1896 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



533 



bottom-boards, and covers, were loaded upon 

 the flatboat; and then, as the shadows began 

 to deepen, he shoved the boat off, ran it down 

 stream a few rods, then into a little cove sur- 

 rounded by those tall tules that grow so luxu- 

 riantly upon every slough along the river. 

 Here it was secure from observation; and, tying 

 it fast, he again leaped on shorn and made his 

 way through liie willows tn the deserted apiary. 

 The hivHs. with their buzzing inhabitants, were 

 then attended to. With the aid of a little 

 smoke from an ignited piece of rotten sycamore 

 wood the hees were driven inside, and a piece 

 of wire cloth tacked closely over the enirance. 

 The cover was then removed, and a square of 



and his wife came vividly to mind; and in 

 like manner all of the weird stories he had ever 

 heard came floating unbidden into his imagi- 

 nation. The flapping of some bird in the trees, 

 the splash of some prowling animal in the 

 water, or the hoot of an owl, all had a startling 

 efi'ect; and, though the hours dragged wearily, 

 he was thus kept on the alert for any possible 

 danger. 



Toward midnight the skies began to lighten 

 up. as they often do in this western country, 

 and things that wore not visible an hour pre- 

 vious could now be dimly seen at some distance. 

 Fred had keiai his post well under the trees and 

 near ilie river; and, though he was expecting 



"The night is stormy and dark, my lover is on the sea; 

 Let me to the night winds hark, and hear wliat they say to me." 



gunny sacking nailed in its place. The porous 

 cloth would give ample ventilation, and still 

 prevent the bees from escaping. The six hives 

 were thus prepared for removal. It was then 

 too dark for further work, and Fred bethought 

 himself of his lunch-basket, with an appetite 

 sharpen(>d by his long afternoon's labor on the 

 boat and on shore. He refreshed himself upon 

 bread, beans, and canned meat from the Gher- 

 ing ranch, and milk and a few uickuacks given 

 him by his friends the Buells. 



Fred's work in preparing his bee-keeping 

 outfit for leiuoval had kept his thoughts of 

 danger in abeyance; but now with nothing to 

 do but to sit still in the gathering darkness, 

 and think, every motion and word of Dawson 



Dawson, still he hoped that his suspicions 

 against the man were groundless. Thus ex- 

 pecting and not expecting, his heart gave a 

 great throb as a boat with one occupant came 

 silently floating down the river with the cur- 

 rent. A silent movement with the one oar sent 

 the boat as quietly to the shore. The slouch 

 hat and slouchy form, dimly seen, revealed the 

 man Dawson. Fred quietly stole away past 

 the cabin and alongside the old water-pipe. 

 Dawson evidently supposed that Fred was 

 asleep in the cabin. The absence of the flat- 

 boat apparently disconcerted him, for he peered 

 into the darkness up and down the river-bank; 

 but he soon turned his attention toward the 

 cabin, and stealthily approached it. He silent- 



