AUGUST 1, 1913 



A rin-al teacher invariably makes a good leekeeper. 



for the Avork, the healthfuhiess of the work, 

 and the knowledge derived, a source of en- 

 thusiasm to both teacher and pupil aiding 

 the teacher in understanding his pupils. 



In thinking' of the teaching profession in 

 the rural schools, I recall an address made 

 by a certain rormal-school principal not 

 long- ag'o in which he said he believed the 

 old adage, " Teachers are born and not 

 made," was not so in the original, ar.d a 

 fault of the typesetter, for such a saying 

 has not been always true. He thought the 

 saying- should have read and probably did 

 read, " Teachers are born and not paid,'' 

 for then it would be true in a practical 

 way. 



The teacher is not only poorly paid, but 

 in most cases his position lasts only eight 

 months of the year. He must then take up 

 some other line of work during the summer 

 season. Beekeeping affords a lucrative 

 employment for the summer vacation time 

 as well as for Saturdays during the other 

 parts of the year. 



The teacher represents, as a class, one of 

 the best mind forces of the country. With 

 his natural tendencies toward science and 

 experiment, the modern pedagog would 

 surely not retard the rapid progress in api- 

 culture. With the present-day curriculum 

 in the schools the subject of nature study 

 has become compulsory, and the bee must 

 be studied to a certain extent. The economic 

 value of the bee has also to be brought out 

 in connection with the proper poUenization 

 of fruit-trees. Then. too. their habits have 



to be discussed. In this way eonsidera'jle 

 knowledge is required of the teacher about 

 the honey-producing insects in order to give 

 the proper work for the children under his 

 care. 



The teacher who has been in the school- 

 room for eight months does not feel, from 

 point of duty to himself and his schoolwork 

 for another year, like taking- up a position 

 in an office during the summer, and in a 

 large number of cases does not feel like 

 hiring out to a farmer to do all of his hard 

 work for him. What he wants and needs 

 is the open air, and this he can get by own- 

 ing a small apiary and by working his yard 

 intensively. This would be much better 

 than owning- more bees, as it would pay 

 better for the money invested. 



By having his bee-house and work-shop 

 below the colonies the honey could be easily 

 wheeled to the extractor in small ([uantities 

 without expending so much vital energ-v^ as 

 would be the case without a wheelbarrow or 

 hand cart. 



Then, again, many teachers, among them 

 myself, are afflicted to some extent with 

 rheumatism. They are often cured by the 

 stings of the bee. By this I do not infer 

 that eveiy case can be cured by the method 

 given ; but at any rate, from my own ex- 

 perience I have found that, wiien I am 

 away teaching, I often have a touch of the 

 disease ; but on coming home on vacations 

 or in the summer I am not troubled in that 

 way at all. Further, on looking- into the 

 matter I find that the hospitals in the local 



