St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1885-05-16
Bees Stampede a Passenger
Train
,Peck's sun.

western train between milwaukee anu
Chicago one day last week. The train
took on, at Lake Bluff, large number
of people returning home from camp
meeting in session there, and every seat
was full, four deep, of preachers, dea-
cons, old ladies, Sunday school teachers,
giggling girls and children, destined
for all Of the stations between Lake
Bluff and Chicago. The big conductor
was going through the forward car, tak-
ing UP the half rate return tickets, when
something struck him III on the back OF
the neck that felt like sabre, and ne
made use OF a word that caused Che
hair of deacon from Highland Park to
tnrn gray. The conductor looked at
the front door, and it was full OF bees.
1t appears that a tree had been cut
down near the track, which contained
swarm Of wild honey bees, and the bees
had settled on the bank beside the track
to rest, and when the engine came
along and the engineer squlrted steam
and hot water amongst the bees tney
got mad and all that were not kllled
came into the cars to see it such things
could be and not overcome them like a
summer squash. The conductor, though
bitten in vital part, on his neck, held
his position, knowing that he would
have fun enough with the passengers to
make up for his injuries. A middle
aged Sunday school. teacher OF the re-
male persusiOn. who was holding a 0Ig
scholar on her lap, suddenly jumped up
and said she was stabbed, and ashed tie
conductor to protect her, and she look
ed around quite saucy at travelling
man in the seat back of her who had an
umbrella. The conductor said he
guessed she wasn't stabbed, but she be-
gan TO yell, and while he was trying to
| soOthe her a preacher from EvbnstOn
| reared up and said something about
! hades, and began crawling over the
! back of the seat in front of him, where
| deacon from Lake Forest was explain
ing a passage in the bible to a young
woman from Rodgers Park. The dea-
con and the young woman were mad,
and just then they felt stings from the
bees, and they jumped out into the aisle
and accused the minister OF being
mean, horrid thing. A quartette, two
| girls and two boys, in couple OF seats
| that we're facing each other, were sing
ing hymn, when bee struck the So
prano in front of the neck, and it broke
! her voice all up, and she yelled murder
and grabbed the coat-tail of cOlored
porter who was going through the car
on a gallop with u bee on his trousers
| leg. The tenor and bass singer thought
the porter had done something wrong
| to the soprano, and were going to whip
| him, when the alto got bite and yelled
for the police, and Sunday school
superintendent in seat opposite
| thought the tenor had insulted the alto,
and he took the tenor by the neck. Just
then a bee struck the tenor, and he
thought it was the superintendent who
! had hit him, and he was just getting
ready to wallOp him when the conductor
| told them to be quiet or he would have
to put them off, and then he explained
that the train had run over swarm of
bees, and they had got in the car. That
settled it. Every person that had not
| been stung didn't want to be, and they
| all pulled their feet off the floor and
tucked them up under them on the
seats, and there was yelling in all the
| languages known to camp meetings.
| The windows were opened to let the
bees out, and more bees came in. and it
was pandemonium for ten miles. The
bees seemed to run to female arms that
| were covered with thin lace, or that
were bare, and silk stockings presented
no barrier at all against the busy little
bees. A girl would suddenly turn pale,
! hold her breath minute, and then
scream. One girl climbed uD the water
cooler as quick as a cat would climb a
tree if dog was after it. and when the
conductor came along she grabbed him
around the neck and asked him to save
her. He untangled her and sat her
down on the coal box, and told her he
was very saving man, but he couldn't
save whole train load of girls at once,
as he was no bee keeper. A Chicago
minister put his foot up on the stove
and began to roll up his pants leg to
/ catch bee, and the women all screamed
4 again, and the conductor told him he
would have to take berth in sleeper
4 if he was going to disrobe. He rolled
his pants down and left the bee there
but every little while he would take
hold of his pants with his thumb and
finger and hold them away from his lea
and shake his foot and leg like Scotch
man dancing the Highland fling. When
the train stopped at the first station the
4 passengers all got out on the platform
I and kicked bees out of their pants, as
the case may be, the conductor and
4 brakeman drove the bees out of the cars
. and the passengers got in again, but
i every little while somebody would jump
4 up about eight feet, and then begin tt
/ hunt in the plush cushion for some
4 thing. Everybody got stnng more OF
less, and several ministers and deacOnt
4 looked, when the train reached Chi
cago, as though they had been trying tt
knock out Sullivan in four rounds.