Feb. 8, 1900. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



85 



Aug-ust, to expel the air, is liquid yet. The air ouf,'lit 

 always to be expelled, because the foam that rises when 

 candied honey is melted that had not been previously heated 

 is an objection to the sale of the honey. But that previous 

 heating- which prevents the foam would also prevent the 

 honey from candying soon, which would be an obstacle to 

 depending upon the sale of candied honey in the way sug- 

 gested. 



Pres. Aikin — So long as the honey candies the fiber 

 package is all right. . I have never had any complaint of 

 the foam. 



J. B. Adams — My customers now prefer candied honey. 

 They did not before. 



A motion was made that each member be requested to 

 state the number of his colonies and the approximate 

 amount of honey for the year. After some discussion it was 

 not carried. 



THE HEALTH OF BEES IN COLORADO. 



Introducing the subject, "Health of Bees," the secre- 

 tary read portions of the inspectors' reports, showing that 

 the first mention of foul brood was in 1886, and the first 

 steps taken toward a law, in 1888 ; and that considerable 

 foul brood yet existed. Every bee-keeper should inform his 

 neighbors of the nature of the disease, and should hand 

 them copies of the law, of which 1,000 have been printed, 

 and should inform the inspector of the existence of bees 

 affected. Very often the inspector does not know, and can 

 not be blamed. 



H. Rauchfuss — There is a disease far worse than foul 

 brood. We have spared no time and money to find out 

 about it. It seems to spread. It started with one colony in 

 our apiaries eight years ago. Four years ago we lost 300 

 out of 400. It commenced April 27, and ended in June. 

 Now the bees even die in the fall to some extent. We got 

 some bees from a locality where they never knew the dis- 

 ease, and they would commence dying in a few days. Some 

 wintered in the cellar did not have it, but as soon as they 

 were taken out, became aflfected. 



J. B. Adams — The statistics show a terrible state. As 

 an inspector I can say that represents the worst, as only 

 apiaries were inspected that were supposed to be diseased. 

 But other apiaries not inspected are all right. 



F. Rauchfuss — But it is well to let people know of the 

 state of affairs here. I believe there is just as much foul 

 brood in Arapahoe and Jefferson counties now as five or six 

 years ago. Because an inspector can not find where the 

 disease is does not show he is neglecting his duty. It was 

 not intended as a criticism. Farmers with small apiaries 

 often neglect their bees and let them die down without 

 reporting. In some instances infected bees are moved from 

 one county to another without permission. 



J. B. Adams — I think there is not one case of foul brood 

 in Boulder county where there used to be ten. But we have 

 too much of it yet. The inspector is blamed for much that 

 he should not be blamed for. 



H. Rauchfuss — We must take into consideration that 

 the percentage of foul-broody colonies -is much larg^er than 

 that shown by the reports. There is hardly any bee-keeper 

 who does not burn up or cure his diseased colonies without 

 reporting them. We treated 24 colonies without reporting 

 them, and I know of another instance of 18 colonies so 

 treated this year without being reported. 



Mr. Brock — I think the secretary's statement is not ex- 

 aggerated. There is not one yard out of ten that is clean 

 in the southern part of Jefferson county. Around Littleton 

 I have not heard of one that is. Last" summer I bought 24 

 colonies, and found only one not foul. These were not re- 

 ported. 



Mr. Tracy — Last summer the inspector came around 

 and askt if I had any foul brood, without asking how many 

 colonies I had. So that apiary was not reported. But if 

 an apiary has only one colony diseased, that is reported. 



Mr. Lyon — I don't think the percentage is overesti- 

 mated. If I find foul brood in my yard I treat it, and it is 

 not reported. It is so every year. I know of one instance 

 in which only two out of 12 colonies were not diseased, and 

 another in which only one out of 10 was not. Those cases 

 were not reported. 



A letter from C. B. Elliott was read by the secretary, 

 in which the following was requested by him to be placed 

 before the Association: "Has an inspector any right to 

 tell the condition he finds an apiary in after inspection, 

 whether he finds foul brood or not?" Mr. Elliott further 

 wrote he would put himself on record in this discussion as 

 saying the inspector " has no right to tell any one whether 



he finds foul brood or not. He is a public servant, and 

 should not under any circumstances tell any one the private 

 affairs of any one he is called to inspect their bees — under- 

 stand me, I am not finding fault or censuring any one. The 

 question was askt me, and the party asking wanted the 

 matter brought up at this meeting," 



Mr. Rhodes — According to law the inspector has no 

 right to withhold the information whether foul brood exists 

 in an apiary of not. 



