278 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



April 14, 1904. 



come vineg^ar ; and if still left exposed to a moist air it 

 would finally become water, and in time the water would 

 evaporate, leaving only a dry sediment in the bottom of the 

 jar. Now this latter ferment (bacterium lineola) is a true 

 bacterium, and can work only on the surface, as it is of 

 aerobic nature. Hence the larger the surface exposed to the 

 air the more rapid will be the changing of the alcohol into 

 acetic acid or vinegar. 



Now as to " adding water to the honey in the beginning, 

 to make it more favorable to decomposition," honey con- 

 tains formic acid in sufficient quantity to make it an anti- 

 septic to some extent, preventing work of decomposition, 

 but in an atmosphere heavily laden with moisture the organ- 

 isms will be greatly aided in decomposing the honey, and if 

 some water be added it will become still more favorable. 



Alcohol can be oxydized into acetic acid chemically by 

 platinum black without the aid of a ferment. Now, right 

 here let me tell of an experiment I made this winter. Now 

 these ferments are to be found on the skins of nearly all 

 fruits in summer, and in the air, but in the winter they are 

 usually dormant, and probably not to be found in the air in 

 very cold weather ; so I took about 2>2 pounds of honey and 

 mixed with water so as to make a gallon. I put this in a 

 jar and set in a warm place near the stove. After three 

 weeks it was found to be still only sweetened water, and the 

 water had evaporated so that there was hardly 3 quarts left. I 

 then poured in ,' . teacupful of good cider- vinegar, and in less 

 than two weeks it was good vinegar ; so it would seem that 

 the proper organisms were not present until I poured in the 

 vinegar containing these proper ferments. The vinegar no 

 doubt contained both the alcoholic and acetic ferments. 

 Probably a few apple-parings would have given similar re- 

 sults, as they usually contain both of these organisms. 



Now, water is ' ! oxygen, and the air is 1-5 oxygen, and 

 the acid forming ferments draws oxygen from the air and 

 transfers it to the alcohol, so it may seem that the bulk 

 would be increased; but in making this change other proper- 

 ties are lost, so the weight would be less, and probably bulk 

 also. In answer to the first question, as to what law in 

 chemistry furnishes moisture for the air, I would say. 

 Evaporation. As to how much faster honey would decom- 

 pose if mixed with half its weight in water, I am sure I 

 don't know. It would very much depend upon whether 

 aerobes or anaerobes were the agents of decomposition. Also 

 different temperatures favor different organisms ; some pre- 

 fer 100 degrees, some a lower temperature, but all living 

 micro-organisms require moisture for rapid propagation, 

 hence adding water to the extent of a half would favor them 

 in that respect. Also the proportion of formic acid to the 

 whole would be less, hence more favorable. 



Knox Co., 111. 



I Convention Proceedings ) 



Report of the Ontario Bee-Keepers' Convention 

 Held in Trenton, Dec. 1, 2, and 3, 1903. 



BY MORI,KY PETTIT. 



(Continued from pa^re 264.) 

 SIZE OF HIVB — RBPAIRING HIVB-COVERS. 



" What size of hive would you recommend 7" 



C. W. Post — Nine or more frames. 



" How repair covers which leak ?" 



Mr. Post — Cover with tin, and paint over the tin. 



CLOSTNG HIVE-ENTRANCKS FOR MOVING. 



"How would you close the entrances of hives for mov- 

 ing ?" 



Mr. Post — We have for the top a frame the size of hive, 

 and an inch or so deep, covered with wire-cloth. Slim wire 

 nails are driven through this frame into the top of the hive. 

 The same sort of frame is fastened on with Van Deusen 

 hive clamps in place of the bottom-board. The screen on 

 the bottom-frame is next the hive. These arrangements are 

 left on all through the swarming season, and almost en- 

 tirely prevent swarming. 



