He was a hale old man, filled with knowledge gain- 

 ed in a long life in the open, meeting big men in the 

 big woods. 



Outdoor enthusiasts might do well to study the 

 methods of the old man. He never rode when he could 

 walk, and for years, when in the woods, refused to 

 sleep in a tent or under cover, always preferring to 

 wrap himself in a blanket and sleep in the open. 



He leaves a widow, who is 80, and one daughter, 

 Mrs. Ima Sims, Little Falls, who has been a school 

 teacher at River Falls, "Wis. 



It is rather a peculiar coincidence that almost simul- 

 taneously with the death of Mr. Ayer, the last sawmill 

 at Little Falls closed down "for good." The mill 

 had been in operation for more than 30 years and was 

 one of the plants developed through the untiring work 

 of Lyman Warren Ayer. 



Adventures With Bumblebees 



BY D. LANGE 



It is an interesting fact that the bumblebees are the 

 only social bees native to North America. The several 

 kinds of honey bees have all been introduced from 

 Europe, but of the big rovers of flowerland, the bum- 

 blebees, about fifty native species are known. 



I had a fine opportunity to observe a nest of bum- 

 blebees during the middle of August, while I was 

 camping on the beautiful St. Croix River in Minnesota. 



Late one afternoon as I was cutting grass on a bog 

 studded with blue lobelias and purple thistles, a bum- 

 blebee began to buzz angrily about my head. I paid 



