The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1871-08-03
Another Bee Story.

A story is going the rounds Of the news
papers TO the effect that swarm of bees
lately lit upon a boy, in Missouri, and that
the father of the boy got him off with but
one sting, (given by a bee that the child
bit to keep it out of his mouth), by telling
him to stand perfectly still, aud then re-
moving his hat, which was covered with
bees, aud placing it on bush, to which
the other bees Immediately swarmed This
is pronounced "gammon by some igno-
ramuses, but to every person who knows
anything of bees it will be the most proba.
bic thing in the world. Bees are not often.
sive creatures, and million of them
might settle upon the naked person of the
Kentucky giant, and he not be stung even
once, were he to keep perfectly quiet; but
were he to move, or cndeavOr TO remove
them, the bees would Immediately assume
the otfeDsive-defensive mode of making
war-that is, they would defend them
selves by offending him-and probably
sting HIM to death in a few minutes.
Many, many years ago, we lived hard by
Squire g., in the town of Blank, Blank
State, who kept q dozen hives of bees
we hadn't got learned enough then to
have apiaries--all of which stood on long
shelves under mOnstrous palm-tree that
was in the yard in front of The squire s
house; and we never think of Plato and
thyme and Hymettus and the droNsy hum
OF bees, without being reminded of those
dear honey-makers of the long, long ago
for the window at which we sat at school
looked right out upon the hives and there
XHs zg ass p dsfs5ops f6si Vas masn s gong
nenn0rtm murmur of the neighboriDg
woods. We'll, one hot summer day, the
old squire was standing before his hives
bare headed and bald headed, like Elisha
the prophet-but with bees, not boys (or
bears), near him--and with nothing on
him but his shirt and shoes and trousers
when the inhabitants of one of the hives
suddenly swarmed, and lit upon the
venerable mans pate, which they Gov
cred in layers two or three inches
deep, making his bead-piece the most
comical looking piece of humanity we ever
| gaZed upon, so We never think Of it With
out laughing though the worms ate il
| some forty years ago, creeping IN and
creeping out, as their manner Is, and as
they viii with yours, sir, clever as you
think it is, and with yours, madam, hand-
some as it is. We suppose the bees mis-
took the 'squire's face for gigantic tull,
blown rose of new pattern, which re-
| Quired TO be looked into Immediately for
it was of most beautiful new rum color
which the squire heightened by twelve
daily applications of Internal paint, a
proper Tor, rather, Il Common) practice
eUoughi in these ante (and antj-) temper
| auce times, when rum vas rum AID punch
was perfect. The squire was thoroughly
up to the lodges of the apes, and so ht
stood still, as stiff as 80 iron ram rod thu
mad stood the inspection of the grea
Frederick Just then Mrs. s. came tC
the door of the house, and seeing ho- hus
band in such a plight, gave the usua
feminine speech for such cases made anC
provided, and then said TO him, "KeeI
where you are, while | go aud get th'
broom to brush em off "Pm dead if
dol" thought the squire. He then man
aged to grope his way to a large tub tha
he had just previously filled with wate
from a neighboring brook for rinsing pur
poses, aud which stood on high BEECH
Into this water he dipped his head slo"l.
until it was entirely immersed, and hel,
it there, holding bis breath at the sam
time, till every bee was made sufficient,
stingless TO have satisfied Mr.. Eugen
Wrayburn himself The water swarme'
with bees, and the old gentleman swarme'
into the house, with the only white face b
had worn for almost half century, au
which he never repeated till he lay in hi
coffin. If, read r, you ever should b
swarmed upon, do as the squire dad, an
prove the excellence of the water cure.
} you could cOntrive to have the water ice'
90 much the better for you-and so muc
the worse for the bees. Boston 1rd0etLe.
|