THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



569 



mies," covered on both sides with 

 bees, take the place of tlie outside 

 poUenized and honey-lilled combs of 

 the eight and ten frame hives. Not 

 one-third the usual amount of pollen, 

 or bee-bread, is stored in the combs, 

 for there is no room for it. The 

 honey, for the same reason, is carried 

 into the sections. The Held is the 

 best and cheapest store-house for 

 pollen, in this locality, and the bees 

 can get it there as fast as needed. 



Remember that it is comb honey 

 that we are after in this article, not 

 bees ; and we must not use lioney in 

 rearing bees that when hatched will 

 not be more than able to supply their 

 own wants. Our field is supposed to 

 be already fully stocked, and we get 

 all the increase desired by natural 

 swarming. Why then should we 

 burden our surplus-producing colonies 

 by causing them to consume honey in 

 rearing brood for nuclei colonies '? I 

 take '• solid comfort "' in handling 

 these honeyless brood-chambers with 

 no braced, bulging combs or dripping 

 honey, but five perfect reversible 

 sheets of lirood. 



This system works better with Ger- 

 man and hybrid bees, because such 

 bees are less prone to crowd the 

 queen or clog the brood frames with 

 honey. Large producers of honey 

 now quite generally admit that some 

 black blood is essential to the best re- 

 sults in producing comb honey. Over 

 half of my colonies worked on this 

 plan are pure light Italians, and but 

 little honey is left in the brood-cham- 

 ber. In the latter part of the season, 

 in this locality, bees usually get 

 enough honey to keep them breeding 

 rapidly ; but if they did not, I should 

 leave them a super containing suffi- 

 cient honey for present wants. Al- 

 though at present many of my colo- 

 nies are destitute of lioney and de- 

 pendent upon nature for their supply, 

 yet I have no trouble from robbing 

 or swarming out. 



The " wintering problem" has al- 

 ready been so thoroughly elucidated 

 that time is all that is now necessary 

 to set us right on that question. 



Furnessville,^ Ind. 



Pacific Rural Press. 



Concerted Action Necessary. 



WM. MUTH-RASMUSSEN. 



The object of the "Bee-Keepers' 

 National Union " is to protect its 

 members from all unlawful and un- 

 reasonable interference in their 

 chosen pursuit, and, when necessary, 

 to assist them in defending their in- 

 terests. For this purpose each mem- 

 ber will be charged an annual fee of 

 25 cents, besides an entrance fee of 

 one dollar, which will be the first as- 

 sessment, intended to be used for the 

 defense of our brother bee-keeper in 

 Wisconsin. As his will be a test case 

 it is of vital importance to the whole 

 bee-keeping fraternity that he gain 

 this suit. If he loses, tliere will be no 

 end of trouble to other bee-keepers, 

 for many stand ready to attack us if 

 they can only see the least chance of 

 victory. We cannot afford this. 



I shall not here go into a discussion 

 about the benefit of insects, and prin- 

 cipally of honey-bees, in fertilizing 

 the Howers, without wliicli fertiliza- 

 tion no fruit or seed would be pro- 

 duced, nor of the alleged injury that 

 bees do to ripe fruit; these subjects 

 have been gone over often before, and 

 would require a separate article. The 

 question here is, whether it can be 

 proved or not, tliat bees, when forag- 

 ing for their food, molest grazing ani- 

 mals, and whether a bee-keeper can 

 be compelled to discontinue his occu- 

 pation ijecause a neighbor, from ignor- 

 ance, envy or malice, chooses to make 

 him trouble through the courts. 



The bee-keepers, as a class, are 

 poor, and have not individually the 

 means for expensive litigation ; but 

 most of them are intelligent and 

 honest, and have no intention of 

 troubling or interfering with their 

 neighbors, iind many of them take 

 extraordinary precautions for this 

 very purpose, which people in other 

 business would never dream about. 

 It is, therefore, only by concerted ac- 

 tion that we can hope to defend our- 

 selves. If it is once known that we 

 have a powerful organization, ready 

 and able to defend each of its mem- 

 bers against any unjustifiable wrong 

 or annoyance from outsiders, many 

 will be slow to throw down the 

 gauntlet. 



Now let every bee-keeper come to 

 the front and join the ranks by send- 

 ing $1.25 to Thos. G. Newman, 925 

 West Madison Street, Chicago, Ills. 

 Do not lag behind. It is to your own 

 personal interest, for you do not 

 know when the time will come that 

 you may be placed in the same pre- 

 dicament as ourbrotherin Wisconsin. 



