Remedies for Poul Brood. 405 



with marvelous rapidity; and hence the horrors of yellow 

 fever, scarlatina and cholera. 



To cure such diseases the fungi must be killed. To pre- 

 vent their spread the spores must be destroyed, or else 

 confined. But as these are so small, so light, and so invisi- 

 ble — easily borne and wafted by the slightest zephyr of 

 summer, this is often a matter of the utmost difficulty. 



In "foul brood" these germs feed on the larvae of the 

 bees, and thus convert life and vigor into death and decay. 

 If we can kill this miniature forest of the hive, and destroy 

 the spores, we shall extirpate the terrible plague. 



Some of the facts connected with "foul brood" would 

 lead us to think that the germs or spores of this fungus are 

 only conveyed in the honey. This supposition, alone, 

 enables us to understand one of the remedies which some 

 of our ablest apiarists hold to be entirely sure. 



REMEDIES. 



V 



If we can fin 1 a substance that will pi-ove fatal to the 

 microbes and yet not injure the bees, the problem is solved. 

 Our German scientists, those ma.-ters in scientific research 

 and discovery, have found this valuable fungicide in sali- 

 cylic acid, an extract from the same willows that give us 

 pollen and nectar. This cheap white powder is easily 

 soluble in alcohol, and, when mixed with borax, in water. 



Mr. Hilbert, one of the most thoughtful of German bee- 

 keepers, was the first to effect a radical cure of foul brood 

 in his apiary by the use of this substance. He dissolved 

 fifty grains of the acid in five hundred grains of pure 

 spirits. One drop of this in a grain of distilled water is 

 the mixture he applied. Mr. C. F. Muth, from whom the 

 above facts as to Herr Hilbert are gathered, suggests a 

 vari tion in the mixture. 



Mr. Muth suggests an improvement, which takes advan- 

 tage of the fact that the acid, which alone is very insoluble 

 in water, is, when mixed with borax, soluble. His recipe 

 is as follows: Eight gi-ains of salicylic acid, eight grains 

 of soda-borax, and one ounce of water. This remedy is 

 applied as follows: First, uncap all the brood, then throw 

 the fluid over the comb in a fine spray. This will not 



