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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..82facbf --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #67750 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/67750) diff --git a/old/67750-0.txt b/old/67750-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index c6ee060..0000000 --- a/old/67750-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7029 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Wilderness Honey, by Frank Lillie Pollock - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Wilderness Honey - -Author: Frank Lillie Pollock - -Illustrator: H. C. Edwards - -Release Date: March 31, 2022 [eBook #67750] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at - https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILDERNESS HONEY *** - - - - - - WILDERNESS HONEY - - -[Illustration: “Poison!” exclaimed Alice. “Why, it must have been -meant to kill the bees!”] - - - - - WILDERNESS HONEY - - BY - FRANK LILLIE POLLOCK - - ILLUSTRATED BY - H. C. EDWARDS - - NEW YORK - THE CENTURY CO. - 1917 - - - - - Copyright, 1917, by - The Century Co. - - Copyright, 1916, by - Perry Mason Company - - - Published, September, 1917 - - - - - TO ROSA - - WHO HAS HELPED ME TO HARVEST - SO MUCH HONEY IN THE - WILDERNESS - - This story has appeared serially in the “Youth’s - Companion,” and my thanks are due the publishers for - permission to reprint it. - - Frank Lillie Pollock. - - The publishers also wish to acknowledge the courtesy of - the “Youth’s Companion” in arranging for the use of the - pictures. - - - - - CONTENTS - - I The Bee Fever - II Trouble in the Dark - III Strange Perils - IV Honey and Swarms - V Failing Hopes - VI Robbing the Robber - VII Reaping the Harvest - VIII A Run of Luck - IX Stopping a War - X Fire and Water - XI A Good Summer’s Work - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - “Poison!” exclaimed Alice. “Why, it must have been meant to kill - the bees!” - - It was not without a secret feeling of misgiving that Alice and Bob - bade farewell to Harman’s Corners - - Two of the hives that were farthest from the house had been pillaged - - It was not a wild beast in the trap; it was a man! - - “No, you stay here, Allie. There won’t be any shooting, but this is - no girl’s business” - - He was plainly in no condition to show fight and the boys advanced - without hesitation - - It wheeled in a panic and went straight over the bee yard, clearing - the hives in great bounds - - - - -WILDERNESS HONEY - - -CHAPTER I - -THE BEE FEVER - - -“We’ll have to sell the store,” said Bob Harman, with decision. “No -use blinking it.” - -“What, sell Harman’s!” cried his sister Alice, aghast. - -“Well, why not?” Bob demanded. “It’s bringing nothing in. It hasn’t -been paying expenses for ever so long. We’d all be richer if it had -been sold years ago.” - -“Very likely,” muttered Carl. “But fancy Harman’s going out of the -family!” - -All three turned and looked at the weatherbeaten side of the frame -building adjoining the house—the store that for half a century had -been known as “Harman’s.” It had been a great place in its day, had -Harman’s. Almost the first recollections of all three children were -connected with the store. They had played behind the counters, been -weighed on the big scales; and the familiar, rich smell of molasses -and tea and hardware and cloth was like an odor of home. Later they -had helped to serve customers—it did not keep them very busy—and for -the last year Carl had managed the business almost single-handed. It -did seem impossible to give up the store. - -The three orphans were holding a council on the front veranda of the -old brick house where the Harmans had lived ever since they came as -pioneers into Upper Canada. Once there had been three hundred acres of -land, and capacious barns and stables, and stock, but all this had -dwindled away, till the farm was represented by ten acres behind the -house, and even this was rented to a neighbor. - -The April sunshine was warm on the veranda, although the fields were -still brown, and patches of snow lay here and there in sheltered -nooks. The maples at the roadside were red, and in Alice’s garden -green sprouts were bravely pushing up. On the south side of the fence -were the twelve white-painted hives of her bees, and the hum of flying -insects filled the air. - -Nearly eighty years before the Harmans had been among the first -pioneers who broke into the wilderness north of Lake Ontario. They had -helped to open the roads; they had cleared land; and they had started -a frontier store on the new highway. For two generations the hamlet -that sprang up there was known as “Harman’s Corners.” It lay on the -direct road to Toronto and it had its great days before the railway -came. In winter the laden sleighs went past by scores, carrying wheat -and meat and timber to the growing city, and the drivers all stopped -at the cross-road. The Corners supported three taverns, all doing a -thriving trade. The fourth corner was occupied by the store. - -As there were no other stores in that district, Harman’s had a -monopoly of trade, and its owner should have grown rich. But the -Harman of that day lacked business enterprise. He was good-natured, -slow, procrastinating, and spent more time at the taverns than behind -his counter. The store lost ground, and when the railway was built and -passed three miles away to touch at Woodville, the Corners received -its death-blow. - -Produce went to Toronto by rail instead of by sleigh or wagon. -Harman’s was out of the line of traffic. The three taverns closed one -by one. At Woodville the Elliott Brothers established an enterprising -store, with all the modern tricks of trade. The farmers went thither -to do their buying, and Harman’s stock grew shop-worn and out of date. - -Still, Mr. Harman clung to the business, keeping no proper books, but -cherishing a vague idea that the store was maintaining his family, -while, in fact, it was losing money daily, and all but ten acres of -the farm had to be sold. For the last two years he had been ill; for -nearly a year Carl had had virtually entire management and had -discovered the truth. During this time the Elliott Brothers had -repeatedly offered to buy the store. They wished to run it as a branch -of their Woodville establishment, and Carl had urged his father to -sell. Mr. Harman, however, refused to entertain the idea for a moment, -and remained firm up to that March day when he died. Mrs. Harman had -died four years earlier, and the three children were orphans, with -what looked like a losing inheritance. - -Alice was eighteen years old and had been keeping house for the family -ever since her mother’s death. She was tall, brown-haired, and -gray-eyed; an out-of-door girl, full of energy. She was a great -chicken-raiser and an indefatigable gardener. The bees she had had for -three years, starting with three hives, and had already acquired a -very cheerful bank account of her own from the sale of honey. - -Bob was nineteen, dark-haired, rather short, and powerfully built. His -turn of mind was highly scientific and practical, and he was trying to -get through a course of electrical engineering at the Toronto School -of Science, where he was better known as a half-back on the varsity -team. - -Carl was a year and a half younger than Alice and was her chief -assistant with the bees, but he lacked his brother’s muscles. He had -an idea that something in journalism would suit him exactly, but it -was a long way from Harman’s Corners to a daily newspaper office. -Meanwhile he looked after the store and attended the Woodville High -School when he could, riding to and fro on his bicycle, and tried to -prepare for the university. - -But educational prospects looked rather bad just then. Everything had -to be subordinated to the question of making a living, and Bob had -come up from Toronto to help in threshing the matter out. - -All the property had been left to the three children, and an old -neighbor and friend, Isaac Ferguson, was appointed executor and -trustee till the heirs should come of age. But an inventory of the -property revealed a disastrous state of affairs. - -All the land and buildings were heavily mortgaged. Although no proper -books had been kept, it was plain that the store had not been paying -expenses for a long time, and there was an appalling collection of -unpaid bills—many of them bills for stock that had grown old and -worthless. When all these liabilities were cleared off, there would -not remain much more than a thousand dollars from Mr. Harman’s estate. - -Part of this state of things was no surprise to Carl, who had been in -closer touch with the business than either Alice or Bob, but even he -rather inclined to the idea that it would be best to clear out the old -stock at any price, get in some fresh stuff, and try to float the -business for a little longer, at any rate. - -“Even if we did sell out,” he argued, “we wouldn’t get enough to live -on for long, and we’d have no chance of making any more.” - -“Elliott’s would pay one of us forty dollars a month to stay here as -clerk. I was talking to them yesterday,” responded Bob. “That would be -a good job for Alice.” - -“No, I’ll never do that, and I don’t see how you could go to see those -people!” cried Alice, hotly. “If I only had a hundred hives of bees -like these we wouldn’t need anything from anybody,” she went on after -a moment’s indignation. “Why, last year I made over one hundred and -twenty-five dollars from only eleven hives.” - -“I wish we had them, too,” said Carl, “but we haven’t, so what’s the -use. Bees cost about ten dollars a colony here and hard to get at -that. I declare, Allie, you could get nearly as much for your apiary -as the store is worth!” - -“I wouldn’t sell them, though, not for twenty dollars a hive!” the -girl declared. “I’d rather see the store go, by a great deal. What do -you think we ought to do, Bob?” - -“I don’t know,” returned her brother, slowly. “Maybe I’ve an idea, but -the present question to be settled is whether we want to accept -Elliott’s proposition—to buy us out, I mean.” - -They discussed the worrying problem all the rest of the afternoon and -at supper and during the evening and at intervals the next day. Then -Bob had to return to his classes in Toronto and he went away, leaving -the matter still unsettled. - -Spring came on with the breathless haste of the North. The last -patches of snow vanished. The grass grew greener daily; tulips were -budding; and the bees were gathering honey profusely from the -pussy-willows. Alice and Carl went through the hives, cleared out the -winter’s dirt from the bottom-boards, spaced the combs properly, -scraped away excrescences of wax and propolis. They were so engaged, -when Bob suddenly appeared without any warning, ten days after his -departure. - -“Hurrah! What’s up?” shouted Carl, pulling off his hat and bee-veil -and rushing to meet him. “You’ve got some news. I can see it.” - -“Nothing much,” returned Bob. “Anyway I won’t say anything about it -just now. Go ahead with your work. And, say, have you got an extra hat -and veil? I’d like to look on.” - -Bob had never handled the bees much, nor taken any great interest in -them, so that both Carl and Alice were surprised at his request. -However, they were too busy at the moment to discuss it, and he was -provided with a mosquito-net veil, which he draped about his hat. He -leaned over the hives as they were opened, peered in, and asked -innumerable questions. - -“What’s happened to you, Bob?” said Alice at last. “You seem to want -to learn the bee business.” - -“Maybe,” said Bob, enigmatically. “Now what’s the best the bees ever -do, Alice? How much honey do you get from them, on an average?” - -“Well, this is my pet colony,” said the girl, raising the cover from -the hive nearest her. Under the board cover was a canvas quilt, which -she peeled up, revealing the tops of the combs, each in its wooden -frame. At the disturbance, a yellow froth of bees boiled up from -between the combs, but Alice unhesitatingly laid hold of one of the -center combs and lifted it out for inspection. It was covered on both -sides with a thick layer of bees, crowded as closely as they could -stand. There were some old veterans that had wintered over, with -shiny, worn bodies and ragged wings; there were just-hatched bees, -fluffy and yellow like young chickens; there were bees with yellow -balls of pollen on their legs, looking for an empty cell to store the -bee-bread. They all remained quiet, seeming but little disconcerted at -being lifted so suddenly into the daylight. Only the bees near the top -of the comb, where a little honey shone in the cells, dipped their -heads and began to suck it up in haste. They felt that, if this -strange earthquake was going to destroy the hive, they would at least -save what they could. Over Alice’s fingers and bare wrists the bees -crawled, but made no attempt to sting. They were the purest Italian -breed and were almost as yellow as gold. - -“I paid a dollar and a half for this queen last year,” said Alice, -“and—look, there she is now.” - -She indicated a point about the center of the comb, where the queen, -twice the length of a worker-bee but much more slender, was walking -slowly and with dignity over the cells, looking into each one to see -if it held anything. Finding one unoccupied, she gravely inserted the -point of her long abdomen into it and deposited an egg. During this -process she was attentively watched by her own guard of half a dozen -bees, who kept their heads always pointed toward her, and proffered -her honey on their tongues when she had finished. Day and night, Alice -explained, this went on, a good queen often laying a couple of -thousand eggs in twenty-four hours. These eggs, hatching in three -weeks, mean a vast army of workers for the honey harvest. - -“This colony brought me in more than twenty-five dollars last year, -all by itself,” said Alice, putting the comb carefully back into the -hive. “It gathered something over a hundred pounds of comb honey, -worth twenty-five cents a pound. If one had a whole apiary like -that!—but such things never happen. On the average, it’s a good colony -that makes ten dollars’ worth of honey, and less than that, of course, -if you were running a large apiary and only getting wholesale prices.” - -“Well, I call that good enough,” remarked Bob and said no more until -that evening after supper, when he consented to bring out what was in -his mind. - -“It was only a vague notion that I got in my head,” he explained, -“from what Alice said about wanting a hundred hives of bees. Perhaps -there’s nothing in it yet. I don’t know. But anyhow, there’s a fellow -in our class who lives at a place called Morton, away up in northern -Haliburton, and he mentioned to me about a month ago that a man up his -way had a lot of bees for sale. I wasn’t especially interested then, -but when I went back to town last time, I thought of it and made -further inquiries. Then I wrote to the owner. Then I felt as if I -ought to go up and look into the thing, so I went.” - -“You’ve been there? How many hives? What’s it like?” cried Alice and -Carl together. - -“Just got back. Well, it’s about the wildest, roughest place I ever -saw. The bee outfit is fourteen miles from the railroad, away back in -the woods, and you can take your choice of driving over a fearfully -rocky trail or going up the river in a boat or tramping it. The bees -are on a deserted backwoods farm, where nobody has lived for nearly a -year. Goodness knows why anybody ever went there in the first place. -But the bees are there all right—a hundred and eighty colonies, all -packed outdoors in big sawdust cases. It was too cold to open the -hives, but the bees were flying and seemed in good shape. Very few, if -any, were dead. Then there’s a great heap of apparatus stored in the -barn, a honey-extractor, empty combs, supers for comb-honey, smokers—a -regular outfit, in fact.” - -“Yes, but the price?” demanded Carl, anxiously. - -“Fifteen hundred dollars.” - -“That settles it, then,” said Alice, with a disappointed sigh. - -“Oh, there’s such a thing as buying on easy terms,” returned Bob. -“Those bees belonged to a man who had no more sense than to try to -start a farm among the rocks. I’m certain he never made anything out -of the land, but he surely did have the right instinct for beekeeping. -He died sometime ago, his wife and children moved away, and I guess -everything he owned was mortgaged, including the bees. Anyway, the -whole outfit has come into the hands of the owner of the mortgage, who -lives at Morton—a queer character, if there ever was one. He doesn’t -know what to do with all those bees. Last summer he hired a man to -look after them, and the fellow either cheated or muddled, for old -Farr—that’s his name—told me that there wasn’t much money in bees, and -he thought of melting the combs all down for the wax. But he’d be glad -to sell them and take easy payments. - -“He’d let us keep them on the land rent-free, and he’d take five -hundred dollars cash down. When we sell the summer’s honey we pay -another five hundred dollars, and the rest in one year, with interest -at ten per cent., a chattel mortgage on the bees and positive -assurance that he’ll sell us out if we don’t come down with the money -on the required dates.” - -“Could we handle a hundred and eighty colonies? We’ve never had over a -dozen here, you know,” said Carl, dubiously. - -“I’ll guarantee that we could handle them. I’ll see to that!” cried -Alice. “But could we make the money?” - -“I believe we could,” said Bob, earnestly. “The woods up there are -full of solid masses of wild raspberry thickets for miles around, -where the timber has been cut or burned over. Nothing yields honey -like the raspberry bloom, they tell me. There’s lots of basswood, too. -Shouldn’t we be able to get a hundred pounds of honey to the hive, -Alice?” - -“It sounds to me as if we ought to. It depends on the weather, of -course.” - -“Well, at ten cents a pound wholesale, that makes eighteen hundred -dollars that we could count on this year, and next year we should get -far more, for the bees would have increased. Why,” he exclaimed, -growing enthusiastic, “I don’t see how we could possibly lose on it!” - -“No clover up there, I suppose?” asked Carl. - -“No, nor grass either. Nothing much but rocks and sand, hemlock and -jack-pine and birch, wild raspberries, and little lakes, and a deep -river that runs right through the bee farm.” - -“We’d camp out there!” exclaimed Alice. - -“No, there’s a log-house that we can live in. But I’ll tell you one -thing—living up there wouldn’t cost us much. I must have seen fifty -partridges on my way in, and the man that drove me told me that there -are lots of deer, and now and then a bear. Once in a while a moose -strays down from the North, and there must be ducks on the river. I -know it’s swarming with trout. Of course we’d be taking a chance on -the season. It’s generally either a feast or a famine with the bees—a -big crop or a failure—but what do you say?” - -“Take the chance! Take it!” cried Alice, jumping up in excitement. - -“It does seem too good a thing to lose,” said Carl. “But we hardly -want to exile ourselves up there in the north woods for years, do we?” - -“Why not? I think it would be glorious!” said his sister. “But we -don’t have to. The bees need to be looked after for only four or five -months of the year. They’ve been up there for over a year, with hardly -any attention at all, and they’ve got on all right. We can leave there -in October, sell our honey, and come back here, or go to the city, or -do anything—take a trip to Europe, if we’ve had a good season. Carl -can go to the university. Don’t you see that it’s the very thing for -us? It’s the solution of all our difficulties.” - -“The backwoods all summer, and the city in winter! It would give us -some variety in life, anyway,” said Carl. - -“Yes, and there’s no way of making money so nice as keeping bees. It’s -sweet and clean and honest. It’s kid-glove work, too, not muddy and -dirty, like farming. And it’s all scientific and fascinating. Every -colony has its own peculiar nature that has to be studied. Some you -can pet, and some you have to bully. No one could ever make any -success with bees who didn’t feel the fascination and wasn’t full of -the love of the thing.” - -“Well, you’ve got love of it enough to supply the rest of us, Alice, -though I believe we’d all like it,” said Bob. “But we mustn’t forget -that we can’t do anything without Mr. Ferguson’s consent. We’re -infants in the eyes of the law, and he’s our guardian.” - -It was too late to go to see Mr. Ferguson that evening, but they -talked over the scheme till nearly midnight. They went into all the -details and made calculations of their probable profits, till they had -worked themselves up into a high stage of enthusiasm. As Bob said, it -hardly seemed possible to lose. With a hundred and eighty colonies of -bees in a good honey district, they were sure to make some money; but -they began to feel desperately afraid that Mr. Ferguson could not be -made to see it in the same light. - -The next morning they went to see him in a body, primed with -arguments. To their delight, however, they found him by no means -obdurate. Their guardian was an elderly, shrewd farmer, who saw -clearly that the store could never be made to pay, and he had been -pondering for some time upon the best investment for the orphans’ -inheritance. He promptly advised them to make the best bargain with -the Elliott Brothers that they could, but the idea of the apiary came -upon him as a shock. - -“Fifteen hundred dollars worth of bees!” he said doubtfully. “A pretty -big order, ain’t it?” - -Alice and Carl plunged at him with arguments and examples. Mr. -Ferguson, however, knew the success that Alice had made with her bees, -and he was willing to listen, questioning them closely about probable -crops, prices, and risks. He seemed in a fair way to be convinced, but -refused to give any answer at once, saying that he was going to get -the opinion of a cousin of his near Toronto, who kept bees. This must -have been satisfactory, for within a few days he announced his -approval of the enterprise. - -Bob immediately went to Woodville and closed the deal with the -Elliotts. Now that their dream was changed to reality, it was -something of a wrench to the young Harmans, for the store seemed like -an inseparable part of home itself. But they had made up their minds -and they went through with it. Bob remained at home a little longer to -help take the inventory of stock and complete the formal transfer; and -then suddenly there was a new sign over the door that had been -“Harman’s” for more than fifty years. - -They also sold the ten acres of land. The house and the garden and -orchard they kept, for only the direst necessity would have made them -part with that. There was still a mortgage of $800 on it, but the -payments were easy and might be allowed to stand. When all their other -liabilities were paid up, they found themselves with a capital of -slightly over one thousand dollars, which was a little more than they -had expected. - -“When we’ve paid our first five hundred on the bees,” said Carl, -“we’ll have nearly six hundred left. That will be ample for us to live -on till the honey crop is sold, and after that there’ll be money to -burn!” - -Some of this capital, however, had to go toward Bob’s expenses in -Toronto. It was of the utmost importance that his studies should not -suffer, for he was virtually sure of a well-paid position after his -graduation. - -“But I can take a week or ten days off,” he said, “and come up and -help you get started. I’m well ahead with my work. We needn’t move up -there till the middle of May. My exams will be all over in June, and -then I can come up for the busy season with the bees. That will be -plenty of time, for the raspberries don’t blossom nearly so early up -there as they do farther south.” - -The next thing was to buy the bees, and this was arranged through Mr. -Ferguson and a lawyer at Morton. They paid five hundred dollars down, -and gave a mortgage on the apiary for the rest, covering whatever -number of hives of bees it might contain. This was a shrewd wording, -if not a tricky one, for it not only released the seller from any -responsibility as to the number of living colonies in the yard, but it -also covered any increase that might be made afterward. The bees were -not to be moved from the place without permission, and they were to -pay the second installment on August 1, by which time, they -calculated, the honey crop would be sold. - -Now that all was settled, Alice and Carl were impatient to be off. It -was hard to see Elliott’s sign over Harman’s store, to see the old -goods sold off at slaughter prices, and to see the new paint, -woodwork, and fresh stock that the old place was getting. Alice -declared that she would go all the way to Woodville rather than buy -anything next door. It was still early, however, to go into the north -woods, but, toward the end of April, Carl paid a flying visit to their -new property and came back full of enthusiasm. - -“I hadn’t time to look into many hives,” he said, “but I counted one -hundred and twenty colonies carrying in pollen in great shape. The -maples must be coming in flower, but everything looks pretty cold and -dismal up there still. The season seems fully a month later than here. -I looked into a few of the rest of the colonies. Some were flying a -little, and I found only three dead ones. On the whole, I think -they’re coming into first-class condition, and I believe we’ve got a -bargain.” - -Alice was more impatient than ever at this news, but a week of cold, -backward weather followed; there were many preparations to make, and -it was another two weeks before they finally made ready to leave for -the North. It was decided that Carl should go a couple of days ahead -of the others and try to make their quarters somewhat habitable. Alice -was to follow with Bob, and he once more interrupted his studies for a -week to come up and help with the last preparations. - -With great care and consultation they got together an outfit that was -slim for housekeeping or elaborate for camping, as one might choose to -regard it. Alice selected blankets, pillows, cooking utensils, and -tableware. Bob packed his fishing tackle and his rifle, a good 38.55 -caliber repeater, with plenty of cartridges. They took two hams and a -side of bacon from their own homecured stock, beans, two bags of -potatoes, flour, sugar, and other groceries, together with several -large loaves of fresh bread that Alice baked herself. Another package -had to be made of gardening implements; a hoe, a rake, and a spade, -and an abundance of different seeds. If she was going back to the -land, Alice said, she was going to do it thoroughly. - -An ax was needed, too, and a sharp hatchet, a saw and hammer and -assorted nails. In fact, there seemed to be no end to the things to be -taken—necessaries, all of them. One thing after another was forgotten -and remembered at the last minute—lamps and a washboard, soap, books, -a looking-glass, a pepper-box. In the end, they had three huge -packing-cases, and several small packages. Alice had cherished a dim -hope of being able to take a crate of her favorite White Leghorn hens -to supply them with fresh eggs, but she was forced to give that plan -up. - -They took the tools from the home apiary, but the dozen hives of bees -they left where they stood. On the last day Alice equalized them in -strength and put top stories of empty combs on all of them, so that -they could be left to themselves in comparative safety. - -Carl then left for Morton, taking with him a small trunk containing a -supply of cooked food, an ax, a hammer, his shot-gun and his fishing -rod. Alice and Bob gave him forty-eight hours’ start, and then shipped -their freight and took the train for the North. - -At leaving, they both felt a flood of homesick regret and misgiving. -Harman’s Corners was the only home they had ever known, and Alice’s -lips quivered, when she looked back from the buggy as they drove to -the station. Bob himself felt a sudden doubt as to whether he had been -right in proposing and urging the speculation. A bad season, a little -hard luck, and they would be utterly stranded and penniless. - -[Illustration: It was not without a secret feeling of misgiving that -Alice and Bob bade farewell to Harman’s Corners] - -But these forebodings gradually evaporated as the train went -northward, skirting Lake Simcoe, crossing the Muskoka country, running -hourly deeper into the rocky wilds. It was a slow local train and took -more than half a day to make the journey, so that it was late in the -afternoon when they at last stepped out upon the board platform of the -little Morton station. - -A sharp chill in the air reminded them that they had come a hundred -miles due north. Morton had once been a flourishing lumber town, -operating four sawmills, but the pine had long since been cut away, -and the place had greatly declined, like Harman’s Corners. It seemed -to consist of only a couple of dozen houses, two or three stores, and -a frame hotel. The dark evergreen forest apparently came close up to -the town in every direction, but Bob informed his sister that a few -determined farmers tried to get a living out of the rocky soil, and -several French half-breed families lived near the village, contriving -to support existence on a little lumbering, a little trapping, and a -little guiding. In November the district woke to temporary life, with -the influx of deer hunters from farther south. - -It was much too late in the day for Bob and Alice to think of driving -to the apiary, so they went to the little hotel, where, at this -season, they were the only guests. After engaging their rooms, they -proceeded to look up Mr. David Farr, who held the mortgage on the -bees. - -They found him in the post-office and store which he owned. He was -postmaster, and also, as they learned later, justice of the peace, -clerk of the township, and road inspector. Besides being the leading -merchant of the town, he bought furs and ginseng, dealt in local -mortgages, occasionally traded in timber, and had an interest in a -mica mine that was trying to succeed near the village. This last -speculation seemed to indicate a sort of sporting spirit, which was -perhaps what had induced him to lend money on so risky a security as a -yard of bees, even at ten per cent. interest. He was a little, -withered man, more than sixty years of age, with white hair, a -straggly beard, gimlet eyes, and a not unkindly mouth. - -“Well, here’s the young people that’s bought the bees,” he said, -wrinkling up his face into a dry smile. “You expect to make a fortune -outer ’em, hey, young lady? Well, I don’t say as you won’t. But you -won’t get what you expect to get. Folks never does, not in anything.” - -“Oh, we don’t expect much, Mr. Farr,” said Alice, laughing. - -“Now, don’t tell me that. You know you do. But it’s always best to -expect nothing and then be surprised and thankful. Now whenever you’re -in town, just come and see me, and I’ll do what I can to see you fixed -right.” - -“I’m sure you’re very kind—” Bob began. - -“No, I ain’t, neither. Don’t you look for no kindness from me. I want -to help you to get along, so’s you can pay me my money. Kindness and -business is separate things, and I always keep ’em separate. As I told -you, young man, if you don’t live up to the terms of the mortgage I’ll -seize you up the minute the law allows me. Now you both come along -home with me and have supper.” - -They had supper with Mr. Farr and his wife and slept at the hotel. -Next morning they found their freight boxes awaiting them at the -station, and hired a team to haul them to the apiary. It was the same -driver who had taken Carl out two days before, and he mentioned the -fact that Carl had borrowed his dog to keep him company till the -others came. As they were having their boxes and bales loaded on the -wagon, Mr. Farr strolled up to see them start, and he again impressed -upon them his intention of being absolutely relentless in case they -failed to keep to the strict terms of the sale. - -“And the old fellow means it, too,” said Bob, when they were off. -“He’ll sell us up in a minute if we don’t produce the cash on the -first of August. I fancy we needn’t fear him, but what a wretched old -skinflint he is!” - -“I don’t know,” said Alice, laughing. “I rather like him.” - -It was fourteen miles to the bee farm, and after the first mile from -the village the road grew terrible. In some places it was of corduroy -logs. It went up and down steep hills, and for long stretches it was -strewn with large, loose rocks, which made Alice’s tinware clash and -jangle in the boxes as the wagon lurched along. It was impossible to -go faster than a slow walk, and even then the riding was so rough that -Bob and Alice got down and walked for much of the way. - -The May morning was sunny and warm, and the highland air sparkling. -The road ran between dense, tangled masses of second-growth spruce and -hemlock, now and then broken by a wide burned slash, thick with -raspberry canes. These were just beginning to grow green, and the -young beekeepers looked at them with great interest, for their -fortunes depended on these prickly jungles. - -Now and then they caught a glimpse of a small lake. Several times -ruffed grouse rose with a roar and thunder behind the screen of -evergreens, and once their driver stopped to point out the slender, -delicate hoof-mark of a deer on a bit of sandy road. - -They had left Morton at eight in the morning. It was after noon, and -they were hungry, and tired with walking, and sore with riding, when -the driver pointed with his whip across the hemlocks. - -The trail curved suddenly. There was a desolate, stump-filled -clearing, with the squat forms of several log buildings at the other -end. All about them stood rows and rows of large, rude-looking boxes -painted dark red, and above the creaking of the wagon they caught a -deep, distant roar of insect wings. - -“Oh!” cried Alice, “the bees!” - - - - - CHAPTER II - - TROUBLE IN THE DARK - - -At first they saw nothing of Carl, but as the wagon lumbered up -through the stumpy clearing, he came dashing around the cabin with a -whoop of delight. He was carrying his shotgun and was accompanied by a -fox-terrier, which rushed to the wagon, barking loudly with joy. - -“Hurrah!” cried Carl. “I’ve been looking for you all day. Here’s your -dog,” he added to the wagoner. “Thanks. He’s been a great help to me.” - -“Carl!” Alice screamed. “What in the world is the matter with your -face?” - -“Haven’t been fighting with Jack, have you?” inquired the driver. “You -and him both look as if you’d been up against it.” - -Carl grinned rather sheepishly. His face was badly scratched. A long -strip of sticking-plaster extended from his ear to his chin, and there -was a crisscross of red lines across his cheek. His hands were marked -too; one thumb was tied up in a rag, and the white back of the -fox-terrier showed half a dozen deep, fresh scratches. - -“Oh, nothing,” he said, hastily. “Only skin-deep scratches. Nothing -but a bad scare, really. Got our freight all right? Want something to -eat?” he added, winking furiously at his brother as a hint to drop the -subject of his wounds. - -Bob took the hint, nudged Alice, and, though they were both full of -curiosity, they said no more, but busied themselves with taking the -load off the wagon and hauling the boxes inside the house. - -“Oh, what a delightful place!” cried Alice, at the doorway. “And how -frightfully dirty!” - -“Dirty?” returned Carl, indignantly. “You wouldn’t say that if you’d -seen it when I came. The whole place was full of dead leaves and -rubbish. The door had stood open all winter, I guess. I’ve been -cleaning it out ever since I got here, and I call it in pretty fair -shape, considering. Why, the chimney was full of dead leaves and old -birds’ nests. There was a family of squirrels living in the roof, and -down under the floor there was—well, I’ll tell you later,” he added in -a whisper. - -“I don’t want to wait,” complained Alice, peering curiously about the -place that was to be their home for the next few months. - -The building was about twenty feet wide and thirty long, and was -divided across the middle by a partition of boards. One of the rooms -so formed was evidently the main living-room and kitchen; the other -was subdivided into two small bedrooms. Each of these contained, by -way of furniture, a rough wooden bunk and a large shelf fastened to -the wall, which might serve as a dressing-table. - -The large room had a big fireplace of rough stone, with a fire that -Carl had lighted still smouldering. The floor was of planks, and at -one point stained and splintered, as if by a gun-shot. It had been a -rather well-made cabin, and the logs were chinked with lime plaster, -but much of the chinking had fallen out, and the cracks yawned wide. -There were two windows in the larger room, and one in each of the -small ones, with a good deal of their glass remaining. A ladder -ascended to a black hole in the ceiling that formed the entrance to a -loft under the rafters. Dust and soot were on the log walls, and a -decided odor of smoke clung about the whole place. - -“Everything is all right now,” Carl assured them. “And the bees are in -splendid shape. I’ve been looking at them. Now I know this man wants -to start back to Morton as soon as he has rested his horses a little, -so as to get home before dark, and I propose that we all have -something to eat.” - -“Good idea!” said Bob. “I’ll open the box that has our provisions in -it.” - -“Hold on. I’ve got something better than that!” cried his brother. -“Just come with me.” And he led the way around the cabin to an old -rain-water barrel that stood beneath a trough from the eaves. It was -half full of water, and, as they bent over it, there was a swirl and a -flash of orange below the surface. - -“Twenty-seven trout!” said Carl. “I caught ’em all in about an hour -and a half this morning, and put ’em here to keep alive till you came. -One of ’em must weigh four pounds. I tell you, we won’t starve here -till the river runs dry.” - -“Fried trout and bacon! Splendid!” exclaimed Alice. “Get out about -three pounds of those fish, Carl, and clean them. I’ll build up the -fire, while Bob gets out the frying-pan and all the eatables he can -find.” - -In less than an hour they had their first wilderness meal, which their -appetites would have made delicious, even if Alice had been a worse -cook than she was. The fried trout, rolled in meal, were excellent; so -was the bacon and homemade bread; and if there was a shortage of forks -and plates, and neither chairs nor table, nobody minded it at all. - -As soon as they had finished, the driver started back toward Morton, -followed by the fox-terrier. The three apiarists were left alone on -their new kingdom, and Alice at once fixed expectant eyes upon Carl. - -“Now tell us about it,” she demanded. “What on earth happened to you -before we came, and what was the horrible thing you found under the -floor of the house?” - -Carl smiled in the same uneasy fashion as before, and touched his -wounded face tenderly. - -“I didn’t want that fellow to hear it,” he explained, “for it’s a -queer sort of thing, and very likely he’d have thought it was a lie. -It’s rather a joke on me, too, though it didn’t seem funny at the -time. I don’t think I was ever so scared in my life. - -“We were late in getting off from Morton, and had delays on the -way,—one of the tires came off,—so that it was nearly sunset when we -got here. It was a chilly, dark evening, and looked like rain. The old -shanty was about the dreariest-looking place I ever saw. I’d seen it -before, but it looked different in the sunshine. The door was standing -open, half-blocked by a great drift of leaves and rubbish. The chimney -wouldn’t draw; it was choked with birds’ nests, and, of course, there -wasn’t a stick of furniture in the place. - -“The driver was in a hurry to start back, for he wanted to get home -before midnight, and he helped me to carry my trunk inside, and got -ready to go. I didn’t like it; I hadn’t any taste at all for being -left there all alone, and I proposed that he leave Jack, the terrier -you saw, to keep me company. I knew you would be coming out in a -couple of days, and the dog could be sent back. - -“So we tied Jack up in the house, and the man went off. I cleared away -the leaves so that the door would shut and got in some firewood for -the night and poked out the chimney with a pole, so that I could make -a fire without being choked with smoke. Then I opened the trunk and -got out the grub that I’d brought. - -“A bright fire made all the difference in the world, and the house -didn’t seem so lonely. Jack was awfully interested in a broken hole in -the floor, and I thought a groundhog probably had its den under there. -I called him and untied him, and we ate bread and cold ham, sitting on -my trunk in front of the fire, and were quite comfortable. - -“All my bones were sore with the rough ride out from Morton, and I -felt sleepy. It wasn’t long after dark when I made up a pile of dead -leaves and old spruce twigs from one of the bunks in the bedroom, and -lay down on my blanket. I was tired, but I couldn’t go to sleep. I -felt nervous and on the alert. I fancied I heard something moving -under the house, and Jack kept startling me by constantly bristling up -and growling. I was awfully glad I had him, though, and I was glad I -had my gun. I had it standing loaded against the trunk.” - -“Goodness! I wouldn’t have spent the night alone in this place, not -for—for a million hives of bees,” said Alice, shuddering. - -“Well, I don’t know that I would have either, if there had been any -chance to get away,” Carl admitted. “But I had to stay, and at last I -did go to sleep. I must have slept soundly, too, for I woke in a kind -of daze at hearing Jack bark. The fire had almost burned out; there -was just a glimmer from the coals. I couldn’t see anything, but off in -the corner Jack was barking furiously. - -“I thought he had found a rat. I was sleepy and cross and called him -to come back. He must have thought I was encouraging him, for I heard -him make a rush. There was an awful snarling, and a yowl like a scared -cat’s, and a wild rough-and-tumble scrimmage across the floor in the -dark. I jumped up, wide awake, you can bet, just as Jack broke away -and rushed back to me. He seemed to have been whipped. He was whining -and trembling all over. - -“Then from the other side of the room I heard a sort of purring growl, -exactly like that of a fighting tom-cat, rising into a squall every -few bars. I couldn’t see anything, but after a while I made out a pale -greenish pair of spots, like eyes. - -“I felt pretty sure that it must be a lynx that had strayed into the -shanty somehow, and now that the shock was over I wasn’t so much -scared. A lynx isn’t very savage, nor very hard to kill, they say. I -reached around for the gun, and when I cocked it with a click the -beast squalled again. I aimed square between the shining eyes and -pulled down. - -“The flash half blinded me. The place seemed full of smoke, and Jack -charged through it, barking. I heard something rush across the floor, -and Jack followed it into the little room. - -“I wanted a light badly. I tried to poke up the fire, but it was too -nearly out. I lighted a match. The floor was torn up with shot and -spattered with blood, just as you see it, but there wasn’t any dead -lynx. I got a glimpse of Jack at the door of the bedroom, barking and -looking back, and then my match went out. - -“I put in another shell and lighted another match. Jack ventured -further into the room when I came to the door. I couldn’t see -anything, and stepped inside. The match burned out and dropped, and I -was feeling for another when something hit me on the -shoulder—something alive. - -“It was like a small flying tiger. Before I knew it I had got this rip -down my cheek, and then two or three more. I felt the soft, cool fur -against my neck, and it’s a wonder it didn’t rip my throat open.” - -“What on earth was it?” cried Alice, excitedly. - -“I didn’t know myself,” returned the narrator. “It was too small for a -lynx, but I was fairly cowed by its ferocity. I grabbed it and tried -to throw it off. It bit me half through the thumb, but I managed to -tear it loose from my coat and fling it down. It mixed up with Jack; -there was an awful howling, but I was making for the door. - -“I didn’t stop till I was outside, and Jack wasn’t long after me. He’d -been beaten again. It was pitch-dark and raining a little, and I -cooled down, and the rain washed the blood off my face. - -“I thought at first that I wouldn’t go into that house again till -daylight, but I gradually got my nerve back. I wanted to find out what -sort of beast it was that was living in our cabin. Besides, I didn’t -want to spend the rest of the night outdoors in the rain. It wasn’t -quite one o’clock. I looked at my watch with a match.” - -“You might have gone to the barn,” Bob suggested. - -“It never occurred to me. Anyhow, I ventured back to the cabin again. -Everything was quiet. I got to the fireplace and made a blaze of dead -leaves. It lighted up the whole place, but there was no sort of animal -in sight, though I couldn’t see much into the small room. - -“So I made up a torch of spruce branches and tiptoed up to the bedroom -door again, with my gun ready and the torch in front. Jack charged in -ahead of me. I could see well this time. The snarling growl began -again, and there on the shelf beside the head of the bunk was a cat.” - -“What, a wildcat?” Bob exclaimed. - -“Tame wild cat. No, I mean a wild, tame cat. Anyway, it was wild -enough for anything. Its fur stood on end all over its body, making it -look almost huge. Its ears twitched; its tail snapped; its eyes fairly -blazed; and it kept up that singing snarl all the time. It seemed to -be paying more attention to the dog than to me, and Jack took precious -good care not to come too close. - -“At the next glance I saw another cat, a Maltese one, lying dead on -the floor. That must have been the one I shot at. Then it struck me -that I was up against a whole family, and I looked around for more of -them. There was another in a dark corner, with its back arched and its -tail puffed like a feather boa. But that one seemed to want to hide -more than fight, and I couldn’t see any more. - -“I couldn’t help grinning to think how scared I had been by a cat. -These brutes must have belonged to the last people who lived here, and -they had been running wild ever since. I didn’t want to shoot them. I -like cats myself, but not that kind, and I had to get them out of the -house for the sake of peace and quiet the rest of the night.” - -“I expect the poor wretches were half starved. You might have tamed -them, Carl,” Alice suggested. - -“I’d like to have seen you calling ‘Kitty, kitty,’ to that snarling -young tiger perched on the shelf. No, I threw lumps of wood and bark. -When that did no good, I took a loaded shell out of my pocket and -threw it as hard as I could. That hit the beast on the back, and it -made a leap and lighted square on top of Jack. He had come up too -close. - -“For a minute all I could see was a tangle of white and gray fur, -spinning like a wheel, making every imaginable sort of dog and cat -fighting noise. The second cat joined in with its noise, and the -uproar was something awful. But Jack was no match for the cat. He -broke away with a howl, and rushed behind me. - -“The cat jumped after him, blind with rage. I kicked at it, and the -beast fastened on my trousers, scratching and biting like a demon. I -hit it with the gun-butt, and beat it with the torch. Fire flew in all -directions. The cat let go at that, but a lot of dry leaves on the -floor caught fire and flashed up, and in a moment the whole place was -full of smoke. - -“I rushed out again, with Jack in front. At the door I stumbled over -something soft that snarled at me. When I was fairly outside I looked -back. The small room seemed all on fire, and I began to wonder what -Mr. Farr would say if I burned his cabin down on the first night. But -the flame was only from light stuff; it didn’t catch on the logs, and -in a few minutes the place was dark again. - -“I felt pretty certain that the cats were driven out, but I had no -idea of going back to see. I knew when I was licked, and I think Jack -felt the same way. Then I remembered the barn and I stumbled down -there through the beehives. It was a pretty rough place, but it was -dry and there weren’t any cats. In the morning I went back to the -cabin and cleaned up the mess.” - -“Find any more cats there?” Bob inquired. - -“Only the dead one.” - -“What was it like?” - -“Just a big, gray tom-cat. The biggest I ever saw, though. It must -have weighed twenty pounds. The fur was badly scorched off, or I think -I’d have skinned it.” - -“Cats go wild very easily,” Bob remarked. “It’s common enough for a -cat to take to the woods. They’re never more than half-tamed animals -at the best.” - -“It’s no wonder the poor brutes were savage, after living here for a -year, and all through the winter too,” said Alice. “If I ever see any -more of them I’ll try to tame them.” - -“I wish you luck,” said Carl, ironically. “But these cats weren’t poor -brutes. They’d been living on the fat of the land. I found the hole -through the floor into their den underneath, and I took up a plank. -There were gnawed bones of rabbits and partridges there, and all sorts -of game. Very likely a litter of kittens had been raised there. If -they don’t get killed, there’ll soon be a new breed of wild animal up -in these woods.” - -“You had an awful time, Carl,” said Bob. “And I’m sure we’re properly -grateful to you for clearing out the wild beasts before we came up. -But you really ought not to have come here alone. I never thought of -danger, but there might have been a lynx or bear in the cabin.” - -“Nothing could have been worse than what there was. However, my -scratches didn’t go very deep, and I had some sticking-plaster in my -trunk. Never mind the cats. Let’s go out and look at the bees.” - -“Yes, let’s see them, and then I want to explore the whole place!” -exclaimed Alice. - -Both the boys had examined the bees before, but this was Alice’s first -good look at the apiary, for there had been time for only a hasty -glance before dinner. They walked down the rows of hives, through -clouds of flying bees that were too busy to be bad-tempered. The hives -were arranged in long rows between the house and the barn, facing the -southern sun, and there were seven of these rows of great, red, winter -cases holding two or three hives each. As far as outside appearances -went, the bees appeared to be in good condition. They were flying -thickly from the small winter entrance-holes, and coming in by scores -with balls of greenish-yellow willow pollen on their legs. This -profuse pollen-gathering is always a good sign. It shows that there is -a queen in the hive, and a big brood to be fed on this “bee-bread,” -and this means a multitude of workers for the still-distant harvest. - -Alice lifted the heavy cover of one of the cases. It was packed with -sawdust to the height of the enclosed hives, and on the top of each of -the two colonies was placed a large, thick cushion of burlap, packed -with chaff, to keep the warmth down. - -Alice raised the cushion and peeled back the canvas quilt covering the -frames. A gush of bees boiled up, taking wing instantly and circling -about with an angry “biz-z!” Two or three dashed against the girl’s -face, but did not actually sting, for a bee must be driven to absolute -frenzy before it makes up its mind to sting and die. But Alice closed -the hive hastily, and they all moved on to a more peaceful quarter. - -“These bees are blacks and nervous in their temper,” said Carl, -laughing. “You can’t handle them like your Italians.” - -“We’ll tame them,” Alice returned. “But did you notice the shape that -colony was in. It was boiling full of bees from one side to the other. -Black or not, it’ll get ten dollars’ worth of honey if there is any -bloom in the woods this summer.” - -“Oh, lots of them are like that,” Carl assured her. “See how they’re -carrying pollen. But we must have a regular overhauling,—open every -hive and go through it to see if they have honey enough to carry them -through the spring, and what kind of queens they have, and everything. -We must keep track of the internal condition of each one.” - -“What! The state of every single hive?” exclaimed Bob. “Why, nobody -could remember it.” - -“If you’re going to be an apiarist, Bob, you must use the right -terms,” corrected Alice, laughing. “Colony, not hive. The hive is -merely the box that the colony lives in. Oh, yes, a good bee-keeper -knows the condition of every colony. It makes it easier to have them -all numbered, and then a record can be kept in a note-book. We should -do that.” - -“Fine training for bad memories, I should think,” Bob remarked. “Now -down here in the barn is all the miscellaneous bee-stuff. Let’s have a -look at it and see if we’ve got value for our money.” - -The barn was some thirty yards from the house. It was also built of -logs and was not very much bigger. Although small, however, it was -probably large enough to hold any crops that farm ever produced. Part -of it was partitioned off, floored with planks, and seemed to have -been used as a stable. In this compartment was piled an enormous, -disorderly heap of bee-supplies: extracting and comb-honey supers, -empty combs and frames, several galvanized honey tanks, an extractor, -some worn-out veils, a smoker, and an immense lot of odds and ends. - -“I pulled this stuff around considerably when I was looking over it -yesterday,” said Carl. “That’s why it’s in such a mess now. Seems to -me we got our money’s worth, if quantity counts for anything.” - -“A lot of it is probably worthless. Once it was a good working outfit, -I suppose,” said Bob, as they contemplated the mass. “But it’ll all -have to be overhauled, sorted, and cleaned up. That’ll be work for you -when I’m gone.” - -“Work for a week, I should think,” said Alice. “But I’ll enjoy it. I -expect to find all sorts of surprises in that pile. We’ll come back to -it again, anyway, but what we really must do first is to set our house -in order. Remember, we haven’t a stick of furniture.” - -“Oh, Bob and I can soon knock together some benches and tables,” -remarked Carl. “There are some good pine boards here in the barn. We -have bunks to sleep in, and we can put up some more shelves, and -that’s all we’ll need, for we’ll be outdoors virtually all the time -when we aren’t asleep.” - -But before attempting to do anything with the house, they explored the -rest of their domain, or part of it, for they did not attempt to -penetrate far into the woods. The farm was said to contain eighty -acres, but not twenty were cleared, and none of it was fenced. In -fact, the new tenants never did know exactly where the boundaries of -their property were. The forest hemmed them in; as far as they knew, -they had no neighbors nearer than Morton, and they could not imagine -why the original settler had even chosen that remote and sterile place -for a homestead. - -“Probably he didn’t know how bad the land was until he cleared it,” -Bob suggested. - -About twenty yards behind the cabin was the White River, lined with -blossoming willows and alders, now full of humming bees. The river was -deep and nearly a hundred feet wide. It ran down to Morton and would -have afforded an excellent water-route to the village, if they had had -a boat. - -The settlers had cleared ten acres in front of the house, removed half -the stumps, and had apparently tried to grow oats there. Nearer the -house was a spot that had been a vegetable garden; a few onions were -still sprouting wild. Nearer the house, to Alice’s joy, hollyhocks -were coming up, and a bed of hardy ribbon grass persisted. - -After this inspection, work commenced in earnest. They built a great -fire on the hearth, and Alice filled all the available pots and pans -with water to heat. Meanwhile the boys brought up the lumber from the -barn, got out their tools, and gave themselves to furniture-making. It -was a busy afternoon, and by evening they were all dead tired, but the -cabin was transformed. - -Alice had swept and scrubbed it and cleaned down the walls and -ceiling. The holes in the walls were closed with fresh chinking of -clay and moss, and the broken windows partly protected with pieces of -board. Carl and Bob had constructed several stout benches, a table -that was strong and solid if not beautiful, and had put up shelves on -the wall. A brilliant fire of pine-knots flamed in the clean -fireplace, and a few gay lithographs decorated the wall. For further -decoration, their guns, rods, and saucepans hung beside the chimney. - -The small rooms had been cleaned out likewise. The low, board bunks -were filled with fresh spruce and balsam twigs, warranted to cure the -worst insomnia, and the blankets and pillows were spread over these -forest mattresses. A small bench completed the bedroom furniture, for, -in true pioneer fashion, they were all to wash in a tin basin on a -wooden block outside the door. Here too was the family mirror and -comb, but Alice had a small private looking-glass in her room. - -The boys promised to construct some kind of pantry or cupboard for the -provisions as soon as they had the time, but it was too late to do any -more that afternoon. They contemplated the result of their labors with -great satisfaction, and really the old cabin looked like a very -homelike place. Trout and bacon and eggs were sizzling in the -frying-pan; the teakettle hummed, and when the supper was finally -spread upon the new plank table they all attacked it with the -appetites of true foresters. - -They helped Alice to clear away and wash the dishes and built up a -blazing fire, for the evening was cool. But they were too tired to sit -long before it. Conversation flagged; one by one they nodded, and -before nine o’clock Carl announced with a yawn that he had to go to -bed. - -“No fear of cats to-night, I suppose,” suggested Bob. - -“Not a bit,” replied Carl, sleepily. “They can’t get through the door -or windows even if they should want to come back, and I closed the way -into their den under the house.” - -Lighting candles, they retired to their rooms, and Carl, at any rate, -was hardly on the _sapin_ bed when he was asleep. It seemed to him -that he had slept only a few minutes, though it was really two hours, -when he was sharply awakened by a hand on his shoulder. He sat up, -startled and dazed, and saw Alice standing beside him with a lighted -candle. She looked wide-eyed and frightened. - -“Get up, Carl,” she whispered. “There’s something outside, among the -beehives. I was so frightened.” - -“One of those beastly cats again, I suppose,” said Carl, shaking Bob -awake. - -“No, nothing like a cat. I couldn’t sleep well. I was nervous, and I -thought I heard something stirring outside. I looked out the window, -and I saw something dim and big and black—like a bear.” - -“A bear!” exclaimed Bob, clutching for his rifle, which he had brought -into the bedroom with him. - -A few moments later they all sallied into the bee-yard. There was no -moon, but the starlight was so brilliant that it was not very dark. -The rows of silent beehives looked weird and strange, but nothing -stirred among them. They searched the whole clearing in vain. There -was no trace of any living thing, and at last they went back to the -cabin. It was nearly midnight, and cold, and they built up the fire -and warmed themselves. - -The boys were sure that Alice had been dreaming, but she was positive -that she had both seen and heard some animal, and, in fact, was so -nervous that they had difficulty in persuading her to go back to bed -again. For some time, indeed, they were all wakeful and alert, but -they slept at last. Shortly after daylight they were up again, and the -first thing they did was to make another search of the ground among -the hives. Sure enough, in a sandy corner of the yard Carl came upon a -track. It was not very distinct, but it looked as if a bear might have -made it. - -“I was sure of it!” cried Alice, triumphantly. - -“I believe it is a bear track,” said Bob. “If we’d only got a sight of -him last night! But we must look out. A bear in this bee ranch might -ruin us in one night. All this honey would seem to him like a gold -mine.” - -“Or a forest of bee-trees,” added Carl. “Yes, I think we ought to keep -a fire burning in the yard every night, even if we have to get up two -or three times to make it up. But isn’t it wonderful that this apiary -hasn’t been destroyed long ago, if there are bears about?” - -The morning air was sharp. No bees were flying till after nine -o’clock. It was Friday, and Bob had to go back to Toronto on Monday, -so that it was necessary to unpack the bees and go through them all if -they were to have his help at this long and heavy task. - -They decided to unpack them first, as it would be easier to examine -them after they were out of the cumbersome winter cases, and after -breakfast the boys began to bring out the wooden, summer hive covers -that were stored in the barn with the rest of the supplies. Meanwhile -Alice lighted two smokers and got the hats and veils ready. There were -canvas gloves that they had brought from home, too, in case the bees -should prove especially cross, and with all this apparatus they went -out, ready for the first work on the new apiary. - -The winter cases usually held two colonies, and were resting on stands -of two by four scantling. Alice puffed on the smoker bellows till a -strong white cloud poured from the nozzle, and then blew a strong -blast into the entrance hole of each of the two hives in the first -case. Panic-stricken, the bees rushed inside, and the boys at once -dragged the heavy case a few feet out of the way. Lifting the cover, -they threw off the cushions, and then lifted the hives out of the -cases, setting them down so that the flying bees would find their -entrances exactly where they had stood before. For a bee’s homing -instinct depends mainly on location. A worker will come back three -miles straight to her hive, but if that hive is pushed three feet -aside, she may spend hours in trying to find it. - -It was hard work. The cases were made of heavy lumber, and the boys -had to carry them away and stack them up neatly. Even when the hives -were out, the cases, with their sawdust packing, were as much as they -cared to handle. - -And this juggling with their homes naturally irritated the bees -greatly. The summer hives, different in shape and color from the cases -that they had been used to, did not look homelike to them. They failed -to recognize them. They hung about uncertainly in the air; they tried -to enter cases that had not yet been unpacked; and this caused -fighting with the guards. Some of them followed the big red cases and -tried to enter them again. They grew vicious and stung, so that the -apiarists had to put on their gloves. But by degrees a few began to -recognize the odor of their old homes, and set up the peculiar whirr -that acts as a call to the whole colony. They flocked down on the -entrances in clouds, and stood with heads down and wings vibrating -fast in the air—fanning, as bee-keepers call it—which is their -invariable way of expressing great joy. - -Alice left the canvas quilts over the hives, but put on the summer -board covers, and then they all went on to the next. - -“These hives seem to me awfully light,” said Bob, as he lifted out the -box with its bees. “They surely can’t have much honey.” - -“I hope we don’t have to feed them,” Alice said, apprehensively. -“Never mind; we’ll find out to-morrow. Let’s get them all unpacked -to-day.” - -Packing and unpacking the hives in fall and spring is the most -monotonous and heavy task of the whole season, mere hard, fatiguing -work, unrelieved as it is by any interest of skill and science. The -young Harmans did not finish the job till nearly dusk, and the boys’ -backs and arms ached when they carried the last case away. But the -yard looked more like an apiary now, and its owners contemplated it -with pride. - -The summer hives were sixteen by twenty inches in size, and a little -less than a foot deep. They were not painted white, as is usual with -bee-hives, but were all sorts of colors, red, green, brown, yellow, -giving the apiary a highly cheerful and picturesque effect. Either the -former owner had had a lively taste for color, or else he had used -whatever paint he happened to have on hand. - -That night they kept a fire between the rows of hives, and Bob got up -once to replenish it. He heard nothing stir, and in the morning there -were no fresh tracks. He predicted that a bear would never again -venture so near a dwelling, even with the temptation of unlimited -honey. - -Both the boys had stiff muscles that morning, but they had planned to -inspect the bees thoroughly that day, and determined to go through -with it. It promised to be a fine day, and the bees were getting -enough honey to make them good-tempered; so they could be handled -easily. - -“I’m going to show you whether I can’t handle these black bees as -painlessly as Italians,” said Alice when they went out, and she -stopped before the first hive in the row. She was wearing the usual -black-fronted veil, but no gloves, and she pulled her sleeves high up -on her wrists. - -The colony was a strong one, with scores of bees coming and going. -Alice gently blew a little smoke across the entrance, driving in the -guards; then she blew a stronger puff. A frightened roar arose within. -Panic spread through the hive instantly, for smoke is the only thing -that bees fear. Alice waited half a minute and then removed the cover -and pulled off the canvas quilt. - -A flood of bees surged up between the frames, but she drove them down -with a puff of smoke before they could take wing. Another strong puff, -and she set down the smoker, and with a screw-driver pried loose the -outside frame, next to the hive wall. - -It came out hard, for the frames had probably been moved very little -for over a year, and the bees had glued them fast. When she lifted it -out it was covered with a close layer of black bees, who did not -remain quiet on the combs like Italians, but scurried here and there, -gathered in clusters, and tumbled off on the ground in knots. They ran -over Alice’s bare hands, but were too thoroughly subdued to sting. - -The comb was almost wholly filled with brood, sealed over with brown -wax in the center, and the younger brood in a circle around this, -looking like glistening white worms coiled at the bottom of each cell. -In answer to a question from Bob, Carl explained that the egg laid by -the queen hatches into a larva in three days. For seven days the -rapidly-growing grub is fed incessantly by the bees, and then sealed -over with wax to spin its cocoon and undergo its metamorphosis, -hatching in eleven days more into a fully-developed bee. - -Alice set down the frame, after looking to see that the queen was not -upon it, and took out another. This was similarly full of brood, with -a narrow rim of honey along the top. All the rest of the ten frames -showed much the same condition, except the one next to the other wall -of the hive, half of which was filled with fresh pollen, and half with -newly gathered honey. - -“This colony must be fed,” said Alice, replacing the last frame and -closing the hive. “It’s got a splendid force of bees and heaps of -brood, but a week of rainy weather would starve it to death. But what -do you think of the way I can handle cross bees? I didn’t get a -sting.” - -“Highly scientific, but too slow,” said Carl. “At your rate we’d be -two or three days going through the yard. I think I’ll put on gloves -for to-day, so that we can get through them faster.” - -In fact, Alice had been obliged to move with the utmost deliberation, -stopping frequently to use the smoker afresh, and it was slow work. So -Carl put on the sting-proof bee-gloves, with sleeves halfway to the -elbow and half the fingers cut off, took the other smoker, and began -work on the next row. Bob, who was not skilled at bee manipulation, -acted as assistant to both of them, fetching and carrying the things -that the two experts needed. - -Carl had no need of gloves for the first colony he opened. Instead of -a crowded mass of bees, only a little cluster showed between the two -center combs. Lifting one of them out, he spied the queen at once, -walking over a small patch of brood about three inches in diameter. -There were bees enough to cover only one comb well, and they were all -huddled in this central space, trying desperately to build up their -colony. These were yellow bees, at least half-bred Italians. - -“Will they live?” asked Bob, peering into the pathetic little colony. - -“Oh, yes, they’ll come on, but probably far too late to do anything at -gathering honey this season,” Carl answered. “By the time they’ve -built up strong the honey-flow will be over.” - -A moment later Alice uttered an exclamation from the hive she had just -opened. - -“Here’s something wrong!” - -Carl and Bob went to look. The colony was of about one-fourth its -normal strength, and the bees, instead of being clustered on the -combs, were running and scattering in every direction. Despite the -smoke they boiled out of the hive, making a peculiar distressful hum, -not easily described. - -“Queenless, for certain!” Carl exclaimed, recognizing these -indications. - -And, indeed, when the combs were taken out one by one there was no -sign of either eggs or brood. The queen must have perished in the -winter. These bees were all old ones from the last season, and they -had no possibility of rearing any young. In a little while longer they -would all have died, and they were well aware of their desperate -state. They were intensely nervous and fierce-tempered, yet their -indomitable instinct for work had led them to keep gathering honey. As -they had no brood to feed it to, and adult bees eat little, they had -accumulated almost two combs full of fresh honey from the willows and -maples. - -“Unite them with that weak colony I found just now,” Carl proposed. - -“Just what I was going to do,” Alice returned. - -Carl uncovered the weak colony again, while Bob pried off the bottom -from the queenless one. Alice blew a little smoke on both colonies, -then Bob carefully lifted the queenless hive and set it on top of the -other, making a hive in two stories, with two sets of combs. - -At first there was a little disturbance as the bees from the two -colonies mixed. Several bees rolled out at the entrance, fighting -furiously. Then all was quiet; a contented hum arose within. Lifting a -corner of the quilt cautiously, Carl saw the queenless bees standing -head downward on their combs, fanning with joy at finding themselves -attached to a normal family. - -“Now those two together should build up and do something, and neither -of them would have been any good alone,” said Alice, with -satisfaction. - -After these two bad colonies, they came to a long series of good ones, -crammed with bees and brood, though nearly all light in honey. Then -they found a dead one, with the bees still in clusters on the moldy -combs. These contained not a drop of honey; probably the insects had -starved. Taking out a comb, Alice pointed out how the bees had crawled -deep into the cells, in order to make an unbroken block of heat during -the winter, thus making the empty combs almost a solid mass of -insects. In very cold weather a strong colony, filling a hive, will -crowd itself into a cluster no bigger than a cocoanut. - -They worked all that morning, stopped for an hour at noon, and went at -it again. By evening they had finished the inspection, and were -decidedly disappointed. - -Of the one hundred and eighty colonies, ten were dead. Fifteen others -were without queens and had to be united at once with normal colonies. -From more than twenty hives they had found one or more frames of comb -missing. It was impossible to say whether these had been omitted by -the former owner, or whether they had been abstracted since. About -twenty more colonies were very weak in bees, and would hardly breed up -to full strength in time to gather much honey from raspberries. But -more than a hundred colonies were strong; some of them indeed were -almost overflowing the hive already, and would have to be given more -room soon if swarming was to be prevented. - -But the worst feature was the shortage of honey. Without an abundance -of food in the hive, bees will not rear brood in profusion in the -spring, which results in a weakened condition for the harvest. A -strong colony needs about twenty pounds of honey to carry it through -this critical time, and few had as much as that. Some had only a small -patch of fresh willow honey; plainly they were living only from day to -day, and much of the brood would perish if a spell of cold or rainy -weather should come. To put the bees into strong condition they would -have to be fed. It would take nearly a thousand pounds of honey to go -around, and this new expense would be a hard strain to bear. - -It was hard also to face the fact that their profits would have to -come from less than one hundred and fifty colonies instead of one -hundred and eighty, though they might have known that some were -certain to be dead or queenless. - -“It wasn’t really a heavy winter loss,” said Alice, “yet with one -thing and another, it does look like a poor chance of clearing -eighteen hundred dollars.” - -“Lucky if we make a thousand,” answered Carl. “If the season should be -a poor one, perhaps nothing at all.” - -They were all rather tired and despondent. They had rushed into the -enterprise full of enthusiasm, and only now did they begin to realize -the obstacles ahead of them. - -The next day was Sunday. The weather was still fair, and the bees were -still busy in the willows and maples. For some reason, in the peaceful -May sunshine, the future looked a little brighter to the Harmans. If -the good honey-flow from the willows continued, they might not have to -feed after all, or, at any rate, not half so much as they had feared. - -There was no necessary work to be done that day, and they were glad of -the rest. They watched the bees work in the forenoon; they read and -lounged lazily in the sun; and in the afternoon they went for a stroll -up the river bank. - -The stream was lined everywhere with willows and alders, all in flower -and roaring with bees. Trout leaped from the water; once they scared -up a pair of wild ducks, that went off with a great splashing and -flutter. Several times they saw muskrats navigating along close to the -shore, the apex of a long V ripple on the water, and once in a rick of -drift logs they caught a glimpse of the slender, graceful form of a -mink just diving into a hole. - -“I’ll bet there’s lots of fur up here,” said Bob. “I tell you, I -believe that if I fail in my exams, or if anything goes wrong, I’ll -come up here and stay all winter trapping. I could have got six -dollars for the pelt of that mink. It might pay better than keeping -bees.” - -“Why, I’d like that above all things!” Alice exclaimed. “We’d hunt and -snowshoe, and we could skate right down the river to Morton.” - -“We could lay in provisions, salt down two or three deer, and hundreds -of wild ducks and partridges,” added Carl, with interest. - -“Yes, and trout, too. Or perhaps we could catch them through the ice. -We could pick and dry raspberries this summer, and I’d make jam—only -how would I buy the sugar? Anyhow, we’d have all the honey we could -eat, and in the spring we could make maple syrup. I think it would -simply be immense. But I’m afraid we’ll have so much money that we -won’t have to do it!” she added, with a sigh. - -“I wouldn’t be so sure of it,” said Bob. “But by the time I get back I -suppose we can tell how the game is going to go.” - -Bob had to go back to his classes in the morning, and they spent that -evening earnestly discussing the plan of campaign. The bees would have -to be left entirely in the care of Carl and Alice till Bob could -return, but the heaviest part of the season would probably not come -till after that time. They made out a list of some necessary apiary -supplies, which Bob was to order in Toronto, and found it hard to -order what they needed, without spending more than they could afford. -At the same time they prepared an order for half a dozen Italian -queens to be mailed by a well-known breeder in the southern states. - -“And I’ll buy one good, three-dollar breeding queen,” said Alice. “I -won’t be satisfied till I see this whole yard Italianized. The Italian -bees are gentler and better workers, and if we ever wanted to sell the -outfit again, we would get twice as much for it if it was all -thoroughbred stock.” - -Early the next morning Bob set out to walk to Morton for the train, -and Carl accompanied him to order lumber for making new hives at the -local planing-mill. It was late in the afternoon when he returned with -the same driver and wagon that had been there several times before, -and Jack accompanied them, appearing to have pleasant recollections of -the place. Carl brought, besides the lumber, three hundred-pound sacks -of sugar, some groceries and provisions, and something else that he -threw down at Alice’s feet with a loud clanking of metal. - -“What do you think of that?” he exclaimed. “If any midnight marauder -gets into that, I think he’ll stay with us.” - -It was an enormous bear trap, that Carl had picked up cheap at -second-hand. Rusty and savage-looking, it was a formidable affair, -with sharp-toothed jaws and double springs that had to be set with the -aid of a lever. - -“Good gracious! what a cruel, horrible thing!” exclaimed Alice, -shrinking back. “Surely you don’t mean to set it? Suppose one of the -cats got into it?” - -“It would cut him clean in two,” said Carl, hopefully. “But I’m afraid -a cat’s weight wouldn’t spring it. Certainly I’m going to set it.” - -He did set it that night near the beehives, covering it carefully with -leaves, and fastening the six-foot chain to a small tree. Twice during -the night he thought he heard the chain rattle, and got up hastily to -look, but each time he found the big trap undisturbed. - -[Illustration: Two of the hives that were farthest from the house had -been pillaged] - -For the next day or two Alice was busy with her work about the cabin. -She was making a garden, planting lettuce, radishes, pumpkins, beans, -and potatoes with the seeds that she had brought with her. Around the -door she planted flowers and carefully nursed the few stalks that -still survived there. Carl meanwhile was sorting out the heap of -bee-supplies in the barn, and they were both so busy that they had no -time to be lonely after Bob’s departure. The bees were still busy, -too. The honey-flow from the willows was lasting well, and every day -of it meant several dollars’ worth less of sugar to buy for feeding. -First of all, every morning Carl went out to look at his trap. For -three days it remained unmolested. There was no trace of any animal -having crossed the bee-yard, but the fourth morning told a different -tale. - -Alice was getting breakfast, but she hurried out at her brother’s cry -of alarm. The trap was not sprung, but two of the hives, which were -farthest from the house, had been pillaged. One of them lay tumbled -upon its side, the combs falling loose. The cover had been pulled off -the other, and empty frames from which the honeycombs had been broken -out littered the ground. Masses of bewildered bees crawled over the -wreck, too cowed to be savage. - -Alice gave an exclamation of horror at the sight. - -“What can have done it?” she cried. - -“Don’t know,” said Carl. “But come, let’s put these hives together -again. If the queens aren’t killed, they may amount to something yet.” - -They set up the hives again, and carefully replaced the frames. For -the broken combs they substituted fresh ones from colonies that had -died, and while doing this Alice was lucky enough to catch sight of -one of the queens sitting on a small stick with a faithful bunch of -her bees around her. There was no telling, of course, to which hive -she belonged, so they put her in the one that was nearest. The other -queen was not to be found, but she might easily have been somewhere -among the masses of bees that clung about the wrecked combs. - -“Do you think a bear did it?” Alice asked, when they had finished. - -“It seems more like a bear’s work than anything else,” answered Carl. -“Let’s see if we can find any trail.” - -Most of the ground in the bee-yard was too hard and stony to show -tracks. Carl began to circle the edge of the clearing to see if he -could make out where the animal had entered the apiary. - -“Look here, Carl,” Alice suddenly called to him from a distance. “What -in the world do you make of this?” - -Carl hastened up, and found her bending over a monstrous footprint, -the like of which neither of them had ever seen before. - - - - - CHAPTER III - - STRANGE PERILS - - -The strange oval footprint was at least ten inches long. The creature -that had made it was surely heavy, for it had sunk deep into the -ground; and there were four claw-marks. - -“Surely that’s not a bear-track,” said Alice. - -“More like the track of a young elephant, I should think,” Carl -returned. “That is, if elephants had claws and ever robbed beehives.” - -It was not easy to follow the trail over the hard ground. Here and -there in soft spots they found the huge foot-marks. Apparently the -beast had rambled all over the apiary, coming close to the trap -several times, but always avoiding it. They followed it across the -road, and there it gave out completely. - -Completely bewildered, Alice and Carl returned to the cabin for their -delayed breakfast. The raid on the apiary was a mystery. They knew of -no animal in the Canadian woods that could have made such a track, -though all through breakfast and afterward they discussed and guessed -and tried to imagine some explanation. At last Carl, half in joke, -began to recount Indian legends of the wendigo,—a giant, cannibal -demon supposed to prey on hunters in the North,—until Alice implored -him to stop. - -“I shall be afraid to go to bed to-night,” she said. “Suppose I awoke -and saw that great terrible thing looking in through the window at -me!” - -“Perhaps we’ll catch it in the trap,” Carl tried to reassure her. -“Don’t be frightened, Allie. The wendigo doesn’t leave any tracks -where it walks, and besides I don’t believe it would eat honey. It -loves stronger stuff, like blood and bones.” - -“Oh, stop!” cried Alice, putting her hands to her ears. - -Thinking it over, Carl came to the conclusion that the tracks must -have been made by a very large bear, whose feet were deformed in some -way, perhaps by an injury. Perhaps only one foot was misshapen, for he -had never clearly made out more than one track at a time. Anyhow this -was the only explanation that he could give for the strange trail. - -When darkness fell they gathered a great store of wood and sat late in -the bright firelight. They hesitated about separating to their rooms, -and Alice, at last, flatly refused to go. Carl did not insist, and -they brought out blankets and spread them on the floor by the fire, -laying both guns loaded and handy. - -Neither of them slept well. Several times Carl jumped up, fancying -that he had heard some sound outside; but all was quiet when he opened -the door. But toward daylight they both fell soundly asleep and did -not awake until the sun was high over the cedars. - -The trap had not been sprung; the bees had not been disturbed, and -there were no fresh tracks in the yard. Carl and Alice both felt -decidedly languid after their bad night, but the hot breakfast coffee -was stimulating, and in the bright sunlight they began to feel much -more courageous. - -Shortly after breakfast Alice caught sight of one of Carl’s cats, -eating a quantity of trout-heads that had been thrown out behind the -cabin. It was really a wild-looking creature, enormously large, -yellowish-gray, and very thick-furred. - -“Pussy, pussy! Come here, poor kitty!” she called, coaxingly. - -Carl laughed. The cat bristled its tail, growled, and slunk back inch -by inch till it was close to the thickets, and then vanished with a -leap. - -“You could tame a lynx just as quickly,” said Carl. “These cats are -wild clear through now.” - -“But I believe we could coax them into the house when snow comes, if -we were to stay here all winter,” returned Alice. “One of those -creatures would be as good as a watch-dog.” - -Carl presently set to work again at the bee-fixtures stored in the -barn, while Alice resumed her gardening. He found more supplies and a -greater quantity of them than he had anticipated. There were no less -than two hundred supers for comb-honey, all fitted with -section-holders and separators, but with no sections. There were one -hundred and five deep supers, the same size as the hives, for -producing extracted honey, all full of empty combs for extracting, -though many of these had been badly damaged by mice and the bee-moth. -In one corner was a great pile of perforated zinc queen-excluders, -designed to prevent the queen from reaching the extracting combs and -laying eggs in them. Carl rejoiced at this particularly, for these -excluders are expensive, and he had been wondering if they would have -to buy them. There was also one good smoker and one broken one. There -was a four-frame extractor, rusty, but apparently in working -condition. There were honey tanks, which only needed cleaning, and -there were several hundred brood frames in the flat, which had never -been put together. There were also two dozen ten-pound honey-pails, -most of which had never been used, and were now too rusted to put -honey in; but they would be extremely useful for many household -purposes. Alice had been lamenting her scanty stock of tinware, and -Carl was gathering these together to carry them up to the house, when -he came upon two that were unexpectedly heavy. Opening them, he found -them both full of honey that the former owner had somehow overlooked. -It was candied as hard as butter, but was white and delicious in -flavor, not in the least injured by the winter cold. Carl carried it -up to Alice in triumph. It was a great find. - -“If the honey we get this summer is as white and good as this, -there’ll be no trouble about getting a good price,” he remarked, -digging into the pail with a spoon. - -Alice finally took it forcibly from him, and sent him back to the -barn. He sorted out the different articles, and stored them in neat -piles, making a written inventory of the lot. The things that were to -be repaired he put aside. Should the season turn out well, they would -need more supplies, and certainly they must have about a hundred new -hives for the increase they intended to make, as well as for -additional supers. But this outfit would give them a good start, and -he felt that they had got a bargain after all. - -Down at the bottom of the pile he came upon a big fish-net, now rather -old, moldy, and torn. Still, he thought it might be mended and made -fit for use, and he hung it in the sun. It was not a sportsman’s tool, -of course. He had no idea of using it that summer, but if they should -want to catch a large quantity of fish for winter salting, it would be -just the thing. - -Alice, meanwhile, was planting more lettuce, corn, and potatoes on the -sunny side of the house. All day they both worked hard, and their fear -of the wendigo gradually disappeared. They slept in their own bunks -that night, and in the morning they found that the apiary had not been -molested. - -The willow bloom was almost over now, but the bees were still getting -a little honey from the maples. That day Carl and Alice looked over -some of the colonies again, and were delighted to find that both the -hives that had been raided were getting back into condition again. The -queens had survived, and with the strong force of bees that they -possessed, these two colonies would quickly recover from their -disaster. - -A few other colonies were found almost destitute of stores, naturally -the best ones, as they had an enormous amount of brood to feed with -only a limited supply of honey. Others had honey to spare, and they -equalized matters a little, taking frames of honey from the rich ones -and giving them to the needy. - -That night passed without disturbance, and in the morning a warm, -gentle rain was falling. The roof of the cabin developed a leak, and -Carl had to clamber up to make repairs. As the rain lasted all day, -more leaks appeared hourly, and he was kept busy with his patching. -Between times he went fishing in the river just behind the house. The -trout bit ravenously, and he landed one fish that must have weighed -nearly three pounds. - -The next morning it cleared off warm and damp, and the moist heat -caused a heavy honey-flow from the maples. The whole wilderness sprang -suddenly into intense green. The raspberry bushes were already -beginning to show tiny buds, but it would be weeks yet before these -would open, and meanwhile the bees would probably need feeding. - -Two days later the supplies that Bob had ordered arrived. They -consisted chiefly of brood-frames in the flat, several thousand -one-pound sections, and a large quantity of comb foundation. - -This comb foundation is one of the most necessary things in a modern -apiary. It consists of thin sheets of pure beeswax, about the -thickness of blotting-paper and stamped with the impression of honey -cells. When fixed in a frame or in a section and placed in a hive, the -intelligent insects at once recognize its use and lengthen out the -stamped indentations into accurate cells. A comb is thus produced very -quickly, and with a great economy of honey and wax. - -The wooden section-boxes were in the flat, and had to be folded up -into squares, pressed firmly together, and a sheet of the thinnest -foundation fastened in each with melted wax. This was delicate and -tedious work, and kept the two apiarists busy for the next week. - -All the lumber had to be made up into new hives, too, and the frames -nailed together, filled with foundation, and placed in them. Carl had -set up a work-bench in the barn, and he was busy there from morning to -night with his carpentering, while Alice worked with the sections, -preparing super after super to be placed on the hives whenever the -main honey-flow should begin. They had too much to do to think much of -either bears or wendigos, but three or four nights later Carl was -awakened by a noise in the clearing. He had a confused impression that -somebody had called to him. The next instant he heard a rattle of -metal, and a sound of something thrashing about. He leaped up and -pulled on his trousers. - -“Alice!” he called. “Get up. Light the lantern, quick! Something’s in -the trap!” - -There was a crescent moon, but it gave only a feeble light, and as he -rushed out with his shotgun cocked, he could see little. But as he -approached the trap, he discerned a great, shapeless figure crouched -over it, apparently struggling to get free from the jaws. Thrilling -with excitement, Carl stopped, then crept a little nearer and raised -his gun. He would have fired in another moment, but just then he -caught the sound of a human voice. It was not a wild beast in the -trap. It was a man! - -The fellow was muttering in some unknown language, and no pleasant -words, by the sound of them. Carl ran up, trembling at the narrow -escape, and the figure straightened up to human proportions. - -“Stand still!” Carl cried. “It’s all right. I’ll get you out.” - -He was so shocked at having so narrowly missed shooting a man that it -did not occur to him that perhaps he had caught the honey-thief. - -“Take off zis trap,” cried the man, with an oath. “He break my leg.” - -Alice was lighting the lantern in the cabin. In the darkness Carl -could just make out that the fellow was caught by one foot. To open -the stiff springs of the trap he would need a lever. - -“Wait a minute!” he called, groping about for a stout pole. - -He found one, bent over the trap, and then uttered a startled -exclamation. The man’s imprisoned foot looked strangely huge and -deformed. He struck a match; the man struck it from his hand, but in -the momentary flash Carl saw that the fellow was wearing enormous, -padded moccasins. - -“Oho!” he cried. “So you’re the wendigo!” - -[Illustration: It was not a wild beast in the trap: it was a man!] - -“No understan’,” growled the prisoner. “Open zis trap and let me go.” - -Carl hesitated a moment. Then he pried down one of the springs, -slipped the ring down to hold it, and released the other spring. The -jaws fell apart. The man withdrew his foot, almost toppled over, and -then painfully hobbled a few steps. - -“I git even! I keel you for zis!” he exclaimed, standing on one leg. - -At that moment Alice came hurrying out with the lighted lantern, and -the man wheeled and started away at a limping run. Evidently he wished -to avoid the light. - -“Hold on!” shouted Carl, picking up his gun. “Stop! I want to know who -you are. Stop!—or I’ll shoot.” - -The thief flung back some savage answer, but kept moving. Carl -discharged one barrel of his gun in the air, but it had no effect, for -the next moment the man had vanished into the dark woods. Carl did not -care. He had only wished to frighten the fellow, and he would not have -known what to do with him as a prisoner. The thief surely had had his -lesson, and he looked after him with a smile. - -“That was your wendigo, Alice,” he said to his sister, who was pale -and badly frightened. “Did you notice his feet? He was wearing great -stuffed moccasins to imitate a wild beast’s track. I suppose they had -nails in the toes for claw-marks. Look here and see the wendigo trail -he made.” - -Sure enough, here and there on the soft bits of earth they found the -same great misshapen trail as before, claw-marks and all. Carl -chuckled. - -“I’ve heard of the trick before,” he said. “I don’t know why it never -occurred to me that it might be a human bear. But I don’t think he’ll -try it again.” - -“He may do worse, though,” said Alice nervously. “He might set fire to -the cabin or the bees—or shoot us.” - -But Carl did not think there was any danger of the man attempting any -revenge for that night at any rate. He was likely to be too lame and -sore, and he had not seemed to carry any weapon; so, after watching -for a short time, they went back to bed. - -But neither of them slept much in the few hours that remained before -daybreak. They were up early and tried to follow the trail of the mock -wendigo, but they lost it on the stony road. No hives had been damaged -this time; the robber had doubtless been trapped before he had time to -rob. And the trap must have bitten hard, for there was blood on the -rusty, toothed jaws. - -Carl had noticed that the man spoke with a strong foreign accent. The -only foreigners in that district were the French half-breeds living -near Morton. He had no doubt that the honey-thief had come from that -settlement, for these people had no high reputation for strict -honesty. - -He could hardly think that the fellow would try to steal any more -honey from the hives, and he did not believe that he would walk all -the long way from Morton merely to seek revenge. He tried to impress -Alice with this comforting view; nevertheless he slept lightly for -several nights, and kept a loaded rifle close to his bunk. - -He was right. The raider did not venture back, and presently the -pressure of work drove most other considerations out of their minds. -The willow and maple bloom were both over. The bees were getting no -honey now, and no colony had honey that could be spared. Feeding had -to be resorted to. - -They had no regular feeders; this was one thing that the miscellaneous -pile in the barn failed to contain. Alice extemporized several, -however, by uncovering a hive, setting a tin pan full of sugar syrup -directly on top of the frames, and putting the cover over all. In one -night the bees would store fifteen or twenty pounds of syrup in their -combs, and one such feed was enough to last them till the honey-flow. - -Carl incautiously fed his first colony in the daytime and nearly -precipitated a riot in the yard. The colony that had been given the -syrup rushed out in wild excitement, flying into the air and -returning. They knew that sweet was coming in from somewhere, but they -did not yet comprehend the source. The bees from adjoining colonies, -seeing this excitement, began to rush out likewise; some of them made -their way into the feeding hive, finding the entrance unguarded in the -commotion, and there was sharp fighting. Fortunately this was a strong -colony, well able to defend itself, and the robber bees were routed; -but after that Carl was careful to do his feeding after sunset or on a -rainy day. - -During the day there were still supplies to be got ready for the -coming harvest. Another wagon-load of lumber came over from Morton, -and soon Carl had an immense stack of new hive-bodies ready for the -expected increase. A corresponding number of bottom-boards and covers -had to be made as well, so that there was little time now for hunting, -fishing, or loafing. - -To be sure, almost every day either he or Alice caught a few trout, -but this was for food and not for sport, and was done as expeditiously -as possible. Often, too, they shot a rabbit or a partridge when it did -not involve walking too far. Game was out of season, indeed, but real -settlers are exempt from the provisions of the game laws, and Alice -became very expert at this sort of foraging. - -To his amazement, on coming in to dinner one day, Carl was confronted -with an omelette. - -“Why, Alice! where did you get the eggs?” he exclaimed. - -“I’m ashamed to tell you,” the girl replied. “You see, we had no fresh -meat, and I was sick of pork and fish too, and I took the shotgun and -walked out down by the river to see if I might see a duck. A partridge -flew up almost from under my feet, and perched on a branch. I shot it -without thinking; but the next minute it struck me that she must have -a nest. I looked, and there it was, with fourteen eggs in it. I almost -cried! However, I gathered them up and brought them home, and they -were all perfectly good but two.” - -It was highly wrong, of course, but the omelette was delicious, and -Carl did not reprimand her. - -It was now the middle of June, and summer seemed to have come on with -a rush. All the trees were in full leaf; the buds on the raspberry -canes were swelling, and the bloom might be expected in a week. The -days had grown almost hot, and mosquitoes began to appear. Bob wrote -that his examinations had commenced, and that he would be able to come -up within ten days. - -Alice and Carl had pretty well finished their preparations for the -honey-flow, and now had a good deal of time on their hands. They -fished often, following the river up and down, wishing for a canoe. -And they explored the woods in every direction to find the extent of -the bee pasturage. - -“Why, there must be miles of berries,” Carl said. “There’s no end to -them, not to speak of lots of basswood. I don’t see how we can fail to -get a hundred pounds of honey per colony.” - -Alice’s garden was flourishing too. All the vegetables were up, and -she tended them herself. This occupation, with the care of the cabin, -took up a good deal of her time, and Carl often went on fishing and -exploring expeditions alone. It was on one of these solitary rambles -that he met with an adventure that he never could forget and never -remembered without a shock of horror. - -It was a hot, late June day, and he had walked up the river with his -fly-rod, fishing at intervals, but for the most part merely loitering. -It was too sunny and hot for the trout to rise well, but there was -much of interest to be seen in the stealthy, wild life that swarmed -around him. He knew well where a pair of wild ducks had their nest in -a marshy spot, and he watched them from a distance. Muskrats could be -seen anywhere, and he knew now where to look for the shy mink. At a -sandy spot on the shore he found the trail of a deer that had come to -drink the night before, and a little farther up he came to the foot of -a long rapid. - -The banks of the river narrowed greatly here, and the current swept -down like a mill-race through the cramped channel studded with sharp, -black rocks. The chute was over a hundred feet long, and was a place -which only a daring canoe-man would have dared to run. A portage would -have been difficult, however, for the shore on both sides and for a -long way back was choked with dense cedar thickets, a maze of fallen -and standing trunks that was nearly impenetrable. - -Carl stopped and cast his flies across the tail of the rapid, where he -knew big fish were accustomed to lie. The day was unfavorable, -however; after half an hour’s fishing he caught only two rather small -trout, and he began to debate whether to return or to go through the -jungle. It was hardly worth while to go farther, but at the head of -the rapid there was an immense burned slash choked with wild -raspberry, and he was anxious to see how the buds were coming on. - -So he took his rod apart and plunged into the thickets. It was a slow, -struggling business and took him more than half an hour to reach the -other side, where the rapid began its tumultuous course. - -The raspberry slash was fully a quarter of a mile wide and ran off to -an indefinite distance from the river. The canes were growing four -feet high and were covered with large buds; here and there a flower -was almost open. Carl pushed into the prickly thickets for some -distance, and was looking at the prospect of bloom with great delight, -when he caught a glimpse of a grayish, furry hide vanishing among the -bushes a few rods away. - -He jumped upon a fallen log and gazed around. Nothing stirred, but he -was sure that he had not been mistaken. There was a strip of open -ground, ahead where the unknown animal must show itself if it was -coming toward him, and in a few seconds indeed the creature came out -from the raspberries into plain sight. It came at a fast, slinking -trot, a gray-brown animal about the size of a collie dog, -bushy-tailed, carrying its head low. - -Carl had never seen a timber-wolf at large, though he had watched them -behind iron bars, and he recognized the animal in a moment. He was not -particularly frightened, but was very much surprised, for he had not -supposed that there were any wolves in that district. Still, he -recollected, where deer are plentiful there are almost sure to be -wolves, and deer have been increasing very fast in the North of late -years. The great Algonquin Park game-preserve affords them a safe -breeding-place, and they have spread into all the territory for miles -around. Wolves are extremely shy and timid when alone, and Carl stood -still and watched it come, in amused expectation of the frantic bolt -it would make when it caught sight of him. - -But it came on with disconcerting steadiness, though it glanced up, -sniffed, and must have seen him. Carl began to feel a slight -uneasiness. The beast’s coat looked dull and mangy. There was a -curious, jerky motion in its gait, and large flecks of froth on its -half-open jaws. As it came nearer, Carl heard a continuous low sound, -half snarl and half moan, from its low-hung muzzle. - -As if by intuition, Carl realized what was the matter. The animal was -mad! - -Dimly he remembered now having heard that rabies is terribly prevalent -every summer among the timber-wolves, serving, in fact, a useful -purpose in keeping down their numbers. The afflicted wolf always -leaves the pack and wanders forth alone, spreading its malady, of -course, at every chance meeting, till it dies a merciful and solitary -death. - -Carl had no weapon, not even a knife. It was too late to run, and this -would only draw the animal’s pursuit. But a dead cedar stood at his -elbow, and with a bound he clutched the trunk, and pulled himself up -among the dry, spiky branches. - -The movement caught the sick wolf’s attention, and it sprang forward -while Carl was still dangling. He kicked out desperately. His boot -caught the wolf on the jaw as it leaped after him, and it fell back -with a yelp, while Carl tremulously established himself out of reach. - -The unfortunate animal made three or four bounds into the air in an -aimless fashion, and stared up blinking. Carl expected to be held -captive in the tree for a long time, but in a few minutes the wolf -seemed to forget him. It raised its muzzle and howled dismally, then -loped off into the thickets, heading down the river. - -Carl kept his perch in the tree for some minutes after the animal was -out of sight. The peculiar horror of this peril, worse than any -ordinary form of death, had completely unnerved him. Then, like a -flash, it came upon him that the wolf was heading directly for their -cabin. - -Alice was there alone, perhaps working in her garden or in the -bee-yard or at the barn—certainly somewhere out-of-doors. The wolf -would come blindly out into the clearing; and in its madness, as he -had seen, it had no fear of man. - -The imminence of this more appalling danger shocked Carl out of his -panic. He slid down from his tree breathlessly and rushed toward the -river. - -The cedar jungle barred his way. It would take him a long time to get -through it, so long that he could hardly hope to reach the clearing -first. The fast loping trot of the wolf is deceptive, and Carl knew -that the animal was moving almost as swiftly as a man could run. It -could slip through the thickets with little trouble, but for himself -the delay might be fatal. - -He turned to the river. If he had had a canoe he would have risked the -rapid without hesitating, for the water-way was the only one past this -barrier. He thought of swimming down, but just then his eye fell upon -a short, thick, pine log, half stranded and half afloat, close to him. - -Without stopping to think of the risk, Carl shoved it into the -current, waded after it, and flung himself upon it. It would serve as -a float, and the spray was spattering in his face before he realized -the full danger. - -The pine log shot like a bullet down the boiling current, going too -fast to revolve in the water, and missing the boulders by some -miraculous good luck. Carl had intended to steer with his legs, but he -was half-way down the chute before he had time to make a movement. - -In that rush he could only hold his breath and cling hard. His leg -struck something; it must have been a rock, but he was only grazed. He -plunged through a bank of piled foam with a flurry of white flakes, -and he was almost at the tail of the rapid when the log turned and he -went under. He let go involuntarily. The log darted away, and for a -moment he was choked, battered, and blinded, and then he came up at -the foot of the rapid, feeling half-stunned. Several inches of skin -were gone from one hand where it had struck a rock, but he had -suffered no serious injury, and he regained his feet in about three -feet of water and waded ashore. - -There was a fairly clear path down the shore, and he began to run, -stumbling and dizzy at first, then faster as he warmed to it. He was -desperately afraid of overtaking or running upon the wolf, and he kept -a sharp lookout as he ran. But he saw nothing of the animal, and began -to hope that he had distanced it. - -It was a long way, but Carl was a good runner and in fine physical -condition. Nevertheless he flagged at last, slowed to a walk, tried to -run again, and paused, his heart almost bursting his sides. He was not -a quarter of a mile from the clearing, he thought, and he was -struggling on at a fast walk, when he heard a moaning howl in the -woods, ahead and to the right. - -It sent fresh life through him like an electric shock. The sound had -seemed to come from the exact direction of the cabin. With a burst of -desperate energy he dashed ahead and burst through the willows. At the -first glance he saw with a flood of thankfulness that he was not too -late. - -Alice had a veil on and was doing something at one of the hives -between the house and the barn. - -“Run, Alice!” Carl yelled, rushing toward her. “Run for the house!” - -Alice looked up in surprise and called something back to him, without -moving. - -“Run!” her brother screamed desperately; and by the energy of his tone -Alice grasped that something was seriously wrong. She started to close -the hive quickly, and at that moment Carl saw the gray, dog-like form -emerging from the willows, half-way between Alice and himself. - -The animal snapped at the branches as it went through, and Alice -glanced back just then, saw it, cried out, and started to run toward -the house. Instantly the wolf threw up its head, caught sight of her, -and with a sort of snarling howl, raced after her. - -Carl dashed in pursuit, forgetting that he had no weapon. Alice was -losing ground. She would be overtaken before she could gain the cabin; -but Carl gained a little with his last stock of energy, and when he -was forty feet behind he picked up a large stone, aimed, and threw it. - -It hit the wolf hard on the flank. The animal stopped and looked back. -Carl threw another stone and missed. But the wolf turned and rushed -back at its new enemy. - -In his turn Carl bolted, with a confused notion of getting into the -barn. But the big door stood wide open when he reached it. The place -would only be a trap, and he wheeled about just in time to meet the -rabid animal’s charge with a vigorous kick that caught it under the -jaw and flung it backward. - -He remembered the sharp hatchet on his workbench in the barn and -rushed into the building to get it; but the wolf was after him like a -flash. Carl checked it again with another furious kick, so hard this -time that it went almost in a somersault backward. As it tumbled, Carl -caught sight of the old fishing-seine that he had found. - -It was hanging on a peg at his side. He dragged it down, and as the -maddened animal launched itself at him again, he flung the net over -it. - -It stumbled and rolled, entangled. It scrambled to its feet and once -more fell, biting furiously at the meshes. Carl seized the hatchet and -circled round, looking for a chance to place a blow, but he was afraid -to come too close, and the rotten meshes were tearing under the -animal’s struggles. - -At that moment Alice suddenly appeared at the barn-door, with Bob’s -rifle in her hands. - -“Stand aside!” she called, and as Carl leaped away, the rifle cracked. - -The wolf leaped into the air, net and all, with a sharp yelp, and fell -again, kicking blindly. The rifle banged again and a third time. The -wretched animal’s struggles grew feebler, and in a few moments it was -dead. - -Then, with the strain off, Carl collapsed suddenly on an empty -beehive, and everything reeled around him. - -“Carl, Carl, what’s the matter?” cried Alice, dropping on her knees -beside him. “You’re not hurt, are you? The wolf’s dead. Why, you’re -dripping wet!” - -Carl recovered himself and reassured her. He gave her a toned-down -account of what had happened, but she did not suspect that the animal -was rabid, nor did he venture to tell her. He warned her strictly -against examining the body and presently he dragged it toward the -river, dug a deep hole and buried it, net and all. It was several -months before he ventured to tell his sister what a frightful danger -they had both escaped; but the experience gave him such a fright that -for a long time he never ventured far into the woods without carrying -firearms. - -Carl felt quite weak and shaky for the rest of that day, and after -changing his wet clothes he sat down in the sun, petted by Alice as a -semi-invalid. He was quite recovered by the next morning, however, and -he went up the river and recovered his rod, which he had dropped in -the raspberry slash. Looking at the rapid now, he wondered by what -miracle he had come through it alive. - -The bees were doing nothing now, but carrying in pollen and water for -brood-rearing, and they hung sullen and listless about the hives, very -much inclined to be cross. Raspberry bloom was only a few days off; -they were all fairly well supplied with food, and there was nothing -now to do but let them alone. - -Resuming their fishing and exploring rambles, Carl and Alice once -followed the river down a little farther than they had ever gone -before. About three miles below their cabin they came upon a -well-marked trail, and out of curiosity they followed it. They had not -gone far when they came to the edge of the woods and they stopped in -surprise. - -They were on the border of a wide expanse of reeds and marsh-grass -bordering the river. Near the woods it was fairly solid and dry, but -farther out they could see a great expanse of quagmire, thinly -overgrown with small grasses and spotted with pools of oily-looking -water. It was a dangerous, unwholesome-seeming place. - -“Why, this must be Indian Slough!” said Carl, looking up and down the -marsh. - -“What’s that?” Alice inquired. - -“A historical spot. I thought I had spoken of it. The driver of my -wagon told me about it when I was coming out from Morton, but I didn’t -think it was so near us. - -“The story is that a war-party of Iroquois, during the great Indian -raids on Canada in the French days, tried to land somewhere -hereabouts, and was swallowed up bodily by this morass. It used to be -called _Marais aux Iroquois_ on account of that event, and that has -been Englished into Indian Slough.” - -“Ugh!” shuddered Alice. “I don’t like it. It looks as if it had -swallowed up hundreds of men. Very likely it has, in its time.” - -“I’m sure the mosquitos would swallow anybody piecemeal, if he stayed -long here,” Carl returned. “Let’s move on.” - -The trail led around the edge of the marsh, and they had followed it -for scarcely twenty rods farther, when, to their amazement, they came -suddenly upon the edge of a clearing. - -It was only three or four acres fronting the marsh. It was dotted with -stumps, and among them stood a log house and barn much like their own. -A few hens scratched about a worn-down haystack. A hog lay stretched -in the sun by the barn; and as they came in sight a hound dashed into -view and set up a noisy baying. - -“Neighbors!” exclaimed Alice. “Who’d have expected it? And why on -earth should anybody live in this feverish, mosquitoey, swampy place.” - -“Probably that marsh is full of muskrats,” Carl suggested. “The owner -here may be a trapper, and likes to live near his work.” - -Attracted by the noise of the dog, a couple of ragged children rushed -out of the cabin, stared, and then bolted in again like scared -rabbits. A woman came to the door, stared also, and stepped outside. - -“I’m going up to get acquainted,” said Alice, and she went boldly -toward the house. - -Her brother followed at a little distance, loitering intentionally to -give Alice time to break the ice. The hound came bounding up, wagging -his tail and sniffing at the gun Carl carried, and the boy paused to -make friends with him. He was patting the brute’s head when a man came -around the corner of the house. - -He was blinking, and looked as if he had been taking a nap in the sun. -Big and strong-framed he was, black-haired, and black-bearded, and his -face was almost as dark as an Indian’s. He was roughly clad in a -flannel shirt, duffel trousers and moccasins, and he looked surprised, -half-hostile, and half-shy. - -“Hello, good-morning!” said Carl. “_Bon jour!_” he added, guessing at -the man’s probable nationality; and then, at a second glance, he -gasped with surprise. “Why, you—you’re the—” - -But the dark-faced squatter, limping heavily on one leg, had turned -and dashed out of sight around the house again. - -Carl stared after him for a moment and then called to his sister. - -“Come, Alice. We must go back.” - -Something in his voice startled the girl. She glanced sharply at him -and bade her new acquaintance farewell and they started back together -across the clearing. - -“What’s the matter?” she whispered. - -“I’ll tell you in a minute. Keep moving—not too fast.” - -He was not really much afraid of being attacked, but he felt much -safer when they were in the cover of the woods. - -“That’s where the wendigo lives,” he explained at last. - -“What! the man you caught in the trap?” - -“I’m sure of it. Of course I couldn’t see the fellow’s face plain that -night, but this man has a good general resemblance to him, and he -walks with a most suspicious limp—in the same leg, too, that the trap -caught. Besides, he bolted as soon as he had a look at me. He knew who -I was, all right. Yes, I’m certain it’s our honey-thief. What did you -find out from the woman?” - -“I couldn’t get her to say much, and I couldn’t understand half her -dialect. She told me their name—Larue, I think. She said there were -lots of ducks and muskrats in the slough, and they didn’t mind the -mosquitos. And oh Carl! she had two of the most splendid black bear -skins! I’d give anything to have them. The cabin was an awful -place—like a pig-sty, but there were two children with the loveliest -brown, dirty faces I ever saw.” - -“Probably half French and half Ojibway or Chippewa,” said Carl. “Larue -certainly sounds French enough. I’m afraid they’re a rough lot, and -I’m sorry we have them for our nearest neighbors.” - -They reached home in perfect safety, but the incident revived their -former feelings of uneasiness. However, this wore away as the days and -nights passed without disturbance; and Carl felt relieved to remember -that Larue had seemed far more frightened at the encounter than he -himself had been. - -The weather was growing steadily warmer. Frequent rains brought -vegetation forward with the marvelous rapidity of the northern summer. -The little, pale, greenish flowers of the raspberry were almost open. -And at last one morning Carl came dashing into the cabin with a shout: - -“The bees are getting honey!” - -Alice hastened out to look. The air was full of flashing wings and a -resonant hum. The main honey-flow had started. The crisis of their -fortunes was at hand. - - - - - CHAPTER IV - - HONEY AND SWARMS - - -The sullen listlessness that had hung over the apiary for over a week -was gone. Bees were at work from every hive, coming and going with a -swift activity like the days of the willow bloom. - -“Hurrah! We must put on the supers at once,” cried Alice. “I believe -we ought to have had them on several days ago.” - -Breakfast was hurried through that morning, and no dishes were washed -up after it. They hurried down to the barn to bring up the prepared -supers, placing one beside each hive, so that they could all be put on -at once. - -The supers for extracted honey were exactly the same size as the body -of the hive itself, without either top or bottom, and each containing -eight ready-built frames of comb. The cover of the hive is removed and -the super set upon it, then the cover replaced on the top of the -two-story edifice. Usually a sheet of zinc queen-excluder is placed -between the two, the perforations so accurately made that they will -let the workers pass into the upper story, while the larger-bodied -queen cannot get through. The lower story is then known as the -brood-chamber, and the ideal condition is for the queen to keep this -division constantly full of the cycle of eggs, larvæ, and hatching -bees, while the workers store all the honey in the super, convenient -for taking off. - -A good deal of comb honey in one-pound sections was to be produced -also, and Alice had already picked out the strongest colonies for this -work. Section honey is a fancy product and sells at a high price, and -the apiarists counted on this to pay off the $500 due in August. For -that reason, the comb-honey crop was of the most immediate importance, -though there would be a greater quantity of the extracted honey. -Naturally, bees will store much more honey when built combs are -furnished them, but the extracted honey sells more slowly, and at -little more than half the price. - -They had already prepared more than a hundred section supers,—boxes of -the same length and width as the brood-chamber, but only half the -depth,—each containing thirty-two sections with foundation. One of -these was set accurately on the top of each of the seventy colonies -selected to gather the fancy crop. The deep, extracting supers of -built combs were distributed among the rest of the bees. - -Carl and Alice worked hard all that day and for part of the next -forenoon, putting on the supers. The weather was hot and moist, -splendid honey weather. More and more of the pale raspberry blossoms -were opening, though as yet the honey-flow was barely at its start. - -That evening Alice peeped into some of the newly placed supers, -irresistibly curious to know what the bees had done. The supers of -combs were full of the insects, cleaning out the cells and varnishing -them ready for honey-storage, and here and there was even a glistening -patch of fresh honey. In the supers of sections no combs were yet -built of course; but the bees were clustering there in masses, and -evidently preparing for work in earnest. - -All looked most promising, but both she and Carl knew that everything -depended on the weather from day to day. For the honey-flow is the -most capricious thing in the world. If the weather is too wet, the -bees cannot work, and the honey is washed out of the blossoms. If it -is too dry, the secretion of nectar in the flowers will cease -altogether. A cold spell, too, will check the honey-flow, and high -winds will dry it up. Often the clouding over of the sky, or a shift -in the wind will produce a heavy flow or stop one. It is regulated by -faint differences of temperature and moisture, and the ideal weather -is warm and damp, with, if possible, a suggestion of thunderstorm in -the air. In such a day a good colony of bees will often bring in ten -pounds or more of honey, so that Alice and Carl had figured that every -good day would be worth easily a hundred dollars. - -The next morning was warm, and the bees worked merrily. Now that the -honey-flow had started, they were no longer cross. Their owners could -walk up and down the rows of hives, through the clouds of flying bees -that came almost as thick as snowflakes, and there was scarcely any -danger of being stung. Carl was standing in the midst of this -activity, observing the flight with satisfaction, when a volley of -bees suddenly poured with a loud roaring from one of the hives nearest -him. - -“Swarm, Alice!” he yelled. - -It was the first swarm of that season, and of course it came from one -of the strongest colonies. Carl marked the hive that had sent it out -and turned his attention to the bees in the air. - -For some seconds the cloud of insects swirled round and round, then it -drifted slowly toward the cabin. Finding no place to alight there, it -floated irresolutely about in one direction and another, and finally -moved down toward the river, flying about twenty feet from the ground. - -Here it suddenly concentrated by a small cedar tree. A few bees -settled on the tip of a long branch; in a moment there was a brown -cluster, growing as he looked at it, and in five minutes the branch -was bending down under the weight of a mass of bees that would nearly -have filled a five-gallon pail. - -“What a tremendously big swarm!” exclaimed Alice, who had come to look -at it. “Did you see the hive they came from? Then let’s attend to it, -and then we can hive the swarm.” - -When they removed the cover of the hive that had swarmed, the super -was seen to be nearly empty of bees, though it contained a good deal -of fresh honey. Lifting it off, they saw that the brood-chamber also -appeared sadly depleted. Fully two-thirds of the bees had gone with -the swarm. - -“Isn’t there any way of keeping them from swarming, Alice?” asked -Carl. “We’d get so much more honey if the colonies didn’t break in two -like this.” - -“None,” Alice replied, busy with the smoker. “Except by seeing that -they always have plenty of storage room for honey. They don’t usually -swarm till they get crowded. This colony was probably feeling crowded -before we put the super on it; they got the swarming idea fixed, and -when the honey-flow started well, away they went.” - -Meanwhile Alice was taking out one comb after another, glancing at -each and replacing it, till she came at last to the most marvelous -thing in the world of bees—the mystery of the queen-cells. - -There they were, five or six on a single comb, great, peanut shaped -protuberances, some sealed with a rounded capping, others still open -at the tip, showing the white young queen within, floating in a mass -of royal jelly. - -For when the bees become queenless, they have the science to rear a -new one to save the colony from perishing. An ordinary worker-egg that -is just hatching into the larva is profusely fed with royal jelly, -that strangely prepared food of which no one knows the exact -composition. Instead of growing in the ordinary cell, the larva is -given one of these great waxen cones for its nursery; and instead of -hatching in twenty-one days into a worker bee, it hatches in sixteen -into a fully fledged virgin queen. The first preparation for swarming -is the starting of a batch of these queen-cells, so that the colony -shall not be left queenless when the queen departs with the swarm, and -the swarm does not leave till some of the cells are sealed over. - -Whenever a queen loses her life, or grows so old as to be useless, the -same sort of queen-cells are started to replace her. The only -exception is when a queen dies in the winter, and there are no eggs -from which a new one can be reared; and then, unless man gives help, -the colony quickly vanishes. - -Carl had seen queen-cells often enough before, but he never ceased to -regard them with amazement. He peeped into an unsealed cell, took out -a little of the thick, white, royal jelly and tasted it on the end of -a twig. - -“Rich, thick, sour, and sweet all at once,” he commented. “It turns a -worker into a queen. I wonder what it would do to me if I ate a lot of -it.” - -“You’d be a king,” said Alice, promptly. “Put those cells back. -They’ll get chilled. And let’s go and catch that swarm.” - -Carl had a number of hives prepared for such emergencies, each with -ten new frames of foundation. The old hive, now out of action, they -carried away to a new stand, and placed the prepared hive where it had -stood. Upon it they put the partly-filled super that the swarm had -left. - -Alice now brought out the large water-pail from the house, and they -walked down to where the swarm was settled. It still clung there in a -big, brown, murmuring, pearl-shaped mass. There they would probably -hang for hours, till they had decided in their mysterious councils -what hollow tree in the forest they would make for. - -But they were not to leave man’s control. Carl climbed a little way -into the tree, then, leaning far out, slipped the tin pail close under -the swarm and shook the branch smartly. With a thump the whole mass -dropped into the pail, not a bee flying. They seethed and flowed like -molasses, while Carl hastily jumped down, ran to the hive he had -prepared, and poured them down at its entrance. - -They began to crawl in at once, and among the rest Alice caught sight -of the queen just entering the hive with a mass of bees. This meant -definite possession being taken. Immediately the bees spread over the -entrance-board began to “fan.” The swarm was safely hived. - -A new swarm usually works with great vigor, knowing that it has a -great deal of time to make up, and this one might be expected to -finish the super. The parent colony was now out of action; but it -would hatch out a new queen in a week, and would build up strong again -before fall. - -“We must really do something to keep swarming down,” said Alice, -anxiously. “Of course, we want to increase our bees, but if the -colonies break up now, it will cut our honey crop in two. And we -_must_ get the honey.” - -“Nothing to do, then, but to go all through them and see if any more -are starting queen-cells,” replied Carl. “It’s rather a big job, -though, and I wish Bob were here to help us.” - -However, it was not necessary to tear all the hives open. Some, they -knew, were too weak to think of swarming. With others it was -sufficient to glance at the entrance and into the super to make sure -of the steady, contented activity. About twenty they went through -thoroughly, and in five of them they found the beginnings of -queen-cells—an acorn-shaped cup, with an almost microscopic larvæ in -it surrounded by royal jelly. These they tore down at once, and marked -the hives for close watching in future. - -Next morning they continued this inspection, and three swarms came out -while they were at work. One of them settled in the top of such a high -tree that it could not be reached. They had to let it stay, and late -that afternoon it took wing again and made off, across the woods, out -of sight. - -The others they hived successfully, and they made all possible haste -to look through all the suspicious colonies for signs of swarming. -Despite all efforts, however, the bees seemed to be getting ahead of -them, and they were working frantically when a voice hailed them from -the direction of the river: - -“Hello, busy bees!” - -Bob was coming up through the willows from the direction of the river, -and, dropping everything, they rushed to meet him in delight and -astonishment. - -“How in the world did you get here? Where’s your wagon? You didn’t -walk?” cried Carl. - -Bob waved his hand triumphantly toward the river. He had come from -Morton by water, in a second-hand boat that he had bought cheaply in -the village. It was not beautiful; it was a homemade affair, which -could be poled, paddled, or rowed, or perhaps sailed too. It was old -and rough and needed painting badly, but it was water-tight and had -cost only nine dollars. Alice was enchanted; a boat was what she had -been longing for most of all. - -Bob had had rather a hard up-stream pull, for he brought quite a cargo -with him besides his trunk—potatoes, dried apples, prunes, butter, -flour, and two more cases of bee-supplies. - -“And here’re your queens,” he added, taking a package from his pocket. - -There were seven mailing-cages, six tied in one parcel, and the other, -containing the three-dollar breeding queen, by itself. Carl looked -through the wire gauze cover at this valuable insect, surrounded by -her attendants. - -“She doesn’t look any bigger or better than the rest of them,” he -complained. - -“Wait till we see how she performs,” said Alice, hopefully. - -The mailing-cages were small, hollowed-out wooden blocks, covered on -one side with wire cloth; each contained an Italian queen, with half a -dozen attendant bees, that had traveled all the way in the mail-bags -from Tennessee. One small compartment in each cage was filled with -soft candy, and most of this had been eaten on the journey. - -As these queens had already been too long confined, Alice at once made -preparations for introducing them—a matter of no small difficulty. For -a colony of bees, even if deprived of their queen, will not easily -accept a strange one. They prefer the more lengthy plan of raising a -batch of queen-cells, and will kill any new queen put into the hive. -Sometimes, however, they can be thrown into a panic by smoking and -beating on the hive, and the new queen slipped in while they are too -demoralized to notice her. The more common plan, however, is the one -that Alice adopted. - -She had already selected seven colonies where the queens appeared to -be laying badly, and she now searched these queens out and killed -them. Tearing off a strip of pasteboard on one end of a mailing-cage, -she revealed a small hole plugged with soft honey-candy; then she -pushed the cage into the hive, down between the combs. The bees would -at once eat out the candy, thus opening the hole and releasing the -queen, and the sweet would put them in a good humor, so that they -would be likely to accept her without trouble. - -All but one of the seven were safely introduced. The seventh was found -next morning dead in front of the hive where the bees had thrown her -body out. Luckily it was not the three-dollar queen. - -Late that afternoon it rained a little, and the next day was hot and -muggy. It was perhaps the best honey day of the whole season. The bees -were almost frantic over the abundance of sweet. The apiary roared -like a huge mill. Carl, who had gone fishing, declared that he could -hear it a quarter of a mile away. Long after dark the apiary still -roared sonorously from every hive, where the bees were fanning -furiously with their wings, driving currents of air between the combs -to ripen the fresh honey. Bob looked into the supers after flying had -ceased, and reported that many of the combs were entirely full of -sparkling honey, clear as water. Of course, it was still unripe and -unsealed, and would need the care of the bees for some time before -taking on the rich, thick consistency of finished honey, ready to be -sealed. - -For the time being the apiarists had checked the swarming and had a -few days of leisure. Now and again a swarm did come out despite all -precaution, but they caught nearly all of these, so that there was a -fresh row of new colonies being built up. - -Then a succession of chilly days cut the honey-flow short. The bees -turned sulky and cross. It was impossible to go among the hives -without being stung, but after the third day honey began to come in -slowly once more. - -Strawberries were now ripe, and could be picked in the greatest -profusion. Alice gathered them daily; so did the boys, and in fact for -a few days they ate hardly anything else. Alice longed to make jam, -but had no jam-pots. - -Carl went out one morning to pick berries, but returned within an -hour, looking disturbed. In one hand he held his half-filled pail, and -in the other a rusty tin pan. - -“What do you think of this, Bob?” he demanded. - -The pan was half full of some dark fluid, at which his brother sniffed -carefully. - -“Maple syrup,” he pronounced. - -“Yes, and something else. See that green sediment? That’s Paris green. -I found the pan under the bushes, just beyond the hives.” - -“Poison!” cried Alice. “Why, it must have been meant to kill the -bees!” - -“I guess Mr. Larue was trying to get revenge for his sore leg,” said -Carl, grimly. “This must have been laid some days ago, for there’s -rainwater in it. Luckily the bees won’t touch any other sweet when -they’re getting honey.” - -In his first wrath, Bob declared that he would take his gun, go down -to the squatter’s cabin, and accuse him of the trick; but their calmer -judgment decided that it was best to let the matter pass unnoticed. So -it would probably have passed, but for a chance encounter of Carl’s a -few days later. - -He was going through the woods with his shotgun, and came upon a trout -brook about a mile from the cabin—a stream well known to him, though -he seldom fished there. He was quietly following up the bank when he -perceived Larue a few yards in front of him. The squatter was smoking -a clay pipe and angling industriously with a short rod. A -double-barrelled shotgun stood against a tree behind him. - -They sighted each other almost simultaneously, and for a moment stared -at one another in surprise and distrust. - -“W’at you want?” said the half-breed. “You try to creep up on me, eh?” - -“I didn’t know you were here,” said Carl. “But, look here, you’d -better not try to kill any more of our bees.” - -“Keel your bees? Don’t know w’at you mean.” - -“Yes, you do. I found the poison you put out. You could be arrested -for that—” - -“You have me arrest! Why, I keel you first!” cried Larue. - -“Don’t try it. And you keep away from our camp in future. When we hear -anything after dark we’re as likely as not to shoot.” - -Carl held his gun ready, for he half-expected Larue to attack him. But -the squatter did not reach for his weapon; he only assailed Carl with -such abuse in mixed French and English that the boy almost lost his -temper. He half raised his gun, and then, as good sense came back to -him, lowered it quickly. - -“We don’t want any trouble with you,” he said, trying to speak coolly. -“If we do have any, it’ll be your own fault. But you keep away from -our place. Now I’ve warned you.” - -He stepped back into the cedars and walked away, his ears alert for -any suspicious sound behind him. But as he cooled down he felt that he -had acted most injudiciously; and he felt, in fact, so annoyed with -himself that he determined not to mention the matter when he got home. - -It took him some time, however, to calm his irritation to this extent, -and meanwhile he walked rapidly and rather aimlessly through the woods -toward the northwest. He was thinking of anything but his directions, -when he came upon the remains of an old road, probably a disused -timber-road that might lead to Morton. Following this for a couple of -hundred yards, he came in sight of a little lake that he had never -seen before. - -It was about two miles wide and contained one small, rocky islet. Fire -and storm seemed to have swept the shores, for they were covered for -more than a hundred yards from the water with tangled dead wood, ricks -of underbrush, sprouting second growths, and raspberry canes -everywhere. In fact there seemed to be square miles of wild raspberry -around the lake. It was covered with bloom, but not a bee did he see. -There was no necessity for their bees to travel so far as this to find -all the raspberry bloom they wanted. - -“What a magnificent spot for an apiary!” Carl reflected, as he gazed -about him. - -In addition to the raspberries, Carl noticed on a little rise of -ground near him, a whole grove of large basswood trees. It was too -early for their bloom, but he was going over to inspect them when -something seemed to strike him heavily on the head. - -The boy dropped in his tracks, and probably for several minutes he lay -unconscious. He came to himself feeling dazed and sick, with a dim -idea that some one had clubbed him. His mind turned to Larue, as he -got weakly to his feet, but no one was anywhere in sight. His hat lay -on the ground. He recovered it, and was startled to see two small -holes through the crown. At the same time he became aware that blood -was running down his forehead. - -It flashed upon him that he had been shot and shot through the head! -He turned sick and faint at the idea and wondered how he came to be -still alive. He hardly dared to put his hand to his head, fearing to -find a gaping cavity, but he could not feel exactly what he could call -a wound, though there was a very sore spot on the top of his skull. He -raked away a good deal of loose hair, and blood was trickling down -freely. - -He was somewhat reassured at finding the wound was not going to be -immediately fatal. Looking at the holes in his hat, he saw that they -must have been made by a small-caliber, high-powered, rifle bullet, -and this exonerated Larue, for it was a shotgun that the squatter had -been carrying. Carl had heard no report; very likely the shot had been -fired by some sportsman at a mile distance, perhaps on the other side -of the lake. Missing its proper mark, the bullet had driven on till -Carl had had the misfortune to come in its way. - -He made his way down to the lake and contrived a cold compress on his -head with his handkerchief, and began to think of making his way home. -He was so dazed, still, that he entirely forgot the old lumber road by -which he had come in, and started through the woods in what seemed to -be the direction of the cabin. - -He felt very weak and sick when he attempted to walk, but he kept -going for a long time, till he came out upon a wide, half-burned -strip, choked with wild-raspberry vines. A rapid, shallow brook -hurried down the middle of the opening. - -He had never seen this place before that he could remember, and -suddenly it seemed to him that all his directions had gone suddenly -wrong. He had not the slightest idea in which direction the cabin lay. - -At this moment it occurred to him that he had a pocket compass. He -consulted it, tried to think out his position, but his head ached too -violently for any mental effort. However, he set out again in a new -direction, and, after half an hour’s unsteady walking, came into -another raspberry slash—which he presently recognized as the same one -he had passed before. - -At this new horror added to his pain and weakness, his strength failed -entirely. He fell among the flowering canes and lay there for a long -time, partly in a sort of stupor, partly in dull anger against the -stupid recklessness of men who go into the woods with rifles having an -effective range of two miles. - -He was parched with thirst and fever, but could hardly summon energy -enough to crawl down to the stream. Finally he accomplished it, drank, -and dipped his head in the water, and felt refreshed. He was able to -think more clearly. - -He had his compass; he knew the directions, but he could form no sort -of idea whether the cabin lay north, south, east, or west. He could -not remember definitely in which direction he had traveled after -meeting Larue, and his wanderings since that time had completely -confused him. - -As he lay there he heard the murmur of bees among the raspberry -blossoms. They were probably his own bees, he reflected dimly, and he -envied them their wings and their instinct that led them straight home -across the forest. And then it struck him that he could not possibly -be more than two miles from home, or the bees would not be working -there in such numbers. - -He thought he saw a chance of help. A laden bee flies home in a -proverbially straight line. He watched the insects as they crawled -over the blossoms and finally rose laden into the air. They circled, -rising in spirals, and then darted across the open space and over the -tree-tops. It was easy to follow the black specks for some distance -against the blue sky. - -Carl sighted their course carefully with the compass, took another -drink at the stream, and set off on their trail. It was a painful -tramp. His head ached excruciatingly, and when by accident he tripped -or stumbled, the jar left him weak almost to fainting. A dozen times -he sat down to rest and almost despaired of getting anywhere. - -It seemed to him that he had walked miles when he came to another -raspberry thicket, and here he found the guiding bees again. Again he -sighted their course, and they took the same homeward direction as the -first had done. - -Clearly he was on the right track and, somewhat encouraged, he forced -himself ahead again. But in less than fifteen minutes he came out upon -the shore of a rapid river. - -Here was an obstacle. The stream was fully sixty feet wide and looked -deep. Carl wondered how so large a river had existed in the -neighborhood, without their having seen it, and began to have doubts -as to his course after all. Perhaps these were merely wild bees from -some hollow tree. However, he was determined to follow them home. They -were crossing the river, and he would have to cross it. He picked up a -long, dry cedar pole for a float in case he went out of his depth, and -waded in. - -Halfway across he stepped into a deep hole, and was immediately -carried off his feet by the force of the current. Then he had reason -to bless his pole, for it saved him from drowning, though he was -rolled over and over and half choked. He managed to recover his -footing and scrambled ashore—but on the same side of the river as -before. - -He was more dazed than ever by the ducking, and he started down the -bank to look for a better place to cross. Bees were going over his -head in great numbers. The roar was tremendous, and now he noticed -that they were crossing the river in both directions, coming and -going. - -Perhaps, he thought, he was on the right side after all, and he -stumbled on for another hundred yards. He encountered a beaten path, -followed it, and the woods opened into a clearing. All at once the -noise of the bees rose prodigiously, and like a flash the whole -landscape turned familiar. - -It was home. He saw the roof of the cabin. The bees had led him -straight after all. His strength almost failed him in this last lap, -but Bob saw him coming and rushed anxiously to meet him. - -“What’s the matter?” he cried as he ran up. - -“I’ve been shot,” Carl muttered. “Plumb through the head.” - -And then he collapsed, so that Bob had to call Alice for help and -carry him into the house. - -He recovered when they were sponging his head and cutting away the -hair to get at his wound. The blood had caked and had stopped its -bleeding. It must have looked gruesome, for he heard Alice and Bob -discussing how they could get a doctor. - -“I don’t know that it’s so bad, after all,” said Bob, after more of -Carl’s crown had been washed clean, and after a little more -examination he began to laugh. - -“Get up!” he said. “You’re not hurt. It’s only a graze, hardly deep -enough to draw blood!” - -Carl looked astonished and foolish. Alice, who had been pale, but -collected, gave Bob a reproachful look, sat down suddenly, and began -to cry a little. - -“Just a little m-more, though, and he would have been k-killed!” she -stammered. - -“Yes,” said Bob, more seriously, “half an inch lower, and that bullet -might have done for you. How did it happen? Who could have shot at -you?” - -Carl gave an account of his adventure. As soon as he learned that his -deadly wound was only a scratch he felt remarkably better. A good part -of his collapse must have been due to pure mental effect. But it was -not all imaginary; the graze of a high-powered bullet upon the top of -the head was stunning enough, and when he tried to get up he found -himself still weak and staggery. - -“But I’ve found a superb place for another bee-yard,” he told them. “I -don’t think it’s more than three miles from here, and there’s enough -raspberry and