increase the consumption, stimulate the demand and stiffen the price of honey." GEO. W. WILLIAMS, Sec. National Beekeepers' Association.

Short Course in Beekeeping.-The Ontario Agricultural College at Guelph will hold its short courses from Jan. 4 to March 19. The short course in beekeeping will last eleven days or from Jan. 12 to 23.

National Beekeepers' Association

A preliminary announcement of the annual convention and official meetings of delegates from affiliated societies, to be held at the Auditorium Hotel, Denver, Colo., Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, Feb. 16, 17, and 18, 1915. It is to be held jointly with the meeting of the Colorado State Beekeepers' Association.

HOTEL RATES.

Room without bath, single, $1.00 per day and upwards.

Room with bath, single, $1.50 per day and upwards.

Excellent café and meal service may be had. The hotel is convenient to all street car connections and adjacent to railroads.

The convention apparently will have ample, comfortable quarters with a large assembly hall, reception room, committee room, etc. The reception

session in the evening for those who do not leave town that night. Special arrangements for this will be announced during the convention.

PROGRAM OF PAPERS.

An effort is being made to secure the best talent in the country. Not all will be present to read their papers, but the members are assured of hearing some of the most recent and worthy remarks from the apicultural leaders on this continent. At present, however, it is merely possible to partially list these papers.

The following have promised papers the nature of which is not known. *Expected to be present:

Prof. E. G. Baldwin, Deland, Fla., *Prof. C, E. Bartholomew, Ames, Iowa. *E. J. Baxter, Nauvoo, Ill., *J, M Buchanan, Fran lin, Tenn., D. H. Coggshall, West Groton, N. Y, *E. G. Carr, New Egypt, N. J.. *C. P. Dadant, Hamilton, Ill., Benjamin Davis. Tennessee, Edgar Elthorp, New York, *Wesley Foster, Boulder, Colo., N. E. France. Platteville, Wis., L. V. France, Madison, Wis., *Prof, Francis Jager, Minnesota, Allen Latham, Norwich Town, Conn., J. W. Leenhoff, Porto Rico, John H. Lovell, Waldboro, Me,, J. P. Merwin, New York, Prof. Frederick Millen, Michigan, Dr. E. F. Phillips. Washington. D. C., *Frank Rauchfuss. Denver, Colo.

The following titles have been received:

"Some Legal Phases of Beekeeping"-J. G. Gustin, Missouri. "Breeding Bees"-Geo. B. Howe, New York.

"Inspection in Iowa"-*Frank C. Pellett, Atlantic, Iowa.

The Production of Extracted HoneyApiary Inspection and the Disease Situation in Ontario"-*Prof. Morley Pettit, of Guelph, Ont.

January, 1915.

"Migratory Beekeeping"-"E. R. Root, Medina, Ohio.

Straining and Clarifying Honey"-H. H. Root, Medina, Ohio.

Autumn Mating to Control Inheritance," -Prof. F, W, L. Sladen, Ontario, Canada.

A Plea for Better Bees"-Jay Smith, Indiana.

A Competency for the Hive"-*E. D. Townsend, Northstar, Mich,

"Honey Publicity "-*Geo. W. Williams, Redkey, Ind.

The Educational Value of Beekeepers' Associations"-A. Y. Yates. Connecticut.

A considerable number of other contributions have been solicited and are anticipated.

The following Committee on Local Arrangements is announced: Directors, Wesley Foster, Chairman, Boulder, Colo., Louis F. Jouno, 4732 West 34th Ave., Denver, Colo., and Mr. N. L. Henthorne, President of the Colorado State Beekeepers' Association, Platteville, Colo. Members are at liberty to communicate with the committee con

BEE-KEEPING

North Carolina Notes

This is our third summer with bees, and our experience may be of interest to the readers, as we are in the North Carolina mountains which Mr. J. J. Wilder often mentions.

Although my husband is very much interested in bees, he leaves the care of them to me, and I do not see any reason why women cannot be as good beekeepers as men. Women will be interested in something, chickens, flowers, fancy work, etc., to relieve the monotony of house work, and I find bees the most profitable as well as the most interesting.

