JUNE 1, 1913 



379 



amount of honey in proportion to tlie wax 

 is small. We are surprised to note that, out 

 of the total weight of 950 pounds of drain- 

 ed cappings, nearly two-thirds of the weight 

 was honey. — Ed.] 



SOME CAUTION IN THE TREATMENT OF DIS- 

 EASE 



BY J. M. BUCHANAN 



I must take issue with E. D. Townsend, 

 pages 760, 813, Dec. 1, 15, as to the use of 

 combs which have contained American foul 

 brood. While it may be possible that all 

 the diseased matter may be cut out, still it 

 is impossible to know when this is done ; 

 and it seems to me that it is running a great 

 and unnecessary risk to use such combs. 

 The germs of the disease are carried in the 

 honey to all parts of tlie hive; and who can 

 say, without a careful microscopic examina- 

 tion of every cell, where these germs may 

 bef It is not alone in the cells that have 

 contained diseased brood, but in many cases 

 it may be above the excluder, remote from 

 the brood-nest. 



While brothei' Townsend may be able to 

 control the disease in this manner — that is, 

 by cutting' out the diseased portion and 

 using the rest of the comb — still the rank 

 and tile of careless beekeepers will undoubt- 

 edly make a mess of it, if such practice is 

 sanctioned by the bee journals. Like J. E. 

 Crane, in my work as inspector I have 

 found all kinds and conditions of beekeep- 

 ers, and by far the majority are too igno- 

 rant or too careless to ti'eat the disease suc- 



Piece of comb built in six days after a queen was introduced.- 

 From E. G. Ward. 



cessfuUy bj' any of the modified methods. 

 The best and safest way, I have found, is 

 to recommend shaking into an empty hive 

 and carefully burning or burying all of the 

 frames, combs, brood, and honey from the 

 old hive. The hive may be saved if prop- 

 erly scorched out. 



USING COMBS FROM A SUPER OVER A DISEASED 

 COLONY. 



Last year the editor stated that the combs 

 from a super over a diseased colony might 

 be used with safety. To give the matter a 

 test I took three combs from over a diseased 

 colony. They were fresh combs and above 

 an excluder, and I gave them to a clean 

 colony late in the fall. As soon as brood 

 was started in these combs in the spring, 

 the disease appeared, showing that such 

 combs are not always safe. 



don't fool with AMERICAN FOOL BROOD. 



While a careful manipulator may experi- 

 ment with European foul brood in many 

 ways with impunity, it does not pay to 

 " fool " with American foul brood in an 

 apiary where there are healthy colonies. 

 There is much danger of robber bees spread- 

 ing the disease; also danger of the opera- 

 tor carrying the infected honey on his hands 

 or clothes to other colonies. 



I have found carbolic cloths a very valu- 

 able aid in the inspection and treatment of 

 diseased hives, as they are the best preven- 

 tive of robbing that I know of. Old burlap 

 bags are cut up and sprinkled with crude 

 carbolic acid, and spread over the hive or 

 over the combs that are removed. By the 

 way, these same cloths when dry make the 

 most satisfactory smoker fuel. 



It seems too bad to 

 destroy nice fresh 

 combs that, we fondly 

 hope, might be clean ; 

 but it is safest in the 

 long run, where one is 

 not prepared to render 

 them entirely out of 

 the reach of bees; and 

 few beekeepers are 

 thus prepared. I have 

 burned hundreds of 

 nice straight all-work- 

 er combs, and buried 

 the ashes; and, while 

 it hui'ts my feelings to 

 do so, still it is " good 

 riddance to bad rub- 

 bish." 



DO NOT USE MAILING- 

 CAGES FOR INTRO- 

 DUCING. 



Another care less 

 practice that should 

 be avoided is the in- 



