380 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Nov. 30, 



I think it would be a good plan for 

 correspondents to give size of frames 

 and capacity of hive when writing 

 about bees. It would give the editor 

 and his readers a better idea of the 

 writer as a bee-keeper, a great help to 

 beginners, and might be the means of 

 adopting a uniform hive in America. 



My profit from capital invested in 

 bees' is 40 percent., all my investments 

 being permanent, such as extractor, 

 smoker, etc. My increase is 250 per 

 cent., which pays me handsomely for 

 the pleasure I have had with my bees. 



Browning, Mo.. Oct. 27. 18X1. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Disposal of Honey. 



GEO. W. HOUSE. 



Since the publication of my article 

 and the comments thereon in the 

 American Bee Journal for Sept. 

 14, I have again visited our larger 

 eastern markets, and I am still more 

 conlident that the position I have ta- 

 ken on the subject is correct. Time. 

 however, will tell. 



I notice the editor on the first page 

 of that issue takes exceptions to the 

 desirability of centralizing the honey 

 traffic, and says : " The proposed cen- 

 tralization or co-operation is imprac- 

 ticable, for the reason that the neces- 

 sities of bee-keepers vary as much as 

 do their ideas regarding hives, win- 

 tering, etc. As a rule, the heavier 

 producers have their outlets to mar- 

 ket already established, or have had 

 sufficient experience to be able to sell 

 in job lots to the best advantage. 

 These men of course would see no ad- 

 vantage to be derived from co-opera- 

 tion, and would not jeopardize their 

 established trade by entering into the 

 scheme." 



The only "necessities" that bee- 

 keepers have in marketing their pro- 

 ducts, is to realize satisfactorily on 

 their consignments as quick as possi- 

 ble. To best attain this point would 

 be to Sell for cr/s/i ; and that is what I 

 have been laboring so hard to perfect; 

 see page 291, American Bee Jour- 

 nal, where I said, " when we can con- 

 centrate our honey, we shall be able 

 to sell for cash, and we shall see buy- 

 ers traveling the country to purchase 

 it," etc. Since that writing we have 

 had the pleasure of seeing men travel- 

 ing the country buying for cash. 

 This, no doubt, is owing to the earn- 

 est work and diligent effort on the 

 part of the heavier producers in this 

 State to concentrate our honey, and 

 we are now reaping our reward. 



One firm, in particular, witli a cap- 

 ital of fifty millions of dollars, have 

 decided to handle honey on a cash 

 basis altogether, and undoubtedly 

 they will endeavor to control that 

 market to a certain extent. In doing 

 so, they will be obliged to buy up the 

 small consignments of honey finding 

 their way into the hands of commis- 

 sion men who do not scruple at cut- 

 ting the prices. This is right, because 

 they could not pay good prices, know- 

 ing that those small consignments 

 would surely be closed out much be- 

 low the market, thus having a ten- 

 dency of lessening the prices, and 

 working ruin to the firm making it 

 their special business. 



There are a very lew commission 

 houses in New York that make a 

 specialty of our products. These men 

 will co-operate in sustaining the pri- 

 ces. But of the many CO lission 



men, 99 out of every 100 have not the 



facilities lor handling honey. They 

 must necessarily have a special room 

 or department for it. which fact is 

 proved by the few making the busi- 

 ness a success, besides many other 

 little matters pertaining to the busi- 

 ness. 



I do not understand why the editor 

 should call this feature a "scheme." 

 Centralization is important to the 

 heavier producers, and equally im- 

 portant to the lesser producer. They 

 both are working for the same end, 

 viz: to dispose of their products for 

 spot cash upon delivery. To be able 



to do this, we must encourage the 

 buyer or middleman. 



While in Boston, a firm told methey 

 could sell more honey, and it would 

 command higher prices if the honey 

 was confined to 3 or 4 wholesale 

 houses. This firm are trying to con- 

 trol that market as regards prices, 

 and they are right in their opinion, 

 because there would not be that run- 

 ning from one commission house to 

 another by the retailer, to pick up bar- 

 gains that may be offered, and after- 

 wards reporting the same to other 

 houses in order to secure the same ad- 

 vantages. 



If one man should consign 1000 lhs. 

 of honey to each of 10 commission 

 merchants, in nearly every case you 

 would find that honey setting in plain 

 sight where every passer-by would no- 

 tice it. The retailer or grocer in pass- 

 ing along, sees honey in the hands of 

 their commission men ; the first idea 

 that strikes him is, " Why, there must 

 be a vast amount of honey in the mar- 

 ket. What a splendid opportunity I 

 shall have to buy cheap. But I must 

 wait a while, for fear that the market 

 will be glutted, and the bottom 

 knocked out of the prices." 



If the 1000 pounds were put into the 

 hands of one man, the producer would 

 realize on his consignment much 

 sooner, and at far better prices, be- 

 cause the retailer or buyer would feel 

 safe in putting in his stock, knowing 

 that the prices would not be cut, nor 

 the market glutted. 



