96 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



Feb. 



and afterward to that school over among 

 the hills, which now numbers toward forty, 

 strong men and women were moved to tears. 

 It was the little prayer her motlier had 

 taught her to say before she lay down at 

 night. Has any one the hardihood to say 

 that God, the creator of the universe, did 

 not hear this simple little petition from the 

 dying breath of the work of his hands ? Can 

 we not, my friends, so live that our dying 

 beds may be like that V 



Except ye become as little children, ye can not en- 

 ter the kingdom of heaven. 



FKOM THE WORKERS BEYOND HIE SEAS. 



As the following treats of bees as well as 

 mission work, I presume it will be read with 

 interest by all our readers. It is an extract 

 from a letter seat to one of our bee-men from 

 his brother, who is a missionary. Sending 

 our iournal free to missionaries may not be 

 so biad an idea, after all ; but I confess it did 

 not occur to me how much help tliey might 

 give us in the way of looking up the diifer- 

 ent races of bees that are to be found on 

 our globe. As w^e catch glimpses of their 

 work from these extracts from their letters, 

 we feel better acquainted with them, and 

 more like praying for them intelligently. 



I was invited into the house of a tea farmer, a 

 Cantonese. I noticed that there were several bees 

 around, and just then he asked me to change my 

 seat. I had been sitting with my back against the 

 table, and as I changed he pointed to a drawer in the 

 table, which seemed to be lull of bees. He drew it 

 out an inch or so, and, sure enough, there was a 

 swarm of bees. He informed me that they settled 

 there last year. They seemed very gond natured. 

 One alighted on his neck, and his little boy began to 

 call out; but he quietly waited a moment, and off it 

 flew. As I came past the other houses on my way 

 back, I was invited in, and found a man trying to 

 read a book I had given him. I sat down and ex- 

 pounded it. He asked, " What is God?" and I tried 

 to explain to him. Then he asked if I hid any more 

 curious things. After awhile I took out a jiocket- 

 compass, and a knife with a magnetized blade. They 

 knew what the compass was, but did not know the 

 principle on which it works, nor any thing about 

 magnetism. Of course, they "ai-ya-d," and won- 

 dered, and admired. They passed around some rice 

 turnovers. These are mjide of a glutinous rice, 

 boiled, and then pounded into a hard dough. The 

 inside is filled with a conglomerate of bean sprouts, 

 greens, red pepper, garlic, salt fish, pork, and I 

 don't know what else. They were piping hot. The 

 first few mouthfuis tasted rather strong; but the 

 taste improved as I ate, and I disposed of two and a 

 half, withovit trouble. 



There was one man on the boat said to me one 

 evening, that he would like to go with me to foreign 

 lands; would do any sort of work for me if I would 

 take him. I began to moralize on going to heaven 

 as infinitely better. He said up in heaven we could 

 see all lands at once. He asked how long one would 

 have to practice Christianity before he could ascend 

 to heaven. I replied, it was after death. He an- 

 swered rather sadly, " When I die. I won't be." The 

 Buddhists and the Taoists both believe in the possi- 

 bility of translation, if one can only becnme perfect- 

 ly abstracted, and stay so long enough. 

 Focchoo, China, March 1, 1880. 



WHAT TO DO WITH THE BOYS. 



As you are a Sunday-schoc 1 man, Mrs. T,. wishes 

 me to ask you how to entertain and instruct a class of 

 —well, I'll call them" street Arabs," for mi st of them 

 ni'ver attend church, and none of them attended 

 Sunday-sckool until she called on and persuaded 

 them to attend. The class now numbers 21 pupils, 

 from four to eleven years of age; and how to enter- 

 tain them sorely perplexes her. W. W. L. 



Otwell, Pike Co., Ind., Dec. !», 1?80. 



Your wife has struck on one of the bard 

 problems, friend L. I told you last month, 

 that the question of what to do with 

 criminals is one that is now puzzling our 

 greatest minds. Well. it is not unlikely that 

 your wife has to do with criminals in their 

 earlier stages, and therefore I would bid her 

 God-speed, and tell her not to be discouraged, 

 even though her work seems the most hope- 

 less. ^\ny thing is better than giving tliem 

 up and letting them go. If she has got 21 

 that care to come and listen to her, she has 

 already proved her ability. I need hardly 

 tell her that the first thing is the Bible for a 

 daily teacher, and much earnest prayer to 

 God for help. She seems to know what a 

 power there is in visiting them through the 

 week, because, if I am correct, it is in that 

 way she has brought them in. If they will 

 look at books and papers, these are excellent 

 mediums for catching and holding their at- 

 tention. If they won"t, interest Ihem with 

 curiosities; show them simple tricks and 

 experiments ; post yourself on the leading 

 events of the day,— the news for instance; 

 study the especial forte, or hobby, of each 

 member of the class ; learn their names, so 

 you can call each one by his es])ecial famil- 

 iar title ; set them to work, and, through it 

 all, strive to show them of the spirit and 

 love of the ]\Iaster. Avho is calling to them 

 through their better selves. Teach them 

 how to be brave and magnanimous ; teach 

 them the true elemei.ls of gentility and re- 

 tinement ; get acquainted with their parents, 

 brothers, and sisters, and call on all you 

 help. (iCt everybody to help that you can 

 lay hold of ; get the boys themselves to labor 

 for the salvation of each other : and every 

 time you get discouraged, and feel like giv- 

 ing up, go to that Master and beg and plead 

 for them. Hold on and importune, and when 

 you see one soul safely into the Idngdom, it 

 will give you a joy that will brighten your 

 whole life thereafter. Our friend ]\I. has a 

 class of little girls in that school over among 

 the hills, and the light and hope that beams 

 from his face as we go home after the school 

 is over is — I can't tell it, but the Master can. 

 Hear him:— 



1 thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, 

 because thou hast hid these things from the wiseand 

 prudent, and hast revealed themiuitobabcs.— Matt. 

 11 : 25. 



WHAT SHALL WE DO WITH THE MIDNIGHT AS- 

 SASSIN. 



1 must confess I was somewhat taken aback when 

 you said, " Perhaps it would be best to shoot theman 

 that had his hand in our trousers pocket." I really 

 did not expect such advice from a teacher. When I 

 am at work at the mill, and come home, [ find the 

 boys have brought in all the axes and bolted all the 

 doors. Their ma asked Ihem why they did not do it 



