102 



THE BEE-KEEPERS ' REVIEW. 



calling our honey "Southern strained" when 

 it is extracted and put up just as other folks 

 doit — I don't see how the Eeview can be 

 improved, as it is the best paper on the sub- 

 ject that I read. — My preference is, iirst, 

 editorials; second, correspondence; third, 

 extracts. The first number of the Review 

 was good, and every change has been an 

 improvement. — When using a shallow frame, 

 isn't there trouble from pollen being carried 

 into the sections? Would not that be a good 

 topic for discussion? — By all means let us 

 have the leaders. It might make it a little 

 easier for some of your correspondents if 

 the leaders were left out, but I hardly think 

 any of your readers would wish them ex- 

 cluded." 



Friends, I know this little "by talk" is in- 

 teresting, but it must be cut off for this 

 month, at least. That leaders are needed 

 there is no question. In my leader of last 

 month, I omitted to mention the plan of 

 covering a large surface of comb with a wire 

 cloth cage, the same as with the Peet cage, 

 only on a larger scale. More than half of 

 the articles sent in, mention this plan, and 

 go into details. There is no use in publish- 

 ing several such descriptions. No corres- 

 pondent can know what the others will say, 

 but no one will describe in detail what has 

 already appeared in the leader. The leaders 

 will be continued, covering the ground as 

 clearly and concisely as possible and also as 

 exhaustively as space will admit. Then I 

 wish the readers of the Review to review the 

 leaders. If there are mistakes, errors, omis- 

 sions or fallacious ideas, point them out. 

 In return I will review the work of my re- 

 viewers, giving a general suniming up. In 

 this way we shall get at nearly all of the 

 facts in the case. 



I am grateful to those who have written so 

 kindly, and I wish more would do so. The 

 advise of one correspondent, "that I don't 

 allow myself to be advised clear out of my- 

 self," is timely; but there is no danger of 

 that. A man might be capable of making 

 a journal that would suit a large class of 

 people, yet fail from a lack of knowledge of 

 what this class of people desired. It is an 

 advantage to ;in editor to be in touch with 

 his readers, to know when he is {)leasing 

 them and icliy. 



Another thing. I wish each reader would 

 write to the Review the moment he finds 

 something with which he does not agree; 

 write when he is remii'ded that he knows 



better, than the one who is writing, how this 

 thing should be done; write when he wishes 

 information upon any point, be it ever so 

 small; write when information is asked for 

 that he can give. Oftentimes, all that is 

 necessary can be written upon a postal. 

 Readers, the Review is as much yours as it is 

 mine, and if you will only allow me to be one 

 among you, to become so near to you that I 

 can feel your needs, the Review will be the 

 more helpful for such acquaintanceship. 



THE ADULTEBATION OF HONEY. 



The suggestion of a "trade mark" has 

 again brought this topic uppermost. Before 

 touching upon the trade mark, let us try and 

 get at some of the basic principle ; under- 

 lying the whole question. 



Why is honey adulterated ? Simply because 

 there is a profit in the transaction. If honey 

 is ever raised at so little expense that it can 

 be sold as low as glucose or as sugar may yet 

 be ?old, adulteration of honey will at once 

 cease. I believe this point has been reached 

 in California. I once thought that we were 

 paying too much attention to methods of 

 management for cheapening the production 

 of honey, as compared with our attempts at 

 improving our methods of marketing and 

 the maintaining of high prices. Probably 

 it would be a difficult matter to convince 

 some of us that we were ever getting too 

 much for our honey. But the point I wish 

 to make is this : Large crops of honey sold 

 at low prices are more desirable than small 

 crops that cannot be sold at prices that are 

 higher in proportion to the diminished 

 quantity of honey. In other words, honey is 

 a luxury, and the price loill »of advance in 

 proportion to its scarcity. Supply and de- 

 mand affect the iirice of honey in the same 

 manner that they do other commodities, 

 with this exception : after the price has gone 

 up until it has reached a certain stage, it can 

 be forced no higher, let the quantity be 

 never so small. People simply do without 

 it. Not so with flour, butter, potatoes, coal, 

 or any staple commodity that people must 

 have. Hence it will be seen that large crops 

 of honey, cheaply raised, are more to be de- 

 sired than small crops raised at a greater 

 expense. Although it is not the usual prac- 

 tice of essayists to state their conclusions at 

 the beginning of their essays, I am going to 

 say right here that I have more faith in 

 cheap honey to prevent adulteration than I 



