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147 



XHOKIAS G. MEWSIAN, 



EDITOR. 



Voinv, Marcli 9,1889. No. 10. 



Mr. W. X. ICicIiardsou, one of the 



proprietors of the Monte Blanc6 apiaries at 

 Santa Barbara, Calif., called at this oHice 

 last weeic. The apiaries consist of 1,500 

 colonies of bees, and was beguD in 1880. 

 They are sending honey by the carloads to 

 Boston, New York, and Eastern cities. 



»p. Mason'iii address at the Tri-County 

 Institute at Adrian, Mich., was very inter- 

 esting. It took fofty minutes, and was 

 listened to with the closest attention. This 

 was a three-day meeting, and the Doctor 

 worked faitlifully for the pursuit of bee- 

 keeping. Bee-keepers should improve all 

 such opportunities. 



Silo and Milnge is the name of a nice 

 25-cent pamphlet by Prof. A. J. Cook. It is 

 written in the Professor's familiar chatty 

 manner, and is well worth reading and 

 studying, so as to make it of practical use. 

 His preface reads thus : 



I write this primer : first, because I have 

 been asked to do so ; secondly, because, 

 from my experience, 1 deem the silo a tre- 

 mendous advantage to any farmer, and I 

 wish to influence the farmers to do that 

 which will aid them, in the struggle for suc- 

 cess, more than any other one thing. My 

 silo has been a surprising success, and in 

 this little brucMirc 1 shall tell in a plain, 

 simple way how I grow the corn, build my 

 silo, (ill and cover it, and feed the silage. I 

 shall not pretend that this is surely the best 

 method in every respect, but I shall urge 

 that it will all pay, and prove asuccess ; for 

 1 have tried it at an immense profit. There 

 ouBht to be one thousand silos built in 

 Michigan, and ten thousand in the United 

 States during the next year. I hope and 

 trust that this little effort of mine may aid 

 in bringing this about. 



The Professor has proved by experience 

 on the farm his every statement. We can 

 supply it at the publisher's price. 



California llonoy Crop.— In their 

 fourth annual report of the honey and bees- 

 wax crop of California tor 1SS8, just issued, 

 Messrs. Schacht, Lemcke & Steiner, of San 

 Francisco, remark as follows : 



A fair crop of honey has been gathered 

 and marketed this season. The quality has 

 also been up to the average, and the price 

 has ruled high enouah to be satisfactory to 

 apiarists and dealers. Thiols as we antici- 

 pated in our report last year, and as far as 

 present prospects can be read, the outlook 

 tor the next crop is equally good, although 

 fears for a small crop are entertained. 



As we have mentioned more than once in 

 our annual reviews, it is very difficult to 

 eive a correct estimate of the California 

 honey crop. Onr reason tor this is found in 

 the fact; that no reliable, or other statistics 

 of the article, are kept in the different coun- 

 ties and localities of the State, as there 

 should be. Consecpiently we are compelled 

 to rely wholly for this information on re- 

 ports from our agents and correspondents, 

 which is reliable as far as it goes, and on 

 this authority our estimate of this season's 

 crop is made. From the fifty or sixty thou- 

 sand colonies in California, for the year 

 1888, there was marketed of extracted honey, 

 3,000,000 pounds, and of comb honey, .500,000 

 pounds, or a total of 3l< million pounds for 

 the season. 



This result compared with former seasons 

 is favorable, as the following figures evi- 

 dence : 1887, 1,200,000 lbs. ; 1886. .5,000,000 

 lbs. ; 1885, 1,250,000 lbs. ; 1884, 9,000,000 lbs. 



A great portion of this season's crop was 

 shipped by steamer or rail, direct from the 

 apiaries to San Francisco, as the following 

 statistics show ; extracted, 1,200,000 lbs. ; 

 of comb honey, 300,000 lbs., or a total of V., 

 million pounds. This also compares favor- 

 ably with the receipts of former years, viz : 

 1887, 1,300.000 lbs. : ISSfi, 3,500,000 Ihs. ; 1885, 

 3,000,000 lbs. ; 1SS4, 3,i;00,0001bs. ; 1883,1,400,- 

 000 lbs. ; 1882, 1,000,000 lbs. 



Since the lirst of this year the receipts 

 have been 1,000 cases of extracted and 450 

 cases of comb, and for the remaining four 

 or five months they will probably be light, 

 as the interior supply is getting limited. 