F. Rauchfuss — The inspector is paid by the county, and 

 we are entitled to know. Mr. Elliott is the very person who 

 was very anxious to find out if his neighbor had foul brood 

 among his bees, and who went with the inspector for that 

 purpose. 



H. Rauchfuss — Health inspectors are compelled to put 

 out notices on houses where certain diseases exist, such as 

 scarlet fever. In fact, the law does say our inspectors have 

 to tell. 



The secretary here read Sec. 3 of the foul brood law, as 

 follows: " Every bee-keeper or other person who shall be 

 aware of the existence of foul brood, either in his own api- 

 ary or elsewhere, shall immediately notify the county in- 

 spector of bees, if there be one, and if not, the secretary of 

 the Colorado State Bee-Keepers' Association, of the exis- 

 tence of such disease, and in default of so doing shall, on 

 summary conviction before a justice of the peace, be liable 

 to a fine of five dollars and costs." (See also Sec. 8.) Per- 

 haps some inspector may have been indiscreet and said 

 something out of school about other matters than foul 

 brood. But he can be held to account for such things as 

 well as any other man. 



Mrs. Hord — The more public the cases of disease are 

 made, the greater the incentive to keep our own bees clean. 

 I can not understand the motive of the question. 



Mr. Jouno — Does a high or low elevation, or shade or 

 sunshine, determine the presence of foul brood ? 



Mr. Brock — It makes no difference at all. Foul brood is 

 ca'rried from one hive to another, whether either one is high 

 or low. 



A Member — I have had bees only a quarter of a mile 

 from foul brood, and my bees did not take it. 



F. Rauchfuss — The bee-keeper may do much to prevent 

 his bees from taking it, by handling them so they will not 

 get started to robbing, and if he notices they are robbing 

 somewhere else, he should find out where, and take the 

 proper measures to have it stopt. 



Mr. Bates — I live on the Platte River bottom, and have 

 30 or 40 colonies. One man who lives above on high land 

 has more foul brood than I have. I have reason to believe 

 it is all carelessness. I think the inspectors don't do their 

 duty as they should do. I brought bees nine years ago 

 from Nebraska to West Denver. A few blocks away a few 

 hives of bees were inspected by the inspector, who found 

 six out of seven rotten with foul brood. The owner was 

 away. I was with the inspector, and heard him tell the 

 owner's wife to take care of them. I went four or five days 

 later, but the owner did nof want to kill the bees. The in- 

 spector should burn a colony right away. I inspect my own 

 bees, and when I find a diseased colony I burn it up. Just 

 as long as it is neglected we will never get rid of it. 



Ch. Adams — The last apiary I visited had foul brood. 

 According to law I had no right to burn the diseased colo- 

 nies before five days' notice. 



Mr. Bates — I don't know whether the inspector has the 

 right or not, but he should have. I have had foul brood 

 caused by the neglect of others, and know it. A neighbor 

 of mine made a pile of his. diseased hives and covered it 

 with nothing but canvas. 



Mr. Rhodes — Ch. Adams is correct — the inspector has 

 no right to burn immediately. The law is lame in that re- 

 spect, and also in that the inspector has no forfeit to pay if 

 he does not do his duty. 



H. Rauchfuss — Our law provides for that. Section 8 

 says there is a fine if any person exposes sources of infec- 

 tion — even before the five days' notice is up. 



Question. — How long do you starve foul-brood)' bees 

 after transferring, when there is no honey in the field ? 



Mr. Milleson — I put them in shape so they don't have 

 anything to eat all winter — that is my invariable rule. It 

 is cheapest, causes least anxiety, and doesn't cost very 

 much to destroy them. It makes vinegar material, and 

 material for the wood-shed, and saves so many chances. 



J. B. Adams — I would burn out the hives with kerosene, 

 and use them again. 



[Continued 'next week.] 



