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156 FOURTH ANNUAL REPORT 



are assessed. Now if we are assessed, that will give us cer- 

 tain rights before the Legislature. 



Mr. Swift — The only thing is this, bees come under that 

 class of ferce naturce — they are wild by nature; and conse- 

 quently anything of that character is like a fiock of prairie 

 chickens — the farmer does not have to pay taxes on them. 

 Bees are not assessable under the revenue laws of the State 

 of Illinois unless a man chooses to list them as "other prop- 

 erty." Consequentiv this is my opinion. The Supreme Court 

 may .differ from me — I am not certain it has ever been ad- 

 judicated upon by the Supreme Court — but I think they are 

 not assessable from the very fact that without any provoca- 

 tion a colony of bees does sometimes take wing and go away 

 in the spring. It is the very fluctuating character of the thing. 

 A man in the fall might have 100 colonies, and in the spring 

 he might not have more than 15, and according to Dr. Miller, 

 then, he has to go before the Board of Supervisors and the 

 Committee on Payments and present his claim for the loss 

 of his-property, unless he chooses to pay on something he has not 

 got. Under those circumstances, the bees not being assessable, by 

 the very nature of the property, as property that is fixed 

 and tangible is, that can be gotten hold of or levied upon — 

 because I don't believe there is a sheriff in the State would 

 levy on a hive of bees — by that very fact you could not go 

 before the Legislature and ask any law that would give force 

 that a bee-keeper should be recompensed if his bees were 

 injured by being treated for foul brood or any disease. But if 

 you can get the Legislature to recognize that this is a source 

 of revenue for the State, and of wealth to the individual, and 

 his wealth in that way can be assessed and taxed as his money 

 and household goods and the things he can buy as the result 

 of his product, then they will legislate and will do what they 

 have done in the past — give you any appropriation for the 

 protection of that industry. But when you come to ask for 

 recornpense for injury done by making the injured better, 

 you have gone up against the wrong thing, and will meet a 

 snag every time. 



Mr. Dadant — I would be very glad to hear bees are not 

 assessable. I have been paying taxes on bees for many years. 

 The argument is very good but it is not only bees ; there is 

 the hive, the combs, the brood, the honey, the supers and 

 sections of foundation and all that belongs to the hive. I 

 pay taxes on my bees; I pay taxes on the comb foundation 

 I manufacture. All this belongs to the bees. If the bees are 

 not asessable, and all this other part of the property is not 

 taxable, I have $15,000 worth of goods on hand. I have been 

 paying taxes, and I would be ashamed not to pay taxes. 



Mr. Swift — Mr. Dadant does not bear in mind that he is 

 in a manufacturing industry. 



Mr. Dadant — We would suffer from foul brood if our 

 bees had it. 



Mr. Swift — You say your wax does not get affected by 

 foul brood. As a manufacturer with an industry with a 

 capital stock, then, you would be assessed upon it whether in- 



