THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



245 



honey properly, and they know that we 

 are willing to pay them full market 

 value. 



Some buyers, of course, pursue another 

 course— write all over creation for prices, 

 and sell to the highest bidder. While 

 they have a perfect right to do so, and 

 are entitled to all they can get. we, as 

 buyers, have discontinued making bids 

 and letting others figure on our prices. 

 We rather prefer having the bee keepers 

 set their price, and if it suits us we buy. 



We can cite some instances where we 

 took bee keepers up at their price, say- 

 ing that we would take their honey, but 

 never received the goods — evidently 

 some other party offered them a little 

 more. These cases, however, are few 

 and far between, but they are the com- 

 mon occurences every year. 



On the other hand, we have many 

 shippers, large producers, who will not 

 sell to us, but consign; knowing that they 

 receive better returns in the end. Where 

 we buy outright, it is but natural that 

 we expect to buy at as low a price as we 

 can, taking our own chances on the 

 market. Whereas, where we handle on 

 commission, we charge so much for 

 selling, and the shipper takes the chances 

 of the market. We might say right here, 

 however, that our shippers who consign 

 to us, are invariably well pleased with 

 the final returns. 



You say further: "We can't all peddle 

 our honey; we can't all sell it to retailers; 

 we can't all build up a mail order trade; 

 etc." 



Very true. In some sections, no doubt, 

 much more is produced than can be sold 

 in the home or nearby markets, and these 

 bee keepers, principally the large pro- 

 ducers will have to depend en the large 

 city markets. Some of them may not 

 have the time to dispose of their product 

 in a small way, and therefore would 

 rather sell in the lump. Others may not 

 have the necessary experience to build up 

 a trade in a retail way, or to consumers. 



Others figure that the traveling and 

 advertising expenses would offset the 



extra price they might receive, besides 

 their loss of time. All of these things 

 have to be taken into consideration. We 

 receive numerous letters from small 

 producers, some of them far distant, who 

 have but small lots to ship, asking what 

 we can do for them. We invariably ad- 

 vise them that we cannot encourage 

 small shipments, especially from far 

 distant points, and that they should 

 certainly be able to realize a better price 

 at their home or nearby markets than 

 we would be able to realize them. 



You say: "The great difficulty is in 

 the heedless, thoughtless manner in 

 which so many honey producers keep on 

 selling their honey year after year in the 

 same old way, etc." 



Right you are! Take for instance in 

 the East where we have quite a large 

 trade. These buyers generally come to 

 New York once a week in the fall of the 

 year, and drop in inquiring about comb 

 honey. Where we have to ask them 1 4 

 to 16 cents for white honey in a whole- 

 sale way, they say: "Why we are sup- 

 plied right from our neighborhood and 

 can get all the honey we want from 10 

 to 12 cents. These are instances where 

 the small producers rush their honey 

 into the nearby markets and large towns, 

 and, not knowing the market value, take 

 what they are offered, thus not only injur- 

 ing themselves, taking far less than they 

 ought to receive, but depressing the 

 market in general. 



You say: "The quality of the honey 

 and the manner in which it is put up, 

 etc., have a wonderful bearing upon the 

 sale." 



Exactly so. A fancy article put up 

 in a neat, clean style, will always bring 

 top market price, whether sold outright 

 or sold on commission. If the editor 

 could only see some of the lots of comb 

 honey we receive, he would not wonder 

 why we could not satisfy shippers. Some 

 of the comb honey we receive we would 

 rather not handle at all, as we cannot 

 satisfy the shipper, for he expects as 

 much for his goods as for honey put up 



