756 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNALc 



Dec. 2, 



displays are, mostly, simply big piles of honey as it might be 

 piled up in some commission merchant's store. 



Extracted honey in the liquid form cannot be shown to 

 much advantage except in glass, and If the glass is of the white 

 or tllDt variety, and there is a window back of the exhibit, the 

 light coming in and "shimmering and glimmering" as itstrikes 

 the honey, a very beautiful display may be made. There ought 

 also to be an exhibit of candied honey, and explanatory labels, 

 then when honey candies on the hands of some ignornant pur- 

 chaser — or rather, purchaser that once was ignorant — he will 

 know that it has nut •' turned back to sugar." I am glad to 

 note that Illinois offers premiums on displays of candied honey. 

 Illinois has done another good thing, she has gotten up a score 

 card to be used in judging the honey exhibits. This shows ex- 

 hibitors upon what points their exhibits are to be past, and is 

 a guide to the judge. I believe that Illinois now stands near 

 the head as regards her apiarian premium li&t and show at the 

 State fair. One reascjn for this Is because her bee-keepers 

 hustle and tell the managers what they want. The managers 

 of fairs are usually willing to grant anything reasonable that 

 is askt of them. The reason, or, at least one reason, why the 

 premium listsof so many States are so meager is because the 

 bee-keepers have never askt for anything better. 



Of course, I am saying considerable about the premium 

 list, but that is the foundation of all successful and profitable 

 exhibits. In most of the other departments of the different 

 Slate fair lists there is something approaching uniformity — 

 that is, the horse department of the premium list of Michigan 

 does not differ materially from that department in other pre- 

 mium lists, and their is no reason why the same uniformity 

 might not exist in the apiarian department ; In fact, it is ap- 

 proaching that now to some extent, No list any longer offers 

 premiums on full colonies of bees — they all say : "single- 

 comb observatory hive." But let the premium list be what it 

 may, the exhibitor should make it his guide and counsellor. It 

 should be studied thoroughly ; not only the apiarian part, but 

 all of the rules and regulations. The exhibits must fit the list 

 — must comply with its reiiuirements. I remember an old man 

 who once made quite a creditable exhibit, perhaps as good as 

 some exhibitor who received $75 in premiums, yet this old 

 man received only one meager premium of $2.00. He felt 

 that he was treated unfairly, but the only trouble was that 

 his exhibits did not meet the requirements of the list. 



Plan well before hand what you will exhibit, and how you 

 will exhibit it. To illustrate, one man who had had no exper- 

 ience in exhibiting at fairs met me the second morning after 

 we were on the grounds and said : " Well, I suppose that you 

 have been planning all night just how to put up your exhibit 

 so as to ' do me up ?' " 



"No" I answered, " I knew before leaving home exactly 

 in what shape I should set up my exhibit." 



" You did ?" he exclaimed. " Well, that beats me. Had 

 It all planned out before you left home? Well, well." 



This planning and arranging an exhibit is half the bat- 

 tle. Time, and lime again, have I seen an exhibitor beaten by 

 some one who had fewer and inferior goods, but who knew 

 how to exhibit them to the best advantage. Many a time have 

 I heard H. D. Cutting say, in passing an exhibit, " Wouldn't 

 I like to get in there and arrange that exhibit. Some of you 

 fellows would have to take a back seat if that exhibit was only 

 up in shape." And he was correct. 



Have everything the very best that it is possible for you 

 to get it. Remember that in these days it is only the very best 

 that can secure a premluui. To go to a fair with a second- 

 grade article is only time and money wasted. Never stop with 

 "That's good enough," or "That will have to do." It is good 

 enough only when you can make it no better, and even then 

 you will often find that it is only second best. Nothing takes 

 the conceit out of a man like making exhibits at the fairs. I 

 have been at it now for about 15 years, going to five State 

 fairs last year, and I expect to start next week on a similar 

 trip, and I suppose it is this experience that is largely to blame 

 for my modesty. 



but to return. Not only have everything first-class, but 

 have it ready at least a week before you start. If you don't, 

 you will be hurried at the last, you will forget things, not do 

 good work, and leave home tired and fiustrated, and If there 

 Is any place that a man needs to be at his best, it is with an 

 exhibit at a fair. Have everything all ready and boxt, and 

 each box labeled with its contents, so that you will not have 

 to be opening box after box iu a worried search for a needed 

 article. 



