1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



963 



ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON BEE-SMOKERS. 



Jabbing the Editor's Ribs Again; Fuel for Smol<ers. 



BV G. C. GKKINEK. 



Thf smoker article by Mr. S. E. Miller, 

 of Missouri, is tiptop. I call it "tiptop" 

 because, with the exception of a few minor 

 variations, it af^rees with my views almost 

 to a letter. It seems more natural to oper- 

 ate the smoker with the left hand, leavinjj;- 

 the ri_i;ht to use the other tool, chisel, screw- 

 driver, or whatever it may be. (1 use a 

 pocket screwdriver.) When openiuj,'' the hive 

 I stand behind it; after that I step on the 

 right side, setting' the smoker on the frames, 

 on the opposite side from where I begin to 

 handle the frames, or on the hive behind 

 me, when not in use. If Mr. M is left- 

 handetl, his way would be more natural. 



If the editor is anatomicall3' constituted 

 like the rest of us human beings, I can not 

 understand how he can twist his thumb on 

 the other side of the bellows unless he uses 

 the smoker wrong way to from the further 

 side of the hive, blowing the smoke toward 

 himself. 



If we have the right material — and ever3^ 

 bee-keeper should have it — lighting the 

 smoker can be done in a twinkling at any 

 time. No shavings, kerosene, nor any thing 

 else is needed. I have three shoe-boxes 

 which I always keep well filled. No. 1 con- 

 tains well- rotted basswood. It is so com- 

 pletel}' decaj-ed that a piece taken in the 

 hand can be transformed into powder by a 

 slight squeeze. I find it in the woods where 

 trees are blown down and are decaying. 

 No. 2 contains rotten apple-tree wood. 

 This is quite solid, about half way between 

 the former and sound wood, so that it fre- 

 quently' requires saw and hatchet to work 

 it up into proper shape. I have an old hol- 

 low apple-tree near the house that has sup- 

 plied me for two or three years. No. 3 con- 

 tains — I am almost afraid to say it, but 

 will tell the truth — tobacco. This may go 

 a little against the Root principle; but the 

 Lord made it, and it is for man to use it 

 according to his best judgment. So I own 

 up that I use it by way of a little brier- pipe. 

 I am not a very heavy smoker; but when I 

 expect a real hot time I always light it, 

 and I lay it in a great measure to my pipe 

 (and gentle treatment) that I can handle 

 my bees almost entirely without a veil, and 

 mittens I never use. 



I do a good share of my bee-work b3' sim- 

 pler using my pipe. This saves the time 

 and trouble of handling the smoker and veil. 



To light the smoker I take from box No. 1 

 three or four little pieces about the size of a 

 finger, from one to two inches long: hold 

 them in a bunch by one end over the open 

 smoker; strike a match, and hold it under 

 the other end. When the wood is well ig- 

 nited, which will be in a second or two, I 

 drop it, match and all, into the smoker. 

 Then I throw in a few pinches of fine stuff, 

 and after that a few coarser chunks from 



Ihe same box, and fill the rest of the barrel 

 from box No. 2; shut up the smoker, and, 

 with a few puff's to get the fire well started, 

 the smoker is read}' for business for the next 

 two or three hours unless it is used very 

 steadily and needs refilling sooner. I nev- 

 er leave it open, as Mr. M. advises, and 

 hardly ever lose a fire. Of course, all the 

 material must be thoroughly dried before 

 it will work as described. 



Do we need a hook on the smoker? Yes, 

 I consider it a desirable feature, if it is the 

 right kind; but the one sent out by the Root 

 Co. is not that kind. Its shape and place 

 never suited me, and for that reason I never 

 put one on, except the last one. When I re- 

 ceived the smoker, one of the late style Cor- 

 nell, and found that the manufacturers still 

 took the p:iins to furnish a hook with each 

 smoker, I thought I must have a wrong im- 

 pression about this hook business, and per- 

 suaded myself to give it a trial. I fastened 

 it according- to directions; but before I had 

 used the smoker half an hour I was well 

 satisfied that I had made a mistake. After 

 I had scratched my thumb a few times, it 

 came off in less time than it took to put it 

 on. 



Venice, N. Y. 



[It is all right, friend G., for you to have 

 your notions about the method of handling 

 smokers and the convenience of a hook; but 

 we are not all constituted alike. One of 

 the most extensive bee keepers in the world 

 — perhaps the most so — gave me this idea 

 of the hook on a smoker- bellows. I consid- 

 er it a g-reat convenience. Of course, there 

 are sharp points; but what is the use of 

 getting hooked? Those hooks are for the 

 purpose of catching into the wood of a hive. 

 When you handle a pitchfork you are quite 

 liable to get hooked if you are net careful; 

 but I imagine yen always handle it right 

 end to. — Ed.] 



HONEY — ITS SUPERIORITY OVER SUGAR AS A 

 FOOD. 



H. KELLOGG. 



Mr. A. I. Root — deal- Friend: — I have 

 j'our letter in reference to honej'. I am send- 

 ing you, with this, something I have writ- 

 ten on the subject of cane sugar. I consid- 

 er honey much preferable to cane sugar 

 as a food. It is practically a fruit sugar, 

 and is ready for absorption. Eaten in mod- 

 erate quantities it ought to tax the diges- 

 tive organs much less than cane sugar, and 

 is to be commended. 



Many persons ought to be able to utilize 

 honey' who can not use cane sugar. Adults 

 often lack the power to digest cane sugar. 

 Cane sugar is chiefly obtained from grass- 

 es and roots. It is a sugar adapted to herb- 

 ivorous animals. One of the four stomachs 

 of the cow secretes a ferment which is capa- 

 ble of digesting cane sugar. Digestion of 

 cane sugar converts it into honey, so honey 

 is practically cane sugar already digested.. 



