840 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Bee. 31, 



GBORaB •yy. YORK, - Sdttor. 



PtTBLISHED WEEKLY BY 



CEORCE W. YORK & COMPANY, 

 US Micbig^ali St., - CHICAaO, ILL. 



$1.00 a Year — Sample Copy Sent Free. 

 [Kntered at the PoB^Office at ChicaEO as Second-Class Mall-Matter. 



VoLinVI, CHICAGO, ILL, DEC. 31, 1896. No. 53, 



EDITORIAL COMMENTS. 



A Happy ,lie>v Vear to all our friends 1 To-day another 

 year ends— to-morrow the New Year begins. May the next be a 

 happy and prosperous year to you all. And may all the best of 

 your new-made resolutions be faithfully kept. Each year we all 

 should advance— should be better prepared to do more telling 

 work. Let us all strive to live better, to labor more earnestly, and 

 seek only to do our best in all things. Then no doubt the bright 

 New Year will indeed be a happy and satisfactory one. 



Once more, and to each and every one — 



A HAPPY NEW YEAR. 



A Complete In<Iex to Volume 36 will be found in this 

 number of the Bee Journal. We believe it is fairly correct, and 

 doubtless will prove of great value to all who preserve their copies 

 from week to week. We think that any pride we may feel in our 

 annual index is quite pardonable. It indicates a wonderful 

 amount of information on the subject of bees, and is arranged in 

 such a way as to be very helpful, in that almost any or every im- 

 portant topic brought up during this year may easily and quickly 

 be found and re-read, if desired. 



Xliis is tlie SSrd i\iiniber of the American Bee Jour- 

 nal for 189(1— a sort of New Year's present to you. Ordinarily 52 

 numbers are all that could be expected in one year, but this is one 

 of the years that calls for an extra number. We have no doubt it 

 will be duly appreciated, but we almost felt that the great major- 

 ity of our readers would have been entirely satisfied had we omit- 

 ted this number, and closed the volume with the 52nd issue, last 

 week. No other bee-paper in America is ever called upon to pub- 

 lish more than its usual 12 or 24 numbers in any one year. But 

 this year our readers get 53 copies for .*1.00, instead of the usual 52. 

 Nothing like good measure, you know. 



Volume XXXVI Completed This number of the Am- 

 erican Bee Journal finishes the 36th volume. Getting along in 

 years somewhat. But so long as it " improves with age," perhaps 

 no one will entertain serious objections. Volume 87 begins next 

 week. We wish that nil who are now getting the Bee Journal 

 could continue right along, but, as usual, there will doubtless be 

 quite a number who will feel that they must part company with it. 

 Well, our best wishes are herewith extended to all such, and we 

 trust that some day they may again be found among our readers. 

 Our latch-string ever hangs outward ; pull it, and come in at any 

 time the spirit moves you to do so. 



iVIenil>er<si for tlie IXew Union At the late meeting 



of the Minnesota State 'Bee-Keepers' Association, held at Minne- 

 apolis, the subject of the new United States Bee-Keepers' Union 

 was fuUy discussed, and seven of the members paid in their dues 

 of .sl.OO each, saying that if more was needed it would be forth- 

 coming. They liked the idea of prosecuting dishonest commission- 

 men and adulterators of honey, and were glad to help on such a 



good work in the interest of bee-keepers. The names of the seven 

 members (with the $7.00 for dues) were forwarded to the Secre- 

 tary, Dr. Mason, who no doubt was pleased to enroll them in the 

 list of members of the New Union. There is nothing to hinder 

 others from joining now, if they wish, and we will receive their 

 dues, if it is more convenient to send to us. Then when the two 

 societies are united (which we presume will be about Feb. 1, 1897) 

 the money in both treasuries can be put into one, and all go to- 

 ward carrying out the work proposed to be done under the New 

 Constitution. 



The above only shows that bee-keepers are ready to join an 

 association where all will be benefitted alike. While the old Union 

 has done most excellent work along its one line of defense of the 

 right to keep bees, that work has been confined almost wholly to 

 the few who have gotten into trouble with their neighbors ; and, 

 besides, the question is now pretty well settled by strong court 

 decisions. What is needed now is to get after the honey-dealing 

 frauds and swindlers, as well as securing the enactment of good 

 anti-adulteration laws applying to all food products. Along these 

 two lines the New Union would find plenty of opportunity to do 

 some good work. And when bee-keepers once see that there is a 

 prospect of something being done toward putting an end to fraud- 

 ulent honey commission firms and adulteration of honey, we have 

 no doubt there will be a grand rush to join the New Union. 



Help Correct Postal Al»iises.— In the House of Rep- 

 resentatives Bill 4566— the Loud Bill— will be up for consideration 

 Jan. 5 and 6; the final vote will be taken on Jan. 6. The object of 

 this Bill is to correct many of the flagrant postal abuses on the 

 part of certain publications that should not be entitled to the low 

 second-class or newspaper rate of one cent per pound, but which 

 now are causing a big annual expense to the Post-Offlce Depart- 

 ment. The Department would be entirely self-sustaining if all 

 publications were compelled to pay the proper postage rate. The 

 Loud Bill will help correct the matter. Write at once to your Rep- 

 resentatives at Washington, urging them to be sure to vote for the 

 Loud Bill. It ought to pass, as it is the right kind of legislation , 

 entirely in the interest of every taxpayer and legitimate publica- 

 tion. 



^ • » 



Ke!i«oIiition» of lOnilorsenicnt.— It seems that at the 

 recent meeting of the Minnesota State Bee-Keepers' Association 

 those present discussed pretty thoroughly the honey commission 

 business in all its phases. One of the results was the passage of a 

 resolution or two, which we received with the following letter 

 from the Secretary : 



Crystal, Minn., Dec. 8, 1896. 

 Mr. Geo. W. York, Chicago, 111. 



J/;/ Dear tyir .—Enclosed find a copy of the resolution passed at 

 the annual meeting of our State Bee-Keepers' Association, held in 

 Minneapolis, Dec. 2 and 3. I assure you that the Association feels 

 very kindly to you for the work you have been doing for them and 

 others by your manly exposition of commission-house frauds. Mr. 

 C. Theilmann, who has suffered so much from these dishonest peo- 

 ple, speaks in the highest terms of the aid you gave him. That 

 the American Bee Journal and its Editor may be prospered, is the 

 wish of all Minnesota bee-keepers. E. K. Jaques, iiec. 



The resolutions referred to by Mr. Jaques in the foregoing 

 read as follows: 



Ifesolivd, That the Minnesota Bee-Keepers' Association tender 

 their thanks to Mr. York for the bold manner in which he has ex- 

 posed the rascals and sharks among the commission-men in Chi- 

 cago, and for the position he has taken in regard to the adultera- 

 tion of honey. 



It was moved, seconded, and unanimously carried, that the 

 resolution passed, endorsing the New Constitution adopted by the 

 North American Bee-Keepers' Association, and advising all bee- 

 men in Minnesota to join the New Union, be sent to the American 

 Bee Journal for publication, or whatever action it may see fit to 

 take. 



We vpish to sincerely thank the Minnesota bee-keepers for 

 their kind expression in our behalf. We feel that we have done 

 only what is right in exposing frauds and opposing honey -adultera- 

 tion, and we believe that if we can have the continued support 

 of bee-keepers, short work can be made of all who start out to 

 swindle honey-producers ; and also that with the help of the pro- 

 posed United States Bee-Keepers' Union a great deal can be done 

 toward stopping the adulteration of honey. 



1^" See " Bee-Keeper's Guide" offer on page 8-45. 



