18<»-.' 



ChKANlXCiS IN 15K10 ( Tl/rURE. 



•-'3 



always plenty of llu\\('r> lure. Tlif lircs :iri' 

 WDi-kiiiR MOW on tlu' royal pahu-irci'. li is sim- 

 ilar to tilt' raliliaiTf-pahnt'i to of Florida, only, 

 insii-ad of Itloominy: two or tlircc wccUs. likr 

 till" palnit!tto. it blooms all the year. As soon 

 as oni' st«MU of lilossoms is (lone, another taUes 

 it^ place: and a small ai»iary eould store snr- 

 pliis honey almost all the yeai' from that alone. 



'Phis is a heaiitiriil i-oiintry. Instead of hein}; 

 low and swampy, as many people suppose, it is 

 hiirh anil rollinij:. w illi mimy hills that mijilit 

 almost he diirnilied Ity the name of monntains. 

 The place where I am located is eifxhtcen miles 

 east of Havana by one of the tincst roads on 

 the island. TIk' farm consists of about 8(M) 

 acres, all in fruits, suirar-cane. and i)astnre 

 land. There are a ujreat many kinds of fruit 

 here, amonsj: which I nilfiht mention oranges, 

 lemons, limes, fii'aiu'-fruit. bananas, plantains, 

 niamayas. coi-oanuts. mangoes. cotTee, and 

 many otiiers that are strange to the eyes of an 

 American. 



In describing some of the many things to be 

 seen here one can not fail to mention the roads. 

 This is a limestone country, and the rocks are 

 ))nt to a good use in paving th(> roads. The 

 road leading fiom Havana to San .lose, two 

 miles from heie and twenty fioin Havana, is as 

 smooth as a race-track, and lined on each side 

 with palm-tfees. This is certainly the bee- 

 keepef"s paradise, and will one day lead the 

 world in the production of honey. 



P'red L. Chayckaft. 



Havana. Cuba. Nov. 17. 



[We are glad to hear from you. friend C'lay- 

 craft. We were about to say "• friiMid Freddie:'' 

 but after all these years you must have grown 

 to the stature of a man. We remember very 

 distinctly the part yon took in the early Juvk- 

 xiLK Gleanings, especially when you weighed 

 the bee-loads a Id Hasty. We trust the same 

 spirit of investigation will follow you in your 

 new quarters, and that you will give us further 

 of your impressions in that land of flowers.] 



Lad/es' Conversazione. 



WAX BOUQUET OF AUTUMN LEAVES. 



SOMETHING TO PO IN AVINTKK. 



No prettier ornament for the parlor can be de- 

 vised than wax leaves and flowei's; and as win- 

 ter is the time when bee-keeping ladies or their 

 daughters have leisure for fancy-work, if ever. 

 1 will tell how to make a bouipiet of autumn 

 leaves; and next month, if desi)(.d. I will tell 

 liow to make a wreath of wax flowers, or a 

 white cross in wax. 



r.,eaves are made by pressing thin sheets of 

 beeswax lUJon a leaf-mold until they are veined 

 and cut oft. Urst wet the mold. Cov^r a wire 

 for a stem, with strips of wax |)ressed around 

 smoothly, oi' use one coveri'd with thread (such 

 as are used in ladies" hats). !,ay tlu' st<'ni on 

 the whole length of the leaf: then lay on an- 

 other sheet of wax. and press on tightly (but do 

 not press on the wire) till cut off smooth all 

 around. 



I''or autumn leaves, use iliin sheets of y(;llow 

 beeswax — just such as are used to make founda- 

 tion for sections: the thinner the Ix^tter. so that 

 there are no holes in the wax. Wet the mold: 

 I>ress on the yellow wax. and cut ofl': then, 

 while the leaf is still on the mold, rub on to it 

 some red. green, or t)rown |)aint. as fancy dic- 

 tates. Do not rub on too mucli. as the lining 

 will not stick. Now lay on a su-ni covered with 



wax. and press on the mold again another bit of 

 yellow wax. 'I'his last forms the lining to the 

 leaf. Now press on ai'ouud the edges until they 

 are cut (itV smooth. The ro(tm should be warm, 

 so that the wax will work easily and not break 

 -just comfortably warm issuflicient. 



