The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-02-13
The Busy Bee,

An exchange has an article headed, "5ess
and their Work for Man." The heading re-
minds rs of man that q bee worked for last
summer. 1t was out to the Soldiers Home.
There was picnic, and dance, snd lunch, and
everything on the grass. Among tre gentle
men present was Mr.. Severance. He was
around in the crowd, seeing that everybody
was happy, and when lunch time came be found
himself seated on the green grass, with white
pants on, In party of ladies, some Of whom he
didn't know frcm Eve 1t Is alleged that Gen.
Hincks. the governor Of the Home, is desirous
Of breaking up this picnic business, and that to
that end he has caused the commissioner of
agriculture to send him quantity of the sassi-
est bees known to science, regular Sitting Bull
bees, that are repeaters, and know no such
word as fail. to work the singing utensil. This
may not be true, but anyway, bees have been
turned into the Home grounds to pasture, and
though Gen. Hincks may be innocent he is re-
sponsible. Well, Severance was sitting on the
gtound, dissecting sandwich, and wondering
what was In the bottle that was looking over
the edge Of basket, when suddenly he felt
something crawling up the inside of his trou-
sers He is not as demonstratve as some, bat
he noticed IL. He was calm to all outward ap-
pearance, but within him there was q vague
longing to know the nature Of the beast Ii
kept on crawling. Severance Is not wealtby,
but he would have given his note If he could
have known the species of bug that was going
up him with so deliberate and busfness-like
tread. he knew IL was not an ant, because it
was not small enough, and it was not big enough
for hen, though when is stopped and scratched
with its hind feet, he thought it resembled q
hen.
ri
to trif1e with my feelings and spoil my days
enjoyment. l will rebel" He laid down
sandwich that he had Just bit q camers track
out of, and smiled He did not feel like smil-
ing but he thought he would laugh at soms-
thing that was said, and slap his knee at the
same time, as though he was tickled, and thus
kill the bug, and no one in the party would
know anything about IL. One OF the women
said something cunning, just as the insect was
going up Severance's thigh By easy stages, and
he broke out into laugh aud slapped his leg.
His face was wreathed in No. s smile, his
lips were parted as though he was the happiest
man In America, but when his hand struck his
hiud leg he jumped mp a1out four feet aud
came down on lemon pie. The smile frozs to
his face, and his mouth remained open as
though he had lock jaw. He felt as though
bar of railroad iron had been shot
through his leg out of q cannon. The
women looked at him scared, q strange
woman particularly whispering to q COM
panion that he was evidently in the last
stages He was about to excuse himself, to 20
and see man, when the strange woman also
Jumped up. She turned red in the face, grabbed
her skirts and shook them, run aronnd tree
aud said "get out" started across the road on a
run and went up to one of the houses. 1t Is
supposesble case that there were just bees
enough for two When she went away Sever
ance went up behind the cook house and in
vestgated the IN alter, and Tom Williams said
he kicked something into the ground with his
bDOt heel eight nine times. During th0
dance that occurred in the afternoon there was
one violin player who played with great ami.
m alton, arc q strange woman danced as though
she was hired to-Peck's Sun.