254 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



December, 



In answer to this question, Mr. 

 Sylviac quotes the following experi- 



different glands. One of these pro- 

 duces effects similar to convulsions, 



ments, which were made at the time the other effects rather similar to 



for the purposes above mentioned: those of morphine. The general sub- 



1. A small artificial swarm of 2,000 stance of the venom (beside the two; 

 bees fed on sugar, built 66 grams of poisons above mentioned) produces 

 comb in three days. This was under the swelling and the other local irri 

 unfavorable circumstances. Cool tation. 



weather and too few bees. This would It has also been stated that while a 



give II milligrams per bee and per poison, the venom is useful not only 



day, if all were at work equally well, against rheumatisms but also some 



Deducting 200 bees too old or too other diseases. To apply it directly 



young, or otherwise occupied, give li from living bees is objectionable 



milligrams and a fraction instead of li. though, as stated in a previous paper! 



(I gram equals 1,000 milligrams; i it has been done to a greater extent , 



American pound of 16 ounces equals than generally supposed. The experl 



a fraction over 452 grams). ments made now have in view th( 



2. A nucleus of 300 bees built 45 preparation of a serum to be injectedi 



grams of comb in eight days under 

 a temperature rather low. 



To get the venom the bees are firs' 

 chloroformed and the stingers pullet. 



3. A swarm of 20,000 bees usually out, sac and all, one by one. They an 



builds about 1,000 grams of comb 

 during the four first days. This was 

 the usual average during tne afore- 

 said experiments. Usually about one- 



then sold to the druggists, who ex 

 tract the venom by pressure am 

 chemical action. This has been doH' 

 on a small scale for quite a numbe 



■ 



tenth of the swarm consists of drones] of years, and the preparation used b; 

 Another proportion of bees are too homeopathic doctors to a certain ex 

 young or too old to secrete an appre- tent. There may be a source of rev 

 ciable quantity of wax. Admitting enue for the bee-keepers in course 

 15,000 bees, we would have an aver- time. — L'Apiculteur. 

 age of nearly 17 milligrams per bee 

 daily. 



4. One swarm of 13,000 bees prac- 



In a previous number of the Api 



culteur a correspondent advised th 



tically without drones gave 100 grams bee-keepers who use the DeLayen 



hive to spread the combs so the quee 



i 



31 



in a day 



5. One exceptional case is that of could not use them for brood, excep 

 a swarm of 10,000 bees nearly without oi course, those reserved for that pui 



drones which built 900 grams of comb 

 in three days. That would be 30 mil- 

 ligrams a day for each bee, if all had 

 taken part, which is not likely to be 

 the case. None of the other experi- 

 ments came near to that. 



n 



pose. It turns out that a number c 

 bee-keepers are already doing thsi 

 very thing. The distance from cer 

 ter to center varies between 42 an 

 50 millimeters, the majority of thos 

 who reported using 43. (One Amer: 



6. Berlesh is quoted as having can foot equals 305 millimeters.) Se% 



met an exceptional case where each ^''al had tried perforated zinc, bt 



bee must have produced 0.57 gram found it unsatisfactory, 



of wax per day. There must be an er- (The DeLayens hive is what w 



ror somewhere. Possibly 0.057 are would call here a "Long-Ideal" cha: 



meant. Even then it would be ex- 

 cessive. — L'Apiculteur. 



Bee-Sting Poison. 



The question of the composition of 

 bee venom is still going on. Wild 

 bees have also been examined. Mr. 

 Langer, P. Bert, Cloez and Phisalix 



^''ur^u'L^* "^^^^^ ^^ seems now es- the end of the frames and sometime 

 tabhshed that the "stinging" proper- at one of the small sides; the frame 

 of the vtnom are due not to the formic being then what we would ca 

 acid but to two different sub- "across" the hive. A tight divisio 

 stances, probably secreted by two board is used, reducing the hive t 



hive. The walls and cover are dot 

 ble, with packing between the tw 

 walls. It is a one-story hive, havin 

 from 15 to as much as 20 combs. Th 

 combs are very large; sometime 

 square, sometimes much higher tha 

 long. The entrance is placed some 

 times at one of the large sides facin 



k 



