AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



73 



Topics of Interest. 



Foiil-Brooil is a Gem Disease. 



C. J. ROBINSON. 



The report of the International Con- 

 vention, held at Keokuk, published in 

 the American Bee Journal, acquaints 

 us of some hard things our kind cous- 

 ins " over there " in Canada have to say. 



One of their chief men applies to us 

 the epithet, "modern Gentiles," who are 

 supposed to be antitypes of the ancient 

 heathen ! 



His "voluntary contribution," read at 

 the Convention, and published on pages 

 762 and T6B, is, at least in some partic- 

 ulars, of singular import. Seemingly, 

 the author aimed to reflect on the Yan- 

 kee " great guns and tribunes " specially, 

 and include Yankees generally. How- 

 ever, he whitewashes his "furrin " with 

 the mention that his fault-finding "is 

 harmless banter (?). All right, friends, 

 give and take ! 



The gist of the contribution, of any 

 importance, is expressed in the text of 

 the learned essayist's theme : " How to 

 cure foul-brood among bees." This is 

 still a problem generally, and will con- 

 tinue such, so long as its true character 

 and real cause are not recognized by bee- 

 keepers. 



The Ontario Bee-Keepers' Association, 

 have, by virtue of an executive enact- 

 ment, officials who are qualified, by rea- 

 son of their research and experience, to 

 perform the duties of a "Board of 

 Health " in charge of apiaries. Messrs. 

 Allen Pringle and Wm. McEvoy, who 

 constitute the board, a^e familiar with 

 the phenomenon known as foul-brood, 

 and Mr. McEvoy informs us that he 

 had a case of foul-brood originate in "one 

 of his colonies, under his observation 

 and test, exempted from any possibility 

 of mistake. 



The treatment of foul-brood, as set 

 forth in the " contribution," is the 

 starvation plan, which gets rid of the 

 foul-brood virus, providing nothing is 

 left undone. However, it is more prac- 

 tical, and more certain of success, to use 

 "drugs" in connection with the plan of 

 removing bees and sound brood from 

 infected hives. The "starvation" is 

 a blissful fancy. I cannot avoid the 

 issue. I have the proof to ratify my 

 position. , Almost all writers have 

 treated the subject of foul-brood as hav- 

 ing originated within the memory of 

 man, but its advent, as proved by itself, 



was co-eval with the first appearance of 

 bees in cold climates. 



The brood of bees, while in the meta- 

 morphosis state, from the hatching until 

 developed into the imago, have in their 

 organisms an innate principle, which by 

 dint of circumstances, develop (as cer- 

 tain as that cider ferments, when under 

 favorable circumstances)the phenomenon 

 called foul-brood, and these conditions 

 are liable to happen whenever brood 

 dies from any cause, and passes into an 

 active state of fermentative decomposi- 

 tion, developing putrefaction. 



In all living tissues there are latent 

 spores (the same in inanimate matter is 

 fungoid) which remain inert until 

 quickened by some vital force, conse- 

 quent upon the failure of normal vitality 

 in some tissue wherein the spores become 

 nursed and invade the tissue substance. 

 Whenever spores are quickened, they ply 

 their role of destroying the substance of 

 tissues, and multiply by fission in forms 

 known as micro-organisms. 



In cases, including foul-brood, where 

 efiScient antiseptics and disinfectants 

 (germicidal and oxidizing agents) can 

 be brought to bear on the germs (bacilli) 

 their progress by fission is rendered 

 abortive, and the germs (though not 

 killed) die from starvation, as it were. 



The disease, called consumption may, 

 perhaps, be denominated a germ disease, 

 but germs are not the primary cause, 

 though it is probable bacilli is the sec- 

 ondary cause— the factor that consumes 

 the living tissues. 



It is certain that spores are not the 

 primary cause of consumption, for it is 

 self-evident that they would not remain 

 dormant, and celebrate, at will, in a 

 ghost dance. 



In cases of lung disease, it is impossi- 

 ble to treat the diseased tissues with 

 germicidal agents — except indirectly 

 through the medium of the circulating 

 fluid — the blood. 



In the Koch " lymph " process, the vir 

 tues of a true germicidal agent that re- 

 tains its virtues while coursing through 

 the lungs, is a great boon in therpeutics. 



In a former communication, I alluded 

 to Mr. Jones, who sits on the throne of 

 bee-dom in Canada, mentioning that in 

 1882, he, at a Convention, listened to 

 the reading of my essay, claiming that 

 foul-brood originated by the rotting of 

 dead brood, thus developing bacilli ; and 

 Mr. Jones was the first who responded 

 to my claim, by saying : " I do not be- 

 lieve that foul-brood is a germ disease." 



I take it that Mr. Jones is not a 

 scientist, and that he ventures in "where 

 angels fear to tread." While readin? 



