590 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 15. 



little I have. I will report later how I get 

 along. But I will add this much, and close: 

 I have had a host of help around me picking, 

 marketing, and looking after 8 acres of small 

 fruit. When I get settled up, and expenses 

 paid, I believe I shall take off my hat and give 

 three cheers for the bees. 

 New London, O., July '20. 



[Dan White is a "hustler;" and if you 

 could see him once as I have, and imbibe a 

 little of his enthusiasm — well, I think you 

 could sell honey too. Our hustling friend 

 asks a very pertinent question : Is it good pol- 

 icy for the bee-keeper to sit down and wait for 

 people to come and buy his honey, or put it 

 into large packages and throw it on the mar- 

 ket ? or shall he sell it himself around home, 

 and get good prices? Just think of this a 

 good long while, brother bee-keepers, and 

 then ponder a moment on some of the things 

 that Mr. Buchanan has said in the article just 

 preceding. — Ed.] 



DEVELOPING HOME MARKETS. 



Putting out a Fine Article, and Having it Stand 

 on its own Merits. 



BY B. F. ONDERDONK. 



A/r. Root: — I notice an uneasiness in the 

 minds of some of the correspondents of the 

 various bee- journals as to what they will do 

 with the large crop of hone}- in view this year. 

 I would say to all, make your oivn market. 



In 1895 I commenced with three colonies, 

 and got a surplus of 89 finished sections, re- 

 taining imperfect ones for \\\y own use. As 

 my duties call me to the city every da}- I do 

 all my apiarian work before 7 A. M., and after 

 6 P. M., working as early as 4:30 and up to 10 

 P. M. The first case, a 12-lb. section one, I 

 fixed up, using w-ider glass than usual, o'^i in., 

 to make a good display, and carried it into 

 the house, and said to my wife, " Show this to 

 the grocer when he calls for orders." 



She asked him, " Do you sell honey ? " 



" Well, we always have it, but there is little 

 sale." 



" Is it as fine as this? " 



" My ! isn't that nice ? What we have looks 

 as though the mice had gnawed it. If that is 

 for sale I'll take it and see what can be done 

 with it." 



This was in October. He sold my entire 

 surplus ; and when that was exhausted he 

 sold all of his old stock — an appetite was cre- 

 ated. In 1896 my surplus of 312 lbs. was 

 gone by January. 



The other grocer with whom I also deal 

 wouldn't touch it. "Never sold any comb 

 honey." This summer I told him he ought 

 to sell honev, to be up with his competitor. 

 "Well, I'll think about it." 



The first honey I took off June 22, and sent 

 him a case with the message, "If you don't 

 sell it I'll take it back." He has' now his 

 fourth dozen. The other man has it also on 

 sale. I have taken off 385 sections to date. 

 Of course, among them are some nice and 



white, but only three-fourths full, hardly mar- 

 ketable ( of course, all sections are thoroughly 

 cleaned ) ; and as we have a fish-peddler who 

 sells fruits and vegetables as well, I said: 

 " Here, you can surely sell honey." 



"Oh! I don't know." 



" Well, now, these you can have at 10 cents; 

 sell them for 15 cents; or two for a quarter; 

 these No. 1 are 13 cts.; fancy 15 cts., to the 

 grocers. ' ' 



This peddler's route covers a circuit of five 

 miles from the village, and is run three days. 

 He sold out his case (12 sections) each day, 

 and had not enough to go round. He has 

 engaged all my incomplete sections. He got 

 15 cts. each, and a nice profit, |;1.80. 



In the spring a neighbor living a mile away 

 came to me and asked me if I wov;ld instruct 

 him in the care of bees, as he knew nothing 

 about them, and had a chance to purchase 

 eight colonies. I have informed him on all 

 points, and he is a credit to my teaching, mak- 

 ing a success. 



Some of my friends expressed surprise at 

 my willingness to encourage competition as 

 they called it. I told them that a successful 

 competitor would increase the field of de- 

 mand ; that honey would be introduced to 

 hundreds of families who would not other- 

 wise know of it; but that I felt it my duty to 

 benefit my fellow-man, even though I might 

 suffer loss. 



Mountain View, N. J. 



SECTION-PRESSES AND THE RIETSCHE PRESS, 

 AGAIN. 



The Comparative Merits of the Daisy, Hubbard, 

 and the Rietsche Combined Machine Discussed. 



BY F. L. THOMPSON. 



Some time ago Alois Alphonsus, of Vienna, 

 stated that foundation could be made as thin 

 with the Rietsche press as with a mill. He is 

 a professional bee-keeper of good standing. 

 That was the basis of my ' ' assumption ' ' of the 

 possibility of making eight L. sheets to the 

 pound with the press. I did not entirely be- 

 lieve that statement, but thought he was a lit- 

 tle mistaken ; yet it strongly indicated that 

 foundation could be made pretty thin, for 

 surely they can turn out 11 feet to the pound, 

 anyhow, in Europe, on the mills there in use. 

 At any rate, that statement, and your experi- 

 ence of three L. sheets to the pound, seem ut- 

 terly irreconcilable. Though I have never 

 seen a Rietsche press, what I read about it 

 makes me lingeringly suspect that your expe- 

 rience with it is not identical with that of for- 

 eign bee-keepers. Did you u.se the honey and 

 alcohol lubricant ? The press is frequently re- 

 ferred to in high terms by disinterested parties 

 in a number of foreign bee-papers which I re- 

 ceive. I hope to learn before long just how 

 thin the improved machine makes foundation. 

 I think it would be well to find out all about 

 this ; for until then I, for one, and no doubt 

 others, will feel uneasy, and be tempted to 

 send our hard-earned dollars across the ocean 

 for something to save money with. 



