THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



isB 



have we given colonies dry, clean combs in 

 exchange for their natural stores, and fed 

 them a syrup of cane sugar. After the 

 combs were tilled and sealed we have often 

 cut out small pieces of this " sugar honey " 

 and eaten it. We did this simply to "see 

 how it tasted." We had read that molasses, 

 or sugar, ar any sweet, would remain ur- 

 changed when stored l)y the bees, and we 

 wished to know if it were true. It isn't. 

 Bees do change the taste and the fei'liiKj of 

 sugar syrup when tliey store it. They not 

 only give it a " twang " hut a '"mucilagin- 

 ousness" that it has not before they handle 

 it. It tastes like sugar and it tastes like 

 honey ; and, were we to judge by the taste, we 

 might almost say "sugar honey" in the 

 same sense as we say " basswood honey." — 

 As we understand the matter, digestion be- 

 gins in the mouth. When we have chewed 

 our food and saturated 'it with saliva it is 

 "partially digested :" and when bees in 

 bringing in nectar, and handling it about, 

 add to it the secretion of their glands, there- 

 by changing, or partly changing, the cane 

 sugar to grape sugar, and giving it that de- 

 lightful twang, why isn't it, in a certain 

 sense, "partially digested nectar" just as 

 much as our food is partly digested by the 

 addition of our saliva? Let us not be more 

 nice than wise. 



THE BEE-KEEPEES' UNION. 



Thanks to the Bee-Keepers' Union and the 

 efforts of its indefatigable Manager, Mr. 

 Thomas G. Newman, we now have a decision 

 from a Supreme Court, that of Arkansas, 

 that "Neither the keeping, owning or raising 

 of bees is in itself a nuisance. Bees may be- 

 come a nuisance in a city but whether they 

 are or not, is a question to be judicially de- 

 termined in each case." This decision was 

 reached in the well known suit between Z. A. 

 Clark, and the city of Arkadelphia, Arkan- 

 sas, and it will, as the manager of the Union 

 says : " Be a guide to the rulings of judges, 

 for the information of juries, and for the 

 regulation of those that may dare to interfere 

 with a resi)ectable pui'suit, by law, or other- 

 wise." A brief history of the suit, together 

 with argument of counsel, has been publish- 

 ed in pamplet form and can be obtained by 

 enclosing stamp to the Manager. 



Let not bee-keepers think, however, that 

 there are no more battles to be won, for there 

 arc, and the "sinews of war" are needed 



notv. The honey crop of the present year 

 promises to be a fair one and all who can 

 spare the money ought to support the Union 

 that has so faitiifully defended their rights. 

 The entrance fee is |;1 .(X), and that pays for 

 the dues for any portion of the unexpired 

 current year, ending December ;51st. Then 

 it costs only one dollar for annual dues, 

 which are payable every New Year's day, 

 and niust be paid within six months, in 

 order to retain membership in the Union. 

 If membershii) ceases, all claims against 

 former membeis cease : and all claims to 

 the protection of the Union are dissolved. 

 The entrance fee and dues must be sent 

 direct to the general manager, Thomas G. 

 Newman, Chicago, 111., who will record the 

 names, and send receipts for every dollar 

 sent in. 



NEW METHODS OF QUEEN REARING. 



In Glramnys for July 1.'"), Mr. Stachelhau- 

 sen says : — 



" Doolittle's new book is very interesting ; 

 but I know by experience that his new plan 

 of raising queens- in full colonies over a 

 queen-excluding honey-board does not work 

 every time. In this locality, during the 

 horsemint How, every queen-cell will be de- 

 stroyed. ■ May be it would work with the 

 cell-protector. I have not tried it as yet : but 

 I believe the plan will always work in the 

 spring, and as long as the colony is inclined 

 to swarm." 



A correspondent writes us that it is not 

 practical to have queens fertilized over a 

 queen-excluder, below which is a laying 

 queen. He says such results are exceptional 

 — when the (pieen is old or something of the 

 kind. Before i)utting any of this into the 

 Review, we thought it better to allow Mr. 

 Doolittle an opportunity of explaining. In 

 reply to our iiuiuiries we received a letter 

 from which we extract the following : — 



Borodino, N. Y., .Tuly 22, 1889. 



Friend H : — 



Your good letter of the 18th 

 at hand, and I hasten to reply. Before do- 

 ing so, however, I wish to thank you for 

 writing mo instead of rushing into print 

 with the matter as some of our publishers do 

 witliout calling for an explanation till after 

 much harm has been done to innocent par- 

 ties. 



Let me assure you that the plan of getting 

 cells Inult in upper stories, as I luive given it 

 in my liook, />■ « success cvcnj ichcrc it lias 

 been fried. I have had thousands of cells 

 thus built at all times of the year without a 

 single failure, and I have not heard of a fail- 

 ure. 



