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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



Sept. 21, 190S 



tance of bee-keepers themselves doing some- 

 thing to popularize the use of honey. Not a 

 tenth part of the honey that should be con- 

 sumed on the tables of the public is now 

 found there. In order that some definite plan 

 might be inaugurated, several of those most 

 interested originated The Honey-Producers' 

 League. Its objects are all right, and its pro- 

 moters made a sincere effort to get the bee- 

 keepers and their money together in a way 

 that, had it succeeded better, we believe 

 would have been a great step in attaining the 

 desired result. 



But great plans and objects can not be 

 developed and attained in a day — nor in on* 

 year. An honest attempt has been made to 

 do just what many of the leaders say should 

 be done, except that the League was organ- 

 ized to do it instead of the National Associa- 

 tion. 



Now, if it is thought that the National can 

 better do the work undertaken by the League, 

 and also that bee-keepers will rally to the 

 former in larger numbers with their money, 

 then by all means let the National at its next 

 meeting decide to undertake the work. Let 

 it elect an advertising committee of say three, 

 whose duty it will be to manage this part of 

 the work of the National. Perhaps it would 

 be well to have a separate honey advertising 

 fund for the committee's use, which shall be 

 raised by an increase in dues or otherwise. 

 The details can be worked out at the National 

 convention, if it should decide to take up the 

 honey-advertising subject. 



It might be possible that the members of 

 the League would be willing to have the dues 

 they have paid into the League treasury 

 turned over to such National advertising com- 

 mittee as mentioned. This we .suggest as 

 only a possibility, as we have no right to 

 say that it would be done. 



Of this, however, we feel reasonably certain : 

 Something ought to be done to induce the 

 public to eat more honey, both for the benefit 

 of the public's health and for the financial 

 benefit of those who produce honey. The 

 question is. How can it best be accomplished? 

 If The Honey-Producers' League can't do it, 

 perhaps the National Bee-Keepers' Associa- 

 tion can. 

 Which shall it be, if either of them? 



Split-Top Sections 



Occasionally something is said in favor of 

 sections made in halves, or at least with the 

 top-bar in two parts. When sections were 

 first introduced, it was common to have a 

 saw-kerf in the top-bar to receive the founda- 

 tion, but that fell into disuse when other 

 methods of fastening were introduced. There 

 is no denying that foundation is held very 

 firmly when the top-bar is split entirely in 

 two; but it is no more to he denied that the 

 line of wax showing ou the top of the finished 

 section is always an eyesore. 



Split-top sections have been used in Eng- 

 land more than in this country; but if one 

 can judge from the Ijjt- papers over there, 

 they are not growing in fu'/ur there. 



/= 



V 



->• Some (Expert (Dpinion -f 



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J 



Maeterlinck's "Life of the Bee."— 



We have a few copies of this book, price, post- 

 paid, $1.40; or with the Aiiierican Bee Jour- 

 nal one year— both f or $ .' i h i, as long as the 

 books last. It is a oloih-bound book, and has 

 427 pages. 



What the National Bee-Keepers' 

 Association Should Attempt 



Ques. 30 — Phase name one or more of the 

 moKt hnportant thltign for the National Bee- 

 Keepers^ Association to attempt to accom.pJi.sh. 



S. T. Pbttit (Ont.)— Can not do it. 



Dr.C. C. Miller (111.)— Advertising honey. 



C. Davenport (Minn.) — To bring before 

 the public the value of honey as a food. 



Dr. J. P. H. Brown (Ga.)— To secure bet- 

 ter prices, better freight-rates, and less adul- 

 teration. 



Mrs. J. M. Null (Mo.) — Advertise honey 

 as though the people had never heard of 

 such a thing before. 



R. L. Taylor (Mich.) — An effective plan 

 to secure a more general distribution and 

 consumption of honey. 



E. E. Hasty (Ohio) — I have my doubts 

 about most of the new schemes — let them hold 

 fast what they have already gained. 



Morgan Bros. (S. Dak.) — 1. The suppres- 

 sion of the adulteration of honey. 2. Aiding 

 its members in the sale of their products. 



0. O. PopPLETON (Fla.)— Keep on doing 

 what it has done, for one thing. Fight the 

 adulteration of honey at every opportunity. 



L. Stachelhausen (Tex.)- Fighting the 

 adulteration of honey and the public prejudice 

 against honey. Getting a better market for 

 honey. 



J. M. Hambadgh (Calif.)— Destroy the sale 

 of adulterated honey. Overcome public preju- 

 dice against honey. Educate the people to 

 use pure honey. 



E. Whitcomb (Nebr.)— Pure-food laws by 

 National legislation; and a National law 

 which will work uniformly to stamp out foul 

 brood in the different States. 



Rev. M. Mahin (Ind.)- The most impor- 

 tant is the suppression of honey adulteration. 

 Next to that, if indeed it should not be placed 

 first, is the eradication of bee-diseases. 



