T-he greatest menace at present is European Foul Brood. This scourge 

 is known to have practically wiped out the keeping of bees over a terri- 

 tory of perhaps three hundred square miles around Ottawa, and five 

 hundred square miles in Northumberland, Hastings and Prince Edward ; 

 it has also gained a foothold at Fort Erie on the Niagara River. Much 

 loss by this particular disease might have been saved if the beekeepers 

 had kept Italian instead of common black bees, or if they had Italianized 

 as soon as they were warned. As the situation now stands, it seems to 

 be spreading from these districts like a blight, carrying all black bees 

 before it. Only those who Italianize their bees can hope to save them, 

 as no system of inspection can cure black bees of this particular disease. 

 Men with the right strain of Italian bees are securing enormous yields 

 of honey right in the centre of infected district. As the Irishman says, 

 "It's an ill wind that blows nowheres," and there is not the slightest 

 doubt that this wind of European Foul Brood, though ill enough, will 

 blow money into the pockets of the men who will sit tight, get Italian 

 bees, and weather the storm. 



AMERICAN FOUL BROOD. 



This disease is caused by bacteria known to scientists as Bacillus 

 Larvae (not B. Alvei, as was formerly supposed). It reaches the healthy 

 young larvae by means of infected food unsuspectingly fed to them by 

 the nurse bees. In most cases the larvae dies when nearly ready to seal 

 up, and most of the cells containing infected larvae are capped. The 

 dead larva softens, settles to the lower side of the cell in a shapeless mass, 

 at first white or yellow, changing to cofifee-color and brown. At this stage 

 it becomes glutinous, so that if it is picked with a toothpick the contents 

 will rope out half an inch or so when the pick is slowly withdrawn. 

 It adheres to the cell so it cannot be lifted out entire. It has the odor 

 of a poor quality of glue. When the larva dries it forms a tightly ad- 

 hesive scale, of very dark brown color, which cannot be removed without 

 tearing the cell wall. 



Where the infected larvae are capped the cappings turn a darker 

 color and become flat or sunken, the workers perceiving that something 

 is wrong usually start to tear off the capping, but, discovering the con- 

 dition of the contents, they generally leave it with a small perforation in 

 the centre until quite dry, then the capping is removed, and in time honey 

 may be stored in the cells containing the scales of disease. The millions 

 of disease spores then float out into the honey, which becomes a medium 

 for carfying the disease to other healthy larvae by robbing, in the same 

 or some other apiary. Some of the honey is also carried into the supers, 

 to make room for alterations in the brood nest, and is marketed in the 

 form of bottled or section honey. It goes into many homes, especially in 



