THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Replies by Frominent Apiarists. 



[It is useless to ask for answers to 

 Queries in this Department in lees time 

 than one month. They have to wait their 

 turn, be put in type, and sent in about a 

 dozen at a time to each of those who answer 

 them ; get them returned, and then find 

 space for them in the JonBNAL. If you are 

 in a "hurry" for replies, do not ask for 

 them to be inserted here.— Ed.] 



Troile in Melting fax. 



Query, No. 267.— This spring, having 

 considerable old comb, I began melting it 

 up tor wax, expecting to have plenty and to 

 spare ; but instead of wax it seemed like 

 melted bee-bread, with only a light skim- 

 ming of beeswax on top. I have made wax 

 before and had good luck. What was the 

 trouble?— J. F. P. 



Overboiling. Melt your wax slowly 

 and witli care.— Dadant & Son. 



Old combs. I once attempted to 

 extract wax from very old brood- 

 combs, and hardly got a smell of wax 

 for my trouble.— G. L. Tinker. 



Did you not let the comb be ex- 

 posed more or less to wet for a long 

 time V— C. C. Miller. 



I have had no trouble of this kind 

 when I used a good wax extractor. I 

 have seen cases of this kind when I 

 thought too much heat had been ap- 

 plied.— H. D. Cutting. 



It would seem that the combs were 

 old and probably tilled with bee-bread 

 and cocoon liningsof cells. The newer 

 the comb the more wax obtained. I 

 have found that combs 6 or 7 years 

 old would not give % part the wax 

 that could be obtained from those one 

 year old. The reason is obvious, and 

 heeds no explanation here. — J. E. 

 Pond, Jr. 



I guess that these combs had been 

 exposed to the weatlier, and become 

 rotten. I once tried in vain to get 

 any vpax out of sucli combs. Much 

 bee-bread does not account for it. — 

 James IIeddon. 



If the combs are moldy and rotten 

 the wax will be dead, druggy stuff, 

 and will not separate readily, and is 

 worthless at any rate. The worst 

 cheated I ever was in the bee-busi- 

 ness, was by a supply dealer selling 

 me a large lot of foundation made of 

 dead, rotten wax. The combs will 

 give me trouble as long as I tolerate 

 them in my apiary. I would guess 

 that your combs were old and full of 

 bee bread. I had a good deal of 

 trouble with a lot of such combs my- 

 self some years ago. I finally got the 

 wax separated and cleared by repeat- 

 ed melting in plenty of hot water. — 

 G. W. Demaree. 



Do Queens Re-Mate ? 



Query, No. 268.— Does an old queen re- 

 mate about the time of going out with a 

 swarm ?— J. E. T. 



No.— "VV. Z. Hutchinson. 

 I think not.— C. C. Miller. 

 No, never.— G. W. Demaree. 

 No.— Dadant & Son. 

 I think not.— James Heddon. 



I never saw anything looking that 

 way, and I believe not.— G. M. Doo- 



LITTLE. 



No. The external passage leading 

 to the spermatheca closes up after a 

 queen becomes a few weeks old.— G. 

 L. Tinker. 



That is something we know noth- 

 ing about. The general supposition 

 is that a queen mates but once. — H. 

 D. Cutting. 



I think she never mates after the 

 first successful meeting with the 

 drone.— A. J. Cook. 



No, sir ! most decidedly not. It is 

 claimed by some that queens do mate 

 more than once ; this may be true 

 during the first four or five weeks 

 after they emerge from the cell, but it 

 is physically impossible after they 

 have arrived at maturity. I give the 

 above as my opinion, based on my 

 knowledge of the anatomical and 

 physiological formation and con- 

 struction of these insects ; I have 

 given the matter some considerable 

 attention both in the way of study 

 and experiment, and I believe I am 

 correct. I am open, however, open to 

 conviction, but demand proofs to the 

 contrary.— J. E. Pond, Jr. 



Extra Onenings in Hiyes, 



Query, IVo. 269 — Is it necessary to have 

 extra openings on the back part of the hive, 

 or on top, for ventilation, besides the en- 

 trance^- F. S. 



I do not use such.— G. M. Doolit- 



tle. 



I do not know whether it is neces- 

 sary, but I practice it.— C. C. Miller. 



I think that a good, large entrance 

 is sufficient, when the hive is shaded. 

 — W. Z. Hutchinson. 



Sometimes, in very hot weather; 

 not every year, and never on top. — 

 Dadant & Son. 



No. I would have no opening but 

 the one where the bees enter in front. 

 —A. J. Cook. 



No. I do not like them. I do not 

 want guard-bees at every point of the 

 hive. Keep all hives well shaded.— 

 Jajies Heddon. 



In summer I like to have my hives 

 so I can raise them up from the plat- 

 forms about 14 i'lch ; that gives good 

 circulation all around^nd the bees 

 will not hang out.— H. D. Cutting. 



I think that it is, if the entrance is 

 small. I now make my hives with 



very large entrances, and have been 

 for several years making them a little 

 larger. It is now made S% inches 

 long and l}^ inches deep, which is 

 not considered too large for winter or 

 a full colony in summer time.— G. L. 

 Tinker. 



All the extra ventilation I ever give 

 my hives is a slight raising of the 

 cover to the hive when the weather is 

 hot and the bees indicate lack of com- 

 fort by " laying out," A thin wedge- 

 shaped piece of wood inserted under 

 the cover at the back end gives a 

 draft of air at the proper place. — G. 

 W. Demaree. 



I have never found it to be so. I 

 give ample ventilation at the en- 

 trance, and find such sufficient. With 

 a large entrance, ample room in sec- 

 tions, good shade, and a raised cover 

 when extremely hot, no other or 

 further ventilation is necessary. In 

 winter no ventilation should be given 

 other than at the entrance, except 

 such as comes from covering in the 

 frames with burlap or its equivalent, 

 and placing a chaff (or its equivalent) 

 cushion over all.— J. E. Pond, Jr. 



Amonnt of Water in M Honey. 



Query, No. 270.— What per cent, of 

 water is contained in new honey when 

 gathered from the (lowers ?— Mt. Sterling. 



It differs.— W. Z. Hutchinson. 



It varies so greatly that no answer 

 can be given. Sometimes it seems 

 nearly all water ; then again the nec- 

 tar is quite thick.— A. J. Cook. 



It differs from one kind of flowers 

 to another. The botanist Bonnier 

 says that some nectar contains 75 per 

 cent, of water. Some seasons yield 

 more watery honey. — Dadant &Son. 



The per cent, of water in the nec- 

 tar of different kinds of flowers prob- 

 ably varies, but I think it is usually 

 as much as 40 per cent. — G L. 

 Tinker. 



It depends from what source it 

 comes. Basswood honey, in dry, hot 

 weather, contains very little water 

 when it comes from the flowers ; 

 while teasel is about five parts water 

 to one part honey.— G. M. Doolittle. 



It will vary with the different nec- 

 tars and on different soils. I have 

 reduced 40 per cent, in a large test 

 tube, and again only 12 per cent. — H. 

 D. Cutting. 



it depends upon the state of the 

 weather, and the variety of bee- 

 forage from which the nectar is gath- 

 ered. Its density varies all the way 

 from a small percentage in weight 

 above water, to nearly the standard 

 weight of marketable honey. At least 

 such is the case in my locality.— G. 

 W. Demaree. 



I have never tested it experimen- 

 tally, but I should guess about U in 

 volume and perhaps }i or a little less 

 in weight. It will vary so much in 

 different grades of nectar, that no 

 more than an approximation can be 

 made.— J. E. Pond, Jr. 



