110 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



the American people," so perhaps we had 

 better all throw up the hat for the "Al- 

 bino Bee, the best in the world." 



O Stapt es 

 Columbia, Tenn., Feb, 4th, 1876. 



For the Apaerican Bee Journal. 

 Comb Honey vs. Extracted. 



My bees have wintered, so far, very well. 

 I have lost only three queens. Every 

 hive is strong but one. This one was foul 

 broody last fall, has only bees in three 

 spaces between the combs but brood in all 

 stages, while I found only eggs in a few 

 of ihe balance of my hives. I had foul 

 brood in two of my hives last fall. They 

 appear to be cured, however, entirely. 



Honey trade was very satisfactory with 

 me this winter as far as quantity was con- 

 cerned, and if I may judge by the increase 

 of demand in the retail trade, my trade 

 will be better next season. 



Is it not amusing how some of our 

 brethren will jump from one extreme to 

 another? It is not long since when every 

 body struck out for extracted honey. 

 Five hundred pounds to the hive ; that will 

 give us a fortune. Yes; The time will 

 come when we shall realize a thousand 

 pounds of honey to the hive, said one of 

 our celebrated ( ?) teachers in apiculture. 

 We do raise a respectable quantity of 

 honey, and honey has since become an 

 article of trade. Extracted honey is fast 

 getting to be a competitor to cane sugar, 

 while its good qualities are appreciated 

 more every year. Immense quantities are 

 used for table use and for manufacturing 

 purposes, quantities of which we had no 

 idea a few years ago. And yet, we are 

 not happy. How we have sobered up in 

 the face of all these facts! Bee-keeping 

 is a failure, the honey pump is a humbug 

 and a detriment to bee-keeping, says one 

 of our sanguine brothers. Let us all raise 

 comb honey, etc. About such language 

 we see in our Bee Journals at the present 

 time. There is hardly ever anything 

 gained in business, by jumps. It requires 

 energy and persevereuce to carry on any 

 business, and there is no reason why bee- 

 keeping should be an exception. Every 

 bee-keeper should raise comb honey and 

 also machine extracted honey, he should 

 take pains to keep each kind of honey 

 by itself and to offer for sale each kind in 

 as attractive a style as possible. 



As a business man I know that I must 

 hold my wares only at such prices at 

 which they will take, if I want to sell, 

 and the same holds good with farmers and 

 bee-keepers. It pays every bee-keeper 

 best to work up a home trade, as his 

 honey will bring him the best price from 

 consumers, and the balance only, he 

 should otfer to a dealer, who — must buy 

 cheap, of course. It is expensive to han- 



dle honey, and more so than people gen- 

 erally think. 



There is no mistake but that the ma- 

 chine extracted honey is the only pure 

 honey possible, and it will be tlie honey in 

 demand after a while. Comb honoy will 

 remain a fancy article only, but it sells 

 also ; let us therefore, each one of us, raise 

 our share of comb honey and let each 

 one of us raise more of the one or of the 

 other, just as he thinks best. But don't 

 let us condemn everything because other 

 parties don't grab for our lot first. Comb 

 honey will always be a risky article. It 

 will be damaged if kept over a year; not 

 so with machine extracted honey. And 

 if ever an overstocking of the market 

 takes place it will be with the former 

 and not with the latter. 



Cincinnati, O. Chas. K. Muth. 



The Bee as a Scavekger. — A mouse 

 found its way into the hive of one of our 

 amateur bee men, not long since, and the 

 intruder was found dead, and completely 

 imbedded in wax. The mouse, having a 

 sweet tooth, crept into the hive to steal 

 honey, but unfortunately aroused the in- 

 mates, and before he could find his way 

 out again, was stung to death. B3r.and-by 

 decomposition set in, and Mr. Mousey be- 

 gan to disseminate a bad smell, which 

 bees cannot tolerate ; but landing it impos- 

 sible to hustle him over the ramparts, as 

 they do other nuisances, they went ener- 

 getically to work and sealed him up in 

 wax, hermeticall}^ sealed him, in fact, sa 

 that not the slightest odor escaped, tO' 

 make the hive unpleasant for the high- 

 toned, extremely neat and cleanly inhab- 

 itants. — Schoharie Republican. 



'^^ Mrs. Willis D. Bailey is hereby 

 informed that her letter is received, but as 

 she gave no Post Office, County or State, 

 it is impossible to comply with her re- 

 quest, till she furnishes these requisites. 



Salem, III. — March 13, '76. — I went 

 into winter quarleis with 130 colonies^ 

 well supplied with honey. Have lost five- 

 from queenlessness, none by desease. 



Bees very lively but have consumed a 

 vast amount of honey, in consequence of 

 the warm winter. Am feeding Rye meal 

 which they " go for " lively. Have 

 noticed them bringing in polen. An ex- 

 amination shows that they are making a 

 fine start in breeding. 



Of honey resources, we have in the 

 spring, soft maple and elm, followed by 

 fruit bloom, and hard maple, then white 

 clover, which, though blooming abun- 

 dantly, sometimes fails to afford honey. 

 Also some black and yellow locust. Then 

 fall flowers, smart weed, Spanish needle: 

 and some buckwheat. L. McColm. 



