570 



AMERICAN BEE JOUETJAl- 



Sept. 4, 1902. 



"Quoting the Honey Market" Again. 



BY " RIP VAN WINKLE." 



I have read the comments of the honey-buyers and com- 

 mission men made in answer to the Editor's request to 

 " give me what I am after," etc., and I see no reason to 

 change my position on the subject as given in my article, 

 that is, that the honey-producers of this locality ought to 

 have an organization for the protection of their interest in 

 such matters. And the general conclusion I arrive at, after 

 reading all the replies is, that all practically admit that the 

 market has been misquoted, most of the articles being de- 

 voted to explaining the reason ivhy. 



And now allow me to examine some of the statements. 

 The Editor says that it is better to 1 — , no. He says, "It is 

 better to quote a cent lower rather than a cent above the 

 market." So it is (for the buyer or commission-man). I 

 don't dispute it ; but I am looking at it, I frankly admit, 

 from the selfish standpoint of the producer. 



Mr. Muth "would suggest a broader range." That is, 

 I suppose, from his standpoint, he being a philanthropist, 

 and only in business for his health. Well, of course, it does 

 make a difference, sometimes, which point of view you take, 

 or whose ox is gored. 



Then comes R. A. Burnett & Co., and, in a very moder- 

 ate and conservative article, among other things repeats 

 the Editor's statement : It is better to I — , to be a little lower 

 in the quotations given, than a little higher. " It is the de- 

 sire of the commission merchant to quote as high as he 

 dares, eic." (The italics are mine). Depending on his con- 

 science, I suppose. Well ! well 1 



Then comes Hy. Segelken, all the way from New York 

 (I didn't say anything'about the New York market, but it 

 seems the shoe tit him, too), and after facetious remarks 

 about my being asleep, and afraid to sign my name, pro- 

 ceeds to say : 



"' We endorse emphatically every word of Editor York's 

 reply, especially where he says ' It is better to 1 — , no, quote 

 a cent lower,' etc. Exactly ihis has been our rule ever since 

 we have been in business." 



As I observed above, I had not included the New York 

 market in my article, as I did not at that time know that 

 Mr. Segelken had been misquoting it for so long ; and as 

 for my name, there is an old Greek adage which says, 

 " Consider not so much who speaks, as what is spoken," 

 and Mr. Segelken practically admits the truth of my state- 

 ment as to ly — , no, misquoting the market. 



Mr. Weber seems to be the only one of these combina- 

 tion buyers and commission men who honestly quotes the 

 exact prices that he gets. 



Another gentleman. Mr, H. R. Wright, has a word to 

 say, who seems to be legitimately a commission man (not a 

 buyer), and I wish to call attention to what he says. He 

 has been in the business 30 years, and he does not quite 

 agree with these buyers, etc., but says on page 486 ; 



" It is not wise to quote honey too high or too low, for 

 quotations are seen by buyers as well as the producers, and 

 it is extremely difficult to sell above quotations." And 

 again, near the foot of the same page; " I do not under- 

 stand why any party would want you to quote market under 

 price, unless they want to use the quotation to help them buy 

 in the country.'" 



Now, isn't it about time that some one mentioned it, 

 even a sleepy Rip Van Winkle, when three prominent buy- 

 ers and commission men admit that " It is better to 1 — , no, 

 excuse me ! better to quote the market differently from 

 what it is ? And, candidly, I would be not a little ashamed, 

 even if I were a New Yorker, to admit that I had been ly — , 

 excuse me again ! — misquoting the New York market all 

 these years, even if I had such an authority on commercial 

 ethics as Editor York to wink at it. 



But, gentlemen, what is the need of lying — excuse me — 

 quoting the market lower, etc. ? You don't need to ; as Joe 

 Jefferson makes my famous namesake say about his glass 

 of liquor, " You'd be better mitout it." 



