692 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTrRE. 



Sept. 1. 



great, or the direction not to his mind, with a sharp 

 pull he brings tlie hobby under control, or else de- 

 liberately dismounts. , 



Few have had the cliance for editoriul traimng 

 that Ernest has had, and few have so well protited 

 by it Probably no one could tell when he became 

 editor of Gleanings in Kke Culture. I doubt if 

 at any point of time there was any formal transfer 

 of the position of editor from father to son. The 

 fact is, he grew into the place. Very likely not 

 many of the readers of Gleanings know how tuUy 

 under the control of the son are its columns. Ex- 

 cept the home and gaiden departments, it i am not 

 mistaken, unless you tind the initials "A. i. K.' at- 

 tached, you may be suro that every thing- has felt 

 the editorial iutluence of Ernest. Tl.at the journal 

 has lost nothing- by the change of censorship, in the 

 minds of its supporters, is evidenced by the fact 

 that, within hve years from the time Ernest took 

 hold, the subscripuon list increased from tive to ten 

 thousand. 



How much of the ability to control within proper 

 limits his natural inclination to hobby-riding- comes 

 ■ irom a balance-wheel inherited from his mother, 

 lean not say. lam quite inclined to creuit that 

 ability largely to the father. With a matured judg- 

 ment coming from a wide experience, so long as it 

 was needed, he kept a close watch lest any false 

 step was taken, and very likely Ernest was saVeU 

 irom coming to grief more tuan once by listening 

 to the advice of ni» more experienced father. 



Being both independent thinkers, it is hardly to 

 be expected that the father and son snould aiwaye 

 hold the same views. Indeed, they are very lar 

 from doing so. But to me it has always been very 

 interesting to notice the readiness to concede on the 

 pirt of each, and to view with respect the opinions 

 of the other. Fortunately for the best use of the 

 position he holds, in any question having an impor- 

 tant bearing on the general interestsof bee-keepers, 

 Ernest never liesitates to seek counsel Horn those 

 on whose expeiience he can rely, and in any impor- 

 tant departure as to the manufacture or use of 

 •ippliances he asks the opinions of a number whom 

 he considers experts, seconded by his immediate 

 cabinet of advisers-his father, his brother-in-law, 

 J. T. Calvert, and the foreman of wood-work, J. S. 



Warner. 



It is also fortunate that Ernest has given up, or 

 sent to the background, his bent for invention. As 

 an inventor his field would be more limited. He 

 operates in a wider field, and is always on the look- 

 out for improvements, come they from what source 

 they may, new or old. And no pains are spared to 

 get at the truth of the matter, or to bring it to pub- 

 lic notice, if found wortliy. Immediately njonnected 

 with an immense manufacturing establishment, 

 Gleanings nolds a position as leader in largely 

 deciding what shall and shall not be popularly used 

 among bee-keepers-a position that it could not 

 long hold if its leadings were not always carefully 

 made in the direction of the best interests of all 



concerned. , . , x, ^ ^ 



I quote here from a sketch published about two 

 years ago in the Review, written by the principal 

 stenographer and proof-reader in the office of 

 Gleanings: 



'• In manners, Ernest is very open and friendly. 

 In fact, one knows him about as well after an hour's 

 talk as he ever will. But this friendly urbanity 



does not prevent liim from seeing the quack iinrt 

 impostor in an instant, so he is seldcm, if ever, im- 

 posed upon. He is uttci ly destitute of selfishness; 

 and his library, his camera, microscope, gun, or 

 whatever he has, is entirely lor the benefit of any 

 who can be benefited thereby His picture shows 

 phrenologically an even balance of temper, wliich 

 is well known to us here; for it is just as safe to ask 

 a favor of him before dinner as after, which is not 

 the case with most men. 



"In speech, our junior editor is very rapid, with 

 frequent interruptions, or going back to get a bet- 

 ter word. In this respect he is j ust the opposite of 

 his father, who seldom changes a word in dictating 

 even two pages of "Our Homes," containing 3000 

 words. A. I. has all his editorials fully matured 

 and ready to put together, like the stones in Sol- 

 omon's temple, while Ernest goes more on the cut- 

 and-try plan. 



"But the best thing I can say about Ernest is the 

 unchanging attention which he pays to his father 

 and mother. With him, nothing must stand in the 

 way of their convenience and pleasure." 



"In speech," used by the writer quoted above, 

 evidently refers to dictation for publication, for in 

 convention, although perhaps a little rapid, he is 

 easily followed, and I do not recall any hesitation 

 or going back for a better word. He is a pleasant 

 and easy conversationalist, with a certain inquiring 

 expression that always suggests to me an interroga- 

 tion-point— a never ceasing watch for what may be 

 new or true. 



I can hardly say as much for his writing as his 

 speech. 1 have little faith in the ability to read 

 character from handwriting; and if I were called to 

 pass a night for the first time in a room with Ernest, 

 with no other knowledge of him than seeing some 

 of his handwriting, I should surely want to put my 

 walch under my pillow. Perhaps if I had the priv- 

 ilege of a stenographer and phonograph, nuj chi- 

 rography might be no better than his. 



The word in the German language that means 

 "earnest" is "eriist," and changing the first letter 

 to a capital it becomes the proper name Ernst, 

 which in English is changed to Ernest; so there 

 might seem something prophetic in his christening, 

 for if any one characteristic stands out prominent 

 in Ernest's make-up it is his intense earnestness 

 I remember being quite amused at a bee-keepers 

 convention at seeing him carrying about with bin 

 a piece of a frame, in which he was at that timt 

 much interested; and wherever you saw Ernest 

 there you saw that piece of siick to which he wa! 

 solemnly holding on, apparently determined thai 

 he must make others see In it the merits he saw 

 And he did. 



As mentioned in the quotation given, anotlie 

 characteristic is evenness. Whether at the factory 

 at church, at convention, at iiis house, he alway 

 has seemed to me alike, the same earnest Ernest 

 As might be expected, he is active in the chuid 

 and Cliristian Endeavor Society, and has been elect 

 ed for the third time as superintendent of th 

 Sunday-school. 



Among the many bee-keepers with whom I ai 

 proud to claim acquaintance, none appear to m 

 more like a brother. He seems more nearly my ow 

 age (most of the others seem older), and somehow 

 can get closer to him. Probably others feel muc 

 the same toward him. 



