774 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



Dec. 1 



When I first heard the boys had been us- 

 ing my automobile without permission I 

 said they ought to be put in jail if nothing 

 else would mend matters in our town. But 

 teaching that class, especially the closing 

 words, had softened my heart. I managed 

 to have Johnnie Smith wait a little after 

 the others had gone, without anybody no- 

 ticing it; and then the Holy Spirit began 

 teaching me some lessons. It said some- 

 thing like this: First, .lohnnie Smith pre- 

 sumed, somewhat, on being so well acquaint- 

 ed with me that I would not make any seri- 

 ous fuss, even if I found it out. Then it 

 added that automobiles are now a craze with 

 almost everybody. The boys especially ara 

 full of wonder and curiosity in regard to 

 these wonderful machines. This was evi- 

 dent from the fact that Johnnie had man- 

 aged to learn in some, way just how to move 

 the levers and guide it; and by the time I 

 was ready to question him and remind him 

 that it was not only a violation of law, but 

 dangerous business in many ways, my 

 heart was softened toward him and all other 

 growing boys. I soon found, however, that 

 I still needed my little prayer, " Lord, help," 

 for Johnnie excused himself by saying he 

 did not run it. It was the other boy, Jim- 

 mie Brown, who was in the machine with 

 him. Remembering that Jimmie Brown 

 was working nights and mornings in our 

 factory, and was often around the automo- 

 biles, r readily accepted this ex])lanation, 

 especially as he had frankly admitted that 

 he was very much in the wrong in getting 

 into the automobile at all. 



The next day I met Jimmie Brown, and 

 gently paved the way, but was astounded 

 when he told me that Johnnie Smith did all 

 the running. He did not know how, and 

 could not have run it if he had tried. I 

 thought at this crisis that I had better give 

 notice to the parents of both the boys and 

 let them, get at the truth of the matter. 



Now, while I admit it is a great tempta- 

 tion for boys to meddle with automobiles I 

 am sure it is something that ought to be at- 

 tended to. During almost every church 

 service we hear horns tooted and the bells 

 ringing on the various automobiles that 

 bring people to church. I suppose the boys 

 do not realize the mischief they may do by 

 moving switches and meddling with the 

 complicated and delicate if not dangerous 

 machinery connected with the automobile. 

 I hope the parents whose eyes meet these 

 words will excuse me if I suggest to them 

 that they are making a serious mistake by 

 bringing up even young boys so that they 

 will not have proper respect for the property 

 of others, especially if such property is in 

 the form of an automobile. Some boys are 

 wonderfully inquisitive, I am well aware. 

 And this spirit of wanting to know about 

 things is a good and proper one. Do not 

 scold such a boy and nag him, but insist, 

 line upon line, and precept upon precept, 

 that he m,ust refrain from meddlmg with 

 the property of others. Excuse me for say- 

 ing it; but OHr own children, who have been 



out in the world, have never, one of them, 

 taken any such liberty with property be- 

 longing to others. "Thou shalt teach these 

 words diligently unto thy children," etc. 



The things I have mentioned are, perhaps, 

 trifling in themselves; but I am told that 

 this meddling with automobiles is a serious 

 matter all over our land. Just after the 

 event I have mentioned, one of my grand- 

 sons, who is quite an expert with automo- 

 biles, took a machine that cost over a thou- 

 sand dollars, to Oberlin, where he is attend- 

 ing school. He kept it over night in the 

 barn of a relative. Some time in the night 

 some young men (we do not know w^hether 

 they were students or not) took the ma- 

 chine out of the barn (without the knowl- 

 edge or permission of the owner), ran it 

 forty miles by the speedometer, and return- 

 ed it to the neighborhood of the barn so 

 much disabled that it cost between forty 

 and fifty dollars to have it repaired. When 

 Howard placed his machine in the barn the 

 night before, he was aware that something 

 was wrong with it, and planned to get up by 

 daylight to remedy the trouble. In this 

 condition it was abstracted and run forty 

 miles. Our attorney informs me that a re- 

 cent law imposes a fine of $200 or imprison- 

 ment, or both, for taking an automobile 

 without the jiermission of the owner. Now, 

 the above is bad enough; but investigation 

 proves that automobiles have been taken 

 without leave something like a dozen times 

 during the past few months. On one occa- j 

 sion a physician, after having a hurried call \ 

 to see a patient, found his machine missing, 

 without any knowledge of where it went nor 

 who took it. I hardly need remind our i 

 readers that Oberlin, Ohio, has for many m 

 years had a reputation for being a model = 

 college town. This reputation not only ex- 

 tends throughout Ohio, but over the greater 

 part of the United States. In view of this 

 I do think the college as well as the town 

 authorities should take the matter in hand 

 and find out whether this work is students' 

 pranks or something belonging to somebody 

 who has no connection with that justly cele- 

 brated school. I have advised offering a re- 

 ward, and setting detectives at work; but I 

 am informed that nothing is being done, 

 because the boys brought the machine back 

 —at least into the neighborhood of where 

 they found it. Now let me digress again a 

 little. 



Down in our Florida home, before I had 

 my little automobile there I fixed up a nice 

 little keg so that my neighbors could reach 

 into it and deposit mail or get letters when 

 going to and from the postoffice. In just a 

 few days my barrel was broken down. Then 

 I nailed it up stronger with clinch nails; 

 but it was broken down again and again. 

 I said to Mr. Rood that there must be some 

 very bad boys in that neighborhood who 

 kept smashing my mail-box. He did not 

 agree with me, however. He said he could 

 not think there were any boys in that vicin- 

 ity who had any spite against me (a new 

 comer), or would do such a thing. I told 



