July. 11)21 



O I. R A N T N S IN P. K E C TT T. T U R E 



42. "5 



New York, TMiilailelliliiii, .-lud St. Louis. Tho 

 arrivuLs of lioiu'V, :is well as a. statomeiit of 

 prevailing market conditions and quotations, 

 are shown in detail for each market. Our 

 representatives and our correspondents are 

 urged to limit their price tigures to those 

 representing actual sales, and when a rec- 

 ord of actual sales cannot be given to report 

 asking prices and designate them as such. 



The information concerning prices and 

 conditions prevailing in important produc- 

 ing areas is compiled by an extensive sys- 

 tem of correspondence with a large number 

 of producers and hone_y-shipping associa- 

 tions. By a careful comparison of quota- 

 tions secured from the different sources, it 

 is possible to maintain an accurate and de- 

 pendable price-reporting service w h i c h 

 should be of great value to producers and 

 shippers. 



Our report also includes oflficial import 

 and export statistics obtained from the 

 U. S. Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Com- 

 merce, as well as reports of estimated pro- 

 duction released by the Bureau of Crop Es- 

 timates of this Department. 



Since this service was started few com- 

 plaints have been received. On the other 

 hand, the service has been frequently com- 

 mended by beekeepers, individually and col- 

 lectively. We believe that a wide dissemi- 

 nation of reliable market information has a 

 salutary effect upon the trade not only in 

 honey but for other products by making it 

 more diiiicult for the unscrupulous receiver 

 to yield to the temptation to render incom- 

 plete or incorrect returns and by discourag- 

 ing the circulation of fictitious reports of 

 market conditions. It is believed the pub- 

 lication of facts will stimulate healthy com- 

 petition, discourage unfair and wasteful 

 practices, and in so doing go far to imj^rove 

 the ethics of our marketing methods. 



Our only purpose in this work is to pub- 



lish information that is authentic, depend- 

 able, and wlioUy inii)artial. We may be 

 Justly criticised for mistakes in collecting, 

 compiling, and interpreting the informa- 

 tion received and will take all possible steps 

 to correct them when discovered. On the 

 other liand we believe we are entitled to the 

 full and whole-hearted co-operation from 

 the industry in placing at our disposal the 

 complete facts regarding the market situa- 

 tion so that the whole industry may be bene- 

 fited thereby. 



During periods of market depression, such 

 as we are now witnessing, a market reporter 

 finds the job of collecting and compiling a 

 comprehensive report of a large market a 

 difficult task. In the case of New York City 

 our reporter interviews at least 20 of the 

 responsible rec(jjvers. Their quotations and 

 statements are noted, and when all received 

 a composite statement is prepared. This 

 statement is further compared and checked 

 in the Washington office before being re- 

 leased. Generally speaking no complaint can 

 be made of the co-operation received, but a 

 few instances have arisen whereby co-opera- 

 tion has been entirely withheld. You have 

 no doubt noticed that our honey report has 

 carried a statement for w^eeks from one of 

 the most important honey markets in the 

 United States that no information can be 

 published concerning that market because 

 of the refusal of the receivers to furnish the 

 information desired. 



We wish to take this opportunity to ex- 

 press our appreciation to you and everyone 

 else who has co-operated in placing the ser- 

 vice on its present basis. Constructive sug- 

 gestions for its improvement are welcomed 

 and will be accepted in so far as our facili- 

 ties and methods will permit. Y"ou are at 

 liberty to publish the contents of this letter 

 if you see fit to do so. 



Taking Extracted Honey. — Continued from p. 413. 



cilitates pumping and clarifying. The steam 

 generator is in the honey-room where its 

 suri)lus heat also assists clarifying the hon- 

 ey, thus being beneficial instead of a nuis- 

 ance as it w^ould be if in the room where 

 the men are working. So we have the ad- 

 vantage of a capping melter and steam- 

 heated knives without the discomfort of ar- 

 tificial heat, or fumes from an oil stove. 

 Store tanks are of about 2500 pounds capac- 

 ity. We prefer this size to larger ones, as 

 we never add more honey to a tank which 

 has been partly filled and left over night. 

 We fill one or two tanks daily according to 

 how things go. Tiie slowest part of the 

 outfit is the eigiit-frame extractor. This 

 year with increased extractor capacity we 

 hope to do more in a daj'. 



In the production of extracted lioney the 

 quality of tlie jproifuct is the first considera- 

 tion. !• <l(i not mean necessarilv color. Al- 



together too much stress has been placed on 

 color, or absence of color, simply because 

 flavor is more difficult to standardize. It is 

 unwise to educate the public to look for wa- 

 ter-white honey, and equally unwise to teach 

 the difference between numerous minor 

 sources. I have seen an old-fashioned bee- 

 keeper lead his customer around a row of 

 cans wath a spoon, saying, "Now this is 

 fruit bloom, this is clover, this is linden, 

 this is thistle, this is fall flowers; which 

 would you like?" The prospect tastes one 

 after the other and looks confused because 

 he cannot tell much difference; or, if he can 

 distinguish flavors, he likes one about as 

 well as another. If he does decide that he 

 likes one better, the chances are he is dis- 

 satisfied next time because there is no more 

 of that particular flavor. Is it not better 

 to strive for a uniformly good blended fla- 

 vor with light color and rich well-ripened 

 (juality? 



(leorgetown. Out. 



