218 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mar. 15. 



know where to procure a further supply. This 

 practice was often the means of bringing new 

 customers ; but only honey of good quality 

 should be sent out. Much honey may be sold 

 at the bee-keeper's home by having a sign up, 

 " Honey for Sale." 



Mr. Winter advised advocating the use of 

 honey through the printed page, and by per- 

 sonally informing the public of the value of 

 honey as a health food. All agreed that the 

 standard of extracted honey should be main- 

 tained by extracting no honey imtil it has 

 been thoroughly ripened on the hive. 



The convention voted to make application 

 to the Western Classification Committee to 

 change the ruling in regard to bees in hives 

 less than car lots. At present such shipnients 

 can be sent only by express at exorbitant 

 rates. It is claimed by practical bee-keepers 

 that hives properly prepared can be safely 

 shipped by freight; and if a favorable ruling 

 can be procured it will largely increase the 

 sale of bees, and consequently increase traffic 

 for transportation companies. 



On the question of making a State exhibit 

 of honey and apiarian supplies at Omaha, it 

 was the opinion of the members present that 

 it was inadvisable. Mr. Wilcox stated that it 

 would require at least !?:',00 in order to make a 

 creditable exhibit. This amount of money 

 we can not raise, as our industry is not yet 

 recogn'zed by our State to the extent that 

 they will make such appropriations for our 

 use. 



The convention voted against making such 

 exhibit. The general opinion seemed to be 

 that these great and expensive expositions 

 occur too often in our country at present, and 

 are promoted by a ring of people who wish to 

 make big money out of them. 



A resolution was passed, favoring the amal- 

 gamation of the North American Bee-keepers' 

 Union and the United Stales Bee-keepers' 

 Union. The following officers were elected : 

 President, Frank Wilcox, of Mauston; Vice- 

 president, Jacob Huffman, of Monroe; Trea- 

 surer, H. Lathrop, of Browntown; Secretary, 

 N. E. France, of Platteville. 



Browntown, Wis., Feb. 12. 



FACING" COMB HONEY. 



A Reply to Aaron Snyder. 



BY J. B. WII,HEI<M. 



On page 83 Mr. Aaron Snyder comes down 

 somewhat severely on farmers, and especially 

 on bee-keepers, as a dishonest class of people. 

 You will always find people in any occupation 

 who do not have a surplus of honesty, no 

 matter where you go ; but that is not saying 

 that a majority are so. I have no doubt The 

 A. I. Root Co. buys and sells more honey than 

 Mr. Snyder; and in their comments on his 

 article they say there was no evidence of fac- 

 ing any of the lots sent to them. I saw some 

 of the same honey at their store, but I do not 

 think, to judge by the weight of the cases, 

 that any of the honey was faced. I might, 

 probably, have placed the honey in a different 



grade ; but in the locality where it was pro- 

 duced they would have called it fancy, where 

 I probably would have graded the same only 

 as No. 1. They might have called it " white," 

 and I called it amber; but I can not see how a 

 bee-keeper can place an inferior article of 

 honey in the back of a case without being 

 detected by the weight of the case itself, 

 knowing the number of sections in a case. 

 The most of my honey 1 have sold in the 

 home market to private families and to the 

 grocery trade; but never have I had any trou- 

 ble in selling again where I sold before. But 

 often have I been complimented because my 

 honey was so very nice, and asked by some of 

 these wise grocers how I made it so nice and 

 white. My answer would be, " Do you think 

 I was skillful enough to finish or shape such a 

 delicate article as comb honey ? " But if such 

 great ii'en as Dr. Talmage make erroneous 

 statements concerning the honey-bee, it may 

 be overlooked with smaller lights such as 

 grocers and consumers of honey who could 

 not distinguish the difference between a bee 

 and a gre,-n horsefly. 



If Mr. Snyder will look up instructions for 

 barreling apples I think he will find that they 

 all want the end of the barrel faced. But this 

 is not saying that you shall place veiy nice 

 apples in the botiom and head of the barrel, 

 and fill up the center with knotty and gnarly 

 fruit ; tliis would be overdoing the matter. 

 You can not go into the market in any place 

 and buy apples, peaches, pears, plums, straw- 

 berries, or grapes — yes, nor even cabbage — 

 unless it is so placed as to make the best im- 

 pression to the eye possible. \\'hy, even in 

 nature, in God's own store, you find it so. 

 Look at the fruit on the trees, and you will 

 find the nicest specimens of the fruit where it 

 will attract the eye. No wonder that mother 

 Eve was tempted ! I wonder whether s \e felt 

 toward the Lord as does Mr. Snyder toward 

 bee-keepers. 



But, to cap the climax. Mr. Snyder quotes a 

 New York farmer as baling bog hay and wrap- 

 ping it with good hay so as to sell for first 

 qualit}'. With the baling-presses used now it 

 is an impossibility to bale hay in such a man- 

 ner but that every forkful fed to the press will 

 show. With the old presses used thirty or 

 forty years ago you might have done such a 

 thing; but the cost would have overbalanced 

 the profit. I .should be as safe in ofi'ering 

 §1000 reward for baling bog hay, and facing 

 or wrapping the same so as to sell for choice 

 or No. 1 timothy, as is Mr. A. I. Root in of- 

 fering KIOOO for a sample of comb honey made 

 by man equal to that made by the bees. 



Now, if some people will read Mr. Snyder's 

 assertioBs they may have reason to think 

 that the majority of bee-keepers, farmers, and 

 fruit-raisers are rogues and thieves. How 

 could they doubt it? Here it is, black on 

 white, by a bee-keeper himself. A little more 

 charity in your next article, Mr. vSnyder, and 

 not such sweeping assertions. 



St. Stephens, O. 



[I do not think, friend W., that Mr. Snyder 

 really meant to say that bee-keepers are a dis- 



