1900 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



497 



temptations and pitfalls Satan has spread 

 around them. 



NOTES or TRAVH., 



* BY . . A.I.ROOT r 



I was on hand at the Sunday school conven- 

 tion mentioned elsewhere, just after dinner of 

 the second day. The largest church in Akron 

 was crowded to overflowing, and, in fact, they 

 had overflow meetings some of the time. Now, 

 it is a pretty hard matter for me of late to sit 

 in a crowded audience during more than one 

 sermon or speech of any kind at a time ; and 

 as a rule I do not like the sermon or speech to 

 be a very long one. As the day was warm, 

 the windows were swung partly open ; but 

 with the great crowd suffering for air it vexed 

 me to think that somebody could not swing 

 all the windows open as wide as they coii/d be. 

 Another thing, I could not hear the speakers 

 unless they spoke very loud indeed ; and 

 many of the women (whom I most wanted to 

 hear) I could scarcely hear at all. I was so 

 far back in the crowd I could get only a 

 glimpse of the speaker's face by dodging first 

 one way and then the other. Finally some- 

 body suggested that the women remove their 

 hats, and then I made a discovery. I could 

 not only see the speaker, without any trouble, 

 but I could also /lear, and I think I heard ev- 

 ery word after the hats were taken off. I have 

 thought best to mention this right here, be- 

 cause, even in our own community, there are 

 some who have taken exceptions because our 

 pastor asks the women to remove their hats. 

 Well, I got along for another hour after the 

 hats were off. Then I so longed for the pure 

 air and the open country that I slipped out and 

 was soon flying in the direction of relatives 

 five or six miles east of Akron. Btfore I had 

 gone far, however, it began to rain. But I 

 pushed on for about four miles, until my Sun- 

 day clothes were getting such a wetting I 

 climbed up on a porch to wait till the summer 

 shower was over. I told the good people I 

 just wanted to go over as far as Mr. Wolf's ; 

 but they informed me the family were at the 

 convention in Akron. My conscience had 

 been troubling me about deserting the great 

 body of Christian people in the way I had 

 done, so I just turned around and wheeled 

 back to the convention faster than I went 

 away. I have once before mentioned in the 

 Home Papers that this particular family had 

 recently united with the church, and become 

 earnest workers in the Sunday-school, perhaps 

 somewhat on account of my vehement urging. 

 The man who owned the porch remarked, " I 

 suppose you know the Wolf people are all 

 great Sunday-school folks." Yes, they had 

 left their farmwork in the very busiest time of 

 the year to attend the convention, and here 

 was I (after all my ia/k), playing truant. I 

 went back and took my place in the audience, 

 and behaved myself until after ten o'clock 

 that night. The rain cooled the air. My 



trip of eight miles had got my blood into ex- 

 cellent circulation, and the grand themes that 

 were discoursed gave me, I trust and believe, 

 a new baptism of the Holy Spirit. The good 

 people of Akron furnished free lodging to all 

 who attended ; and as the number went into 

 the thousands they had spread the people all 

 over the city. I asked for an assignment 

 over in the suburbs nearest my relatives, and 

 at daybreak I was out on my wheel, this time 

 with a clear conscience. 



I found cousin Wolf's folks just getting 

 up. Things in general all over the farm 

 (more especially the corn and potatoes) were 

 just "getting up" in good style, also. Not- 

 withstanding taking a day off, or two days 

 off, if you choose, to attend the convention, I 

 think I never saw things look so nice before 

 as they did on that farm. We discussed pota- 

 toes and strawberries ; and after a nice break- 

 fast such as none but a wheelrider (who starts 

 oflf at daylight) can fully appreciate, I started 

 off to Wilbur Fenn's, some five or six miles 

 distant. He was in the cellar operating a new 

 machine of his own invention for taking the 

 sprouts from potatoes. I wanted particularly 

 to see how he had managed in keeping the 

 potatoes from sprouting during the recent ex- 

 ceedingly hot weather. He said he got along 

 all right, and had very little sprouting, until 

 toward the first of June. Then the long 

 stretch of hot days, hot nights, and hot winds, 

 raised the temperature of the cellar, and the 

 potatoes all together started on a boom of 

 sprouting. Shoveling them over did not seem 

 to do them much good, and so he was putting 

 them through the machine. Like myself, he 

 had 200 or 300 bushels yet unsold; but he 

 says he does not worry over such a quantity, 

 even in the middle of June, nowadays, as he 

 used to. People have learned for miles around 

 that, when there are no more o/d potatoes to 

 be had anywhere else, they can always get 

 some at Wilbur Fenn's ; and it is much the 

 same way around here. It is now pretty well 

 demonstrated that any piece of vacant ground 

 will do for potatoes if we get at it about the 

 first of July. Last fall we had an early frost, 

 it is true ; but this does not happen very often. 

 People have discovered this, as I am saying, 

 and therefore there are more and more people 

 wanting late potatoes to plant. And this is • 

 not all. Even when new potatoes sell at the 

 same price for table use as old ones, a good 

 many prefer the old potatoes, especially if 

 they have been properly cared for. Wilbur 

 Fenn says potatoes for table use should be 

 placed directly on the bottom of the cellar — 

 no boxes or bins. Of course, the cellar, or 

 that part of it, should be kept perfectly dark. 

 We had the new Russets for dinner ; and ei- 

 ther my wheelride or Mrs. Fenn's skill in 

 cooking or Wilbur's plan of keeping them 

 (may be all three together) resulted in getting 

 up the nicest dish of mashed potato, it seems 

 to me, I ever tasted, and that, too, iyi June. 



Now then. Somebody who would like the 

 job can make a business of furnishing the peo- 

 ple nice potatoes, either to plant or to eat, 

 clear up into June or July. Of course, there 

 should be a nice cellar made specially for keep- 



