1896 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



901 



One may travel and keep his thoughts to him- s 

 self, or he can be sociable and form many pleas- » 

 ant acquaintances. To confess the truth, it is 5 

 a little hard for me to make advances among ? 

 entire strangers; but I have so often been re- | 

 warded for so doing that I ought to profit by i 

 past experience. As we neared New Orleans j 

 the man in the berth above got down and sat J 

 beside me. Somehow I got the impression from 

 his looks that he and 1 had no ideas in common, 

 and that it would be of no use to get acquaint- 

 ed. I will not tell you what other thoughts 

 Satan suggested; but a better spirit finally pre- 

 vailed, and I said something, just because I 

 felt a Christian ought to say something. What 

 do you think ? Why, it turned out he was a 

 prominent business man in an Ohio city, and 

 not only a temperance business man, but a sup- 

 porter of the Anti-saloon League of Ohio. He 

 needed just the encouragement I could give 

 for him to continue his support to the cause; 

 and as we separated he remarked that it had 

 given him much pleasure to make the acquain- 

 tance of one whom he had known before only 

 by reputation. Suppose I had listened to Satan! 



After he left, as the car was crowded a young 

 lady was placed in the seat opposite. Now, 

 although I am, as a rule, favorably inclined 

 toward young ladies, Satan whispered that I 

 "had better keep my mouth shut." After we 

 had sat facing each other for some time in 

 silence the better spirit suggested I should at 

 least give her an opportunity to talk. She 

 proved to be a teacher in Southern Louisiana, 

 and very soon we were chatting as old friends 

 that had just met. After a Ifttle urging she 

 consented to share my lunch, and so we break- 

 fasted together. I gave her the last Glean- 

 ings containing the story of the Idaho school- 

 ma'am; and when we bade each other adieu it 

 was in truth a parting with a friend and com- 

 rade in the battle for truth. Dear friends, 

 what woul be the result to the world if the 

 men and women "who love righteousness" 

 could clasp hands oftener in this never ending 

 battle against iniquity? Who does not feel 

 more courage after these brief acquaintances 

 that give us glimpses of another comrade in the 

 field? 



There are, it is true, "ships that pass each 

 other in the night;" but it is also true there 

 are many that need not pass in the night (or 

 daytime either) without a friendly hail; and 

 this hail need not delay either, but, on the con- 

 trary, help both of them along on life's voyage. 



At New Orleans I was met at the depot by 

 our good friend J. W. Winder, who very kindly 

 pointed out the improvements made since my 

 visit four years ago. Electric cars now take 

 the place of the horses and mules; and from 

 the amount of business they are doing it is hard 

 to imagine how New Orleans could do without 

 them. The cars follow each other so closely 

 on the busy streets that you can find the car 

 you want almost always in sight. The Louisi- 

 ana State Lottery, that was so prominent every- 

 where four years ago, is now gone out of sight 

 (at least), and. we trust, for ever. Of course, 

 other things in the line of gambling are still 

 there, but we hope for more triumphs. 



Friend Winder has about 300 colonies of bees 

 in one yard about three miles out of the city. 

 His yield of honey during the past season was 

 from 20 to 25 lbs. per colony. I think it would 

 have been larger if the number were divided 



and placed in two or more localities. He thinks 

 not enough more, however, to pay for the extra 

 expense. His honey, rather dark in color, 

 brings about 50 cts. per gallon, and thus com- 

 petes with best New Orleans syrup. He says 

 there is a great quantity of glucosed honey sold 

 in the city. The mixers want a dark honey of 

 very strong flavor for this purpose. The glu- 

 cose makes it white enough, and tones down 

 the strong flavor. Nothing has been done in 

 this State, so far as he knows, to punish or re- 

 strain adulteration. Friend W. keeps pure 

 honey at different points all over the city; but 

 the mixed is cheaper, and so sales of the genu- 

 ine are slow. 



Dec. 4th. — We found ice on the water beside 

 the track almost to Houston, Tex., early this 

 morning, but it is now quite warm in the mid- 

 dle of the day. 



We just passed a train loaded with huge iron 

 tanks, labeled " Southern Cotton-seed Oil." If 

 this is sold under its true name, I presume it is 

 all right, whether used for food or for other 

 purposes. 



Between Houston and San Antonio we pass 

 vast fields of both cotton and sugar-cane; and 

 the smoke pouring forth from the great sugar- 

 mills looks like business indeed. The vast ex- 

 panse of prairie, where one can see quite dis- 

 tinctly 20 miles or more, will always move me 

 with a feeling of inspiration, I presume, no 

 matter how many times I see it. A friend who 

 often sits near my elbow when we work to- 

 gether at home has called the " book of Nature " 

 one that makes no mistakes, and always tells 

 the same story. I wish he were with me now. 

 He would find the leaves of the book here sure- 

 ly broad enough.* Our 13-year-old boy Huber 

 has a fashion of eating his meals with an open 

 book before him, reading while he eats. Well, 

 that is just what I have been doing; but my 

 open book is out of the open car window. ill_J 



DOORYARDDDECORATION. 



At almost all the stations along the Southern 

 Pacific we found some very attractive work in 

 the way of decorating the yard with white 

 stones. These stones are arranged so as to 

 mark out the paths and flower-beds; and at 

 some places stars, circles, and crosses are ar- 

 tistically arranged with rows of stones. When 

 white stones can not not be had, get cobble- 

 stones and dip them in whitewash. They can 

 be readily seen after night, so as to keep people 

 off your plants. 



Some one has spoken of the present "epi- 

 demic of crime." This morning some one got 

 into our car and stole the whole of the tickets 

 belonging to the passengers while they were in 

 possession of the conductor of the sleeper. The 

 thief then threw them off the train, calculat- 

 ing to get them or have a confederate do so; 

 but some one found them, carried them to the 

 nearest station, and wired ahead. As it is, I 

 expect to find my ticket waiting tor me at San 

 Antonio after I have finished my visit at the 

 Atchleys. 



Later.— New tickets were made out for us by 

 the railroad company on our arrival at San 

 Antonio. 



San Antonio.— As the train was late, 1 did 

 not get here until night, and I began to have 

 that same feeling I have so often in traveling, 

 " a stranger in a strange land." For a time I 

 rambled about and began to feel homesick just 

 because I didn't know anybody. I stepped into 

 a bicycle store and arranged for a wheel in the 

 morning, as my train for Beeville didn't leave 



* 1 have lieard him say that sometimes he felt 

 like shaking hands with every weed (even the hum- 

 blest) he met. Out here on the prairies he would 

 find a big Job of "hand-shaking." 



