456 



THE AMERICAN BEE JUURJSal. 



functions, the greatest accuracy In 

 workmanship Is required. 



1 am as willing as I am compelled 

 to admit that this is no small objec- 

 tion to its introduction, yet I feel sure 

 that its many other superior qualities 

 will far over-balance this objection, 

 and at the close of this season I look 

 for a proportionately greater number 

 of strong testimonials than any other 

 late apicultural invention has elicited. 

 I am looking for a small number of 

 failures with its use, and 1 fully be- 

 lieve that every such failure may be 

 credited to imperfect construction. I 

 fear that in some of the hives sent 

 out, notwithstanding our pains-tak- 

 ing, the bee-spaces are too deep, and 

 in some there may have been a 

 shrinkage in the frames, etc. I buy 

 all of the frames, and liave found it 

 difficult to get them made as ordered. 

 However, I am rapidly learning how 

 to overcome these mechanical diffi- 

 culties. My greatest fear is with 

 reference to hives constructed by 

 others. 



I have cut all flat material from dry 

 lumber, and at the same time shop- 

 dried our pieces, after which they 

 have been hand- worked to the exact 

 width, and I consider this necessary 

 to the best results. The hive is 

 designed for liandling very rapidly 

 and with greatest ease, and to carry 

 this out in practice accurate work- 

 manship is required. Many have 

 ordered one or two hives to "test." 

 While they may, to some extent, test 

 its functions, they will get no test 

 whatever of the ease and speed of 

 manipulation. This hive is altogether 

 different from any other, as regards 

 its management. A bee-keeper who 

 is trained in all the movements re- 

 quired in handling suspended-frame 

 hives, and who is daily handling 

 many of them, will be hardly com- 

 petent to test the claimed superiority 

 of manipulation of the new hive, by 

 the occasional use of one or two which 

 will ever meet him as something 

 peculiar, and which he is unused to. 

 Two or three bee-keepers have each 

 between one and two hundred of 

 them in use, while others have con- 

 siderable but lesser numbers, and 

 these gentlemen will be able to tell 

 us something which all will be bound 

 to receive as evidence. Here, we are 

 more and more pleased with the new 

 hive as our experience with it en- 

 larges. 



lJowagiac,p Mich. 



B^r the American Bee JournaL 



Taxing Colonies of Bees, 



E. B. SOUTHWICK. 



1 notice in the Bee Joi/rnal of 

 June 2, some answers to Mr. Blair's 

 question on page 309—" Are bees tax- 

 able property ';"' Mr. Roberts of Iowa 

 has given some quotations but none 

 have any reference to the question 

 asked. That bees are property I do 

 not deny, but that they are absolute 

 property I do most emphatically deny, 

 and I claim that none but absolute 

 property is taxable, without a special 



law to that effect. For instance : 

 Dogs are taxable when there is a 

 special law to that effect ; bees would 

 be taxable under the same rule. 



Some time since 1 tried to show that 

 bees were property and as such for the 

 damage they did, the owner was 

 liable ; and liow there comes forth a 

 California judge and in his charge 

 sanctions what I had previously stated 

 (see editorial on page 35o.) Bees, as I 

 had previously stated are only quali- 

 fied property. Now the way is to Bud 

 out if such property is taxable, and 

 that can only be done by inquiring of 

 the ablest and most learned in the 

 law, and not those who have a mere 

 surface knowledge of it. Inquire of 

 one who knows the difference between 

 absolute and qualified property. 



Mr. Pond also has an answer to the 

 question. Well, 1 would not mention 

 it were it not for a hint that he gives, 

 that if the "hue-and-cry" continues we 

 may all have to pay taxes on our bees. 

 Now, if bees are taxable I want them 

 taxed; I want all absolute property 

 taxed. There are many millions of 

 property unjustly exempt from taxa- 

 tion now, a load that the honest tax- 

 payer has to carry. I say let the " hue- 

 and-cry " go on, not only in the bee- 

 papers but in every paper in the 

 Union, and every society, until every 

 kind of absolute property be justly 

 taxed. 



Sherman, xsMich. 



For tTie American Bee Journal. 



Getting Law for Bee-Keepers. 