basswood there for the bees to work themselves to death. -It would be a gold mine to us. We ought to move half the bees over -there at once.” - - - - - CHAPTER V - - FAILING HOPES - - -Next day Carl was still feeling unsteady and ill, but on the following -morning he felt well enough to guide Bob to the new apiary site, and -the two boys went off together. They returned full of enthusiasm. - -“There must be half a square mile of basswood trees,” said Bob. “So -we’d have a double chance, if the berries failed.” - -“Yes, and the best is that there’s a road going to the place,” Carl -added. “The old lumber road I told you about. It comes out on the road -to Morton, a mile or so from here. It would only need a day or two -with an ax to clear it out for a wagon to pass.” - -“This yard is certainly getting crowded,” said Alice, thoughtfully. -“With all the new swarms, we’ll have over two hundred colonies soon, -and a hundred is as many as most locations will support. But what -about the expense of moving? It would cost six dollars a day to get a -team from Morton, and we’d have to build a honey-house there, too.” - -“I believe it would pay us even if it cost a hundred dollars,” said -Carl. “But I suppose we can’t do anything till some one goes to Morton -and gets Mr. Farr’s permission to move them. The mortgage says they’re -not to be moved without permission.” - -This was undoubtedly the case, and, as none of them had time to go to -the village just then, the matter was dropped temporarily. But new -events speedily made it a live issue again. - -A little warm rain fell in the afternoon, and next morning the -honey-flow, which had been failing, began again profusely. And then, -suddenly, a riot of swarming broke out among the bees. - -A slow, light honey-flow always induces more swarming than a heavy -one, and Alice had been nervous about the matter for some days. On -this morning she went out with Carl to examine a few of the hives, and -in the very first they found what they had feared to find—a cluster of -the peanut-shaped queen-cells. They were not quite sealed, but would -have been finished the next day, and the colony would have swarmed. - -Carl cut them all out. This treatment usually delays swarming at any -rate for a week, till the colony can raise a fresh batch of cells. But -occasionally, when they have the swarming fever badly, they will -swarm, cells or not, and it is, moreover, very difficult to make sure -of destroying every cell on ten combs swarming with bees. - -The next colony had three heavy supers of honey piled on top of the -brood-chamber, and when they got down to it at last they found no -signs of swarming. But the third colony had cells just started. - -Growing uneasy, they went to look at the hive where the three-dollar -queen had been placed. They could not afford to let that queen lead -her bees away to the woods, but there was not much danger of it, for a -queen less than a year old seldom swarms. - -But on opening the hive they found the brood-combs choked with honey, -few eggs laid, and swarming cells well under way. - -“Why, this queen must be no good!” exclaimed Carl. - -“No, it isn’t that,” replied Alice. “But a queen never lays well just -after she’s come out of the mailing-cage, and the bees have got ahead -of her and filled up the combs with honey where the brood should be. -The poor queen has no room left to lay in; she feels crowded and -that’s what gave them the idea of swarming.” - -It was lucky they had discovered it in time. They cut out the -incipient queen-cells, gave empty combs, and felt sure that they had -made the colony safe. They were just proceeding to another of the -colonies where one of the new queens was, when, with a loud roaring, a -storm of bees began to volley out of a hive at the farthest end of the -yard. - -They surged about wildly in the air for some time, and then settled in -a cluster on the tip of a small cedar where swarms had alighted -several times before. Alice kept an eye on them, while Carl hurried -off to the barn for fresh hives. - -Before he could get back another swarm roared out of a second hive, -eddied about like a cloud of smoke, and finally settled. And then a -third hive swarmed. - -When bees are in the mood for it, the flying of a single swarm will -sometimes start a perfect uproar of swarming throughout an apiary, and -colonies will become carried away by the excitement and swarm without -being normally ready for it. That seemed to be the case this time. Bob -came running out to help, but a fourth swarm was already in the air. -Then came two more, which united and settled in one enormous cluster, -the size of a large bucket. Bees fairly darkened the air; the -apiarists lost track of how many swarms were out or where they came -from, and the noise was like a small tornado. - -The three rushed about frantically, gathering up such clustered swarms -as they could most easily reach, and Bob was instructed to dash a -dipperful of water right into the top of every colony that might be -likely to abscond. Such a drenching is an effectual check to swarming -for that day at any rate and does the bees no harm. - -This vigorous treatment produced some quiet. No more swarms had -emerged for about fifteen minutes, when the familiar crescendo roar -sounded again, and Bob uttered a despairing yell. From the -three-dollar queen’s colony the bees were pouring out like steam from -an escape-valve. - -“Oh! don’t let them go!” shrieked Alice. - -Bob rushed up and dashed water into the entrance; Carl poured in a -volume of smoke, but nothing could stop them. There was already an -enormous cloud of bees circling over the hive, and the only thing now -was to wait till they had clustered. But they did not seem inclined to -cluster. The swarm drifted about uncertainly, here and there, now -high, now low, and finally began to edge toward the river. - -Expecting that they would settle on the willows by the water, the -three apiarists followed it anxiously. But it did not settle. It went -over the trees, and out above the stream. - -“They’re going across! They’re making straight for the woods!” cried -Alice. “That queen is lost!” - -“No, they’ll surely cluster a little further on,” Bob exclaimed. “I’m -going to follow them up. We can’t lose that queen. I’ll bring them -back.” - -He snatched up a grain sack that they had already been using in -collecting swarms, jumped into the boat and rowed himself across the -river. - -The runaways did not travel very fast, and he could see the swarm -gyrating and drifting like a cloud of smoke over the trees. But it -moved too fast for him to keep up with it over that rough ground. He -kept it in sight for nearly a quarter of a mile, and then it faded -like mist into the sky. - -It might be that the bees had already selected some hollow tree for -their new home, and had gone straight to it without clustering. This -sometimes happens, but very rarely; a swarm almost always settles and -hangs for some time, probably as a means of getting its force -together, ready for the final journey, and Bob felt sure that this -swarm would sooner or later settle on a branch. - -He kept on, therefore, scrutinizing the trees carefully for a pendant -brown bunch. No such thing appeared, and though he stopped and -listened at every few rods he did not hear the humming drone that a -swarm keeps up for some time after it has settled. - -He lost count of distance, stumbling along with his eyes in the air, -but he must have gone a mile from the apiary when he was stopped by a -savage, guttural grunt, apparently close by. Just ahead of him was a -dense clump of willows and alders fringing a small stream, and as he -gazed, he thought he saw the dim outline of an animal through the -shrubbery, something large and tall like a buck. - -Anxious to get a look, Bob edged sideways and parted the willows a -little. He was thunderstruck to see a bull moose standing in the -shallow water and glaring at him. - -Now he remembered having heard at Morton that moose had lately been -seen in this district. At one time they were plentiful; then for years -they had vanished, and were only beginning to reappear as they strayed -south from the great game-preserves to the north. - -At most times of the year they are exceedingly shy and timid animals, -hard to get in view. Bob was amazed that this one had let him come up -so close, and he was edging forward to get a better look through the -tangle of under brush in front of him when the animal charged at him -furiously. - -He jumped aside, found himself near a low-branched cedar, and -scrambled up it. He had just time to draw his legs out of reach when -the moose crashed into the tree with a force that jarred it to the -roots. - -When Bob recovered his breath he had time to feel astonished and -indignant at this unprovoked attack. Bull moose are sometimes -dangerous in the rutting season of autumn, but never in early summer, -and the horns of this one had not yet quite outgrown their “velvet.” - -But he was clearly in a murderous temper. He stamped, tore up the -earth and brushes around the cedar, gritted his teeth, and cocked his -eye upward at the bee-keeper with a baleful glare. Then, all at once, -Bob saw what was the matter. - -The lower part of the bull’s right shoulder was mangled and torn with -wounds that were evidently not more than a day or two old. They might -have been made by the claws of a bear; more likely by a charge of -buckshot. Anyhow, they were enough to account for a good deal of bad -temper, for they must have caused intense pain. - -But the bull’s hostility did not seem to last long. Bob was looking -upwards to see if he could climb higher in his tree, and when he -glanced down again the space beneath him was empty. The moose had -slipped silently away into the woods. - -Whether he had really fled or was merely hiding in a near-by thicket -Bob could not tell. He hesitated to come down, and for some minutes he -sat dubiously in the branches, looking carefully about him for the -enemy. Then something caught his eye that gave him a joyful surprise. - -About twenty yards away there was a great brownish lump clustered at -the tip of a low maple sapling, which bent slightly under the weight. -Bob stared at it intently. It was certainly a swarm of bees. It could -hardly be any other than the one he was chasing. If it had not been -for the bull moose he might not have seen them, for they were aside -from the straight line, and so near the ground that an elevated post -was needed to distinguish them. - -He was desperately anxious to secure them now, for there was no -telling when they might take wing again. He waited for some ten -minutes very impatiently. No sign nor sound came from the moose, and -Bob slid to earth and hastened toward the little maple. - -The little tree had sagged over so that the swarm hung no higher than -his shoulders, and it could be captured in the neatest possible -manner. He carefully slipped the mouth of his sack over the swarm till -the whole cluster was inside. Then he gathered the sack around the -branch they hung by, and shook it violently. There was a sudden roar, -and a heavy weight dropped into the sack. He had secured all the -swarm, except for a few bees that flew about in wild dismay at this -disappearance of their comrades. - -Much elated, Bob turned back toward home. The sack hummed and stirred -with the efforts of the angry insects to get out. But he had hardly -gone ten yards when something stirred in the underbrush. He stopped, -startled. The next instant a fearful bellow filled his ears, and the -wounded bull burst through a curtain of evergreens. - -Bob turned and ran as fast as he could, still clinging to the sack. -Luckily the bull was somewhat lame from his wound and not in his -regular racing form. At is was, Bob was almost run down; he saved -himself only by leaping aside and changing his direction. All the time -he kept on the lookout for a tree that he could climb, and he clung -tightly to the sack. He was determined not to drop it except as a last -resort, for the mouth was not tied, and the bees would escape at once. - -The hoofs of the bull clattered behind him. He dodged wildly again, -swerved behind a tree, and caught sight of a dead hemlock trunk that -was spiked with short branches, and leaned at a decided angle. - -It was almost as easy to climb as a ladder, and Bob scrambled up to -safety, still carrying his swarm. - -The bull’s disappointed fury was now uncontrollable. He roared -frightfully; his black mane stood stiffly on end, and he gritted and -gnashed his teeth. Probably by this time he had got Bob thoroughly -associated with the pain that he was suffering, and it was too much -for him to be twice checked in his revenge. - -He reared up with his fore feet against the trunk of the hemlock. Then -he drew back a few yards and charged into it with such force that, to -Bob’s horror, it gave slightly and leaned even farther over than -before. Evidently the roots were rotten and held insecurely. It was no -place of safety after all. - -Again the bull crashed into the trunk, and this time, with an ominous -creaking, it went over more than a foot. - -This result seemed to encourage the bull greatly. He rammed his head -against the trunk and pushed hard. Bob heard the rotten roots -snapping. Pausing now and again to glance up at Bob with what seemed a -gleam of savage triumph in his eye, the bull continued to butt and -push. - -Bob clung in his tree panic-stricken, while it swayed over farther and -farther. In a few seconds he would surely be hurled under the brute’s -hoofs. Then it flashed upon him that he had one weapon left, and a -terrible one. He disliked to use it, even to save his life, but -another charge of the bull, and a heavy lurch of the almost uprooted -tree convinced him that he must not hesitate. - -He held the sack directly over the bull’s head, and shook out the -swarm. At the same time he ducked quickly, and snatched his coat up to -cover his own face. - -There was a hissing roar as though from a burst steam-pipe, and he -felt a dozen burning stings on his hands. Then he heard a sudden, -astonished snort from the bull and a sound of furious trampling. - -He ventured to peep through an opening in his coat. The air round him -was full of bees, and the bull’s face and head seemed covered with a -surging brown mass. Thousands of bees were clinging and stinging -pitilessly, while the animal rushed about, fiercely shaking its head -and bellowing with pain and fury. - -Blindly it started to bolt, and collided heavily with a tree. It made -a fresh start and splashed into the brook. From the sounds it seemed -to be rolling in the water. Probably it got rid of some of its -tormentors in this way, but certainly not of all. It dashed out of the -creek, bolted past Bob’s tree, knots of maddened bees still clinging -to its hide, and crashed through the underbrush, straight away into -the woods. There was no doubt that it was gone this time, for Bob -could hear its smashing rush fully half a mile away. - -Bob was stung a good deal himself, but this seemed a very light -matter. He slipped to the ground and lost no time in finding a safer -place, for the air was still full of savagely-excited bees. Here he -remained for half an hour, picking the stings out of his skin, and -waiting till he considered it safe to go home. - -He might as well recover the sack, he thought, before he left, and he -went to get it, regretting bitterly the loss of the swarm. No doubt it -had saved his life; it could not be helped; but still it was a shame -to lose Alice’s three-dollar bee. - -But as he approached his former perch he was surprised to find that -the bees had collected again. Not all of them, indeed; instead of the -big swarm, there was now only about a quart of bees in a little bunch -on a cedar twig. But they would hardly have gathered there if the -queen had not been with them, and Bob bent over the cluster and looked -at it closely. - -They had got over their stinging fury now. He was able to scrutinize -them carefully, and in a few seconds he made out the slender, graceful -body of the yellow, Italian queen, as she crawled about among her -bees. Full of delight, he slipped the sack over it, shook the bees -off, and started hastily for home. More than half were lost, to be -sure, but he would have sacrificed all the rest of the swarm to have -saved the queen. - -He reached the river without seeing anything more of the bull, ferried -himself across, and went up to the apiary, where Carl and Alice were -still working hard. - -“I’ve got ’em!” he cried triumphantly as he appeared. - -“Got them!” his brother exclaimed. “Looks as if they’d got you!” - -Bob’s face was indeed a shocking sight. A bee-keeper usually becomes -hardened to stings, so that they do not cause swellings; but Bob had -not yet become sufficiently inoculated. There were big lumps on his -forehead, one eye was nearly closed, his chin was lopsided, and both -his hands were somewhat puffed. But he was highly elated at having -recovered the swarm with the valuable queen, which they at once -carefully restored to a hive. - -“There, old lady!” said Carl, as he saw the yellow queen creep into -the hive with her bees, “you’ve had enough wild life now, and you’d -better settle down to business.” - -Bob gave them a brief account of what had happened, while he helped -them sort out the swarms, but in the course of another hour his eye -closed so badly that he was obliged to retire to the cabin. Several -more swarms had come out while he had been gone, but all of them had -been recovered, and by that night they had twenty-eight new colonies -more than they had bought. - -The apiary was certainly far too crowded, and doubtless there would be -still more swarming before the season was over. Some of them ought to -be moved to another spot, and the sooner this could be done the -better. - -The next day was hot and dry. No honey appeared to be coming in, and -no swarms went out, and early the following morning Carl paddled the -boat down to Morton. - -He had no difficulty in securing Mr. Farr’s written consent to moving -part of the bees to the new location by the lake. He ordered a -two-horse team and hayrack to come out to the apiary the next day, and -came home with a roll of wire gauze and several papers of tacks. - -It took a day to clear away the bushes and brush from the old road, -but it was ready when the wagon arrived from Morton, and they moved -fifty colonies the next night, in two loads. The next morning they -moved another load by daylight. It was hard, tedious work to load and -unload the heavy hives, and the wagon had to move slowly all the way. -It was dangerous work, too; though the entrances of the hives were -closed with wire gauze, an aperture might develop through which the -bees could rush out, and the result would probably be stung horses, a -runaway, and a line of smashed hives scattered along the road. One of -the boys walked with a lighted smoker beside the load all the way, on -the watch for possible trouble, and they all breathed much more freely -when the hives were off the wagon. - -They set them on large stones a few rods back from the water. Later -they could make regular stands for them, and before another season, of -course, they would have to build a small house for extracting and -storing the apparatus. - -For the present they contented themselves with a tiny hut no bigger -than a piano-case, built of rough logs, in which to store tools and a -few frames, extra hives, and odds and ends. Most of the colonies in -the new yard were old ones that had swarmed and were weak in bees. -They would gather no more surplus honey and would need little -attention this year, but would build up strong for the next season. - -The day of the swarming riot was the last really good day of the -raspberry bloom. The effect of the shower had been transient. The -weather turned hot and dry. The honey dried up in the flowers, and the -discouraged bees worked only for an hour or two early every morning. - -“If it would only rain—really rain hard!” groaned Alice. - -“Unless it does, the honey-flow is certainly at an end,” said Carl, -anxiously. “The berry bloom won’t last long in this drought and I’m -certain there’s nothing like a thousand dollars’ worth of honey in the -supers now.” - -“No—or five hundred,” added Bob. - -In fact, the earliest raspberry blossoms were now replaced by green -fruit. If rain should fall in time, the later bloom might last for a -week more, and there was the basswood flowering still to come. But the -weather remained hot and dry, and there was no dew at night. Alice’s -garden withered, though she watered it every evening. Twice clouds -rolled up from the south, and they heard thunder. It must have rained -within ten miles, but not a drop fell at the apiary. - -“Even half an hour’s shower would mean a couple of days’ honey-flow,” -said Bob. - -But it did not come. Now and again a little moisture in the air set -the bees working for an hour or two, but most of the time they were -idle. As usual in a honey dearth they became bad-tempered. Their -owners could no longer stroll about among the hives with impunity. The -bees came into the cabin, attracted by one of the pails of candied -honey, and would have carried every morsel of it away if they had been -permitted. Robber bees were prowling about every hive, looking for a -chance to steal a little sweet from some careless colony, but every -entrance was alive with alert guards, and no bee was allowed to pass -in without being examined and smelt all over. The robbers did get a -foothold in one weak colony, however, and before the apiarists saw it, -it was besieged by a cloud of bees. They carried it by assault, too, -after half an hour’s fighting, killed the defenders, tore down most of -the combs, and carried every drop of the honey away to their own hive. - -Then they turned their attention to the hive standing next in the row, -but this was a powerful colony, and the raiders got more than they -bargained for. In a moment the entrance was covered with knots of -furiously-fighting bees. Every robber was pounced upon the moment it -alighted. The attack was beaten off, and for a time quiet reigned in -the yard. - -Day by day the raspberry bloom vanished, and no fresh buds were -opening now. The time came at last when it was entirely gone, and all -the thickets were covered with fruit. The basswood trees were full of -buds—but would they yield nectar? - -It was the middle of July. In two weeks they must pay five hundred -dollars, with interest, and they did not have the money. Unless they -could make it, the bees would be taken from them. - -“If the basswood only yields as it should we’ll manage it, after all,” -said Bob, trying to be optimistic. - -Alas! the basswood flowered in the midst of a hot wave, when the whole -land lay baked and panting. The bloom lasted only a day or two, dried -up, and withered. Scarcely a bee had touched the blossoms. - -The Harmans felt unspeakably gloomy and discouraged. The failure of -their hopes, after so much anticipation, labor, and experience, was -hard to bear. - -“We may as well look the thing square in the face, Allie,” said Carl -one morning, when he was alone with his sister in the cabin. “The -season’s over, and it’s a failure. I don’t know how we’ll save the -bees.” - -“Surely we’ll have money enough to pay Mr. Farr. We must save the bees -if we starve ourselves, for they mean everything to us. How much money -have we left?” - -“About two hundred dollars. It has just melted away, with all the -expenses of fresh supplies and sugar and then the cost of establishing -the new yard, besides our own living.” - -“Well, surely we can get three hundred dollars’ worth of honey, to -make up enough for our payment. We can manage to live some way and rub -along till another season comes.” - -“Well, that’s what I wanted to talk about,” went on Carl, earnestly. -“You see, Bob’s university work mustn’t be interrupted on any account. -He’ll want to drop it, I know, to save the money, but we mustn’t let -him. We’ve got to find the money somehow. Now, I’ve been thinking that -you might go back to Harman’s Corners, where you could live in our old -house for little or nothing, and I might get some kind of a job in -Toronto.” - -“You’re right,” Alice agreed. “Bob must keep up his work. But I -wouldn’t stay at home all alone. I’d rather get a job in Toronto, -too.” - -Then began a long discussion of plans, but they revealed nothing of -all this to Bob. That very evening, however, Bob proposed that his -sister take a walk with him. - -“This investment hasn’t panned out, Alice,” he said, when they were -well away from the cabin. “We’re not going to make a cent profit this -year. I blame myself for it, for I got you both into it.” - -“Nonsense, Bob!” returned Alice. “We were just as eager as you were. -We all rushed into it, and we all knew that it was a gamble on the -weather.” - -“Well, anyhow, I’m not going back to college next term. Carl will want -me to, I know, but you must back me up. I couldn’t use any money that -way. We’ll be hard up at the best, and I won’t have you two rob -yourselves for my support.” - -“Oh, Bob! You must go back!” - -“Well, I won’t. What’s a year lost, anyhow. But I’m uncertain what to -do. I could come up here and trap all winter. I’m sure I could make -several hundred dollars, all clear profit; but trapping is a sort of -gamble, too. Or I could get a job any time with the Toronto Electric -Company at about fifteen a week. Trapping would be more fun, but the -other would be surer, and I’d get a lot of practical experience. What -do you think?” - -“I don’t know!” said Alice, half laughing and half crying. “Oh, I -don’t know, Bob. I think—I think we’d better harvest our honey first -and see how it turns out.” - -And the next day they began to harvest the crop. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - - ROBBING THE ROBBER - - -It was the comb honey in the one-pound sections on which they were -depending for an early sale at a fancy price, and naturally they -wished to take this off first. The only place to pile and sort it was -in the cabin, and they proceeded to turn the boys’ bedroom into a -storehouse. There was no furniture to take out; they merely removed -the bedding, and laid boards over the bunk to make a platform. Carl -nailed wire gauze over the window, and Bob constructed a rough screen -for the outer door. With the bees in that fierce robbing humor the -place must, above all things, be kept bee-tight. - -It was a ticklish task to take off the supers, for the bees were -intensely irritable, and a hive was no more than opened when a host of -robbers collected, eager to pilfer a mouthful. The boys had to be -quick in their movements. Bob opened the hive, and the moment the lid -was up Carl drove great blasts of smoke into the super, at the same -time keeping enough smoke in the surrounding air to repel the thieves. -Bob then seized the super, knocked it on the ground to jar out the few -bees left in it, and hurried with it to the cabin. - -In the storeroom Alice was waiting to sort and grade the honey. The -delicate sections were glued fast in the frames that held them, and -had to be pried carefully out. The very finest sections, sealed white -and smooth all over, were classed as “Fancy”; those of slightly -rougher appearance ranked as “No. 1.” A certain number of the rest -might be saleable at a low price; the honey was just as good as the -“Fancy,” but their appearance was against them. But the larger part -was worth nothing, except for the honey that could be obtained by the -extractor. - -From the first it became apparent that there was going to be more -honey than they had expected, and their hopes began to go nervously -upward. When the opening of a hive showed a good super, with all its -combs smooth and white, the boys chuckled, and Bob exulted in its -weight as he lugged it into the house. Some colonies had as many as -three supers like this, but many had only one or two, and some, where -the colony had swarmed, only a worthless and unfinished set of combs. - -Beside these, there were the extracting supers, containing a good deal -of honey, but they did not intend to extract at once. The comb honey -came first. - -The piles of supers accumulated in the little room faster than Alice -could remove the sections. With rising hope, the boys worked -feverishly, and shortly after noon they carried in the last super. -Then they set to work to assist Alice at the sorting and grading. - -Every section had to be looked at and estimated, the propolis and wax -scraped from the wood, and then placed carefully in the -shipping-cases. The emptied supers were put outdoors; the supers with -unfinished sections were set by themselves. All three worked hard that -afternoon, and much of the next day, but it was not till nearly -supper-time that they emptied the last super, and filled the last -shipping case. - -There were 3840 sections. Of these, 1200 ranked as “Fancy,” and about -600 as “No. 1.” Nearly 2000 sections were unsaleable. - -“These we can eat ourselves,” remarked Alice. - -“We ought to get $2.50 a dozen for the best, and $2 for the ‘No. 1’,” -Bob estimated. “That comes to—” - -“$350,” said Carl, who was a lightning calculator. “Why, that’s not so -bad! Then all those unsaleable sections must have at least a thousand -pounds of honey in them that we can extract. Besides, there must be -three or four hundred dollars’ worth of extracted honey on the hives -which we’ll be able to sell later.” - -“Hurrah!” shouted Bob. “We’ll pull through, after all.” - -“Yes, and with something to the good!” cried Alice. - -In their relief and joy they joined hands and performed a wild dance -around the shipping cases. It did not last long, though, for they were -tired and stiff with bending over the supers; they were gummy with -propolis and wax, and sticky with honey, and on the window was a -cluster of bees the size of a small swarm, which had been carried in -with the honey. After dark Carl brushed them off into a bucket, -carried them out, and poured them down in front of a weak hive. They -crawled gladly in, and as they all had their sacs full of honey, they -were admitted. A honey-laden bee is always welcome to any hive. - -The comb honey had to be sold at once, for the time was growing short. -Bob proposed that he should go over to Morton and make the sale in -Toronto by telegraph, or by long-distance telephone if he could get -connections. It was a good plan, but Carl was anxious to be on hand to -hear how the negotiations went; Alice was no less eager, and was, -moreover, unwilling to be left alone at the cabin, so it ended in -preparations for all of them to go to Morton and make the deal -together. - -“Above all things, we must be careful to leave the cabin bee-tight,” -Alice warned them. “Just fancy the bees finding a way in. They’d carry -all that honey back to the hives before we got home.” - -So they plugged every chink in the logs most carefully with wet clay -and moss, looked to the wire screens, and even blocked up the chimney. -The cabin door they fastened with a big padlock and chain, and Alice -packed up half a dozen of the best sections for a gift to Mr. Farr. - -“No use trying to sweeten him,” Bob warned her. “He’ll take it, but -he’ll be as hard as nails with us all the same. He keeps business and -friendship separate, you know.” - -“Anyway I’m going to take him the honey. I rather like him, you know,” -Alice persisted. - -They went down in the boat, a slow and rather lazy drift with the -current in the warm morning sunshine. About noon they reached Morton, -and found that they could get telegraph connections at the railway -station, and long-distance telephone at the hotel. - -As a first step, Bob telegraphed to the headquarters of the Provincial -Bee-keepers’ Association to learn what the season had been throughout -the country, and how prices were ranging. It was two o’clock in the -afternoon before the reply came; the waiting had been something of a -strain, and Bob looked nervous when he ripped open the yellow -envelope, but then his face brightened. - -“Splendid! Listen to this!” he cried. - -“‘Honey crop reported about one third normal throughout Ontario. -Severe drought. Members advised to hold for good prices. Market -firm.’” - -“The drought must have been worse with them than it was with us,” said -Carl. “Well, prices are likely to go ’way up, and we ought to have a -chance to make some money.” - -“It looks so,” replied Bob, “and now I want you to let me do the -negotiating. I’m an ignoramus at handling bees, but I think I can sell -honey better than either of you.” - -“Who’ll you sell it to?” asked Alice. - -“I’m going to try Mr. Brown, of Brown & Son, you know, the wholesale -grocery people. We used to buy a lot of stock from him for the store. -I’ve often bought from him by long-distance, and I’ll see if I can’t -sell to him the same way. Anyhow, I think he’ll give us a square -deal.” - -The telephone was not in a booth, but merely attached to the wall of -the hotel office. However, there was no one in sight or hearing at the -time, and they might as well have been in a private room. Bob called -the long-distance connection, and after about fifteen minutes’ waiting -got a reply from the Toronto grocery dealers. Alice and Carl stood -beside him, and listened breathlessly to the conversation. - -“Is that Mr. Brown?” cried Bob. “This is Bob Harman—of Harman’s -Corners, you know. No, I’m not there just now. I’m running a bee-ranch -up north. A bee-ranch. Honey-bees, you know. Yes. Yes, we have a lot -of splendid comb-honey. Are you in the market?” - -For a moment he listened attentively. - -“We have about a hundred dozen ‘Fancy’ and about fifty dozen ‘No. 1,’” -he continued. “We ask $3 and $2.50 a dozen for the two grades, freight -paid to Toronto.” - -“What an awful price! We’ll never get it,” whispered Alice, startled. - -“Don’t speak. You’ll shake his nerve,” Carl muttered. - -“No,” Bob was saying into the transmitter. “We wouldn’t care to take -much less. There’s been a bad crop everywhere, and honey is scarce -this year. Oh, we couldn’t think of taking that. What’s that? All -right. In an hour, then. Good-by.” He turned away from the telephone. - -“They actually had the nerve to offer $2.25 for the ‘Fancy,’ and $2 -for the other,” he said. “They said they had bought a lot of ‘Fancy’ -at $2, but I think that was pure bluff. And I thought they were sure -to give us a square deal! Well, I’m to ring them up again in an hour, -and if they won’t come up to a decent figure, there are other dealers -in Toronto.” - -It seemed a long time to wait. Alice carried her gift of honey to Mr. -Farr, and came back reporting that he had seemed much pleased. But he -had shaken his head grimly at her account of the poor season. - -“The old skinflint needn’t worry,” said Carl, angrily. “He’ll get his -money all right.” - -“Yes, but I’m not going to sacrifice that honey,” said Bob with -decision. “It’s cost us too much—with cats and moose and stings and -bears and wendigos. It ought to be worth a dollar a pound. If we can’t -do well in Toronto, we’ll ring up Montreal. Honey prices are often -better there.” - -They did not wait much beyond the hour in calling Mr. Brown again, and -this time Bob got him with very little delay. - -“Yes,” he said in reply to some question, “I’ve thought it over, and -we can’t possibly accept what you offer. We’ll shade the price to -$2.80 for the best grade, but we think we should have at least $2.50 -for the other. It’s really beautiful honey.” - -He listened a moment and frowned. “Hold the line a moment,” he said at -last. “I must consult my brother.” - -He turned to Carl and Alice, holding his hand over the transmitter, so -that their conversation should not leak through to Toronto. - -“He says his best figure is $2.60 and $2.30, cash down,” he said in a -low tone. “What shall we do?” - -“Take it, by all means. That isn’t so bad,” said Carl, anxiously. - -“Yes, take it—take it!” Alice begged. “We mustn’t lose the sale.” - -Bob looked at them thoughtfully for a moment, and then an expression -of determination crossed his face. He turned back to the telephone. - -“Sorry—can’t do it!” he said, firmly. “We will take $2.70 and $2.40, -but that’s positively our last word. We’re thinking of shipping to -Montreal.” - -Alice turned pale, and clutched Bob’s arm in remonstrance, but he paid -no attention to her. - -“No,” he said into the telephone, “I’m not trying to drive any hard -bargain, Mr. Brown. But there’s scarcely any comb-honey this year, and -prices are going up. Shall we ship? All right. That will be -satisfactory. We can ship to-morrow or the day after. Good-by!” - -He hung up the telephone and made a wild leap into the air. - -“Victory!” he exclaimed. “We get $2.70 and $2.40, cash on delivery. -About twenty cents a dozen more than we’d counted on. It was the -mention of Montreal that fetched them, for they were keen to get the -honey. We’re saved!” - -“Frenzied finance!” said Carl, who had been jotting down some figures -on a scrap of paper. “But it comes to $390, and with the $200 we’ve -got we’ll be able to make our payment all right. Let’s get that honey -shipped at once.” - -First, however, they had to arrange for a teamster to go out to the -apiary for the honey; then they had to make some purchases in the -village, and when they had finished their errands, it was too late for -the long pull up the river that afternoon. So they all stayed at the -hotel and started up-stream at eight o’clock the next morning. - -It was nearly noon when they arrived at the apiary landing, and they -were tired, but light-hearted with success. They went up toward the -cabin with their arms full of packages, and suddenly Alice, who was in -front, uttered a sharp cry. - -A cloud of robber bees hung roaring about the cabin. The door, which -they had left locked, stood half open. They dropped their parcels and -rushed up. The main room was swarming with bees, but fortunately the -screen door into the honey room was shut, and they had not been able -to get in, though they were trying hard. - -But a glance through the wire showed that the honey had been pillaged. -The piles of supers were overturned; so were the stacks of full -shipping cases, and half of them seemed to be gone. - -Alice gave one glance through the door at the wreck and then dropped -on a bench and hid her face in her hands. Bob rushed into the -store-room, with Carl at his heels. - -A great part of the best honey was gone—nearly all the “No. 1” grade -and some of the “Fancy.” They could not tell accurately at the moment -how much. More than a thousand pounds seemed to be missing, but the -thief had abstained from taking any of the unsaleable sections. - -“It can’t have been gone long!” said Carl, excitedly. “Let’s see if -there are any tracks.” - -As they hastened out they noticed that the heavy staple that held the -padlock had been pried off. The ground near the door was too hard to -show tracks, but a little way from the river they found footprints -heading toward the cabin, and in the gravel along the shore they found -the mark where a boat had been drawn up. - -“Gone by water!” said Bob grimly. “Do you suppose it was that -half-breed squatter?” - -“There’s no one else living along the river within ten miles. He must -have seen us all going down the river yesterday, and knew that he had -a clear field. What fools we were to leave all that honey. We’re done -for now!” - -“Not much!” returned Bob. “If that fellow has the honey, we’ll get it -back. Here, come along!” - -He led the way rapidly back to the cabin, took down his rifle, and -began to fill the magazine with cartridges. Carl picked up his -shotgun. - -“Bob! What are you going to do?” exclaimed Alice. - -“Get that honey back,” replied her brother shortly. “Going down the -river.” - -“Well, if you’re going, I’ll go too and paddle the boat.” - -“No, you stay here, Allie. There won’t be any shooting, but this is no -girl’s business. Stay here and get the bees out of here and things -straightened up. We won’t be long—I hope!” - -[Illustration: “No, you stay here, Allie. There won’t be any shooting, -but this is no girl’s business”] - -Alice looked entreating and frightened, but Bob was immovable. -Carrying their guns, the two boys went back to the boat and in another -minute were shooting down the stream as fast as the oars and current -could take them. As they went they decided upon a plan of action. They -did not want any collision with the half-breed. If it came to weapons, -it would mean somebody killed or wounded, and that would be worse than -losing the whole crop of honey. They only wanted to make sure that he -had really stolen the honey, and where he had hidden it. Afterwards -they would see about recovering it. - -They landed near the great slough, left the boat, and went cautiously -through the woods to the edge of the clearing. No one was in sight. No -dog barked this time, and the cabin door was shut. - -“Perhaps they’ve gone away with the haul,” muttered Bob. “The only way -is to go up and find out.” - -So they marched boldly across the stumpy field to the cabin, and -knocked. - -“_Entrez!_” cried a voice from within, and Bob pushed open the door. - -There was a startled exclamation from within. Larue rose from a seat -where he was doing something with a large piece of buckskin, and he -looked black as he saw the two boys standing armed in the doorway. His -wife, a tall, rather handsome and shabbily-dressed woman, stopped -short in the middle of the floor, looking frightened. Two pretty, -gipsy-like children slunk into the background. - -“_Bon jour! bon jour!_” said both Bob and Carl politely. - -“_Bon jour_,” responded the squatter, and his face softened a little. -“What do you want? You speak French?” - -“Only a little—not enough to talk,” replied Bob. “Mr. Larue, our house -was broken into while we were away, and about a thousand pounds of -honey stolen—over $200 worth. We came to see if you knew anything -about it.” - -“Me? How should I know anyt’ing about zat?” returned Larue. - -It was hard to put the accusation direct, and Bob hesitated a little. - -“The honey was taken away by boat. You have a boat, and you’re the -only person that lives down this way, so—” - -“You say I steal your honey?” cried the squatter angrily. “I tell you -I know nottings about it. Look! Is the honey here?” - -Carl and Bob both looked, and Bob sniffed as well, and sniffed again -with suspicion. The cabin was all one large room, and a thousand -pounds of honey certainly could not have been concealed in it. It -contained only the simplest furniture, a dirty cooking stove, a table, -two rough beds, on which were spread the two fine bearskins that Alice -had seen, and a small cupboard. But Bob suddenly darted forward and -picked up a small fragment of honeycomb from the floor under the -table. - -“Where did this come from?” he cried. - -“Bee-tree,” returned the half-breed, cunningly. - -“I don’t believe it!” exclaimed Carl, examining the bit of wax. “This -comb was built on foundation. It came from our bee-yard.” - -“Give us back our honey, and we’ll say nothing more about it,” urged -Bob. “You don’t need to steal honey. We’ll give you all you can eat.” - -“_Voila!_” cried Larue. “I know nottings about your honey. It is that -you want to make trouble. You come here to see me; _bien_, you are -welcome. You come here to insult me; you go outside quick.” - -“When we come back, we’ll bring a constable!” cried Carl. - -The woman said a sentence to her husband in rapid French, which the -boys failed to catch. - -“Let your constable come,” continued the squatter. “He find nottings. -But as for you, you git out and stay out. I know nottings about your -honey. _Va-t-en! Git!_” - -“Come along! No use talking any more!” muttered Bob, and the boys -departed, feeling rather beaten and angry. They crossed the clearing -and paused to look back from the cover of the woods. Larue was -standing in his doorway, gazing after them. - -“All the same, I know the honey is somewhere about this place,” Bob -broke out. “Why, I could smell it. I couldn’t be mistaken. And that -piece of comb—” - -“It was certainly a piece of a section,” Carl agreed. “I’m afraid, -though, that I made a bad break in threatening him with a constable. -He’ll be sure to move the plunder right away to some place where -nobody could ever find it.” - -“He certainly hasn’t got it in his cabin. Maybe it’s stored in the -barn.” - -“Likely enough. Or somewhere near here in the woods. How we’ll ever -locate it is more than I can imagine.” - -“If it’s in any exposed place some bees will be likely to find it and -rob it out for him. Wish they would!” said Bob. - -Carl looked quickly at his brother and meditated in silence for a -moment. - -“Look here!” he exclaimed at last. “Why can’t we send bees to scout -for that honey. They might even carry it back, and no power on earth -could stop them if they got going. Of course they couldn’t lug the -sections home, but they’d lick out all the honey and put it in their -hives again, and we could extract it. That would be better than losing -it all.” - -Bob looked dubious at first, and then he began to laugh. - -“Robbing the robber!” he exclaimed. “I don’t know but what it might -work. Anyway, it’s a brilliant idea and ought to be tried. None of -those shipping cases had their tops closed, and the bees could get -into them without any trouble. But how’ll we work it? It’s three miles -from here to the bee-yard.” - -“Yes, we’d have to bring some hives down here within range,” replied -Carl. “We could float them down in the boat. Four or five would do to -see if they found the honey, and then we could bring more.” - -They got into their boat and pulled up-stream again. From a distance -they saw Alice waiting at the landing, peering eagerly down the river. - -“Thank goodness, you’re back!” she exclaimed fervently. “I’ve been so -worried. Did you have a fight? Did you find the honey?” - -“Neither honey nor fight,” returned Bob, as they went ashore. “But we -think we know where the honey is, and we’re going to send some -messengers after it to-morrow.” - -“Messengers? What do you mean?” cried Alice, mystified. Carl chuckled -and outlined the plan to her, much to her amusement, though she was -doubtful of its success. - -“Why, there’s a thousand pounds of honey missing,” she said. “A colony -can’t carry more than ten pounds of honey a day. What a lot of -colonies it would take, or what a long time, to have them bring all -that back, even if they find it!” - -However, the boys were determined to give the plan a trial, and as -soon as it was dark they loaded half a dozen of their strongest -colonies into the boat. Along with them they took supers of empty -combs. - -It crowded the boat considerably and made an awkward cargo, but they -got it safely down the river. Landing near Larue’s clearing, they put -the hives ashore and then carried them, one by one, with much labor -and stumbling, through the woods. Within two hundred yards of Larue’s -barn, but well back among the trees they set the hives down behind a -cedar thicket. Bob then laid a trail of honey from the hives almost to -the barn, sprinkling a little on the ground and leaves every few feet. -Before he had quite reached the barn, the hound began to bay noisily, -and the boys scuttled off to the river and paddled homeward. - -About nine o’clock the next morning they made their way cautiously -down to their ambushed “messengers” to see what was going on. They -found things active. Bees were coming and going rapidly, dropping -heavily laden in front of the hives. Every colony was alert, excited -and bad-tempered. The intelligent insects knew well that honey was -coming from some unnatural source. Robbing was in the air; they felt -it, and every entrance was massed with guards in readiness for a -possible attack. - -“They’ve found it!” exclaimed Carl, gleefully. - -The boys sat down and watched. All the bees were certainly going -straight toward Larue’s clearing, and they came heavily back, dropping -by scores at the hives, almost too heavy to fly. In the course of an -hour the activity had greatly increased. - -“Yes, they’ve located it, all right,” said Bob. “They’re heading -toward his barn, it seems to me. I wish I dared go and look, but we’d -better be careful not to show our noses. Larue is probably on the -watch.” - -They put on the supers of empty combs to give storage room for the -honey and went back to the cabin for dinner, laughing. But they were -too much excited to stay long away from the ambushed hives, and they -returned to them toward the middle of the afternoon. Alice was -intensely anxious to be allowed to go with them, but the situation was -highly delicate, and they decided that it was hardly safe. - -When they came within a hundred yards of the hidden hives they heard -the roar of the bees. Never before had they seen such a fury of work. -A black belt, a river of bees, seemed to be flowing over the trees -toward the clearing. The entrances were almost choked as the insects -poured out and in, and the ground in front was covered with crawling -bees that had dropped exhausted. - -They were savagely cross, too, as bees always are when robbing is -going on. There was fighting at the entrance of every hive, probably -due to bees mistaking their doors in the new location. The whole front -of the hive was brown with guards, and it was dangerous to go nearer -than twenty feet. Bob had brought a veil with him, though, and he -opened one of the supers. He received several stings on the hands, but -reported that the combs were nearly half full already, and not with -nectar, but with thick, ripened honey. - -“No doubt at all that it’s our honey coming back,” he said. “I wonder -what Mr. Larue thinks of all this. If we’re careful, he’ll never -suspect that we had any hand in it. He’ll just take it as a kind of -judgment for his thieving. But what oceans of bees seem to be going -over. You wouldn’t think that half a dozen hives could send out so -many.” - -“I’ve a notion that the bees from the home yard are coming here too,” -said Carl. “Just look in the air.” - -In fact, a long air-line of bees could be discerned going straight up -the river above the trees. It was a long flight, of course, but bees -have been known to go four or five miles when honey is scarce. Perhaps -the home apiary might have found the stolen honey even if they had not -moved any bees. - -During that afternoon the excitement rose to a perfect frenzy. A -torrent of bees swept overhead, from the ambushed hives to the -clearing and up the river toward home. The boys began to grow uneasy; -as Carl had said, no power on earth could stop things now, and it -looked rather as if they had unlocked forces that were too much for -them. Carl hastened home to look at conditions there, and came back -breathless, reporting the apiary in a turmoil. Bees were flying, -robbing, fighting and bringing in honey. Many of the colonies had not -yet learned where the honey was coming from, and were flying around -the cabin in clouds, or trying to pounce on some weaker colony. - -“But there must be over a million bees going to the Frenchman’s -place,” he said. “I think we ought to try to find out what’s going on -there. The whole family may be stung to death.” - -It did look dangerous, but they were greatly afraid to be seen. -Larue’s indignation must be well up to shooting-point before this. But -they crept cautiously toward the clearing. - -Before they reached the edge of the woods they could hear a roar like -a distant cataract; and when they came into the open they were -appalled at what they saw. - - - - - CHAPTER VII - - REAPING THE HARVEST - - -A roaring black cloud that looked almost like the vortex of a tornado -swirled over the log barn. There was a smaller cloud hovering about -the house, and the whole clearing was alive with bees, coming and -going, looking for something, all extremely irritable. - -Approaching the barn as closely as they dared, they saw that the whole -building was like a vast beehive. The insects covered the logs; they -swarmed in and out of every one of the wide chinks between the -timbers. Myriads were continually emerging and flying off, and myriads -more took their places. - -“Gracious!” exclaimed Carl, looking rather wildly at his brother. “I -didn’t know we had so many bees. The honey’s here in the barn all -right.” - -“It won’t be here long, at this rate,” returned Bob. “But I wonder -what’s happened to Larue and his family and live stock. Perhaps -they’re all dead!” - -The boys really felt seriously uneasy at the overwhelming success of -their scheme. Except for the bees, no living creature was in sight, -but Carl presently spied a dead hen near the barn. Evidently she had -been killed by the bees, and this increased their uneasiness. Bob made -an attempt to reach the cabin, but a host of savage bees drove him -back, despite his veil. The insects were fighting-mad. - -The boys crept around the edge of the clearing, keeping in the shelter -of the woods, where the bees did not molest them. They had made about -half the circuit when they caught sight of a heavy cloud of smoke -rising a little way back among the thickets. - -“S-sh! There they are!” whispered Bob. - -They lay low for a minute, then, hearing no sound, crept up close -enough to gain a view of the camp. The squatter’s family were sitting -dejectedly in the shelter of smoke from a heavy smudge. Larue himself -reclined against a tree, but he was hardly recognizable. Both his eyes -seemed to be swollen shut. He had two big lumps on his forehead, his -lips were puffed, and one ear was twice its rightful size. It was -clear that he was in no fighting condition, and the boys walked up -without any hesitation. - -[Illustration: He was plainly in no condition to show fight, and the -boys advanced without hesitation] - -“You seem to be having trouble,” said Bob innocently. - -The squatter tried to screw his eyes open far enough to get a glimpse -of them. - -“_Nom d’un nom!_” he ejaculated, thickly through his swollen lips. -“Dose bees! Dey come—dey swarm—!” and he trailed off into a mixture of -French and English indistinguishably distorted in his puffy mouth. -They could hardly make out a word. - -“What’s been happening, Mrs. Larue?” said Carl, turning to the woman. -She also bore marks of stings, and so did the two children. - -“Your bees!” she cried. “Dey come in by t’ousands—millions! We stay in -de house—no! _Pas possible!_ Dey kill my two best _poulets_. Kill us -too, if we not get out!” - -“What do you suppose they could have been after?” asked Bob. - -The woman cast a quick glance at her husband, and said she didn’t -know, but in her queer dialect she gave an excited account of what had -happened—from her point of view. - -That forenoon they had suddenly been invaded by a whirlwind of bees. -The family had tried at first to shut themselves up in the house, but -the bees forced an entrance through hundreds of crevices, and they had -had to take to the woods. Larue had been terribly stung while trying -to get a cow out of the barn, and two hens had been killed by the -bees. Afraid to leave cover, the family had been sitting all day under -the smudge-smoke, without food, not daring to go to the house to find -any. She knew, of course, that these were the Harman bees, but the -boys were relieved to find that she seemed to have no sort of -suspicion that the raid had been planned. - -“We must get this thing stopped,” whispered Carl, drawing his brother -aside. “The bees’ll kill everything on the place.” - -“Yes, and after dark we can carry away the rest of the honey -ourselves,” replied Bob. “These people won’t try to stop us. In fact, -now will be a good time to try to make up a peace with them.” - -“You’ll be all right by to-morrow, Mr. Larue,” said Carl, -reassuringly. “Perhaps you know better than we do what attracted the -bees down here, but we’ll try to fix it so they won’t bother you any -more.” - -“I move away from zis place!” cried the squatter, energetically. “Ze -bee—he make my life one misery!” - -“Well, I’m sorry it happened,” returned Bob. “Here’s a dollar to pay -for your two hens, and we’ll send you some honey—for the children.” - -The woman took the dollar bill, muttered a word of thanks, but did not -seem much propitiated. As for stopping the raid, the boys could do -nothing till the bees stopped of themselves for the night. It was -really dangerous to venture out of the shelter of the woods. Even -sunset brought little cessation of the uproar, and it was not till it -was quite dark that the bees gradually ceased to hover about the barn -and cabin. - -Bob and Carl then accompanied the Larues to their house, which was -strewn with dead and half-dead bees. On the table were several -unmistakable pieces of section honey, which the boys wisely pretended -not to see. No doubt Larue had brought them in for breakfast, but the -bees had taken all the honey out of the combs. After finishing the -honey, they had licked up everything sweet in the house, including two -quarts of maple syrup and a jar of raspberry jam. - -The barefooted children were at once stung by treading on the -stupefied bees that crawled over the floor. Larue flung himself down -on the bed and started up again instantly, with a loud ejaculation. -There were bees in the bed, too. The woman took a broom and began to -sweep the insects out, but the boys judged it more politic not to -stay. - -“Can you lend us a lantern?” inquired Bob. “We want to look into the -barn. There’s some honey of ours there that we want to take away. When -it’s gone, the bees will leave you alone.” - -“_Oui_, I get you ze lantern,” said the woman. “Look in ze barn. Look -anywhere. But I see no honey. I know nottings about it. I get you -anyt’ing, only you take dose bees away.” - -Though the bees had ceased flying, there were many of them still -crawling about the log barn, and in the lantern-light they perceived a -big pile of something lightly covered with hay. - -“There it is!” exclaimed Carl, with satisfaction. - -It was indeed the stolen shipping cases and supers, and the hay -covering had not prevented the bees from getting at them. At a glance -the honey seemed to be all there. At the worst, not many of the -sections were missing, though the honey was presumably all cleaned out -of them. There were a good many bees still in the boxes, and the floor -was covered with dead insects. Evidently they had fought ferociously -over the plunder. - -“Quite a load of stuff to take home in the boat,” remarked Carl, as -they surveyed the rescued honey. - -“Yes, but if all the honey is out of it, it won’t be heavy, I fancy,” -said Bob. “I saw an old wheelbarrow around here, and we’ll use it to -take the stuff to the boat. We absolutely must get it all home -to-night, before these people recover from their shock.” - -The top cases of honey were indeed light, and seemed to contain -nothing but empty combs—hardly that, in fact, for the wax sifted out -in fine powder, for it had been torn to pieces by the frenzied bees. -But as they went deeper the boxes grew heavier; some of them seemed -almost full weight, though no doubt they were all damaged enough to be -unsaleable. - -It took three boat-loads to get the honey back home, and it was hard -and heavy work pulling it up against the current. Alice was jubilant, -and when they came up with the second load she had a supper of bacon, -trout, cold partridge, and hot coffee ready for them. They needed it; -food had never tasted so good; and after finishing everything in -sight, they went back for the last load. - -“We ought to bring those six hives of bees home, too,” said Carl, -uneasily. - -“I suppose we should, but who cares?” replied Bob. “I’m dead tired, -and I wouldn’t row up that river again for a whole apiary. Larue -doesn’t know where they are. We’ll bring them up at sunrise in the -morning. I’m going to bed.” - -But it was then considerably after midnight. The boys overslept, and -did not waken till eight o’clock. The bees at home were flying -already, showing signs of much excitement, and could be seen going -down the river as on the day before. They were still looking for -stolen honey. - -“Won’t they hang around and bother the Frenchman again to-day?” Bob -asked. - -“I’m afraid so,” said Carl. “But it can’t be helped, and they’ll soon -find that there’s nothing more to be had, and go about their business. -It’ll be better when we get those six hives home.” - -It was after nine o’clock when they reached the ambushed hives, and at -the first glance Carl uttered a loud cry of dismay. - -“Why, they’re all shot to pieces!” - -They both ran up. One hive was overturned, with a great, splintered -hole blown through its side; a second was nearly as bad, and all the -remaining four had been more or less perforated with buckshot. Honey -had run out on the ground, and the bees were crawling about stupidly, -seeming too much disconcerted to gather it up. - -“Looks as if Larue had got his eyes open again,” said Carl, as they -surveyed the wreck. - -“Yes, and he’s on the warpath!” Bob lamented. “Just when I had planned -to make peace with him! I hoped he’d never find out that we had -engineered this riot, and we’ve paid him for his hens, and I was going -to send him some honey to sweeten him up. And now it’s all off.” - -“Well, I don’t believe this is a particularly safe spot for us if he’s -out with his gun,” said Carl. “Let’s get these hives moved away.” - -First Bob peeped through the thickets into the clearing. A good many -bees still hung about the barn and cabin, and no doubt they were -fiercely cross at finding no honey where they had expected it. There -was no sign of the French family; very likely they were under their -smudge again. - -“I can’t say I blame Larue for being mad,” said Bob, “after being -driven out of his house for two days running. I suppose he expected to -find all quiet this morning, and it’s almost as bad as ever. Then he -found these hives and he naturally bombarded them.” - -“Well, if he hadn’t brought our honey down here it wouldn’t have -happened!” returned Carl, hard-heartedly. “He’ll bombard us, too, if -we hang around here long.” - -They carried the dilapidated hives down to the boat with a good deal -of difficulty, and rowed them up-stream. Two of them were ruined, but -it was likely that the bees themselves and the combs would do very -well if lodged in fresh hives. The outfit was nearly double its former -weight and a later investigation showed that the bees had crammed -every available cell with honey and had built fresh scraps of comb in -any corner where there was room. - -On their return Alice met them with a joyful face. - -“What do you think?” she cried. “I’ve been sorting over the cases of -sections you brought back, and there are a lot that haven’t been -touched by the bees at all—perhaps three or four hundred; and there -are quite a lot more that have only little torn places; so they can go -as ‘No. 1’ anyway. Then there are all the sections that weren’t stolen -at all. We’ll still have some honey to sell.” - -“Maybe a hundred dollars’ worth,” returned Carl. “That won’t go far -toward our big payment next week.” - -“Yes, it will—with our extracted honey,” urged Bob. “We must get it -all off, extract every drop we have, and sell it quick—sacrifice it if -necessary. Anything to get returns at once!” - -“There must be four hundred dollars’ worth on the hives. We can make -the payment, if we’re quick,” said Alice. - -“Anyway, we won’t have a cent left over,” insisted Carl, who seemed -determined to look on the black side. - -“But we have the bees. Next year they’ll make our fortunes,” said -Alice, cheerfully. - -Tired as he was, Bob paddled down to Morton that afternoon, wrote a -letter of explanation to Brown & Son, and ordered by telegraph nine -hundred five-pound honey pails, to be shipped by return freight. The -pails cost forty dollars, and he groaned inwardly as he parted with -the money. - -It was with some uneasiness that he navigated his boat past the -squatter’s clearing, but he saw nothing of any of the Larue family, -either coming or going. When he got back to the bee-yard he found that -Alice and Carl had been busy. They had brought in the old honey -extractor, cleaned and oiled it and set it up, along with the -honey-tanks. Carl had improvised an uncapping-box from the rain-water -barrel, and they had already extracted the honey from a great number -of the damaged and unfinished sections of comb. - -The three of them finished up that part of the work during the -afternoon and cleaned out all the honey from the unsaleable sections -and from those that the bees had torn in Larue’s barn. From these they -got more than a thousand pounds of fine, clear honey. It was an -excellent beginning. - -But it was only a beginning. In five days they would have to pay Mr. -Farr five hundred dollars with interest. To sell the honey might well -take two days. Consequently they had something more than two days in -which to take off, extract, and pack a crop of perhaps four thousand -pounds of honey. It would have been a fairly large undertaking for -skilled men, and the Harmans were quite unaccustomed to extracting on -a large scale. - -But they had determination enough to make up for lack of experience. -They went to bed early, in order to have as long a rest as possible. -By daylight Alice was preparing breakfast, and the sun was not more -than fairly above the trees when they attacked the big job. - -Armed with veils, gloves, smokers, and bee-brushes, the boys went out -to the yard, while Alice waited for the honey to come in. The big -extracting supers were full of bees, that rushed up furiously when the -cover was lifted off. Carl drove them down with smoke, while Bob -quickly lifted out comb after comb, shook and brushed off the bees in -masses before the hive, and put the combs into an empty super. When -that was full, he carried it with some difficulty into the house. -While he was gone Carl removed the now vacant super, closed the hive, -and smoked another. Bob came back in a moment and cleared the bees -from this super, carrying it likewise into the cabin. Super after -super came off, and when seven or eight of them were stacked in the -honey-room they began extracting operations. - -Alice had volunteered to do the uncapping, as she had been accustomed -to do it at home, and she had the huge, razor-edged honey-knife -already standing in a pail of hot water, since the edge cuts much -better when warm enough to melt the wax. - -She rested one of the full honeycombs on the rim of the barrel, and -with a single sweep of the great knife she sliced off the entire outer -sealed surface of the comb, so as to leave the cells open. Repeating -this operation upon the other side, she handed the comb to Carl, who -slipped it into the extractor. When four combs had been uncapped and -put into the machine, he turned the crank vigorously. The reel whirred -as the combs spun round; impelled by centrifugal force, the honey flew -out of the cells against the sides of the extractor and dribbled -slowly down to the bottom. - -When he stopped the machine to take out the now empty combs Carl put -his finger down into the extractor and scraped up a dripping fingerful -of honey, which he put into his mouth. - -“Delicious!” he exclaimed, with high appreciation. - -Meanwhile Alice had uncapped a fresh set of four combs, and a pool of -honey was forming in the bottom of the extractor. It was so thick that -it ran very slowly down the sides, but within a few minutes it stood -several inches deep. Bob drew off a pailful through the gate, and -poured it through the cheese-cloth strainer into one of the tanks. It -was almost water-clear, thick and rich—honey of the very highest -grade. - -Bob then returned to the hives and began to bring in supers -single-handed, taking back the sets of emptied combs and replacing -them on the hives. He was able to attend to this duty as fast as Alice -and Carl could uncap and extract. At noon, when Alice stopped work to -prepare dinner, they had extracted almost six hundred pounds of honey. -It was the harvest from fourteen hives. - -“Why, that isn’t half bad,” said Alice, after making this calculation. -“That amounts to about forty-five pounds per hive. Better than I -expected from this poor season.” - -“We may have more honey than we think,” said Carl, brightening. “But -we must get ahead faster, or it’ll take us all the week.” - -During the afternoon they managed to empty the supers of twenty-one -colonies. But these were not quite so well filled, and yielded only a -little more than seven hundred pounds. - -That night it rained—the longed-for rain, now too late to be of -service. Early the next morning they set to work again, but had to -stop taking off honey on account of a fresh downpour. In the midst of -the rain the wagon arrived from Morton with the nine hundred -honey-pails. - -“Couldn’t we send some of it back with him?” suggested Alice. - -So they begged the teamster to wait a few hours, and set to work -furiously, filling the tins from the tanks. Bob sat by the tank with a -mountain of five-pound pails beside him, filling them rapidly from the -open honey-gate. Once full, he passed them to Alice, who wiped them -clean and put on the covers; then Carl nailed them up again in their -shipping crates. - -At noon they ate a hasty, cold luncheon, and again set feverishly to -work at the pails. They made such speed that at four o’clock they were -able to start the wagon back with a load of two hundred five-pound -pails of honey. - -The rain had stopped, and they began to take off honey and extract -again. They were getting rather tired, and the task before them seemed -endless. It was the twenty-ninth of the month. It seemed hardly -possible that they could put up all that honey and turn it into cash -in less than three days. - -All that afternoon they toiled, weary and silent, but still -determined. The uncapping barrel was nearly full of oozy masses of -comb, from which the honey drained slowly into a pail through a hole -in the bottom. The three Harmans were smeared to the eyes with honey. -They were stiff with stings, too, for the whole room was crawling with -bees that had been brought in on the combs. They were underfoot, on -the walls, in the cappings and the strainer, and a great mass had -clustered on the window like a swarm. - -By six o’clock there were scarcely half a dozen hives left uncleared -in the apiary, though a large pile of unhandled supers had accumulated -in the workroom. They stopped work, and the boys helped Alice to get -supper. - -“But we’re not going to get through in time,” said Bob, anxiously. -“It’ll take us nearly all of to-morrow to extract and can up the rest -of the honey. Then it’ll take some time to get it sold.” - -“But we’ve _got_ to get through in time!” cried Alice. “Are we going -to fail now by just a few hours?” - -“Well, let’s finish the extracting to-night—work till it’s done,” Bob -proposed. - -“All right,” replied Carl, wearily. “I’m game!” - -So after supper they attacked their task afresh. The boys tried to get -all the supers into the house while daylight lasted. They worked hard, -but the last supers were very heavy, the bees were cross as night came -on, and darkness had fallen before they got the last one in. Alice -placed several beeswax candles about the room, and they began to -extract. - -Hour after hour the whir and rattle of the extractor went on. It was -almost the only sound in the room, for they were too tired to talk. -The pile of full supers went down, and the empty ones went up, till -they clogged the room, and had to be carried outdoors. Alice uncapped -till she could no longer hold the slippery knife-handle, and Carl took -her place, while she drew off honey from the extractor into the tanks. -It was hot in the choked little room, reeking with the odor of honey -and the smell of the candles and the tankful of wet cappings, and -occasionally they went outdoors for a few minutes to cool off and -breathe a little. - -“Alice said that bee-keeping was kid-glove work—nothing heavy or hard -about it,” remarked Carl ironically during one of these rests. - -It seemed to be tacitly understood that they were to keep at it till -the honey was all extracted, and they stayed doggedly at work despite -weariness and stings. It was shortly after one o’clock when they -emptied the last super; they were all saturated with honey and -perspiration; the uncapping tank was heaped with wax, and the candles -had burned low. All the tanks were brimful, and there was over a -hundred pounds in the reservoir of the extractor. - -“Going to can it up?” asked Carl, faintly. - -“Not much!” Bob ejaculated. “I’m going to bed.” - -They were all ready to go. Alice retired to her room, and the boys -spread blankets on the floor of the living-room. They were tired -enough to doze the moment their heads touched the pillow, but Bob had -not been in bed for five minutes when he bounced up with a yell. A bee -had stung him on the leg. - -The floor and the blankets were alive with bees. Bees seemed to be -everywhere. The boys shook out their bedding, swept up the floor, and -tried again. There were fewer bees now, but still enough to make their -presence felt, and finally the boys became nervous and wakeful, -imagining that they felt crawling bees even where there were none. -After a restless half-hour Bob got up and lighted a candle. - -“I can’t sleep. I’m going to can up honey,” he announced. - -Carl wearily followed him, and after they had been at work a few -minutes Alice came out and joined them. There had not been so many -bees in her room, but more than enough to make sleeping impossible. - -Hour after hour they drew off honey from the big tanks into the little -pails, and packed them in the crates. They worked till after three -o’clock, stopped for hot coffee and bread, and completed their great -task soon after sunrise. There were altogether 675 five-pound tins, -beside the two hundred already sent to Morton—a total crop of 4375 -pounds. At least fifty pounds more would still drain from the -uncapping tank. - -But they were too dead weary to rejoice. They ate a hastily prepared -breakfast, then carried the blankets to a sunny spot outdoors and went -sound asleep. Not one of them woke till nearly noon, when they were -aroused by the hallooing of the teamster, who had been ordered to come -back that day for another load. - -It made a big load, and the man was unwilling to take it. But they -could not think of another day’s wait, and finally persuaded him with -arguments and increased pay. Bob was to go out with the load, they had -agreed. He was to ship the honey and go to Toronto with it. There he -was to make the quickest possible sale and send the money back by -telegraph. - -“You’d better come over to Morton on the first of August, day after -to-morrow,” he said to Carl, as he was leaving. “Probably you’ll find -the money waiting for you at the telegraph office. If it isn’t there, -wait at the hotel, and I’ll telephone you some time during the day. In -case there’s any delay, get old Farr to let us have a few days’ grace. -He ought to do that, especially if we pay him for the accommodation.” - -Bob went off on the loaded wagon. Carl and Alice were too thoroughly -tired to feel inclined to clear up the sticky litter in the -extracting-room and they spent most of the day in sleep. - -Next morning, however, they put things in order. The tank of wet -cappings was left to drain still longer, but Alice washed down the -floor, removed the extracting outfit, and restored the boys’ bed. All -the live bees in the room were by this time clustered in a quiet lump -on the window, and Carl was able to brush them off gently into a -bucket and carry them out to a hive like a natural swarm. He put most -of the wet supers back on the hives whence they had been taken, and -was surprised to notice that the bees paid no attention to these -fresh, sticky combs when they were exposed in the yard. A little honey -seemed to be coming in. He could not guess its source, but it was -enough to keep the bees from robbing. - -All this did not take them more than a couple of hours, and Alice had -even time to wash, dry, and iron a blouse before starting for the -village which represented civilization for them just then. Carl also -paid civilization the homage of brushing his shoes and putting on a -tie under his low collar, and then they made an early start down the -river. - -They rather disliked to leave the cabin unguarded, but this time it -contained little of value. As they passed Indian Slough they spied -Larue on the shore; he looked long and steadily after them, but -neither made any sign. - -“Don’t like it!” remarked Carl. “He knows we’ve gone away now, and -goodness knows what he may do to the bees!” - -“I don’t think he’ll touch them. He must have had enough of fighting -bees,” returned Alice. - -Anyhow, it was a chance that had to be taken, for they could not stand -on guard by the apiary forever. They reached Morton about ten o’clock -and went straight to the telegraph office, where they were bitterly -disappointed to find no waiting message from Bob. - -A feeling of impending misfortune crept over both of them. They had -fully expected the money to be there. - -“I do hope Bob doesn’t try one of his wild bluffs for a high price and -miss a sale altogether!” Carl muttered. - -Alice went to the hotel, to be on the lookout for a telephone call, -while Carl hung about the telegraph office. At every clicking of the -keys he thrilled with anticipation, but noon arrived, and one o’clock, -and still no word from Toronto. Carl then hunted up Mr. Farr and -explained the situation. - -“I don’t know why Bob hasn’t wired,” he said, “but we’ve got the honey -and it’s as safe as money in the bank. It’s only a matter of a few -hours, or days, at the most. If you’ll give us a little extension of -time we’ll gladly pay you for it. Anything you wish, five dollars, or -ten dollars a day, even.” - -But the postmaster shook his head with a grim smile. - -“I’ll give you all the time the law allows, and not an hour longer!” -he said. - -“Yes, but can’t you—” - -“No, I can’t. I told you out and out at the start that you’d get no -kindness from me—straight business and nothing further.” - -He refused to hear a word of Carl’s protestations, and at last the boy -went to the hotel, indignant and keenly anxious. Alice had had no -message. They waited, staying near the telephone, unable to read, -unable to talk, till, about four o’clock, a call came for Carl. - -Almost breathless, he took the receiver, and recognized Bob’s -long-distance voice. - -“Is that you, Bob?” he cried. “What have you done? Farr won’t give us -an hour’s time.” - -“Never mind!” came his brother’s reassuring voice. “It’s all right. I -sold at ten and a half. I’ve got the money and I’ll wire it at once.” - -Ten and a half! They had not expected to get over ten cents for the -extracted honey. Carl almost shouted, and Alice gasped with relief -when he told her. It seemed as if a mountain’s weight had been lifted -off their shoulders. - -But there must have been some delay about sending the money, for it -had not arrived by six o’clock. Carl hung about the telegraph office -all the evening, growing uneasy once more as hour by hour went by. -Surely something had not gone wrong at the last minute! - -But the money-bearing message did finally arrive towards ten o’clock. -It was an order for $612, which included the returns from what was -left of their comb-honey crop. The telegraph clerk wrote a check, and -Carl and his sister hastened to Farr’s house. It was dark from top to -bottom. Carl knocked loudly once, twice. There was no reply. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - - A RUN OF LUCK - - -Again and again Carl hammered at the door. At last some one raised a -window in the second story, and a voice called down rather crossly -through the darkness. - -“It’s Harman!” Carl cried. “I’ve come to pay your money.” - -“Too late. I’m abed,” answered Mr. Farr. “Come in to-morrow.” - -“Not much!” retorted Carl. “It’s due before midnight to-day, and you -said you wouldn’t give me an hour’s extra time. I’m not taking any -chances. I’m afraid you’ll have to get up.” - -Mr. Farr chuckled and left the window. They heard him stirring about, -and presently saw the light of a lamp. In a few minutes he opened the -front door and conducted them into the sitting-room. His hair was -tousled, and he was in his stocking-feet and looked older and more -wizened than ever, but something seemed to be amusing him greatly. - -Carl produced the telegraph check. Mr. Farr scrutinized it carefully, -chuckled once more, wrote a receipt, and gave them a check of his own -in change. - -“I’m obleeged for the money,” he said, smiling broadly, “but you -needn’t have been in such an all-fired hurry with it.” - -“It was your fault,” Carl explained. “You said, you know—” - -“Yes, I know, and I expect the joke’s on me at having to get up in the -middle of the night like this. But the law gives you three days of -grace, you know. And besides, you can’t foreclose a mortgage without -giving thirty days’ notice. You had a whole month to pay in. Guess you -ain’t studied mortgage law. That’s why I wouldn’t take your ten -dollars a day for an extension, and I was having my quiet laugh to see -you so flustered and worrited, when you wasn’t in no danger at all.” - -“But—but I thought—” Carl stammered. - -“That I’d grab the bees away from you to-morrow? Foreclosing a -mortgage is a slower business than that. Now you think I’m a pretty -hard customer, don’t you?” - -Carl blushed. - -“Well, I’ll tell you now that I never foreclosed but one mortgage in -my life, and that was on a farm where I hadn’t got no interest for -three years, and the fellow was boasting that Dave Farr’d never get a -cent out of him. Foreclosed on him, I did; but I’d have no more shut -down on young people like you than I’d have sold myself out.” - -“I’m sorry, Mr. Farr! We didn’t understand—either the business, or -you!” cried Alice, and she held out her hand impulsively. - -“That’s all right, young lady. You didn’t know nothing about business, -of course, and I did, that’s all. I oughter have told you how you -stood instead of laughing, and it serves me right to be got up out of -bed at this time of night. And now my sleep’s broke up, I’ll have a -chaw, and you can tell me how your investment panned out.” - -Mr. Farr produced a black plug of tobacco from inside the clock, bit -off a piece and disposed himself to listen. Carl briefly outlined -their fortunes, and told of the trouble they had had with Larue. Mr. -Farr laughed heartily at the expedient of the robber bees. - -“I see you young people are as sharp as they make ’em!” he said. “Just -think of sending them bees to bring back their own honey! But I know -Baptiste Larue—known him for years. He ain’t such a bad fellow, lazy -and steals a little, and if you play him a bad trick he’ll get back at -you sure as fate. That’s the Indian in him; and if you do him a good -turn he’ll never forget it, and that’s the Indian too, I guess. Pity -you’ve got at loggerheads with him. Better try to straighten it out. -I’ll have a talk with him when I see him, and maybe I can help to -straighten things out.” - -They went back to the hotel to sleep that night with the feeling that -an enemy had suddenly been transformed into a friend. Mr. Farr -promised to help them in every way he could; at the same time he was -careful to assure them that business was business, and he would still -hold them to the strict letter of the mortgage. But this time Alice -laughed, and he did not seem offended. - -They expected Bob to come up on the train next morning, but he failed -to arrive. It seemed unwise to remain away from the bee-yard any -longer, so they embarked immediately for the voyage up the river. - -It was a fine, sunny morning. The rains had broken the drought, and -the air was full of the moist heat that makes good honey weather, but -the raspberry bloom was long since over. - -The harvest was past; the bee-season was practically done, and they -had saved themselves, if only by the skin of their teeth. Now that the -money was paid, they both felt the reaction from the strain and -fatigue of the last weeks. The thought of their finances depressed -them. They had not two hundred dollars in the world. - -“If we’d only had some more of this weather a month ago!” said Carl. - -“Yes, it would have meant hundreds of dollars. But there’s no hope of -anything more from the bees this year,” Alice replied. - -“Worse than nothing! For we’ll probably have to feed them sugar to -winter on, perhaps a hundred dollars’ worth. It’ll leave us nearly -broke, I’m afraid. Alice, we’ll have to go to the city this winter and -do as I proposed.” - -They rowed up the river for a long way in silence. Then Alice, trying -hard to speak hopefully, said, “Anyhow, we’ve got a lot of valuable -property, and next year—” - -“Hark!” Carl interrupted. “What’s that?” - -He had stopped rowing, and there was dead silence in the wilderness. A -jay called noisily from a treetop, and then again silence fell. After -a minute, as Alice listened, she seemed to hear a deep, murmurous hum -from the woods along the shore. - -“It sounds like bees,” she said, doubtfully. - -“It is bees!” affirmed Carl after listening a little longer. “It must -be our bees. But what are they after? How far are we from home?” - -Alice thought they were about two miles. They had passed Indian Slough -some time before. - -“I do hope they’re not after Larue again,” said Carl. “But most likely -they’ve found a wild bee-tree and are robbing it.” - -But after a few minutes Carl grew so curious that he went ashore and -tried to follow the flight of the bees, which could now be seen -passing overhead. Presently Alice heard him calling her, in great -excitement. - -She hastened after him. He was standing at the edge of a great burned -slash that extended for fully two miles. It was studded with charred, -spike-branched trees and second-growth hemlock, tangled with berry -bushes, and choked with quantities of a weed that grew three feet or -more high and bore spikes of brilliant, crimson-pink flowers. - -On the nearest spike of blossoms Alice saw three or four bees, and -from the whole tract resounded the deep, busy hum that they had heard -from the river. - -“D’you know what that is?” shouted Carl, dancing with exultation. -“Willow-herb! Fireweed! What do you think of that?” - -Alice also recognized it. Willow-herb—also known as “fireweed,” -because it always springs up in the track of forest fires—is one of -the best honey-yielding plants in America. It flowers in late summer, -and lasts until frost kills it, secreting nectar heavily whenever the -weather is at all favorable. A single colony of bees has been known to -gather the almost incredible amount of four hundred pounds of honey -from this plant alone. It does not grow in the settled portions of the -country, and as the Harmans had never seen it in profusion, they had -never thought of including it among their prospective resources. - -“O Carl!” cried Alice. “We may get a big crop after all! Let’s hurry -home and see what the bees are doing.” - -Burning with impatience, they hurried up the river as fast as the -heavy old tub could be driven against the stream. Without waiting to -tie the boat, they ran to the apiary. The air was full of a heavy -roar. Bees were coming in by thousands and dropping on the -hive-entrances. It was like the best days of the raspberry flow. Carl -seized his sister by the waist and joyously hugged her. - -“It seems too good to be true! If it only lasts! Won’t Bob be -astonished when he gets here?” - -Bob did not arrive till late the next afternoon. He had walked all the -way from Morton to save the expense of a conveyance and he was very -tired. He had also probably been meditating on their financial state, -for he seemed depressed; but Carl and Alice said nothing at once about -the sudden change in their prospects. - -The bees had ceased flying for the day, but from all the hives, where -the new honey was being ripened, came a heavy roar. After supper Bob -walked out towards the hives and noticed it. He stopped to listen, and -scrutinized the entrances closely. - -“Been feeding them?” he asked at last, with a perplexed look. - -“No,” answered Carl, gravely. - -“Surely they can’t have been gathering anything, can they?” - -“Gathering anything!” Carl burst out, unable to hold the secret any -longer. “I guess those bees have gathered about a thousand pounds of -honey in the last two days. The fireweed is in bloom, Bob. We never -thought of that, did we? There are miles of it! It yields honey by the -ton, and if we just get regular rains we’ll have our -eighteen-hundred-dollar crop yet.” - -Bob could hardly believe the news till he had looked into some of the -supers himself, where great patches of clear, white honey already -showed. Then his enthusiasm knew no bounds. - -“I was just beginning to think we’d been fools to go into this apiary -game,” he exclaimed. “But this puts a different color on the thing. If -we only get the right weather, now!” - -For the next three days the weather was indeed perfect, and the bees -did marvelously well. A visit to the new apiary by the lake showed -that the colonies there were also storing heavily and needed supers. -They had never expected this yard to yield any surplus honey this -season, but the bees were actually crowding the queen out of the combs -with the rush of new honey. - -“We’ll have to get a team and have a load of supers hauled over,” said -Alice. “One thing’s certain—next season we must have a horse and wagon -of our own. We must have paid out over fifty dollars for team-hire -this summer, and now we’ll have to have all these supers hauled home -again for extracting.” - -However, they had to have a quantity of lumber brought out from Morton -to make winter cases for the increased number of colonies, and the -teamster moved the load of supers while he was there. The management -of the bees during this late honey-flow was simple. Bees rarely swarm -after midsummer, and they only needed to be let alone to fill their -empty combs with the honey from the willow-herb, whose crimson spikes -were visible everywhere. Exploring the woods the apiarists found it in -immense quantities in every burned slash; they had seen the green -plants often enough during the summer, but had not recognized it until -it came in bloom. There appeared to be forage for hundreds of -colonies. - -Raspberries were ripe now, and the Harmans gathered quarts. They might -have gathered barrels, if they had had any means of disposing of them. -They ate them in every possible manner—raw, stewed, in pies, but -mainly with fresh, extracted honey poured over them, which they found -to be a dish worthy of any epicure’s attention. Alice also made a -great quantity of jam with some sugar that was left from the spring -feeding, and filled up all the remaining honeypails. - -It was the fruitful season of the wilderness. Game was growing more -plentiful. The woods and streams were full of the new broods of -partridges and ducks, strong-winged now and wary. Hares were -everywhere, and once, while picking berries, Carl caught a glimpse of -a black bear. It was only a glimpse, for the bear vanished like -lightning, but Carl carried a rifle after that when he went for -berries. - -He carried it in vain, but it occurred to him that the lakeside apiary -was terribly exposed to a bear’s depredations, and he carried the big -trap over there, and set it among the hives. He found the yard in -perfect safety, and the bees storing honey fast in nearly all the -supers. - -All through the latter part of August the weather remained warm and -clear. Not much rain fell, but light showers came often enough to keep -the fireweed from drying up, and the bees were busily at work almost -every day. And now Alice set to work to improve the breed of the bees -by queen-rearing operations. - -To transform a black colony into Italians, it is only necessary to -exchange their queen for an Italian queen. In the course of a couple -of months the old generation of black bees will all have died, and all -the newly hatched brood will be the offspring of the Italian mother. -But Alice could not afford to buy any more queens, and she had -determined to rear them herself. - -The rearing of thoroughbred queens is a special art in itself. Any -colony, if deprived of its queen, will raise a number of queen-cells -to produce another, but these cells will of course be from eggs laid -by the old queen, and the new queen will be of the same breed. To -change the breed it is necessary to manœuver a substitution without -the bees being aware of it. - -Alice began by killing the queen of one of the black colonies that had -proved bad-tempered and a poor honey-gatherer. For four days, then, -she let the hive alone. At the end of that time she went over all the -combs and cut out every queen-cell that had been started. - -This produced terrible consternation in the hive. There were no larvæ -now in the hive young enough to produce a queen, for queen-cells -cannot be raised from a larva more than three days old. The bees ran -about the entrance in consternation, and the loud, shrill buzzing of -their despair could be heard across the contented hum of the normal -colonies. But Alice was already taking measures for their relief. - -She prepared a flat stick an inch wide, just long enough to fit inside -an empty brood-frame. Upon this stick she stuck a dozen little cups of -molded beeswax, much the size and shape of an acorn cup, and into each -cup she put a little lump of the white royal jelly taken from the -queen-cells that she had destroyed. This operation is called “priming” -the cells. The next step was to graft them. - -For some time Alice and the boys had been carefully watching the -egg-laying work of the Italian queens that they had bought, and they -had already selected the two that seemed best to use as breeders. -Neither of these, it should be said, was the famous three-dollar -queen. In actual performance she was outstripped by several of the -ordinary one-dollar sort. - -From the hive of the best breeding queen Alice selected a comb -containing eggs and just hatched young larvæ. These little larvæ were -almost invisible, tiny white worms no larger than the comma on a page -of print, floating in milky food at the bottom of each cell. It was -delicate work to touch them, but with the point of a hairpin Alice -fished out one of these for each of the primed artificial cells, -laying it carefully down in the royal jelly. Hurriedly, then, lest the -incipient queens should be chilled, she put this stick of cell-cups -into the unfortunate queenless colony. - -Next morning she went to look at it. Out of the dozen cells the -queenless bees had accepted ten, were drawing the cells out already -into the usual peanut shape, and had fed the larvæ large quantities of -additional royal jelly. All was going well, and Alice proceeded to -prepare a fresh set of cups for another colony. - -It takes twelve days for a queen to hatch after the cell has been -started in this manner. Early on the twelfth day, Alice selected the -twelve colonies in most need of requeening, went through the combs, -found the queens and killed them. - -About three hours later she put into each of these hives one of her -grafted cells, now on the point of hatching. In one case, indeed, the -cell hatched in her fingers, and a beautiful, yellow, Italian virgin -queen emerged. - -In ten or twelve days more, all these young queens would be mated and -laying, and these colonies could be considered Italian for the -future—Italian, at least on the mother’s side, for the worker-bees -would also be affected by the drone parentage. - -Queen-rearing can only be carried on during a honey-flow, and while -the good fireweed flow lasted, Alice raised several dozen queen-cells. -All did not go smoothly, of course. Sometimes the bees refused to -accept the artificial cells, tearing them down as fast as they were -given; once a young queen hatched prematurely, and her royal jealousy -immediately caused her to demolish all the rest of the cells on the -frame, tearing out her young sisters and stinging them to death. Some -queens were also lost on their mating flight, but in all Alice -succeeded, with the help of the boys, in requeening about fifty -colonies. - -By this time most of the colonies had filled an extracting super -apiece. Some had filled two. Nearly all the damaged sections of comb -had been put back on the hives, and the bees had refilled them with -alacrity, sealing them over as white and smooth as if they had been -freshly built. There would be a good deal of section honey to sell -after all. - -“I don’t believe I ever saw a honey-flow last so well,” said Alice. -“It surely can’t go on much longer, and I’m almost afraid to look out -every morning, for fear it’s over.” - -They expected frost every day now, but for another full week the -weather continued warm and open, and the bees continued to bring in -nectar, though in daily-diminishing quantities. Then one evening the -wind shifted into the north, and the temperature went down, not to -frost, but low enough to stop the secretion of nectar. The bees were -idle, and that day the tragedy of the drones began. The long steady -flow of honey had caused the bees to tolerate them until late, but now -their time had come. At every hive-entrance the bees could be seen -chasing them, biting and worrying them, driving them out, but seldom -stinging. The big, stingless drone is very much afraid of his armed -little sisters, and is unable to resist when thrown out of the hive. -All day long could be heard the loud buzzing of the drones as they -tried in vain to reenter their homes, and the next morning they could -be seen by scores, dead in front of the hives, where they had perished -of cold and starvation. In a week hardly a drone was left in the -apiary. - -This meant an end to Alice’s queen-rearing, and she took out and -destroyed the last set of cells that was under way. It was now too -late in the season to kill a queen and attempt to replace her. Every -effort had to be turned toward getting the colonies into the best -condition for winter. - -The weather did turn slightly warmer, but the honey-flow did not -recommence. Then, early one morning, when Carl went out to the yard, -he found the tops of the hives white with hoar-frost. - -“That’s the end of it,” he said. “Well, we can’t complain, for it’s -lasted wonderfully.” - -That day the fireweed flowers hung wilted in the sunshine. The -honey-season was certainly over this time. Nothing remained to be done -now but to extract and sell what was on the hives, but they considered -it better to leave it in the supers to ripen for another week. - -All the honey at the lakeside apiary would have to be hauled home to -be extracted, since there was no extracting-house near or any -facilities for doing the work. It was somewhat uncertain how much was -there, for they had not visited that yard for about two weeks. It was -needful now, however, to make up a close estimate of the amount of -honey to be taken off, for they wanted to order the honey-tins to hold -the crop. Bob offered to go over to the lake and count the supers, and -he set off early in the morning, taking his rifle. - -It was a beautifully crisp autumn day. Squirrels chattered from the -trees; partridges roared up from the undergrowth. Bob sighted a fresh -deer-trail on the old lumber road, but the legal season for deer had -not yet opened. He shot a couple of partridges on the way, however, -clipping their heads neatly with a bullet, and hung them up on a tree -to be picked up on his return. - -He was quite a quarter of a mile from the apiary when he became aware -of a faint murmur, which he took for the breeze in the tree-tops. But -as he advanced it increased to a roar. It sounded like a dozen swarms -flying at once. Bob was bewildered, then scared, and he began to run. - -“It can’t possibly be swarming!” he thought. “Surely the bees in this -yard haven’t struck a new honey-flow at this time of year.” - -Breathlessly he came out upon the shore of the little lake. The apiary -was in sight. The roar increased to a tremendous volume, but even -Bob’s ears perceived the difference between the contented hum of a -working yard, and this high-pitched, angry, tumultuous note that -filled the air. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - - STOPPING A WAR - - -Bob hurried through the debris of dead timber till he got a clear view -of the bee-yard. It was plain enough that something was seriously -wrong, for the whole place was in a state of wild disorder. The air -was full of circling bees, and the white fronts of most of the hives -were brown with masses of bees, crawling and surging excitedly. One -hive near him was actually almost hidden by the cloud that hovered -about it. It looked as if a swarm was coming out, but Bob knew better. -It was war in the apiary. The bees had gone on a robbing riot, and -this hive had been overcome and was being sacked. - -How this fearful state of things had started, Bob was unable to -imagine. To be sure, there had been no honey coming in lately, and -bees will always rob if they get a chance in a honey dearth; but all -the colonies at this yard were now strong and should have been well -able to defend themselves. Bob could not think how matters had ever -got in such a state as this. - -Advancing a little incautiously, a bee stung him on the nose, and he -dodged back again into the shelter of a thicket. Keeping under cover, -he skirted about the apiary, viewing the scene carefully, till at the -other end he came upon the clue to the mysterious rioting. - -Two hives had been upset, and supers, combs, covers, and bottomboards -lay strewn about the stony ground. What had done it he could not -guess. The thought of Larue passed through his mind, but this hardly -looked like the work of any human honey-thief, for the parts of the -hives were tossed pell-mell, and frames and combs were smashed and -crushed on the ground. He was too far away to get a good view and was -afraid to go nearer, for the air was alive with half-maddened bees. -Not many bees appeared about the wrecked hives, however; and probably -every drop of honey had been licked up from them long ago, but there -was no doubt that all this broken honey in the yard had started the -rioting. - -There is something about stolen honey, especially when it is obtained -close to the hives, that causes bees to become almost insane—sometimes -entirely so. Virtually every hive seemed to be engaged in repelling -robbers and trying itself to rob other colonies. The ground was -covered with knots of fighting insects; in front of the hive that was -being sacked there was fully a quart of dead and dying bees that had -perished in the battle. As soon as this hive had been cleaned out the -robbers would attack another, in greatly increased force, and after -that a third. - -Bob had no means of knowing how long this state of things had been -going on, but it would greatly reduce the apiary if it continued much -longer. He knew well what he ought to do; the colonies doing most of -the robbing should be smoked well to take the courage out of them; the -colonies that were being robbed should have wet grass piled all around -the entrance. But he needed a veil, for it was really as much as his -life was worth to venture unprotected into that cloud of maddened -insects. Gloves would be useful, too, but above all he needed a -smoker. - -All these things were stored in the little hut that they had made in -the center of the bee-yard, but to get to it he would have to pass -right through the thickest of the fighting. He hung back for some -time, hesitating and reluctant. He wished vainly for his brother, but -at last he made up his mind, pulled his hat over his eyes, buried his -hands in his pockets, turned up his collar, and made a bolt for the -little storehouse. - -He shot between the rows of hives so fast that for ten yards nothing -touched him. Then he was stung on the chin, and again on the nose. But -he had almost reached the hut when something caught him by the right -ankle with such force that it seemed to break his leg. He tumbled -headlong with a sharp cry, fell against a hive and knocked it -sideways. - -Fortunately it did not overturn, but a gust of savage bees surged into -his face. He brushed at them, and tried to get on his feet. Something -that hurt extremely was hanging to his right foot. He made a blind -leap to get away from that vortex of stinging insects, but was pulled -up short by the ankle and fell again, with a rattle of metal. And now -he saw the great, rusty steel trap gripping his foot. He had walked -squarely into Carl’s bear trap. He had forgotten that it had been set -in this yard. - -For the moment he was too bewildered to realize more than this bare -fact. He crawled away as far as the chain would let him, lay flat on -his face and tried to protect himself from the tormenting insects. It -seemed to him that all the bees in the yard had turned upon him. They -were in his hair, they got under his collar and up his sleeves. -Probably there were in reality only a few hundred attacking him, but -it seemed to him that he got a fresh sting every second, till his -whole body was in agony. - -He drew his foot under him to examine the trap, and see if it could -not be taken off. Age and rust had taken a good deal of the strength -out of the springs, and, luckily, Bob was wearing heavy shoepacks that -day with his trousers tucked inside them, so that the combined -thicknesses of stout leather, cloth, and socks had deadened the force -of the springing jaws. But it hurt extremely; his foot was numb, and -he could not see how to extricate himself. - -He tried to press down the springs with his hands, but he was not -strong enough. It needed a lever to set that trap. Reckless of stings, -Bob stood up and tried to stamp down the spring with his free foot, -but in his constrained posture he was barely able to stir it. It would -certainly take a lever to open the jaws. If he could only escape into -the security of the woods, away from these maddening bees, he felt -sure that he could contrive to get himself free, but the chain would -let him go no farther. The chain was riveted to the trap in a heavy -swivel, and the other end was attached to a stout maple sapling. The -tree was too large to break off, but Bob had a stout pocket-knife and -thought he might hack through it if he had time enough. - -But he was beginning to feel sick and dizzy with the stinging. A -professional bee-keeper thinks little of being stung, and Bob was -pretty well hardened to it by this time, but not to such wholesale -doses. His body was beginning to feel numb all over, and his tongue -seemed swelling in his mouth. A horde of bees, he thought, roared and -crawled over him, but his brain seemed stupefied, and he could hardly -think connectedly of anything. - -The idea dawned upon him that he was really going to be stung to -death, and the horror of it whipped his brain to a last effort. He -cast about for some expedient. If he only had a smoker! But why could -he not make a smoke without one? - -Instantly he struck a match and dropped it into a heap of dead leaves -that lay beside him. They flamed up, and at the first puff of smoke -the bees about his head drifted away. He piled on more leaves, using -the dampest he could find, and created a suffocating cloud of smoke. -He choked in it himself, but there were no bees about him now, except -a few entangled in his clothing. - -He crawled toward the maple sapling, raking the burning smudge along -with him. Under cover of the smoke he began to whittle into the hard -trunk with his knife. Between the thick smoke and a bee-sting that had -nearly closed his eye, he worked rather blindly, and had hacked nearly -half through the trunk before he discovered that no such work was -necessary. The chain was merely wound around the tree a few times and -hooked back into its own links. He might have known that it would be -so fastened, and if he had been a little more clear-headed, he could -have released himself a moment after being caught. - -However, he cast the chain loose immediately and began to hobble -toward the woods, trap and all. Once under cover, he pried open the -trap without much difficulty, using a stout pole. There was a deep -purple furrow on each side of his ankle, and his foot was blue and -numb. He rubbed it a long time and bathed it in the lake before -feeling came back to it. - -He felt decidedly weak and shaky and had to take off all his clothes -in order to get rid of the bees that were still crawling and stinging -in their recesses. Being stripped, he ducked himself in the cool lake -three or four times and felt better. Naturally, he selected a spot for -his bath that was at a safe distance from the apiary, where the war -was still raging. - -He sat down and rested for half an hour after dressing, and then felt -recovered sufficiently to make another attempt at subduing the -fighting bees. It was imperative that the disorder be stopped at once, -and his late experience had given him a hint how to do it. - -Going to the windward side of the yard, he collected rubbish and -lighted a number of smoky fires, so that the smoke drifted across the -hives. Under cover of this smoke he advanced further into the yard and -lighted more fires, till the whole apiary was veiled in clouds of -vapor. - -Fighting stopped instantly. The one thought in each bee’s mind was to -get back to its own hive, and by myriads they flew or crawled home. In -a few minutes Bob was able to make his way safely to the little -store-hut, where he secured a veil and smoker, though really he now -had little need of either. The few bewildered bees drifting about -through the smoke were far too frightened to think of stinging. - -Peace was restored, though it might be only a temporary one. Bob made -haste to contract the entrances of all colonies that he thought might -be weak. With a night’s rest and only an inch-and-a-half doorway to -defend, he thought they should be able to take care of themselves. - -Then he went to examine the cause and beginning of the trouble—the two -overturned hives, and he had scarcely glanced at them when he uttered -a loud exclamation. There was no doubt at all who had been the -disturber here. Long claw-marks ripped the paint of the hives. The -combs and frames had been chewed and mangled, showing plenty of -tooth-marks on the splintered wood, and a wisp of black hair clung to -one of the covers. - -“Br’er Bear, and no mistake about it!” muttered Bob. - -About half the combs had been chewed up, both the super combs of honey -and the lower-story combs of brood. Apparently the bear had liked the -taste of unhatched bees. What honey he had left had, of course, been -cleaned up by the bees from the yard, and all the scattered wax was -now dry as bone. No doubt the raid had been made during the night, and -in the morning the neighboring bees had pounced on the spilled and -scattered honey and gone mad with robbing. - -There was not much that he could do now. He put the hives together -again, gathered up the scraps of wax, and also straightened the hive -that he had fallen against when the trap caught him. But he was much -concerned for the future. It was very probable that the bear would -return to this sweet corner, and the trap was very little likely to -catch him. In any case, the bees would probably recommence their -robbing the next morning. For some time that apiary would need careful -attention. - -He would have liked to leave his smudges burning so that the odor of -the smoke would warn the bear away, but he decided that it would be -unsafe. The lakeside slope was littered with all sorts of dry rubbish, -and a little fire might easily burn up the entire apiary. Having done -all he could, he took his rifle and limped home, rather painfully, for -his ankle was very lame. - -“How much honey did you find there?” Carl demanded when he entered the -cabin. - -“I don’t know. I forgot to look,” said Bob. “Only there isn’t so much -as there was yesterday, and there’ll be still less if we don’t look -sharp.” - -“What on earth’s the matter?” cried Alice. “And how did you ever get -so badly stung?” - -“Robber bees—robber bears—steel traps!” said Bob succinctly; and he -proceeded to tell them of the deplorable conditions he had discovered. - -“A bear—a real bear this time!” exclaimed his brother. “He’ll be -certain to come back to-night for more. I’m going to lay for him. -Allie, I’ll get you your bearskin after all.” - -“Then I’ll see you do it,” said Alice. “For if you’re going after it -to-night I’ll go too.” - -“Nonsense! We may be up all night. Bob’ll go with me.” - -“Not on your life!” returned Bob, wearily. “I wouldn’t walk back there -this evening to save all the bees from destruction. There’s no sense -in going to-night anyway. The bear will never come back with that -strong smell of smoke in the yard.” - -“You can’t tell. I believe he would,” Carl argued. “His mouth will -water for honey too hard to resist. Anyhow, I’m going to take a chance -on it and wait for him with some buckshot shells.” - -“And I’m certainly going!” affirmed Alice. “You don’t want to go -alone—and Bob says the bear won’t come, so there’ll be no danger.” - -Carl really did not want to spend the night in ambush alone, and as -Bob was in no condition for the adventure, he agreed to allow Alice to -go with him. There would be a moon that night, but not till after -eleven o’clock, and if they were to reach the apiary before dark, it -would be necessary to start immediately after supper. - -Alice put on a short skirt, a jersey, and a tam-o’Shanter, and took -the shotgun, for which Carl carried half a dozen buckshot shells in -his pocket. He carried Bob’s rifle himself, and they took a lunch with -them, for if the vigil lasted all night, they would be decidedly -exhausted before daylight. Bob jeered mildly at the whole proceeding, -and after watching them off went immediately to bed. - -It was a long tramp through the twilight to the lake apiary, and it -was almost dark when they arrived. A faint smell of smoke still -lingered in the air from Bob’s smudges, and from the hives arose a -dull, uneasy roar. Honey had been won and lost that day, but by no -honest means, and all the bees were still suspicious and restless. By -morning the fighting would probably recommence. - -There was a very faint air blowing from south to north, and Carl and -Alice ambushed themselves on the leeward side of the yard. The ground -rose slightly there, so that they had a good view of the whole apiary. -Clumps of small cedars grew all around them, and a big fallen log in -front made an excellent breastwork. - -They placed their weapons across the log and sat down, glad of the -rest. The evening air was cool, almost frosty, and the wilderness was -very still. They barely dared converse, even in the faintest whispers. - -For an hour or so they were both on tenterhooks of expectation, but as -time passed this wore off, and they began to feel weary and drowsy. -Carl would have found more difficulty in keeping awake, only that from -time to time his ears caught some rustle or crackle in the underbrush -that set him thrilling with excitement. But nothing ever appeared in -the bee-yard, where the roaring had gradually quieted. - -At last the sky lightened over in the east, and the moon gradually -appeared between the trees. It was almost full, and the forest changed -marvelously into deep black and pale silver. Voices began to be heard -from the wilderness as if this were the dawning of the forest day. - -The long trail of a swimming muskrat crossed the surface of the lake. -A raccoon cried plaintively behind them, and away at the other end of -the water they heard the uncanny, cackling laugh of a loon. There were -strange murmurings and stirrings everywhere in the undergrowth, and -then, far away to the north, sounded a single long shriek, savage and -shrill, that caused a sudden long silence in the woods. Probably it -was a lynx on his night’s hunting. - -Moonrise put them both wide awake again for a time. But as an hour -passed and nothing in particular happened, they grew drowsy once more. -Alice frankly put her head on the big log and dozed, but Carl kept -awake with determination, scrutinizing the edge of the woods all along -the ghostly rows of beehives. - -Time passes very slowly in such a vigil, and the moon was getting -lower in the sky. Carl was growing very tired of it, and he had nudged -Alice awake several times, when it suddenly struck him that something -had moved in the woods behind him. He was not sure what he had heard, -or whether he had heard anything, but the next instant a black figure -passed between him and one of the nearest rows of hives. - -Almost breathless, he squeezed Alice’s arm and she looked up, -blinking. Carl pointed. The dim figure moved forward, with a stealthy, -heavy, noiseless swing, till it came out in the clear moonlight, and -they both saw the figure of the bear distinctly. - -It stopped and seemed a trifle uneasy, swinging its head and evidently -sniffing the air. Then, seeming reassured, it suddenly reared up on -its hind legs, and with one sweep of its paw, sent the cover of the -nearest hive flying. - -They saw the bees boil up like smoke into the bright moonlight. Carl -grasped the rifle, and cocked it noiselessly. The bear plunged his -nose into the super, and they heard the delicate combs and frames -smash under his teeth. - -A tearing flash from Carl’s rifle split the shadows. Alice uttered a -shriek of excitement. The bear was down, rolling over beside the hive, -and apparently done for. Carl dashed out in triumph. - -But as he approached the animal it reared up unsteadily, and launched -a vicious sweep with its iron-clawed paw. Carl sprang back, threw up -the rifle and pulled the trigger. Only a soft snap answered. He had -forgotten to throw another shell into the chamber. - -As he tried to protect himself, the gun was dashed out of his hand, -and he might have been struck down the next instant, but Alice charged -up and fired both barrels of the shotgun at a range of two yards. As -it appeared afterwards, she missed the bear cleanly with both shots; -but the buckshot, clustering like a bullet, blew the nearest beehive -almost to pieces. - -But the shots turned the animal’s attention, and it wheeled and -charged straight through the shotgun smoke. Carl uttered a shout of -horror, but Alice had already dodged and was running like a deer -across the bee-yard, with the bear hotly in chase. - -Carl groped desperately for the rifle that had flown out of his hands, -but failed to find it. Bees from the damaged hives seemed to be -crawling all over the ground. He gave up the search and rushed wildly -after the bear, shouting at the top of his voice to distract its -attention. It paid no heed, but at that moment Alice, with most -remarkable gymnastic skill, scrambled into a small hemlock just in -time. - -But a bear can climb trees better than any girl! Carl saw the animal -rear up against the trunk and he flung a knotted lump of wood with all -his force. It hit the beast on the back. It turned with a fierce -snarl, and Carl in his turn had just time to scramble into a tree to -escape its charge. - -The moment he had done so he was sorry, for now he was sure to be -clawed out of the branches; but man has an almost uncontrollable -instinct to climb a tree to avoid a danger. The bear did indeed rear -up against the trunk, clawing the bark and trying to draw himself up. -But he did not actually climb, and it came into Carl’s mind that -perhaps his first bullet had so injured the animal as to make him -unable to climb. - -He looked down at it with the most intense anxiety. It really did seem -either unable or unwilling to ascend the tree. It walked about -uneasily; then went over to the hemlock where Alice was perched, and -finally returned to Carl. After sniffing about the foot of the tree it -lay down as if on guard. - -Carl’s hopes rose as he looked at it. For some minutes it hardly -seemed to stir, though he could not doubt its intense vigilance. -Perhaps it was remaining quiet in the hope that he would be tempted to -come down. - -“Are you all right, Carl? Where is it?” called Alice, in a low tone. - -“Lying like a dog at the foot of my tree,” Carl responded. “Are you -all right?” - -“Fairly comfortable. I’ve got a lot of bees on me, though,” she added. - -Carl presently became aware that he had bees on him also. The ground -must have been covered with them where the bear had torn the hive -open; some had probably flown from the combs and settled on the two -apiarists. Carl felt one crawling on his neck; he brushed it off, and -a moment later was stung by another that had crept up the inside of -his trouser-leg. He seemed to have bees crawling all over him, and no -doubt Alice, whose skirts afforded less protection, was in even worse -case. - -In fact, he could hear her squirming about on her branch, and brushing -at her clothing. - -“They’re stinging me all over,” she called piteously at last. “There -must be more than a million bees on me. I believe I’ll get down and -run.” - -“Don’t do it!” Carl implored. “Try to stand it for a little while. -Maybe the bear’ll go away.” - -But in his heart he knew that the bear was not at all likely to go -away before daylight, and that was a long time to wait. The annoyance -of the bees was growing intolerable. In the semi-darkness they would -not take wing; they merely crawled, and when they became entangled, -they used their stings. Carl could hear the continual “biz-zz” of -insects somewhere out of reach under his clothing, and every few -minutes he felt the keen thrust. - -“I simply can’t stand this,” groaned Alice, and Carl felt that he had -had enough of it too. - -“Hold on! Don’t move!” he cried. “I’m going to see if I can’t slip -down and get the gun.” - -He was perching in a beech tree with long and spreading branches, and -he had already observed that one of these lower limbs drooped to less -than a man’s height from the earth. Carl began to creep out on this -branch, as soundlessly as he could, but despite his care he thought he -saw the bear move its head and look at him. - -The branch sagged heavily under his weight as he went further out. He -was six or eight feet from the trunk, and on the side farthest from -the bear, and he hesitated for several seconds. He could see Alice -watching him anxiously from her tree. - -Finally he made up his mind, swung off, and dropped to earth with the -spring of the bough. It swished back with a tremendous crackling of -twigs, and Carl bolted headlong for the place where he had lost the -rifle. - -He had no doubt that the bear was pursuing him. He dodged around a -beehive and glanced over his shoulder, but saw nothing of the animal. -Striking a match, he bent over the earth and was lucky enough to catch -the blue glint of the rifle-barrel almost at once. - -With a great feeling of relief he picked it up, tried the action and -put in a fresh cartridge. The bear had made no sign, and now Carl -assumed the aggressive and marched back toward his tree, holding the -rifle ready. - -He could see the bear plainly, lying in the shadow of the beech, but -it did not stir. A suspicion began to grow in Carl’s mind. Advancing a -little nearer, he threw a lump of wood, hitting the prostrate animal -fairly, but still it did not move. Carl chuckled to himself, walked -closer, inspected the bear cautiously, and ventured to punch it in the -side with the rifle-muzzle. - -“Come down, Allie!” he called. “It’s all right. He’s dead!” - -There was a crackling of twigs as Alice slipped down, and then came to -look, astonished and almost unbelieving. - -“Dead? What killed it?” - -“That first shot of mine must have fatally wounded it. Anyway it’s as -dead as a door-nail, and seems to have been dead for some time. I -expect we might have come down a lot sooner if we had known.” - -“I wish we had,” said Alice. “I think I’m a pincushion of beestings.” - -“Well, go and get the bees off you. I’ll light a fire, and then I’ll -do the same.” - -Alice retired into the shadows and loosened her clothing. Carl built a -blaze from light wood, got rid of his own bees by brushing and -slapping, and dragged the carcass of the bear up to the firelight. It -was a medium-sized animal, with a beautiful, black, glossy pelt, but -nearly the whole of one side was soaked and stiffened with blood. -There was, also, a large pool of blood where it had been lying. It was -plain that Carl’s first bullet had cut an artery somewhere, and the -bear had gradually weakened and lain down to die quietly by the tree. - -There was something rather pathetic about this ending of the wild -animal, Alice thought, when she had come back and had it explained to -her. - -“Well, you’ll have your bearskin anyway. That’ll partly compensate for -the honey we’ve lost through him.” - -“Do you know how to skin a bear?” Alice demanded. - -“No,” replied her brother, “but I’ve got a knife, and I’m going to -try.” - -It was then shortly after two o’clock in the morning. They got out -their lunch gladly, and ate it by the fire, and then Carl undertook -the task of skinning the game. The light was not very good, and he had -only a large pocket-knife, so that the operation proved longer and -more fatiguing than he had expected. - -“I don’t know whether I’m doing this in the orthodox manner,” he said -as he wrestled with it. “But anyway I’m getting the hide off all in -one piece.” - -He finished removing it at last, and rolled it up to be taken home. It -would need to be washed free of the blood-stains and combed as well, -for there were at least a hundred bees tangled in the fur, where they -had died in defense of their homes and honey. The carcass was fat and -in fine condition. - -“Want some bear steaks, Allie?” Carl demanded. - -Alice thought not. The stripped carcass of the bear looked somewhat -horribly human. - -It was between three and four o’clock by that time, and as the -moonlight did not penetrate the woods very well, they determined to -wait for dawn before returning. The air was decidedly sharp; the -warmth of the fire was welcome. They arranged themselves as -comfortably as possible beside it, sat talking for a time, fell -silent, dozed, and fell asleep. - -They were awakened by a shout. It was broad day, and the east was -crimson. By the old roadway Bob was just coming into the bee-yard. He -had felt uneasy about them and had started for the lake at dawn, -despite his lame foot, bringing a honey-pail full of coffee. At sight -of the bear his chagrin was boundless. - -“Think what I missed!” he exclaimed. “I’ve been hoping for a chance at -a bear all this fall, and I’m laid up at the last moment and Carl -kills the bear with my own rifle. Hard luck? I should say so! - -“But we certainly ought to take one of this fellow’s hams back with -us,” he continued. “They say it’s better than pork, and we’ve no fresh -meat except what game we can pick up. Give me that knife.” - -It was no easy matter to detach the hind quarter with nothing but a -jack-knife, but Bob did manage at last to get it off, though he -mangled it badly. It must have weighed twenty-five pounds, and the -hide and meat would make heavy enough trophies to carry home. - -How to dispose of the rest of the carcass was another problem. They -did not want to leave it to putrefy in the apiary; they had no means -of digging and did not care to throw it in the lake. Finally Carl -discovered a little hollow back in the woods, and they scraped it out -somewhat with sticks, put in the bear’s body, covered it with what -loose earth they could gather, and piled stones over it. - -“I suppose one of us ought to stay here to-day and watch the bees, in -case of more robbing,” said Alice, doubtfully. - -None of them felt much inclined for this duty. Bob pointed to the sky, -where heavy clouds were rolling up already. - -“No use. It’ll be raining by noon,” he said. “Rain will keep -everything quiet, and if it should clear off sooner, one of us can -come out again this afternoon.” - -So they heated the pail of coffee at the last coals of the fire, drank -it, and started homeward, well burdened with the bearskin, the meat, -and the two guns. The sky continued to darken; a few drops fell before -they gained the cabin, and by ten o’clock a cold, sharp rain was -falling. It looked like the first of the autumnal rains; a fire was -welcome in the cabin, and Carl and Alice made up for their hard night -by a long nap. There was no danger of the bees fighting that day. - -It cleared and turned warmer the next morning, and shortly after noon -Carl and Bob walked over to the lake. All was quiet; the bees were -flying a little, but were not attempting to rob. Evidently the -intermission of that rainy day had caused them to recover from their -demoralization. - -But they were alarmed to notice that Carl’s fire, imperfectly -extinguished, had spread among the dry rubbish on the ground till it -had been put out by the rain. If the rain had held off, it might have -done a great deal of damage. The beehives, made of dry pine, and full -of wax and propolis would burn like so many torches. - -“I’m afraid I was careless that time,” said Carl. “But we’ll have to -come over here with our axes and clear away all this rubbish.” - -“Yes, and cut a regular fire guard around the yard,” Bob agreed. “We -can’t take any chances on this outfit, and there are always forest -fires up here in the fall.” - -Just now the woods were wet, and there was no immediate danger, so -they resolved to put off this duty till after extracting. For another -week the honey was allowed to remain on the hives. Frost fell on three -successive nights, but the days were sunny and warm. The maples -crimsoned; the woods became a flare of color. They had dried again -too, and when Bob went to Morton to order a team to haul the honey, he -came back with the report that the village was smoky, and fires were -burning in the woods to the westward. - -Extracting the honey was not such a hurried task this time. First they -cleared out the home yard; then had the full supers hauled in from the -lakeside apiary; they took a whole week in taking off the crop, -extracting the honey, and packing it in sixty-pound tins, and shipping -cases. - -The crop of fireweed honey turned out a little over seven thousand -pounds of liquid honey, and eighty dozen sections, nearly all of the -“Fancy” grade. Besides, they had about two hundred pounds of honey -reserved for their own consumption, and for giving away. A generous -amount was allotted to Mr. Farr, and they planned to supply Larue with -a rich helping if there was any chance of thereby healing up the feud. - -“Well, we’re not making the $1,800 we hoped for,” said Bob. “But we -ought to get $700 for this extracted honey, and about $200 for the -sections. Counting what we sold before, that comes to over $1,500.” - -“Besides, we won’t need to feed an ounce of sugar for winter,” Alice -added. “The hives are so heavy now that they feel as if they were -nailed down. How we’ll lift them into the winter cases I don’t know.” - -“Yes, and they’ve mostly got young queens,” said Carl. “With plenty of -food and young queens they’re sure to winter well and make money for -us next year. We’ve got over two hundred and ten colonies now. Next -year we’ll almost certainly clear a couple of thousand dollars.” - -But they did not get so much for this crop of honey as they expected. -The fireweed honey was not quite equal in quality to that from the -raspberry. They received only nine cents for the extracted honey, and -$2.25 a dozen for the sections. That brought them $810, however; -beside they got $40 for a hundred pounds of beeswax from the melted-up -cappings and bits of comb. The boys voted that $40 to Alice as her fee -for doing the uncapping. - -There was not much left to be done now, but prepare the bees for -winter, but that meant making new winter cases for nearly all the -hives at the lakeside apiary. They had already had a load of lumber -and a keg of nails taken there, and were waiting till they should have -leisure to do the carpenter work. - -A few days after shipping the last of the honey, the two boys went -over to the lake with their axes, intending to clear the place up as -well as possible. When they came within half a mile of the yard they -heard the distant, resonant bay of a hound somewhere to the west. - -“Some one’s breaking the game laws,” remarked Bob, for the open season -for deer was still far off. “Probably it’s one of those fellows from -Morton.” - -The voice of the hound was coming nearer, and by the time they -approached the lake, it sounded so close that they stopped in the -underbrush to watch for signs of the hunt. - -In a few minutes a crash sounded in the woods, and a small buck dashed -out and plunged into the shallow water. Instantly a rifle cracked from -somewhere down the shore. The deer wheeled, turned straight toward the -boys, and had come close before it caught sight of them. It swerved -again in a panic and went across the bee-yard, clearing the hives in -great bounds. - -[Illustration: It wheeled in a panic and went straight over the bee -yard, clearing the hives in great bounds] - -“Crack! crack! crack!” came the reports of the invisible rifle. But -the buck, apparently untouched, vanished into the woods. It left a -hive with the cover kicked off, and a cloud of angry bees hovering -over it. - -In another minute the dog came up on the hot trail, yelping and -quivering with excitement. - -“Why, that’s Larue’s hound,” whispered Carl. - -A moment later the squatter himself emerged from the thickets a -hundred yards down the shore and came walking slowly up, with his -rifle over his shoulder. The dog had been doubling about where the -buck had swerved and now, catching the trail, he dashed into the -bee-yard with a loud bay, which was followed by a sharp yell. He had -blundered right into the hive that the deer had struck, and he was -rolling over and over, with brown knots of bees clinging to his hide. -Larue ran toward him, but the dog leaped up and bolted into the woods, -yelping with pain and fright. He was evidently done with hunting for -that day. - -The boys squatted down close under the cedars. They heard Larue -muttering angrily, and half expected him to shoot up the apiary. But -no shot sounded. Perhaps he had grown afraid to meddle with the bees, -and after a time they heard him tramp into the woods again. - -“Now isn’t that the toughest kind of luck?” Carl muttered. “We’re -always running afoul of that fellow. Now I suppose he thinks he has a -new grievance against us, though it wasn’t our fault.” - -“I don’t see how we dare go away and leave all this bee outfit alone -for the winter,” said Bob. “He’d have it all destroyed before spring. -We’ve got to make peace with him somehow.” - -“Mr. Farr said that he’d never forget a good turn. I’d take a lot of -trouble to do him one, if somebody would only show me how!” said Carl. - -For some time they discussed methods of placating him. As soon as they -felt sure that he had gone a safe distance from the apiary, they set -to work to clear up the fire danger. - -It was really too great a task for two pairs of hands. They worked -most of that day, cleared up a great deal of the brushwood, dragged -fallen logs out of the way, and even made some attempt at cutting a -fire guard along the shore. But when evening came they seemed to have -made little impression. - -“We’d best hire a couple of regular woodcutters to clear up the whole -place and burn the rubbish,” said Carl. “We can afford it now.” - -“Well, we might take another whack at it ourselves, when we come over -to make the winter cases,” suggested Bob. - -They did not return to the lake for nearly a week, being busy at -putting the home hives into their winter boxes again, but the place -was constantly and heavily on their consciences. The woods had grown -very dry again. No more rain had fallen, and the ground was covered -with dead leaves, dry brush, and bark that any spark would set ablaze. -Near the cabin there was not so much danger, for the river made a good -fire guard on one side, and the woods on the other were mostly of -small green spruce and hemlock, which would not burn very readily. - -There was fire somewhere certainly. For several days smoke had hung in -the west, and the sun had gone down in a sullen haze of red. Almost -every day the boys planned to attend to the lake apiary, but some -other duty intervened, till, one morning, Alice ran into the cabin -with a frightened look on her face. - -“There’s smoke in the northwest—toward the lake!” she exclaimed. - -Bob and Carl hurried out to look. Smoke was certainly rolling up from -the direction of the lake, and there was a light breeze from the -north. - -“That dry stuff along the shore must have caught somehow!” exclaimed -Bob. “What fools we were not to clear it up. But maybe it hasn’t come -near the bee-yard yet. Get your ax, quick, Carl—and run!” - - - - - CHAPTER X - - FIRE AND WATER - - -Tearing through the undergrowth, running till they were breathless, -walking fast and then running again, the boys made their way through -the woods. To save time they took a short cut, but the ground was so -rough that it may have proved longer in the end, and before they -struck the old logging-road they realized that this was no light blaze -in the dead wood. Volumes of smoke surged over the trees, and when -they came within half a mile of the lake, they found the way blocked. - -Ahead of them the woods were burning to left and right. Hardly any -flame was visible, but the forest was choking with smoke and full of -the sharp smell of burning cedar. In the distance they could hear the -roar of the flames and the occasional crash of falling trees. To save -the apiary looked hopeless. - -“How in the world did it ever spring up so suddenly?” exclaimed Carl. - -“Don’t know. But we can’t get through this way. Got to go round it!” -gasped his brother, and they plunged into the woods again. - -Though they were not far from the lake they had to make a wide detour -to the west to reach it. What they could do when they got there they -hardly knew, but the bees meant everything to them. They could not let -the apiary burn without a fight. - -Stumbling through the smoke, they reached the lake shore at last. -Clouds of smoke drifted over the water, and the fire crashed and -roared. Two hundred yards away they saw the beehives dimly and ran -toward them. They had not yet been touched, but the fire was burning -straight toward the yard, through the rubbish-ricks along the shore. - -“Can we clear a belt around them?” cried Carl, doubtfully. - -“Too late!” said Bob. “Can’t start any counter-fire either. Can’t we -move them out of the way somehow?” - -Standing in bitter perplexity they looked from the apiary to the -woods. The fire was coming down the eastern shore; the hives were at -the southern end and would certainly be consumed when the -conflagration rounded the foot of the lake. There was not much flame -in sight, but dense smoke rolled across the water, and hot ashes were -falling in showers. These might start fresh fires anywhere. - -“We’ll get trapped here ourselves if we don’t make haste!” Carl -exclaimed. - -Bob went down to the shore and dashed water over himself. - -“If we only had the boat we could ferry them off!” he said, and then -uttered a loud exclamation. - -“A raft! a raft! That’s the thing, Carl. Make a raft!” - -“Yes, float ’em across the lake,” cried Carl. “Or up to the island. -That’ll be best. Let’s get the logs together!” - -Halfway up the lake, barely visible through the smoke, was the little -islet. It was barely twenty yards in diameter, but there was nothing -on it to burn, and it would be a safe refuge if they could get the -bees to it. - -Bob had already begun to chop furiously into a dead pine log. There -was plenty of timber scattered along the shore, and, better still, -there was the lumber and the nails that they had brought for the -winter case. Time, only, was lacking. - -Both boys rushed about frantically through the smoke. They dislodged -the logs that lay nearest the water, hewed off the large limbs, and -rolled the trunks down to the shore. Splashing in and out of the -shallow water, they succeeded at last in getting half a dozen small -tree trunks afloat together. Carl dragged down boards from the lumber -pile, and Bob spiked them down with the back of his ax for a hammer. - -“We’ll never do it!” Carl choked. - -But they hauled in fresh timbers, more boards, and nailed them to the -first section. The smoke was growing hotter and thicker; they could -plainly feel the fierce breath of the fire itself. Pieces of flaming -bark and branches were beginning to rain down. A partridge, blinded by -the smoke, whirred over their heads and tumbled into the water. - -“Keep going, Carl!” Bob cried hoarsely. “A little more’ll do it.” - -Working frantically, they managed to put together a few more square -feet of raft and cover it with lumber. It was a rickety affair, but it -must serve as it was. There was no time to do any more. - -“Now all aboard with the bees!” Bob shouted. - -He wiped his streaming eyes, seized upon the nearest hive, splashed -with it into the shallow water, and set it on the raft. The bees were -not flying, but the smoke and heat had caused them to cluster out on -the entrances in great lumps. It was impossible to handle the hives -without crushing bees, and when this happened they stung savagely. - -But it was no time to think of stings, and the boys hardly noticed -them. The hives were a heavy weight, however; they were stuffed with -willow-herb honey; some of them must have weighed eighty pounds, and -the most distant had to be carried over a hundred feet to the raft. It -was hardly possible to handle these single-handed. - -Already the fire had burst out around the corner of the lake, and the -dry wood around the apiary was ablaze. A flame suddenly sprang up in -the middle of the yard, but Carl instantly stamped it out and went on -with the work. His hands were bleeding; his back felt as if it were -broken. He hardly knew how the last hives got on the raft. But -suddenly there were no more of the painted boxes on the shore, and his -brother was crying frantically to him to come aboard. He waded into -the water up to his neck, helped to shove the shaky raft off, and -swung himself upon the logs. With a couple of long poles the boys -worked furiously to push the raft into deep water, but it moved with -extreme slowness. - -The whole shore was now aflame. Masses of blazing wood, driven by the -wind, went hissing into the water. The heat and smoke were almost -unendurable. But foot by foot the raft crept out into the lake till -the water grew so deep that they could no longer reach bottom. They -were forced to use the poles as sweeps, and their progress became -still slower. - -“We’ll save them! We’ll do it!” cried Bob, exultantly. - -But they were far from safe. They were about a hundred feet from -shore, and the heat was intense. Fire flooded over the whole ground -where the apiary had stood. On the raft the air was scorching, and -presently honey and melted wax began to ooze from one of the hives. -The combs were melting down. - -Carl leaned over the edge and dashed water over all the hives, and it -steamed up from the hot wood. But he kept splashing them till they -cooled somewhat; meanwhile Bob was working hard at the pole. -Presently, by good luck, they passed over a shoal spot, and they dug -the poles into the bottom, gaining several yards. - -At that moment Carl cried out sharply and pointed ashore. - -“What is it?” exclaimed Bob. - -“Some one out there—I saw him through the smoke—just for a second!” -the boy gasped. - -They both gazed intently. The drifting smoke-clouds shrouded all the -scene. Then, as they blew aside a little, both the boys saw a human -figure, a man, roughly dressed, dodging up the shore at full speed to -escape the fire. - -“Larue!” exclaimed Bob. - -“That’s who it was! For a minute I was afraid it might be Alice come -to look for us,” said Carl. “But what can that fellow be doing here?” - -“He must have got caught on the other shore, and is running around the -lake to dodge it. Why, Carl, you don’t suppose—” - -“No, I really don’t think he’d do such a thing,” Carl answered. “To -try to burn out the apiary would be too much. He’s making for home. I -suppose he’s afraid the fire may burn down that way.” - -There was no time then to speculate upon him any further. The air was -a trifle fresher now, but the raft seemed to be growing more shaky -every minute, and the boys were afraid it would actually fall to -pieces. They had to propel it with the utmost care, but sparks no -longer fell on them, and the little island was growing nearer. - -“We’ve done it, Carl! We’re safe!” said Bob, and this time he spoke -with reason. - -Still it took another quarter of an hour of slow and anxious -navigation before they grounded the raft on the island. They jumped -into the water and began to unload the hives at once, setting them -down anywhere on the stony ground. This was another heavy task, but -when it was done they wiped their streaming faces, and breathed more -freely. - -Even here the air was thick with smoke, but it was not hot. Driving -before the breeze, the fire seemed to be burning south and west from -the lake and was now progressing up the western bank. Probably it -would burn for miles, but nothing could be done now to check it. - -“You don’t think it’ll go near our cabin, do you?” asked Carl -suddenly. - -“Not unless the wind shifts,” answered Bob. “But I think we ought to -get back there as soon as we can. No telling what may happen.” - -“I suppose we can leave the bees here all right till the fire’s out,” -said Carl, looking critically around him. “But how are we going to get -ashore ourselves?” - -They did not relish the idea of trying to paddle the raft over the -half mile of water to land, and besides they preferred to leave it -where it was for use when they should remove the bees from the island. -Both of them could swim, but neither felt equal to a swim of that -distance, especially as they were nearly exhausted already. So for a -time they sat still on the island, closely surrounded by murmuring -masses of their bees, till it was nearly noon, and they began to grow -desperately hungry. - -“It seems to me a thousand years since I had breakfast,” said Carl. -“Nothing for it but to swim, I guess.” - -They looked and dreaded, but there was really no easier way. Stripping -off their already soaked clothes, they made them into two bundles, -which they tied at their necks, and each took a loose plank from the -raft to serve as a float. With this support there was no danger of -sinking, though it made their progress somewhat slow, and in half an -hour they stepped ashore on the mainland. - -The shore was still hot here where the fire had passed, and they had -to go up the lake for half a mile before they found a way around the -burned area. Here the fire seemed to have started, spreading -southward, and they wondered again what had been its origin. - -This necessary detour made it a long tramp home, and they were very -tired, blackened, and hungry when they came in sight of the cabin, and -perceived Alice scouting about on the trail in front, evidently on the -lookout for them. - -“Oh, boys!” she exclaimed, hastening toward them. “Are you all right? -I’ve been almost out of my mind with fright. I could see the smoke, -and I thought—I didn’t know what might happen. I knew you’d try to -save the bees. Are they all burned up?” - -“Not a bit of it,” said Carl. “We rafted them off into the lake.” - -“Good! But I don’t care for anything, as long as you’re both safe. You -must be hungry. I’ve had dinner ready for hours. I thought of trying -to carry a lunch to you, but I was afraid I might miss you.” - -“The fire didn’t seem to be coming this way, Alice?” enquired Bob. - -“Oh, no. Only the smoke was thick. The bees have been frightened and -cross all the morning. The fire seems to me to be heading down the -river, toward Indian Slough. I hope it doesn’t get to Larue’s place.” - -The boys washed off the ashes and soot, sat down to the delayed -dinner, and ate with appetites worthy of what they had gone through. -Now that the physical strain was over, they felt the effects of it, -and they ached in every muscle. They were disinclined to do anything -after dinner, and they all sat outside the cabin and watched the -apparent progress of the fire, as indicated by the smoke over the -tree-tops. It was certainly burning down toward the river, but far -below them, and it seemed to be rather decreasing than spreading. Bob -fancied it had encountered a wet piece of woodland that had given it a -check. The sky was overcast besides, looking as if rain might fall -before morning. On the whole, things looked safe enough; so the boys -went to bed soon after dark, and slept heavily. - -Carl was awakened by his brother shaking his arm. - -“Get up!” Bob was saying. “Put on your clothes. Hurry!” - -Very sleepily Carl obeyed, without knowing what was the matter. -Daylight had just come. In the east the sky was crimsoning delicately, -but down the river in the southwest, it was all one fierce red glare. -A high wind had risen, roaring through the trees, and they could see -the reflection of the fire on the smoke-clouds, and now and again even -the tongues of flame themselves, leaping against the sky. - -Alice and Carl were both out-doors, watching in anxiety. - -“It isn’t coming this way, is it?” asked Carl, when he had taken in -the alarming spectacle. - -“No. The wind’s the wrong way,” responded Bob. “But it must be burning -down mighty near our friend Larue. I believe we ought to take the boat -and go down. He may need help.” - -“Yes, I’m sure we ought!” Alice urged. - -“Seems to me I’ve done enough fire-fighting for awhile,” Carl -grumbled. “Why, yes, of course we must go,” he added. “I’ll be ready -in a second. Shall we take our axes?” - -“I declare, we left them both at the raft,” said Bob. “Never mind; I -dare say we won’t need them. Alice can stay and keep house again.” - -“Certainly not!” returned Alice, decisively. “There’s a woman down -there and two little girls, and they may need a woman to help them. -I’m going along.” - -“Well, come along then—but I’d rather you wouldn’t,” said Bob with -reluctance. - -They all got into the boat and went down stream as fast as the oars -and current could carry them. It was growing quite light now, but the -morning mists and the pervading smoke blurred the outline of -everything. The sky was clouded and stormy-looking. It might rain. -Meanwhile the wind blew strongly and seemed still rising. - -“If this wind keeps up and no rain falls, it’ll mean millions of -dollars loss, beside—very likely—some lives,” said Bob. “At this rate, -it may go right over Morton.” - -They had gone a couple of miles down the stream before they really -approached the fire zone. Heavy smoke clouds whirled before the wind; -farther down the woods a little way in from the water seemed all -ablaze on the right-hand shore, though the fire had not jumped the -river. - -“Looks as if Larue’s outfit had gone!” said Bob. - -But as they drifted down things did not look so bad. A short distance -back from the river, fire was, indeed, fiercely at work, but along the -shore there was only occasional burning trees, dead ones that had been -ignited by brands drifting through the air. They expected to encounter -the squatter’s canoe, but nothing appeared on the smoky water, and -they had come down near the beginning of the big slough when all of -them, all at once, were startled by hearing a cry from the shore. - -“Listen! What was that? Stop!” yelled Bob - -They stopped paddling and listened. Nothing was heard now but the -snapping wood. But they had all heard it—a thin, high-pitched scream, -like a child’s cry—or perhaps the cry of some lynx or wildcat trapped -in the burning forest. - -“It was some of the Larues! It was one of the children!” cried Alice. - -“Must have been. Let me ashore. I’ll find it!” Carl exclaimed. - -“You won’t go into that blazing wood!” ejaculated Bob. - -“It isn’t blazing yet, but it soon will be. I can always get back to -the river if I’m forced out. No danger. Keep a close lookout for me if -I have to run for it.” - -Bob looked doubtful, Alice frightened, but Carl shoved the boat a -little nearer the land and sprang out into the shallow water. He -deliberately dipped entirely under, came up dripping, and disappeared -into the smoky woods, waving a farewell over his shoulder. - -The shore was lined with dense thickets of willows and small hemlocks, -which he brushed through. Pausing, he tried to look about him, but the -smoke-haze was so dense that he could not see any distance. - -“Any one here?” he shouted. “Larue! Child! _Petite!