1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



729 



nuisance, carrying debauchery and crime in its 

 wake, while bee-keeping brings health and in- 

 telligence at every step of its progress. It is 

 not only necessary that the facts be ascertained 

 for bee-keepers, but they should be established 

 by publication and circulation, so that any 

 backwoods ignoramus like the Los Angeles 

 supervisor can not wield a contaminating in- 

 fluence. The more power and execution there 

 is in the organization, the more regard and 

 friendship there is cultivated for the industry 

 itself. 



In many cities, especially where the corpo- 

 rate limits include large scopes of farming lands, 

 it is sought to prohibit the keeping of bees. 

 This was the case in Los Angeles, either be- 

 cause the city fathers wanted business to indi- 

 cate that they merited their present salaries, or 

 because the bees paid an occasional visit to the 

 fruit-stands. I am uncertain which. IJut I do 

 know there were one thousand flies to one bee; 

 and while flies are filthy, such bees are ex- 

 tremely harmless and cleanly. The fear of an 

 interference by the Bee-keepers' Union permit- 

 ted the bees to remain. 



Another line of occupation for such an organ- 

 ization is the detection and punishment of 

 adulterators. First, there should be laws made 

 to prohibit adulteration. The only way to get 

 them is to put shoulders to the wheel, and 

 push. The ground is smooth, and the axle well 

 oiled, but the push is lacking. Just a bare 

 willingness will almost start the wheel moving. 

 It needs detectives to gather evidence, and 

 lawyers to tell what evidence is. It is estimat- 

 ed than one-half the honey produced by Cali- 

 fornia, has been adulterated with glucose, and 

 sent east, by a few if not by a very few whole- 

 sale firms. Honest dealers refused to buy, be- 

 cause eastern markets have been ruined by the 

 hand of the adulterator, and the best of honey 

 now goes begging for 4 cents while there is only 

 a partial crop. Thus the wealthy adulterator's 

 coffers have been filled, and the pockets of the 

 poor bee-keeper are now being emptied, and the 

 eastern honey markets are stagnated to a cor- 

 responding extent. 



Another imposition upon our welfare is the 

 local retailer or grocer. He is the man who 

 makes a living by constantly beating down all 

 prices but his own. He tells the honey-man 

 there is a big crop when it is very small. He 

 tells the honey-man that his honey is of poor 

 quality. Then when he sells it out he tells his 

 customers how fine the quality is; docks two 

 cents for propolis on sections, but sells it out as 

 if there never was any such thing as propolis; 

 pays 4 cents a pound for extracted honey, 

 which he sells at 8 or lo, while he pays $5.50 per 

 100 pounds for sugar which he sells out at 19 

 pounds for one dollar, or li cent per pound less 

 than the purchase price. One is a local, neigh- 

 borly industry, while the other is Spreckles' 



monopoly, of the Sandwich Islands. If the 

 grocer will charge as much for selling sugar as 

 honey, it will be eight pounds for $1.00. This 

 will check the consumer's greediness for that 

 foreign monopolistic commodity in favor of 

 what may be obtained near home. That will 

 make honey 10 cents in place of 4. 



Still another complaint I have to make is in 

 regard to the imposition of licenses upon those 

 who peddle their own productions, by county 

 supervisors and town councils. At the bottom 

 of this will doubtless be found the merchants, 

 in the endeavor to swing the retail business 

 into their exclusive hands. Fruit, tinware, or 

 notions is different from honey, because they 

 can not be, or are not liable to be, adulterated. 

 I believe that nine-tenths of the honey adulter- 

 ation of the past was the work of dealers. Not 

 only city dealers, but several country mer- 

 chants, have boasted of how they did it. 

 With their high profits on honey, and no profits 

 on sugar, and their adulterating tendencies, 

 are we going to submit without a murmur to 

 their sitting down upon our humble vocation 

 with a license? Such a law is a step in favor 

 of capital and monopoly, both great and small. 



Florence, Cal., Sept. 10. 



fl think you are quite right as to fields of 

 work for the Union. I have, as you may know, 

 advocated that it was high time for it -to 

 branch out, and one of these lines of work v^as 

 the hiring of detectives to follow up suspected 

 cases of adulteration, and not wait for outside 

 sources to bring in a mountain of evidence, for 

 such evidence will not usually come in of itself. 

 But it seems to me the estimate is rather 

 sweeping, that assumes that "one-half the 

 honey produced by California has been adulter- 

 ated with glucose." I don't believe it. While I 

 do not call in question your veracity, I should 

 like to know the source or basis upon which 

 such estimate is made, or the person or persons 

 making it, before I could swallow it. You see, 

 if it is not true, or is based on insufficient data 

 or poor authority, the mere reference to it in 

 \)Y\n\,, unchallenged, does harm. Suppose, for 

 instance, that the newspapers all over the land 

 pass the statement the rounds, that half of all 

 the so-called California honey is adulterated, 

 and then back it up by saying that California 

 bee-keepers generally believe it, what will be 

 the efl'ect on consumers'? If such a thing is 

 not true, a fearful damage will be done to Cali- 

 fornia bee-keeping interests. Now, then, 

 Gleanings wishes to be enlightened on this 

 "estimate." Let it be sifted to the bottom; 

 and if it is true, we will, with the help of the 

 Union, try to remove the condition that makes 

 such a statement true. — Ed.] 



CALIFORNIA ECHOES. 



By RamMir. 



"The pleasant occupation of lending bees," 

 says Bro. Hutchinson, in the Cosmopolitan. 

 Are we to be considered as bee-tenders, instead 

 of bee-keepers after this ? 



What a fuss you benedicts make over the 

 mere suggestion of crackers and cheese! I 



