202 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mar. 1 



a mass of beautiful white roots; in fact, the 

 roots were too long before I knew it. Bet- 

 ter not let them stay in the sand until the 

 root is over '2 -in. in length. Some iiorists 

 saj', do not let them get to be over "4 -inch. 



After you learn how to make nasturtiums 

 grow you can take other plants that are 

 more difficult. We have succeeded in mak- 

 ing some beautiful plants of cuttings of 

 "Crimson Rambler" roses, but it takes 

 two or three weeks to get them rooted. Al- 

 most any plant that grows can be made to 

 take root when you get at the conditions 

 and understand them. Even hard-wood 

 trees can be propagated in the same way. 



Now, the great point in this cutting busi- 

 ness is that, by means of the process, we 

 are enabled to hold fast to that " wild colt " 

 that our friend got hold of when he was get- 

 ting out the new radish. Luther Burbank, 

 of California, has taught the world that we 

 can have almost any thing we want (in the 

 way of fruit) if we are willing to work for 

 it a sufficient number of weeks, months, or 

 years, as the case may be. I know I have 

 written considerable on this same subject 

 before but I firmly believe that one of the 

 remedies, not only for our physical ills, but 

 for the era of crime that is now casting a 

 dark shadow over our nation — one of the 

 great remedies for both sickness and crime, 

 so it seems to me — is getting people busily 

 employed in studying God's works. I have 

 found health, even during this severe win- 

 ter time, because I have been so busy and 

 so happy. There is an unceasing demand 

 for men (and women too) who are experts 

 along the lines I have been treating. This 

 work enables us to keep in constant touch 

 with, and keep plainly in sight, not only 

 the leaves and flowers of the plant, but the 

 root-growth. I never enjoyed watching root- 

 growth before as I have this winter; and 

 when every thing is just right the micro- 

 scopic roots push out and grow with won- 

 derful rapidity. Again and again as I 

 knocked the black balls of earth out of my 

 little pots (or a big one, as the case may 

 be), I uttered exclamations of surprise and 

 delight to see a beautiful plant had done 

 wonders in the way of root-growth when I 

 least expected it. Be patient; work care- 

 fully; watch and inquire; get every thing 

 just right, and your reward will come. 

 And again and again it comes home to me 

 that our children — yes, the babies as well 

 as the boys and girls — are not unlike the 

 plants. Parents seldom realize the possi- 

 bilities that lie before their children. Many 

 a mother has watched and waited and pray- 

 ed as her gentle and loving hand guided 

 the little mind that was intrusted to her 

 care. Many times, perhaps, it has seemed 

 as if the young mind was attracted only by 

 evil; but finally she succeeds in sowing the 

 good seed and starting right impulses in 

 the little mind. It grows and develops day 

 by day, and finally, before she suspects it 

 — yes, before anybody ihoughi oi it — this 

 boy or girl has budded and blossomed into 

 a glorious Christian character. His work 



will not only stand through all time but 

 through eternity. 



MECHANICAL AIDS IN OUR HOMES; HEAT- 

 ING AND LIGHTING BY ELECTRICITY 

 WITH WINDMILL POWER. 

 Mr. Root: — "Work out a plan to heat and light our 

 homes by electricity by means of windmill power, 

 and tell us all about it in your journal. 

 Waverly, Neb., Feb. 14. G. R. Noren. 



Friend N., the thing you mention is al- 

 ready being done, but the apparatus is 

 quite expensive. The Aermotor Co., of 

 Chicago, will send you circulars telling 

 j^ou more about it than I can here. The 

 principal difficulty is storing power suffi- 

 cient to do the work when the wind does 

 not blow. One way is to have an elevated 

 reservoir in which to pump the water. Let 

 this water run a water-motor, and you 

 have it. Another way is to use a storage 

 battery to store up the electricity until 

 needed. M3' impression is the reservoir for 

 water is cheaper and less complicated ; 

 and there is this in its favor — you can have 

 the water for any other purpose you wish. 

 The trouble with wind for all such uses is 

 that there are times, perhaps intervals of 

 several weeks or months, when j'ou will 

 have an enormous amount of power — enough 

 to last through long periods ; and then, 

 again, there are considerable periods when 

 there will be little or no wind. This ne- 

 cessitates a great amount of water — that is, 

 if 3'ou are going to use electricity for heat- 

 ing as well as lighting. If you want to 

 run only a few lamps, the matter is com- 

 paratively easy. Another thing, there is 

 quite a loss of power by using it first to 

 pump up water, and then convert the fall- 

 ing water into power again, and have this 

 pow,er riui the motor. The world is now 

 waiting for some cheaper storage battery, 

 or for some short cut to apply the power of 

 coal, or wind either, so it can be applied di- 

 rectly to the motor. The power from the 

 windmill direct, as you know, is very un- 

 even, even with our best-regulated mills. 

 Unless you have a storage arrangement, 

 either a reservoir of water or electricity, 

 your lights would be first away down un- 

 til you could not see, and then they would 

 flare away up in a perfect blaze, burning 

 out your fuses, and possibly melting your 

 wires. The wind is all right for plenty of 

 power; but it is, as yet, much like an un- 

 broken colt. It needs taming. If any of 

 our readers are using electric lights fur- 

 nished by windmill power we should be 

 glad to hear from them. An unfailing 

 spring of water solves the problem easily. 

 Even a very small stream, where you have 

 a sufficient fall, will light your home beau- 

 tifully; and if the volume is large enough 

 it will also warm your rooms and do the 

 cooking. I expect, this coming summer, to 

 harness up a spring to light up our cabin 

 in the woods. Perhaps I should say, rath- 

 er, I am going to make some experiments in 

 that direction. 



