254 Old Days on the Farm 



phasise his arguments and awaken the apathetic 

 from their slumbers. A hive of bumble-bees had 

 built their nest in the pulpit. A particularly hefty 

 blow on the pulpit top brought forth results in 

 the form of a horde of angry bees and of course 

 these attacked the preacher. Giving vent to a 

 distracting yell he cleared the pulpit at a bound 

 and made for the exit. Those in the pews thought 

 their pastor had suddenly gone insane, but when 

 the bees began to widen the extent of their opera- 

 tions, the congregation, too, stood not on the order 

 of their going, but went pell-mell. 



That fine old Quaker poet, John Greenleaf Whit- 

 tier, among other gems of verse left behind an 

 exquisite little poem entitled, '^ Telling the Bees." 

 This remarkable custom of "Telling the Bees" 

 prevailed in the rural districts of New England in 

 Whittier's days. The custom was brought from 

 the Old Country. On the death of a member of 

 the family, the bees were at once informed of the 

 event and their hives dressed in mourning. This 

 ceremonial was supposed to be necessary to pre- 

 vent the swarms from leaving their hives and 

 seeking a new home. 



In earlier days it was not unusual for a woods- 

 man to find a **bee" tree in the winter — that is 

 a tree where a colony of bees had made their home 

 — and there was often much honey to be had from 

 such trees. It was, of course, quite safe to har- 

 vest the honey as the bees would be in a dormant 

 condition. 



