A SELF-SUPPORTING HOME 



into a five-pound lard pail, which had had a 

 row of holes bored round the bottom and in 

 the lid, so that, when the hay was lighted and 

 the lid put on, it would just smoulder, making 

 a dense smoke issue through the holes. The 

 contrivance seemed all right, and there was 

 smoke enough to blind me; yet when I 

 cautiously removed the top of the hive and 

 commenced to take out a frame, bees swarmed 

 all over my head and shoulders. Fortu- 

 nately, I retained sufficient presence of mind 

 to remain perfectly quiet until the farm boy, 

 who had been watching near by, got a large 

 bundle of hay, fired it and almost roasted me 

 before the bees were sufficiently stupefied 

 to allow their being brushed off and the 

 lid of the hive replaced, for the horrible com- 

 bination of fright and smoke had rendered 

 me quite incapable of further investigation. 



Through all this stupid blundering I only 

 received one sting, but that so amply illus- 

 trated what might happen that discretion 

 seemed the better part of valor. I deter- 



97 



