492 



GLEANINGS IN BEK CULTURE. 



June 1 



The Breeding of Bees. 



Also Something about the Review's Latest Correspondent. 



Little has been done in the scientific breeding of 

 bees, compared to what has been done in the breed- 

 ing of other domestic stock. Some of us have bred 

 our queens from those queens whose colonies have 

 given the best results. So far, so good; but regarding 

 the effects of inbreeding or outcrossing, most of us 

 are wofuUy ignorant. This whole question of hered- 

 ity, the laws of breeding, etc., is a broad one, but the 

 Bee-keepers' Review is going to tackle it; and, by the 

 way, it has been fortunate enough, at the very outset, 

 to secure the services of a very competent man — Mr. 

 Frederick B. Simpson, of Cuba, N. Y. 



I must beg Mr. Simpson's pardon for what I am 

 about to say, for praising him to his face, so to 

 speak, but, as a new-comer in the field of apicultural 

 literature, I feel that it is no more than fair to men- 

 tion his qualifications for writing upon that subject. 



Even though I am not particularly interested in 

 stock, I have for years heard of the Simpson herd of 

 Jerseys. For years it was headed by the famous bull. 

 Mercury. Not only has Mr. Simpson been interested 

 in the breeding of Jerseys, but trotting stock has oc- 

 cupied his attention ; there being from 150 to 250 

 horses always on hand. There is a 1200-acre farm at 

 New Hudson, 100 acres at Hunt's Point, New York 

 City, and a mile track at the home farm at Cuba. It 

 was amid such surroundings that the jounger Simp- 

 son (the Review's correspondent) w^s brought up. 

 He has the advantage of a college education, having 

 taken a degree in civil engineering, which taught him 



to do everything with great accuracy. He was always 

 passionately fond of natural history, and studied it 

 and biology quite extensively, being familiar with the 

 writings of such men as Darwin and Spencer. He 

 has an extensive collection of insects, many of which 

 he had the pleasure of rearing from the egg to the 

 perfect insect. During the past seven years he has 

 devoted his entire time to the management of his 

 father's trotting-horse interests — especially to the 

 studying of breeding problems. By the way, al- 

 though so much of a horseman. Mr. Simpson never 

 bets, gambles, swears, nor indulges in liquor or 

 tobacco, or other dissipations. Of late he has taken 

 an interest in bees, and is going at it with enthu- 

 siasm, aided by his vast and varied knowledge on 

 the subject of breeding, to try to solve some of 

 the problems regarding the scientific breeding of 

 bees. Space forbids my telling the start he has made, 

 and the plans that he has for the future, but I feel 

 sure that I have told enough to show that the four 

 pages that he contributes to the June Review will be 

 read with interest by every bee-keeper. 



Neither must I forget our old friend Arthur C. Mil- 

 ler, who first stirred up this subject in the bee jour- 

 nals, and who has an article in the June Review on 

 "Variations, how they are Started, Intensified, and 

 Established." 



The Review is 81.00 a year; or I will send it for 1901, 

 and a queen of the Superior Stock, for only $2.00. 

 Queen alone is SI. 50. 



W. Z. Hutchinson, Flint, Michigan. 



I. J. Strirgham, 105 Park Place, New York City. 



Keeps in stock a full line of modern appliances for bee-keepers. 



SILK-FACED VEILS. 



As good as any made ; 35 cents postpaid. Catalog free. Full 

 colonies Italian bees, 16.00. Apiaries, Glen Cove, Long Island. 



I. J. Stringham, 105 Park Place, New York City. 



NOW READY! 



64-PAGE CATALOG OF EVERY THING BEE-KEEPERS NEED. Illustrated 

 and fully described. Especially valuable to beginners for the information 

 it contains. Send your address on postal and get it now. Established 1884. 



J. M. JENKINS, Wetumpka, Ala. 



