age, provided they escape the frost of 

 winter. Last winter my bees wintered 

 on summer stands without protection, 

 and I did not lose a single colony. 

 Wintered in fine condition, and with 

 the aid of the fruit blossoms commenced 

 to breed rapidly. Atits close they were 

 left without stores or resource, with 

 hive full of brood and no honey. Here 

 I could see the advantage I might have 

 gained by killing half of the bees at the 

 close of the previous honey season, and 

 had at this juncture, hives with an ave- 

 rage say of thirty pounds honey to have 

 added to my hives full of brood and no 

 honey. The result then would have been 

 in four weeks, all my hives full of bees 

 and brood. Whereas the result was at 

 the end of four weeks, they were not 

 half full of bees and scarcely any brood, 

 and I had to feed too or they would have 

 been all dead. Of course we would hate 

 to kill the bees in the fall, and we would 

 hate to layout a hundred dollars for 

 sugar in the spring to feed, for we know 

 it takes a great deal of hard work to 

 sell a hundred dollars' worth of honey 

 or bees to get it back. 



The advantage of comb and honey in 

 the rapid increase of colonies is not gen- 

 erally understood. While it may never 

 have been tried to what extent one col- 

 ony could be multiplied in a season, I 

 have no hesitancy in asserting that in 

 the hands of a skillful apiarist with the 

 above facilities, fifty would be entirely 

 within bounds. 



Lawrence, Kansas. 



For the American Bee Journal, 



Marketing Honey, Etc. 



M. S. BAKER. 



A number of articles have appeared 

 from time to time in the American 

 Bee Journal upon this subject, gen- 

 erally expressing an opinion of the 

 great necessity of having a uniform 

 price to govern the market. G. M. Doo- 

 little, in the December number, says : 

 " Now, what we want is a fixed price for 

 our honey, as there is for other produce," 

 but confesses that he does not feel com- 

 petent to point out a way whereby we 

 can secure the desired result, but to 

 bring the subject before the readers of 

 the Journal. He asks the question : 

 " Could it not be brought about by our 

 National Bee Convention asking deal- 

 ers to agree upon certain prices V" In- 

 asmuch as he asks the question through 

 your columns, an answer through the 

 same will be in place. My answer is 

 emphatically, No. In my opinion there 

 is but one way, and that is by the lawof 

 supply and demand. Just when you 



havegotthe dealers to agree upon afixed 

 price, some producer steps in and offers 

 his honey at a much lower price to in- 

 sure quick returns, and thus ends any 

 combination ; I care not how it may 

 have been effected. 



I agree with many, that through our 

 organizations we may do much to create 

 a demand, and nothing so effectually 

 creates a demand as a great supply, 

 which must necessarily reduce the price. 

 Now, when the price is reduced below a 

 paying business, then enough of the 

 producers will drop out of the business 

 to lessen the supply, and establish a 

 price more uniform. Bee men are not 

 going to make or produce honey at a loss 

 very long, though it does seem that some 

 do persist in it for some time. And 

 now, right here is a good time and place 

 for me to express an opinion that I have 

 entertained for some time: That some 

 of our bee men who write for the bee 

 papers, commit an error in so setting 

 forth the profits of bee-culture that 

 many are induced to engage in it, think- 

 ing it a remunerative and lucrative 

 business, and will suffer losses and re- 

 verses that will necessitate their doing 

 something else for a living. 



The idea, too, that many advance, 

 and the advice they gratuitously offer 

 to farmers and mechanics generally to 

 keep bees, I look upon as erroneous and 

 one calculated to work an injury to the 

 business generally and to those who at- 

 tempt to handle bees in connection with 

 other business. My argument to sus- 

 tain this view is,— 1st. No one should 

 engage in a business that he cannot take 

 pride enough in to at least interest him- 

 self. 2d. That but few men are so con- 

 stituted that they can manage success- 

 fully, at the same time, a variety of 

 business. This is verified in the various 

 trades and professions. The manufac- 

 turer that makes a specialty of but one 

 thing, can so manipulate the business 

 that he can defy competition. His 

 whole energies are turned to that one 

 thing, which enables him to perfect and 

 put it into the market at the lowest 

 price. The professional man is the most 

 successful who turns the whole channel 

 of his thoughts upon one wheel, for in 

 tnis he has a concentrated power which, 

 if he had suffered it to branch out to 

 supply a number of wheels, the chances 

 are all against him that none of them 

 would move, and even if they did, the 

 power would all be lost in friction. 



I know that the profits figured out in 

 isolated cases on a few bees may look 

 tempting to a farmer that seemingly is 

 getting small profits, and he is induced 

 to try his luck, as he terms it, but just 

 when his bees require the most atten- 



