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September Sunrise. 



Written for the American Rural Home 



BY EUMA LTNDON. 



Up from the east in crimson beauty elowing, 

 Tile first September sunrise of the year 



Ascends tlie waitinK sky— a soft wind blowing, 

 Teils to the listening: earth its Queen is here. 



As some swift courier with bright torch glaring. 



Scales the steep mountain tilt the crest is won. 

 To set the world agaze at its grim daring. 



The season's herald mounts his torch, the sun. 



The moon grows white, the faint stars fade and 

 flicker. 

 And die before the splendor of the dawn. 



The new day steps abroad, earth's pulse beats 

 quicker. 



Night's shadowd suddenly are quenched and gone. 



J Still upward, higher, wider leaps the glory. 



The morn's gray bars are lines of red and gold ; 

 Sunflower and golden-rod take up the story. 

 And nod the news until the day is old. 



No after season, dull, or dark or lonely, 

 Or filled with whirling snows, or gray with cold, 



Gan quite efface this memory and this only. 

 Of Queen September on her throne of gold. 



Are Better Bees tlian Italians 

 Required ? 



Written for the Amerinnn Bee Journal 



<lnery 654.— Is abetter race of bees needed 

 than the Italians we now have ?— H. F. C. 



Yes. — A. B. Mason. 



No. — Mahala B. Chaddock. 



I think so. I do not like pure Ital- 

 iLsiis. — R. L. Taylor. 



Should a better race appear, we 

 wiiuld say Yes. — J. M. Hambaugh. 



Yes. I do not believe that we have 

 1 inched the end of all perfection yet. — 

 Klgene Secor. 



Improvement is always needed. Per- 



j' riion cannot be reached Dadant & 



Son. 



Yes, if any can be found. We want 

 tlie best bees on earth.— C. H. Dib- 



BERN. 



A better race would be desirable ; 

 but a better race I do not know of. — 

 J. P. H. Brown. 



I doubt very much if the Almighty 

 ever made a better bee. Perhaps He 

 ' could, but He has not.as yet. — Mrs. L. 

 Harrison. 



. ■ Most assuredly. We ought to have 

 a race that has all the good points of 

 all the races. — A. J. Cook. 



It would seem so, from the efforts 

 of queen-breeders, to produce some- 

 thing better. — G. L. Tinker. 



Well, yes, we will always want some- 

 thing better than we have ; but no betr 

 ter bee is likely to be brought out than 

 the carefully-selected Italian. — G. W. 

 Demaree. 



We always want to better what we 

 have, and by allmeans let us have a 

 better race, if it is possible.— P. L. 



VlAXLON. 



Certainly, we need a better race, if 

 it exists ; but I have some doubts of its 

 existence. — C. C. Miller. 



In my judgment, and I have tried 

 them side by side for several years, the 

 Syrians are a better race than the 

 Italians. — M. Mahin. 



All progressive persons are looking 

 for something better, and in the near 

 future I look for better strains of bees 

 tlian we have at present. — H. D. Cut- 

 ting. 



We will always need a better race 

 of everything, bees included. Every- 

 thing in the world, except the dull 

 preacher, stops when it is done. — J. 

 M. Shuck. 



Yes ; a race more gentle, with longer 

 •tongues, harder workers, longer lived, 

 and earlier risers ; and one that can 

 stand our cold winters, without suc- 

 cumbing in the spring. — Will M. 

 Barnum. 



I do not think that there is, but new 

 races must be found and advertised in 

 order to create enthusiasm and compe- 

 tition. The Italians are good enough 

 for myself. — J. E. Pond. 



"Needed " is a curious word for this 

 place. All progressive men want 

 "better" everylhinrj, and none of us 

 are ready to claim perfection in any- 

 thing. I now have a much better 

 strain of bees than any pure Italians, 

 and I "need" them every day of the 

 summer. — James Heddon. 



Yes. Just give us a bee of the 

 bumble-bee size, and with all the per- 

 severance and good qualities of the 

 Italians, and I will invest $100 in the 

 first queen you have to spare, which 

 will answer the description. — G. M. 



DOOLITTLE. 



Most assuredly. "Improvement" 

 is the order of the day. We have not 

 yet attained perfection. Every pro- 

 gressive apiarist wants the best on 

 Earth. No matter what are the at- 

 tainments of the present, there is a 

 longing for "the next progressive 

 step" in all directions. Better bees, 

 with longer tongues, and even greater 

 activity, docility and beauty are always 

 wanted. When such are produced, 

 they will find a ready market — but 

 even such will not long satisfy the 

 ever-advancing ideas of the modern 

 bee-keeper ! He will still look for the 

 better ones — yet unbred, undeveloped, 

 and unborn. Perfection is never at^ 

 tained — it is always a step in advance, 

 to induce a longing for it, and a reach- 

 ing out after it. Give us the best the 

 Earth aflbrds — always. — The Editor. 



MARKETING. 



How lo Properly Prepare Comb 

 Honey for market. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 

 BY E. L. PRATT. 



For the last few years I have hand- 

 led a crop of comb honey (from 500 

 to 800 pounds) in my home market, at 

 prices ranging from 30 to 35 cents, 

 and very often as liigh as 40 cents for 

 an extra nice article. 



At the present time, I have at least 

 a do/.en people at my heels, all the 

 time, asking for more of that " nice 

 honey." The other morning I brought 

 up a large basket full of this year's 

 crop, and before I could arrive at my 

 destination, it was all disposed of. 



Now, how do I work it ? you ask. 

 In the first place, I read everything 

 anybody has to oft'er on the subject of 

 marketing, and profit by any good 

 points discovered. 



I keep in my pocket, pamphlets and 

 printed matter, "Why Eat Honey," 

 " Honey as an Article of Food," 

 "Honey as Medicine," etc., and when 

 an opportunity aftbrds itself, the teach- 

 ings of these are made known. 



Bees are mentioned and talked 

 about until everybody for miles around 

 knows that I "keep a lot of bees and 

 sell fine honey, that is warranted 

 pure." Many have bought honey 

 directly from the hive, which is all- 

 convincing to the inexperienced masses. 



The honej- should be taken ofi:' 

 directly after capping, and stored in a 

 warm room until thoroughly ripe. The 

 boxes should be perfectly clean of bee- 

 glue, and as white as possible, before 

 a pound is sold. 



I have three grades, and the first 

 and second are carefully wrapped up 

 in vei-y pleasing packages. The thii-d 

 is sold in bulk, or otherwise, to the 

 best advantage. 



Before the paste-board cartons were 

 put upon the market, I used to have a 

 plain rim made of white pulp-board, 

 just right to take a one-pound section. 

 I now use the cartons. 



After the honey is thoroughly vipencd. 

 I label each box with a plain, small, 

 neat label, printed with black ink, 



"Warranted pure honey by ." 



Each box is then done up in one sheet 

 of white tissue-paper, and slipped into 

 a carton. I now wrap the whole thing 

 in pink-tinted French folio-paper, seal- 

 ing down the corners neatly with paste 

 or mucilage. 



After I have wrapped and sealed 

 enough for a week's supply, I go over 



