THE AMEEICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



(Froai the Canada Fanner.] 



Honey and Hew to Judge It. 



There arc many kinds nnd qualities of. houejr- 

 Almost . every kind of llov.-er scCTetes lioncy-iie- 

 culiar to itselfand possessing- to a emisidei'ablc ex- 

 tent, the properties of the plant or'llower whence 

 it is.derlved.' Henc? some kinds of honey are 

 very unwholesome or poisonous, fteing ,G:athered 

 by the bees from noxious floAvcrs^; other kinds 

 again are simply unpleasant to taSte — not fit for 

 the table. It has been supposed by inany that bees 

 make honey, but such is not the Case, they only 

 gather it from the floAvers that secrete it ; hence its 

 different qualities and flavors. A's we have fev*' 

 if any poisonous llowers in Canada, we have lit- 

 tle or no unwholesome honey. In the Southern 

 States nnich of the honey is quite poisonous, and 

 cannot be eaten until after it has been boiled, 

 which is said to evaporate a portion of its bad 

 qualities. There are people who think they can- 

 not eat honey even in Canada, without first boil- 

 ing It ; but if such were to select honey gathered 

 from white clover or bass wood, I have no doubt 

 they could eat it as safely as any other sweet. 



Bees never mix the difierent kinds of honey 

 when depositing in the hive. If bees commence 

 to work on white clover they will work on noth- 

 ing .else, so long as that kind of honey can be ob- 

 tained to any great amount, and aJl that kind is 

 deposited by itself. When they leave that for 

 buckwheat they no longer deposite it in the same 

 cells with the clover honey, but in adjoiiiing 

 cells, or in a separate piece of comb. Experienced 

 bee-keepers are aware of this, and as soon as 

 buckwheat blossoms they remove all boxes that 

 are nearly full — that is, if they which to keep the 

 clover honey pure. Again, when removing honey 

 froni boxes for the purpose of straining, those 

 pieces of comb containing buckwheat honey may 

 be separated, and the clover honey preserved 

 pure. If some of those who exhibit honey at the 

 fairs were to be more careful as to the kind of 

 lioney they selected for exhibition, they would 

 be more likely to obtain prizes. I have seen fine 

 white clover honey greatly injured by leaving a 

 small portion of buckwheat honey mixed with 

 it. There being so many kinds and qualities of 

 honey, there is a chance for selection. 



As our Provincial Fair is close at hand, I take 

 the liberty to explain how lioney should be 

 judged — in other words, to point out what the 

 characteristics of good honey are, for the benefit 

 of those who may wish to compete, as well as for 

 those who may be appointed to judge. Though 

 I have no reason to complain, having received 

 first and second prizes for two or three years, 

 yet many times at our county fairs I have known 

 the prize to be awarded for honey on account of 

 it possessing one peculiar feature, that of being 

 thick ; at other times on account of its being of 

 a very light color ; Avhile little or no regard were 

 paid to other important qualities. Honey in the 

 comb can onljMjc judged by its appearance, so 

 long as it is exhibited in close boxes, so that it 

 cannot l>e tasted. It often happens that an in- 

 ferior article of honey in the comb obtains the 

 ])rize, us the jnize is awarded to tliat which is 

 the whitest ; but the whitest comb docs not al- 

 ways contain tlie purest honey. Yet, as before 



I stated, so long as honey is oxLibltcd in close 

 boxes, it is proper to award a prize for the 

 whitest comk. . It is, lioweyer. quite diffcr'^nt 

 with hon( y in the jar, which is open \.:> JnsMCC- 

 tion. and which, to be first-class, shoidd possess 

 the following characteristics : ligiitcolor. thick- 

 ness,- Jvnd pleasant flavor. Though lionoy may 

 not alwayi^; possess all these C(ualities, vet ti;o 

 nearest approach thereto should be awarfi'^'d tlie 

 first prize., It would be very improper to uunrd 

 the first prize to a jar of honey on account of its 

 light color, if another jar wan 'of a thicker con- 

 sistency and better flavor, although cons!der.ibly 

 darker ; and so of the other, qualities. I may 

 safely saj' there are only two kinds of honey 

 gathered in Canada which possess all the above 

 qualities, One is gathered from clover, nnd the 

 other from that abominable nuisance, the Canada 

 thistle. Both, if properly jirepared from virgin 

 comb, are light in color. That gathered from 

 the thistle is generally somev.iiat thinner than 

 clover honej', but its flavor is more aromatic, 

 and to most tastes more agreeable, especially 

 when combined in proper proportions witli clo- 

 ver honey, Avhose llavor it overcomes or hides. 

 The proportions are about one part of clover 

 honey to two parts of thistle honey. This, when 

 properly prepared, Avill eclipse all other honey, 

 and carry oft' the prize, as I have proved for three 

 years. J. H. Thomas. 



Brooklin, Ontario, Sept. 4, 1867. 



Flanders' Apiary. 



The editor of the Ohio Farmer recently visited 

 Kelley's Island, in Lake Erie, and gives the fol- 

 lowing account of what he saw there in the '-bee 

 line:" 



"W. A. Flandeks, the Bee Man. — Professor 

 W. A. Flanders, you may have heard of him, 

 has his Apiarian Institute on Kelley's Island, 

 and of course Ave visited his Institution. Mr. 

 Flanders has a host of bee-families, dwelling in 

 busy harmony under every green tree in the 

 neighborhood. Talk of big prices for merino 

 rams, Flanders can get more money for an Ital- 

 ian queen bee, with three rings around her tail, 

 than any ram pedler can get for the best Ver- 

 mont merino in his flock. Flanders shoAved us 

 (in a vial of alcohol) one of these amiable little 

 female sovereigns Avho had lately fallen in a duel 

 Avith another amiable little female sovereign, for 

 Avhich Ire declared, Avith a sigh Avhich came from 

 as loAV doAvn as the seat of his broad pantaloons 

 that he Avoukl not have taken sixty dollars ! 

 Bugs is riz ! But then the thing can be settled 

 by arithmetic ; here are fifty other amiable little 

 female sovereigns, bred from this little insect in 

 the vial, for each of which Flanders can take 

 from tAventy to twenty-five dollars. The demon- 

 stration is plain — a little insect not so big as a 

 tooth-pick, Avorth more money than a r-hort-horn 

 bull ! The idea avouUI be ridiculous if it Avas not 

 true. But Flanders has improved upon the ori- 

 ginal Doctor Jacob ToAvnsend, and instead of 

 being satisfied Avith the orthodox full-blood Ital- 

 ians with three rings, has got one better, and 

 shoAved us a queen of his raising with four rings 

 around her body, all of the royal purple and 

 gold." 



