Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1878-11-28
Miserll Fl
Rheumatism Movement Cure.

New York Weekly
One day not a great while ago. Mr.. Mid
dlcrb. who i a constant reader of the N,,r
York Heskly, read In his favorite paper a
paragraph copied from the Pr1rger --l1sd.
t-iTiisrh1nhch6s WOchonbiIu, a German pa
per. which Is an accepted authority on
such points. stating that the sting of , bee
was sure cure for rheumatism, and citing
several remarkable Instances in which peo-
pie had been perfectly cured by th. abrupt
remedy. Mr.. Middlerib did not stop 10 re-
fleet that paper with such a name as ths,
would be very apt TO saw any thing; he
only thought of the rheumatic twinges that
grappled his knees once in while, and
made lie burden 10 him.
lie read the article several times and
pondered over il. He understood that the
singing must be done scientifically and
thoroughly. The bee, as he understood the
article. was to be griped by the ears aud
set down upon the rheumatic Joint, and
held there until Il stung itself stingless. He
had some misgivings about the matter He
knew il would hurt. He hardly thought II
could hurt any worse than the rheumatism.
and II had been 80 many years since he
was stung by bee that lac had almost for
gotten what it felt like. lie had. however.
general feeling that il would hurt some.
But desperate diseases require desperate
remedies, aud Mr.. Midderib was willing to
undergo any amount OF suffering il 1t would
cure his rheumatism.
He contracted with Master Niddlerib for
a limited supply OF bees. humming and
buZziug about in the summer air, but Mr..
Midlf'rlb did not know how 10 get them
lie ielt, however. that he could safely de-
pend uron the instincts and methods OF
b0yhood lie knew that IL there was any
In 49, - -. 1.
ever lifted a acknowledgements man off
the clover could be induced to enter a wide
mouthed glass bottle, his son knew that
way.
For the small sum OF one dime Master
Middlcrib agreed 10 procure several. to-
wit: six bees, sex aud age not specified
but. ss Mr.. Middlcrib was left In uncer-
taiuiy a. 10 the race, 1t was made oblga-
tory upon the contractor to have three Of
them honey and three humble or, In the
generally accepted vcrnacular, humble.
bees. Mr. NJ. did not tell hi. son what he
wanted those bees Tor, and the boy went off
on hi> mission With his head so full OF as
toBi>hment that Il fairly whirled Evening
brings all home. and the last rays of the
declining sun fell upon Master MiddleIib
with short. wlde-mouthed bottle comfort
ably populated with hot, il!-natured bees.
and Mr., Mddlerib and dime. The dime
aud the bottle changed hands. Mr. Mid
dlerib put the bottle in his coat-pocket and
went into the house, eying everybody he
met very susplciously, as though he had
made up his mind TO sting TO death the first
person who laid bee" TO him. lie con-
[ hded his guilty secret 10 none of his family.
/ He hid his bees in his bedroom, and as he
, looked at them Just before putting them
away he now wished the experiment was
safely over. He wished the imprisoned
| bees did not Look so hot aud cross. With
exquisite care he submerged the bottle in
basin OF water and let few drops in on
/ the heated inmates TO cool them OF.
AT the tea table he had a great fright
Miss Middlerib, in the artless simplicity of
/ her romantic nature, said:
II smell bees. How the odor brings
! up
! But her father glared at her and said
with superfluous harshness and execrabe
grammar:
''IIush up. You don't smell nothing"
Whereupon Mrs. Mildlerb asked him if
| he had eaten anything that disagreed with
him. and Miss Middlerib said:
! why. pa and Master Middlerib smiled
| as he wondered.
| Bed time at last. and the night was warm
/ and sultry. Under various false preteLses,
-'ii- elioiitd aooul uOusC
until everybody else was in bed, and then
| he sought his room. He turned the night
| lamp down until its feeble ray shone dimly
as death light.
| Mr.. Middlerib disrObed slowly--very
| slowly. When at last he was ready to go
| numbering into his peaceful coach, he heav-
! ed a profound sight. so full OF apprehen
sion aud grief that Mrs. MiddIerib. who
was awakened by it. said If it gave him so
much pain to come to bed, perhaps he had
/ better sit up all night. Mr.. Midderib
checked another sigh. but said nothing and
| crept into bed. After lying still few mo-
ments he reached out and got his bottles
| OF bees.
Ii was not an easy thing to do to pick
| Que bee out OF the bottle-full with his fing-
ers, and not get into trouble. The first
| bee Mr.. Middlerb got was a little brown
honeybee that wouldn't weigh half an
| ounce if you picked him up by the ears.
| but il you lifted him by the hind leg, would
weigh "a much as the last end of bay
1 mule. Mr. Middierib could not repress "a
| groan.
What's the matter with youg" sleepily
asked his wife.
Ii was very hard for Mr.. Mddlerib to say
he only felt bot. but he did il. He didn't
have to lie about il either. He did feel very
hot indeed. About eighty six all over. aud
one hundred and ninety-seven on the end
of his thumb. He reversed the bee. and
pressed the warlike terminus of il firmly
| against the Rheumatic knee.
IL didn't hurt SO badly As he thought it
| would
Ii didn't hurt ut all.
Then Mr.. Middlerib remembered that
when the honey-bee stsbs a human toe, il
generally leaves its harpoon in the wound,
and The invalid knew that the ouly thing
this bee had to sting with was doing its
work at the end of his thumb.
He reached his arm out from under the
sheet. and dropped this disabled atom OF
rheumatism linlment on the carpet. Then,