited experience of it, is a good worker, and a prolific sort."

I admit that Mr. Cowan's oversight may have been unintentional; if it was not he would not have worded his statement as he did. His "explanation" on page 811, to all who are in possession of the facts, is merely an attempted evasion.

66

I have before me a copy of the last Journal of Horticulture, which says that Mr. Cowan's statement, which appeared in the issue of Nov. 19, was inserted under a misapprehension," and that the statement was not according to facts. It goes on and gives the facts, and then states "it will be seen that Punic bees are twice mentioned there, and that a reply is given, founded on experience';" yet in the British Bee Journal for Aug. 27, 1891, on page 381, the same editors, in reply to "Inquirer," say: "We know nothing

about the so-called Punic bees, and can give no information as to their value."

In reference to Mr. Cowan's article on "Tunisian bees," in Dec. 17 British Bee Journal, I wish to state that the Mr. W. F. Kirbey is the curator of the British Museum, Natural History Department, Division Hymenoptera. We have his letters to prove that they had no bees in the Museum from North Africa, except Egypt, which are yellow banded, nor have they any so dark as ebony.

Mr. Cowan professes to recognize them as native bees of Tunis in their dead and dry state, yet when Lowmaster asked if they came from Tunis, he could not tell him, although he had seen Punic bees alive at the Royal Lancaster Show. He also says that he is going to Tunis to clear matters up relating to them. If he was acquainted with the bees, why does he have to go there to get acquainted.

In the British Bee Journal for April 15, 1885, page 133, is where he gets his information about the 40 colonies belonging to a French gentleman, the Kssar-Tyre Apiary. Some of the queens showed yellow. The article is written by Mr. Frank Benton. There are no references in March 20.

He says the bees of Tunis, Algeria, Morocco, and Minorca are the same, yet he says the bees of Tunis show yellow, which the others do not. If they show yellow, how can they be the same?

Whether it pleases Mr. Cowan or not to call these ebony-colored bees Punics, they are now in America on trial. They are entirely different in both color and characteristics from any he ever yet imported. They are proving themselves up to what has been claimed for them, and will doubtless find their way into many apiaries another season.

What American bee-keepers are after is a dollar-and-cent bee, and it makes no difference in their value, whether they be called Punic or Tunic. "A rose

by any other name would smell sweet.

as

I will now rest my case, and let experience with the Punic bees settle their value in America.

Beverly, Mass.

[This controversy is very tiresome. Here is a sample: Mr. Carr is said to have never "had or seen a Punic stock in his life," and in the second paragraph of the foregoing, it is stated that "it can be proven that Mr. Carr had a Punic queen." Both may be literally truebut why does not Mr. Carr settle it, by making a statement in his paper-the Record? What good will be done by discussing it in a periodical 4,000 miles away from one disputant, and 1,000 miles distant from the other? Messrs. Carr and Hewitt are the principals in this dispute-not Messrs. Cowan and Pratt. Why waste pages on the latter, when the principals could settle it in two or three lines?

When in error, Mr. Cowan has always shown that he gladly makes the amende honorable. What possible object could he have for misrepresenting or suppressing facts? He is not interested in the queen trade (or any other trade, for the matter of that), and as the editor of the British Bee Journal, and for years chairman of the British Bee-Keepers' Association, he has proved himself just and honorable. Had it been otherwise, it would have been found out long ago by his associates. It is absurd to suppose that he could have any object for concealing anything about Punic bees.

Now, as Mr. Pratt suggests in the last paragraph: "Let experience with the Punic bees settle their value in America,"

and let all strife and discord about them cease. This is the season for "Peace on Earth, and Good Will to Men." Let us all realize it, and be happy.-ED.]

Western Wisconsin Bee Notes.

REV. STEPHEN ROESE.

At the opening of the season of 1891, bee-keepers of this section of country looked forward with a hope of a bountiful honey season. White clover seemed to come in season, and quite plenty of it, but it secreted very little nectar, and basswood proved only of short duration -only for 3 or 4 days the busy bees seemed to visit it; after which there was a honey dearth for sometime, until buckwheat came into blossom, but it seemed to yield no honey. My apiary was located right in the center of about 100 to 125 acres of buckwheat, and I never extracted one pound which I would call buckwheat honey.

Golden-rod and wild aster yielded some honey, but not much, as from 80 colonies I had only 150 pounds of Fall honey, and of this amount a goodly part had to be fed back to those in need, for many colonies did not gather enough to breed on, and, in consequence, breeding went on at a very small scale, especially late breeding, for many colonies left off breeding early in September, except those which had been kept stimulated by feeding. As many bee-keepers in this section of country do not keep up with late improvements, nor keep pace with the spirit of the times in apiculture, the result will be that the mortality among bees this Winter and the coming Spring will be great, for many even leave their bees on the summer stands at the mercy of a Wisconsin Winter.

I harvested a honey crop last season of about 2,600 pounds, and thought, at the close of the honey season, that all colonies were moderately prepared for Winter, but on removing them into the winter repository on Nov. 26, I found that nearly one-fourth had less stores than they ought to have. Frames of honey were given to those in need, as far as they would reach, but quite a number were marked for February feeding.

One hive and about 150 pounds of honey were stolen the last of August, on the first chilly night we had, and the next morning, as soon as the sun came

up, quite a commotion and flying of bees was noticed in the yard, and on examination it was found that the double hive was missing, and the bees stolen. Those which could take to their wings, returned to their old stand, and, not finding their home, tried to enter the neighboring hive. Another hive with combs was placed on the stand of the former, in which all returning bees took refuge. Toward 10 o'clock, when the bees in the apiary began to fly, a perfect black stream was noticed in the air, bees coming and going, and on following the stream of bees, I was led to the spot where the bees had been carried dur

ing the night, the hives and frames broken up, and the spoil divided among the thieves; and by noon, the spot where the honey had been cut out of the frames, and spilled on the ground, the grass and weeds for about 4 feet square was covered with bees about 3 to 4 inches thick, cleaning off the besmeared, unfortunate bees, and by nightfall hardly a sign of honey could be seen. Fully two-thirds of the colony had returned to the new hive on the old stand, which seemed to be on the evening in a far different mood from what they were in the morning.

I sent immediately to the South for a queen, to be given on its arrival to the unfortunate colony. It arrived in due time, and was placed over the cluster of bees on the frames, but the bees did not seem to care much for their Southern

66

stepmother," showing no friendship nor any enmity. After three days it was decided to release the new queen, and see what she would do in the way of replenishing the hive with young bees before going into winter. quarters. The cage was opened, but before letting her step in, it was thought best to let the unfortunate colony undergo a special examination, and to my surprise I found 3 frames partly filled with newlylaid eggs, as a result of the feeding, for the old queen must have returned, which fact accounted for the bees not caring much for their Southern stepmother: and ere the warm September days passed away, the unfortunate colony had quite recruited up for Winter, and the Southern queen was given to a colony which was queenless, and showed signs of a laying worker.

This makes 13 hives that I have had stolen from year to year, since keeping bees in this locality, and in each case the right ones were spotted as the thieves; but, in the last one stolen, the bees betrayed the thief, in whose yard they were found, in such a manner that