806 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Oct, 15. 



by the Cubans, thougli, that another such 

 storm might not strike this place again for 

 twenty years. With this sickly encourage- 

 ment, and a hope for better times, I procured 

 help, and at some little cost and work I had 

 things right again in a few days, losing only 

 two hives entirely from the blow, besides a 

 few others half drowned by the rain that fol- 

 lowed the storm. 

 Bejucal, Aug. 1. 



[It would pay any of our readers who may 

 be contemplating going to Cuba for the pur- 

 pose of carrying on beekeeping to read this 

 article very carefully. While, doubtless, some 

 have gone there and " struck it rich," I know 

 of a number who have achieved any thing but 

 success. 



We have heard from other sources of the 

 prevalence of bee-diseases in Cuba ; and I 

 hope that some sort of law can be passed soon 

 by which every one who keeps bees shall be 

 compelled to treat or destroy affected colonies. 



The 6rst disease Mr. Someiford speaks of, 

 and which he says is in every apiary on the is- 

 land, I should judge was pickled brood. The 

 second one, from the description given, I 

 should say was foul brood, and the third one 

 is probably black brood. While the descrip- 

 tion does not tally exactly, for the last named 

 as we find it in New York, yet it does in some 

 respects ; and from the fact that it is a new- 

 comer it would appear that it is the regular 

 black brood. Harry Howe says he has found 

 this disease in Cuba as well as foul brocd ; and 

 as he is somewhat of a microscopist as well as 

 a bacteriologist he is in a position to know. 

 —Ed.] 



NOTES OF TRAVEL IN EUROPE. 



Continued from Last Issue. 



BY J. T. CAI^VERT. 



We spent the most delightful week of all 

 our trip in Switzerland in sight of its snow- 

 capped mountains and its superb lakes whose 

 waters are not like any other I have seen in 

 all my travels. The ice of the glaciers, when 

 seen in the mass from beneath, is of a beauti- 

 ful sea-green color, and all the Swiss lakes 

 partake of this same distinctive color. There 

 are a variety of shades of green, from the 

 dark-green firs on the mountain-sides, the 

 lighter green of the grass, to the bright-green 

 cast of the charming lakes. The snowy peaks, 

 set between the nearer peaks covered with 

 green, make a charming picture that you nev- 

 er weary of looking at. 



Leaving Geneva early in the morning we 

 arrived in Paris in the evening, after a long 

 day's ride across a diversified country. Much 

 of the country passed through in France was 

 rather poor and stony, and used as grazing 

 land. We passed rich farming land bearing 

 heavy crops of wheat and oats and numerous 

 other farm crops. In all our travels we did 

 not see a field of corn, which seems to be tru- 

 ly an American crop. More farm machinery 

 was seen in France than in any section we had 



gone through yet ; but it was not until I reach- 

 ed Scotland that I found the most advanced 

 farming seen anywhere abroad. Through 

 some sections of England some of the modern 

 binders may be seen ; but in Scotland they 

 are quite common. These machines in use 

 over there are mostly of American manufac- 

 ture. There are home-made reproductions 

 which are preferred by some because of the 

 greater ease of securing repairs, or a patriotic 

 desire to encourage home industry. 1 found, 

 as a rule, this latter feeling was not strong 

 enough to resist the temptation continually 

 presented, of being able to secure for less 

 money better goods of American make. 

 There is no question but the United States is 

 rapidly finding her way into the world's mar- 

 kets, and she will find these markets sure and 

 secure in proportion as she makes an honest 

 effort to supply goods of intrinsic worth, and 

 adapted to the changed conditions found 

 abroad. Some of the first harvesting-ma- 

 chines sent over were entirely too light, and 

 would not stand the strain in the heavier crops 

 on the rich land of England and Scotland. 

 Why, I was told that in the region of Dundee, 

 Scotland, five to eight stone per acre of wheat 

 is considered an average crop. There being 8 

 bushels to a stone, that means 40 to 60 bushels 

 per acre. In our section of Ohio the farmers 

 consider they are doing very well with half 

 that yield. In what are known as the fen 

 lands in Central England, there are large 

 tracts that are lower than the level of the sea, 

 and are reclaimed by confining the rivers in 

 dykes or embankments, draining the land and 

 pumping the water from the drains into the 

 rivers. Flood-gates are provided at the mouth 

 of the rivers, which allow the waters to flow 

 out at low tide ; and when the tide rises they 

 close, thus preventing the sea from flowing 

 in. These fen lands grow very heavy crops of 

 all kinds, and enable the farmers to pay a tax 

 of $1.00 an acre or over for maintaining the 

 pumps, besides $8 00 to $10 00 per acre rent 

 for the land, as well as other dues for main- 

 taining stone roads, established church, etc. 

 I was convinced that the burden of taxation 

 on the American farmer is as nothing compar- 

 ed with that on his brethren on the continent. 

 The usual rent of a farm in Ohio is less than 

 half that paid in England, Scotland, or Ire- 

 land In spite of their much heavier crops, 

 they have all they can do to live and meet the 

 numerous burdens upon them. 



It is the very rare exception to find a man 

 tilling his own land. Almost universally the 

 farmers are tenants who do not own the soil 

 they till. In spite of all this, they take life 

 easy compared with the average American. 

 Nine hours is considered a day's work, and 

 even that short space of time must be broken 

 two or three times to eat. Few people have 

 less than four meals a day, and many have a 

 fifth. Even in shops and factories it is the 

 rule for the men to work for an hour and a 

 half, then stop for breakfast. After putting 

 in about three hours and a half more they 

 have dinner. After dinner they work four 

 hours, thus finishing the day. 



Another custom that is quite universal is a 



