The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-07-25
FALSE RIVER. Pointe Coupee,
July Is, 1875.
Editor of the Bulletin

Editor OF the Bulletin
Ever since the terrible boulecersen1eat of South
ern institutions and civilization occasioned by the
war, the cry ON all SIDES has been: "The
Southern people are too indolent to adapt them
selves to their changed circumstances and to
deyelope the vast resources OF their country
So often and from so many sources does this
come that we ourselves would almost be brought
pies that we see around us of energy that tot &
under great di advantages and will not be
thwarted by great Obstacles.
should like to call your attention and that OF
your readers to one of these examples, which
has interested me greatly during my visit to this
beautiful and hosptabe region. / refer to bee
culture as carried on by Mr.. Chas. Parlange, OF
this parish, who, am Informed, has the largest
and most successful apiary in the South. A few
years ago, while preparing himself for the bar,
| at which he has made marked success and
taken high stani, Mr.. Parlapge became in
terested in the subject OF bee culture. and having
read the excellent works OF Quinby and other
apiculturlsts Of the North, he set to work IN
aided to establish an apiary. Commencing with
| q t W colonies Of native back bees, such as
we have all seen in clumsy bee gums in
old fashioned gardens, he made hives OF
approved modern style, obtained Italian queens
| from the North and went to work to Italianze
and increase his colonies wi b such success that
| his apiary now numbers more than one hundred
and seventy five hives, some OF these hives hav-
ing the streng b OF three colonies. All OF this
WAS ACCOMPLISHED NIuoub q Gay Inter- upClOu pl
his studies, or, afterwards, OF his professional
duties.
The hives are Of very simple construction, con-
sisting Of square boxes placed one above the
other without partitions. In each box there are
placed, at regular intervals, light wooden frames,
In which the bees build their combs. These
combs the Italian bees fill completely in four
days. When full, the frames containing the
combs are taken out and toe bees brushed of
with feather. The frames are then placed in
<la xtroo xuhy rh ota of fra unrk
of wire in which the comb-frames fit. This wire
framework is enclosed in q kind of wooden cask,
and is made to revoive rapidly by means OF a
crank. Thus the honey is thrown out of the cells
by centrifugal power, and. flowing through q
strainer in the bottom Of the cask, comes out as
pure and clear as Observation-Disclosures by dead
bees or flakes of wax which made the honey OF
former times rather doubtful mixture. The
honey is then ready to be put in barrels and sent
to market. The combs are taken out of the eX-
tractor empty and unbroken and placed back in
the hives; they are filed again in four days. Some
of Mr.. Parlanges hives yield as much as six and
one-har gallons every four days, and it now re-
quires the whole time of a man and two boys to
extract the hives as fast as they are filled.
The extraction is now going on at the rate OF
one barrel of honey day, and his "crop" this
season will probably be the largest east OF Cali
fornia the great apiaries in the North having
fallen behind, owing to unpropitious seasons.
And this leads me to cali attention to the adj
vantages that the South has for bee culture over
the North and West The summers are longer,
so that the extracting seasons lasts from April to
October. The winters are lees severe and the
bees are never frozen, as is sometimes the case
in the North. And lastly, the honey bearing
trees and plants of this section are OF the richest
| variety and quite ine1haustible.
| The question has been asked: "What is to be
done with all this honey?" The answer is that
there are good markets for it both 10 New York
and Liverpool, and, it is said, it may be readily
and profitaby converted into brandy of excellent
quality. Yours truly, HYMETTUs.