ee- 



K 



eepeps 



'BeV 



lecu 



A MONTHLY JOURNAL 



Devoted to tl^e Iqterests of Hoqey Producers. 



$L00 A YEAR. 



W. Z. HUTCHJNSOJM, EditOP & PPop. 



VOL, V, 



FLINT, MICHIGAN, FEB. 10. 1892. 



NO. 2. 



The special topie of this issue is 



Writing for the Bee Journals 



That of the next issue cuill be 



A Continuatiori of the Subject, 



Why and How Honey Should be Graded.- 



Why Color Should be Considered 



in Grading. 



(^1 



I HE establLsh- 

 i meutof auni- 

 forui system of 

 ^'lading houey 

 is, undoubtedly, a 

 matter of very 

 meat importance 

 to honey i) r o - 

 ducers. In the 

 production of 

 honey, whether 

 the bee keeper fol- 

 lows {general rules 

 1 adopts plans peculiar to himself, is of 

 little consequence to others ; but when his 

 honey is placed for sale on the general mar- 

 ket, the general good and justice to all de- 

 mand that some uniform system of classifi- 

 cation be adopted. 



Upon what shall our system of grading be 

 based ? Shall it be appearance or quality V 

 To what extent shall other points be con- 

 sidered V Whose interests shall we chiefly 



consider — the producer, the jobber, or com- 

 mission man, the retailer or consumer ? 



Let us analyze the different systems pro- 

 posed, point by point, and see, if we can, on 

 what they are based, wherein they agree, or 

 in what they differ, and in what, if anything, 

 they are lacking. 



First, as to the number of grades. The 

 Chicago convention adopted only three 

 grades of the system propo'sed, leaving it 

 incomplete. The Albany rules, though they 

 begin by stating that " Honey shall be 

 graded in two grades,'" provide for three 

 grades of white honey, besides putting buck- 

 wheat houey in a grade by itself. This last 

 provision is entirely too local to find place 

 in a national and uniform system of grading, 

 unless we endorse what is already a custom 

 to a large extent of calling all dark honey 

 buckwheat. 



There is a large and increasing number of 

 dealers and consumers who want only the 

 best, and who are willing to pay an extra 

 price for it. The skillful honey producer 

 can produce a considerable proportion of 

 honey that will satisfy this demand. For 

 this he can, and ought to, receive an extra 

 price. There should therefore be a grade 

 that approaches perfection, and the first 

 grade of the Chicago system is not at all too 

 exacting in its requirements for this purpose. 



Next to this should come the great bulk of 

 choice, salable honey. Below this should 

 come honey which is of good quality, but 

 which from any cause is less attractive in 

 appearance. Lastly, there should be a grade 



