1 8 THE BLESSED BEES. 



our climate, and had cared for them in the best 

 manner. All the approved works on fruit-culture 

 had, from year to year, found their way to his shelves. 

 He had been an authority on apples through all the 

 country. The orchard had never given so large a 

 crop as that fall. There were seven hundred trees, 

 and nearly all were well laden. There were scarcely 

 any orchards in the vicinity in bearing condition. 

 When ours was first put out father had been looked 

 on, by many of the surrounding farmers, as a foolish 

 visionary. But he had looked ahead. He foresaw 

 that the country would rapidly develop ; that the 

 great lumber regions near us would give a large 

 market for apples ; that railroads would be built and 

 thus an outlet secured to the markets south and 

 west. So he had contented himself with log build- 

 ings, and had planted the orchard. Now his wise 

 forethought came to our help when he had forever 

 gone from us. 



To gather the apples and take them to market 

 was by no means a small work. But experience in 

 former years with smaller crops had taught us how 

 to manage. A portion of the crop was to be 

 marketed at once, a portion was to be stored for 

 marketing in the spring. Our apples were well 

 known as of the best quality. The buyers in 

 Howard were competing somewhat for superior 

 fruit, some desiring to send it to the lumber camps, 



