562 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



For tbe American Bee JoumaL 



My Experience with Foul Brood. 



R. C. nOLSIES. 



lu July. 1S82. the flow of honey he- 

 iiig good". I noticed that the bees of 

 one of niv colonies were idle and list- 

 less while the other colonies were at 

 work. I had only to take off the cap 

 of the hive, and 'lift out a frame, to 

 find both by the odor and appearance 

 a case of "foul brood." The concave 

 brood caps, with perforations, the dead 

 brood, dark-colored and ropy, and bad 

 ^mell. all being present. I had read 

 so much about it. that my heart grew 

 sick within me. and I felt as I once 

 did. after working half an honr in en- 

 deavoring to land a two-pound trout. 

 and finding that it was only a "sucker."" 

 I put the frame back and left the 

 bees uutil near dusk. I then set a 

 box beside the hive, and after smok- 

 ing the bees pretty thoroughly .brushed 

 them off the frarnes into the" box. put- 

 ting on a cover (in which was a hole 

 about 6 inches square, covered with 

 wire cloth), and fastened it on. I 

 then set the box away in a dark stall 

 in my barn, and let it "stand fi-om 36 to 

 40 hours. I then took a clean hive, 

 put it on the same stand, put in it 

 frames of foundation, and emptied 

 the bees out of the box into it. I put 

 on a feeder containing some granu- 

 lated sugar svrup with a little salicylic 

 acid mixed with it. The colony drew 

 out the foundation, stored nearly 

 enough honey to take tliem through 

 the winter, and I had no more " foul 

 brood "" there. 



I then proceeded to examine my 

 other colonies, of which I had 20 in 

 all. I found 6 other colonies infected 

 with the disease, i only slightly, and 2 

 seriously. I determined to try some 

 experiments, and having read your 

 valuable Jourx.\l for a "year or two. 

 and kept the numbers o"n file, also 

 owning A. I. Roots " Bee-Keeping."" 

 Cook's Manual. King. Quinby and 

 I>angstroth books. I had quite a library 

 to draw from. I took the worst case 

 left, and phiced a clean hive on the 

 stand, in which were new frames with 

 foundation, and brushed the bees im- 

 mediately from the infected combs on 

 to the foundation, and put on a feeder 

 with syrup and salicylic acid as before. 

 The colony also built out the founda- 

 tion, stored enough honey for winter, 

 and has showed no signs of the dis- 

 ease since. 



The other -5 colcuiies not being as 

 seriously affected. I determined to try 

 and save the combs if I could. I pro- 

 cured a solution of salicylic acid, ac- 

 cording to the recipe given. I think bv 

 C. F. Muth. also by A. I. Root, and 'a 

 sprayer, and sprayed the combs and 

 bees" thoroughly every week, and some- 

 times oftener. until I thought the dis- 

 ease eradicated. It certainly decreased, 

 and seemed to disappear. " On looking 

 over my bees in October. I found that 

 it was not eradicated, and in one hive 

 it was quite bad. 



I brimstoned the liees in that hive, 

 and buried the combs, as I also did 

 those of the first two colonies mem- 

 tioned. The other -i colonies were in 

 brick hives, with a cement lining in- 



ry 



them. I sent to L. C. Root & Bro. for 

 some emptv combs, having none my- 

 self, and "transferred the combs to 

 some new frames, took the bees out of 

 each hive, washed out the hives, every 

 crevice and corner with salicylic acid, 

 filled the comlis as well as I could 

 with svrup. and brushed the bees on 

 to them. I have never seen any " foul 

 brood "" since. 



As it is now a vear since I saw the 

 last of it. I feel tliat I eradicated the 

 disease from my apiary with the loss 

 of onlv one colony. I did not burn or 

 destiw a hive. "I waslied them out 

 thoroughly with the acid, let them dry 

 in the sun", and have since used some 

 of them. The query with me was. 

 where did the disease" come from, as it 

 is said only to proceed from some other 

 diseased colonv. 



I kept verv quiet about it, only my 

 wife and oldest son knowing ot the 

 trouble. I have several neighbors who 

 keep bees. one. only a few rods 

 distant, who has a colony in a cup- 

 board, or large box in the attic of his 

 shop. About the first of May last. I 

 asked him hcnv his bees were doing. 

 He rephed that they died out in the 

 winter. I asked him if he had re- 

 moved the combs, and he replied that 

 he had not. I suggested to him that 

 he had better do so soon, or the moths 

 would destroy it all. . 



