N(>\ i:m)ii;k, 1920 



G I. K A \ r X S r \ B F. V. C U I. T U R K 



651 



George S. Demuth 



WK have already notified our readers 

 that George S. Demuth, of the Bureau 

 of Entoiuology, a man who has lec- 

 tured on beekeeping in almost every State 

 in the Union, as well as giving most careful 

 attention to bee problems in those States, 

 will become editor-in-charge of Gleanings 

 from now on. Before he begins to take a 

 hand in the work, and while he is finishing 

 up his labors in the employ of Uncle Sam, 

 it is fitting that I should tell our readers 

 something about the man and his qualifica- 

 tions for the new job he is about to under- 

 take. 



For the last 10 years I have had my eye 

 on the man. More and more as duties liave 

 crowded on me, and as the years went by, 

 it became increasingly evident that I should 

 have to have an assistant who could relieve 

 me. I made overtures to Mr. Demuth a few 

 years ago, but was unable to get him. I felt 

 all along that I needed a man who under- 

 stands beekee{)ing problems all over the 

 United States. These problems are so varied 

 and so different in different States of the 

 Union that it needed some one of nation- 

 wide knowledge of beekeeping conditions. 

 Mr. Demuth, trained as a teacher, had a 

 very successful career as foul-brood insjiec 

 tor in Indiana before he entered the gov- 

 ernment service. He also made his bees ]>ay. 

 Even after he left his home in Peru, Ind.. 

 and went to work for Uncle Sam, he still 

 kept his apiaries in Indiana and made them 

 pay, and pay big, notwithstanding he was 

 500 miles away. While in the government • 

 service the only time he was with his bees at 

 all was during the vacation periotl in sum- 

 mer. Mr. Demuth pursued the jiolicy of ])ut 



ting his bees uj) so well in the fall tliat they 

 iieeded no attention whatsoever in the sjiriug 

 except such few directions as he couhl give 

 to an attendant until he came to see them 

 the following summer. And even after he left 

 the bees he would tell an attendant what 

 else to do with them. It was a case of let- 

 alone beekeeping for 11 months of the year 

 that was a wonderful success. If I should tell 

 our readers the crops of honey he has been 

 harvesting year after year, 500 miles from 

 his bees, with only four weeks of personal 

 attention, they would hardly believe it. But 

 his income from his bees has been very much 

 in excess of his salarj' received from Uncle 

 Sam, and that was no snutll figure. 



While he was in the government service 

 for a period of 10 years he had at his elbow 

 one of the best scientifically trained minds 

 in the T'^nited States. I refer, of course, to 

 Dr. E. F. Phillips. It is one thing to know 

 j>ractical al)iculture. It is another thing to 

 know liow to interpret certain known facts. 

 IMiillips and Demuth have made a working 

 team that has materially advanced modern 

 apiculture in this country. We consider that 

 a man trained in scientific apiculture by 

 Phillips is no small acquisition to Gleanings' 

 staff. 



In the government service Mr. Demuth has 

 traveled all over the United States; and 

 while doing so he lias gone into beekeepers' 

 homes, looked over their apiaries, and 

 studied their ]>rob!ems first liand. In not a 

 few instances he lias i)oiiite(l out mistakes 

 that men who have been king years in the 

 bee business have not observed. The chief 

 mistake, as pointeil out elsewhere, was in not 

 having colonies strong enough in liarvcst. 



