42 



SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL EEPORT OF TIIE 



dash at right agle with floor of barrow, 

 so hive bodies will not slide forward 

 while wheeling. The screened windows, 

 have bee escapes so any bees from within 

 easily return to apiary. 



As the combs (all worker made from full 

 sheets comb foundation) are full of honey 

 and sealed, the supers are set by side of 

 uncapping box which is light width to 

 hold the combs after uncapping, and has 

 screen bottom above real bottom of box 

 by which the cappings can drain out the 

 loose honey, and as it drains direct into 

 the automatic strainer where all honey 

 from extractor also goes, thus leaving all 

 faucets open. No danger of run overs or 

 waste, and needs to be cleaned but once 

 in a season. Again notice almost every 

 comb is built down to bottom bar, Ipy plac- 

 ing them just above queen excluder in 

 extracting supers. 



A steam heated uncapping knife does 

 much better work and far faster than any 

 other knife or uncapping machine ^t on 

 market. (I have three kinds of uncapping 

 machines — after testing each, have laid 

 aside as relics.) The steam boiler has 

 safety valve to avoid danger, also steam 

 whistle that tells us when boiler is getting 

 short or water. 



The combs are extracted with a 6 frame 

 reversible machine, turned by a 72 year 

 old man, and several times has extracted 

 more honey per hour than when same 

 machine was turned with 3 horse power 

 engine. That kind of power is always in 

 running order and means much on busy 

 days. All the honey from automatic 

 strainer is stored a few days in lar^e 

 storage tanks, then drawn into 30 pound 

 deep tin pails, and set in tank of hot water 

 few moments, and when warmed is poured 

 into empty extractor tank and at once 

 drawn into new 5 gallon honey cans and 

 cover screwed down. That honey kept in 

 the bee-house (no stove in there to keep 

 ro m warm) will not granulate before late 

 spring, and has the heavy body, customers 

 like. The flavor is not injured or lost, and 

 all customers say "tastes like more." 



By having young queens in later summer, 

 the hives in fall are full of young bees for 

 winter and are the ones next spring to 

 count on for honey. Such colonies also 

 are less liable to swarm, and if well bl-ed 

 Italians properly cared for should give 

 large honey yield per colony if season per- 

 mits. 



For out apiaries, the auto truck saves 

 much loss of time and makes possible good 

 locations too far from home for profit if 

 horses must be means of travel. 



Now my brother bee-keeper I have 

 simply described my apiaries, not as model, 

 but under present conditions as they are, 

 25,000 pounds to over double that are 

 returns per year, and you can do as well I 

 know. 



These warm days I must get my bees 

 ready for winter, so wish all of you profita- 

 ble meeting. 



Yours truly, 



N. E. Franck. 



The Secretary reed, this paper after our 

 meeting had adjourned so there was no 

 chance for discussion. 



THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF 



BEE-KEEPING IN THE UNITED 



STATES. 



(By E. R. Root) 



I do not know but I am a little like 

 Josh Billings when he said, "What is the 

 use of knowing so much when so much 

 you know ain't so?" Or, perhaps to be 

 more exact, to quote the downcast Yankee, 

 who, in endeavoring to quote Jo.sh Bill- 

 ings, said, "What is the use of saying so 

 much when so much you say hadn't orter 

 be said? " Joking aside, w hen we approach 

 this question of the present and future of 

 bee-keeping, and especially the question of 

 advancing prices, I hardly know what to 

 say. Should I bull the market too high 

 by pamting loo rosy a picture, ami then 

 the war should stop and prices collapse, I 

 might be blamed by a lot of bee-keepers 

 because of my advice they held their honey 

 only to find that the market hadliaken a 

 sharp decline. If I told the bee-keepers 

 that they had better sell at once -if they 

 have not already done so, and then find 

 prices go up, I would be blamed again. 



During these war times no one can 

 actually forecast what is going to happen. 

 During the latter part of the fall the market 

 was beginning to rise; and then it halted 

 around 11 and 12 cents for the best table 

 extracted. There was a feeling at the 

 time, and this feeling was shared by Wall 

 Street banker^, and army men, that the 

 war would be over by Christmas, or not 

 later than the first of January. That 

 feeling was becoming so strong that prices 

 began to tip downward; and the predic- 

 tions were that there would be a decline 

 on all market commodities. The result 

 was that buyers were fearful, and did not 

 pay more than 12 cents at the outside. 

 Many bee-keepers sold, having imbibed the 

 feeUng that the war would be over in three 

 months, and that they had better sell then 



