Dec. 21, 1899. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



809 



The fact that it was not found in the interior is good evi- 

 dence that the insect was not a native of America. Other- 

 wise, natural swarming- would have distributed it thruout 

 tlie land long- before the arrival of the white man. 



Jonathan Carver, an Englishman, explored Wisconsin 

 and the adjacent territory in 1766-67, and in his book pub- 

 lisht soon after he mentions the common insects. The 

 honey-bee is not among them, but the bumble-bee is re- 

 ferred to as follows : " The bees of America principall)' 

 lodge their honey in the earth, to secure it from the ravages 

 of the bears, who are remarkably fond of it." 



The honey-bee was first noticed by white men in Ken- 

 tucky in 1780, in New York in 1793, and west of the Miss- 

 issippi in 1787. 



Again the " Sting=Trowel Theory." — Mr. J. J. Ochs- 

 ner, of Sauk Co., Wis., when renewing his subscription for 

 1900, enclosed the following which he dipt from the Octo- 

 ber number of the Normal Instructor — a teacher's paper 

 publisht in the State of New York : 



THB STING IS USBFUL. 



What seems to us only harmful and disagreeable may 

 sometimes prove to have uses of which we know nothing. 



It will be a surprise to many to learn that, after all, the 

 most important function of the bee's sting is not its sting- 

 ing. I have long been convinced that the bees put the 

 finishing touches on their cell-work by the dextrous use of 

 their stings ; and during this final finishing stage of the 

 process of honey-making the bees inject a minute portion 

 of formic acid into the honey. This is in reality the poison 

 of their sting. This formic acid gives to the honey its 

 peculiar flavor, and also imparts to it its keeping qualities. 

 The sting is really an exquisitely-contrived little trowel, 

 with which the bee finishes off and caps the cells when they 

 are filled brimful with honey. While doing this the formic 

 acid passes from the poison-bag, exudes, drop by drop, from 

 tlie point of the sting, and the beautiful work is finisht. 



May it not be, perhaps, that one of the purposes of life's 

 stings is to give a greater zest and flavor to its honey ? 



Altho no quotation marks appear in the clipping as it 

 appears in the Normal Instructor, those who are familiar 

 with the literature of a few years ago will recognize the 

 second and larger paragraph as something very like the 

 words of the Rev. W. F. Ciarke. Probably no wilder theory 

 as to bees was ever imagii-ied, nor one with less foundation. 

 The only reason for the belief of Mr. Clarke that the sting 

 of the bee was used as a trowel, and that poison was dropt 

 from the bee's sting into the honey, was the one given in 

 the clipping, "I have long been convinced." What con- 

 vinced him he never divulged. Many a bee-keeper has 

 watcht bees working wax, but no one has ever said he saw 

 the sting used for that purpose. No one ever said he saw 

 poison drop from the sting into the honey. Mr. Clarke 

 never said he had seen such a thing ; he only said he was 

 "convinced." It would be to his credit if he should now 

 say he had no foundation for his conviction, seeing that the 

 sting-trowel theory seems again coming to light. 



Naptha Beta and Napthaline for Foul Brood. On 



page 786 appeared a reply to the following from Mr. Dud- 

 ley. We should also have publisht at the same time the 

 opinions of Thos. Wm. Cowan, editor of the British Bee 

 Journal, and Hon. R. L. Taylor, both of whom were kind 

 enough to respond to our request, but their replies were 

 overlookt and found too late to appear with Prof. Cook's. 

 Here is Mr. Dudley's question : 



Editor York: — I am very much interested in all yuu can publish 

 ill regard to naptha beta and naphthaline. Do \-ou think if naptha- 

 line were put into hives of healthy colonies in early sprinjjr, and kept 

 there durint.'- the robbing season, that the germs of foul brood that would 

 be brought from other infected hives would be kept from spreading in 

 the healthy colonies until the bee-keeper would discover it, and have an 

 opportunity to cure it while strong in bees? 



