Dec. 1, 1904. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Conducted by Emma M. Wilson, MareDgo, 111. 



809 



Propolis as a Deodorizer and Perfume. 



A foreign journal advises that all scrapings of propolis 

 be saved. A piece as big as a hazelnut may be burned on a 

 hot shovel to deodprize a sickroom. One can easily believe 

 that the aromatic odor coming from the heated propolis vsrill 

 be more agreeable than the burning sugar so commonly 

 used. It is also recommended to be put in linen-drawers to 

 give a mildly pleasant perfume. Have any of the sisters 

 ever tried it for this latter purpose ? 



Greater Use of Honey in Cooking. 



It is probably time to urge again the importance of a 

 greater use of honey in cooking. The sisters are the ones 

 who have in hand the making of " sweeties." Not that the 

 amount of honey used in the families of bee-keepers would 

 be enough to make any great difference in the honey 

 market — although every little helps — but such things are 

 "catching", and if one woman makes honey-cakes, or 

 honey-cookies, the recipe will be called for by a dozen 

 others, especially if the product be good, which it may be. 



Perhaps the one main reason why honey is not more 

 largely used in place of sugar is because the sugar is 

 cheaper. Some may be surprised to hear that in some cases 

 honey is cheaper than sugar, but a little reasoning will 

 make it seem not so surprising. It is a well established 

 fact, although not so well known as it should be, that when 

 honey is used the cake or cookies produced will keep much 

 longer than if sugar be used — 3 times, perhaps 10 times as 

 long. Now when a batch of sweets is made, it is often de- 

 sirable that they be kept for some little time, but when 

 sugar is used the whole thing must be used up in a very 

 short time or it becomes too dry and stale for use. On the 

 contrary, if honey be used the freshness continues for 



weeks, or even months. So it may be cheaper to use honey 

 at 3 prices, where it will last many times as long. The 

 honey is more wholesome, too ; especially where there is 

 the least kidney trouble. 



In almost any case — possibly in every case — honey may 

 take the place of sugar in cookery, bearing in mind the 

 liquid condition of the honey, and remembering that |less 

 liquid of any other sort must be used with the honey. 



" Squares of Delight "—Honey-Cookies. 



The following recipe is taken from the Delineator : 



" Squares of Delight. — Boil two pounds of sugar and 

 one pint of water together until a little dropped into cold 

 water can be rolled into a brittle ball. Moisten 10 ounces of 

 cornstarch with enough water from a pint to make a thin 

 paste. Heat the remainder of the water to the boiling 

 point, and add it, with a pound of powdered sugar, to the 

 dissolved cornstarch and cook over the fire for 10 minutes 

 after the paste is clear. Slowly pour it into the sugar 

 syrup, add a ;4 pound of extracted honey and ,'+ ounce of 

 powdered tartaric acid. Flavor with rose or any fruit fla- 

 voring, and add ^4 pound of chopped almonds. Return to 

 the fire and cook until it will not adhere to the fingers when 

 lightly touched. Cool in an oiled straight-.sided pan, and 

 when cold cut in squares with a sharp knife." 



Here's still another recipe for honey-cookies that comes 

 from across the water : 



" One tablespoon extracted honey ; one pint sour cream; 

 one teaspoon soda ; flavor, if desired; make a soft paste 

 with flour." 



Doesn't seem as if that would be very sweet ; but some 

 don't like things very sweet. 



The " Old Reliable " seen througb New and Unreliable Glasses. By E. E. Hasty, Sta. B Rural, Toledo, Ohio. 



A SWARM OF BEES AND RHYMES. 



• What a trying-to-patience fellow W. A. Pryal is ! 

 Assumes that my poetical box of starch and chunk of cheese 

 must be small ones — too small for the purpose — and then 

 scolds about his own assumption, and then — who would 

 think it ? — tries to sic me onto February ! I'm not afraid of 

 February ; no true old bachelor is. 



A swarm of bees in February 



Is worth a new silk dress for Sarey. 



A swarm of bees in March 



Is worth a [100-lb.J box of starch. 



An April swarm of bees 



Is worth a [40-lb.J chunk of cheese. 



A swarm of bees in May 



Is worth a [half-ton] load of hay. 



A swarm of bees in .June 



Is worth a [small-sized] silver spoon. 



A swarm of bees in .July 



Ain't worth a fly. [i.e. Not so valuable as the silver one 

 on Sarey 's hat. j 



But it's, very painful for Pegasus to have to explain 

 himself so. The Society for Preventing Cruelty to Ani- 

 mals will be after you, Mr. Pryal. Page 762. 



EXCHANGING BEES WHEN INTRODUCING QUEENS. 



So Mississippi has tried the new kink of substituting 

 the attendant bees in the cage by some of the queen's 

 future subjects — and they rudely grabbed hold of her. 

 That's just the kind of things we want to be finding out. 

 As Dr. Miller suggests, selected young bees would be much 

 less liable to behave in that way. Whoever catches young 

 bees doing so should make haste to inform us. Page 714. 



CLIPPED QUEENS AND SWARMING. 



That bees should carry a clipped queen at swarming- 

 time and take her ofi' for a quarter of a mile will strike 

 some readers as enormously unreasonable and absurd. I, 

 myself, hardlj- think they actually did it ; but there is no 

 absurdity about it. Nothing but lack of forethought and 

 lack of drill keeps them from abolishing the clipping of 

 queens altogether. No one would clip if they a/ways car- 

 ried off the clipped queens. To carry off a dead comrade 

 and drop it at a distance is in regular line of duty. Some- 

 times one that isn't dead yet but kicking and resisting will 

 also be carried off. A queen is somewhat heavier, to be 

 sure, but then several could take hold at once if they did it 

 just right. Kind o' runs in my mind that I have seen two 

 fly together with a dead bee. For Mr. Gustave Gross to 

 get his hat-brim within two feet of the entrance while 



