1901 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



409 



my head, that had ten monstrous grape-fruits. 

 Well, they were not really hangitig on the 

 tree, because they were so heavy that most of 

 them rested on the ground. I took a kodak 

 view of it; but Ernest pronounced it "no 

 good." The locality round about Slu^.rt will 

 likely very soon be noted for its oranges and 

 grape-fruits as well as for its pineapples. 



Six years ago West Palm Beach, was the ter- 

 minus of the East Shore Railway ; but the 

 road now runs away down to Biscayne Bay, 

 •and on to Miami. I stopped one day at West 

 Palm Beach to visit one of our Medina Co. 

 boys, or one who used to be years ago, Mr. J. 

 N. Parker, and also to look over the Royal 

 Poinciana Hotel. Friend Parker is in the 

 truck business. He grows pineapples to some 

 extent, but does not give as much attention 

 to it as they do in some other localities. He 

 had some of the handsomest Irish potatoes I 

 ever saw anywhere. At his place, for the first 

 time, I ate guavas right from the bushes. He 

 said it was a little early for nice ones. I spent 



ANOTHER VIEW, SHOVl^ING LARGER PLANTS 



half a day very pleasantly, and I think profit- 

 ably, in looking over the wonderful tropical 

 gardens belonging to the Royal Poinciana. 

 .Here we find almost every tropical plant 

 known in any part of the world, and, better 

 still, every plant, from the smallest flower to 

 the largest tree towering away up toward the 

 sky, and each plant, tree, or bush, is plainly 

 labeled with the common name, and also the 

 Latin name. In fact, it is quite a school to go 

 over the grounds and learn by practice to call 

 by name all these exotics by sight. Of course, 

 you can not pick the fruit. I was greatly in- 

 terested in the sapodilla-tree. The fruits are 



as large as peaches, but they look more like a 

 potato. I found them for sale, however, on 

 fruit-stands, and after a little practice I learn- 

 ed to like them tolerably well . They are rather 

 swett, and remind me of the mandrakes of 

 my childhood. Once when I was a boy I got 

 very sick by eating too many mandrakes, and 

 therefore any thing that reminds me of this 

 occurrence brings up recollections not exactly 

 pleasant. If I am correct, the sapodilla is 

 sometimes called the custard apple. 



The morning I visited the great hotel I was 

 told that 1600 people took breakfast,. and that 

 their breakfas-t costs the guests, on an average, 

 11.00 each. It took about 400 waiters to take 

 care of the 1600 guests. So this one hotel has 

 a population, if that is the proper way to speak 

 of a hotel, equal to a town of 2000. I did not 

 get breakfast there myself, nor dinner. The 

 dinner costs more than a dollar if I am cor- 

 rectly informed. But I very much doubt if 

 anybody enjo\ ed his dinner more than I did 

 mine. Shall I tell you what it was ? I went 

 to a fruit-stand and bought 

 a nice ripe pineapple for 

 15 cents. Then I went to 

 a restaurant and asked for 

 some bread and butter. 

 For a nickel I got a great 

 plateful of bread and plen- 

 ty of nice butter. The 

 pineapple was both food 

 and drink, and so I did 

 not have any tea or coffee, 

 and certainly did not want 

 any. When the proprie- 

 tor said five cents paid for 

 the bread and butter I 

 gave him another nickel 

 for clearing up the rem- 

 nants of my pineapple. 

 Well, I had several meals 

 of just pineapple and bread 

 and butler ; and I have a 

 sort of notion in my head 

 that such a diet would 

 agree with me to a dot, 

 three times a day, the 

 year round ; and I have 

 been planning to take, 

 some time, a vacation, and 

 live on pineapples and 

 bread and butter for sever- 

 al days, and prove to the 

 world that such a diet is 

 ample. Oh dear me ! how 

 many things there are I 

 should like to try if this busy world's cares 

 did not stand in the way ! 



There is quite a pretty zoological garden 

 connected with the Royal Poinciana ; there is 

 also an aquarial garden ; but it is not taken 

 care of as it might be, notwithstanding some- 

 body is constantly on hand to take the 25 cts. 

 one has to pay to look through it. 



During the past few years, the Royal Poin- 

 ciana has been enlarged by a sort of annex 

 hotel that they call the Breakers. I believe 

 the expense of stopping at the Breakers is a 

 little less. It is not worth while, however, to 

 find fault with high prices while everybody, 



