THE HOW AND WHY OF THIS BOOK. 
This book aims to give the beginner in beekeeping only the essentials 
of the business. It is an apiary primer, written out of the necessities of a 
humble beginner who did not find in any existing beekeeping litera- 
ture the simple, direct, kindergarten sort of teaching that a beginner in 
beekeeping so much needs. He found books written by very able and very 
scholarly beekeepers who had had many years of experience with bees. 
But it seemed to this beginner that these beemasters were “shooting over 
his head,” in their beginner books. They seemed to forget that he, as a 
beginner of the greenest type, did not know a frame from a section, nor 
that the drone or queen might not be the greatest honey gatherer in the 
hive. Knowing truly so much of bees and beekeeping themselves, these 
able authorities did not seem to comprehend how little he knew, and so 
they knew too much, in very fact, to write for the humble, bee-ignorant 
beginner. 
So it was that this beginner, during the first season of his trialful 
beekeeping, set down daily in a notebook what he first wanted to know 
about bees and the simple directions that he needed—but could not find in 
the bee books. After the close of his first beekeeping season, this beginner 
read all the literature he could find that had been printed for the beginner, 
jotted down the omissions in this literature, and then wrote the first draft 
of “Starting Right with Bees.” This was done in the fresh remembrance 
of many steps taken blindly, of many failures in things attempted, and in 
the chastened and contrite spirit of one many times needlessly stung. He 
completely revised this first draft of his modest essay into beekeeping lit- 
erature at the close of his second beekeeping season. He had lived and 
learned—a, little more. The manuscript was then given to the several 
Editors of Gleanings in Bee Culture to read, correct and add to as ruth- 
lessly as they might. They were restricted only in one particular: that 
they humble themselves even as this little child of beekeeping and write 
nothing that he and the great army of beginner beekeepers everywhere 
could not understand. Mrs. Iona Fowls Wheeler and Mr. Geo. 8. Demuth 
are to be credited in particular for valuable suggestions in the final revision 
of the manuscript. 
The result is this book—for better or for worse than other books 
written for beginners in beekeeping. 
It is hoped that these condensed lessons, if carefully studied, will start 
the beginner on the highway to success under normal conditions. Very 
many of the scientific and more intricate details of beekeeping will not be 
touched upon at all in these pages, as they: are not necessary in the first 
steps and might serve only to confuse the novice. 
Furthermore, this book will not as a rule attempt to give several 
different ways of performing a certain beekeeping operation or of meeting 
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