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48 



SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 





Becker for Treasurer for the ensuing 

 year, which motion was carried and the 

 ballot was cast accordingly. 



The newly-elected officers expressed 

 their appreciation of the honor and the 

 confidence of the members reposed in 

 them, and accepted the duties of their 

 respective offices cheerfully, promising 

 their continued efforts to advance the 

 interests of the business of bee-keeping. 



Pres. Smith — The Secretary will dis- 

 tribute slips of paper on which the mem- 

 bers will please write the names of 

 those whom you wish to serve you as 

 vice-presidents for the ensuing year. 

 Five are to be elected, and you may each 

 vote for 5 if you wish. All the votes will 

 be counted and the 5 members receiving 

 the highest number of votes will be de- 

 clared elected. 



The vote resulted as follows: ist 

 Vice-President, J. E. Johnson of Wil- 

 liamsfield; 2nd Vice-President, S. N. 

 Black, of Clayton; 3rd Vice-President, 

 E. J. Baxter, of Nauvoo; 4th Vice- 

 President, A. L. Kildow, of Putman; 

 5th Vice-President, W. H. Hyde, of 

 Canton. 



Pres. Smith: — The appointment of 

 foul brood Inspector is next on your 

 list of business coming before you. 



Mr. Stone, — I move that our present 

 Inspector, Mr. J. Q. Smith, who has 

 served so acceptably, be appointed for 

 the coming year. 



The motion having received a second 

 the question was put by Mr. Johnson, 

 the newly elected ist Vice-President, 

 and unanimously decided in the affirma- 

 tive. 



Mr. Stone said that was as good a 

 time as any to bring up the matter of 

 the salary of the Secretary, and present- 

 ed some facts in regard to the work re- 

 quired of that officer in carrying out the 

 instructions of the Association. 



Mr. Scroggin moved that the Secre- 

 tary's salary be made $75.00. 



Mr. Dadant asked if any of the State 

 fund was available for this purpose, or 

 if it had to come from other sources. 

 It was stated that it could not be paid 

 out of the money received from the 

 State. The subject of finances, and 

 more particularly the amount now in the 

 treasury, was inquired into. 



Mr. Becker moved to amend the mo- 

 tion before the Association by making 

 the Secretary's salary $60 instead of 



$75. 



Mr. Scroggin accepted the amend- 



ment and the question being put was 

 carried, and the salary fixed at $60. 



A very sensible and interesting paper" 

 was read by Mr. Johnson on: 



IN THE POOR YEARS PREPARE 



FOR THE GOOD YEARS THAT 



ARE SURE TO FOLLOW 



As we come together to discuss 

 things of interest to bee-keepers at this 

 convention, we come not as bee-keepers 

 having just reaped a bountiful harvest, 

 but we come, at least most of us, having 

 cause for discouragement, as in most 

 parts of Illinois ttiere is this year al- 

 most a honey-famine. As bee-keepers, 

 we usually get enthusiastic when we are 

 in the midst of a prosperous year, and 

 when in the midst of a good honey- 

 harvest, we at once begin to plan to 

 increase the size of our apiary, and us- 

 ually we increase our number of colon- 

 ies only to find that when we are best 

 ready for a big honey-flow we don't 

 get it. Then the poor years will dis- 

 courage us so that we neglect our bees, 

 and thus lose many colonies, so that 

 when a good honey-year comes we are 

 not prepared to meet it to the best ad- 

 vantage. 



You have perhaps noticed that unless 

 we exert ourselves to follow our best 

 judgment, we naturally fall into a habit 

 of doing a good deal as others do. The 

 man who merely follows the crowd will 

 never succeed as well as he who does 

 what, after careful consideration, he 

 concludes to be the right thing to do, 

 whether others do it or not. 



Let us review our present situation. 

 We have had an exceedingly poor 

 honey year, and last year was not extra 

 good. The blue-grass in the pastures 

 is in many places killed- out by dry 

 weather, and, should we have a wet year, 

 which we usually do after a dry one,, 

 the white clover will spring up unhind- 

 ered; not only so, but many people have 

 thinned out their stock so that it will 

 not be pastured so closely as usual next 

 year, and it is only when the white 

 clover gets ahead of the cattle that it 

 can yield its best. Not only so, but dur- 

 ing a wet year there will be much more 

 abundance of heartsease, Spanish-needle 

 and other fall flowers; so, taking all 

 things into consideration, I think we 

 have a fair prospect for a moderately 

 good year in 1907. So let us not for- 

 get that in the time of a poor honey- 

 year is the time to keep up courage and 



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