have only starters you will get more drone comb than you want.

It is hardly likely that foul brood had anything to do with the bees swarming. You can make sure whether you have foul brood by sending a sample of the suspected comb to Dr. E. F. Phillips, Department of Agricul ture, Washington, D. C. If you write him in advance he will send you a package in which to send the sample. It will cost you nothing. The 3 banded leather-colored Italians are probably as good as any. Summer or fall is a good time to requeen.

Bees Hanging Out-Black Bees in Hive

1. My bees have been hanging from the top of the hive to the ground. They fly around the hive and then cluster. Only a few seem to work. They have been doing this for two weeks. Are they getting ready to swarm?

2. I bought them last year for pure Italians, and now there are black ones in the hive. Could they have been pure Italians? This is my first year with bees. OHIO.

ANSWERS.-I. I don't know enough about the conditions to answer. If no nectar is to be had, that may be a sufficient reason for their idleness. If there is a good flow of nectar, hanging out might be a sign they are getting ready to swarm, and yet they would hardly keep that up for two weeks. So, on the whole, it looks more as if there is nothing for them to do, yet that may not be the case at all. Give them more room and more ventilation.

2. You do not say whether there were any black bees in the hive last year. If the workers were all properly marked last year, it is possible that the queen was superseded last fall or this spring. and that the new queen is mismated. If there are only a few black bees in the hive, they may be from other colonies; for bees do more in the way of changing from one hive to another then is generally supposed. Look in the hive and see whether there are any black bees among the downy little fellows that have just hatched. If there are, then either the queen has been changed or the queen you bought was not pure.

Swarming Will Cutting Out Queen-Cells Effect a Safe Cure?

I

Here is a little bee-history and two ques tions: On Nov. 12, 1911, mercury 12 degrees above zero, I put my 2 colonies of bees into the cellar. These will be called No. 1 and No. 2 from this on. They wintered well, few bees dying and falling on the floor during their confinement, which lasted almost 5 months. I did something I never did before and believe it worth reporting. I left the bottom-boards on and the summer entrances just as they were on the stands outside, and to give better ventilation I lifted the tops and carried them back one inch. This gave an abundance of air circulating through the hive, and prevented dampness or mold in the hives or on the combs. I mention this procedure because the winter preceeding I placed 4 colonies in the same cellar, turning the entrances toward the wall, and gave no ventilation save what they got from the summer entrance. I lost almost all my bees, and the hives were full of moisture and mold.

April 14, 1912. temperature 70 degrees above. I carried Nos. 1 and 2 out on the sum mer stands. No. I was rich in honey and populous in bees, covering every frame in a 10-frame dovetailed hive. No. 2 was not so rich in bees nor honey.

I had some partly-filled sections from the preceding season, these I fed from time to time in the open, as the weather was damp and cold.

May 19 No. 1 sent out a good sized swarm at 2 p.m. This No. 3) was placed on the old stand, and No. I was moved the width of itself east. May 23 the weather looked threatening, and though it was only 4 days since No. 3 issued, I moved No. 1, the parent colony 12 feet away, instead of waiting 8 days as instructed, thinking we would deplete it more to move on the 4th day, while flying. than to wait until the 8th day, when the weather would probably be cold or rainy.

May 31 No. I sent out a good sized secondary swarm. Being away from home my brother hived it in an & frame hive with full foundation wired in. When I got home in the afternoon of the same day we opened No. I and cut out all the queen-cells. We then placed a loose door in front of No. 1, and picking up one frame at a time we shook

the secondary swarm on the door. In this way we had a good chance to watch for the queen. We found 2 queens and killed one. Since this experience No. I is seemingly happy and is working.

May 23 No. 2 sent out a medium-sized prime swarm at 2 p.m. It was hived and placed on the old stand, the parent colony moved the width of itself, and each allowed to remain there 8 days. This new swarm, as you see, is No. 4.

Now May 31, 8 days after No. 4 came out of No. 2, No. 2 was moved 12 feet away. The workers from No. 2 went to No. 4 and were slaughtered by the thousand.

1. Why did No. 1 swarm the second time! 2. Why did No. 4 kill the fielders from No. 2 ?

3. If a colony is rich in bees and honey, and is apparently ready to swarm, is it a safe or sure procedure to cut out all queencells? ILLINOIS.

ANSWERS.-I. For the same reason that any colony sends out a swarm: because there were two or more young queens in the hive, and enough bees in a prosperous condition to afford to swarm. If you had left them 4 days longer there would likely have been no second swarm. Killing one of those queens probably made no difference, for if you had let them alone one would have killed the other. But destroying the cells probably did make a difference.

2. I don't know. Can't make a guess. Never heard such a case before.

3. If you mean safe and sure to prevent swarming, no. In some cases it may prevent swarming entirely. In some cases it may delay it a week or two. In some cases it may delay it only a day or two.

Bait for Bee-Hunting-Swarms Killing Drones

1. What is the best bait to use for hunting bees?

2. One colony of my bees swarmed yesterday and returned to the hive. What do you think was the cause of it?

3. When bees fly off through the woods how far can you look for them? When they get up above the trees how far can I look for them?

4. Does it make any difference when I kill the drones?

5. About how long do you think it will be before that swarm comes out again?

TEXAS. ANSWERS.-I. Honey is probably as good

as any.

