REGARDING           RE>America's honeybees                                    
                                                                                
Walter Patton writes:                                                           
"The big question is why H Shimunaki  U.S.D.A. did not mention the              
hopeless situation facing U. S. beekeepers when their bees have mites           
 and viruses which may be being introduced to the U.S. beekeepers               
from Canadian Bees entering the U.S. after being imported and                   
 thus introducing and spreading honeybee pest and diseases                      
 with total disregard for the intent of the Honey Bee Act of 1922               
which had a strict prohibition against the import of honeybees                  
 to the U.S. for the specic verbadium purpose to "prevent the introduction      
and                                                                             
 spread of pests and diseases to U.S. honeybees." H. Shimunaki since            
 his paid consultancy and paid 6 or 8 week vacation for he and his wife to      
New Zealand has had no concern for New Zealand bees being allowed               
 into the U.S. via Canada without regard for the original intent                
 of the Honeybee Act of 1922. Further H. Shimunaki allowed for a                
 Federal Registry notification to be published stating that the                 
 U.S.D.A., Secretary of Agriculture had found New Zealand                       
 to be free of any pests and diseases of honeybees, a fraudulent                
statement, WHY? Beekeepers of America need new leadership                       
at the U.S.D.A. with peer review to solve the problems with                     
honeybees in the United States of America."                                     
                                                                                
I have hesitated up till now to enter this fray, but I can't help it any        
longer.  Except from Mr. Patton, I have never heard that there was any          
disease or mite problem with New Zealand bees.  Just the contrary - Canadian    
beekeepers have been prohibited (until now at least) from importing American    
bees because of *our* mite problem, and have had to get them all the way from   
New Zealand or raise the bees themselves (a better approach anyway).   Why      
does Mr. Patton claim that Dr. Shimunaki's statement about New Zealand bees     
is fraudulent?  Let's have some hard *facts* about this, or otherwise drop      
the subject.                                                                    
                                                                                
Ted Fischer