320 FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 



of disease throughout the whole season ; with a disease 

 that at that time was said to be ten times worse than 

 American foul brood. I felt like giving up. But only 

 for a little while. If others had fought the disease, why 

 couldn't I ? Besides, I could now have some live expe- 

 rience with a thing I had only previously read about. 



I started in to use the AlcEvoy treatment, brushing 

 the diseased colonies upon foundation, after doing some 

 breaking up and doubling. In all, however, only 56 

 colonies were actually brushed upon foundation. When 

 I came to look how they were building up, I found, out 

 of those first treated, that 9 had left, bag and baggage, 

 leaving empty hives. That was probably from starva- 

 tion, so after that I gave to each shaken colony one or 

 more sections of honey taken from diseased colonies. 

 So far as I know, this did not in any case convey the 

 disease. Later, to make more sure against desertion, 

 one of the diseased combs was left in the hive, and 

 beside it two empty frames — not even a starter in the 

 two frames, and the rest of the hive empty. \Mien the 

 bees made a start at building in the empty frames, the 

 old comb was taken away, and the hive was filled up with 

 full sheets of foundation. Sometimes the comb the bees 

 had built in the empty frames was taken away after a 

 good start was made on the foundation, and sometimes 

 not. The outcome seemed to be all right either w^ay. 



Partly to please Editor E. R. Root, toward the lat- 

 ter part of the summer I tried the Alexander treatment. 

 The gist of that treatment is to remove the queen and 

 in 20 days give the colony a ripe queen-cell of best Ital- 

 ian stock, or else a very young virgin. Previous to the 

 treatment, however, an important requisite is to make 

 the colony strong. 



I varied from the regular treatment by giving hy- 

 brid virgins instead of Italian, as my bees were mostly 

 hybrids. It may be a question whether hybrids are not 

 as good as Italians in carrying out the treatment, pro- 

 vided the hybrids are of equal vigor. 



