1907.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



141 



THE BEE-KEEPING WORLD 



Stall Conlributors : F. Greiner, Adrian Cetaz 

 Conlribulions to this department are solicited from all quarters oi the earth 



BELGIUM. 



Stopping Swarms. 



Mr. Lacoppe Arnold says that last 

 June, he had a peculiar case of 

 swarming. On coming back home, he 

 found a primary swarm hanging to a 

 light, flexible branch of a small 

 sized tree. The swarm was exposed 

 to the sun. At the time he discov- 

 ered it, the bees were beginning to 

 leave. He tried to stop them with 

 water but failed. The swarm started 

 oflf and was crossing the Luxemburg 

 railroad when an express train hap- 

 pened to pass. The noise, the smoke 

 and steam disconcerted the swarm 

 completely. The bees divided, one 

 group came back home and the other 

 settled on some bushes near by. 



This gave him an idea. He took a 

 sky rocket, put it at the end of a 

 pole and exploded it in the middle of 

 the next swarm when it was in the 

 air. The efifect was the same. Half 

 of the bees returned to the parent 

 hive, and the others settled immedi- 

 ately in a hedge near by. 



Another swarm treated the same 

 way settled immediately in some 

 bushes near by. — Le Rucher Beige. 



Analyzing Honey. 



Dr. Haenle, professor of chemistry 

 at the Strassburg Institute has dis- 

 covered a process of analyzing honey 

 which enables him to discover any 

 adulteration. Mixtures prepared on 

 purpose were submitted to him, and 

 in every case he was able to detect 

 the adulteration, not only the kind, 

 but also the percentage added. — Le 

 Rucher Beige. 



Feeding Swarms. 



Mr. E. Ruffy advises to feed the 

 swarms. He says that it helps them 

 so much, that a fed swarm may give 

 a good surplus when if not fed, it 

 might not have made more than its 

 winter provisions. He also advises 

 to hive the swarm on a few frames 

 with starters only. And when these 

 frames are built and the swarm is be- 

 ginning to build drone combs, com- 

 plete the brood-nest with full sheets 

 of foundation. — Bulletin de la Suisse 

 Romande. 



An Old Method of Detecting Adul- 

 terated Wax. 



Sometimes the substances added to 

 the wax change either the point of 

 fusion or the density. In the ab- 

 sence of special instruments, the 

 change can be detected by the two 

 following processes. 



1st: As to the density. Make two 

 small pieces of the same size and 

 form, one of the wax to try and the 

 other of pure wax. Put the pure wax 

 in a glass of water. Add enough al- 

 cohol to make the wax barely float. 

 Put in the other. If it goes to the 

 'bottom it is heavier, if it floats partly 

 out of the liquid it is lighter. In eith- 

 er case it is adulterated. As 

 to the point of fusion: Make two 

 pieces as described above. Put them 

 in a small thin glass with water. Put 

 that glass in another containing warm 

 water. Add .boiling water ^lowly so 

 as to raise the temperature gradually 

 and uniformly in both. If both pieces 

 of wax are pure they will melt at the 

 same time. A mixture of wax and 

 resin melts sooner (at a lower tem- 

 perature) than pure wax. On the 

 other hand, an addition of paraffine 

 will raise the melting point. — Le 

 Rucher Beige. 



A. Crousse says that sometimes all 

 the young queens go oflf with the last 

 afterswarm and leave the parent hive 

 hopelessly queenless. — Le Rucher 

 Beige. 



Paul Schonfeld. 



Professor Paul Schonfeld died April 

 7th, 1906, at the age of 84 years. He 

 was one of the leading bee writers of 

 Germany. During his life he has stud- 

 ied chiefly the anatomy and physiolo- 



