1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



1045 



Miller has to say, and that he refers back 

 to something- previous, giving- the page 

 where it is found. Some one else in a like 

 manner indicates another pag-e, and so on. 

 The one reference in the index enables me 

 to find every place in the volume where 

 that particular subject is discussed. 



Our index is very voluminous ; and even 

 now it is not possible to give a page num- 

 ber to every little subject, tracing it out in 

 all its phases clear through the volume. If, 

 then, our correspondents will be careful to 

 give the pag-e in every instance it will 

 greatly facilitate back reading, and enable 

 one to get a birdseye view of the subject 

 during- the year past. 



THE COMB-HONEY CANARDS; THE NEED OF 

 A NATIONAL I'UKK FOOD LAW ; "SEN- 

 ATORIAL COUK'rF.SY. '" 



Recently a friend of mine happened to 

 mention to some other friends in Cleveland 

 that he was going to Medina. 



"Medina? Medina? Why, that is the 

 place," said these acquaintances, "where 

 they have a factory for manufacturing comb 

 honey. Going- down there, eh? Well, tell 

 us all about it when you come back." 



So the comb-honey I'e bobs up here and 

 there in one form and another, and one can 

 readily see why the Root Co. feels like 

 chasing it down to its last analysis. It is 

 general!)' known that there is a big bee- 

 hive establishment in Medina; and the un- 

 sophisticated public in general have heard 

 the numerous canards that have been set 

 afloat, and conclude, as a matter of course, 

 that comb honej' is manufactured here. We 

 Medinaites are not very well pleased with 

 this kind of reputation ; and if there were 

 laws by which we could g-et hold of some of 

 these people who are so persistently circu- 

 lating- these lies we would make'it warm 

 for some one. 



If this were all we could stand it, but I 

 believe it is true that manjr people in the 

 cities believe that comb honey is manufac- 

 tured—that very little of it is genuine. You 

 can scarcely run across a person who has 

 not read these stories ; and, on the other 

 hand, you can not find one who has read 

 the denials of bee-keepers that we have 

 caused to be published. The lie goes on 

 being credited, while truth is smothered. 

 Verily the task seems hopeless. 



Some day when we get a national pure- 

 food law, perhaps consumers will believe 

 that the beautiful honey they see in the 

 market is not manufactured. One great 

 remedy for this deplorable situation is for 

 the bee-keepers of the country to make a 

 united demand on their congressmen for a 

 pure-food law along the lines of the Hep- 

 burn bill that has been up a number of 

 times, was finally passed by the last House, 

 but which was shelved and pushed aside 

 in one way and another, all because of 

 "Senatorial courtesy," and because our 

 national Senate refuses to adopt some mea- 

 sure whereby the filibusi^ering- of a very 



small minority can be stopped. Some day 

 the people will rise up in their wrath, and 

 elect only Senators who will carry out the 

 will of the people. They are sick and tired 

 of the talk-to-death rule in the upper House. 

 The action of the Senate, or, rather, of a 

 despicable minority, regarding- some very 

 necessary, almost indispensable, laws is 

 aggravating- beyond measure. 



aikin's candied honey in paper pack- 

 ages. 

 Just now I saw our folks have some very 

 pretty little 2-lb. packages of the above in 

 our department where we retail honey. 

 They are getting 25 cents each for these 2- 

 Ib. packages— 12>^ cents per lb. for honey 

 done up in paper! Said I, "Why, this is 

 more than you g-et for honey put up in 

 g-lass. " 



"Yes, that is so. We get only 11 cents 

 per lb. for honey in glass jars, jar includ- 

 ed." 



This means there is a full pound of liquid 

 honey sold for 11 cents, and the glass thrown 

 in. We do not sell liquid honey the way 

 they do glassed comb honey. When I re- 

 monstrated because they are getting more 

 for honey in a cheap paper package than 

 for that in a nice self-sealing glass jar, the 

 reply was, " W^ell, the paper package is a 

 new thing; and, besides, Aikin's honey is 

 of extra quality." 



Now, friends, the great point right here 

 is, can other bee-keepers all over the world 

 put up honey in paper packages and have 

 it nice, dry, and clean? Why, there is not 

 a cleaner-looking package in the groceries 

 than these 2 lb. paper packages of candied 

 hone)'. And right here the impression 

 comes to my mind that perhaps Aikin 

 drains off the sticky inferior liquid portion 

 of his candied honey. I did the same thing 

 thirty years ago, and I have done it this 

 past year. The best way in the world to 

 improve the quality of any liquid honey is 

 to put it out in the cold and get it to candy 

 if you can. Then put it in a strainer, or 

 break it up in chunks so as to drain out (in 

 a warm place) all the liquid portion that 

 seems reluctant to candy. After it has 

 drained for several days, and the candied 

 honey has turned white and become tolera- 

 bly hard, melt it up gradually, not getting 

 it too hot, as suggested elsewhere in this 

 number, and your honey will be greatly 

 improved in quality and color; and if you 

 pour it into these paper bags it will candy 

 and remain hard, dry, and white. It will 

 also be very much thicker than it was be- 

 fore you drained oft" the watery liquid hon- 

 ey. Now, any honey that can be made to 

 candy by putting it out in the cold can be 

 refined and purified by the above process. 

 Just one thing more about these paper 

 packages: Ernest seems to think they do 

 not stand hot weather. But I am sure they 

 will stand it almost as well as they will 

 cold weather, if you keep the air out. If 

 the paper package is not absolutely air- 



