THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



165 



Regfivding " size and kind of 

 section box to nse," he sa3's, "Two- 

 pound sections will be somewhat 

 the favorite, though tlierewill be a 

 good demand for one pounds too. 

 Half pounds will hardly briug the 

 difference in cost to the apiarist. 

 T would suggest the following pro- 

 portions, viz. : two pounds, sixty 

 per cent. ; one pound, thirty per 

 cent., and half pounds, ten per 

 cent. Nothing larger than two 

 pounds should be shipped at all. 

 Section boxes should be very rigid 

 at the corners, so that they will 

 support the comb and not requiring 

 the comb to supi)ort them ; light as 

 possible and perfectly clean and 

 smooth. 



For immediate home trade, glass 

 is not necessary, or for oue-half 

 pound sections ; but where the 

 honey is to be shipped and for all 

 other sizes glass is almost abso- 

 lutely necessar^r for the safety of 

 shipping and to keep the honey 

 from leaking and looking bad." 

 As to kind and size of crates he 

 sa3's, " These should be made of 

 clean, smooth, white lumber, light 

 and yet strong and rigid. They 

 should contain always twelve two 

 pound sections ; twenty-four one 

 pounds or twenty-four half-pounds, 

 Never put two sizes, though, in 

 one crate. Everything depends 

 on the cqypearance of comb honey, 

 even though the flavor may be 

 nothing extra, but in my experience 

 all white honey has a good flavor. 



Ship always in as large lots as 

 possible, as the damage is always 

 smaller in proportion in large lots, 

 and where neighbors can make up 

 a carload among them to ship to 

 one point it will be all the better 

 both as to safety and expense. 



For a shipping mark use a small 

 stencil on the same end with the 

 weight. Put nothing else whatever 

 on the crate as it only has to be 

 scratched off and spoils the looks of 

 it." 



[It is our fault that the words in 

 the last sentence are italicized 

 and the reason is this. It is our 

 candid opinion that every apiarist, 

 who has a reputation to establish, 

 has a right, and a just one, to place 

 his stamp upon one end of his 

 crates of honey in such a Avay that 

 it shall not be erased. We say this 

 not in order to disagree with Mr. 

 Twichell or others but because Ave 

 believe that, in the past, New York 

 honey has been taken by commis- 

 sion merchants and sold for Cali- 

 fornia honey, and that the reputa- 

 tion of the California honey was 

 largely built up l)y such proceed- 

 ings and we think it due the 

 beekeepers who take great pains 

 with their crops that they retain 

 the use of one end of all honey 

 crates for their own stamp. Per- 

 haps our opinion on this point is 

 fault}', and we invite criticism in 

 order to arrive at some means for 

 regulating the relations between 

 the producer and the consumer. 

 Ed.] 



QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 



QUESTIONS ]5Y THK EDITOR. 



1. What is the condition of your col- 

 onies at the present time as compared 

 with a corresponding date last season? 



2. From what you know at present, 

 what do you consider tlieoutloolc to be 

 regarding the honey crop and the mar- 

 ket for the same? 



3. What means, if any, do you use to 

 secure early drones and to keep them 

 from being destroyed during cold snaps 

 or scarcities? 



4. When yon have colonies supplied 

 Avith sections, and they get the swarm- 

 ing fever "awful bad," have you any 

 means whereby you can bring them un- 

 der subjection and yet keep them at 

 work in the sections? If so, will 

 kindly explain it? 



you 



5. Have you ever suspected that af- 

 ter a queen had once taken a marriage 

 flight, she again meets the drone as she 

 issues with a swarm of bees? If so. 



