806 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 15 



well as in the super; and an empty extra 

 brood-chamber without frames put under 

 the proper or true brood-chamber is a very 

 great help, not only to the proper drawing- 

 out of the brood- chamber, but to make the 

 bees contented in the hive. Next, to get 

 evenly built combs the bees must not be 

 given too much room. This is true of brood- 

 chamber, extracting and comb-honey super. 

 Give the bees no more foundation than they 

 can well cover, and they will do their best 

 work. If more surplus comb is desired, hon- 

 ey must be left in the combs already full, 

 and foundation added. Many a time I have 

 seen bee-keepers add frames with founda- 

 tion just before extracting, only to have the 

 bees after extracting first utilize the drawn 

 comb, and perhaps chew holes in the sheets 

 of foundation, these holes to be filled with 

 drone- cells when the comb is built out. 



By means of taking away a portion of the 

 frames in the brood- chamber, two days aft- 

 er the swarm has been thrown upon them, 

 and replacing with dummies, the same bene- 

 ficial results can largely be secured that are 

 sought by hiving the swarm on starters and 

 the drone-comb done away with. Whether 

 in brood-frames, surplus combs, or sections 

 I see in economic bee keeping no place for 

 any thing but full sheets of foundation, and 

 I have to buy every pound I use, or at least 

 have my own wax made into foundation, 

 which is the same thing. In moderate flows 

 or in heavy flows I see the need alike. It 

 should be avoided, to have foundation in the 

 hive when the bees do not require it. 



Brantford, Canada. 



[This is one of the best and soundest arti- 

 cles on foundation that we have ever pub- 

 lished, and I commend it to the careful at- 

 tention of every reader. Especially would 

 I place emphasis on Mr. Holtermann's 

 treatment of a newly hived swarm, to keep 

 it contented and from overheating and 

 stretching the foundation. — Ed.] 



FOUL BROOD. 



Some of the Late Statements Condemned; 



Italians not Proof Against 



the Disease. 



BY J. E. CHAMBERS. 



During the past year I have noticed many 

 articles appearing in Gleanings, at differ- 

 ent times, claiming that foul brood could be 

 cured simply by changing queens; and lately 

 Mr, Simmins and even such an excellent 

 authority as Mr. Alexander, seem inclined 

 to support that theory— see page 1318, Dec. 

 15, and page 22, Jan. 1. Without desiring 

 any controversy with any one, I wish to say, 

 for the sake of the pursuit, that I consider 

 such doctrine sure to cause disappointment 

 and even ruin; for you, Mr. Editor, are not 

 far wrong when you say, page 23, that you 

 can not understand why honey that remains 

 in the hive where foul brood has been ram- 



pant, and which has the germs of the disease 

 m it, will not reinfect the new brood. I 

 have had a good deal of trouble with foul 

 brood in my own apiaries, and I am as cer- 

 tain that any treatment, no matter what it 

 may be, that does not contemplate the re- 

 moval of every drop of infected honey from 

 the hive will be a failure. For several years 

 I made numerous experiments, in many 

 cases boiling the honey and feeding it back, 

 in order to satisfy myself whether or not it 

 was as contagious as report said. In all 

 cases I took away every drawn comb, and 

 gave foundation; but in every case the dis- 

 ease returned after a short time. I also 

 tried the plan of taking away all combs of 

 honey, but leaving the empty combs and al- 

 lowing the bees to rear and mate a young 

 queen. In a few cases the disease was ap- 

 parently cured; but, I think, it always re- 

 turned. However, I found out that, if eve- 

 ry particle of pollen as well as honey was 

 removed, the dry combs would be safe to 

 use. But I would not advise the novice to 

 take any chance with even these, for, to my 

 certain knowledge, while I do not doubt the 

 entire sincerity of all who believe that a 

 cure can be effected by simply allowing the 

 diseased colony to rear a new queen, 1 say 

 emphatically it is a great mistake, and in 

 saying this I am aware of the belief among 

 many that these men who are authorities 

 of no mean order should know more about 

 foul brood in the infected countries of Eng- 

 land and America than a mere novice; but to 

 such I only want to say that I have had five 

 years of steady work and experiment to rid 

 my apiaries of the scourge, and I have suc- 

 ceeded to my entire satisfaction, but not by 

 the methods advised. The old reliable Mc- 

 Evoy treatment, rightly administered, does 

 the work every time. 



Another foolish and in some cases fatal 

 mistake is the belief that Italians are in 

 any way proof against foul brood. During 

 all these years I had one apiary of Italian 

 stock from over a dozen of the best breed- 

 ers in the United States, and here right 

 among these bees, said to possess such im- 

 munity, is where the disease first started— 

 brought, as I believe, from a distance of 

 several hundred miles; but whether or not 

 the infection was in the candy or carried by 

 the bees and queen I am not able to say. 

 At any rate I know it was not known here 

 until brought by Italian bees; and I also 

 know that it remained in that apiary as long 

 as there was an Italian colony left; and I 

 also know that very few of my Carniolan 

 colonies were ever affected by it; and it 

 never gained any foothold in my three Car- 

 niolan apiaries, but the Italians were wiped 

 out or I had to requeen with pure Carniolan 

 stock, since which there has been no foul 

 brood in this yard. However, I do not claim 

 that the Carniolans are proof against it, for 

 I know that there is not a race of bees on 

 the face of the earth that is proof against 

 it. When once well started, the boasted 

 Italians were in my case as helpless to resist 

 its ravages as a rabbit would have been 



