164 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Read before the Northeastern Convention. 



Dysentery, Its Causes, and Prevention. 



CHAS. DADANT. 



Dr. Angelo Dubini, an eminent 

 pliysician of Milan, Italy, and learned 

 bee-keeper, contests that the term 

 dysentery be accurate, to designate 

 the disease, vvhicli is the subject of 

 this article. In a book, L'Ape, pub- 

 lished in 1881, he uses the term 

 diarrhea. In fact, if we consult 

 Webster's unabridged dictionary, we 

 find that dysentery means inflamma- 

 tion of tlie rectum, or colon, attended 

 with griping pains, constant desire to 

 evacuate the bowels, and discharges 

 of mucus and blood ; while diarrhea 

 means a morbidly frequent evacua- 

 tion of the intestines ; a relax ; a flux. 



Such delinitions show pertinately 

 that the word diarrhea applies more 

 accurately to the symptouis of this 

 disease, than the term dysentery. 



But is really the affection in ques- 

 tion a malady? If \\'8give, at even- 

 ing, to a colony of bees some syrup, 

 made with oneortwoi)oands of honey 

 dissolved in a quart of water, on the 

 following morning, if warm, we will 

 see the bees flying out to void their 

 intestines. Tliey will shed liciuid 

 drops all around of a matter as colored 

 as the honey contained in the syrup 

 given the day before, yet we cauiioc 

 say that these bees have the diarrhea ; 

 for this discharge will be natural, 

 althougli more copious than usual. 

 But this abundance will be the result 

 of the unusual quantity of water ab- 

 sorbed with the honey. 



If, instead of diluted honey, such as 

 white honey is in sealed combs, or if 

 we give thick syruj), made with the 

 granulated sugar, it will be impossible 

 on the following morning to notice 

 the least discharge of excremeul;il 

 matter ; for the reason that the honey, 

 or the sugar syrup given, being ab- 

 solutely pure, has left very little, if 

 any, residues in the inteaiines. 



Let us suppose that, in both cases, 

 we shut up the bees, after giving the 

 food. The colony with pure honey 

 will support. without great suffering, 

 a seclusion of a whole week ; or if fed 

 with sugar syrup it will suffer even 

 less ; while the bees fed with diluted 

 honey will suffer from the flrst day ; 

 and their sufferings will increase 

 every day on account of the overload 

 of their bowels, which is increased by 

 the necessity for the bees to eat a 

 great quantity of a meagre food, in 

 which they can barely find a sufficient 

 support. Then, some bees, unable to 

 stand the overload of their bowels, 

 will perish ; while some will regret- 

 fully relieve their intestines in be- 

 smearing their combs and the otiier 

 bees. 



If we give those bees a chance to 

 lly, during a warm day, those not too 

 much weakened by their sufferings, 

 and wliich were not soiled by their 



sisters, will become again lively and 

 active, ready to resume their daily 

 work. 



From the above we can truly say 

 that the word malady cannot apply to 

 such a condition. It is an accidental 

 suffering which ceases as soon as the 

 cause disappears. 



Now that we know what liappens 

 in a colony, in which we have in- 

 tentionally" produced the diarrhea, it 

 is an easy task to find the causes which 

 produce such suffering in the colonies 

 during winter. These causes are 

 multiple. 



1. Bad honey. Sometimes the honey 

 gathered in July ferments before win- 

 ter. Its particles of sugar, on ac- 

 count of their affinity for each other, 

 have united, to form granulations, 

 freeing the water which was com- 

 bined with them. This water then 

 has fermented and bursted open the 

 cells of the combs. The bees in suck- 

 ing this honey have suffered by the 

 fermentation and by the large amount 

 of water that they have absorbed, to 

 draw from this water the small 

 quantity of honey that it contained, 

 while the bulk of lioney, hardened in 

 the cells, could not be used. Such 

 effect is often seen in liiulen honey. 



Unsealed honey although ripened is 

 also a cause of diarrhea ; for, honey 

 being hygrometric, absorbs moisture, 

 sometimes to such an extent as to 

 drop from the cells. 



