1872.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



211 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



Washington, March, 1872. 



Death of Samuel Warner. 



Readers of the Bee Journal : — Tour dear old 

 friend, the honored editor of the American Bee Jour- 

 nal, is dead. On Saturday, February 17th, he awoke 

 early, partially dressed himself, and was talking 

 pleasantly with his wife, when he was suddenly seized 

 with shortness of breath, soon became unconscious, 

 and in less than fifteen minutes breathed his last. 

 The physician pronounced his disease to be aneurism 

 of the heart. He had complained for more than a year 

 of pain and numbness, interfering greatly at times 

 with the use of his pen. 



A noble, unselfish, good man has fallen. In the 

 full vigor of his intellect, with judgment unimpaired, 

 and memory wonderfully tenac'ous. Nearly seventy- 

 three years old ! How few of the readers of the Jour, 

 nal could have imagined that its vigorous editorials 

 and wise management Avere the products of a man 

 who had reached an age when most men are com- 

 paratively useless. 



If he could have chosen for himself, it would have 

 been to die thus with the harness on ; to pass by the 

 shortest transition from useful happy work to the 

 belter land. 



Few know how much Mr. Samuel Wagner has done 

 for the promotion of bee-culture in America. Being 

 able to read the German fluently* — indeed, until he 

 was nearly ten years old he spoke no English — he 

 had taken all the numbers of the Bienenzietung and 

 other German bee journals, from their origin. His 

 library is unquestionably the choicest repository in 

 America, of German bee literature, and probably the 

 fullest in this department, of any private library in 

 the world. Better acquainted with the history and 

 literature of bee-culture than any man in America, 

 perhaps than any living man — seldom if ever forget- 

 ting a single fact once lodged in his extraordinary 

 memory ; he was so modcstf and reserved, that only 

 those who knew him well, understood the wide range 

 of his reading and investigation. 



Unselfish to an unusual degree, lie cared compara- 

 tively little for money or applause, but kept steadily 



* We forgot in the "February number of the Ameri- 

 can Bee Journal, to give the proper credit to Mr. 

 Wagner for his translations from the Bienenzietung, 

 given in the article on the Berlepsch frames. 



fit is with deep regret that we announce that no 

 likeness exists of our venerable friend. He shrank 

 80 instinctively from everything having the least 

 appearance of personal display, that he could never 

 be prevailed on to allow his portrait to be taken. 



in view the advancement of the true interests of bee- 

 culture, making his varied information contribute to 

 the wider diffusion of all that pertained to the true 

 theory and practice of his favorite pursuit. While 

 specially familiar with everything pertaining to this 

 subject, he was well versed in the civil history of his 

 country, and intimately with the ecclesiastical history 

 of the German Reformed Church, in which he had 

 served for many j'cars as an honored elder. There 

 were few subjects, indeed, on which he could not 

 converse with ease, and by the extent, variety and 

 remarkable accuracy of his information, he was one 

 of the most delinhlful companions to all who enjoyed 

 the pleasure of his acquaintance. 



It is very difficult to realize that all these stores of 

 instructive and entertaining knowledge lie buried in 

 his tomb, and nothing but a firm belief in the wis- 

 dom and goodness of that merciful Father, in whom 

 he trusted, can reconcile us to his loss. He who hath 

 brought " life and immortality to light in the Gospel," 

 knows best when and how to summon his children to 

 their unclouded splendor. 



L. L. Langstkotii. 



Samuel Wagner was born at York, Pennsylva- 

 nia, August I7th, 1798. His father was at that time 

 pastor of the German Reformed Church in that 

 borough. Having accepted a call from the German 

 Reformed congregation at Frederick, Maryland, he 

 removed there. Mr. Wagner there attended the paro- 

 chial school attached to the church. In 1810, his father 

 resigned, owing to ill health, and returned to York, 

 where he shortly after died. Mr. Wagner was then 

 sent to the York County Academy, where he received 

 his education. After leaving the academy, he engaged 

 for some years in mercantile pursuits. In 1834, he 

 purchased the York Recorder. In 1839, he sold the 

 York Recorder to Mr. T. C. Hamley, and removed to 

 Lancaster, where in 1830, he established the Lancaster 

 Examiner. Receiving the offer of the cashiership of 

 the York Bank, he sold the Examiner to Hamniersley 

 & Richards, and returned to York, holding the 

 position of cashier till April, 1862. In 1863, he 

 accepted the position of disbursing officer of the 

 Senate. Resigning this position in 1SG8, he, for the 

 few remaining years of his life, devoted all his ener- 

 gies to the editing and management of the American 

 Bee Journal, which was to him a labor of love. 



Accident to Eev. L. L. Langstrotli. 



On Friday, January 26th, Mr. Langstroth fell and 

 had his left foot severely injured by the wheel of a 

 street railroad car. He was on his way to my father's 

 house, and was at once brought here by the superin- 

 tendent of the railroad. At first, it was feared that 

 all the toes except the large one would have to be 

 entirely amputated, as the bones of all of them were 

 broken ; the small toes were deeply lacerated by the 



