Bee Keeping By The Times Bee Master J Cumming

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1864 edition. Excerpt: ... LETTERS FROM CORRESPONDENTS, ADDRESSED TO "THE TIMES" BEE-MASTER. HAVE selected a few of the countless letters addressed to me by those who read my letters in The Times, and I have appended such replies as seemed to me expedient. I have not printed several anonymous and very acrimonious letters. One writer of two anonymous letters says, his connection with the press is very great, and that in the Saturday Review and other periodicals he will write " scorching critiques;" that he will warn the publishers that they will earn a loss; and that he will influence The Times to receive no more communications. One letter has the post-mark "Ampthill;" but I suppose its real date ought to be Colney Hatch or Hanwell. I cannot otherwise explain the extraordinary language. But I am able to add, that the letters of the Beemaster in The Times have done good service; and I hope this little work will survive these threats of one or two irritable hornets. I once thought quarrels and angry controversies were confined to ecclesiastical denominations--churches and chapels. But I have learned what I did not expect, that not a few apiarians so devoutly believe each his own patent hive to be the only way to a honey harvest, that if you do not notice it, you are denounced as ignorant of the progress of science, and if you disapprove of it, you must know nothing about bees. I hope they will all improve in temper as they advance in experience, and agree to differ while they cease to quarrel. I have made up my mind on two or three subjects, from thought and reading, and personal observation; and though open to argument, evidence, and facts, I am not in the least to be moved by intemperate criticism or illnatured ridicule. August 1st. The "Bee-master" is respectfully...

"Bee-Keeping by 'The Times' Bee-Keeper" is a vintage handbook on the management of bees and beehives. Written as a result of the popularity of the author's articles published in "The Times" newspaper, this volume aims to outline the basic principles of keeping bees for the amateur or layman. This profusely illustrated handbook is highly recommended for modern readers with a practical interest in bee-keeping, and it is not to be missed by collectors of vintage bee-keeping literature. Contents include: "Introduction", "Bee-keeping Money-making", "Bee-keeping a Source of Enjoyment", "How to Begin Bee-keeping", "The Bee-house, and How to Place It", "Hives and Bee-boxes", "How to Get Bees", "The Inmates of the Hives", "Bee Enemies", "The Bee-master's Letters to "The Times", "Bee Things in General", etc. Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing this book now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction on bee-keeping.

First published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Beekeeping is a sixteen-billion-dollar-a-year business. But the invaluable honey bee now faces severe threats from diseases, mites, pesticides, and overwork, not to mention the mysterious Colony Collapse Disorder, which causes seemingly healthy bees to abandon their hives en masse, never to return. In The Quest for the Perfect Hive, entomologist Gene Kritsky offers a concise, beautifully illustrated history of beekeeping, tracing the evolution of hive design from ancient Egypt to the present. Not simply a descriptive account, the book suggests that beekeeping's long history may in fact contain clues to help beekeepers fight the decline in honey bee numbers. Kritsky guides us through the progression from early mud-based horizontal hives to the ascent of the simple straw skep (the inverted basket which has been in use for over 1,500 years), from hive design's Golden Age in Victorian England up through the present. He discusses what worked, what did not, and what we have forgotten about past hives that might help counter the menace to beekeeping today. Indeed, while we have sequenced the honey bee genome and advanced our knowledge of the insects themselves, we still keep our bees in hives that have changed little during the past century. If beekeeping is to survive, Kritsky argues, we must start inventing again. We must find the perfect hive for our times. For thousands of years, the honey bee has been a vital part of human culture. The Quest for the Perfect Hive not only offers a colorful account of this long history, but also provides a guide for ensuring its continuation into the future.