774 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



Nov. 9 1905 



greatest number of votes, we have practically 

 destroyed the value of the intortnal ballot, 

 and might just as well hold our elections 

 without any nominations. 



" As it is, the very object that the Directors 

 had io view is defeated by the manner in 

 which the results of the ballot are published." 



That the General Manager has gone beyond 

 the letter of his instructions there can be no 

 question. But are not the Directors also to 

 blame for upholding him in such action? For 

 he did precisely the same thing a year earlier, 

 and they have at least winked at his action 

 by keeping silence, for it is hardly to be sup- 

 posed that he would have done the same thing 

 again it any vigorous objection had been 

 made by them. 



But did the Board of Directors actually con- 

 template such action as the Review desires? 

 Evidently the Review reads into the ruling 

 something more than is to be found there, 

 making it read that the two men receiving the 

 greatest number of votes are to be candidates. 

 But the rule does not say they are to be " the 

 only ■' candidates; not even that they are to 

 be " the " candidates; only that they " are to 

 be candidates." 



Grant, however, that it was the intention 

 to make them the only candidates— for there 

 is no denying that specially naming as candi- 

 dates the two receiving the greatest number 

 of votes looks no little in the direction of 

 making them the only ones — would the 

 course desired by the Review be a wise one? 



The Review is speaking close to the mark 

 when it says: "Almost the sole object of 

 this informal Ballot is that we may, if we so 

 desire, occasionally elect a new man to ofBce. ' ' 

 Perhaps not exactly that, either. A man is 

 not especially desirable simply because he is 

 new. Other things being equal, a new man 

 is not so good as one having had previous ex- 

 perience in the same office. But for years it 

 had been the custom to vote for the same set 

 of men over and over again, just because there 

 Wis no chance to Und out what any one else 

 thought as to fit names for the place. Some 

 of the officers themselves felt that the exist- 

 ing state of things was not desirable — not to 

 say that they thought it intolerable. The 



ground for the difficulty was that there was 

 no meeting face to face of the members, no 

 chince to compare notes, no chance to know 

 what others thought, no suggestion of any 

 new name, and when the time came to send 

 ballots by mail the old members were re- 

 elected year after year. The idea of the pre- 

 liminary nomination by postal card was to 

 get away from this as far as possible, and to 

 get as near as possible to a meeting in person 

 where all names are announced as well as the 

 number of votes received by each. What would 

 be thought if, at any meeting of a deliberative 

 body, an informal ballot should be taken, and 

 the entire proceeding should be kept secret 

 except the announcement that Smith and 

 Jones received more votes than any other, but 

 no member should know which got the higher 

 number of votes? It that were the right pol- 

 icy, then it should be carried just one step 

 further, and only have the name announced 

 of the one receiving the most votes. 



The Review says, " It we give the names of 

 half a dozen candidates, and tell which one 

 received the greatest number of votes, we have 

 practically destroyed the value of the informal 

 ballot." Did the Review ever know of an in- 

 formal ballot being taken where those voting 

 met in person without that very thing being 

 done to which it objects? If the Review is 

 right, then the value of the informal ballot is 

 always practically destroyed. On fnrther 

 thought, however, it will probably modify its 

 views on that point. 



Instead of keeping things in the dark, let 

 there be still more light, and let not only all 

 names be given, but the number of votes for 

 each. 



Failure Qood for Beginners 



J. A. Green very sensibly remarks in Glean- 

 ings in Bee Culture: 



"It is sometimes a real misfortune for a 

 man to have two or three good seasons at his 

 start iu bee-keeping. He is building on a 

 false foundation. It takes several years to 

 find out what an average is in bee-keeping. 

 When disaster comes, as it is sure to sooner 

 or later in the shape of a poor season, he is 

 not as well prepared to meet it as if his earlier 

 experiences had been less flattering." 



r 



\= 



ITItsccUaneous Hetps 3tcm5 



J 



Julia Ida Montleng, daughter of Mr. 

 and Mrs. Charles Mondeng. of Minneapolis, 

 was married to Ernest W. Langdon, on Oct. 

 30. Our heartiest congratulations are hereby 

 extended to Mr. and Mrs. Langdon. 



The Illinois State Convention of bee- 

 keepers will be held in the Board of Super- 

 visors' room in the Court House in Spring- 

 field, 111., Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 31 

 and 23. It is hoped that there may be a large 

 attendance of Illinois bee-keepers. Reduced 

 rates have been arranged for on the railroads. 