If this drug will retard the disease so that it can be discovered and 



treated w-hile a colony is strong. I can see how it can be of much service 

 to those who produce honey in foul-brood localities. 



Salt Lake Co., Utah. Geo. E. Dudi,ev. 



Ansiver. — During the time that napthaline is in a hive 

 the vapor given off, while not killing the bacilli, arrests their 

 increase of growth ; therefore, as suggested, it would pre- 

 vent the infection from spreading in healthy colonies. It 

 is. however, safer to have a couple of balls of napthaline 

 split in halves in the hives at all times. 



Monterey Co., Calif., Thos. Wm. Cowan. 



Answer. — I have never tried the drugs mentioned 

 above, but from considerable experience with the u.se of 

 salicylic and carbolic acids I should not rely on the plan 

 proposed. Syrup medicated with salicylic acid fed to the 

 bees of any infected colony will prevent the spread of the 

 disease (not cure it) in that colony, as well as to healthy 

 colonies from diseased ones so fed. Possibly the drugs 

 mentioned might do so, too, but as I have tried the other I 

 should prefer that if I were in a case where I wisht to pre- 

 vent the development of the disease for the time being at 

 every cost, feeding during " the robbing season." But the 

 development of the disease is not usually so rapid that one 

 who is acquainted with its characteristics will not discover 

 it before the colony becomes weak, if he is on the lookout 

 for it, going thru each colony three or four times during 

 the season. R. L. Tayi.or. 



Lapeer Co., Mich. 



u/e® 



Mr. Chas. D.\d.\nT, writing us Dec. 12, reported the 

 illness of his son C. P., vrho was suffering with bronchitis. 

 We hope he is all right again now. 

 » * # * * 



The Canadian Bee Journai, for December is a 

 pictorial number, containing 16 pictures of leading Cana- 

 dian bee-keepers, chiefly officers and directors of the Onta- 

 rio Bee-Keepers' Association. It is very pleasant to look 

 upon the faces of those whose names are familiar to all who 

 read the Canadian Bee Journal. 



« # * * * 



Mr. T. F. Bingh.\m, of Clare Co., Mich., wrote us as 

 follows, Dec. 13 : 



" Everything looks well for a great honey-year. To- 

 day is almost the only freezing daylight we have had. My 

 bees don't know that the wind blew yesterday, or that the 

 air is freezing. No snow." 



« ♦ ♦ ♦ » 



Mr. S. a. Niver — the New York State bee-keeper and 

 honey-salesman who it was said had a tongue that workt on 

 a central pivot — dropt in very une.xpectedly to see us one 

 day last week. He's a "jolly boy," even if he has a daugh- 

 tei- somewhere near a quarter of a century of age. B3- 

 the way, the daughter is to be wedded this very week, we 

 believe. (Congratulations all around.) Mr. Niver lived in 

 Chicago the five years just preceding 1890. 

 ♦ * » ♦ ♦ 



Ernest Wynne Hoyden is the name of the latest ar- 

 rival among the A. I. Root Co. Master Ernest Wynne was 

 born to Mr. and Mrs. A. L. Boyden, Nov. 2. 1899. Editor 

 Hutchinson, when announcing the event, said : 



" Mr. Boyden is the Michigan young man wlio went 

 down to Medina a few years ago, became one of the busi- 

 ness managers for the A. I. Root Co., won the heart and 

 hand of Constance Root, or ' Blue Eyes.' as Mr. Root used 

 to call her, has since become one of the partners in the 

 company — and now has a boy, as well as the rest of them." 



We extend our congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Boyden, 

 as well as to all the rest of the " Rootvillians." upon the 

 arrival of " Ernest No. 2." May he emulate the " E(a)rnest- 

 ness" and other virtues of his honored uncle. 



The Premiums offered on page 814 are well worth work- 

 ing for. Look at them. 



