8 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Jan. 7, 



%gj¥ ^ 



Eidiior. 



GEORGE W. YORK & COMPANY, 

 lis Michigan St., - CHICAGO, II.L. 



$1.00 a Year— Sample Copy Sent Free. 

 [Botered at the Posl^Offlce at ChlcaKo as Second-Class Mail-Matter. 



Vol. mVII, CHICA&O, ILL, JAN. ], 1897. No. 1 



Editorial Con)n)cr)i^^ 



Voliiiue Tliirly-Sureu of the American Bee Journal 

 opens with this number. Soon it will be two-score years since the 

 talented Mr. Samuel Waguer began to publish it as a small 

 monthly. In ISSl, Mr. Thos. G. Newman— who from ISTS to 1S93 

 was its tireless helmsman— clianged it to a weekly. Ever since it 

 has not failed, we believe, to appear " on time" each week. In the 

 10 years a few over S3U numbers have been issued, amounting to 

 over 10,500 printed pages of apiarian information. That represents 

 considerable mechanical labor on the part of che publishers during 

 all those 10 years. 



By the way, this mouth Miss Mattie C. Godfrey completes her 

 14th consecutive year as typesetter on the Bee Journal. She is as 

 steady as the best time-keeper, and probably has " set up " in type 

 the contributions of more apiarian writers than any other person 

 in this country. It is mainly owing to her careful expertuess that 

 the Bee Journal is usually so free from typographical errors, for 

 she has been able, until the past two years, to put into type nearly 

 all that has appeared in its columns. Since its enlargement, just 

 two years ago, more or less extra help has been required. But 

 '■ Miss Godfrey " still does her share, and does it well. 



We are glad to give the foregoing paragraph, for it is entirely 

 deserved by one of the truest, most conscientious and faithful 

 helpers with which any employer could be blest. 

 -*-»-* 



!i$Iiil>|>in»; Coinit Honey.— About the middle of Decem- 

 ber we had some actual "experience " in receiving a shipment of 

 coml) honey from Minnesota in a smasht-up couditiou. It has 

 made us feel a little sympathetic toward commission-men, or 

 those who haudle comb honey in any way. 



There was about 2,300 pounds of white comb honey in 24-pound 

 single-tier cases, that had come about 50J miles by freight on the 

 Chicago & Northwestern railroad. It was not crated as it should 

 have been— .say about 20U pounds (S cases) in a crate with handles 

 at each end, and with straw or hay in the bottom and at the ends 

 to prevent jarring when switching or starting the train, in hand- 

 ling, etc. 



Well, wo got it from the depot, and when we gazed at the 

 broken down combs our heart sank within us. We could hardly 

 believe that any one nowadays would think of shipping comb 

 honey in that way. But there it was— a leaky, sticky, dauby job 

 ahead of us. 



We started in, and with some extra help opened every case, 

 took out each broken comb and its section-box, and with common 

 white cord fastened the comb in its former place by tying the cord 

 both ways around the section-box. This kept each comb fairly 

 ujiright, though in a leaking condition. 



We went through all the cases, some of them with fully half 



the contents broken down. Where over one-fourth were thus 



broken, we removed the whole of them, and with a wet cloth 



wiped the inside of the case, and put new paper in the bottom. 



We repackt the whole lot. putting the string-tied broken combs 



all in cases by themselves, and the uninjured sections of honey in 

 separate cases. When we were through we had about 550 

 pounds of the broken-down honey. This latter was sold to a honey 

 commission-man here for 7 cents per pound, and probably found 

 its way finally into the hands of what are known as "cutters"— 

 firms who cut up comb honey and put it into tumblers with glucose 

 surrounding the comb. 



We want to say right here and now, that we ilmi't want 

 another such a sweet, stuck-up job on our hands. We believe the 

 one just described would have been wholly unnecessary had the 

 shipper packt the cases of honey in large crates with handles, etc., 

 as has been so frequently advised in these columns. 



Of course there was quite a loss on the broken honey, besides 

 the unpleasant work of repacking, tying in the loose, leaking 

 combs, etc. But it was a good lesson all around, and now we hope 

 those who read this may profit by our experience. 



'I'lina !>»<. Jwjiicpli 4'onveiitioii Keport (our own) is 

 in a good state of preservation. We had hoped to begin the re- 

 maining part of it before now, but felt that it would be better to 

 first publish the reports of more recent meetings, and then follow 

 with the unpublisht portion of the St. Joseph proceedings. As it 

 has been delayed now over two years, a month or two longer will 

 not injure its historical value very much, anyway. A.nd, then, it 

 gives ex-Secretary Benton just so much longer time to decide 

 whether he will fulfill the positive promise he made at the Toronto 

 meeting in September, 18y5, when, in reply to a question as to 

 whether he would forward the part of the Report he was with- 

 holding, said, " J will." But up to this time it has failed to come. 



However, we have it all right in the carbon copy from the 

 shorthand reporter of the St. Joseph convention, Mr. Louis R. 

 Lighton, which we obtained from him when on our way home 

 from the Lincoln convention in October last. It was fortunate 

 that Mr. Lighton had the extra copy, for the one held in Washing- 

 ton may crumble to dust before Mr. Benton decides to keep his 

 word with the North American Bee-Keepers' Association. 



'I'lio Ainnlganiiilion <(iie<a>tion we presume will be 

 settled this month. The perhaps 2.50 members of the National Bee- 

 Keepers' Union have the deciding vote, as the North American 

 Bee-Keepers' Association gave its favorable decision last October, 

 at the Lincoln convention. Those who now will vote have it in 

 their power to help form the strongest "Union " yet known among 

 bee-keepers. Will the majority improve theirgolden opportunity? 

 We believe they will; and when the ballots are opened and 

 counted, Feb. 1, we fully expect to see the New Constitution 

 adopted, and also the following list of officers almost unanimously 

 elected : 



For Board of Directors — Hon. R. L. Taylor, of Michigan; G. 

 M. Doolittle, of New York; Prof. A. J. Cook, of California; A. I. 

 Root, of Ohio; Hon. Eugene Secor, of Iowa; and C. P. Dadant, of 

 Illinois. 



For General Manager and Treasurer- Dr. C. C. Miller, of 

 Illinois. 



It would be a difficult thing to find seven better men among all 

 the bee-keepers in this country. All of them are well known to 

 the bee-fraternity, having been prominently before the apiarian 

 world for a score or more of years. And it l/wy couldn't make 

 their part of the New Union a splendid success, we are free to say 

 that we don't know who could. 



*-»-»•■ 



A !>'«'W $$i>rlliiis' IC«'foriii— or reform in spelling— is 

 being undertaken among quite a number of publishers, editors, 

 authors, and prominent writers of the day. Messrs. Funk & Wag- 

 ualls, of New York— the publishers of the great Standard Dic- 

 tionary — began a new effort, about a year ago, to reform our 

 miserable spelliug, by securing the promises of 300 publishers 

 editors, authors, etc., to join them in an attempt to undertake the 

 work by piecemeal, as it were, each one agreeing to adopt certain 

 changes in spelling when a full 300 had consented thereto. 



Well, the editor of the American Bee Journal was among the 

 300 leaders in the new reform, and with this number we begin the 

 use of the first rule to which all have agreed, viz : To change 

 "ed " to " t " in words ending with "ed" and pronounced "t." 

 For instance: Worked — workt; helped — helpt; astonished- aston- 

 isht; watched— watcht, etc. Of course there are some exceptions 



