1888 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



873 



rapidly. It was quite thick when extracted, and be- 

 came cloudy from granulation within a very few 

 days after being taken from the combs. 



I doubt if it would pay to move bees any great 

 distance, to take advantage of a cucumber crop, 

 unless the bees should be otherwise absolutely idle; 

 but to have the cucumbers brought to my bees in a 

 year of failure, in sutlicient quantity to prevent 

 the necessity of feeding a single ounce for winter 

 stores, I consider a matter for profound gratitude. 

 Even in a year of plenty, the crop is of considerable 

 consequence to me, for it comes after the harvest 

 is over, and, as a general rule, the fall yield from 

 other sources amounts to very little in my neigh- 

 borhood. C. C. M1LI.ER. 



Marengo, 111., Oct. 18, 1888. 

 There, friend Miller, you have given us 

 something not only interesting but valuable. 

 What an ingenious arrangement the tool 

 you mention is, to save one's back ! I have 

 stooped over and pushed leaves away until 

 it made my head ache, but I never thought I 

 might have something to do it with. I pre- 

 sume very likely, as you say, while it will 

 not pay us to make any great stir about 

 acres of cucumbers, it may be well worth 

 the while for bee-keepers near by to move 

 their hives to the vicinity during an unfa- 

 vorable season. 



CHINESE CURIOSITIES AT QUIET 

 NOOK. 



ANOTHER LETTER FROM ANNA QUIIyLIN. 



T N an article published in June 1st Gleanings, I 

 (Mf told you of a letter I had received from China; 

 ^r and ever since that I have been intending to 



tell you something more in regard to that 



wonderful little letter. 

 I presume some of you will remember an article 

 written by Mrs. Chaddock, which was published in 

 Gleanings, Dec. 1, 1887, giving a little sketch of 

 Anna Quillin and her collection of curiosities. 

 Now,! do not know whether Gleanings makes a 

 regular business of going to the uttermost parts of 

 the earth or not; but I do know that that copy 

 traveled over land and sea, and in February ar- 

 rived in North China, and reached a missionary 

 who is stationed there. In the latter, part of April 

 I received a letter from that missionary; and, 

 though we were utter strangers, as the world 

 counts strangers, yet we were tint strangers, but 

 friends in Christ Jesus our Lord. I think my friend 

 will pardon me if I let the readers of Gleanings 

 enjoy the contents of that letter with me, for a 

 pleasure is always enhanced when shared with 

 others. 



Miss Anna Quillin:—! saw a note written by Mrs. 

 Chaddock, for Gleanings, referring to your col- 

 lection of curiosities. It occurred to me that a lit- 

 tle something from China might add to your pleas- 

 ure. I inclose a couple of New Year's calling- 

 cards; a letter I received some days ago; a cash; a 

 one-c<nt Chinese stamp, and a two-cent^.Japanese 

 stamp. The story of your patience in suffer- 

 ing has preached the gospel unto the end^ of the 

 earth. May God add to your peace and joy, and 

 never suffer your faith to be overcome. 



O. W. W. 



Tsunhua, North China, Feb. 24, 1888. 



The New Year's cards are not stiff cards, but are 

 strips of soft Chinese paper. One of them is Ihi 

 inches in length, and 3| inches in width; the other 

 is 61/4 in length by 314 in width. On the back they 

 are the color of unbleached muslin, and on the face 

 a bright red (vermilion) color, and are decorated 

 with some huge black characters in Chinese, which 

 may represent the names of people, or may be a New 

 Year's salutation, or may be any thing else in the 

 Chinese language, for aught I know to the contra- 

 ry- 



The letter is on a single sheet of soft creamy- 

 looking paper, ruled lengthwise with broad red 

 lines, and almost the entire sheet is covered with 

 pictures outlined with red, which are stamped in 

 the paper. Here, near the top of the page, is a 

 portion of a tree with one limb extending nearly 

 across the sheet; under its spreading branches are 

 quite a number of impossible-looking horses, 

 prancing, dancing, and tossing their heads. A lit- 

 tle further down the page is a rather steep road 

 with some more queer-looking horses. Some of 

 them are going up, some coming down, and some 

 of them have packs strapped on their backs, while 

 down here in the corner Is another horse lying on 

 its back, rolling and kicking. The message is in 

 black ink, and goes on in regular lines, regardless of 

 the pictures. But no one need ask me what that 

 letter is about, for its secrets are safe— I will nev- 

 er divulge them. 



The Chinese and Japanese do not write and print 

 across the page as we do, but lengthwise; and in- 

 stead of beginning at the upper left-hand corner, 

 and reading across the page from left to right, they 

 begin at the upper right-hand corner and read 

 down the page— their lines running down the page, 

 and their hieroglyphics placed between them like 

 columns of figures. 



The " cash " is a Chinese coin made of brass; is 

 nearly an inch across, and is made with a hole In 

 the center, which is exactly one-quarter of an inch 

 square. One cash is equal to one-tenth of an Ameri- 

 can cent; so if you had one dollar in one-cash pieces 

 you might find it very convenient to string them as 

 you would beads. The Japanese have a similar 

 coin, and they have some other coins of small 

 value, with a square hole in the center. 



How little we know what an influence for good or 

 evil, even the least of us may have in the world! 

 How strange and wonderful that I, an almost help- 

 less invalid, lying here on my couch in Illinois, 

 could have a particle of influence in China! Nev- 

 er before had I realized the force of the Scripture 

 injunction: " Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory 

 of God." Then let each one of us ask for guidance 

 and sustaining power in every trying hour. 



Ipava, 111. Anna B. Quillin. 



Friend Anna, perhaps I should make a 

 little explanation as to why Gleanings 

 gets away off into the uttermost corners of 

 the earth as it does. The older readers 

 know something of the secret of ,it ; but I 

 think they will excuse me if I tell the story 

 again brielly. Shortly after my conversion, 

 our young minister wanted me to talk in 

 the young i)eople's missionary meeting ; and 

 he assigned me, for a subject, the Sandwich 

 Islands. I told him I did not know any 

 thing about it, and I was afraid I did not 

 care any thing about the Sandwich Islands. 

 But he urged so strongly that I decided, out 