2. It may be that the queen was not able to fly with them. It may be that it was an after-swarm or a mother colony in which there was a young queen which was making her bridal trip, and a lot of her bees flew out with her.

3. If you mean how far it is worth while to look for a swarm that has flown away, I should say that they might go any distance inside of 5 miles, and possibly farther. I don't know that getting above the trees would make any difference.

4. Yes, it will save something in the way of feed. If you should kill them all, and if there were no neighboring drones, your young queens reared without any drones would rear no worker-bees, only drones. But you needn't be alarmed about getting all killed off. When you have killed off all you can, the likelihood is that plenty will be left.

5. If my first guess was correct, they might come out again in a day or so. If my second guess was correct, they would likely not come out again.

Trouble With Ants-Bees Not Working in Supers

1. I have 6 colonies of bees. The smaller ones are bothered with large, black ants. Is there any way of stopping them?

2. What is the reason that bees will not work in the supers? I put 2 sections of comb in the middle of each super before putting them on, but the bees work in the body of WISCONSIN. the hive.

ANSWERS.-I. On page 167, under the head of Timely Hints for June," you will find an answer to your question. As mentioned there, ants annoy the bee-keeper rather than the bees. It is decidedly annoying to have them crawling over the hands and biting. Yet it may be well to add that there are ants and ants. Go far enough South and you may find ants that will destroy a colony sometimes in short order. Even in the North there is a kind to be dreaded. You Most say yours are "large, black ants. likely that means ants that are a quarter of

an inch or so in length, which are large in comparison with little red ants. But if you have the big wood ants that are 4 of an inch long, then that's another story. I've had no little trouble with them, and they are hard to combat. They get between the bottomboard and the board on which it rests, and honey-comb the bottom-board. Sometimes there will be merely a shell left, so that you will hardly notice anything wrong, yet a little touch when hauling bees might break through a hole to let the bees out. Carbolic acid may do something toward driving them away. You may also poison them. two pieces of section, or, perhaps, better still, two thin boards 4 inches square, or larger, fasten upon each end of one of them a cleat % inch thick, and lay or fasten the other on it, thus leaving a space of 1⁄2 inch between the two boards. Mix arsenic in honey and put between the boards. The bees can not get into so small a space, but the ants can. Or, put poison in a box covered with wire-cloth that will let the ants in but keep the bees out.

Take

2. Your letter is dated May 20, and at that time it is very unlikely that the bees were getting enough to work in the supers. Certainly they were not here, and I am farther south than you. Don't expect your bees to do anything in the supers until there is enough coming in to fill up all empty cells in the brood-chamber. Time enough to store honey for you after they have stored all they can for themselves.

Getting Bees from a Chimney-Do Swarms Ever Return

1. Do you know of any way in which I can get bees from the chimney of a house? 2. Will a swarm that once leaves ever come back to the same hive? NEW JERSEY.

ANSWERS. 1. I don't know of any very good way. If any one else does, perhaps he will tell us. I've had such bees offered me if I'd take them, and never thought they were worth the trouble.

2. It is the regular thing for a swarm to return to its hive in a short time after leaving. if its queen is not with the swarm, either because she is clipped or for any other reason. Even if hived, if its queen should be accidentally killed within a day or so I think the swarm might return. If you mean that the swarm leaves by flying off entirely. I don't suppose there's one chance in a thousand for such a swarm to return.

Chilling of Brood Danger of Poisoning Bees

1. On May 12 a swarm issued and was hived in the usual way, the new hive being placed on the old stand, and frames given with full sheets of foundation. The foundation has been drawn out and the brood capped, Yesterday, June 8, I looked at the colony and the brood is only partly covered with bees, and is dead. I am of the opinion that the change in the weather we have had a sudden change from warm to cool weather has caused the bees to cluster over certain portions of the brood to keep it warm, and in doing so they have had to leave some of the other frames of brood, and consequently they have become chilled. This couldn't be a case of foul brood with new frames and new foundation, etc., could it? The larvæ which I pulled out of the cells were white and almost matured, but were not ropy or sticky like a case of foul brood would be.

2. What I want to know now is, will the bees clean out these frames, or would it be advisable to shake some bees in front of the hive from another colony, so as to give the hive more bees?

3. The swarm wasn't a very large one. although the queen keeps on laying. What is the use of it if the brood can not be kept so it will properly mature? I have never had a case like it before.

4. In order to keep the weeds from growing in front of the hives, I have sprinkled salt water around, and it has had a good effect. Last year it was done quite often. and the weeds were kept down. This year they all came up again, and salt is dear if much is used. A friend of mine, who is a chemist, told me he would make up something that I could put in water and use it with a watering-pot. and he said it would kill grass, weeds, or any other stuff where it is put on; but there is acid in it. Now, what I want to know is, whether the bees alighting on the ground would drink any of the stuff and die? I have been afraid to try it without consulting you, for fear of killing

the bees. I might sprinkle around the hives at night after dark, and the solution would be all soaked in the ground by morning. Some have advised me to use crude oil, such as they sprinkle the streets, but I would just like to know that, in the event of my using anything, would the bees get poisoned by drinking some of it. I got my idea from the fact that the bees have been poisoned from people spraying fruit-blossoms: although that is different, for the bees are after pollen and nectar in that case. NEW JERSEY.

ANSWERS.-I. It doesn't seem at all like a case of foul brood.

