664 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Oct. i*/, 



ANjl 



%i\ 



GEORGE Vr. YORK, • Editor. 



PT7BLI8BT WEEKLY BY 



GEORGE W. YORK & COMPANY, 

 IIS Midilgatx St.. - CHICAGO. ILL. 



tl.OO a Year — Sample Copy Sent Free. 

 [Bntered at the Post-oace at CtaicaKO ag Second-Class Mall-Matter. 



United States Bee-Keepers' Ujiioii. 



Organized to advance the pursuit of Apiculture; to promote tlie interests 



of bee-keepers ; to protect its members ; to prevent the adulteration 



of honey; and to prosecute the dishonest honey-comraisBion men. 



Membership Fee-SI.OO Per Annum. 



lixoc^iitlx'-G Committoo, 



PRESinENT— George W. York. Vice-Pres.— W. Z. Hutchinson. 

 Secretary— Dr. A. B. Mason, Station B, Toledo, Ohio. 



Board of X>irecf ors, 



E. R. Root. E. Whitcome. E. T. Abbott. 



W. Z. Hutchinson. Dr. C. C. Miller. C. P. Dadant. 



Genernl Manas:^r and Treasurer. 



Eugene Secor, Forest City, Iowa. 



Vol. fflVII, CHICAGO, ILL., OCT, 21, I89I, No. 42, 



Editorial Con)n)cr)i^^ 



Bee-Keeping: is the title of Farmers' Bulletin No. 

 59, just issued by the United States Department of Agricul- 

 ture, by Frank Benton, M. S., Assistant Entomologist. It 

 contains 32 pages, and appears to have been issued more in 

 the interest of the beginner in bee-keeping than the expert. 

 We say appears, for the reason that it has just come to our 

 desk this minute, and we have not the time to examine it 

 carefully before this number of the Bee Journal goes to press. 

 We hope soon to reduce It somewhat for " Beedom Boiled 

 Down." 



m I ■ 



Xl-e Trans-Mississippi Exposition next year 

 promises to be one of great interest to bee-keepers as well 

 as everybody else. Hon. E. Whitcomb, of Friend, Nebr., 

 has recently been appointed an Honorary Commissioner in 

 charge of the honey exhibit to be made there. No better 

 selection could be made. Mr. Whitcomb is well known to the 

 bee-keeping world, and especially to those of the great and 

 growing West. 



Mr. Whitcomb desires to get in communication with all 

 the principal bee-keepers' associations of the country as soon 

 as possible, and would like to have the presidents of such 

 societies send him their names and addresses <il onre. We 

 hope all will comply with this request, and co operate with 

 Mr. Whitcomb In every possible way. In a letter received 

 from him Oct. i), he says : 



FuiioNi) York :— I notice that Illinois has made quite an 

 appropriation for the Trans-Mlsslsslppi Kxposltion. Why not 

 the bee-keepers of that Slate rush In, get your share of it, 

 and put up a nice honey-show? Plans for the honey-house 

 are now being made, and I assure you that It will bo the finest 

 ever dedicated exclusively for that purpose in the world. I 



wish that you would earnestly advocate in the Bee Journal, 

 from week to week, the necessity of every State bee-keepers' 

 association taking hold of this matter, and putting up some- 

 thing that will not ouly be a credit to their State but to the 

 Trans-Mississippi country. It will be my object to make it as 

 pleasant as possible for all when visiting the Exposition. 

 Yours very truly, E. Whitcomb. 



What does the Illinois State Bee-Keepers' Association 

 have to say to the above suggestion ? Stand up, Pres. Dr. C. 

 C. Miller and Sec. Jas. A. Stone, and do your duty. 



Xhe Northwestern Convention program will 

 likely consist almost entirely of the discussion of questions 

 askt by those present. It would be a good plan for each one 

 to write out some question, before leaving home, and bring 

 them. Put them on separate slips of paper, and then when 

 the hat Is past, you can drop them In, and each can be discust 

 in Its turn. 



Don't forget the time and place of the meeting — Wednes- 

 day and Thursday, Nov. 10 and 11, at the New Briggs House, 

 northeast corner of Fifth avenue and Randolphstreet, Chicago. 



Also, don't forget to be there. 



Bees in a Beer-Keg.— The Kankakee, 111., Ga- 

 zette, of Oct. 7, contained the following account of a swarm 

 that chose an empty beer-keg as a place of habitation : 



" In the large oak-trees beautifying Mr. Barton's lawn, 

 the envy of the neighborhood, three empty kegs which once 

 contained a quantity of best brew, have for a number of years 

 given shelter to a thrifty family of squirrels, the older mem- 

 bers of which have become so well acquainted with their pro- 

 tector that they promptly answer his call to take tempting 

 morsels from his hand. One Sunday, last June, a swarm of 

 bees flew across the yard, spied an empty keg and immediately 

 served notice on the squirrels to vacate. Throughout the sum- 

 mer the large family labored to collect a quantity of honey. 

 How to get at the sweetness, 30 feet above earth, without be- 

 ing stung, was the problem which Mr. Barton called upon 

 Carl Ring to solv£. Mr. Ring may not be a king-bee, but he 

 perhaps deserves the title of the Bee-King of Kankakee 

 county more than any other individual. Without losing any 

 time, Mr. Ring climbed the tree, plugged up the holes of 

 egress and lowered the squirrel-house to the ground. It was 

 heavier than if full of Its original contents — 47 pounds of de- 

 licious honey was removed. Mr. Barton kept the honey and 

 King Ring took the bees. Mr. Barton advises his friends who 

 are fond of honey to fill their trees with squirrel-houses. This 

 is the second time he has been favored in this way." 



If only all the beer-kegs in the world could thus be filled 

 with honey, what a blessing it would be to mankind. If less 

 beer were made and drank, there would be more money to 

 spend for honey and other good things that many a poor 

 family must go without. Every honey-producer, as well as 

 everybody else who loves humanity and are self-respecting, 

 should be dead against the whole infernal strong-drink traffic. 

 We are glad to be able to say that so far as we know, nearly 

 every bee-keeper is on the right side on this question. 



The California Bee-Keepers' Exchaiig^e 



is thus commented upon by its Secretary, Mr. John H. Martin, 

 in a letter to us dated at Los Angeles, Sept. I'J : 



It is a very unwise thing to expect that in one year the 

 California Bee-Keepers' Exchange Is going to step before the 

 markets of the world a fulllledged, sound liuancial organiza- 

 tion. Such things must have a development. Wo have a rep- 

 utation to establish, membership to gain, prejudices to over- 

 come, enemies outside to encounter, and, also, too true it is, 

 there are enemies inside. These are all concomitants of all 

 new organizations ; and if the Exchange survives for a rea- 

 sonable time, it will gain strength. The Intolligeut bee-keep- 

 ers are aliv(3 to tht! benelits to be derived from such an organi- 

 zation, and will stand by It through all discouragements ; and 

 If a failure is made In a certain line of work, another method 

 will be employed next time. 



If the bee-keepers of California would stand together so 

 as to control over half of the output of honey, there would be 



