1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



233 



"Sunny Southlanders " didn't have much to 

 say, but all closed up to the fireplace. 



I remember you and your mother well, from 

 seeing you at the World's Fair convention. It 

 struck me you were "mother herself" in looks, 

 oiitsUle and inside. C. Theilman. 



Theilmanton, Minn., Feb. 8. 



[This, as our readers will see, was forwarded 

 to A. I. R. himself, who replies. — E. R.] 



Many thanks, good friend T., for your time- 

 ly caution; but 1 must think you overestimate 

 the dangei'. If you read my notes carefullyyou 

 will see I mentioned the poor dwellings with 

 wind blowing under the floors, etc. Surely no 

 one will think of "pulling up stakes" and 

 rushing down to "Dixie" on account of the 

 pen-{)icture I gave Huber. It was mostly to 

 contrast the difference between Dixie, and 

 snow a foot depp and zero, that I wrote\ \t. 

 Suppose I should, in my travels anywhere (say 

 through Minnesota, for instance) write up all 

 the disagreeable things, tell i,f the tumble-down 

 buildings, deserted farms, untimely frosts and 

 drouths, etc. Would anybody want to read 

 such "travels"? and would it do any good? 

 Even our pleasant town of Medina, where I 

 have lived, grown, and prospered, is often called 

 the "meanest place on earth:"' "fntining 

 doesn't pay," and all kinds of business are 

 "overdone," to people who always wear that 

 kind of "spectacles." Now. Florida is much 

 like Medina, unless you look for its bright side, 

 and take in its rcdfcwiijig features. There are 

 lots of tumble-down hotises. slipshod gardening, 

 and dilapidated orange-groves. By the way. a 

 neglected orange-grove is about as sorry a look- 

 ing place as one can well imagine. Perhaps there 

 never was a time more unfavorable for writing 

 up Florida than this very winter I have chosen: 

 but you see by my notes I still find a world full 

 of interesting things — a world full. too. of op- 

 portunities to go to work and get good pay for 

 your work. Back of it all. I see continually 

 the hand of the unseen Ood, the hand of the 

 living Father. 



TJinrsdny Feb. 7.— During the afternoon at 

 GitTord, Florida, the thermometer stood at 72°. 

 Next morninsr at sunrise it was down to 22° — 

 a fall of fifty degrees in 12 hours ! The greater 

 part of fill the garden stuff in the State was 

 killed outright, the second time, in just one 

 winter. People had just begun to recover, and 

 to get courage, since their December losses, and 

 now here we are acrain. I say 7ve for I feel as 

 if I were a part of Florida now. Shall I write 

 this up as a part of the bad features of Florida? 

 Of course, it indicates that noiv and then* we 

 must expect disasters down here. But, dear 

 friends, crops fail and losses occur everyivhere. 



Since I have been a Christian mv disposition 

 is to see sunshine, even through black clouds; 

 and mv travels in any land will take in natu- 

 rally the sunny features; but I think that, if 

 yon look caref^uUy, you will find I have faith- 

 fully mentioned, also, most of the unpleasant 

 things. — A. I. R. 



HOME AGAIN. 



Here I am, March 13th, back again in the 

 land of mud, dampness, and frost. Florida is 

 gone — gone in a brief 48 hours; gone with its 

 clean sand and sunshine; gone like a bright 

 dream. I have traveled through it something 

 like 1.500 miles, and didn't find mud enough to 

 scarcely need to brush off my pant-legs once. 

 Mrs. Root will tell you \t must he a wonderful- 

 ly cZean place. Triie; but you can't get any 



* I believe the Weather Bureau will bear me out 

 in the assertion tliat no such winter has occurred 

 here before in fifty years.— A. I. R. 



crops down there like those here on our Medina 

 clay, without a tremendous sight of fertilizers 

 of some kind, and you have to keep putting 

 on the fertilizers for every crop you raise. 



