lANUARY 1, 1915 



I hero is I lie danger of the colonies belonging 

 (o neighbors getting a part of the supplies; 

 next, the needs of the colonics are not al- 

 ways in proportion to the numerical strength 

 of the colony. Instead of putting open food 

 out in tlie morning I prefer to put it out 

 as late as possible in the afternoon so long 

 as the bees can get it before it is too cool 

 and dark for them to fly. 



SUGAR SYRUP TURNED INTO BEESWAX. 



Mr. Editor, will you let me suggest a 

 solution to your statement that your fore- 

 man, by feeding one quart of sugar syrup, 

 half sugar and half water, had six frames 

 of foundation half drawn out f My solution 

 is that the side wall of the comb foundation 

 is often thinned and elongated, and there- 

 fore a large part of that side wall was made 

 out of the wax side wall, and perhaps a 

 part out of the base of the comb foundation. 

 To test this matter the frame with founda- 

 tion should be weighed when given to the 

 swarm, and then weighed after the syrup 

 luis been fed, and the foundation built or 

 drawn out. Some fifteen years ago I carried 

 on some experiments in connection with my 

 position as lecturer and experimenter in 

 apiculture at the Ontario Agricultural Col- 

 lege, and I blackened the wax of which the 

 foundation was made by stining lampblack 

 with the wax when melted. When the bees 

 were put on this foundation, and built the 

 comb thereon, there was no difficulty in 

 detecting, by the black or shade of black, 

 just how far and to what extent the bees 

 utilized the comb foundation. 



The report of these experiments is given 

 in full on pages 358-9 of the May 1st issue 

 for 18fl6. The following extracts from that 

 iej)ort have a bearing on this particular 

 • juestion : 



In our experiments, observations were talten along 

 various lines — first, as to what extent, if any, the 

 bees thin the base and side wall of the various thick- 

 nesses and kinds of comb foundation. Measurements 

 were made, whenever possible, of the weight of foun- 

 dation compared with the number of square feet, and 

 thickness of the base of foundation. Measurements 

 were taken of the comb at the base, the side wa'l 

 close to the base, and half an inch up the side wall. 

 The comb was put on ice to hardiMi it for the pur- 

 pose of more accurate measurement ; and three 

 measurements were taken in this case. 



Again, to see just how the bees utilized the comb' 

 foundation, tliree tanks of melted wax were pre- 

 pared. One was colored with a preparation of 

 alkanct, another with a preparation of carbon, and 

 the third was pure beeswax, uncolored. The various 

 stages in the manufacture of comb foundation were 

 carried out, giving comb foundation from each tank 

 ten, twelve, and fifteen feet square to the pound. 



These were placed side by side, and drawn out in 

 the upper stories by the bees. It was manifested in 

 various ways that the bees objected to the alkanet, 

 so this kind wa.s discarded. To the foundation, 

 rolore<l 1 lack with the preparation of carbon, the 

 Ices did not object. The object in placing founda- 

 tion made of ordinarj' wax alongside of the colored. 



13 



\v;is to make measurements of each kind when drawn 

 out by tlie bees. The measurements of the colored 

 aiul uncolored, being identical, gave us a basis for 

 I lie statement that the bees did not object to this 

 preparation; and the method of drawiii-r this out 

 was identical with that of ordinary foundulion. The 

 liise and lower part of the comb were not, as we 

 iiiiKht expect, of a black color, and the fresh and 

 added was white. Instead there is a regular grad- 

 uation from black at the base to white at the top 

 of the cell. Tlie heavier the foundation, the darker 

 the base and adjoining side wall. 



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Fig. 1. (c) — giving a side view of comb founda- 

 tion, 1.5 sq. ft. per pound; and the same after the 

 comb has been completed and capped by the bees. The 

 lioney has been extracted, and washed away from the 

 comb, and a section cut down, which, after a thor- 

 ough drying, has been filled with plaster of Paris. 



From the above it would appear reasonable to 

 expect that the bees keep adding scales of newly 

 secreted wax and then pulling the side wall, thus 

 decreasing gradually the percentage of colored wax. 

 We also conclude that the quality of wax used in 

 the foundation has an influence, not only on the 

 base, but, to a certain extent, in almost the entire 

 wall of the cell. The heavier the foundation, the 

 jjreater tlie influence on the side wall. Again, notes 

 were taken daily when the liees were beginning to 

 draw out the foundation; and although the heavier 

 foundation was scattered about in the various parts 

 of the upper stories, they gave the preference to the 

 heavier foundation, working on it first. Great cau- 

 tion must, of course, be observed in coming to con- 

 clusions. The bees, if the heavier foundation had 

 been taken away, might have been almost as willing 

 to go to work at once upon the lighter grade. At 

 present no way appears open for conducting a sat- 

 isfactory experiment to prove any thing in this di- 

 rection. The measurements taken at the base of the 

 wall, and half an inch from the base, all tend to 

 sliow that the wall is thicker at the base, and tapers, 

 becoming thinner at the mouth. So far as I am 

 aware, no one has ever made such measurements. 



The " Vandeusen " is a flat-bottom (unnatural) 

 foundation. The various specimens of this kind 

 wliich were put into the sections were partially 

 i-overed to prevent the bees from touching the cover- 

 vt\ portion. The remainder was left to the bees. In 

 every cjuse the bees changed the base from flat-bot- 

 loni to natural. 