There is a business here in Chicago conducted on sinii- 

 liar lines. Shippers send stock to the commission man, on 

 commission : stock is sold and returns made, etc. A journal 

 is published in the interests of the shippers, wherein actual 

 sales are reported. The editor publishes actual sales of all 

 prominent transactions. He may make his comments on 

 the state of the market, etc., but the shipper and stockman 

 who receives the paper can see for himself just what the 

 market is, and can use his own judgment in his shipments. 

 There is no lying or misquoting, and if his stock arrives on 



a weak or falling market he can't blame the comynission man 

 for misleading him on quotations, at least. 



There seems no good reason why this system could not 

 be adopted by the bee-papers. Wouldn't it be better for all 

 concerned ? Gentlemen — combination-buyers-and-commis- 

 sion-men — why not try it and see if you will not thrive just 

 as well by telling the truth, and have the added pleasure of 

 a new sensation ? Cook Co., 111. 



[And to think that all our symposium on quoting the 

 honey market was lost on " Mr. Rip 1" This certainly is dis- 

 couraging. But we'll let him "call names" if he wants to, 

 and accuse us all of lying, for it seems to amuse him, even 

 if everybody else knows his charge isn't true — Editor.] 



Questions and Answers. \ 



CONDUCTED BY 



T>Tt. C. C. MII^I^Ett, Marenfgo, HI, 



[The Q lestioas may be mailed to the Bee Journal office, or to Dr. Miller 



d rect, when he will answer them here. Please do not ask the 



Doctor to send answers bv mail.— Editor.1 



Feeding for Winter Stores. 



I have had bees a long time, and this is the poorest year 

 I have seen for honey, some of my best colonies not having 

 enough to take them through. What is best to do with them, 

 feed or not ? And what shall I feed them, honey or sugar ? 

 and how shall they be fed ? and when ? I have about 10 

 colonies out of 63 in this condition. I started with 29 colo- 

 nies in the spring and now have 63 ; they are strong in bees 

 but have not enougVi honey to take them through the win- 

 ter,'*and I do not believe they will get any more. 



When I say to feed honey, I thought of taking out a 

 comb that is well filled and putting it in for them ; but even 

 then they will not have enough for winter. Iow.4. 



Answer. — Increasing from 29 to 63, you have evidently 

 had some after-swarms, and in a bad year it would have 

 been the part of wisdom to prevent after-swarms or else to 

 return them. It may be well to unite now any that are 

 weak in bees and then feed those that need it. If you have 

 enough combs of sealed honey to give the needy, nothing 

 can be better. If not, then feed sugar and water in a Miller 

 feeder or by the crock-andplate plan. See page 567. 



Catnip as a Honey-Plant. 



What is the value of catnip as a honey-plant ? I have 

 a few bunches along the poultry-yard fence, and every day 

 from morning until night the bees are working on the 

 plants. Would it pay to plant out '2 acre, or an acre, of 

 catnip for bees ? Could the leaves or seed be utilized in 

 anyway. Illinois. 



Answer. — Catnip is a superior honey-plant, but I have 

 some doubt whether it would be a paying investment to 

 plant half an acre with it. The leaves are used as a medi- 

 cine, especially for children, and if a market could be found 

 for these there might be profit in the planting. In the life- 

 time of Jesse Oatman, I saw at his place a cultivated patch 

 of perhaps an eighth of an acre, but I think it was not con- 

 sidered wise to continue it. 



Perhaps there are others who can answer definitely. 



Tlie Queen's Sting. 



Last February I wrote for your idea in regard to the 

 queen's so-called stinger being a feeler, to which you re- 

 plied on page 153. When I read your reply I saw that I 

 failed to express what I had meant. 



My experience agrees with every condition in your reply. 

 I should have written that my observation had been, and 

 still seems to be, that instead of being a stinger it was a 

 guage, with power of feeling used to place the egg in a uni- 

 form position in each cell, as you find them. Your clipping 

 in reply to Ohio, page 409, is about my idea. 



To-day I saw two queens up close together that had been 



