376 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



cnte a bond of .'$2,000 for the faithful per- 

 formance of their duties. 



The following letter was then read: 



" Chattanooga, Tenn., Oct. 8, 1877. 



"W. J. Andkews, Esq., Dear Sir:— I 

 suggest that at the next meeting of the N. 

 A. B. K. A. that each one present be re- 

 quested to draw up a petition to the P. M. 

 General requesting him to rescind his late 

 ruling in regard to the shipment of queens 

 through the mails; and, if necessary, so 

 qualify it, that they can still be shipped 

 tnrough the mails. Let each one get as 

 many names signed to it as possible, for- 

 ward to the Secretary, and he to the P. M. 

 General. Put a shoulder to the wheel and 

 make it go! I will start one here. 



S. C. DodOtE." ■ 



W.J.Andrews was appointed a committee 

 to wait on tlie P. M. General, and prt-sent 

 the matter to him, in person, and to see 

 what can be done to have bees sent by mail, 

 as heretofore. 



The Honey Market. 



F. B. Thurber, Esq., who offered a medal 

 for "the best honey in the most marketable 

 shape" to be exhibited at the American 

 Institute, and through whose indefatigable 

 exertions so large a honey market has been 

 created during the past year in this country 

 and Europe, being present was invited to 

 address the Convention. He spoke as fol- 

 lows: 



Mr. President and Gentlemen:— The 

 firm of which I am a member oifered a 

 medal for "The best honey in the most 

 marketable shape," and this has been 

 awarded by the Judges to Mr. Doolittle, of 

 Borodino, N. Y. I regret to learn that Mr. 

 Doolittle is not here, as 1 had hoped to have 

 the honor of presenting the medal to the 

 winner in person, but 1 presume it will an- 

 swer the sajne purpose if presented by 

 proxy, and I would ask your honorable 

 Secretary to perform that duty. 



In this connection and at this time it is 

 perhaps proper, as there are commercial 

 problems connected with this as with every 

 other form of industry, that I should briefly 

 discuss the past, present and future of the 

 honey market. About 3 years ago the at- 

 tention of our firm was attracted to this as a 

 rising industry, and we made it a depart- 

 ment of our business, which, under the able 

 management of Mr. Hoge, has become a 

 great success; so much so. indeed, that it 

 has given rise to some feeling on the part of 

 other honey dealers, who charge us with 

 desiring to monopolize the business. In 

 regard to this I would simply say that we 

 have pursued this branch of our business 

 with the same diligence that we do in other 

 departments and no more; that we offered 

 a medal to attract the attention to the im- 

 portance of putting up honey in a shape 

 that would tend to increase the consump- 

 tion, and we believe that the same ability, 

 enterprise and capital devoted to the 'honey 

 business that is (levoted to other branches 

 of trade will result in greatly promoting the 

 interests of this industry, which in the past 

 has not received the attention, commercial- 

 ly, which is deserved. Probably long be- 

 fore, and certainly ever since, Judas sold 

 honey to the Tyrians. it has been an article 

 of commerce. Whether the industry has 

 held its own or declined for the greater part 

 of this period we have no statistical infor- 



mation to determine. Sweetness, however, 

 has always been synonymous with good- 

 ness, whether in a physical or moral view, 

 and honey and sugar have been the articles 

 upon which have devolved the duty of 

 tickling man's palate. The use of honey, 

 however, antedates that of sugar, going 

 back many centuries before the Christian 

 era, while the general use of sugar is of 

 comparatively recent date. There are evi- 

 dences of its high antiquity in India and 

 China, but it appears to have been only 

 vaguely known to the Greeks and Romans. 

 Sugar cane was grown in Cypi'us about the 

 middle of the 12th century, and at a later 

 time was transported to Maderia, from 

 whence it was carried to the West Indies. 

 It was not until the middle of the 16th cen- 

 tury, however, that the art of refining sugar 

 was discovered by the Venetians, after 

 which it soon became established in Ger- 

 many, rapidly developed into one of the 

 largest branches of human industry, until 

 now it has become one of the commonest 

 necessaries of life, with an aggregate an- 

 nual consumption of from 2,000,000 to 2,.500,- 

 000 tons. 



Why the production of honey has falleu 

 so far behind that of its sacharine competi- 

 tor is a mystery. It is in the highest degree 

 healthful and palatable, and up to about the 

 middle of the 16th century was the only 

 sweet in general use. The sources of sugar 

 are not more numerous, plentiful nor re- 

 liable than are those of honey. If all the 

 honey could be saved from all the flowers 

 which bloom on this great continent, our 

 transportation lines would be tax<Hl to their 

 fullest capacity during a large portion of 

 the year in carrying it to market. And yet 

 sugar has grown into an enormous industry, 

 while honey has hardly more than main- 

 tained its former status. In America, how- 

 ever, within the last few years a wonderful 

 advance has been made in the production of 

 this article. Improved methods and ap- 

 pliances have been invented, which has 

 greatly improved the quality and increased 

 the quantity of honey stored by the " little 

 almsmen of spring bowers." as Keats has 

 termed the bees. With the improvement in 

 quality has come more tiian the usual in- 

 crease in consumption which naturally ac- 

 companies improved quality and reasonable 

 prices. This revival in an ancient industry 

 is perhaps due, more than anything else, to 

 the improved homes which have been pro- 

 vided for the busy little workers, which 

 have enabled them to make a better quality 

 of honey than formerly. They have also 

 been taught to store tne honey in small 

 packages suitable to the requirements of 

 the retail buyer. 



It was to obtain the best possible results 

 in these two requirements that induced our 

 firm, as above mentioned, to offer as a prize 

 a medal bearing an inscription, "For the 

 best honey in the most marketable shape." 

 It is a curious fact that the bees have been 

 taught to build their frames of wax and 

 store the honey, in small squares of comb, 

 of a convenient size for the ordinary family 

 purchaser, or, in other words, they make 

 "to order" the quantities and styles de- 

 manded by tlie consumer. Fortius we are 

 indebted, I helieve, to that veteran apiarist, 

 Mr. J. S. Harbison, and the " Harbison 

 frames" are now a household word through- 

 out the U. S. It is only a few years since 

 these improvements have been made, and 



