THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



Api'il 



(From The Review.) 



LESS HONEY PER OOLO^lY 



MAY BE SICURED IN THE FUTURE BUT IM- 

 PROVEMENTS WILL LESSEN THE COST. 



G. A. Deadman 



The bee-keeping of the future will 

 undoubtedly differ from that o£ the 

 past. It differs now considerably from 

 that of only a few years ago, and must 

 continue to differ. If we were living 

 in the "East," Syria for instance, and 

 did as they do in many things, there 

 would probably be very little change, 

 as they are slow to adopt new methods, 

 being content to live as their fathers 

 did. We in the "West" pride our- 

 selves on being progressive, which, if 

 true, there must of necessity be a dif- 

 ference, arising from improved meth- 

 ods and appliances, saying nothing of 

 that arising from extended or depressed 

 markets. Rather would it not have 

 been better to have asked, " Wherein 

 will the bee-keeping of the future dif- 

 fer from the past?" Certain changes 

 in condition, such as 3'ou mention in 

 your excellent paper read at the On- 

 tario Bee-Keepers' convention recent- 

 ly held in Stratford, must make a dif- 

 ference in the bee-keeping of the fu- 

 ture. Who can say what this differ- 

 ence will be? Do "coming events 

 cast their^^shadows before." I believe 

 with you that changes in conditions 

 render the honf-y yield more doubtful, 

 and no doubt even those in Florida, 

 who have or will suffer from the late 



severe frosts, will assent to this. Just 

 how much the change of conditions 

 will decrease the honey yield on the 

 one hand, or improved methods and 

 appliances increase the profits on the 

 other is difficult to say. That im- 

 proved methods and appliances will 

 change the bee-keeping of the future 

 no one can doubt. As you say, "It is 

 astonishing to see with hovv little care 

 an apiary can now be managed." From 

 changed conditions in nature the honey 

 yield may be less, but it may be more 

 than counterbalanced bj the lessened 

 cost of production. 



How about the differences that arise 

 from changed conditions of the mar- 

 kets ? This cannot be as great as it 

 has been in the last twenty years, but 

 that both the retail and wholesale 

 price of honey will be less, 1 have not 

 the least doubt. The low prices of 

 sugars and syrups alone will produce 

 this, not saying as to how much it 

 will be affected by the stringency of 

 the times, increased production of but- 

 ter, and consequently lower prices of 

 the same. When butter is dear, honey 

 is sometimes substituted, and when 

 sugars are low more preserved fruits 

 are eaten and consequently less honey 

 and the same with syrups. These 

 things taken together with the fact 

 that so many are unemployed, must 

 lower the price of honey. There has 

 been notliing like the usual demand 

 this season for honey, either at retail 

 or wholesale. The tillers of the soil 

 have bought considerable honey from 

 us in other years. They speak of this 

 as being the hardest year to make 

 money they have known. Whether 

 this has effected the demand more than 

 have the low prices of sugar and 

 syrups, I am unable to say, but I be- 



