426 



THE AMERICA]^ BEE JOURNAL. 



The larger portion is sold by com- 

 mission merchants in San Francisco, 

 orders being received by them from 

 all parts of the world. 



This industry can be greatly ex- 

 tended in this country. The best 

 locations are at the mouths of can- 

 yons, where water is plentiful. Some 

 apiarists cultivate a little land while 

 taking care of their bees, and others 

 indulge in stock-raising. 



For tbe American Bee Journal. 



Foul Brood-A Criticism. 



J. E. POND. 



I do not wish to be deemed disputa- 

 tious, or to open up an acrimonious 

 discussion, but I cannot believe that 

 Mr. Hoyle's ideas in regard to " foul 

 brood," given on page 393, are correct; 

 and for the reason that they do not 

 agree either with my own experience 

 in tbe matter, or the views I have 

 adopted after comparing my experi- 

 ence with that of others. 



My first practical knowledge of 

 foul brood was in 1868, and as that 

 knowledge was gained through the 

 loss of some 25 colonies of flrst-class 

 Italians, at a time when I could have 

 sold every colony for from $25 to $35 

 each, I feel that I have the right to 

 think that I know something about 

 that disease, and its symptoms. As 

 to remedies and means of cure, I 

 know absolutely nothing, save what I 

 have learned by study, and I trust 

 that I may never know more than 1 

 now do of the disease. 



The disease was brought into my 

 own apiary through feeding Cuban 

 honey, that was not thoroughly scald- 

 ed. This I know, because every col- 

 ony so fed showed the disease in early 

 spring, while those not so fed had no 

 symptoms till two or three months 

 later. At first I did not know what 

 was the trouble, and of course I took 

 no means eitherof prevention or cure; 

 the result being that by the first of 

 August every colony but one was in- 

 fected, and, "strange to say, this par- 

 ticular one never took the disease at 

 all ; probably because from its loca- 

 tion and strength ; it neither visited, 

 nor was visited by the contaminated 

 colonies. 



Mr. Hoyle says: "I have known 

 for nearly two years that old bees, as 

 well as the larvse, would be diseased " 

 — meaning with foul brood. Now my 

 experience is just the reverse of this. 

 In my own apiary 1 have never known 

 a diseased larva to emerge from its 

 cell, or a mature bee to show any sign 

 whatever of that disease ; and from 

 the very name given the disease, it 

 cannot affect mature bees ; if it does, 

 it is of course wrongly named. I do 

 ' not doubt that Mr. II. '■ mashed a bee 

 that stung him, and that its excre- 

 ment was black;" I do not doubt, 

 either, that Mr. IPs hives contained 

 honey that was death to his mature 

 bees; but I do doubt his conclusion, 

 that honey-dew will ever of itself 

 cause foul brood ; and I do know, 

 without being a scientist, that foul 

 brood is sometimes caused by bacteria. 



I know this because I have treated it, 

 and tested it very carefully. 



And further, my experience teaches 

 me that while a " bee-keeper can (per- 

 haps) have the disease in his apiary 

 every year. . . .and never notice it," it 

 will not be many years before he will 

 have no bees whatever to notice, un- 

 less he adopts and uses some of the 

 remedies that have been proved to be 

 efficacious in causing a cure. If the 

 microscope did not show bacteria in 

 foul brood, the fact that the remedies 

 urged are of the nature they are, is 

 sufficient proof to myself of bacteria. 



In fact,not only my own experience, 

 but the experience of every bee- 

 keeper who has seen and known foul 

 brood, and given the public the bene- 

 fit of such experience, disproves the 

 ideas stated by Mr. H. ; and while 

 perhaps he may be correct, and all 

 the others, including Mr. Frank Che- 

 shire (who certainly has given the 

 subject more attention, scientifically, 

 than any other, to my knowledge), 

 wholly wrong, I still cannot believe 

 him right without some little proof. 



I do not know whether Mr. H. had 

 foul brood in his apiary or not; I 

 hope it may prove that he did not, and 

 I trust that his advice in boiling sus- 

 picious honey will be taken, and for 

 myself 1 will add to that advice : Do 

 not feed it to your bees after it is 

 boiled, if there is a chance that they 

 will not use it up at once. 



