1893 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



(55 



more leisurely. Taking it all together, this 

 Horseshoe device, with the wonderful scenery 

 across and down the valley, is one of the finest 

 pieces of scenery I ever met on any railroad: 

 and I am determined. Providence permitting, 

 to have a view of it some time in summer. 

 There are many beautiful rivers along this 

 route— the Susquehanna, for instance. As we 

 reach Baltimore it widens out into beautiful 

 little lakes in many places. I can not tell you 

 about the scenery as we got into Delaware, as 

 it was after dark. As they were behind time, 

 they hustled us into Washington at a pretty 

 lively rate, and for the first time in years I had 

 a little touch of car-sickness. Ernest thought 

 it was owing to the rapid running; but I insist- 

 ed that it was because I drank a cup of coflfee 

 along in the afternoon. I did not particularly 

 want the coffee, but they called out only so 

 many minutes for lunch, and I didn't see any 

 milk handy, so I took the coffee. Unless 1 

 change my mind, I do not believe I shall drink 

 any more coflfee, at least hot coffee — come to 

 think of it, I am not going to say " as long as I 

 live,"' after all. for I believe it will be much 

 better to take coffee, and say nothing, than to 

 annoy the very kind friends I always meet 

 when traveling, and make them think I am 

 full of whims and notions. No, I do not mean 

 that I will take a glass of beer, just because the 

 crowd does: but beer and coflfee are very diflfer- 

 ent things. When I can have my choice I am 

 going to take milk; and when I can not have 

 my choice I am beginning to think I won't take 

 any drink at all when I am eating. 



In all my travels I do not think I ever stopped 

 at a hotel more comfortable, and more com- 

 plete in its arrangements, than the Randall 

 House, in Washington. I have put up at hotels 

 where they charged more money, but there was 

 something lacking. At the Grand Hotel, in 

 San Francisco, we paid large prices, and things 

 generally were fine; yet we were kept awake 

 at night — at least Mrs. Root was— by the rats 

 frolicking all over the premises. Just think of 

 it, friends! rats in one of the fioest hotels in 

 San Francisco. Other great hotels do not have 

 rats, but they almost always have something. 

 The Randall House did not have any thing but 

 comfort and peace. Very f'^w waiters were 

 needed, for every thing weni by imchinery. 

 The house was warmed by steam, and i l was a 

 very easy matter for the occupant of the room 

 to have exactly the temperature desired. 

 When they get our railway coaches up to that 

 notch of civilization, they will be far ahead of 

 what they are now. The water-closets at the 

 Randall house were especially to my liking. 

 Every facility for keeping yourself clean and 

 sweet, even including a nice new modern bath- 

 tub, was close by the door of every sleeping- 

 iroom. 



Just about as soon as I could get my head on 

 the pillow, the car-sickness and every thing 

 else, so far as I was concerned, vanished. As 

 soon as it was daylight next morning, the first 

 thiiig that met my eye as I looked from the 

 window of our room was a sign. ''Columbia 

 Bicycles to Let.'' Mrs. Root and I went out 

 for a walk first: but she knew how I was long- 

 ing for a wheel to try those beautiful paved 

 streets, and so she soon excused herself. I had 

 pictured to myself the enjoyment of having a 

 wheel with a pneumatic tire like my own; but 

 when the man in the store said there was not a 

 pneumatic tire in the whole city of Washing- 

 ton, for rent, my hopes took a fall. He added, 

 however, that the cushion tires were just as 

 good. I did not tell him so to his face, but I 

 will tell you. dear reader, that he is a naughty, 

 wicked man. He gave rae a wheel that he 

 -called a Columbia; but it was so shabby-look- 



ing I at first refused it, and accepted it only 

 when he said it was the best they had. It was 

 stiflf-necked, and hard on the bit; and I had 

 had been so accustomed to twisting and turning 

 everywhere with my own wheel that this thing 

 came pretty near getting me into several 

 scrapes. It ran before the street-cars, and 

 would not turn until I '" yanked it " with all my 

 strength. Never mind; I enjoyed it notwith- 

 standing. As soon as I got it tolerably under 

 my thumb, I hied me away to the Washington 

 Monument. It looked very tame at a distance. 

 Whyl when a mile away you might almost 

 call it a whitewashed smokehouse. It is much 

 like the mountains in California. When you 

 have traveled right toward it for half a mile, it 

 is further off than when you started; but it 

 keeps looming up, and increasing in size. When 

 I reached its base I got oflf my wheel and tried 

 to look up; and then I began to realize that it 

 was in truth the tallest piece of masonry on the 

 face of the globe. More of this anon. 



It was getting to be almost time to open the 

 convention, and I wanted to see the Capitol. It 

 was about a mile away; but I had got the hang 

 of my wheel well enough so that I made the 

 mile pretty quickly. First I circled around it 

 on the beautiful walks, admiring the statuary, 

 etc. Then I brought up before the entrance. I 

 do not know that I have ever felt much im- 

 pressed by statuary; at least, I have not of late 

 years been much attracted by the nude figures 

 we see in art-galleries; but as I stood before 

 the entrance of the Capitol of our nation, a 

 group of figures in white marble took hold of 

 my whole being as no work of art has ever done 

 before. I forgot my wheel; I forgot the frosty 

 air, and every thing else. The figure I am go- 

 ing to describe stands at the right of the 

 entranc(\ A sturdy wood-chopper In his shirt- 

 sleeves, with his hat thrown off and his shirt- 

 collar turned back, holds in his muscular and 

 sinewy grasp a savage of the forest. The 

 scene probably refers to earlier days. The sav- 

 age has in one hand a tomahawk, and in the 

 other a scalping - knife. The wood - chopper 

 stands a little at his back. He has grasped the 

 savage by the wrists, and holds him with such 

 an iron grasp that his captive can scarcely 

 move. The face of the latter shows a fury of 

 hate and rage. He looks like a baflfled demon. 

 Then as the eye rises to the manly face above 

 him. beaming with kindness, intelligence, and 

 love — yes. there is even love for his enemy de- 

 picted in that face — the expression that shines 

 forth from the still cold marble speaks more 

 eloquently than words. As I gazed on it I was 

 so much overcome with emotion that I could 

 not speak. I almost panted for breath. The 

 marble seemed to say to me, in words more 

 eloquent than those of the most finished orator, 

 something like this: "My friend, I am more 

 than a match for your savage strength and 

 fury: but please believe me when I try to assure 

 you that I would not willingly be your enemy. 

 We come here to these new shores, not to fight 

 you and plunder you of your possessions. 

 We come to teach you better things than skill 

 in using warlike weapons such as you hold in 

 your hands. We come to bring you the glad 

 message of peace on earth and good will toward 

 men." Dear friends, what can be moj-e appro- 

 priate than this wonderful piece of statuary for 

 such a place as this, the emblem and motto of 

 the work the United States hopes to do with 

 the rest of the world ? It is our mission and 

 our work to conquer and control sin and wick- 

 edness. Our laws are good and wise, and it 

 behooves us to enforce them. But may God 

 help us to enforce them with kindness and love. 



While we take the revolvers and bowie- 

 knives out of the hands and pockets of the out- 



