January, 1917 



GLEANINGS IN BKE CULTURE 



well as general farm crops. In such a lo- 

 cality bees would naturally thrive. 



A few years ago this big smelting con- 

 cern, having a reported capitalization of 

 three and a half millions of dollars, lo- 

 cated their plant at Thorold. Shortly af- 

 ter, complaints began to pour in of bees 

 dying it was claimed as the direct result of 

 the smelter smoke, the bees dying worst 

 in the direction of the smoke carried by the 

 prevailing winds. Finally the beekeepers 

 in the locality combined together in a joint 

 suit against the smelter company. The 

 case was postponed from time to time, but 

 tinally came to trial on Nov. 30. Whether 

 the fruit-growere and farmei-s joined with 

 tlie plaintiffs in the action we are not ad- 

 vised; but evidently they Avere very much 

 interested, because, if the smeltere killed 

 off the bees, it would cause a marked re- 

 duction in the volume of their fruit. 



The best legal talent was employed on 

 each side, the case being fought in the su- 

 preme court of Ontario at St. Catharine's. 



The plaintiffs, of course, introduced the 

 case of Utah, where the smelters paid the 

 l>eek6epers $60,000 damages. They also 

 introduced evidence to show that horses be- 

 longing to the smelter company died, which 

 the defense admitted, we are informed. 



The direct testimony of the beekeepers 

 who had suffered loss showed that their bees 

 died in large numbers^n 1909 more par- 

 ticularly, and every year since, within a 

 range of from one-fourth to five miles of 

 the smelter. But the loss it is claimed has 

 been less since the company has used screens 

 for catching the free arsenic. 



The defense sought to show that the 

 bees died fi'om natural causes; that the 

 symptoms described by the beekeepers, of 

 bees dying, were the same as those of bee 

 paralysis. Isle of Wight disease, and the 

 disappearing disease. It also tried to show 

 that brood diseases might pirogi-ess far 

 enough so that the old bees would die off, 

 and the colony thus become extinct, be- 

 cause there would be no new blood to sup- 

 ply the loss. 



The editor of Gleanings was called in by 

 the plaintiff to tell how far bees would fly 

 — to describe the vaiious adult bee diseases 

 and to show that the symptoms as reported 

 by the various witnesses of bees dying with- 

 in the vicinity of the smelters were not the 

 same as those of the Isle of Wight disease 

 or bee paralysis. 



We were kept on the witness-stand for 

 about three hours and a half. Prof. Mor- 

 ley Pettit, of the Apicultural School of 

 Gueljih, next followed as expert witness 

 for the plaintiff. The defense " went af- 



ter " both of us — a matter to be expected. 

 Our testimony tended to show that the re- 

 ported symptoms were not the same as 

 those of adult bee diseases, but, rather, of 

 poisoning. 



At the time we left, Dee. 2, it was hard 

 to say how the case would go; but we have 

 been informed that the main plea by the 

 defendant was that the i)laintiff had " made 

 no ease." The judge has taken the matter 

 under advisement, but at tliis writing he 

 has rendered no decision. 



A decision for the plaintiffs, if we under- 

 stand it, will not mean that the smeltei-s, 

 who employ an army of men, will have to 

 shut up shop; but it will mean that they 

 will be required, probably, to pay damages 

 already sustained, and to use better means 

 for preventing free ai-senie from going up 

 the stacks and being scattered all over the 

 vicinity, destroying vegetation as well as 

 animal and insect life. 



There were some amusing incidents that 

 came up during the trial — iDarticularly in- 

 teresting to the beekeepers present. The 

 attorneys on both sides of the ease had 

 been " cramming " up on bee-lore. They 

 had hunted up everything on the subject 

 of bee diseases, poisons, smelters, distance 

 bees fly, and anything and everything that 

 might have a bearing on the smelter ques- 

 tion. Some of the questions were funny, 

 showing that " a little learning is a danger- 

 ous thing." Some questions could nbt be 

 answered by yes and no, because they as- 

 sumed impossible conditions. Other ques- 

 tions could not be answered in the manner 

 stated, and his lordship the judge was 

 fair enough to ask counsel to restate their 

 questions. 



One question asked by the defense was 

 that, " Assuming that all the brood 

 in a hive was dead as the result of foul 

 brood, would not the bees gradually die 

 off, leaving nothing but the hive and 

 combs?" We replied by saying that "The 

 condition referred to rarely if ever occurs." 

 Counsel came back by saying, " You did 

 not answer my question. I am not asking 

 you to answer another question." After 

 some iDarleying we weie ])ermitted to say 

 that foul broud alone larely kills a colony; 

 that only about half the brood would be in- 

 \olved in the worst case, when the colony 

 in its weakened condition would die as a 

 result of spring dwindling, or winter cold. 

 Defense was evidently anxious to show that 

 foul brood could and does kill adult bees 

 during the summer time and thei'>efore 

 might explain bees dying near smelters. 



As soon as a decision is given by the 

 judge we will announce the result. 



