Jan. 24, 1901. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



53 



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Convention Proceedings. \ 



Report of the Proceedings of the 31st Annual 



Convention of the National Bee-Keepers' 



Association, held at Chicag-o, 111., 



Aug-. 28, 29 and 30, 1900. 



BY DR. A. B. MASON, SEC. 



(Continued from page 39.) 

 Pres. Root — We will next listen to the paper by George 

 W. York, on 



HOW TO SHIP HONEY TO MARKET, AND IN WHAT 

 KIND OF PACKAGES. 



While this subject is ever one of greatest interest to 

 those bee-keepers who make the production of honey a real 

 business, still it is also a topic on which it is almost im- 

 possible to say anything new — especially for me to do so. 



Unquestionably, the "how" to ship honey to a distant 

 market is by freight, every time, and for two very impor- 

 tant reasons, v\i.: First, the transportation charges are 

 much less than by express ; and, second, the comb honey so 

 shipt is more likely to arrive at its destination in good 

 condition. 



SHIPPING COMB HONEY. 



In the shipping of comb honey great care must be used 

 in its preparation to withstand the necessary handling in 

 transit. Judging from personal experience, and also from 

 somewhat extensive observation in the Chicago market, the 

 only safe way in which to put up comb honey to stand 

 shipping successfully is first to put it into non-drip cases, 

 having a follower-board at the back of the sections, with 

 newspaper wadded up and crowded in back of the follower. 



After that, the cases of honey should be placed firmly 

 in a large crate whose upper side-pieces extend out and be- 

 yond each end of the crate about six inches, to be used as 

 handles for carrying between two men. In the bottom of 

 the crate should be put a bed of straw or hay, to act as a 

 cushion under the honey-cases. Then, when putting the 

 cases in they should be so placed that the glass side of each 

 shows thru the crate. This will be an aid to the freight 

 handlers, revealing the contents, and thus suggesting care 

 in moving the crates. 



It is not a bad thing to put hay or straw on top of the 

 cases before nailing the top slats on the crate, so that 

 should it accidentally be turned upside down, the honey 

 would not be injured. 



But in addition to all the above care in packing comb 

 honey for shipping, it is also well to mark or tack on this 

 precautionary notice, in large letters, COMB HONEY — 

 HANDLE WITH CARE. 



If comb honey is prepared for shipment as above 

 directed, precious little of it will suffer any when shipt, no 

 matter what the distance, nor how often it may be trans- 

 ferred from one railroad to another. 



CAR-LOAD SHIPMENTS OF COMB HONEY. 



For car-load shipments of comb honey no crates are 

 necessary. Simply see to it that the cases are placed solidly 

 in the car, in such a way that the combs are parallel with 

 the railroad track. This is necessary in order to avoid 

 breaking down of combs from the sudden starting or stop- 

 ping of the cars. The bumping of freight-cars is simply 

 an awful thing, hence every case of honey must be securely 

 fastened. It will do no harm to put a light bed of straw or 

 hay on the floor of the car before putting in the cases of 

 honey. Even if not really necessary as a cushion, it would 

 serve to keep the bottoms of the first row of cases clean. 



If you wish to keep the tops of the top tier of cases neat 

 and clean in the car, the whole can be covered with news- 

 papers, or other paper, tackt down lightly. Or, what is 

 better, a large canvas covering can be used, and after the 

 honey is unloaded, this canvas can be returned by freight 

 to the shipper, and thus used over and over again. It pays 

 to keep comb-honey cases absolutely clean. We all know 

 how dirty and dusty one becomes when traveling even in 

 the comfortable upholstered passenger coaches; but how 

 much worse it must be in a rough old freight-car 1 



SHIPPING EXTRACTED HONEY. 



It will not be necessary to say much on the shipping of 

 extracted honey. Simply put it up in good 60-pound tin 

 cans, two in a box, and send it off to market by freight. 



