276 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mar. 15 



on original work and investigation of his 

 own. The queen-breeder may well read 

 with care the series begun by him in this 

 issue. 



ANOTHER NEW EDITION OF THE A B C — THE 

 100th THOUSAND IN THE PRESS. 



There has been such an enormous run 

 on our A B C of Bee Culture that the last 

 10,000, issued from the press about a year 

 ago, is well nigh exhausted. We are hard 

 at work upon a new edition, but the new 

 books will not be ready until some time in 

 September. We suggest that all dealers 

 purchase no more copies than they can dis- 

 pose of before then. In the mean time, many 

 of our friends would prefer perhaps to wait 

 for the new edition, which will have many 

 additions. It will contain a large list of 

 new honey-plants, and many of the articles 

 will be entirely re-written to conform to the 

 progress that has been made during the 

 last few months. Take, for example, the 

 subjects of "Candied Honey," "Extracted 

 Honey," and "Queen-rearing." Many new 

 facts have been developed, and these will 

 be incorporated in new articles. Every 

 year develops short cuts and new practices. 



This new edition will reach the 100th 

 thousand mark — certainly a large sale 

 when we consider that there is scarcely one 

 bee-keeper to a community. 



ANOTHER KINK IN CUTTING CANDIED HON- 

 EY INTO BRICKS. 



Our Mr. Jesse Warren, spoken of in our 

 last issue, who has been so successful in 

 cutting candied honey up with a wire, page 

 224, has now gone one step further. He 

 runs a current of electricity through the 

 wire, heating it up to 110 or 120°. This 

 greatly reduces the labor of cutting, and at 

 the same time gives chunks that are math- 

 ematically true, and as smooth and clean 

 as a piece of polished mirble. 



Everybody is delighted with our brick 

 honej'; and even in this town of Med ma, 

 where bee-keeping represents such large 

 interests, residents have asked how it is 

 that we can turn liquid honey into solid 

 like like this — not even supposing it to be 

 candied honey, for, indeed, it doesn't look 

 like that article. They have gotten the 

 idea that by some process or preparation 

 we take ordinary honey and solidify it. 

 The old prejudice against granulated honey 

 does not enter into consideration, because 

 here is something that is not mushy nor 

 mealy, but a smooth solid brick almost 

 snow-white. The wrapping of transparent 

 paratifine paper greatly enhances its ap- 

 pearance and selling quality. 



THE OHIO FOUL-BROOD BILL HELD UP IN 

 SENATE COMMITTEE. 



The b^e-keepers of Ohio need to write to 

 their Senators at once, urging the passage 

 of the foul-brood bill which passed the 

 House and is now in the committee of the 

 Senate, where it looks as if there were a 



disposition to hold it up. From some ad- 

 vices received we are fearful that a majori- 

 ty of the committee are not inclined to re- 

 port the bill to the Senate at all. The Ohio 

 bee-keepers should write to their Senators, 

 Senate Chamber, Columbus, Ohio, at once, 

 to see the members of the Agricultural 

 Committee, and urge them to report on it at 

 once. Delay is dangerous just now, when 

 so many measures are on the calendar. Also 

 write Senator R. W. Dunlap, Chairman of 

 the Agricultural Committee, Senate Cham- 

 ber, Columbus, O., urging the importance 

 of the bill; thiit your interests will be jeop- 

 ardized if the measure is not passed, etc. 



PREVENTING HONEY FROM GRANULATING 

 BY THE USE OF GLYCERINE. 



Our experiments have been going on as 

 spoken of in a late issue. We put up a 

 series of samples of alfalfa honey in paper 

 bags. Some contained the clear honey; 

 others one per cent, others two per cent, 

 and others three per cent of glycerine. 

 During very cold weather they all remained 

 clear, as reported; but since the weather 

 has moderated, alternately cool and warm, 

 the samples without glycerine have candied. 

 Those containing one per cent have granu- 

 lated partly, while the two and three per 

 cent mixtures have remained perfectly clear. 

 Whether they will continue to do so remains 

 to be seen. 



As I have before pointed out, a mixture of 

 glycerine could hardly be called adultera- 

 tion, because this product is about ten times 

 as expensive as ordinary honey. Natural- 

 ly enough, if it were used at all it would be 

 in small percents and for the purpose of 

 preventing granulation — something that 

 would be perfectly legitimate and proper. 

 But there is one possible objection to the 

 use of glycerine, in that it may slightly af- 

 fect the flavor of the honey. If so, it will 

 bar out its use. 



STINGS — ARE THEY AN ACTUAL ASSET TO 

 THE BEE KEEPER? 



I WONDER how many bee-keepers there 

 are who, if thej' could, would actually ren- 

 der it impossible for their bees to sting. I 

 will admit there are days when one who 

 has been stung pretty viciously wishes there 

 v^ ere no such thing as stings in his busi- 

 ness. It would be a great convenience to 

 be able to open a hive without smoke, and 

 without cautious deliberate movements; but 

 is it not true that these same stings, which 

 are sometimes an annoyance to us, serve 

 the ver}' useful purpose of protecting our 

 property to an extent that more ihan offsets 

 the inconvenience at times? As it is now, 

 there is compa^-atively little troub'e from 

 thieves and mischievous boys, even when 

 the bee-yards are located some distance 

 from any dwelling. 



And then here is another point of view: If 

 our bees had no .stinj;s, is it not possible 

 that everybody else would keep bees in his 

 own back yard, the same as many persons 

 keep chickens? If so, we should have mere 



