190 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mar. 15 



import them?" The first answer, given by 

 Wm. McEvoy, is, "No," without any reason 

 added. E. France says, "Yes, try them." Mrs. 

 J. N. Heater says, " I think not." J. M. Ham- 

 baugh says, " I am in favor of making the ef- 

 fort." J. A. Green says, " I consider it an ex- 

 periment of doubtful value." R. L. Taylor 

 says, '■ No, not in the interest of bee-keepers 

 financially." 



I do not know just why Mr. Taylor thinks as 

 he does; but if the project should prove a fail- 

 ure it would certainly not benefit bee keepers 

 financially. On the other hand, if it should be 

 a success above the highest expectation of any 

 one, and if it should be found that Apis dorsnta 

 should in this country prove as tractable in 

 every way as ^pis mellifl en, dnubWns the an- 

 nual yield of honey, does it necessarily follow 

 that beekeepers would make money by it? 

 One of the greatest difiBculties of the present 

 that confronts bee-keepers is that of finding a 

 market; and if the output should be doubled, 

 and the price cut in two, it would only increase 

 his labor without increasing his pay. But if 

 honey could be made plentier and cheaper, that 

 would certainly seem to be for the good of the 

 people in general, and the financial interests of 

 bee-keepers should not stand before the general 

 good. 



W. G. Larrabee says, " Yes, if they would not 

 turnout like the English sparrow." He may 

 have in mind the possibility that Apis dorsata 

 would divide the harvest with our present bees, 

 without any additional benefit. 



Chas. Dadant & Son hardly have any such 

 fears, for they say, " We do not believe Apis 

 dorsata would stand our climate." C. H. Dib- 

 bern says, "No. I think they would be of no 

 value to the bee-keepers of America." P. H. 

 Elwood says, " Probably not. There are other 

 things the government might do that would 

 help us more." 



Prof. A. J. Cook is emphatic in his indorsi>- 

 ment, saying. " I certainly do. I think that is 

 just the kind of work for the government to 

 carry forward; " and G. M. Doolittle thinks it 

 can do no harm to try, for he replies, " There is 

 lots of money spent more fooli.-hly by the gov- 

 ernment than in importing Apis dorsata." 



Dr. J. P. H. Brown says, " My opinion is that 

 they would not be a desirable acquisition to the 

 bee-keepers of the United States." Jas. A. 

 Stone says, " I have not made up my mind. In 

 doing so, I always think of English sparrows, 

 and I am very slow to say yes." Eugene Secor 

 says, " If the government wishes to experiment 

 with ^pis dorsata, I have no objections; but 

 as a bee-keeper I shall not ask it to do so at 

 present." Emerson T. Abbott says. "No. Gov- 

 ernment was not organized to import bees, or 

 any other kind of live stock. The sooner peo- 

 ple learn this the better it will be for them and 

 the government too." Rev. M. Mahin says. 



"I do not. It is my opinion that they would 

 not be of any advantage to the bee-keepers of 

 America. If they were capable of domestica- 

 tion the people of India would have domesti- 

 cated them long ago." 



Mrs. Harrison seems inclined to poke fun at 

 the scheme. She says, " I do; and put them In 

 the everglades of Florida. They are 160 miles 

 long and 60 miles broad. The water is from one 

 to six feet deep, dotted with little islands. The 

 Seminole Indian and Apis dorsata would go 

 well together, for he likes honey when it is to 

 be had for the taking; also fruit; but in his 

 wild state he has never been known to plant a 

 tree or keep bees in a hive." 



G. W. Demaree says, " I should be glad if the 

 Agricultural Department of the government 

 would take the matter in hand and import the 

 big honey-bee of India, Apis dorsata. But, 

 really, I fear that the undertaking might fail 

 because the officials would most certainly in- 

 trust the management of the new bees to some 

 favorite dudes, who would make a windy fail- 

 ure of them." J. E. Pond says, "No! Most 

 decidedly not. ... I am of the opinion now 

 that the discussion tha' is being made is more 

 to subserve the purpose of some one who knows 

 that cranks and an easily gulled public always 

 exist, and are ' playing a tune to suit their de- 

 sire for dancing.' " 



Less has been done by our government for 

 bee keepers than has been done bv other gov- 

 ernments—Canada, England, and some of the 

 European powers. It has done less for them 

 than it has for perhaps every othpr interest per- 

 taining to agriculture, so it would be nothing 

 very immodest for bee-keepers to ask such aid 

 as they might desire. But if ihev ask for some- 

 thing that proves of no benefit to the country, 

 will it not lessen their chances for getting aid 

 in other directions? Better first ask aid in the 

 way of experiment stations or something of that 

 kind— something as to whose success there can 

 be little doubt, and not a thing that many re- 

 gard as a will-o'-the-wisp. 



You may ask what reason there is for consid- 

 ering success so problematical. Some have said 

 they think Apis dorsata might be successfully 

 domesticated here, and that possibly it might 

 be crossed with Apis mcUijica. Those of oppo- 

 site views point to the stubborn fact that it 

 nevtr has been domesticated in its own coun- 

 try. Tho^e who appear to know something 

 about the matter say it can not be domesti- 

 cated; that it will never stay in a hive, but at 

 stated times will desert its habitation just as 

 surely as a migratory bird. Surely it seems 

 reasonable that it is hardly worth while to 

 bring it here until success has been attained in 

 confining it to a hive in its own country. 



You press the point that there is a great 

 quantity of honey to be had from red clover. 

 But it will do no good to get another bee to 



