354 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



words were uttered the answer came, strong 

 and distinct, " No." 



"Dear Lord, shall I complain to the 

 slieriff about the boj'S ? '' 



The answer came clear and plain as be- 

 fore, " No." 



Once more, "Shall I scold them or threat- 

 en them with arrest?" 



Again came the decided " No." 



At this point I asked Bi'o. Rood another 

 question : 



" ]\Ir. Rood, do you know or have you 

 lieard of the boys interrupting or annoying 

 anybody else who di'ives an automobile on 

 our streets? 1 suppose there are a hundred 

 of them or more in and around Braden- 

 town. His repW was, " Mr. Root, I have 

 never heard of their interfering or inter- 

 ruiiting anybody else." 



I told him that this pointed out the fact 

 that I was at least partly at fault if not 

 entirely so; and I went home to consider 

 the matter. Shortly after, I ran on to the 

 following in the Sunday School Times. 

 Read it, and see if you can catch on to 

 Avhere it hits your case. 



TRANSLATING COMMONPLACE TRUTH. 



When any truth seems commonplace to us it has 

 lost its power for us. How can that power be re- 

 stored or discovered? Coleridge gives the secret 

 when he says: "To restore a commonplace truth to 

 its first unconunon luster, you need only traniilate it 

 into action." " Blessed are the meek " is one of the 

 familiar promises that often has little appeal; but 

 how it bristles with surprises and with power when 

 it is turned into action! Every i)romise of the word 

 may be found to contain the life-giving Spirit of God 

 when it is translated into the uncommon language 

 of life. 



Let me now tell my little story again, 

 relating some facts I have neglected in the 

 above. 



Years ago, when T got my first automo 

 bile, or " Oldsmobile," rather, it had a oack 

 seat ; but the passengers on the back seal 

 were obliged to ride backward. To get on 

 this back seat there was a step not vei-y far 

 ujD from the ground. To get on to this step 

 there were iron rods to grasp hold of on 

 each side. Now, this back step was ex- 

 ceedingly handy for carrying parcels, mer- 

 chandise, etc., and we liked to use it for 

 that iDurpose. This back step was remov- 

 able; but when we tried leaving it on all the 

 time we soon discovered that it was a great 

 temjotation to mischievous boys. Even wlien 

 going at considerable speed a boy could 

 gi-asp hold of the iron rod and swing on to 

 the seat. This sort of sport was attractive, 

 because one could thus get aboard very 

 much as a conductor dextrously swings on 

 to the steps of a fast-moving train. Tlie 

 boys soon becatne very expert; and while 

 here in Medina we left the ste]3 at home be- 

 cause the boys would load us down. I had 



the machine shipped down to Florida. But 

 I soon found that the boys in Florida were 

 not particularly different from the boys in 

 Medina. At first I wanted to be pleasant 

 and good-natured to the boys, and permit- 

 ted them to ride; but when it began to be 

 too much of a burden for the old machine, 

 1 asked them to get off. Some of the boys 

 heeded ray request. Others did not seem 

 disposed to move; and if they did get off, 

 as soon as my back was turned they got on 

 again. 



In this waj', and with an old machine, I 

 editcated the schoolboys to l)e ungentleman- 

 ly. When I got a new Sears automobile 

 they recognized me, even if they did not the 

 machine, and began climbing on behind. 

 I finally scolded, and then threatened. 1 

 forgot my religion. My cloak of humility 

 that I usuall}^ wore was neglected, and fell 

 ■ from my shoulders. Satan saw a chance, 

 and he followed it up. There is an old 

 adage to the effect that it takes two to make 

 a c^uarrel. Xi first I defended myself by 

 saying I was entirely right — the fault wai? 

 all with the boys. - Moses has been called, 

 1 believe, the meekest of men. Just once in 

 his life he became angered, and forgot him- 

 self and his dignity before the people. He 

 said to the grumbling children of Israel. 

 " Ye rebels, must we now fetch you water 

 out of this rock? " I, like poor brother ( ?) 

 Moses, forgot the text I have been quoting 

 to you for lo these forty years, and was 

 quarreling with the boys. I think there 

 is an old saying that goes something like 

 this : " It not only takes two to make a 

 bargain, but it takes two to make a quar- 

 rel." The boys were unquestionably rude 

 and in the wrong; but I too had been rude 

 and in the wrong or else there would not 

 have been anj^ quarrel. Let me digress a 

 little. 



Years ago, as our readers will remember, 

 I was an enthusiastic truck-gardener — at 

 least in an experimental wa3\ One year 

 my hobby was nice Hubbard squashes; and 

 knowing from former experience of the 

 fight I would have with the bugs 1 provided 

 some square boxes, one for each hill. These 

 were made by nailing four shingles together 

 so as to make a square box. The thin end 

 of one was tacked into the thick end of an- 

 other; and these square boxes were covered 

 with cheese-cloth, and kept in readiness 

 one particular si")ring; but, lo and behold! 

 the bugs did not trouble us that season — at 

 least not one had been seen until a warm 

 spell about the last of May. ' But one Sat- 

 urday night, just about sundown, after my 

 help had all gone home, a great swarin of 

 bug-s camped down on my precious hand- 

 some squash-plants. I rushed to the house. 



