1897. 



THE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER. 



205 



I have said that self-sealing devices 

 made the ordinary screw top pack- 

 ages expensive. In the case of some, 

 the price is 2 and 3 cts. per lb. 

 Without it, it would be less than half. 

 It has occui'ed to me, in view of what 

 Mr. Aikin has said in the last para- 

 graph, that we as bee-keepers 

 ought to make use of some standard 

 tin package, such as is used for canned 

 tomatoes, peaches, etc. Fruit growers 

 have long since come to the conclusion 

 that a 3 lb. tin can made of light tin, 

 having the fruit itself soldered in, is 

 the cheapest of any package they 

 oould get. This same 3-lb. package 

 would hold about 4^ lbs. of honey, 

 and would cost the bee-keeper, who 

 bought it in a large way, probably 

 not to exceed a cent a pound for the 

 honey they would hold. But, you say, 

 bee-keepers are not skillful enough to 

 solder these fruit cans when filled 

 with honey. Perhaps; but I know a 

 good many who are. We will suppose, 

 for instance, that Mr. A. has bought 

 500 cans, each can to hold about 4| 

 lbs. of honey when filled. We will 

 say that he has filled them, and is now 

 ready to have them soldered. 1 ven- 

 ture to say he can get his tinsmith to 

 solder the whole batch in about one 

 day's time; and the cost ought not to 

 succeed S2.50, or half a cent a can. 

 Honey put up in this shape can be 

 put in standard packages; and, when 

 neatly labled, said label going clear 

 around the can, will compare favor- 

 ably with any other goods on the 

 maikets. They can be tipped upside 

 down, any way, and there will be no 

 danger of leaking. I grant that this 

 idea of tin fruit-cans for honey is not 

 new; but I am of the opinion that it 

 has not received the recognition it de- 

 serves. 



But it would be no very great trick 

 to do the soldering oneself. Soldering- 

 kits are furnished very cheaply now, 

 and the directions that go with them 

 make the whole thing plain. I have 

 known of a number of instances in 

 California where the bee-keepers sol- 

 dered all their own square cans. 



In Mr. Aikiu's last paragraph he 

 touches upon a p lint that is by no 

 means a visionary scheme. The 

 California Beekeepers' Exchange is 

 organized, if i am not mistaken, for 

 the very purpose of seeking and out- 

 let for the honey from its members; 

 that is to say, it is to take the annual 

 crops of honey from bee keepers, in 

 the bulk, and put them in uniform 

 packages or various sizes for the gen- 

 eral market. Such a scheme ought to 

 be favorably considered by the bee- 

 keepers of the East, and I believe it 

 would be well for the United States 

 Bee keepers' Union to discuss the 

 matter at its next meeting. 



Let us now consider some of the 

 advantages. One large packing house 

 or, if you please, several of them, 

 scattered at strategic points, could buy 

 up the honey from bee-keepers in 

 every direction, in the bulk for.o. If 

 uniform packages were agreed upon, 

 and this honey were put into such 

 packages, with neat labels, and a guar- 

 antee of absolute purity, it would do 

 much to help bee-keepers secure bet- 

 ter prices. 1 know of one large uuder- 

 buyer who mixes his strong-flavored 

 honey with that which is milder 

 flavored, thus making a honey that is 

 both uniform and pleasant. One 

 honey-buyer mixes alfalfa and strong 

 basswood, and calls it "liucerne." 

 The alfalfa alone sometimes has a 

 flavor that is too mild, and the bass- 

 wood is sometimes too stioug. Com- 

 bining the two makes a flavor that is 

 just right. You see the point is here: 

 A large packing- house cuuld take the 

 honey from several sections of the 

 country, and combine them in such a 

 way as to make one kind of honey of 

 uniform flavor, and thus il would 

 bring a good price. I do not mean to 

 say that buckwheat should be mixed 

 with clover, but that two or three 

 grades of amber might be mixed, or 

 two or three grades of white honey, 

 and both the white and the amber 

 would be much the better. I hope 

 this question will be thoroughly dis- 

 cussed. — Ed.] 



