C)18 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



Sept. 



Mr. Langstroth would narrate the personal experi- 

 ence of that meeting-. 



At each and every meetiny of bee-keepers' asso- 

 ciations throughout the length and breadth of the 

 land, methinks I can hear in solemn, heartfelt tones 

 the eloquent rhetoric of the mourners who bewail 

 the loss of their benefactor, their instructor, their 

 friend. At once a thousand eager voices would 

 proclaim, "Let not his body rest in an unknown, 

 unmarked grave;" and presently a shaft would 

 arise, " ei-ected by the bee-keepers of America." 



My friends, the iiev. L. L. Langstroth neefls no 

 more eloquent epitaph than his own "The Hive and 

 the Honey-Bee." It will live longer, and be read 

 more broadcast than all your fervid eloquence, 

 your studied rhetoric, or yovir heartfelt grief. He 

 needs no monument, to be seen, perhaps, a few 

 hundred yards off; his modest monuments already 

 adorn the premises of the thousands who to-da3' 

 either earn their livelihood, in whole or in part, or 

 derive pleasure and profit from the work of his 

 brain. 



" The Rev. L. L. Langstroth is dead !" To-day you 

 think the loss would be great; how much more 

 would it have been thirty or forty years ago, before 

 he announced to you the only way to pi-operly util- 

 ize the honey-bee? But, lie still lives; "his health, 

 impaired by early studies; able to do but little for 

 himself, and notworth a single dollar." Mr. Ponds 

 statement has never been denied, so I take it to be 

 true. 



Bee-men and bee-women everywhere, are we do- 

 ing- our duty as a grateful people? Editors of bee- 

 journals, type-setters, pressmen, all in the printing- 

 office! ask yourselves, " Would our paper be in ex- 

 istence, except for the hanging, sectional, movable- 

 frame principle?" If so, should we no! present to 

 Mr. Langstroth, living, what he will not need when 

 dead? Ought we not to see that his gray hairs de- 

 scend to a peaceful grave, giving him the assurance 

 that those near and dear to him will bo spared from 

 want, at least? 



I do not write in his behalf as a mendicant; far be 

 it from me to do so. Were he rich as the fabled 

 Croesus, it would be our duty to show, in some way, 

 our thanks. He is poor — in moderate circumstanc- 

 es ; make him easy. Help the cause in j-our papers, 

 by every means, and j^ive, besides, what your duty 

 dictates. Proprietors and workmen in supply 

 houses, would you be earning a livelihood as you 

 now do, if Mr. Langstroth had not given you the 

 movable-frame hive? Then give what your duty 

 dictates. Queen-venders, where would your occu- 

 pation be? Then give what duty dictates. Bee- 

 keepers' associations, conventions, and the like, 

 would you have mingled together for pleasant in- 

 tercourse and instruction? Have you enjoyed 

 yourselves? Have you learned any thing which 

 will profit you? Do what duty dictates to you ! 



Bee-keepei'S, who have profited by the sale of 

 bees, or have derived pleasure in raising bees and 

 honey, can you give a pound or two for each hive 

 that has assisted you these many years? Do you 

 owe Mr. Langstroth one or two pounds of honey for 

 each movable-frame hive you possess? If so, g-ive 

 it — give what duty dictates, and no more. I sim- 

 ply, as one of you, tell you what I deem to be your 

 duty, and think Mr. Langstroth could not decline a 

 spontaneous offer from his friends everywhere. 



Mr. Editor, will you receive, not our subscrip- 

 tions, but our (hir8? Will twenty cents for each 



hive, from event bee-keeper who owns a movable- 

 frame hive, form a respectable sum? If not, what 

 will? My dues are ready as soon as you consent to 

 be treasurer of the fund. 



S. C. BOYLSTON, 



General Freight ami Ticket Agent, C. A- S. Il'y Co. 

 Charleston, S. C, Sept. 4, 1884. 



All I can say, friend B., is, I am ready with 

 my twenty cents per hive ; but I Avonld sug- 

 gest, instead of puttino- me in treasurer, the 

 amounts he remitted directly to friend Lang- 

 strotli liimself. His address is L. L. Lang- 

 stroth. Oxford, Butler Co., Ohio, and liis 

 son-iii-hiw, }klr. Cowan, can easily have some 

 printed caids of acknowledgment of the re- 

 ceipt of money, and these can he addressed 

 by some member of the household, so as not 

 to task the strength of our old friend in his 

 present atflietion. Perhaps it will lie a good 

 way to have the amount sent in. publislied 

 in Gleanixos month after month. We 

 will clieerfullydo our part in the matter, and 

 otiier bee journals can act a.; they think prop- . 

 er. Our number of hives averages, perhaps, 

 winter and summer, about 250. This will 

 make our donation SJO.OO. which amount is 

 ready to l)e lianded over crerij uca'-years'' dati. 



^^» — Bs_ 



PATENTS. 



SO.MF, SrOGERTIONS PROM FRIEND HEDDON IN 

 REGARD TO THE MATTER. 



fRIEND ROOT:- Having been somewhat as- 

 sociated with a patent lawyer and solicitor for 

 a term of years, my attention has been called 

 in that direction. As might be expected, I 

 have read your printed report and decision re- 

 garding your suit with Mr. Forncrook with much 

 interest, as published in last issue. We all regret 

 very much that so much time and money should be 

 spent over this controversy and suit. It is the re- 

 sult of simc one being in the wrong. It seems Mi-. 

 Matthews has decided that Mr. Forncrook is that 

 person. 



To the end that such controversies and expenses 

 may be as few and far between as possible in the 

 future, I will add my small mite in that direction, 

 with your allowance of space, as it is a matter which 

 vitally interests us all, and does not seem to be 

 clearly understood by all bee-keepers. 



Lotus analyze the subject. Many think a patent- 

 right a monopoly. Well, be it such: it has one sav- 

 ing feature, in the fact that it is given to the mo- 

 nopolist as a reward for intellectual labor— a labor 

 which, while it gives the laborer a monopoly, is also 

 a great blessing to community at large. Personally 

 I can not say that I see any great advantage or jus- 

 tice in the patent-system. Notwithstanding, how- 

 ever, the majority of nearly all countries think the 

 system a good one; and as a true American citizen 

 it is my duty to fall in line, abiding- by the will of 

 that majority so far as my acts are concerned in the 

 matter. I hold, further, that it is consistent for me 

 to obtain a patent and enjoy its fruits, even while I 

 do not believe in the system. Patriotism to what I 

 consider just, should lead me to talk and vote 

 against the system I consider wrong. But while 

 said system is in vogue, and I am daily paying trib- 

 ute to it, for me to refrain from taking advantage 

 of it would amount to martyrdom, which should not 

 be expected from any individual. 



am in favor of discussing the wisdom of the 