I remember one great, big, stout, enterprising bee-keeper, 

 whose home is In this city, who once upon a time came up to 

 Detroit with an exhibit. His comb honey was packt in bulk in 

 big boxes, his honey-crates or cases in the Hat, his extracted 

 honey in bulk, and his bottles ordered of Muth to be sent by 



freight to Detroit. How many times he went to the freight 

 office after those bottles I do not know. But they finally came 

 and were washt and filled in the night. Then there were 

 broken combs to be disposed of in some way and the drip 

 cleaned up. The sound of his hammer kept folks awake until 

 four o'clock in the morning, and then he lay right down on the 

 hard Boor and slept the sleep of the — exhausted, I guess. 



Not only should the comb honey be packt in its exhibition 

 cases, but the cases should be in a dust-proof case or crate 

 with handles on the end. The extracted honey should be bot- 

 tled and packt. 



By the way, the nicest way of packing bottles of honey is 

 by the use of cardboard, of the cellular style, made into parti- 

 tions after the egg-crate style. It is cheap and f urnlsht cut up. 

 I had about 500 bottles packt that way last year and took 

 them to five State fairs and not one bottle was broken. A lit- 

 tle excelsior is put in the bottom of the boxes. 



Now asuggestion (you know this paper is only sugges- 

 tions) about preparing bees for exhibitions. Take two combs 

 of bees and sealed brood from the colony having the bees you 

 desire to exhibit. Set them in a hive. Put a queen iu a cage 

 on top of the frames. Shut up the hive and keep it shut up 

 until towards night the next day. Keep it out of the sun while 

 it is closed. When it is opened set it by the side of the old col- 

 ony. In a day or two most of the old bees, that is, the flying 

 bees, will have returned to the old hive. Now release the 

 queen. Do this a week or two before the bees are to go away. 

 The day before they are to go away take them to anew stand. 

 Shake the bees from one of the combs, returning it to the old 

 colony. This gives an abundance of young bees that can bear 

 confinement. The day that the bees are to go away, set the 

 comb of bees into the little single-comb hive in which they are 

 to be exhibited. There must be an abundance of room and 

 plenty of ventilation. There must be room at the bottom, tpp 

 and sides, and one side of the hive should be wire cloth, the 

 other of glass. Don't take bees without a queen, as queenless 

 bees worry more. With bees prepared in this manner I have 

 had them build great pieces of comb, and when bees do this 

 they are not suffering. 



Ship your exhibit by freight and go with it, if you have to 

 go in a freight car. I have done this many times and enjoy 

 the novelty, altho I must admit that it is a little lonesome at 

 night. Tliis is the only way to get an exhibit around in time, 

 (especially if you go from one fair to another) and not have 

 your goods smasht. Take a tent and sleep on the fair grounds. 

 When there are several bee-keepers present, all can share one 

 tent, each bringing his bedding and some provisions, and buy- 

 ing when more are needed. In this way the exnenses are very 

 slight, the fare excellent, and the enjoyment supreme. 1 

 might say it is the one outing of the year with me. 



There are often many little mishaps and delays and an- 

 noying circumstances. Don't let them upset you. Keep cool 

 and look at the matter philosophically. And, above all, don't 

 let the loss of expected premiums sour you and spoil your en- 

 joyment. I never yet received all of the premiums that I ex- 

 pected to win, but, at the same time, I have often received 

 those that were unexpected. 



And when the fair is over don't get in too big a hurry to 

 get away. The great mass of goods on the grounds have been 

 several days accumulating, and they can't be removed in a 

 few hours. It takes time. I have seen men fret and stew, and 

 swear and sweat, and stay up all night trying to get away, 

 while others who went to bed and took things coolly went out 

 on the same train as the " fretters." 



But I have written enough, and shall be glad to listen to- 

 others. VV. Z. Hutchinson. 



R. F. Holtermann— If I were going to place a limit upon 

 the amount of honey In a display I would put the amount at 

 500 pounds for comb, and the same for extracted honey. 

 Then I would have another lot of 100 pounds. Then lO 

 pounds in which quality and manner of putting up for market 

 should be considered. I think that a score card is a most ex- 

 cellent thing. It is a guide for both the exhibitor and the 

 judge. We can get uniformity here that we can gel in no 

 other way. I got my first ideas of exhibiting while visiting 

 the Detroit Exposition. Mr. Hutchinson's paper Is full of 

 good suggestions. It shows that he has been there. That 

 little point of marking upon the boxes what they contain 

 shows that he has had experience. 



Rev. E. T. Abbott — We in Missouri at one time had a^ 

 larger premium list than any State except Michigan. When 

 we first began making exhibits of honey but little attention 

 was paid to the matter. Our markets were poor. But, as we 

 increast our displays, the demand for honey Increast. Wo do 

 not want to diminish the .siare of our displays. When there is 

 a big display people will come in and say, "Honey, honey I 



