THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



February 



I decided to brimstone tlieni; but as I 

 was very busy tlien, I closed the hive 

 for a time. The hive was neglected 

 until one day in July, when I siw rob- 

 ber bees carrying the supposed diseased 

 honey from the hive. I was horror- 

 stricken. Picliing up tiie hive, I car- 

 ried it to a near-by stream, killed and 

 shook what bees I could into the water 

 and then carried it into the shop. I 

 supposed this to be a reckless act, yet I 

 did it. I no A^ begin to fear and dread 

 the disease. Was it contagious ? To 

 what extent ? I resolved to experiment 

 and to become more alert and careful. 



I took two diseased frames from, the 

 shop, inserted them in a s^trong four- 

 frame nucleus in the beginning of 

 August. In two weeks they were badly 

 diseased; but as they were strong and 

 had stopped brood-rearing, they fllled 

 their six frames solid with buckwheat 

 honey. I brimstoned them — a needless 

 act, I think — rendered the honey and 

 burned the wax. 



The apiary was now put up for win- 

 ter. During the winter I thoughtrauch 

 upon the disease. To what extent could 

 it, or would it run ? Had I better quit 

 bee-keeping and commence anew in 

 another locality ? These were questions 

 that passed through ray mind. 



Spring of 1S99 opened; I looked for 

 disease. Found none in March, April 

 or May. Felt more hopeful; but in June 

 eight cases turned up, with seemingly a 

 few more slightly attacked. ii'ive of 

 these had cast swarms, and when, after 

 five or seven days I came to return them, 

 I found the dreaded malady. I returned 

 only two of the five swarms, resolving 

 to give the remaining three the heroic 

 treatment of brimstone. Tlie parent 

 stocks with returned swarms gathered 

 surplus lioney about like otlier colonies 

 and have had seemingly healthy biood 

 since. Of the three colonies which I 

 intended to brimstone, two reared 

 queens of their own, one of which re- 

 ceived an accession of bees from a stray 

 swarm, built up solid for winter, while 



the other, being light in stores, was fed 

 sugar i-yrup. liotii have had healthy 

 brood since. The remaining one of the 

 five that had cast swarms, failed to rear 

 a queen, but became heavy with honey, 

 and I brimstoned them. 



One thing more at this time troubled 

 me. Tliose five swarms from black- 

 broody parent stocks, had they carried 

 the disease to other bees as they min- 

 gled in the air with many other swarms 

 and eventually clustered with them and 

 were divided and hived with them? 

 According to observation afterwards 

 they had not. 



In early June I had found a sixth 

 colony afflicted with black brood. They 

 were rather reduced in numbers; brood 

 not very badly affected. I tried to build 

 them up. Gave frames of capped brood 

 two or three times. The disease re- 

 mained, but the bees gained in numbers. 

 They seemed to make a heroic fight 

 against the disease; at times making a 

 loud, buzzing noise and fanni;)g violent- 

 ly with their wings: but as they did not 

 prevail against the malady, I brimstoned 

 them. 



There were yet during the same sea- 

 son, a few days later, two more serious 

 cases — a combination of drone-laying 

 queens with black-brood combined. I 

 brimstoned both. 



In all cases I used the hives again 

 with good results, after charring them 

 with burning straw. 



In lltOO I do not know that I found 

 any real case of black-brood, though I 

 saw a few suspicious-looking cases; but 

 Isuppose it was not black-brood, as they 

 did equally well with the rest, excei)t 

 one two-frame nucleus. This had what 

 I feared to be black-brood. I closed it 

 then, being busy. A few weeks later 

 found it queenless, broodless and very 

 few bees. I brimstoned it. 



SU.MMAKY OF RESULTS. 



Not a single colony that retained its 

 queen and unsealed brood recovered. 



Every colony made queenless and was 

 deprived of its unhealed brood, though 



