THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



683 



ing for 80 feet through ttie earth, run- 

 ning below the frost line and then 

 reaching the surface of the earth, 

 where it shoulii be protected by wire 

 gau/.e. so that vermin could not enter 

 the iiipe. We see that as a lire is built 

 in the stove the air is drawn from the 

 cellar and is supplied by the sub-earth 

 pipe. This cools the air when tlie 

 weather is warm and warms it when 

 it is cold. I have known such a cellar 

 to be in successful use for nearly half 

 a score of years ; and several others 

 for a less time. Some secure ventila- 

 tion by the usual means and keep the 

 right temperature by a refrigerator, a 

 cistern in the cellar, or a stream of 

 water passing through it. The sub- 

 earth plan is the most scientific, and 

 works best. The cellar should be dry 

 and quiet, 



The bees should be removed to the 

 cellar before wintersets in. The hives 

 should be dry, if possible, when put 

 in, and the bees should be set in so 

 quietly that they would not be dis- 

 turbed. Once in, we remove the 

 covers, leaving the cushions on and 

 opening the entrances. Thus ar- 

 ranged, we may leave the bees till the 

 pollen of April bids us to prepare for 

 the work of a new year. 



The only valid objections to cellar 

 wintering is the labor of moving the 

 bees and the danger of spring dwind- 

 lings. The expense of moving is less 

 than that of either of the other meth- 

 ods, and, if we properly confine the 

 bees by use of the division board as 

 they commence to work in spring, we 

 may have no fear of dwindling, 

 especially if we have such a cellar as 

 suggested above. , 



Lansing, Mich. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Bee aud Honey Sliow at Baltimore. 



C. H. LAKE. 



Dear Editor— I see by this week's 

 issue of the Journal you failed to 

 receive several copies of our daily 

 publications containing accounts of 

 the great fair. 



You will see our exhibit was an in- 

 dependent one, but no others entered 

 the contest and we had a one-sided 

 one, so to speak. Some how we can 

 not get the beekeepers to show their 

 products at the fairs. The small 

 premiums offered by most societies 

 will not pay the trouble— is one great 

 drawback. I don't know of another 

 society in the State of Maryland that 

 offer over S3.00 in the apiarian depart- 

 ment, except Baltimore, and the in- 

 crease of premiums of this society is 

 due to your article upon the subject, 

 about two years ago. 1 placed it in 

 the hands of the society and at their 

 annual meeting it was argued and a 

 portion of the premiums as recom- 

 mended by you adopted as follows : 



For Best Colony of Italian Bees in Movable 



Combs f .» 00 



For best display of Bees includinK their pub- 

 lic manlpulatkin r> 00 



For best Ii> lbs. Comb Honev 2 (Hi 



For bestdHpiay Extracted and Comb Honey. ".; 00 

 For best Crate of Honey ready for shipplnK- . - 00 



A second premium is also offered on 

 the same exhibit, making about $20, 



offered as premiums in this class. 



In the implement or machinery de- 

 partments any new feature can be 

 entered, as any labor saving imple- 

 ment for any purpose, the award of 

 premiums to Ije from the societies — 

 medals to a diploraaj or equal cash 

 premiums, as the exhibitor chooses. 

 Under this head we are compelled to 

 enter our hives, foundation machinery, 

 extractors and whatever new things 

 may be tried or proved worthy ; all old 

 articles, as those used at an early date, 

 being ruled out. 



Now, it would be much better for 

 all agricultural societies, offering bee- 

 keepers any inducements to show their 

 products, to make one class of every- 

 thing that bee-keeping requires, and 

 have competent judges that know 

 their business in this respect— espec- 

 ially on articles of known merit. As 

 an illustration of this, one of our 

 workmen conceived the idea of an 

 automatic self spacer for the brood- 

 chamber, somclhing that every bee- 

 keeper in the laud that uses a bar hive 

 requires. The device was duly entered 

 but no committee came to examine it, 

 consequently it went by unnoticed ex- 

 cept by bee-keepers, who were uni- 

 versal "in their decision of its being 

 the " best thing out." I will send you 

 a set of Lan^stroth frames with the 

 appliance all ready, and they will 

 " speak for themselves " as it would 

 require too much writing to give a 

 clear description of them at this time. 

 A new feeder, also was passed by for 

 the same reason. 



