u JflurMl, 



DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF THE PRODUCERS OF HONEY. 



VOL. XX. 



CHICAGO, ILL., MAY 14, 1884. 



No. 20. 





Published every Wednesday, by 



THOMAS G. NEWMAN, 



Editor and Pkoprietor. 



The Honey Crop of California. 



We have received the following ex- 

 planatory letter from Messrs. Geo. W. 

 Meade & Co., of San Fraucisco, Cal., 

 dated April 29, 1884. They say : 



In the I5ee .Journal of April 23, 

 we notice that Messrs. Stearns & 

 Smitli, of this city, dispnte the figures 

 we gave in our "annual review, as a 

 close approximation of the California 

 honey crop of last year, in which we 

 set forth tlie total production at 9G0,- 

 000 lbs. The lirm above referred to, 

 place the quantity at l,8S7,O0U lbs. ; in 

 other words, an excess over our figures 

 of 427..54U lbs. 



Our figures were compiled, as they 

 always are, from the only reliable 

 sources in all the honey sections of 

 the State ; and, in making figures, we 

 deal with vxights only, and not cases, 

 as both the cases used for comb and 

 extracted honey now differ in size 

 and ipiantity of honey contained 

 therein. 



Let us analyze the figures as given 

 by Messrs. S. & S. They state the re- 

 ceipts at .S,4.j() cases extracted honey, 

 which, it seems, they figure at li!0 

 lbs. net weight each. Allowing that 

 the number of cases is correct, al- 

 though it is not known where they 

 obtained their information, it is a 

 fact well known to large lioney dealers 

 here tliat fully one-half, if not more, 

 of this lioney' was packed and re- 

 ceived this year in cases of nne-tin 

 each, which hold only about 70 to 7-5 

 lbs. net of honey. Deduct, therefore, 

 50 lbs. each on, say 4..500 cases of 

 honey, and we liave a deficiency on 

 the start on extracted honey alone of 

 ^2.5.000 lbs. from tlieir figures. 



The same authority also places the 

 production of comb honey at 4,228 

 cases, wliich they tigureat601bs.net 

 each, or 253,480 lbs., an equivalent of 

 12 to 13 cars of comb honey ; when 

 from the most reliable sources in the 

 whole State, our own purchases, as 

 the largest dealers, and inquiries with 

 commission dealers, we cannot learn 

 that the entire product of comb honey 

 the past year exceeded from 125 to 

 1.50,000 lbs. all told ; and these figures 



we believe to be correct enough for 

 all practical purposes. 



Deducting, therefore, 12.5,000 lbs. of 

 comb honey from their figures, we 

 have a further deficiency in their 

 comb lioney estimates of 128,480 lbs. 



Taking tip their figures on " shipped 

 from interior,'' all of wliich were in- 

 eluded in our original estimates, and 

 workuig on the same basis, fully one- 

 half in one-tin cases, we can "easily 

 make a ^deduction of -50,000 lbs. from 

 their estimate of 118,340 lbs., thus re- 

 ducing the quantity to 68,.340 lbs. 



In conclusion, therefore, we beg to 

 recapitulate as follows : 



Estimate made by S. & S 1..387,.540 



Less deficiency extr. . .22-5.000 

 comb... 128,480 

 " Int. ship.. .50,000 403,480 



Net production. 

 Our figures 



984,060 

 960,000 



Difference 24,060 



While these figures, as given by us, 

 are not claitned to be absolutely, yet 

 we know them to be approximately 

 correct ; and we again asssert, without 

 any fear of successful contradiction, 

 that the total honey crop of Califor- 

 nia for the past year, according to our 

 original figures, was somewhere be- 

 tween 9-50,000 and 1.000,000 lbs. 



An Apostle in days of old said : 

 " Without controversy, great is the 

 mystery of godliness." After reading 

 the foregoing, we may remark : 

 Without controversy, great is the 

 honey crop of California ! 1 While, 

 perhaps, neither the hgures of Messrs. 

 Meade & Co. or Stearns & Smith, are 

 absolutely correct — they show most 

 plainly that the honey crop of last 

 year was quite satisfactory, taken as 

 a whole, and has been shipped to all 

 quarters of the globe. 



We are glad to get these figures 

 from the two rival honey merchants 

 of San Francisco, for they show con- 

 clusively that there is no collusion, 

 and the figures are near enough for 

 all practical purposes, no matter 

 which are the nearest to the exact 

 amount. 



While we thank both firms for their 

 interesting figures, we think there is 

 no need of further dispute concern- 

 ing the small discrepancy between 

 the two estimates. We only wish we 



had two such firms in every large city 

 of the East ; for competition is the 

 life of trade— especially the honey 

 trade. What is needed more than 

 anything else, is men who will push 

 the sale of honey and thus create a 

 market for the product. 



1^ Prof. Cook writes us that he 

 has sold 2,000 copies of his Manual 

 during the past year. The twelfth 

 thousand being just published. The 

 Manual is a deservedly-popular book, 

 and we congratulate the Professor 

 upon his success with it. 



1^ We have received a pamphlet 

 of 44 pages, by Mons. Ed. Bertrand, 

 of Nyon, Switzerland, entitled " The 

 Care of Colonies of Bees ; or a calen- 

 dar of apiculture, with advice for be- 

 ginners, in the management of bees." 

 It consists of a detailed system of 

 management of bees for each of the 

 months of the year, and covers the 

 entire ground of manipulation. It is 

 published in French ; and is scientific, 

 progressive and practical. 



W Mr. I. V. McCagg, President of 

 the Eastern Iowa and Western Illi- 

 nois Bee-Keepers' Association, has 

 sent out postal card blanks to each 

 member, and desires that they all be 

 filled out and returned to him, so as to 

 enable him to make a complete report 

 to all the members, before the swarm- 

 ing season commences. 



1^ Mr. F. A. Chapman wishes to 

 correct the statement concerning the 

 800 pounds of honey on page 21-5. He 

 exhibited it at the Industrial Exhibi- 

 tion held in Cobourg last October, in- 

 stead of at the Industrial Exhibition 

 in Toronto last September, as there 

 stated. 



^° Mr. Ira Barber desires to cor- 

 rect his article concerning ventilation, 

 in the middle of the third column of 

 page 264. He meant that those not 

 ventilated at the top of the hive were 

 in just as good condition as when put 

 into the cellar, and that all upward 

 ventilation was abandoned. 