A better demand and higher price of the 

 article, caused much larger shipments of it 

 to be made to Europe this season than were 

 made last year. They amounted by sailing 

 vessel to Europe and other foreign countries 

 700,000 pounds, and by sail via New York, 

 175,U00 pounds. The principal part of these 

 shipments went direct to England ; the bal- 

 ance to Germany. France did not import 

 any from here during the year, but will 

 probably soon become an importer. 



Overland shipments including those for 

 Europe, via New York, amounted to nearly 

 one million pounds, while in 1887 they were 

 9.50,000 pounds ; issi;, 3,000,000 pounds ; and 

 in 188.5, 1,370,000 poiuids. 



These heavy and constantly increasing 

 shipments, sliow that Europe is a large con- 

 sumer of our honey ; and that it is impor- 

 tant to all concerned in tlie honey-trade, to 

 do everything that can be reasonably done, 

 to increase it, by taking great care in pro- 

 ducing a fine article in all respects, and 

 putting it up in good and strong packages. 

 The quality and color should also be looked 

 after by tlie apiarist, dealer and shipper. 



The average price of extracted honey dur- 

 ing the last season has been from 5'., to 6'..' 

 cents ; for comb honey, 10 to 12^.1 cents per 

 pound for one pound sections, while the 

 two-pound sections have been sold for less. 

 Present quotations are 5}i to 6 cents per 

 pound for extracted honey. 



It is too early now to say what the crop 

 of the coming year will be. Spring rains 

 are necessary, and if we get tliem, there 

 will be a good yield. We feel confident 

 though, in saying that the outlook so far is 

 good, that the coming season will probably 

 not be behind the past one, although noth- 

 ing certain can now be said. 



Congress last week passed a resolution 

 favoring unrestricted trade with Canada. 

 Commissioners were appointed to prepare a 

 plan for the assimilation of the import 

 duties and internal revenue taxes of the two 

 countries, and an equitable division of re- 

 ceipts in a commercial union. In its report 

 on foreign affairs, it says : 



Our commercial relations with Canada-, 

 have recently awakened a deeper interest, 

 and received a more thorough discussion 

 than ever before. The tendency of publie. 

 opinion is plainly toward the enlargement 

 of trade lietweeii the two countries. 



In Canada the movement has advanced 

 from what a few years ago was an effort for 

 partial reciprocity to a wide expression in 

 tavor of unrestricted intercourse and com- 

 mercial union. The Chambers of Commerce 

 and Boards of Trade of the leading cities 

 ot Canada, and more than fifty farmers' in- 

 stitutes and conventions have adopted reso- 

 lutions declaring in favor of commercial 

 union or unrestricted trade between the two 

 countries. 



The answer made by tlieir opponents, and 

 those most closely attached to English trade 

 and English rule has been that the United 

 States has given no indication that it would 

 receive or even consider any proposal, how- 

 ever friendly in spirit, or however favorable 

 to us in its terms it miglit be. Your com- 

 mittee believes that the power herein con- 

 ferred upon the President can do no harm, 

 that it will be wisely used, and will lead to 

 beneficent results, promoting the indepen- 

 dence, prosperity, and peace of the two 

 great people. 



The Uee Hire, in its March number 

 just received, has quoted a part of an item 

 from the Ameiucan Bick Journal of Feb. 

 16, on page 99, concerning "a club agent 

 down East," who had taken subscriptions 

 for papers and then " lit out with the 

 money." The Dee Hive says it would have 

 been much, better to have "given the ab- 

 sconder's name or town, than to cast reflec- 

 tions on the honesty of all Eastern club- 

 agents." Wc intended na wrong. The dis- 

 iionesly was recorded because, as we there 

 stated, several of our subscribers had sent 

 him money, and lost it. His name is J. K. 

 Boak, but his address is now unknown to 

 many who would like to know it. Perhaps 

 it would have been better to liave given the 

 name before. 



Frosted Grain is good for seed. Prof. 

 Green, of tlie Minnesota State Agricultural 

 College has completed his experiments to 

 ascertain the value of frosted grain for seed. 

 His report made on Feb. 25, shows that 

 from 40 to 90 per cent, of the total amount 

 planted will sprout and grow. He says that 

 the experiments may be relied upon, and 

 hereafter farmers may plant frosted grain 

 witli the assurance that it will grow, rather 

 tlian run in debt for other seed. Oliver 

 Dalryraple, the bonanza farmer of Dakota, 

 and the largest wheat-grower in the North- 

 west, is inclined to believe that the experi- 

 met can safely be relied upon, and will test 

 further on his 40,000acre farm. 



Xlie Xliird Annual I'air of the 



Dakota Board of Agriculture will be held 

 at Grand Forks, Dak., Sept. 17 to 21, 1889. 



