1907 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



541 



No. 25 treats of what Germans call " Steinbrut," or 

 mummitied brood. In this disease the brood becomes 

 hardened and brittle, and, what is more important, 

 adult bees are also affected. It is due to a microbe 

 caled Aspergilliis Jlaruf!. found in abundance in the af- 

 fected brood and also on the hairs of adult bees. In- 

 oculation experiments on rabbits and fowls not only 

 produce the disease but cause their death; from which 

 it is inferred that this microbe is the true cause 

 of the disease in question. We would, however, 

 point out that too much reliance should not be placed 

 on this, as we know that Asperaillis Jiaras is partho- 

 genic in rabbits, whereas it is saprophytic in man. 

 The disease seems to be epidemic in some districts of 

 Germany. 



Dr. Moore and Dr. White were the first to 

 discover that Bacillus alvei was not the 

 cause of foul brood, but the direct cause of 

 black brood. In only one respect do the 

 investigations of the Imperial Institute dif- 

 fer from the findings of these men; and that 

 is regarding the cause of foul brood — the 

 common kind that seems to be so prevalent 

 in Europe and this country. The Institute 

 lays the cause to a Spirocfuvte belonging to 

 an altogether different family of the higher 

 bacteria that appeared in all the samples of foul 

 brood, as well as in all the dried masses and 

 scales. Dr. White, on the other hand, at- 

 tributed the cause to Bacillus larvce. It re- 

 mains to be seen which of these two author- 

 ities is right on this proposition. The fact 

 that Dr. White was the first to show that we 

 have been laboring under a wrong impres- 

 sion as to the cause of foul brood, entitles 

 his opinions and findings to a greater degree 

 of respect than ever. That his discoveries 

 are being confirmed in part, at least, by so 

 high German authority is a distinct ti'ibute 

 to his skill, and we incline to the opinion that 

 this same authority will find that he has also 

 discovered the microbe responsible for the 

 old-fashioned foul brood. 



THE PRICE OF HONEY NOT KEEPING PACE 



WITH OTHER COMMODITIES; THE FOOD 



VALUE OF HONEY. 



Some maintain the present low prices of 

 honey are permanent, and others think the sal- 

 vation of the honey-producer is more bees to 

 produce more honey. In other words he must 

 cut a stick to beat himself with. It can not be 

 disputed that honey in Europe sells for more 

 than it does in this country: and the consump- 

 tion of it in Europe is not small by any means, 

 so that it can not be stated the higher prices 

 keep the consumer from buying. On the con- 

 trary, low prices tend to create an impression 

 that the article offered is not what it is repre- 

 sented to be. No one reciuires more than a 

 small amount of honey at a meal, hence there 

 is no need to sell it at low prices. It is a con- 

 centrated food of high feeding value. In- 

 trinsically it is miich more valuable than but- 

 ter, yet it sells for considerably less. Why 

 so? Honey possesses a richer flavor than 

 butter, has a greater life-sustaining power, 

 and keeps imlefinitely; whereas butter keeps 

 but a few days or weeks. At one time in 

 this country comb honey sold for moi'e mon- 

 ey than butter; but that was Ijefore glucose 

 came this way. Doolittle once sold his comb 

 honey for 28 cents per lb. section, wholesale. 

 He could not do it now, though the ability 



of the consumers to purchase is far greater 

 than it was then. The same people are now 

 paying nearly twice as much for their butter 

 as they did then. What is the I'eason for the 

 change? Pai'tlylackof confidence, and part- 

 ly because honey is not a staple like butter. 

 People, as a rule, want pure foods, even when 

 their cash is short; but the trouble with hon- 

 ey up to and including Dec. 31, 1906, was 

 that the public did not have confidence in its 

 purity. The general impression was that 

 honey on the market was, in the main, 

 adulterated. One can hardly blame them 

 for their opinions, for they realized adulter- 

 ation was very common, and were nervous 

 about it. They thought, too, that the bee- 

 keeper was as likely as anybody else to be 

 dishonest. 



The situation has changed considerably for 

 the better; but the effect of continual and 

 reiterated misrepresentation will long remain 

 to create an unfavorable opinion of honey 

 in the minds of manyconsumers in this coun- 

 try. 



To restore confidence, bee-keepers will have 

 to get behind the national pure-food law 

 and conduct a lively campaign of education. 

 The American people are eagerly reading 

 every thing relating to pure food. They are 

 even now willing to listen to the bee-keep- 

 er's side of the honey question. They want 

 to know what he has to say about his prod- 

 ucts, honey and wax. If he says they are 

 pure they are willing to believe, knowing, as 

 they do, that Uncle Sam to a certain extent 

 looks after that. Granting that honey is pure, 

 they want to know how honey must be used 

 and what it is good for. They ought to be 

 informed all about its value as a food and 

 medicine. For the first time in history we 

 see a nation thoroughly aroused to the para- 

 mount importance of pure food properly used. 

 Within the next few years, books and papers 

 about food will appear in great numbers on 

 account of the eager desire for information 

 on the part of the people everywhere. 



THE TERRIFIC DEATH-RATE OF CHILDREN 

 DUE TO BAD FOOD. 



Why all this Jurore about food? Why not 

 let people do as they have always done— look 

 out each one for himself? The reason we 

 think for the change is this: Women in this 

 country have been receiving a superior edu- 

 cation for a generation back, and they have 

 gradually come to learn of the terrific death- 

 rate of children, and the causes of that holo- 

 caust of babies. They have found that bad 

 food and bad hygienic conditions were re- 

 sponsible for half the death-rate in the chil- 

 dren at least. This aroused mothers every- 

 where, and they in turn have created a senti- 

 ment which demanded pure-food legislation. 



Now, it must be admitted that honey is 

 largely a food for children — a fact that is usu- 

 ally lost sight of by many bee-keepers who 

 deal directly with consumers or by writers 

 on the subject. We must convince the Amer- 

 ican mothers that honey is the best sweet for 

 children. If we succeed, there need be no 

 worry about the sale of honey. 



