THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



23 



Perhaps the next symptom that would be 

 the most likely to attract the attention of the 

 ordinary observer is the peculiar appearance 

 of the cappings over the diseased brood. 

 They may, or may not, be perforated, and 

 may be flat, or somewhat sunken. 



It may be that the first brood that is dis- 

 eased is sealed over, but I am not fully satis- 

 fied that such is the case ; in fact, I doubt it 

 very much, if / were looking for foul 

 brood, I should look for it in unsealed cells. 

 My experience has been that but a small 

 portion, comparatively, of the diseased brood 

 is ever sealed ; although our friend Root, in 

 the ABC, says it " is generally confined to 

 sealed brood," I have never seen a case in 

 which there was sealed diseased l)rood, in 

 which there were not mauy more cells un- 

 sealed than there were of those sealed ; and, 

 if I were looking for the disease, I should 

 look first in the unsealed cells. 



A peculiar and characteristic condition of 

 a diseased larva is that, at first, the putrid 

 mass lies on the lower side of the cell, being 

 thicker or deeper at the bottom or back end 

 of the cell than at the front end of the 

 mass, and, as it becomes older, it 

 draws back farther in the cell and extends 

 farther up on the back etid or bottom of 

 the cell. 



The color varies, with age, from a grayish 

 to a black ; looking mucli like pus, or mat- 

 ter, from a sore on a person. 



In attempting to remove it from a cell, 

 I have always used a common pin, and I 

 don't remember of ever succeeding in re- 

 moving it on the first trial. Some of it 

 would adhere to the pin head and stretch out 

 an inch, more or less, not letting go its hold 

 in the cell, and would then let go the pin and 

 fly back into the cell : never Ijreaking, as I 

 remember. Some of the tenacious, ropy, 

 elastic mass might adhere to wood, but I 

 have never tried a sliver. Unless the fore- 

 going characteristics were present, I should 

 have no fears of foul brood. 



Some writers have stated that the dis- 

 eased brood may reach the imago stage, yet 

 not lose its shape. This may be possible, 

 l)Ut if I never had any foul brood except such 

 as that, I'd not worry about it. I have had 

 such brood in foul Ijroody colones, and I've 

 had just the same in colonies that were not 

 foul broody, and have had such brood sent 

 me by mail, but when there were no putrid 

 cells I've never succeeded in inoculating a 

 colony with foul brood by its use. The A B 

 C says : " About the first symptom will be 

 now and then a cell of capped brood, the 

 capping of which is sunken, and perforated 

 by a small hole." while Mr. Ed. Bertrand 

 says : " It is only when the disease has lasted 

 some time, that the cappings are punctured, 

 and that the brood has an ofi'ensive odor." 



It is pretty generally conceded that the dis- 

 ease is communicated by means of infected 

 honey, but it may be conveyed by combs 

 that have been in a diseased colony, yet do 

 not contain a particle of honey. One or 

 more of the putrid larva- may dry down and 

 become a small, hard, black lump (mummy) 

 in the bottom of the cell ; and, if honey is 

 placed in the cell, the " mummy " will soften 

 and convey the disease. 



If the disease is conveyed only by the me- 

 dium of infected honey, there would seetn to 

 be but little need of fear that the infection 

 would be conveyed by a hive that had con- 

 tained a diseased colony, unless some of the 

 mummies, or some dried down honey, re- 

 mained in the lave, and came in contact 

 with honey. 



in this world there are but few diseases for 

 whicu therd is a specific ; but, fortunately, 

 toul brood is oae of tiie few ; and it is not 

 foolisn and expensive crejnation. 



When foul brood was discovered in our 

 apiary, we had about forcy colonies, and 

 tuey were increased during the season, 

 mostly by division, to about seventy. As we 

 worKed tor extracted honey, nearly every col- 

 ony became infected ; and, i doubt not, every 

 one would have been had all yielded surplus. 

 Only one colony w<is badly attected. 



During that season (i860) and the two fol- 

 lowing, it seems to me mat i spent many 

 weeks of time in uncaf piiig diseased brooa, 

 and in sprayii g comos with salicylic aciU 

 and borax as recommended by Mr. Muth. 

 I have no doubt that this treatment kept the 

 disease in check, but i don't remember to 

 have cured a single colony in this way. 



In 18rfi we had a surplus, from sweet clo- 

 ver, of about seventy pounds per colony, the 

 nearest sweet clover being nearly two miles 

 away ; but we had no increase, in 1882 we 

 had little surplus or increase, and the disease 

 had become so bad in many colonies as to 

 be really disgusting. Two colonies were en- 

 tirely Uepopulated. 



The spring of 1883 found us with about 75 

 colonies, some in fair condition and many a 

 trifle weak, but we had the trustwortny in- 

 formation that the starvation method was a 

 sure remedy. As soon as it was practicable, 

 in May and June, it was applied, and was a 

 perfect success. 



\\'e began operations by boiling, in a large 

 iron kettle, everything, that coaiu be boiled 

 witliout injury, that had in any way come 

 in contact witli the disease. A quan- 

 tity of foundation had been made in wired 

 frames on a (jiveu press, and was all ready 

 for use. The apiary stood in two lows in an 

 open place in the orchard, the rows being 

 eight feet apart and the hives four teet apart 

 111 the rows. We began at one end of the 

 back row, and set a disinfected or boiled 

 hive, filled with foundation, in place of the 

 removed hive. After having laid down new 

 or disinfected sticks for the hive to stand on, 

 we then shook and brushed nearly all the 

 bees from the combs of the old hive upon a 

 cloth laid down in front of the new hive to 

 enable the bees to run in more readily. If 

 the first and second colonies were rather 

 weak, the new hive was set half way between 

 them, and the bees from both hives put in 

 the new one, the best queen caged in the 

 hive, and the other queen caged and saved to 

 be used when needed. 



After the beas hid mostly returned from 

 the fields, aud before they bayan to fly 

 a,'ain to the flelds, the new hive was moved 

 ajout two rods in front of the old location 

 to a place that was almost an exact dupli- 

 cate of the old on?, and the front of the hive 

 and the alighting board washad with the s.il- 



