150 



ITHE SMERicJtK mmm j&^mmmi^. 



-»^»^^^»-^» — ■» — ■ -^ » ■T'—J^:t^TL^^'^^'^'^^^^i^^^—^^^^^^^' 



wai-m, tap tlie wax at the edge of the 

 pan, tipping it up, and the warm hone}' 

 will drain out clean. Now fill the pan 

 M ith ^vater, and thoroughly wash the 

 wax from stickiness, and the honey 

 that is obtained is lirst-class. The 

 reader will see how solar heat can be 

 used at the right time of j-ear to ac- 

 complish the same result. — J. Heddon. 

 If you should melt the cappings 

 carefully in the stove oven, and let the 

 melted matter cool, then take off the 

 wax from the top, you will save both 

 the honey and the wax. — The Editor. 



MR. EUGENE SECOR. 



We have great pleasure in present- 

 ing to our readers an engi'aving, show- 

 ing the personal appearance, and a 

 short biographical sketch, of America's 

 " poet-laureate of apiculture " — Mr. 

 Eugene Secor. 



For the past ten years Mr. Secor has 

 been writing poetry and prose for the 

 Amekcan Bee Jodrnax and other 

 periodicals, some of the best of the 

 poetic effusions being " Lessons from 

 the Ivy," the "Honey-Moon," the 

 " Bees are Swarming," " Weighing 

 the Baby," and "Gathering the Clan." 

 The latter, descriptive of the Bee-Con- 

 vention at Chicago in 1887, is so rich 

 that we introduce it here as a sample : 



At Chif^flBo they met. a riKht lolly set. 



On a soft, balmy flay in NnvtMuber ; 



Such a " buzz" and ••roar" 1 lieard once before— 



At an old cirter-uiill in September. 



From the West ftml Ihe East, to this saccharine feast. 

 Came the " woi-kers " rheerf ullv " sinffine." 

 And Iho' each had a wish tn " sip " from the dish, 

 But few were incllnea to be "slinging."' 



They tallipd about hces— their legs and their knees - 

 Of the Gtui-giyen nectar in flowers. 

 Of its value as fond, of bare-headed brood, 

 And the late sad failure in showers. 



Our " countryfiod wavs."' the reporter says. 

 Betrayed the l>ontof our calling. 

 At lliis we're not mad, but exceedingly glad 

 That our looks far exceeded his scrawling. 



Such a constant 7ii(?n. without smnke or drum ! 

 'Twas said each had a " Iiec in his iionnet :" 

 But whetiier that's s... one tiiinu I do know, 

 The " hive " liad a MitUr uiion it. 



The Masnn bee took the MWfr to Cnok. 

 Who adjudi^ed from its si/.e and demeanor. 

 There was no need to tread on. nor even put a Iff dd-oit 

 As It lived on "Sassafras" y?oot -a gleaner. 



yor three days and niglit", surprises, delights, 

 Made us hapjtv as bees in sweet clover ; 

 'Tls a bright Green spot, not s.ion forgot— 

 In memories Hutcli. a rich trover. 



'Twould fail me to tell, how the" honev-dew " fell 

 From many sweet hps. t'lonyh human ;' 

 nut I lor one, when convention was dtme. 

 Went home from Cliicago u New man. 



Mr. Secor wrote the poems used at 

 the Bee-Convention at Columbus, O., 

 last fall, which were set to music by 

 Dr. C. C. Miller for the occasion. 



Mr. Secor is not only a poet, but he 

 is also humorous writer. One of the 



best articles in this line may be found 

 in the Bee Journal for 1883, page 

 259. It is an amusing sketch, protray- 

 ing some of the troubles incident upon 

 removing bees from cellars, and is 

 written in the form of a " play " — a 

 jubilee concert. If ever the reader 

 feels blue, just read that and laugh — 

 laugh until you feel " jolly." We 

 laughed over it until we forgot all of 

 our troubles, and all business besides. 

