183 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mak. 1. 



We have received a vigorous protest from 

 Mr. Thaddeus Smith, an old contributor and 

 subscriber, against the idea of petitioning Con- 

 gress to order an appropriation for printing 100,- 

 000 copies of Benton's new book, as proposed by 

 Hon. Geo. E. Hilton. The protest is well worded, 

 and sound in argument; and before bee-keepers 

 go too far, perhaps they had better wait until 

 they see his article. Unfortunately it comes 

 too late for this issue, but it will appear March 

 15. 



We have excellent pure-food laws in this 

 State; and a recent decision from the Ohio Su- 

 preme Court sustains them on every point. It 

 is a misdemeanor, not only to adulterate, but to 

 sell foods in the State, even though adulterated 

 in another State; and it makes no difference 

 whether the vender knows of the adulteration 

 of the product or not. The State does not have 

 to prove it, and he is liable just the same. The 

 recent decision means at least $20,000 to the 

 State annually. Our food-inspecto rs are active 

 and alert, and are making the sale of adulterat - 

 ed food-stufls a dangerous business. ^T" 



During the past few days we have received 

 several complaints against F.I. Sage & Sons, 

 commission merchants, of New York. We had 

 decided to drop their advertisemeni until these 

 matters were adjusted, when we received no- 

 tice to the effect that the firm had failed. 

 Their card is out now of course. The only 

 reason we speak of it now is to prevent fur- 

 ther consignments from going to their address. 

 Of course any honey sent on commission is the 

 property of the shipper, and can be by hira re- 

 plevined. F. I. Sage A: Sons, were an old firm 

 in whom we had always placed confidence, and 

 we regret matters have taken the turn that 

 they have. 



In our last issue, page 137, in a footnote just 

 following the statements of the three bee-hive 

 manufacturers I said, "Besides ourselves I be- 

 lieve the three firms here represented are the 

 only ones in the country who manufacture a 

 full line of bee-hive material so far as wood- 

 work is concerned." In saying this I did an 

 injustice to an old well-known advenisi'r, E. 

 Kretchmer, of Red Oak, Iowa. By his card in 

 this issue it will be seen that he is well equip- 

 ped for manufacturing every thing in the line 

 of bee-goods. I don't know how I overlooked 

 him; but by good rights I should have included 

 him in the list of those "who manufacture a 

 full line of bee-hive material." As in the case 

 of the other three, I have asked him to make a 

 similar statement of his busines s, which I shall 

 be glad to publish later with his photograph. 



We have on hand several good articles in 

 type which have been crowded out of this and 

 the previous number for lack of room. I have 

 been in hopes we could "catch up " with our 

 space; but as I see no immediate prospect of it 

 now, we shall have to add extra pages next 

 issue to take them in. I also have more good 

 articles in manuscript which I fear will never 

 even get into type, for the reason that the rule 

 of the " survival of the fittest " will make some 

 of them give room to something perhaps a little 

 better or more seasonable. The editorial fan- 

 ning-mill may not always do a good job of 

 sifting; but when it gets out of gear, kindly 

 call the editor's attention and he will see if it 

 can be fixed. 



FOUNDATION BY THE OLD PROCESS OF DIPPING, 



FIVE TIMES MORE LIABLE TO STRETCH 



IN THE HIVE THAN THE NEW 



WEED PROCESS. 



Just as soon as we got the new Weed process 

 of making foundation nicely under way, we sent 

 Mr. O. O. Poppleton, of Stewart, Fla., sample 

 sheets of the product, and sample sheets of the 

 old foundation, same weights and size. These 

 he was to test in the apiary as soon as the 

 weather would permit, to determine the relative 

 sag or stretch of the two kinds of foundation in 

 the hive. After he had made his first tests, he 

 wrote us that the difference was slightly in 

 favor of the new process; but the weather was 

 hardly suitable to arrive at satisfactory results. 

 A month or so later we heard from him again, 

 under date of Feb. 19, giving more exhaustive 

 experiments, the result of which showed that 

 the sag by the old process, or dipped founda- 

 tion, he had been trying, was nearly five times 

 greater than by the new process. 



Mr. Poppleton, cautious as he is, desires to 

 test the matter further, when the weather Is 

 hotter, and will report again. He adds: "It 

 looks as though your claim, that the new 

 method gives extra toughness to the wax, is 

 correct." Any one who works the two kinds, 

 the new and the old, in his hands can readily 

 see the difference; and it is not surprising at all 

 that the bees should discover the marked dif- 

 ference in favor of the new foundation. Inci- 

 dentally it may be remarked that the bees can 

 work this wax in a much cooler temperature 

 than the old dipped product. 



SYRUP BY THE COLD PROCESS VERSUS THAT BY 

 THE OLD WAY. 



Skylark, in another column, calls attention 

 to the difference of opinion between Dr. Miller 

 and Mr. Elwood regarding syrup for feeding 

 made by using heat, versus that made by the 

 cold process, as was spoken of in Gleanings 

 some time last fall. Both of these bee-keepers 

 are practical men; and when two such doctors 

 disagree, who shall decide ? 



Last winter, and so far this winter, we tried, 



