THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



697 



Among them, and well worthy of 

 notice, is a new method of fastening 

 comb foundation in sections, by 

 means of an ingenious little machine, 

 in which heat is applied to the sec- 

 tion and pressure to the comb foun- 

 dation. Confectionery of various 

 kinds, prepared with honey, made an 

 attractive display, but it is very 

 doubtful if honey can be economically 

 substituted for sugar in such prepara- 

 tions. Properly speaking, honey is 

 itself a confection. It should not be 

 brought into competition with sugar 

 as a sweetener, being Itself a perfect 

 sweet-meat from nature's pantry. 



On the whole, the exhibit of honey 

 and apiarian supplies at the recent 

 Toronto Industrial proved conclu- 

 sively that bee-keeping is abreast 

 with other lines of productive busi- 

 ness, both in methods and results. 

 Visitors from abroad, competent to 

 judge, did not hesitate to pronounce 

 the opinion that no country in the 

 world can surpass Canada, either in 

 the excellence of its honey or the 

 skillfulness of management on the 

 part of its bee-keepers. 



For the American Bee JoumaL 



THe Season of 1887, etc. 



J. V. CALDWELI,. 



The harvest is past, and the summer 

 is ended— and I have no honey. 



This has been the poorest season 

 for honey since I have been in the 

 business except one, in 1879. I had 

 to feed a large amount of sugar syrup 

 for winter stores. I have just finished 

 fixing up my bees for the winter by 

 equalizing stores ; there is enough for 

 all. They are all in excellent condi- 

 tion for 'winter, and if it was not for 

 the reason that the clover is badly 

 killed by the dry weather, and con- 

 sequently not so good a prospect for 

 next season, I would be contented, as 

 I believe that the failure this season 

 will result in better prices for several 

 years to come. The country will be 

 cleared of the overstock of honey. 

 What little honey consumers get this 

 winter will be at a better price, and 

 it will be easy to keep the price up for 

 some time. 



And it will close out a lot of small 



Eroducers, who, if they have a few 

 undred pounds of honey, rush it 

 into market at any price, thinking 

 they are going to ^lut the market. 

 One of that kind lives a few miles 

 from me. He had 18 colonies last 

 spring. He bought 8 pounds of foun- 

 dation and 500 section boxes. About 

 the time clover began to bloom, he 

 came to town and went around to the 

 stores and to private houses engaging 

 honey in sections at 10 cents per 

 pound. Well, he did not bring very 

 much honey ; he was getting the 

 " bulge " on me in selling his honey. 

 This same man came to me a few 

 days ago, to learn how to feed his 

 bees. 1 told him that he had better 

 get some book on bee-keeping, and 

 subscribe for a bee-paper. I used to 

 have a good home market for my 

 honey, but a few of the same kind as 



the man I have mentioned, spoiled 

 my trade last season. I sold but little 

 comb honey at home, and could not 

 do as well as to ship it. 



I have a little of last year's honey 

 on hand ; not much, but I am getting 

 my own price when I let it go. From 

 what 1 can learn from small bee- 

 keepers in this vicinity, I think there 

 will be but few bees left in the spring, 

 many colonies are dead now. 



INVENTION OF THE TIN-T CASES. 



As there is considerable talk about 

 T-tin cases, I would like to know 

 who is entitled to the honor of having 

 first made and used them. My neigh- 

 bor. Mr. J. B. Keeler, and myself 

 made and used them in 1876, and 

 have used them ever since. Who 

 made and used them before the Cen- 

 tennial year ? 



MARKET REPORTS OF HONEY. 



A short time ago, I thought, as I 

 was going to St. Louis, that I would 

 buy a lot of both extracted and comb 

 honey, as the prices quoted in the 

 Bee Journal would give me a good 

 profit, for I could readily sell comb 

 honey for 20 cents, and extracted at 

 i2H cents per pound. The price of 

 comb honev was reported at 10 to 12 

 cents, and "extracted in barrels at 4J^ 

 to 5% cents. I called, and found the 

 commission house had on hand two 

 .5-gallon cans, and six quart-jars of 

 California honev : but not a pound of 

 comb honev in the shop ! They 

 thought I could not get it in the city, 

 as honey was very scarce, and none 

 coming in. Query: How did that 

 firm know that 10 to 12 cents per 

 pound was all that comb honey would 

 bring in the market V 



I went to nearly all the dealers, and 

 could not find a pound of comb honey. 

