770 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. IS 



ers, around whom seem to cluster the bee- 

 keeping- interests of Sutter Co. 



This county, as a bee-keeping center, de- 

 serves more than a passing reference. At 

 the time of my visit the United States gov- 

 ernment had sent a committee of Senators 

 and Representatives to the little town to in- 

 vestigate the effect of placer, or, rather, 

 hydraulic mining, on the fertile valleys. 

 The greed for gold is so great that power- 

 ful streams of water (in the hands of rich 

 syndicates) are turned against the sides of 

 the mountains, practically undermining and 

 washing' them away so that the debris and 

 silt wash down the rivers, overflowing their 

 banks into the fertile valleys below, carr3'- 



j. H. brick's elevated bee-vard, end view 



ing ruin and desolation in its wake. Among 

 the chief sufi'erers from this destructive 

 method of gold-washing were the people 

 round about Nicolaus. So extensive had 

 been the washings for gold that the old bed 

 of the river had been filled up, and had 

 overflowed its banks repeatedly, carrying 

 silt and all sorts of debris over the land 

 round about. Ranches that were worth 

 large sums of money had become mere 

 wastes, and the owners bankrupt. But bee- 

 keeping, fortunately, was not entirely snuff- 

 ed out. 



A cry went up (and has been going up 



ever since) to the State and national govern- 

 ments, from the suffering ranchers, pray- 

 ing for relief. Immense dikes were then 

 put up on each side of the river, to keep the 

 water within its banks; but now and then 

 the embankments would break, and the 

 land would be devastated by a flood, crops 

 ruined, and the people driven from their 

 once fertile lands. In spite of protest, in 

 spite of petitions, in spite of every thing, 

 the gold-miners kept on with their work of 

 ruin. The small amount of gold secured, I 

 was told, would not begifi to compensate for 

 the fearful loss of land. 



On this occasion of which I speak, the 

 United States Senators and Representa- 

 tives were there to look after 

 the interests of the ranchers, 

 for certain it was the interests 

 of the miner and of the farmer 

 were conflicting. So bitter is 

 the feeling that at times there 

 is bloodshed; and as I looked 

 over those conflicting interests 

 I could not help thinking of the 

 conflict of interests between 

 the pear-men and bee-keepers. 

 But in this case the bee-men 

 were suffering with the farm- 

 ers, for the growing of alfalfa, 

 that was once profitable, had 

 been discontinued on a good 

 many ranches, simply because 

 the land was buried up under 

 the silt from the gold-wash- 

 ings. In the mean time, while 

 Congress is deliberating and 

 doing nothing, the people are 

 suffering, and the feeling be- 

 tween the rancher and the 

 miner was becoming more and 

 more strained. 



A WONDERFUL HONEY-PLANT, 

 CARPET GRASS. 



But, very fortunately for the 

 bee-keeper in Sutter Co., th»" 

 demise of the alfalfa was fol- 

 lowed by the beautiful little 

 carpet grass. It thrives on dry 

 land, and yields immensequan- 

 tities of honey. It grows all 

 over the vicinity, gives forth 

 honej' of the finest quality, 

 from the middle of May until 

 frost comes on in the fall. The 

 bees will sometimes gather as 

 much as 8 lbs. of honey a day 

 from it; but 3 lbs. is usually considered a 

 good yield. From three-fourths to four- 

 fifths of all the honey in Sutter Co. comes 

 from this source; and so important has it 

 come to be that the little alfalfa that is 

 grown does not cut much of a figure in the 

 production of honey. 



The carpet grass makes a very thick and 

 heavy matted growth ; and as one walks 

 over it he imagines he is walking on very 

 rich heavy plush, carpet, for it gives spring 

 and elasticity to the step. Taking out my 

 largest camera I took a full-sized picture of 

 it, and the result, nearly life size, is before 



