562 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 1. 



eyes she was the very embodiment of health 

 and lovehness; and he, with many conflicting 

 emotions passing through his mind, rode for 

 many miles with but little conversation be- 

 tween them. 



This silence might have continued through 

 the remaining portion of the journey; but 

 after crossing the Sacramento River the road 

 led diagonally up a steep bluff. Alfaretta's 

 pony wa^ upon the outer edge of the grade, 

 and at one point the embankment was svip- 

 ported far below by log-work. The earth- 

 (juake had evidently loosened the logs, and 

 the tread of the pony caused the embankment 

 to slide down a few feet. It was not much of 

 an accident — rather more startling than inju- 

 rious. The pony made a desperate struggle 

 to regain the roadway. Fred, whose horse 

 was close in on the grade, and not caught in 

 the slide, leaped from his horse and was by 

 Alfaretta's side instantly, and aided the pony 

 to gain the roadway. 



"My!" said Alfaretta, trembling; "how it 

 frightened me! but I didn't shriek, did I, 

 Fred?" 



"Oh, no!" said Fred; "you are too brave 

 a girl for that." 



A little further along, after regaining her 

 composure, she said: " How good of you, Mr. 

 Anderson, to again guide me out of peril!" 



Fred felt a little' chill at the words "Mr. 

 Anderson;" but having a resolve in mind he 

 nerved himself for the effort of his life, and 

 said, in a low, earnest tone, "Alfaretta, would 

 that I could be your guide through all of your 

 life. You are going to your home with joy; 

 let me have the great pleasure of going with 

 vou, hand in hand, for weal or for woe. If I 

 have been your guide in dangerous places, 

 vou now by one little act can requite it a 

 thousand fold. I close my ej^es and reach out 

 my hand,, tempting fate." 



Fred's horse was near Alfaretta's, and for a 

 moment he felt suspended between heaven 

 and earth; every beat of the heart seemed an 

 age. Would she' clasp his hand ? The thought 

 of her refusal caused him in imagination to 

 sink down to unutterable depths of despair. 

 But, oh the rapture! Could he believe it ? her 

 hand sought his, and now the thrill of joy 

 lifted him as far above the earth as, a moment 

 before, he was below it. Clasping Alfaretta's 

 hand more closely, he opening his eyes, and 

 looking upward, said, "Oh sunshine! how 

 glorioiis! how gi'and the great dome of heaven! 

 how beautiful the earth, radiant with floral 

 gems! how sweetly sing the birds! and the 

 very winds breathe music through the trees; 

 but far above all these the love of woman rules 

 and beautifies the world. Without that love 

 it would be a barren waste indeed;" and he 

 raised the hand to his lips and kissed it. 



"Well, I declare, Fred," said Alfaretta, 

 "you are getting decidedly sentimental. I 

 really believe we are on earth yet, though." 



"That may be," replied Fred, "but it has 

 suddenly become a new earth to me." 



Their conversation was here interriipted by 

 the arrival of Gimp, whose horse came up on 

 a lope. He had been interviewing the oper- 

 ator of the ferryboat about the fishing; and 



before he was near them he shouted, " They 

 say the fishing is purty good along this yer 

 river now." 



"That maj' be," said Fred, with a smile; 

 and, turning to Alfaretta, he said, "Then you 

 remember nothing about pulling me from the 

 river with the fish-pole, and calling me Mr. 

 Pickerel ? ' ' 



" Nothing whatever," replied Alfaretta; " it 

 is all a blank to me, as well as any remem- 

 brance of the lovely home you say we have on 

 this river." 



"Yes, Alfaretta, it is a lovely home; and 

 when we reach yonder bend you shall see it. 

 Over yonder," and Fred pointed across the 

 river, " is the Ghering ranch; and that white- 

 appearing rock out in the tiiles is all that 

 remains of the bluff upon which I had my 

 neat apiary and beautiful honey. Why, as I 

 look across I feel almost like shouting for 

 Matt Hogan." 



"And to think what ill luck you have had 

 with bees — this apiary washed away, and those 

 hundreds of valuable swarms overwhelmed in 

 the valley! Fred, I think you should give up 

 all idea of keeping bees." 



"Oh, no!" replied Fred; " all of these dis- 

 couragements have given me training for bet- 

 ter work in the futirre. I believe I can now 

 fit up the most scientific practical apiary in 

 the country; at any rate, I am anxious to try 

 it. But here we are at the river bend. Now 

 for your first glimpse of home through sane 

 eyes; but what is the matter, Alfaretta ? You 

 look pale; please be a brave girl now, and con- 

 trol yourself." 



" I will try, Fred; but you scarcely realize 

 that it is over five years since I saw my people 

 to sanely remember them, and all of these 

 years of anxiet}- and sorrow must have wrought 

 changes. I shall not see the same parents I 

 saw five years ago; and are they at home? are 

 they alive, Fred? are the}' living here? Oh 

 the conflict of these thoughts!" 



"Courage, dear; we shall soon know all; 

 see, there is smoke from the chimney. Some- 

 body is waiting for 3'ou." 



J. U., Neb. — Perhaps you have not seen a 

 sample of the drawn foundation. We have 

 made some that runs lo feet to the pound, with 

 cells Ig inch deep. When the cells are % 

 inch deep it runs about 11 feet to the pound. 

 Even this is nearly as light as thin foundation, 

 but heavier than extra thin. But our thinnest 

 drawn foundation is lighter than any founda- 

 tion that has ever been made having any wall. 

 The drawn foundation running 15 feet to the 

 pound is very much lighter than the extra- 

 thin foundation, which is only 13 feet to the 

 pound. Perhaps you have been relying on 

 statements made by those who oppose the new 

 drawn foundation. If you have, we would 

 suggest that you send and get some samples 

 from our latest dies. If the new drawn foun- 

 dation should come into general use, if we 

 made it as light as 15 feet to the pound it 

 would take nuich less wax than foundation 

 does at present. 



