402 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Invert sugar — cane sugar that has 

 been reduced by heating with an acid — 

 is left-handed iu its rotation. It is 

 usually given as -25°. 



Bees gather the cane sugar of nectar, 

 and while gathering and passing to the 

 hive, they reduce it by digestion, or 

 change it to invert sugar. Thus honey 

 contains from 2 to 8 per cent, of sucrose, 

 60 to 75 per cent, of reducing sugar 

 levulose and dextrose, and gives a left- 

 handed rotation rarely higher than a 

 -200. 



As bees digest the nectar of flowers, 

 we would suppose that honey gathered 

 very rapidly would be less perfectly 

 digested, as it would be a shorter time 

 in the digestive canal, and so would con- 

 tain more sucrose, and less reducing 

 sugar. As bees gather sweets from such 

 varied sources — widely different flowers, 

 sap and secretions from various insects 

 — we would suppose that the honey 

 might vary not a little. Thus I have 

 long wondered if the formulae depended 

 upon by our chemists were entirely re- 

 liable, and sufficient to always determine 

 the genuine from the adulterated. 



To determine this point, I recently 

 sent over 50 samples of honey to three 

 of our ablest chemists, viz. : Dr. R. C. 

 Kedzie, Prof. H. W. Wiley, Government 

 chemist, and Prof. M. A. Scovell, of 

 Kentucky. I have preliminary reports 

 which are exceedingly interesting. 



The samples which I sent were simply 

 numbered. There were honeys from all 

 our noted honey-plants, several samples 

 of honey-dew, honey stored rapidly 

 from pure cane syrup fed very rapidly 

 to the bees, and mixtures of honey and 

 glucose. 



The samples of honey adulterated with 

 glucose, were detected, but with them 

 was classed a sample of aphis honey, 

 which our bees gathered from bark-lice, 

 and which was rank and entirely un- 

 marketable. Two other samples of 

 honey-dew were pronounced genuine 

 honey. One of these was from cynip 

 infested oak acorns. Both were pleas- 

 ant to the taste. 



The samples of honey from cane sugar 

 syrup, one extracted the next day after 

 it was stored, and the other not until it 

 was capped, were both detected. But 

 with them were classed genuine honey 

 from basswood, white clover, both were 

 very fine, and one from horse-mint, all 

 very rapidly gathered. Thus my opin- 

 ion, often expressed to my students, that 

 our chemists could not distinguish gen- 

 uine honey which was rapidly gathered 



from that secured by feeding cane syrup, 

 is fully sustained. 



Three samples, one white clover, one 

 golden-rod, and one white sage, all very 

 rapidly gathered by the bees, gave such 

 a high left-handed rotation that there 

 was a suspicion of adulteration, with 

 invert sugar. Yet these were all gen- 

 uine honey of superior excellence. 



Three other samples, one from black 

 mangrove, one from an unknown source, 

 stored in Louisiana, and which never 

 granulated, and one from horse-mint 

 (the latter gathered very rapidly), de- 

 ported themselves exactly as would in- 

 vert sugar. 



Thus we see, that while the chemists 

 can detect adulteration, even with one- 

 third or one-fourth glucose, they could 

 not distinguish honey from flowers, from 

 that secured by feeding bees pure cane- 

 sugar syrup ; that while they now can 

 detect adulteration by use of commercial 

 glucose (that most if not always used), 

 they cannot by use of present methods, 

 detect honey produced by feeding bees 

 wholly or in part on cane-sugar syrup. — 

 College Speculum. 



Agricultural College, Mich. 



Black German Bees vs. Italians, 



JOHN H. BLANKEN. 



It is about 23 years since the yellow 

 bees came to this country, and it can be 

 easily proved by bee-keepers who kept 

 bees long before that time, whether the 

 Italian or the black German bees are 

 the best. We all know that years ago 

 we had more honey, that of late years 

 the honey crop has been growing 

 smaller, and had we all black bees we 

 might have more honey, because the 

 black bees keep themselves pure, and 

 bring in lots of honey, where Italians 

 are getting mixed up, thus giving their 

 owners plenty of trouble and work ; and 

 by trying to keep pure Italians and ex- 

 perimenting to improve our bees we are 

 getting less honey. 



Mrs. Atchley says that she kept both 

 blacks and Italians for 20 years, and 

 long ago decided on that question. It 

 must be remembered that within 20 

 years we have had good improvements 

 in bee-culture, and we should have more 

 honey instead of less in late years. And 

 then, Mrs. A. says that in really good 

 honey-years we cannot see much differ- 

 ence between the two races. 



Mr. H. C. Farnum, on page 450, says 

 that the blacks are ahead in honey- 



