The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-01-14
Euening Story
Uncle Honey Bunch.
BY BARBARA KERR.


Mrs. Carlotta Allerton, his daughter,
wiiifred, and his son. Tom. Jr.. was.
lin the vernacular of west Texas,
running past a queer little stene
house.
Wilifred must of necessity see what
sort of persons lived there, so she set
off down the lane into the yard. A
most curious sight met her swarm
of bees SCI med to be trying to get in
1.-THE window. ana bees were roaming
wild all over the premises She gave
a scream of 'lismay, which brought
I man from b>hind the house. She was
amazed at the bees, but more amazed
at the man. He was honey from top
to toe ami bees were swarming all over
him.
He paid no attention to the bees
except to catch them by the wings. II
they CHANGED to light on his bare
hands, and holding them aloft gently
fwould let them loose to. fly away. His
bbig fat collie apparently had taken
refuge from the bees behind screen
set up before an overturned box. and
did not come out even to speak to the
stranger.
My goodness gracious!' screamed
Willifred, lodging a stray bee, you'll
surely get stung."
"Oh, yes, probably. but not enough
to hurt. They really aren't paying
much attention to me. They're some
what nervous. I've been robbing them
today" said the bee-man, noncha-
lantly. Then: rs there anything 1
can do for you?"
But Just look at them. I should
say they are nervous. Why, they are
trying to get inside your house. LOOK
at that window ledge! A whole swarm
Of them trying to go inside. They il
take your house and you'll never get
inside of it again." cried Wilifred,
aghast.
Yes. but they did that a long tne
Iago. They seemed to want to live
there even more than I did, so I just
let them take one side of it and 1 live
in the other side" said the bee-man
But don't they sting you insisted
WiIifred.
No, we get along most amicably
fixed up a glass compartment for
them,- and We live in peace and
harmony
"Ohl gasped Wilifred Then, of
course, there isn't anybody here but
you-no woman"
wistfully across the desert plain as
tho hoping she were coming.
"Of course" Wilifred fastened to
say, a woman would be SO afraid of
| DSeS-
And a bit afraid of me and the
desert-so she did not come in the
first place Perhaps she was right"
oh" murmured Wilifred sympa-
thettcally, pardon me. 1 didn't mean
/ to-to-pry.,'
You didn't You Simply caught me
rather unawares. 1 think 1 told you
because 1 wanted to. Old bachelors
get SO lonesome that they are garru-
Ions on slight PROPAGATION now and
l. 1ArN- Ax7<
Esaying it, it was because I fancied
"a resemblance in you to that woman
who feared to trust me and the desert
witfsher future. As 1 said before, per-
haps she was right. At any rate I
blame her, less and less as the years
roll by. But changing again to his
matter-of-fact manner, you have not
told me whether there is anything
could do for YOU.
'.oh. yes" laughed Wilifred. cor
rather no, 1 guess not. We went into
a chuckhole and the men are digging
the machine out, so L came exploring
And am so much more interested in
the bees and the honey than digging
out autos, which has become rather
common thing"
Have you ever tasted any of the
valley honey? I was going to say cat
claw honey. but as you are a tender
foot you'd hardly know the term. Let
me go inside and get some for You -
Returning, he handed her upon a
wooden plate a most delicious cake of
honey just cut from the frame and it
was bleeding" its liquid sweetness in
little orange colored rivulets into the
dish.
How perfectly scrumptious! Um-m.
my! III go back and share it with the
lam. and then as we come by, they
snail tell you how much it added to
our lunch, for We have not eaten it
yet. She turned to go.
! PerHaDS I'd heftar tha forcos
ready, FOR we sometimes have to pull
people out Of these holes" suggested
the bee man.
"Well. what have you there, Mrs.
Christopher Columbus?" asked her
aunt as Wilifred approached her
aunt's perch at the side of the road,
bubbling over with delight at her ac-
QUESTION.
Sitting down beside her wilifred
proceeded to tell her all about it,
Sweetest man on Gods green earth,
auntie. He was honey from the crown
OF his hat to the soles of his shoes.
Fact. You'd be crazy about him. 1
guess the girl that he was going to
marry stung him so hard that he took
up bees as a counter irritant What's
the matter, auntie?" For her aunt
gasped, turned white. sprang to her
| feet, looking from left to right in dis
may, as tho she must flee-but where
to? For the bee man was coming =
few rods away, leading his horses.
He stopped for a fleeting moment as
if he. too. had seen a ghost, then TAX
ing off his hat he said:
"Ah. SO 4hat explains the resem-
hlance. Your daughter. I suppose.
NO faltered Aunt Carlotta; "it's
my niece, Toms daughter. That's
Tom over there"
But Mr.. Allerton had recognized
him: Why. hello. o. B. Where in
| thunder did you come from? Live
around here2" And he FASTENED out
of the mud to greet his old-time friend
and ALMOST once-upon-a- time brother
in-law. This is young Tom, Ned;
you ought to remember him. Tom,
this is Ned O'Barron; used to live in
our town"
The bee man, without further cere-
mony. began backing his horses