2. Giving more bees will, of course, strengthen the colony, but it is no more necessary than if no brood had been killed. As the bees occupy increased room for either brood or stores, they will clean out the dead brood.

3. There is no use in having eggs laid that will not mature, but a queen will keep on for some time laying more than the necessary number of eggs when suddenly cut down as to the room she occupies, provided she is a prolific queen. But she is not likely to continue very long laying more eggs than the bees can care for.

4. I don't believe you need fear killing the bees by poisoning the grass as you propose, especially if the work is done at night as you suggest. But it will be an easy matter to try it before a single hive before you go over the whole apiary.

Melting Up Old Combs

I have a lot of combs from hives in which the bees winter-killed; also from late swarms of last year that starved out during the long. cold winter. How can I convert these combs into beeswax? NEBRASKA.

ANSWER-If you have enough to make it worth while, the best way to get the wax out of your combs is to get one of the waxpresses or extractors that will leave in the remains a very small amount of wax. To be sure, you can get out quite a bit of wax with a solar extractor, but if the number of combs be large it will pay to get something more effective. For a very few combs, however, it may not pay to spend much, and the solar will do. You may also get out a large percent with a dripping pan. Take an old dripping-pan (of course a new one would answer, split it open at one corner, put it in the oven of a cook stove with the split end projecting out of the oven so that a vessel set under it will catch the dripping wax. Put a pebble or something else under the inside corner, so as to make the wax flow outward. If the comb be previonsly soaked with water for several days, and a single comb at a time be laid in the pan, the wax will not be tempted to hide in the cups made by the cocoons. But it will be slow work. You may also break the combs up into bits, provided you can have them cold enough to be brittle, put them in a gunny sack in a boiler or other vessel on the stove, weight down the sack, working it occasionally with a stick, and skim off the wax as it rises. Having made this attempt at answering, it is only fair to add that I feel like a baby in long dresses compared with the editor-inchief when it comes to working wax. He has waxed wise in wax-working through many years of experience that I have not had. So I cheerfully yield the floor to him, to make such emendations as he sees fit.

The only thing the Editor would add is that, with old combs in which many generations of bees have been reared, it hardly pays to render the wax without water, for a great deal of it is soaked in the cocoons and cast skins of the larva. Soaking these in water first, prevents the wax from adhering to the residue, or slum-gum as they call it. The last method given is, in our opinion, the best, unless a regular wax-extractor is used. -EDITOR.]

not a cure. Some believe that the only way to treat European foul brood successfully is to treat it the same as American foul brood, by brushing the bees upon the foundation. The late E. W. Alexander made the colony queenless, and 20 days later gave it a queen-cell or a very young virgin of Italian stock. That left the colony 27 days or more without any eggs being laid. I have treated cases without any eggs being laid for a week or 10 days, a number of cases that were not very bad. merely having the queen caged the proper time. While this dequeening plan may be said to be on trial, I have much faith in it, and in my own practice prefer it.

Increasing Ventilation—Dividing

1. As I am a student in beedom, I am trying to learn a little every day, not only in my yard, which I started 2 months ago, but also from all obtainable reading matter.

Now, there is one main question which I do not find answered anywhere. In Root's ABC of Bee Culture" it is suggested to put 4 blocks under the brood-chamber in order to give the colony more ventilation. This I have tried for the first time today, and found that it was just the thing. I have never seen my bees as busy as today.

But, while the colony can hardly be guarding all 4 sides of the hive all day long, is there not danger from robbing? And how about the wax-moth miller? Is it advis able to leave those blocks in their places day and night, or should they be taken out eve nings?

2. I bought some bees this spring, and one colony had two brood-chambers, one on top of the other. Now, I have read somewhere, if a man is after comb honey, only one of those brood-chambers should be allowed. So I took off the lower hive, expecting all the bees to be above. But I was mistaken- . There was a bunch also in the lower story, I put this hive on a new stand, and expected the bees to return to the main colony. But they stayed and worked as though nothing had happened. So I ordered a queen and introduced it according to the directions, but I could not find any eggs when I investi gated about a week later. The bees are carrying pollen and honey, and what I would like to know is this: Is it a sign of young brood when bees carry pollen? IOWA.

ANSWERS.-I. While I value greatly the matter of giving abundant ventilation, I'm afraid you are giving it more credit than it deserves, when you think it increases noticeably the amount of work a colony does the very first day. The special value of this abundant ventilation lies in the fact that it does something toward making the bees more comfortable, thus doing at least a little toward keeping down swarming. It would be too much work to raise the hive and lower it daily. No need to lessen the ventilation until cooler weather comes for good, or at least until danger of swarming is over Don't worry about moths or robbers if the colony is strong. The bees will take care

REPORTS AND

Binding Bee Journals-A Veil and Shirt Combined

I have learned some good things by studying some back articles in the Bee Journal, sol nail the old journals together one year at a time with small nails driven in from both sides, so that the nails pass each other about four on a side. Tack a piece of board or leather on each side. This will keep the nails from pulling through.

