596 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL, 



Sept. 20 1900. 



New Bee=Papers and Their Treatment. — In a recent 

 Bee-Keepers' Review Mr. Hutchinson has a splendid edi- 

 torial on this subject, nearly every word of which we can 

 heartily endorse. It reads as follows : 



The death of a bee-journal a few months ago has been 

 followed by a variety of comments in some of the other 

 journals. Some of these criticisms have been written in a 

 spirit that seemeth to say : " It's good enough for you. 

 You ought to have known better than to have started a bee- 

 journal." Other journals have condemned this style of 

 comment. Mj' own opinion is that the death of a bee-jour- 

 nal furnishes a fitting opportunity for pointing out the 

 folly of embarking in such an enterprise, but it should be 

 done in a kindly manner. 



There certainlj' is no' need of any more bee-journals. 

 The field is well covered ; perhaps overstockt. If I should 

 sell the Review to-day the last thing that I would think of 

 doing would be that of starting another bee-journal ; and I 

 certainly would be in a better position to make a success of 

 it than would some man who had had no experience in that 

 line. If Bro. York should sell the American Bee Journal I 

 doubt if he would ever think of such a thing as starting 

 another bee-journal. I doubt if there is a publisher of a 

 bee-journal in this countrj' who would not find it well nigh 

 impossible, even with his present capital and experience, to 

 start in and build up a new journal. If this be true, what 

 can a novice expect ? 



The birth, growth and prosperity of existing journals 

 have resulted from a peculiarly appropriate combination of 

 men, time and circumstances. A successful bee-keeping 

 editor must possess several characteristics. To understand 

 bee-keeping alone will not suffice. Even a college educa- 

 tion may not make of a man a good school-teacher. In the 

 making of an editor there must be editorial instinct. To 

 this ought to be joined a knowledge of printing and some 

 taste in typography. This last is not so important, as good 

 printers can be hired. I have, however known of a bee- 

 journal being started because the owners of some job-office 

 thought they could print it so cheaply .' It is much easier to 

 learn the printer's trade than it is to learn bee-keeping. 



I think that in justice to ourselves, and to those who 

 may be thinking of starting a bee-journal, it should be 

 made known that at present there is really no demand for 

 another bee-journal ; that to establish one would require an 

 outlay of time, energ-y, skill and capital that, if invested in 

 some other business, would bring far greater returns. 



Having said all this, it must be admitted that this is a 

 free country. If a man believes that he can make a success 

 - of bee-journalism, he has a perfect right to put his time, 

 talents and money into that busitiess. We ought not to en- 

 courage him to start : but, if he will do it, there is a certain 

 amount of courtesy due him as a brother publisher. I know 

 of an ex-editor of a bee-journal who would not allow even 

 the name of a new rival to appear in his journal. 



We need not exchange advertising space with a new 

 journal unless we believe it to be to our advantage to do 

 so ; there is no call for us to pat the new editor on the back 

 and urge him on to spend his last dollar in what we believe 

 to be a losing venture, but the courtesies extended to a jour- 

 nal ought not to be proportioned according to its age or 

 prosperity. No one ever lost anything by being polite, or 

 even kind, to the new journal ; and sometimes the new 

 journal succeeds in spite of predictions to the contrary, and 

 then the past favors become as bread cast upon the waters. 

 The old, establisht journals can afford to be magnanimous 

 in this matter. It creates a much better impression even 

 among their own readers than does a course that savors of 

 jealousy and selfishness. Don't encourage them to start ; 

 but, if they do enter the ranks, their position entitles them 

 to our editorial courtesy. 



To Prevent Swarms Settling in Undesirable Places 



is a desideratum. A swarm may settle in a place yery high 

 or otherwise difficult of access, and after the bee-keeper 

 with immense pains has secured it, he is ahything but 

 pleased to see another swarm settle in the same place. For 

 it is a very common thing for a swarm to settle on the same 

 spot where another has settled on the same day, or the day 

 before. Indeed, a number of swarms, one after another, 

 are likely to choose the same spot for clustering. To pre- 

 vent a second clustering in an objectionable place, it is 

 recommended in Maehrische Biene to paint the place with 

 carbolic acid. 



