NOVEMBER 1, 1913 



755 



General Correspondence 



REMARKABLE COMPETITIVE EXHIBIT 

 BEES AND THEIR PRODUCTS AT THE 

 CONNECTICUT FAIR, HARTFORD 



OF 



BY BURTON N. GATES 



A most remarkable and unique apioul- 

 tural display is annually made at the Con- 

 necticut Fair, Hartford. It is by far the 

 most spectacular beekeeping show now 

 available in the East. The management has 

 an abundance of enthusiastic material avail- 

 able in Connecticut beekeepers. The bee- 

 keepers have an exceptionally interested 

 fair management and well-equipped fair 

 building, 75 x 50 feet. There is, moreover, 

 an aggregate of $500 in premiums. Con- 

 sider what this means to the promotion of 

 the industry when ujiward of 150,000 peo- 

 ple attend the fair. 



The large electrically lighted building 

 with electric signs, of pavilion type, and 

 accessible near the entrance to the grounds, 

 is apart from all other displays. (See Fig. 

 1.) Thus the apicultural disj^lay is dis- 

 tinctly a feature. In contrast it is to be 

 regretted that the honey show at some fairs 

 is frequently merely an annex to the fruit 

 or flower shows, or even to the poultiy ex- 

 hibit, which, of course, makes it less dis- 

 tinctive. The illustration shows a few of 

 the attendants and exhibitors. 



At Hartford the competition is " open to 

 the world," witli this restriction — that com- 

 petitors must be or become members of the 



Fig. l.^Beekeepini:, Exhil.it Hall, Hartford, Ct. The pavilion is 75 

 X 50 feet, with an open front. Some of the concessions are shown grouped 

 in front. 



Connecticut Beekeepers' Association. This 

 applies with exception to the section desig- 

 nated " Culinary," comprising cookery in 

 which honey is used, and to the " Displays 

 by Novices." 



Another distinctive feature is that the 

 premiums are offered and awarded by the 

 Connecticut Beekeepers' Association, of 

 which Mr. A. W. Yates is the present Chair- 

 man of the Committee on Fair. In tlus 

 way the best interests of beekeepers are 

 fostered; also the excellency of the display 

 may be attributed to this provision. The 

 Association, being incorporated, receives 

 from the State a bounty for premiums, 

 which accounts for the fact that, since 1908, 

 when the Association began to make its 

 competitive displays, the premium awards 

 have advanced from $35.00 to $500. This 

 is a surprising and admirable development 

 in six years. The earnestness in the display 

 of products is further maintained by a slight 

 entry fee of 25 cents for each entry in prac- 

 tically all classes. 



At the present display, made the week 

 beginning Se^Dtember 1, there were upward 

 of twenty competitors. The extent of the 

 displays may be judged from the fact that 

 there were approximately fifty colonies of 

 bees and from eight to ten tons of honey on 

 exhibition, besides displays of cookery, wax, 

 and products not specifically called for in 

 the premium list. Another feature of the 

 Association's effort is the acquainting of the 

 public with honey. 

 Concessioners have for 

 sale wax, honey in all 

 forms, and honey 

 sandwiches. It is esti- 

 mated that the sales of 

 concessioners may be 

 as high as $100 on the 

 large days of the fair. 

 A fee for space is re- 

 quired from each con- 

 cessioner. 



Still another feature 

 which has especially 

 interested the public is 

 the daily manipulation 

 of bees in a cage. Such 

 demonstra t i o n s , as 

 beekeepers know, at- 

 tract large audiences. 

 This handling of bees 

 may occur several 

 times a day, and is 

 scheduled according to 

 the attendance at the 

 fair. The management 