I would like to describe a veil for the benefit of all bee-keeping friends. It is a perfect bee-veil. I read about it in Gleanings in Bee Culture for Sept. 1, 1910, page 558. For those who do not want to look it up. I will describe it. Take an old work shirt and cut the collar out large enough so that you can get your head through easily. Hem in a small piece of wire in lieu of a collar. Now get a piece of 1⁄2 inch rope and sew it to the wire collar all around to form a lip to hold the rubber-cord of the veil, The top elastic goes around the hat, and the bottom one around the wire in the shirt, thus you have a perfect veil, fixed so the bees can not get in, and yet you are free and

of themselves, I don't know just how the moths manage it, but they seem to work their way into a hive even if the entrance be only large enough for a single bee; but the bees will not allow them to make any headway even if all the combs are exposed, always provided the colony be strong, and especially if the bees are Italian.

2. Bees can protect their stores better if these stores are above the brood, so you would generally find the bees in the lower instead of in the upper story. However, they may have their brood-nest in either, or in both.

I have great respect for men of the cloth, and it would not be polite in me to dispute your word, but I feel quite-sure you are mistaken in thinking that when you put the lower story on a new stand the bees "stayed and worked as if nothing had happened." I don't want to encourage you to become a gambler, but if you were one, and if I were. too. I'd count it a safe thing to stake heavy odds on it that every last held bee returned to the old location the first time it returned from the field.

That you found no eggs in the hive a week after the introduction of the queen raises the suspicion that no queen may be present. Yet it sometimes happens that a queen may be present more than a week after introduction before the eggs can be found. Although it is generally said that carrying in pollen is the sign that a queen is present, it is not always reliable. You will find more pollen generally in a queenless colony than in a queen right one, which shows that the bees continue to accumulate pollen after they have ceased to have brood to use it up. But after a little there will be a falling off in the amount of pollen brought in, and you will see the bees of the queenless colony bringing in smaller loads, if they bring any.

Bees Killing Each Other-Remedy

I. Will bees kill each other in their own hive?

2. I had a strong colony a month and a half ago and they have almost gone to nothing. They are constantly fighting amongst themselves, and are neglecting the brood which is dead in the cells. I can gather by the pint bees that they have killed. At first I thought they were robbing, so I moved the hive about 4 miles, and I find it is still the same. Kindly tell me what is the cause and the remedy. NEW YORK.

ANSWERS.-I. It often happens that one bee will kill another in their own hive, provided they are young queens. But under normal conditions a worker will not kill another worker of the same colony.

2. I don't know what the trouble is. It looks a little as if what you call fighting might be the bees driving out diseased bees. If there is further trouble, please give as full particulars as possible either to this office or to Dr. E. F. Phillips, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.

July, 1912.

have only starters you will get more drone comb than you want.

It is hardly likely that foul brood had anything to do with the bees swarming. You can make sure whether you have foul brood by sending a sample of the suspected comb to Dr. E. F. Phillips, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. If you write him in advance he will send you a package in which to send the sample. It will cost you nothing. The 3 banded leather-colored Italians are probably as good as any. Summer or fall is a good time to requeen.

Bees Hanging Out-Black Bees in Hive

I. My bees have been hanging from the top of the hive to the ground. They fly around the hive and then cluster. Only a few seem to work. They have been doing this for two weeks. Are they getting ready to swarm?

2. I bought them last year for pure Italians, and now there are black ones in the hive. Could they have been pure Italians? This is my first year with bees. OHIO.

ANSWERS.-I. I don't know enough about the conditions to answer. If no nectar is to be had, that may be a sufficient reason for their idleness. If there is a good flow of nectar, hanging out might be a sign they are getting ready to swarm, and yet they would hardly keep that up for two weeks. So, on the whole, it looks more as if there is nothing for them to do, yet that may not be the case at all. Give them more room and more ventilation.

2. You do not say whether there were any black bees in the hive last year. If the workers were all properly marked last year, it is possible that the queen was superseded last fall or this spring, and that the new queen is mismated. If there are only a few black bees in the hive, they may be from other colonies; for bees do more in the way of changing from one hive to another then is generally supposed. Look in the hive and see whether there are any black bees among the downy little fellows that have just hatched. If there are, then either the queen has been changed or the queen you bought was not pure.

Swarming Will Cutting Out Queen-Cells Effect a Safe Cure?

Here is a little bee-history and two ques tions: On Nov. 12, 1911, mercury 12 degrees above zero, I put my 2 colonies of bees into the cellar. These will be called No. 1 and No. 2 from this on. They wintered well, few bees dying and falling on the floor during their confinement, which lasted almost 5 months. I did something I never did before and believe it worth reporting. I left the bottom-boards on and the summer entrances just as they were on the stands outside, and to give better ventilation I lifted the tops and carried them back one inch. This gave an abundance of air circulating through the hive, and prevented dampness or mold in the hives or on the combs. I mention this procedure because the winter preceeding I placed 4 colonies in the same cellar, turning the entrances toward the wall, and gave no ventilation save what they got from the summer entrance. I lost almost all my bees. and the hives were full of moisture and mold.

April 14, 1012, temperature 70 degrees above, I carried Nos. 1 and 2 out on the summer stands. No. I was rich in honey and populous in bees, covering every frame in a 10-frame dovetailed hive. No. 2 was not so rich in bees nor honey,

I had some partly-filled sections from the preceding season, these I fed from time to time in the open, as the weather was damp and cold.

May 19 No. I sent out a good sized swarm at 2 p.m. This No. 3) was placed on the old stand, and No. I was moved the width of itself east. May 23 the weather looked threatening, and though it was only 4 days since No. 3 issued, I moved No. 1, the parent colony, 12 feet away, instead of waiting 8 days as instructed, thinking we would deplete it more to move on the 4th day, while flying, than to wait until the 8th day, when the weather would probably be cold or rainy.