We started in three years ago by buying five colonies of Italian bees. We thought it would take at least that many to keep us supplied with honey. You can imagine our surprise when we secured 200 pounds and increased to 15 colonies. We ran out of patent hives and put them in box-hives. I transferred them this year.

The next year, 1913, was so cool here in the mountains until the last of June that we did not have any honey until just before sourwood bloomed. We had no swarms that year, but sold about $25 worth of honey.

This year has been good, especially the early part. We had a heavy apple and locust bloom. We got a full super of the finest honey from the locusts by preventing swarming, blocking up the entrances and getting them started in the super as soon as we could. I save all the empty combs I can for bait combs, as we produce bulk comb honey. I place the partly-filled frames over a colony that needs feeding in the fall and let them carry the honey down in the brood-chamber before cold weather. Then in spring place one or two combs in the super. I doubled my number of colonies this year, but one absconded. I sold $80 worth of honey

at 15 cents a pound here in the country. Some of my colonies that did not swarm produced about 90 pounds.

We live on the west side of the Blue Ridge mountains, about one-fourth mile from the foot, so our bees cross over to the east side, which is about two weeks earlier and a lot better beecountry. There is no sourwood on this side, but we have a great many locusts.

This has been a busy and interesting year for me. I have taken off all our honey and hived every swarm; besides I have transferred four, three for myself and one for a neighbor. I got along so well, and the bees seemed so good with the first colonies I tried, I thought I did not need a veil or gloves, but the bees I transferred for my neighbor were very black. We had only one veil, and I let the neighbor have that, but I soon decided I had rather do without assistance than a veil. I got them transferred finally.

The plan I like best is to let the colony that is to be transferred swarm three times; hive first swarm and unite second with another second swarm, and place third close by the old hive, then in 21 days drum the bees out of the old hive and unite them with the swarm placed by the old hive. I cut out the old combs and place them in the frames which this third swarm has not filled.

Why don't we see more in the Bee Journal from the women? I am sure they read this department. I am a regular book worm, but I read my beepapers first of all, and am planning lots of things for my bees. Beekeeping is just like getting pay for something you would do for nothing.

[MRS.] J. T. REEVES. Laurelsprings, N. C.

Indeed 90 pounds per colony may well look good to you, and it would

look good to a good many others, too Too often the big yields alone are given, while the same ones who get the big yields have dead failures from other colonies or in other seasons.

Yes, it is a thing greatly to be desire that more of the women tell us about what they are doing. Perhaps your example may stimulate others.

Disturbing Bees in Winter

I just read in the American Bee Journal for October, page 353, about disturbing bees in winter. Last winter in the latter part of December, I was moving four strong colonies from a neighbor's place one-half mile distant. I got the bees for the asking. We had about two feet of snow and the hives were entirely covered. We shoveled them out, and as they had no bottomboards, but were standing on a large wide board, wide enough so that the bees could alight on it, I took the cover of one hive where the bees had died, and placed it on the canvass sheet that was spread on the wagon bed and put the hive of bees on that. After all four were loaded we put the remainder of the canvass over them and went home, placed them on their former board and left them alone until spring.

They wintered all right, and one colony swarmed April 30, but as I went to hive it the swarm left. I had one swarm from that yard two years ago that has been one of my strongest colonies. I think it was also the best one to rear queens from. It filled two stories.

I hope I can get a good crop of comb honey next year. I can sell it easily at the door. I had several calls for honey this season, but had nothing to sell, as my bees did not fill a single section nor start in one.

I am at present (Oct. 16) feeding five colonies with soft candy and sugar syrup, and they consume it rapidly. I spread the candy on paper or pasteboard and place it on the frames, put a super cover over it and close the hive. I have only two Boardman feeders for syrup. We have dry weather at present, so the bees can work, but it may change any day as the rainy season is approaching.

I was told this summer that the foulbrood inspector would come shortly after the last flow, but he has not appeared yet. I know a beekeeper six miles south of here who has at least 200 colonies. He does not read bee journals or books. I heard some time ago that he takes the supers off before the combs are all sealed and the honey ripe and sells it. Of course, people do not like his honey.

