454 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 1. 



HONEY FOR HORSES. 



You may suggest it would be a rather expen- 

 sive feed. Well, circumstances alter cases. It 

 may not be so expensive after all. Listen. 

 Friend McMillan wanted a pony to go to town 

 with, and to run around the neighborhood. A 

 neighbor offered him a mustang at a very low 

 price, because the animal was vicious and un- 

 manageable. Friend M. and his good wife, 

 however, decided they could educate the pony 

 to be useful, and the neighbor brought him 

 over. It took two men to deliver the new pur- 

 chase — one to drive and the other to lead the 

 horse by the bits: and as it was, they came in 

 sweating and puffing, and seemed very glad 

 indeed of the privilege of Uirning over the 

 property to its new owner. How did they make 

 out? Well, it was my pleasure to have very 

 many pleasant rides around the country with 

 that same pony. Now for the secret. I have 

 heard of §.")0 secrets, and I do not know but this 

 one would add SnO to the value of very many a 

 balky or vicious horse. I think the credit of 

 the discovery belongs to the good kind-hearted 

 Mrs. McMillan. I suppose you have heard it 

 said that the shortest cut to a man's heart is 

 down his throat. Everybody knows it is not 

 true, but there may be a grdin of truth in it. 

 Well, Mrs. M. set out that very tirst day to win 

 not only the affections but the good will of the 

 mustang pony. She gave him bread and butter 

 and honey to start with. Come to think of it, I 

 do not know but the butter was left out, and so 

 it was only bread and honey. The tempting 

 morsel hit the spot exactly; and after the pony 

 had had a good slice of bread, with a liberal 

 allowance of honey, he would nod his head 

 with satisfaction, and do almost any thing they 

 wanted him to, for a whole hour. 



We were late in starting out; but when we 

 got hitched up. and I was in the buggy, the 

 pony made a bee-line for the back door of the 

 kitchen. His benefactress came out to give 

 him an approving word; but friend McMillan 

 said we were so late we shouldn't have time to 

 wait for him to have his accustomed sweets. 

 The pony looked terribly disappointed, and 

 evidently had almost a mind to go back to his 

 old life, and act badly. I plead for him; but 

 friend M. said he was old enough to behave 

 himself without being coaxed like a baby every 

 morning, and made him go on. He went very 

 well till we came to the store and postoffice; 

 and I presume, as this was a frequent program, 

 he expected us to turn back and go home, 

 refreshing himself by the way, no doubt, in 

 thinking how nice that bread and honey would 

 taste when he got back. His master, however, 

 had planned a long trip for him, before getting 

 home; and when his head was turned in an- 

 other direction we came so near having a cir- 

 cus performance right in the public street that 

 I wanted to get out. My companion, however, 

 assured me he would bring his horse around all 

 right in a few minutes. When I questioned 

 him as to how he knetv he would, he said they 

 two had had a good many rough-and-tumbles 

 in the sand, and the pony knew that he knew 

 who came out on top every time at the ending. 

 So the pony, philosophizing, evidently, that 

 "what could not be cured must be endured," 

 took us all over the surrounding country before 

 we got home. I want to stop right here long 

 enough to tell Mrs. M. to go and give that pony 

 an extra piece of bread, well sopped in good 



honey, just the minute her eyes meet this in 

 Gleanings.* 



In the neighborhood of Fort Reed is a most 

 beautiful country residence belonging to Rev. 

 Lyman Phelps, whose writings perhaps many 

 of you have seen in the religious papers. He 

 has not only a magnificent orange-orchard, but 

 peaches, pears, strawberries, and ever so many 

 other fruits right along the margin of one of 

 the prettiest little sheets of water (Silver Lake) 

 to be found in Florida. 



Sanford has something unique in the way of 

 sanitary arrangements. The sewage is in a 

 series of open ditches, covered only at street- 

 crossings. Well, at the head of each street, 

 away off' at the back side of the town furthest 

 from the lake, an artesian well has been put 

 down. I think they have to go something less 

 than 100 feet in order to meet an immense flow 

 of water. These artesian wells send a sufficient 

 current over and into the lake to wash all the 

 filth and every thing else out of the open 

 ditches as soon as it falls in. One feels like 

 protesting against such a waste of water; but 

 everybody says the supply is inexhaustible. 

 No matter how many wells you put down, or 

 how large, they just flow and keep flowing, 

 year in and year out; and yet with all this 

 abundance of water, that runs of itself up to 

 almost any height desired, it is only here and 

 there that it is as yet made any use of for irri- 

 gation. 



I had arranged to meet Constance, who was 

 stopping with relatives in Jacksonville, at San- 

 ford; but there had been no very definite ap- 

 pointment; and hunting for strangers away 

 down in the interiorof Florida, when you didn't 

 even know when they would be along, seemed 

 a good deal like huntins for needles in a hay- 

 stack. I inquired for Mr. Ming, a cousin of 

 mine, connected with the Orange-belt Railroad; 

 but although all the railroad men assured me 

 he was a "mighty good fellow " nobody could 

 just then put his finger on the man. I began 

 to get somewhat homesick. I always do when 

 I have time, therefore I usually manage when 

 away from home to avoid having time for any 

 such recreation. I was up very early in the 

 morning, before any one else was stirring. I 

 finally met a porter who was hustling up a 

 drummer that he might not miss his train. I 

 felt restless, and wanted to go somewhere, so I 

 concluded to go on the same train with the 

 drummer. It was on the Orange-belt; and just 

 as soon as I stepped aboard I almost ran against 

 my cousin, Mr. Ming. He said the women- 

 folks, Constance included, would be in on the 

 afternoon train from Jacksonville. It did not 

 stOD raining just that minute; but if you had 

 looked into my face you might have thought 

 there was very bright sunshine everywhere. 

 Now, perhaps some of our readers do not enjoy 

 having me tell about how an unseen presence 

 often seems to guide my step*. When I arose 

 that morning I prayed earnestly, and yet I am 

 afraid with very little faith, that God would 

 direct me on that rainy morning, so that I might 

 find Constance and my relatives. As soon as I 

 heard the porter say this man would be late for 

 the train, without knowing u'hat train, or on 



*Ev-ery bee-keeper knows how passionately fond 

 of lioney bears are. Well, several circumstances 

 seem to suggest to me that this stronsr love for this 

 peculiar form of sweets is not confined to Bruin 

 alone. Bruin, by the life he leads, has an opportu- 

 nity for discovering honey, and to satisfy his crav- 

 ing for it, while other animals have not; and may 

 we not take advantage of this strong liking and use 

 it to put a liorse on liis good behavior ? Will some- 

 body test it on a balky horse, and report ? After he 

 has acquired the appetite, tlie honey would surely 

 serve to divert his attention from his "sulks," if 

 nothing more. 



