The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1898-12-15
! SQUATTER SKETCHES
I Abe Hope Takes Kurnel Bunker's
/ Advice About ee-Keeping.
I Copyright. 4esS. BY N. QUAD. I

Copyright. 1ess.
BY N. QUAD.

dOOlS VITA ZIG SCCnl VI d uOLGu
different blossoms in the evening air,
asked him why he had never gone into
Bookkeeping. He uttered a grunt or
two of disgust and replied:
st wasn't mo- than a month ago
that the ole woman split up. the last
beehive fur kindlin' wood"
''Then you have raised bees?"
Eyes. sab"
at seems as if you ought to raise any
amount of honey in such climate as
this, where the bees can work ten
months in the year"
"And it seemed that way to Kurnel
Bunker, and to me'h the ole woman.
sab. but it turned out mighty different
One day last spring l was skinnin'
squirrels right on this doah-step when
Kurnel Bunker rid up on that spotted
boss O his and calls out:
"'Hello, Abe Hope, and how's chills
and fever this spring.
"'Jest about the same SEE I.
"'Abe,' seq the kurnel, as he sorter
looked around fur my jug O. whisky
I'm powerful busy with nevis and
polyticks and cotton and other things
and can't take on anythin' mo-, but
I've got a scheme that'll make a rich
man O. yo' in ten vars. Money in it,
Abe-heaps o. money, and yo' won't
hev to lift yo'r hand to make 100000
"'No mo- canebrake hawgs.' SEE I.
Who's talllin' bout hawgs?' seq the
kusnel. 'Hawgs amt fifteen fur this
locality, but bees ar. Jest go inter
raisin' honey and yo'll be bigger man
than Julius Caesar
"Arter I had gin the kurnel a drink"
said the squatter. che told me about il
Thar was a Teller down on the river
with a flat-boat loaded with bee-hives.
He was sellin' Of 'em fur five dollars
hive, and the kurnel figgered it out in
way to make yo'r hair stand up. If | be
gan with five swarms of bees I'd hev
fifty swarms in five vars. Fifty swarms
o. bees means 1000 pounds O. honey
var. In ten vars I'd hev $50 hives and
nigh 5000 pounds of honey to sell every
sezun. He took drink and figgered it
fur me, and he took a drink and fig
gered it fur the ole woman. and it cum
out the same way ell the time Pears
to us like a mighty good show to roll
in wealth, and when the kurnel said
that them bees would just hump them
selves all day long without any watch
in from me, I made up my mind I'd go
into it,"
"And you bought five hives to start
81 I oc1ya1 10 IL, 7 L :.
pipe.
eyes. bought five hives" he replied,
''and sot 'em up over thar by the
fence. The stranger was kind-heart
ed man and he helped me, and he
stayed round all day long and fggered
what them bees would do fur me. Fig
gered jest the same as the liurnel did,
and men the ole woman lay awake
most of the night talkin' bout bosses
and kerriges and dimuns and SIGH
Stranger, mebbe yo' hev obsarved few
insecks around yere?"
Eyes, have"
Seems like a sort o headquarters fur
'skeeters, gallinippers, swamp flies,
house flies, boss flies and canebrake hor-
nets. Men the ole woman has got used
to them, but notice yo' wriggle round
a good deal, specially in the evenin'.
They pear to be plenty huff, but I've
seed the time when thar was hundred
to one"
THAT was after an overflow of the
river, suppose?"
Not skassly. That was about two
weeks arter l got them bees. Them
hives was sot up and the bees buzzin'
around arter sweets when | went out
into the cane one day to look fur my
mewl. I was gone about two hours,
and as I got back home noticed that
the insecl1s was heap mo- plenty than
usual. / was wonderin' bout it when
the ole woman comes out and SEE:
"'Abe. mebbe thars goin' to be an
earthquake or a cyclone or flood in the
river. l never did see the pesky in
seeks so thick around yere befo'.'
II sorter thought thar might be
dead mewl in the bresh near by to
anythin'; and they kept CROWN thick
er an thicker, and bimeby we had to
git into the cabin and close the doahs
and winders and raise a smoke. | was
lookin' out when my ole mewl begun
to snort and prance and pull at the
rope. He was so ole and tuff that a
built would have bounded off his hide,
but when about million hornets and
gallinippers settled down on him he
showed his feelin's mighty quick. He
jest bucked and jumped and screamed
out, and if he hadn't pulled away he'd
hev been murdered right thar. He went
eff down the road as if the devil was
arter him, and the ole woman feels fur
me through the smoke and sez
"'Abe Hope, we might as well git
right down on our knees and go to
prayin', fur the Judgment day can't be
more'n fo'ty rods off! Whatever in this
world has brung an the insecks in the
state of Mississippi iSto one clearin'?'
Jest about then" said the squatter
with smile, "Kurnel Bunker Gums
ridin' along. He'd bin over to Scots
dale to git his mail, and he reckoned to
stop At my place for drink and to see
how them bees was a-gittin' on. He had