92 
DR. MILLER'S 
increase; but the wrong kind does; as when a comb is taken from 
a diseased colony and given to a healthy one. I don’t mean that 
giving a frame of brood from one colony to another is wrong ma- 
nipulation in all cases, but it is wrong where the brood is taken 
from a diseased colony. 
Q. Is it safe to use section-boxes over again with drawn- 
comb and without comb, that have been on colonies that had 
foulbrood? 
A. I should not be afraid to use them in case of European 
foulbrood, but with American foulbrood there might be danger. 
Q. How can I tell foulbrood? 
A. The chief symptom in American foulbrood is the ropy 
character of the dead larva; stick a toothpick into it, and when 
you draw it out it will string an inch or two. If European 
foulbrood, look for larvae that instead of being nearly white 
are quite yellowish. If you write to Dr. E. F. Phillips, Department 
of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., he will send you, gratis, valua- 
ble printed matter about foulbrood, and also a box so that you 
may send sample of diseased brood for expert diagnosis. 
Q. You have written several plans for curing foulbrood. Now, 
if half of your colonies were diseased next spring, what treat- 
ment would you choose? 
A. If they had American foulbrood, I would use the McEvoy 
plan. If it was European, I would wait till perhaps the beginning 
of clover harvest, and first see that each colony to be treated 
was made strong by uniting or by giving frames of brood well ad- 
vanced. Then I would remove the queen and give to the colony 
a ripe queen-cell or a virgin queen of best stock. 
Q. Is there anything that could be fed to the bees to prevent 
foulbrood ? 
A. In this country drugs are generally considered of no ac- 
count in foulbrood. In England it is a common thing to add 
naphthol beta to the bees’ food, with the idea that it helps to 
prevent foulbrood. 
Foulbrood, American.— Q. What are the chief causes of 
American foulbrood? I have never heard of a case in this sec- 
tion. 
A. The chief and the only cause is the presence of a microbe, 
bacillus larvte, and the disease is generally conveyed to a healthy 
colony by means of honey from a diseased colony. A drop of in- 
fected honey no larger than a pin-head is enough to start the 
destruction of an entire apiary. 