After leaving the East Coast I visited in suc- 

 cession Sandford. Oakland, Tarpon Springs, 

 St. Petersburg. Manatee. Tampa, Thonotosas- 

 sa. Lakeland, Bowling Green, Avon Park. Kis- 

 singen Springs, Homeland. Bartow, Punta 

 Gorda. Fort Myers, Orlando. Tavares. Mt. Dora, 

 Blue Springs. Orange City, Lake Helen, Palat- 

 ka, Lake City, and Green Cove Springs. The 

 only place where I found orange-trees full of 

 foliage, fruit, and blossoms, was at Ft. Myers; 

 and T made in that vicinity a still bigger "find" 

 for bee-keepers — at least, I consider it so. You 

 have all doubtless noticed what our good vet- 

 eran friend Poppleton has to say about the de- 

 struction of the black mangrove on the East 

 Coast. Well, imagine my feelings when the 

 men who ran the steamer told me the rank 

 vegetation which covers the numberless islands 

 on Charlotte Harbor was black mangrove, and 

 almost nothing else. As nearly as 1 can learn, 

 but few bee- keepers have ever located on or 

 near these islands; but I am told the woods is 

 so full of wild honey it is brought in in large 

 quantities. W^e shall at once open up corres- 

 pondence with all the bee-keepers we can find 

 in that vicinity. Here seems to be a chance 

 for the migratory brethren. This point is so 

 far south, the mangrove seems to be entirely 

 unharmed. My Florida note* will, in full, go 

 through several months yet I shall be glad to 

 answer any questions that my notes do not an- 

 swer. 



KIND WORDS FROM ODR CUSTOMERS. 



Tlie much-talked of Crane smoker is received, and 

 was thoroughly tested, which resulted in proving 

 all that is claimed f(ir this pride of the apiary. 



Reinersvile, O., Feb. 3"). J. A. Golden. 



Order No. 35.286, you shipped Feb. 8. I received 

 Feb. 28. .5 boxes. 'I'liey are in good shape. The 

 foundation is very nice, good color— a groat deal bet- 

 ter quality than I have been using. Tlie freight 

 was very low - 78 cents. I shall put the hives to- 

 gether next week, then I will write you how I like 

 them. Wm. R. Page. 



Avon, N. Y., March 1. 



BEST LOT OF BEK-FIXTURES HE EVER HAD. 



Goods came to hand all righ*-. Some of the boxes 

 were split pretly badly, and the lamp was broken; 

 but I must say they were the best lotof bee-tlxtures 

 I ever had. Everything fit nicely, lam 67 years 

 old, and have had bees since I was a boy. 



Cline, Tex., Feb. 2 W. H. Beaslet. 



We have sent A. 1. Root one of the latest improv- 

 ed queen-traps. Those wlio purchase traps of him 

 the coming season will get the most complete 

 queen-trap ever used. Tlie new trap will soon be 

 illustrated and described in Gleanings. 



A. I. Root has sold more of our drone-and-queen 

 traps than any other firm. We predict tha^ in the 

 near future, tlie Root's will be about all the bee-sup- 

 ply dealers in the country. Medina will be the head 

 center, and their sunplies will be found on sale in 

 every State in the Union . They now have a branch 

 supply office in tlio Stale of Florida. 



"Quality, not cheapness," is their new motto. 

 That has the right ring to it. Success for Bro. Root 

 was establislied years ago. — American Apicultiaiat. 



THAT CAR OF BEE-GOODS, AND HOW THEY PLEASE. 



The car of bee-keepers' supplies has arrived, and 

 is unloaded. I have not had a chance to check up 

 ail the small articles; but so far as i have ciiecked, 

 every thing is O. K. The hives and sections are 

 even nicer, if any tiling, than the last car was, and 

 we are all deliglited with the "bee notions." as we 

 call them. I think yi u can count on an order for 

 the next car of goods 1 need. W. O. "Victor. 



Wharton, Tex., Mar. 8. 



