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A MONTHLY JOURNAL 



Devoted to tl^e Interests of Hoqey Producers. 



$1.00 A YEAR. 



W. z. HOTCHiNSON, Editor and Proprietor. 



VOL X, 



FLINT. MICHIGAN, FEB, 10, 1897. 



NO 2. 



AVork at jVUdiigani's 



Experimental 



^piarv. 



B. L. TAYLOK. APIARIST. 



DOES ALL OF THE HONEY IN A FOUL-BBOODY 

 COLONY CONTAIN GEBM8 ? 



WO cases of 

 foul brood 

 were discovered 

 during the season 

 of 1896. These 

 were treated as 

 heretofore by 

 putting the bees 

 into clean hives 

 furnished with 

 foundation and 

 the diseased hives 

 with their combs 

 disinfected with heat. The treatment was 

 completely successful as has uniformly 

 been the case heretofore. The two all- 

 important considerations in the operation 

 are that the management be so careful and 

 guarded that no bees from the diseased col- 

 ony be driven to other colonies and that 

 no bees from healthy colones be [)ermitted 

 to visit the combs of the diseased colony. 

 The reason upon which this caution is 

 founded is that the gerius of the disease 

 are liable to be carried from the diseased 



colony to healthy ones in its honey — at 

 least it is the supposition that there is such 

 liability. We know certainly that robber 

 bees when engaged in robbing a diseased 

 colony carry the infection to their own hive. 

 We are certain also that honey extracted 

 from combs which have contained the dis- 

 eased larvjB convey the disease to colonies 

 that use it. But to liave this effect it is not 

 necessary to suppose that every cell of honey 

 contains germs, and when we consider how 

 small a proportion of the larvae are freshly 

 effected with the disease at any one time, 

 and that the progress of the disease in a 

 colony is generally quite slow, it is rational 

 to suppose that but a small proportion of 

 the cells of honey contains the germs. There 

 would perhaps be an excep! ion to this if a 

 strong colony becaoie badly affected with 

 the disease towards fall, say in August, when 

 its hive was well filled with brood and when 

 a good fi >w of honey occured in September, 

 for in that case, in the ordinary course of 

 things, as tlie dead matter of the larvaj dried 

 down, the cells containing it would be filled 

 with honey. It would seem inevitable then 

 that a large proportion of the cells of honey 

 should contain floating germs so soon as 

 sufficient time were given to allow the hon- 

 ey to soften the dried matter. After thifl 

 the cells containing affected honey may be 

 largely increased in numbers by the remov- 

 al of the honey from cell to cell as in the 

 spring when brood rearing is resumed. 



Cowan in his celebrated work laid it down 

 as a scientific fact that the germs of foul 



