AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



271 



carry home at night twice as many ber- 

 ries as the ones that kept hunting for 

 thick patches. 



So, dear friend, you might gather 

 more "berries" to stay in one place and 

 gather up the scattering ones rather 

 than waste your time and money hunt- 

 ing for the thick patches, notwithstand- 

 ing Texas is a good honey country, and 

 all that; but I am going to tell you the 

 plain facts about Texas as I see them, 

 and you imist depend upon your own 

 judgment as to whether you will find a 

 place to suit you or not, as a place that 

 would suit me might not suit you. Now 

 to your questions. 



I have been keeping bees in Texas for 

 nearly 20 years, and I have never had a 

 failure of a honey crop, while others in 

 different parts of the State have re- 

 ported failures at different times ; but 

 this is dependent upon the bee-keeper 

 just about as much as the country. Our 

 average per colony has been, for many 

 years, taking both comb and extracted 

 honey together, 50 pounds, as this is 

 the average report taken at our annual 

 conventions for quite awhile. Some bee- 

 keepers average more than 100 pounds 

 per colony for years, while others almost 

 fail entirely, which puts the average 

 down to 50 pounds. 



I have always found a market here at 

 home for all the honey that I could pro- 

 duce, and in fact I have never yet had 

 more nice honey, either comb or ex- 

 tracted, than I could sell readily. Our 

 average price has been about 10 cents 

 per pound — comb honey ranging from 

 12 to 15 cents per pound, and extracted 

 from 3 to 4 cents less. 



As to the capital required to start 

 you besides the bees, it would be hard 

 for me to answer, as it will depend en- 

 tirely upon circumstances, how you live, 

 and work, etc. If I had 100 colonies of 

 bees in Texas, and supplies to run them 

 one year, and ^100 in money, I would 

 feel pretty independent. 



Yes, I think it would be healthy for 

 your mother down here, as there is no 

 local cause for sickness unless you 

 should settle in the lowlands where 

 malaria exists; but people are sick some 

 anywhere, and we all have to die sooner 

 or later. 



I think you can always find employ- 

 ment to make your board, and more, 

 too, in Texas ; but, of course it would 

 depend on what you can do, as we have 

 had some grown men on the farm that 

 could not hitch up a team to a plow or 

 wagon, and of course were not worth 

 their board on a farm. Of course, it 



would be best for such men to go on a 

 farm and pay board, and learn to work 

 before getting a job. 



No, I am not sure that you would find 

 a place to suit you, but if a country 

 where bees do well, that is healthy, with 

 good land, good people, good schools, 

 good churches, and a fine country would 

 suit you, then you need not be afraid to 

 make a leap towards Texas. 



Yes, there are nearly always good 

 places to rent on reasonable terras. 



Jennie Atchley. 



Oon^ention Notices. 



IOWA. — The eleventh annual convention of 

 the Iowa State Bee-Keepers' Association will 

 be held in their tent at Des Moines. Iowa, on 

 Sept. 6th and 7th. All friends and bee-keep- 

 ers are cordially invited. For programme 

 write to the Secretary. 



J. W. BiTTENBENDER, SeC. 



Knoxville, Iowa. 



INTERNATIONAL.-The North American 

 Bee-Keepers' Association will hold its 24th 

 annual convention on Oct. 11. 12 and 13. 189.3. 

 in Chicago, Ills. Not only is every bee-ljeeper 

 in America, whether a member of the society 

 or not. invited to be present, but a special in- 

 vitation is extended to friends of apiculture 

 it every foreig-n land, Frank Benton. Sec. 



Wasliing-ton, D. C. 



NEBRASKA.— The yearly meeting of the 

 Nebraska State Bee-Keepers' Association will 

 be held at Lincoln, Neb., on Wednesdaj' and 

 Thursday evenings. Sept. 13th and 14th, 1893. 

 This will be held in connection with our State 

 Fair, and we would be pleased to have Eastern 

 visitors meet with us. One-way excur- 

 sion rates will be given on all railroads from 

 Chicago to Lincoln, at that time. Let every 

 bee-keeper call and get acquinted with the 

 Nebraska honey - producers, whose head- 

 quarters are always open. 



York, Nebr. L. D. Stilson, Sec. 



Bee-Keepingf for Profit.— We 



have just Issued a revised and enlarged 

 edition of Dr. Tinker's book, called 

 "Bee-Keeping for Profit." It details 

 his most excellent " new system, or how 

 to get the largest yields of comb and 

 extracted honey." The book contains 

 80 pages in all, and is illustrated. Price, 

 postpaid, 25 cents, or clubbed with the 

 Bee Journal for one year, for $1.15. 



Capons and Caponi:2ingf, by 



Edward Warren Sawyer, M. D., Fanny 

 Field, and others. It shows in clear 

 language and illustrations all about 

 caponizing fowls ; and thus how to 

 make the most money in poultry-raising. 

 Every poultry-keeper should have it. 

 Price, postpaid, 30 cents ; or clubbed 

 with Bee Journal one year, for $1.10. 



