sides of the road. By running a mower up and down 

 the road -several times during the summer it had 

 been kept from encroaching on the driveway. Not 

 only that, but the cut clover had been thrown into 

 the middle of the road; and how springy and delight- 

 ful it all was! There was no dust, and the pleasant 

 perfume of sweet clover filled the air. Some cattle 

 in an adjacent pasture were reaching through the 

 wire fence and feeding on the clover within reach; 

 and the bees were on hand by thousands, carrying 

 away the nectar and filling the air with their content- 

 ed hum. Soon I passed into another township; and, 

 though the sweet clover had extended for miles fur- 

 ther, it had all been cut and burned in the road, 

 leaving a scene of desolation; and, oh how dusty it 

 was! 



Again I passed over this road in October. I had 

 been wallowing through the mud, and was weary 

 enough, when I again experienced the pleasant sen- 

 sation of my sweet-clover road. Instead of mud there 

 was that springy roadbed, without mud or dust. 

 Upon further investigation I found the sweet clover 

 had all been cut when about done blooming, and care- 

 fully piled in the road where the sun had soon wilted 

 it, and the wagon-wheels had crushed and mixed it 

 with the soil. Though this road ran through a level 

 mucky country it was the best road there was any- 

 where. The millions of decaying roots in the ground 

 on either side seemed to provide a sort of natural 

 drainage that seemed to carry off all surplus water. 

 It appeared that no work with plow or grader had 

 been done on it for several years, and only the intelli- 

 gent care of the clover had done the business. 



Now, is it not possible that, aside from bee-keeping, 

 as so often happens, we have been making war on our 

 best friend? Surely the suggestions I have men- 

 tioned .are worth investigating. Sweet clover has 

 come to stay; and, whether we are bee-keepers or 

 not, had we not better turn it to some account? 



C. H. DIBBERN. 



Milan, 111., July 1, 1899. 



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