20 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL, 



Jan. 11 1900. 



and he was always saving every little bit of comb, brace- 

 combs, little spurs from the covers, etc., and all thrown into 

 a box kept in a convenient place for the purpose. It is said 

 that example is more lasting- than counsel, and in this case 

 it seems to be verified, for I have faithfully followed his ex- 

 ample, while if he had given it to me in the form of advice, 

 I would have forgotten it the next day. 



Altho some people at the present day put tlieir old 

 combs into a sack, the sack into a washboiler, and the boiler 

 upon the kitchen stove, and boil, the majority of them re- 

 sort to more improved methods. 



The solar wax-extractor seems to be in the line of pro- 

 gression, and improvements are reported from Florida and 

 Colorado. Furtlier improvements may be expected, until 

 there will be nothing for boilers or presses to do. 



There is at present a revival of the press method. It is 

 right and proper to make improvements, but the press was 

 in use in the Grimes apiary 15 years ago. If it will get out 

 another pellet of wax it is well to use sunshine, water and 

 pressure ; the pellets make ounces, the ounces pounds, 

 pounds dollars, and dollars clothing and food for our person. 



The Grimes family are pleased to observe that the old 

 steam-stove wax-extractor is relegated to the relic heap, for 

 of all slow-working vexations, and utterly useless things 

 for an extensive bee-keeper, it was the worst. 



To get the most wax from an apiary, it pays occa- 

 sionally to scrape the frames, honey-boards, and the inside 

 of the hives, and. when old frames are broken up, to be sure 

 they make fine kindling wood, but before using them for 

 that purpose they should be boiled — there is much wax 

 sticking to old frames even after they are scraped seem- 

 ingly clean. 



And here one of the boys at my elbow irreverently re- 

 marks that I had better advise bee-keepers to boil all the 

 dead bees. That might be a good plan for certain specific 

 purposes, but as we have workt the dear little bee for all her 

 dear life is worth, it is time we should exclaim, "Requi- 

 escat in pace 1" 



To get the most out of an apiarj- in working it for 

 queens needs special talents. If a person is a proficient 

 honey-producer it is no sign that he couid succeed in queen- 

 rearing. The qualifications for a queen-breeder can be 

 summed up briefly in the following : Order, patience, neat- 

 ness, application. 



We were told some months ago, in one of our bee- 

 papers, how a certain honey-producer, when lie wanted to 

 open a hive, kickt the top off, and when extracting the 

 honey allowed the bees by the million to drown in it. In 

 order for such a fellow to succeed in queen-rearing, there 

 v^ould have to be a grand reformation of his feet, his 

 hands, and his head, and probably the latter would be a 

 hopeless task if he is over 25 years of age. 



The economical home-rule applied in the Grimes apiary 

 is to secure good queen-cells, and eventually queens, thru 

 the swarming season when it requires but little order, 

 patience, etc. At other times, queens are purchast from 

 well-know n, reliable dealers, and it is a waste of honey to 

 buy cheap queens, or to patronize a queen-breeder whose 

 reputation is not establisht. 



Judging of the scarcity of advertisements in that line, 

 the sale of colonies of bees is not a very extensive business. 

 In trying to get the most out of an apiary by this means. 

 Old Grimes has had some experience. The desire to buy 

 was not equal to the anxiety to sell, and the anxiety of the 

 buyer to bear the price down created a desire to hold, and 

 after quite a little advertising only a few colonies were sold. 



Probably the best method of selling colonies for profit 

 was practiced a few years ago by Mrs. Lizzie Cotton, of 

 Maine. Her plan was to sell a fortune-making hive with the 

 bees, and all for the modest sum of $20! As she catered 

 mostly to a class commonly known as " suckers,'" the field 

 was in due time supplied, and Lizzie went out of business. 

 There is probably a new crop of " suckers " by this time, 

 but when one is tempted to work the field it is found that 

 the American Bee Journal has such a watchful eye upon 

 the verdant ones that it is doubtful if the scheme would 

 work. The best time to sell bees is upon special occasions, 

 such as stocking a new field, or replenishing a country 

 after a great loss. 



