646 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 1 



this portion of Cuba. The lady portion of 

 the household should have the more sympa- 

 thy, for their isolation is more complete. 

 But living- near a Cuban town of some size, 

 she has the benefit of such society as the 

 town affords; and I am assured that there 

 are some excellent people, even in these ru- 

 ral towns. 



Mr. and Mrs. Moe are both ex-school- 

 teachers, and, later, ex-butter-makers, and 

 from the Coggshall country, West Groton, 

 N. Y. Like so many Americans, Mr. Moe, 

 aided and abetted, I presume, by Mrs. Moe, 

 desired to branch out into something new, 

 or where they could get on better than in old 

 New York. Cuba was very prominently in 

 the public eye then, and to this island they 

 came. Mr. Moe did not come here with the 

 remotest idea of going into the bee-business. 

 He had other irons in the fire; and as the 

 other irons were of a disappointing nature 

 he began to cast around for others. Harry 

 Howe had been in Cuba and in the bee bus- 

 iness, and, withal, was an old acquaint- 

 ance of Mr. Moe, in West Groton. It was 

 no wonder that, after stopping with his old 



but while there was loss in one way there 

 was gain in another. Much of his leisure 

 time was spent with Harry Howe, and he 

 was all the time gaining experience. His 

 experience as a butter-maker probably was 

 a help to his taking readily to the bee bus- 

 iness; for the butter- maker must attend to 

 small details, and use due vigilance in ma- 

 nipulation. 



Bee-books and periodicals were purchas- 

 ed and carefully studied, and Mrs. Moe be- 

 came as much interested in the bees as her 

 husband; and when they moved out to their 

 apiary she was quite as inuch of a worker 

 in it. Like all Americans fresh from the 

 States they had to contend with foreigners 

 and a strange tongue. It seems to a Cuban 

 that his first duty is to bleed the "Ameri- 

 cano'" who may fall into his hands. Prices 

 go up to fabulous figures. If you wish a 

 load hauled, the price is double or treble 

 what it would be to a Cuban. At the store 

 the provisions you buy are a few cents high- 

 er than to Cubans. The average — yes, be- 

 low the average — American grocer will fa- 

 vor a new customer by selling to him at 



MR. AND MRS. MOE IN THEIR HOME APIARY. 



friend for a while, he caught the bee-fever, 

 bought eleven colonies from a Cuban, and 

 in those Cuban hives. Soon after he bought 

 a few more, making a total of 33 colonies. 

 He found a location for these three miles 

 from Candelaria, in a splendid grove of 

 mango-trees and other shrubber3^ Here he 

 pitched his tents and commenced to grow. 



At first the growth was slow and under 

 many difficulties. His new hives and sup- 

 plies were long in'arriving from the States. 

 His bees in'native'hives swarmed, and were 

 hived in'all manner of nondescript boxes; 



very reasonable rates. He looks forward to 

 future trade and a chance to beat him after- 

 ward. The Cuban grocer takes no such 

 look ahead, but skins you the first chance. 

 The reason is probably found in their ver- 

 sion of the old proverb, "A bird in the 

 hand is worth f7vo in the bush." Their 

 version is, " One bird in the hand is worth 

 cien (100) flying." 



Being ex-schoolteachers it was not many 

 months ere they were picking up the Span- 

 ish language;*and now after two years' so- 

 journ, they are_both quite proficiev\1; \a its 



