OCIOHKR 1920 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



589 



iiu'iit tlu" whole of boedoin turned lifjlit 

 about face. Later work by Dr. Phillips and 

 his assistants proved the soundness of Dr. 

 driller's views. 



Dr. Miller, later on, developed, if he did 

 not invent, a plan for uniting bees with a 

 sheet of newspaper. The plan is very 

 simple and effective. He moved the weaker 

 of the two colonies to be united and jilaced 

 it on top of the stronger one. Between the 

 two stories was. placed a sheet of newspaper 

 (with or without a small hole punched in 

 iti. Tlie bees would gradually unite thru 

 this paper; and because the uniting was so 

 gradual there would be no fighting and less 

 returning of the moved bees to their old 

 stand. 



This little sketch would be incomplete, 

 were I not to refer to a very predominant 

 and dominant characteristic in Dr. Miller — 

 that temperament or quality in his nature 

 that makes the world delightful and every- 

 thing lovely — so much so that it showed 

 out not only in his face but in his writings. 

 I think some of the happiest times of my 

 life have been spent in Dr. Miller's home. 

 Not only did he carry optimism thru the 

 jirinted page, but we found it at the break- 

 fast-table and all thru the day without a 

 let-up. He went further. His conversation 

 was one ripple of merriment thruout. He 

 never ridiculed, but he could see the funny 

 things of life, and sometimes I have come 

 away from his table sore from laughter. 

 He had the habit of taking one by con- 

 versational surprise, and would have him 

 holding his sides almost before he knew it. 



I said to him 30 years ago: "Doctor, I 

 wisli there were some way by which you 

 might reproduce those breezy remarks you 

 make at conventions and in your home — 

 those little sidelines that arc so helpful and 

 yet seem like a drink of cold water on a 

 hot day. Is it not possible that you (sould 

 send Gleanings a page or two of .short items 

 of general comment each month? and I 

 would suggest the name 'Kernels ot 

 Wheat,' as we already have a department, 

 ' Heads of Grain. ' " 



He liked the idea; but for a title he sug- 

 gested that "Stray Straws'" would be much 

 more appropriate. That would be more in 

 line with his ability, he said. Our older 

 and younger readers know liow well he suc- 

 ceeded in giving us ' ' Stray Stx-aws ' '. They 

 were really kernels of wheat. Dr. Miller's 

 paragraphs of five to a dozen lines were 

 worth whole articles; and almost every one 

 of those paragrajilis was replete with 

 smiles. 



Years afterward, when T talked aliout 

 the success of his department he said to me: 

 "Ernest, all the credit belongs to you. You 

 discovered how I might be able to give a 

 little help to beekeepers, and I am cer- 

 tainly glad if i have succeeded." 



Years ago at some of the conventions 

 there was more or less strife: and well do 

 1 remember that Dr. Miller, in his quiet 

 way, with a sru*'* that was more persua- 



sive than a policeman 's club, would smooth 

 out all the difficulties leaving a good feel- 

 ing all around. In this respect he and Prof. 

 Cook were without a peer. I remember 

 one day he came to me, in the history of 

 the National Beekeepers' Association, when 

 there seemed to be a bitter fight on. He 

 said to a group of us: "You have asked me 

 to pour oil on the troubled waters. The 

 job is too big for me, boys. But I will try 

 ni}^ best if you will offer a prayer that only 

 good may prevail" — and it did. 



This brings me to another important side 

 of Dr. Miller's character — an abiding faith 

 in God. Come what might, with him all 

 was well. There came a time when, thru 

 some mismanagement on the part of others, 

 he lost a considerable part of his savings. 

 With a sweet spirit of resignation he wrote: 

 "I have not lost all. I have my good wife 

 and my sister. I have a few years of vigo- 

 orous life left to me yet. I have in prospect 

 a good crop of honej-. The Lord has al- 

 ways taken care of me, and I am not wor- 

 ried over the future. ' ' 



Dr. Miller would have been great in any 

 line of w^ork or profession. Had he stayed 

 in music his fame would have gone over the 

 world, I verily believe; and if he had kept 

 on in the practice of medicine he would 

 have advanced the profession materially. 

 Even in the early days he said people did 

 not need medicine so much as they needed 

 common sense in treating their bodies. He 

 gave up the practice of medicine because 

 he said he did not believe much in giving 

 medicine, and because he had to charge for 

 his daily visitations; and, because his pa- 

 tients objected to paying his bills when he 

 had given no medicine, he w'ould go into 

 something that was more congenial to him. 



Let nie tell you why I think Dr. Miller 

 would have been great in the field of medi- 

 cine, or, I should say, in healing. In his 

 day medicine was considered as almost the 

 sole reliance, but not so with Dr. Miller. 

 P'ifty years ago he believed that hygiene, 

 ])lenty of water inside and out, rest, and 

 temperance in eating, are far more im})ort- 

 ant than drugs. Our best doctors today 

 would testify that he w-as fifty years ahead 

 of his time. The modern schools of medi- 

 cine are advocating less drugs and more 

 hygiene, plenty of good air and water. 

 When Dr. Miller was going thru college he 

 did not know that he could overwork, but 

 soon found that he was burning the candle 

 at both ends. He came out of college ;i 

 full-fledged graduate with several hundre<l 

 dollars to the good, but with health 

 broken. All his life he had to be careful 

 what he ate, as a consequence. He was 

 obliged to keep from overeating as well as 

 from overdoing. Many and many a time T 

 have seen him at the table stop short. ' ' I 

 would like to eat that." he would say, but 

 he would rigidly deny himself, and the re 

 suit was that he kept himself active in 

 mind and body. He was not only a great 

 teacher but a great healer. 



