954 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 



them. If Satan made just a little impres- 

 sion the other time, he didn't a bit here; 

 and with it came the feeling, " This money 

 all belongs to the Master, and not to myself." 

 So long as he supplies me with all 1 want 

 and all I need, why should I covet any thing ? 

 Oh, the unsearchable riches of those who 

 have their whole trust in the resources of 

 Him who is Lord of all ! 



All at once one of the friends whom I had 

 left at the convention came into the car 

 where I sat. He was on the way home, and 

 was as much surprised on seeing me as I 

 was on seeing him. I did not know how 

 soon he would be called uii to leave me, and 

 so I came, pretty soon, squarely up to the 

 work I felt the Master had given me to do. 

 Said I, almost abruptly,— 



" Friend , you are a Christian, I be- 

 lieve." 



He looked up at me with a smiling face, 

 and said : 



" Mr. Root, just the very moment my eyes 

 fell on you as I came into this car,! felt 

 that 1 should be called upon to meet this 

 question. xVnd now I want to tell you that 

 I am glad that you have said just these 

 words to me, even though it be true that 

 I am not and never have been a member of 

 any church. The reasons why I have never 

 united — that is, if they arc tit to be called 

 reasons— are, that the chui^h I had thought 

 I must unite with, if any, is not near at 

 hand. I have been helping in ano1 her church, 

 and my wife and I have been studying the 

 Bible, and have even gone so far as to have 

 family prayers, but we are not members of 

 any body of Christian people. I have known 

 my duty, but some how Ihave longed to have 

 somebody assure me, as you do, in your 

 earnest way, that it was just what I ought 

 to do." 



The church he mentioned is a new one, 

 in a new section of country, and it is doubt- 

 less weak and very much in need of the 

 energy, intelligence, and spiritual strength 

 which these two young bee-friends can give 

 it. Its influence for good on the communi- 

 ty round about will, without question, be 

 ever so much greater for having these two 

 come forward and take a bold stand, and 

 let their faith be shown by their works. 

 As we parted he took me by the hand and 

 promised that, if his wife approved (and he 

 felt sure she would), they would at once, 

 before another Sunday, go to the pastor and 

 tell him of their determination and wish to 

 become members of the church. A strange 

 feeling comes over me w^hen I think of his 

 remark, that he expected me to labor with 

 him on this very question. If such respon- 

 sibilities are coming upon me, how great is 

 the need that I be pure in heart and honest 

 in deed ! " Lord, help ! " comes up again 

 and again ; and when I think of the little 

 conflict— yes, perhaps even feeble conflict- 

 over that bright round dollar, how earnest- 

 ly can I pray that I may be cleansed, both 

 soul and body, from all temptations of a 

 like nature, taking no thought for what we 

 shall eat or what we shall drink, nor yet for 

 the body what we shall put on ; for is it not 

 true, that a life with .Jesus is incomparably 

 more than meat or raiment, or any thing else 

 that the world can offer V 



00^ 0WN ^PI^RY. 



CONDUCTED BY ERNEST E. ROOT. 



PINE STRAW AS A SMOKER FUEL. 



TTp FRIEND from the South, W. W. Wil- 

 ^flb, son, Punta Rossa, Florida, sends a 



pr package of " pine straw " as he called 

 ^^ it, to be tried in the Clark, as a smok- 

 er fuel. The material was evidently 

 the spines, or leaves from a species of pine- 

 tree — the spines of which were about a 

 foot in length. From the package sent, I 

 took a bundle large enough to slip down in- 

 to a Bingham, having first lighted the bot- 

 tom ends. A few puffs of the " Doctor " 

 gave me a beautiful smoke, dense and curl- 

 ing. It lasted well, and did not diminish in 

 volume. In consequence of the length of the 

 fuel, I did not try any in the Clark, though 

 it now occurs to me I might have coiled it 

 up, in which case I have no doubt it would 

 have burned as well as in the Bingham. 

 Those who are so situated as to be able to 

 get this pine straw, such as our friend sent, 

 would do well to try it; and if satisfactory, 

 lay in a stock of it for next season's use, to 

 dry. 



THE SMOKER QUESTION, AGAIN. 



As our friend R. L. Taylor, on page 845, 

 has spoken so vehemently in favoi" of the 

 Bingham, after having used the cold-blast, 

 perhaps the testimony of another friend 

 who has used both smokers may be interest- 

 ing right here. He says : 



I have read in Gleanings the discussion in re- 

 gard to smokers. I used Bingham's 6 or 7 years. 

 For the last year I used Clark's. It is a comfort to 

 use it. Bingham's is about the nearest to a dis- 

 appointment it can be. It is generally out when 

 I want it. Sometimes it is too hot, and then again 

 it throws sparks among the bees. I. B. Whiton. 



Ithaca, Mich., Nov. 21, 1887. 



I do not give place to the letter to in any 

 way detract from the merits of the Bing- 

 ham smoker, but to show that some are 

 just as vehement in praise of the Clark as 

 others are of the Bingham. While I recog- 

 nize and have experienced some of the 

 defects mentioned by the friend above, I 

 have not found them quite so bad. Isn't 

 it a good deal in notion, after all, friends ? 

 We can't all see things alike. 



Here is a letter from another friend : 



A SUGGESTION ON BINGHAM'S SMOKER-TOP. 



I see that Ernest burns his fingers, and empties 

 the contents of the Bingham smoker into the hives. 

 Now, did it ever occur to him that, if he would 

 simply connect the cone and fli"e-box on the side 

 with a small hinge, riveted securely, it would be 

 the easiest thing in the world to open and close, 

 without burning fingers or spilling fire into hives? 

 I have used mine in this way two years. I am well 

 pleased; but I would not use it if I were obliged to 

 pick up and place the cone off and on in the old 

 way. O. G. Josenhans. 



Owosso, Mich., Nov. 36, 1887. 



I have several times thought myself that 

 a hinge to the top would be a convenience, 

 and perhaps quite an advantage. But per- 

 haps friend Bingham does not look at it in 

 that way. 