W. A. PKYAL. 



It seems to me that the only way 

 for California bee-keepers to get 

 ahead in lawsuits is for some bee- 

 keeping-horticulturist to have one of 

 his neighbor bee-keepers bring a 

 friendly suit against him in the Su- 

 perior Court, for say S350, for dam- 

 ages, etc., done by the defendant's 

 bees to the plaintiff's fruit. A suit 

 like this could be easily arranged ; 

 the costs would not be much to try it 

 before the court without a jury, and 

 the losing party could appeal it to the 

 Supreme Court, and then its decision 

 would be final, and would be the law 

 of the State, till reversed, or the 

 legislature enacts differently. And, 

 besides, the courts of other States 

 would quote such a decision, and it 

 would have great weight in other 

 cases of a like nature. 



The costs of such a suit let us say 

 will be, for filing complaint, ST.oO ; 

 serving summons (this is a little high, 

 but the bee keepers may live quite a 

 distance from the Court House, which 

 will make the milage of the sheriff 

 " run up "), !?10. This would be all 

 the costs up to the end of the trial, 

 when the stenographer would want 

 his fees for reporting, which are 

 about §10 per day — say \% days, §15 ; 

 entering judgment, |5 ; ?87.5d would 

 be the cost of the suit, not including 

 witnesses at §2 a day, and milage, nor 

 cost for serving subpoenas, as the 

 parties may have some party other 

 than an officer do this much cheaper 



than an officer is allowed for such 

 service. 



By two persons like those named 

 getting together, or, in fact, a num- 

 ber of bee-keepers meeting and select- 

 ing two such persons from their 

 number, and have one of them, who 

 is a fruit-raiser or grape-grower, 

 bring action against the other for the 

 cause already stated, the whole lot 

 to "work the racket" for all it is 

 worth, an interesting suit would be 

 the result. Fifty dollars they could 

 raise among themselves. They could 

 easily find two ambitious young law- 

 yers who would be willing to see the 

 suit through for the " glory there is in 

 it." (Let me whisper, California 

 lawyers don't care much for the 

 "glory "a case brings unless some- 

 thing else more substantial comes 

 with it) ; still, I am sure there are to 

 be found some very smart young 

 attorneys who would gladly tackle 

 such a suit and see it through if the 

 parties were to pay all costs of the 

 suit. 



In appealing, the costs come a little 

 higher : To the clerk of the Supreme 

 Court for certifying to papers (this 

 will be hardly necessary as the at- 

 torneys will be able to agree that 

 they are correct, and so stipulate), 

 say $3 ; a couple of affidavits, say 

 $1.50; printing transcript on appeal", 

 at 75 cents a page for pica (this is the 

 Oakland price, though the usual rate 

 is $1), say 50 pages, $37.50; filing 

 transcript with the clerk of Supreme 

 Court, $15; printing briefs for both 

 sides, say 12 pages each, at 75 cents, 

 $18 ; and other expenses, say $10, 

 making a total of S125. 



The costs may run a few dollars 

 above these figures, but I think they 

 may be kept within $100. If the bee- 

 keepers cannot stand the whole of 

 this amount, they may call on the 

 " Union " for the balance. 



I would like very much that some 

 bee-keepers would agree to fight this 

 matter out on such a basis, and get 

 the law ,so arranged that it would be 

 plain sailing thereafter. One thing I 

 would here state is, that it might 

 take some two or three years ere a 

 decision could be had in our highest 

 court, as its calendar is now pretty 

 lengthy. In the Superior Court a 

 decision could be had in the course of 

 a few months. Still, however, I am 

 certain that as our Superior Court has 

 had its machinery augmented this 

 last year, it may in a year exhaust the 

 calendar and be ready to take up a 

 case soon after its being filed. 



I see no reason why the course out- 

 lined above could not be pursued in 

 some other State just as readily as in 

 this State. Let the readers of the 

 Bee Journal look into the proposi- 

 tion and report. We want as many 

 strong decisions in favor of the bee- 

 keepers' rights as we can possibly 

 get, and if bee-keepers can secure 

 such ones by fair means let them do 

 so, no matter if there are two or three 

 pending in different States at the 

 same time. New York, Massachu- 

 setts and California cases would be 

 preferable, with perhaps an Illinois, 

 Indiana or Ohio case thrown in. 