Mr. Green has not been able to eat honey for the last three or four years. It makes him sick. He is helping me in my business as much as he can, although he does not understand or know anything about managing bees, but he has always urged me to get all the bees I can, and helps me to get them home. In the spring of 1913 I got four colonies, for the asking, from a family that did not like to go near bees. Last fall I did the same with another party.

I plant all the honey plants, shrubs

and trees I can get. Last year I sowed a sample package of sweet clover, and this summer I gathered some 14 to 16 pounds of seed. I also sowed some borage, and it bloomed all summer and fall until the frost stopped it. I sowed some this spring, but late, and it did not grow until now. I have an herb in the garden called "rue," that is blooming and the bees work on it. I expect to have a good honey-flow from sweet clover next year, as I sowed some on waste land and in the garden for seed. I have a fine location here for bees, a creek is running by with willows and hawthorns. In March, when the snow is going, there appear some flowers we call salt and pepper, and soon after my bee-yard is yellow with the dandelions. I cannot set a foot down without stepping on bees

working on them. We have a little orchard with prunes and plums, and will plant more next year or some time later. [MRS.] MARGARETHA GREEN.

Weiser, Idaho.

Honey is such a wholesome food that it is too bad not to be able to eat it. At least it would be worth while for Mr. Green to make considerable effort along that line before giving up. If he tries eating a very small amount at first, gradually increasing the amount, in time it may not disagree with him at all. It is also possible that it is the kind of honey. Dr. Miller uses a good deal of honey, taking it in place of sugar in his hot drink every day, and yet there are some kinds of honey that he cannot use at all, such as strong flavored fall honey.

Beekeepers of the Pacific

We of the Pacific Coast are always much interested in the personal experience and methods of our eastern beekeepers. We like to see the names and photographs of the prominent men in print so that in a way at least we feel acquainted with them.

This being a strong feeling with our men here, we thought the readers of the American Bee Journal might feel the same about us. We have consequently prevailed upon a few of our leading beekeepers here to give us sketches of their ways of getting results in their chosen work.

This month we will introduce Mr. Andrew Joplin, the largest beekeeper of Orange Co., Calif., who, by the way, is especially strong in the line of spring increase.

METHOD OF MR. ANDREW JOPLIN.

I have been asked to explain how I keep my bees so strong and in such good working condition when the early honey-flow comes, and as I have no patent on my methods, I freely give away the secret.

We Californians usually let our supers of extracted combs remain on the hives in the fall, for sometimes a late honey-flow happens along after extracting season has closed, and the bees gather their winter's store of food.

By Oct. 15 I will have been over all my yards (three in number), closed the ventilators, weighted down the lids. As a part of this examination, I look for signs of skunks in front of each colony, to see if they are feeding on the bees. Incidentally. I will say that a little egg mixed with strychnine put out in shallow cans at the entrance of the hives that are being disturbed usually stops them. These night marauders do more harm than is generally supposed, and if let alone will weaken colonies, and make it possible

for them to be robbed out.

After closing ventilators I do not bother my bees much until about March 10. Very rarely do I open the brood-nests of colonies after the extracting season, until the date mentioned above, but that does not mean that my bees are neglected that long. About Jan. 1 to 15 I lift each hive clear off the ground (hefting them, I call it), to ascertain the amount of honey stored, and by a system of marking on the front of the hive I register the condition of each, so I can begin my work of building up the weak ones. method of marking is in plain numerals from 1 to 5. The lightest ones are marked 1 and the heaviest ones 5. Those that are between the light and heavy are from 2 to 4.

My

The yard that has the most 1's and 2's calls for attention first. These I put feeders on. My method of feeding is very simple. I take any kind of quart cans or 5-pound lard pails that are thrown away and melt off the top. These cans serve as covers. Then I take milk cans and melt the top off of them, leaving a milk can (small size) or regular feed cups for each cover can. I then bore a 3% of an inch hole in the hive lid and place my feed cup beside it, full of feed syrup, and cover all with the quart cover can. The 38-inch hole gives the bees access to the feed and the cover can shuts out robbers.

