82 



THE AMERICAN BEEKEEPER. 



common in Canada, and at first 

 thought one would suppose, as has 

 heeu intimated by others, that their 

 cold climate caused it, but I don't 

 believe their climate is at fault when 

 we remember that Canada produces 

 extracted honey almost exclusively. 

 Their seasons are short, and every 

 expedient is resorted to, both early 

 and late, to increase their yield, even 

 that most terrible practice of extract- 

 ing from the brood chamber. And 

 here friends, is where the disease of 

 foul brood is born. I have wondered 

 for years past why bee-keepers were 

 so silent in regard to this terrible 

 practice, but when we consider that 

 man is but little behind the robber 

 bee in selfishness the matter needs no 

 explanation. "No man liveth unto 

 himself,.' and this is exemplified with 

 terrible force in this case. If the 

 men who do the wrong were the only 

 ones to suffer, the matter would not 

 present such ugly features, but neigh- 

 bor A knows nothing of his friend's 

 means of producing extracted honey, 

 but he knows all at once that his bees 

 have got foul brood, and no one 

 knows how it originated. But ig- 

 norance is a poor excuse in the mat- 

 ter. The man who whirls frames of 

 brood in the extractor simply to get 

 honey knows that he is doing wrong, 

 or else his stock of commonsense is 

 limited. It is selfishness more than 

 ignorance, and every man who starts 

 the disease should be made to pay full 

 damage. I do not wish to appear too 

 positive, but I will say that I know 

 whereof I speak when I saythat foul 

 brood is caused by whirling the combs 

 of brood in an extractor. I can kill the 

 larvie in brood combs every time in 

 this way and start the disease. 



Let any one try the experiment 

 with hens eggs that are half hatched. 

 Wrap them up so that they will not 

 break and give them a whirl with 

 your extractor and see if the hen will 

 hatch them. This will not be the 

 case with the eggs of the bee, but the 

 larvae if disturbed will rot, and who 

 that has tried it dare say that the ex- 

 tractor does not disturb the larvae ? 

 Look at the extracted honey ; see the 

 scum that rises on top. This scum is 

 albumen. If you can throw this 

 albumen off from the larva? and have 

 the larva' live' then you can extract 

 the albumen from a hen's egg and 

 still have it hatch ; but it may be 

 stated that the bees put other albu- 

 men on the larva? in place of that 

 which has been thrown out with the 

 extractor. Well, if they do they 

 cannot save the life of the larva? any 

 more than you can save the life of a 

 half-hatched chicken by replacing the 

 albumen of the egg after it has been 

 removed. Again, the larvie that is 

 thus uncovered is easily chilled by 

 the whirling they receive in the ex- 

 tractor ; and can larvae thus mal- 

 treated live and produce good bees ? 

 My experience and experiments say 

 no, to say nothing of the quality of 

 honey extracted from brood combs, 

 mixed as it is with larva? food. The 

 fact that some do in innocence and 

 others in wilfull carelessuess produce 

 the disease of foul brood by extract- 

 ing the brood combs, should arouse 

 the indignation of all honest bee- 

 keepers, and enlist their energies, 

 not only in an endeavor to discourage 

 the evil practice, but to educate those 

 who need it to the fact that we can't 

 go contrary to nature and escape pun- 

 ishment. 



Ovid, Pa. 



