THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



619 



of caleulatioii). Now, divide 4000 lbs. 

 by 8(1, and we liave about 112 poiiiids 

 as tlie product of one square niilti; 

 then multiply ;>."),000, the number of 

 square miles in Maine, by 11:2, and we 

 liave 3,i)a).000 lbs. of comb lioiu-y as 

 the actual possibilities of production 

 in Maine last year. This at ioc. per 



Eound, amounts to $7S4,0o0. Now, as 

 ee-keepinj;' is but in its infancy, and 

 our apiarists unskilled in the applica- 

 tion of the science, it is not unreason- 

 able to supi)ose that this estimate 

 might be doubled. This would give 

 7,S40.000 lbs. as the probable possibili- 

 ties of Maine's yearly honey crop. 



Now then, as we usually get two 

 pounds of extracted honey to one 

 pound of comb honey, we shall have, 

 if we run wholly for extracted honey, 

 7,840,000 lbs. of extracted honey, as tlie 

 actual possibilities of Maine this year, 

 or 224 pounds per square mile. " We 

 find 6 pounds of comb honey as the 

 amount aniuially allotted by nature 

 to each inhabitant of Maine, in our 

 present knowledge of the science. 

 Are we satisfied with this small allow- 

 ance of t) pounds of comb or 12 pounds 

 of extracted honey V We cannot have 

 both, and thus it remains for each 

 one individually to decide which he 

 shall produce, comb honey or extracted 

 honey. 



I find, by talking with quite a num- 

 ber of grocers, that the market de- 

 mands comb honey in their immediate 

 vicinity. I find, also, by reading some 

 bee-papers, that the market demands 

 comb honey and that its production 

 is setting s'trongly in that direction. 

 Mr. T G. Newman in his work" Bees 

 and Honey," says; "To-day comb 

 honey is the preference for table use ; 

 and if we would cater to the public 

 want, we must put that article in its 

 most attractive shape." In regard to 

 extracted honey, he says, "none but 

 a thoroughly good article should be 

 produced and placed upon the market, 

 as the price depends on its quality ;" 

 and further, " a good article of ex- 

 tracted honey has excellent qualities, 

 which when well known will com- 

 mend it to all consumers, and is equal 

 in every respect to the best comb 

 honey." 



"Every bee-keeper should fully sup- 

 ply his own locality, and he should 

 let it be distinctly understood that it 

 is the pure honey, taken from the 

 combs by centrifugal force; that 

 nothing is added to it and nothing 

 taken trom it, except the comb ; that 

 it is not the old-fashioned " strained 

 honey," which was obtained bv being 

 taken from dead bees, pollen, mashed 

 brood, etc., but that it is the pure 

 liquid gathered from the flowers,which 

 will give health to the body, force to 

 the mind, and strength to the intellect 

 of those who eat it." 



"The fact should be known that 

 granulated honey can be reduced to 

 its Hquid state in a few moments, by 

 placing the jar containing it in warm 

 water. When thus liquefied, it so 

 remains for some time before again 

 crystallizing. Consumers may be sure 

 of a wholesome article by purchasing 

 granulated honey and reducing it." I 

 was shown a jar of honey in the liquid 

 state which had been thus liquefied 



for two years since it was reduced 

 from the granulated state. 



I find that grocers are willing to 

 take comb honey in limited quantities, 

 but have a decided objection to ex- 

 tracted honey. Why is this so ? One 

 grocer told me that there was a de- 

 cided prejudice against extracted 

 honey in his locality. Another grocer 

 took fifteen jars on commission and 

 said that lie did not know whether he 

 could sell it, but would try. I saw 

 him the other day, and he had dis- 

 posed of ten jars of it at the same 

 price as comb honey ; and he said that 

 his customers liked it. 



But another says, " How much do 

 you ask for your comb and extracted 

 honey y" "I wholesale comb honey 

 at 20 cents and extracted at 12 cents 

 per pound." " What is wax worth V" 

 "32 cents." "About how much wax 

 will a pound of honey yield ?" "Oh, 

 perhaps an ounce, more or less." 



The grocer looked thoughtful a mo- 

 ment and turned away without com- 

 ment, as comment to his mind was 

 unnecessary. The fact was, the whole 

 thing smelt of adulteration to him 

 and we had given him the figures 

 with which to prove it. But his ac- 

 tions spoke louder than words, " you 

 bee-men sell us honey in the comb for 

 20 cents. When you go to the trouble 

 to extract other honey and sell it for 

 12 cents, when you might have had 

 20 without extracting, and the ounce 

 of wax you sell for 2 cents more, mak- 

 ing your pound of extracted net you 

 only 14 cents, when we would have 

 been glad to have given you 20 cents 

 for it in the comb !" 



