THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW^ 



301 



IN WHICH DIKEOTION OUGHT BEE-KEEPEB9 NOW 

 TO WOEK TO BETTER THEIE CONDITION ? 



With the next issue, the Review will be 

 five years old, and I should like to close the 

 year with a number that shall be unique. I 

 have been thinking for some time that I 

 should like to ask each of several of our best 

 bee-keepers to write what he considered the 

 best article that he ever ivrote. Let each in 

 his mind go over the bee-keeping of the 

 past, see how it has progressed first in this 

 direction then in that, met this obstacle then 

 that, then consider the bee-keeping of the pre- 

 sent, its needs and necessities, then try and 

 give the best advice possible to give in a sin- 

 gle article as to the course that bee-keepers 

 ought to pursue in the future to make their 

 pursuit more pleasant and profitable. After 

 giving the matter sufiicient consideration, 

 let each write as though it were the last arti- 

 cle that he expected to write — as though 

 writing for a prize— and the best material 

 must be used and put into the best possible 

 shape. 



In the past there have been what might be 

 termed eras in bee-keeping. There was the 

 invention of the movable comb hive, of the 

 honey extractor, of comb foundation, of the 

 introduction of the Italian bees, etc. Bee- 

 keepers have had winter losses, foul brood, 

 low prices for honey and poor seasons to 

 contend with. Sometimes one of these bur- 

 dens bears quite heavily, then it becomes 

 less weighty and another takes its place. A 

 few years ago the trouble seemed to be to 

 find a market for our product. Several 

 poor seasons in succession have removed 

 that trouble most effectually, but the reme- 

 dy is worse than the disease. 



The point that I now wish brought up is 

 in what field can bee-keepers labor with the 

 hopes of securing the best returns ? It is 

 not at all probable that the poor seasons will 

 continue. If they are to keep on coming 

 thicker and faster, then bee-keeping must 

 become an auxilliary pursuit, or we must 

 raise sugar honey if sugar remains cheap, or 

 something different must be done. There 

 have been spells of poor seasons in the past, 

 and then good seasons have come again, and, 

 as history repeats itself, we may again look 

 for good seasons in the future. There are, 

 of course, locations where the natural honey 

 resources have been removed, and old-time 

 harvests need not be expected, but those lo- 

 calities that have failed simply from a lack 



of the right kind of weather, or something 

 of that sort, may look for good seasons 

 again. 



Taking bee-keeping as it is, what does it 

 most need ? Does it need better appliances ? 

 Shall we keep more bees and establish out- 

 apiaries, or shall we keep less bees and do 

 something else ? Shall we enlarge or con- 

 tract ? Perhaps some will add " abandon ?" 

 If a man is to abandon bee-keeping, then he 

 needs no more apicultural advice. If a 

 man is to stay in it, what shall he do differ- 

 ent than what he is now doing ? My friend, 

 from your experience and observation, please 

 write the best article that you can that 

 might be appropriately headed, "The Best 

 Advice That I can Give Bee-Keepers." 



Perhaps the views of the editor may be 

 called for. They can be given in few words. 

 In my opinion, the most promising field of 

 labor is that of lessening the cost of honey. 

 Honey is not a staple in the same sense 

 that flour, meat and potatoes are. In pro- 

 portion as prices of honey climb up, does 

 the demand go down ; and it is mostly in the 

 devising of plans, methods, hives, appli- 

 ances, etc., whereby the labor of raising hon- 

 ey may be lessened that bee-keepers must 

 look at present for their success. The in- 

 vention of the bee-escape was right in this 

 line. Self-hivers are pointing in the same 

 direction. What is needed is to be able to 

 place an apiary out here a few miles, anoth- 

 er out in this direction, another in that, etc., 

 and then have matters so arranged that one 

 man can care for all of them. Or these same 

 methods must allow a man to have an apiary 

 at home and be able to manage it by the use 

 of a small part of his time, some other busi- 

 ness taking the greater part of his time. I 

 believe that it is in this direction that bee- 

 keeping talent should turn its energies ; now 

 tell what you think. 



All are invited to express their views on 

 this question, and give the best advice that 

 they can. It may not be possible to give all 

 of the articles in the December number, but 

 everything of value that comes to hand will 

 be published as soon as it is possible to do 

 so, and everything that is used will be paid 

 for when it is printed. 



SUGAK HONEY AND THE ADVISABILITY OF ITS 

 PEODUOTION. 



I am proud of my correspondents. This 

 difiicult, delicate, tender subject of sugar 



