Sept. 17, 1903. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



597 



[ Convention Proceedings ] 



The Los Angeles Convention. 



Report of the Proceeding's of the 34th Annual 



Meeting of the National Bee-Keepers' 



Association, Held at Los Angeles, 



Calif., Aug. 18, 19 and 20, 



1903. 



The 34th annual convention of the National Bee-Keep- 

 ers' Association met in Blanchard's Music Hall, Los Ange- 

 les, Calif., Aug. 18, 19 and 20, 1903, according to previous 

 arrangement and announcement of the Executive Commit- 

 tee. 



The first session was held Tuesday evening, Aug. 18, 

 and consisted of a royal welcome extended on the part of 

 the California State Bee-Keepers' Association. Pres. T. O. 

 Andrews presided, and an elaborate program had been pre- 

 pared for the occasion. The music was furnished by the 

 excellent orchestra of the First Methodist Sunday-school of 

 Los Angeles, under the direction of Prof. Valentine. 



In the absence of the city's mayor, Hon. M. P. Snyder, 

 Prof. A. J. Cook, of Pomona College, was called on to 

 deliver an address of welcome, which he did in his usual 

 happy way. Dr. D. W. Edwards, of the city, also helped to 

 extend greetings to the convention. 



The responses were given by President Hutchinson, 

 Secretary York, A. I. Root, Frank Benton, and others. 



It was an auspicious opening to the sessions of the con- 

 vention which were to follow. 



Wednesday Morning, Aug. 19. 



The first business session was called to order at 10 a.m., 

 with Pres. Hutchinson in the chair. 



Prayer was offered by Prof. Cook. 



It was moved and carried that the following committees 

 be appointed by the chairman later, to report during the 

 meetings : On Amendments, Memorials, Publicity, Reso- 

 lutions. 



Pres. Hutchinson — I have no address, for there was 

 such an urgent call to go out among the bees and get rid of 

 foul brood over in Michigan that there was no time and no 

 place to write an address. There is plenty of other work 

 of more importance, and we may as well commence with 

 business and let the president's address go. The first thing 

 on the program is an address by Prof. A. J. Cook, who will 

 now speak on 



HONEY EXCHANGES AND CO-OPERATION AMONG 

 BEE=KEEPERS. 



You may know the old story of the lord and the Irish- 

 man coming down the street, passing by the penitentiary, 

 when the lord said, " Pat, if everybody was in that peniten- 

 tiary that ought to be, where would you be ?" 



"Walking alone, your honor," answered Pat. 



I am walking too much alone ip this matter of co-opera- 

 tion, and I tell you I believe heartily in it, and I wish this 

 morning that I could so enthuse you that you would go 

 home and stir up the people so that it would be felt from 

 Maine to Texas, and from Colorado to Washington. It 

 seems to me there is nothing more important than this 

 matter of co-operation — working together. I believe in it 

 so much that three of us at our place own a cow together — 

 four of us. I should say. I didn't get it big enough. My 

 three nearest neighbors and myself own a cow together. Is 

 that union ? Why, if that cow gets out there is no fault- 

 finding in that neighborhood. And I tell you, it would be 

 a good thing if you owned chickens all together — a blessed 

 good thing. 



Again, it costs S9.00 a j'ear to take a daily paper. I 

 could hardly afJord that. If I were editor of a bee-journal 

 I mighti but, being a poor professor, my pocket-book is as 

 flat as a cock-roach ! 



Now, three of us take a daily paper together, and we 

 get along just as well. Don't you know it is a god thing — 

 co-operation ? We are working together. When I read my 

 paper I know my neighbor has read the same thing. Per- 

 haps when I meet him I will say to him, " What do you 



think of the news in that paper to-day ?" And he will say, 

 "Why, I just thought of you when I read that." And if 

 there happens to be a lady living alongside of you, you see 

 this might become very pleasant. 



I don't stop there. I can not afford to take eight or ten 

 magazines. My wife and daughter like to have them ; I 

 am too busy to read all of them. So twelve of us take the 

 magazines together. My friends, that is practical co-opera- 

 tion, and it works well. I would like you to consider some- 

 thing of that kind. It pays. Co-operation is in the air, 

 and we want a great deal more of it than we have. It is 

 strange how slow we are in this matter. If I were not so big 

 a fool myself I would say the whole community are fools. 

 But it is strange that you people are not more wide-awake 

 in this matter of co-operation — getting together. 



I have a friend, an old student of mine that I think a 

 great deal of, and I am going to introduce him to you here. 

 He says it is impossible to get the people to co-operate fully 

 on the Citrus Fruit Exchange. Although nearly all believe 

 it has saved the fruit industry in this section, yet about 40 



Prof. A. J. Cook. 



percent are all we can get into it — to the shame of our citrus 

 fruit-growers be it said. It is strange that the people do 

 not wake up to the importance of this great question. What 

 is the great Standard Oil business ? I tell you, they co- 

 operate, and they get along, and that part of it is all right, 

 and if they only got along by good and righteous methods, 

 then we would all throw up our hats and say, " Go ahead !" 

 And it is only because they are unrighteous in the way they 

 do things that anybody complains. 



Even livery stables co-operate. I went down to San 

 Diego the other day, and it was too far for my wheel, and 

 the rail cars had gone. Of course, I had to go to a livery. 

 Well, I went to a livery stable, and they wanted $6.00 to take 

 me over. I said, "That is too much ; and, besides, I am 

 going for the State, and the State is poor, and of course I 

 can't afford to pay that." 



They said, " You have got to ; you can not go with one 

 horse, you have to have two horses, and that is what you 

 will have to pay." 



I said, " Is there another livery stable here ?" 



They said, " Oh, yes. there is one over there, and 

 another one here, but it won't do any good — they will charge 

 you just the same." 



That is all right — they are all working together. Co- 

 operation is in the air. I know the railroads are working 

 together, and so do you. All these great business interests 

 are working together, and we have got to work together. 

 We wapt to go home and all begin to talk this. 



Here in California we have this great Citrus Fruit Ex- 

 change, and it is a great success. There is no other co- 

 operation of the kind which has ever had anything like the 



