12 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



ing, comb foundation, a Porter bee 

 escape, honey leaflets, and anything- 

 else likely to be of interest, and 

 of a size small enough to be carried in 

 my pockets. This gives the impres- 

 sion that I know something about bee- 

 keeping and can be relied upon to 

 know whether honey is right or not; 

 also that I am capable of giving thein 

 the best bargain possible. Square 

 dealing, g-ood goods, and liberal treat- 

 ment of customers, change unfavor- 

 able impressions to confidence, and 

 the rest is more a matter of hustle 

 than anything else. 



CAN THE BUSINESS BE BUILT UP, OR 

 WILL PEOPLE TIRE OF HONEY? 



Will people continue to buy honey, 

 or will one trial end the deal ? was 

 the main question to be answered, 

 when I commenced this mode of market- 

 ing. After several seasons' work, 

 under various circumstances, I have 

 have demonstrated, to my own satis- 

 faction, at least, that it can be made to 

 grow, and the consumption of honey 

 increased to a greater extent by this 

 method, or something similar, at least 

 embodying the educational, "special 

 pleading" features of it, than all the 

 other agencies combined. Printers' 

 ink used in the "Sunny Jim" style 

 would create a sure thing impression 

 that it was a "fake." Who urges 

 people through the press to eat 

 potatoes, or advocates cabbage as a 

 health food ? Interesting press articles 

 that will help along by giving people 

 exact knowledge and refuting fake 

 items, would be of advantage surely; 

 for instance, a write-up of the efforts 

 and results in breeding long tongue 

 bees would go the rounds if started 

 rightly, and provoke thought, interest 

 and thirst for more. One lady spoke 

 of "red" clover honey, and that 

 brought up this same story. She said 

 her children had something told them 

 in school, about bees, and they had 

 become intensly interested in the sub- 

 ject since that; and my coming with 



the honey added to the demand for in- 

 formation. Where could she get reliable 

 literature to study? I gave her direc- 

 tions to send for Prof. Benton's book, 

 issued by the general government, 

 then took an armful of "Reviews," 

 "Bee Journals," "Gleanings," etc., to 

 her that same evening. 



As a rule, I can sell more honey, per 

 day, in old territory than new, and I 

 believe that there is a growing demand 

 for extracted honey as a wholesome 

 and economical food. 



SOMETHING ABOUT PACKAGES. 



As to the best package, tin, paper, 

 glass, or no package at all, I have ex- 

 experimented all along this line. Ped- 

 dling, that is, taking honey along and 

 delivering as you go, has its advan- 

 tages, and objections. You only go 

 over the ground once, but it is slow, 

 and annoying in some ways. On paper 

 it seems feasible to ask them to pro- 

 duce a dish of some kind, and weigh 

 out for them just as much or little as 

 they wish, charging a sliding scale of 

 prices according to quality. One 

 pound 20 cents, two pounds 30 cents, 

 four pounds 50 cents, and ten pounds 

 for a dollar, would result in selling 

 the great majority in one pound lots. 

 It takes as long to sell, weigh out, and 

 get paid, for one pound as for ten; and 

 while the customer is hunting up and 

 rinsing the package, then getting 

 change (yon know no woman can afford 

 the luxury of a pocket, so her purse is 

 concealed in any old place about the 

 house, she forgets where, causing ex- 

 asperating delays), it results in small 

 sales for the day. Another objection 

 is the almost universal habit of people 

 being a week or two behind with their 

 payments, and must have time to allow 

 for an extra like a package of honey, 

 especially if it is any amount exceed- 

 ing a quarter. 



You see people get reckless and 

 spend their money in times of great 

 prosperity like these; at least, it seems 



