The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1886-09-24
impending bankruptcy ana downfall

impending bankruptcy and downfall
Even loud crack, which announced
the disruption of the trunk, failed to
divert their attention from the intense
pursuit of gain. At length, down came
the tree with a tremendous crash,
bursting open from end to end and
displaying all the boarded treasures of
the commonwealth. One of the hunt
ers Immediately ran up with a wisp of
| lighted hay, as defense against the
bees. The latter, however, made no
attack and sought no revenge; they
seemed Supplied by the catastrope
and unsuspicious of its cause, remain
ing crawling and buzzing about the
ruins, without offering us any molesta-
ton. -
When the tree had been brought
| down, the whole party fell to with
spoon and hunting knife to scoop out
the combs with which the hollow trunk
was stored. A single tree has been
| known to yield from one hundredweight
to one and half hundredweight
Some of the combs were old and of
a deep brown color; others were beau
| tifully white, and the honey in their
cells was almost limpid. Such of the
| combs as were entire were placed in
camp kettles, to be conveyed to the en-
campment; those which had been
broken by the fall were devoured on
the spot. Every stark bee-hunter was
to be seen with rich morsel in his
hand, dripping about his fingers, and
! disappearing as rapidly as cream tart
before the holiday appetite of school
boy"
Not in America alone, but in Africa
also, the wild-bee is an object OF pur-
suit by the natives. Even the Hotten-
tots show considerable shrewdness in
obtaining the wild honey. The author
of an Expedition into the Interior of
Africa thus describes an operation of
this kinds '.One of the Hottentots OBJ
served a number of bees entering a
hole in the ground which had formerly
belonged to some animal of the weasel
kind. As he made signs for us to come
to him, we turned that way, fearing he
had met with some accident" 1t was
the home of a recent swarm. ''When
the people began to unearth the bees,
did not expect that we should escape
being severely stung; but they knew Sc
well how to manage an affair of this
kind, that they robbed the poor bees
with the greatest ease and safety.
Before they commenced digging, fire
was made near the hole, and con-
stantly supplied with damp fuel, to
produce cloud of smoke. In this the
workmen were completely enveloped,
SO that the bees returning from the
field were prevented approaching, and
those which flew out Of the nest were
driven by it to a distance"
The same writer mentions another
incident, even more interesting
''Whilst / was engaged in the chase
one day on foot with Namaqua at
tendant, he picked up a small stone; he
looked at it earnestly, then over the
plain. and threw it down again. /
asked what it was He said there was
the mark of bee on it. Taking it up,
l also saw on it a small pointed drop
of wax, which had fal len from the bee
in its flight. The Namaqua noticed
the direction the point Of the drop in
dictated, and walking on, he picked up
another stone, also with drop of wax
on it, and so on at considerable inter-
/ walls, till, getting behind crag, he
looked up, and bees were seen flying
across the sky and in and out OF a
cleft in the face of the rock.
Here, of course, was the honey he
was in pursuit Of A dry bush was
selected, a fire was made, the. Cliff as
/ aondn6 ard tho noe rrnhha1 tho
smoke
An amusing anecdote is related in
Feminine Monarchy" an old book
printed in 1909, and given by a Rus
sian ambassador to Rome as written
out of experience by Charles Butler. !"
| A man was out in the woods searching
for honey. Climbing a large hollow
tree, he discovered an immense ''find'
of the luscious produce. By some means,
however, he missed his footing, and
slipped into the hollow, sinking up to
his breast in honey. He struggled to
get out, but without avail. He called
and shouted, but alikein vain. He was
far from human habitatlon, and help
there was none, for no one heard his
cries. At length, when he had begun
to despair of deliverance, he was extri-
| Gated in most remarkable and unex-
pected way. Strange to say, another
honey-hunter came to the same tree in
the person of large bear, which.
smelling the honey, the scent of which
had been diffused by the efforts of the
imprisoned man, mounted the tree and
began to lower himself, hind-part
first, into the hollow. The hunter,
rightly concluding that the worst could
| be but death, which he was certain of
if he remained where he was, clasped
the bear around the loins with both
hands, at Che same time shouting with
all his strength. The bear, what with
the handling and theshouting was very
seriously frightened, and made speed
to get out of his fix. The man held
fast, and the bear pulled until, with
his immense strength, ne drew the
man fairly out of his strange prison.
| The bear being released. made the best
of his way off, more frightened than
hurt, leaving the man, as the story
| quantity says, Sin joyful fear.
| We conclude this paper with story
of another kind, version of which
| was given some years ago IN a cOnCeM-
porary; but the French Bishop was
turned into an English prelate, and the
Bookkeeping cure into an Anglican cler-
| gyman, the story being otherwise great
y changed. The said French Bishop,
while paying visit to his clergy, was
much distressed by the extreme power
ty which met him everywhere. Reach
! ing the house of certain curate who
| lived in the midst of very poor parish
toner's, where he expected to witness
even greater restitution, he was
astonished to find that every
thing about the house wore an APP
pearance of comfort and plenty.
Greatly surprised by what he saw, the
Bishop asked: How is this, my friend?
You are the first pastor ] have seen
having Q cheerful face and a plentiful
board. Have you any income indie
pendent of your cure?''
''Yes,n said the cure, II have My
household would otherwise starve on
the pittance I receive from my poor
neonle. IF Won will walk into the oar