STATE bee-keepers' ASSOCIATION. 147 



profit from a colony of bees that has foul brood during the 

 season, supposing they are run for honey? Never mind the 

 question of getting rid of the disease, but what profit will 

 you have from those diseased colonies through the season? 

 And what is the damage to the honey crop by the legitimate 

 treatment ? 



Mr, Root — If I might answer that question, from my own 

 experience I would say, generally speaking, there would be no 

 profit. If the colony could hold its own, if I allowed the 

 disease to run and didn't do anything with it, it would be 

 not a case of profit, but a case of profit and loss, with par- 

 ticular emphasis on the word "loss," with the chance of in- 

 fecting the other colonies. 



Mr. Re3molds — ^Some inspectors might be a little more 

 partial with some than others. There is a point there to 

 look at. 



Mr. Snell — I would like to ask Mr. Smith if he has 

 found any foul brood in the northwestern part of the State? 



Mr. Smith — Yes, sir; in Whiteside county there is a 

 good deal of it. 



Mr. Wilcox — I want to get this clear to my own mind. 



* I have never found foul brood in my apiary, and I hope I 



never will. I understand from all I have read of it that the 



disease is transmitted only through honey. Is that correct? 



Mr. Dadant — I believe that is a mistake. Cheshire de- 

 scribed foul brood as Bacillus alvei, and he found it even in 

 the body of the queens. Now, of course, I couldn't answer for 

 what Cheshire said, but he is one of the best authors on 

 bee-culture. Cheshire was a scientific man, but he was not 

 practical ; he was not a man who produced honey. He found 

 germs of foul brood in all parts of the hive. In cases v/here 

 you cure it so readily I don't believe you have the true, 

 dangerous foul brood. Therefore I think we should be very 

 particular. I don't think we can go any too far. Where you 

 cure it by simply transferring the bees, that is well. I don't 

 think you should expect to do it in every instance. I be- 

 lieve there are dangerous cases where .you will have to 

 transfer the bees and destroy the combs, over and over again. 

 I don't believe you should stand to the statement that foul 

 brood is only in honey. 



Mr. Root — Prof. Harrison gave a paper on that in the 

 Canadian report in which he stated he had found the Bacillus 

 alvei in the ovaries of the queen, as Cheshire has said. But 

 I wish to say, in opposition to that, I have personally intro- 

 duced queens, from ithe worst colonies w« have had, into 

 healthy ones, time and time again, and never saw the disease 

 carried in that way. I don't mean to say it cannot be done, 

 though. But the experience so far as I know over the country 

 has been to the effect that queens may be taken out of these 

 diseased colonies and put into others, and the disease was 

 not transmitted. Why, that is so I don't know, but that is 

 the practical result of it. 



Mr. Dadant — Perhaps in this matter the scientific men 

 are deceived by some circumstances. Now, where a man 



