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OLKANINCIS IN BEE ClI/miE 



June 1 



in Jamaica. In some i)hice.s the conditions 

 are quite healthful, when a short distance 

 olT the oi)posite is the case. That is so at 

 I'anama. At Panama City the climatic 

 conditions are excellent, while at Colon it is 

 not healthful for a white man. 



Down in these countries no one thinks of 

 sending honey to the United States, for the 

 very good reason the prices of honey are too 

 low. By shipping to Europe they can do 

 very much better in every way. In ship- 

 ping beeswax there is a ditTerence of almost 

 10 cents a i)ound in favor of Europe over 

 America. The chief honey-exporting coun- 

 try of the world is Chili, which sends vast 

 quantities of honey and beeswax to Euro- 

 pean ports. They would never think of 

 sending either honey or wax to the Ignited 

 States. Peru is also an excellent bee coun- 

 try; and, though the finances of the coun- 

 try are managed by Americans, they, too, 

 sliip to Europe. The hrm of William R. 

 Grace tV ( ompany, New York, are the agents 

 for Peru in this country. The railroads are 

 owned by Americans. "Americans also con- 

 trol the railroads of Ecuador. In the other 

 countries of South America we cut no figure. 



\'enezuela and Colombia are excellent 

 countries for any American to stay away 

 from, and Boli\ia and Paraguay are too re- 

 mote. Chili is pretty well taken up by bee- 

 keepers, so there are left Brazil, Uruguay, 

 Peru, and Argentina. There is a bee jour- 

 nal in South Brazil, and I think there ought 

 to be a good opportunity for a first-class 

 bee-man in the vicinity of Sao Paulo. The 

 city of Siio Paulo is up-to-date in all respects, 

 and has a population of about (55,000. There 

 is also a chance at Bio Janeiro, the capital 

 of Brazil. It has nearly 9,000,000 people and 

 is a beautiful modern city. Buenos Aires 

 has about 1,000,000 people, and resembles 

 Paris in every way. There ought to be a 

 good opening there for a live bee-keeper ca- 

 tering to fancy trade. Argentina has \ast 

 cattle estates i)lanled to alfalfa, so the op- 

 l)ortunities for a honey crop are good. 

 Something might be done at the City of 

 Mexico: also at the City of Panama. 



Freight rates are so low that they cut no 

 figure in large shipments; but one should 

 always be near a seaport, for many reasons. 



None of our bees are natives of South 

 .\merica. In the strictly tropical sections 

 our bees die out at once unless carefully pro- 

 tected by mankind. Stingless bees in vast 

 numbers occupy the troi)ical and sub-tropi- 

 cal i)arts. Where the rainfall is very heavy 

 our bees can not be said to succeed at all. 

 There are some of our bees around Caracas 

 and Bogota, but only on high ground, and 

 when carefully looked after. In Demarara 

 (British fJuiana) the bees are all of the Ital- 

 ian variety. Our bees do well in the two 

 most southern states of Brazil, Bio Crande 

 do Sul and Santa Catharina, and in Uru- 

 guay, Argentina, Chili, and the dry parts 

 of Peru. 



Yes, foul brood does exist in some of these 

 countries, but not to any alarming extent. 



The more prominent tropical trees do pro- 



duce nectar, some very liberally. Among 

 these are teak, rubber, mangrove, logwood, 

 mahogany, and most fruit-trees. 



Swamp lands are not good for bee-keep- 

 ing. By far the best locations for bees are 

 where the rainfall is light. Sections that 

 require irrigation are best. 



There is a splendid honey country in 

 Mexico, just across the Bio (Irande from 

 Texas, where it is semi-arid. Perhaps the 

 best honey region in the world is Baja Cali- 

 fornia, where the rainfall is about 10 inches 

 per annum. I would not again try to keep 

 bees where the rainfall exceeds GO inches. 

 Speaking broadly, the less rain, the better 

 it is for bees. 



So far as local markets are concerned I do 

 not think mvich of them. At certain points 

 there are (Jerman, English, and Dutch 

 traders who ship honey and beeswax, and 

 l)ay cash for either. They will even extend 

 long-time credit when they know you, and 

 dealing with them is a pleasure. 



In N'enezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, 

 Bolivia. Paraguay, and the valley of the 

 Amazon, the natives are of the same race as 

 our Indians, and you know the rest. When 

 you see American newspai)ers referring to 

 these people as "Latin-Americans," just 

 smile. Costa Rica has a fair-sized white 

 l)opulation, but it is an exception to the 

 general rule. Needless to say, there is very 

 little trading with such people. Many 

 tribes have an unconquerable hostility to 

 white men — for good reasons. 



Yes, there are bee-supply depots at cer- 

 tain jjoints. I think German firms supply 

 the trade in Chili and Peru, and partly in 

 Brazil and Argentina. 



Most of the countries I ha . e mentioned 

 supply emigrants with first-class guide- 

 books and maps. You can get such litera- 

 ture from the legations of those coimtries 

 who maintain ministers or embassadors in 

 Washington. Some of them offer very en- 

 ticing inducements to i)eoi)le who intend to 

 settle on public hind. Chili, Argentina, 

 and Ihuguay are probably the best in this 

 resjject. They are more generous than Un- 

 cle Sam himself. Mexico also olTers induce- 

 ments, more particularly in the territories 

 of Te|)ic, (iuintana Boo, and Baja Califor- 

 nia. But Mexico has much territory suit- 

 able for bees. Campeachy and Yucatan are 

 the homeland of the logwood-tree, which 

 blooms after every heavy rain, and supplies 

 much nectar. In fact, the most common 

 name of the logwood in Spanish and French 

 is Campeche, i)ronounced Canrprach. It 

 grows on land with a coral formation, only 

 a few feet abo\e sea-level, with a thin layer 

 of soil. Rain water disap])ears at once, 

 which makes the country fairly healthy. 

 If you were to locate in I^ower California 

 your chances would be brilliant. The hon- 

 ey croj) is large and certain, the quality 

 high, the selling easy, as it can be sold in 

 San Diego. There is also a good chance at 

 Monterey, where many Americans Hock to 

 in winter time. You have a vast region to 

 choose from, and a selection is not easy. 



San Diego, Cal. 



