212 THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



BliE-KEEFING HIS SOZ.I: BUSINESS. 



In order to enable your readers to judge somewhat as to my 

 competency to judge on bee matters, I will say that I have kept 

 bees continuously for 19 years. For five years bee-keeping has been 

 my sole occupation. And before that I kept over IG'O colonies in 

 one yard for many years. This experience has proved to me that 

 the bee varies a great deal in many ways, and is quite susceptible 

 of improvement by selective breeding". 



I grant that not having direct control of the male parentage 

 is a drawback. But what one cannot do directly is sometimes quite 

 possible indirectly. And as Dr. Miller has said, we can control the 

 drone parentage indirectly. It would seem to me that if such 

 writers as my good friend, the Doctor of Buck Grove, would give 

 some of his experiments and experiences, tell us how many colonies 

 his experience covers, how extensive his investigation into the actual 

 work of our American bee raisers and queen breeders has been, we 

 would be better able to rightly weigh his conclusions. 



For this reason, ]\Ir. Editor, I write this open letter and hope 

 this discussion will lead to more activity in breeding for improve- 

 ment of our little industrious pets. 



Dunlop, Harrison County, Iowa. 



A Discussion of Those Picture Grading Rules. 



BY THE SUBSCRIBERS. 



{Continued from April.) 



^-•Jj^ I RECTOR WILCOX, of Alauston, Wisconsin, in referring 

 JB/ to the illustrations given at the head of the honey quota- 

 tions column has this to say : 



"In looking at tlie illustration of the three grades of sections on 

 page 155, I think the selections are just right, if we are to under- 

 stand they are the poorest that can be admitted into the grades 

 named." 



Another subscriber, Air. William Fritz, of Canastota, New York, 

 believes that we should have a more complete description of the 

 sections, which would include the weights. In writing to me about 

 it, he says: 



"I would like to ask you to publish on page 85 of the January 

 Review pictures of each grade of honey giving size of section, width 

 and what each grade should weigh. Now we have Extra Fancy, 

 Fancy, Numbers 1 and 2. Do all sections weigh alike in a case of 

 24, or do they vary from 12 ounces to 17 ounces per section? I am 

 in the habit of grading all mv 12-ounce sections bv themselves, also 



