EXPERIMENT STATION REPORTS 125 



position to rob. These conditions being secured, take a hive externally 

 as nearly like the one containing the diseased colony as possible, and 

 having moved the hive with the colony to one side, place the new hive 

 furnished with foundation or starters on the old stand, then run the bees 

 into the new hive by shaking or driving. This is all that is necessary 

 for the cure of the colony if nectar is coming in somewhat freeh'. If 

 nectar is scarce or absent, absconding must be guarded against and feed- 

 ing resorted to. Without being certain that it is necessary, I advise 

 feeding scantily for four or five days, and after that as plentifully as 

 ■desired. From this it will be seen that it is prefeialjle to attend to the 

 •cure during a honey flow. 



The plan insisted on by some, that the colony be shaken out into still 

 another hive after being allowed to build comb for four days, I have 

 proved in a hundred cases without a single failure to be entirely unneces- 

 sary. 



I wish here to put in a word of caution against the placing of any 

 reliance upon drugs for curing this disease. My earliest experience was 

 with thirty diseased colonies, upon which I tried the use of drugs 

 thoroughly. I rejieated their use upon other colonies later, sometimes 

 with extreme care, but with entire failure in everv case. 



Sometimes when the disease is discovered in its early stages there is 

 large amount of healthy brood in colonies that are to be treated, and 

 its disposal is a problem that deserves consideration. Sometimes 

 such colonies cast swarms in the swarming season. In such case I hive 

 the swarm on foundation or on frames with starters, alwaj's avoiding 

 combs for that purpose. Then in three weeks I sliake out the bees from 

 the old hive according to the directions already given. Other colonies 

 that are fit to swarm during the swarming season but are not disposed 

 to do so I compel to swarm, i. e., I shake out a swarm and then I treat 

 both old hives and swarms as in case the swarms were natural ones. 

 With weaker colonies and at other seasons this course is not always 

 practical. Under such circumstances, if there are several colonies it is 

 sometimes convenient to shake out all but one or two and give all the 

 brood to that one or two, which are to be treated three weeks later. If 

 there is but one colony it may sometimes be desirable to cage the queen 

 for three weeks — but not often — it is generally better to sacrifice the 

 brood and give the colony a new start. 



If colonies have become greatly reduced in strength by the disease, as 

 the bees are mostly aged under such circumstances, it is advisable either 

 to unite or destroy them, but in doing this extreme care is necessary 

 to prevent the escape of any of the bees into hives containing healthy 

 colonies. 



I have already intimated that the chief difficulty in effecting a final 

 cure is the existence of the disease among neighboring bees, especially 

 among wild bees. The reason of this is that the spread of t"he disease is 

 owing principally if not wholly to the visiting of diseased combs by bees 

 from healthy colonies— or in other words, by the robbing of diseased 

 colonies, and if there is any other way of contracting the disease it is 

 because there are other ways by which the germs of foul brood may get 

 into hives of healthy bees. If one considers that diseased colonies in the 

 woods or belonging to careless neighbors are sure in time to fall a prey 

 ■to healthy colonies, the serious nature of the difficulty is readily appre- 



