McLAIN, 1888. 37 
tion which McLain gives of the appearance of the dead larvee is that 
of American foul brood, he very probably was working with this 
disease. 
7. He seemed to accept the belief that adult bees are affected with 
foul brood as well as the brood. 
8. He supposed that pollen is the medium by which the infection 
is usually transmitted. 
9. He evidently believed in the efficiency of the drug treatment of 
bee diseases. : 
Let us now consider for a moment some of his contentions. One 
must agree with McLain that the diseased condition then known as 
foul brood is an exceedingly serious one, causing great loss to the bee 
keepers. That the disease is quite infectious has often been demon- 
strated. That the germs of the disease may be carried from one 
hive to another in and upon the bodies of the bees seems very prob- 
able. That the germs are carried from one colony to another upon 
the clothing of the bee keepers and that the infection is transmitted 
in this way is extremely improbable. That the germs are carried by 
the winds from one hive to another in the apiary is likewise very 
improbable. That the germs of the disease are liberated from other 
insects and afterwards taken up by bees is not probable. 
In many ways this report by McLain is a conservative one. Suf- 
ficient evidence was wanting to prove most of the points in his paper. 
He probably realized this fact, and for this reason, as a rule, he did 
not make positive statements. Inasmuch as his report covers the 
work of a single season, very little definite information could be 
expected. 
McLatn, 1888. 
In his report ‘ on the succeeding year’s work McLain discusses some- 
what again the question of bee diseases. This report shows the 
influence of Cheshire’s writings, since McLain now speaks of the 
inappropriateness of the name foul brood (p. 21) and the certainty 
of the etiological relation between Bacillus alvei and the disease (p. 20). 
Furthermore he refers to the statements of Cheshire concerning the 
probable spread of disease through the air and by means of the clothes 
and hands of the operator, and says that Cheshire’s observations are 
in agreement with his own which he included in the preceding report. 
McLain had expressed (p. 36) his firm belief in the theory that 
pollen was the common source of infection in foul brood, and not 
honey, as was commonly supposed. This view, he thought, was 
strengthened by some statements which Cheshire made. McLain 
was of the opinion that undue importance was being attached to 
honey as a medium through which the infection is transmitted, and 
1McLain, N. W.,1888. Report on experiments in apiculture. Report of the Commissioner of Agriculture 
for 1887, pp. 170-178. Washington: Government Printing Office, 
