EUROPEAN FOUL BROOD 215 
a sufficient amount of stores to build them up ready for winter. 
To winter a colony with the idea of treating in the spring will 
require in the neighborhood of twenty-five pounds of honey, and 
there is always the danger that they may die during the winter 
or early spring. In this case there is not only the total loss of 
the bees and the honey that they have consumed, but the added 
danger that bees from other colonies may get at the stores and 
rob them out on some warm day before the hives have been 
looked after, and the disease be further spread. If the colony 
is strong enough to have a fair chance of wintering it is possible 
to save honey and wax to the value of from two to four dollars, 
and this is more than a diseased colony is worth at this season of 
the year. The hive may be saved and prepared for use again by 
proper disinfection. 
Late in the evening after the bees have stopped flying, the 
entrance should be tightly closed to prevent the escape of any 
bees. The hive should then be removed to some tight building or 
cellar and the bees killed with sulphur. All honey fit for use 
can be removed, but care should be taken that not a drop ever 
gets back to live bees. The combs can be melted up and the 
wax saved. Honey not fit for the table can be made into vinegar. 
The hive, including both top and bottom, should be thoroughly 
disinfected before using again, and if the frames are to be used 
again they should be boiled. Any honey that is fed to bees 
should be diluted with water and boiled for half an hour or until 
the scum is thoroughly cooked. 
Disinfecting.—For disinfecting hive parts a painter’s torch 
is very good. Some paint the inside of the hives with kerosene 
and then pile one above another and set fire to them and smother 
the fire as soon as the interior is scorched. 
EUROPEAN FOUL BROOD 
The cause of European foul brood is supposed to be Bacillus 
pluton, a microdrganism similar to those responsible for such 
diseases as diphtheria, typhoid fever, etc., in human beings. 