At best honey is unwholesome for 

 winter when it contains too much 

 mellose, or uncrystallizable matter, 

 as honey dew; honey from heath, 

 which is gathered in several countries 

 of Europe, and probably also honey 

 from the very last flowers of the sea- 

 son. 



li. A second cause of diarrhea is an 

 insufficient population to warm the 

 hive, then the dampness, generated 

 by bees, is condensed around the 

 group, and besides eating too much 

 honey, this food contains an unusually 

 great quantity of water. 



3. A third cause of diarrhea is an 

 excessive and prolongated cold, then 

 the bees, to raise the temperature of 

 their hive, eat more, and overload 

 their bowels with feces. It is for that 

 reason that a colony placed in a cellar, 

 where the temperature is maintained 

 at about 45-, can remain healthy for 

 six months and more. 



4. At last a too long seclusion in a 

 place either too cold or too variable ; 

 this variation, in the temperature be- 

 ing insufficient to give to the bees the 

 chance of flying outside. 



None of the causes that I have 

 described would injure the bees, if 

 they were able to ily out and empty 

 their bowels as soon as they experi- 

 ence the need of it. 



To this day, the winter is very 

 mild ; our bees can enjoy a good flight 

 every week at least, and we have not 

 yet noticed in our apiary a single drop 

 of the foul matter, which they drip 

 around their hives after a few days of 

 cold weather. 



To sum up : To prevent diarrhea, 

 it is necessary to see whether all the 

 honey is sealed; and if the bees are 

 left on their summer stands, they 

 need space according to their number. 



so as'to make them able to warm it. 

 It is necessary to cover the top of the 

 frames with some matter that absorbs 

 moisture ; it is also necessary to sur- 

 round the hive with some straw or 

 other warm material, and after a few 

 weeks of protracted cold when the 

 temperature rises to about 45'^ in the 

 shade, it is well to awaken the bees by 

 some jarring, so as to compel them to 

 proflt by the opportunity which is 

 offered to enjoy a good flight and 

 void their intestines. 



If the bees are wintered in a cellar 

 or a special repository, it is as neces- 

 sary to avoid the rising as the lower- 

 ing of the temperature far from 45°. 

 If the cellar is too warm open the 

 windows at night, if the nights are 

 cold. If the nights are warmer than 

 45°, procure some ice and put it in the 

 cellar to melt. 



If the temperature is under 45°, 

 shut up all the openings ; then, if the 

 colonies are numerous, they will 

 warm the cellar ; of course I suppose 

 that the repository is proportionate to 

 the quantity of bees to be wintered in 

 it. 



I have never used a stove to warm 

 my bees, and would not like to be 

 compelled to use such an implement. 



Hamilton, III. 



Kead before the N. E. Convention. 



Wintering and Dysentery. 



N. N. BETSINGER. 



Mr. President, may it please your 

 honor. Brother ~ Bee-Keepers with 

 both profit and pleasure, be it unto 

 you, to listen for a few moments upon 

 the subject I have chosen, on which to 

 give you the great light, and that 

 light whicli is just now beginning to 

 draw upon us, is, " How shall we 

 maintain the health and strength of 

 our bees during the long rest in vege- 

 tation, herein our northern latitude," 

 on every hand we are informed. " I 

 am done with bee-keeping, the win- 

 ters are too severe for us." 



Thousands have theorized, and a 

 few (seemingly at first) to give a little 

 ray of light, to escape another such a 

 calamity as the most of us the past 

 winter had the misfortune to vi'itness, 

 in which many are, and will be mis- 

 led with such ])et theories. 



Not that I think all will fail, for 

 judging from the mildness of this 

 winter thus far, almost any plan will 

 succeed admirably ; especially those 

 left on their summer stands, but the 

 great mystery is, why do bees with 

 the same plan of preparing them, 

 winter perfectly one season and the 

 next almost all die entirely V 



Some say they have been breeding 

 too much, others say too old bees, or 

 that they ate too much poHoi, or the 

 honey was poor." Not a few hold if 

 they could fly every six weeks, perfect 

 healtli would be maintained. Now it 

 lias been a great puzzle to me why 

 this diversity of opinion, until of late, 

 I am able to reconcile it all ; the plan 

 wintering in nearly every case has 

 been imperfect. 



However, as I propose to tell you 

 the main and only cause of dysentery. 