The lea\cs may tie made entirely of beeswax 

 which is more pliable than wiuit we buy. or thi' 

 upi)er sni-face may be ruad<' of slieeied wax pre- 

 pared for the |)urpose, and sold in packages 

 generally kept by drujjgisls. or it may be or- 

 dered by them, both gieen and variegated. 



After the upiier surface of boughten wax is 

 made, lay on the wire stem that has been cov- 

 ered with wax. and for a lining use sheeted 

 beeswax. If the upper surface is green, or near- 

 ly so. then the lining should be of giceri wax. 

 Hut if the upper siu'face is of yellow wax. to im- 

 itate an autumn leaf the lining should be of 

 yellow wax also; and as the wax we buy is so 

 brittle I always prefer to use a lining to the 

 leaves of beesw ax. 



There should be a variety of leaves made, to 

 look well in a bouiiuet, placing the smaller ones 

 at the top, and grading down to the largest for 

 the bottom leaves, i'.egin at the top to nail 

 them on to a prepared board lined with white 

 paper. Nail each leaf on s<^parately. then tlie 

 next leaf so as to cover the stem of the one 

 above it. and so on until all the stems are cov- 

 ered and the leaves nailed on. Now linish by 

 making a few large green stems, and press on 

 underneath the leaves, causing the cluster of 

 leaves to look as if one could hold the bou<|uet 

 in his hand by th<> stems. Around the stem ar- 

 range a wax ribbon so cut and stuck on as to 

 imitate a ribbon tied in a bow-knot. Cut each 

 bow separately, and stick on; then the short 

 strings below the bow, and stick each one on 

 .separately; them a short strip of the wax stuck 

 on in the center, to form the center knot. 



Four or five leaf-molds will be needed to give 

 the best eflfect, altiiough a very pretty bouquet 

 may be made on but one or two molds. 



For sheeters to make up sheets of green wax 

 and small quantities of yellow wax. I form them 

 of plaster of Paris by stirring up a pint bowl 

 half full of it and pouring it into a large break- 

 fast-plate. Before this hardens, put in some- 

 thing iron for a handle — three or four large 

 nails stuck into a potato, with the heads all 

 even; then hold the heads down into the plas- 

 ter until it hardens, just escaping the bottom of 

 the plate. In r.'4 hours heat the plate and then 

 take it out; soak it 10 minutes in lukewarm wa- 

 ter, then dip it into the melted wax (previously 

 colored with a little thin bag of green paint, 

 Paris green, pressed out with an iron spoon). 

 Do not use too much green paint, as it makes 

 the wax brittle. Dip again into the water, caus- 

 ing the wax to peel off the sheiiter just as it does 

 in sheeting wax to be pres.sed into foundation, 

 except that this sheeter makes a round sheet. 

 Yellow wax may be sheeted the same way, but 

 not colored. If'the wax is too hot it will be full 

 of bubbles, which shoidd be skimmed otf. as 

 thev will make the shei-ts full of holes; and if 

 too cold, the sheets will be too thick. Do not 

 trv to make flowers out of such wax, as it is too 

 thick: but it is just right for leaves. 



After th(' leaves are formed into a bouquet, 

 tack on the side pieces, which should be about 

 an inch and a half or two inclu^s deep, forming 

 a box to preserve the leaves from being broken. 

 Over this may \m\ tacked a pane of glass; but a 

 picture-frami' looks much better. 



L'se some green leaves in the bouquet, and 

 rub on to the" yellow. Use quit*! freely of red. 

 brown, or greeii paints, so that the botiquetmay 

 not have too yellow an appearanc<>. 



The leaves should lie flat, yet stand out dis- 

 tinct froTu each (tther. nearly touching the glass. 



