The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1907-11-08

many and the profits are good. A
well-known naturalist has stated that
without bees 100000 varieties Of
flowers would disappear from the face
OF the earth. This Is q startling state.
2 iment. but who will venture to contra
dict It! Few people realize what .
,tvast anounts0f -needful work the bee
d" does in 1ertilizing the blossoms Of ma
pture. The nectar secretedgat the base
'of the flower Is necessary bait for
the worker bee. In trying to reach
1t, the bee has to push past that part
OF the flower containing the pollen
grains; this dust adheres to the bees
body. and when the insect settles on
the next flower. particles of the dust
mikes with that In its blossom, and
30 the flowers are fertilized. ssat ~
nn Let us go to the hive and watch
d the gathering of this great harvest.
A vast population is here. all one tur.
Inoil Of hurry and hustle, thousands
dashing out into the bright summer
air, thousands more returning, push
ing past the hive sentries In one long
amending stream. II we follow this
S'ingoings army we shall see something
Of how the honey is stored. For many
days past the worker bees have been
busy constructing cells, and every
4 available space In the hive has been
occupied by the builders Of the city
to construct golden watts in which to
store the harvest Of liquid sunshine.
The Nee likes to store the honey ON
top of the brood chamber, and the
bee-keeper. knowing this. places q
crate containing twenty-one little
boxes, or sections as they are called.
A small piece of wax il placed or top
OF each as guide or starter for the
bees to- work upon. This wax has the
imprint of cells stamped on 1t, and
the worker bees soon commence to
draw these cells out and add to them
When first placed in the hive the box
has the appearance shown in the illus
tration. AS work proceeds the cells
are enlarged and more" wax is added.
About twelve hours later the wax is
increased to such an extent that the
side walls are reached. The masons
of the city do not rest day or night,
and the result Is that the cells quickly
grow, and by the time they reach the
base Of the box honey has been stored
in some OF the completed cells. The
whole is soon filled, and the illustra-
tion shows the cells completed and
some Of them filled with honey and
sealed over The illustration also
shows the, completed section, which
is a familiar sight III grocers' shops.
If no starter or wax guide had been
placed in the section, the bees would
have. constructed a rough ungainly
box Of. honey, as shown in the upper
right hand corner: of the illustration.
The reason why the bee-keeper is able
to get his bees to fill these boxes with
just one pound of honey is because
the bee will go on increasing the
depth of its cell to several inches or
until an obstruction Is found, then,
when 1t reaches this obstruction, it
Just leaves What is called bee-space
between the Obstruction and the end
Of the cell, that is; it provides room
for the bees to walk about between
the sealed section and the obstruction.
Therefore. BY placing these sections
in rows in the hive and by having
a thin metal sheet between the rows,
the bees just fill the boxes'and then
seal the honey in. - '.@
Now let us watch the bees which
are returning from the fields. They
go straight to the upper part of the
hive, and some will instantly give all
the honey they have to the young bees
which have not yet been outside the
hive, and these take the honey to the
cells. Others will go direct to the
cells, and then, placing their head in, |
We see them slowly moving their long
tongue round the base of the cell |
AS we watch we see a bright liquid |
slowly forming at the, tip of the |
tongue. and when tiny drop of honey
has been deposited, this indefatigable |
worker turns and goes straight back |
to the open fields, where the flowers
and the songs of countless BIRDS, the |
buzz of the insects wings and the sun
shine make the music of the summer
day. The nectar as found in the flower
is a very different thing from the
honey as we know it, When taken
by the bee it is sucked up with its
tongue. then it undergoes a chemical
change inside the bees body, and then
it comes back through the tongHe and
Is placed In the cells. A minute drop
of formic acid from the bees sting
is sometimes added before sealing the
cell over which acts as preservative.
Honey is wonderful gift of nature.
It stands almost alone as a pure, nat
lral sweet in itself. 1t has, also great
medicinal qualities. BY the constant
use Of honey the entire organism is
benefited in high degree. 1t stimu.
ates the appetite, aids digestion and
1t the same time is far better than
lrugs for regulating the. system.
Honey should not be considered simp-
y as luxury; 1t should be used in
very household as necessary article
II diet. There is no danger incurred