260 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



April 1. 



the bee-keepers can keep in pace with the 

 trusts. 



I see by to-day's paper that the Standard 

 Oil Co. has made the largest dividend ever 

 made— $20,000,000 on !?100,000,000 of stock 

 worth $538. Think of it, my friends. 



West Groton, N. Y. 



THE BENEFITS OF CO-OPERATION. 



How it Keeps up Prices in California and Colo- 

 rado, and Nets the Producers more Money. 



BY F. K. BROWN, 



The benefits that we have received by as- 

 sociating are many, and we are ready to give 

 others the benefit of our success. In the past 

 ten years, with the exception of the last two, 

 we have had a very perplexing problem to 

 solve — how to get our just return for our hon- 

 ey at a price that is not far below its actual 

 market value. We have been dependent upon 

 our local buyers for our product, for this rea- 

 son : 



We produce in less quantities than carload 

 (as individuals); hence we have been oblig- 

 ed to sell locally or suffer a loss in freight 

 rates ; and if we ship to San Francisco (as it 

 is altogether out of the question to ship to the 

 eastern market in lots less than carloads), 

 small lots are usually consigned ; and the re- 

 sults are what they are to almost everybody 

 who has had experience along that line. So 

 we have usually sold our honey to the local 

 dealer who would pay cash to us, and buy for 

 as little as the goods could be obtained, and, in 

 many instances, verj^ cheap. I know of par- 

 ties who, after extracting a few cases of honey 

 for the first time in the season, took it to town, 

 as they wanted money very badly ; and the 

 buyer soon discovered this, and would take 

 advantage of the producer's circumstances, 

 buying the honey at from one-half to one cent 

 below the market value at the time of the 

 sale. The next man who took in honey to sell 

 would be told that he was buying honey at 

 such a price, and could not afford to give more; 

 so the price was established for some time, at 

 least, upon the circumstances of the man who 

 had to have money. 



Another heavy loss by the old plan was in 

 the tare, as we were at the mercy of the buyer, 

 and obliged to take the tare that he dictated, 

 amounting to about $30.00 on the carload, all 

 of which we now save. 



The way we now proceed is to elect a business 

 manager, contract all of our season's output to 

 him (arranging to pay him for his time and 

 expenses); he is to sell in car lots for market 

 value, and return to you net proceeds. Not 

 having a warehouse to store in for the associa- 

 tion, each producer who has signed contracts 

 is to report to the manager at each extracting, 

 with a sample of the honey extracted, togeth- 

 er with the number of cases represented by 

 said sample. The honey is stored at home. 

 When the manager gets reports enough to as- 

 sure a car of such honey as he is offering to 

 market, he will order the honey brought in to 

 the place of shipment, where the car is sold 



or shipped for delivery. The producer gets 

 the cash at about $10.00 a ton more than he 

 usually gets. 



We have this year produced and marketed 

 13 cars of extracted honey on the above-men- 

 tioned plan. The buyers abroad will make 

 offers for a car of honey, asking what the 

 grade is, and very often will inquire what is 

 the tare. We always quote exact tare, and 

 find no trouble in thus selling ; and in allow- 

 ing exact tare there is no one hurt ; but some 

 set up the howl that there is an established 

 tare in the eastern market, and if they buy at 

 exact tare they will have to lose in the deal ; 

 but by standing firm I have had no great dif- 

 ficulty, and in no instance have I lost a sale 

 by standing for the exact tare. 



Hanford, Cal., Dec. 11, 1899. 



[The bee-keepers of Colorado have combin- 

 ed in a similar way, and have secured results 

 that are so far very flattering. Had it not been 

 for the Association, Colorado honey during 

 last year, when there was a scarcity, would 

 have netted the producers scarcely more than 

 prices of the former year, when there was 

 plenty. As it was. Manager Rauchfuss shoved 

 the Colorado honey-market clear up, notwith- 

 standing that some of the large commission- 

 houses tried to bully him down. He stood 

 firm, and made them pay his prices, not theirs. 

 See Prof. Cook's article, page 273. — Ed.] 



GOOD BEE LOCATIONS IN CUBA. 



A Wild-goose Chase for them, Remote from Foul 

 Brood, and within Easy Access of the Markets. 



BY HARRY HOWE. 



When I started for Cuba it was with the 

 idea that all I had to do to get a good place 

 for my bee-farms was to find some unoccupied 

 space and stay there. This delusion was 

 quickly dispelled by learning of foul brood. 

 This led to a study of the present limits of the 

 disease, which is by no means completed yet. 

 But about this time I saw that one of the three 

 apiaries under my care was doing much the 

 best. Then inquiry showed other apiaries do- 

 ing still better, while walks in the fields show- 

 ed that there was a good reason for the lack of 

 honey in two of my apiaries in the shape of 

 the absence of flowers. 



We are only eight miles from Havana, on 

 one of the fine roads leading from the city. 

 As it chanced, the big cattle-dealers selected 

 this neighborhood as a sort of receiving station 

 for their stock. Now, at that time cattle came 

 in at about 2000 per day, and all were very 

 hungry. Cattle do not usually eat the aguinal- 

 do (bellflower); but these did, and every 

 thing else green. At one time there were 

 10,000 in sight from one hill. This brought 

 up the question of special troubles to be looked 

 out for. 



Then, as my Spanish began to improve, 

 came long wheel rides and visits to everj' bee- 

 man I could hear of where I arrived with a big 

 bundle of questions. Owing to ihe total ab- 

 sence of roads outside of the fine stone military 

 roads, locations for Americans narrowed down 



