10 



ULEAMIJNUS IN IJKh: CUl/rUKE. 



Jan. 1. 



years or more of the past. I advise all to go 

 slow who are not sure that the plan of winter- 

 ing bees und<!r snow is a success with them. 

 Try only a few at first, till you know of a cer- 

 tainty that you arc right: and then, if your 

 experience proves diflVrcnt from mine, do as 

 you like with the wholi^ a|)iary. 

 Borodino, N. Y., Dec. 15. (t. M. Dooi.itti-k. 



SUGAR-SYRUP HONEY. 



I'HOF. COOK KKI'I.IKS TO Mil. DADANT AND 



on IK Its. 



Digestion is the process wlnsreby th(^ food is 

 so changed that it may pass through an animal 

 membrane, or fiom the alimentai'y canal — the 

 stomach and .intestines— to the blood. As this 

 process is by osmosis, we may say that digestion 

 is rendering the food osiiioiic. Usually this is 

 simply liquefying llu; foo<l, though in some 

 cases, as in blood albumen, the food is already 

 liquid, but not osmotic, and so must tie digested. 

 I would not say that digestion is the litting of 

 the food lor assimilalion. for this is not true. 

 Some of the digest^ed food, a^ soon as it g(^ts 

 into the l)lood. is cliaugi'd agiiin to lit it for 

 assimilation. Tliis is tiue of all ilui peptone, or 

 digested all)uminoids. I l)eli(!V(! no scientist 

 will take issue wiili my delinitioii of digestion. 

 The •'Century Dictionary"' givtis just this 

 dehnition. as does Flint in ilu^ last edition of 

 his Physiology, lie says it is tin? change pr(^- 

 paratory to absorption. 



We eat three kinds of food that need diges- 

 tion: the others aie already osmotic. These 

 are starch and cane sugar; albuminous foods, 

 such as cheese, white of eggs, muscle, etc.; and 

 fats. 



The starch is slightly digested, or changed 

 into glucose, by the saliva. But as this is stop- 

 ped by the acid gastric juice of the stomach, it 

 is unimportant. Yet the sugar so formed needs 

 no furtlier digestion, but is absorbed at once 

 into the blood. The most of the starch, the 

 cane sugar, and all of th(^ fats, are digested, not 

 in tlie stomach, but in the small intestines, by 

 the pancreatic juice— a juice secreted by the 

 pancreas, a large gland lying just back of and 

 below the stomach— th(! most important organ, 

 indeed, of digestion. Here the remaining starch 

 and cane sugar are changed into glucose, and 

 the fat changed into an emulsion, called cliyle, 

 which can be taken u]) by the lacteal vessels 

 and carried into the blood. The albuminoids 

 are digested, usually, by the gastric juice, which 

 is peculiar among tlie digestive juices in being 

 acid. This is all the digestion that is accom- 

 plished in the stomach. Indeed, this does not 

 n(H^d to be done in the stomach, for. if not done 

 iiere. an element of the pancrc^atic juice will do 

 it. This is why a stomacii is not essential to 

 life, and why, in case of cancers and tumors, 

 the whole stomach has been removed, and yet 

 the person so treated recovc^rs and is entirely 

 sound and able-bodied. VV(> speak of the value 

 of a good stomach, and it is very desirable; but 

 W(> see from tlie above tluit a good pancreas is 

 much more necessary- Tlie cane sugar is 

 changed to glucose (physiologists say, and cor- 

 n^ctly, too, digested), in the intestines, by the 

 pancreatic juice. Flint says, last edition of 

 Physiology,' page 171, "All th(^ sugar of the food 

 is converted into glucose t)eforeit is taken into 

 the blood." He says, page 348, that the i)an- 

 creatic juice digests or transforms cane sugar 

 into glucose. This is just what the bees do for 

 us in case we eat honey instead of cane sugar. 

