1889 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



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and the taste had a decided snap, like pun- 

 gent soda ; but 1 did not care very much for 

 it then. 1 decided it was not worth the cost 

 on that Sabbath afternoon. I didn't think 

 at the time (but I did afterward) of the text, 

 " Whosoever drinketh of the water that I 

 shall give him, shall never thirst." Well, 

 what was to hinder my retracing my steps 

 as quickly as I could V Nothing ; only, as I 

 started to go back, something suggested 

 (very likely it was Satan) that, if 1 climbed 

 that big hill to regain the railroad track, I 

 should be all in a sweat, and one ought not 

 to look sweaty with exercise on Sunday. 

 Before me was a smooth traveled road that 

 led back to my hotel, without the necessity 

 of climbing the hill to reach the track. It 

 is true, this travelled road led through the 

 business part of town ; but I did not think so 

 much about that just then. As I passed 

 along the road I saw more and more people, 

 who, it seemed, eyed me as did the others. 

 Most of them were shabbily dressed. Some 

 were smoking and swearing, and I had a 

 sort of feeling that my presence on that 

 street was something of an indirect encour- 

 agement to them to think it was right and 

 proper to be seen on the streets on the Sab- 

 bath day. Pretty soon a path turned off in- 

 to a quiet little grove, or ravine, beside the 

 brook. This path, so far as I could see, 

 went along almost parallel with the public 

 road. " There," thought I, " I can take this 

 path and thereby escape the crowd and 

 their questioning gaze, and it will no doubt 

 lead me just as directly, and may be more so, 

 to my hotel." Do you remember how 

 Christian, in Pilgrim's Progress, started off 

 a little from the straight and narrow path, 

 and, without actually knowing it, got fur- 

 ther away ? Well, it was so in my case. 

 The path led down by some more springs, 

 and, for some reason or other, I thought I 

 would just taste the water of these springs 

 — it wouldn't take more than a moment — 

 and I wanted to see if it were all alike. 

 Was it really so, that these were not as good 

 as the first ones, or was it my guilty con- 

 science that made it seem so V I met more 

 untidy people, and pretty soon I found a 

 wire fence intercepting my path. The own- 

 er of the ground, evidently not liking so 

 many tramping over his lands, had recently 

 made the fence. As soon as I saw it some 

 thing said : 



" Now, old fellow, you will be sure to tear 

 your nice clothes before you get over that 

 wire fence. You know you always have 

 some mishap when you go off so on Sunday; 

 and you may depend on it, you won't escape 

 this time." I thought of the morning, and 

 I felt feverish and nervous. Several times 

 I had tried to walk slowly and sedately; but 

 before I knew it I was rushing ahead again 

 very much as A. I. Root does on week days. 

 I would have turned back and retraced the 

 path until I came to the highway again, but 

 I was getting nervously impatient. How I 

 did long for the protecting walls of the 

 Mountain View House, or even to be so 

 near its doors that no one would think I 

 was guilty of strolling about on the Sabbath. 

 I decided, that by being real careful, I could 

 get over that wire fence, and not have my 



clothes torn. 1 pressed down the top wire, 

 carefully gathered up the coat-tails of my 

 Sunday overcoat, and succeeded in stepping 

 over the fence without a rag of my clothing 

 touching a single barb. Then I decided to 

 walk slowly and sedately the rest of the 

 way, and that nothing should entice me to 

 wander about any more during the after- 

 noon. After I had gone a few rods I hap- 

 pened to look down at my polished boots. 

 They were newly blacked, expressly for 

 church and Sunday - school. Something 

 caught my eye that troubled me at once. I 

 reassured myself, however, by saying men- 

 tally it was only a wide blade of grass that 

 had fallen across my boot. Nervously I un- 

 dertook to brush off that '"blade of grass." 

 As I found it would not brush off, the sweat 

 began to start on my forehead. One of my 

 nice new boots (a pair that just cost $7.00) 

 was actually cut from ankle to toe, and was 

 gapping open wide, showing my blue stock- 

 ing underneath. I have heard that pick- 

 pockets sometimes carry a lance so sharp 

 that it will cut open a pocket, without the 

 owner being aware of it. Had a pickpocket 

 suspected I carried money in my boot, I 

 should have thought it was his work. How 

 was it possible that that great cut was made 

 without my knowing it? Oh, yes ! When I 

 lifted my last foot over that wire fence, I 

 do remember a peculiar singing" zee-e-e-p," 

 and that sound was made by one of those 

 keen barbs as it cut my boot. I was near to 

 the pastor's house. Perhaps they were 

 watching me out of the window. May be 

 some of them would come out to the door 

 just as 1 came by, and find me sweaty, 

 dusty, flushed, and uncomfortable, with a 

 great gash across my foot. Satan whispered 

 to turn around and go and get a shoemaker 

 to sew it up before church time. Just then, 

 however, I thought I could see where 

 glimpses of Satan's cloven foot had been 

 visible all the afternoon, and I said, very 

 decidedly, " Get thee behind me, Satan." 

 The minister's folks did not come out, and 1 

 was enabled to get safely to my tidy little 

 room in the hotel ; and when there I knelt 

 by my bed and asked the kind Savior to for- 

 give me for my folly of the afternoon. And 

 that is the way, dear friends, I slipped away 

 down in the "Valley of Humiliation " from 

 that high pinnacle where it had been my 

 pleasure to stand but a few hours before. 



I had been asked by the pastor to take 

 part in the young people's Endeavor Society 

 at half-past six, before preaching services, 

 and I was on hand, I believe, before any- 

 body else. We have often been enjoined to 

 " put our best foot forward." So far as that 

 was concerned, however, I was trying to 

 keep my best foot in the background, you 

 may be sure. When the proper time came I 

 gave in my testimony But I was some- 

 what like a crippled soldier. The spirit that 

 was with me in the forenoon was not gone, 

 but it was a good deal dimmed. However, 

 I went to bed feeling happy that the Sab- 

 bath day as a whole had not been so very 

 badly spent. 



I found that my train did not leave till 

 2:35 in the afternoon, on Monday, so you 

 may be sure I was up bright and early, ready 



