The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1920-06-22
WORLDS GREATEST
BEEHIVE IS A CAVE
IAN TO CONTAIN 800 ACRES
i IF HONEY, AMOUNTING TO
100 BILLION POUNDS.

NENARD, Texas. : The biggest
liro in the world is located on
~ ps river near here. It's cave
p s;ah contains acres and acres of
Whlon and acres and acres of honey
spaIbs lacked with luscious honey. 1t
cT Iln has millions and millions of little
$ also W. makes-so many millions of
honS that their droning can be heard
teleinnovnral hundred feet from the en-
trance tra of the big cave.
i" "Tba Beehive" is the name OF the
.ouo inhabited by the bees. 1t opens
cav "a from a bluff of limestone rock
I vi above the blue waters of Devils
lug and extends back for more than
Nv" nile From floor to roof of the
a. nav aavo is from SO to 100 feet and
fr o the massive roof hang acres OF
honey blT the pieces Of comb often ex-
4ondinc for twenty feet toward the
soor Fhe bee cave was discovered
nt least two centuries ago, but never
has man devised a way to rob the
"bee gum"
About a year ago an attempt was
made by so-called "bee expert to
,,o the beehive. He scaffolded up to
whore he could cut the honey from
tbp nrotruding wedges of comb and
began his work. The bees did not
take kindly to the efforts of this fell
low and he was stung to death before
he could get out of the cave. So flu
rious we're the bees at an attempt to
rob their place that for many days
their huge swarms darkened the en-
trance to their cave. 1t was months
before any one would venture into
tbe cave to recover the body of the
"robber." By that time it had dried
IN to almost a mummy. Since then
no efforts have been made to rob the
bees.
Presents a New Proposition.
Now comes a man with a different
proposition. He would organize a
company, cut into the top of the cave
and "smoke the bees downward like
they do in an ordinary bee gum He
has told the people there are millions
of dollars worth of honey in the cave
and with about a hundred openings
cut in the top of the rockathe honey
could be removed annually and the
be made millionaires.
But the older inhabitants do not take
kindly to his proposition and the
scheme is about to fall through de-
spite his glowing accounts of fortunes
to be made.
Those who are familiar with the
cave declare there is now at least 900
acres of honey hanging from the roof.
They figure that this would weigh
100000 pounds, and at soc
per pound this would be worth $780,
000,000,000. They also declare that
if way could be found to rob the
'hive" annually at least 81, 000,000,-
900 worth of honey could be taken
from it every year.
But with all these glittering figures
before them they have not been able
to find a way to get the gold from the
honey Computations made by ex-
perts say to cut hole in the roof of
the cave would mean chiseling
through some rs or 100 feet Of solid
rock and if that hole were cut only
such an amount of honey as that di-
rectly under it, or rather near it,
could be secured. They might poison
the bees with fumes from the floor of
the cave and then cut and dynamite,
but those who have worked out this
problem declare that probably not
enough of the honey would be saved
to pay the cost of the work.
Meantime the busy little bees are
their sweets from the flow
ers of hundreds of miles of west Tex.
as and northern Mexico and storing
the precious stuff in the cave.
Bees Have Many Exits.
Old inhabitants declare the bees
have about one thousand places in the
roof or sides of the big cave where
they enter with their honey or make
their exit to gather more. They de-
clare that any person not acquainted
with the presence of the bees would
likely believe an earthquake is com
ing when he happens to be walking
about on the top of the cave, but soon
learns by the countless number of lit
tie bees coming and going from then
entrances and exits the real cause of
the monotonous droning.
1t is said the cave and the beehive
was first discovered by Indians more
than 200 years ago and that it prob
ably existed for thousand years.
Probably the most exciting time of
the year about the big cave is right
now. 1t is the time when the "work-
ing bees" take their usual fling at
me 'drOnes." Now millions of the
Industrious little fellows can be seen
IN deadly combat with the "drones
the big bees of the socialist or boil
Shevist order-those which eat, but
90 not produce. The killing of the
orones will require about one month.