ILLINOIS STATE BEE-KEEPEES' ASSOCIATIOX. 179 



I remember in phj^sics, when I went to school, the law of inertia says a 

 body will remain dead, at a standstill, until kicked, and the kick will 

 set it in motion, and then it will stay in motion until it stops. 



It is most wonderful law, and as long as the laws of nature apply 

 everywhere alike, we may as well extend it to the bee-keepers— The 

 bee-keepers will stay quiet until kicked and then they will set the thing 

 in motion until stopped. The only trouble with this law of inertia 

 with bee-keepers is this — so far we didn't get kicked. 



There is no doubt in my mind that the desire for a larger and 

 better production of honey exists among bee-keepers. Now how are 

 we going to bring them to it? I said at first, we will have to modernize 

 our equipment. 



Ladies and gentlmen if j'ou come to a Bee-keepers' Convention 

 and ask this one and that one about his yard and bee-house and bee- 

 cellar and equipment, and just listen, don't say anything, he tells 

 you the most wonderful things he has — what a wonderful apiary — 

 such wonderful . bees — such wonderful hives, and bee-houses and 

 outfit — such a wonderful cellar. 



Sometime take a day or two off and go down and see their j'ard; 

 you will find out that they are bragging and their description will 

 certainly be discounted 50 per cent and in some cases 90 per cent; 

 in other words, when it comes to a modern equipment or modernized 

 production of honey, with modern tools and means — some bee-keepers 

 are in the same condition as the first English railroad. There is as 

 much difference Ijetween that and the modern locomotive that pulls 

 100 cars to-day; and so it is there is as much difference between the 

 careless, negligent bee-keeper. We have to settle down to modern, 

 standard hives, modern equipment, wire frames, with full foundation, 

 full sections in the comb, perfect bee cellars for wintering, perfect 

 extracting outfit, knowledge of the s\^stem and methods of modern 

 bee-keeping. 



I made a little experiment in the University of Minnesota. Out 

 of 170 people sitting in a room like this, just to satisfy myself, 1 asked 

 them how many know the right way of hiving a swarm? I forget 

 exactly how many there were; I think about a dozen; I called on one 

 of those dozen to describe it and he could not do it right. 



I told of the system of hiving a swarm of bees twice in the school, 

 and after I told it twice a student could not repeat it correctly; it is so 

 hard and so difficult to catch on to the right way of keeping bees that 

 it takes drilling and drilling and demonstration without end before the 

 dull minds of bee-keepers of the country will grasp the fundamentals 

 of bee-keeping. What use are our books of instruction on bee-keeping 

 when the thick covered mind of bee-keepers cannot be penetrated 

 by the clear facts and understanding of the underljdng principles? 

 The ignorance of the principal phases of bee-keeping is so great that 

 the bee-keeper who has a perfect knowledge of bees to-day is the sad 

 exception; I say sad exception because he is the loser. 



Then in this new era of bee-keeping, ladies and gentlemen, we have 

 to fight this terrible disease of foul brood which is threatening to-day 

 to destroy the industry of bee-keeping in several of the very important 

 states, which in spite of the efforts we are making is spreading just 



