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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Feb 11. 



CSORGB W. YOKK, ■ Editor. 



PUBHSHT WEEKLY BY 



GEORGE W."Y0RK & COMPANY, 

 lis ifioliigran St., - CHICAGO. ILL. 



$1.00 a Year — Sample Copy Sent Free. 

 (Bntered at the Post-OflBce at Chlcajto as Second-Class Mail-Matter. 



VoLfflVII. CHICAGO, ILL, FEB. 11, 1897. No. 6. 



''^■TT-TTTTTTT'' 



Editorial Con)n}cr)t^^ 



A Great Honey-Producing: Country like 

 Southern California, says J. H. Martin, of Los Angeles Co., 

 Is never entirely drained of its honey. Many bee-keepers sup- 

 posed that owing to a total failure of the crop the past sea- 

 son, that honey would be scarce and command a higher price. 

 But small lots keep coming forward, which shows that con- 

 siderable honey is held over every year. It would require 

 several total failures to strip the market of honey, and to 

 ■even advance the price. 



•-•-»■ 



The "Wisconsin Contention was held accord- 

 ing to announcement, last Wednesday and Thursday (Feb. 3 

 and 4), and we had the pleasure of being present. It was a 

 good meeting, tho the attendance was not large. We expect 

 to publish a condenst report soon. Next week we will have 

 something to say concerning our trip, and some of the good 

 Wisconsin bee-keepers. The following were elected as officers 

 for the ensuing year : 



President — Franklin Wilcox, of Juneau County ; Vice- 

 Presinent — Jacob Huffman, of Green County ; Secretary — E. 

 France, of Grant County ; and Treasurer— Harry Lathrop, of 

 Green County. All except Mr. Huffman were re-elections. 



Granulated Honey and Sour Honey— We 



have received the following communication from a honey- 

 dealing firm in Minnesota, dated Jan. 21, 1897 : 



The editorial comment on page 40 is as Interesting to us 

 as anything which Mark Twain has written for a long time, 

 the only difference is that Mark Twain drew on the imagina- 

 tion, and you have drawn on the facts where misery loves 

 company. Our firm has been getting experience as to granu- 

 lation of honey at the regular local freight rates. We have a 

 Dairy and Food Commission in Minnesota, as you are doubtless 

 aware, and they are trying to earn their legislative appropria- 

 tion, and are well qualified for the position. Any way, they 

 are on our side, and against a certain new firm west of here, 

 who ordered one case of honey from us, and received granu- 

 lated alfalfa. This firm answered us that the honey was 

 solid, and would have to be put up in better shape to fool the 

 people with. As the freight out of that was less than a dol- 

 lar, we thought it was one of the least expensive of our ex- 

 periences in the same line, and have sent them your editorial, 

 and askt them if they would not send us along some cigars ! 

 Now, Mr. Kditor, if those cigars come, we will not say any- 

 thing about the freight on tho honey, but will divide up tho 

 cigars. 



We would like to know how honey,»which arrives In bar- 

 rels and is sour, can bo handled so as to make It merchantable. 

 Perhaps we ought to offer to pay for this information, but we 

 think if any experienced bee-keeper who is kind enough to 



inform us on this, will realize that he is doing some shipper a 

 benefit, he will not hesitate. Besides this, if we do not get 

 the cigars, we will give an order on that new firm west, to 

 pay for the information. But we are serious, as we have some 

 sour honey here, and want to put it in shape. A. W. S. 



We hope our jovial friend, A. W. S., will at once with- 

 draw that request for "some cigars," if he expects us to help 

 him out with them, for we are too old now to learn the use of 

 the filthy weed in any form. How any man can find comfort 

 in narcotics is beyond us. Aside from the financial waste, 

 think of the injury to one's health ! We hope the day may 

 soon come when all men will cease to befog their brain and 

 shatter their nerves with tobacco and strong drink. To our 

 young men readers we would commend the advice of the 

 noted John B. Gough — among his last words — " Young man, 

 keep your record clean." 



Now, to turn from oue sour subject to another, what 

 about the sour honey that A. W. S. asks about ? It seems to 

 us that heating it to a certain degree will nearly restore its 

 original flavor. How is that ? Are we right, or not ? Will 

 some one who knows, kindly furnish the desired information? 

 We shall be glad to publish it. 



Galvanized -Iron Honey-Tanks.— The Rural 



Californian says that the matter in relation to safe storing of 

 honey in galvanized-iron tanks has been settled for California 

 for several years. Every bee-keeper who produces any 

 quantity of honey uses these tanks. Honey is allowed to 

 stand in them, sometimes for several months, without detri- 

 ment to the honey. 



In that dry climate, where wooden receptacles shrink and 

 fall to pieces, galvanized-iron plays an important part not 

 only in the apiary, but for water-tanks and other purposes. 

 If galvanized-iron is a settled success in California, it should 

 be in all parts of the country. 



Ne-w Bee-Papers Again.— In Gleanings for Jan. 

 15 is an interesting article by Dr. Miller, on " Defunct Bee 

 Journals" — he mentions 16 that have " gone the way of all 

 the earth," during the past 25 years. But he perhaps has 

 been able to discover only about half of them, as many are 

 entirely forgotten. 



The question is raised whether or not the old and estab- 

 lisht bee-papers should encourage the new ones even to the 

 extent of noticing their birth. The conclusion seems to have 

 been reacht, that it is wrong even to so much as notice their 

 birth, as in all probability they can live but a short time, and 

 the sooner they die the less money will their publishers and 

 subscribers lose. We believe this Is correct, when we consider 

 that out of perhaps 50 bee-papers that so far have been 

 started and finally stopt, in America, only about a half dozen 

 to-day give any evidence of continuing for any great length 

 of time. Perhaps a half dozen is putting it pretty high — but 

 time will tell. 



A bee-keeper In the West, who was at one time also a 

 large supply dealer, referring to this subject, wrote us as 

 follows, Jan. 24 : 



Friend York :— I send you by this mail a markt copy of 

 a supply dealer's circular, and yet it was hardly necessary to 

 mark any part of it, as it is all about one thing. I suggest 

 that you make a few quotations exactly as they are, and then 

 say that his 1897 circular shows a great improvement, and 

 contains an announcement and prospectus of a new quarterly 

 bee-journal that ho proposes to establish. (Whew!) I pre- 

 sume you received one. Just think of paying 25 cents for 

 four papers that emanate from such headquarters! Could 

 you not say that you do not understand how people would 

 thus throw away their money when a throe months' subscrip- 

 tion to any one of tho woll-establlsht would give so much more 

 for their money '? But, really, I do not believe the thing will 

 be launcbt. 



It beats all how some supply dealers do squirm under 