May 31 No. I sent out a good sized secondary swarm. Being away from home my brother hived it in an 8-frame hive with full foundation wired in. When I got home in the afternoon of the same day we opened No. 1 and cut out all the queen-cells. We then placed a loose door in front of No. 1, and picking up one frame at a time we shook

the secondary swarm on the door. In this way we had a good chance to watch for the queen. We found 2 queens and killed one. Since this experience No. 1 is seemingly happy and is working.

May 23 No. 2 sent out a medium-sized prime swarm at 2 pm. It was hived and placed on the old stand, the parent colony moved the width of itself, and each allowed to remain there 8 days. This new swarm, as you see, is No. 4.

Now May 31, 8 days after No. 4 came out of No. 2, No. 2 was moved 12 feet away. The workers from No. 2 went to No. 4 and were slaughtered by the thousand.

1. Why did No. 1 swarm the second time! 2. Why did No. 4 kill the fielders from No. 2 ?

3. If a colony is rich in bees and honey, and is apparently ready to swarm, is it a safe or sure procedure to cut out all queencells? ILLINOIS.

ANSWERS.-I. For the same reason that any colony sends out a swarm; because there were two or more young queens in the hive, and enough bees in a prosperous condition to afford to swarm. If you had left them 4 days longer there would likely have been no second swarm. Killing one of those queens probably made no difference, for if you had let them alone one would have killed the other. But destroying the cells probably did make a difference.

2. I don't know. Can't make a guess. Never heard such a case before.

3. If you mean safe and sure to prevent swarming, no. In some cases it may prevent swarming entirely. In some cases it may delay it a week or two. In some cases it may delay it only a day or two.

Bait for Bee-Hunting-Swarms Killing Drones

1. What is the best bait to use for hunting bees?

2. One colony of my bees swarmed yesterday and returned to the hive. What do you think was the cause of it?

3. When bees fly off through the woods how far can you look for them? When they get up above the trees how far can I look for them?

4. Does it make any difference when I kill the drones?

5. About how long do you think it will be before that swarm comes out again?

TEXAS. ANSWERS.-I. Honey is probably as good

as any.

2. It may be that the queen was not able to fly with them. It may be that it was an after-swarm or a mother colony in which there was a young queen which was making her bridal trip, and a lot of her bees flew out with her.

3. If you mean how far it is worth while to look for a swarm that has flown away, I should say that they might go any distance inside of 5 miles, and possibly farther. don't know that getting above the trees would make any difference.

4. Yes, it will save something in the way of feed. If you should kill them all, and if there were no neighboring drones, your young queens reared without any drones would rear no worker-bees, only drones. But you needn't be alarmed about getting all killed off. When you have killed off all you can, the likelihood is that plenty will be left.

5. If my first guess was correct, they might come out again in a day or so. If my second guess was correct, they would likely not come out again.

Trouble With Ants-Bees Not Working in Supers

I. I have 6 colonies of bees. The smaller ones are bothered with large, black ants. Is there any way of stopping them?

2. What is the reason that bees will not work in the supers? I put 2 sections of comb in the middle of each super before putting them on, but the bees work in the body of the hive. WISCONSIN.

ANSWERS.-I. On page 167, under the head of Timely Hints for June," you will find an answer to your question. As mentioned there, ants annoy the bee-keeper rather than the bees. It is decidedly annoying to have them crawling over the hands and biting. Yet it may be well to add that there are ants and ants. Go far enough South and you may find ants that will destroy a colony Sometimes in short order. Even in the North there is a kind to be dreaded. You say yours are "large, black ants.' Most likely that means ants that are a quarter of

an inch or so in length, which are large in comparison with little red ants. But if you have the big wood ants that are 34 of an inch long, then that's another story. I've had no little trouble with them, and they are hard to combat. They get between the bottomboard and the board on which it rests, and honey-comb the bottom board. Sometimes there will be merely a shell left, so that you will hardly notice anything wrong, yet a little touch when hauling bees might break through a hole to let the bees out. Carbolic acid may do something toward driving them away. You may also poison them. Take two pieces of section, or, perhaps, better still, two thin boards 4 inches square, or larger, fasten upon each end of one of them a cleat / inch thick, and lay or fasten the other on it. thus leaving a space of 1⁄2 inch between the two boards. Mix arsenic in honey and put between the boards. The bees can not get into so small a space, but the ants can. Or, put poison in a box covered with wire-cloth that will let the ants in but keep the bees out.

2. Your letter is dated May 20, and at that time it is very unlikely that the bees were getting enough to work in the supers. Certainly they were not here, and I am farther south than you. Don't expect your bees to do anything in the supers until there is enough coming in to fill up all empty cells in the brood-chamber. Time enough to store honey for you after they have stored all they can for themselves.

Getting Bees from a Chimney-Do Swarms Ever Return

I. Do you know of any way in which I can get bees from the chimney of a house? 2. Will a swarm that once leaves ever come back to the same hive? NEW JERSEY.

ANSWERS. I. I don't know of any very good way. If any one else does, perhaps he will tell us. I've had such bees offered me if I'd take them, and never thought they were worth the trouble.

