54 



NINTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 



I introduced perhaps the first Italian 

 queen ever introduced in the State of 

 Indiana. I was then a practicing phy- 

 sician. When the people found I had 

 sent a ten dollar bill to Mr. Langstroth 

 for a queen, they did not know what 

 to make of it. I went on, though, and 

 introduced that queen, and in about 

 six weeks I had built up a good col- 

 ony, and asked the people to look 

 at it. They said, "See what that 

 fellow has done;" and they said I 

 had manufactured the bees! What 

 knowledge the people get about bees 

 and bee-keeping you have literally gox 

 to pound into them, and keep pounding 

 it; It is an industry that i>eople, gen- 

 erally, don't take to. 



Mr. Bowen — I believe the question is. 

 How we can best increase our member- 

 ship? I think one thing that would 

 make it interesting would be to put 

 ourselves in position to go before the 

 legislature and get the lawsi we w^ant; 

 and in order to do that we should have 

 a Legislative Committee appointed, 

 consisting of a dozen or fifteen; they 

 should organize and thoroughly can- 

 vass the State; send out literature, and 

 get what information we can get from 

 Mr. York and others who have lists 

 of bee-keepers throughout the State. 

 We ought to find one or more in each 

 county, and interest them in circulat- 

 ing a petition to the Legislature in 

 regard to our foul brood law; that will 

 interest others; that will make inqui- 

 ries in regard to the Asisociation, and 

 the first thing you know we will be 

 getting namesi from those sources for 

 our State Bee-keepers Association. 



Right down at Jacksonville a party 

 telephoned the other day to know some- 

 thing about the State Bee-keepers As- 

 siociation, and he said, "I want to join 

 it." A lot of men know nothing about 

 the Association. That is one way, by 

 getting out in each county, and have a 

 petition circulated there by one or more 

 men, getting names on the petition; 

 those men who sign their names are 

 going to become interested, and in this 

 way I feel sure we will get good re- 

 sults. Any move we can make in that 

 direction will be a benefit. 



Mr. York — ^I don't »want to talk too 

 often, because you know some people 

 talk a good deal and haven't said any- 

 thing when they get through. But this 

 certainly is a live question. Mr. Stone 

 said awhile ago he didn't think the 



Asenciation would go back any; I don't 

 believe it will; bee-keepers are not very 

 easily discouraged. I think this is the 

 best attendance we have ever had at 

 a State Convention, to start with, and 

 I think we are hajving about the best 

 meeting we have ever had in Spring- 

 field that I know anything about. I 

 don't think bee-keepers are going back- 

 ward. I have visited practically all of 

 the bee supply dealers in this country, 

 within the past three or four weeks, 

 and they all tell me they have had the 

 largest demand for bee-keepers' sup- 

 plies this year; that it has been the 

 best year they have ever had. I don't 

 think Mr. Dadant is discouraged at all, 

 because I think he had probably the 

 largest comb foundation sales the past 

 year that he has had. G. B. Lewis 

 Co., while they were burned out last 

 June, will build a bigger place than 

 ever. The A. I. Root Co. is spreading 

 out — fifteen acres! 



I simply give these to show you that 

 those people still have faith in the bee 

 business, or they would not spread out 

 in the way they have. I believe the 

 bee-keeping business has only just, be- 

 gun. I am surprised at Dr. Bohrer; 

 think of the enthusiasm he has mani- 

 fested; I don't think he was ever so 

 enthused before over bee-keeping as he 

 is today. He attends many conven- 

 tions. I think we ought to try to get 

 a thousand members in this Associa- 

 tion next year. How to do it is the 

 question. Here is one way: , 



We want to get up a monstrous peti- 

 tion to present to the next Legislature. 

 Let us print such a petition and mail 

 it to all bee-keepers we have in this 

 State, and ask them not only to sign it 

 themselves, but to get their neighbor 

 bee-keepers to sign. Tou can present 

 just as many petitions as you want to 

 the Legislature. Have a number of 

 petitions signed. Send out a thousand 

 or fifteen hundred petitions to bee- 

 keepers in this State, and ask them to 

 get their neighbors, also, to sign the 

 petition, and at the same time, ask 

 them to join this Association. I don't 

 think I have done very much. I have 

 tried to help this organization, but I 

 believe we can do better the coming 

 year. 



Here is Mr. Werner; see what he has 

 been able to do; he has been able to 

 get members for this Association; he 

 is not afraid to ask people to join, and 



