84 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



eral j^ears since by Knoblauch, 

 liquid honey is blown on the comb 

 (which has been filled with honey 

 or syrup), by means of a duster. 

 This, however, gives but an im- 

 perfect covering, while the former 

 method is said to give satisfactory 

 results. 



There have been many valuable 

 theoretical discoveries lately made 

 in Germany regarding beekeeping. 

 To these belong more especially 



4. The examination and exact 

 description of the so-called orifice 

 of the stomach of the bees, by 

 Schonfeld (Bee Journal, 1883, Nos. 

 9-10). This organ of which but 

 little has been known until lately 

 is of great importance to the sub- 

 sistence of the bees, and many 

 features in the life of the bees which 

 have been shrouded in darkness 

 are explained through the critical 

 and exact examinations of this 

 organ. I will here mention only 

 one circumstance. 



Several authorities have asserted 

 that in the large glands on both 

 sides in the head of the worker bees 

 (salivary glands) the food sap for 

 the young larva is prepared and 

 separated. This was always dis- 

 puted by Schonfeld and the con- 

 struction of the orifice of the 

 stomach seems to show that he is 

 right and to prove that the food sap 

 is nothing but chyle from the di- 

 gestive stomach of the bee, secreted 

 at will by the help of this orifice 

 of the stomach. 



5. The apparent economy of 

 space and the saving of material 

 in the hexagonal form of bee cells 

 have always been a subject for ad- 



miration and it has generally been 

 supposed that this was due to a 

 singular instinct on the part of the' 

 bees, and j^et it was presumed by 

 some that it was the result of 

 chemico-physical laws ; but it 

 seems that only Dr. Mollenhof of 

 Berlin has succeeded in establish- 

 ing a satisfactor}^ theory by which 

 it no longer appears necessary to 

 attribute this to a high order of 

 instinct in the bees. It would take 

 too much space, however, to de- 

 scribe it here. 



6. Another observation of Dr. 

 Mollenhof is of great importance. 

 Before a honey cell is capped a 

 drop of bee poison is mixed with 

 the honey. As the powerful anti- 

 septic effect of the bee poison has 

 been demonstrated, it is not to be 

 doubted that this addition to the 

 honey contributes greatly to its 

 preservation. Through this there 

 is also given an explanation that 

 shows how the bees, under favora- 

 able circumstances, can defend 

 themselves against the much-to- 

 be-dreaded foul brood as the bee- 

 poison is able to destroy the 

 Bacteria, or germ, if used in suffic- 

 ient quantities. 



7. One observation of the great- 

 est importance is that of the mat- 

 ing of the worker bees with a 

 drone. On July 20, 1883, Mr. 

 Kreraer found in his garden one 

 worker bee to which a drone was 

 banging. The worker tried to free 

 itself from the already dead drone, 

 twisting around in a circle, drag- 

 ging the body of the drone with 

 her. Kremer caught the couple 

 and immersed them in spirits. 



