S86 



GLEx\.Kl^GS m iiEE CULTURE. 



Nov. 



LETTER FBOM ONE OF OUR LADY 

 BEEKEEPERS. 



WRITTEN FOR THE IN DIANA rOI, IS (ON VKNTK )N. 

 HUT NOT ITSED F(^l! WANT OK TIMF.. 



fllP^ followins? letter was I'orwaided us 

 • througli tile kiiulness of Mrs. Rob- 

 bins. You will notice the article was 

 written to be read at the convention, 

 and not to be published in Glean- 

 ings, which fact may induce our friends to 

 overlook the exceedingly kind words ad- 

 dressed to the editor of Gleanings: 



Mrs. Casgandra Rohbins: Dear Madam:— The eve- 

 ning- that Gleanings of Sept. 15 came, among- oth- 

 er things of interest I read the extended notice and 

 programme of the N. A. B. K. Society, and again 

 1 was seized with a desire to accept j-our Ijind invi- 

 tation to attend the convention, and behold the 

 faces, and sit at the feet, and learn of my numer- 

 ous acquaintances which 1 have gained through 

 the medium of the American Bn Journal and 

 Gleanings. 



But in that programme I did not find a certain 

 thing mentioned for consideration in which I 

 should suppose all Western bee-keepers would talje 

 unbounded interest; viz., manufactured comb 

 honey. 



Two or throe years ago I mot an elderly gentle- 

 man from Kansas, who, knowing 1 w;ts an apiarist. 

 Informed me that people "out west" made honey, 

 comb and all, by machinery. I "disdouhted" his 

 statement, as the boy said, but failed to convince 

 him of his error, and you will pardon me if I could 

 not help smiling- while he was talking. It was 

 probably constitutional with him, so we must be 

 charitable, knowing that— 



" Men are preverse and oncertain oreetcrs. 

 And forget that 'tain't likely to happen, 

 Their own private fancies 

 Can always be cappen ! " 



Now, to take the aforesaid industry a little near- 

 er home: 



In the American Bee Journal of .Ian. i:i 1^86, we 

 read: " I went to one grocer in this city who had 

 recently purchased from 0/ii«, 1000 lbs. of what ho 

 honestly supposed to be real honey, and convinced 

 him in five minutes that almost the entire ((uantity 

 was made up of syrup, deftly secured in comb. He 

 simply said, ' What are we coming- toV " 



-' Who is here so base that woifld be a bondman V 

 If any, speak; for him hav;e I offended. J pause 

 for a rei)ly." 



Mrs. Kobbins, jou are quite right, 1 believe, in en- 

 tertaining the idea that women are well adapted 

 to the pursuit of bee culture. Our brothers are 

 often a great help to us in this as in other callings, 

 and, withal, so self-sacrificing. 



One day last July my little seven-year-oid niece, 

 Florence, was visiting here. A short time previous 

 she had been in tlie honey-house of a bee-keeper 

 not forty miles from here, who had recently ob- 

 tained a new machine in place of his old inferior 

 and perhaps slightly disabled one, which worked 

 admirahly; and, what do y9U think? Out of the 

 exceeding generosity of his great heart he told 

 Florence that that old machine would be just the 

 one for her aunt Marcia. Of course, my heart 

 went out in gratitude for his thoughtfulness in my 

 (?) behalf; but I was unable to see why I should not 

 invest my mone.v in a good machine as well a« he: 



and up to this date the question stands open in my 

 mind. But such disinterested solicitude should not 

 go unrewarded. 



Now, 1 am free to admit that 1 have a sort of ad- 

 miration for beekeepers as a class— men and wo- 

 men. I might name several of them, except for my 

 extreme bashfulness. But 1 will not refrain from 

 speaking- words of commendation for our estimable 

 friend, one of our fathers in apiculture— Mr. A. I. 

 Root. 



I have never had the pleasure of seeing him ; but 

 how could I helplinowing him, after having seen 

 so many interesting places and things through his 

 pen— Mr. W. W. Rawson's cucumber-greenhouses 

 and hot-beds at Arlington, Mass., for instance. 

 W^hy, I almost wanted to begin work at once in a 

 greenhouse and garden of my own. And then I 

 should like to shake hands with him on the tobacco 

 question, for I, too, hate that weed. I wonder how 

 it is that he succeeds in helping so many to discon- 

 tinue its use. It can not be simply the gift of a 

 smoker, for that, in these chronic cases, would not 

 serve as a least inducement. But, above all, he seems 

 to be a man who lives his religion every day, and 

 his articles and little suggestions are so helpful to 

 us all who would know the better way, seek peace, 

 and love righteousness. 



And now, in conclusion, allow me to briefly con- 

 gratulate all who have the pleasue of attending 

 your convention. May each be socially benefited, 

 and receive and impart largely of information. 1 

 hope you will not be denied the presence of any 

 " quantity " of patent-right men, with their various 

 wares— every one of whom has the best in the mar- 

 ket; for what is a lieokeepers' convention without 

 them I 



Very cordially your bee-sister, 



Shoreham, Vt. M.vrcia A. Douglass. 



1 am very glad, my good friend, to know 

 that you are interested in cucumber green- 

 houses. I have oftentimes wondered wheth- 

 er the readers of Gleanings were interested 

 in following me through this (to me) won- 

 derful, and, in some respects, unexplored 

 region of vegetable life as well as insect-life. 

 I do think a small greenhouse would be next 

 to ;i piano or organ for every home ; and J 

 do not believe it would be money wasted 

 either, especially if the women-folks had en- 

 thusiasm enough to keep it neat and tidy. 

 Blue Eyes is just now on a big tease for a 

 little greenhouse. She can hardly think of 

 any thing else, and she and her papa bid 

 fair to revive the pleasant relations that ex- 

 isted l)etween them eleven or twelve years 

 ago. You see, she is now almost fourteen 

 years old. I had hoped she might liecome a 

 bee-keeper ; but if her taste should run to 

 floriculture instead, I will try to be con- 

 tent.— Bv the way, my good friend, are you 

 not a little uncharitaV)le toward that brother 

 who offered to sell you his old extractor V 

 May be he thought that, with your compara- 

 tively limited number of colonies, it would 

 answer just as well as a new one, and would 

 cost you very much less money.— I am much 

 obliged for "your very kind words. The to- 

 bacco business is God's work, not mine. 1 

 am very thankful that I have been worthy 

 of being used as an instruijient in his 

 hands. 