R. F. Holtermann said he was sorry so clever a man as 



Mr. Post was so far behind the times in the matter of shut- 

 ting in bees for moving. He then described the Holtermann 

 portico. The sides of the hive project about 3 inches in 

 front, and have a board cover to form a portico. During 

 the day a screen can be slid part way down in grooves for 

 the purpose, then in the evening, after the bees quit flying, 

 drop the screens, confining them to the portico, not to the 

 hive. Half the colony can hang out in this portico, if they 

 wish, the entrance is never choked, and the bees can be 

 safely moved in the hottest weather without other ventila- 

 tion. 



BEE-ESCAPES— PREVENTING INC REASE. 



" Do you use bee-escapes ?" 



Mr. Post — Yes, for taking off comb honey ; not for ex- 

 tracted — it gets too cold. 



"How would you prevent increase in working for ex- 

 tracted honey ?" 



Mr. Post — Give lots of surplus room, screen the bottom- 

 boards, and screens on top. Some hives have two supers, 

 some three, and some four. 



Messrs. Dickenson, Pettit, Hall, Holtermann, and others 

 said this did not prevent swarming for them. 



Mr. Pettit — Swarms would not stay hived for me on, 

 such bottom-boards. If an ordinary bottom-board were 

 used for a few days, then wire-cloth substituted, they would 

 swarm out. 



Mr. Hall — In our country it would not succeed. It must 

 be a difference in the locality. 



HIVING SWARMS ON STARTERS, HALF OR FULL SHEETS. 



" Would you hive swarms on starters, half sheets, or 

 full sheets of foundation ?" 



Mr. Post — For comb honey, hive on starters ; for ex- 

 tracted honey, hive on full sheets or drawn combs. 



Mr. Pettit — From a limited number of experiments we 

 find swarms hived on drawn combs prepare to swarm just 

 three weeks after hiving. 



A member said if hived on starters they were no good 

 for buckwheat. 



Mr. Holtermann — It does not do to have combs below 

 and foundation above, or vice versa. You must use combs 

 in both super and brood-chamber as far as they go, then 

 foundation in both. They will, in a good honey-flow, draw 

 out 12 frames of foundation in 48 hours. 



Mr. Edmondson said he had found where combs were 

 given in the super and only foundation below, that they 

 would desert the brood-chamber and have sealed honey 

 above before touching the foundation below. This with an 

 excluder on, too. 



LARGE VS. SMALL BROOD CHAMBERS. 



Then, as often during the convention, the discussion 

 got off on the matter of large vs. small brood-chambers. 



Mr. Post said that if you got an 8 quart swarm from an 

 8-frame hive, then you would get a 12 quart swarm from a 

 12-frame hive. 



Mr. Holtermann had used both large and small hives, 

 and with good queens he found the former were filled with 

 brood and bees just as well as the latter. 



Mr. McEvoy would double up brood-chambers and have 

 a 16-frame brood-chamber ; with the 12-fraine he found 

 they soon settled down so that the queen occupied a smaller 

 number, and the balance were filled with honey. He pre- 

 ferred two 8-frame brood-chambers. 



Mr. Post said they would desert the lower. 



Mr. McEvoy was willing to go to the trouble of putting 

 the queen below every few weeks. 



Messrs. Dickenson and Shaver said they could beat Mr. 

 Holtermann producing honey, they using a 9 frame and he 

 the 12-frame hive. 



Mr. Hall preferred the llframe hive. 



Mr. Holtermann — It does not do to compare average re- 

 sults between a man with 400 colonies and one with ()0. But 

 with the 12-frame hive some last summer filled four 12- 

 frame supers full of light-colored honey — Langstroth 

 frames. 



Mr. Post — You can easily reduce the size of a large 

 hive, but you can not enlarge a small one. 



DEPTH OF FRAMES— OUT-APIARIES. 



" What depth of frame would you prefer for extracting?" 

 Mr. Post — The regular Eangstroth depth. 

 " Would you bring out-apiaries home for winter 7" 

 Mr. Post— Yes. 



