1898 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



553 



ing in California for several months past for 

 their health. The condition of all three has 

 greatly improved. While Mr. Cowan, Jr., re- 

 mains, Mr. and Mrs. Cowan left there a few 

 weeks ago, stopping on their way at the homes 

 of some of the bee-keepers of the United 

 States. They called on Mr. York, of the 

 American Bee Journal, and on Dr. C. C. 

 Miller. In writing to Dr. Miller recently I 

 mentioned the fact that I was enjoying a visit 

 from Mr. and Mrs. Cowan ; and in reply he 

 writes this, which I give to our readers : 



Dear Ernes/: — I congratulate you heartily on the 

 opportunity of a visit from Mr. Cowan and" his wife. 

 I do so with some intelligence after having enjoyed 

 the treat myself. They came just at a time when 

 work was in such shape that 1 couldn't stop for any- 

 body — just couldn't stop. But I did stop for three 

 days, and gave myself up to the abandon of thinking 

 there was no work to be done while they were here ; 

 and although it may take two weeks to catch up, I'm 

 not worrying over it. 



Along with a strong desire there was al.so ju.st a 

 shade of dread of the coming of two such prominent 

 people ; but they brought with them a large stock of 

 common sense and loving kindness, and immediately 

 we were at ease. Mr. Cowan impres.ses one as a man 

 with a wonderful fund of information, but who has 

 hardl}' discovered j'et that he is any better off in that 

 respect than the ordinary mortal. It so happened 

 that while he was here, I had sent me a letter and a 

 newspaper clipping in a foreign language. I didn't 

 even know what was the language — thought by the 

 looks of the printed part that possibly it might be 

 modern Greek. But Mr. Cowan read it off at sight. It 

 was Russian. It made me feel I'd like to begin life 

 over again and be a linguist. 



Mrs Cowan is so simple and unassuming in her 

 manners that just at first one is hardly ready to rec- 

 ognize in her a woman of unusual intellectual attain- 

 ments ; but gradually the fact appears ; and, along 

 with verj' clear perceptions of the truth, she is pos- 

 sessed with an intense zeal that others shall see the 

 truth as she has learned to see it. My wife, who had 

 more opportunity than I to become acquainted with 

 her, gave as her verdict, " Mrs. Cowan is a woman 

 that lives to do good." 



The present war .seems bringing closer together a 

 good many people. At its clo e there will be no gap 

 between the North and the South; and England and 

 America, mother and daughter, will be closer than 

 ever before. " We be brethren." C. C. Miller. 



Marengo, III., June 13, 1S9S. 



The doctor's impressions of the two were 

 exacily my own — in fact, of all Rootdom. 

 Notwithstanding Mr. Cowan is the most tal- 

 ented and best informed bee-keeper living 

 to day, I believe, having traveled over nearly 

 all of the civilized world; notwithstanding he 

 reads eleven different languages, and speaks 

 perhaps half as many; notwithstanding honors 

 of various kinds have been conferred upon 

 him by different societies for the advancement 

 of science; notwithstanding he is editor of the 

 British Bee Journal, and president of the 

 British Bee-keepers' Association, he is one of 

 the most modest men I ever met. Unassum- 

 ing and quiet in his manner, one can not fail 

 to be impressed that he is in the presence of a 

 master of our pursuit. 



Without doubt he has the most extensive 

 library relating to bees of any man in the 

 world. He has been all his life gathering 

 together rare and old volumes pertaining to 

 bees ; and it does not make any difference 

 what language they are printed in, he reads 

 them just the same. He pronounced some of 

 the bee-books we have, dating back two and 

 three centuries, as being exceedingly rare and 

 valuable — such as, for instance, Butler's Fem- 



inine Monarchy, printed in 1609, or two years 

 before the publication of the common version 

 of the Bible; also Hill's treatise on bees, print- 

 ed in London in 1(108. 



When Mr. Cowan was here in 18S7 he had 

 with him his big microscope with which he 

 has made some of his exhaustive researches. 

 This instrument is one of the finest in the 

 world, and was made by Mr. Cowan himself. 

 Father once pronounced it the finest piece of 

 handwork he ever saw. It is described on 

 page 715 of this journal for 1.S87. 



I found Mr. Cowan to be well versed in all 

 the modern and ancient practices of bee-keep- 

 ing. It seemed to amuse him that .so many 

 ideas were being discovered in these latter 

 days that have been fully described in former 

 works. For instance, the modern starvation 

 cure for foul brood is fully described in Delia 

 Rocca's works, written over a century ago, 

 and printed in 1790. He was also amused at 

 the way we Yankees have of inventing things 

 that his countrymen invented and afterward 

 discarded. 



On the afternoon of one of the days he was 

 here, Mr. and Mrs. Cowan, Mrs. Root, Master 

 Leland, and myself, took a drive down to our 

 basswood apiary. I felt that, when so dis- 

 tiriguished a personage was here, I nmst not 

 fail to take along my camera, and so I re- 

 quested the privilege of a "shot" or two, 

 which was kindly granted ; and I also asked 

 if I might present the result of that shot to 

 our readers. With some reservation this priv- 

 ilege was also granted. Mrs. Cowan is shown 

 in the back of the buggy, Mrs. Root in front, 

 holding the dog Trix; and Master Leland in 

 front of Mrs. R. In the background are the 

 basswoods. From the picture one would 

 think it impossible to go between the trees, 

 but such is not the case. Of course, we do 

 not need to point out Mr. Cowan. 



Mrs. Cowan is as simple and unassuming in 

 her manners as her husband ; and the fact 

 gradually begins to dawn on one, when he be- 

 gins to know her better, that she is a woman 

 of more than usual intellectual attainments, as 

 Dr. Miller well says. She is a very earnest 

 and able advocate of the doctrine that the ten 

 tribes of Israel, after their carrying away to 

 Assyria, 13.'> years before the sacking of Jeru- 

 salem (when Judah and Benjamin were taken 

 to Babylon), were not lost by absorption into 

 other nations. vShe claims that the Bible just- 

 ifies us in believing that these Israelites mi- 

 grated to Central Europe and became the An- 

 glo-Saxon nation ; that England is Ephraim 

 in prophecy, and the United States represents 

 Manasseh ; that the religion and principles of 

 these two nations will spread all over the 

 world and become dominant. 



It is not necessary for me to refer to the 

 members of my own family unless it is to the 

 dog Trix (I count her) that eats more honey 

 than any other canine living. The other day 

 she showed she was very fond of raw banan- 

 as and raw tomatoes ; and for taffy she has a 

 " sweet tooth." I have not tried her yet on a 

 chunk of comb honey, but I have no doubt she 

 would whine for that as she does for every 

 thing else in the sweet line. 



