588 



GLEA^vINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



July 15. 



here that I saw it. Now. my chair- bearers are 

 Quite anxious that I should not travel after it 

 begins to get dark. One of them said to me. 

 '■ That's wliat we are afraid of at night. He 

 won't liurt any one by day: but at night he will 

 crouch by the road and pounce on the passer-by." 



And now permit me to say a few things to 

 the boys — yes. and the girls too, who read 

 Gleanings. When I was a bay I never could 

 keep a knife. Once when I had earned money 

 and got a new knife I spoke about this to a man 

 who had a knife which he had kept for years. 

 He replied, "Never lay your knife down, and 

 you will never lose it." I followed his advice, 

 and kept that knife a whole year. Then one 

 day I forgot it, and it disappeared, never to 

 be seen again. It often seems a bother to stop 

 to shut up a knife and put it in the pocket, 

 when I expect to use it agaiii in a minute: but 

 it is really a great convenience, foi' I never have 

 to waste one second in looking for my knife. 

 This man gave me another good rule: '"Never 

 whittle toward you. and you will never cut 

 yourself." This rule is not so easy of applica- 

 tion as the other, but it does make a difference. 



Another trial to me has been in making mis- 

 takes in writing: and the worst of it was. that, 

 the more I felt vexed about it. the more likely 

 was I to blunder. I read last year about a man 

 who, from being very forgetful, gi'ew to be fa- 

 mous for never foi-getting; and he acquired the 

 habit of renK'mbering in this way: When he 

 found that he had forgotten any tiling, he went 

 right off and attended to it, no matter how in- 

 convenient it might be. This put me on the 

 track of a rule by which I might overcome this 

 infirmity of blundering. Now when I write I 

 have a bit of i)aper handy: and if I make a mis- 

 take I stop at once and write the word or 

 phrase over and over several times. It is mak- 

 ing a decided difference. 



I have begun to wear specs: and for a while 

 I was much bothered by a habit of laying down 

 my spectacle-case, and then having to hunt for 

 it when I took off' my glasses. I adopted the 

 plan of going through the process of taking off 

 and putting on the glasses, and putting the case 

 in my vest-pocket several times, whenever I 

 found that I had forgotten and laid the case 

 down. Now when I want either case or glasses, 

 tliey are right there in my vest-pocket. 



One thing more: I find when I have mislaid a 

 thing, and have to hunt for it, it always helps 

 to pray about it. Two weeks ago I wanted to 

 lock up the house and go away: but, lol my 

 keys were missing. I flurried around a minute, 

 then stopped and said. "Lord, you know what 

 I have done with those keys; please guide me 

 to them." In an instant I recollected that there 

 was a little matter that I had forgotten to at- 

 tend to in a room which I usually keep locked. 

 I went to attend to it. and there weie my keys 

 in the door. When we humble ourselves to ac- 

 knowledge that we need God"s help in every 

 thing, we receive that help in every thing. 

 tJod has i)ut into this universe such an order 

 that there is a right way of doing every thing. 

 It is marvelous how little we can do by men- 

 sti'ength or by force of will if we do not work in 

 the right way. But more marvelous still are the 

 wouflers i^erformed by those who patiently seek 

 out the right way. "If ye be willing and obe- 

 dient, ye shall eat the good of the land." 



Shaowu, China, April 39. J. E. Walker. 



[Friend V>.. I want to thank you for the sim- 

 ple sugge.stion in your last paragraph. Pei-haps 

 some may smile to think of ])iaying over a 

 matter of so little moment, but in many of the 

 varied trials that I constantly meet in giving 

 orders to so many people every day in my life, 

 I have nevei- found any help likethe one you 



mention. When overl)uidened with cares and 

 responsibilities, if I have the [presence of mind 

 to stop and meditate, and breathe my simple 

 prayer, " Lord, help," a break in the clouds 

 comes sooner or later, and I get a glimpse of 

 his loving care. Yes, it has bef'u for years that 

 I have prayed for guidance in hunting for tools, 

 or any thing else tliat was making trouble. Oh, 

 if the boys and girls, and the readers of Glean- 

 ings in general, old and young, could only learn 

 this lesson of faith in ])rayerl And another 

 thing that comes in with it. is this: We must 

 be living good, honest, straight, pure lives, or 

 we have no right to expect our prayers will be 

 answered. "If I regard iniquity in my heart, 

 he will not hear me." So you see such a habit 

 of prayer is a great safeguard against giving 

 way to evil.] A. I. R. 



RAMBLE NO. 42, 



IN WASHIN(iTUN. I). C. 



It is said that evei'y true Mohammedan is 

 bound to visit the tomb of his prophet at Mec- 

 ca at least once in his lifetime. So I believe 

 that every true American should visit the na- 

 tional Capitol at Washington. To view the 

 city from which so much of our national history 

 has emanated, and walk the slree-ts that, in all 

 the past, have in their time reechoed to the 

 footsteps of our gi'eat men causes the blood to 

 flow with more patriotic fire, and gives the cit- 

 izen a resolve to do his little toward making a 

 government for the people instead of for the fa- 

 vored few. 



The Rambler, being greatly favored by the 

 force of circumstances, was not a little surpris- 

 ed to find himself in the national Capitol on 

 April 7th last. I left the cold and cheerless at- 

 mosphere of my northeiii home, where now and 

 then a good amount of snow could be seen, and 

 the accompanying shiver could be felt, and 

 found here the green grass, the budding trees, 

 and the fragrant magnolia coming into bloom. 

 The change was invigorating: and all the eye 

 saw and soul felt could not be properly put 

 upon paper. 



Washington is of interest to the bee-keeper, 

 for here have centered the hopes of thousands 

 of bee-k'eepers: and as their papers for a patent 

 were issued from the Patent Office, it has been 

 received with reverence as the stepping-stone to 

 fortune. How few have realized that fortune 

 is well known to the fraternity 1 Still, we are 

 not one of those who would destroy our patent 

 system, but believe that, under its fostering in- 

 fluence, the inventive faculty has been stimulat- 

 ed as under no other system. Our belief was 

 greatly stimulated by the testimonials of hun- 

 dreds of inventors who. at the time of our visit, 

 were celebrating the centennial of the Patent 

 Office. Their words were full of meaning 

 when directed to the past 1()0 years, and still 

 more pi'egnant with prophecy when directed to 

 the future. The celebration will greatly 

 strengthen the patent system. i\Ir. Callamer is 

 at the head of the bee-hive dejiartment. and is 

 thoroughly posted upon all matters pertaining 

 to bee culture. I think he made the remark, 

 that no patent that had been granted upon bee- 

 hives had been successfully overthrown. ]\Ir. 

 Callamer has been in the Patent Office for 3.5 

 years, and patents on hives and fixtures have 

 iseen quite numerous; but at present there is 

 a decline in quantity. 



There are a few bee-keepers in the city of 

 Washington and subiu-bs. The most enthusi- 

 astic of these is Mr. F. Danzeubaker. Mr. D. 

 will be remembered by the readers of Glean- 

 ings as the inventor of the Dual hive, and the 



