1902 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



11 



interest, and to guard against the possible 

 danger of "foul brood and other infectious 

 diseases." His brother bee-keeper, but 

 half a mile or so distant, however, is of 

 the old primitive style. His bees "work 

 for nothing and board themselves," and oc- 

 cupy a deserted rock pile or isolated nook, 

 and when the task of inspecting is under- 

 taken, " Oh, hokie ! shade of our ances- 

 tors!" Here is a problem that is not prob- 

 lematic — combs crossed and re-crossed ; 

 right and left angles, half-moons, quarter 

 cuts, and miscellaneous go-as-you-please 

 brood-nest. 



Foul brood, black brood, and all the dis- 

 eases known in the category can fester and 

 thrive in these old non-movable-comb hives, 

 so far as the efforts of the inspectors are 

 concerned, from observations that can be 

 gained in the brood-chamber, and so the 

 non-progressive slipshod bee-keeper can 

 thus hug an adder, not onlj^ to sting him- 

 self, but also his neighbors, who are power- 

 less to help themselves under existing con- 

 ditions. 



Now, I am sure, brother bee-keepers, the 

 picture is not overdrawn, and I look upon 

 it as an absolute necessity in behalf of the 

 best interest of the careless bee-keeper, as 

 well as the protection of the progressive 

 apiarist, to enact a State law making it 

 obligator}'^ on each and every bee-keeper to 

 put his bees upon movable combs, so that 

 they may be accessible for investigation and 

 manipulation. It would be doing no one an 

 injustice, but instituting a righteous defense 

 against the common enemy to the bee-keep- 

 ing fraternity, and raising the industry to 

 a higher degree of progress. I 

 also believe it very essential that 

 a law be passed compelling any 

 one, under penalty of a fine, to 

 obtain a certiticate from a law- 

 fully appointed inspector, certi- 

 fying that his or her bees are 

 healthy, and free from all in- 

 fectious diseases, before he can 

 be at liberty to move them from 

 one locality to another; and when 

 bees are imported from an ad- 

 joining State that has no laws of 

 a like nature it should be the du- 

 tv' of the owner of said bees, un- 

 der penalty of the law, to have at 

 once said bees inspected. 



And now, Mr. Editor, I de- 

 sire to hear froin you and all 

 others interested in the bee-keep- 

 ping pursuit. If we desire to 

 progress, and protect ourselves 

 against impending foes, we cer- 

 tainl}' should have laws that will 

 defend us. It is said, "In coun- 

 sel there is wisdom." Now let 

 us have the counsel. 



Richland, Cal. 



[I believe I saw more slipshod bee-keep- 

 ing, go-as-you-please "any old way" 

 methods in California than in any other 

 State I ever visited. In saying this I do 



not mean to convey the impression that there 

 are no up-to-date bee-keepers using modern 

 methods there. We see the two extremes — 

 the best and the poorest. One reason of 

 this is that, when the season.^ are so won- 

 derfull}' productive, those who have the idea 

 that "bees work for nothing and board 

 themselves" are anxious to get some of this 

 honey that "rains down as free as water;" 

 and they see no reason why they can not do 

 as well as their neighbors, but thej- never 

 do. 



Yes, in j'our State it would be a good 

 idea to have a law to compel all persons 

 who keep bees to put them in movable-frame 

 hives; but such a law would hardly be 

 needed in other States. — Ed.] 



RAMBLE 196. 



Foul Brood in California ; Shaffner Bros.; E. 

 Root's Visit ; Jouncers. 



BY RAMBLER. 



Foul-brood inspection is practiced to quite 

 an extent in Central California. Every 

 county that is noted for bee-keeping has its 

 inspector. Mr. Bowen is inspector for Fres- 

 no Co. ; and when he has a real hard case 

 of foul brood on hand he calls in the prom- 

 inent bee-men of the vicinity and allows 

 them to inspect with him; and, having their 

 indorsement, he goes ahead to destroy. 

 While Mr. Bowen is independent enough to 

 take the most severe measures, these wit- 

 nesses he calls in give him such a backing 

 that there can be no cause for complaint. 



LOOKING FOR KOUL BKOUJ). 



There is, nevertheless, a faction of bee- 

 keepers in the county who believe the dis- 

 ease can be temporized with and eventually 

 cured. Esq. Abbott is of this opinion, and 

 he advises the quarantining of all foul- 

 broody combs, extracting the honey and cut- 



