720 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



December, 1920 



grant me this favor I'll never trouble you 

 with any request again; but I don't want to 

 lie, and I know very well that I '11 be likely 

 to want other favors of you: so I make no 

 promise, but please tell me anyhow. I love 

 you." 



(5) When Doctor Miller wrote his treat- 

 ment for European foul brood, it caused 

 some consternation among inspectors and 

 others; later on, of course, we found that he 

 was right. In a note I "threatened" to 

 combat his. views, with this reply. "What 

 you say sounds a little as if you think I 

 wouldn 't like it to have you call me down 

 in print. Look here, my much esteemed fel- 

 low citizen, if at any time you wish to make 

 me think just a little more of you, just com- 

 bat publicly or privately anything I may 

 have said that you think not altogether 

 plumb. I'm sure that I haven't tried to spare 

 your feelings: why should you be tender of 

 mine? 



"1 wonder if you know what an old hum- 

 bug I am, anyway. I pose as knowing things 

 about beekeeping, and then when I get my- 

 self off by myself and meditate on the pile 

 of things I don't know, it's so big that the 

 other pile dwindles down very small in- 

 deed. Well, we're all poor critters." 



(6) "Did I understand you to say that I 

 — that we — didn't appreciate the pictures of 

 the dear little kids and their daddy? That's 

 where you're fooled, altho all the evidence 

 tends that way. Of course, any one with the 

 proper modicum of decency would have 

 thanked you for them long ago. Sadly I 

 confess that I'm a little short on decency, 

 and when badly crowded — as I have been 

 lately — I put off from day to day expecting 

 that each tomorrow will be a little less 

 crowded, and then each day disappoints me; 

 so I'm sure you'll forgive me. You needn't 

 mind giving me a talking-to; my wife has 

 attended to that." 



(7) "I thot by the old Colorado rules 

 (grading rules for comb honey) there was 

 a minimum of 21 per case. Instead of that 

 it is an average of 21. So I cry 'Peccavi,' 

 which is, being interpreted, 'That's one on 

 me.' "Humbly yours, 



' ' C. C. Miller. ' ' 

 "Please understand that 'Humbly' only 

 refers to this time." 



(8) In 1915, I suggested to the editors of 

 Gleanings and the American Bee Journal 

 the desirability of uniformity in the writing 

 of beekeeping terms, and naturally Doctor 

 Miller was included in the informal corre- 

 spondence on the subject, which was rather 

 extensive. The following is one of the choice 

 letters on the subject. The clarity of the 

 analysis and the insistence on good form are 

 characteristic. 



"To the three (3) Conspirators: — 



"Here is my creed. I believe in simplic- 

 ity, and I believe in clarity. I also believe 

 that we must give some heed to the customs 

 of the best writers — and readers. When 

 words are used together jn a more or less 



unusual way as one word, it is simpler to 

 write them without hyphens than with. It is 

 easier to write ' queen and drone trap ' 

 than to write ' queen-and-drone-trap.' It is 

 easier still to write ' queenanddronetrap. ' 

 With ' queen and drone trap ' as I have 

 shown, there is lack of clearness, and dan- 

 ger of mistake. So it is in many other eases, 

 so there must be some way to show the com- 

 pounding. Mr. Eoot would dispense in gen- 

 eral with hyphens. I would go farther than 

 he and dispense with all hyphens, only that 

 we must have some regard for the general 

 custom. That, I think, is, or at least has 

 been, to use hyphens in compounds until a 

 given compound becomes common, and then 

 drop out the hyphen, leaving the word solid. 

 'Bee' is not an adjective, and we cannot 

 use it as such without violating both per- 

 spicuity and good usage. When therefore it 

 is used in a compound we have the choice of 

 the hyphen or the solid word. I should in- 

 cline to the view that all compounds in 

 which 'bee' is used might be written solid 

 without waiting longer. That would be a 

 step in a forward direction. It's up to Dr. 

 Phillips' (or Phillips's — I'm not scholar 

 enough to know which is right) conscience 

 to say how far we shall go in advance. Only 

 we mustn 't drop out hyphens and leave 

 nothing to tie the parts of a compound to- 

 gether. That way lie confusion and bad 

 usage. Whenever he is a little in doubt 

 whether to have a word hyphened or solid, I 

 hope he may lean to the side of progress 

 rather than conservatism, and save tj'pe and 

 space in writing the word solid. 



" I 'm holding my breath until he speaks, 

 ccm. " 



(9) "Haven't time for a cordial reply, so 

 will save the cordiality till you come. 



"Mrs. Miller will have an extra plate and 

 knife for you Monday evening, and you 

 can use knife or fingers — or both. 



"Come. C. C. Miller." 



(10) When in 1915 Mr. Demuth and I an- 

 nounced our findings as to the production of 

 heat in the winter cluster, Editor Eoot was 

 unconvinced, and wrote to Doctor Miller as 

 follows: "The idea that bees are exercising 

 to keep warm is just a little too much for 

 me to believe. * * * i may come to the 

 coaclusion that Dr. Phillips is right, but I 

 am just a little afraid that he has made a 

 mistake." Then after going to the bees for 

 the facts, he wrote as a footnote: "Later: 

 Have just seen both. I am glad to confirm 

 Dr. Phillips. See editorial on the subject in 

 Jan. 15th." After Doctor Miller was sure 

 that Mr. Eoot and I were in agreement, I 

 had the following: "I always knew I didn't 

 know much about bees, and now you and 

 your accomplices are doing your best to 

 prove what little I do know isn't so. Bad 

 cess to you. I enclose part of a letter from 

 Ernest that I enjoyed and wanted ever so 

 much to send you, but didn't dare. Now 

 that you have interviewed him — or he you— 