Independence, Of Calif. 



For tbe American Bee JoumaL 



Making the National Union useful. 



ARTHUK TODD. 



As a rule, where lawyers are de- 

 fending a case in court, they cite 

 cases previously decided in favor of 

 their argument or analogous to the 

 same. In my opinion the best hits 

 lawyers make in court are the 

 " points " given them by their clients. 

 Bee-keepers are the clients ; can we 

 not strengthen our own cause by giv- 

 ing the lawyers the dates of cases de- 

 cided on bee-matters V "Custom" 

 makes law. Let us turn to the old 

 countries of Europe, and carefully 

 search out the customs and laws in 

 vogue there ;liunt up cases decided 

 in England, France, Germany, Switz- 

 erland, Italy, Poland, Spain, Austria, 

 and even little Greece, upcm bee-mat- 

 ters. Let the President write (a cir- 

 cular letter in the various languages 

 would answer) to each prominent bee- 

 man in the countries named, for date 

 of trial, point involved, and decision, 

 that came under his notice, and if the 

 report is printed in any bee-periodical, 

 to give the date and the name of the 

 paper. Further, appoint a translator, 

 and let him go through the files of the 

 German, French, and other foreign 

 bee-papers, probably now in Mr. 



Newman's library. Put the Britifih 

 Bee Journal in the hands of the law- 

 yers. Let some such course as this 

 be adopted, and our side will be able 

 to produce case after case decided in 

 favor of the bee- men. 



Take the sole point of "identity." 

 Can this owner of the sheep produce 

 any one of the bees trespassing ? 

 Suppose he can ! Can he swear to 

 identity ? Perhaps he will be advispd 

 to say that he cannot. The moment 

 he does that, the bee-man's lawyer 

 should demand a non-suit, saying 

 that he can produce cases decided in 

 favor of the bee-man on that very 

 point. The bee-lawyer has but to 

 search the pages of L'Apiculteur for 

 the case of " Ilamet tt al." tried in 

 Paris some 15 years ago, and he can 

 address the court thus ; "Permit me 

 to read you a report of a case tried in 

 Paris, and the verdict entered for de- 

 fendant, where the whole case turned 

 on identity." The Judge would listen, 

 and probably be influenced. Similar 

 cases might be found, tried in other 

 countries ; let them be hunted up. 

 Mr. Newman can turn to page 360, 

 •'Cours Practique lyApiculteur," by 

 H. Hamet. Pans, of which I am sure 

 he has a copy, and therein he will find 

 it stated as follows : "The proprie- 

 tors of apiaries are responsible by the 

 terms. Article 13S5, Code Napoleon, 

 for the injuries done to others by 

 their bees." Under the actual ad- 

 ministration of the law, the bee-keeper 

 almost always escapes, for no one can 

 recognize his bees ; and alone, out of 

 the hive, a bee has no owner, etc. On 

 that very page are given references 

 to decisions of judges in France on 

 bee-matters. I say, " Hunt them all 

 up ;" do it at once ; to be forewarned 

 is to be twice armed. 



Take the question of killing bees by 

 yeast or other poison.— because igno- 

 rant persons think they spoil fruit, 

 etc.— should we stand this? I say, 

 no, sir ! most emphatically. Mr. W. 

 A. Pryal, of California, should quietly 

 proceed to get absolute proof that 

 certain parties did on certain days 

 set a poison to kill certain animals or 

 insects, and when the proofs are all 

 ready, then the National Bee-Keep- 

 ers' Union should "go for" those 

 parties, and force the case into court. 



We bee-keepers can prove that 

 civilized nations, such as France, dis- 

 tinctly (See article 454 of the penal 

 code, French) infiicts the penalty of 

 six days to six months imprisonment 

 upon every individual convicted of 

 having killed, without necessity, an 

 animal belonging to another. The 

 Court of Cassation has ruled that '' un- 

 der the general denomination of 

 domestic animals. Article 4-54 of the 

 penal code, comprises the living 

 beings which live, are raised, are 

 nourished, and which are reproduced 

 under the sheltering protection of 

 man, and by his care." Now, as bees 

 are lodged by man, and receive his 

 care, they must be considered as 

 domestic animals. Case decided March 

 14. 1861. 



I find I have a copy of the French 

 journal Le Rudier. for October, 1884, 

 which contains abstracts of French 

 bee-law, and I mail it herewith to 



