BIOGRAI'HIKS OF NOTED BEE-KEEPERS. 



he su|ici'ml<'iiilN. Iiii( spends mosl ol' his lime in npi- 

 cultnif. At I lie beg-inniuf^- of thi' si'usun he goes 

 daily to the onl-:ii)i!ir.v. doing the work tliere; eomes 

 l)iiek in llie evcining-, and makes prei>aia(ions for 

 botli apiaries for the next day. Mrs. A., witli the 

 lielp of tiie hired ffirl, takes care of tlie home apiary, 

 pnis starters in sections, and does other iig:lit work 

 p( iiaiuing- to the business. By liarvest-time, swarm- 

 ing is nearly over and the work is re\-ersed, Mrs. A. 

 going- daily to the out-apiaiy. while Mr. A. takes 

 care of t lie home apiary and liel|)s liarvest tlie farm 

 crops. Their success lias been varied, the yield per 

 colony ranging' fi-om almost nothing to more than 216 

 lbs. per colony in 1882, when from IKO colonies were 

 taken 39,000 lbs. of extracted honey. Mrs. A. is deep- 

 ly interested in the work of missions, and an addi- 

 tional leason for the benefloial elTects of bee-work 



•^ 





MHS. S.VRAH J. AXTELL. 



upoiilierheaithliesinthetacttlial slie has const ant l.\- 

 with lier the delightful stimulus of the tlioug-ht that 

 e\cry pound of lioney secured allows liert()de\()1e 

 Mil additional amount to the cause so dear to In r 

 heart. Althoug-h not a prolific writer, Mrs. Axlell is 

 practical and interesting'. 



MHS. MAHALA B. CHADDOCK. 



The sub.ie(;l of this sketch was born in (iiaiit Co., 

 1 11(1.. Dec. Ih, 1844. She married, at the age of 22, Mr. 

 .)ohn Chaddock. a prominent farmer of Fulton Co., 

 Illinois. In 1S72 slie hived a 7'unaway swai-nt of 

 lihuU liees. wliieli had clustered upon a peach-tree, 

 and this was lier first start in bee culture. I was 

 tlien writing' bee-letteis to the Prairie Fanner, and 

 Mrs. Chaddock was a contributoi' to that paiier, un- 

 der the noiii lie plume of "Hail Culumbia." Site 

 wroti^ to me, asking some (juestions about bees; and 

 when I hail rc^ad Gi.i<;anings I would send it to her 

 to read and leturn. She became a subscriber and a 

 contributor. 1 sold her an Italian (|iieen in 1874, and 



she Italianized 

 as it has never i 

 she has sold be( 

 tering 17 coloni 



apiai'N'. lb 

 bered mon 

 ■ally e\ eiy 



■r apiai'.N' i 

 lliaii ;«)(•( 

 year, and 



^ not larg'e, 

 lollies; liut 

 s now win- 



MUS. MAHAI^A B. CH.\DD()CK. 



In the fall of 1878 1 visited her, driving t here with 

 my horse and bug'g'y, the distance being' 60 miles. It 

 was dark and raining' when 1 reached her pleasant 

 home, and I was weary with my drive; but my wea- 

 riness was soon dispelled by the cheery welcome I 

 received from her and her excellent husband. Dur- 

 ing' my stay I examined her apiary, and soon saw 

 that it was well cared for, and the whitest of comb 

 hon- y graced her table. I never ate finer canned 

 peaches than at her table, which were sweetened 

 with honey. At the time of my visit she was a wo- 

 man of splendid physique, abounding' in health and 

 strength, and said she enjoyed taking her ax and 

 cutting up trees after they were felled. I thought I 

 never saw- a ])erson possessing equal magnetism. 



Mrs. C.,by her energy and varied abilities, is a fair 

 type of the American country-womiui, a class jiec-ul- 

 iar to this land, and scarcely possible in anyothei'. 

 That she may regain her former health and si lengt h, 

 and that thei-e may be many years of usefulness in 

 store for her, is the sincere wisli of all. 



Mhs. L Hakrison, Gleaitlnys, Fcli., ISSS. 



DR. C. C. MILLER. 



One among tlie very few who make bee-keeping 

 their sole business is Dr. C. C. Miller, of Marengo, III. 

 He was born June 10, 1831, at Ligonier, Pa. With a 

 si>irit of independence, and a good deal of self-denial 

 sometimes bordering upon hardshij), young Miller 

 worked his way through school, graduating at Union 

 College, Schenectady, N. Y., at the age of 22. Unlike 

 many boys who go through college self-supported, 

 running into debt at the end of their course, tmi' 

 young friend graduated with a sui'plus of some 

 seventy odd dollars, over and abo\e his curi-ent ex- 

 penses at school; but, as we shall [ii-esently see, it 

 was at the expense of an otherwise strong const it u- 

 lion. He did not know then, as he does now, the im- 

 portance of observing the laws of iH'alth. Instead of 

 taking rest he immediately took a cour.se in medi- 

 cine, graduating from the University of Michigan at 

 the age of 25. After settling down to pracl ice, jioor 