_” - -But there was no answer. Carl pushed further into the woods. There was -no fire yet in sight, and the wind made the air less choking than it -had been on the day before, but the smashing and roar of the flames in -the forest not a quarter of a mile away was tremendous. - -He groped his way forward, calling continually and peering everywhere, -till the air grew hot, and he found his progress blocked by a clump of -dead, blazing spruces. - -He backed off then and veered to the right, going for several hundred -yards in this general direction, but following a very crooked course. -Despite all his calling and looking, he could find no trace of any -human being, and he began to consider the search hopeless. Great -sparks and pieces of flaming bark were driving overhead and falling -everywhere, starting a hundred fresh fires. - -“Guess I’d better see about getting back to the river,” he said to -himself. “I’ll get cut off if I’m not careful.” - -He wiped his watering eyes and turned in what he thought was the -direction of the water. In a few minutes he saw the woods open out -before him, and he ran forward. But instead of the river bank, he -found himself on the border of Larue’s clearing. - -His directions had become confused. But the clearing faced on the -slough, at any rate, and he thought he could contrive to cross the mud -to the river. The open space was so thick with smoke that he could see -the house and barn only by glimpses, and the river was entirely out of -view. - -He ran out into the open ground, passing close to the barn, and the -memory came to him of the last time he had seen that place, on the -night of the bee raid. Nobody would ever see it again, for it was -certainly doomed to go in less than an hour. - -As he passed, it occurred to him to look in, on the chance that any -live animal might have been overlooked there. The inside was dusky and -smoky and scattered with dry hay. Carl perceived one of their own -supers, which they must have overlooked in removing the stolen honey. -And then he caught sight of a wisp of a pink dress in a corner. - -He rushed toward it. It was a child, cowering down by some empty -barrels, and he had no trouble in recognizing the youngest of Larue’s -two little girls. He had admired her great black eyes and olive skin -already, but now she was grimy, streaked with black and ashes, and -frightened almost out of her senses. - -“Child!” exclaimed Carl. “How did you get here! Where’s your papa?” - -“_Sais pas_,” whimpered the little one. “_Je veux aller._” - -Carl knew just enough French to gather that she was too bewildered to -know anything, and that she wanted to go home. He could not imagine -how she had been left here,—unless, indeed, all the rest of the family -had perished. - -“Come along. I’ll take care of you,” he said, and he took her hand and -led her out. But her five-year-old steps could not keep up with him, -and he had to take her up in his arms and carry her. - -With this load he knew that he could never scramble and plunge through -the marsh to safety, and he determined to go back by the way he had -come. First, however, he put the little girl down, and ran to look -into the cabin. No one was there; it was dismantled of all its -household stuff and bore the signs of a removal in haste. Plainly the -squatter had got away, but Carl could not conceive by what -carelessness the child had been left behind. - -Picking up the little girl again, he started back through the woods. -The smoke was thicker; it was perceptibly hotter, and within thirty -yards he found the ground on fire before him. The trees had not yet -caught, but the leaves, deadwood, and underbrush were all aflame or -smoldering, making a belt impossible to cross. - -Carl turned back across the clearing again, and tried the other side. -Here it was even worse, for there was a huge “wind-row” of fallen, dry -spruces that was blazing like a furnace. Again Carl was driven back, -and when he reached the clearing, he noticed that the roof of the barn -was beginning to burn, ignited by falling sparks. - -There was nothing left for it, but to try the marsh. He paused and -looked it over, trying to pick out the firmest part, and at that -moment he heard two quick gunshots from the river, far out through the -smoke. - -It was Bob, he thought, signalling his position. He forgot for the -moment that they had brought no guns with them. Carl yelled loudly in -reply, and strode out warily into the great slough. - -At first it was comparatively firm, then he suddenly went over his -shoe-tops in mire. He struggled out and tried to step from one tuft of -grass to another till the vegetation ceased entirely, and he saw in -front a dim expanse of green quagmire, spotted with pools of -oily-looking water. It was impossible to pass that way. Carl struggled -back to firm ground again, set the child down and looked desperately -about. - -Scattered fires were breaking out all around the clearing now, and -here and there the tall weeds along the marsh were beginning to blaze. -Soon it would be impossible to remain even there. He hurried up and -down the margin, trying the footing. Nowhere could he find any solid -way. No doubt Larue would have known safe trails through the slough, -but in the hurry and flurry of the moment Carl could not hit upon one. - -Again he heard two shots from the river. The boat was no doubt moving -slowly up and down in front of the marsh. Carl shouted again, but the -roaring of the fire and wind was now so loud that he doubted if he was -heard. - -The child clung to him desperately, but she did not cry. Stoical, from -her Indian blood, perhaps, she gazed at him in a sort of wild silence. - -“Never mind, _petite_!” said Carl. “I’ll get you safe out of it yet.” - -But he could not see how it was to be done. If he had a couple of -planks, to be laid down and moved forward alternately, he thought he -might bridge a way over the slough. He hastened into the cabin again, -to see if there was any loose board that he could wrench off. He could -find nothing movable that would answer the purpose. The place was -littered with scraps of rubbish not worth taking away—a few old -muskrat skins, scraps of clothing, a torn blanket, and an old pair of -snowshoes. - -The sight of the snow-shoes now gave him an inspiration. He ran out -with them and hastily bound them on. - -“Here, little one, climb on pick-a-back!” he exclaimed, stooping, and -the child obeyed, understanding his gesture if not his words. With her -arms around his neck, clasping her feet firmly, he trudged awkwardly -out into the weeds of the marsh-edge. - -A hurricane of sparks, hot ashes, and bits of burning wood swept over -him as a clump of burning trees crashed down close to the shore. He -had no difficulty in getting across the first twenty or thirty feet of -the slough; the tufts of grass supported him easily. Then the -vegetation grew more scanty. It almost ceased, and there were -stretches of bare mud, sometimes thinly caked on the surface, -sometimes supporting straggly weeds that looked like streaks of green -foam. - -Fortunately both Carl and the little girl were light weights. Together -they weighed less than two hundred pounds, and Carl was overjoyed to -find that the snow-shoes held him up whenever there was the smallest -scrap of vegetation to bind the mud. The meshes were old and torn. -Brown water bubbled up between them, but they supported the weight as -long as he did not pause. As he went farther he had to step more and -more quickly to keep from sinking, till at last he was forced into a -run. Sinking deeper and deeper at every stride, the snow-shoes -scattered the mud in great flakes. - -Suddenly he tripped. Overbalanced by the weight on his shoulders, he -went sprawling. He clutched at the little girl, who had shot over his -head, and dragged her out of an oozy pool. Then a yard away, he spied -a rotten log half sunk in the mire, and floundered to it. - -On this support he hesitated for a few minutes. Both he and the little -girl were covered with mud from head to foot. The shore behind him, -was veiled in smoke and he could not yet see the river. He seemed shut -off, isolated on that quagmire, in the midst of dimness. - -All at once the signal shots banged again, sounding less than fifty -yards away. Carl screamed wildly in answer, and, taking the child on -his back, started forward again. But the footing became more and more -treacherous. He sank at every step, and the mud flowed over his -snow-shoes and weighted them down. It was only by great efforts that -he avoided being stuck fast. - -But just when the snow-shoes were growing so heavy that he could -hardly lift them, he saw sand and gravel mingling with the ooze. A -little farther, and a rippling line of water washed over his feet. He -splashed into it. In two or three steps he went knee-deep, then to his -hips. He heard a splashing in the water, and dimly saw the outline of -an approaching boat. - -He flung himself forward to meet it, went over his head, and came up -trying to swim with one hand and to support the child with the other. -The muddy snow-shoes encumbered him; he dipped under again, -half-choked; then a hand gripped him by the collar, and he was hauled -up to the gunwale of the boat. - -“Bob!” he spluttered. - -But it was not his brother. It was Larue’s dark face that met his, -streaked with black now and looking wild with anxiety. - -“Rosalie! _Ma petite! T’es sauve!_” he ejaculated and lifted the -little girl into the boat. The next instant Carl himself got aboard, -half scrambling and half hauled up by the half-breed. Just then -another boat rushed up out of the smoke, and he heard Alice calling, -“Carl!” - -“Here he is! Bo’—bot’ safe!” sang out the squatter. “He fin’ her! Here -he come, crossing ze marsh on my ole _raquettes_. It is wonderful. -Mister Harman, zis is w’at I nevaire forget!” - -Carl stuttered something, unable to speak articulately. He felt weak -and dizzy and full of mingled smoke and water. He saw the faces of -Alice and Bob looking anxiously at him, but they seemed to waver, and -everything went round dizzily when he lay back in the boat and shut -his smarting eyes. - -He was vaguely aware of the movement of the boat through the water and -of talking voices. He thought some one was dashing spray over him and -he made a confused attempt to get up. - -“_Restez!_” said Larue, and Carl “rested.” - -The bump of the boat against the bank brought him to himself. Water -was really falling on his face. Looking up, he was amazed to find that -it was raining. The two boats had come to land at the temporary camp -where Larue had removed his family. A bark lean-to shed was built -against a tree; smoke curled up from a little fire; there was a shriek -as Mrs. Larue rushed forward to the boat and seized upon her rescued -child. - -There was a great scene of excitement and jubilation, and little -Rosalie, who had hitherto preserved the silence of an Indian baby, now -began to sob as she nestled in her mother’s arms. - -“He fin’ her!” cried Larue, indicating Carl. “I have been crazy. Can’t -guess where she go. I search everywhere—up, down the river, in ze -woods, in ze smoke—can’t fin’ notting. T’ink she dead, sure. But Mr. -Harman fin’ her, and cross ze _marais_ on ze snow-shoes, by gar! -Greatest t’ing I ever see!” - -“You’re a hero, Carl,” said Bob, laughing. - -Larue seemed to be divided between joy and gratitude at the rescue of -the child, and admiration at Carl’s feat of crossing the slough on -snow-shoes. His wife’s protestations of gratitude were most profuse, -embarrassing Carl terribly. - -“It really wasn’t anything,” he stammered. “Really I found her by -accident. But how did she ever get lost?” - -Both Larue and his wife volubly attempted to explain, mixing the -matter up badly. It seemed that the family had been alarmed about the -middle of the night by the approach of the fire, and had moved out in -haste. In the darkness and confusion Rosalie had somehow vanished. -They had searched and called. Larue, who was very fond of his -children, and of this one in particular, was like a madman. After -establishing his wife and the other child in safety, he searched the -shore up and down the river and went into the woods, without finding -any trace of the little girl. On the river he had met Bob and Alice, -who told him that Carl had gone ashore, and the two boats had rowed up -and down on the lookout, firing signals at intervals with Larue’s gun. - -Rosalie herself could give no coherent account of how she had strayed -away or where she had been. She knew only that she had found herself -in the darkness and the woods, had been terribly frightened and was -waiting for papa to come for her. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - - A GOOD SUMMER’S WORK - - -It had continued to rain, and it was coming down hard by this time, a -cold, driving rain from the north, that would check the forest fire if -it lasted long enough. Larue’s camp was a miserable place, and far -from water-tight. - -“We must ask them to come home with us,” Alice whispered to Bob. “We -can’t let the poor wretches stay here in the rain.” - -Bob looked startled and a little reluctant, but Alice gave the -invitation without waiting for him to object. - -“Mademoiselle is as good as ze angels,” said Mrs. Larue. “Certainely -we be glad to go, is it not, Baptiste?” - -“Maybe it rain for two—tree days,” said the squatter, regarding the -sky. “Put ze fire out—good! But zis is terrible poor camp. _Oui_, we -go, and many t’anks!” - -He put some of his most perishable possessions in his boat, covered -the rest well with bark and boughs, and took his family on board. It -was raining in torrents when they passed the clearing again on their -way back, and everything was a mist of smoke, steam, and rain. But -both the house and barn were still standing, and did not appear to be -now on fire. - -It was a pretty tight fit for seven of them in the Harmans’ cabin, and -rather a severe strain on the larder. But Bob went down to the river -and caught a dozen trout. Larue sallied into the woods and came back -in an hour, soaked like a sponge, but bringing with him five -partridges. Mrs. Larue lent a hand at the cookery, and they produced a -meal that was at any rate abundant. - -All that afternoon it rained, and, as Bob said, every drop was worth a -dollar to that imperiled forest country. - -“We’ll be able to put our bees back off the island as soon as it lets -up,” said Carl. “The ground’ll be cooled off pretty well again. You -know, Larue,” he added, “we had a fire of our own yesterday. Nearly -burned up our bees at the lake.” - -“Yes, and we fancied we saw you through the smoke. But most likely it -wasn’t,” said Bob. - -Larue had been talking volubly and gaily, but his face suddenly fell. - -“Yes, I guess you see me,” he said, looking sheepish. “By gar, I am a -beast, an assassin. But I have some bad viskey in me yesterday, and I -know no better.” - -“I thought so,” said Bob, quietly. “Larue, what did you want to burn -us out for?” - -“Surely you didn’t start the fire!” cried Carl, staring. - -“_Voila!_” said the half-breed, contritely. “It was one rotten treek. -But, you see, you catch me in bear trap. Your bees sting my cow, kill -my hen, sting my dog, sting me mos’ to death. So I see ze bee-boxes up -there all alone, and I say, ‘He sting me no more, by gar!’ So I light -fires—here, dere, many places at once.” - -“I wouldn’t have believed it of you, Larue!” cried Carl indignantly. - -“Sure, I sorry I do it now. But, you know, I have ze viskey in me -yesterday. I get turned round in ze smoke, nearly get caught by ze -fire myself. I see you rafting off ze bee-boxes, and I guess you see -me too. And then—ze fire spread and spread, and ze wind he rise, and -go clear to ze slough and burn my house.” - -“I guess you’re punished for it,” said Bob. “But we never meant to -quarrel with you or do you any harm. You took our honey, you know, and -you got stung when the bees went to bring it back. And we didn’t set -the trap to catch you. We thought it was some wild animal, from the -tracks you made.” - -The half-breed grinned, shamefacedly, yet with just a touch of pride -as well. - -“Good treek, eh?” he said. “I learn him from a man in ze lumber woods. -He steal hogs zat way—make track like bear.” - -“Fine trick, yes,” agreed Bob. “Only you got the worst of it. In fact, -you’ve come out worst in all your tricks, I believe.” - -“Serve me right, eh!” Larue admitted. “For ze honey, I steal him when -I need ze money bad. But nevaire mind. Zat is all over, and we forget. -I ask your pardon for all ze trouble I make you. You save _ma petite_, -and I never forget zat. After now, I am yours. You say to me, ‘Larue, -come!’ and I come. You say, ‘Larue, do zis—do zat!’ and I do zis, do -zat. No money, no pay. I can never pay you for what you do for me.” - -“All right, Larue, we’re friends henceforth, and we’ll shake hands on -it,” said Bob; and they shook hands gravely all around to seal the -peace. - -“You know, when we saw your big tracks we thought it was a wendigo,” -said Alice, laughing. - -“Wendigo?” cried the half-breed, his face clouding. “When you see a -wendigo?” - -“Why, there’s no such thing,” said Carl. - -“Do not say zat. Ze wendigo—he is terrible! I have never see him, -no—but I know a man, a trapper at Lac Temagimi—” - -And he plunged into a terrifying tale of Indian superstition. He was -an excellent story-teller, and as he sat with gesticulating hands, and -dark, flashing eyes, he held them all fascinated. From this he went on -to blood-curdling tales of the loup-garou, or werewolf, ghostly -huntsmen, and other horrors of French-Canadian tradition, till Alice -begged him to cease. She said she would be afraid to sleep that night. - -“Don’t you like them?” said Alice privately to Carl that evening. “I -think Larue isn’t half a bad fellow, and the children are darlings. I -like his wife too, and she says she’ll teach me to speak French.” - -“I’m afraid it’s a queer dialect she’d teach you,” Carl answered. “But -really they’re a pretty decent lot, now we get to know them. Anyway, -I’m tremendously glad we’ve made peace.” - -It rained hard nearly all night, but in the morning only a drizzle was -falling, which presently ceased. It was cold and dismal, but the -squatter rowed down the river to look at his property. He came back -overjoyed. The clearing, he said, was choking with smoke and steam, -but the fires were all out, and the house and barn were both standing. -The roofs were gone, indeed, but a few days’ work would replace them. - -“I get some of my friends to help me,” he said. “We make a bee, and -soon put him right.” - -“We might let him have that lumber for the winter cases that we put -into the raft,” Carl whispered to his brother. “It’s scorched and -soaked with water now so that it would hardly do for hives, but it -would be all right to mend a roof.” - -“Good idea!” Bob answered, “and we’ll help him mend it. We’re pretty -crowded here, and the sooner he can get into his own house again the -better for us.” - -That afternoon Larue accompanied them to the lake apiary. Where the -yard had been was nothing but a waste of wet ashes and rocks, but the -fire was out, and at any rate the ground was thoroughly cleared at -last. From the shore they could see the hives scattered over the -little islet, with the raft aground beside them. - -It was quite a problem how to get out to them. But finally, by Larue’s -advice, they constructed a small raft which carried the three of them -over, with a great deal of ricketing and splashing. The bees were all -safe, with the exception of three colonies that had been melted down -by the heat of the fire, and they set to work at once to load them on -the raft again. - -Larue was useful at the rafting. It turned out that he was an expert -lumberman and river-driver. He seemed as strong and wiry as a panther, -worked gaily and heroically, unmindful of an occasional sting. In -fact, the boys could not help liking him, now that they met him on -terms of peace. He might have been lawless enough, but he insisted on -handling the heaviest end of everything, sang, chatted, laughed, and -seemed so determined to win their good feeling, that they were both -ready to forgive him all the trouble he had caused them. - -The lumber in the raft was now really unfit for use in the bee-hives, -and Larue was intensely grateful when they offered it to him. -Immediately he went off and hunted up a friend of his, also a -half-breed, who had been living unsuspected all this time not five -miles away. This man owned a horse and wagon, and next morning he -hauled the lumber from the lake to the river, and they rafted it down -to Larue’s farm. He must also have sent word to Morton in some way, -for a couple of days later half a dozen dark-faced fellows came up the -river in canoes, carrying saws, hammers, and axes, to assist at the -“bee.” - -Bob and Carl also took part. Two of the visitors were skilful -carpenters, and they made the house-roof tighter than it had been -before. There was not lumber enough for the barn, but the half-breeds -contrived a wonderfully ingenious thatch of logs, mud, and cedar -boughs which would turn water as well as shingles. - -Bob took the opportunity of sending word back to the Morton sawmill -for more lumber. It arrived a few days later, and the boys were amazed -to find Larue and the same gang of half-breed helpers come with it. -They all went out to the lake, and unloaded the cargo. The half-breeds -had been under the impression that a house was to be built, but they -were all men who, with an axe and a knife, could make anything from a -gunstock to a boat. It was only necessary to show them how the winter -cases were to be made, and the speed with which the boards were cut up -and nailed together was marvelous. There was a constant fire of song -and chaff in French patois kept up, but the work was all finished so -early that the men went into the woods, cut timbers, and ran up the -framing of an extracting-house, which could be finished the next -season. - -They would not hear of taking any pay for this work. However, they all -came back to the cabin, where Alice had a great supper prepared of -everything eatable that she could find within reach. It was the honey -that found greatest favor, however, with the guests; they all seemed -to have a child’s appetite for sweets, and it vanished in immense -quantities. Luckily there was plenty of it, and each of the men was -provided with some to take away. - -Later in the evening they built a great fire in the clearing, and -there by the red light the half-breeds sang _voyageur_ songs, -_habitant chansons_, old songs that had been sung in Quebec for two -hundred years, and some of them in Normandy before that. The -half-breeds had excellent voices, and the songs were all new to the -Harmans—“Entre Paris et St. Denis,” “La Claire Fontaine,” and the -canoe song with the rattling chorus of “En Roulant ma Boule.” This -last was a particular favorite. - -It was midnight when they broke off, and too late to go back to -Morton. Fortunately it was a fine night, and they camped by the fire -on heaps of spruce twigs. In the morning, after drinking an enormous -kettle of black coffee, and eating honey and bread, they started -homewards, all piled together in the single wagon, laughing and waving -farewells. The creaking of the wagon mingled with the diminishing -chorus of: - - “Rouli, roulant ma boule roulante, - En roulant ma boule roulante, - En roulant ma boule.” - -It was the gayest time the old cabin had ever known, and it seemed -almost lonely when they had gone. - -“Jolly lot!” said Carl. “I fancy Mr. Farr wasn’t far wrong when he -said that Larue wasn’t a bad fellow when you get on the right side of -him. Anyhow, it’ll be a great relief to know that we can leave the -bee-yard without being afraid that it’ll be robbed or burned out -during the winter. I believe that forest fire was worth all the -trouble it made.” - -When they had put the hives back into their winter cases and stored -the supplies carefully away in the cabin, the work for the season was -finished. Bob was anxious to get back to town for the fall term, and -neither Carl nor Alice were unwilling to leave. The bees would need no -more attention for six or eight months, and there was nothing to keep -them longer in the woods. - -They left nearly all their house-keeping outfit in the shanty, boarded -up the windows, and nailed up the door. The wagon came from Morton for -their baggage, but they themselves preferred to go down to the railway -by the river. - -It was a cloudy, chilly fall day when they got into the boat for the -last time, not without regret. - -“Good-by, old shanty!” called Alice, as they pushed off. “I’ll be glad -to see you again in the spring.” - -They stopped a moment at Indian Slough to leave a few pails of honey -for the Larues. The squatter promised to look after their cabin and -see that no harm came to anything about the place while they were -gone, and they left the whole family on the shore, waving good-by. It -was hard to believe that these people had been such bitter enemies a -few weeks earlier. - -“Well, we haven’t done so badly,” said Bob, as they dropped down the -stream. “We had about $500 when we came in here. Now we’ve got nearly -$1000, besides about two hundred and ten good colonies of bees, that -will surely make $2000 for us next season.” - -“And we’ve had a lot of fun over it, too,” Carl added. “And some -pretty tough times, along with fires, bears, wolves, and bee-stings. -But it’s been better than keeping a country store.” - -“I should think so!” Bob exclaimed. “It was the luckiest thing that -ever happened when I heard of these bees for sale. I almost wish that -we could start at work with them again next month.” - -“I almost wish that, too,” said Alice, “but not quite. I believe I’ve -had enough wild life for a few months. Now I’d like something quiet -and civilized for a little while—something just like Harman’s -Corners.” - - THE END - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILDERNESS HONEY *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following -the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use -of the Project Gutenberg trademark. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Wilderness Honey</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Frank Lillie Pollock</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Illustrator: H. C. Edwards</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: March 31, 2022 [eBook #67750]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILDERNESS HONEY ***</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div class='ce'> -<h1>WILDERNESS HONEY </h1> -</div> -<div id='ifpc' class='mt01 mb01 wifpc'> - <img src='images/illus-fpc.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>“Poison!” exclaimed Alice. “Why, it must have been meant to kill the bees!”</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div class='ce'> -<div style='font-size:1.4em;margin-bottom:1em;'>WILDERNESS HONEY </div> -<div>BY</div> -<div style='font-size:1.2em;margin-bottom:0.4em;'>FRANK LILLIE POLLOCK </div> -<div style='font-size:0.8em;'>ILLUSTRATED BY </div> -<div style='margin-bottom:2em;'>H. C. EDWARDS </div> -</div> -<img src='images/illus-001.png' alt='' style='margin-left:40%;width:20%;' /> -<div class='ce'> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;margin-top:2em;'>NEW YORK </div> -<div>THE CENTURY CO.</div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;'>1917 </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div class='ce'> -<div>Copyright, 1917, by</div> -<div style='margin-bottom:0.7em;'><span style='font-variant:small-caps'>The Century Co.</span> </div> -<div>Copyright, 1916, by</div> -<div style='margin-bottom:0.7em;'><span style='font-variant:small-caps'>Perry Mason Company</span> </div> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;margin-bottom:0.7em;'><i>Published, September, 1917</i> </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div class='ce'> -<div style='margin-bottom:0.7em;'>TO ROSA </div> -<div>WHO HAS HELPED ME TO HARVEST</div> -<div>SO MUCH HONEY IN THE</div> -<div>WILDERNESS</div> -</div> -<blockquote> -<p>This story has appeared serially in the “Youth’s Companion,” and my -thanks are due the publishers for permission to reprint it.</p> - -<div style='text-align:right;'><span style='font-variant:small-caps'>Frank Lillie Pollock.</span></div> -<p>The publishers also wish to acknowledge the courtesy of the “Youth’s -Companion” in arranging for the use of the pictures.</p> - -</blockquote> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center'>CONTENTS</div> -<table class='toc tcenter' style='margin-bottom:3em'> -<tbody> - <tr><td class='c1'>I</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chI'>The Bee Fever</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>II</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chII'>Trouble in the Dark</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>III</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chIII'>Strange Perils</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>IV</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chIV'>Honey and Swarms</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>V</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chV'>Failing Hopes</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>VI</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chVI'>Robbing the Robber</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>VII</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chVII'>Reaping the Harvest</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>VIII</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chVIII'>A Run of Luck</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>IX</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chIX'>Stopping a War</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>X</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chX'>Fire and Water</a></td></tr> - <tr><td class='c1'>XI</td><td class='c2'><a href='#chXI'>A Good Summer’s Work</a></td></tr> -</tbody> -</table> -</div> - -<div class='section'> - -<div style='text-align:center'>LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS</div> -<blockquote> -<ul> -<li><a href='#ifpc'>“Poison!” exclaimed Alice. “Why, it must have been meant to kill the bees!”</a></li> -<li><a href='#i002'>It was not without a secret feeling of misgiving that Alice and Bob bade farewell to Harman’s Corners</a></li> -<li><a href='#i003'>Two of the hives that were farthest from the house had been pillaged</a></li> -<li><a href='#i004'>It was not a wild beast in the trap; it was a man!</a></li> -<li><a href='#i005'>“No, you stay here, Allie. There won’t be any shooting, but this is no girl’s business”</a></li> -<li><a href='#i006'>He was plainly in no condition to show fight and the boys advanced without hesitation</a></li> -<li><a href='#i007'>It wheeled in a panic and went straight over the bee yard, clearing the hives in great bounds</a></li> -</ul> -</blockquote> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' title='I—The Bee Fever' id='chI'> - <span style='font-size:1.4em;'>WILDERNESS HONEY</span><br/><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER I</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>THE BEE FEVER</span> -</h2> -<p>“We’ll have to sell the store,” said Bob Harman, with decision. “No -use blinking it.”</p> - -<p>“What, sell Harman’s!” cried his sister Alice, aghast.</p> - -<p>“Well, why not?” Bob demanded. “It’s bringing nothing in. It hasn’t -been paying expenses for ever so long. We’d all be richer if it had -been sold years ago.”</p> - -<p>“Very likely,” muttered Carl. “But fancy Harman’s going out of the -family!”</p> - -<p>All three turned and looked at the weatherbeaten side of the frame -building adjoining the house—the store that for half a century had -been known as “Harman’s.” It had been a great place in its day, had -Harman’s. Almost the first recollections of all three children were -connected with the store. They had played behind the counters, been -weighed on the big scales; and the familiar, rich smell of molasses -and tea and hardware and cloth was like an odor of home. Later they -had helped to serve customers—it did not keep them very busy—and for -the last year Carl had managed the business almost single-handed. It -did seem impossible to give up the store.</p> - -<p>The three orphans were holding a council on the front veranda of the -old brick house where the Harmans had lived ever since they came as -pioneers into Upper Canada. Once there had been three hundred acres of -land, and capacious barns and stables, and stock, but all this had -dwindled away, till the farm was represented by ten acres behind the -house, and even this was rented to a neighbor.</p> - -<p>The April sunshine was warm on the veranda, although the fields were -still brown, and patches of snow lay here and there in sheltered -nooks. The maples at the roadside were red, and in Alice’s garden -green sprouts were bravely pushing up. On the south side of the fence -were the twelve white-painted hives of her bees, and the hum of flying -insects filled the air.</p> - -<p>Nearly eighty years before the Harmans had been among the first -pioneers who broke into the wilderness north of Lake Ontario. They had -helped to open the roads; they had cleared land; and they had started -a frontier store on the new highway. For two generations the hamlet -that sprang up there was known as “Harman’s Corners.” It lay on the -direct road to Toronto and it had its great days before the railway -came. In winter the laden sleighs went past by scores, carrying wheat -and meat and timber to the growing city, and the drivers all stopped -at the cross-road. The Corners supported three taverns, all doing a -thriving trade. The fourth corner was occupied by the store.</p> - -<p>As there were no other stores in that district, Harman’s had a -monopoly of trade, and its owner should have grown rich. But the -Harman of that day lacked business enterprise. He was good-natured, -slow, procrastinating, and spent more time at the taverns than behind -his counter. The store lost ground, and when the railway was built and -passed three miles away to touch at Woodville, the Corners received -its death-blow.</p> - -<p>Produce went to Toronto by rail instead of by sleigh or wagon. -Harman’s was out of the line of traffic. The three taverns closed one -by one. At Woodville the Elliott Brothers established an enterprising -store, with all the modern tricks of trade. The farmers went thither -to do their buying, and Harman’s stock grew shop-worn and out of date.</p> - -<p>Still, Mr. Harman clung to the business, keeping no proper books, but -cherishing a vague idea that the store was maintaining his family, -while, in fact, it was losing money daily, and all but ten acres of -the farm had to be sold. For the last two years he had been ill; for -nearly a year Carl had had virtually entire management and had -discovered the truth. During this time the Elliott Brothers had -repeatedly offered to buy the store. They wished to run it as a branch -of their Woodville establishment, and Carl had urged his father to -sell. Mr. Harman, however, refused to entertain the idea for a moment, -and remained firm up to that March day when he died. Mrs. Harman had -died four years earlier, and the three children were orphans, with -what looked like a losing inheritance.</p> - -<p>Alice was eighteen years old and had been keeping house for the family -ever since her mother’s death. She was tall, brown-haired, and -gray-eyed; an out-of-door girl, full of energy. She was a great -chicken-raiser and an indefatigable gardener. The bees she had had for -three years, starting with three hives, and had already acquired a -very cheerful bank account of her own from the sale of honey.</p> - -<p>Bob was nineteen, dark-haired, rather short, and powerfully built. His -turn of mind was highly scientific and practical, and he was trying to -get through a course of electrical engineering at the Toronto School -of Science, where he was better known as a half-back on the varsity -team.</p> - -<p>Carl was a year and a half younger than Alice and was her chief -assistant with the bees, but he lacked his brother’s muscles. He had -an idea that something in journalism would suit him exactly, but it -was a long way from Harman’s Corners to a daily newspaper office. -Meanwhile he looked after the store and attended the Woodville High -School when he could, riding to and fro on his bicycle, and tried to -prepare for the university.</p> - -<p>But educational prospects looked rather bad just then. Everything had -to be subordinated to the question of making a living, and Bob had -come up from Toronto to help in threshing the matter out.</p> - -<p>All the property had been left to the three children, and an old -neighbor and friend, Isaac Ferguson, was appointed executor and -trustee till the heirs should come of age. But an inventory of the -property revealed a disastrous state of affairs.</p> - -<p>All the land and buildings were heavily mortgaged. Although no proper -books had been kept, it was plain that the store had not been paying -expenses for a long time, and there was an appalling collection of -unpaid bills—many of them bills for stock that had grown old and -worthless. When all these liabilities were cleared off, there would -not remain much more than a thousand dollars from Mr. Harman’s estate.</p> - -<p>Part of this state of things was no surprise to Carl, who had been in -closer touch with the business than either Alice or Bob, but even he -rather inclined to the idea that it would be best to clear out the old -stock at any price, get in some fresh stuff, and try to float the -business for a little longer, at any rate.</p> - -<p>“Even if we did sell out,” he argued, “we wouldn’t get enough to live -on for long, and we’d have no chance of making any more.”</p> - -<p>“Elliott’s would pay one of us forty dollars a month to stay here as -clerk. I was talking to them yesterday,” responded Bob. “That would be -a good job for Alice.”</p> - -<p>“No, I’ll never do that, and I don’t see how you could go to see those -people!” cried Alice, hotly. “If I only had a hundred hives of bees -like these we wouldn’t need anything from anybody,” she went on after -a moment’s indignation. “Why, last year I made over one hundred and -twenty-five dollars from only eleven hives.”</p> - -<p>“I wish we had them, too,” said Carl, “but we haven’t, so what’s the -use. Bees cost about ten dollars a colony here and hard to get at -that. I declare, Allie, you could get nearly as much for your apiary -as the store is worth!”</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t sell them, though, not for twenty dollars a hive!” the -girl declared. “I’d rather see the store go, by a great deal. What do -you think we ought to do, Bob?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” returned her brother, slowly. “Maybe I’ve an idea, but -the present question to be settled is whether we want to accept -Elliott’s proposition—to buy us out, I mean.”</p> - -<p>They discussed the worrying problem all the rest of the afternoon and -at supper and during the evening and at intervals the next day. Then -Bob had to return to his classes in Toronto and he went away, leaving -the matter still unsettled.</p> - -<p>Spring came on with the breathless haste of the North. The last -patches of snow vanished. The grass grew greener daily; tulips were -budding; and the bees were gathering honey profusely from the -pussy-willows. Alice and Carl went through the hives, cleared out the -winter’s dirt from the bottom-boards, spaced the combs properly, -scraped away excrescences of wax and propolis. They were so engaged, -when Bob suddenly appeared without any warning, ten days after his -departure.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah! What’s up?” shouted Carl, pulling off his hat and bee-veil -and rushing to meet him. “You’ve got some news. I can see it.”</p> - -<p>“Nothing much,” returned Bob. “Anyway I won’t say anything about it -just now. Go ahead with your work. And, say, have you got an extra hat -and veil? I’d like to look on.”</p> - -<p>Bob had never handled the bees much, nor taken any great interest in -them, so that both Carl and Alice were surprised at his request. -However, they were too busy at the moment to discuss it, and he was -provided with a mosquito-net veil, which he draped about his hat. He -leaned over the hives as they were opened, peered in, and asked -innumerable questions.</p> - -<p>“What’s happened to you, Bob?” said Alice at last. “You seem to want -to learn the bee business.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe,” said Bob, enigmatically. “Now what’s the best the bees ever -do, Alice? How much honey do you get from them, on an average?”</p> - -<p>“Well, this is my pet colony,” said the girl, raising the cover from -the hive nearest her. Under the board cover was a canvas quilt, which -she peeled up, revealing the tops of the combs, each in its wooden -frame. At the disturbance, a yellow froth of bees boiled up from -between the combs, but Alice unhesitatingly laid hold of one of the -center combs and lifted it out for inspection. It was covered on both -sides with a thick layer of bees, crowded as closely as they could -stand. There were some old veterans that had wintered over, with -shiny, worn bodies and ragged wings; there were just-hatched bees, -fluffy and yellow like young chickens; there were bees with yellow -balls of pollen on their legs, looking for an empty cell to store the -bee-bread. They all remained quiet, seeming but little disconcerted at -being lifted so suddenly into the daylight. Only the bees near the top -of the comb, where a little honey shone in the cells, dipped their -heads and began to suck it up in haste. They felt that, if this -strange earthquake was going to destroy the hive, they would at least -save what they could. Over Alice’s fingers and bare wrists the bees -crawled, but made no attempt to sting. They were the purest Italian -breed and were almost as yellow as gold.</p> - -<p>“I paid a dollar and a half for this queen last year,” said Alice, -“and—look, there she is now.”</p> - -<p>She indicated a point about the center of the comb, where the queen, -twice the length of a worker-bee but much more slender, was walking -slowly and with dignity over the cells, looking into each one to see -if it held anything. Finding one unoccupied, she gravely inserted the -point of her long abdomen into it and deposited an egg. During this -process she was attentively watched by her own guard of half a dozen -bees, who kept their heads always pointed toward her, and proffered -her honey on their tongues when she had finished. Day and night, Alice -explained, this went on, a good queen often laying a couple of -thousand eggs in twenty-four hours. These eggs, hatching in three -weeks, mean a vast army of workers for the honey harvest.</p> - -<p>“This colony brought me in more than twenty-five dollars last year, -all by itself,” said Alice, putting the comb carefully back into the -hive. “It gathered something over a hundred pounds of comb honey, -worth twenty-five cents a pound. If one had a whole apiary like -that!—but such things never happen. On the average, it’s a good colony -that makes ten dollars’ worth of honey, and less than that, of course, -if you were running a large apiary and only getting wholesale prices.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I call that good enough,” remarked Bob and said no more until -that evening after supper, when he consented to bring out what was in -his mind.</p> - -<p>“It was only a vague notion that I got in my head,” he explained, -“from what Alice said about wanting a hundred hives of bees. Perhaps -there’s nothing in it yet. I don’t know. But anyhow, there’s a fellow -in our class who lives at a place called Morton, away up in northern -Haliburton, and he mentioned to me about a month ago that a man up his -way had a lot of bees for sale. I wasn’t especially interested then, -but when I went back to town last time, I thought of it and made -further inquiries. Then I wrote to the owner. Then I felt as if I -ought to go up and look into the thing, so I went.”</p> - -<p>“You’ve been there? How many hives? What’s it like?” cried Alice and -Carl together.</p> - -<p>“Just got back. Well, it’s about the wildest, roughest place I ever -saw. The bee outfit is fourteen miles from the railroad, away back in -the woods, and you can take your choice of driving over a fearfully -rocky trail or going up the river in a boat or tramping it. The bees -are on a deserted backwoods farm, where nobody has lived for nearly a -year. Goodness knows why anybody ever went there in the first place. -But the bees are there all right—a hundred and eighty colonies, all -packed outdoors in big sawdust cases. It was too cold to open the -hives, but the bees were flying and seemed in good shape. Very few, if -any, were dead. Then there’s a great heap of apparatus stored in the -barn, a honey-extractor, empty combs, supers for comb-honey, smokers—a -regular outfit, in fact.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, but the price?” demanded Carl, anxiously.</p> - -<p>“Fifteen hundred dollars.”</p> - -<p>“That settles it, then,” said Alice, with a disappointed sigh.</p> - -<p>“Oh, there’s such a thing as buying on easy terms,” returned Bob. -“Those bees belonged to a man who had no more sense than to try to -start a farm among the rocks. I’m certain he never made anything out -of the land, but he surely did have the right instinct for beekeeping. -He died sometime ago, his wife and children moved away, and I guess -everything he owned was mortgaged, including the bees. Anyway, the -whole outfit has come into the hands of the owner of the mortgage, who -lives at Morton—a queer character, if there ever was one. He doesn’t -know what to do with all those bees. Last summer he hired a man to -look after them, and the fellow either cheated or muddled, for old -Farr—that’s his name—told me that there wasn’t much money in bees, and -he thought of melting the combs all down for the wax. But he’d be glad -to sell them and take easy payments.</p> - -<p>“He’d let us keep them on the land rent-free, and he’d take five -hundred dollars cash down. When we sell the summer’s honey we pay -another five hundred dollars, and the rest in one year, with interest -at ten per cent., a chattel mortgage on the bees and positive -assurance that he’ll sell us out if we don’t come down with the money -on the required dates.”</p> - -<p>“Could we handle a hundred and eighty colonies? We’ve never had over a -dozen here, you know,” said Carl, dubiously.</p> - -<p>“I’ll guarantee that we could handle them. I’ll see to that!” cried -Alice. “But could we make the money?”</p> - -<p>“I believe we could,” said Bob, earnestly. “The woods up there are -full of solid masses of wild raspberry thickets for miles around, -where the timber has been cut or burned over. Nothing yields honey -like the raspberry bloom, they tell me. There’s lots of basswood, too. -Shouldn’t we be able to get a hundred pounds of honey to the hive, -Alice?”</p> - -<p>“It sounds to me as if we ought to. It depends on the weather, of -course.”</p> - -<p>“Well, at ten cents a pound wholesale, that makes eighteen hundred -dollars that we could count on this year, and next year we should get -far more, for the bees would have increased. Why,” he exclaimed, -growing enthusiastic, “I don’t see how we could possibly lose on it!”</p> - -<p>“No clover up there, I suppose?” asked Carl.</p> - -<p>“No, nor grass either. Nothing much but rocks and sand, hemlock and -jack-pine and birch, wild raspberries, and little lakes, and a deep -river that runs right through the bee farm.”</p> - -<p>“We’d camp out there!” exclaimed Alice.</p> - -<p>“No, there’s a log-house that we can live in. But I’ll tell you one -thing—living up there wouldn’t cost us much. I must have seen fifty -partridges on my way in, and the man that drove me told me that there -are lots of deer, and now and then a bear. Once in a while a moose -strays down from the North, and there must be ducks on the river. I -know it’s swarming with trout. Of course we’d be taking a chance on -the season. It’s generally either a feast or a famine with the bees—a -big crop or a failure—but what do you say?”</p> - -<p>“Take the chance! Take it!” cried Alice, jumping up in excitement.</p> - -<p>“It does seem too good a thing to lose,” said Carl. “But we hardly -want to exile ourselves up there in the north woods for years, do we?”</p> - -<p>“Why not? I think it would be glorious!” said his sister. “But we -don’t have to. The bees need to be looked after for only four or five -months of the year. They’ve been up there for over a year, with hardly -any attention at all, and they’ve got on all right. We can leave there -in October, sell our honey, and come back here, or go to the city, or -do anything—take a trip to Europe, if we’ve had a good season. Carl -can go to the university. Don’t you see that it’s the very thing for -us? It’s the solution of all our difficulties.”</p> - -<p>“The backwoods all summer, and the city in winter! It would give us -some variety in life, anyway,” said Carl.</p> - -<p>“Yes, and there’s no way of making money so nice as keeping bees. It’s -sweet and clean and honest. It’s kid-glove work, too, not muddy and -dirty, like farming. And it’s all scientific and fascinating. Every -colony has its own peculiar nature that has to be studied. Some you -can pet, and some you have to bully. No one could ever make any -success with bees who didn’t feel the fascination and wasn’t full of -the love of the thing.”</p> - -<p>“Well, you’ve got love of it enough to supply the rest of us, Alice, -though I believe we’d all like it,” said Bob. “But we mustn’t forget -that we can’t do anything without Mr. Ferguson’s consent. We’re -infants in the eyes of the law, and he’s our guardian.”</p> - -<p>It was too late to go to see Mr. Ferguson that evening, but they -talked over the scheme till nearly midnight. They went into all the -details and made calculations of their probable profits, till they had -worked themselves up into a high stage of enthusiasm. As Bob said, it -hardly seemed possible to lose. With a hundred and eighty colonies of -bees in a good honey district, they were sure to make some money; but -they began to feel desperately afraid that Mr. Ferguson could not be -made to see it in the same light.</p> - -<p>The next morning they went to see him in a body, primed with -arguments. To their delight, however, they found him by no means -obdurate. Their guardian was an elderly, shrewd farmer, who saw -clearly that the store could never be made to pay, and he had been -pondering for some time upon the best investment for the orphans’ -inheritance. He promptly advised them to make the best bargain with -the Elliott Brothers that they could, but the idea of the apiary came -upon him as a shock.</p> - -<p>“Fifteen hundred dollars worth of bees!” he said doubtfully. “A pretty -big order, ain’t it?”</p> - -<p>Alice and Carl plunged at him with arguments and examples. Mr. -Ferguson, however, knew the success that Alice had made with her bees, -and he was willing to listen, questioning them closely about probable -crops, prices, and risks. He seemed in a fair way to be convinced, but -refused to give any answer at once, saying that he was going to get -the opinion of a cousin of his near Toronto, who kept bees. This must -have been satisfactory, for within a few days he announced his -approval of the enterprise.</p> - -<p>Bob immediately went to Woodville and closed the deal with the -Elliotts. Now that their dream was changed to reality, it was -something of a wrench to the young Harmans, for the store seemed like -an inseparable part of home itself. But they had made up their minds -and they went through with it. Bob remained at home a little longer to -help take the inventory of stock and complete the formal transfer; and -then suddenly there was a new sign over the door that had been -“Harman’s” for more than fifty years.</p> - -<p>They also sold the ten acres of land. The house and the garden and -orchard they kept, for only the direst necessity would have made them -part with that. There was still a mortgage of $800 on it, but the -payments were easy and might be allowed to stand. When all their other -liabilities were paid up, they found themselves with a capital of -slightly over one thousand dollars, which was a little more than they -had expected.</p> - -<p>“When we’ve paid our first five hundred on the bees,” said Carl, -“we’ll have nearly six hundred left. That will be ample for us to live -on till the honey crop is sold, and after that there’ll be money to -burn!”</p> - -<p>Some of this capital, however, had to go toward Bob’s expenses in -Toronto. It was of the utmost importance that his studies should not -suffer, for he was virtually sure of a well-paid position after his -graduation.</p> - -<p>“But I can take a week or ten days off,” he said, “and come up and -help you get started. I’m well ahead with my work. We needn’t move up -there till the middle of May. My exams will be all over in June, and -then I can come up for the busy season with the bees. That will be -plenty of time, for the raspberries don’t blossom nearly so early up -there as they do farther south.”</p> - -<p>The next thing was to buy the bees, and this was arranged through Mr. -Ferguson and a lawyer at Morton. They paid five hundred dollars down, -and gave a mortgage on the apiary for the rest, covering whatever -number of hives of bees it might contain. This was a shrewd wording, -if not a tricky one, for it not only released the seller from any -responsibility as to the number of living colonies in the yard, but it -also covered any increase that might be made afterward. The bees were -not to be moved from the place without permission, and they were to -pay the second installment on August 1, by which time, they -calculated, the honey crop would be sold.</p> - -<p>Now that all was settled, Alice and Carl were impatient to be off. It -was hard to see Elliott’s sign over Harman’s store, to see the old -goods sold off at slaughter prices, and to see the new paint, -woodwork, and fresh stock that the old place was getting. Alice -declared that she would go all the way to Woodville rather than buy -anything next door. It was still early, however, to go into the north -woods, but, toward the end of April, Carl paid a flying visit to their -new property and came back full of enthusiasm.</p> - -<p>“I hadn’t time to look into many hives,” he said, “but I counted one -hundred and twenty colonies carrying in pollen in great shape. The -maples must be coming in flower, but everything looks pretty cold and -dismal up there still. The season seems fully a month later than here. -I looked into a few of the rest of the colonies. Some were flying a -little, and I found only three dead ones. On the whole, I think -they’re coming into first-class condition, and I believe we’ve got a -bargain.”</p> - -<p>Alice was more impatient than ever at this news, but a week of cold, -backward weather followed; there were many preparations to make, and -it was another two weeks before they finally made ready to leave for -the North. It was decided that Carl should go a couple of days ahead -of the others and try to make their quarters somewhat habitable. Alice -was to follow with Bob, and he once more interrupted his studies for a -week to come up and help with the last preparations.</p> - -<p>With great care and consultation they got together an outfit that was -slim for housekeeping or elaborate for camping, as one might choose to -regard it. Alice selected blankets, pillows, cooking utensils, and -tableware. Bob packed his fishing tackle and his rifle, a good 38.55 -caliber repeater, with plenty of cartridges. They took two hams and a -side of bacon from their own homecured stock, beans, two bags of -potatoes, flour, sugar, and other groceries, together with several -large loaves of fresh bread that Alice baked herself. Another package -had to be made of gardening implements; a hoe, a rake, and a spade, -and an abundance of different seeds. If she was going back to the -land, Alice said, she was going to do it thoroughly.</p> - -<p>An ax was needed, too, and a sharp hatchet, a saw and hammer and -assorted nails. In fact, there seemed to be no end to the things to be -taken—necessaries, all of them. One thing after another was forgotten -and remembered at the last minute—lamps and a washboard, soap, books, -a looking-glass, a pepper-box. In the end, they had three huge -packing-cases, and several small packages. Alice had cherished a dim -hope of being able to take a crate of her favorite White Leghorn hens -to supply them with fresh eggs, but she was forced to give that plan -up.</p> - -<p>They took the tools from the home apiary, but the dozen hives of bees -they left where they stood. On the last day Alice equalized them in -strength and put top stories of empty combs on all of them, so that -they could be left to themselves in comparative safety.</p> - -<p>Carl then left for Morton, taking with him a small trunk containing a -supply of cooked food, an ax, a hammer, his shot-gun and his fishing -rod. Alice and Bob gave him forty-eight hours’ start, and then shipped -their freight and took the train for the North.</p> - -<p>At leaving, they both felt a flood of homesick regret and misgiving. -Harman’s Corners was the only home they had ever known, and Alice’s -lips quivered, when she looked back from the buggy as they drove to -the station. Bob himself felt a sudden doubt as to whether he had been -right in proposing and urging the speculation. A bad season, a little -hard luck, and they would be utterly stranded and penniless.</p> - -<div id='i002' class='mt01 mb01 wi002'> - <img src='images/illus-002.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>It was not without a secret feeling of misgiving that Alice and Bob bade farewell to Harman’s Corners</p> -</div> -<p>But these forebodings gradually evaporated as the train went -northward, skirting Lake Simcoe, crossing the Muskoka country, running -hourly deeper into the rocky wilds. It was a slow local train and took -more than half a day to make the journey, so that it was late in the -afternoon when they at last stepped out upon the board platform of the -little Morton station.</p> - -<p>A sharp chill in the air reminded them that they had come a hundred -miles due north. Morton had once been a flourishing lumber town, -operating four sawmills, but the pine had long since been cut away, -and the place had greatly declined, like Harman’s Corners. It seemed -to consist of only a couple of dozen houses, two or three stores, and -a frame hotel. The dark evergreen forest apparently came close up to -the town in every direction, but Bob informed his sister that a few -determined farmers tried to get a living out of the rocky soil, and -several French half-breed families lived near the village, contriving -to support existence on a little lumbering, a little trapping, and a -little guiding. In November the district woke to temporary life, with -the influx of deer hunters from farther south.</p> - -<p>It was much too late in the day for Bob and Alice to think of driving -to the apiary, so they went to the little hotel, where, at this -season, they were the only guests. After engaging their rooms, they -proceeded to look up Mr. David Farr, who held the mortgage on the -bees.</p> - -<p>They found him in the post-office and store which he owned. He was -postmaster, and also, as they learned later, justice of the peace, -clerk of the township, and road inspector. Besides being the leading -merchant of the town, he bought furs and ginseng, dealt in local -mortgages, occasionally traded in timber, and had an interest in a -mica mine that was trying to succeed near the village. This last -speculation seemed to indicate a sort of sporting spirit, which was -perhaps what had induced him to lend money on so risky a security as a -yard of bees, even at ten per cent. interest. He was a little, -withered man, more than sixty years of age, with white hair, a -straggly beard, gimlet eyes, and a not unkindly mouth.</p> - -<p>“Well, here’s the young people that’s bought the bees,” he said, -wrinkling up his face into a dry smile. “You expect to make a fortune -outer ’em, hey, young lady? Well, I don’t say as you won’t. But you -won’t get what you expect to get. Folks never does, not in anything.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, we don’t expect much, Mr. Farr,” said Alice, laughing.</p> - -<p>“Now, don’t tell me that. You know you do. But it’s always best to -expect nothing and then be surprised and thankful. Now whenever you’re -in town, just come and see me, and I’ll do what I can to see you fixed -right.”</p> - -<p>“I’m sure you’re very kind—” Bob began.</p> - -<p>“No, I ain’t, neither. Don’t you look for no kindness from me. I want -to help you to get along, so’s you can pay me my money. Kindness and -business is separate things, and I always keep ’em separate. As I told -you, young man, if you don’t live up to the terms of the mortgage I’ll -seize you up the minute the law allows me. Now you both come along -home with me and have supper.”</p> - -<p>They had supper with Mr. Farr and his wife and slept at the hotel. -Next morning they found their freight boxes awaiting them at the -station, and hired a team to haul them to the apiary. It was the same -driver who had taken Carl out two days before, and he mentioned the -fact that Carl had borrowed his dog to keep him company till the -others came. As they were having their boxes and bales loaded on the -wagon, Mr. Farr strolled up to see them start, and he again impressed -upon them his intention of being absolutely relentless in case they -failed to keep to the strict terms of the sale.</p> - -<p>“And the old fellow means it, too,” said Bob, when they were off. -“He’ll sell us up in a minute if we don’t produce the cash on the -first of August. I fancy we needn’t fear him, but what a wretched old -skinflint he is!”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” said Alice, laughing. “I rather like him.”</p> - -<p>It was fourteen miles to the bee farm, and after the first mile from -the village the road grew terrible. In some places it was of corduroy -logs. It went up and down steep hills, and for long stretches it was -strewn with large, loose rocks, which made Alice’s tinware clash and -jangle in the boxes as the wagon lurched along. It was impossible to -go faster than a slow walk, and even then the riding was so rough that -Bob and Alice got down and walked for much of the way.</p> - -<p>The May morning was sunny and warm, and the highland air sparkling. -The road ran between dense, tangled masses of second-growth spruce and -hemlock, now and then broken by a wide burned slash, thick with -raspberry canes. These were just beginning to grow green, and the -young beekeepers looked at them with great interest, for their -fortunes depended on these prickly jungles.</p> - -<p>Now and then they caught a glimpse of a small lake. Several times -ruffed grouse rose with a roar and thunder behind the screen of -evergreens, and once their driver stopped to point out the slender, -delicate hoof-mark of a deer on a bit of sandy road.</p> - -<p>They had left Morton at eight in the morning. It was after noon, and -they were hungry, and tired with walking, and sore with riding, when -the driver pointed with his whip across the hemlocks.</p> - -<p>The trail curved suddenly. There was a desolate, stump-filled -clearing, with the squat forms of several log buildings at the other -end. All about them stood rows and rows of large, rude-looking boxes -painted dark red, and above the creaking of the wagon they caught a -deep, distant roar of insect wings.</p> - -<p>“Oh!” cried Alice, “the bees!”</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chII' title='II—Trouble in the Dark'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER II</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>TROUBLE IN THE DARK</span> -</h2> -<p>At first they saw nothing of Carl, but as the wagon lumbered up -through the stumpy clearing, he came dashing around the cabin with a -whoop of delight. He was carrying his shotgun and was accompanied by a -fox-terrier, which rushed to the wagon, barking loudly with joy.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” cried Carl. “I’ve been looking for you all day. Here’s your -dog,” he added to the wagoner. “Thanks. He’s been a great help to me.”</p> - -<p>“Carl!” Alice screamed. “What in the world is the matter with your -face?”</p> - -<p>“Haven’t been fighting with Jack, have you?” inquired the driver. “You -and him both look as if you’d been up against it.”</p> - -<p>Carl grinned rather sheepishly. His face was badly scratched. A long -strip of sticking-plaster extended from his ear to his chin, and there -was a crisscross of red lines across his cheek. His hands were marked -too; one thumb was tied up in a rag, and the white back of the -fox-terrier showed half a dozen deep, fresh scratches.</p> - -<p>“Oh, nothing,” he said, hastily. “Only skin-deep scratches. Nothing -but a bad scare, really. Got our freight all right? Want something to -eat?” he added, winking furiously at his brother as a hint to drop the -subject of his wounds.</p> - -<p>Bob took the hint, nudged Alice, and, though they were both full of -curiosity, they said no more, but busied themselves with taking the -load off the wagon and hauling the boxes inside the house.</p> - -<p>“Oh, what a delightful place!” cried Alice, at the doorway. “And how -frightfully dirty!”</p> - -<p>“Dirty?” returned Carl, indignantly. “You wouldn’t say that if you’d -seen it when I came. The whole place was full of dead leaves and -rubbish. The door had stood open all winter, I guess. I’ve been -cleaning it out ever since I got here, and I call it in pretty fair -shape, considering. Why, the chimney was full of dead leaves and old -birds’ nests. There was a family of squirrels living in the roof, and -down under the floor there was—well, I’ll tell you later,” he added in -a whisper.</p> - -<p>“I don’t want to wait,” complained Alice, peering curiously about the -place that was to be their home for the next few months.</p> - -<p>The building was about twenty feet wide and thirty long, and was -divided across the middle by a partition of boards. One of the rooms -so formed was evidently the main living-room and kitchen; the other -was subdivided into two small bedrooms. Each of these contained, by -way of furniture, a rough wooden bunk and a large shelf fastened to -the wall, which might serve as a dressing-table.