THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



3^7 



have done business through the asso- 

 ciation, tiien onlj- can it be said that 

 the bee-lieepers themselves, and not a 

 middleman, get all the profits. Right 

 here is the invincible superiority of 

 a co-operative business over all job- 

 bing methods, by which the difference 

 between buying and selling prices is 

 all absorbed by the unnecessary mid- 

 dleman. Many here in Colorado do 

 not understand this distinction yet. 

 but think we are a concern of bee- 

 keepers, it is true, but one that makes 

 honey off of other bee-keepers just as 

 a jobber does; whereas, we are in 

 reality a public channel of co-operative 

 sales (earlj- or late as desired) open 

 to all bee-keepers, who get back every 

 cent of the final proceeds of their 

 honey which is not used in the actual 

 cost of handling it, and who have it 

 in tlieir power to absolutely control its 

 policy through the election of such 

 men as they desire for officers. 



The provision that no rebates shall 

 be paid to those who become stock- 

 holders after August 1 is necessary in 

 order to prevent advantages being de- 

 rived from the investment of money 

 for too short a time after the season's 

 preparation is over, when it would do 

 little good for that year. 



It Avill be noticed that no provision 

 is made for a sinking fund. We have 

 an equivalent that is better, namely, 

 the stock itself. A special reserve 

 fund would be money taken from the 

 hands of individuals and put in the 

 power of a few, with all the attend- 

 ant possibilities of abuses. But as it 

 is, those who think the capital should 

 be larger have the power to make it 

 as large they please by simply buying 

 more stock, and this kind of capital 

 remains in the control of the members, 

 and is a reserve fund. 



Denver, Col., Nov. 13, 1902. 



HELPING ONE ANOTHER. 



Ny%../-^/^ 



BY R. G. AIKIN. 



Organization can aid in the Work. Suggestions as to 

 How Organization can be Accomplished. 



It is with pleasure that I note the 

 decided interest being manifested in 

 the question of organized marketing. 

 I hope to see the journals and con- 

 ventions so full of it that every bee- 

 keeper in the land will be brought to 

 think on the subject; and, having 

 thought, proceed to act. We cannot 

 act too soon, but action should not be 

 too hasty, nor without ripe and well 

 matured plans. Now that the subject is 

 getting warm, maybe the editor and 

 readers will not think it amiss for me 

 to rehash some of the thoughts I have 

 previously published; perhaps they 

 will be more warmly received than 

 heretofore. 



Mr. Editor, did you know that 1 

 was a crank? That is what some peo- 

 ple call me. Well, we cranks have 

 this satisfaction, that we are vision- 

 ary and see visions; and, somehow, 

 after we have been cranking about so 

 long, things begin to move, and our 

 visions came true. Some of us have 

 been cranking about this co-operative 

 marketing question for several years, 

 until there is pressure enough to be- 

 gin to move things. 



This is a big subject, but these are 

 days of big things, and the people who 

 will not do things in a big way are 

 left out in the cold. The anthracite 

 coal operators have been doing thlncB 