 Yet I do not think this glucose is identical with 

 that made in the staich-factories. The chem- 

 ist detects no difference, but the physiologist 



does. In such matters the. physiologist is much 

 better authority than the clnsmist. His reagents 

 are more sensitive. Every intelligent bee- 

 keeper is uhysiologist enough to refute the 

 ablest chemist in this matter. So long as our 

 bees refuse conunercial glucose until forced to 

 take it, and so long as it is fed with fatal effects 

 for winter use, so long is the argument with the 

 be(!- keeper- physiologist. 



A word as to chym<! and chyle. The lirst 

 word refers to the mat(!iial in tlu; stomach, 

 which, as we see. is of a varied nature. It con- 

 sists of the aJbuminoids move, oi' less digested, 

 and the starch, except the very small amount 

 digested in the mouth by saliva, the fat, and 

 cane sugar. Of course, the word is no longer of 

 any use in hutnail physiology,. and we do not 

 find it at all in many physiologies. It is a goo(l 

 term for the food of be(!-larv;e. Chyle is used 

 to dc^signate the digest(!d fats, which are taken 

 up by the lacteals. 



I have always enjoyed reading Mr. Dadant's 

 articles, even though controversial, as they are 

 candid and caut-iou>. I was suriiri-^ed. however, 

 at his representation of iiiy r(t'»\s in Gi.kan- 

 INGS. Nov. 1.5. p. 833. 1 should not have recog- 

 nized them at all. H^ says. " Prof. Cook can 

 boast of being tli(^ first who wrote that the 

 more o> less complete change of food by its 

 mixture with gastric juice is digestion." I 

 must (litTer. as I nev(U' said or wrote any such 

 thing. From what I have* said above, it will be 

 seen tliat any such assertion would bf absurd. 

 I am Vf^y SOI ry that my friend has any such 

 impiession. anu I can not se(^ how lu'gotit. If 

 I have written so carelessly as to give any such 

 impression. I l)eg pardon, and will be grateful 

 to be referred to the article. Mr. Dadant says. 

 "Of cotirse, no savant will say that starch is 

 digested before going into the stomach." I beg 

 pardon; but I think that every physiologist 

 will say that some starch is digestisd in the 

 month. Mr. Dadant is surely alone in this 

 view. Every word that Mr. Dadant quotes in 

 his article from scientists can not hit me very 

 hard, for it is all true, and I accept all of it. 



I do say that honey is digested nectar, and I 

 certainly believe that every physiologist — I 

 should not go to a chemist, as this is not in his 

 line — will sustain me, whether he be Ameri- 

 can or Euroi)ean. They say that cane sugar 

 eaten by us is digested or transformed by the 

 pancreatic juice. They say the bees do the 

 same thing, and Mr. Dadant knows it. I feed 

 33 lbs. of cane sugar at night, and extract it the 

 next morning, and there is eight per cent of 

 cane sugar and (u per cent of glucose. Now, 

 friend Dadant, you know that the secretion of 

 the bees transformed this. If you prefer, say 

 transformed. All physiologists call it digestion, 

 whether in America or France. It is digestion, 

 and why not say so? And, friend Root, Cowan 

 does agree with me exactly. On page 7 of his 

 excellent book he says: "The nectar which 

 was gathered from the; flowers has been 

 converted into honey by a secretion derived 

 from the salivary glands." Page 119. he says: 

 "The production of a secretion to assist diges- 

 tion to convi'vt the cane sugar of nectar into 

 the grape sugar of honey." And ho quotes 

 Planta. who is surely a savant, to the same pur- 

 port. Cheshire, vol. I., pp. 100 and 2(53, gives 

 exactly the same explanation. So you see, 

 friend Root, both Cowan and Cheshire — yes, 

 and Planta — yes, ctal., I am sure, of scientists, 

 teach this, for it is the truth in the matter. 

 Two things I like very much: First, to be right; 

 and, second, to have the support and sympathy 

 of my friends. In this matter of sugar-syrup 

 honey I candidly believe I am right. I wish I 

 had the support of my friends, for I like all of 

 my friends to be on ihe side of the truth. 



