Aug. 3. 1905. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



337 



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 Special Clrticles 



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Comb Honey in the Home Market 



BY "ILLINOIS" 



Twenty-five years ago a man with 10 colonies of bees, 

 kept in the old-fashioned way, could supply our little 

 town with honey ; now we need about a ton to each 

 thousand people to supply the home market. 



Then honey was sold by the pound, and in a small way ; 

 now we sell to consumers by the case, and it bee-keepers in 

 their home markets would put up their comb honey in small 

 cases of not more than 10 or 12 pounds each, and quote and 

 sell it that way, their market would be improved. 



We have told people all about honey as a medicine, and so 

 the general public buys honey about as freely as bee-keepers 

 buy pills. 



Sell a woman a section of honey and tell her how good it 

 is for the croup, mixed with lemon-juice, and she is likely to 

 put it away somewhere until the baby has the croup, and by 

 that time the honey may be in a condition either to kill or 

 cure — to kill the baby, or cure it of its love of honey for good 

 and all. 



What we want is, people to use honey as an article of 

 food, so sell to them by the case, and they will eat it by the 

 case, and want more. 



Put the retail price per case so that you can sell to 

 grocerymen at market rates, and so that they can make a fair 

 profit if they sell by the case, and a larger one when they sell 

 by the section, and let them supply the demand for less than 

 a case. You and your grocer will then be good friends, and 

 can work together. 



It is an advantage to put your name on your honey in 

 'your home market, and also use a stamp with " Keep Comb 

 Honey Where it Will Be Dry and Warm," or something to 

 that effect. 



One thing I must say, and that is, that people become 

 educated in regard to the quality of honey very fast, and so 

 first, last, and all the time, quality must not be lost sight of. 

 Keep all unfinished, leaky and broken sections out ; and don't 

 try to convince people that what they don't like is all right. 



Good salesmen, and much talk, will not sell poor and off 

 grades of honey a second time ; and if I and my location can 

 not produce honey that will sell itself the second time, I would 

 better quit, for I will have to do so iu the end. 



My experience in city markets is small, and I know that 

 ignorance in regard to honey prevails, yet it would seem as 

 If methods which are successful among a few thousand people 

 ought to be so among many, and I fully believe that what wi^ 

 most need is men who will get honey of the right quality to 

 the eaters of it, in a clean and attractive condition, and then 

 The Honey-Producers' League, which is a long step in the 

 right direction, and other means of education, can do the rest. 



I sometimes wonder if a " Honey- Eaters' League" should 

 not be organized to educate a large proportion of our bee- 

 keepers ill the handling and care of their bees and honey. 



The marketing of extracted honey is quite different from 

 that of comb, but the same principles apply to both — small 

 quantities used as a luxury, large quantities as food. 



Selling and Shipping Honey 



BY F. GREINER 



If every lover of honey had a fair opportunity to obtain 

 all he wanted at a reasonable price it would not be necessary 

 to hold over a part of our crop. We bee-keepers do not 

 reach consumers — there lies the trouble. We must aim to 

 distribute the honey we produce over a larger territory, c-ac// 

 one of us. 



If we find it necessary to place our crop in the hands of 

 commission men, it is not advisable to ship it all to one firm. 

 It may work all right, and it may not. The practice is.alto- 

 gether too hazardous. One friend writes me from a neighbor- 

 ing county, saying he saw my honey at a certain house in Ilos- 

 ton, and went home and shipped his 7000 pounds to the same 

 firm last fall to be sold on commission, but it seems he has not 

 yet received his money for it ; the honey is not yet sold. 



Another friend in my own town shipped the larger por- 

 tion of his crop — all the white honey — to the same firm, and 

 has not yet had his pay. My own honey was sold to the firm 

 before it went, at a fair price. The honey the two friends 

 shipped would have netted more than what I had received, 

 had it been sold at that time. But it seems to me the firm 

 could not handle so large an amount of honey, and made no 

 effort to find an outlet somewhere else. They allowed the 

 time when it might have been sold at a good price to pass by, 

 and now it is on their hands and the producers have no money 

 to use. The chances are they will have to wait till next fall, 

 and then take a small price. 



It always has seemed to me a poor policy to ship a large 

 quantity of honey to one firm at one time, when it is to be 

 handled on commission. I have always sent small lots — not 

 over 400 or 500 pounds at one shipment. When that was sold 

 I shipped more. I also tried different markets. In this way 

 I received some cash right away, and I selected those mar- 

 kets for further consignments which gave me the quickest re- 

 turns and best net prices. I never have been caught with 

 comb honey on my hands when winter came on, following the 

 plan as outlined. 



I want to sell for cash if possible, but I am never at a loss 

 to know what to do with my honey if the cash buyer does not 

 come around. 



The firm to whom my two friends shipped their honey is 

 all right. I have dealt with them for years, sold to them a 

 number of times, but last fall they had too much on their 

 hands, and should have so informed their shippers. 



HOW BEE-KEEPERS OBTAIN LOW FREIGHT RATES BY COMBIN- 

 ING WITH FRUIT GROWERS IN NEW Y'ORK STATE. 



The fruit-growers of this vicinity formed an association 

 some years ago, having for its objects obtaining low rates from 

 the railroad companies, and to oversee the shipping of the 

 fruit, particularly grapes. The association hires a man to see 

 to the loading, and another one is sent to Boston, where all 

 the fruit is sent, to oversee the unloading. A great many 

 dollars have thus been saved to the fruit-men yearly. 



While originally the association was formed for the benefit 

 of fruit-growers, concessions have been made to peach, plum 

 and even apple growers. I have also shipped butter, eggs, 

 chestnuts and honey in the same cars with the grapes without 

 objections being raised by the railroads. The rate on all 

 these products to Boston is but 35 cents per 1000 pounds, 

 which I consider a low rate. The transit is quick and safe. 

 Our own men and we ourselves handle the products. There 

 is seldom any smashing. When our honey can be corded 



METHOD OF PACKING COMB HONEY FOR SHIPPING. 



right in with the grapes (the grapes being in five-pound 

 baskets) no bettor way can be devised ; but I aim always to 

 get my honey into the center of the car, the grape baskets 

 thus forming a cushion on each end. 



When honey must be shipped by way freight in small lots, 

 to insure safety it should be put up in specially constructed 

 crates, as shown in the picture lierewlth. They may be con- 

 structed on a different plan, Ijul this, it seems to me, is the 

 simplest. It is doubtful that auy straw put under the honey, 

 as is recommended, increases the safety or is a further guar- 

 antee against breakage. Ontario Co., N. Y. 