Convention Proceedin^Si | 



Report of the Proceeding's of the 31st Annual 



Convention of the National Bee-Keepers' 



Association, held at Chicag-o, 111., 



Aug-. 28, 29 and 30, 1900. 



BV DR. A. B. MASON, SKC. 



(Continued from pace 581.) 



Pres. Root — You have heard Mr. Niver's paper, what do 

 you wish to say on this subject ? 



C. A. Hatch — Don't we have a paper later, on co-opera- 

 tion in selling honey ? 



Pres. Root — Yes, we have such a subject. It comes the 

 last thing on the program. 



Mr. Hatch — This seems to be in the line of that. I move 

 the discussion of this paper be taken up at the same time 

 that the subject is brought up on the program. (Motion 

 prevailed.) 



Pres. Root — We will pass to the next subject, by L- Kreut- 

 zinger, of Illinois, 



BEE-KEEPINQ IN A CITY. 



The following paper on city bee-keeping will mainly re- 

 late to that part of apiculture where bee-keeping is con- 

 ducted on a large scale with three or more apiaries in a 

 large city. The principal object in view is to enumerate 

 its advantages and drawbacks in comparison with country 

 bee-keeping. 



Nearly every city bee-keeper runs his apiary for comb- 

 honey production. The reason for this is the handy trans- 

 portation facilities — the short distance to the market and 

 stores, the very little risk, if any, of getting the combs 

 broken or soiled while in transit — which enable him to de- 

 liver and sell his honey in the most perfect condition and in 

 the neatest appearing packages or cases. 



The country bee-keeper, especially one whose apiary is 

 located a great distance from markets, and perhaps way off 

 from any railroad transportation — who has his honey crop 

 first to transport by wagon to the station, then have it un- 

 loaded in order to get the cases into the freight-car to be 

 shipt to the point of its destination, whereby the unavoida- 

 ble jarring may cause considerable damage thus mar- 

 ring the neatness of the cases, will risk no chances, and, in 

 order to avoid such losses, will choose the more safe method 

 of extracted-honey production. 



While the city bee-keeper often encounters difficulty in 

 finding a proper locality for an out-apiary, which, in order 

 to answer all purposes must be somewhat detacht, j'et not 

 too much isolated, the countrj' bee-keeper may locate his 

 bees on almost any place on a farm without going to the 

 expense of building sheds and fences. 



The city bee-keeper has generally little trouble, if any, 

 in selling all of his crop; people will call on him and buy 

 his honey freely, being satisfied of its purity ; they know it 

 is pure, because they see him remove the honey from the 

 hives, and therefore there can be no doubt or distrust as to 

 its purity. 



I wish to mention a method of creating a large demand 

 for honey thru the medium of splendid advertising without 

 cost. About a week previous to your intended honey crop 

 harvest, send out notices to your friends and acquaintances 

 inviting them to be present at the event, naming place, 

 date and hour your friends will be welcomed; then, too, 

 send one to each editor of the newspapers of your city. In 

 turn )'OU will find in their papers not only an announcement 

 of the event, but they will also send their reporters, who 

 will describe it more particularly, thus giving you lots of 

 advertising — for nothing ! 



One thing is not to be overlookt — don't be prepared to 

 start with the harvesting of your crop at that time, but have 

 all things prepared when the occurrence is to take place — 

 have the honey mostly taken otf and packt and ready for 

 sale ; in other words, have your harvesting work nearly all 

 done when you expect the crowd. As your friends will see 

 you remove the honey from the hives, they will want some 

 like they are offered to taste ; you will therefore be kept 

 I busy with packing, and entertaining them by illustrating- 



