1901 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



793 



they have boosted it to 2000. As I have be- 

 fore stated, there seems to be a combhiation 

 which has induced some of the dail^' papers 

 to circulate such reports rii^ht and left. 

 These g"lib falsifiers even go so far as to 

 saj', "This year's crop is estimated at 2000 

 cars;"* that while the prices last year ruled 

 at 8 '4 cents, they are now down to less than 

 half that, and the}' will probably have to 

 g-o lower; and, as if to add insult to injurv% 

 they further state that Honolulu honey is 

 being; poured into California, and from 

 there it is being sent east. 



Such stories have a strong- tendency to 

 unsettle the market ; and the animus back 

 of it all is very apparent. The Western 

 "bears" are ^luxious, of course, to have 

 the prices go down. They know the crop is 

 light; and then when they get the producers 

 under their thumbs, they propose, no doubt, 

 to scoop up the honey at a low figure, and 

 then hold it until it advances. 



Moreover the Eastern buyers are being 

 scared; and one man, whose honesty is 

 above reproach, wrote, asking for my pri- 

 vate opinion. He is a large buyer; and he 

 says i/ these stories are true he would not 

 daxe to take on any inore honey. But it is 

 evident that there are some other men in 

 collusion with the Western buyers who are 

 anxious that these inflated yarns shall be 

 scattered, because, forsooth, it will depress 

 the Eastern market as well. If, for exam- 

 ple, there were 2000 cars in California, and 

 as much more of Honolulu honey, it would 

 be perfectly clear that a large portion of it 

 would have to go east. But no one need be 

 alarmed over the matter. The facts are, I 

 doubt whether SO cars could be scraped up 

 and sent eastward from California, all told. 

 The large baking concerns have laid in 

 quite a stock — probably all they will re- 

 quire; for when the price was down they 

 snapped up every bargain they could get 

 hold of; but now producers with business 

 heads on them are holding the rest of the 

 crop back. 



For some weeks back we have been hav- 

 ing men on the Pacific coast make a care- 

 ful canvass; and it is very evident that the 

 crop is light in comparison with those of 

 some of the big years. I do not believe ' 

 there is an aggregation of responsible pro- 

 ducers anywhere in California who would 

 guarantee to-day to deliver more than 25 

 cars; and as nearly as we can estimate 

 they are holding back till these exaggerat- 

 ed reports have run their course, and the 

 market seeks its natural level. It is most 

 unfortunate that thesQ canards should have 

 been started at this time; for this is usual- 

 ly the z't'/T season for disposing of honey, 

 and it ma^^ take months to correct the false 

 impression. 



The situation in the East, briefly told, is 

 this: There is actually less comb honej' 

 pi'oduced this year than last ; and what 

 there is, seems to be of an inferior grade. 



*In its best years infield the verv best, the entire 

 crop has not exceeded 500 cars and this year was only 

 fair, with less than half the bets to get the honey. 



We have advocated in these columns repeat- 

 edlj' that bee-keepers are running too much 

 for extracted honey, in the East; at least, 

 good comb honey sells all the way from 2^ 

 to 3 times as much as extracted for a like 

 quality. The market on extracted has be- 

 come a. little unsettled, owing to aforesaid 

 "bears" who not only love honey but are 

 contriving, to get it for nothing. Yes, we 

 are even told that the markets' of the East 

 were being- glutted; but .some of our friends 

 went into some of those rnarkets to buy hon- 

 ey in car lots. Do you believe they could 

 get any? There was not any in sight. To 

 state the matter fairly, there is probably a 

 fair crop of extracted honey of Eastern pro- 

 duction; and the prices on extracted will, 

 therefore, rule about the same as last year, 

 for the same season of the year. Colorado 

 honey is evidently being held until the mar- 

 ket recovers itself from the.se conflicting- 

 statements. The crop has been lig-hter, and 

 so far oflerings that have been very meager 

 are as high as or higher than a year ago. 

 There is only a moderate crop in Arizona — 

 about 25 cars all told; and this is likewise 

 being held for the same reason. Texas, 

 one of the big honey States, will show up 

 well; but much of its product will be inar- 

 keted at home, while Arizona honey, a large 

 portion of it, will have to be sold in the East. 

 Returning to California, latest advices 

 show that the season has been a flat fail- 

 ure in the central portions of the State. 

 Our men can not find more than three car- 

 loads all told. In Southern California it 

 would be a large estimate to allow for 75 

 cars, if the general reports we get are true, 

 and they come from men who are not inclin- 

 ed to "bull" the market. I know they are 

 very close to the truth, because I was 

 through much of that territory myself, and 

 perhaps two-thirds of the crop had been 

 harvested. 



I shall send copies of this statement, pre- 

 pared this day., to all the large buyers 

 whom I believe to be reliable and honest, 

 and will seek their advice and help. In 

 the mean time, bee-keepers themselves can 

 help us by scattering the real facts. Send 

 to your o\vn buyer a copj^ of this journal, 

 marking this. If you want another copy, 

 write us, and we will send you another, or 

 as many as you can use. 



Later. — Since the above was written one 

 of the best bee-keepers in Cjiliforniti who 

 was sent by a San Francisco firm through 

 the best honey country around Los Ang-eles, 

 to get samples and quantities of honey, 

 writes, after a careful canvass, that he could 

 scarcely find all told 250 tons (20 cars), and 

 that he is informed by reliable parties that 

 the crop further south and east is very light. 

 Moreover he finds that some of the buyers, 

 in the papers, at Los Angeles, credit to a 

 bee-keeper as mady cars of honey as he has 

 in tons. This may account for the outrag- 

 eous exaggeration of the reports. Whether 

 imintentionally or purposely, there is no 

 excuse for it. As to prices, the honey is'be- 

 ing held firm at 5 cents or more. 



