274 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW, 



"No one who has read the Bee Journal 

 can doubt the sincerity of its editor in his 

 fearless defense of the rights of bee keepers, 

 and in his efficient services for the promotion 

 of their interests. 

 The readers of a periodical are sometimes 

 • responsible, however, for the best applica- 

 tion of the editor's efforts in their behalf. 

 The severe condemnation of honey dew or 

 " bug juice," and those who sell it for honey, 

 are applicable to some specimens of that 

 article I have seen, but not to all. 



The nectar produced by aphides in this 

 section this season is of very fair quality. 

 It sells readily in our retail markets at five 

 cents for extraced, and eight cents for comb, 

 while the best white clover and linden honey 

 sells at eight cents for extracted, and fifteen 

 cents for comb. While some do not like the 

 honey dew (and I include myself in the 

 number), I find many who do, and some 

 who prefer it to white clover or basswood 

 honey, among whom are people of refined 

 tastes, such as our postmaster, our railroad 

 agent, etc. 



My largest sales are to those who have 

 used it, and order it the second and third 

 times. It has shown a remarkable medicinal 

 value in promptly curing a severe case of 

 throat and lung trouble of long standing. 

 I call it honey dew, and explain its source 

 only when asked to do so. A proper expla- 

 nation will not change the attitude of a fair 

 and reasonable mmd. 



As for appropriateness of names, I think 

 the term " dew " is more appropriate for this 

 kind of nectar than it is for that which ex- 

 udes from the plants, since dew is always 

 deposited — it never exudes. 



To my mind, it would be as elegant, as 

 appropriate, and as near correct to use the 

 term " cow juice" when speaking of milk, 

 as it is to call the natural secretion of the 

 glands of the aphis, *' bug juice." 

 Mt. Veknon, Iowa. 



[We admit that there are different quali- 

 ties of so-called honey dew, and that even 

 the bug juice varies in kind, but for all that 

 it is not honey, and should never be sold for 

 honey. 



Milk is a natural product, common to ani- 

 mals, including humanity. As it is in no 

 sense exclusively a product of the cow, it 

 would be sheer nonsense to call it "cow 

 juice ! " There is no similarity between the 

 two terms. The secretions of the aphida? are 

 neither honey nor dew, no matter how often, 

 nor by whom they are so-called."— Ed. A. 

 B. J.] 



Friend Foster is correct. When speaking 

 of milk he, of course, had reference to cows' 

 milk, and that it would certainly be as cor- 

 rect to call cows' milk "cow juice" as to 

 call the natural secretion of the glands of 

 the aphis "bug juice." Dew is water con- 

 densed from moisture in the air, and in all 

 probability real dew never contains sweet, 

 at least I do not suppose it does, and, as I 

 understand the matter, what is termed 

 " honey dew " is either a secretion from the 



leaves through some diseased condition, 

 perhaps, or else the secretion of some insect. 

 It is not "dew," neither is it "bug juice." 

 It has never been properly named, but it has 

 long been called " honey dew." If given 

 another name let it be one more exact and 

 appropriate, and until such a name is found 

 let's continue to call it by its old name, 

 " honey dew." 



Melting Combs Into Wax. 



The chapter upon melting wax, to be 

 found in Langstroth on the Honey Bee, Re- 

 vised by Dadant, contains so much of value 

 upon the special topic for this month that I 

 cannot do better than to copy it entire: 



"We will now describe the different pro- 

 cesses used by bee keepers to render the 

 combs into wax. To melt every comb, or 

 piece of comb, as it ii^ taken from the hive, 

 would increase the work, and, as it is prefer- 

 able to choose our time for this operation, 

 we have to preserve them from the ravages 

 of the moths by some of the methods that 

 we have given. 



The cappiugs after extracting are allowed 

 to drain in a warm place for several weeks; 

 very nice honey being obtained from them. 

 They are then washed in hot water, and the 

 sweet water obtained can be used for cider, 

 or wine, or vinegar. These cappings, as well 

 as the broken pieces of white comb in which 

 brood was never raised, should be melted 

 apart from the darker combs, for, not only 

 are they easier to melt, but, the wax obtained 

 being very bright in color, is unsurpassed for 

 making comb foundation for surplus boxes. 



When the combs are blackened by the de- 

 jections of the worker bees, or of the drones, 

 and by the skins and cocoons of the larvaj, it 

 is so difficult to render the wax, that many 

 bee keepers think it is not worth the trouble. 

 We advise washing these combs and keeping 

 them under water for about twenty-four 

 hours. Then the cocoons and other refuse 

 l)emg thoroughly wet and partly dissolved, 

 will not adhere to the wax. This will be 

 lighter colored, if the com .s are melted with 

 clear water and' not with water already dark- 

 ened by the washing. 



But as this method always leaves some wax 

 in the residues, for some of it goes into the 

 cells during the melting, and it is impossible 

 to dislodge it, a better result is obtained by 

 crusliiug the combs before washing them. 

 But this pulverizing can bo done only in 

 winter, when the wax is brittle. 



The combs should be melted with soft or 

 rain water, the boiler kept al)out two-thirds 

 full, and heated slowly, to prevent boiling 

 over. If the floor, around the stove, is kept 

 wet, any wax that may drop will be easily 

 peeled off. 



During the melting carefully stir till all 

 is well dissolved. Then lower into a boiler 

 a sieve; made of a piece of w ire cloth, bent 

 in the shape of a box, from which the wax 

 can be dipped as it strains into it. If the 