</p> - -<p>The large room had a big fireplace of rough stone, with a fire that -Carl had lighted still smouldering. The floor was of planks, and at -one point stained and splintered, as if by a gun-shot. It had been a -rather well-made cabin, and the logs were chinked with lime plaster, -but much of the chinking had fallen out, and the cracks yawned wide. -There were two windows in the larger room, and one in each of the -small ones, with a good deal of their glass remaining. A ladder -ascended to a black hole in the ceiling that formed the entrance to a -loft under the rafters. Dust and soot were on the log walls, and a -decided odor of smoke clung about the whole place.</p> - -<p>“Everything is all right now,” Carl assured them. “And the bees are in -splendid shape. I’ve been looking at them. Now I know this man wants -to start back to Morton as soon as he has rested his horses a little, -so as to get home before dark, and I propose that we all have -something to eat.”</p> - -<p>“Good idea!” said Bob. “I’ll open the box that has our provisions in -it.”</p> - -<p>“Hold on. I’ve got something better than that!” cried his brother. -“Just come with me.” And he led the way around the cabin to an old -rain-water barrel that stood beneath a trough from the eaves. It was -half full of water, and, as they bent over it, there was a swirl and a -flash of orange below the surface.</p> - -<p>“Twenty-seven trout!” said Carl. “I caught ’em all in about an hour -and a half this morning, and put ’em here to keep alive till you came. -One of ’em must weigh four pounds. I tell you, we won’t starve here -till the river runs dry.”</p> - -<p>“Fried trout and bacon! Splendid!” exclaimed Alice. “Get out about -three pounds of those fish, Carl, and clean them. I’ll build up the -fire, while Bob gets out the frying-pan and all the eatables he can -find.”</p> - -<p>In less than an hour they had their first wilderness meal, which their -appetites would have made delicious, even if Alice had been a worse -cook than she was. The fried trout, rolled in meal, were excellent; so -was the bacon and homemade bread; and if there was a shortage of forks -and plates, and neither chairs nor table, nobody minded it at all.</p> - -<p>As soon as they had finished, the driver started back toward Morton, -followed by the fox-terrier. The three apiarists were left alone on -their new kingdom, and Alice at once fixed expectant eyes upon Carl.</p> - -<p>“Now tell us about it,” she demanded. “What on earth happened to you -before we came, and what was the horrible thing you found under the -floor of the house?”</p> - -<p>Carl smiled in the same uneasy fashion as before, and touched his -wounded face tenderly.</p> - -<p>“I didn’t want that fellow to hear it,” he explained, “for it’s a -queer sort of thing, and very likely he’d have thought it was a lie. -It’s rather a joke on me, too, though it didn’t seem funny at the -time. I don’t think I was ever so scared in my life.</p> - -<p>“We were late in getting off from Morton, and had delays on the -way,—one of the tires came off,—so that it was nearly sunset when we -got here. It was a chilly, dark evening, and looked like rain. The old -shanty was about the dreariest-looking place I ever saw. I’d seen it -before, but it looked different in the sunshine. The door was standing -open, half-blocked by a great drift of leaves and rubbish. The chimney -wouldn’t draw; it was choked with birds’ nests, and, of course, there -wasn’t a stick of furniture in the place.</p> - -<p>“The driver was in a hurry to start back, for he wanted to get home -before midnight, and he helped me to carry my trunk inside, and got -ready to go. I didn’t like it; I hadn’t any taste at all for being -left there all alone, and I proposed that he leave Jack, the terrier -you saw, to keep me company. I knew you would be coming out in a -couple of days, and the dog could be sent back.</p> - -<p>“So we tied Jack up in the house, and the man went off. I cleared away -the leaves so that the door would shut and got in some firewood for -the night and poked out the chimney with a pole, so that I could make -a fire without being choked with smoke. Then I opened the trunk and -got out the grub that I’d brought.</p> - -<p>“A bright fire made all the difference in the world, and the house -didn’t seem so lonely. Jack was awfully interested in a broken hole in -the floor, and I thought a groundhog probably had its den under there. -I called him and untied him, and we ate bread and cold ham, sitting on -my trunk in front of the fire, and were quite comfortable.</p> - -<p>“All my bones were sore with the rough ride out from Morton, and I -felt sleepy. It wasn’t long after dark when I made up a pile of dead -leaves and old spruce twigs from one of the bunks in the bedroom, and -lay down on my blanket. I was tired, but I couldn’t go to sleep. I -felt nervous and on the alert. I fancied I heard something moving -under the house, and Jack kept startling me by constantly bristling up -and growling. I was awfully glad I had him, though, and I was glad I -had my gun. I had it standing loaded against the trunk.”</p> - -<p>“Goodness! I wouldn’t have spent the night alone in this place, not -for—for a million hives of bees,” said Alice, shuddering.</p> - -<p>“Well, I don’t know that I would have either, if there had been any -chance to get away,” Carl admitted. “But I had to stay, and at last I -did go to sleep. I must have slept soundly, too, for I woke in a kind -of daze at hearing Jack bark. The fire had almost burned out; there -was just a glimmer from the coals. I couldn’t see anything, but off in -the corner Jack was barking furiously.</p> - -<p>“I thought he had found a rat. I was sleepy and cross and called him -to come back. He must have thought I was encouraging him, for I heard -him make a rush. There was an awful snarling, and a yowl like a scared -cat’s, and a wild rough-and-tumble scrimmage across the floor in the -dark. I jumped up, wide awake, you can bet, just as Jack broke away -and rushed back to me. He seemed to have been whipped. He was whining -and trembling all over.</p> - -<p>“Then from the other side of the room I heard a sort of purring growl, -exactly like that of a fighting tom-cat, rising into a squall every -few bars. I couldn’t see anything, but after a while I made out a pale -greenish pair of spots, like eyes.</p> - -<p>“I felt pretty sure that it must be a lynx that had strayed into the -shanty somehow, and now that the shock was over I wasn’t so much -scared. A lynx isn’t very savage, nor very hard to kill, they say. I -reached around for the gun, and when I cocked it with a click the -beast squalled again. I aimed square between the shining eyes and -pulled down.</p> - -<p>“The flash half blinded me. The place seemed full of smoke, and Jack -charged through it, barking. I heard something rush across the floor, -and Jack followed it into the little room.</p> - -<p>“I wanted a light badly. I tried to poke up the fire, but it was too -nearly out. I lighted a match. The floor was torn up with shot and -spattered with blood, just as you see it, but there wasn’t any dead -lynx. I got a glimpse of Jack at the door of the bedroom, barking and -looking back, and then my match went out.</p> - -<p>“I put in another shell and lighted another match. Jack ventured -further into the room when I came to the door. I couldn’t see -anything, and stepped inside. The match burned out and dropped, and I -was feeling for another when something hit me on the -shoulder—something alive.</p> - -<p>“It was like a small flying tiger. Before I knew it I had got this rip -down my cheek, and then two or three more. I felt the soft, cool fur -against my neck, and it’s a wonder it didn’t rip my throat open.”</p> - -<p>“What on earth was it?” cried Alice, excitedly.</p> - -<p>“I didn’t know myself,” returned the narrator. “It was too small for a -lynx, but I was fairly cowed by its ferocity. I grabbed it and tried -to throw it off. It bit me half through the thumb, but I managed to -tear it loose from my coat and fling it down. It mixed up with Jack; -there was an awful howling, but I was making for the door.</p> - -<p>“I didn’t stop till I was outside, and Jack wasn’t long after me. He’d -been beaten again. It was pitch-dark and raining a little, and I -cooled down, and the rain washed the blood off my face.</p> - -<p>“I thought at first that I wouldn’t go into that house again till -daylight, but I gradually got my nerve back. I wanted to find out what -sort of beast it was that was living in our cabin. Besides, I didn’t -want to spend the rest of the night outdoors in the rain. It wasn’t -quite one o’clock. I looked at my watch with a match.”</p> - -<p>“You might have gone to the barn,” Bob suggested.</p> - -<p>“It never occurred to me. Anyhow, I ventured back to the cabin again. -Everything was quiet. I got to the fireplace and made a blaze of dead -leaves. It lighted up the whole place, but there was no sort of animal -in sight, though I couldn’t see much into the small room.</p> - -<p>“So I made up a torch of spruce branches and tiptoed up to the bedroom -door again, with my gun ready and the torch in front. Jack charged in -ahead of me. I could see well this time. The snarling growl began -again, and there on the shelf beside the head of the bunk was a cat.”</p> - -<p>“What, a wildcat?” Bob exclaimed.</p> - -<p>“Tame wild cat. No, I mean a wild, tame cat. Anyway, it was wild -enough for anything. Its fur stood on end all over its body, making it -look almost huge. Its ears twitched; its tail snapped; its eyes fairly -blazed; and it kept up that singing snarl all the time. It seemed to -be paying more attention to the dog than to me, and Jack took precious -good care not to come too close.</p> - -<p>“At the next glance I saw another cat, a Maltese one, lying dead on -the floor. That must have been the one I shot at. Then it struck me -that I was up against a whole family, and I looked around for more of -them. There was another in a dark corner, with its back arched and its -tail puffed like a feather boa. But that one seemed to want to hide -more than fight, and I couldn’t see any more.</p> - -<p>“I couldn’t help grinning to think how scared I had been by a cat. -These brutes must have belonged to the last people who lived here, and -they had been running wild ever since. I didn’t want to shoot them. I -like cats myself, but not that kind, and I had to get them out of the -house for the sake of peace and quiet the rest of the night.”</p> - -<p>“I expect the poor wretches were half starved. You might have tamed -them, Carl,” Alice suggested.</p> - -<p>“I’d like to have seen you calling ‘Kitty, kitty,’ to that snarling -young tiger perched on the shelf. No, I threw lumps of wood and bark. -When that did no good, I took a loaded shell out of my pocket and -threw it as hard as I could. That hit the beast on the back, and it -made a leap and lighted square on top of Jack. He had come up too -close.</p> - -<p>“For a minute all I could see was a tangle of white and gray fur, -spinning like a wheel, making every imaginable sort of dog and cat -fighting noise. The second cat joined in with its noise, and the -uproar was something awful. But Jack was no match for the cat. He -broke away with a howl, and rushed behind me.</p> - -<p>“The cat jumped after him, blind with rage. I kicked at it, and the -beast fastened on my trousers, scratching and biting like a demon. I -hit it with the gun-butt, and beat it with the torch. Fire flew in all -directions. The cat let go at that, but a lot of dry leaves on the -floor caught fire and flashed up, and in a moment the whole place was -full of smoke.</p> - -<p>“I rushed out again, with Jack in front. At the door I stumbled over -something soft that snarled at me. When I was fairly outside I looked -back. The small room seemed all on fire, and I began to wonder what -Mr. Farr would say if I burned his cabin down on the first night. But -the flame was only from light stuff; it didn’t catch on the logs, and -in a few minutes the place was dark again.</p> - -<p>“I felt pretty certain that the cats were driven out, but I had no -idea of going back to see. I knew when I was licked, and I think Jack -felt the same way. Then I remembered the barn and I stumbled down -there through the beehives. It was a pretty rough place, but it was -dry and there weren’t any cats. In the morning I went back to the -cabin and cleaned up the mess.”</p> - -<p>“Find any more cats there?” Bob inquired.</p> - -<p>“Only the dead one.”</p> - -<p>“What was it like?”</p> - -<p>“Just a big, gray tom-cat. The biggest I ever saw, though. It must -have weighed twenty pounds. The fur was badly scorched off, or I think -I’d have skinned it.”</p> - -<p>“Cats go wild very easily,” Bob remarked. “It’s common enough for a -cat to take to the woods. They’re never more than half-tamed animals -at the best.”</p> - -<p>“It’s no wonder the poor brutes were savage, after living here for a -year, and all through the winter too,” said Alice. “If I ever see any -more of them I’ll try to tame them.”</p> - -<p>“I wish you luck,” said Carl, ironically. “But these cats weren’t poor -brutes. They’d been living on the fat of the land. I found the hole -through the floor into their den underneath, and I took up a plank. -There were gnawed bones of rabbits and partridges there, and all sorts -of game. Very likely a litter of kittens had been raised there. If -they don’t get killed, there’ll soon be a new breed of wild animal up -in these woods.”</p> - -<p>“You had an awful time, Carl,” said Bob. “And I’m sure we’re properly -grateful to you for clearing out the wild beasts before we came up. -But you really ought not to have come here alone. I never thought of -danger, but there might have been a lynx or bear in the cabin.”</p> - -<p>“Nothing could have been worse than what there was. However, my -scratches didn’t go very deep, and I had some sticking-plaster in my -trunk. Never mind the cats. Let’s go out and look at the bees.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, let’s see them, and then I want to explore the whole place!” -exclaimed Alice.</p> - -<p>Both the boys had examined the bees before, but this was Alice’s first -good look at the apiary, for there had been time for only a hasty -glance before dinner. They walked down the rows of hives, through -clouds of flying bees that were too busy to be bad-tempered. The hives -were arranged in long rows between the house and the barn, facing the -southern sun, and there were seven of these rows of great, red, winter -cases holding two or three hives each. As far as outside appearances -went, the bees appeared to be in good condition. They were flying -thickly from the small winter entrance-holes, and coming in by scores -with balls of greenish-yellow willow pollen on their legs. This -profuse pollen-gathering is always a good sign. It shows that there is -a queen in the hive, and a big brood to be fed on this “bee-bread,” -and this means a multitude of workers for the still-distant harvest.</p> - -<p>Alice lifted the heavy cover of one of the cases. It was packed with -sawdust to the height of the enclosed hives, and on the top of each of -the two colonies was placed a large, thick cushion of burlap, packed -with chaff, to keep the warmth down.</p> - -<p>Alice raised the cushion and peeled back the canvas quilt covering the -frames. A gush of bees boiled up, taking wing instantly and circling -about with an angry “biz-z!” Two or three dashed against the girl’s -face, but did not actually sting, for a bee must be driven to absolute -frenzy before it makes up its mind to sting and die. But Alice closed -the hive hastily, and they all moved on to a more peaceful quarter.</p> - -<p>“These bees are blacks and nervous in their temper,” said Carl, -laughing. “You can’t handle them like your Italians.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll tame them,” Alice returned. “But did you notice the shape that -colony was in. It was boiling full of bees from one side to the other. -Black or not, it’ll get ten dollars’ worth of honey if there is any -bloom in the woods this summer.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, lots of them are like that,” Carl assured her. “See how they’re -carrying pollen. But we must have a regular overhauling,—open every -hive and go through it to see if they have honey enough to carry them -through the spring, and what kind of queens they have, and everything. -We must keep track of the internal condition of each one.”</p> - -<p>“What! The state of every single hive?” exclaimed Bob. “Why, nobody -could remember it.”</p> - -<p>“If you’re going to be an apiarist, Bob, you must use the right -terms,” corrected Alice, laughing. “Colony, not hive. The hive is -merely the box that the colony lives in. Oh, yes, a good bee-keeper -knows the condition of every colony. It makes it easier to have them -all numbered, and then a record can be kept in a note-book. We should -do that.”</p> - -<p>“Fine training for bad memories, I should think,” Bob remarked. “Now -down here in the barn is all the miscellaneous bee-stuff. Let’s have a -look at it and see if we’ve got value for our money.”</p> - -<p>The barn was some thirty yards from the house. It was also built of -logs and was not very much bigger. Although small, however, it was -probably large enough to hold any crops that farm ever produced. Part -of it was partitioned off, floored with planks, and seemed to have -been used as a stable. In this compartment was piled an enormous, -disorderly heap of bee-supplies: extracting and comb-honey supers, -empty combs and frames, several galvanized honey tanks, an extractor, -some worn-out veils, a smoker, and an immense lot of odds and ends.</p> - -<p>“I pulled this stuff around considerably when I was looking over it -yesterday,” said Carl. “That’s why it’s in such a mess now. Seems to -me we got our money’s worth, if quantity counts for anything.”</p> - -<p>“A lot of it is probably worthless. Once it was a good working outfit, -I suppose,” said Bob, as they contemplated the mass. “But it’ll all -have to be overhauled, sorted, and cleaned up. That’ll be work for you -when I’m gone.”</p> - -<p>“Work for a week, I should think,” said Alice. “But I’ll enjoy it. I -expect to find all sorts of surprises in that pile. We’ll come back to -it again, anyway, but what we really must do first is to set our house -in order. Remember, we haven’t a stick of furniture.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, Bob and I can soon knock together some benches and tables,” -remarked Carl. “There are some good pine boards here in the barn. We -have bunks to sleep in, and we can put up some more shelves, and -that’s all we’ll need, for we’ll be outdoors virtually all the time -when we aren’t asleep.”</p> - -<p>But before attempting to do anything with the house, they explored the -rest of their domain, or part of it, for they did not attempt to -penetrate far into the woods. The farm was said to contain eighty -acres, but not twenty were cleared, and none of it was fenced. In -fact, the new tenants never did know exactly where the boundaries of -their property were. The forest hemmed them in; as far as they knew, -they had no neighbors nearer than Morton, and they could not imagine -why the original settler had even chosen that remote and sterile place -for a homestead.</p> - -<p>“Probably he didn’t know how bad the land was until he cleared it,” -Bob suggested.</p> - -<p>About twenty yards behind the cabin was the White River, lined with -blossoming willows and alders, now full of humming bees. The river was -deep and nearly a hundred feet wide. It ran down to Morton and would -have afforded an excellent water-route to the village, if they had had -a boat.</p> - -<p>The settlers had cleared ten acres in front of the house, removed half -the stumps, and had apparently tried to grow oats there. Nearer the -house was a spot that had been a vegetable garden; a few onions were -still sprouting wild. Nearer the house, to Alice’s joy, hollyhocks -were coming up, and a bed of hardy ribbon grass persisted.</p> - -<p>After this inspection, work commenced in earnest. They built a great -fire on the hearth, and Alice filled all the available pots and pans -with water to heat. Meanwhile the boys brought up the lumber from the -barn, got out their tools, and gave themselves to furniture-making. It -was a busy afternoon, and by evening they were all dead tired, but the -cabin was transformed.</p> - -<p>Alice had swept and scrubbed it and cleaned down the walls and -ceiling. The holes in the walls were closed with fresh chinking of -clay and moss, and the broken windows partly protected with pieces of -board. Carl and Bob had constructed several stout benches, a table -that was strong and solid if not beautiful, and had put up shelves on -the wall. A brilliant fire of pine-knots flamed in the clean -fireplace, and a few gay lithographs decorated the wall. For further -decoration, their guns, rods, and saucepans hung beside the chimney.</p> - -<p>The small rooms had been cleaned out likewise. The low, board bunks -were filled with fresh spruce and balsam twigs, warranted to cure the -worst insomnia, and the blankets and pillows were spread over these -forest mattresses. A small bench completed the bedroom furniture, for, -in true pioneer fashion, they were all to wash in a tin basin on a -wooden block outside the door. Here too was the family mirror and -comb, but Alice had a small private looking-glass in her room.</p> - -<p>The boys promised to construct some kind of pantry or cupboard for the -provisions as soon as they had the time, but it was too late to do any -more that afternoon. They contemplated the result of their labors with -great satisfaction, and really the old cabin looked like a very -homelike place. Trout and bacon and eggs were sizzling in the -frying-pan; the teakettle hummed, and when the supper was finally -spread upon the new plank table they all attacked it with the -appetites of true foresters.</p> - -<p>They helped Alice to clear away and wash the dishes and built up a -blazing fire, for the evening was cool. But they were too tired to sit -long before it. Conversation flagged; one by one they nodded, and -before nine o’clock Carl announced with a yawn that he had to go to -bed.</p> - -<p>“No fear of cats to-night, I suppose,” suggested Bob.</p> - -<p>“Not a bit,” replied Carl, sleepily. “They can’t get through the door -or windows even if they should want to come back, and I closed the way -into their den under the house.”</p> - -<p>Lighting candles, they retired to their rooms, and Carl, at any rate, -was hardly on the <i>sapin</i> bed when he was asleep. It seemed to him -that he had slept only a few minutes, though it was really two hours, -when he was sharply awakened by a hand on his shoulder. He sat up, -startled and dazed, and saw Alice standing beside him with a lighted -candle. She looked wide-eyed and frightened.</p> - -<p>“Get up, Carl,” she whispered. “There’s something outside, among the -beehives. I was so frightened.”</p> - -<p>“One of those beastly cats again, I suppose,” said Carl, shaking Bob -awake.</p> - -<p>“No, nothing like a cat. I couldn’t sleep well. I was nervous, and I -thought I heard something stirring outside. I looked out the window, -and I saw something dim and big and black—like a bear.”</p> - -<p>“A bear!” exclaimed Bob, clutching for his rifle, which he had brought -into the bedroom with him.</p> - -<p>A few moments later they all sallied into the bee-yard. There was no -moon, but the starlight was so brilliant that it was not very dark. -The rows of silent beehives looked weird and strange, but nothing -stirred among them. They searched the whole clearing in vain. There -was no trace of any living thing, and at last they went back to the -cabin. It was nearly midnight, and cold, and they built up the fire -and warmed themselves.</p> - -<p>The boys were sure that Alice had been dreaming, but she was positive -that she had both seen and heard some animal, and, in fact, was so -nervous that they had difficulty in persuading her to go back to bed -again. For some time, indeed, they were all wakeful and alert, but -they slept at last. Shortly after daylight they were up again, and the -first thing they did was to make another search of the ground among -the hives. Sure enough, in a sandy corner of the yard Carl came upon a -track. It was not very distinct, but it looked as if a bear might have -made it.</p> - -<p>“I was sure of it!” cried Alice, triumphantly.</p> - -<p>“I believe it is a bear track,” said Bob. “If we’d only got a sight of -him last night! But we must look out. A bear in this bee ranch might -ruin us in one night. All this honey would seem to him like a gold -mine.”</p> - -<p>“Or a forest of bee-trees,” added Carl. “Yes, I think we ought to keep -a fire burning in the yard every night, even if we have to get up two -or three times to make it up. But isn’t it wonderful that this apiary -hasn’t been destroyed long ago, if there are bears about?”</p> - -<p>The morning air was sharp. No bees were flying till after nine -o’clock. It was Friday, and Bob had to go back to Toronto on Monday, -so that it was necessary to unpack the bees and go through them all if -they were to have his help at this long and heavy task.</p> - -<p>They decided to unpack them first, as it would be easier to examine -them after they were out of the cumbersome winter cases, and after -breakfast the boys began to bring out the wooden, summer hive covers -that were stored in the barn with the rest of the supplies. Meanwhile -Alice lighted two smokers and got the hats and veils ready. There were -canvas gloves that they had brought from home, too, in case the bees -should prove especially cross, and with all this apparatus they went -out, ready for the first work on the new apiary.</p> - -<p>The winter cases usually held two colonies, and were resting on stands -of two by four scantling. Alice puffed on the smoker bellows till a -strong white cloud poured from the nozzle, and then blew a strong -blast into the entrance hole of each of the two hives in the first -case. Panic-stricken, the bees rushed inside, and the boys at once -dragged the heavy case a few feet out of the way. Lifting the cover, -they threw off the cushions, and then lifted the hives out of the -cases, setting them down so that the flying bees would find their -entrances exactly where they had stood before. For a bee’s homing -instinct depends mainly on location. A worker will come back three -miles straight to her hive, but if that hive is pushed three feet -aside, she may spend hours in trying to find it.</p> - -<p>It was hard work. The cases were made of heavy lumber, and the boys -had to carry them away and stack them up neatly. Even when the hives -were out, the cases, with their sawdust packing, were as much as they -cared to handle.</p> - -<p>And this juggling with their homes naturally irritated the bees -greatly. The summer hives, different in shape and color from the cases -that they had been used to, did not look homelike to them. They failed -to recognize them. They hung about uncertainly in the air; they tried -to enter cases that had not yet been unpacked; and this caused -fighting with the guards. Some of them followed the big red cases and -tried to enter them again. They grew vicious and stung, so that the -apiarists had to put on their gloves. But by degrees a few began to -recognize the odor of their old homes, and set up the peculiar whirr -that acts as a call to the whole colony. They flocked down on the -entrances in clouds, and stood with heads down and wings vibrating -fast in the air—fanning, as bee-keepers call it—which is their -invariable way of expressing great joy.</p> - -<p>Alice left the canvas quilts over the hives, but put on the summer -board covers, and then they all went on to the next.</p> - -<p>“These hives seem to me awfully light,” said Bob, as he lifted out the -box with its bees. “They surely can’t have much honey.”</p> - -<p>“I hope we don’t have to feed them,” Alice said, apprehensively. -“Never mind; we’ll find out to-morrow. Let’s get them all unpacked -to-day.”</p> - -<p>Packing and unpacking the hives in fall and spring is the most -monotonous and heavy task of the whole season, mere hard, fatiguing -work, unrelieved as it is by any interest of skill and science. The -young Harmans did not finish the job till nearly dusk, and the boys’ -backs and arms ached when they carried the last case away. But the -yard looked more like an apiary now, and its owners contemplated it -with pride.</p> - -<p>The summer hives were sixteen by twenty inches in size, and a little -less than a foot deep. They were not painted white, as is usual with -bee-hives, but were all sorts of colors, red, green, brown, yellow, -giving the apiary a highly cheerful and picturesque effect. Either the -former owner had had a lively taste for color, or else he had used -whatever paint he happened to have on hand.</p> - -<p>That night they kept a fire between the rows of hives, and Bob got up -once to replenish it. He heard nothing stir, and in the morning there -were no fresh tracks. He predicted that a bear would never again -venture so near a dwelling, even with the temptation of unlimited -honey.</p> - -<p>Both the boys had stiff muscles that morning, but they had planned to -inspect the bees thoroughly that day, and determined to go through -with it. It promised to be a fine day, and the bees were getting -enough honey to make them good-tempered; so they could be handled -easily.</p> - -<p>“I’m going to show you whether I can’t handle these black bees as -painlessly as Italians,” said Alice when they went out, and she -stopped before the first hive in the row. She was wearing the usual -black-fronted veil, but no gloves, and she pulled her sleeves high up -on her wrists.</p> - -<p>The colony was a strong one, with scores of bees coming and going. -Alice gently blew a little smoke across the entrance, driving in the -guards; then she blew a stronger puff. A frightened roar arose within. -Panic spread through the hive instantly, for smoke is the only thing -that bees fear. Alice waited half a minute and then removed the cover -and pulled off the canvas quilt.</p> - -<p>A flood of bees surged up between the frames, but she drove them down -with a puff of smoke before they could take wing. Another strong puff, -and she set down the smoker, and with a screw-driver pried loose the -outside frame, next to the hive wall.</p> - -<p>It came out hard, for the frames had probably been moved very little -for over a year, and the bees had glued them fast. When she lifted it -out it was covered with a close layer of black bees, who did not -remain quiet on the combs like Italians, but scurried here and there, -gathered in clusters, and tumbled off on the ground in knots. They ran -over Alice’s bare hands, but were too thoroughly subdued to sting.</p> - -<p>The comb was almost wholly filled with brood, sealed over with brown -wax in the center, and the younger brood in a circle around this, -looking like glistening white worms coiled at the bottom of each cell. -In answer to a question from Bob, Carl explained that the egg laid by -the queen hatches into a larva in three days. For seven days the -rapidly-growing grub is fed incessantly by the bees, and then sealed -over with wax to spin its cocoon and undergo its metamorphosis, -hatching in eleven days more into a fully-developed bee.</p> - -<p>Alice set down the frame, after looking to see that the queen was not -upon it, and took out another. This was similarly full of brood, with -a narrow rim of honey along the top. All the rest of the ten frames -showed much the same condition, except the one next to the other wall -of the hive, half of which was filled with fresh pollen, and half with -newly gathered honey.</p> - -<p>“This colony must be fed,” said Alice, replacing the last frame and -closing the hive. “It’s got a splendid force of bees and heaps of -brood, but a week of rainy weather would starve it to death. But what -do you think of the way I can handle cross bees? I didn’t get a -sting.”</p> - -<p>“Highly scientific, but too slow,” said Carl. “At your rate we’d be -two or three days going through the yard. I think I’ll put on gloves -for to-day, so that we can get through them faster.”</p> - -<p>In fact, Alice had been obliged to move with the utmost deliberation, -stopping frequently to use the smoker afresh, and it was slow work. So -Carl put on the sting-proof bee-gloves, with sleeves halfway to the -elbow and half the fingers cut off, took the other smoker, and began -work on the next row. Bob, who was not skilled at bee manipulation, -acted as assistant to both of them, fetching and carrying the things -that the two experts needed.</p> - -<p>Carl had no need of gloves for the first colony he opened. Instead of -a crowded mass of bees, only a little cluster showed between the two -center combs. Lifting one of them out, he spied the queen at once, -walking over a small patch of brood about three inches in diameter. -There were bees enough to cover only one comb well, and they were all -huddled in this central space, trying desperately to build up their -colony. These were yellow bees, at least half-bred Italians.</p> - -<p>“Will they live?” asked Bob, peering into the pathetic little colony.</p> - -<p>“Oh, yes, they’ll come on, but probably far too late to do anything at -gathering honey this season,” Carl answered. “By the time they’ve -built up strong the honey-flow will be over.”</p> - -<p>A moment later Alice uttered an exclamation from the hive she had just -opened.</p> - -<p>“Here’s something wrong!”</p> - -<p>Carl and Bob went to look. The colony was of about one-fourth its -normal strength, and the bees, instead of being clustered on the -combs, were running and scattering in every direction. Despite the -smoke they boiled out of the hive, making a peculiar distressful hum, -not easily described.</p> - -<p>“Queenless, for certain!” Carl exclaimed, recognizing these -indications.</p> - -<p>And, indeed, when the combs were taken out one by one there was no -sign of either eggs or brood. The queen must have perished in the -winter. These bees were all old ones from the last season, and they -had no possibility of rearing any young. In a little while longer they -would all have died, and they were well aware of their desperate -state. They were intensely nervous and fierce-tempered, yet their -indomitable instinct for work had led them to keep gathering honey. As -they had no brood to feed it to, and adult bees eat little, they had -accumulated almost two combs full of fresh honey from the willows and -maples.</p> - -<p>“Unite them with that weak colony I found just now,” Carl proposed.</p> - -<p>“Just what I was going to do,” Alice returned.</p> - -<p>Carl uncovered the weak colony again, while Bob pried off the bottom -from the queenless one. Alice blew a little smoke on both colonies, -then Bob carefully lifted the queenless hive and set it on top of the -other, making a hive in two stories, with two sets of combs.</p> - -<p>At first there was a little disturbance as the bees from the two -colonies mixed. Several bees rolled out at the entrance, fighting -furiously. Then all was quiet; a contented hum arose within. Lifting a -corner of the quilt cautiously, Carl saw the queenless bees standing -head downward on their combs, fanning with joy at finding themselves -attached to a normal family.</p> - -<p>“Now those two together should build up and do something, and neither -of them would have been any good alone,” said Alice, with -satisfaction.</p> - -<p>After these two bad colonies, they came to a long series of good ones, -crammed with bees and brood, though nearly all light in honey. Then -they found a dead one, with the bees still in clusters on the moldy -combs. These contained not a drop of honey; probably the insects had -starved. Taking out a comb, Alice pointed out how the bees had crawled -deep into the cells, in order to make an unbroken block of heat during -the winter, thus making the empty combs almost a solid mass of -insects. In very cold weather a strong colony, filling a hive, will -crowd itself into a cluster no bigger than a cocoanut.</p> - -<p>They worked all that morning, stopped for an hour at noon, and went at -it again. By evening they had finished the inspection, and were -decidedly disappointed.</p> - -<p>Of the one hundred and eighty colonies, ten were dead. Fifteen others -were without queens and had to be united at once with normal colonies. -From more than twenty hives they had found one or more frames of comb -missing. It was impossible to say whether these had been omitted by -the former owner, or whether they had been abstracted since. About -twenty more colonies were very weak in bees, and would hardly breed up -to full strength in time to gather much honey from raspberries. But -more than a hundred colonies were strong; some of them indeed were -almost overflowing the hive already, and would have to be given more -room soon if swarming was to be prevented.</p> - -<p>But the worst feature was the shortage of honey. Without an abundance -of food in the hive, bees will not rear brood in profusion in the -spring, which results in a weakened condition for the harvest. A -strong colony needs about twenty pounds of honey to carry it through -this critical time, and few had as much as that. Some had only a small -patch of fresh willow honey; plainly they were living only from day to -day, and much of the brood would perish if a spell of cold or rainy -weather should come. To put the bees into strong condition they would -have to be fed. It would take nearly a thousand pounds of honey to go -around, and this new expense would be a hard strain to bear.</p> - -<p>It was hard also to face the fact that their profits would have to -come from less than one hundred and fifty colonies instead of one -hundred and eighty, though they might have known that some were -certain to be dead or queenless.</p> - -<p>“It wasn’t really a heavy winter loss,” said Alice, “yet with one -thing and another, it does look like a poor chance of clearing -eighteen hundred dollars.”</p> - -<p>“Lucky if we make a thousand,” answered Carl. “If the season should be -a poor one, perhaps nothing at all.”</p> - -<p>They were all rather tired and despondent. They had rushed into the -enterprise full of enthusiasm, and only now did they begin to realize -the obstacles ahead of them.</p> - -<p>The next day was Sunday. The weather was still fair, and the bees were -still busy in the willows and maples. For some reason, in the peaceful -May sunshine, the future looked a little brighter to the Harmans. If -the good honey-flow from the willows continued, they might not have to -feed after all, or, at any rate, not half so much as they had feared.</p> - -<p>There was no necessary work to be done that day, and they were glad of -the rest. They watched the bees work in the forenoon; they read and -lounged lazily in the sun; and in the afternoon they went for a stroll -up the river bank.</p> - -<p>The stream was lined everywhere with willows and alders, all in flower -and roaring with bees. Trout leaped from the water; once they scared -up a pair of wild ducks, that went off with a great splashing and -flutter. Several times they saw muskrats navigating along close to the -shore, the apex of a long V ripple on the water, and once in a rick of -drift logs they caught a glimpse of the slender, graceful form of a -mink just diving into a hole.</p> - -<p>“I’ll bet there’s lots of fur up here,” said Bob. “I tell you, I -believe that if I fail in my exams, or if anything goes wrong, I’ll -come up here and stay all winter trapping. I could have got six -dollars for the pelt of that mink. It might pay better than keeping -bees.”</p> - -<p>“Why, I’d like that above all things!” Alice exclaimed. “We’d hunt and -snowshoe, and we could skate right down the river to Morton.”</p> - -<p>“We could lay in provisions, salt down two or three deer, and hundreds -of wild ducks and partridges,” added Carl, with interest.</p> - -<p>“Yes, and trout, too. Or perhaps we could catch them through the ice. -We could pick and dry raspberries this summer, and I’d make jam—only -how would I buy the sugar? Anyhow, we’d have all the honey we could -eat, and in the spring we could make maple syrup. I think it would -simply be immense. But I’m afraid we’ll have so much money that we -won’t have to do it!” she added, with a sigh.</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t be so sure of it,” said Bob. “But by the time I get back I -suppose we can tell how the game is going to go.”</p> - -<p>Bob had to go back to his classes in the morning, and they spent that -evening earnestly discussing the plan of campaign. The bees would have -to be left entirely in the care of Carl and Alice till Bob could -return, but the heaviest part of the season would probably not come -till after that time. They made out a list of some necessary apiary -supplies, which Bob was to order in Toronto, and found it hard to -order what they needed, without spending more than they could afford. -At the same time they prepared an order for half a dozen Italian -queens to be mailed by a well-known breeder in the southern states.</p> - -<p>“And I’ll buy one good, three-dollar breeding queen,” said Alice. “I -won’t be satisfied till I see this whole yard Italianized. The Italian -bees are gentler and better workers, and if we ever wanted to sell the -outfit again, we would get twice as much for it if it was all -thoroughbred stock.”</p> - -<p>Early the next morning Bob set out to walk to Morton for the train, -and Carl accompanied him to order lumber for making new hives at the -local planing-mill. It was late in the afternoon when he returned with -the same driver and wagon that had been there several times before, -and Jack accompanied them, appearing to have pleasant recollections of -the place. Carl brought, besides the lumber, three hundred-pound sacks -of sugar, some groceries and provisions, and something else that he -threw down at Alice’s feet with a loud clanking of metal.</p> - -<p>“What do you think of that?” he exclaimed. “If any midnight marauder -gets into that, I think he’ll stay with us.”</p> - -<p>It was an enormous bear trap, that Carl had picked up cheap at -second-hand. Rusty and savage-looking, it was a formidable affair, -with sharp-toothed jaws and double springs that had to be set with the -aid of a lever.</p> - -<p>“Good gracious! what a cruel, horrible thing!” exclaimed Alice, -shrinking back. “Surely you don’t mean to set it? Suppose one of the -cats got into it?”</p> - -<p>“It would cut him clean in two,” said Carl, hopefully. “But I’m afraid -a cat’s weight wouldn’t spring it. Certainly I’m going to set it.”</p> - -<p>He did set it that night near the beehives, covering it carefully with -leaves, and fastening the six-foot chain to a small tree. Twice during -the night he thought he heard the chain rattle, and got up hastily to -look, but each time he found the big trap undisturbed.</p> - -<div id='i003' class='mt01 mb01 wi003'> - <img src='images/illus-003.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>Two of the hives that were farthest from the house had been pillaged</p> -</div> -<p>For the next day or two Alice was busy with her work about the cabin. -She was making a garden, planting lettuce, radishes, pumpkins, beans, -and potatoes with the seeds that she had brought with her. Around the -door she planted flowers and carefully nursed the few stalks that -still survived there. Carl meanwhile was sorting out the heap of -bee-supplies in the barn, and they were both so busy that they had no -time to be lonely after Bob’s departure. The bees were still busy, -too. The honey-flow from the willows was lasting well, and every day -of it meant several dollars’ worth less of sugar to buy for feeding. -First of all, every morning Carl went out to look at his trap. For -three days it remained unmolested. There was no trace of any animal -having crossed the bee-yard, but the fourth morning told a different -tale.</p> - -<p>Alice was getting breakfast, but she hurried out at her brother’s cry -of alarm. The trap was not sprung, but two of the hives, which were -farthest from the house, had been pillaged. One of them lay tumbled -upon its side, the combs falling loose. The cover had been pulled off -the other, and empty frames from which the honeycombs had been broken -out littered the ground. Masses of bewildered bees crawled over the -wreck, too cowed to be savage.</p> - -<p>Alice gave an exclamation of horror at the sight.</p> - -<p>“What can have done it?” she cried.</p> - -<p>“Don’t know,” said Carl. “But come, let’s put these hives together -again. If the queens aren’t killed, they may amount to something yet.”</p> - -<p>They set up the hives again, and carefully replaced the frames. For -the broken combs they substituted fresh ones from colonies that had -died, and while doing this Alice was lucky enough to catch sight of -one of the queens sitting on a small stick with a faithful bunch of -her bees around her. There was no telling, of course, to which hive -she belonged, so they put her in the one that was nearest. The other -queen was not to be found, but she might easily have been somewhere -among the masses of bees that clung about the wrecked combs.</p> - -<p>“Do you think a bear did it?” Alice asked, when they had finished.</p> - -<p>“It seems more like a bear’s work than anything else,” answered Carl. -“Let’s see if we can find any trail.”</p> - -<p>Most of the ground in the bee-yard was too hard and stony to show -tracks. Carl began to circle the edge of the clearing to see if he -could make out where the animal had entered the apiary.</p> - -<p>“Look here, Carl,” Alice suddenly called to him from a distance. “What -in the world do you make of this?”</p> - -<p>Carl hastened up, and found her bending over a monstrous footprint, -the like of which neither of them had ever seen before.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chIII' title='III—Strange Perils'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER III</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>STRANGE PERILS</span> -</h2> -<p>The strange oval footprint was at least ten inches long. The creature -that had made it was surely heavy, for it had sunk deep into the -ground; and there were four claw-marks.</p> - -<p>“Surely that’s not a bear-track,” said Alice.</p> - -<p>“More like the track of a young elephant, I should think,” Carl -returned. “That is, if elephants had claws and ever robbed beehives.”</p> - -<p>It was not easy to follow the trail over the hard ground. Here and -there in soft spots they found the huge foot-marks. Apparently the -beast had rambled all over the apiary, coming close to the trap -several times, but always avoiding it. They followed it across the -road, and there it gave out completely.</p> - -<p>Completely bewildered, Alice and Carl returned to the cabin for their -delayed breakfast. The raid on the apiary was a mystery. They knew of -no animal in the Canadian woods that could have made such a track, -though all through breakfast and afterward they discussed and guessed -and tried to imagine some explanation. At last Carl, half in joke, -began to recount Indian legends of the wendigo,—a giant, cannibal -demon supposed to prey on hunters in the North,—until Alice implored -him to stop.</p> - -<p>“I shall be afraid to go to bed to-night,” she said. “Suppose I awoke -and saw that great terrible thing looking in through the window at -me!”</p> - -<p>“Perhaps we’ll catch it in the trap,” Carl tried to reassure her. -“Don’t be frightened, Allie. The wendigo doesn’t leave any tracks -where it walks, and besides I don’t believe it would eat honey. It -loves stronger stuff, like blood and bones.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, stop!” cried Alice, putting her hands to her ears.</p> - -<p>Thinking it over, Carl came to the conclusion that the tracks must -have been made by a very large bear, whose feet were deformed in some -way, perhaps by an injury. Perhaps only one foot was misshapen, for he -had never clearly made out more than one track at a time. Anyhow this -was the only explanation that he could give for the strange trail.</p> - -<p>When darkness fell they gathered a great store of wood and sat late in -the bright firelight. They hesitated about separating to their rooms, -and Alice, at last, flatly refused to go. Carl did not insist, and -they brought out blankets and spread them on the floor by the fire, -laying both guns loaded and handy.</p> - -<p>Neither of them slept well. Several times Carl jumped up, fancying -that he had heard some sound outside; but all was quiet when he opened -the door. But toward daylight they both fell soundly asleep and did -not awake until the sun was high over the cedars.</p> - -<p>The trap had not been sprung; the bees had not been disturbed, and -there were no fresh tracks in the yard. Carl and Alice both felt -decidedly languid after their bad night, but the hot breakfast coffee -was stimulating, and in the bright sunlight they began to feel much -more courageous.</p> - -<p>Shortly after breakfast Alice caught sight of one of Carl’s cats, -eating a quantity of trout-heads that had been thrown out behind the -cabin. It was really a wild-looking creature, enormously large, -yellowish-gray, and very thick-furred.</p> - -<p>“Pussy, pussy! Come here, poor kitty!” she called, coaxingly.</p> - -<p>Carl laughed. The cat bristled its tail, growled, and slunk back inch -by inch till it was close to the thickets, and then vanished with a -leap.</p> - -<p>“You could tame a lynx just as quickly,” said Carl. “These cats are -wild clear through now.”</p> - -<p>“But I believe we could coax them into the house when snow comes, if -we were to stay here all winter,” returned Alice. “One of those -creatures would be as good as a watch-dog.”</p> - -<p>Carl presently set to work again at the bee-fixtures stored in the -barn, while Alice resumed her gardening. He found more supplies and a -greater quantity of them than he had anticipated. There were no less -than two hundred supers for comb-honey, all fitted with -section-holders and separators, but with no sections. There were one -hundred and five deep supers, the same size as the hives, for -producing extracted honey, all full of empty combs for extracting, -though many of these had been badly damaged by mice and the bee-moth. -In one corner was a great pile of perforated zinc queen-excluders, -designed to prevent the queen from reaching the extracting combs and -laying eggs in them. Carl rejoiced at this particularly, for these -excluders are expensive, and he had been wondering if they would have -to buy them. There was also one good smoker and one broken one. There -was a four-frame extractor, rusty, but apparently in working -condition. There were honey tanks, which only needed cleaning, and -there were several hundred brood frames in the flat, which had never -been put together. There were also two dozen ten-pound honey-pails, -most of which had never been used, and were now too rusted to put -honey in; but they would be extremely useful for many household -purposes. Alice had been lamenting her scanty stock of tinware, and -Carl was gathering these together to carry them up to the house, when -he came upon two that were unexpectedly heavy. Opening them, he found -them both full of honey that the former owner had somehow overlooked. -It was candied as hard as butter, but was white and delicious in -flavor, not in the least injured by the winter cold. Carl carried it -up to Alice in triumph. It was a great find.</p> - -<p>“If the honey we get this summer is as white and good as this, -there’ll be no trouble about getting a good price,” he remarked, -digging into the pail with a spoon.</p> - -<p>Alice finally took it forcibly from him, and sent him back to the -barn. He sorted out the different articles, and stored them in neat -piles, making a written inventory of the lot. The things that were to -be repaired he put aside. Should the season turn out well, they would -need more supplies, and certainly they must have about a hundred new -hives for the increase they intended to make, as well as for -additional supers. But this outfit would give them a good start, and -he felt that they had got a bargain after all.</p> - -<p>Down at the bottom of the pile he came upon a big fish-net, now rather -old, moldy, and torn. Still, he thought it might be mended and made -fit for use, and he hung it in the sun. It was not a sportsman’s tool, -of course. He had no idea of using it that summer, but if they should -want to catch a large quantity of fish for winter salting, it would be -just the thing.</p> - -<p>Alice, meanwhile, was planting more lettuce, corn, and potatoes on the -sunny side of the house. All day they both worked hard, and their fear -of the wendigo gradually disappeared. They slept in their own bunks -that night, and in the morning they found that the apiary had not been -molested.</p> - -<p>The willow bloom was almost over now, but the bees were still getting -a little honey from the maples. That day Carl and Alice looked over -some of the colonies again, and were delighted to find that both the -hives that had been raided were getting back into condition again. The -queens had survived, and with the strong force of bees that they -possessed, these two colonies would quickly recover from their -disaster.</p> - -<p>A few other colonies were found almost destitute of stores, naturally -the best ones, as they had an enormous amount of brood to feed with -only a limited supply of honey. Others had honey to spare, and they -equalized matters a little, taking frames of honey from the rich ones -and giving them to the needy.</p> - -<p>That night passed without disturbance, and in the morning a warm, -gentle rain was falling. The roof of the cabin developed a leak, and -Carl had to clamber up to make repairs. As the rain lasted all day, -more leaks appeared hourly, and he was kept busy with his patching. -Between times he went fishing in the river just behind the house. The -trout bit ravenously, and he landed one fish that must have weighed -nearly three pounds.</p> - -<p>The next morning it cleared off warm and damp, and the moist heat -caused a heavy honey-flow from the maples. The whole wilderness sprang -suddenly into intense green. The raspberry bushes were already -beginning to show tiny buds, but it would be weeks yet before these -would open, and meanwhile the bees would probably need feeding.</p> - -<p>Two days later the supplies that Bob had ordered arrived. They -consisted chiefly of brood-frames in the flat, several thousand -one-pound sections, and a large quantity of comb foundation.</p> - -<p>This comb foundation is one of the most necessary things in a modern -apiary. It consists of thin sheets of pure beeswax, about the -thickness of blotting-paper and stamped with the impression of honey -cells. When fixed in a frame or in a section and placed in a hive, the -intelligent insects at once recognize its use and lengthen out the -stamped indentations into accurate cells. A comb is thus produced very -quickly, and with a great economy of honey and wax.</p> - -<p>The wooden section-boxes were in the flat, and had to be folded up -into squares, pressed firmly together, and a sheet of the thinnest -foundation fastened in each with melted wax. This was delicate and -tedious work, and kept the two apiarists busy for the next week.</p> - -<p>All the lumber had to be made up into new hives, too, and the frames -nailed together, filled with foundation, and placed in them. Carl had -set up a work-bench in the barn, and he was busy there from morning to -night with his carpentering, while Alice worked with the sections, -preparing super after super to be placed on the hives whenever the -main honey-flow should begin. They had too much to do to think much of -either bears or wendigos, but three or four nights later Carl was -awakened by a noise in the clearing. He had a confused impression that -somebody had called to him. The next instant he heard a rattle of -metal, and a sound of something thrashing about. He leaped up and -pulled on his trousers.</p> - -<p>“Alice!” he called. “Get up. Light the lantern, quick! Something’s in -the trap!”</p> - -<p>There was a crescent moon, but it gave only a feeble light, and as he -rushed out with his shotgun cocked, he could see little. But as he -approached the trap, he discerned a great, shapeless figure crouched -over it, apparently struggling to get free from the jaws. Thrilling -with excitement, Carl stopped, then crept a little nearer and raised -his gun. He would have fired in another moment, but just then he -caught the sound of a human voice. It was not a wild beast in the -trap. It was a man!</p> - -<p>The fellow was muttering in some unknown language, and no pleasant -words, by the sound of them. Carl ran up, trembling at the narrow -escape, and the figure straightened up to human proportions.</p> - -<p>“Stand still!” Carl cried. “It’s all right. I’ll get you out.”</p> - -<p>He was so shocked at having so narrowly missed shooting a man that it -did not occur to him that perhaps he had caught the honey-thief.</p> - -<p>“Take off zis trap,” cried the man, with an oath. “He break my leg.”</p> - -<p>Alice was lighting the lantern in the cabin. In the darkness Carl -could just make out that the fellow was caught by one foot. To open -the stiff springs of the trap he would need a lever.</p> - -<p>“Wait a minute!” he called, groping about for a stout pole.</p> - -<p>He found one, bent over the trap, and then uttered a startled -exclamation. The man’s imprisoned foot looked strangely huge and -deformed. He struck a match; the man struck it from his hand, but in -the momentary flash Carl saw that the fellow was wearing enormous, -padded moccasins.</p> - -<p>“Oho!” he cried. “So you’re the wendigo!”</p> - -<div id='i004' class='mt01 mb01 wi004'> - <img src='images/illus-004.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>It was not a wild beast in the trap: it was a man!</p> -</div> -<p>“No understan’,” growled the prisoner. “Open zis trap and let me go.”</p> - -<p>Carl hesitated a moment. Then he pried down one of the springs, -slipped the ring down to hold it, and released the other spring. The -jaws fell apart. The man withdrew his foot, almost toppled over, and -then painfully hobbled a few steps.</p> - -<p>“I git even! I keel you for zis!” he exclaimed, standing on one leg.</p> - -<p>At that moment Alice came hurrying out with the lighted lantern, and -the man wheeled and started away at a limping run. Evidently he wished -to avoid the light.</p> - -<p>“Hold on!” shouted Carl, picking up his gun. “Stop! I want to know who -you are. Stop!—or I’ll shoot.”</p> - -<p>The thief flung back some savage answer, but kept moving. Carl -discharged one barrel of his gun in the air, but it had no effect, for -the next moment the man had vanished into the dark woods. Carl did not -care. He had only wished to frighten the fellow, and he would not have -known what to do with him as a prisoner. The thief surely had had his -lesson, and he looked after him with a smile.</p> - -<p>“That was your wendigo, Alice,” he said to his sister, who was pale -and badly frightened. “Did you notice his feet? He was wearing great -stuffed moccasins to imitate a wild beast’s track. I suppose they had -nails in the toes for claw-marks. Look here and see the wendigo trail -he made.”</p> - -<p>Sure enough, here and there on the soft bits of earth they found the -same great misshapen trail as before, claw-marks and all. Carl -chuckled.</p> - -<p>“I’ve heard of the trick before,” he said. “I don’t know why it never -occurred to me that it might be a human bear. But I don’t think he’ll -try it again.”</p> - -<p>“He may do worse, though,” said Alice nervously. “He might set fire to -the cabin or the bees—or shoot us.”</p> - -<p>But Carl did not think there was any danger of the man attempting any -revenge for that night at any rate. He was likely to be too lame and -sore, and he had not seemed to carry any weapon; so, after watching -for a short time, they went back to bed.</p> - -<p>But neither of them slept much in the few hours that remained before -daybreak. They were up early and tried to follow the trail of the mock -wendigo, but they lost it on the stony road. No hives had been damaged -this time; the robber had doubtless been trapped before he had time to -rob. And the trap must have bitten hard, for there was blood on the -rusty, toothed jaws.</p> - -<p>Carl had noticed that the man spoke with a strong foreign accent. The -only foreigners in that district were the French half-breeds living -near Morton. He had no doubt that the honey-thief had come from that -settlement, for these people had no high reputation for strict -honesty.</p> - -<p>He could hardly think that the fellow would try to steal any more -honey from the hives, and he did not believe that he would walk all -the long way from Morton merely to seek revenge. He tried to impress -Alice with this comforting view; nevertheless he slept lightly for -several nights, and kept a loaded rifle close to his bunk.</p> - -<p>He was right. The raider did not venture back, and presently the -pressure of work drove most other considerations out of their minds. -The willow and maple bloom were both over. The bees were getting no -honey now, and no colony had honey that could be spared. Feeding had -to be resorted to.</p> - -<p>They had no regular feeders; this was one thing that the miscellaneous -pile in the barn failed to contain. Alice extemporized several, -however, by uncovering a hive, setting a tin pan full of sugar syrup -directly on top of the frames, and putting the cover over all. In one -night the bees would store fifteen or twenty pounds of syrup in their -combs, and one such feed was enough to last them till the honey-flow.</p> - -<p>Carl incautiously fed his first colony in the daytime and nearly -precipitated a riot in the yard. The colony that had been given the -syrup rushed out in wild excitement, flying into the air and -returning. They knew that sweet was coming in from somewhere, but they -did not yet comprehend the source. The bees from adjoining colonies, -seeing this excitement, began to rush out likewise; some of them made -their way into the feeding hive, finding the entrance unguarded in the -commotion, and there was sharp fighting. Fortunately this was a strong -colony, well able to defend itself, and the robber bees were routed; -but after that Carl was careful to do his feeding after sunset or on a -rainy day.</p> - -<p>During the day there were still supplies to be got ready for the -coming harvest. Another wagon-load of lumber came over from Morton, -and soon Carl had an immense stack of new hive-bodies ready for the -expected increase. A corresponding number of bottom-boards and covers -had to be made as well, so that there was little time now for hunting, -fishing, or loafing.</p> - -<p>To be sure, almost every day either he or Alice caught a few trout, -but this was for food and not for sport, and was done as expeditiously -as possible. Often, too, they shot a rabbit or a partridge when it did -not involve walking too far. Game was out of season, indeed, but real -settlers are exempt from the provisions of the game laws, and Alice -became very expert at this sort of foraging.</p> - -<p>To his amazement, on coming in to dinner one day, Carl was confronted -with an omelette.</p> - -<p>“Why, Alice! where did you get the eggs?” he exclaimed.</p> - -<p>“I’m ashamed to tell you,” the girl replied. “You see, we had no fresh -meat, and I was sick of pork and fish too, and I took the shotgun and -walked out down by the river to see if I might see a duck. A partridge -flew up almost from under my feet, and perched on a branch. I shot it -without thinking; but the next minute it struck me that she must have -a nest. I looked, and there it was, with fourteen eggs in it. I almost -cried! However, I gathered them up and brought them home, and they -were all perfectly good but two.”</p> - -<p>It was highly wrong, of course, but the omelette was delicious, and -Carl did not reprimand her.</p> - -<p>It was now the middle of June, and summer seemed to have come on with -a rush. All the trees were in full leaf; the buds on the raspberry -canes were swelling, and the bloom might be expected in a week. The -days had grown almost hot, and mosquitoes began to appear. Bob wrote -that his examinations had commenced, and that he would be able to come -up within ten days.</p> - -<p>Alice and Carl had pretty well finished their preparations for the -honey-flow, and now had a good deal of time on their hands. They -fished often, following the river up and down, wishing for a canoe. -And they explored the woods in every direction to find the extent of -the bee pasturage.</p> - -<p>“Why, there must be miles of berries,” Carl said. “There’s no end to -them, not to speak of lots of basswood. I don’t see how we can fail to -get a hundred pounds of honey per colony.”</p> - -<p>Alice’s garden was flourishing too. All the vegetables were up, and -she tended them herself. This occupation, with the care of the cabin, -took up a good deal of her time, and Carl often went on fishing and -exploring expeditions alone. It was on one of these solitary rambles -that he met with an adventure that he never could forget and never -remembered without a shock of horror.</p> - -<p>It was a hot, late June day, and he had walked up the river with his -fly-rod, fishing at intervals, but for the most part merely loitering. -It was too sunny and hot for the trout to rise well, but there was -much of interest to be seen in the stealthy, wild life that swarmed -around him. He knew well where a pair of wild ducks had their nest in -a marshy spot, and he watched them from a distance. Muskrats could be -seen anywhere, and he knew now where to look for the shy mink. At a -sandy spot on the shore he found the trail of a deer that had come to -drink the night before, and a little farther up he came to the foot of -a long rapid.</p> - -<p>The banks of the river narrowed greatly here, and the current swept -down like a mill-race through the cramped channel studded with sharp, -black rocks. The chute was over a hundred feet long, and was a place -which only a daring canoe-man would have dared to run. A portage would -have been difficult, however, for the shore on both sides and for a -long way back was choked with dense cedar thickets, a maze of fallen -and standing trunks that was nearly impenetrable.</p> - -<p>Carl stopped and cast his flies across the tail of the rapid, where he -knew big fish were accustomed to lie. The day was unfavorable, -however; after half an hour’s fishing he caught only two rather small -trout, and he began to debate whether to return or to go through the -jungle. It was hardly worth while to go farther, but at the head of -the rapid there was an immense burned slash choked with wild -raspberry, and he was anxious to see how the buds were coming on.</p> - -<p>So he took his rod apart and plunged into the thickets. It was a slow, -struggling business and took him more than half an hour to reach the -other side, where the rapid began its tumultuous course.</p> - -<p>The raspberry slash was fully a quarter of a mile wide and ran off to -an indefinite distance from the river. The canes were growing four -feet high and were covered with large buds; here and there a flower -was almost open. Carl pushed into the prickly thickets for some -distance, and was looking at the prospect of bloom with great delight, -when he caught a glimpse of a grayish, furry hide vanishing among the -bushes a few rods away.</p> - -<p>He jumped upon a fallen log and gazed around. Nothing stirred, but he -was sure that he had not been mistaken. There was a strip of open -ground, ahead where the unknown animal must show itself if it was -coming toward him, and in a few seconds indeed the creature came out -from the raspberries into plain sight. It came at a fast, slinking -trot, a gray-brown animal about the size of a collie dog, -bushy-tailed, carrying its head low.</p> - -<p>Carl had never seen a timber-wolf at large, though he had watched them -behind iron bars, and he recognized the animal in a moment. He was not -particularly frightened, but was very much surprised, for he had not -supposed that there were any wolves in that district. Still, he -recollected, where deer are plentiful there are almost sure to be -wolves, and deer have been increasing very fast in the North of late -years. The great Algonquin Park game-preserve affords them a safe -breeding-place, and they have spread into all the territory for miles -around. Wolves are extremely shy and timid when alone, and Carl stood -still and watched it come, in amused expectation of the frantic bolt -it would make when it caught sight of him.</p> - -<p>But it came on with disconcerting steadiness, though it glanced up, -sniffed, and must have seen him. Carl began to feel a slight -uneasiness. The beast’s coat looked dull and mangy. There was a -curious, jerky motion in its gait, and large flecks of froth on its -half-open jaws. As it came nearer, Carl heard a continuous low sound, -half snarl and half moan, from its low-hung muzzle.</p> - -<p>As if by intuition, Carl realized what was the matter. The animal was -mad!</p> - -<p>Dimly he remembered now having heard that rabies is terribly prevalent -every summer among the timber-wolves, serving, in fact, a useful -purpose in keeping down their numbers. The afflicted wolf always -leaves the pack and wanders forth alone, spreading its malady, of -course, at every chance meeting, till it dies a merciful and solitary -death.</p> - -<p>Carl had no weapon, not even a knife. It was too late to run, and this -would only draw the animal’s pursuit. But a dead cedar stood at his -elbow, and with a bound he clutched the trunk, and pulled himself up -among the dry, spiky branches.</p> - -<p>The movement caught the sick wolf’s attention, and it sprang forward -while Carl was still dangling. He kicked out desperately. His boot -caught the wolf on the jaw as it leaped after him, and it fell back -with a yelp, while Carl tremulously established himself out of reach.</p> - -<p>The unfortunate animal made three or four bounds into the air in an -aimless fashion, and stared up blinking. Carl expected to be held -captive in the tree for a long time, but in a few minutes the wolf -seemed to forget him. It raised its muzzle and howled dismally, then -loped off into the thickets, heading down the river.</p> - -<p>Carl kept his perch in the tree for some minutes after the animal was -out of sight. The peculiar horror of this peril, worse than any -ordinary form of death, had completely unnerved him. Then, like a -flash, it came upon him that the wolf was heading directly for their -cabin.</p> - -<p>Alice was there alone, perhaps working in her garden or in the -bee-yard or at the barn—certainly somewhere out-of-doors. The wolf -would come blindly out into the clearing; and in its madness, as he -had seen, it had no fear of man.</p> - -<p>The imminence of this more appalling danger shocked Carl out of his -panic. He slid down from his tree breathlessly and rushed toward the -river.</p> - -<p>The cedar jungle barred his way. It would take him a long time to get -through it, so long that he could hardly hope to reach the clearing -first. The fast loping trot of the wolf is deceptive, and Carl knew -that the animal was moving almost as swiftly as a man could run. It -could slip through the thickets with little trouble, but for himself -the delay might be fatal.</p> - -<p>He turned to the river. If he had had a canoe he would have risked the -rapid without hesitating, for the water-way was the only one past this -barrier. He thought of swimming down, but just then his eye fell upon -a short, thick, pine log, half stranded and half afloat, close to him.</p> - -<p>Without stopping to think of the risk, Carl shoved it into the -current, waded after it, and flung himself upon it. It would serve as -a float, and the spray was spattering in his face before he realized -the full danger.</p> - -<p>The pine log shot like a bullet down the boiling current, going too -fast to revolve in the water, and missing the boulders by some -miraculous good luck. Carl had intended to steer with his legs, but he -was half-way down the chute before he had time to make a movement.</p> - -<p>In that rush he could only hold his breath and cling hard. His leg -struck something; it must have been a rock, but he was only grazed. He -plunged through a bank of piled foam with a flurry of white flakes, -and he was almost at the tail of the rapid when the log turned and he -went under. He let go involuntarily. The log darted away, and for a -moment he was choked, battered, and blinded, and then he came up at -the foot of the rapid, feeling half-stunned. Several inches of skin -were gone from one hand where it had struck a rock, but he had -suffered no serious injury, and he regained his feet in about three -feet of water and waded ashore.