MARCPI 1, 1914 



Willis LyiK'h, ouf county inspector, and 

 J. G. Gilstrap, who had tried hard to keep 

 the case out of court, gave long testimony 

 about the location of the bees, their man- 

 agement, variety, what should be done with 

 them, etc. The apiary was about 590 or 595 

 .set from the well, 100 feet from Mi'. H.'^ 

 hog-corral. The only water provided for 

 the bees when the case came to trial was a 

 tub about a third full, in which was a grain 

 sack on a float of some kind, probably a 

 redwood board. The water was stale, and 

 unfit for bees. There were no trees or other 

 screen between the ajDiary and the well, 

 except a partial screen of weeds part of the 

 year, while the bees were located on ground 

 too high to irrigate. 



Several witnesses not mentioned were 

 called to the stand, and several more present 

 did not testify, as it was late, and the evi- 

 dence was sufficiently clear. 



When all the evidence was in, the judge 

 said it was clear that the bees Avere an in- 

 convenience, and they would have to be 

 moved; that tlie plaintiff was unnecessarily 



nervous, but had suffered no financial loss, 

 and the court could grant no damages; that 

 he did not wish to work any unnecessary 

 liardship on the defendant, and wished to 

 know how soon he could conveniently move 

 llie bees. Mr. Van Wye would not answer 

 directly, as he did not know that he could 

 get another place for them. The judge in- 

 formed him that bees are entitled to protec- 

 tion, but human habitation is of first impor- 

 tance, and suggested 30 days as the limit. 

 The defendant preferred a rainy day late in 

 the winter if they had to be moved. Then 

 the decree came that the bees must be moved 

 far enough from the plaintiff so that they 

 would not annoy him, by Nov. 15. 



Judge Fulkerth said, in summing up the 

 case, that such little cases should not come 

 into court, but should be settled as neigh- 

 borhood affairs. He warmly commended J. 

 G. Gilstrap for trying to keep the case out 

 of court. Mr. Van Wye has the costs to 

 ]5ay. He had a Modesto lawyer, also one 

 from San Francisco. 



Modesto, Cal. 



BEEKEEPING FOR PROFESSIONAL FOLKS IN CITIES 



BY W. M. COPENHAVER, M. D. 



It is very important and very necessary 

 that all who are closely confined by office 

 work of various kinds find, sooner or later, 

 some outdoor attraction, be it some of 

 the various athletic sports or some such 

 work as gardening, chicken-raising, etc. ; 

 and the more intensely interesting such live- 

 lihood may become, and at the same time 

 proving a source of profit to the partici- 

 pant, the more likelihood Avill there be of its 

 remaining a source of recreation. In the 

 undertaking of almost any enterprise in life, 

 it seems natural for one to consider the 

 profit to be derived therefrom, and few of 

 us care to undertake any work without the 

 belief that there will be some return for the 

 labor and energy expended. This seems to 

 be human. 



After considerable thought and study di- 

 rected toward the choosing of a side line or 

 " hobby," if you please, suitable for one of 

 sedentary habits, one that Avonld afford op- 

 portunity for considerable study, and at the 

 same time bring one in touch with outdoor 

 life, and because of its adaptability to life 

 in a city, I have chosen that of beekeeping. 



There are few cities, large or small, where 

 a few colonies of bees may not be kept with 

 more or less profit and a great deal of pleas- 

 ure. 



Dwelling briefly on tlie profit side of our 



hobby, I might say that, for tlie amount of 

 capital invested, the returns from beekeep- 

 ing will often show a larger profit for the 

 expenditure than from almost any other 

 enterprise; and as proof of this statement 

 T may say that T started with one colony in 

 the spring of 1908, whicli was my first year 

 with bees, and increased it to nine colonies, 

 and received 50 lbs. of fancy comb honey as 

 surplus. 



In my present location, a town of 16,000 

 people, where bees had never been kept, two 

 miles from nectar-secreting plants, from one 

 colony, bought the spring of 1912, I made 

 an increase to four colonies, and took 108 

 lbs. of fancy comb honey. 



During the year 1913 these four colonies 

 gave a return of $15.00 per colony, spring 

 count, with increase to 17 colonies, and $20 

 in prizes at the Montana State Fair. This 

 shows in a small way what can be done on 

 a back lot in the heart of a city, and proves 

 the statement tliat, besides pleasure, there 

 is also profit in keeping bees. 



But there is the more important side of 

 beekeeping for the individual of sedentary 

 liabits than that of profit. I refer to the 

 thoroughly absorbing subject of the study 

 and manipulation of these very interesting 

 inmates of the hive. One can not become 

 interested in the study of the habits and life 