Our exhibit was the largest ever 

 seen in the State, and, as we went 

 more for the benefit of advertising 

 our business than the small premiums 

 offered, we were well rewarded for the 

 effort it cost us. 



Baltimore, Maryland. 



Scientitlc American. 



Irritating Effect of . Bee Stings. 



PROF. A. VOGEL. 



It is well known that the effect of a 

 stinging nettle on the skin agrees very 

 closely with the sensation produced 

 by the sting of a bee or wasp. But 

 the great similarity is not limited to 

 the feeling it causes, but, what may 

 not be so generally known, the cause 

 of the irritation is essentially the 

 same. It may be considered as defi- 

 nitely settled that formic acid is pres- 

 ent in the poison sac of the bee sting, 

 in the so-called bee poison. The same 

 corrosive acid also occurs in the sling 

 of the nettle. Some species of cater- 

 pillars have f(umic acid in some of 

 their hairs, which they seem to shake 

 off at will, and when a person touches 

 such a caterpillar the poison pene- 

 trates the skin whenever it is moist, 

 and causes burning, itching and in- 

 flammation. These poisonous members 

 preserve their irritating powers, even 

 after the death of the worm. This 

 accounts for reliable statements that 

 visitors to collections of caterpillars 

 have suffered from exanthematous 

 eruptions on the neck. " JIany hairy 

 caterpillars cause itching and burning 

 of the skin when touched, and some- 



times it gives rise to swelling and red- 

 ness. This depends on the hne hairs, 

 which produce the same effect when 

 they float around the air. Many ladies 

 who visited the caterpillar room of the 

 naturalist lleaumer had a breaking 

 out on the neck." 



In the sting of the bee, wasp, hor- 

 net, etc., a minute drop of a transpa- 

 rent liquid may be observed on the 

 sting, and is called "bee poison" 

 (formic acid). It penetrates into the 

 wound produced by the sting, and 

 causes the well known effects. It 

 would, however, be a great mistake 

 to assume that the only object of this 

 is to increase the effect of the sting, 

 that is, that it serves only to injure. 

 It has a far more important purpose, 

 namely, to prevent fermentation and 

 decay. The celebrated bee cultivator, 

 IIolz, reports that in his long experi- 

 ence with lioney, that which came 

 from what are called " ranchorous 

 swarms" (boshaft) had peculiar pro- 

 perties. It always had a bitter, harsh 

 taste, and its smell was sharp too. 

 How can the character of the swarm 

 affect the smell and taste of the honey 

 they gather V We know that bees, 

 when they are disturbed, run out their 

 stings, on the end of which may be 

 seen a tiny drop. This little drop, as 

 we have already said, is bee poison, or 

 formic acid. When the disturbance 

 is at an end they draw in their stings 

 again, but the little drop of liquid 

 does not go back with it, but is wiped 

 off on the comb, and sooner or later 

 gets mixed up with the honey. This 

 explains why the honey from such ex- 

 cited bees tastes and smells sharper 

 than that from peaceable bees. Ex- 

 citable bees will rub off this little 

 drop of formic acid more frequently 

 than other bees ; perhaps a larger 

 drop is formed by nervous bees than 

 these that are not nervous, and hence 

 the honey is much richer in formic 

 acid. This acid is never absent in 

 genuine honey, but the amount dif- 

 fers. This contamination is not only 

 uninjurious but very useful, in fact 

 necessary, for it keeps the honey from 

 spoiling ; we know, indeed, that puri- 

 fied honev, from which the formic 

 acid has been removed, very soon fer- 

 ments, while unpurilied honey will 

 keep unchanged for years. Nature 

 furnishes the bees with this knowl- 

 edge instinctively, and therefore they 

 do not carry this drop of formic acid 

 away out of the hive. Bee connois- 

 seurs assure me that the bees add to 

 it the nectar which they collect that is 

 free from it so as to make it keep, and 

 they do this in places where they are 

 notdislurbed, too. 



Bee stings are often spoken of in 

 agricultural and popular papers as a 

 remedy for rheumatic affections, and 

 numerous cures are adduced to prove 

 it. If the formic acid that accompa- 

 nies the sting can be looked upon as 

 the principal agent in the cure, it 

 would be worth while to try the ex- 

 periment of rubbing the spot with 

 this acid or injecting it under the 

 skin so as to avoid the somewhat in- 

 convenient method of applying live 

 bees. 



Two hundred years ago formic acid 

 was made from the brown wood ants. 