2. It is the regular thing for a swarm to return to its hive in a short time after leaving, if its queen is not with the swarm, either because she is clipped or for any other reason. Even if hived, if its queen should be accidentally killed within a day or so I think the swarm might return. If you mean that the swarm leaves by flying off entirely. I don't suppose there's one chance in a thousand for such a swarm to return.

Chilling of Brood-Danger of Poisoning Bees

1. On May 12 a swarm issued and was hived in the usual way, the new hive being placed on the old stand, and frames given with full sheets of foundation. The foundation has been drawn out and the brood capped, Yesterday, June 8, I looked at the colony and the brood is only partly covered with bees, and is dead. I am of the opinion that the change in the weather (we have had a sudden change from warm to cool weather, has caused the bees to cluster over certain portions of the brood to keep it warm, and in doing so they have had to leave some of the other frames of brood, and consequently they have become chilled. This couldn't be a case of foul brood with new frames and new foundation, etc.. could it? The Jarvæ which I pulled out of the cells were white and almost matured, but were not ropy or sticky like a case of foul brood would be.

2. What I want to know now is, will the bees clean out these frames, or would it be advisable to shake some bees in front of the hive from another colony, so as to give the hive more bees?

3. The swarm wasn't a very large one. although the queen keeps on laying. What is the use of it if the brood can not be kept so it will properly mature? I have never had a case like it before.

4. In order to keep the weeds from growing in front of the hives, I have sprinkled salt water around, and it has had a good effect. Last year it was done quite often. and the weeds were kept down. This year they all came up again, and salt is dear if much is used. A friend of mine, who is a chemist, told me he would make up something that I could put in water and use it with a watering-pot, and he said it would kill grass, weeds, or any other stuff where it is put on; but there is acid in it. Now, what I want to know is, whether the bees alighting on the ground would drink any of the stuff and die? I have been afraid to try it without consulting you, for fear of killing

the bees. I might sprinkle around the hives at night after dark, and the solution would be all soaked in the ground by morning. Some have advised me to use crude oil, such as they sprinkle the streets, but I would just like to know that, in the event of my using anything, would the bees get poisoned by drinking some of it. I got my idea from the fact that the bees have been poisoned from people spraying fruit-blossoms; although that is different, for the bees are after pollen and nectar in that case. NEW JERSEY.

ANSWERS. I. It doesn't seem at all like a case of foul brood.

2. Giving more bees will, of course, strengthen the colony, but it is no more necessary than if no brood had been killed. As the bees occupy increased room for either brood or stores, they will clean out the dead brood.

3. There is no use in having eggs laid that will not mature, but a queen will keep on for some time laying more than the necessary number of eggs when suddenly cut down as to the room she occupies, provided she is a prolific queen. But she is not likely to continue very long laying more eggs than the bees can care for.

4. I don't believe you need fear killing the bees by poisoning the grass as you propose, especially if the work is done at night as you suggest. But it will be an easy matter to try it before a single hive before you go over the whole apiary.

Melting Up Old Combs

I have a lot of combs from hives in which the bees winter-killed; also from late swarms of last year that starved out during the long, cold winter. How can I convert these combs into beeswax ? NEBRASKA.

ANSWER.-If you have enough to make it worth while, the best way to get the wax out of your combs is to get one of the waxpresses or extractors that will leave in the remains a very small amount of wax. To be sure, you can get out quite a bit of wax with a solar extractor, but if the number of combs be large it will pay to get something more effective. For a very few combs, however, it may not pay to spend much, and the solar will do. You may also get out a large percent with a dripping pan. Take an old dripping-pan (of course a new one would answer, split it open at one corner, put it in the oven of a cook stove with the split end projecting out of the oven so that a vessel set under it will catch the dripping wax. Put a pebble or something else under the inside corner, so as to make the wax flow outward. If the comb be previonsly soaked with water for several days, and a single comb at a time be laid in the pan, the wax will not be tempted to hide in the cups made by the cocoons. But it will be slow work. You may also break the combs up into bits, provided you can have them cold enough to be brittle, put them in a gunny sack in a boiler or other vessel on the stove, weight down the sack, working it occasionally with a stick, and skim off the wax as it rises.

Having made this attempt at answering, it is only fair to add that I feel like a baby in long dresses compared with the editor-inchief when it comes to working wax. He has waxed wise in wax-working through many years of experience that I have not had. So I cheerfully yield the floor to him, to make such emendations as he sees fit.

[The only thing the Editor would add is that, with old combs in which many generations of bees have been reared, it hardly pays to render the wax without water, for a great deal of it is soaked in the cocoons and cast skins of the larvæ. Soaking these in water first, prevents the wax from adhering to the residue, or slum-gum as they call it. The last method given is, in our opinion, the best, unless a regular wax-extractor is used. -EDITOR.]

not a cure. Some believe that the only way to treat European foul brood successfully is to treat it the same as American foul brood, by brushing the bees upon the foundation. The late E. W. Alexander made the colony queenless, and 20 days later gave it a queen-cell or a very young virgin of Italian stock. That left the colony 27 days or more without any eggs being laid. I have treated cases without any eggs being laid for a week or 10 days, a number of cases that were not very bad, merely having the queen caged the proper time. While this dequeening plan may be said to be on trial. I have much faith in it, and in my own practice prefer it.

