62 Missouri AcjriciiUiiral Report. 



was cut short, and the season was as discouraging to bees, as the bee- 

 keeper. Many failed to secure stores sufificient for winter, and will die 

 of starvation, unless fed by their keeper. This scarcity of stores induced 

 robbing, and this robbing in diseased districts was the means of spread- 

 ing disease and enlarging the area of diseased territory. 



AVhile these influences may reduce the number of colonies of bees in 

 the State, and to some extent discourage the .industry, yet there are some 

 hopeful and encouraging signs, one of which is the promise of a favorable 

 season, when the bee industry will bviild up with wonderful rapidity, and 

 soon regain its loss. Another is, that with these winter losses will go 

 quite a number of colonies that have contracted disease, and to some ex- 

 tent, this will help to prevent the further spread of the trouble. 



Furthermore, these discouragements should be object lessons, not only 

 to bee keepers, but to prospective bee keepers as well, for there are some 

 who yet believe the old saying that "Bees work for nothing and board 

 themselves, ' ' and who really think that all that is necessary to supply an 

 ordinary family with honey is to procure a swarm of bees in some old box 

 or hollow log and place it in some out-of-the-way place, and then visit it 

 with the ancient smudge and torch light equipment as often as honey 

 is wanted. But with the more successful apiarists more progressive ideas 

 are entertained. They realize that intelligent thought and management 

 are as essential to success in bee culture as in any other line of business, 

 and that unless the prospective honey producer is willing to give a rea- 

 sonable amount of care and attention to his bees, failures are most likely 

 to be the harvest that will be reaped, and he will realize that his table 

 would have been better provided with the tempting sweet, had he bought 

 honey instead of bees. 



In emphasizing the importance of caring for bees, it may seem to 

 some that I am ]>utting too nuich stress upon this subject, but if the 

 questioner could have gone with me through the work of inspecting for 

 one season and made a careful study of the whole situation, I think he 

 would readily agree with me in the statement that, ignorance, indiffer- 

 ence and negligence are the greatest drawbacks to successful apiculture. 



These are the greatest obstacles in the Avay of eradicating the dis- 

 ease, Foul Brood, which has gained such a wide spread throughout the 

 United States and Canada. 



I will here give a very brief description of Foul Brood, the most 

 disastrous bee disease we have to contend with. 



SYMPTOMS OF AMERICAN FOUL BROOD. 



In the advanced stages of this disease the colony becomes weak and 

 listless, and upon opening the hive a very disagreeable odor will be no- 



