386 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 15 



OUR CHICKENS IN FLORIDA AFTER WE LEFT. 



I told you on page 215, April 1, that 1 had 

 been getting from 45 to 50 eggs a day from 

 70 hens during the past winter, and they 

 were still laying at about that rate when we 

 turned them over to a neighbor the last of 

 March. I told him that removing to a new 

 locality would probably check their laying 

 for several days. It is also true that, after a 

 lot of hens have been laying well all winter, 

 even down in Florida, they usually slack up 

 as warm weather comes on. Nothwithstand- 

 ing this, my neighbor makes the following 

 report: 



Afr. A. I. Root:— I had very good luck with the hens 

 and chicks so far until to-day, when I found two hens 

 dead, one on the nest and one under the roost. I have 

 not noticed anything wrong, except that some of them 

 seem to be getting too fat, and I missed two or three 

 hens soon after I got them. I do not know where they 

 went to; but, never mind. I got 1166 eggs in the month 

 of April from them, and 1460 from about 80 hens of my 

 own. They are not doing quite so well now. The 

 price is 20 cts. yet. 



I did not know of the experience you had with the 

 yellow hen until I saw it in GLEANINGS, April 1, page 

 215, which my wife picked up over at Lamkin's after 

 they were gone. I had just the same experience, only 

 18 instead of 25. She seems to be too big and clumsy. 

 If you do not want her back I think I will sell her. It 

 has been pretty hot here to-day, but only 90. The 

 weather has been fine this spring— cooler than last 

 year during April. J. E. STANTON. 



Bradentown, Fla., May 17. 



Now, 1166 eggs for April is slightly over 38 

 eggs a day on an average. As two hens died, 

 a Buff Orpington was sitting, and one or 

 two were lost, there were only about 65 hens 

 to give the 1166 eggs. 1 have no idea why 

 the two hens should die, and I have not much 

 faith in medicine. If I am correct, the 65 

 hens are in a much smaller yard than they 

 occupied on our place; and the best "medi- 

 cine " I could suggest would be a larger 

 yard, or, better still, let them run loose. We 

 should, however, recognize that it is nothing 

 very strange if a hen or two should die oc- 

 casionally out of a lot of about 70. I suppose 

 the Buff Orpingtons are usually good moth- 

 ers. My advice regarding that particular 

 heavy hen would be to use her up for a 

 chicken pie. She always laid pretty well, 

 except that she wanted to sit after she had 

 laid fifteen or twenty eggs; and she was not 

 very much inclined to give up when she got 

 the fever. 



TEMPERANCE. 



CAN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AFFORD TO 



CONTINUE TO BE A PARTNER WITH THE 



LAW-BREAKERS? 



I copy the following from the Chicago Ad- 

 vance. As I understand it, the Advance does 

 not commit itself on the subject further than 

 to copy, without comment, from two other 

 periodicals— the first the Springfield Repub- 

 lican, and the other the Christian Work and 

 Evangelist, as follows: 



THE GOVERNMENT NULLIFIES LOCAL OPTION. 



Mr. Bryan's Commoner last week contained an edi- 

 torial from the editor's pen that may compel the serious 

 attention of the President and Congress of the United 

 States. About half of this country now lies under local 



prohibition of the liquor traffic. One can travel from 

 Cape Hatteras almost to the Rocky Mountains and not 

 touch the soil of a State that allows liquor to be manu- 

 factured or sold. Many other States are half "wet" 

 and half " dry," under local option. To that vast num- 

 ber of people who support State or local prohibition, 

 Mr. Bryan's present attack upon the federal govern- 

 ment for isuing federal licenses for the sale of liquor 

 in places where State or local law prohibits it will 

 strongly appeal as sound and just. Mr. Bryan thus 

 states the case: 



■• In spite of the attempt of local authorities in these dis- 

 tricts to prohibit the sale of liquor as a beverajre. the federal 

 government continues to issue 1. censes in contemptuous dis- 

 regard of local sentiment and local law. The government re- 

 ceives $85 for each license, and in receiving the money it must 

 either Intend to collect tliat sum without giving any thing 

 valuable in return i in case the one receiving the license does 

 not sell liquor I, or to encourage the one receiving the license 

 to violate the local law, for he can not use his license without 

 violating the law. Can the federal government afford to con- 

 tinue to be a partner with the lawbreakers? Can any party 

 afford longer to legalize this partnership!" 



The Republican continues: 



The issue is put squarely up to Congress, and to the 

 party controlling Congress, now that Mr. Bryan pro- 

 poses " an amendment to the internal-revenue part of 

 the Payne bill prohibiting the issuing of federal li- 

 censes for the sale of liquor in States, counties, or com- 

 munities where the sale is locally prohibited." Why 

 shouldn't his view be accepted as sound? 



The Christian Work and Evangelist adds: 



The United States government receives internal-rev- 

 enue taxes from liquor dealers in prohibition territo- 

 ries. Very few liquor-sellers care to operate without 

 paying the federal tax. for the national excise service 

 has a long arm. In last week's Commoner Mr. Bryan 

 called on the Democrats in Congress to amend the in- 

 ternal-revenue portion of the Payne bill so as to pro- 

 hibit the issue of federal revenue-tax receipts in States, 

 counties, or communities where the sale of liquor is 

 locally prohibited. As Mr. Bryan says, the present 

 system is calculated to cultivate disrespect for law, in 

 that the federal government actually reaps a profit 

 from the issue of licenses which stimulate lawbreak- 

 ing. "Can the federal government afford to continue 

 a partner with the law-breakers? Can any party af- 

 ford longer to legalize this partnership?" With Mr. 

 Bryan, we say no. 



Our readers may be aware that I have for 

 some time been considerably stirred up 

 about this matter, and I confess that I have 

 criticised our government rather severely; 

 but after reading the above from the Ad- 

 vance I decided to submit it to the Superin- 

 tendent and Attorney of the Anti -saloon 

 League, and I am very glad indeed, for he 

 not only gives us light on the whole matter, 

 but suggests that the government may not 

 be so terribly out of the straight and narrow 

 path after all. 



Dear Mr. Root.— The enclosed clipping is all right, 

 but I have never agreed with one of the propositions 

 presented in the statement. The parties who argue, as 

 Bryan does, go on the theory that, if the United States 

 government received no revenue from the traffic, we 

 would be able to stop it. The fact of the matter is, that 

 if the United States government does collect a tax it 

 helps to prosecute the parties who sell. In other 

 words— the fact that the parties pay the United States 

 revenue tax is prima-facie evidence that they have 

 violated law, and we use that fact in the local-option 

 or State prohibitory laws. If the United States govern- 

 ment were prevented from collecting this tax. these 

 same parties would sell liquor, and we should have one 

 less agency to secure evidence against them. 



The courts have repeatedly held that the payment of 

 the United States revenue tax did not in any way pro- 

 tect a liquor-dealer who sold liquor; and if he did sell 

 in violation of any local option or State law, he must 

 suffer the penalty therefor; and the fact of his paying 

 the United States revenue tax could be used as evi- 

 dence against him when he was prosecuted under these 

 other laws. The $25.00 tax which the United States 

 government receives from each local dealer is so small 

 that I do not think it influences many people in voting 

 wet on the ground that they get a large amount of 

 money for the government in that way. 



W. B. Wheeler. 



Columbus, 0., May 28. 