Adrian Getaz (Tenn.) — Fight the adul- 

 teration of honey. Get appropriations from 

 the Government to carry on apicultural experi- 

 ments in our agricaltural institutions. 



N. E. France (Wi?.)— Advertise honey and 

 its uses. Help to market honey for members. 

 Less defense in neighbors' quarrels. Better 

 methods for nominating candidates for offices. 



Eugene Secor (Iowa)— Advertise the value 

 of honey as a food. Keep before the people 

 the fact that bees are not an injury to flowers 

 or fruit. Assist in procuring and enforciug 

 pure-food laws. 



Jas. a. Stone (111.) — The teaching of the 

 general public how few blossoms bear fruit 

 unless pollenized by bees or other insects. 

 And the uselessness of spraying fruit-trees 

 while in bloom. 



Wm. McEvot (Ont.)— To get the bee-keep- 

 ers to leave the honey with the bees until it is 

 well ripened before they extract it, so that 

 they will be able to sell the public a much 

 better quality of extracted honey. 



C. P. Dapant (III.) — Do away with the 

 story of manufictured comb honey as far as 

 possible by proper advertising; this is the 

 most important matter to bee- keepers to-day. 

 But there are thousands of other things to do. 



J. A. Green (Colo.) — Increase the honey 

 market by educating the people in the use of 

 honey; teach themii'.t to fear the adultera- 

 tion that does not u ist; and check, and. if 

 possible, do away with the adalteration that 

 does exist. 



Prof. A. J. Cook (Calif.) — A national 

 association for marketing, or a national or- 

 ganization like the Southern California Fruit 

 Exchange. I believe this can be accomplished, 

 and it would be of tremendous value to all 

 bee-keepers. 



E. D. TowNSEND (Mich )— Michigan has a 

 law prohibiting the word " honey " being used 

 except on packages containing puce honey. 

 Help other States to get a similar law, then 

 help put the law in force. I think there is no 

 impure honey on the market in this State. 



C. H. DiBBERN (111.) — 1. Stop the sale of 

 all glucose syrup as honey. 2. Run down 

 every lie as to comb honey being "manu- 

 factured" and extensively sold. 3. Adver- 

 tise honey as being far ahead of all sugars 

 and syrups as a wholesome article of food. 



G. W. Demaree (Ky.)— Let the National 

 Bee-Keepers' Association take steps to en- 

 lighten the general public, and disabuse their 

 minds of the past and present delusion that 

 bee-culture is necessarily a " little business," 

 and much will be accomplished by its efforts. 



R. C. AiKiN (Colo.)— Unite all into a co- 

 operative association. Intelligent, united 

 action in distributing products and buying 

 supplies carries with it many other things; 

 eliminates competition, unifies packing, cuts 

 out extra expense, and gives confidence. The 

 United States of America is a " great com- 

 bine." Who would chop it to pieces, or have 

 .5 or 10 concerns to deliver a letter from 

 ocean to ocean? See? 



E. S. LoTEST (Utah)— A more thorough 

 organization. It is needed all aloag the line. 

 The bee-keepers of every State should be 

 organized so as to be in touch with the Na- 

 tional. The whole should be organized to 

 such extent that estimates could be made as 

 to the extent of the entire honey crop, its 

 value, also where and when to market the 

 product. Sugar-men do this, and why not 

 the bee-keepers? " In union there is strength." 



P. H. Elwood (N. Y.)— I. To protect the 

 bee-keeper from unjust ordinances, etc. 2. 

 To prevent the sale of adulterated honey. 3. 

 To educate the people to eat nii're honey, 

 and shun the vile, unhealthy glucose com- 

 pounds offered under various names I once 

 bought a can of the best obtainable brand 

 of glucose, and offered it to the bees. They 

 took only a limited quantity and died before 

 spring. I do not believe it possible to winter 

 a colony of bees on pure commercial glucose. 

 Grape-sugar is the natural food of the honey- 

 bee. Then why do they not assimilate the 

 grape-sugar of glucose equally as well as that 

 of honey? 



Deptli of Shipping-Cases 



Shipping-cases for comb-honey ought to be 

 a little deeper than the height of the sections, 

 when they are piled up a dozen or more 

 high, then the weight of nearly the whole 

 pile will not rest upon the honey in the lowest 

 case, which, in some cases, causes a leak. Mr. 

 Irving Kinyon writes me that he got this hint 

 from P. H. Elwood.— Bee Keepers' Review. 



Coinl) Honey Guarantee Circulars. 



— These were gotten up by The Honey-Pro- 

 ducers' League, to be put into shipping-cases 

 before nailing them up for market. They are 

 mailed for only 10 cents for 50 — practically 

 cost price. Every bee-keeper who has any 

 honey to sell by the case should use these 

 circulars. They will help to inspire confi- 

 dence in the genuineness of comb honey. 

 Send all orders to this office. 



