i'iiii BEE-KEEFERS REVIEW. 



347 



year ago in the Keview I have read with 

 avidity the occasional articles that have 

 appeared in the other journals. It is evi- 

 dent that many bee-keepers are beginning to 

 realize that, for them, bee-keeping is not 

 what it was onco. It is not the province of 

 a bee journal to discourage but rather to 

 enthuse and encourage, but not at the ex- 

 pense of the truth. If bees in large num- 

 bers can no longer be kept at a profit in 

 some localities, the sooner the bee-keepers 

 of those localities learn that fact, the better 

 it is for them — but I won't " steal any more 

 thunder " from the article that I am going 

 to copy from the Progressive. It was 

 written by Dr. Miller aud is well worthy of 

 consideration. 



" Some seem to have settled into the be- 

 lief that the forests have been cut away, 

 cultivation has destroyed the wild flowers, 

 and that as a consequence we are never 

 again to have such yields of honey as in the 

 past. Others come up smiling at the close 

 of each year of defeat, prophesying good 

 things to come, and hopefully recounting all 

 the omens for good. 



I think there is no denying the fact that 

 in general the past few years have not been 

 as good as formerly for the majority of bee- 

 keepers. And I plainly confess that I don't 

 know anything about the future of bee-keep- 

 ing. But I incline rather to join the ranks 

 of the optimists. The wise man says: 'Say 

 not thou. What is the cause that the form- 

 er days were better than these ? for thou dost 

 not inquire wisely concerning this. ' But I 

 suppose I may be allowed to discuss some- 

 what the reasoning of those who do inquire. 



As already mentioned, it is thought by 

 some, perhaps by a good many, that the 

 advance of civilization and cultivation has so 

 changed the flora that no further explanation 

 is needed for the falling off in honey crops. 

 There may be something in that in a certain 

 locality. A good deal in some. For where 

 linden has been a chief source of nectar and 

 the trees have ail been cut down, there can 

 be no question as to the result. But lindens 

 are not found everywhere, and in many 

 places they have not been cut down, and 

 failures have occurred in their presence. 



The destruction of wild flowers by the 

 plow doesn't cut so great a figure as many 

 imagine. Look over the list of wild flowers 

 that yield great crops of honey, and that are 

 destroyed by the plow and tell me what they 

 are. Such plants as fire weed are not great 

 in number, and are found only in a few 

 regions. Besides, in largei areas such as the 

 state of New York and parts of some other 

 states, all the wild flowers were gone years 

 ago just as much as they are now. The 

 disappeareance of its crops didn't occur 

 along with the disappearance of the wild 

 flowers, but some time after. 



Again, the failures of recent years are 

 attributed to climatic, electric or other occult 



influences. It may be. Who knows ? I'm 

 sure I don't. The weather is responsible 

 for a good many things, and quite possibly 

 it may be the guilty party. 



Bat 1 fancy I hear some one say : ' Sup- 

 pose you do locate the place, what are you 

 going to do about it ? ' Well, nothing I sup- 

 pose. ' Then whafs the use talking about 

 it'? Well, now, there may be some use in 

 talking about it, even if we can't do any 

 thing about it. A good many of us do a 

 good deal of thinking about it. We've got 

 to — can't help ourrelves. After running 

 bluntly up against partial or total failures, 

 for a number of years, we can't help but 

 think about the question whether it is wise 

 to continue making pre{)aratious for crops 

 that never come. And a thing that's worth 

 thinking about ought to be worth talking 

 about. For myself, if the past two seasons 

 are to be an index of the future, the sooner I 

 get out of bee-keeping the less I'll lose by it. 

 And I'd give something to know what the 

 next five or ten years will bring in the way 

 of pasturage. 



Notwithstanding the fact that my bees 

 have given me no surplus for two years, I'm 

 putting them into winter quarters with a 

 good bit of the same hopefulness I had in 

 years gone by after a good season. I'll tell 

 you a little how it looks to me. If it's the 

 presence or lack of bl(jssoms, I don't see any 

 reason why there may not be as many blos- 

 soms next year as there were ten or fifteen 

 years ago. My chief, indeed my almost 

 sole source of surplus is white clover. Some- 

 times plants aud blossoms are scarce, some- 

 times bloom is abundant. I don't know any 

 great reason why next year may not be one 

 of their abundance. 



If it's electric or other conditions tha 

 make the trouble, no one that I know of can 

 tell much about them, and as the whole mat- 

 ter lies in the region of uncertainty, why 

 not expect good conditions as well as bad 

 for next year ? The weather with all its 

 appurtenances and belongings is proverbial 

 for its changeableness. We've had changes 

 for the worse, are we not just as likely now 

 to have them for the better ? Two years of 

 total failures is a somewhat remarkable 

 thinff. It would be still more remarkable if 

 we should have three. 



Notwithstanding the many failures, there 

 are also successes. This year is reported by 

 some as the best year ever known. May it 

 not come our turn next year '? I think I 

 never knew a better fall yield, in ray locality, 

 than the present year. Although it gave me 

 no surplus, it was still valuable, for it saved 

 feeding for winter. Now if the bees took a 

 fresh grip on the harvest, why may they not 

 do it on the next white honey harvest V 



There is also a possibility of increased 

 acreage of honey plants in the future. Rape, 

 alfalfa, crimson clover, sweet clover and 

 perhaps other things are talked of as prom- 

 ising foraee plants where they are now little 

 known. Who knows what possibilities there 

 may be in that direction ? 



On the whole, I think I'll not brimstone 

 my bees yet. " 



