TRAPPING AND BEE HUNTING. 167 



lines, or about southeast from the stand, and when he had it ready, 

 to call to me and I would bring the bees over and we could get a 

 cross line and locate nearly the tree that the bees were in. 



We soon got the direction in wHc!i the bees flew. I then told 

 Smoky to take the line that now flew in a westerly course from 

 the stand and in the direction of two or three large maple trees. 

 The other line now flew nearly north from the stand and back 

 toward the creek where there was considerable large timber still 

 standing. 



Leaving the bait on the stand, I took the course of the bees 

 that were now flying north and went to a large birch tree that was 

 standing on the bank of the creek. I was still several rods from 

 the tree when the bees began coming to me and I knew that the 

 tree was close by. I was looking the different trees over to see 

 which tree the bees were in when Smoky began to halloo as thougn 

 something terrible had happened him. 



Guessing at the cause of Smoky's shouting, I continued on in 

 the direction in which the line led and soon saw the bees going 

 into the large birch tree. I took my knife and cut the letters B T 

 on the tree and then went to Smoky, who was still making the 

 woods ring with his shouts. 



Smoky began guying me, saying that I was an old bee hunter 

 but it took Smoky to find the first bee tree. I did not tell him 

 that I had found the tree that the other line of bees went, to, but 

 agreed with him. I told him to mark the tree that he had located 

 and then he could go and locate the other tree if he wished while 

 I would go to camp and be getting grub ready. 



In about three-quarters of an hour Smoky came to camp and 

 began washing for dinner and said not a word. When I saw that 

 Smoky would not talk, I said, "Well, Smoky, did you find the other 

 bee tree?" He said, "Oh ! you keep right on baking flapjacks." 

 Well, after Smoky regained his speech and told how blamed bright 

 I was, he was going to go right to work and take out the honey 

 from one of the trees at once. I told him that as we had no 

 screen to put over his face, the bees would sting him to death, and 

 that he had better wait until early the next morning when it was 

 frosty. 



