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THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



May 



gradually declined until 15c has been 

 the highest limit in most markets for 

 the past four or five years. Mr. Doo- 

 little thinks overproduction is the 

 cause, but this can hardly be the case. 

 We believe today there are fewer bees 

 kept throughout the country than at 

 any previous .time for ten years. In 

 Western New York a few years ago 

 one could pass along the country 

 roads and see apiaries on every hand. 

 Today they are a rarity. In some 

 Western States they have undoubtedly 

 very much increased in numbers, but 

 the decrease in the East has more 

 than counterbalanced such increase. 

 There are, undoubtedly, several caus- 

 es for low prices. For the past few 

 years sugar has been very low in 

 price. Sugar syrup and glucose also 

 is now extensively used in the man- 

 ufacture of goods where formerly 

 honey was used. Wages are much 

 lower than they were a few years ago, 

 thus restricting the ability of many 

 former customers to buy hone}', it 

 being classed among luxuries, and 

 above all the prices of almost every- 

 thing have materially declined and 

 why not honey ? 



Reduction of Prices. 



Foundation has been reduced 3c a 

 pound from prices in our 1896 cata- 

 log. This is owing to the lower price 

 of wax. 



Our No. 1 Falcon Polished Sec- 

 tions we now offer at $2.50 for 1000, 

 $4.50 for 2000, $6.40 for 3000, $10 

 for 5000. Less than 1000 same pric- 

 es as formerly. 



Beeswax is lower. We are now 



paying 25c cash or 28c in trade, per 

 pound, delivered at our railroad sta- 

 tion, (Falconer, N. Y). This price is 

 not guaranteed. We will pay highest 

 market price when wax is received. 

 Prices are liable to be reduced again 

 within a short time If you have any 

 wax to sell it is advisable to send it 

 now. 



We will duplicate the prices on 

 hives and supplies offered by any 

 first class manufacturers — and in 

 many cases can do even better by you 

 than anyone else. 



Christmas Tips. 



One of the objectious to Christmas 

 boxes, writes James Payn, is that one is 

 eeldom quite certain whether one is 

 giving to the right people. Dumas tells 

 us that he took some pains to discover 

 one Christmas day what he was payiog 

 for. A second lamplighter excited his 

 suspicious. "I have already made my 

 little present, " he said, "to the man 

 that lights the street lamp." "Yes, 

 sir," returned the other, "but I am the 

 man who puts it out. " 



Spurgeon's Points For the Preachers. 



"Mind you avoid inappropriate 

 texts," said Mr. Spurgeon one day to 

 his college students. "One brother 

 preached on the loss of a ship with all 

 hands on board from 'So he bringeth 

 them to their desired haven,' and an- 

 other returning from his marriage holi- 

 day : 'The troubles of my heart are en- 

 larged. Oh, bring me out of my dis- 

 tress!' Mind your figures of speech are 

 not cracked. Don't talk like the brother 

 who said, 'I fly from star to star, from 

 cherry beam to cherry beam. ' Get 

 among your people or somebody may be 

 saying of you, as one old lady said of 

 her minister, that he was invisible all 

 the week and incomprehensible on Sun- 

 days. Shun all affectation in the pul- 

 pit, and mind you never get into the 

 goody goody style. One of this sort said, 

 'I was reading this morning in dear 

 Hebrews.' " — New York Observer. 