Now, I know there are some large and most excellent 

 producers of extracted honey who prefer to use wooden 

 barrels for holding and shipping their honey. No doubt 

 that is all right/or litem, but I don't advise it. Of course, 

 I am not going to try to compel them to use tin cans if they 

 prefer wooden barrels. I would simply say, I believe that 

 perhaps three-fourths of all the extracted honey produced 

 in this country is now shipt in tin cans ; and I further be- 

 lieve that withiti ten years practically all of it will be put 

 up in such packages. 



I have no doubt that the barrel has the advantage of 

 cheapness, and is also more easily rolled around than two 

 square cans in a box. But for a strong tendency to spring 

 a leak, and for a miserable job of digging out candied 

 honej', you always can count on the barrel. 



For reliquefying, for selling in uniform single-package 

 amounts, for nearly every desirable thing one wants to do 

 with extracted honey, I always commend the 60-pound tin 

 can. 



Now, I believe I have not offered one new idea in this 

 whole paper. But it's not my fault. I didn't solicit the 

 job of writing it It was forced upon me — likely to fill out 

 the program, or because somebody else declined the stupen- 

 dous honor (?). But no matter now just why I was prest 

 into service for this special occasion. The subject, as well 

 as the paper, is before you for discussion. Both are war- 

 ranted to take in meek submission whatever you may feel 

 disposed to administer. George W. York. 



Pres. Root — You have the paper before you : now is the 

 opportunity for discussion. On the suggestion of some one 

 the discussion yesterday and the day before on this subject 

 was deferred till after the reading of Mr. York's paper. 

 Now is the time to discuss all these things. 



W. J. Pickard — Two years ago I shipt 250,000 pounds of 

 honey in barrels. I did not have any loss : I got paid for 

 the same amount of honey that I shipt ; but this year I was 

 advised by our old friend, Mr. York, to use cans. We have 

 used cans to our regret and sorrow. We filled a can to get 

 ready to send away and found it bursted on the bottom and 

 running all over the floor. Or, we would get a can full and 

 get ready to send it away, and find a nail hole on the top 

 or side ; all these things we have had. Fill a good barrel 

 with honey and roll it off into a corner and it is sure to be 

 there the next day. We paid about 90 cents for cans ; we 

 use a barrel that will hold 350 pounds for 90 cents. It takes 

 a small boy to roll a barrel, and takes a man to handle two 

 60-pound cans. 



C. A. Hatch — I have used honey-cans almost every year, 

 and I have used barrels also ; and I have lived in the same 

 county that Mr. Pickard has workt in nearly all my life. I 

 have had more loss in one season with barrels than I ever 

 did in all my experience with cans. I have had 350-pound 

 barrels of honey, the head drop out, and the whole con- 

 tents run out into a man's wagon-box so it was all lost. The 

 first intimation he had of any disaster was that his feet 

 and lines were wallowing around in honey. 



Mr. Taylor — Difference in location I 



Mr. Hatch — It isn't the location ; I have filled cans from 

 Wisconsin, Arizona, California and Colorado, all the same, 

 from one end of the country to the other. I endorse every 

 word that has been said by Mr. York, but laying all jokes 

 aside, there is this condition about the two packages: If 

 you have a good cooper and know just where j'ou can get 

 your barrels at a reasonable price, and know you can de- 

 pend on them, the honev that goes to bakers and manufac- 

 turers should be put in barrels; but if you want it for re- 

 tail grocers" trade, you can't beat the can. We have to 

 study our market and find out how honey is consumed, and 

 then put the honey in the package that the market de- 

 mauds, no matter what our opinion is. It was said you 

 have to pay 90 cents for cans ; that must be a mistake ; the 

 cost is about -'4 cent per pound if put in new cans, and 

 about a half a cent if put into barrels. Let me tell you an 

 experience I had with barrels. There was a cooper running 

 a large manufacturing establishment near me, and the man 

 I had been getting my barrels from moved away, and I 

 thought that as long as I could get barrels from that cooper 

 I was all right, but in this case I had to get new barrels, so 

 I told him to send me a sample of his difterent kinds of bar- 

 rels that he thought would do for shipping honey. There 

 was one that I thought I would measure and estimate what 

 it would hold, and so I commenced pouring in water at the 



