1907 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



767 



on its way to market. Water transportation 

 is immensely superior to railroads in cheap- 

 ness; and, moreover, it is better. There is 

 no bumping on steamers to knock the hon- 

 ey-eomb to a pulp. 



Any business tirm that does much ship- 

 ping of heavy goods knows the immense 

 value of w at er transport, not only incompelling 

 lower rates but in securing more reasonable 

 treatment from the railroads. 



FOKEST RESEIIVES ON GOVEKNMENT LANDS; 



MORE IRKIGATION NEEDED FOR THE 



GREAT WEST. 



The last Congress, before it passed the 

 agricultural appropriation, added a rider 

 stipulating that, in future, no land should be 

 set aside as forest reserves except by act of 

 Congress. This was a direct slap at the 

 President, who saw the animus of it at once; 

 and, to show his sense of duty to the people, 

 he set aside another large area of the public 

 domain as forest I'eserves, after which he 

 signed the agricultural-appropriation act. 



The attitude of Congress in view of the 

 rapid advance in the price of all kinds of 

 lumber, including hive lumber, is to be de- 

 plored. It is to be hoped that some future 

 Congress, less svil)ject to great corporate in- 

 terests, will rise to the emergency; for if 

 lumber continues to advance much more it 

 will take a little fortune to build a home. It 

 is fortunate we have a President who is too 

 great to be cajoled or fooled l)y a lot of old- 

 timers who are bossed by private interests. 



However it may appear to others, we bee- 

 keepers are not particularly anxious to see 

 the public lands of the West cleared off by 

 settlers, and planted to grain crops. On the 

 contrary, we would rather see more irriga- 

 tion works undertaken by the national gov- 

 ernment, and any thing of that kind will 

 have our support. There is a movement 

 now on foot to ask Congress for the loan of 

 $300,000,000 to provide for irrigation pro- 

 jects in all the semi-arid States, and Glean- 

 ings would gladly support any such move- 

 ment when once it is started, for the irrigat- 

 ed lands certainly make ideal homesteads for 

 worthy people. 



That same President will use his great in- 

 fluence to help along this enterprise. Say! 

 Roosevelt is nearly always on the right side 

 of every good thing. 



WEATHER CONDITIONS AND PROSPECTS; A 



STJLL FUKTHER STIFFENING OF THE 



HONEY MARKET PROBABLE. 



The season is practically a failure in South- 

 ern California. Some of the largest produc- 

 ers in the vicinity of Los Angeles report no 

 honey in sight, and are feeding. While there 

 were good rains, yet subsequent weather 

 conditions prevented the bees from doing 

 much. While some sage honey will be pro- 

 duced in the extreme southern part of Cali- 

 fornia, we are safe in saying that very little 

 of it will find its way to any of the Eastern 

 markets. 



Conditions have not been altogether satis- 



factory for Central California, and we do not 

 expect, therefore, much of a crop from that 

 section. 



Weather conditions have improved some- 

 what for the Northern States; but the seascn 

 as a whole is still very backward. In many 

 localities the bees are doing exceptionally 

 w-ell in making up for bad weather. Dan- 

 delions have yielded honey and pollen as 

 never before; and where there has been any 

 fruit-bloom the bees have done well. Clo- 

 ver and basswood have been put back a 

 acoupleof weeks; and if theydo nttcome on 

 too early there will be a chance for a fair 

 crop, for the bees are now making double- 

 quick time. 



The spring losses, however, have been very 

 severe all over the country, south as well as 

 north. The Southern States seem to have 

 suffered more proportionately, as they were 

 not as well prepared to stand the bad weath- 

 er as their more Northern neighbors. 



Texas is not saying much, but the few re- 

 ports are not particularly favorable. In Col- 

 orado, conditions have not been satisfactory: 

 and the season in Florida has been a com- 

 plete failure. 



There ought to be a strong stiffening of 

 prices, for the market certainly will not be 

 glutted with honey, and there will be very 

 little glucose concoctions on the market mas- 

 querading under the name of honey, to hold 

 down prices. We look for a better market 

 than we have ever seen before. 



THE EFFECT OF THE NATIONAL PURE-FOOD 

 LAW ON THE MAPLE-SYRUP INDUSTRY. 



The following excerpt from the Loidsiana 

 Planter of May 18 bears out in a remarkable 

 way what we have been saying to our read- 

 ers for some time anent the working of the 

 national pure-food law. What is said herein 

 will apply to honey as well as maple syrup 

 or maple sugar. 



VERMONT'S CROP OF MAPLE SUGAR. 



The national pure-food law is workirfr wonders for 

 the maple-sugar producers, actiny largely as it does 

 as a guarantee of the purity of the products offered as 

 genuine maple sugar and syrup. Vermont is the chief 

 sugar-producer, and it is estimated that in that State 

 the total output will reach 20 millions of pounds of su- 

 gar and syrup combined. The general price for the 

 genuine article during the last few years has been 

 from 8 to 12 cents: and now, with the increased de- 

 mand for it, owing to the probable purity of all that is 

 offered, the crop is bringing from 15 to 20 cents per 

 pound. At \b cents per pound the maple-sugar crop 

 of Vermont will amount to about three millions of 

 dollars in value, or as much money as the Louisiana 

 rice crop has brought until within a very few years. 



Of course, the delightful flavor of the sugar and syr- 

 up made from genuine maple sap accounts for the fact 

 of its bringing three or more times the price of cane 

 sugar per pound. It accentuates the fact, however, 

 that there is a large demand for genuine cane syrup 

 and cane molasses in the United States, and a demand 

 that could be doubled or tripled were the consumers 

 made thoroughly satisfied as to the pedigree of the 

 stuff sold to them. Glucose skillfully made, and prac- 

 tically neutral in flavor or transparent in color, has 

 been the foundation material from which any quanti- 

 ty of maple syrup or cane syrup could be fictitiously 

 derived. Just as orris root is the flavoring element 

 in the manufacture of low-grade raspberry syrups, so 

 hickory bark and other materials create the maple 

 flavor which for years has disguised the glucose prod- 

 ucts, and apparently made them acceptable wherever 

 they were offered for sale. 



