36 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS ON APICULTURE. 
Bacteria. — We have now come to the consideration of that factor 
in the etiology of bee diseases which is most important and with 
which we would have the bee keepers become familiar. The annual 
loss sustained by the bee keepers of this country due to the one cause, 
bacteria, is to be reckoned in millions. It is unfortunate that it is 
necessary to use the word bacteria, because too many at once think 
that they are not able to understand anything about bacteria. This 
is a mistaken idea. It is not difficult to understand the facts about 
them which are most important in the treatment of disease. It might 
be well to review here some of the things known concerning their life 
history. 
Nearly two years ago the writer had the honor of reading a paper 
at a meeting of bee inspectors held at San Antonio, Tex., upon the 
subject of the bacteriology of bee diseases. This paper appears in 
Bulletin No. 70 of the Bureau of Entomology of the United States 
Department of Agriculture, page 10. In it are discussed briefly the 
nature of bacteria, their distribution, the methods of studying them, 
and the results of their activity. It is stated that bacteria — often 
called germs, microbes, and parasites — are very small plants; so 
small, indeed, that 12,000 placed end to end measure but 1 inch. They 
increase in number with marvelous rapidity. Under favorable condi- 
tions each bacterium in twenty minutes becomes two. At this rate 
countless millions are formed in twenty- four hours. As the soil be- 
comes exhausted in which they are growing many species form spores 
which are in a way comparable to the seeds of higher plants. These 
spores are very difficult to destroy by heat and other disinfectants. 
It is well to remember, concerning the distribution of bacteria, that 
they are found in very large numbers everywhere about us, but that 
most of them are as harmless as the vegetables we eat. But should 
there be introduced into an apiary, for example, the species of bacteria 
which causes American foul brood, then the brood becomes exposed 
to the disease and will probably contract it. 
The study of bacteria must be carried on for the most part in the 
laboratory. By the use of the microscope we are able to tell the 
genus (e. g., Bacillus) to which an organism belongs, and by specially 
prepared media, or soils, we are able to determine the species to which 
it belongs (e. g., alvei). 
Having determined these things about bacteria, we are interested in 
finding out what they are capable of doing. We learn that some do 
good, as, for example, in bringing to decay the remains of dead ani- 
mals and plants, while other species do harm by their ability to pro- 
duce disease or death in the animals in which they are able to gain 
entrance. The disease American foul brood, which causes the great- 
est loss to the bee-keeping industry, has been demonstrated to be 
