Bee-keeping, hy " The Times' " Bee Master. 281 



BEE-KEEPING, BY "THE TIMES'" BEE MASTEK* 



The publication of a book by a writer who announces himself 

 as connected with the Times newspaper, is certain to attract 

 a considerable amount of attention, wholly irrespective of the 

 merits or even of the subject of the work. We therefore feel 

 called upon to devote a far greater amount of space to a notice 

 of this volume, than we should have done had it appeared 

 under different auspices. 



The history of the book may be briefly related. In July 

 of the present year, a letter signed "a Bee Master" appeared in 

 the Times, giving an account of the honey harvest at Tunbridge 

 Wells; this was followed by others by the same writer, on 

 different varieties of hives, and on bee subjects generally. The 

 manifest ignorance of the author, and the numerous misstate- 

 ments contained in the letters, gave rise tomuchadverse criticism 

 in those journals that devote any space to apiarian matters ; and 

 Mr. Woodbury, one of the most practical, and at the same time 

 one of the most skilled scientific bee-keepers in the kingdom, 

 wrote a letter, which was inserted in the Times, opposing- a few 

 of the numerous fallacies contained in the Bee Master's com- 

 munications. This called forth several letters from the Bee 

 Master in reply. To these Mr. Woodbury, although attacked 

 in the most personal and discourteous manner, was denied the 

 opportunity of answering. In the course of the correspondence, 

 the Bee Master stated that he had acceded to a request of 

 Messrs Low to compile a book on the subject. Hence the 

 issue of the present volume. 



The work consists essentially of a reprint of the Bee Master's 

 letters to the Times, including those which were written in 

 reply to Mr. Woodbury's criticisms, which criticisms, however, 

 are not inserted in the volume. The remainder of the book 

 is chiefly made up of what is technically known as padding — 

 80 pages out of the 224 of which the book consists are extracts 

 from other writers. These extracts have often nothing what- 

 ever to do with the subject of practical bee-keeping, but are 

 merely employed to swell the size and price of the volume. 

 As evidence of this, it is only requisite to mention some of 

 the authors and subjects cited. Thus Kirby is quoted (not from 

 the original, but at second-hand through Lardner's twopenny 

 tract) to the extent of eight pages, on the habits of the solitary 

 clothier bee ; Huber is laid under contribution respecting the 

 instinct of the humble bee ; Washington Irving contributes an 



* Bee-keeping hy " The Times' " See Master. London : Sampson Low and 

 €o. 1864. 



