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THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



THE SAD DEATH OF DR. A, B. MASON. 



On the 30th of October, Dr. A. B. 

 Mason, of Toledo, Ohio, who has for 

 seven consecutive years been Secre- 

 te ry of the National Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation, went into his summer 

 kitchen with a lighted lamp in his 

 hands, and there was an explosion of 

 natural gas that had leaked, unbe- 

 known to him, from a stove in that 

 room. In the explosion, and the worlc 

 of subduing the flames that followed, 

 his face and hands were so severely 

 burned that the skin came off. The 

 shoclv to his system, and the terrible 

 pain that followed, prostrated him. 

 He lingered until Nov. 12th, when 

 death came to his relief, and there 

 passed over the river one of the truest 

 and best of men that the apicultural 

 world has ever known. I have known 

 him intimately for about 20 years. 

 We have been competitors and com- 

 panions at fairs, chums at conven- 

 tions, and close friends when I have 

 been so fortunate as to visit at his 

 home. His death has saddened me as 

 Avould that of a brother. His genial 

 face, and jovial, kind manner will be 

 sadly missed at the gatherings of the 

 National, but saddest of all will be 

 the dear ones in the home with a va- 

 cant cnair by the fireside. 



In order that no time may be lost, 

 and that the work of the annual elec- 

 tion may be taken up at once, that 

 there may be a secretary to count the 

 ballots, as provided by the constitu- 

 tion, the doctor's eldest son, Ellis 

 E., has been appointed to till out 

 the unexpired term of his father's 

 office. 



MR. E. T. ABBOTT VERSUS THE SO-CALLED 

 "PUSH." 



Mr. E. T. Aooott, in a recent issue 

 of his paper, the Modern Farmer, op- 

 poses the holding of any other office 

 by any Director of the National Asso- 

 ciation. Among other things he says: 



•"One of the directors has been presi- 

 dent of the association for the last 

 year. He laid his wires for re-election 

 at Denver, and through the courtesy 

 of the Colorado bee-keepers was re- 

 elected to the office of president, not- 

 Avithstanding the fact that he had 

 shown himself utterly unfit for a pre- 

 siding office. He does not seem to be 

 satisfied with two offices, and through 

 the medium of his paper he is now 

 trying to dictate who shall fill a third 

 office. It is funny, is it not, when 

 one man is willing to set himself up 

 for the whole thing in an association 

 of nearly one thousand members'.' It 

 seems to the writer that the time has 

 come for the membership at large to 

 take some of this power out of the 

 hands of the 'push.' One office is 

 surely enough for any one member to 

 hold." 



A newspaper controversy is seldom 

 a very pleasant affair, but a duty to 

 myself, my readers, and the members 

 of the Association, demands an ex- 

 planation and defense. 



When Mr. Abbott says that I "laid 

 my wires" for re-election at Denver, 

 he is simply making an assertion re- 

 garding a matter of which he knows 

 absolutely nothing. The simple facts 

 regai-ding the matter are that I had 

 written to no one on the subject, had 

 not talked with anyone about it— had 

 not even given the matter a thought. 

 At Buft'alo I was elected without my 

 knowledge or consent. I was out of 

 the room for a few minutes, and when 

 I returned I found the entire body of 

 members on their feet. It was the 

 rising vote by which I had been 

 elected. Bro. Root called me up to 

 the chair and extended congratula- 

 tions, and this was the first intima- 

 tion that I had that I was to be made 

 President. Of late, the Association 

 has fallen into the habit of giving its 

 presiding officer two terms. I shall 

 not condemn nor defend this practice. 



