28 



THE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER. 



Januar 



Sending: Uedeflotlies by Mail. 



An old uegro bearing a huge bundle 

 of bedclothes which were somewhat the 

 worse for wear and none too immacu- 

 late in character rapped at one of the 

 little windows up at the postofifice. The 

 clerk who appeared in answer to the 

 summons was thus greeted by the afore- 

 said darky : 



"Boss, I'ze got tu send dis here bun- 

 dle o' bedclo'es to my old 'oman down 

 in Mis'sippi. Is dis here de place whah 

 I'ze got ter start it off?" 



"Oh, you want to send the package 

 by mail, do you?" asked the clerk, 

 without cracking a smile. 



"Sartaiu, fer sho', boss. How much 

 is I got ter pay?" inquired the darky. 



The clerk could not resist the temp- 

 tation to play a joke upon a fellow 

 clerk, so he said: 



"Well, uncle, this isn't the place for 

 you to leave your bundle, but if you 

 will just take it down to that window 

 below here" — indicating the general 

 delivery department— "and hand it in 

 to the clerk down there, he will put the 

 right number of stamps on it and send 

 it ofif f or you. " 



"Thauke'ee, boss; thank'ee. I sho' is 

 obleeged ter you," said the unsuspect- 

 ing Senegambian. 



He at once made his way to the de- 

 partment indicated. Arriving there, he 

 thrust his hi^ge bundle into the win- 

 dow, into which it fitted closely, at the 

 same time telling the astonished presid- 

 ing genius of that department please to 

 put stamps on it and sent it to "my eld 

 'oman, Sallie Sanders, down in Water 

 Valley." 



It is said that a coolness now exists 

 between these erstwhile friendly clerks 

 in the Memphis postoffice. — Memphis 

 Scimitar. 



Antetobacco Smoking. 



There is ample authority for the 

 statement that before the introduction 

 of tobacco it was customary to inhale 

 the smoke of burned herbs for medici- 

 nal purposes. There is, however, so far 

 as I know, no authority for supposing 

 that pipes at all resembling our tobacco 

 pipes were ustd for this purpose. Lyte 

 says of coltsfoot : 



"The perfume of the dried leaves 

 ledde upon quicke coles, taken into the 

 mouth throueh the nine of a funnell. 



ui" tunnell, helpeth such as are trouble 

 with the short nesse of winde, and fetch 

 their breath thicke or often, and do (sic 

 breake without daunger the impostem 

 of the breast. " 



This is the usual form of the direc 

 tions given in such cases, and Gerar 

 follows it almost word for word, add 

 ing, however : 



"Being taken in manner as they tak 

 tobaco, it (coltsfoot) mightily prevail 

 eth against the disease aforesaid." 



This is pretty good evidence that tc 

 bacco pipes were not in use in Lyte 

 time, but had been iotroduced in Ge 

 rard's. In Sylvester's "Tobacco Battel 

 ed and Their Pipes Shattered" tobacc 

 pipes are spoken of as a new invention 



Two smoakie Engines, in this latter Age 

 (Satan's short Circuit, the more sharp his rage 

 JEave been invented by too-wanted Wit, 

 Or rather, vented from th' Infernall Pit, 

 Guns and Tobacco-pipes, with Fire andSmoal 

 (At least) a Third part of Manliind vo choak. 



He considers the later invention th 

 more devilish of the two. — Notes aU' 

 Queries, 



A Rainfall of Seeds. 



Some days ago the province of Ma 

 cerata, in Italy, was the scene of an ex 

 traordinary phenomenon. Half an hou 

 before sunset an immense number o 

 small blood colored clouds .covered th 

 sky. About an hour later a cyclou 

 storm burst, and immediately the ai 

 became filled with myriads of smal 

 seeds. The seeds fell over town anc 

 country, covering the ground to a deptl 

 of about half an inch. The nest day th. 

 whole of the scientists of Macerata wen 

 abroad in order to find some explana 

 tion. 



Professor Cardinali, a celebratec 

 Italian naturalist, stated that the seed; 

 were of the genus cercis, commonly 

 called Judi;S tree, and that they belong 

 ed to an order of legumiuos&as founc 

 only iu central Africa or the Antilles, 

 It was found, upon examination, that i 

 great number of the seeds were actuallj 

 in the first stage of germination.— 

 Golden Peuuv. 



Mother. Sometimes. 



"The child," said the shoe cleri 

 boarder, "is father to the man. " 



"Uh, not always," said the cheerful 

 idiot. "Sometimes it is a girl. ' — Indi- 

 anapolis Joiwaul. 



