MOORE AND WHITE, JANUARY 15, lOOH. 59 



likewise. Ten samples of diseased brood were therefore examined 

 wliicli corresponded in o-ross appearance to the symptoms of the dis- 

 ease which Chosliire and Cheyne reported, and the bacteriological 

 examination of these 10 samples revealed the presence of Bacillus 

 alvei in numbers sullicient to lead one to suspect a causal relation of 

 the organism to the disease. The conclusion that would be drawn 

 from these facts regarding the disease, in the absence of Howard's 

 work, ver}' naturally would be that it is not a new disease, but simply 

 "foul brood." 



It was necessary now to weigh the evidence which Howard pro- 

 duced in support of the view that the disease was new. Howard 

 received 5 samples from Mr. West and reported the presence of 

 ^^ Bacillus milii" in all of them, "Bacillus thoracis" in 2, and "Asper- 

 gillus pollini" in 1, but nothing was found in the samples of so-called 

 "black brood" received and examined by Moore and White v\^hich 

 could be identified as either species. The experimental data which 

 Howard offered in support of his view was also very unsatisfactory. 



In view of all these facts the authors of the report under considera- 

 tion drew the conclusion : ' ' That the prevailing disease [so-called 

 black brood] in this State [New York] is very similar to, if not 

 identical with, the 'foul brood' of other States, Canada, and Europe." 

 This conclusion means that the disease, which the people of New 

 York State were taught by Howard to be a new disease and which 

 he chose to call "The Now York bee disease" or "black brood," is 

 not a new one, but is the one which Chesliire and Cheyne agreed was 

 "foul brood." 



Various moculation experiments were now tried for the purpose of 

 demonstrating whether or not Bacillus alvei is the cause of a brood 

 disease. Several methods of inoculation which had been used by 

 others in attempting to produce the disease in healthy brood experi- 

 mentally were employed, but always with negative results. The 

 most logical way to make the inoculation and the one which might 

 bo expected to give the most accurate results, very naturally, is by 

 feeding the bees. This was tried with the hope that it would give 

 the most accurate results. 



The inoculation of one colony only is reported. A colony free 

 from disease was fed, on August 4, sugar sirup, to which was added 

 the spores of Bacillus alvei taken from agar plates and tlie vegetative 

 form of the same species taken from fresh bouillon cidtiu'es. Simi- 

 lar feedings were given to the bees three times per week until Sep- 

 tember 28, but the symptoms of "black brood" did not appear. The 

 results of tliis experiment, therefore, were negative, as were all the 

 others as far as the producing of the disease was concerned. To 

 make sure that some of the culture fed had reached the larvae, cul- 