I find it a splendid idea to take a little warm feed syrup and drop it through the hole in the lid onto the combs below, and then blow my breath into the hole, which causes a great commotion among the bees, and they come up and soon find the feed which they immediately begin to devour. After this I have no trouble getting the bees to take the feed from the cans.

I also found it necessary to put a bunch of excelsior in the feed cup, so the bees can get out if they should fall into the syrup.

Understand me now, I am only treat

ANDREW JOPLIN.

too weak to need so much comb space, so I remove them, putting them upon some hive marked 4 or 5.

In my location it is often dark, cloudy weather for a couple of weeks at a time during the spring months, and if I did not have feeders on and keep feed in them the weak colonies would starve.

My three apiaries are in a mountain district and are some miles apart. and it keeps ine busy during cloudy or rainy weather to keep feed in all my weak colonies, but as that is an essential part of my success in building up my colonies I do it just as the farmer plows and prepares his ground before seeding it. So when night comes and I hear the rain falling outside I feel good to know that my bees have not been neglected, but have feed to eat and are getting stronger all the time.

March is the month to roll up the sleeves and get down to business and go down among the bees themselves, for at this time of the year colonies are of various strength, and if there are many weak ones it means lots of hard work.

In my location we have then only two months in which to build up weak colonies, as the harvest of honey usually commences about May 1, and colonies must be in shape by that time if we would expect them to do their best, whether there is any honey-flow or not.

So about March 1 I begin to work on my weak colonies that I have been feeding since January, examining the

January, 1915.

queens, which I denominate good or bad by their work in the brood-chamber, and I never fail to find some that need superseding.

The heavier colonies naturally get far ahead of the lighter ones and will start drone-brood, so I hold them back except a few of the best stock that raise good, yellow drones.

Most any time after March I start a hive or two making queen-cells. With me, the Doolittle plan has resulted best, and as soon as the cells are about 9 or 10 days old I pick out some good, strong colony of my darker, or what I call my vicious bees, remove their queen, cage the mature cells and put them in a frame and place them in the warmest part of the now queenless colony.

In about 4 or 5 days these cells are all hatched and the young queens caged. These are critically examined for visible defects or faults. Those passing the examination are now ready for use.

This is where nuclei hives shine. I take 6 of them (3 or 4 frames) and set them in a semi-circle back of the hive with the caged queens. Then I remove the super and take frames from the colony and place one in each of my nuclei. I give each nucleus as near an equal amount of brood as possible. Then I divide the rest of the frames containing honey, being careful not to use drone-combs. Of course, you understand that I raise these combs out carefully so that what bees are clus

tered on them go with the combs into the nuclei.

Now I divide what bees are left in the old hive so that my nuclei each have like amount of bees. I then take my caged young queens, and to be safe dip them into water, and turn them loose on the alighting-board of the nuclei, and they run in without trouble. Having been hatched in the mother hive, they are already acquainted with the workers and are immediately received.

I now take these nuclei and set them

in my apiary wherever I want them, for bees thus divided rarely, if ever, go to the old stand again. However, as a

BEE-KEEPING

precautionary measure, I remove the hive from the place, leaving the place bare.

I have found that the percentage of queens lost by this plan is very small. The young queens in a few days will be laying.

These nuclei are given great care, and as fast as they need room I give it to them by using a 6-frame, then a 10frame box, and from that to my regular hive.

I replace all poor queens at this same time, thus building up my colonies so they can do good work when the flow starts in. ANDREW JOPLIN.

IN DIXIE

Bad Case of Dwindling

"I have a few colonies of black bees that I transferred from box-hives this year. At first they were strong and worked very well but soon dwindled down, and I think now that four of them are so weak the queens have quit laying. They have very little honey (and I haven't had supers on at all), so for the past few days I have been fee

d

ing them a little at night. I have also taken out all but five frames in one hive and put in a division-board.

