422 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



December 



are acres of it, literally covering 

 shrubs and logs in marshy places. It 

 is called potato vine and pomme de 

 terra in this region. — F. C. P. 



KEEP YOUR FEET ON THE 

 GROUND 



By H. B. Turrell 



I always pay close attention when 

 the Dadants are talking about their 

 own bees and business, and think the 

 readers of the Journal would, per- 

 haps, like to hear more about their 

 apiaries; so I am going to suggest 

 that they might arrange to run a 

 series of articles, which might be 

 called "A Beekeeper's Log," through- 

 out the year, giving their readers an 

 intimate account of everything that 

 occurs in their own bee-yards in that 

 length of time. 



From my own experience, I think 

 that what the beginner lacks most is 

 a comprehensive view of the various 

 operations carried on in beekeeping, 

 giving the when, why and how" of the 

 game. 



My impression is that the average 

 amateur gets his head heated up with 

 facts and fancies until he cannot tell 

 the white things of practical bee- 

 keeping from the blue things of spec- 

 ulative apiculture — in plain language, 

 the amateur should be taught to keep 

 his feet on the ground. 



And just here allow me to suggest 

 that the novice is the greatest source 

 of joy and and the greatest curse of 

 the beekeepers. Witness: (a) the 

 questions in the "Questions and 

 Answers" column, (b) how hard it 

 is for the beekeepers to get a decent 

 price for their product; (c) the 

 spread of foulbrood throughout the 

 country. Maryland. 



I am certainly thankful for your 

 very complimentary letter. We love 

 to be appreciated, as every human 

 being surely does. 



The reason why we do not give 

 more of our own experiences is ex- 



actly because, as you put it nicely, 

 the average amateur — in fact the av- 

 erage man — may "get his head heated 

 up with facts and fancies .... and 

 should be taught to keep his feet on 

 the ground." 



If we were to dwell on ourselves 

 too much, it would be a "one man's" 

 journal and would probably lose 

 some of its interest. In fact, it 

 would be sure to do it. An editor 

 needs to be constantly reminded of 

 the necessity of "keeping his feet on 

 the ground," and the best way to do 

 this is to publish experiences of oth- 

 ers, whether successful or unfor- 

 tunate. We learn from both experi- 

 ences, and, besides, we ascertain that 

 we are not the only successful ones. 



The novice occasionally causes an 

 experienced beekeeper to shrug his 

 shoulders, at the simplicity of his 

 questions. But he points out to us 

 where the greatest failures happen. 

 So we hope novices will read this 

 paragraph, and take heed. — Editor. 



HONEY AT THE GLENN COUNTY 

 FAIR 



By Dora Stuart 

 "When the golden-hued October 



Tells us we have time to spare. 

 We'll just yoke up Buck and Brindle 



And Whoa ! Haw ! Gee ! to the Fair." 



So runs a song of forty years ago. 



As a means of locomotion. Buck 

 and Brindle have long since been re- 

 placed : but the rollicking autumn 

 spirit is still displaved by the in- 

 creasing numbers who "steer" vari- 

 ous motor-propelled vehicles, not 

 ■only to the fairs held in their own 

 coimties, but to those held in adioin- 

 ing and even distant counties. Thus, 

 on September 29. notwithstanding her 

 thin soles, we "yoked up" Liz and 

 "Forded" our way swiftly, though 

 cautiously around sharp rocks, lurk- 

 ing ruts and over precarious bridges 

 of unfinished highways, from Chico. 

 Butte County, California, to view the 



fair, and particularly the agricultural 

 booth, at Orland, in the neighboring 

 county of Glenn. 



Bee friends from Butte County 

 were already at the honey booth. So 

 were bee friends met the previous 

 year. Dr. Sayler, Bee Inspector of 

 Glenn County, was again in charge 

 of the exhibit and the largest con- 

 tributor to it. Indeed, Dr. Sayler 

 may fairly be called the father of 

 beekeeping in that county, in the 

 sense that his energy and devotion 

 are the principal factors in promot- 

 ing the growth of the industry and 

 the standardizing of its products. 



The honey exhibit, the second for 

 Glenn County, was a distinct im- 

 provement over that of last season, 

 both in variety and the taste shown 

 in arrangement. It donsisted oS 

 honey — white, light amber and dark 

 amber — wax, live bees, modern equip- 

 ment, and a special exhibit of foul- 

 brood combs. 



The prize winners were: 



Comb honey — R. H. Yearnshaw. 



Extracted honey — M. A. Sayler. 



Beeswax — R. H. Yearnshaw. 



Sweepstakes — M. A. Sayler. 



The judges who made the awards 

 were : 



W. H. Dickenson, Manager Depart- 

 ment of Apiculture, Diamond Match 

 Company; Charles Edson and J. E. 

 Edson, his nephew, of Butte County, 

 where they operate large apiaries 

 both for queen-rearing and for 

 honey-production ; and C. D. Stuart, 

 Chico. 



The sources of nectar in Glenn 

 County are practically the same as 

 those of Butte County — star thistle, 

 alfalfa, fruit bloom and miscellane- 

 ous wild flowers. 



As a whole, the display was con- 

 vincing illustration of the develop- 

 ment of the beekeeping industry that 

 is sure to follow the dividing up of 

 the large land holdings in California. 

 For, until twenty years ago, Glenn 

 County was owned almost entirely 

 by one man, who leased it to renters 

 in large tracts. But with the sale of 

 the land to small farmers, and the re- 

 cent provision by the Federal Gov- 

 ernment's Stony Creek reclamation 

 enterprise, of adequate irrigation fa- 

 cilities, apiculture, aiong with other 

 industries of little landers, is begin- 

 ning to come into its own. 



The character of settlers that such 

 enterprises invite, is witnessed by 

 the unusually creditable display 

 made at this last fair. Although 

 housed in a tent, the exhibit was 

 worthy of an older community, in 

 which alone apiculture can thrive. 



California. 



Apicullwrjl booth at Glenn County, California, Fair 



THE KINGBIRD 



Several letters regarding the king- 

 bird have come to this office recently. 

 Since the birds are not as plentiful 

 as in former years much less is heard 

 about them than in the past. Some 

 beekeepers favor shooting the birds 

 on sight, while others would protect 

 them. From the writer's observa- 

 tions, he is inclined to think that the 

 bee-catching habit is not so common 



