1901 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



105 



covering of the whole tree as explained by 

 Prof. Lowe (with the result that little or no 

 fruit had set) showed clearly that the bees, 

 and they alone, did the mixing of the pollen. 



At the conclusion of both addresses, both 

 professors were given a most hearty vote of 

 thanks for the interesting and valuable testi- 

 mony they had produced ; and this testimony 

 was the more valuable because both men be- 

 gan these experiments at the solicitation of 

 the fruit men, anxious to show that spraying 

 during blooming-time was not detrimental 

 but decidedly advantageous. Verily the bees 

 in York State have been and are being vindi- 

 cated on every hand. 



President Marks said he had made the 

 statement that 95 per cent of the bee men of 

 the State were also fruit growers. He wished 

 it understood that a large number, yes, the ma- 

 jority of fruitgrowers, acknowledged that the 

 bees were their best friends ; that it was only 

 a few of the fruit-men who were at variance 

 wi.h the bee-keepers ; that there was no real 

 fight between bee keepers and fruit-groweis. 



OUR 



homes; 



BY A.I. ROOT. 



The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man 

 availeth much.— James 5:16. 



Dear friend, do you know of somebody who 

 is very kind, accommodating, skillful, and 

 helpful in every way when he feels just like 

 it ; but when he does not happen to feel just 

 like it he can be as contrary, disobliging, and 

 vexatious as he is at other times good-leniper- 

 ed ? I suppose such people are all over the 

 world. When you take them just right, or 

 when they happen to feel like it, they are 

 mos'. estimable ptople and valuable citizens. 

 At ether times they are so contrary, disoblig- 

 ing, and ugly (to get right down to it), that 

 it is hard work to live near them and be oblig- 

 ed to have any thing to do with them.'-' May 

 be you remember having got hold of a certain 

 hired man or girl who was of this sort. When 

 she or he first began work you wondered how 

 it was that he changed places so often, and 



*Sjmetimesa man is wanted for a particular job — 

 oftentime.s something of very great importance. The 

 question is, " Who can do it ? " Finally we hit upon a 

 man who would til the bill exactly, providing he took 

 a notion to. Sometimes the question comes up before 

 acommiitee. This man is peculiir. Jf the right per- 

 son should present the subject to him when lie hap- 

 pened to be in one of his accommodating mcods he 

 might fall in with it and do it to our entire satisfac- 

 tion. Again, if somebody he did not like should pre- 

 sent the matter, or he did not happen lo be in an 

 "accommodating mood,' he would refuse to have any 

 thing to do with it, ind, may be, declare flatly it could 

 not be done. A great many times I have met just such 

 co.,tingencies. It is not only in business matters, Init 

 in temperance work, and in various greatly needed 

 reforms. We can not say we will have nothing to do 

 with one who is so changeable (and we might almost 

 say urtiuthful i : for sometimes it seems as if the world 

 could hardlv gt t along without them. All we can do 

 is to make the best of circumstances and of the peo- 

 ple we meet. Earnest prayer and patient labor are 

 the two things needed, and a broad charity for those 

 who are beset with these human infirmities and weak- 

 nesses. May God help us. 



yet was so reasonable in his charges. As time 

 passed, and you became a little better acquaint- 

 ed, little by little this person began to f-how 

 out his moods and streaks and inconsisten- 

 cies, and then the secret was out. What are 

 you going to do with such people ? SomeViody 

 said a while ago she would not have a girl on 

 the premises who would tell deliberate false- 

 hoods. But, my friend, you can not very well 

 lay down rules. I have sometimes thought 

 these people I have described did not really 

 inean to tell a falsehood, and that, in fact, it 

 hardly ought to be called a falsehood. Your 

 hired girl or man gets one of these .streaks, 

 and declares the thing you want done can not 

 be done. You explain fully what is wanted, 

 and tell him you could do it yourself easily if 

 you had time. But, unfortunately, a bad 

 spirit has got hold of the otherwise usually 

 skillful and ready helper. He insists it can 

 not be done, gets contrary, and pretends he 

 did not understand just what you wanted. 

 The result is, wasted time and loss of property. 

 There is a controversy or conflict between you 

 two, and the hired man comes out ahead May 

 be it is the hired woman or hired girl who 

 comes out ahead. In one of our Home Papers 

 recently I expressed a dislike for the term 

 "hired girl ; " and just as I expressed a dis- 

 like for it a writer suggested that we say 

 "housemaid." The woman of the house is 

 the housekeeper, or housewife, if you choose. 

 Her helper is the housemaid. Well, now, 

 this housemaid, or hired man, as the case may 

 be, thinks he is telling the truth when he said 

 he did the best he could. If you question 

 him, perhaps he will insist that he did the 

 best he could, and furthermore declare, per- 

 haps, that the thing you wanted can not be 

 done. May be by this time you are sufficient- 

 ly stirred up so you drop other important du- 

 ties, and go to wrk and show him just how 

 easily the thing can be done if one goes about 

 it in the right way ; or perhaps you call in 

 somebody else who has not " got his back up " 

 on this particular matter, and let your hired 

 help see you are right. Is he convinced, and 

 does he beg your pardon ? Generally speak- 

 ing, he does not. He is still contrary ; and 

 this is one of the sad phases of humanity. 

 Perhaps somebody puts in right here, "Get 

 rid of him.'" But, my dear friend, this same 

 person has many grand good qualities, and he 

 has many lovable traits. He can do things 

 that nobody else can do or has learned to do 

 You can not afford to let him go, unless, in- 

 deed, you let the same spirit into your heart 

 that has found a lodging-place in his, and 

 "cut oflf your nose to spile your face." I beg 

 pardon for such a piece of slang, but it just 

 hits the spot. Per-haps some of you say, 

 "Well, Bro. ROot, what would you do? or 

 what fl'o v^ do under such circumstances?" 

 In the jflf st place, I try to keep my temper. 

 IfjjBu' l(jse your temper you have stepped 

 3own from the throne where reason holds 

 sway. You are standing exactly on the same 

 level with your contrary man. " He that rul- 

 eth his own spirit is greater than he that tak- 

 eth a city." But if you get stirred up you can 

 not take any city at all ; in fact, you can not 



