TREATMENT OF BEE DISEASES. 16 
majority of the reports of wax-moth depredations received by this 
department which can be investigated it is found that the trouble is 
actually an outbreak of a brood disease. 
The spraying of fruit trees while in bloom is possibly injurious to 
bees, and there exists among beekeepers a strong feeling against the 
practice. Since no entomologist now recommends that fruit trees be 
sprayed during the blooming period, this is probably rarely done by 
progressive fruit growers. However, it is frequently reported by 
beekeepers that they are losing bees by poisoning due to spraying. 
A number of cases of the death of colonies, reported as caused by 
poisoning due to spraying while trees were in bloom, have been found 
to be in reality outbreaks of European foul brood, which is particu- 
larly prevalent in the spring and early summer. 
Other circumstances to which is often attributed the death of brood 
or of the colony are chilling, fumes from coke ovens, and malicious 
poisoning. The wise attitude on the part of the beekeeper is first to 
suspect diseases as being the cause of any losses which he may sus- 
tain, and to be sure that there is no infectious disease present before 
looking elsewhere for a cause. 
NATURE OF THE DISEASES. 
There are two recognized infectious diseases of the brood of bees, 
now known as American foul brood and European foul brood. Both 
diseases weaken colonies by reducing the number of emerging bees 
needed to replace the old adult bees which die from natural or other 
causes. In neither case are adult bees affected, so far as known. The 
means used by the beekeeper in deciding which disease is present is the 
difference in the appearance of the larve dead of the two diseases. 
That the diseases are entirely distinct can not now be doubted, since 
they show certain differences in the age of the larve affected, in their 
response to treatment, and in the appearance of the dead larve. 
This is made still more certain by a study of the bacteria present 
-in the dead larve. Reports are sometimes received that a colony 
is infected with both diseases at the same time. While this is pos- 
sible, it is not by any means the rule, and such cases are usually 
not authentically reported. There is no evidence that chilled or 
starved brood develops into an infectious disease or that dead brood 
favors the development of a disease. 
NAMES OF THE DISEASES. 
The names American foul brood and European foul brood were 
applied to these diseases by the Bureau of Entomology, of this de- 
partment, to clear up the confusion in names which formerly existed. 
By retaining the words “foul brood” in each name the disease- 
inspection laws then in force could be interpreted as applying to 
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