1881 



GLEANINGS IN BEE GULTUKE. 



131 



received a letter from him urging me to try Holy- 

 Land queens, which he pronounces superior, if any 

 thing, to the Cyprians. If I can spare the money, I 

 think I will try both. E. T. Flanagan. 



Belleville, 111., Feb. 5, 1881. 



Yery well done indeed, friend F.. and I am 

 glad to hear that onr fairs are becoming 

 more and more a means of imparting and 

 receiving information. After one goes to 

 the tronble and pains of taking things as you 

 have done, it is no more than fair that he 

 should have some recompense for his trouble. 



FOUL BROOD, AIVD ITS EXTEBITHNA- 

 TION BY A l,\\V OF THE STATE. 



I HE following is the contents of a print- 

 ed notice which some friend has been 

 kind enough to send us: — 



state of MiehiKan. File No. 54. House of Representatives Xo. 

 98. Inti-oduced by Mr. Root. Recommended hv Committee 

 on Horticulture ' Lansiner, Mich., Feb. 3, 1881. 



A BILL to prevent the spread of Foul Brood among bees, and to 

 extirpate the s;inie. 



Skction 1. Till- jM-ople of the State of Michigan enact. That it 

 shall be unlawlul lur any persnii to keep in his apiary any colo- 

 ny of bees atfec-lcd witli tli>' ivnifagious malady known as foul 

 brood; and it shall be the duty of every bee-keeper, as soon as 

 he becomes aware of the existence of said disease among: his 

 bees, to forthwith destioy or cause to be destroyed all colonies 

 thus affected. 



Sec. 8. In any county In this State, in which foul brood ex- 

 ists, or in which there are good reasons to believe it exists, it 

 shall be lawful for any five or more actual bee-keepers of said 

 county to set forth such fact, belief, or aiii)rehension, in a peti- 

 tion addressed to the judge of probate, requiring him to ap- 

 point a competent comraissionei' to jjrevent the spread of said 

 disease, and to eradicate the same: which petition shall be tiled 

 with and become a i)art of the lecords of the court where such 

 application is made. 



Sec. 3. It shall be the dut.v of the judge of probate, on the re- 

 ceipt of the petition specilied in section two, of this act, to :ip- 

 Eoint within ten da.vs thereafter a well-known anil cuTniicteut 

 ee-keeper of said county, as a commissioner, who shall hold his 

 office during the pleasure of said court; and a record of such 

 api)i>intment, and levocation, when revoked, shall be filed as a 

 part of the records of said court. 



Sec. 4. It shall be the duty of said commissioner, within ten 

 days of hiji appointment as aforesaid, to tile his acceptance of 

 the same with the court from whom he received his appointment. 



Sec. 5. Upon complaint of any two bee-keepeis oi^ said county 

 in writing and on oath, to s:ii(l connnissioner, setting forth that 

 said disease exists, or th.it they have gnod reason to believe it 

 exists within said county. (lc>iun,itinK the apiar.v or apiaries 

 wherein they believe it to be. it shall become the duty of the 

 connni.ssioner, to whom such conijilaint is delivered, to proceed 

 without unnecessary delay to <-xaii\ine the hccs so designated; 

 and if he shall become s:itisficd that any colnny or colonies of 

 said bees are diseased with foul brood, he shall, without further 

 distui'bance to said bees, fix some distinguishing mark upon 

 each hive wherein exists said foul brood, and immediately noti- 

 fy the jierson to whom said bees belong, personally or by leav- 

 ing a written notice at his place of residence, if he be a resident 

 of such county; and if such owner be a non-resident of such 

 county, then by leaving the same with the person in charge of 

 such bees, requiring said person, within five days. Sundays ex- 

 cepted, from the date of said notice, to effectually remove or 

 destroy said hives, together with their entire contents, by bury- 

 ing them or by fire. 



Sec. 6. If any person neglects to destroy, or cause to be de- 

 stroyed, said hives and their contents in manner as described in 

 section five, after due notification, he shall be deemed trniltvof 

 a misdemeanor, and punished by a tine not to exceed fifty dol- 

 lars for the first offense, and for each additional olfense he shall 

 be liable to a fine not to exceed one hundred dollars, at the dis- 

 cretion of the court; and any ju-tice of the peace of the town- 

 ship where said bees exist shall have jurisdiction thereof. 



