556 



GLEANINGvS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 1. 



from the fruit-blossoms largely induces brood- 

 rearing. The season is so far advanced that 

 there is no longer any condensation within 

 the hive, and, in order to rear brood, large 

 quantities of water are necessary. 



In a great portion of Colorado the streams 

 flow directly from the snow and ice, not many 

 miles in the mountains. The bees go forth in 

 quest of water, go to the streams, fill them- 

 selves with cold water, are chilled, and die. The 

 necessity for water is constantly increasing 

 within "the hive; others go forth, and share 

 the same fate, until the whole colony has dis- 

 appeared. 



A paper read by us at the Lincoln conven- 

 tion last year effectually covers this matter; 

 and the complaint made by Mr. Aikin is 

 almost identical with that occurring a few 

 years ago in an apiary near Omaha, and which 

 was effectually cured by water within the 

 apiary, where the water can be tempered, as 

 best suited to the wants of the bee, by the 

 gentle rays of the sun. 



In the case near Omaha not a dead bee could 

 be found in the apiary; but we did find them 

 in large cjuantities dead around the hydrants 

 in the immediate neighborhood. We doubt 

 not that bee-keepers attach too little impor- 

 tance to what might seem to be a very small 

 item — watering their bees within the apiary, 

 of furnishing water of standard purity, and of 

 a temperature best suited to the wants of the 

 colony. 



A careful study of the hive during the spring 

 and middle brooding season has more than 

 convinced us of the importance of watering in 

 the apiary. 



Friend, Neb., July 15. 



THE TWO UNIONS. 



Reasons Why the U. S. B. K. U. Should be Support- 

 ed ; a Reply to Prof. Cook. 



BY DR. A. B. MASON. 



Mr. Editor: — Will you please tell me what's 

 the matter with our 'old friend Prof. Cook? 

 It's awful hot here to-day, and I sit by an 

 upstairs window and look out upon our apiary 

 (it belongs to the whole family, so I say our; 

 if I didn't I don't know how soon my better 

 half would be after me with a broom), where 

 the busy bees seem to think this is ideal honey 

 weather, for the;/ are busily engaged in bring- 

 ing in the nectar from the acres of white 

 clover, and acres more of sweet clover that is 

 just coming into bloom. 



It being too hot for active work I've been 

 looking over late numbers of bee-journals, 

 and I feel like asking the above question; for, 

 within a few months, less or more, I've been 

 noticing the peculiar ' ' antics ' ' indulged in by 

 some of our well-known bee-keepers who have 

 taken Greeley's advice and gone west to grow 

 up with the country. But something seems 

 to be wrong. Either the country has got its 

 growth or else the climate doesn't agree with 

 them, or something else is the matter. 



Our good friend Hambaugh seems to be all 

 right; but just look at the Rambler. He's 



been drawing on his imagination for quite a 

 while to .unravel the "Mystery of Crystal 

 Mountain," and he hasn't got it unraveled 

 yet, and he doesn't seem likely to for some 

 time yet; but he's got plenty of imagination 

 left. Will you kindly keep watch of him a 

 little, and see that he doe-sn^t get " luny," for 

 there's no telling where he'll finally land if 

 he persists in keeping in the company of such 

 a character as Alfaretta and others of his pet 

 friends. 



I might name more of our friends who show 

 signs of having imbibed something that has 

 changed them from what they were when liv- 

 ing farther east. 



And our old stand-by, Prof. Cook, shows 

 signs of having acquired a disposition to dis- 

 regard the rights of others, as is shown, to 

 me, when he says on page 449 of GLEANINGS 

 for Jvme 15, in speaking of Mr. Newman's 

 construing the meaning of the vote of the 

 National Union in January last, " If so, I am 

 not sure but, on the plea of self-preservation, 

 we should disregard such vote." Now, please, 

 don't let Prof. Cook get so careless and lax in 

 his ideas of what is right as to "disregard" 

 the wishes of those who have paid their money 

 into the treasury of the National Union, and 

 who also chose him as one of the Advisory 

 Board to carry out their wishes, and not to 

 disregard them. 



Like you, I can not agree with Prof. Cook 

 when he says there is not room enough for 

 two organizations. There is not only as much 

 room now as ever for two organizations, but 

 more. The old North American was in the 

 field when the National Union was organized, 

 and still there was room for it, and well have 

 the Advisory Board and General Manager 

 occupied the field, and protected our interests. 

 The National Union took the field because the 

 North American didn't occupy it all, or, rather, 

 because a line of work needed doing that was 

 not being done by the North American. The 

 North American and National Union were not 

 doing all that needed to be done, so another 

 attempt was made to enlarge the scope of both 

 by providing that the National Union should 

 look after honey-adulterators and dishonest 

 honey commission men; but a large majority 

 of its members said no, and, true to his old- 

 time faithfulness to the interests of the Na- 

 tional Union, General Manager Newman says 

 that voice must be heard and obeyed; but 

 Prof. Cook isn't "sure" but such a voice 

 should be "disregarded." As the result of 

 that vote, the United States Bee-keepers' 

 Union came into existence for the purpose of 

 looking after interests that are more vital to 

 bee-keepers than was that of 1)eing allowed to 

 keep bees in cities and villages, etc. The 

 United States Bee-keepers' Union proposes to 

 look after the interests of its members in the 

 same way as did the National Union, and, in 

 addition, try to make it warm for the adulter- 

 ators, and for such commission-men as attempt 

 to defraud its members. 



I am sure there is room for both the National 

 Bee-keepers' Union and the United vStates 

 Bee-keepers' Union; and I am just as sure 

 that there is no need for both of them exist- 



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