86 BEES FOR PLEASURE AND PROFIT. 



have ceased flying, some sulphur should be lighted in the 

 bottom of this hole, and the hive, removed from its floor- 

 board, should be placed over it, care being taken that the 

 quilts are tucked in all around at the top of the frames, so 

 as to prevent any bees from escaping. The fumes from the 

 burning sulphur will suffocate the bees, and when they are 

 dead the combs, frames, dead bees, and the quilts must all 

 be burnt, as they harbour the spores, which are capable of 

 lying dormant for astonishingly long periods, and afterwards, 

 when the bee-keeper might suppose all danger past, these 

 spores, under favourable circumstances, suddenly develop and 

 restart the disease afresh in the apiary. The hive and its 

 stand must be thoroughly scrubbed, inside and out, with 

 boiling water and strong soap, and then painted all over 

 (again inside and out) with a solution of one part of Calvert's 

 No. 5 carbolic acid to each two parts of v/ater. Take care 

 that the carbolic solution is thoroughly worked into every 

 joint and crevice. The site where the diseased stock stood 

 must be dug up and the earth turned over for a radius of at 

 least 6 feet around the old stand. When— but only when— by 

 exposure to sun and air the smell of carbolic has passed away 

 (and this will take some time) the hive may be used again. 



"Starvation" or •• Fasting" Cure for Foul Brood. 



If, however, the diseased stock is still strong in bees, it 

 may be cured by what is known as the " starvation " or 

 "fasting" method. This consists in shaking all the bees oft' 

 the combs into an empty box or straw skep — an operation 

 which should be performed towards evening when the bees 

 have ceased to fly, lest some may enter other hives and carry 

 the disease with them. The bottom of the box or skep should 

 then be covered w^ith cheese cloth (a very coarse sort of muslin 

 which admits the air freely), and placed in a cool, dark cellar, 

 the box or skep being stood on two small strips of wood about 

 1 or H inches thick (sticks will do) so as to raise it from the 

 floor and thus secure a thorough current of air underneath ; 

 this is most important, as otherwise the bees would be 

 smothered. The reason for placing the bees in the dark is 

 that, if left in the light, they would make such frantic efforts 

 to get out that many would become worn out and die. 



While the bees are in the cellar all the combs, frames, and 



