THE BEE-MOTH. 499 



sulphur fumes is a less expensive remedy, though a little 

 more troublesome. Bi-sulphide of carbon is an evaporating 

 explosive substance, which must be handled with care, but its 

 evaporation within a closed box is sufficient to destroy all 

 living insects; a tablespoonful is enough for the combs of a 

 hive. Sulphur or brimstone may be used by first making it 

 into wicks; it is melted over a slow fire and strips or rags 

 dipped into the liquid. These strips, when coated with brim- 

 stone, may be used by cutting them into pieces 6i the re- 

 quired size for each operation. 



A bee-keeper of Switzerland, Mr. Castellaz, keeps his combs 

 in a closed box, in which he places some lumps of camphor. 

 He says that bees accept these combs, even when impreg- 

 nated with the odor of camphor. 



813. Italian bees, unless exceedingly weak and queenless, 

 will defend a large number of combs against moths. One 

 of our neighbors, who had, occasionally, helped us in the 

 apiary, after witnessing our success in bee culture, bought 

 a colony of Italian bees and divided it into three swarms, 

 without regard to the scantiness of the crop. His swarms 

 having dwindled to naught, he returned their combs to the 

 impoverished colony, whose population was unable to cover 

 more than two or three combs. But the returned combs had 

 not been protected against moths, which hatched so numerous 

 that our neighbor, surprised to see about as many moths as 

 bees going out of the hive, came to us for advice. On open- 

 ing the hive, we found three combs of brood crowded with 

 bees, and seven others that were a perfect mass of webs, 

 spotted with excrements. The bees were all on their combs 

 and the moths on theirs; not one worm could be found on 

 either of the three combs, protected by the Italians. Both 

 populations, the one of bees, the other of moths, seemed to 

 dwell harmoniously near each other. 



814. The most fruitful cause of the ravages of the moth 

 still remains to be described. If a colony becomes hopelessly 

 queenless (499)^ it must, unless otherwise destroyed, in- 