And when we try to explain by tell- 

 ing him that we use the comb over 

 again in tlie hive, and that it costs in 

 honey nearly two-thirds as much to 

 make the comb as the comb holds, 

 then lie is puzzled again, and when 

 the question is put, "Sir, will you 

 have some of our extracted honey," to- 

 day ?" he first looked thoughtful, then 

 wise, then turned away with a shake 

 of his head or a " no I thank you," as 

 much as to say, " maybe what you say 

 is true, but "this bird is not to be 

 caught with chaff a second time." 



I saw at once tliat my chance to get 

 twenty cents for my extracted honey 

 was fully as good, if not better, than 

 to get a less price, and as the cost of 

 creating a market was quite an item, 

 I then resolved to put comb and ex- 

 tracted at the same price hereafter. 



To those who are now using an 

 extractor and know what you can do, 

 I would say, do not make much 

 change, unless you can do it for the 

 better sale of your honey. To those 

 who have not yet gone into it, I would 

 say, "don't," or not largely, unless 

 you have the brain force to create 

 your own market and maintain it by 

 square, honorable dealing. 



i^ The Cedar Valley Bee-Keepers' 

 Association will hold its second an- 

 nual meeting in Beckley's Hall, South 

 Side. Waterloo, Iowa, on Oct. 1 and 2, 

 1884. Reduced rates over the differ- 

 ent railroads. All interested are cor- 

 dially invited to attend and make this 

 one of the best meetings in the State. 

 H. O. McElhany, Sec. 



Kor tlie American Bee Journal. 



Controlling Increase, etc. 



Q. W. DKMAKKE. 



It is not my purpose to " moralize," 

 as the manner of some is on such oc- 

 casions as this. Let the past with its 

 successes and failures suflice us. It 

 is with the present and future that 

 we have to deal. It is enough to say 

 that the past honey season lias not 

 been satisfactory to most of us. 



The flow of nectar from white 

 clover was marvelously profuse, but 

 the period was too short to give a full 

 crop. Many of us made the mistake 

 of laying our plans too broad for the 

 short harvest, which we did not 

 anticipate. I, for one, have learned 

 something in that direction, and from 

 that experience. Hereafter, I shall 

 work my bees for what is in sight, 

 and broaden my plans if the occasion 

 demands and justifies it. 



I wish to call your attention to the 

 fact that many persons ijegin to talk 

 and write as though bee-culture, as a 

 science and as a practical industry, 

 has reached the top round of tlie 

 ladder. Let no one be deceived by 

 the exhausted ideas of such. I am 

 willing that it shall go to record when 

 I say here, that the present mode of 

 handling or manipulating bees and 

 bee-implements, in short, the present 

 system of bee-keeping, which we 

 proudly call the " modern system," 

 will, in the near future, be revolu- 

 tionized and made a thing of memory 

 only. 



There is no question, pertaining to 

 apiculture in the South, of so much 

 importance as that of controlling in- 

 crease. In the North, where long, 

 cold winters hold the " balance " witn 

 the grip of death, it is well enough to 

 say, "let the bees swarm." With us, 

 bees succumb to nothing but the ex- 

 piration of the lease of life, or 

 straight-out starvation. Not a fatal 

 case of the disease known as dysen- 

 tery or diarrhcea, in the North, has 

 ever come to the knowledge of the 

 writer, in all Central and Southern 

 Kentucky. Most of us have seen 

 bees with distended bodies when con- 

 fined to the hives unusually long dur- 

 ing unusually cold winters ; but a 

 single flight in the open air is all that 

 is necessary to restore them to a nor- 

 mal condition. The Southern apiarist 

 smiles at the conceit of the pollen and 

 hibernation theorists. Our bees 

 gather pollen eight months in the 

 year, and "snap their fingers" at 

 pollen chimera. 



As to the " sleepy-headeduess " of 

 bees: In .January, 1881, my bees 

 could be seen either on the wing or 

 stirring about the entrances of the 

 hives every day but three in that 

 month. They wintered well without 

 sleep ('?). Why, sirs, if I should fol- 

 low the advice of some who say, " let 

 the bees swarm," my apiary would 

 multiply to 2,000 colonies in four 

 years, provided that I would covenant 

 to let none of them starve ! 



In the light of these facts, any 

 system of management that does not 

 put the matter of increase entirely at 

 the disposal of the apiarist, needs 



