CHAPTER XV 



LAWS THAT CONCERN THE BEE-KEEPER 



Because of the nature of the honey-bee and the fact that 

 the insects cannot be restrained like cattle or poultry, the laws 

 concerning the bee-keeper are somewhat different from those 

 that affect the owners of other live stock. In the first place bees 

 are recognized as being wild by nature and once a swarm gets 

 beyond its owner's control and passes to the premises of another 

 he loses all property right in them unless he follows them and 

 keeps them in sight. 



Bees found in a tree or other natural cavity become the prop- 

 erty of the first person who reclaims them. This fact, however, 

 does not give any right to trespass on the property of another. 

 During the days of early settlement of this country there was 

 an unwritten law that wild bees became the property of the man 

 who found them and marked the tree. While this right was 

 generally recognized there was no law that would confer 

 any right to the bees unless the finder proceeded to take posses- 

 sion of them. As soon as wild bees are taken into possession 

 they become the property of the man who reclaims them. This 

 right will be recognized and protected as long as they are under 

 his care. Should he injure the tree in which the bees are found 

 in removing them, he will be liable to the land owner for trespass. 



The time has gone by, in most localities, when serious ques- 

 tions regarding the ownership of wild bees are likely to arise. 

 Bee-keeping is now a recognized industry in itself and the owner 

 of bees enjoys the same rights and privileges as holders of other 

 property. The relation of the bee-keeper to his neighbors, how- 

 ever, especially where there is a large apiary in closeproximity 

 to the home of other persons, frequently presents some problems 

 that are decidedly different from those of any other calling. 



The keeping of bees in cities and towns is so generally prac- 



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