While in New York, I found honey 

 in the hands of tea commission firms ; 

 flour commission houses; hop com- 

 mission merchants, and so on through 

 the list. I took the position of buyer, 

 and upon making inquiries under the 

 pretense of desiring to purchase, I was 

 enabled to get their manner of doing 

 business for us honey producers. If 

 this was not a fair test, and the best 

 way to obtain the real facts, will some 

 one please say what is? Men may 

 write, and men may theorize ; but to 

 obtain knowledge, we must have prac- 

 tical experience. 



If you wanted to buy but a few 

 crates or cases of honey, it could not 

 be purchased much under the market 

 price. But I found that they were de- 

 sirous of closing out the whole con- 

 signment, and to get it off their hands, 

 would sell for 25 per cent, under the 

 market. And again, not making a 

 specialty of the business, they had no 

 special place or department for the 

 consignment, but it would be piled up 

 among various other goods, and some 

 out on the street, broken, leaky and 

 filthy. 



Reader, do you think this manner 

 of marketing your products is satis- 

 factory and businesslike? Do you 

 think you would realize as much, or 

 get returns any quicker? Or would 

 it not be better tor us all to have our 

 honey neatly piled up in a room where 

 no other goods are kept, and arranged 

 so as to compare favorably with the 

 other consignments beside it, and in 

 the hands of a thoroughly reliable and 

 competent man, who has an estab- 

 lished honey trade ? 



Reader, this matter rests with us; 

 the sooner we perfect a system of mar- 

 keting (concentrating our honey), the 

 quicker will we see " wholesale' honey 

 merchants" springing up ; when we 

 shall be able to dispose of our pro- 

 ducts for cash, and at good prices; 

 fluctuating in price no morn than any 

 of the agricultural products. 



On page 315, American BebJotjb 

 nal, Mr. Ileddon says: "Buyers 

 are ' hears,' for it is to their interests 

 to depress the wholesale price of 

 honey. Commission men are the 

 'bulls,' for they are working for our 

 interests, and hold up the prices to the 

 best of their ability." 



In this I cannot agree with Mr. 

 Ileddon. It seems to me the above 

 quotation is right to the reverse of 

 what it actually is. I will give a case 

 of actual occurrence that I happened 

 to witness : 



A bee-keeper arrived in New York 

 with 14,000 pounds of comb honey. 

 lie was offered 17 cents in cash for his 

 entire crop. He wanted 18 cents, and 



would not sell for less. Therefore he 

 placed the honey in the hands of a 

 commission merchant, and before he 

 was out of town, the honey was sold 

 for 16 cents to the same firm that of- 

 fered him 17 cents. That man, un- 

 doubtedly, will never sell on commis- 

 sion again, as that transaction cost 

 him nearly slim. 00. Yet such trans- 

 actions are of frequent occurrence. 



As a rule, the commission men are 

 the " bears," because all the interest 

 they have in the matter is to get their 

 per cent, of commission, while the 

 wholesale dealer or middlemen are the 

 " bulls," because it is to their interest 

 to sell their own goods at the best pos- 

 sible prices. 



From what I have seen and know 

 by actual transactions. I cannot see 

 how honey will bring more money to 

 us put into the hands of the retailer 

 through the commission house, than 

 placed in the retailer's hands through 

 the wholesale honey house. 



I think the editor has misunderstood 

 my position on this question. There 

 is no " scheme " about it. but simply 

 the duty of each and all of us for the 

 protection of our interests. I have no 

 doubt said enough in this to clearly 

 define my position in this cause, to the 

 reader and all interested. When we 

 each work for our own interests, we 

 work for the interests of each other. 

 Therefore I shall stand firmly on this 

 rock, knowing full-well that time will 

 sustain me in this work for the inter- 

 ests and benefit of the fraternity. 



I heartily endorse the action of the 

 American Bee Journal in the is- 

 sue of Nov. 16, in the denouncement 

 of "glucose" and its "advocates." 

 It is the duty of all our periodicals to 

 pour red-hot shot and shell into the 

 camps of those advocating " glucose " 

 in any manner. 



I am also pleased to see the Ameri- 

 can Bee Journal again falling into 

 line by encouraging debate, etc. This 

 is what placed the Bee Journal at 

 the head 12 years ago. And it is that 

 spirit that brought out many facts and 

 settled doubts in years gone by. 



To get at facts, we must admit free 

 discussion. Facts are more important 

 than favors. To reach the real value, 

 we must compare— add and subtract, 

 till the actual result appears. 



Whoever brings before the public a 

 new article, or advances a new theory, 

 must expect, and ought to solicit crit- 

 icism, until all the points are brought 

 out independent of theory. To oppose 

 this shows a want of confidence in 

 the merits of the article or question 

 advanced. 



Fayetteville, N. Y. 



From the Farmers' Home Journal. 



The Yellow Italian Bee. 



A. P. FARNSLEY. 



When I was a boy. I was very fond 

 of watching the bees. I would stand 

 and watch them for hours, and never 

 tire of seeing them going out and 

 coming in laden with the pollen of the 

 flowers. Now, my recollection is that 

 these bees I took so much interest in 

 when I was a small hoy. were yellow, 

 and had the yellow bands around the 

 abdomen, like the Italians. 