Increasing Ventilation—Dividing

1. As I am a student in beedom, I am trying to learn a little every day, not only in my yard, which I started 2 months ago, but also from all obtainable reading matter.

Now, there is one main question which I do not find answered anywhere. In Root's A B C of Bee Culture" it is suggested to put 4 blocks under the brood-chamber in order to give the colony more ventilation. This I have tried for the first time today. and found that it was just the thing. I have never seen my bees as busy as today.

But, while the colony can hardly be guarding all 4 sides of the hive all day long, is there not danger from robbing? And how about the wax-moth miller? Is it advis able to leave those blocks in their places day and night, or should they be taken out eve nings?

2. I bought some bees this spring, and one colony had two brood-chambers, one on top of the other. Now, I have read somewhere, if a man is after comb honey, only one of those brood-chambers should be allowed. So I took off the lower hive, expecting all the bees to be above. But I was mistakenThere was a bunch also in the lower story. I put this hive on a new stand, and expected the bees to return to the main colony. But they stayed and worked as though nothing had happened. So I ordered a queen and introduced it according to the directions, but I could not find any eggs when I investi gated about a week later. The bees are carrying pollen and honey, and what I would like to know is this: Is it a sign of young brood when bees carry pollen? IOWA.

ANSWERS.-I. While I value greatly the matter of giving abundant ventilation, I'm afraid you are giving it more credit than it deserves, when you think it increases noticeably the amount of work a colony does the very first day. The special value of this abundant ventilation lies in the fact that it does something toward making the bees more comfortable, thus doing at least a little toward keeping down swarming. It would be too much work to raise the hive and lower it daily. No need to lessen the ventilation until cooler weather comes for good, or at least until danger of swarming is over Don't worry about moths or robbers if the colony is strong. The bees will take care

REPORTS AND

Binding Bee Journals-A Veil and Shirt Combined

I have learned some good things by studying some back articles in the Bee Journal, sol nail the old journals together one year at a time with small nails driven in from both sides, so that the nails pass each other about four on a side. Tack a piece of board or leather on each side. This will keep the nails from pulling through.

I would like to describe a veil for the benefit of all bee-keeping friends. It is a perfect bee-veil. I read about it in Gleanings in Bee Culture for Sept. 1. 1910, page 558. For those who do not want to look it up. I will describe it. Take an old work shirt and cut the collar out large enough so that you can get your head through easily. Hem in a small piece of wire in lieu of a collar. Now get a piece of 1⁄2 inch rope and sew it to the wire collar all around to form a lip to hold the rubber-cord of the veil, The top elastic goes around the hat, and the bottom one around the wire in the shirt, thus you have a perfect veil, fixed so the bees can not get in, and yet you are free and

of themselves, I don't know just how the moths manage it, but they seem to work their way into a hive even if the entrance be only large enough for a single bee; but the bees will not allow them to make any headway even if all the combs are exposed, always provided the colony be strong, and especially if the bees are Italian.

2. Bees can protect their stores better if these stores are above the brood, so you would generally find the bees in the lower instead of in the upper story. However, they may have their brood-nest in either, or in both.

I have great respect for men of the cloth, and it would not be polite in me to dispute your word, but I feel quite sure you are mistaken in thinking that when you put the lower story on a new stand the bees "stayed and worked as if nothing had happened." I don't want to encourage you to become a gambler, but if you were one, and if I were, too. I'd count it a safe thing to stake heavy odds on it that every last held-bee returned to the old location the first time it returned from the field.

That you found no eggs in the hive a week after the introduction of the queen raises the suspicion that no queen may be present. Yet it sometimes happens that a queen may be present more than a week after introduction before the eggs can be found. Although it is generally said that carrying in pollen is the sign that a queen is present, it is not always reliable. You will find more pollen generally in a queenless colony than in a queen right one, which shows that the bees continue to accumulate pollen after they have ceased to have brood to use it up. But after a little there will be a falling off in the amount of pollen brought in, and you will see the bees of the queenless colony bringing in smaller loads, if they bring any.

Bees Killing Each Other-Remedy

I. Will bees kill each other in their own hive?

2. I had a strong colony a month and a half ago and they have almost gone to nothing. They are constantly fighting amongst themselves, and are neglecting the brood which is dead in the cells. I can gather by the pint bees that they have killed. At first I thought they were robbing, so I moved the hive about 4 miles, and I find it is still the same. Kindly tell me what is the cause and the remedy. NEW YORK.

Foul Brood in Nebraska

This is 25 miles from Hastings, Nebr. The loss of bees here last winter was about 90 percent or more. What are left pick up slowly. We are having rains now and they are doing better. We had some foul brood last summer, but I have not seen any this spring. I have insisted on all the old combs being burned, and am in hopes that it is gone for good, but that is too good to expect. J. T. KELLIE, Heartwell, Nebr. Bee-Inspector.

Spring Dwindling Causes Loss

I think this is the worst spring I ever saw for bees. My bees wintered in good shape, but April and May have been so cold and

wet that the colonies have dwindled until I have hardly any first-class colonies left. and many of them have only a pint or a quart of bees, when, at this time, they ought to have a hive full of brood and bees. Parksville, N. Y., May 24. A. W. SMITH.

