Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1858-02-05
The Honey 3ss.
ETBH PoA THA oRIo FAaunR, . ?. KI1ux1B
PsoF. or cLnVnLAED maDicAL coLLAsa.,.--,. !.

! nae ISoI yet dPpeureu mere. 1nc L1FtneIa
| then, in many instances, possessed ons
hundred or more colonies, and German o!
my acquaintance numbered his at over two
| hundred.
| Abou, the year 1928, frst in the West,
detected the moth, among stock Of bees in
| Mercer county, Pennsy lvania, and within
two years after, il had become common
throughout the State of Ohio. There ars
some reasons to suppose it may have sp
proached the southern sections of our State,
several years earlier.
Anterior to its introduction, little pains
were required to insure SUCCESS in cnlfiyat-
ing bees. Hives were constructed after oDs
Of three models, to-wit:- square or oblong
box, transverse section of a hollow tree,
or conical basket, constructed of straw, Of
the capacity of from one 10 two bushels. Ia
those halcyon days of bee raising, swaruls
often came out earlier, and in larger num-
bers than in recent times. It was no upu-
sual occurrence for u spring swarm to Gil
the hive with stores and young brood So
rapidly as To allow it, also, to throw off u
swarm sufficiently early for the latter To
accumulate abundance of su,tentnce before
the close of the season.
With the debut of the moth tho health.
.vigor, ami successful efforts Of our stocks
seem to have been impaired |; ordinary api.
arans now find it diff cult to keep good their
numbers from year to year
Another pest, equally extensive, and per-
haps still more destructive to our favor!ta
insect, followed the progress Of the bee
| moth, viz: the inventors and peddiers of
patent bee hives. Not year has elapsed
within half century, in which public atten-
tion has not been urgently solicited to some
Improvement which was certain 10 counter
act the moth, and restore bee cultivation to
its primitive success. Such have been tho
PROMISES held out to the community in ev-
cry new project, and all, Till recently, have
turned out worse than useless.
Each one has embraced the plan, in some
form. Of annually robbng the stock CT the
newly made comb and honey, and leaving
the old to become foul and impaired, and
this last to be placed beyond the inspection
Of the apiaraD; rs consequence, il soon
becomes concrete with age, and recepta-
Gle for worms. Every such plan must, Of
Course, run counter to the habits oe the bee.
and the strongest colony, under It's applica-
ton, will be destroyed in tew years time.
After fifty years experience with various
patent and improved hives, | at length came
to the conclusion, that they were all worth
| less | then determined to return TO the
use of the o!d-fashioned box hive, withou,
any drawer, or appendage whatever, aud
accordingly contracted with a joiner for q
supply, constructed after that model.
On the first day of August, of the present
year, having been vexed by calls and hin
drances from a class of individuals, who
seem not TO know the value of time to a
business man, | at length escaped to my
library, and resumed my studies; not, how
ever, in u mood that predisposed me to tha
production of any excess of good nature.
At this juncture of time and constituencies.
Mr.. Kirkpatrick, OF Ihe Ohio Farmer, en-
tered my sanctum and introduced Mr. OTIS,
! of Wisconsin, with a brief statement that
Mr. Otis was proprietor of the Rev. Mr.
Langstroths improved hive, and method Of
managing the honey bee. What was ths
exact condition of my features on hearing
this announcement. at this particular mo-
ment, | cannot describe, but Mr.. Otis was
as kind and amiable as one could wish, and
his demeanor withal, " was" as Gen. Jack
SON said of Nick BidJle, as calm as sum-
mer sea-" The following laconic dialogue
eDsued:
Mr. Otis. Il understand you are famiiiar
with the honey bee!
DIR. Kirtland.-I know something Of it.
Mr.. OIL wish to make you acquainted
with the great Improvements of Mr.. Lang
stroth, in the hive, and the management OF
the honey bee.
DIR. K.-I look upon all such professed
improvements as impositions. What dOes
he profess to accomplish!
| Mr.. O.--To place both the bees and
their combs at the entire control of the api-
arian, SO that he may, at any time, remove
all, or any portion of both, examine their
! condition, free them from depredators, or
/ other injurious agents, aud then return them
to the same, another hive, without the
least disturbance, or injury, to either the
/ bees or their combs. When it is desirable.
! he will also prevent natural swarming, and
! will create artificial swarms to almost any
extent required. BY these means he is
always able TO keep his colonies healthy
and vigorous, and to obtain rapid
increase of stock, and a large surplus
OF honey.
DIR. K.--Ail this may be theoretically
possible, yet | should like to meet with tbs
person who could accomplish it.
Mr.. OIL will do it to your full satsfae-
,ion, provided you will allow me to transfer
one of your old colonies into one Of my
new hives.
DR. K.-(Bo,h clipping their words and
sentences rather short)--I have not conf
dence enough, sir, in You: plan, to allow
you to experiment on one of my colonies.
Mr. OFF you have not, will you do me
the favor to ride with me to Mr.. Siurtevant's.
in East Cleveland, where will demonstrate
to your conviction and satisfaction, the per-
feet practicabili;y of my propositions.
The visit was made. 1 there saw. on an
extensive scale, all accomplished which he
proposed. / could tyuthfuliy say, in the
language Of the Ethiopian Queen, {" the haL
had not been t,id."
During the next three succeeding days, I
gladly consented TO have him operate in
driving the stocks from cne Of Affleck's
Patent Hives, and two of those expensive
nuisances, called Bee PalIces,'' and
transferring them, with the valuable Por-
tious of their brood comb, to an equal
number of Langstroth's hives. The fret
Of these had not swarmed in two years, and
the workers had long since ceased to nani-
fest any industry. The other two had never
sent off swarms; all of their hives wers
filled with foul collections of black and filthy
comb, canGied honey, concrete bee-bread.
an accumulation OF oocoons, and larve Of
the moth. Within tweuty-four hours each
colony became reconciled to its new tene
ment, and commenced labor with far greater
activity than the inhabitants Of any Of my