A week or two later I asked him 

 again if he had removed the comb, to 

 which he replied that he had, that a 

 few of the outside combs were nice, 

 and had nice honey in them, but that 

 the inside ones were all rotten, and 

 stunk so that it most made him sick 

 taking them out. I then guessed I 

 knew where my " foul brood "' came 

 from. 



The yield of white clover and bass- 

 wood honey here, this year, was bet- 

 ter than for the three previous years, 

 but of fall honey not enough to safely 

 winter on, and" I have been feeding 

 several colonies. 



West "Winsted, Ct. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



How about that Foul Brood 1 



J. M. HICKS. 



I see on page o.31 of the excellent 

 Bee Journal, a short note taken 

 the apiary department of the Ameri- 

 can Grange Bidkiin. of September 20; 

 and which it seems lias been the cause 

 of Mr. C. F. Muth asking tlie Bee 

 Journal to reproduce it. and says, 

 "it lo«ks so much like a slur," &c,; 

 and then by way of reply he offers to 

 stake S-50 against SIO of Mr. Hicks' 

 money that I (Hicks.) cannot cure 

 foul brood witliout using what lie 

 calls his remedy. &c. ; and still to 

 make the matter more showy. Mr. 

 Muth offers to wager S5 against SI of 

 Hicks' money that he (Hicks.) cannot 

 pi-ove ever to have seen a colony of 

 bees affected with malignant foul 

 brood. Xow, Mr. Editor, let me say 

 if I were so inclined, or ever had been 

 a gambler, I might very easily relieve 

 the gentleman of his S->5; but having 

 been reared under different inlluences. 



I must decline Mr. Muth's special 

 proposition. But if Mr. Muth has 

 really taken umbrage at that note, 

 and thinks that I intended it as a slur 

 on him or any otlier member of the 

 the Xorth American Bee-Keepers' 

 Society, I am sorry, as it was not so 

 intended, but merely a question asked 

 and reference made to the long and 

 labored reports by certain members 

 of the convention on foul brood, and 

 after all no definite conclusion arrived 

 at, except a banter by 2 or oj of the 

 members to stake SoO as a fund for 

 the benefit of Mr, Langstroth in case 

 the cure was, or was not, affected in 

 1 or 2 different ways, as mentioned by 

 C. F. Muth and 1). A. Jones, each of 

 whom had a pet theory of their own, 

 of which I need not mention now. 



I thought so little of either process 

 as mentioned by the gentlemen ; es- 

 pecially so when it was to be tested on 

 a wager of SoO and to be the special 

 fund of an old and honored bee-keep- 

 er as well as a minister of the gospel. 

 So far as I am concerned, and as be- 

 ing weighed in the balance with any 

 man who desires to judge my capacity 

 and ability of knowing what foul 

 brood is and curing the same, I shall 

 only say I was quite well acquainted 

 with the disease in 1S70, and lost sev- 

 eral colonies of bees at that time, until 

 I stopped its ravages and further 

 spread among my Dees, which has 

 been over 13 ago; to-day I have no 

 signs of tlie dreaded epidemic diseases 

 known to bees. 



Further, here let me say that I 

 stated (when I had an opportunity so 

 to do.) at the Xorth American Bee- 

 Keepers' Convention, in 1882, that an 

 ounce of preventation was better than 

 a pound of cure, and gave my plan of 

 same ; and that, too, without favor or 

 reward, and have never charged a 

 cent for giving the knowlede of same 

 to any who so desire it. Further, let 

 me say, so far as Mr. Muth's plan and 

 use of salicylic is concerned, it is no 

 new thing, and has been known for 

 many years as a remedy, only as a 

 failure, for foul brood. I claim no 

 special honors for using rock salt as a 

 preventive, which I know it to be 

 from many years of experience, and 

 trust it may do much in preventing 

 such a loathsome disease as foul 

 brood from spreading. 



I am well aware that I do not know 

 it all yet, nor do I make such preten- 

 sions, but hope to be able to guide my 

 little pets, the bees, safely through, 

 and reap my reward accordingly. 



Battle Ground, Ind., :N'ov. 1, 1883. 



(^■May we ask you, dear reader, to 

 speak a good word for the Bee Jour- 

 nal to neighbors who keep bees, and 

 send on at least one neio subscription 

 with your own ";' Our premium, " Bees 

 and Honey," in cloth, for one neto sub- 

 scriber to the Weekly, or two for the 

 Monthly, besides you'r own subscrip- 

 tion to either edition, will pay you for 

 your trouble, besides having the satis- 

 faction of knowing that you have 

 aided the Bee Journal to a new 

 subscriber, and progressive apiculture 

 to another devotee. 