</p> - -<p>There was a fairly clear path down the shore, and he began to run, -stumbling and dizzy at first, then faster as he warmed to it. He was -desperately afraid of overtaking or running upon the wolf, and he kept -a sharp lookout as he ran. But he saw nothing of the animal, and began -to hope that he had distanced it.</p> - -<p>It was a long way, but Carl was a good runner and in fine physical -condition. Nevertheless he flagged at last, slowed to a walk, tried to -run again, and paused, his heart almost bursting his sides. He was not -a quarter of a mile from the clearing, he thought, and he was -struggling on at a fast walk, when he heard a moaning howl in the -woods, ahead and to the right.</p> - -<p>It sent fresh life through him like an electric shock. The sound had -seemed to come from the exact direction of the cabin. With a burst of -desperate energy he dashed ahead and burst through the willows. At the -first glance he saw with a flood of thankfulness that he was not too -late.</p> - -<p>Alice had a veil on and was doing something at one of the hives -between the house and the barn.</p> - -<p>“Run, Alice!” Carl yelled, rushing toward her. “Run for the house!”</p> - -<p>Alice looked up in surprise and called something back to him, without -moving.</p> - -<p>“Run!” her brother screamed desperately; and by the energy of his tone -Alice grasped that something was seriously wrong. She started to close -the hive quickly, and at that moment Carl saw the gray, dog-like form -emerging from the willows, half-way between Alice and himself.</p> - -<p>The animal snapped at the branches as it went through, and Alice -glanced back just then, saw it, cried out, and started to run toward -the house. Instantly the wolf threw up its head, caught sight of her, -and with a sort of snarling howl, raced after her.</p> - -<p>Carl dashed in pursuit, forgetting that he had no weapon. Alice was -losing ground. She would be overtaken before she could gain the cabin; -but Carl gained a little with his last stock of energy, and when he -was forty feet behind he picked up a large stone, aimed, and threw it.</p> - -<p>It hit the wolf hard on the flank. The animal stopped and looked back. -Carl threw another stone and missed. But the wolf turned and rushed -back at its new enemy.</p> - -<p>In his turn Carl bolted, with a confused notion of getting into the -barn. But the big door stood wide open when he reached it. The place -would only be a trap, and he wheeled about just in time to meet the -rabid animal’s charge with a vigorous kick that caught it under the -jaw and flung it backward.</p> - -<p>He remembered the sharp hatchet on his workbench in the barn and -rushed into the building to get it; but the wolf was after him like a -flash. Carl checked it again with another furious kick, so hard this -time that it went almost in a somersault backward. As it tumbled, Carl -caught sight of the old fishing-seine that he had found.</p> - -<p>It was hanging on a peg at his side. He dragged it down, and as the -maddened animal launched itself at him again, he flung the net over -it.</p> - -<p>It stumbled and rolled, entangled. It scrambled to its feet and once -more fell, biting furiously at the meshes. Carl seized the hatchet and -circled round, looking for a chance to place a blow, but he was afraid -to come too close, and the rotten meshes were tearing under the -animal’s struggles.</p> - -<p>At that moment Alice suddenly appeared at the barn-door, with Bob’s -rifle in her hands.</p> - -<p>“Stand aside!” she called, and as Carl leaped away, the rifle cracked.</p> - -<p>The wolf leaped into the air, net and all, with a sharp yelp, and fell -again, kicking blindly. The rifle banged again and a third time. The -wretched animal’s struggles grew feebler, and in a few moments it was -dead.</p> - -<p>Then, with the strain off, Carl collapsed suddenly on an empty -beehive, and everything reeled around him.</p> - -<p>“Carl, Carl, what’s the matter?” cried Alice, dropping on her knees -beside him. “You’re not hurt, are you? The wolf’s dead. Why, you’re -dripping wet!”</p> - -<p>Carl recovered himself and reassured her. He gave her a toned-down -account of what had happened, but she did not suspect that the animal -was rabid, nor did he venture to tell her. He warned her strictly -against examining the body and presently he dragged it toward the -river, dug a deep hole and buried it, net and all. It was several -months before he ventured to tell his sister what a frightful danger -they had both escaped; but the experience gave him such a fright that -for a long time he never ventured far into the woods without carrying -firearms.</p> - -<p>Carl felt quite weak and shaky for the rest of that day, and after -changing his wet clothes he sat down in the sun, petted by Alice as a -semi-invalid. He was quite recovered by the next morning, however, and -he went up the river and recovered his rod, which he had dropped in -the raspberry slash. Looking at the rapid now, he wondered by what -miracle he had come through it alive.</p> - -<p>The bees were doing nothing now, but carrying in pollen and water for -brood-rearing, and they hung sullen and listless about the hives, very -much inclined to be cross. Raspberry bloom was only a few days off; -they were all fairly well supplied with food, and there was nothing -now to do but let them alone.</p> - -<p>Resuming their fishing and exploring rambles, Carl and Alice once -followed the river down a little farther than they had ever gone -before. About three miles below their cabin they came upon a -well-marked trail, and out of curiosity they followed it. They had not -gone far when they came to the edge of the woods and they stopped in -surprise.</p> - -<p>They were on the border of a wide expanse of reeds and marsh-grass -bordering the river. Near the woods it was fairly solid and dry, but -farther out they could see a great expanse of quagmire, thinly -overgrown with small grasses and spotted with pools of oily-looking -water. It was a dangerous, unwholesome-seeming place.</p> - -<p>“Why, this must be Indian Slough!” said Carl, looking up and down the -marsh.</p> - -<p>“What’s that?” Alice inquired.</p> - -<p>“A historical spot. I thought I had spoken of it. The driver of my -wagon told me about it when I was coming out from Morton, but I didn’t -think it was so near us.</p> - -<p>“The story is that a war-party of Iroquois, during the great Indian -raids on Canada in the French days, tried to land somewhere -hereabouts, and was swallowed up bodily by this morass. It used to be -called <i>Marais aux Iroquois</i> on account of that event, and that has -been Englished into Indian Slough.”</p> - -<p>“Ugh!” shuddered Alice. “I don’t like it. It looks as if it had -swallowed up hundreds of men. Very likely it has, in its time.”</p> - -<p>“I’m sure the mosquitos would swallow anybody piecemeal, if he stayed -long here,” Carl returned. “Let’s move on.”</p> - -<p>The trail led around the edge of the marsh, and they had followed it -for scarcely twenty rods farther, when, to their amazement, they came -suddenly upon the edge of a clearing.</p> - -<p>It was only three or four acres fronting the marsh. It was dotted with -stumps, and among them stood a log house and barn much like their own. -A few hens scratched about a worn-down haystack. A hog lay stretched -in the sun by the barn; and as they came in sight a hound dashed into -view and set up a noisy baying.</p> - -<p>“Neighbors!” exclaimed Alice. “Who’d have expected it? And why on -earth should anybody live in this feverish, mosquitoey, swampy place.”</p> - -<p>“Probably that marsh is full of muskrats,” Carl suggested. “The owner -here may be a trapper, and likes to live near his work.”</p> - -<p>Attracted by the noise of the dog, a couple of ragged children rushed -out of the cabin, stared, and then bolted in again like scared -rabbits. A woman came to the door, stared also, and stepped outside.</p> - -<p>“I’m going up to get acquainted,” said Alice, and she went boldly -toward the house.</p> - -<p>Her brother followed at a little distance, loitering intentionally to -give Alice time to break the ice. The hound came bounding up, wagging -his tail and sniffing at the gun Carl carried, and the boy paused to -make friends with him. He was patting the brute’s head when a man came -around the corner of the house.</p> - -<p>He was blinking, and looked as if he had been taking a nap in the sun. -Big and strong-framed he was, black-haired, and black-bearded, and his -face was almost as dark as an Indian’s. He was roughly clad in a -flannel shirt, duffel trousers and moccasins, and he looked surprised, -half-hostile, and half-shy.</p> - -<p>“Hello, good-morning!” said Carl. “<i>Bon jour!</i>” he added, guessing at -the man’s probable nationality; and then, at a second glance, he -gasped with surprise. “Why, you—you’re the—”</p> - -<p>But the dark-faced squatter, limping heavily on one leg, had turned -and dashed out of sight around the house again.</p> - -<p>Carl stared after him for a moment and then called to his sister.</p> - -<p>“Come, Alice. We must go back.”</p> - -<p>Something in his voice startled the girl. She glanced sharply at him -and bade her new acquaintance farewell and they started back together -across the clearing.</p> - -<p>“What’s the matter?” she whispered.</p> - -<p>“I’ll tell you in a minute. Keep moving—not too fast.”</p> - -<p>He was not really much afraid of being attacked, but he felt much -safer when they were in the cover of the woods.</p> - -<p>“That’s where the wendigo lives,” he explained at last.</p> - -<p>“What! the man you caught in the trap?”</p> - -<p>“I’m sure of it. Of course I couldn’t see the fellow’s face plain that -night, but this man has a good general resemblance to him, and he -walks with a most suspicious limp—in the same leg, too, that the trap -caught. Besides, he bolted as soon as he had a look at me. He knew who -I was, all right. Yes, I’m certain it’s our honey-thief. What did you -find out from the woman?”</p> - -<p>“I couldn’t get her to say much, and I couldn’t understand half her -dialect. She told me their name—Larue, I think. She said there were -lots of ducks and muskrats in the slough, and they didn’t mind the -mosquitos. And oh Carl! she had two of the most splendid black bear -skins! I’d give anything to have them. The cabin was an awful -place—like a pig-sty, but there were two children with the loveliest -brown, dirty faces I ever saw.”</p> - -<p>“Probably half French and half Ojibway or Chippewa,” said Carl. “Larue -certainly sounds French enough. I’m afraid they’re a rough lot, and -I’m sorry we have them for our nearest neighbors.”</p> - -<p>They reached home in perfect safety, but the incident revived their -former feelings of uneasiness. However, this wore away as the days and -nights passed without disturbance; and Carl felt relieved to remember -that Larue had seemed far more frightened at the encounter than he -himself had been.</p> - -<p>The weather was growing steadily warmer. Frequent rains brought -vegetation forward with the marvelous rapidity of the northern summer. -The little, pale, greenish flowers of the raspberry were almost open. -And at last one morning Carl came dashing into the cabin with a shout:</p> - -<p>“The bees are getting honey!”</p> - -<p>Alice hastened out to look. The air was full of flashing wings and a -resonant hum. The main honey-flow had started. The crisis of their -fortunes was at hand.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chIV' title='IV—Honey and Swarms'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER IV</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>HONEY AND SWARMS</span> -</h2> -<p>The sullen listlessness that had hung over the apiary for over a week -was gone. Bees were at work from every hive, coming and going with a -swift activity like the days of the willow bloom.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah! We must put on the supers at once,” cried Alice. “I believe -we ought to have had them on several days ago.”</p> - -<p>Breakfast was hurried through that morning, and no dishes were washed -up after it. They hurried down to the barn to bring up the prepared -supers, placing one beside each hive, so that they could all be put on -at once.</p> - -<p>The supers for extracted honey were exactly the same size as the body -of the hive itself, without either top or bottom, and each containing -eight ready-built frames of comb. The cover of the hive is removed and -the super set upon it, then the cover replaced on the top of the -two-story edifice. Usually a sheet of zinc queen-excluder is placed -between the two, the perforations so accurately made that they will -let the workers pass into the upper story, while the larger-bodied -queen cannot get through. The lower story is then known as the -brood-chamber, and the ideal condition is for the queen to keep this -division constantly full of the cycle of eggs, larvæ, and hatching -bees, while the workers store all the honey in the super, convenient -for taking off.</p> - -<p>A good deal of comb honey in one-pound sections was to be produced -also, and Alice had already picked out the strongest colonies for this -work. Section honey is a fancy product and sells at a high price, and -the apiarists counted on this to pay off the $500 due in August. For -that reason, the comb-honey crop was of the most immediate importance, -though there would be a greater quantity of the extracted honey. -Naturally, bees will store much more honey when built combs are -furnished them, but the extracted honey sells more slowly, and at -little more than half the price.</p> - -<p>They had already prepared more than a hundred section supers,—boxes of -the same length and width as the brood-chamber, but only half the -depth,—each containing thirty-two sections with foundation. One of -these was set accurately on the top of each of the seventy colonies -selected to gather the fancy crop. The deep, extracting supers of -built combs were distributed among the rest of the bees.</p> - -<p>Carl and Alice worked hard all that day and for part of the next -forenoon, putting on the supers. The weather was hot and moist, -splendid honey weather. More and more of the pale raspberry blossoms -were opening, though as yet the honey-flow was barely at its start.</p> - -<p>That evening Alice peeped into some of the newly placed supers, -irresistibly curious to know what the bees had done. The supers of -combs were full of the insects, cleaning out the cells and varnishing -them ready for honey-storage, and here and there was even a glistening -patch of fresh honey. In the supers of sections no combs were yet -built of course; but the bees were clustering there in masses, and -evidently preparing for work in earnest.</p> - -<p>All looked most promising, but both she and Carl knew that everything -depended on the weather from day to day. For the honey-flow is the -most capricious thing in the world. If the weather is too wet, the -bees cannot work, and the honey is washed out of the blossoms. If it -is too dry, the secretion of nectar in the flowers will cease -altogether. A cold spell, too, will check the honey-flow, and high -winds will dry it up. Often the clouding over of the sky, or a shift -in the wind will produce a heavy flow or stop one. It is regulated by -faint differences of temperature and moisture, and the ideal weather -is warm and damp, with, if possible, a suggestion of thunderstorm in -the air. In such a day a good colony of bees will often bring in ten -pounds or more of honey, so that Alice and Carl had figured that every -good day would be worth easily a hundred dollars.</p> - -<p>The next morning was warm, and the bees worked merrily. Now that the -honey-flow had started, they were no longer cross. Their owners could -walk up and down the rows of hives, through the clouds of flying bees -that came almost as thick as snowflakes, and there was scarcely any -danger of being stung. Carl was standing in the midst of this -activity, observing the flight with satisfaction, when a volley of -bees suddenly poured with a loud roaring from one of the hives nearest -him.</p> - -<p>“Swarm, Alice!” he yelled.</p> - -<p>It was the first swarm of that season, and of course it came from one -of the strongest colonies. Carl marked the hive that had sent it out -and turned his attention to the bees in the air.</p> - -<p>For some seconds the cloud of insects swirled round and round, then it -drifted slowly toward the cabin. Finding no place to alight there, it -floated irresolutely about in one direction and another, and finally -moved down toward the river, flying about twenty feet from the ground.</p> - -<p>Here it suddenly concentrated by a small cedar tree. A few bees -settled on the tip of a long branch; in a moment there was a brown -cluster, growing as he looked at it, and in five minutes the branch -was bending down under the weight of a mass of bees that would nearly -have filled a five-gallon pail.</p> - -<p>“What a tremendously big swarm!” exclaimed Alice, who had come to look -at it. “Did you see the hive they came from? Then let’s attend to it, -and then we can hive the swarm.”</p> - -<p>When they removed the cover of the hive that had swarmed, the super -was seen to be nearly empty of bees, though it contained a good deal -of fresh honey. Lifting it off, they saw that the brood-chamber also -appeared sadly depleted. Fully two-thirds of the bees had gone with -the swarm.</p> - -<p>“Isn’t there any way of keeping them from swarming, Alice?” asked -Carl. “We’d get so much more honey if the colonies didn’t break in two -like this.”</p> - -<p>“None,” Alice replied, busy with the smoker. “Except by seeing that -they always have plenty of storage room for honey. They don’t usually -swarm till they get crowded. This colony was probably feeling crowded -before we put the super on it; they got the swarming idea fixed, and -when the honey-flow started well, away they went.”</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Alice was taking out one comb after another, glancing at -each and replacing it, till she came at last to the most marvelous -thing in the world of bees—the mystery of the queen-cells.</p> - -<p>There they were, five or six on a single comb, great, peanut shaped -protuberances, some sealed with a rounded capping, others still open -at the tip, showing the white young queen within, floating in a mass -of royal jelly.</p> - -<p>For when the bees become queenless, they have the science to rear a -new one to save the colony from perishing. An ordinary worker-egg that -is just hatching into the larva is profusely fed with royal jelly, -that strangely prepared food of which no one knows the exact -composition. Instead of growing in the ordinary cell, the larva is -given one of these great waxen cones for its nursery; and instead of -hatching in twenty-one days into a worker bee, it hatches in sixteen -into a fully fledged virgin queen. The first preparation for swarming -is the starting of a batch of these queen-cells, so that the colony -shall not be left queenless when the queen departs with the swarm, and -the swarm does not leave till some of the cells are sealed over.</p> - -<p>Whenever a queen loses her life, or grows so old as to be useless, the -same sort of queen-cells are started to replace her. The only -exception is when a queen dies in the winter, and there are no eggs -from which a new one can be reared; and then, unless man gives help, -the colony quickly vanishes.</p> - -<p>Carl had seen queen-cells often enough before, but he never ceased to -regard them with amazement. He peeped into an unsealed cell, took out -a little of the thick, white, royal jelly and tasted it on the end of -a twig.</p> - -<p>“Rich, thick, sour, and sweet all at once,” he commented. “It turns a -worker into a queen. I wonder what it would do to me if I ate a lot of -it.”</p> - -<p>“You’d be a king,” said Alice, promptly. “Put those cells back. -They’ll get chilled. And let’s go and catch that swarm.”</p> - -<p>Carl had a number of hives prepared for such emergencies, each with -ten new frames of foundation. The old hive, now out of action, they -carried away to a new stand, and placed the prepared hive where it had -stood. Upon it they put the partly-filled super that the swarm had -left.</p> - -<p>Alice now brought out the large water-pail from the house, and they -walked down to where the swarm was settled. It still clung there in a -big, brown, murmuring, pearl-shaped mass. There they would probably -hang for hours, till they had decided in their mysterious councils -what hollow tree in the forest they would make for.</p> - -<p>But they were not to leave man’s control. Carl climbed a little way -into the tree, then, leaning far out, slipped the tin pail close under -the swarm and shook the branch smartly. With a thump the whole mass -dropped into the pail, not a bee flying. They seethed and flowed like -molasses, while Carl hastily jumped down, ran to the hive he had -prepared, and poured them down at its entrance.</p> - -<p>They began to crawl in at once, and among the rest Alice caught sight -of the queen just entering the hive with a mass of bees. This meant -definite possession being taken. Immediately the bees spread over the -entrance-board began to “fan.” The swarm was safely hived.</p> - -<p>A new swarm usually works with great vigor, knowing that it has a -great deal of time to make up, and this one might be expected to -finish the super. The parent colony was now out of action; but it -would hatch out a new queen in a week, and would build up strong again -before fall.</p> - -<p>“We must really do something to keep swarming down,” said Alice, -anxiously. “Of course, we want to increase our bees, but if the -colonies break up now, it will cut our honey crop in two. And we -<i>must</i> get the honey.”</p> - -<p>“Nothing to do, then, but to go all through them and see if any more -are starting queen-cells,” replied Carl. “It’s rather a big job, -though, and I wish Bob were here to help us.”</p> - -<p>However, it was not necessary to tear all the hives open. Some, they -knew, were too weak to think of swarming. With others it was -sufficient to glance at the entrance and into the super to make sure -of the steady, contented activity. About twenty they went through -thoroughly, and in five of them they found the beginnings of -queen-cells—an acorn-shaped cup, with an almost microscopic larvæ in -it surrounded by royal jelly. These they tore down at once, and marked -the hives for close watching in future.</p> - -<p>Next morning they continued this inspection, and three swarms came out -while they were at work. One of them settled in the top of such a high -tree that it could not be reached. They had to let it stay, and late -that afternoon it took wing again and made off, across the woods, out -of sight.</p> - -<p>The others they hived successfully, and they made all possible haste -to look through all the suspicious colonies for signs of swarming. -Despite all efforts, however, the bees seemed to be getting ahead of -them, and they were working frantically when a voice hailed them from -the direction of the river:</p> - -<p>“Hello, busy bees!”</p> - -<p>Bob was coming up through the willows from the direction of the river, -and, dropping everything, they rushed to meet him in delight and -astonishment.</p> - -<p>“How in the world did you get here? Where’s your wagon? You didn’t -walk?” cried Carl.</p> - -<p>Bob waved his hand triumphantly toward the river. He had come from -Morton by water, in a second-hand boat that he had bought cheaply in -the village. It was not beautiful; it was a homemade affair, which -could be poled, paddled, or rowed, or perhaps sailed too. It was old -and rough and needed painting badly, but it was water-tight and had -cost only nine dollars. Alice was enchanted; a boat was what she had -been longing for most of all.</p> - -<p>Bob had had rather a hard up-stream pull, for he brought quite a cargo -with him besides his trunk—potatoes, dried apples, prunes, butter, -flour, and two more cases of bee-supplies.</p> - -<p>“And here’re your queens,” he added, taking a package from his pocket.</p> - -<p>There were seven mailing-cages, six tied in one parcel, and the other, -containing the three-dollar breeding queen, by itself. Carl looked -through the wire gauze cover at this valuable insect, surrounded by -her attendants.</p> - -<p>“She doesn’t look any bigger or better than the rest of them,” he -complained.</p> - -<p>“Wait till we see how she performs,” said Alice, hopefully.</p> - -<p>The mailing-cages were small, hollowed-out wooden blocks, covered on -one side with wire cloth; each contained an Italian queen, with half a -dozen attendant bees, that had traveled all the way in the mail-bags -from Tennessee. One small compartment in each cage was filled with -soft candy, and most of this had been eaten on the journey.</p> - -<p>As these queens had already been too long confined, Alice at once made -preparations for introducing them—a matter of no small difficulty. For -a colony of bees, even if deprived of their queen, will not easily -accept a strange one. They prefer the more lengthy plan of raising a -batch of queen-cells, and will kill any new queen put into the hive. -Sometimes, however, they can be thrown into a panic by smoking and -beating on the hive, and the new queen slipped in while they are too -demoralized to notice her. The more common plan, however, is the one -that Alice adopted.</p> - -<p>She had already selected seven colonies where the queens appeared to -be laying badly, and she now searched these queens out and killed -them. Tearing off a strip of pasteboard on one end of a mailing-cage, -she revealed a small hole plugged with soft honey-candy; then she -pushed the cage into the hive, down between the combs. The bees would -at once eat out the candy, thus opening the hole and releasing the -queen, and the sweet would put them in a good humor, so that they -would be likely to accept her without trouble.</p> - -<p>All but one of the seven were safely introduced. The seventh was found -next morning dead in front of the hive where the bees had thrown her -body out. Luckily it was not the three-dollar queen.</p> - -<p>Late that afternoon it rained a little, and the next day was hot and -muggy. It was perhaps the best honey day of the whole season. The bees -were almost frantic over the abundance of sweet. The apiary roared -like a huge mill. Carl, who had gone fishing, declared that he could -hear it a quarter of a mile away. Long after dark the apiary still -roared sonorously from every hive, where the bees were fanning -furiously with their wings, driving currents of air between the combs -to ripen the fresh honey. Bob looked into the supers after flying had -ceased, and reported that many of the combs were entirely full of -sparkling honey, clear as water. Of course, it was still unripe and -unsealed, and would need the care of the bees for some time before -taking on the rich, thick consistency of finished honey, ready to be -sealed.</p> - -<p>For the time being the apiarists had checked the swarming and had a -few days of leisure. Now and again a swarm did come out despite all -precaution, but they caught nearly all of these, so that there was a -fresh row of new colonies being built up.</p> - -<p>Then a succession of chilly days cut the honey-flow short. The bees -turned sulky and cross. It was impossible to go among the hives -without being stung, but after the third day honey began to come in -slowly once more.</p> - -<p>Strawberries were now ripe, and could be picked in the greatest -profusion. Alice gathered them daily; so did the boys, and in fact for -a few days they ate hardly anything else. Alice longed to make jam, -but had no jam-pots.</p> - -<p>Carl went out one morning to pick berries, but returned within an -hour, looking disturbed. In one hand he held his half-filled pail, and -in the other a rusty tin pan.</p> - -<p>“What do you think of this, Bob?” he demanded.</p> - -<p>The pan was half full of some dark fluid, at which his brother sniffed -carefully.</p> - -<p>“Maple syrup,” he pronounced.</p> - -<p>“Yes, and something else. See that green sediment? That’s Paris green. -I found the pan under the bushes, just beyond the hives.”</p> - -<p>“Poison!” cried Alice. “Why, it must have been meant to kill the -bees!”</p> - -<p>“I guess Mr. Larue was trying to get revenge for his sore leg,” said -Carl, grimly. “This must have been laid some days ago, for there’s -rainwater in it. Luckily the bees won’t touch any other sweet when -they’re getting honey.”</p> - -<p>In his first wrath, Bob declared that he would take his gun, go down -to the squatter’s cabin, and accuse him of the trick; but their calmer -judgment decided that it was best to let the matter pass unnoticed. So -it would probably have passed, but for a chance encounter of Carl’s a -few days later.</p> - -<p>He was going through the woods with his shotgun, and came upon a trout -brook about a mile from the cabin—a stream well known to him, though -he seldom fished there. He was quietly following up the bank when he -perceived Larue a few yards in front of him. The squatter was smoking -a clay pipe and angling industriously with a short rod. A -double-barrelled shotgun stood against a tree behind him.</p> - -<p>They sighted each other almost simultaneously, and for a moment stared -at one another in surprise and distrust.</p> - -<p>“W’at you want?” said the half-breed. “You try to creep up on me, eh?”</p> - -<p>“I didn’t know you were here,” said Carl. “But, look here, you’d -better not try to kill any more of our bees.”</p> - -<p>“Keel your bees? Don’t know w’at you mean.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, you do. I found the poison you put out. You could be arrested -for that—”</p> - -<p>“You have me arrest! Why, I keel you first!” cried Larue.</p> - -<p>“Don’t try it. And you keep away from our camp in future. When we hear -anything after dark we’re as likely as not to shoot.”</p> - -<p>Carl held his gun ready, for he half-expected Larue to attack him. But -the squatter did not reach for his weapon; he only assailed Carl with -such abuse in mixed French and English that the boy almost lost his -temper. He half raised his gun, and then, as good sense came back to -him, lowered it quickly.</p> - -<p>“We don’t want any trouble with you,” he said, trying to speak coolly. -“If we do have any, it’ll be your own fault. But you keep away from -our place. Now I’ve warned you.”</p> - -<p>He stepped back into the cedars and walked away, his ears alert for -any suspicious sound behind him. But as he cooled down he felt that he -had acted most injudiciously; and he felt, in fact, so annoyed with -himself that he determined not to mention the matter when he got home.</p> - -<p>It took him some time, however, to calm his irritation to this extent, -and meanwhile he walked rapidly and rather aimlessly through the woods -toward the northwest. He was thinking of anything but his directions, -when he came upon the remains of an old road, probably a disused -timber-road that might lead to Morton. Following this for a couple of -hundred yards, he came in sight of a little lake that he had never -seen before.</p> - -<p>It was about two miles wide and contained one small, rocky islet. Fire -and storm seemed to have swept the shores, for they were covered for -more than a hundred yards from the water with tangled dead wood, ricks -of underbrush, sprouting second growths, and raspberry canes -everywhere. In fact there seemed to be square miles of wild raspberry -around the lake. It was covered with bloom, but not a bee did he see. -There was no necessity for their bees to travel so far as this to find -all the raspberry bloom they wanted.</p> - -<p>“What a magnificent spot for an apiary!” Carl reflected, as he gazed -about him.</p> - -<p>In addition to the raspberries, Carl noticed on a little rise of -ground near him, a whole grove of large basswood trees. It was too -early for their bloom, but he was going over to inspect them when -something seemed to strike him heavily on the head.</p> - -<p>The boy dropped in his tracks, and probably for several minutes he lay -unconscious. He came to himself feeling dazed and sick, with a dim -idea that some one had clubbed him. His mind turned to Larue, as he -got weakly to his feet, but no one was anywhere in sight. His hat lay -on the ground. He recovered it, and was startled to see two small -holes through the crown. At the same time he became aware that blood -was running down his forehead.</p> - -<p>It flashed upon him that he had been shot and shot through the head! -He turned sick and faint at the idea and wondered how he came to be -still alive. He hardly dared to put his hand to his head, fearing to -find a gaping cavity, but he could not feel exactly what he could call -a wound, though there was a very sore spot on the top of his skull. He -raked away a good deal of loose hair, and blood was trickling down -freely.</p> - -<p>He was somewhat reassured at finding the wound was not going to be -immediately fatal. Looking at the holes in his hat, he saw that they -must have been made by a small-caliber, high-powered, rifle bullet, -and this exonerated Larue, for it was a shotgun that the squatter had -been carrying. Carl had heard no report; very likely the shot had been -fired by some sportsman at a mile distance, perhaps on the other side -of the lake. Missing its proper mark, the bullet had driven on till -Carl had had the misfortune to come in its way.</p> - -<p>He made his way down to the lake and contrived a cold compress on his -head with his handkerchief, and began to think of making his way home. -He was so dazed, still, that he entirely forgot the old lumber road by -which he had come in, and started through the woods in what seemed to -be the direction of the cabin.</p> - -<p>He felt very weak and sick when he attempted to walk, but he kept -going for a long time, till he came out upon a wide, half-burned -strip, choked with wild-raspberry vines. A rapid, shallow brook -hurried down the middle of the opening.</p> - -<p>He had never seen this place before that he could remember, and -suddenly it seemed to him that all his directions had gone suddenly -wrong. He had not the slightest idea in which direction the cabin lay.</p> - -<p>At this moment it occurred to him that he had a pocket compass. He -consulted it, tried to think out his position, but his head ached too -violently for any mental effort. However, he set out again in a new -direction, and, after half an hour’s unsteady walking, came into -another raspberry slash—which he presently recognized as the same one -he had passed before.</p> - -<p>At this new horror added to his pain and weakness, his strength failed -entirely. He fell among the flowering canes and lay there for a long -time, partly in a sort of stupor, partly in dull anger against the -stupid recklessness of men who go into the woods with rifles having an -effective range of two miles.</p> - -<p>He was parched with thirst and fever, but could hardly summon energy -enough to crawl down to the stream. Finally he accomplished it, drank, -and dipped his head in the water, and felt refreshed. He was able to -think more clearly.</p> - -<p>He had his compass; he knew the directions, but he could form no sort -of idea whether the cabin lay north, south, east, or west. He could -not remember definitely in which direction he had traveled after -meeting Larue, and his wanderings since that time had completely -confused him.</p> - -<p>As he lay there he heard the murmur of bees among the raspberry -blossoms. They were probably his own bees, he reflected dimly, and he -envied them their wings and their instinct that led them straight home -across the forest. And then it struck him that he could not possibly -be more than two miles from home, or the bees would not be working -there in such numbers.</p> - -<p>He thought he saw a chance of help. A laden bee flies home in a -proverbially straight line. He watched the insects as they crawled -over the blossoms and finally rose laden into the air. They circled, -rising in spirals, and then darted across the open space and over the -tree-tops. It was easy to follow the black specks for some distance -against the blue sky.</p> - -<p>Carl sighted their course carefully with the compass, took another -drink at the stream, and set off on their trail. It was a painful -tramp. His head ached excruciatingly, and when by accident he tripped -or stumbled, the jar left him weak almost to fainting. A dozen times -he sat down to rest and almost despaired of getting anywhere.</p> - -<p>It seemed to him that he had walked miles when he came to another -raspberry thicket, and here he found the guiding bees again. Again he -sighted their course, and they took the same homeward direction as the -first had done.</p> - -<p>Clearly he was on the right track and, somewhat encouraged, he forced -himself ahead again. But in less than fifteen minutes he came out upon -the shore of a rapid river.</p> - -<p>Here was an obstacle. The stream was fully sixty feet wide and looked -deep. Carl wondered how so large a river had existed in the -neighborhood, without their having seen it, and began to have doubts -as to his course after all. Perhaps these were merely wild bees from -some hollow tree. However, he was determined to follow them home. They -were crossing the river, and he would have to cross it. He picked up a -long, dry cedar pole for a float in case he went out of his depth, and -waded in.</p> - -<p>Halfway across he stepped into a deep hole, and was immediately -carried off his feet by the force of the current. Then he had reason -to bless his pole, for it saved him from drowning, though he was -rolled over and over and half choked. He managed to recover his -footing and scrambled ashore—but on the same side of the river as -before.</p> - -<p>He was more dazed than ever by the ducking, and he started down the -bank to look for a better place to cross. Bees were going over his -head in great numbers. The roar was tremendous, and now he noticed -that they were crossing the river in both directions, coming and -going.</p> - -<p>Perhaps, he thought, he was on the right side after all, and he -stumbled on for another hundred yards. He encountered a beaten path, -followed it, and the woods opened into a clearing. All at once the -noise of the bees rose prodigiously, and like a flash the whole -landscape turned familiar.</p> - -<p>It was home. He saw the roof of the cabin. The bees had led him -straight after all. His strength almost failed him in this last lap, -but Bob saw him coming and rushed anxiously to meet him.</p> - -<p>“What’s the matter?” he cried as he ran up.</p> - -<p>“I’ve been shot,” Carl muttered. “Plumb through the head.”</p> - -<p>And then he collapsed, so that Bob had to call Alice for help and -carry him into the house.</p> - -<p>He recovered when they were sponging his head and cutting away the -hair to get at his wound. The blood had caked and had stopped its -bleeding. It must have looked gruesome, for he heard Alice and Bob -discussing how they could get a doctor.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know that it’s so bad, after all,” said Bob, after more of -Carl’s crown had been washed clean, and after a little more -examination he began to laugh.</p> - -<p>“Get up!” he said. “You’re not hurt. It’s only a graze, hardly deep -enough to draw blood!”</p> - -<p>Carl looked astonished and foolish. Alice, who had been pale, but -collected, gave Bob a reproachful look, sat down suddenly, and began -to cry a little.</p> - -<p>“Just a little m-more, though, and he would have been k-killed!” she -stammered.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Bob, more seriously, “half an inch lower, and that bullet -might have done for you. How did it happen? Who could have shot at -you?”</p> - -<p>Carl gave an account of his adventure. As soon as he learned that his -deadly wound was only a scratch he felt remarkably better. A good part -of his collapse must have been due to pure mental effect. But it was -not all imaginary; the graze of a high-powered bullet upon the top of -the head was stunning enough, and when he tried to get up he found -himself still weak and staggery.</p> - -<p>“But I’ve found a superb place for another bee-yard,” he told them. “I -don’t think it’s more than three miles from here, and there’s enough -raspberry and basswood there for the bees to work themselves to death. -It would be a gold mine to us. We ought to move half the bees over -there at once.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chV' title='V—Failing Hopes'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER V</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>FAILING HOPES</span> -</h2> -<p>Next day Carl was still feeling unsteady and ill, but on the following -morning he felt well enough to guide Bob to the new apiary site, and -the two boys went off together. They returned full of enthusiasm.</p> - -<p>“There must be half a square mile of basswood trees,” said Bob. “So -we’d have a double chance, if the berries failed.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and the best is that there’s a road going to the place,” Carl -added. “The old lumber road I told you about. It comes out on the road -to Morton, a mile or so from here. It would only need a day or two -with an ax to clear it out for a wagon to pass.”</p> - -<p>“This yard is certainly getting crowded,” said Alice, thoughtfully. -“With all the new swarms, we’ll have over two hundred colonies soon, -and a hundred is as many as most locations will support. But what -about the expense of moving? It would cost six dollars a day to get a -team from Morton, and we’d have to build a honey-house there, too.”</p> - -<p>“I believe it would pay us even if it cost a hundred dollars,” said -Carl. “But I suppose we can’t do anything till some one goes to Morton -and gets Mr. Farr’s permission to move them. The mortgage says they’re -not to be moved without permission.”</p> - -<p>This was undoubtedly the case, and, as none of them had time to go to -the village just then, the matter was dropped temporarily. But new -events speedily made it a live issue again.</p> - -<p>A little warm rain fell in the afternoon, and next morning the -honey-flow, which had been failing, began again profusely. And then, -suddenly, a riot of swarming broke out among the bees.</p> - -<p>A slow, light honey-flow always induces more swarming than a heavy -one, and Alice had been nervous about the matter for some days. On -this morning she went out with Carl to examine a few of the hives, and -in the very first they found what they had feared to find—a cluster of -the peanut-shaped queen-cells. They were not quite sealed, but would -have been finished the next day, and the colony would have swarmed.</p> - -<p>Carl cut them all out. This treatment usually delays swarming at any -rate for a week, till the colony can raise a fresh batch of cells. But -occasionally, when they have the swarming fever badly, they will -swarm, cells or not, and it is, moreover, very difficult to make sure -of destroying every cell on ten combs swarming with bees.</p> - -<p>The next colony had three heavy supers of honey piled on top of the -brood-chamber, and when they got down to it at last they found no -signs of swarming. But the third colony had cells just started.</p> - -<p>Growing uneasy, they went to look at the hive where the three-dollar -queen had been placed. They could not afford to let that queen lead -her bees away to the woods, but there was not much danger of it, for a -queen less than a year old seldom swarms.</p> - -<p>But on opening the hive they found the brood-combs choked with honey, -few eggs laid, and swarming cells well under way.</p> - -<p>“Why, this queen must be no good!” exclaimed Carl.</p> - -<p>“No, it isn’t that,” replied Alice. “But a queen never lays well just -after she’s come out of the mailing-cage, and the bees have got ahead -of her and filled up the combs with honey where the brood should be. -The poor queen has no room left to lay in; she feels crowded and -that’s what gave them the idea of swarming.”</p> - -<p>It was lucky they had discovered it in time. They cut out the -incipient queen-cells, gave empty combs, and felt sure that they had -made the colony safe. They were just proceeding to another of the -colonies where one of the new queens was, when, with a loud roaring, a -storm of bees began to volley out of a hive at the farthest end of the -yard.</p> - -<p>They surged about wildly in the air for some time, and then settled in -a cluster on the tip of a small cedar where swarms had alighted -several times before. Alice kept an eye on them, while Carl hurried -off to the barn for fresh hives.</p> - -<p>Before he could get back another swarm roared out of a second hive, -eddied about like a cloud of smoke, and finally settled. And then a -third hive swarmed.</p> - -<p>When bees are in the mood for it, the flying of a single swarm will -sometimes start a perfect uproar of swarming throughout an apiary, and -colonies will become carried away by the excitement and swarm without -being normally ready for it. That seemed to be the case this time. Bob -came running out to help, but a fourth swarm was already in the air. -Then came two more, which united and settled in one enormous cluster, -the size of a large bucket. Bees fairly darkened the air; the -apiarists lost track of how many swarms were out or where they came -from, and the noise was like a small tornado.</p> - -<p>The three rushed about frantically, gathering up such clustered swarms -as they could most easily reach, and Bob was instructed to dash a -dipperful of water right into the top of every colony that might be -likely to abscond. Such a drenching is an effectual check to swarming -for that day at any rate and does the bees no harm.</p> - -<p>This vigorous treatment produced some quiet. No more swarms had -emerged for about fifteen minutes, when the familiar crescendo roar -sounded again, and Bob uttered a despairing yell. From the -three-dollar queen’s colony the bees were pouring out like steam from -an escape-valve.</p> - -<p>“Oh! don’t let them go!” shrieked Alice.</p> - -<p>Bob rushed up and dashed water into the entrance; Carl poured in a -volume of smoke, but nothing could stop them. There was already an -enormous cloud of bees circling over the hive, and the only thing now -was to wait till they had clustered. But they did not seem inclined to -cluster. The swarm drifted about uncertainly, here and there, now -high, now low, and finally began to edge toward the river.</p> - -<p>Expecting that they would settle on the willows by the water, the -three apiarists followed it anxiously. But it did not settle. It went -over the trees, and out above the stream.</p> - -<p>“They’re going across! They’re making straight for the woods!” cried -Alice. “That queen is lost!”</p> - -<p>“No, they’ll surely cluster a little further on,” Bob exclaimed. “I’m -going to follow them up. We can’t lose that queen. I’ll bring them -back.”</p> - -<p>He snatched up a grain sack that they had already been using in -collecting swarms, jumped into the boat and rowed himself across the -river.</p> - -<p>The runaways did not travel very fast, and he could see the swarm -gyrating and drifting like a cloud of smoke over the trees. But it -moved too fast for him to keep up with it over that rough ground. He -kept it in sight for nearly a quarter of a mile, and then it faded -like mist into the sky.</p> - -<p>It might be that the bees had already selected some hollow tree for -their new home, and had gone straight to it without clustering. This -sometimes happens, but very rarely; a swarm almost always settles and -hangs for some time, probably as a means of getting its force -together, ready for the final journey, and Bob felt sure that this -swarm would sooner or later settle on a branch.</p> - -<p>He kept on, therefore, scrutinizing the trees carefully for a pendant -brown bunch. No such thing appeared, and though he stopped and -listened at every few rods he did not hear the humming drone that a -swarm keeps up for some time after it has settled.</p> - -<p>He lost count of distance, stumbling along with his eyes in the air, -but he must have gone a mile from the apiary when he was stopped by a -savage, guttural grunt, apparently close by. Just ahead of him was a -dense clump of willows and alders fringing a small stream, and as he -gazed, he thought he saw the dim outline of an animal through the -shrubbery, something large and tall like a buck.</p> - -<p>Anxious to get a look, Bob edged sideways and parted the willows a -little. He was thunderstruck to see a bull moose standing in the -shallow water and glaring at him.</p> - -<p>Now he remembered having heard at Morton that moose had lately been -seen in this district. At one time they were plentiful; then for years -they had vanished, and were only beginning to reappear as they strayed -south from the great game-preserves to the north.</p> - -<p>At most times of the year they are exceedingly shy and timid animals, -hard to get in view. Bob was amazed that this one had let him come up -so close, and he was edging forward to get a better look through the -tangle of under brush in front of him when the animal charged at him -furiously.</p> - -<p>He jumped aside, found himself near a low-branched cedar, and -scrambled up it. He had just time to draw his legs out of reach when -the moose crashed into the tree with a force that jarred it to the -roots.</p> - -<p>When Bob recovered his breath he had time to feel astonished and -indignant at this unprovoked attack. Bull moose are sometimes -dangerous in the rutting season of autumn, but never in early summer, -and the horns of this one had not yet quite outgrown their “velvet.”</p> - -<p>But he was clearly in a murderous temper. He stamped, tore up the -earth and brushes around the cedar, gritted his teeth, and cocked his -eye upward at the bee-keeper with a baleful glare. Then, all at once, -Bob saw what was the matter.</p> - -<p>The lower part of the bull’s right shoulder was mangled and torn with -wounds that were evidently not more than a day or two old. They might -have been made by the claws of a bear; more likely by a charge of -buckshot. Anyhow, they were enough to account for a good deal of bad -temper, for they must have caused intense pain.</p> - -<p>But the bull’s hostility did not seem to last long. Bob was looking -upwards to see if he could climb higher in his tree, and when he -glanced down again the space beneath him was empty. The moose had -slipped silently away into the woods.</p> - -<p>Whether he had really fled or was merely hiding in a near-by thicket -Bob could not tell. He hesitated to come down, and for some minutes he -sat dubiously in the branches, looking carefully about him for the -enemy. Then something caught his eye that gave him a joyful surprise.</p> - -<p>About twenty yards away there was a great brownish lump clustered at -the tip of a low maple sapling, which bent slightly under the weight. -Bob stared at it intently. It was certainly a swarm of bees. It could -hardly be any other than the one he was chasing. If it had not been -for the bull moose he might not have seen them, for they were aside -from the straight line, and so near the ground that an elevated post -was needed to distinguish them.</p> - -<p>He was desperately anxious to secure them now, for there was no -telling when they might take wing again. He waited for some ten -minutes very impatiently. No sign nor sound came from the moose, and -Bob slid to earth and hastened toward the little maple.</p> - -<p>The little tree had sagged over so that the swarm hung no higher than -his shoulders, and it could be captured in the neatest possible -manner. He carefully slipped the mouth of his sack over the swarm till -the whole cluster was inside. Then he gathered the sack around the -branch they hung by, and shook it violently. There was a sudden roar, -and a heavy weight dropped into the sack. He had secured all the -swarm, except for a few bees that flew about in wild dismay at this -disappearance of their comrades.</p> - -<p>Much elated, Bob turned back toward home. The sack hummed and stirred -with the efforts of the angry insects to get out. But he had hardly -gone ten yards when something stirred in the underbrush. He stopped, -startled. The next instant a fearful bellow filled his ears, and the -wounded bull burst through a curtain of evergreens.</p> - -<p>Bob turned and ran as fast as he could, still clinging to the sack. -Luckily the bull was somewhat lame from his wound and not in his -regular racing form. At is was, Bob was almost run down; he saved -himself only by leaping aside and changing his direction. All the time -he kept on the lookout for a tree that he could climb, and he clung -tightly to the sack. He was determined not to drop it except as a last -resort, for the mouth was not tied, and the bees would escape at once.</p> - -<p>The hoofs of the bull clattered behind him. He dodged wildly again, -swerved behind a tree, and caught sight of a dead hemlock trunk that -was spiked with short branches, and leaned at a decided angle.</p> - -<p>It was almost as easy to climb as a ladder, and Bob scrambled up to -safety, still carrying his swarm.</p> - -<p>The bull’s disappointed fury was now uncontrollable. He roared -frightfully; his black mane stood stiffly on end, and he gritted and -gnashed his teeth. Probably by this time he had got Bob thoroughly -associated with the pain that he was suffering, and it was too much -for him to be twice checked in his revenge.</p> - -<p>He reared up with his fore feet against the trunk of the hemlock. Then -he drew back a few yards and charged into it with such force that, to -Bob’s horror, it gave slightly and leaned even farther over than -before. Evidently the roots were rotten and held insecurely. It was no -place of safety after all.</p> - -<p>Again the bull crashed into the trunk, and this time, with an ominous -creaking, it went over more than a foot.</p> - -<p>This result seemed to encourage the bull greatly. He rammed his head -against the trunk and pushed hard. Bob heard the rotten roots -snapping. Pausing now and again to glance up at Bob with what seemed a -gleam of savage triumph in his eye, the bull continued to butt and -push.</p> - -<p>Bob clung in his tree panic-stricken, while it swayed over farther and -farther. In a few seconds he would surely be hurled under the brute’s -hoofs. Then it flashed upon him that he had one weapon left, and a -terrible one. He disliked to use it, even to save his life, but -another charge of the bull, and a heavy lurch of the almost uprooted -tree convinced him that he must not hesitate.</p> - -<p>He held the sack directly over the bull’s head, and shook out the -swarm. At the same time he ducked quickly, and snatched his coat up to -cover his own face.</p> - -<p>There was a hissing roar as though from a burst steam-pipe, and he -felt a dozen burning stings on his hands. Then he heard a sudden, -astonished snort from the bull and a sound of furious trampling.</p> - -<p>He ventured to peep through an opening in his coat. The air round him -was full of bees, and the bull’s face and head seemed covered with a -surging brown mass. Thousands of bees were clinging and stinging -pitilessly, while the animal rushed about, fiercely shaking its head -and bellowing with pain and fury.</p> - -<p>Blindly it started to bolt, and collided heavily with a tree. It made -a fresh start and splashed into the brook. From the sounds it seemed -to be rolling in the water. Probably it got rid of some of its -tormentors in this way, but certainly not of all. It dashed out of the -creek, bolted past Bob’s tree, knots of maddened bees still clinging -to its hide, and crashed through the underbrush, straight away into -the woods. There was no doubt that it was gone this time, for Bob -could hear its smashing rush fully half a mile away.</p> - -<p>Bob was stung a good deal himself, but this seemed a very light -matter. He slipped to the ground and lost no time in finding a safer -place, for the air was still full of savagely-excited bees. Here he -remained for half an hour, picking the stings out of his skin, and -waiting till he considered it safe to go home.</p> - -<p>He might as well recover the sack, he thought, before he left, and he -went to get it, regretting bitterly the loss of the swarm. No doubt it -had saved his life; it could not be helped; but still it was a shame -to lose Alice’s three-dollar bee.</p> - -<p>But as he approached his former perch he was surprised to find that -the bees had collected again. Not all of them, indeed; instead of the -big swarm, there was now only about a quart of bees in a little bunch -on a cedar twig. But they would hardly have gathered there if the -queen had not been with them, and Bob bent over the cluster and looked -at it closely.</p> - -<p>They had got over their stinging fury now. He was able to scrutinize -them carefully, and in a few seconds he made out the slender, graceful -body of the yellow, Italian queen, as she crawled about among her -bees. Full of delight, he slipped the sack over it, shook the bees -off, and started hastily for home. More than half were lost, to be -sure, but he would have sacrificed all the rest of the swarm to have -saved the queen.</p> - -<p>He reached the river without seeing anything more of the bull, ferried -himself across, and went up to the apiary, where Carl and Alice were -still working hard.</p> - -<p>“I’ve got ’em!” he cried triumphantly as he appeared.</p> - -<p>“Got them!” his brother exclaimed. “Looks as if they’d got you!”</p> - -<p>Bob’s face was indeed a shocking sight. A bee-keeper usually becomes -hardened to stings, so that they do not cause swellings; but Bob had -not yet become sufficiently inoculated. There were big lumps on his -forehead, one eye was nearly closed, his chin was lopsided, and both -his hands were somewhat puffed. But he was highly elated at having -recovered the swarm with the valuable queen, which they at once -carefully restored to a hive.</p> - -<p>“There, old lady!” said Carl, as he saw the yellow queen creep into -the hive with her bees, “you’ve had enough wild life now, and you’d -better settle down to business.”</p> - -<p>Bob gave them a brief account of what had happened, while he helped -them sort out the swarms, but in the course of another hour his eye -closed so badly that he was obliged to retire to the cabin. Several -more swarms had come out while he had been gone, but all of them had -been recovered, and by that night they had twenty-eight new colonies -more than they had bought.</p> - -<p>The apiary was certainly far too crowded, and doubtless there would be -still more swarming before the season was over. Some of them ought to -be moved to another spot, and the sooner this could be done the -better.</p> - -<p>The next day was hot and dry. No honey appeared to be coming in, and -no swarms went out, and early the following morning Carl paddled the -boat down to Morton.</p> - -<p>He had no difficulty in securing Mr. Farr’s written consent to moving -part of the bees to the new location by the lake. He ordered a -two-horse team and hayrack to come out to the apiary the next day, and -came home with a roll of wire gauze and several papers of tacks.</p> - -<p>It took a day to clear away the bushes and brush from the old road, -but it was ready when the wagon arrived from Morton, and they moved -fifty colonies the next night, in two loads. The next morning they -moved another load by daylight. It was hard, tedious work to load and -unload the heavy hives, and the wagon had to move slowly all the way. -It was dangerous work, too; though the entrances of the hives were -closed with wire gauze, an aperture might develop through which the -bees could rush out, and the result would probably be stung horses, a -runaway, and a line of smashed hives scattered along the road. One of -the boys walked with a lighted smoker beside the load all the way, on -the watch for possible trouble, and they all breathed much more freely -when the hives were off the wagon.</p> - -<p>They set them on large stones a few rods back from the water. Later -they could make regular stands for them, and before another season, of -course, they would have to build a small house for extracting and -storing the apparatus.</p> - -<p>For the present they contented themselves with a tiny hut no bigger -than a piano-case, built of rough logs, in which to store tools and a -few frames, extra hives, and odds and ends. Most of the colonies in -the new yard were old ones that had swarmed and were weak in bees. -They would gather no more surplus honey and would need little -attention this year, but would build up strong for the next season.</p> - -<p>The day of the swarming riot was the last really good day of the -raspberry bloom. The effect of the shower had been transient. The -weather turned hot and dry. The honey dried up in the flowers, and the -discouraged bees worked only for an hour or two early every morning.</p> - -<p>“If it would only rain—really rain hard!” groaned Alice.</p> - -<p>“Unless it does, the honey-flow is certainly at an end,” said Carl, -anxiously. “The berry bloom won’t last long in this drought and I’m -certain there’s nothing like a thousand dollars’ worth of honey in the -supers now.”</p> - -<p>“No—or five hundred,” added Bob.</p> - -<p>In fact, the earliest raspberry blossoms were now replaced by green -fruit. If rain should fall in time, the later bloom might last for a -week more, and there was the basswood flowering still to come. But the -weather remained hot and dry, and there was no dew at night. Alice’s -garden withered, though she watered it every evening. Twice clouds -rolled up from the south, and they heard thunder. It must have rained -within ten miles, but not a drop fell at the apiary.</p> - -<p>“Even half an hour’s shower would mean a couple of days’ honey-flow,” -said Bob.</p> - -<p>But it did not come. Now and again a little moisture in the air set -the bees working for an hour or two, but most of the time they were -idle. As usual in a honey dearth they became bad-tempered. Their -owners could no longer stroll about among the hives with impunity. The -bees came into the cabin, attracted by one of the pails of candied -honey, and would have carried every morsel of it away if they had been -permitted. Robber bees were prowling about every hive, looking for a -chance to steal a little sweet from some careless colony, but every -entrance was alive with alert guards, and no bee was allowed to pass -in without being examined and smelt all over. The robbers did get a -foothold in one weak colony, however, and before the apiarists saw it, -it was besieged by a cloud of bees. They carried it by assault, too, -after half an hour’s fighting, killed the defenders, tore down most of -the combs, and carried every drop of the honey away to their own hive.</p> - -<p>Then they turned their attention to the hive standing next in the row, -but this was a powerful colony, and the raiders got more than they -bargained for. In a moment the entrance was covered with knots of -furiously-fighting bees. Every robber was pounced upon the moment it -alighted. The attack was beaten off, and for a time quiet reigned in -the yard.</p> - -<p>Day by day the raspberry bloom vanished, and no fresh buds were -opening now. The time came at last when it was entirely gone, and all -the thickets were covered with fruit. The basswood trees were full of -buds—but would they yield nectar?</p> - -<p>It was the middle of July. In two weeks they must pay five hundred -dollars, with interest, and they did not have the money. Unless they -could make it, the bees would be taken from them.</p> - -<p>“If the basswood only yields as it should we’ll manage it, after all,” -said Bob, trying to be optimistic.</p> - -<p>Alas! the basswood flowered in the midst of a hot wave, when the whole -land lay baked and panting. The bloom lasted only a day or two, dried -up, and withered. Scarcely a bee had touched the blossoms.</p> - -<p>The Harmans felt unspeakably gloomy and discouraged. The failure of -their hopes, after so much anticipation, labor, and experience, was -hard to bear.</p> - -<p>“We may as well look the thing square in the face, Allie,” said Carl -one morning, when he was alone with his sister in the cabin. “The -season’s over, and it’s a failure. I don’t know how we’ll save the -bees.”</p> - -<p>“Surely we’ll have money enough to pay Mr. Farr. We must save the bees -if we starve ourselves, for they mean everything to us. How much money -have we left?”</p> - -<p>“About two hundred dollars. It has just melted away, with all the -expenses of fresh supplies and sugar and then the cost of establishing -the new yard, besides our own living.”</p> - -<p>“Well, surely we can get three hundred dollars’ worth of honey, to -make up enough for our payment. We can manage to live some way and rub -along till another season comes.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that’s what I wanted to talk about,” went on Carl, earnestly. -“You see, Bob’s university work mustn’t be interrupted on any account. -He’ll want to drop it, I know, to save the money, but we mustn’t let -him. We’ve got to find the money somehow. Now, I’ve been thinking that -you might go back to Harman’s Corners, where you could live in our old -house for little or nothing, and I might get some kind of a job in -Toronto.”</p> - -<p>“You’re right,” Alice agreed. “Bob must keep up his work. But I -wouldn’t stay at home all alone. I’d rather get a job in Toronto, -too.”</p> - -<p>Then began a long discussion of plans, but they revealed nothing of -all this to Bob. That very evening, however, Bob proposed that his -sister take a walk with him.</p> - -<p>“This investment hasn’t panned out, Alice,” he said, when they were -well away from the cabin. “We’re not going to make a cent profit this -year. I blame myself for it, for I got you both into it.”</p> - -<p>“Nonsense, Bob!” returned Alice. “We were just as eager as you were. -We all rushed into it, and we all knew that it was a gamble on the -weather.”</p> - -<p>“Well, anyhow, I’m not going back to college next term. Carl will want -me to, I know, but you must back me up. I couldn’t use any money that -way. We’ll be hard up at the best, and I won’t have you two rob -yourselves for my support.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, Bob! You must go back!”</p> - -<p>“Well, I won’t. What’s a year lost, anyhow. But I’m uncertain what to -do. I could come up here and trap all winter. I’m sure I could make -several hundred dollars, all clear profit; but trapping is a sort of -gamble, too. Or I could get a job any time with the Toronto Electric -Company at about fifteen a week. Trapping would be more fun, but the -other would be surer, and I’d get a lot of practical experience. What -do you think?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know!” said Alice, half laughing and half crying. “Oh, I -don’t know, Bob. I think—I think we’d better harvest our honey first -and see how it turns out.”</p> - -<p>And the next day they began to harvest the crop.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chVI' title='VI—Robbing the Robber'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VI</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>ROBBING THE ROBBER</span> -</h2> -<p>It was the comb honey in the one-pound sections on which they were -depending for an early sale at a fancy price, and naturally they -wished to take this off first. The only place to pile and sort it was -in the cabin, and they proceeded to turn the boys’ bedroom into a -storehouse. There was no furniture to take out; they merely removed -the bedding, and laid boards over the bunk to make a platform. Carl -nailed wire gauze over the window, and Bob constructed a rough screen -for the outer door. With the bees in that fierce robbing humor the -place must, above all things, be kept bee-tight.</p> - -<p>It was a ticklish task to take off the supers, for the bees were -intensely irritable, and a hive was no more than opened when a host of -robbers collected, eager to pilfer a mouthful. The boys had to be -quick in their movements. Bob opened the hive, and the moment the lid -was up Carl drove great blasts of smoke into the super, at the same -time keeping enough smoke in the surrounding air to repel the thieves. -Bob then seized the super, knocked it on the ground to jar out the few -bees left in it, and hurried with it to the cabin.</p> - -<p>In the storeroom Alice was waiting to sort and grade the honey. The -delicate sections were glued fast in the frames that held them, and -had to be pried carefully out. The very finest sections, sealed white -and smooth all over, were classed as “Fancy”; those of slightly -rougher appearance ranked as “No. 1.” A certain number of the rest -might be saleable at a low price; the honey was just as good as the -“Fancy,” but their appearance was against them. But the larger part -was worth nothing, except for the honey that could be obtained by the -extractor.</p> - -<p>From the first it became apparent that there was going to be more -honey than they had expected, and their hopes began to go nervously -upward. When the opening of a hive showed a good super, with all its -combs smooth and white, the boys chuckled, and Bob exulted in its -weight as he lugged it into the house. Some colonies had as many as -three supers like this, but many had only one or two, and some, where -the colony had swarmed, only a worthless and unfinished set of combs.</p> - -<p>Beside these, there were the extracting supers, containing a good deal -of honey, but they did not intend to extract at once. The comb honey -came first.</p> - -<p>The piles of supers accumulated in the little room faster than Alice -could remove the sections. With rising hope, the boys worked -feverishly, and shortly after noon they carried in the last super. -Then they set to work to assist Alice at the sorting and grading.</p> - -<p>Every section had to be looked at and estimated, the propolis and wax -scraped from the wood, and then placed carefully in the -shipping-cases. The emptied supers were put outdoors; the supers with -unfinished sections were set by themselves. All three worked hard that -afternoon, and much of the next day, but it was not till nearly -supper-time that they emptied the last super, and filled the last -shipping case.</p> - -<p>There were 3840 sections. Of these, 1200 ranked as “Fancy,” and about -600 as “No. 1.” Nearly 2000 sections were unsaleable.</p> - -<p>“These we can eat ourselves,” remarked Alice.</p> - -<p>“We ought to get $2.50 a dozen for the best, and $2 for the ‘No. 1’,” -Bob estimated. “That comes to—”</p> - -<p>“$350,” said Carl, who was a lightning calculator. “Why, that’s not so -bad! Then all those unsaleable sections must have at least a thousand -pounds of honey in them that we can extract. Besides, there must be -three or four hundred dollars’ worth of extracted honey on the hives -which we’ll be able to sell later.”</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” shouted Bob. “We’ll pull through, after all.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and with something to the good!” cried Alice.</p> - -<p>In their relief and joy they joined hands and performed a wild dance -around the shipping cases. It did not last long, though, for they were -tired and stiff with bending over the supers; they were gummy with -propolis and wax, and sticky with honey, and on the window was a -cluster of bees the size of a small swarm, which had been carried in -with the honey. After dark Carl brushed them off into a bucket, -carried them out, and poured them down in front of a weak hive. They -crawled gladly in, and as they all had their sacs full of honey, they -were admitted. A honey-laden bee is always welcome to any hive.</p> - -<p>The comb honey had to be sold at once, for the time was growing short. -Bob proposed that he should go over to Morton and make the sale in -Toronto by telegraph, or by long-distance telephone if he could get -connections. It was a good plan, but Carl was anxious to be on hand to -hear how the negotiations went; Alice was no less eager, and was, -moreover, unwilling to be left alone at the cabin, so it ended in -preparations for all of them to go to Morton and make the deal -together.</p> - -<p>“Above all things, we must be careful to leave the cabin bee-tight,” -Alice warned them. “Just fancy the bees finding a way in. They’d carry -all that honey back to the hives before we got home.”</p> - -<p>So they plugged every chink in the logs most carefully with wet clay -and moss, looked to the wire screens, and even blocked up the chimney. -The cabin door they fastened with a big padlock and chain, and Alice -packed up half a dozen of the best sections for a gift to Mr. Farr.</p> - -<p>“No use trying to sweeten him,” Bob warned her. “He’ll take it, but -he’ll be as hard as nails with us all the same. He keeps business and -friendship separate, you know.”</p> - -<p>“Anyway I’m going to take him the honey. I rather like him, you know,” -Alice persisted.