One question I must ask Mr. II., 

 viz : IIow long does it take his bees 

 to seal up their larvae V He says, 

 on page 394, that a close observer 

 ''will detect foul brood in discolored 

 larvae at least three weeks before he 

 would see sunken caps." 



As our editor well says, it is very 

 important that we should all know 

 the phases of this dread scourge of 

 the apiary, and a perusal of Mr. Frank 

 Cheshire's work will prove of the 

 greatest value, as it is the only really 

 scientific work we have from the pen 

 of one who has studied the subject 

 carefully from a scientific standpoint. 



As I said at the start, I have not 

 written for the purpose of provoking 

 a discussion, but as Mr. H's article is 

 a mere mass of statements, and' as 

 those statements are wholly at va- 

 riance with the scientific opinions 

 heretofore made public, I for one (and 

 I presume all the many readers of the 

 Ajierican Bee Jouknal) would 

 like also to hear the proofs as we are 

 striving to learn all the facts, not 

 only in regard to foul brood, but to 

 every department in bee-keeping. 



Foxboro,o+ Mass. 



System and Success. 



Local Convention Directory. 



1H87. Time and placr of MetUnt. 



Nov. lfi-18.— North American, at Chicjvgo. Ills. 



W. Z. Uutcbinson, Sec, RogerBvTile, Mich. 



Dec. 7-9.— Michigan State, at East Saginaw, Mich. 

 H. D. Cutting, Sec, Clinton, Mich. 



tST" In order to have this table complete, Secre- 

 taries are requested to forward full particulars of 

 time and place of future meetings.— ED. 



^ff~ Ail who intend to be 8j-steniatio in 

 their work in the apiary, should get a copy of 

 the Apiary Register and commence to use it. 

 the prices are reduced, as follows : 



For 50 colonies (120 pages) $1 00 



" 100 colonies (220 pa^es) .125 



" 200 colonies (420 pages) 150 



The larger ones can be used for a few col- 

 onies, give room for an increase of numbers, 

 and still keep the record all together in one 

 book, and are therefore the most desirable. 





First Basswood Blossom, etc.— M. 



O. Tuttle, Osage, 5 Iowa, on June 26, 

 1887, writes : 



I send you the first basswood blos- 

 som that I have seen this year. It 

 opened to-day. The forest is full of 

 it, but it seems to me it is coming on 

 early. Bees have been getting a little 

 honey for the past ten days— some 

 from white clover— and I see they are 

 at work vigorously on the sumac. I 

 have heard of swarming in the county, 

 where the bee-yards have but few 

 colonies. I have prevented it so far 

 quite easily, but now will come the 

 fun. 



Light Crop Indicated.— S. Shoup, 

 Coloma, 9 Mich., on June 28, says : 



The present indications are that we 

 shall have the lightest honey crop for 

 many years. Clover is drying up. 

 Basswood will bloom by July Land 

 unless we get rain the yield from 

 basswood will be very light, and we 

 have but very little honey on the 

 hives now. Swarming is over in my 

 yard. Bees are in fine condition. 



Prospect Good for Basswood.- Dr. 



G. L. Tinker, New Philadelphia,o«0., 

 on June 27, 1887, writes : 



Bees are doing only moderately well 

 here, so far, but the prospect is good 

 for basswood. 



Development of ftueens.- Patrick 



Keating, New Almaden,>o Calif., on 



June 20, 1887, writes : 



I would like to have this question 

 answered in your Jouknal : In how 

 many days does the queen begin to 

 lay eggs after she is hatched, and 

 drones are flying V My bees are al- 

 ways fighting, not for want of honey, 

 as they are getting it nine months 

 and more out of every year here in 

 California. They are hybrids. 



[About the fifth day after the queen 

 emerges from the cell, if the weather 

 is pleasant, she may be seen crawling 

 about the entrance of the hive, and 

 if the next day is propitious, she may 

 try her wings some from the alight- 

 ing-board. She will appear somewhat 

 excited, but after awhile she will 

 mount up and circle around, increas- 

 ing the distance each time, to mark 



