246 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Apr. 



crating-. He has some demand for half-pound sec- 

 tions, and fills a limited number of them. His ex- 

 hibit at the Vermont State Fair attracted much at- 

 tention. It was gotten up in a very original man- 

 ner. He carried out his "red, white, and blue" 

 idea by making- his honey-exhibit into a flag as 

 shown in the sketch. 



HOLMES* FLAG MADE OP SECTIONS OF HONEY. 



The white stars and stripes are one-pound sec- 

 tions of honey. The rest is wood, and painted in col- 

 ors. 



Mr. Holmes is deacon and Sunday-school super- 

 intendent in the Congregational church at Shore- 

 ham, andisaman thought much of in the communi- 

 ty. His home is enlivened by wife and children. 



From Mr. Holmes apiary we made a short journey 

 to see Miss Marcia A. Douglass, ex secretary of the 

 Vermont Bee-keepers' Association. Though own- 

 ing 30 swarms, and interested in bees and bee- 

 journals, she is at present not a bee-keeper. Mr. 

 Holmes keeps the bees and hives the swarms while 

 she attends to the swarms of ladies and girls who 

 will deck their heads out with those things called 

 bonnets, hats, etc. 



From what the Rambler saw, we should judge 

 that the millinery store was run with ihe same suc- 

 cess that the bees were. Miss Douglass regrets 

 that circumstances compel her to keep from among 

 the busy hum of her pets. The Rambler was ill at 



RAMBLER'S MISHAP. 



ease in the store among so much gaudy finery, and 

 was constantly afraid he would smash something. 

 We regretted to see so many birds of brilliant plum- 

 age used to decorate hats. We were told they came 

 from tropical climes; but if every millinery shop 



all over the land is stocked up with them, thens 

 millions must be killed every year to supply the 

 demands of fashion. The Rambler got off into a 

 reverie over the right and wrong of it. 



We bade Miss Douglass farewell, and took our de- 

 parture; but we knew we could not leave without a 

 mishap. Our umbrella tried to carry off some of 

 the fancy hats. 



We envied our friend John, who seemed to bear a 

 charmed life among so much finery. He had won- 

 derfully recovered his geniality within the last 

 hour; forgot his toothache, and laughed at the Ram- 

 bler's predicament. 



We had a slow ride in the rain and mud again, and 

 the next morning we bade good-by to our very kind- 

 friends. We wanted to shake the mud from our 

 feet, not in animosity, but we didn't want to carry 

 the precious Shoreham soil away. We did, how- 

 ever, and some of it yet sticks to the Rambler. 



Now, look here, old friend ; Medina Coun- 

 ty has from time immemorial, had undisput- 

 ed possession of the honor of being reckoned 

 the banner county, not only in the State of 

 Ohio, but any other State, for clay mud. 

 The " dobe " on the mountains of California 

 has a little advantage in being more waxy 

 than our clay here in Medina County ; but 

 your vivid description of the Shoreham mud 

 almost made us feel a little bit jealous. 

 Well, we have had it for a steady six 

 months without let-up or hindrance, and I 

 am sure your Shoreham friends have not 

 been favored to that extent. We are very 

 sorry for your mishap in that millinery 

 store, friend R. But then, if it had not 

 been for that hook at the end of your um- 

 brella we might not have had that glimpse 

 of that pretty miss in trouble, shown in 

 your sketch. Would it not be better to turn 

 the hook of your umbrella down when you> 

 go off in a hurry, as you did there? 



PEDDLING HONEY. 



a good article on the subject. 



I began with horse and buggy, going from house 

 to house, and weighing out to each customer as I 

 found sale for it. But that soon proved to be 

 a slow and disagreeable business, as most customers 

 would take only 3 or 4 pounds, and weighing out 

 from the wagon with a spring balance was slow, 

 uncertain, and a sticky, gummy business. I soon 

 quit that, and began buying tin buckets that would 

 easily hold ten pounds. I put that amount into 

 each, and going to the merchants, the lawyers, doc- 

 tors, and bankers, I would sell bucket and all, 

 charging- only a trifle for the bucket. This way was 

 a decided improvement, but still I lost something 

 on the buckets, and occasionally I would find a man 

 who wanted a less quantity; so to accommodate 

 that class, and save the loss on buckets, I went to a 

 tin-shop and bought quart tin fruit-cans and buck- 

 ets by the dozen, getting them at reduced rates. 

 The quart tins hold 3 pounds, and cost me 4 cents 

 each. 1 would sell them filled with honey at 40 cents 

 each. Ikept the quart tins back out of sight until 

 I found a person who would not buy as much as a 

 bucket of honey, and then I would present them, 

 often making a sale with them where I had failed 

 with a larger quantity. 



The gallon buckets cost me by the dozen 10 cents 