I remember when looking at them, 

 the negro men at dinner time would 

 come to where I was, and talk to me 

 about them, and about my fondness 

 for them ; and I distinctly remember 

 one of the men used to tell me about 

 the wild black bees that made their 

 homes in the woods; ami I remember 

 when the bees in some of the hives 

 changed to black bees, the man re- 

 ferred to accounted for it by saying 

 the wild bees drove out the tame lines, 

 and took possession of their homes. 

 Now, so vivid is my recollection of the 

 yellow bees with their golden bands, 

 that the first time I saw the Italians 

 bees they reminded me of old friends 

 of long ago, and by association I was 



carried back to the scenes of my 

 youth, when I was as happy and free 

 from care as the beautiful forms I was 

 so fond of watching going in and out 

 of the hives. 



Dr. Allen informed me that parties 

 in Arkansas claim that they had the 

 yellow bee with the bands long before 

 the war. Aristotle describes very 

 fully two kinds of bees— the yellow 

 and black bee. The yellow bee was 

 lost sight of for several centuries. 

 They were discovered by one of Na- 

 poleon's officers when he crossed the 

 Alps. They were introduced at that 

 time into France. Now. am I wrong 

 in my recollection of the bees I 

 watched in my youth, or is it possible 

 that the Italian bee was introduced 

 into Louisiana by the French when 

 that country belonged to France, and 

 that they migrated north till they 

 reached Kentucky, or that they were 

 brought from Louisiana here' at an 

 early day by persons here who annu- 

 ally visited New Orleans to trade? 

 Men used to go from my neighborhood 

 annually, before 1812, to New Orleans 

 to trade. Some of my father's broth- 

 ers went from here at a very early pe- 

 riod, to Louisiana for that purpose. 



Now, if the bees I watched when I 

 was a small boy were Italians, or de- 

 scendants of Italian stock, and if the 

 yellow bees that were in Arkansas 

 before the war were descendants of 

 Italian stock, then the Italian bee was 

 first introduced into this country when 

 Louisiana belonged to France. 



I would like to hear from some of 

 our Arkansas friends on this most in- 

 teresting question, and also from 

 others who know any thing about the 

 yellow bees of 40 years ago. Espe- 

 cially would I like to hear from Mr. T. 

 S. Kennedy and Gen. C. M. Clay, 

 whose many opportunities for observ- 

 ing these insects will enable them to 

 say something of general interest to 

 the readers of your paper. The latter 

 gentleman, while in Mexico in 1846, 

 may have seen bees of that country. 



For tue American Bee Journal. 



Size of Hive for Comb Honey. 



A. R. KOHNKE. 



In answering a question of Mr. 

 Sears, of Girard, Pa., as to the size of 

 hive tor comb honey, the editor of the 

 Bee Journal says that the Langs- 

 troth is the one heprefers. But he is 

 probably aware that there are 2 sizes 

 of that hive in general use. one of 

 which holds 10 frames, which Mr. 

 Muth, of Cincinnati, uses; the other 

 being an 8-frame hive, Mr. Ileddon 

 piefers to the exclusion of all others. 



To arrive at a correct size of a hive, 

 we should first find out the desirable 

 qualities of such. 1. The hive and 

 frame should be shallow enough to 

 prevent the bees from storing too 

 much honey just above their brood 

 nest in the brood chamber, and it ap- 

 pears to me that the Langstroth 

 frame i3 admirable for this purpose. 

 Second, the queen should have suffi- 

 cient room to deposit as many eggs as 

 she can, besides leaving room enough 

 lor the bees to store honey and pollen 

 for use in the brood chamber. This 

 latter takes on an average about 2 

 inches under the top bar of each 

 frame, being less in the middle and 

 more on the outside frames, or about 

 ii of each frame. One frame of comb 

 8x16 contains 6,400 cells; 8 frames, 

 51,200, and 10 frames. 84,000, three- 

 fourths of which serve for brood rear- 

 ing, or 44,800 and 56,000 respectively. 

 Now I will leave this part of calcula- 

 ting, and commence at the other end. 



Mr. Langstroth says in his book, 

 " the queen lays 6 eggs per minute," 

 which, to grant all the advantage pos- 

 sible. 1 will admit to be the case at the 

 height of the honey season. Hut that 

 would make 360 eggs per hour, and 

 8,640 per day ; at that rate it will take 

 only from 5 to 6 days to fill an 8-fra- 

 mer, and from 7 to s days a 10-framer, 

 anil t lie queen would fill, in 21 days 

 (the time liees hatch from egg), 181,- 

 440 cells, or 30 frames. 



Prof. Cook, in his Manual, puts it 

 at 4 eggs a minute, or 5,760 per day, 

 at which rate an S-framer would be 

 tilled in less than days, and a 10- 

 framer in less than 11 days, or 20 

 frames in 21 days. I do not think we 



