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76 



SIXTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 



the Illinois State Bee -Keepers' As- 

 sociation, with its 800 members, not to 

 produce an essay for the prizes offered. 



I "Will offer to compete, and, being 

 the only man to compete, I will surely 

 win. 



I will offer it to our Secretary. 



Mr. Stone — The title of the paper: 



FIELD MEETS, ASSOCIATIONS AND 

 CO-OPERATION. 



Prize essay by Mr. C. P. Dadant. 



Fifty years ago meetings of bee- 

 keepers were rare events and it was 

 out of the question to gather together 

 more than a half dozen in one place. 

 Bee-keeping by modern methods was 

 just beginning. The growth of the 

 business was rapid, but sporadic. Illi- 

 nois for a long time could not gather 

 in one spot more than half a dozen 

 persons interested in bees, until bee- 

 men of several states were drawn to- 

 gether at Chicago. In good seasons, 

 however, large numbers of bee-keep- 

 ers became interested, but only tempo- 

 rary. For instance, the Western Illi- 

 nois and Eastern Iowa Association, 

 organized in the seventies, brought to- 

 gether 105 members in May, 1879, at 

 Hamilton. Two successive good sea- 

 sons were the reason of it. But with- 

 in 3 years that prosperous association 

 disappeared. 



Something more stable was secur 

 when the bee-keepers obtained recog- 

 nition from some of the state legis-" 

 latures. Perhaps foul brood is to be 

 thanked for forcing this. The exist- 

 ence of the disease compelled honey 

 producers to get together for mutual 

 protection. Now not only the legis- 

 latures but the colleges are beginning 

 to recognize the needs of bee-keping. 



Field meets are a modern idea. Yet 

 nothing better could be thought of be- 

 cause often these meetings are held 

 in the apiaries, where methods and 

 implements of individual leaders may 

 be displayed and explained. 



But the most important need of bee- 

 keepers, co-operation, is yet in the 

 future. Co-operation is successful in 

 very few places, but this local suc- 

 cess is sufficient to indicate its value. 

 The Colorado Honey Producers' As- 

 sociation, which is not merely an as- 

 sociation, but a stock company, is as 

 good a model as may be found. It is 

 not the only one in existence in this 



country but it is the most successful 

 and the longest established. 



Foreign countries can show some 

 very good organizations. The bee- 

 keepers of Switzerland, who count 

 among their numbers very few special- 

 ists, are yet well organized. The two 

 Associations in that progressive repub- 

 lic have together a membership of 

 over 11,000. Their principal aim is to 

 protect their members against losses 

 by disease among their bees, floods 

 and avalanches,- so common in Switzer- 

 land. They manage to indemnify their 

 members for all losses with a tax of 

 one cent per colony of bees. 



The principal losses which they 

 have to cover are those from foul 

 brood, which was very prevalent un- 

 til a thorough organization, with state 

 help, created systematic inspection and 

 treatment. 



In Italy, a stock company, organized 

 for the sale of honey and beeswax, has 

 been in existence for twelve years, and 

 has handled millions of pounds of bee 

 produce. Although national in scope, 

 its influence is, so far, only local in re- 

 sults. But the prospect of such an 

 organization is immense, provided it 

 be well managed. 



All successful co-operative organi- 

 zations need a capital stock, to which 

 the members subscribe and which gives 

 them a personal pecuniary interest in 

 the success of the Association. 



Above all, these companies need 

 good, stable, conservative management. 

 The idea of co-operation is valuable, 

 but the business may be readily over- 

 done. I can give an instance of failure 

 through too great enthusiasm in a 

 co-operative grocery which organized 

 and failed within the past few years in 

 our immediate vicinity. 



This co-operative grocery was or- 

 ganized among consumers, both farm- 

 ers and city people, with shares of 

 stock at $20 each, for the purpose of 

 saving the middleman's profit and sup- 

 plying groceries at cost. The capital 

 stock of $20,000 was promptly sub- 

 scribed and paid in. But the manage- 

 ment got over-confident. They bought 

 sppplies on a large scale, and they 

 were so eager to crush the retailers' 

 opposition that they sold goods at a 

 less price than the original purchase 

 price and the cost of handling added. 

 The result was prompt. They were 

 compelled to shrink their business. 