The shipping and sale of nuclei from the South to the 

 North ought to be workt up into a good, paying business. 



If the bee-keeper desires to sell bees and at the same 

 time hold enough to make the honey-production profitable, 

 he should never sell bees to his nearest neighbor, for every 

 colony the neighbor owns takes just so much from your 

 apiary. The bee-keeper who wishes to make the most out 

 of his apiary should have no rivals within 8 or 10 miles. 



Report of the Chicag'o Bee-Keepers' Convention. 



BY HERMAN F. MOORE. 



[Continued from papre 6.] 



Next on the program was a paper by Mr. H. M. Arnd, 

 of Dupage Co., 111., on 



Marketing Honey and Creating a Demand for It. 



Marketing honey is one of the most essential parts of 

 bee-keeping. A failure in the honey crop means the loss of 

 part of your year's labor, but if you sell your product at a 

 loss your entire year's labor is in vain. 



I understand that this year's honey-production is less 

 than one-half, but of a superior quality, and yet some bee- 

 keepers have sold their product at the 1897 prices, when 

 there seemed to be an overproduction, times were hard, and 

 all food could be bought at very low prices. Whereas, this 

 year, all kinds of food products — in fact everything, has 

 advanced greatly, and honey should doubly have a big ad- 

 vance, on account of scarcity, quality, and rise in values of 

 goods in general. And yet, these very same men complain 

 that there is no money in honey ! 



From my short experience I find that it is not difficult 

 to sell A No. 1 honey direct to the consumer at a good price, 

 if you go at it in the right waj-. A man should be neatly 

 but plainly drest, as his appearance goes far in impressing 

 the purchaser that he has the genuine article from his own 

 apiary. He must be " up in his business," always willing 

 and ready to answer the hundred and one questions that 

 are apt to be askt. I do not know of anything that will get 

 a person quicker, and moi'e interested, than the bee subject : 

 nearly all seem to know that the science is full of the 

 miraculous, and are not at all backward in asking all sorts 

 of questions, some of which would stump Dr. Miller or Mr. 

 Uoolittle to answer. If you once get people interested you 

 will have no trouble in making sales. Do not hesitate to 

 answer questions, even if at times you have to guess at the 

 answer. 



The public in general believes, and some of them think 

 they know, that an imitation comb honey is manufactured, 

 and as I make extracted honej- a specialty, I do not argue 

 the point, but sell tliem the extracted with the understand- 

 ing that if it is not pure and satisfactor)'. they can either 

 exchange or return it at my expense. I have had only one 

 lot returned, and that was not even opened, the lady of the 

 house contending that her husband had no right to make 

 the purchase without her consent — that she\Vas the " boss," 

 and I think she was, because the honey came back. 



You must send out onh' superior goods. If you have 

 an inferior article, either sell it to some of your neighbors, 

 or to bakers, at a discount, and tell them that it is not first- 

 class ; feed it back to the bees in the fall, or put it in the 

 vinegar-barrel, but never put it on the market as fancy 

 honey. 



You must stud?- your trade, and know when to approach 

 certain customers. Some you can sell to at any time of the 

 year, whereas the indifferent honey-purchaser can only be 

 reacht successfully after a pay-day, or when the thermome- 

 ter is down to zero. 



If your competitor has good goods, always have a good 

 word for him. 



Most of my product goes to Chicago, and by a careful 

 study of my customers, giving them just what they want, 

 and when they want it, I am able to get magnificent prices. 



I always sell direct to the consumer, and get all that 

 there is in it. I sell my goods on their own merits, not on 

 the defects of mj' competitors'. I do not try to compete 

 with South Water street, or the corner grocery, but sell as 

 independently as if I were a " trust." I do most of my busi- 

 ness in the down-town district, as I have a large acquaint- 

 ance there, and can meet them personally. I usuallj' go to 

 such places where I am either known, or I might know their 

 forty-second cousin's aunt ; if I am not acquainted I will 

 tell them that I know their relative, and explain my busi- 

 ness. I usually have a few sample bottles of honey, and 

 some of my circulars, and place them where I think they 



