Weekly Trinity journal., 1878-10-19
THE BEE-STING REMEDY.
BY r. J. BUDETTE.

One day not great while ago, Mr..
Middlerib, who is constant reader ofthe
New York Weekly, read in bis faverite
paper paragraph copied from the Pae-
ger Observation-Disclosures Wochenbtatt,
German paper, which is an accepted
authority on such points, stating that the
sting of bee was sure cure for rheu-
matism, and citing several remarkable
instances in watch people had been per-
feetly cured by this abrupt remedy. Mr..
Middlerib did not stop to reflect that a
paper with such name as that would be
very apt to say anything; he only
thought Of the rheumatic twinges that
grabbed his knees once in while, and
made life burden to him.
He read the article several times and
pondsred over ii. He understood that
the singing must be done scientifically
and thoroughly. The bee. as he under
stood the article, was 20 be gripped by the
ears and set down upon the rheumatic
joint, and held there until it stung itself
stingless. He had some misgivings
about the matter. He knew it would
hurt. He hardly thought it could hurt
any worse than the rheumatism, and it
had been SO many years since he was
stung by Gee that he had almost for
gotten what it felt like. He had, how
ever, a general feeling thai it would hurt
some. But desperate diseases require
desperate remedies, and Mr.. Midd.erib
was willing to undergo any amount of
suffering if it would cure his rheumatism.
He contracted with Master Middlerib
for limited supply of bees. There were
bees and bees, humming and buzzing
about in the Summer air, but Mr.. Mid
'dlerib did not know how to get them
He felt, however, that be could safely
depend upon the instinct. and methods of
boyhood. He knew that if there was any
way in heaven or earth whereby the shy
est bee that ever lifted a two hundred
pound man off Of the clover, could be i1-
duced to enter a wide mouthed glas. bot
tie, his son knew that way.
For the small sum of ore dime Master
Middlerib agreed. to procure several, to
wit six bees, sex and age not specified
but as Mr.. Middlerib was left in uncer-
tainty as to the race, it was made obliga-
tory upon the contractor to have three of
them honey and three humble, in the
generally accepted vernacular, humble
bees. Mr.. Mdderlb did not tell his son
what he wanted those bees for, and the
boy went off on bis mission, with bis head
60 full fastonishment that i. fairly whirl-
ed. Evening brings all home, and the
last rays Of the declining sun fell upon
Master Middlerib with a short wide
mo1thsd BOTTLE comfortably populated
with hot, i'll natured bees, and Mr.. Mid
dlerib and a dime. The dime and the
bottle changed hands. Mr.. Middlerib |
put the bottle in his coat pocket and went
into the house, cycling everybody he met
very suspiciously, as though he had made
up his mind to sting to death the first per
son that said "bee" to him. He confded |
his guilty secret to none of his family
He hid his bees in HIS bed room, and as
he looked at them just before putting
them away he half wished the expert
meRt was safely ever. He wished the
imprisoned bees didn't look so hot and
cross. With exquisite care he submerg
ed the bottle in basin of water, and let
few drops in on the heated inmates to
cool them off.
At the tea table he had great fright.
Miss Middlerib, in the srtesO simplicity
of hor romantic nature, said
II smell bees. How the odor brings
up"
But her father glared at her, and said
with superfuous harshness and execrable
grammar.
Flush up! You don't smell moth
ing"
Wbereupon Mrs. Middlerib asked him
if he had eaten anything that had disa-
greed with him, snd Miss Middlerib
ssid:
"Why, pa I" and Master Middlerib
smiled as he wondered.
Bed time at last, and the night was
warm ard shltry. Under various false
pretenses, Mr.. Middlerib strolled about
the house until every body else was in bed
and then he sought his room. He turned
the night lamp down until its feeble rays
ehana dinal W a Iaatb l;obf
Mr.. Mddlerib dsrobed slowly-very
slowly. When at last he was ready to
70 numbering into his peaceful couch, he
hsaved profound sigh, so full of appre-
hension and grief that Mrs. Middlerib,
who was awakened by it, said if it gave
him so much pain to come TO bed, per-
haps he had better sit up all night. Mr..
N iddlerih checked another sigh, but said
nothing and crept into bed. After lying
still few moments he reached out and
got his bottle of bees.
1t was not an easy thing to do, to pick
one bee out Of bottle full with hi. fin
gers, and not get into trouble. The first
bee Mr.. Middlerib got was little brown
honey bee that wouldn't weigh half an
ounce if you picked him up by the ears,
but if you lifted him by the hind leg, as
Mr.. Middlerib did, would weigh as much
as the last end Of bay mule. Mr.. Mid
dlsrib could not repress groaL.
whats the matter with yoa :" sleep
ily asked his wife.
1t was very hard for Mr.. Middlerib to
say that he felt hot, but he did it. He
didn't have to lie about it, either. He
did feel very hot, indeed. About eighty
six all over, and one hundred and ninety
seven on the end of his thumb. He re-