-J^ 



^tlE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



only safeguard against these consequences 

 of the ebb and flow in the honey yield. 



Now the second item. You say that wood 

 separators are preferable for T supers. I 

 think not, if the tin should be nearly as 

 cheap in the long run. We want to reduce 

 the propolis nuisance to the minimum, if 

 we can afford to do so. With tin separators, 

 if the sections are keyed up tightly as they 

 should be, scarcely more propolis will be 

 used than where any two surfaces meet. 

 But with separators 1-16 to X i^i- thick 

 there is space enough to ram in a whole lot 

 of the stuff. Still, if wood separators are to 

 cost us 30 cents per hundred and the tin 

 i|1.90, perhaps we had as well use the wood. 

 Meohaniosbueg, 111. Jan. 22, 1891. 



Separators and Leaders — How Can the 

 Review be Improved T 



JAMES HEDDON. 



lO HAVE a practical bee-keeper, a suc- 

 cessful, doUar-and-cent honey pro- 

 ducer, for the editor of a bee journal, 

 is a very good thing, and no one was more 

 pleased than I when you took up apicultural 

 journalism. But there it is again ; this rose 

 bush has thorns on it. You know all about 

 the practical facts relating to nearly every 

 topic you bring up, and in the number just 

 previous to the one in which the discussion 

 is to appear, you go over all of the ground, 

 and leave us fellows who have kept bees for 

 years, nothing to do, except to say, " Yes, 

 we think just as you do." If you would sim- 

 ply ask questions and not write an essay 

 - yourself a month in advance of all the rest 

 of us, we would have something left to say, 

 that would not be second hand. The way 

 you are doing the business, we would rather 

 you were entirely impractical, so you would 

 print a lot of false assertions, then we could 

 have something to throw clubs at. We have 

 no objections to your essay, but we want it 

 in the same issue with our own. 



How do you like to be scolded in this way 'i 

 How do you like my essay on " Separa- 

 tors," anyhow ? 



DowAGiAO, Mich. Jan. 2(J, 1891. 



[Accompanying the above was the follow- 

 ing private letter. — Ed.] 



Friend H.— I mapped out, in my mind, 

 what points I would touch on the Separator 

 question, and then got out the Review and 

 read your leader, and found it led all over 

 my entire ground, so I put in the enclosed 



squib, for it contains food for thought, and 

 may make a little spice to the general dish. 

 I can't say a word about Separators, except 

 to repeat just what you said one month pre- 

 vious. J* ^* 



[What a time I do have trying to suit you 

 all. Awhile ago Dr. Miller said, " Whatever 

 you do, don't give up your comprehensive 

 leaders." Still longer ago, Mr. Boardman 

 complained because I expressed myself so 

 freely in advance of the discussions, because 

 some might hesitate to express their opinion 

 when it opposed the editorial opinion. Now 

 Mr. Heddon says that I tell everything in 

 advance, so there is nothing left for him or 

 anyone else to say. 



The Review is published for the purpose 

 of securing and scattering the most reliable 

 information pertaining to practical, success- 

 ful, financial bee keeping, and its editor is 

 always willing to take into consideration 

 any scheme whereby it can be made to more 

 successfully fulfil its mission. Instead of 

 stating my views upon this question of writ- 

 ing exhaustive leaders in advance of dis- 

 cussion, I most urgently ask everyone who 

 has the interest of the Review at heart, to 

 write me his views upon the subject. Not 

 necessarily for publication, but simply that 

 I may in this manner get my finger upon the 

 public pulse. I know that we have recently 

 had quite a discussion upon apicultural 

 journalism, but, for all that, I should be very 

 glad to have the personal opinion of each 

 reader as to what might be done to improve 

 the Review. Would you be pleased to have 

 more correspondence, or more editorial, or 

 more extracts V Don't hesitate to say " less 

 . editorial," if you feel that way, as it will 

 not hurt my feelings a particle. Tell me 

 with whose writings you are particularly 

 pleased, with what number you were parti- 

 cularly pleased, with which feature of 

 the Review you are the most in love, etc., 

 etc. Say what topics you would like dis- 

 cussed. In short, write a free, chatty, can- 

 did letter, telling me just what you would 

 like to have me do. Such letters will be con- 

 sidered confidential, and will not be pub- 

 lished—unless permission is given. You 

 don't know, friends, what a treat it would 

 be to receive such a letter from each of you. 

 All would be read, and the suggestions con- 

 sidered, and it does seem as though good 

 would come from thus getting so near to my 

 readers as to know exactly what each want- 

 ed. Write to me.— Ed.] 