Sec. 7. The commissioner shall be ;ill.jwed for services under 

 this act, two dollars f<u- each full day. and one dcilhir for each 

 half-day, the amount to be audited by the board cit supci'visors. 



SEC. 8. In all suits and prosecutions under this act, it shall be 

 necessary to prove that said bees wei'e actually diseased or in- 

 fected with foul brood. 



To all of which I would say amen, and ex- 

 press a wish that every .State in the Union 

 might set right to work and do likewise, un- 

 til not a single foul-broody apiary exists any 

 where between the waters of the Atlantic 

 and Pacilic. This is especially to be dread- 

 ed now, while so many are proposing to 

 stock their empty hives and combs with bees 

 purchased from abroad. Let us wake up, 

 boys, and take the matter in hand, lest we 

 find ourselves hi the midst of a trouble that 

 is many times worse than having our bees 

 frozen out wintering, or being dead with 

 dysentery or spring dwindling. 



Pertaining: to Bee Cultxii-e. 



We respectfully solicit the aid of our friends in eonducting 

 this department, and would consider it a favor to have them 

 send us all circulars that have a deceptive appearance. The 



freatest care will be at all times maintained to prevent injustice 

 eing done any one. 



^^KtH'E claiming the name of Kirk Kidder has suc- 

 nm ceeded in extracting some $300.00 from the 

 ^"^^ good citizens of this vicinity for the privilege 

 of making and selling a patent bee-hive in this and 

 adjoining counties. The patent, he claims, was se- 

 cured by K. P. Kidder & Son, of Burlington, Vt., 

 Mar. 23, 1868, and covers all arrangements for secur- 

 ing the surplus honey without disturbing the brood- 

 nest; also the triangular top-bar for comb-guide. 

 From what we know of other patents, we suspect he 

 is a humbug. Can you give any light in Gleanings? 



Moretz Mills, N. C, Jan. IT, 1881. H. A. Davis. 



Any one who makes such claims as you 

 mention are humbugs and swindlers, with- 

 out question. The Kidder hive and the tri- 

 angular comb-guides are both old matters of 

 years ago, and, if I am correct, not now in 

 use by our leading bee-men. This seems to 

 be about the case of the average patents 

 offered for sale. 



Always look out for anybody who offers 

 you more than the usual price for anv staple 

 article. The following letters will illustrate 

 the point. Mr. L. D. Worth, of Beading 

 Center, N. Y., had an application for honey 

 from a New York commission house, as fol- 

 lows : — 



We have a good demand for honey, and can find 

 ready sale for all you have. We quote clover at 19 

 to 21 c, and buckwheat 18 to 20. 



Ballard, Branch & Co. 



112 Broad St., N. Y., Oct. 8, 1880. 



Friend W., thinking he would try one case 

 first, sent it along. Here is their reply on 

 receiving it : — 



Your honey has been received, and contents not- 

 ed. Please pack the rest so it will not shake. Send 

 on all you can; worth 18 c. Will send sales of this 

 box with the other lot you ship. B., B. & Co. 



New York, Oct. 15, 1880. 



Our friend wrote them he preferred the 

 pay for the first lot before sending more. At 

 this they made the following reply, and that 

 is the last he ever heard from them : — 



Do not send any more honey in the shape your last 

 was shipped. It was all smashed up in very bad 

 shape; will do the best I can with it, and report as 

 soon as closed out. B.,B. &Co. 



New York, Oct. 27, 1880. 



lie finally i;eferred the matter to us ; and, 

 although they have a fine large printed let- 

 ter-head, as commission merchants at \V1 

 Broad St., Kew York, we are unable to find 

 any such firm quoted at all in the mercantile 

 agency books. We at once wrote them, 

 courteously asking for an explanation ; but 

 although nearly a month has passed, no word 

 can we get. 



JioraL— When anybody wants you to send 

 them honey, inquire at your nearest bank if 

 there is any such firm, and if they are in 

 good standing. If not, by no means send 



