172 GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. Mab. 



Your ideas are tiptop, friend II. My ex- *3 Per cent of the whole. One pound of sugar, 



perience has been exactly like your own. therefore, requires for its combustion about 68 ou- 



When the officers of our county fairs blun- bic feet of air. Supposing the bees to consume 



der, and make themselves a laughing-Stock half an ounce per day, or about a pound per month, 



for all bee-keepei'S, it is the fault Of the bee- and supposing the air space in a hive to be half a 



keepers, because they did not come and help cubic foot, to furnish the oxygen absolutely re- 



and properly post them. Perhaps the officers quired for the consumption of this small quantity 



Of some county fairs think they can not af- the air in the hive must be changed in one way or 



ford the amount of money ($27.00) in your another, at least once in every six hours. There is 



table ; but in such an event, the bee-keepers n0 escaping this conclusion, if this supply of air 



should turn in and help. After you have i8 C ut off, the bees will die just as certainly as the 



once showed the officers what you can do, machinery , n the -Home of the Honey-bees" 



and put up your display in good shape, 1 am would if tne da r8 were cloeed and the fur . 



sure they would not be at all backward in nace nermetically sealed . 

 giving you handsome encouragement ; and 



this State Of affairs is very much better than I may mention, incidentally, that the oxidation of 



fault-finding. If , after having done all you half an ounce of sugar in the bodies of the bees 



can, they should get hold Of a poor man for produces sufficient heat to raise the temperature of 



judge, and accord the premiums to a box- 23^ lbs. of water one degree. In both the above 



hive bee-keeper, don't find a bit Of fault, but cases, the sugar is assumed to be free of water. As- 



urge the importance next time of having a suming their food to contain 18 per cent of water, 



practical bee-mail for at least One Of the which is about the normal quantity in honey, the 



judges. oxidation of half an ounce of food would raise the 



"^* - ~* — ^"""' temperature of 13 lbs. of water one degree. Since 



THE FOOD QUESTION IN WINTERING the Quantity of carbon in honey and sugar is the 



BEES. same, their heat-producing powers should be the 



same, and experimental tests prove this to be the 



FRIEND CORNEIL TAKES FRIEND HEDDON TO TASK. case. 



The union of oxygen and carbon, besides gener- 



J^\EPLYING to question No. 97, in Gleanings, atina: a great amount of heat, produces a large 



EX Mr. James Heddon says it does not make quantity of carbonic acid, which is given off with 



MX much difference about ventilation, because the breath. To dilute this gas as fast as it is pro- 



■*^Y the whole matter of safe wintering hinges on duced, so as to render it harmless, the air in the 



the food. Since, of the thirteen bee-keepers hive must be changed every half-hour, assuming 



who send replies, Mr. Heddon is the only one who the consumption of stores and capacity of the hive 



ignores ventilation as a factor in wintering, it is to be the same as before. 



proper to inquire what are his views regarding food, The quantity of vapor produced by the consump- 



upon which, in his opinion, hinges all the chances tion of a pound of sugar can be shown to amount to 



of failure or success. about 16 cubic feet. This is an additional reason for 



Of sugar syrup he says, "It has heat-producing a steady change of the air in the hive, 

 elements to a greater degree than honey." He These statements of fact are in accord with the 

 says, " Syrup contains no nitrogen, but it does con- teachings of physiologists and scientists whose rep- 

 tain more oxygen " than .honey, and he says this utation is second to none in the world; and I would 

 oxygen is burned to keep up the temperature. Of ask Mr. Heddon to investigate what is known re- 

 pollen, he says, " Pollen is almost wholly nitrogen," garding these facts, and be prepared either to ad- 

 and " the consumption of nitrogen is the cause of mit their correctness, or to successfully controvert 

 the trouble." On this account he objects to honey, them, 

 because it often contains floating pollen. "From the researches of Dr. A. de Planta, as to 



In a recent article, Mr. Heddon says, "When the the chemical composition of hazel pollen, we learn 



bees find themselves unable to keep up the proper that the contents of pollen grains consists of proto- 



temperature by the burning of oxygen derived from plasm, starch, and oils. After thorough drying, the 



the honey and sugar syrup they consume, they add to residue remaining consists of 31.63 per cent of nitro- 



it combustion from that taken in in the air they geneous matter, 64.36 per cent of non-nitrogeneous 



breathe." Honey and sugar are built up of carbon, substances, and 4.01 per cent of ash. The non-nitro- 



with twice as much hydrogen as oxygen. This is genous portion contained no glucose, but cane 



precisely the proportion in which these two ele- sugar was proved to be present to the extent of 14.70 



ments are united in water. Neither the one nor per cent, and starch to the extent of 5.26 per cent." 



the other plays any part whatever in heat produc- —LB. B. J., 1886, p. 286.] 



tion, when combined as they are in this case. That In an analysis of pollen given by the late Arthur 



depends entirely upon the quantity of carbon pres- Todd, B. B. J., 1883, p. 14, we find : 



ent, and upon the requisite quantity of oxygen be- Water 12.74 per cent. 



ingtaken in, by breathing, to oxidize it. The oxy- £8^^; ;";::;..\7.7 /.jEwKSK 



gen which takes part in heat production is not taken Sugar 26.20 percent. 



into the alimentary canal, and is therefore neither Nitrogenous organic sub's 36.59 per cent. 



meat nor drink, but it passes from the air, taken in Albumen, which is shown to be present to the ex- 



by breathing, into the blood by diffusion, and by tent of 21.75 per cent, contains about 15 per cent of 



diffusion also from the blood into the tissues; hence nitrogen, or 3.26 per cent of the whole. The whole 



the necessity for a change of air in the hive, be- amount of nitrogen present was less than 40 per 



cause "one pound of carbon requires for its com- cent in this case, and less than 32 per cent in the 



bustion 158 cubic feet of air."— [Butler on Ventila- former one. These analyses hardly justify any one 



tion of Buildings.] in saying " pollen is almost wholly nitrogen." In 



The quantity of carbon in one pound of sugar is the latter case the carbon in the sugar present 



