TntL Bt^hj-KEEPERS REVIEW, 



155 



Amalgamation or no amalgamation, it is 

 really folly for us to divide up our money, 

 time and energies between two National 

 organizations. 



Db. C. C. Miller is now doing more than 

 any one else to bring about a union between 

 the North American and the Bee-Keepers' 

 Union. As soon as somebody brings up an 

 objection he explains it — shows that it isnH 

 an objection, simply a misunderstanding. 

 It is noticeable that a real, valid, reasonable 

 objection has not yet appeared. 



" Doing Business for fun, " is what the 

 editor of the American Bee-Keeper calls the 

 selling of supplies at the prices at which 

 some are offering them. He says it works 

 well for awhile, but can't last. Bro. Mer- 

 rill is correct. There must be a fair, living 

 profit in all businesses, or they come to an 

 end. 



Dk. Miller wants me to explain how I 

 can unite weak swarms with those that are 

 stronger, if I do take off the honey boards 

 oftener ^han once in three years, on the 

 average. As a rule, not more than one- 

 fourth of my colonies each year need such 

 treatment. To be honest, I don't believe 

 very much in the uniting of colonies of bees 

 at any time. Much depends, however, on 

 circumstances, and what we wish to accom- 

 plish. 



California seems to be getting some of 

 our best men. Prof. Cook, -J. H. Martin, .1. 

 M. Hambaugh, and -Jacob Alpaugh have been 

 there some time, and I see by the Pacific 

 Bee Journal that an old friend and ac- 

 quaintance, Mr. A. D. D. Wood, formerly of 

 Lansing, is now foreman of the Bennett Bee 

 Hive Co. of Los. Angeles. Yes, and Bro. T. 

 G. Newman and family have just gone to 

 California. 



" Rambler " has already turned story tel- 

 ler, and part of the first chapter of his first 

 story, " Bee-Keeper, Fred Anderson, " ap- 

 pears in Gleanings for May 1st. The plot is 

 laid in California, the hero is a bee-keeper, 

 and we can well believe the editor of Glean- 

 ings when he says the story is "interesting, 

 thrilling, instructive, and full of droll in- 

 cidents so characteristic of that Rambler 

 man. " 



Queens, when " balled, " sometimes re- 

 ceive injury in the main joint of one of 

 the hind legs. Mr. B. F. Averill, ofVa., 

 writes that by amputating the leg at the 

 joint mentioned, the laying capacity of the 

 queen will remain uninjured. 



*^«^«-«*«»»ii-» 



An Early Spring is what we are now en- 

 joying. I think I have never seen vegeta- 

 tion so far advanced at this date as it is now. 

 Of course, this has given the bees an early 

 start, but it must not be forgotten that the 

 flowers, too, have an early start, and that it 

 takes just so long anyway, to develop a bee, 

 hence it is possible that an early spring is 

 not the advantage to a bee- keeper that it 

 appears at first to be. 



Gleanings has changed the color of its 

 cover two or three times of late. I doubt if 

 it can do better than to settle down upon the 

 color of its last issue — that of a light pale 

 blue. Some of the journals have changed 

 the color of their covers several times. I 

 don't suppose that this matter is very import- 

 ant, but when we become accustomed to see- 

 ing a paper in the same dress all the time it 

 seems a little " off " to have it appear in a 

 different color. 



■»»it»^«*'«^»ir«. 



Distilled Water is something that F. L. 

 Thompson would like to know about. He 

 is of the opinion that it could be obtained 

 with less trouble and expense than by us- 

 ing a filter and boiling the water. He thinks 

 that he has heard of an arrangement for 

 attaching to a kitchen stove that would 

 furnish two or three gallons a day. He 

 thinks that such water would be more free 

 from mineral ingredients than is filtered 

 water. Do any of my subscribers know 

 anything about this matter ? 



The Progressive Bee Keeper is true to its 

 name. There is no bee journal that seems 

 to have more 'git up and git. " Its corres- 

 pondants are real, live, practical, wide 

 awake bee-keepers. There seems to be a 

 live spirit pervading its pages. It's only 

 .50 cents a year, but it is not one whit behind 

 the $1.00 journals. These are a few of the 

 things that I have been wanting to say for a 

 long time, but have not seemed to have the 

 space, now I feel that they must be said. 

 Long live the Progressive. 



