DISEASES OF BEES 39 



Associations in the form of grants, as the Directors, with the approval 

 of the representatives of the Associations, may decide. 



Subscribing Associations will be required to take up five shares 

 of £1 each for every 100 members only 4/- per share being payable 

 the first year. It is hoped that it will be unnecessary to call up any 

 more money on the shares, so there will be no annual payment. 

 Thus Associations will only be asked to pay £1 for every 100 

 members. 



In addition there will be an Annual Premium of Id. per colony 

 of bees (spring count), minimum 6d. 



Some Associations seem to think this is more than they can 

 afford. It is difficult to see how the annual premium can be less 

 than Id. The chairman of one B.K.A. has offered to pay the 6d. 

 minimum for all the members the first year. Where an Association 

 has a number of very poor members cannot this excellent example 

 be followed ? 



As to the initial payment on the shares, even this has been 

 criticized in some quarters. £1 per 100 members the first year only, 

 does not seem very much to ask for, as the Society must have some 

 working capital to start with. If beekeepers really want foul brood 

 control will they not be willing to make some slight sacrifice to 

 obtain it ? Surely, if an Association has no funds to pay for the 

 shares, there is one beekeeper in a hundred who would give £1, or 

 eight who would be prepared to give 2/6 to get control of foul brood. 



Let no Association say that there is little disease in its territory 

 and therefore it has no need of foul brood insurance. This is a 

 national scheme. Only by receiving a large number of premiums 

 from areas where there is little disease can we hope to weather the 

 first few difficult years, and set the scheme on a firm financial basis. 

 You can help to make it a success now. If it fails it will be many 

 years before another plan is tried. Your county may not always 

 be as free from disease as it is to-day. You may one day be glad 

 of the help Bee Diseases Insurance, Ltd., can give you. 



Dr. a. L. Gregg stated that the research on brood diseases 

 which was being conducted at Rothamsted had reached a critical 

 stage, and that there was every hope that, if it could be continued, 

 some tangible result might be reached. The beekeepers would, 

 he said, be very foolish were they to let slip the opportunity of con- 

 tinuing this research. He proposed the following resolution : 

 " That this Conference considers that the Beekeepers' Associations 

 should continue to provide the financial support required to ensure 

 the continuance of the foul brood research at Rothamsted." 



The motion was carried. 



Mr. Lindley (Gloucester) said that he felt that the work on 

 brood diseases was extremely useful and on behalf of the newly 

 formed Honey Producers' Association offered the sum of five 

 poimds a year for three years in support of the work. (This con- 

 tribution has since been increased.) 



