PRACTICAL BEEKEEPING 75 



ed will soon dwindle to nothing and so exterminate the pest. 



Another bacterial disease of a more serious nature commonly 

 called four brood is the bacillus of the hive. Its common name 

 aiises from the symptoms which are readily noticeable in the brood. 

 The latter becomes dark and in the case of sealed brood if the 

 sunken caps are removed the larvae or pupae in a dead condition are 

 putrid, have a strong odor and are of a stringy or ropy consistency. 

 The simplest remedy for the disease which is very contagious, is 

 to shake the bees from the diseased colony into a box just at night- 

 fall, when they are all in. The combs and honey may 'hen be des- 

 troyed by burning and the hive disinfected by washing with cor- 

 rosive sublimate made by adding one eighth of an ounce to each 

 gallon of water. This same disinfectant may be used on tools and 

 also on the hands after handling the diseased colony. The bees con- 

 fined for two day in a dark place may be now fed a half pint to a 

 pint of medicated syrup each day for two or three days. This syrup 

 is prepared by adding one part of carbolic acid to six hundred parts 

 of sugar syrup. Honey may be used if available. At the end of 

 the fourth or fifth day the bees may be taken out and shaken into a 

 hive provided with starters set up a little apart from the other bees. 



Should there be considerable brood from several colonies it may 

 be^ placed over one affected colony until the young bees have emerg- 

 ed and then the combs may be melted up for wax by boiling for 

 several hours in hot water. The bits of comb built by the bees dur- 

 ing confinement should be treated similarly. The wax on cooling 

 should have the settlings containing any possible spores burned. 

 Bees thus treated almost always can be cured. As far as we know 

 there have been no cases of this malady in the state, and, in fact, it 

 is not a very common disease, the writer never having met with an 

 actual case in his experience. 



