46 



EIGHTH ANNUAL. REPORT OF THE 



them." He said, "Werner, I ought to 

 have done what you said and there 

 would be some more left." There was 

 only two colonies left. He said, "What 

 did you fellows come after?" I told 

 him we understood he was again run- 

 ning for legislator and we wanted his 

 assistance if he was elected. He said, 

 "I am a candidate and I will he elect- 

 ed." He said, "If you come up, if you 

 want a law" (I explained it), he said, 

 "I will help you, I will do all I can, 

 and more than that, I know the bene- 

 fit of it. I know what it is. Last year 

 I didn't know." But he promised us 

 if our committee comes before the Leg- 

 islature, "Come up and see me and I 

 will work among my Democratic 

 friends." 



They say he got more bills through 

 than any other Representative of Illi- 

 nois. And he promised us faithfully 

 that he would try to have a compul- 

 sory foul brood law passed. 



Mr. Holekamp: How will you get 

 any till passed that will benefit the 

 f arme r ? 



First our Governor vetoed it and the 

 second time he signed the bill. 



Our Association gave me the power 

 to do what I wanted to do. 



I sent a circular calling the atten- 

 tion of every bee-keeper for having 

 such a law passed. About the 26th of 

 December I mailed to each member of 

 the Legislature and the Governor a 

 circular that a bill would be intro- 

 duced, and describing the nature of it, 

 and stating how necessary it was to 

 have this bill passed. That the bee- 

 keepers wanted it and it was needed. 

 Calling attention to the fact that we 

 have in Missouri forty-five thousand 

 bee-keepers in charge, I think, of 

 two hundred and sixty thousand colo- 

 nies. 



One of the first bills introduced in 

 the Legi-slature was our bee-keepers' 

 bill. 



I sent a letter to a Senator who was 

 a Democrat, and a Representative who 

 was a Republican. Then I asked all 

 these bee-keepers to write to their 

 Senator in the House to support this 

 bill. 



I went to Jefferson City and button- 

 holed every member of our Legislature 

 I could get hold of. 



I took five boxes of foul brood, the 

 worst I could find. I went before the 

 house and they recommended my bill. 



The Senate Committee I did not see 



bo.cause I spoke to the Senators at the 

 hotel and showed them the foul brood 

 combs. My bill passed without any 

 change. 



It was a bill which was not of any 

 1 ersonal interest to me, and therefore 

 I did not have to be examined to speak 

 for it. 



They asked if I would be Inspector. 

 I told them if instead of two thousand 

 dollars a y( f.r they would give fifty 

 thousand dollars, then I would have 

 a deputy in every county, otherwise 

 I would not Jiave the job. 



After the bill passed the second time 

 I we. t to r^ee the Governor. 



I had written a good many letters, 

 always making them personal, so I 

 think he w.as familiar with what we 

 wanted. Our bill was passed and 

 signed. 



Then I looked around for an In- 

 spector. I found the man I thought we 

 needed. I asked the State Board of 

 Agriculture to appoint him. ^e was 

 appointed and is doing good work to- 

 claj'. 



The thing is not to make this bill 

 political, not to have anj^ politics in it 

 ■\vhatever. It is simply a law that the 

 fanners and bee-keepers need. 



When I spoke to a legislator they 

 didn't knew whether I was a Demo- 

 crat or a Republican, and they said, 

 "I have heard from home, too." Every- 

 body was glad because I went to all 

 of them. 



' I think there will be no trouble if 

 you will show the legislators there is 

 no politics in it, but that the farmers 

 need it. 



Mr. Smith: In that line I have had 

 some experience. At the last four 

 meeting;s of our Legislature I was 

 chairman of a committee to pass that 

 IdIII and we have never succeeded in 

 getting it out of the committee. No 

 doubt if it had been recommended by 

 .the committee it would have passed. 

 Put the stumbling block with this leg- 

 islature is they will not pass any more 

 bills that will give the Governor any 

 more political advantages in the mat- 

 ter of an appointment. 



If our bill was so changed that the 

 Bee-Keepers' Association should ap- 

 point some one to act as Inspector there 

 would be no trouble, but when it comes 

 that on the recommendation of the 

 Governor, they are opposed to any 

 more power of the Executive. 



Mr. Holekamp: We asked the State 



