THE AMEEICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



161 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



A Cheaper Bee House. 



Mr. Editok : — I have just been readinir the 

 January number of the Bee Journal. I think 

 Novice's bee house is so expensive that verj' few 

 persons will be induced to put so much money in 

 so small a building. My brother and I built one 

 last fall, ten feet by twenty-one inside measure- 

 ment, eight feet high in Uie cellar part, with 

 shelving to contain one hundred and twenty 

 stocks of bees, and a shed overhead six feet 

 liigh in the clear, in which to store out empty 

 hives, caps. &c. The entire cost of it was less 

 than twenty-six dollars. We did all the labor 

 ourselves. "We have now in it more than one 

 hundred and twenty colonies of bees, in tip-top 

 condition. 



The past season was the poorest ever known 

 in this part of the country. More than half the 

 bees will starve to death. Natural swarming 

 commenced very late, and after the 15th of July 

 I do not think the bees gathered as much as they 

 used from day to day. 



I swarmed my bees artificially, and as soon as 

 the pasturage failed I stopped. We increased 

 our stocks about one-half, and have had the larg- 

 est share of surplus honey that has been taken in 

 tliis county. We use the shallow form of Laug- 

 stroth's hive. I have examined several liundred 

 stocks, in different styles of hive, this fall, and 

 have tbund none that are near as heavy as those 

 in the shallow form. 



Henry S. Wells. 



Lisle, Broome Co., N. T. 



[For the American Bee Journal.] 



Experience with Eoulbrood. 



Several years ago I purchased two stocks of 

 Italian bees of a man in the State of Maine, for 

 Avhich I paid him forty dollars. They were in 

 Langstroth hives. I opened both hives after I 

 received them, as I was anxious to know what 

 kind of a bargain I had made. On removing the 

 top board I detected a peculiar smell, such as 

 had never come in contact with my olefactorj^ 

 nerves before. Although I liad never seen a case 

 of foulbrood, I at once pronounced the two hives 

 infected with this disease. 



It was then early in the month of June, and I 

 let the bees work, to see what would be done. I 

 examined them every day, to ascertain how the 

 disease was progressing. The stench grew more 

 intolerable, as the disease spread in the combs. 

 I did nothing the first year to check it from 

 spreading. Early the next spring, I opened my 

 hives, to see if the disease was still there, and of 

 course found that it was, and quite as much so 

 as ever. Very little brood was to be seen, and 

 all my stocks showed unmistakeable signs of be- 

 ing foulbroody. I now commenced to experi- 

 ment, and every comb containing brood was re- 

 moved, the brood cut out and buried deep in the 

 ground, and new combs that contained no brood 

 were given to each hive. In a short time these 

 combs had brood in them, and were likewise 



infected ; and so I went through with tlie same 

 operation of cutting it out ; and towards the hit- 

 tor part of summer no brood hatched out at all — 

 my stocks being so badly infected. 



I know of but one way to cure this disease, and 

 I strongly advise others who are troubled with 

 this malady to adopt my remedy, namely — de- 

 stroy all the hives, combs, and everything about 

 the apiary that came in contact with the foul- 

 brood. I melted all tlie combs, and burned all 

 my hives, and had a thorough cleaning out of 

 everything that would induce the disease to re- 

 turn. I then purchased a new stock of bees, 

 hives, &c., and have not seen any traces of foul- 

 breed since. 



That this disease is so contagious as some wri- 

 ters allege, I do not believe. One of my neigh- 

 bors had at that time fifty hives of bees, and none 

 of them were more than twenty rods distant 

 from mine; yet not one of his stocks was in- 

 fected. Perhaps some bee-keepers will not agree 

 with me so far as l)urning the hives, but I am 

 certain that this is the cheapest and surest way 

 in the end. 



My experience with foulbrood cost me about 

 two hundred dollars, and I am not srfrry that I 

 had something to do with it. Should it again 

 make its appearance among my bees, I know just 

 what to do, in order to subdue it ; but I do not 

 expect ever to see anything of the kind again. 

 H. Alley. 



Wenliam, Mass. 



re?" Wc entirely concur with ^.Ir. Alley in advising 

 the immediate and complete destruction, by Are, of 

 hives and combs, after siiflbcating the bees with 

 the fumes of I.n-imstoue, whenever a colony is found 

 infected with foulbrood. Tliis should be done in 

 every c.-ise, unless perchance the owner is disposed to 

 avail himself of the opportunity :o study the disease, 

 and is in a location remote from all other bees. This, 

 of course, will be a rare case, and in every other we 

 advise a prompt resort to tlie ordeal by fire. 



The character of this disease is now ]n-obably un- 

 dergoing a more thorough scientific investigation 

 than ever before ; and it is to be hoped that an effi- 

 cient remedy will, ere lonir, be devised, fully tested, 

 and then given to the public "without money and 

 without price." 



[For the Am 



The Toad. 



Bee Journal.] 



Me. Editor:— As almost all the principal 

 i.ssues in the science of a])iculture have been 

 pretty well discussed through the columns of the 

 Journal, books, &c., there seems but little left 

 about which to write. But, as is often the case, 

 one gets his curiosity as fully gratified in the " side 

 show" asunder the main canvas; and, as "va- 

 riety is the spice of life," we propose for a moment 

 to look in upon the performance in the " smaller 

 rig." ";. 



In nearly all the books on apiculture we have 

 a chapter treating on the enemies of bees ; and, 

 amongst others, the toad comes in for his share 

 of " blessings." Now, to thiswe object. In our 

 humble opinion the toad is one of the most harm- 

 less, yet useful, assistants we have. But some 

 one says "his very looks ought to condemn him." 



