292 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



May, 1919 



Thus they went thru two more hives, Dad- 

 dy Lowe explaining as he worked. But as 

 they approached the fourth hive, Anne 

 calmly sat down on it. 



"Please, Professor Daddy Lowe," she be- 

 gan in her most engagingly wheedling tones, 

 ' ' I want to beg a great favor. ' ' 



The old man laughed aloud. ' ' Go ahead, 

 child, ' ' he smiled, ' ' I knew it was coming 

 soon. Open one up and do it all alone. ' ' 



Anne jumped down eagerly. ' ' I 've ma- 

 triculated! " she exulted. "Now — you 

 watch," she urged. "And — if there's any- 

 thing you don 't understand, don 't hesitate 

 to ask! " 



Daddy Lowe chuckled and straightway be- 

 came the watcher. Carefully Anne removed 

 the cover, loosened the combs and started 

 her examination of the super. One by one, 

 she set out the five combs nearest her, and 

 then began prying the upper hive loose. 



" I '11 do the lifting, ' ' Mr. Lowe said, ris- 

 ing. 



' ' Please, no — thank you, ' ' Anne insisted. 

 ' * I 've set out enough combs so I can lift 

 the rest myself. I want to." 



Grasping the two handcleats, she lifted 

 the super off. But alas, as she lowered it, 

 she likewise tilted it. Two combs slipped 

 off the rabbet and crashed to the ground. 

 Instantly the air was filled with excitedly 

 resentful bees. Daddy Lowe came gallant- 

 ly to the rescue. 



"Oh dear! " wailed Anne, flushed and dis- 

 tressed; "I'm so sorry! See what I did the 

 very first thing. ' ' 



' ' No great harm done at that, ' ' Mr. Lowe 

 reassured her. ' ' They didn 't fall far. Only 

 one comb is broken and that not badly. ' ' 



' ' But you got stung picking up my wreck- 

 age. " 



' ' I was just the innocent bystander, ' ' he 

 smiled. ' ' But you invited me to ask ques- 

 tions. Do you mind explaining just why you 

 did it?" 



"Mean Professor!" she retorted, adding 

 humbly, ' ' Next time I shall lift it more 

 evenly. ' ' 



' ' And it will be easier if you don 't have 

 all the weight on one side, ' ' he suggested. 



Anne finished her job without further mis- 

 hap. Whereupon Mr. Lowe poured great 

 comfort and delight into her troubled soul, 

 by telling her to go on down that row alone, 

 and he would start on the next row. ' ' If 

 you need me, I'm right here," he added. 



Anne sighed rapturously. ' ' I am begin- 

 ning my career. My cup runneth over " 



Most joyfully she worked, and thoroly, 

 hive after hive. And right in the middle of 

 it came Theodore Eobinson. 



"Oh, Theodore!" the girl cried eagerly, 

 her enthusiasm sweeping away all other 

 feelings. " I 'm really starting to be a bee- 

 keeper! Isn't it splendid?" 



"Perfectly lovely!" Theodore answered 

 dryly. The ironical emphasis made Anne 

 suddenly self-conscious. She frowned ever 

 so slightly. 



''But Theodore, just think — " 



' ' I haven 't done much else for the last 

 month," the young man accused. 



' * I 've been studying beekeeping, my- 

 self, ' ' said Anne sweetly. ' ' Aren 't you 

 afraid of bees, Theodore?" 



Theodore kicked a tuft of unoffending 

 grass. ' ' Honestly, Anne, I never thought 

 I'd see you out in the sun this way, all — " 



"All what? Perspiry and hot? Well, to 

 be honest, I never thought it myself. But 

 here I am, and here I 'm likely to be. What 

 are we going to do about it?" 



' ' That 's what I came to tell you. But 

 I 'm interrupting your work. ' ' 



' ' And I can 't stop right now. ' ' 



"I'll wait." 



She protested, but he waited. So about 

 an hour later, having first completed her 

 row of hives, she came out from the house, 

 cool and dainty and refreshed. Theodore 

 was visibly relieved. 



' ' This is the real Anne Lester, ' ' he said. 

 The way he said it spoke volumes, 



Anne resented both the speech and the 

 inferred volumes. ' ' I don 't agree with 

 you," she argued. "I believe the other 

 was the real one. This is merely the prod- 

 uct of a quick bath and a good dressmaker. 

 What were you going to tell me?" 



' ' I 've given up my position. ' ' 



"Theodore! Have you volunteered?" 



The young man's face darkened. "Anne, 

 you know so well I can't do that! Even for 

 you. Every deep conviction in me is against 

 war. I shall answer my call when drafted, 

 but my conscience will never let me go 

 voluntarily. The bitter thing is that you 

 will never understand. ' ' 



" It 's true I '11 never understand how you 

 can feel that way, about tMs war. But I 

 shall always understand how you can 't go, 

 since you do feel that way," she answered. 



"Thanks," he said gratefully. "And 

 here 's the rest of my news. I 've hired out 

 to Mr. Clark — you know — the big farm next 

 this. I 'm going to learn farming. ' ' 



"Farming? Why Theodore, you hate it! 

 And — it makes you hot and dirty. What 

 ever made you think of such a thing?" 



"Can't you guess, Anne?" 



Anne flushed and was silent. Finally she 

 shook her head. "You musn 't change your 

 whole life for me that way, Theodore," she 

 protested gently, ' ' Besides it won 't do any 

 good. Honestly it won 't. ' ' 



It was his turn to be silent. But after a 

 few minutes he jumped up with the old 

 friendly, boyish grin. "Bet you a cooky!" 

 he challenged. 



"Bet you two!" she retorted, happy at 

 the change of mood. And she walked with 

 him to the gate. Coming slowly back to 

 the house, later, she looked off across the 

 fields to the big prosperous Clark farm. And 

 looking, she smiled, and kept on smiling. 

 Then she nodded her head wisely. 



"All right, Theodore," she murmured. 

 " I 'm neither a prophet nor the son of a 

 prophet, but I have a new big idea. And 

 I'm willing to bet another cooky on it." 



