THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



comb-building, without any disposition 

 to swarm, it worked on year after year 

 for three years ; when I moved it home to 

 obtain brood from it to improve my home 

 yard. Here it remained two years more 

 with the same queen; always maintaining 

 the same character. If I could have 

 every queen as good as the one in this 

 colony the profits of my bees would be 

 largely increased — I believe twice what 

 the3^ now are. But a long series of years 

 and many generations with the most care- 

 ful selection will be required to make 

 such traits pernament, so they will -'come 

 true. ' ' Already the outlook is hopeful. Al- 

 read}- there is reason to believe that some 

 of our queen breeders are working along 

 these lines, and if these papers shall stim- 

 ulate others in the same work I shall feel 

 that they have not been written in vain. 

 Middi.ebCrv, Vt. Dec. lo, 1897. 



CURING FOUL BROOD IN WISCONSIN. 



Enforcing the Law. Common Sense and So- 

 ciability Versus OflQcial Dignity. 



N. E. FRANCE. 



There is naught in this bad world like sympa- 

 thy.- eyffo/v. 



URIEND H.-Your 

 ^ letter asking sev- 

 eral questions upon 

 the working of Wis- 

 consin's foul - brood 

 *5t law is at hand. At 



V \ present I am quite 



busy, and will sim- 

 ply answer questions 

 and a little later will 

 write an article or 

 two for the Review. 



( I . ) I am 40 years old ; never used to- 

 bacco or any kind of liquors. After 12 

 years of age I went to school winters; 

 and in sunnner worked with 300 to 5cx3 

 colonies of bees and also with a small 



fruit farm. Then I changed winter-work 

 by teaching school 10 winters; all but one 

 term in the same room. 



( 2. ) How I enforce the law. If I hear 

 any remark that some bee-keeper I am to 

 visit may make me trouble, I learn all 

 possible about him; then I decide what 

 is best to do, and, like Sherman in 

 his march to the sea, cut loose all behind 

 me, and with all kindness visit the man 

 to do all the good possible for him. As 

 to the enforcing of the law where I should 

 be refused, I believe in nearly all cases, 

 if the owner is kindly treated there will 

 be no need of enforcing law; while if I 

 should go with a stiff official air to such 

 a man and demand to see his bees, I 

 should expect trouble — and ought to. 

 Here is an illustration ; last siimmer I was 

 to call on a bee-keeper who was a des- 

 perate fellow. Was told by several not 

 to dare to eat with him for fear of poison; 

 and if I did not take an officer along I 

 could expect a clinch fight. After some 

 inquiry I hired a livery and driver to 

 take me to said man's house. In the 

 woods I found a small log house, partly 

 furnished. A woman came to the door. 

 I inquired if Mr. lived there. 



" Yes, sir;" 



" Is he at home?" 



" Yes sir; he is in yonder field burning 

 brush. ' ' 



I took my grip from the buggy and 

 told the liverj' man he could go; I was 

 going to stpp here. He replied, 



" Rather it be you than me." 



I called on the man; helped to burn 

 brush, at the same time talking bees, and 

 in a few moments he said; 



" Are you our State inspector?" 



" Yes sir." 



"Well, let the brush take care of it- 

 sels; let's go and look at the bees." 



I stayed all night; and the man left his 

 farm-work for two days, using his team to 

 take me, free of charge, to every bee- 

 keeper within ten miles of him. I prefer 

 in every case to stay with the bee-keeper 

 instead of at a hotel, be one of the family 

 while there, and I never have had a 