 A house that has sold a great deal of 

 honey for me, said that they . could 

 easilv get 20 cents for such as I 

 usually sent them, if they had it. 

 Valuable market report ! 



Carlinville,© Ills., Oct. 22, 1887. 



[Such market reports are an insult 

 to bee-keepers.— Ed.] 



Gleanings. 



Bees in tlie Cnmlierlanil Monntains. 



DR. O. M. BLANTON. 



Here I am, far away from home, at 

 Mount Eagle, Grundy County, Tenn., 

 on the Sewanee range of the Cumber- 

 land Mountains, 2,300 feet above the 

 level of the sea. This is a health-re- 

 sort, conducted on the plan of Chau- 

 tauqua, in New York, where persons 

 can enjoy themselves in religious ex- 

 ercises, lectures on various scientific 

 subjects, and the study of all branches 

 of learning in the schools here estab- 

 lished for the mental improvement of 

 the visitors assembled. 



The atmosphere is balmy and 

 health-giving, with a temperature 

 during the summer months of 65'^ to 

 8.5°. The top of this mountain-range 

 is a plateau extending fifty by about 

 five miles wide, with some of the 

 grandest scenery the lover of nature 

 could desire. 



I here met Mr. Albert Wells, of 

 South Pittsburg, Tenn., an old bee- 

 keeper who has an apiary of 30 colo- 

 nies three miles from this village, 

 located on a cliff that commands the 

 view of Battle Creek Valley, with its 

 grand palisades, coves, and chasms. 

 On the plateau there is a great variety 

 of honey plants, such as goldenrod, 

 eupatorium (boneset), asters, and 

 lespedeza (Japan clover) ; also trees 

 and shrubs ; chestnut, black locust, 

 sourwood. and sumac. I observed in 

 the fields, on the commons, roadsides, 

 and every open space in the forests, 

 lespedeza growing in the greatest 

 luxuriance. As to its capacity to 

 produce nectar for bees, I know noth- 

 ing ; but for iis presence, cattle would 

 suffer during the winter months. 



The sides of the mountains and the 

 valleys below are rich in the most 

 valuable timber, such as poplar, bass- 

 wood, black locust, walnut, oak, and 

 hickory, with redbud, dogwood, and 

 red-haw. The usual wild flowers 

 (perennials) abound, and are prolific 

 in nectar, owing to the rich and damp 

 soil with its many delightful springs. 



The bowels of the earth abound in 

 coal and iron. The railroad running 

 along the crest of the mountain was 

 constructed for the conveyance of coal 

 and coke from the mines. I consider 

 this a paradise for the beekeeper, es- 

 pecially when in quest of health. 



With the exception of Mr. Wells, 

 all keep their bees in " gums," as 

 their forefattiers did. Mr. Wells' bees 

 are in good condition, although his 

 yield of honev has been small, owing 

 to ill-health preventing the proper at- 

 tention being given them. I shall try 

 a few here next year, as an experi- 

 ment and pleasant pastime, with the 

 hope of stimulating the old-fashioned 

 bee-keepers to scientific methods of 

 handling bees. 



My apiaries at home, Greenville, 

 Miss., I farmed out to my head bee- 

 keeper, Mr. Alfred Latta, on shares ; 

 and from what 1 can learn they will 

 not yield more than half a crop- 

 about 20,000 pounds. 



The cold spring, with excessive 

 rains in June and Julv, and severe 

 drouth in Au£;ust and September, are 

 the causes. I return home in a few 

 days, as the forests are putting on 

 the sere and yellow leaf, and the cot- 

 ton harvest of the valley is demand- 

 ing my attention. 



Mont Eagle,© Tenn., Sept. 28, 1887. 



For the American Bee Joumai. 



My Experience w itli Bees, etc. 



H. BRAMLET. 



I commenced 3 years ago with one 

 colony of black bees, and I wintered 

 them on the summer stands, on from 

 5 to 7 Langstroth frames. I began 

 the season of 1887 with 13 colonies, 

 and now have 23 in fair condition, 

 without feeding. I realized $15 from 

 the sale of bees and honey, after pay- 

 ing for four queens from four differ- 

 ent breeders ; and " last but not 

 least," our own table has been pretty 

 well supplied. My bees are Italians 