 Try it, and see if it is''nt an excellent 

 antidote for the blues ! 



Then in 188(5 he wrote an article of 

 the same character (see page 728), 



ME. EUGENE SECOR. 



illustrating this maxim : " What's the 

 use of having friends, if you don't use 

 them ?" by detailing his experiences 

 with neighbor Smith, who " never 

 buys anything he can borrow !" 



The following was published in a 

 local paper, last year, concerning Mr. 

 Secor. That sheet purported to be 

 "Columbia's Letters to Uncle Sam" 

 about Forest City and its principal 

 citizens : 



Mr. Eugene Secor is a member of 

 the Real Estate firm of Secor Brotliers 

 & Law. Forest City. Iowa, and a man 

 whose history i.s piominently a part of 

 Winnebago county since 1862. He is a 

 native of Putnam county, N. Y., and 

 was born May 13, 1841. 



A boy of 10, he removed with lus 

 father to ,Shrul) Oak, Westchester 

 county, where, until the years of man- 

 hood were reacheil, he alternated be- 

 tween work on his father's farm and 

 in pursuing his studies at the district 

 school. His m.ajority attained, he 



came to Forest City, working during 

 the summer at the mason's trade, and 

 in the winter teaching school. 



A!ubitious for a classical education, 

 he entered Cornell College, at Mt. 

 Vernon, in 1864, but his brother David 

 going to the war, it became incumbent 

 on him to oversee his brother's official 

 business, he being the Treasurer and 

 Recorder of Winnebago county, con- 

 sequently the subject of this mention 

 was installed into the duties of Deputy 

 County Treasurer and Recorder, also 

 Deputy Postmaster of Forest City, 

 which position he held for two years. 



In 1867 he was Deputy Clerk of the 

 District Court, and in 1868 he was 

 elected District and Circuit Clerk, 

 which office he held to the unbounded 

 satisfaction of the people for three con- 

 secutive terms, being elected the last 

 time without opposition. He was 

 elected Count}' Auditor in 1875, and 

 chosen his own successor two years 

 later without opposition. 



He was chosen the first Mayor of 

 Forest City, and re-elected three con- 

 secutive times. Retiring from the 

 mayoralty, he was elected Cit}' Coun- 

 cilman, which position he still holds. 



He is a member of the banking 

 house of Secors, Law & Plummer, and 

 the real estate firm of Secor Bros. & 

 Law. In addition to these interests, 

 he conducts a considerable farm, is 

 an enthusiastic fruit-grower, and has 

 the largest apiary in the county. 



In 1866 Mr. Secor wedded Miss 

 Millie Spencer, a lady of rare endow- 

 ments, of Erie county, Ohio. Nine 

 children have been the issue, 3 only 

 surviving — Willard, Alson and Nina. 



Mr. Secor takes a laudable interest 

 in school matters. He is a generous 

 supporter and active member of the 

 M. E. church. In short, Mr. Secor is 

 a shining example of western oppor- 

 tunities. He came to this section with 

 good intentions as his only capital, and 

 has by virtuous procedure in all the 

 walks of life, accumulated a comfort- 

 able fortune, and firmly established 

 himself in the esteem of his neighbors 

 anil fellow-citizens. Mr. Secor also 

 honors the position uf Trustee of Cor- 

 nell College at Mt. Vernon, also Trus- 

 tee of the State Agricultural College. 



He has charge of one of the experi- 

 ment stations established In- the State 

 Horticultural Society to determine the 

 hardiness and desirableness of new 

 fruits, trees and shrubs, before being 

 recommended b}- the Society. 



The various positions of honor that 

 Mr. Secor adorns bespeak the exalted 

 respect in which he is held throughout 

 Iowa. Ho is Vice-President of the 

 State Horticultural .Society ; and the 

 President of the Winnebago Count}- 

 Agricultural Society, he being one of 

 the organizers of the latter institution. 



