The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1889-12-20

II KA tx0s,s III \ uoAAA ~ H1senAs
lIyeuy one Of my readers who iiyoa
X gthe country. ead 'pfopabIy every
,olwho IIvea Ia tho city knows TINT
l;hoAeason tho bees bury thempclyes
ii IN flowers Ii thut thty may OK
iract Me nsctar Of which thoy make
heir Aelioious honey. But perhaps
here SSe not many oi either country
,r city readeip who know that the
1oncymalsere, besides helping them
selves. also help the ilowers they yislt
| Sometimes. indeed. II II were pot
or the visits OF the bees, the llos% %ra
would not live at all; for some Oowers
are what y called imperfect, and neou
10 DO powdered with what N known ~
lrollcn before thoy Gun make my
seeds. And the bees carry the pollen
rom d perfect flower TO Qn inns
soricct iiower. and leave itNihere
while they are thinking only Of got
ting nectar II you will catch q bee
which has been gathering nectar, you
will notice that II Is covered with
fine dust That dust Is the pollen
which has clung tothe fine hairs on
lts body. And II you should by
,hance not know what pollen Is. you
have only to put buttorcup TO bahy's
little chin 10 find outif hc loves butt
ser," and you will SOC the golden pol
en-dust oil ovcr tho white skin.
II often happens with highly culti-
vated Strawberries that they have Inn
perfect flowers. and would not bear a
single berry were they not planted
near 20 some other variety that has
perfect flowers. Occasionally 1t hap
pens TO an apple-tree that II bears only
imperfect flowers, and then 1t must
sither depend upon the Notwithstanding
bees or upon Some other agency for
The pollen.
Near tho little town OF Ia Ferte. In
Franco think 1t is La Ferte-there
is an apple-tree which bears only i'm
perfect blossoms; aud the fact having
long ago been discovered. has given
rise to a very beautiful custom among
the maidens Of the village. When
spring-time comes. and the appIe-tree
halls the joyous time with q glad burst
OF blossom, the maidens OF tho village
arm themselves with gay ribbons and
perfect blossoms from their favorito
trees. and go singing to the lonely
tree which has produced only the inn
perfect blossoms. Each girl then kisses
q cluster OF the imperfect blossoms.
and In so doing dusts the former with
the pollen from the latter. She then
ties u distinguishing ribbon near TO
the cluster she has busted.
The tree looks very gay when thus
decorated, with the pink blossoms
smiling up at heaven and the dainty
gibbons auttering In the periume-laden
air; but the best of 1t Is when the
leaves drop like summer snow and the
little apples begin to take shape.
Then the maidcns pluck OF all but the
best fruit. and let that take all the
strength Of the tree. so that the APP
pies grow famously and come to per-
lection. And now is seen the strange
part OF the affair. Tho apples, instead
Of being all of ona kind. nre aa dif.
terent as the blossoms that kissed their
blossoms. the fact being that the ap.
pie is exactly like the apple on the
tree from which the pollen bearing
blossom was taken.
So on this one tree will bo seen
round. rosy-cheeked apples, long yell
low apples, juicy apples. mealy apples,
dainty little apples. and "monstrous
big" apples. Each maiden has the
apple she wished most to have.