296 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



entered my bead the spoonful of wine would 

 cost any more 1 innocently said, " Yes, put 

 it in;" but when he explained it was ten 

 cents each instead of five, because of the 

 wine, T became wiser and sadder also. I 

 " wisely " concluded, also, even if I was 

 only sixteen, that the " chicken business " 

 would not stand any such " incidentals." 



Had Eli " laid down the law " to his two 

 sons Hophni and Phinehas, as my father laid 

 down the law to Iris two sons, it might have 

 averted that terrible war that cost Israel 

 34,000 men. The example these two set by 

 profaning their holy office did at least very 

 much to corrupt and lead astray the nation. 

 It has been suggested more than once that 

 the terrible war now going on in Europe is 

 the result of letting men stand in high and 

 sacred places who, like Eli's sons, " knew 

 not the Lord." 



Let us now go back and consider what 

 might have happened to me had I chosen 

 differently on that momentous Sunday 

 morning. Like many another boy of six- 

 teen I had not at that age any particular 

 conscientious scruples about following my 

 fancy for any particular " Delilah." In 

 fact, I had already an eye on a girl I had 

 met and talked with on those Sunday trips. 

 Just recently we had "Endeavor Sunday" 

 here in Bradentown. The Endeavorers of 

 all denominations had a union meeting, fill- 

 ing a great church. Our pastor gave us a 

 splendid Endeavor sermon, and among other 

 things called attention to the mai'riages that 

 had resulted among the Endeavorers. He 

 said the Christian homes they had estab- 

 lished and were establishing were model 

 hom.es, and were going to raise the stan- 

 dard of the nation. My friend, if you want 

 a wife, look for her in the church or Sun- 

 day-school or Endeavor society. 



Just a word about that expression in our 

 last text, " that thy days may be long upon 

 the land," etc. I am now over 75 years old, 

 and able to do quite a lot of work besides 

 writing these Home papers. Is there any 

 probability that this would have been the 

 case had I decided differently on that Sun- 

 day morning'? Suppose I had kept on with 

 the beer-drinking crowd, perhaps married 

 the bold girl I had met (say at eighteen) 

 instead of waiting until I was twenty-two, 

 etc. Suppose I bad cut loose from the dear 

 old home and the praying mother — the 

 mother who was doubtless praying for her 

 boys most earnestly when they were settling 

 the momentous question. " Choose ye this 

 day whom ve will sen'e." 



BEE "keeping^" by A. I. ROOT; "THAT BEE 

 DISEASE." 



Since A. I. Root has become " really and 

 truly " a beekeeper, you would naturally 

 expect some words of wisdom from him on 

 tlie subject. Well, I think they are coming. 

 Before the " wisdom," however, I want to 

 say that it seems that, wherever I go, people 

 will introduce me as " the great authority 

 on bees;" and one of the papers recently 

 was so kind as to say I probably knew as 

 much about bees as " any man living," etc. 

 Of course, I try to explain (modestly, of 

 course) that I ^vas "pretty well up" in a 

 former age ; but " the present generation," 

 etc. Now for the wisdom. 



About a week ago I noticed some imma- 

 ture bees and larvae out on the ground in 

 front of that three-story hive; but as the 

 bees seemed very busy on the advance or- 

 ange bloom I supposed they must be put- 

 ting some honey above ; for when last ex- 

 amined they had quite a few sealed stores; 

 but the morning after finding a teacupful 

 of dead bees were out in front, and more 

 that could just crawl on the bottom-board, 

 I tell you that hive was pulled apart quick. 



There wasn't a cell of honey in the whole 

 colony, and scarcely a cell of unsealed 

 brood, although there was a big lot of sealed 

 brood in almost every comb below. With 

 the cold rains we are having (three times 

 the normal amount of rain during the last 

 winter), they had been able to work only 

 " from hand to mouth," with the gi'eat 

 amount of brood they had been caring for. 

 I got a jar of honey " in a jiffy," and, 

 holding it high up, let it drizzle slowly into 

 the empty cells. The honey was really 

 about half hot water, so they coutd handle 

 it quickly ; and after the hive was closed up 

 you ought to have seen the rejoicing. They 

 poured out of the hive almost as if they 

 were going to swarm, and then danced in 

 the sunshine to express their thanks for 

 their sudden and unexpected timely deliver- 

 ance. It made me think of some of my 

 timely answers to prayer, Avhen I was 

 caught unexpectedly in sore straits. To 

 make sure of no more such " blundering " 

 I gave them a whole pint of honey next day. 

 poured into the empty combs in the upper 

 stories. How is the above for the " great 

 beeman " with only otie colony of bees to 

 care for? I then put the dead bees on 

 the ground in front, in a corn-popper, 

 sprinkled tliera with sweetened Avater, then 

 placed them in a warm oven, after the fire 

 was all out, but only a feAv revived. They 

 had been neglected just a little too long. 

 Of course they are all right now, but my 

 loss through almost criminal ncaiect is all 



