The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1909-08-18
BEE FARM IN CITY
Unique Apiary Maintained by
Resident Of Reading, Pa.
csrret and its Top Partition Aro Rec
oonized BY the Busy Honey
Mskees Their Only
Proper Quarters.

Reading. Pa.-This city has bee
farm SO situated that 99 rer cent Of
the people in that part OF town even
do not know OF It's presence. TO the
bnsv bees all roads seem to lead 10
this place. for they can fly SO feet up
in the air and still be able 10 reacn
their home without coming in contact
with humanity. At the foot OF Never
sink mountain, in the northwestern
section of the city. lives julius Wag-
ner. On the roof of his house are
many bee hives. Under the window
slIls are a number Of holes leading TO
garret room, where there are many
more hives and where millions Of busy
little workers come and go day by day'
bringing each time little honey from
some clover field, some tree that ls IN
hloom or from other sources, tnus
helping julius Wagner to conduct the
most successful and novel apiary In
Berks county.
Mr.. Wagner says the swarming Of
bees is unnecessary If the bee keeper
properly cares for them. You must
xeep these busiest Of little laborcrs
nroyided with lots OF work. The mo
ment they find they have nothing %
do. and their little home-like cells sre
filed with honey. they get lazy, ana
swarming will follow. II you remove
their honey when the combs are Just
about filled they will Immediately go
u work and refill them and not think
of swarming.
| Without queen a swarm OF oees
would be extinct in short time. a
good queen will lay 5000 eggs each
day. A queens life IL usually about
Ave wears. and in this time II Is esti
mated that she will produce 25.OOO,oOc
eggs. each of which may mature into
a bee.
The queen bees are quite valuable
and sell from 81 to SIS each. for queer
bees are scarce. Queen bees are II
great demand and are shipped to al
, parts of the world. In shipping queer
bees by mail IN little wooden ant
) wire box they must be accompanies
} by a retinue Of servants. A queel
! bees travelling car Is little box. wei
supplied with candy. made OF hone
+ and powdered sugar. and her compar
v ions usually number from ten I
+ twenty-five, according to the distanc
z to be travelled When a journey
y made through the States ten or fiftee
i win be SUFFICIENT, but when tri
abroad Is proposed the queen mus
r have twenty-five or thirty-hve ser
s ants to wait upon her. Successf'
e Journeys In these little palaces hav
II been made by the most expensi'
II bees. and have lasted nearly thrt
II weeks.
II Mr.. Wagner's little workers geners
ss ly keep busy for about forty-one day
sr when their tiny wings get tired al
ID they gradually die of.
Mr.. Wagner, by careful breeding
the Italian bees, has been successf
in acquiring perfect queens. He d
had colonies that produced In one Sc
- son as much as 300 pounds Of hone
y. Occasionally he gets poor worke
4 which average only forty or nj
- mounds to the hive. He Is very care
10 that no other kinds of bees get mix
ts with his italian colonies. He can I
he feet strangers at once, and when I.
~. finds one it is promptly killed. !
so Italian bees are easily distinguish
by the brightness Of their colors.