674 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. 1. 



in one or llit; other with the divided space. 

 Our extracting-snpers are iioi made for brood- 

 chambers, and are not intended for that pur- 

 pose. 



EIGHT VERSUS TEN FRAMES. 



There is. just one point I want to emphasize 

 again in regard to this discussion. Suppose we 

 admit, for tlie time being that large hives are 

 better than small ones. I for one would not 

 essay to lift any thing heavier than the 

 eight-framd hive when it is full of honey. I 

 have " broken ray back " in lifting such full of 

 honey as it is, und I ni'ver want to handle 

 larger brood- chambers. While some people 

 may be strong enough to lift and handle ten 

 and twelves ail in one story. I am sure life is too 

 short for me to attempt anything of the kind 

 so long as two eights aci-omplish the same re- 

 sult with the (to me) indispensible advantage 

 of being able to handle them one at a time. 



Why, when we essayed to carry those single- 

 story eight- frame (full depth) full of honey to 

 the wagon it was all two men could do comfort- 

 ably, and not very comfortably either, you 

 would say, if you could have seen them screw 

 up their faces. 



HUMBUGS AND SWINDLES. 



LOOK OUT FOR THEM; HOW AN HONEST BEE- 

 KEEPER WAS SWINDLED. 



If everybody could read the sad stories that 

 come to us about the failure of the honey crop, 

 the drouth, floods, and accidents of various 

 kinds, and the stories of the expense and trouble 

 that oftentimes are undergone in getting only a 

 small crop, they would surely feel as I do — 

 that, when the bee-keeper once gets a crop of 

 honey, he should be exceedingly careful not to 

 let it slip through his fingers and fall into 

 the hands of swindlers. The Humbug and 

 Swindle department has been, I believe, rather 

 laid on the shelf of late, especially where it 

 concerns bee-keepers and the iioney business; 

 but I am feeling so well now I think I will roll 

 up my sleeves and dare them — nay, I will do 

 more than that; I will hunt them out of their 

 holes, and hold them up to public gaze; and if 

 I can get them behind pri -on- walls I shall feel 

 happier still, even if it does cost me some mon- 

 ey. As an illustration, I am going to give you 

 a little story at full length. 



HOW A BEE-KEEPER LOST JtiV.SO WORTH OF HONEY. 



Friend Boi.t:— Some days ag-o I wrote your firm 

 that I had sold some honey, and that the parties 

 would send me the money on the 3d of July, when I 

 would remit to yoa, etc. I waited on them until the 

 13th, and in the mean time wrote them for the mon- 

 ey, $67.80. I could hear no more from them. On the 

 13th I went to Memphis, having become uneasy 

 about It. i inclose you one of their letter-heads : 



A. M. McLEOD & CO.. 



Manufacturers of and Dealers in 

 ALL KINDS OF FANCY PICKLES. 



Wholesale Only. 

 22 Peyton Ave. 



Condiments, 

 Honey, Jellies, etc. 



Memphis, Ttnn., 189 



When I found the place there was no business 

 house of any kind tliere— onlj' a very small cottage. 



I calUd for A. M. McLeod, or some one of the firm, 

 but atj old grey-lu-aded lady came to the door and 

 informed me that A. M. McLeod was out somewliert% 

 and wiiuld not be in, probably. Iitfore night. I tlien 

 learned from a near- by grocer that 1 would prob- 

 ably find dim at No. 148 jolinson Ave. I went and 

 ft)und a couple of young men wiio wire very reluc- 

 tant about giving me any information whatever; 

 said he was not tliero. They knew nothing of Mr. 

 McLeod's business. After much time and expense 

 I was told to go at once to 14^ Jolinson Ave., ai:d I 

 would tind McLeod tltere. whicli I did. He coolly in- 

 formed me that he liad gone out of business and 

 had niitliing to pay me with; tliat he was then at 

 work for that firm on i'ommisaii))!. 1 asked him 

 wliat he had done with my lioney. He said he had 

 .sold all of it; that a portion was sold on credit, and 

 ho had not been able to collect it. 1 asked what he 

 had done with the money he had taken in, and his 

 answer was that lie had an old mother- to support, 

 arid had to live off the money taken in for the hon- 

 ey. I showed him his letteVliead and letters, and 

 asked if he did not know he was a fraud, and was as 

 good as sti.'aliug that amount, it67.80, from me. To 

 cut tlie matter short, 1 am beat out of the whole 

 amount, anil have no hope of ever getting a dollar 

 of it. The other fellows who are in the deal with 

 McLeod are named Greenwood. When I ;isked Mc- 

 Leod who were the " Co " part of his concern he cool- 

 ly said tliere was no company— that he had put the 

 "Co." to it to make it look bigger. I tliink they 

 will drop the tlrm name of McLeod & Co., and use 

 that of another, probably that of the Memphis 

 Pickling and Caiuiing Co., as I saw some honey put 

 up with labels of that sort that I feel sure was some 

 of my honey. K. J. Mathews. 



Rosedale, Miss., July 20. 



We find the above firm quoted both in Dun 

 and Bradstreet. One of them gives the capital 

 as " very moderate." and the other quotes 

 blank. We promptly notified both in regard to 

 this transaction, and have received their 

 thanks. 



One big point comes out here sharp and clear: 

 Do not send honey to anybody until you have 

 found out from some bank or otherwise that 

 they are reliable parties. What they them- 

 selves write to you iti regard to their standing, 

 business, etc.. is no evidence at all unless they 

 give references to somebody who is known. 

 The fact that they have a letter-head goes a 

 very little way — may be like the case above — 

 only a little cottage out in the suburbs— no 

 company, no capital — nothing but a miserable 

 thieving rascal at the bottom of it all. Of 

 course, we wrote to McLeod iv Co.. telling them 

 what we should do unless they made some sat- 

 isfactory arrangement at once with friend Mat- 

 thews. He writes us below 



T have never heard any thing more from a. lvi. xuc- 

 Leod. I am almost positive that they are still in 

 the swindle under the name of The Memphis Pickle 

 and Preserve Co. I have seen a letter-head of this 

 company at 118 Johnson Ave. Memphis. There is 

 where I found McLeod, and I am sure I there saw 

 some of my honey he swindled me out of, and told 

 them so. I would warn all honey-producers to have 

 nothing to do with them. Thej' ordered a barrel of 

 honey from me a few days ago, saying the.v wanted 

 the same kind I had sold to McLeod & Co. I can as- 

 sure you I did not send it. , K. J. M.^thews. G 

 c Rosedale, Miss., Aug. 16, 



We can find so such institution as the Mem- 

 phis Pickle and Preserve Co. quoted at all; so 

 our friend's surmise is probably correct. Now. 

 friends, we are unacquainted with the laws of 

 the State of Tennessee;' but if any reader of 

 Gleanings in that State will get competent 

 legal advice as to how to proceed, we will have 

 McLeod where he ought to have been long ago, 

 and furnish the money to do it. No wonder 

 they wanted some more honey like that which 

 he sold (?) to INIcLeod tV: Co. If this thing is not 

 stopped, all the thieves and pickpockets in the 

 land will be starting a pickle and honey busi- 

 ness. — A. I. R. 