 See notice on another page for further par- 

 ticulars. 



Chicago •North western Convention. 



— As will be seen by Secretary Moore's notice 

 on another page, there will be a meeting of 

 the Chicago-Northwestern Bee-Keepers' Asso- 



ciation on Tuesday, Dec. 19, at the Revere 

 House, where the last two or three meetings 

 have been held. The forenoon session at 10 

 o'clock will partake of a social nature, and 

 the afternoon session, at 2 o'clock, will be 

 mainly for business. 



It is hoped that there may be a large at- 

 tendance to welcome those who come to be at 

 the National convention, which will likely 

 meet in the evening of the same day (Deo. 19). 



All who desire to have their dollar pay a 

 year's membership in both the Chicago- 

 Northwestern and the National Association, 

 will need to mail it in advance to the Secre- 

 tary-Treasurer of the former Association, Mr. 

 H. F. Moore, Park Ridge, 111., or hand it 

 to him during the sessions of the conventions. 

 One dollar paid to .Mr. France will simply 

 pay a year's membership in the National, and 

 not in any other association also. But a dol- 



lar paid to Mr. Moore will pay the annual 

 dues in both. 



The Apiary of E. E. Craven is shown 

 on the first page. He wrote us that the trees 

 are apple, plum and cherry. He uses Sim- 

 plicity hives exclusively, and says they some- 

 what resemble Jacob's coat. 



Mr. Orel li. Hershiser, of Erie Co., 

 N. Y., writing us Oct. 2", reported as follows : 



" I have had a fairly good honey season. 

 My honey crop amounts to over 16,000 pounds. 

 Bees are in fine condition for winter. I will 

 winter upwards of 300 colonies. I am getting 

 good prices for honey." 



As Mr. Hershiser is a lawyer, he mixes law 

 and bee-keeping, and the result thereof seems 

 to be all right. 



Mr. Chas. M. Darrow, lioute 1, Milo, 

 Mo., while away from home on Sunday, Oct. 

 22, lost by fire nearly everything he had ex- 

 cept a team, wagon and harness, bees, one 

 cow, and two stacks of hay; with insurance 

 of about half the value. Mr. Darrow is a 

 queen-breeder, and had calls for a large num- 

 ber of his queens during the past season. We 

 understand he has on hand several hundred 

 requests for prices on queens for 1006. Any 

 others desiring his queen price-list can write 

 for it. More queen patronage will help him 

 out on his fire loss. 



Prof. A. J. Cook, as most of our readers 

 know, sailed for Europe last August. Last 

 week we received the following letter from 

 him, dated Oct. "34: 



Dear Mb. Tokk: — We are charmingly 

 located, like Paul, in our own hired house — 

 only we are here in grand, old Berlin. It is 

 good to be in such a great university town, 

 and I am big with regrets that it had not been 

 my fortune years ago. 



We are at Heilbronner Strasse 30, Berlin, 

 Germany, and shall be here till April 1, 1906, 

 after which we shall see south Germany, Aus- 

 tria, Italy, Switzerland, and the Fiords of 

 Scandinavia, Please say this editorially, if 

 you will be so kind. My friends wish to 

 know niy whereabouts. 



We are in the finest part of Berlin, but, oh 1 

 it is not America. Every day we say. Give us 

 America. Ever yours truly, 



A. J. Cook. 



Prof. Cook will continue to write regularly 

 for the American Bee .fournal. We have an 

 article from him on the European honey mar- 

 kets and prices, which we will publish in 

 December. 



Jos. 51. »Iartin, a 150 colony beekeeper 

 located in St. Joseph Co , Ind., called on us 

 last week. He had 09 colonies last spring, 

 and increased mainly by dividing. His honey 

 crop was about 600 pounds of extracted and a 

 fair amount of comb honey. 



Mr. Martin usually at this season of the 

 year gets bees from neighbors who would 

 sulphur them anyway for their honey. He 

 simply shakes them out of the boxes (in 

 which they are) on combs of honey in modern 

 hives. He is quite successful in wintering 

 such transferred bees. Possibly many of our 

 readers could get bees in that way it they 

 have the extra hives and combs oi honey 

 necessary. Surely, any man would prefer to 

 give the bees away rather than sulphur them, 

 as he would still have the honey left, and 

 would also be saved the trouble of sulphuring 

 the bees. 