"Moths are bad, and I thought perhaps that was the cause of dwindling at first. These bees, seem to me, enjoy having moths around. Several times I have pinched off a moth's head and dropped it at the entrance, and they would not try to move it in the least. If

tis foulbrood I can't find any trace of it. The bees are just naturally lazy except when they want to sting. Another peculiar thing is they didn't swarm a single time last spring; something I had never known them to neglect. They were still in the box-hives.

"If you can give me any information or tell me what to do for the above it will certainly be appreciated. Also tell me what you think of the Ocklocknee river for bees, from the Georgia and Florida line down for a space of 30 or 40 miles." J. T. DELONG.

Hinson, Fla.

not properly carried out with the modern hives, better not buy them, as it is tying up money. Then, too, your 10frame hives are too large for this section. You could have gotten better results with a smaller or 8-frame hive, but as you have started with the 10frame hives you had better continue with them.

When the first honey-flow comes next spring transfer the bees you have into modern hives or straighten the combs in the frames which they have already built, which may be crosswise, then put full sheets of foundation into the sections or frames in the supers, and the bees will go up, build comb and store honey. Comb foundation is a great inducement to get them to build comb and get it built where you want it.

Wants to Locate Back in Home State

"I am a city raised man contemplating going into the country, also thinking favorably of bees. I would like the benefit of your experience in choice of literature for a beginner, best kind of hives to use, and probable cost of a small beginning.

"At present I contemplate seeking a location in Cherokee Co., Ga. What have you to say regarding that part of the State?

My ideas now are for fruit and bees; what they will be when I get on the ground is hard to tell. I feel pretty sure of returning to Georgia__ this fall or next spring at the latest. I am trying to "line up" the costs of various things theoretically."

Los Angeles, Calif.

EDWIN HAMBLY.

The mountain section of our country is good for both bees and fruit, the two would go very well together. Cherokee Co., Ga., would be a very good section to locate in for this purpose, but counties farther north would

be better, say Habersham, Rabun or Franklin counties.

Any of the bee literature advertised in the bee-papers would be a great help to you, and the more you read on the subject the better. The 8-frame hive would be more suitable with the regular shallow extracting supers for chunk honey. Fifty or seventy-five dollars well invested in this branch would be a good start.

A Successful Venture

"MR. WILDER:-I took your advice and went South last winter and bought a carload of bees near Savannah, Ga., fixed them up and they gathered enough honey to pay expenses, and I carried them back North, starting May 12. My average was 30 pounds, spring flow, and 40 pounds during summer, so I came out ahead. I am coming back again this winter and carry out the same thing, but I want to go to Brunswick or Waycross, Ga., to gather up the carloid of bees in any kind of hives and fix them up as I did the carload last season. I bought 'boxgums' for $1.00 each last season.

"I was much surprised at the southern hospitality and enjoyed the Dixie climate immensely. Any information will be greatly appreciated." New York.

A. IRISH.

Buying bees in one part of the country, or moving them from one part of the country into another can be made a success if it is done economically from and to such points at each end of the line as will assure good rates.

I don't think you will find any trouble in getting all the bees you want at reasonable prices in either of the sections you mention. I believe you are on the right line in such an undertaking, and the beekeepers would be glad to hear from you again giving more particulars..

Discouraged

"I am a young beekeeper (but not so young a man) and want a little information. I have 8 or 10 colonies and took only about 200 pounds, several of them being weak and not producing any surplus at all. I use the 8-frame hive and shallow extracting supers, but not having an extractor I cut the combs out in nice strips, putting them in large mouth glass jars without crushing, then filling with extracted honey. I have no trouble in selling this at 10 cents a pound, but the trouble with me is that I cannot produce much honey. I think I will get an extractor next year. Should I wire the shallow extracting frames? Don't you think I ought to use the 10-frame hive? Not more than half of my colonies yield surplus; what is the cause of this?

After the honey-flow was over about June 1, I tried to make six artificial swarms and made a mess of it. I proceeded thus: I took three frames of brood and placed them in empty hives with a comb of honey beside these three brood combs; some had queencells and some had none. But I soon found queen-cells on those that had none at first. As there was no honey coming in I had to feed them by put