ILLINbiS STATE BEE-KEEPERS' ASSOCIATION 



41 



the cellar, leave them there for three 

 days, and bring them out and feed 

 them, and you have the job done. I 

 ■will gruarantee you will have no more 

 foul brood. You don't need to destroy 

 your hives. Take some sugar syrup; 

 shake that over the bees until they 

 are fairly damp; put a quart, or two 

 quarts, of feed on top of the hive, and 

 in the morning they will go out and 

 get to work; and in one week's time 

 your colony will be in good conditon. 

 The Baldridge plan is a success nine 

 times out of ten, with a little care. 



I had an experience with one colony 

 of bees that we S'hook at least three 

 times, and they developed foul brood 

 every time; it broke out in the same 

 colon5^ Finally I had to destroy that 

 brood. If I had 150 colonies of bees, 

 and found one hive out of the 150 had 

 foul brood, I should certainly burn it; 

 if I found twenty- five, I would surely 

 treat them on the' plan I tell you of. 



J. Q. Smith, the Late President. 



Mr. Dadant — I offered to prepare a 

 paper concerning the work of our late 

 President, and, under the circum- 

 stances, I thought best to write to his 

 w'idow% and ask her for the data that 

 was not in my possession, in order to 

 be able to state what he had done; 

 but I had the misfortune of my letter 

 reaching her when she was sick, and, 

 perhaps, away, for I got toer answer 

 only a day or two ago, and she was 

 then in Texas. I didn't* understand 

 whether she was already there when 

 my letter reached her; at any rate, 

 she w-as unable to furnish me any 

 data. I could have put in my informa- 

 tion what w^as already in the American 

 Bee Journal, but I thought best not to 

 do that; so that what "I have concern- 

 ing our late President concerns only 

 the question of foul brood. It seems 

 to be_ the question of the day. The 

 paper is as follows: 



The Work of Our Late President and 

 Its Continuation. 



Verj?- few people have an adequate 

 idea of the extent of the disease 

 known as ifoul brood all over the w^orld. 

 As bee-culture becomes extended and 

 apiaries enlarge, the chances for dis- 

 ease enlarge also, not only on account 

 of the greater number of hives, but, 

 also, because of the greater traffic, 



purchase and sale, shipping and mov- 

 ing of bees and bee appliances. The 

 growth of bee- culture has exceeded 

 the expectations of many. Careless 

 bee-keepers have gone into the busi- 

 ness with inadequate information, and 

 have made a failure. In numerous 

 cases, it is through these incapable 

 men that the disease has spread. In 

 olden times, the entire lack of knowl- 

 edge caused but little trouble, because 

 there was comparatively no ^hipping 

 of bees. When a man failed, his hives 

 were destroyed, or used for hen-coops, 

 and there was an end of it. As api- 

 aries w^ere quite a distance apart, the 

 spread of diseases as contagious as 

 this was prevented, much as a fire 

 goes out at the edge of the forest; it 

 burns itself out. . - 



Today, with our improved methods 

 and the business of bee- culture be- 

 coming every year of greater import- 

 ance, it is most indispensable to take 

 strenuous means for the abolition of 

 foul brood. As with the white plague, 

 the dreaded consumption, wrhich cuts 

 down so many useful men and women, 

 it is necessary that everyone should 

 know that the disease is contagious, by 

 what means contagion is spread, and 

 they should also know that there is 

 a positive cure for this, as well as 

 for consumption. 



Our late President, J. Q. Smith, who 

 has so long served as one of the most 

 useful members of our State Associa- 

 tion, was long ago initiated in the cure 

 of foul brood. The museum of the 

 State, in the Capitol building, contains 

 a sample of foul brood, supplied hy 

 him years ago. He had found the 

 malady among his bees, and had erad- 

 icated it. 



Since the ^tate of Illinois has given 

 financial support to our State Bee- 

 Keepers' Association, Mr. Smith has 

 acted as our inspector, until his death. 

 Hundreds of cases 'have been cured 

 through his indefatigable efforts. But 

 much remains to be done. Another 

 man is needed, as active as he was, and 

 as devoted to the cause. The allow- 

 ance given by the State for publishing 

 our annual report and for fighting foul 

 brood should be sustained by a law 

 similar to those of most of our neigh- 

 boring States, a law which will make 

 it a penal offence to knowingly keep, 

 ship or sell contaminated colonies. As 

 a rule, apiarists are progressive men. 



