1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



441 



goiug- through it. We melt from 60 to 80 

 tons of wax every season, almost all of 

 which is melted over hot black iron steam- 

 pipes. After a series of experiments we can 

 not see that black iron, as we use it, dis- 

 colors the wax in the least, because the wax 

 flows over them rapidly. If the wax is al- 

 lowed to stand In aji iron kettle for several 

 hours, especiall}' if it is reheated several 

 times, it will darken. If it is confined in a 

 galvanized receptacle for a continued length 

 of time it would assume a greenish tinge. 

 But old comb that is put into either a gal- 

 vanized or black-iron wax-press, and melt- 

 ed, should pass through the machine so 

 rapidlj' that no discoloration will take place 

 — that is, if directions are followed not to 

 let the wax boil or simmer in the inside of 

 the machine. When it is once hot and 

 thoroughly melted, pressure should be ap- 

 plied at once, letting the free wax escape. 

 It will then come out with a beautiful yel- 

 low color. — Ed.] 



THE NEW FOUL-BROOD CURE. 



How <o Apply Formaldehyde ; Why and How it 

 Cures ; a Seasonable and Valuable Article. 



BY WILLIAM HAHMAN. 



3fr. Roof: — I see3'Our remarks on the use 

 of formaldeh3'de in your Apr. 15th issue. I 

 think I wrote you of my curing combs of in- 

 fectious foul brood by means of this chemi- 

 cal late last summer, and was somewhat 

 surprised that you did not give this matter 

 the publicity it deserves. Foul brood is a 

 germ disease, just as smallpox probably is; 

 and my reasoning was that, if formalde- 

 hyde can thoroughly and completely disin- 

 fect premises harboring germs of smallpox, 

 and completely destroy the germs, spores, 

 and all traces of the disease, it might also 

 kill and eradicate foul brood. My tests 

 satisfied me that such treatment does en 

 tirely destroy foul brood. The disease did 

 not reappear in combs that were infected 

 and so treated. The chemical is not ap- 

 plied by spraying, as you suppose, but the 

 vapor is driven ofl^ by evaporating with a 

 lamp. Various styles of formaldehyde- 

 fumigators are now for sale at drugstores 

 at 25 cents each. Each fumigator contains 

 enough formaldehyde to disinfect a common 

 living-room. The cheaper plan is to buy 

 the formaldehyde (40° solution), put a little 

 of it in a tin dish, and place it over a small 

 coal-oil lamp. I fumigated five or six hive- 

 bodies full of frames at one time in this 

 w ly, with three or four tablespoonfuls of 

 formaldehyde, putting the lamp and tin 

 dish in a hive-body and empty super, and 

 stacking on top the hives to be fumigated. 

 I lighted the lamp before stacking up; and 

 after all the formaldehyde was evaporated 

 I tilted up the hives enough to blow the 

 lamp out and let the whole outfit stand 12 

 or 14 hours, shut up tight. After it was all 

 over it took quite a lot of airing to reduce 

 the pungent odor of the gas, and it annoyed 



the bees to receive one of these frames in 

 the colony; but they managed to dispel the 

 rest of the fumes. 



The fact that boiling does not destroy 

 the spores of foul brood does not prove very 

 much. It goes to show that we must use an 

 entirely difterent method of eradication. 

 Because we can drown a cat, it does not 

 prove that we can destroy other animal life 

 in the same way; for fishes could stand no 

 end of drowning. It does not even prove 

 that fishes are particularly hard to kill, 

 but that we must try some other method. 

 We do know that formaldehyde vapor, or 

 fumes, are particularly destructive to germ 

 life; and I believe that its use will mean a 

 big thing for the bee-keeping fraternity. 



Altoona, Pa., April 19. 



[Still the evidence is accumulating, going 

 to show that formaldehyde kills even the 

 spores in affected combs. We shall be very 

 glad to hear from others who have any 

 thing to offer. As I have said before, if we 

 can cure foul brood without melting or burn- 

 ing the combs we shall have made one 

 great step toward economy in treatment. 

 If there is any thing that a practical bee- 

 keeper dislikes to do it is to melt up or burn 

 up several hundred of his choice combs. 

 There is no better property in a bee-yard. 

 — Ed.] 



\_Later. — Since the foregoing was received, 

 the following has come to hand, which will 

 explain itself:] 



I will add that the cases I treated last year 

 appear to be entirely cured up to this time 

 this spring. I have only one case on hand, 

 which was not treated with formaldehyde. 

 I expect to get rid of this in a few days. 

 William Hahman. 



Altoona, Pa., May 7, 1903. 



FORMALDEHYDE APPLIED IN THE FORM OF 

 A GAS AND NOT OF A SPRAY. 



In your footnote to my article on page 

 326 you infer that we spray the combs 

 with formaldehyde. This we formerly did, 

 but we now find it cheaper, quicker, and 

 much more effective to use the gas of for- 

 maldehyde by putting the liquid in a tight 

 can with a small tube attached to the top. 

 A rubber tube is adjusted to this tube, and 

 connected with the comb-box. The can is 

 then placed on an oil-stove, and the liquid 

 boiled about twenty minutes. This frees 

 the gas from the liquid, and causes it to 

 pass through the rubber tube into the comb- 

 box, leaving the water in the can, unless it 

 is boiled so long that it is converted into 

 steam, which will do no harm. 



The reason for making the gas outside of 

 the comb- box is to avoid burning the combs 

 by the gas taking fire. 



Bee-inspector Wright, of the first division 

 of New York, uses a gas-generator in the 

 comb-box; but it is made something like the 

 miners' safety-lamp, and uses formalin pas- 

 tils. The necessary apparatus can be had 

 through Schering & Glatz, 58 Maiden Lane, 

 New York. If any brood hatches from any 



