January, 1914. 



American Hee Journal 



15 



tario. One remedy proposed is that 

 more produce comb honey. While this 

 advice is excellent, the change will not 

 be made in a hurry. The writer feels 

 that while all efforts should be made 

 to organize and in other ways assist 

 the present producers, it is time, if 

 ever, for a more conservative program 

 when influencing more to go into the 

 business. In other words, a curtail- 

 ment of production should be the 

 slogan rather than efforts to produce 

 more honey. This is not selfish, but 

 only common " horse sense," and I be- 



lieve the rank and file of the producers 

 are a unit with me on this matter. 

 Without our western market where 

 would we be this year? And it is well 

 to remember that much as we appre- 

 ciate honey as food, yet after all it is 

 not considered a >teccssi/y by the great 

 mass of consumers. There is such a 

 thing as over development of any indus- 

 try, and I honestly believe that the 

 honey business here in Ontario is dan- 

 gerously near that point just at present. 

 Don't be afraid to criticize if you don't 

 agree with me. 



Convention <^ Proceedings 



Glimpses from the New York State 

 Beekeepers' Convention 



BY F. GREI.N'ER. 



An animated beekeepers' convention, 

 which was well attended, was held in 

 Rochester, N. Y., on Dec. 2 and 3. The 

 reader might be interested in some of 

 the discussions held and addresses de- 

 livered, and if I may be allowed, I will 

 here mention some interesting features 

 as they occurred. 



As to setting and maintaining the 

 price of honey, it was stated by Mr. S. 

 D. House, that in Canada they had 

 successfully settled that question. Crop 

 reports were gathered all over the land 

 by the beekeepers' society, and a special 

 committee then decided what the price 

 should be for the season. So success- 

 ful had they been that even the whole- 

 sale dealers had been abiding by these 

 decisions. The association voted to 

 give this method a trial. 



In a general discussion about cap- 

 ping melters, it was brought out that it 

 was best to allow cappings to drain for 

 a day or more, and then use a capping 

 melter. 



Mr. E. R. Root said that honey should 

 not be left long in contact with hot 

 wax. Some used a water-jacketed 

 boiler to melt the cappings, the same 

 being provided with a spout allowing 

 honey and wax to escape as fast as it 

 had melted suflSciently. Mr. Baldridge, 

 from Kendaia, uses such a one at the 

 close of the day's work. 



That it is a necessity for the exten- 

 sive beekeeper to keep a record of each 

 colony is disputed by few. Mr. Case 

 utilizes broken sections for the purpose. 

 A piece of tin is nailed to the side of 

 each hive, forming a pocket, as it were ; 

 this receives the piece of section and 

 protects it from the rains, etc. This 

 pocket must be of the right depth so as 

 to leave the piece of section protruding 

 just a trifle. 



Why so much difference in the yields 

 of different colonies was explained by 

 Mr. G. S. Demuth, from the Depart- 

 ment of Entomology at Washington, 

 D. C, in a very novel way. Four fac- 

 tors, he said, were responsible for the 

 differences in honey yield in different 

 seasons and with different colonies. 

 First, source of the nectar; secondly, 

 weather conditions ; thirdly, number of 



ceded by the majority that the workers 

 of such a strain should be golden all 

 over except the extreme tip end of the 

 body. A few others held that a bee 

 possessing three or four golden bands 

 might claim the distinction " Goldens " 

 as against the leather-colored strain of 

 Italians. 



Markings of other bees were dis- 

 cussed. It was shown that there was 

 very little difference between brown or 

 black bees (Carniolans, Banats and 

 Caucasians). Mr. Root said even ex- 

 perts were often puzzled. 



Before adjournment it was decided 

 to hold a special meeting at Cornell 

 farmers' week in February, and the 

 next regular meeting in Syracuse dur- 

 ing December, 1914. 



Naples, N. Y. 



•*-•-*■ 



Quebec Meeting of Beekeepers 



workers in the hive ; fourth, public 

 sentiment for storing (storing instinct 

 must be dominant). Mr. Demuth com- 

 pared the conditions to a game of dice. 

