218 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



fourth, always keep it on hand. The 

 failure in any one of these thing^s will 

 bring- any market "to grief." The 

 price should not be too low nor yet too 

 high. I read of some bee-keepers re- 

 tailing their honey at 12 to 15 cents for 

 extracted. I call that an exhorbitant 

 price. There is a limited market 

 which will buy it at that. We have a 

 few such customers as that, and by go- 

 ing to a great deal of trouble to look 

 up only such, we might sell it all that 

 way. But it takes a great deal of 

 labor to hunt up such trade. We like 

 that trade best that will hunt for us. 

 With sugar from five to seven cents we 

 find that honey will rest easily at 

 seven to nine cents. At this the labor- 

 ing class and most of the well-to-do 

 will buy it, and buy it often and with 

 regularity. It might sufficefor anoccu- 

 pation to tide over a poor year to sell 

 at the high price. But the level price 

 from year to year, comes out best. 

 Customers, or at least steady customers 

 who have any economic intentions, be- 

 come suspicious of fluctuating prices, 

 and when prices go up they will^think 

 they are about to be cheated, and when 

 the'price goes down of course they take 

 it for granted that they have been 

 cheated all along. 



Another ingredient, that is almost or 

 quite as nnportant as any of the four 

 mentioned above, is time. It takes 

 time to show people that honey is ripe, 

 is full weight, etc. The second, third 

 and even more times it may require to 

 convince customers that there is no 

 variation. Then after they have 

 learned it, keep right on "mailing 

 them." Confidence thus gained is 

 worth more than half of the crop that 

 is to be sold. In fact, the bee-keeper 

 who has a confidential line of custom- 

 ers is as well off as if he had already 

 harvested a considerable crop even 

 before his bees are out of winter quar- 

 ters. It is making one crop sell the 

 next. And eventually his crops will 

 sell themselves. If you are going to 

 cheat, go far from home to do it. But 

 even then it will not pay where it is 

 likely to be drifted back into your 

 locality again; as might be the case 

 with honey. It might not identify your 

 conduct to your neighbors, but you will 

 suffer from it nearly as much as if it 

 did. 



I used to produce and sell as much 

 of comb as extracted honey. After a 

 customer bought once or twice, and 

 thought of the lower price of extracted, 

 and tasted and considered, he invaria- 



bly decided to take extracted and con- 

 tinued to call for it. As one customer 

 did another did. I never put in a word 

 in favor of either kind. Now, after 

 twelve years, I would not sell one case 

 of comb honey to ten pounds of 

 extracted. 



It would be impossible to turn these 

 customers back to hone3' in the comb. 

 If I kept bees for fifty years, I could 

 find no reason to run one hive to its 

 production. My customers would not 

 accept jars of extracted with chunks 

 of comb honey floating in it, as some 

 bee-keepers put it up. They prefer the 

 clear extracted at the same price. 

 Many have said that they want the 

 honey to eat, not to look at. And by 

 paying strict attention to these before 

 mentioned requisites it found a position 

 in their culmar}^ departments that 

 nothing else can displace. We have 

 just three things to look after in our 

 apiary management viz: Good queens, 

 "elbow grease," and tanks. 



Imported Carniolan 



Queens ! 



A limited numb-rofcboice imported Carniolan 

 queens will be disposed of during July and suc- 

 ceeding montlis. I shall be inCa.niola during 

 July making the.se shipments which will be c'is 

 tributed from Washington, D.C. 



PRICE— ^elecl Imported Queen J4.00. Write for 

 rates for three or more. Address 



RflliPH BENTON, 



-05 It 



925 N. St. N. W. 



WASfllNGTON, D.C. 



BEE-Sl)PPliIES. 



lieuiis' Goods at paetopy Priees. 



Best shipping point in the United 

 States. Special inducements on bee- 

 hives. 88 page Catalog— good infor- 

 mation for all bee-keepers— free. Ask 

 about our free pocket mirror. 



C. M. SCOTT & CO., 



1002 E. Washington St. 

 3.05-51 INDIANAPOLIS, IND 