A Fine Vagrant Swarm

I use Danzenbaker hives and supers. The lower supers of the extracting combs are moved above when full, and the empty ones

A HIVE WELL PROTECTED FROM HOT SUN.

put under. The colony represented is one built up from a vagrant swarm captured from a bee-tree. The bees are of a beautiful yellow and the queen keeps 20 Danzenbaker frames so full of brood that there isn't room for 10 pounds of honey in the two hive-bodies. B. G. ELERITZ.

Central Station Apiary.

A California Description

While visiting friends at Orange, I was invited to accompany Mr. L. A. Korse on one of his daily visits to his apiary just out of the city He has 150 colonies, and runs for extracted honey, as most of them do here. The swarming season is on, and many swarms have recently issued. An extra good season comes about every 5 years, when an extra large colony will produce 300 pounds of honey, and they have been known to produce even more. Mr. Korse has kept bees for many years, and keeps his apiary free from disease. California has county inspectors, and the diseases are kept under control. Illinois, my home, will be wise if they follow this examble. L. M. SELLS. Pasadena, Calif., May 21.

Journal for 1912, I will say that the honey might have come from the laurel tree; there is a small amount of it around here. prob. ably not enough to make a difference, but there is a good deal in some places, and I think I have seen it stated that laurel honey has quite disagreeable properties. THOMAS LEACH, JR.

Sunolglen, Calif., May 20.

Three Poor Years in North Central Texas

Bees have been almost a failure in north central Texas for the past 3 years, owing to drouth, I have moved part of my 300 colonies of bees to Llano county, where I have a better location for them; but a severe drouth is on there now, with prospeets anything but bright for a honey crop this present year.

This apiary is 65 miles from my present location. We have had plenty of rain here up to the present time, but we nearly always have to feed the bees in this locality up to the first of June. So, after this year, I will be located in Llano county for a time at least. L. B. SMITH.

Rescue, Tex., May 24.

Swarm Settles on Automobile

At San Bernardino, Calif., May 13, a swarm of bees flying in a wedge-shaped column caused a havoc in one of the principal streets. Automobiles and buggies collided with several thousand insects, and the occupants beat a hasty retreat. Women took refuge in stores. The swarm finally took possession of an automobile belonging to Mr. W. C. Leccombe, which was standing at the curb, and defied the efforts of the owner of the machine, who was helpless to move his car for several hours Bee-experts finally coaxed the honey-seekers into a box. Pasadena, Calif., May 21. L. M. SELLS.

Hiving Bees in a Sugar Barrel We caught a swarm of bees and placed it in a sugar barrel, just before hiving it in a standard 8-frame hive. The boys mother snapped the picture with the crowd of boys

dung with great success. Of course, it must be perfectly dry. The smoke from it is mild, and will hold fire much better than any other substance I have ever tried. And, again, it has no bad odor. Some people may be prejudiced against the use of it, but if they will take the pains to try it, they will find it to be all right. C. L. SNIDER. Mohler, Wash., June 7.

Bees Wintered Well-Prospects Good My bees have wintered fine with but few losses. They are all in 2-story hives, and I find that many have from one to 14 combs of brood, and are doing well, although I shall have to feed until alfalfa comes into bloom. as there is not much else for them to get at present. It has been cold and wet this spring, and we had snow from Christmas time until in April, with but few moderate days.

Corn planting is now on in full blast. So far crops are looking well, with a good prospect for a honey harvest. Alfalfa is nearly 2 feet high, and is doing fine.

Hutchinson, Kans., May 18.

J. J. MEASER.

Missouri Loss Heavy Also

I had a loss of about 20 percent. I have 50 colonies in good shape; they are working fine today. Prospects are fair for a honey crop if plenty of rain. Considerable white clover is just coming in bloom. It has been cold and backward here.

Avalon, Mo., May 24. F. G. ASHBAUGH.

Not a Colony Lost

My bees are in fine shape. I haven't lost a colony up to date. J. R. SCOTT. Paris, Tex., June 8.

Bees Flourishing in Ohio

Bees are doing splendidly this spring. I have increased my little apiary from 5 colonies to 10. Clover has opened in fine shape. and if the weather continues favorable we

as witnesses. The owner, Ned Berwick, of Hearst Ave., to the right of the barrel, with his hands clasped: Master John and Mr. Frohliger in the rear.

Bees are in fine shape, and ready for the honey harvest. J. C, FROHLIGER. Berkeley, Calif., April 29.

Clover Prospects Fine in New York

The clover crop in northern New York never looked better, with wet, rainy weather all through May. My bees are in poor con: dition, but are picking up on dandelion and fruit bloom. The prospects now are for a large crop of honey. J. S. DEAN.

Rensselaer Falls, N. Y., May 28.

Horse-Dung for Smoker-Fuel

I noticed an article in the last issue of the Bee Journal regarding the use of cow-dung for smoker-fuel. I have never used cowdung for this purpose, but I have used horse

will have a fair crop. Indications are good for a flow from basswood. Medina, Ohio, June 1. J. C. MOSGROVE.

Losses in New York One-Third

The winter losses are a little over onethird. Clover and other honey prospects are good. I have about 230 fairly good colonies now. OREL L. HERSHISER. Kenmore, N. Y., June 3.

Convention Notice

The annual meeting of the New Jersey Bee-Keepers' Association will be held on Friday, July 12, at the apiary of Mr. Chas. H. Root, at Red Bank, N. J. Program for the same is being prepared. E. G. CARR, Sec. and Treas.