 Imagine, he said, each condition to be 

 represented by one of the little cubes, 

 the six sides of each numbered from 

 one to six; cast them on the table; you 

 may imagine that the aces may come 

 up on all four, but it is rarely to be ex- 

 pected. When it happens in beekeep- 

 ing you have a bumper crop. 



Only the third and fourth factors 

 enumerated are under the control of 

 the apiarist, and the more successful 

 he is in keeping the conditions right 

 the better the results. It is probable 

 there will always be a lack of uniform- 

 ity in results with most beekeepers. 

 The breeding of a bee which has the 

 storing instinct to an intensified de- 

 gree, he recommended. 



In the following discussion Mr. 

 House and Mr. Dines, from Camillus, 

 N. Y., championed their sectional hive, 

 asserting that with such a one it was 

 much easier to manage to bring about 

 that contentment within the hive nec- 

 essary for storing the greatest amount 

 of surplus. 



Shall extracted honey be retailed in 

 the granulated form was the ne.xt sub- 

 ject, and Mr. C. B. Howard held that 

 granulated honey should be so sold, 

 kept for sale in the manner as cheese 

 is sliced off from blocks in quantities 

 wanted. 



Mr. E. R. Root showed granulated 

 honey put up for retail trade in paper 

 cartons, weighing about 1 54 pounds, 

 something which would fill the bill it 

 would seem. He stated that to cut up 

 granulated honey into squares of the 

 desired size, the tin was stripped from 

 the honey, or, if in barrels, the staves 

 were taken down, then by means of 

 tightly stretched wires the block of 

 solid honey was cut up. Mr. Root said : 

 " You cannot cut honey, soap, tallow, 

 etc., with knives, but taut wires will do 

 it. When the honey is in proper shape 

 the cubes are wrapped in paraffine 

 paper and slid into the cartons. It may 

 be called honey-spread or honey-but- 

 ter. Comb honey may also be put up 

 in cartons, but must be left to drain for 

 24 hours after being cut up into 

 squares." 



In the question-box a standard for 

 goldens was demanded. It was con- 



The annual meeting of the associa- 

 tion of beekeepers of the province of 

 Quebec, took place in the Government 

 offices at Montreal, Nov. 2. About a 

 hundred members were present. Dr. 

 Emery Lalonde presided. 



After the reading of the minutes the 

 following officers were elected : 



Honorary Chairman — J. E. Caron, 

 Minister of Agriculture. 



Chairman — Dr, Emery Lalonde. 



Vice-Chairman — A. L. Beaudin. 



Secretary-Treasurer— A. O. Comire. 



The financial statement showed re- 

 ceipts from the Government grant 

 $200, and from membership dues $126. 

 After paying the year's expenses there 

 was a balance in the treasury of $37.tjl. 



Statistics concerning the production 

 of honey in the province were fur- 

 nished by the Minister of .Agriculture. 

 The latter complained that the associa- 

 tion had failed to furnish such full in- 

 formation as was necessary concerning 

 crops. To this it was replied that the 

 association covered too large a terri- 

 tory to be able to furnish full statistics. 



A request was made to the Govern- 

 ment for a continuation of the annual 

 grant, and that it be increased to $300. 

 The Government was also asked for an 

 allowance of $1000 for the purchase of 

 Italian queens. 



It was decided to ask for a change in 

 the inspection law to increase the 

 power of the inspectors, to forbid the 

 keeping of bees in hives with immov- 

 able combs, to prevent the importation 

 within the province of infected bees or 

 implements, and to increase the fine 

 for infractions of the law concerning 

 the spraying of fruit trees during 

 bloom. 



Lectures were afterwards given by 

 Mr. Morley Pettit, Provincial Apiarist 

 of Ontario, L. M. Grignon, Chas. Pelo- 

 quin, and Mr. Beaulne, Assistant Ento- 

 mologist of the Ottawa Experimental 

 Farm. 



On the second day, lectures were 

 given by T. C. Magan, Michel Dufault, 

 and J. F. Prud'homme. 



An exhibit of honey, both comb and 

 extracted, was made, and prizes given 

 to the following e.xhibitors : L. J. 

 Comire, Vincent Benoit, and A. L. 

 Beaudin. 



In the afternoon, Mr. Harry Jones 

 exhibited cages for shipping bees by 

 the pound. Mr. Beaulne gave a con- 