</p> - -<p>They went down in the boat, a slow and rather lazy drift with the -current in the warm morning sunshine. About noon they reached Morton, -and found that they could get telegraph connections at the railway -station, and long-distance telephone at the hotel.</p> - -<p>As a first step, Bob telegraphed to the headquarters of the Provincial -Bee-keepers’ Association to learn what the season had been throughout -the country, and how prices were ranging. It was two o’clock in the -afternoon before the reply came; the waiting had been something of a -strain, and Bob looked nervous when he ripped open the yellow -envelope, but then his face brightened.</p> - -<p>“Splendid! Listen to this!” he cried.</p> - -<p>“‘Honey crop reported about one third normal throughout Ontario. -Severe drought. Members advised to hold for good prices. Market -firm.’”</p> - -<p>“The drought must have been worse with them than it was with us,” said -Carl. “Well, prices are likely to go ’way up, and we ought to have a -chance to make some money.”</p> - -<p>“It looks so,” replied Bob, “and now I want you to let me do the -negotiating. I’m an ignoramus at handling bees, but I think I can sell -honey better than either of you.”</p> - -<p>“Who’ll you sell it to?” asked Alice.</p> - -<p>“I’m going to try Mr. Brown, of Brown & Son, you know, the wholesale -grocery people. We used to buy a lot of stock from him for the store. -I’ve often bought from him by long-distance, and I’ll see if I can’t -sell to him the same way. Anyhow, I think he’ll give us a square -deal.”</p> - -<p>The telephone was not in a booth, but merely attached to the wall of -the hotel office. However, there was no one in sight or hearing at the -time, and they might as well have been in a private room. Bob called -the long-distance connection, and after about fifteen minutes’ waiting -got a reply from the Toronto grocery dealers. Alice and Carl stood -beside him, and listened breathlessly to the conversation.</p> - -<p>“Is that Mr. Brown?” cried Bob. “This is Bob Harman—of Harman’s -Corners, you know. No, I’m not there just now. I’m running a bee-ranch -up north. A bee-ranch. Honey-bees, you know. Yes. Yes, we have a lot -of splendid comb-honey. Are you in the market?”</p> - -<p>For a moment he listened attentively.</p> - -<p>“We have about a hundred dozen ‘Fancy’ and about fifty dozen ‘No. 1,’” -he continued. “We ask $3 and $2.50 a dozen for the two grades, freight -paid to Toronto.”</p> - -<p>“What an awful price! We’ll never get it,” whispered Alice, startled.</p> - -<p>“Don’t speak. You’ll shake his nerve,” Carl muttered.</p> - -<p>“No,” Bob was saying into the transmitter. “We wouldn’t care to take -much less. There’s been a bad crop everywhere, and honey is scarce -this year. Oh, we couldn’t think of taking that. What’s that? All -right. In an hour, then. Good-by.” He turned away from the telephone.</p> - -<p>“They actually had the nerve to offer $2.25 for the ‘Fancy,’ and $2 -for the other,” he said. “They said they had bought a lot of ‘Fancy’ -at $2, but I think that was pure bluff. And I thought they were sure -to give us a square deal! Well, I’m to ring them up again in an hour, -and if they won’t come up to a decent figure, there are other dealers -in Toronto.”</p> - -<p>It seemed a long time to wait. Alice carried her gift of honey to Mr. -Farr, and came back reporting that he had seemed much pleased. But he -had shaken his head grimly at her account of the poor season.</p> - -<p>“The old skinflint needn’t worry,” said Carl, angrily. “He’ll get his -money all right.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, but I’m not going to sacrifice that honey,” said Bob with -decision. “It’s cost us too much—with cats and moose and stings and -bears and wendigos. It ought to be worth a dollar a pound. If we can’t -do well in Toronto, we’ll ring up Montreal. Honey prices are often -better there.”</p> - -<p>They did not wait much beyond the hour in calling Mr. Brown again, and -this time Bob got him with very little delay.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” he said in reply to some question, “I’ve thought it over, and -we can’t possibly accept what you offer. We’ll shade the price to -$2.80 for the best grade, but we think we should have at least $2.50 -for the other. It’s really beautiful honey.”</p> - -<p>He listened a moment and frowned. “Hold the line a moment,” he said at -last. “I must consult my brother.”</p> - -<p>He turned to Carl and Alice, holding his hand over the transmitter, so -that their conversation should not leak through to Toronto.</p> - -<p>“He says his best figure is $2.60 and $2.30, cash down,” he said in a -low tone. “What shall we do?”</p> - -<p>“Take it, by all means. That isn’t so bad,” said Carl, anxiously.</p> - -<p>“Yes, take it—take it!” Alice begged. “We mustn’t lose the sale.”</p> - -<p>Bob looked at them thoughtfully for a moment, and then an expression -of determination crossed his face. He turned back to the telephone.</p> - -<p>“Sorry—can’t do it!” he said, firmly. “We will take $2.70 and $2.40, -but that’s positively our last word. We’re thinking of shipping to -Montreal.”</p> - -<p>Alice turned pale, and clutched Bob’s arm in remonstrance, but he paid -no attention to her.</p> - -<p>“No,” he said into the telephone, “I’m not trying to drive any hard -bargain, Mr. Brown. But there’s scarcely any comb-honey this year, and -prices are going up. Shall we ship? All right. That will be -satisfactory. We can ship to-morrow or the day after. Good-by!”</p> - -<p>He hung up the telephone and made a wild leap into the air.</p> - -<p>“Victory!” he exclaimed. “We get $2.70 and $2.40, cash on delivery. -About twenty cents a dozen more than we’d counted on. It was the -mention of Montreal that fetched them, for they were keen to get the -honey. We’re saved!”</p> - -<p>“Frenzied finance!” said Carl, who had been jotting down some figures -on a scrap of paper. “But it comes to $390, and with the $200 we’ve -got we’ll be able to make our payment all right. Let’s get that honey -shipped at once.”</p> - -<p>First, however, they had to arrange for a teamster to go out to the -apiary for the honey; then they had to make some purchases in the -village, and when they had finished their errands, it was too late for -the long pull up the river that afternoon. So they all stayed at the -hotel and started up-stream at eight o’clock the next morning.</p> - -<p>It was nearly noon when they arrived at the apiary landing, and they -were tired, but light-hearted with success. They went up toward the -cabin with their arms full of packages, and suddenly Alice, who was in -front, uttered a sharp cry.</p> - -<p>A cloud of robber bees hung roaring about the cabin. The door, which -they had left locked, stood half open. They dropped their parcels and -rushed up. The main room was swarming with bees, but fortunately the -screen door into the honey room was shut, and they had not been able -to get in, though they were trying hard.</p> - -<p>But a glance through the wire showed that the honey had been pillaged. -The piles of supers were overturned; so were the stacks of full -shipping cases, and half of them seemed to be gone.</p> - -<p>Alice gave one glance through the door at the wreck and then dropped -on a bench and hid her face in her hands. Bob rushed into the -store-room, with Carl at his heels.</p> - -<p>A great part of the best honey was gone—nearly all the “No. 1” grade -and some of the “Fancy.” They could not tell accurately at the moment -how much. More than a thousand pounds seemed to be missing, but the -thief had abstained from taking any of the unsaleable sections.</p> - -<p>“It can’t have been gone long!” said Carl, excitedly. “Let’s see if -there are any tracks.”</p> - -<p>As they hastened out they noticed that the heavy staple that held the -padlock had been pried off. The ground near the door was too hard to -show tracks, but a little way from the river they found footprints -heading toward the cabin, and in the gravel along the shore they found -the mark where a boat had been drawn up.</p> - -<p>“Gone by water!” said Bob grimly. “Do you suppose it was that -half-breed squatter?”</p> - -<p>“There’s no one else living along the river within ten miles. He must -have seen us all going down the river yesterday, and knew that he had -a clear field. What fools we were to leave all that honey. We’re done -for now!”</p> - -<p>“Not much!” returned Bob. “If that fellow has the honey, we’ll get it -back. Here, come along!”</p> - -<p>He led the way rapidly back to the cabin, took down his rifle, and -began to fill the magazine with cartridges. Carl picked up his -shotgun.</p> - -<p>“Bob! What are you going to do?” exclaimed Alice.</p> - -<p>“Get that honey back,” replied her brother shortly. “Going down the -river.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if you’re going, I’ll go too and paddle the boat.”</p> - -<p>“No, you stay here, Allie. There won’t be any shooting, but this is no -girl’s business. Stay here and get the bees out of here and things -straightened up. We won’t be long—I hope!”</p> - -<div id='i005' class='mt01 mb01 wi005'> - <img src='images/illus-005.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>“No, you stay here, Allie. There won’t be any shooting, but this is no girl’s business”</p> -</div> -<p>Alice looked entreating and frightened, but Bob was immovable. -Carrying their guns, the two boys went back to the boat and in another -minute were shooting down the stream as fast as the oars and current -could take them. As they went they decided upon a plan of action. They -did not want any collision with the half-breed. If it came to weapons, -it would mean somebody killed or wounded, and that would be worse than -losing the whole crop of honey. They only wanted to make sure that he -had really stolen the honey, and where he had hidden it. Afterwards -they would see about recovering it.</p> - -<p>They landed near the great slough, left the boat, and went cautiously -through the woods to the edge of the clearing. No one was in sight. No -dog barked this time, and the cabin door was shut.</p> - -<p>“Perhaps they’ve gone away with the haul,” muttered Bob. “The only way -is to go up and find out.”</p> - -<p>So they marched boldly across the stumpy field to the cabin, and -knocked.</p> - -<p>“<i>Entrez!</i>” cried a voice from within, and Bob pushed open the door.</p> - -<p>There was a startled exclamation from within. Larue rose from a seat -where he was doing something with a large piece of buckskin, and he -looked black as he saw the two boys standing armed in the doorway. His -wife, a tall, rather handsome and shabbily-dressed woman, stopped -short in the middle of the floor, looking frightened. Two pretty, -gipsy-like children slunk into the background.</p> - -<p>“<i>Bon jour! bon jour!</i>” said both Bob and Carl politely.</p> - -<p>“<i>Bon jour</i>,” responded the squatter, and his face softened a little. -“What do you want? You speak French?”</p> - -<p>“Only a little—not enough to talk,” replied Bob. “Mr. Larue, our house -was broken into while we were away, and about a thousand pounds of -honey stolen—over $200 worth. We came to see if you knew anything -about it.”</p> - -<p>“Me? How should I know anyt’ing about zat?” returned Larue.</p> - -<p>It was hard to put the accusation direct, and Bob hesitated a little.</p> - -<p>“The honey was taken away by boat. You have a boat, and you’re the -only person that lives down this way, so—”</p> - -<p>“You say I steal your honey?” cried the squatter angrily. “I tell you -I know nottings about it. Look! Is the honey here?”</p> - -<p>Carl and Bob both looked, and Bob sniffed as well, and sniffed again -with suspicion. The cabin was all one large room, and a thousand -pounds of honey certainly could not have been concealed in it. It -contained only the simplest furniture, a dirty cooking stove, a table, -two rough beds, on which were spread the two fine bearskins that Alice -had seen, and a small cupboard. But Bob suddenly darted forward and -picked up a small fragment of honeycomb from the floor under the -table.</p> - -<p>“Where did this come from?” he cried.</p> - -<p>“Bee-tree,” returned the half-breed, cunningly.</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe it!” exclaimed Carl, examining the bit of wax. “This -comb was built on foundation. It came from our bee-yard.”</p> - -<p>“Give us back our honey, and we’ll say nothing more about it,” urged -Bob. “You don’t need to steal honey. We’ll give you all you can eat.”</p> - -<p>“<i>Voila!</i>” cried Larue. “I know nottings about your honey. It is that -you want to make trouble. You come here to see me; <i>bien</i>, you are -welcome. You come here to insult me; you go outside quick.”</p> - -<p>“When we come back, we’ll bring a constable!” cried Carl.</p> - -<p>The woman said a sentence to her husband in rapid French, which the -boys failed to catch.</p> - -<p>“Let your constable come,” continued the squatter. “He find nottings. -But as for you, you git out and stay out. I know nottings about your -honey. <i>Va-t-en! Git!</i>”</p> - -<p>“Come along! No use talking any more!” muttered Bob, and the boys -departed, feeling rather beaten and angry. They crossed the clearing -and paused to look back from the cover of the woods. Larue was -standing in his doorway, gazing after them.</p> - -<p>“All the same, I know the honey is somewhere about this place,” Bob -broke out. “Why, I could smell it. I couldn’t be mistaken. And that -piece of comb—”</p> - -<p>“It was certainly a piece of a section,” Carl agreed. “I’m afraid, -though, that I made a bad break in threatening him with a constable. -He’ll be sure to move the plunder right away to some place where -nobody could ever find it.”</p> - -<p>“He certainly hasn’t got it in his cabin. Maybe it’s stored in the -barn.”</p> - -<p>“Likely enough. Or somewhere near here in the woods. How we’ll ever -locate it is more than I can imagine.”</p> - -<p>“If it’s in any exposed place some bees will be likely to find it and -rob it out for him. Wish they would!” said Bob.</p> - -<p>Carl looked quickly at his brother and meditated in silence for a -moment.</p> - -<p>“Look here!” he exclaimed at last. “Why can’t we send bees to scout -for that honey. They might even carry it back, and no power on earth -could stop them if they got going. Of course they couldn’t lug the -sections home, but they’d lick out all the honey and put it in their -hives again, and we could extract it. That would be better than losing -it all.”</p> - -<p>Bob looked dubious at first, and then he began to laugh.</p> - -<p>“Robbing the robber!” he exclaimed. “I don’t know but what it might -work. Anyway, it’s a brilliant idea and ought to be tried. None of -those shipping cases had their tops closed, and the bees could get -into them without any trouble. But how’ll we work it? It’s three miles -from here to the bee-yard.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, we’d have to bring some hives down here within range,” replied -Carl. “We could float them down in the boat. Four or five would do to -see if they found the honey, and then we could bring more.”</p> - -<p>They got into their boat and pulled up-stream again. From a distance -they saw Alice waiting at the landing, peering eagerly down the river.</p> - -<p>“Thank goodness, you’re back!” she exclaimed fervently. “I’ve been so -worried. Did you have a fight? Did you find the honey?”</p> - -<p>“Neither honey nor fight,” returned Bob, as they went ashore. “But we -think we know where the honey is, and we’re going to send some -messengers after it to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>“Messengers? What do you mean?” cried Alice, mystified. Carl chuckled -and outlined the plan to her, much to her amusement, though she was -doubtful of its success.</p> - -<p>“Why, there’s a thousand pounds of honey missing,” she said. “A colony -can’t carry more than ten pounds of honey a day. What a lot of -colonies it would take, or what a long time, to have them bring all -that back, even if they find it!”</p> - -<p>However, the boys were determined to give the plan a trial, and as -soon as it was dark they loaded half a dozen of their strongest -colonies into the boat. Along with them they took supers of empty -combs.</p> - -<p>It crowded the boat considerably and made an awkward cargo, but they -got it safely down the river. Landing near Larue’s clearing, they put -the hives ashore and then carried them, one by one, with much labor -and stumbling, through the woods. Within two hundred yards of Larue’s -barn, but well back among the trees they set the hives down behind a -cedar thicket. Bob then laid a trail of honey from the hives almost to -the barn, sprinkling a little on the ground and leaves every few feet. -Before he had quite reached the barn, the hound began to bay noisily, -and the boys scuttled off to the river and paddled homeward.</p> - -<p>About nine o’clock the next morning they made their way cautiously -down to their ambushed “messengers” to see what was going on. They -found things active. Bees were coming and going rapidly, dropping -heavily laden in front of the hives. Every colony was alert, excited -and bad-tempered. The intelligent insects knew well that honey was -coming from some unnatural source. Robbing was in the air; they felt -it, and every entrance was massed with guards in readiness for a -possible attack.</p> - -<p>“They’ve found it!” exclaimed Carl, gleefully.</p> - -<p>The boys sat down and watched. All the bees were certainly going -straight toward Larue’s clearing, and they came heavily back, dropping -by scores at the hives, almost too heavy to fly. In the course of an -hour the activity had greatly increased.</p> - -<p>“Yes, they’ve located it, all right,” said Bob. “They’re heading -toward his barn, it seems to me. I wish I dared go and look, but we’d -better be careful not to show our noses. Larue is probably on the -watch.”</p> - -<p>They put on the supers of empty combs to give storage room for the -honey and went back to the cabin for dinner, laughing. But they were -too much excited to stay long away from the ambushed hives, and they -returned to them toward the middle of the afternoon. Alice was -intensely anxious to be allowed to go with them, but the situation was -highly delicate, and they decided that it was hardly safe.</p> - -<p>When they came within a hundred yards of the hidden hives they heard -the roar of the bees. Never before had they seen such a fury of work. -A black belt, a river of bees, seemed to be flowing over the trees -toward the clearing. The entrances were almost choked as the insects -poured out and in, and the ground in front was covered with crawling -bees that had dropped exhausted.</p> - -<p>They were savagely cross, too, as bees always are when robbing is -going on. There was fighting at the entrance of every hive, probably -due to bees mistaking their doors in the new location. The whole front -of the hive was brown with guards, and it was dangerous to go nearer -than twenty feet. Bob had brought a veil with him, though, and he -opened one of the supers. He received several stings on the hands, but -reported that the combs were nearly half full already, and not with -nectar, but with thick, ripened honey.</p> - -<p>“No doubt at all that it’s our honey coming back,” he said. “I wonder -what Mr. Larue thinks of all this. If we’re careful, he’ll never -suspect that we had any hand in it. He’ll just take it as a kind of -judgment for his thieving. But what oceans of bees seem to be going -over. You wouldn’t think that half a dozen hives could send out so -many.”</p> - -<p>“I’ve a notion that the bees from the home yard are coming here too,” -said Carl. “Just look in the air.”</p> - -<p>In fact, a long air-line of bees could be discerned going straight up -the river above the trees. It was a long flight, of course, but bees -have been known to go four or five miles when honey is scarce. Perhaps -the home apiary might have found the stolen honey even if they had not -moved any bees.</p> - -<p>During that afternoon the excitement rose to a perfect frenzy. A -torrent of bees swept overhead, from the ambushed hives to the -clearing and up the river toward home. The boys began to grow uneasy; -as Carl had said, no power on earth could stop things now, and it -looked rather as if they had unlocked forces that were too much for -them. Carl hastened home to look at conditions there, and came back -breathless, reporting the apiary in a turmoil. Bees were flying, -robbing, fighting and bringing in honey. Many of the colonies had not -yet learned where the honey was coming from, and were flying around -the cabin in clouds, or trying to pounce on some weaker colony.</p> - -<p>“But there must be over a million bees going to the Frenchman’s -place,” he said. “I think we ought to try to find out what’s going on -there. The whole family may be stung to death.”</p> - -<p>It did look dangerous, but they were greatly afraid to be seen. -Larue’s indignation must be well up to shooting-point before this. But -they crept cautiously toward the clearing.</p> - -<p>Before they reached the edge of the woods they could hear a roar like -a distant cataract; and when they came into the open they were -appalled at what they saw.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chVII' title='VII—Reaping the Harvest'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VII</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>REAPING THE HARVEST</span> -</h2> -<p>A roaring black cloud that looked almost like the vortex of a tornado -swirled over the log barn. There was a smaller cloud hovering about -the house, and the whole clearing was alive with bees, coming and -going, looking for something, all extremely irritable.</p> - -<p>Approaching the barn as closely as they dared, they saw that the whole -building was like a vast beehive. The insects covered the logs; they -swarmed in and out of every one of the wide chinks between the -timbers. Myriads were continually emerging and flying off, and myriads -more took their places.</p> - -<p>“Gracious!” exclaimed Carl, looking rather wildly at his brother. “I -didn’t know we had so many bees. The honey’s here in the barn all -right.”</p> - -<p>“It won’t be here long, at this rate,” returned Bob. “But I wonder -what’s happened to Larue and his family and live stock. Perhaps -they’re all dead!”</p> - -<p>The boys really felt seriously uneasy at the overwhelming success of -their scheme. Except for the bees, no living creature was in sight, -but Carl presently spied a dead hen near the barn. Evidently she had -been killed by the bees, and this increased their uneasiness. Bob made -an attempt to reach the cabin, but a host of savage bees drove him -back, despite his veil. The insects were fighting-mad.</p> - -<p>The boys crept around the edge of the clearing, keeping in the shelter -of the woods, where the bees did not molest them. They had made about -half the circuit when they caught sight of a heavy cloud of smoke -rising a little way back among the thickets.</p> - -<p>“S-sh! There they are!” whispered Bob.</p> - -<p>They lay low for a minute, then, hearing no sound, crept up close -enough to gain a view of the camp. The squatter’s family were sitting -dejectedly in the shelter of smoke from a heavy smudge. Larue himself -reclined against a tree, but he was hardly recognizable. Both his eyes -seemed to be swollen shut. He had two big lumps on his forehead, his -lips were puffed, and one ear was twice its rightful size. It was -clear that he was in no fighting condition, and the boys walked up -without any hesitation.</p> - -<div id='i006' class='mt01 mb01 wi006'> - <img src='images/illus-006.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>He was plainly in no condition to show fight, and the boys advanced without hesitation</p> -</div> -<p>“You seem to be having trouble,” said Bob innocently.</p> - -<p>The squatter tried to screw his eyes open far enough to get a glimpse -of them.</p> - -<p>“<i>Nom d’un nom!</i>” he ejaculated, thickly through his swollen lips. -“Dose bees! Dey come—dey swarm—!” and he trailed off into a mixture of -French and English indistinguishably distorted in his puffy mouth. -They could hardly make out a word.</p> - -<p>“What’s been happening, Mrs. Larue?” said Carl, turning to the woman. -She also bore marks of stings, and so did the two children.</p> - -<p>“Your bees!” she cried. “Dey come in by t’ousands—millions! We stay in -de house—no! <i>Pas possible!</i> Dey kill my two best <i>poulets</i>. Kill us -too, if we not get out!”</p> - -<p>“What do you suppose they could have been after?” asked Bob.</p> - -<p>The woman cast a quick glance at her husband, and said she didn’t -know, but in her queer dialect she gave an excited account of what had -happened—from her point of view.</p> - -<p>That forenoon they had suddenly been invaded by a whirlwind of bees. -The family had tried at first to shut themselves up in the house, but -the bees forced an entrance through hundreds of crevices, and they had -had to take to the woods. Larue had been terribly stung while trying -to get a cow out of the barn, and two hens had been killed by the -bees. Afraid to leave cover, the family had been sitting all day under -the smudge-smoke, without food, not daring to go to the house to find -any. She knew, of course, that these were the Harman bees, but the -boys were relieved to find that she seemed to have no sort of -suspicion that the raid had been planned.</p> - -<p>“We must get this thing stopped,” whispered Carl, drawing his brother -aside. “The bees’ll kill everything on the place.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and after dark we can carry away the rest of the honey -ourselves,” replied Bob. “These people won’t try to stop us. In fact, -now will be a good time to try to make up a peace with them.”</p> - -<p>“You’ll be all right by to-morrow, Mr. Larue,” said Carl, -reassuringly. “Perhaps you know better than we do what attracted the -bees down here, but we’ll try to fix it so they won’t bother you any -more.”</p> - -<p>“I move away from zis place!” cried the squatter, energetically. “Ze -bee—he make my life one misery!”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’m sorry it happened,” returned Bob. “Here’s a dollar to pay -for your two hens, and we’ll send you some honey—for the children.”</p> - -<p>The woman took the dollar bill, muttered a word of thanks, but did not -seem much propitiated. As for stopping the raid, the boys could do -nothing till the bees stopped of themselves for the night. It was -really dangerous to venture out of the shelter of the woods. Even -sunset brought little cessation of the uproar, and it was not till it -was quite dark that the bees gradually ceased to hover about the barn -and cabin.</p> - -<p>Bob and Carl then accompanied the Larues to their house, which was -strewn with dead and half-dead bees. On the table were several -unmistakable pieces of section honey, which the boys wisely pretended -not to see. No doubt Larue had brought them in for breakfast, but the -bees had taken all the honey out of the combs. After finishing the -honey, they had licked up everything sweet in the house, including two -quarts of maple syrup and a jar of raspberry jam.</p> - -<p>The barefooted children were at once stung by treading on the -stupefied bees that crawled over the floor. Larue flung himself down -on the bed and started up again instantly, with a loud ejaculation. -There were bees in the bed, too. The woman took a broom and began to -sweep the insects out, but the boys judged it more politic not to -stay.</p> - -<p>“Can you lend us a lantern?” inquired Bob. “We want to look into the -barn. There’s some honey of ours there that we want to take away. When -it’s gone, the bees will leave you alone.”</p> - -<p>“<i>Oui</i>, I get you ze lantern,” said the woman. “Look in ze barn. Look -anywhere. But I see no honey. I know nottings about it. I get you -anyt’ing, only you take dose bees away.”</p> - -<p>Though the bees had ceased flying, there were many of them still -crawling about the log barn, and in the lantern-light they perceived a -big pile of something lightly covered with hay.</p> - -<p>“There it is!” exclaimed Carl, with satisfaction.</p> - -<p>It was indeed the stolen shipping cases and supers, and the hay -covering had not prevented the bees from getting at them. At a glance -the honey seemed to be all there. At the worst, not many of the -sections were missing, though the honey was presumably all cleaned out -of them. There were a good many bees still in the boxes, and the floor -was covered with dead insects. Evidently they had fought ferociously -over the plunder.</p> - -<p>“Quite a load of stuff to take home in the boat,” remarked Carl, as -they surveyed the rescued honey.</p> - -<p>“Yes, but if all the honey is out of it, it won’t be heavy, I fancy,” -said Bob. “I saw an old wheelbarrow around here, and we’ll use it to -take the stuff to the boat. We absolutely must get it all home -to-night, before these people recover from their shock.”</p> - -<p>The top cases of honey were indeed light, and seemed to contain -nothing but empty combs—hardly that, in fact, for the wax sifted out -in fine powder, for it had been torn to pieces by the frenzied bees. -But as they went deeper the boxes grew heavier; some of them seemed -almost full weight, though no doubt they were all damaged enough to be -unsaleable.</p> - -<p>It took three boat-loads to get the honey back home, and it was hard -and heavy work pulling it up against the current. Alice was jubilant, -and when they came up with the second load she had a supper of bacon, -trout, cold partridge, and hot coffee ready for them. They needed it; -food had never tasted so good; and after finishing everything in -sight, they went back for the last load.</p> - -<p>“We ought to bring those six hives of bees home, too,” said Carl, -uneasily.</p> - -<p>“I suppose we should, but who cares?” replied Bob. “I’m dead tired, -and I wouldn’t row up that river again for a whole apiary. Larue -doesn’t know where they are. We’ll bring them up at sunrise in the -morning. I’m going to bed.”</p> - -<p>But it was then considerably after midnight. The boys overslept, and -did not waken till eight o’clock. The bees at home were flying -already, showing signs of much excitement, and could be seen going -down the river as on the day before. They were still looking for -stolen honey.</p> - -<p>“Won’t they hang around and bother the Frenchman again to-day?” Bob -asked.</p> - -<p>“I’m afraid so,” said Carl. “But it can’t be helped, and they’ll soon -find that there’s nothing more to be had, and go about their business. -It’ll be better when we get those six hives home.”</p> - -<p>It was after nine o’clock when they reached the ambushed hives, and at -the first glance Carl uttered a loud cry of dismay.</p> - -<p>“Why, they’re all shot to pieces!”</p> - -<p>They both ran up. One hive was overturned, with a great, splintered -hole blown through its side; a second was nearly as bad, and all the -remaining four had been more or less perforated with buckshot. Honey -had run out on the ground, and the bees were crawling about stupidly, -seeming too much disconcerted to gather it up.</p> - -<p>“Looks as if Larue had got his eyes open again,” said Carl, as they -surveyed the wreck.</p> - -<p>“Yes, and he’s on the warpath!” Bob lamented. “Just when I had planned -to make peace with him! I hoped he’d never find out that we had -engineered this riot, and we’ve paid him for his hens, and I was going -to send him some honey to sweeten him up. And now it’s all off.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I don’t believe this is a particularly safe spot for us if he’s -out with his gun,” said Carl. “Let’s get these hives moved away.”</p> - -<p>First Bob peeped through the thickets into the clearing. A good many -bees still hung about the barn and cabin, and no doubt they were -fiercely cross at finding no honey where they had expected it. There -was no sign of the French family; very likely they were under their -smudge again.</p> - -<p>“I can’t say I blame Larue for being mad,” said Bob, “after being -driven out of his house for two days running. I suppose he expected to -find all quiet this morning, and it’s almost as bad as ever. Then he -found these hives and he naturally bombarded them.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if he hadn’t brought our honey down here it wouldn’t have -happened!” returned Carl, hard-heartedly. “He’ll bombard us, too, if -we hang around here long.”</p> - -<p>They carried the dilapidated hives down to the boat with a good deal -of difficulty, and rowed them up-stream. Two of them were ruined, but -it was likely that the bees themselves and the combs would do very -well if lodged in fresh hives. The outfit was nearly double its former -weight and a later investigation showed that the bees had crammed -every available cell with honey and had built fresh scraps of comb in -any corner where there was room.</p> - -<p>On their return Alice met them with a joyful face.</p> - -<p>“What do you think?” she cried. “I’ve been sorting over the cases of -sections you brought back, and there are a lot that haven’t been -touched by the bees at all—perhaps three or four hundred; and there -are quite a lot more that have only little torn places; so they can go -as ‘No. 1’ anyway. Then there are all the sections that weren’t stolen -at all. We’ll still have some honey to sell.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe a hundred dollars’ worth,” returned Carl. “That won’t go far -toward our big payment next week.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, it will—with our extracted honey,” urged Bob. “We must get it -all off, extract every drop we have, and sell it quick—sacrifice it if -necessary. Anything to get returns at once!”</p> - -<p>“There must be four hundred dollars’ worth on the hives. We can make -the payment, if we’re quick,” said Alice.</p> - -<p>“Anyway, we won’t have a cent left over,” insisted Carl, who seemed -determined to look on the black side.</p> - -<p>“But we have the bees. Next year they’ll make our fortunes,” said -Alice, cheerfully.</p> - -<p>Tired as he was, Bob paddled down to Morton that afternoon, wrote a -letter of explanation to Brown & Son, and ordered by telegraph nine -hundred five-pound honey pails, to be shipped by return freight. The -pails cost forty dollars, and he groaned inwardly as he parted with -the money.</p> - -<p>It was with some uneasiness that he navigated his boat past the -squatter’s clearing, but he saw nothing of any of the Larue family, -either coming or going. When he got back to the bee-yard he found that -Alice and Carl had been busy. They had brought in the old honey -extractor, cleaned and oiled it and set it up, along with the -honey-tanks. Carl had improvised an uncapping-box from the rain-water -barrel, and they had already extracted the honey from a great number -of the damaged and unfinished sections of comb.</p> - -<p>The three of them finished up that part of the work during the -afternoon and cleaned out all the honey from the unsaleable sections -and from those that the bees had torn in Larue’s barn. From these they -got more than a thousand pounds of fine, clear honey. It was an -excellent beginning.</p> - -<p>But it was only a beginning. In five days they would have to pay Mr. -Farr five hundred dollars with interest. To sell the honey might well -take two days. Consequently they had something more than two days in -which to take off, extract, and pack a crop of perhaps four thousand -pounds of honey. It would have been a fairly large undertaking for -skilled men, and the Harmans were quite unaccustomed to extracting on -a large scale.</p> - -<p>But they had determination enough to make up for lack of experience. -They went to bed early, in order to have as long a rest as possible. -By daylight Alice was preparing breakfast, and the sun was not more -than fairly above the trees when they attacked the big job.</p> - -<p>Armed with veils, gloves, smokers, and bee-brushes, the boys went out -to the yard, while Alice waited for the honey to come in. The big -extracting supers were full of bees, that rushed up furiously when the -cover was lifted off. Carl drove them down with smoke, while Bob -quickly lifted out comb after comb, shook and brushed off the bees in -masses before the hive, and put the combs into an empty super. When -that was full, he carried it with some difficulty into the house. -While he was gone Carl removed the now vacant super, closed the hive, -and smoked another. Bob came back in a moment and cleared the bees -from this super, carrying it likewise into the cabin. Super after -super came off, and when seven or eight of them were stacked in the -honey-room they began extracting operations.</p> - -<p>Alice had volunteered to do the uncapping, as she had been accustomed -to do it at home, and she had the huge, razor-edged honey-knife -already standing in a pail of hot water, since the edge cuts much -better when warm enough to melt the wax.</p> - -<p>She rested one of the full honeycombs on the rim of the barrel, and -with a single sweep of the great knife she sliced off the entire outer -sealed surface of the comb, so as to leave the cells open. Repeating -this operation upon the other side, she handed the comb to Carl, who -slipped it into the extractor. When four combs had been uncapped and -put into the machine, he turned the crank vigorously. The reel whirred -as the combs spun round; impelled by centrifugal force, the honey flew -out of the cells against the sides of the extractor and dribbled -slowly down to the bottom.</p> - -<p>When he stopped the machine to take out the now empty combs Carl put -his finger down into the extractor and scraped up a dripping fingerful -of honey, which he put into his mouth.</p> - -<p>“Delicious!” he exclaimed, with high appreciation.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Alice had uncapped a fresh set of four combs, and a pool of -honey was forming in the bottom of the extractor. It was so thick that -it ran very slowly down the sides, but within a few minutes it stood -several inches deep. Bob drew off a pailful through the gate, and -poured it through the cheese-cloth strainer into one of the tanks. It -was almost water-clear, thick and rich—honey of the very highest -grade.</p> - -<p>Bob then returned to the hives and began to bring in supers -single-handed, taking back the sets of emptied combs and replacing -them on the hives. He was able to attend to this duty as fast as Alice -and Carl could uncap and extract. At noon, when Alice stopped work to -prepare dinner, they had extracted almost six hundred pounds of honey. -It was the harvest from fourteen hives.</p> - -<p>“Why, that isn’t half bad,” said Alice, after making this calculation. -“That amounts to about forty-five pounds per hive. Better than I -expected from this poor season.”</p> - -<p>“We may have more honey than we think,” said Carl, brightening. “But -we must get ahead faster, or it’ll take us all the week.”</p> - -<p>During the afternoon they managed to empty the supers of twenty-one -colonies. But these were not quite so well filled, and yielded only a -little more than seven hundred pounds.</p> - -<p>That night it rained—the longed-for rain, now too late to be of -service. Early the next morning they set to work again, but had to -stop taking off honey on account of a fresh downpour. In the midst of -the rain the wagon arrived from Morton with the nine hundred -honey-pails.</p> - -<p>“Couldn’t we send some of it back with him?” suggested Alice.</p> - -<p>So they begged the teamster to wait a few hours, and set to work -furiously, filling the tins from the tanks. Bob sat by the tank with a -mountain of five-pound pails beside him, filling them rapidly from the -open honey-gate. Once full, he passed them to Alice, who wiped them -clean and put on the covers; then Carl nailed them up again in their -shipping crates.</p> - -<p>At noon they ate a hasty, cold luncheon, and again set feverishly to -work at the pails. They made such speed that at four o’clock they were -able to start the wagon back with a load of two hundred five-pound -pails of honey.</p> - -<p>The rain had stopped, and they began to take off honey and extract -again. They were getting rather tired, and the task before them seemed -endless. It was the twenty-ninth of the month. It seemed hardly -possible that they could put up all that honey and turn it into cash -in less than three days.</p> - -<p>All that afternoon they toiled, weary and silent, but still -determined. The uncapping barrel was nearly full of oozy masses of -comb, from which the honey drained slowly into a pail through a hole -in the bottom. The three Harmans were smeared to the eyes with honey. -They were stiff with stings, too, for the whole room was crawling with -bees that had been brought in on the combs. They were underfoot, on -the walls, in the cappings and the strainer, and a great mass had -clustered on the window like a swarm.</p> - -<p>By six o’clock there were scarcely half a dozen hives left uncleared -in the apiary, though a large pile of unhandled supers had accumulated -in the workroom. They stopped work, and the boys helped Alice to get -supper.</p> - -<p>“But we’re not going to get through in time,” said Bob, anxiously. -“It’ll take us nearly all of to-morrow to extract and can up the rest -of the honey. Then it’ll take some time to get it sold.”</p> - -<p>“But we’ve <i>got</i> to get through in time!” cried Alice. “Are we going -to fail now by just a few hours?”</p> - -<p>“Well, let’s finish the extracting to-night—work till it’s done,” Bob -proposed.</p> - -<p>“All right,” replied Carl, wearily. “I’m game!”</p> - -<p>So after supper they attacked their task afresh. The boys tried to get -all the supers into the house while daylight lasted. They worked hard, -but the last supers were very heavy, the bees were cross as night came -on, and darkness had fallen before they got the last one in. Alice -placed several beeswax candles about the room, and they began to -extract.</p> - -<p>Hour after hour the whir and rattle of the extractor went on. It was -almost the only sound in the room, for they were too tired to talk. -The pile of full supers went down, and the empty ones went up, till -they clogged the room, and had to be carried outdoors. Alice uncapped -till she could no longer hold the slippery knife-handle, and Carl took -her place, while she drew off honey from the extractor into the tanks. -It was hot in the choked little room, reeking with the odor of honey -and the smell of the candles and the tankful of wet cappings, and -occasionally they went outdoors for a few minutes to cool off and -breathe a little.</p> - -<p>“Alice said that bee-keeping was kid-glove work—nothing heavy or hard -about it,” remarked Carl ironically during one of these rests.</p> - -<p>It seemed to be tacitly understood that they were to keep at it till -the honey was all extracted, and they stayed doggedly at work despite -weariness and stings. It was shortly after one o’clock when they -emptied the last super; they were all saturated with honey and -perspiration; the uncapping tank was heaped with wax, and the candles -had burned low. All the tanks were brimful, and there was over a -hundred pounds in the reservoir of the extractor.</p> - -<p>“Going to can it up?” asked Carl, faintly.</p> - -<p>“Not much!” Bob ejaculated. “I’m going to bed.”</p> - -<p>They were all ready to go. Alice retired to her room, and the boys -spread blankets on the floor of the living-room. They were tired -enough to doze the moment their heads touched the pillow, but Bob had -not been in bed for five minutes when he bounced up with a yell. A bee -had stung him on the leg.</p> - -<p>The floor and the blankets were alive with bees. Bees seemed to be -everywhere. The boys shook out their bedding, swept up the floor, and -tried again. There were fewer bees now, but still enough to make their -presence felt, and finally the boys became nervous and wakeful, -imagining that they felt crawling bees even where there were none. -After a restless half-hour Bob got up and lighted a candle.</p> - -<p>“I can’t sleep. I’m going to can up honey,” he announced.</p> - -<p>Carl wearily followed him, and after they had been at work a few -minutes Alice came out and joined them. There had not been so many -bees in her room, but more than enough to make sleeping impossible.</p> - -<p>Hour after hour they drew off honey from the big tanks into the little -pails, and packed them in the crates. They worked till after three -o’clock, stopped for hot coffee and bread, and completed their great -task soon after sunrise. There were altogether 675 five-pound tins, -beside the two hundred already sent to Morton—a total crop of 4375 -pounds. At least fifty pounds more would still drain from the -uncapping tank.</p> - -<p>But they were too dead weary to rejoice. They ate a hastily prepared -breakfast, then carried the blankets to a sunny spot outdoors and went -sound asleep. Not one of them woke till nearly noon, when they were -aroused by the hallooing of the teamster, who had been ordered to come -back that day for another load.</p> - -<p>It made a big load, and the man was unwilling to take it. But they -could not think of another day’s wait, and finally persuaded him with -arguments and increased pay. Bob was to go out with the load, they had -agreed. He was to ship the honey and go to Toronto with it. There he -was to make the quickest possible sale and send the money back by -telegraph.</p> - -<p>“You’d better come over to Morton on the first of August, day after -to-morrow,” he said to Carl, as he was leaving. “Probably you’ll find -the money waiting for you at the telegraph office. If it isn’t there, -wait at the hotel, and I’ll telephone you some time during the day. In -case there’s any delay, get old Farr to let us have a few days’ grace. -He ought to do that, especially if we pay him for the accommodation.”</p> - -<p>Bob went off on the loaded wagon. Carl and Alice were too thoroughly -tired to feel inclined to clear up the sticky litter in the -extracting-room and they spent most of the day in sleep.</p> - -<p>Next morning, however, they put things in order. The tank of wet -cappings was left to drain still longer, but Alice washed down the -floor, removed the extracting outfit, and restored the boys’ bed. All -the live bees in the room were by this time clustered in a quiet lump -on the window, and Carl was able to brush them off gently into a -bucket and carry them out to a hive like a natural swarm. He put most -of the wet supers back on the hives whence they had been taken, and -was surprised to notice that the bees paid no attention to these -fresh, sticky combs when they were exposed in the yard. A little honey -seemed to be coming in. He could not guess its source, but it was -enough to keep the bees from robbing.</p> - -<p>All this did not take them more than a couple of hours, and Alice had -even time to wash, dry, and iron a blouse before starting for the -village which represented civilization for them just then. Carl also -paid civilization the homage of brushing his shoes and putting on a -tie under his low collar, and then they made an early start down the -river.</p> - -<p>They rather disliked to leave the cabin unguarded, but this time it -contained little of value. As they passed Indian Slough they spied -Larue on the shore; he looked long and steadily after them, but -neither made any sign.</p> - -<p>“Don’t like it!” remarked Carl. “He knows we’ve gone away now, and -goodness knows what he may do to the bees!”</p> - -<p>“I don’t think he’ll touch them. He must have had enough of fighting -bees,” returned Alice.</p> - -<p>Anyhow, it was a chance that had to be taken, for they could not stand -on guard by the apiary forever. They reached Morton about ten o’clock -and went straight to the telegraph office, where they were bitterly -disappointed to find no waiting message from Bob.</p> - -<p>A feeling of impending misfortune crept over both of them. They had -fully expected the money to be there.</p> - -<p>“I do hope Bob doesn’t try one of his wild bluffs for a high price and -miss a sale altogether!” Carl muttered.</p> - -<p>Alice went to the hotel, to be on the lookout for a telephone call, -while Carl hung about the telegraph office. At every clicking of the -keys he thrilled with anticipation, but noon arrived, and one o’clock, -and still no word from Toronto. Carl then hunted up Mr. Farr and -explained the situation.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know why Bob hasn’t wired,” he said, “but we’ve got the honey -and it’s as safe as money in the bank. It’s only a matter of a few -hours, or days, at the most. If you’ll give us a little extension of -time we’ll gladly pay you for it. Anything you wish, five dollars, or -ten dollars a day, even.”</p> - -<p>But the postmaster shook his head with a grim smile.</p> - -<p>“I’ll give you all the time the law allows, and not an hour longer!” -he said.</p> - -<p>“Yes, but can’t you—”</p> - -<p>“No, I can’t. I told you out and out at the start that you’d get no -kindness from me—straight business and nothing further.”</p> - -<p>He refused to hear a word of Carl’s protestations, and at last the boy -went to the hotel, indignant and keenly anxious. Alice had had no -message. They waited, staying near the telephone, unable to read, -unable to talk, till, about four o’clock, a call came for Carl.</p> - -<p>Almost breathless, he took the receiver, and recognized Bob’s -long-distance voice.</p> - -<p>“Is that you, Bob?” he cried. “What have you done? Farr won’t give us -an hour’s time.”</p> - -<p>“Never mind!” came his brother’s reassuring voice. “It’s all right. I -sold at ten and a half. I’ve got the money and I’ll wire it at once.”</p> - -<p>Ten and a half! They had not expected to get over ten cents for the -extracted honey. Carl almost shouted, and Alice gasped with relief -when he told her. It seemed as if a mountain’s weight had been lifted -off their shoulders.</p> - -<p>But there must have been some delay about sending the money, for it -had not arrived by six o’clock. Carl hung about the telegraph office -all the evening, growing uneasy once more as hour by hour went by. -Surely something had not gone wrong at the last minute!</p> - -<p>But the money-bearing message did finally arrive towards ten o’clock. -It was an order for $612, which included the returns from what was -left of their comb-honey crop. The telegraph clerk wrote a check, and -Carl and his sister hastened to Farr’s house. It was dark from top to -bottom. Carl knocked loudly once, twice. There was no reply.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chVIII' title='VIII—A Run of Luck'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VIII</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>A RUN OF LUCK</span> -</h2> -<p>Again and again Carl hammered at the door. At last some one raised a -window in the second story, and a voice called down rather crossly -through the darkness.</p> - -<p>“It’s Harman!” Carl cried. “I’ve come to pay your money.”</p> - -<p>“Too late. I’m abed,” answered Mr. Farr. “Come in to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>“Not much!” retorted Carl. “It’s due before midnight to-day, and you -said you wouldn’t give me an hour’s extra time. I’m not taking any -chances. I’m afraid you’ll have to get up.”</p> - -<p>Mr. Farr chuckled and left the window. They heard him stirring about, -and presently saw the light of a lamp. In a few minutes he opened the -front door and conducted them into the sitting-room. His hair was -tousled, and he was in his stocking-feet and looked older and more -wizened than ever, but something seemed to be amusing him greatly.</p> - -<p>Carl produced the telegraph check. Mr. Farr scrutinized it carefully, -chuckled once more, wrote a receipt, and gave them a check of his own -in change.</p> - -<p>“I’m obleeged for the money,” he said, smiling broadly, “but you -needn’t have been in such an all-fired hurry with it.”</p> - -<p>“It was your fault,” Carl explained. “You said, you know—”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I know, and I expect the joke’s on me at having to get up in the -middle of the night like this. But the law gives you three days of -grace, you know. And besides, you can’t foreclose a mortgage without -giving thirty days’ notice. You had a whole month to pay in. Guess you -ain’t studied mortgage law. That’s why I wouldn’t take your ten -dollars a day for an extension, and I was having my quiet laugh to see -you so flustered and worrited, when you wasn’t in no danger at all.”</p> - -<p>“But—but I thought—” Carl stammered.</p> - -<p>“That I’d grab the bees away from you to-morrow? Foreclosing a -mortgage is a slower business than that. Now you think I’m a pretty -hard customer, don’t you?”</p> - -<p>Carl blushed.</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll tell you now that I never foreclosed but one mortgage in -my life, and that was on a farm where I hadn’t got no interest for -three years, and the fellow was boasting that Dave Farr’d never get a -cent out of him. Foreclosed on him, I did; but I’d have no more shut -down on young people like you than I’d have sold myself out.”</p> - -<p>“I’m sorry, Mr. Farr! We didn’t understand—either the business, or -you!” cried Alice, and she held out her hand impulsively.</p> - -<p>“That’s all right, young lady. You didn’t know nothing about business, -of course, and I did, that’s all. I oughter have told you how you -stood instead of laughing, and it serves me right to be got up out of -bed at this time of night. And now my sleep’s broke up, I’ll have a -chaw, and you can tell me how your investment panned out.”</p> - -<p>Mr. Farr produced a black plug of tobacco from inside the clock, bit -off a piece and disposed himself to listen. Carl briefly outlined -their fortunes, and told of the trouble they had had with Larue. Mr. -Farr laughed heartily at the expedient of the robber bees.</p> - -<p>“I see you young people are as sharp as they make ’em!” he said. “Just -think of sending them bees to bring back their own honey! But I know -Baptiste Larue—known him for years. He ain’t such a bad fellow, lazy -and steals a little, and if you play him a bad trick he’ll get back at -you sure as fate. That’s the Indian in him; and if you do him a good -turn he’ll never forget it, and that’s the Indian too, I guess. Pity -you’ve got at loggerheads with him. Better try to straighten it out. -I’ll have a talk with him when I see him, and maybe I can help to -straighten things out.”</p> - -<p>They went back to the hotel to sleep that night with the feeling that -an enemy had suddenly been transformed into a friend. Mr. Farr -promised to help them in every way he could; at the same time he was -careful to assure them that business was business, and he would still -hold them to the strict letter of the mortgage. But this time Alice -laughed, and he did not seem offended.</p> - -<p>They expected Bob to come up on the train next morning, but he failed -to arrive. It seemed unwise to remain away from the bee-yard any -longer, so they embarked immediately for the voyage up the river.</p> - -<p>It was a fine, sunny morning. The rains had broken the drought, and -the air was full of the moist heat that makes good honey weather, but -the raspberry bloom was long since over.</p> - -<p>The harvest was past; the bee-season was practically done, and they -had saved themselves, if only by the skin of their teeth. Now that the -money was paid, they both felt the reaction from the strain and -fatigue of the last weeks. The thought of their finances depressed -them. They had not two hundred dollars in the world.</p> - -<p>“If we’d only had some more of this weather a month ago!” said Carl.</p> - -<p>“Yes, it would have meant hundreds of dollars. But there’s no hope of -anything more from the bees this year,” Alice replied.</p> - -<p>“Worse than nothing! For we’ll probably have to feed them sugar to -winter on, perhaps a hundred dollars’ worth. It’ll leave us nearly -broke, I’m afraid. Alice, we’ll have to go to the city this winter and -do as I proposed.”</p> - -<p>They rowed up the river for a long way in silence. Then Alice, trying -hard to speak hopefully, said, “Anyhow, we’ve got a lot of valuable -property, and next year—”</p> - -<p>“Hark!” Carl interrupted. “What’s that?”</p> - -<p>He had stopped rowing, and there was dead silence in the wilderness. A -jay called noisily from a treetop, and then again silence fell. After -a minute, as Alice listened, she seemed to hear a deep, murmurous hum -from the woods along the shore.</p> - -<p>“It sounds like bees,” she said, doubtfully.</p> - -<p>“It is bees!” affirmed Carl after listening a little longer. “It must -be our bees. But what are they after? How far are we from home?”</p> - -<p>Alice thought they were about two miles. They had passed Indian Slough -some time before.</p> - -<p>“I do hope they’re not after Larue again,” said Carl. “But most likely -they’ve found a wild bee-tree and are robbing it.”</p> - -<p>But after a few minutes Carl grew so curious that he went ashore and -tried to follow the flight of the bees, which could now be seen -passing overhead. Presently Alice heard him calling her, in great -excitement.</p> - -<p>She hastened after him. He was standing at the edge of a great burned -slash that extended for fully two miles. It was studded with charred, -spike-branched trees and second-growth hemlock, tangled with berry -bushes, and choked with quantities of a weed that grew three feet or -more high and bore spikes of brilliant, crimson-pink flowers.</p> - -<p>On the nearest spike of blossoms Alice saw three or four bees, and -from the whole tract resounded the deep, busy hum that they had heard -from the river.</p> - -<p>“D’you know what that is?” shouted Carl, dancing with exultation. -“Willow-herb! Fireweed! What do you think of that?”</p> - -<p>Alice also recognized it. Willow-herb—also known as “fireweed,” -because it always springs up in the track of forest fires—is one of -the best honey-yielding plants in America. It flowers in late summer, -and lasts until frost kills it, secreting nectar heavily whenever the -weather is at all favorable. A single colony of bees has been known to -gather the almost incredible amount of four hundred pounds of honey -from this plant alone. It does not grow in the settled portions of the -country, and as the Harmans had never seen it in profusion, they had -never thought of including it among their prospective resources.</p> - -<p>“O Carl!” cried Alice. “We may get a big crop after all! Let’s hurry -home and see what the bees are doing.”</p> - -<p>Burning with impatience, they hurried up the river as fast as the -heavy old tub could be driven against the stream. Without waiting to -tie the boat, they ran to the apiary. The air was full of a heavy -roar. Bees were coming in by thousands and dropping on the -hive-entrances. It was like the best days of the raspberry flow. Carl -seized his sister by the waist and joyously hugged her.</p> - -<p>“It seems too good to be true! If it only lasts! Won’t Bob be -astonished when he gets here?”</p> - -<p>Bob did not arrive till late the next afternoon. He had walked all the -way from Morton to save the expense of a conveyance and he was very -tired. He had also probably been meditating on their financial state, -for he seemed depressed; but Carl and Alice said nothing at once about -the sudden change in their prospects.</p> - -<p>The bees had ceased flying for the day, but from all the hives, where -the new honey was being ripened, came a heavy roar. After supper Bob -walked out towards the hives and noticed it. He stopped to listen, and -scrutinized the entrances closely.</p> - -<p>“Been feeding them?” he asked at last, with a perplexed look.</p> - -<p>“No,” answered Carl, gravely.</p> - -<p>“Surely they can’t have been gathering anything, can they?”</p> - -<p>“Gathering anything!” Carl burst out, unable to hold the secret any -longer. “I guess those bees have gathered about a thousand pounds of -honey in the last two days. The fireweed is in bloom, Bob. We never -thought of that, did we? There are miles of it! It yields honey by the -ton, and if we just get regular rains we’ll have our -eighteen-hundred-dollar crop yet.”</p> - -<p>Bob could hardly believe the news till he had looked into some of the -supers himself, where great patches of clear, white honey already -showed. Then his enthusiasm knew no bounds.</p> - -<p>“I was just beginning to think we’d been fools to go into this apiary -game,” he exclaimed. “But this puts a different color on the thing. If -we only get the right weather, now!”</p> - -<p>For the next three days the weather was indeed perfect, and the bees -did marvelously well. A visit to the new apiary by the lake showed -that the colonies there were also storing heavily and needed supers. -They had never expected this yard to yield any surplus honey this -season, but the bees were actually crowding the queen out of the combs -with the rush of new honey.</p> - -<p>“We’ll have to get a team and have a load of supers hauled over,” said -Alice. “One thing’s certain—next season we must have a horse and wagon -of our own. We must have paid out over fifty dollars for team-hire -this summer, and now we’ll have to have all these supers hauled home -again for extracting.”</p> - -<p>However, they had to have a quantity of lumber brought out from Morton -to make winter cases for the increased number of colonies, and the -teamster moved the load of supers while he was there. The management -of the bees during this late honey-flow was simple. Bees rarely swarm -after midsummer, and they only needed to be let alone to fill their -empty combs with the honey from the willow-herb, whose crimson spikes -were visible everywhere. Exploring the woods the apiarists found it in -immense quantities in every burned slash; they had seen the green -plants often enough during the summer, but had not recognized it until -it came in bloom. There appeared to be forage for hundreds of -colonies.</p> - -<p>Raspberries were ripe now, and the Harmans gathered quarts. They might -have gathered barrels, if they had had any means of disposing of them. -They ate them in every possible manner—raw, stewed, in pies, but -mainly with fresh, extracted honey poured over them, which they found -to be a dish worthy of any epicure’s attention. Alice also made a -great quantity of jam with some sugar that was left from the spring -feeding, and filled up all the remaining honeypails.</p> - -<p>It was the fruitful season of the wilderness. Game was growing more -plentiful. The woods and streams were full of the new broods of -partridges and ducks, strong-winged now and wary. Hares were -everywhere, and once, while picking berries, Carl caught a glimpse of -a black bear. It was only a glimpse, for the bear vanished like -lightning, but Carl carried a rifle after that when he went for -berries.</p> - -<p>He carried it in vain, but it occurred to him that the lakeside apiary -was terribly exposed to a bear’s depredations, and he carried the big -trap over there, and set it among the hives. He found the yard in -perfect safety, and the bees storing honey fast in nearly all the -supers.</p> - -<p>All through the latter part of August the weather remained warm and -clear. Not much rain fell, but light showers came often enough to keep -the fireweed from drying up, and the bees were busily at work almost -every day. And now Alice set to work to improve the breed of the bees -by queen-rearing operations.</p> - -<p>To transform a black colony into Italians, it is only necessary to -exchange their queen for an Italian queen. In the course of a couple -of months the old generation of black bees will all have died, and all -the newly hatched brood will be the offspring of the Italian mother. -But Alice could not afford to buy any more queens, and she had -determined to rear them herself.</p> - -<p>The rearing of thoroughbred queens is a special art in itself. Any -colony, if deprived of its queen, will raise a number of queen-cells -to produce another, but these cells will of course be from eggs laid -by the old queen, and the new queen will be of the same breed. To -change the breed it is necessary to manœuver a substitution without -the bees being aware of it.</p> - -<p>Alice began by killing the queen of one of the black colonies that had -proved bad-tempered and a poor honey-gatherer. For four days, then, -she let the hive alone. At the end of that time she went over all the -combs and cut out every queen-cell that had been started.</p> - -<p>This produced terrible consternation in the hive. There were no larvæ -now in the hive young enough to produce a queen, for queen-cells -cannot be raised from a larva more than three days old. The bees ran -about the entrance in consternation, and the loud, shrill buzzing of -their despair could be heard across the contented hum of the normal -colonies. But Alice was already taking measures for their relief.</p> - -<p>She prepared a flat stick an inch wide, just long enough to fit inside -an empty brood-frame. Upon this stick she stuck a dozen little cups of -molded beeswax, much the size and shape of an acorn cup, and into each -cup she put a little lump of the white royal jelly taken from the -queen-cells that she had destroyed. This operation is called “priming” -the cells. The next step was to graft them.</p> - -<p>For some time Alice and the boys had been carefully watching the -egg-laying work of the Italian queens that they had bought, and they -had already selected the two that seemed best to use as breeders. -Neither of these, it should be said, was the famous three-dollar -queen. In actual performance she was outstripped by several of the -ordinary one-dollar sort.</p> - -<p>From the hive of the best breeding queen Alice selected a comb -containing eggs and just hatched young larvæ. These little larvæ were -almost invisible, tiny white worms no larger than the comma on a page -of print, floating in milky food at the bottom of each cell. It was -delicate work to touch them, but with the point of a hairpin Alice -fished out one of these for each of the primed artificial cells, -laying it carefully down in the royal jelly. Hurriedly, then, lest the -incipient queens should be chilled, she put this stick of cell-cups -into the unfortunate queenless colony.</p> - -<p>Next morning she went to look at it. Out of the dozen cells the -queenless bees had accepted ten, were drawing the cells out already -into the usual peanut shape, and had fed the larvæ large quantities of -additional royal jelly. All was going well, and Alice proceeded to -prepare a fresh set of cups for another colony.</p> - -<p>It takes twelve days for a queen to hatch after the cell has been -started in this manner. Early on the twelfth day, Alice selected the -twelve colonies in most need of requeening, went through the combs, -found the queens and killed them.</p> - -<p>About three hours later she put into each of these hives one of her -grafted cells, now on the point of hatching. In one case, indeed, the -cell hatched in her fingers, and a beautiful, yellow, Italian virgin -queen emerged.</p> - -<p>In ten or twelve days more, all these young queens would be mated and -laying, and these colonies could be considered Italian for the -future—Italian, at least on the mother’s side, for the worker-bees -would also be affected by the drone parentage.</p> - -<p>Queen-rearing can only be carried on during a honey-flow, and while -the good fireweed flow lasted, Alice raised several dozen queen-cells. -All did not go smoothly, of course. Sometimes the bees refused to -accept the artificial cells, tearing them down as fast as they were -given; once a young queen hatched prematurely, and her royal jealousy -immediately caused her to demolish all the rest of the cells on the -frame, tearing out her young sisters and stinging them to death. Some -queens were also lost on their mating flight, but in all Alice -succeeded, with the help of the boys, in requeening about fifty -colonies.</p> - -<p>By this time most of the colonies had filled an extracting super -apiece. Some had filled two. Nearly all the damaged sections of comb -had been put back on the hives, and the bees had refilled them with -alacrity, sealing them over as white and smooth as if they had been -freshly built. There would be a good deal of section honey to sell -after all.</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe I ever saw a honey-flow last so well,” said Alice. -“It surely can’t go on much longer, and I’m almost afraid to look out -every morning, for fear it’s over.”</p> - -<p>They expected frost every day now, but for another full week the -weather continued warm and open, and the bees continued to bring in -nectar, though in daily-diminishing quantities. Then one evening the -wind shifted into the north, and the temperature went down, not to -frost, but low enough to stop the secretion of nectar. The bees were -idle, and that day the tragedy of the drones began. The long steady -flow of honey had caused the bees to tolerate them until late, but now -their time had come. At every hive-entrance the bees could be seen -chasing them, biting and worrying them, driving them out, but seldom -stinging. The big, stingless drone is very much afraid of his armed -little sisters, and is unable to resist when thrown out of the hive. -All day long could be heard the loud buzzing of the drones as they -tried in vain to reenter their homes, and the next morning they could -be seen by scores, dead in front of the hives, where they had perished -of cold and starvation. In a week hardly a drone was left in the -apiary.</p> - -<p>This meant an end to Alice’s queen-rearing, and she took out and -destroyed the last set of cells that was under way. It was now too -late in the season to kill a queen and attempt to replace her. Every -effort had to be turned toward getting the colonies into the best -condition for winter.</p> - -<p>The weather did turn slightly warmer, but the honey-flow did not -recommence. Then, early one morning, when Carl went out to the yard, -he found the tops of the hives white with hoar-frost.</p> - -<p>“That’s the end of it,” he said. “Well, we can’t complain, for it’s -lasted wonderfully.”</p> - -<p>That day the fireweed flowers hung wilted in the sunshine. The -honey-season was certainly over this time. Nothing remained to be done -now but to extract and sell what was on the hives, but they considered -it better to leave it in the supers to ripen for another week.</p> - -<p>All the honey at the lakeside apiary would have to be hauled home to -be extracted, since there was no extracting-house near or any -facilities for doing the work. It was somewhat uncertain how much was -there, for they had not visited that yard for about two weeks. It was -needful now, however, to make up a close estimate of the amount of -honey to be taken off, for they wanted to order the honey-tins to hold -the crop. Bob offered to go over to the lake and count the supers, and -he set off early in the morning, taking his rifle.</p> - -<p>It was a beautifully crisp autumn day. Squirrels chattered from the -trees; partridges roared up from the undergrowth. Bob sighted a fresh -deer-trail on the old lumber road, but the legal season for deer had -not yet opened. He shot a couple of partridges on the way, however, -clipping their heads neatly with a bullet, and hung them up on a tree -to be picked up on his return.</p> - -<p>He was quite a quarter of a mile from the apiary when he became aware -of a faint murmur, which he took for the breeze in the tree-tops. But -as he advanced it increased to a roar. It sounded like a dozen swarms -flying at once. Bob was bewildered, then scared, and he began to run.</p> - -<p>“It can’t possibly be swarming!” he thought. “Surely the bees in this -yard haven’t struck a new honey-flow at this time of year.”</p> - -<p>Breathlessly he came out upon the shore of the little lake. The apiary -was in sight. The roar increased to a tremendous volume, but even -Bob’s ears perceived the difference between the contented hum of a -working yard, and this high-pitched, angry, tumultuous note that -filled the air.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chIX' title='IX—Stopping a War'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER IX</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>STOPPING A WAR</span> -</h2> -<p>Bob hurried through the debris of dead timber till he got a clear view -of the bee-yard. It was plain enough that something was seriously -wrong, for the whole place was in a state of wild disorder. The air -was full of circling bees, and the white fronts of most of the hives -were brown with masses of bees, crawling and surging excitedly. One -hive near him was actually almost hidden by the cloud that hovered -about it. It looked as if a swarm was coming out, but Bob knew better. -It was war in the apiary. The bees had gone on a robbing riot, and -this hive had been overcome and was being sacked.</p> - -<p>How this fearful state of things had started, Bob was unable to -imagine. To be sure, there had been no honey coming in lately, and -bees will always rob if they get a chance in a honey dearth; but all -the colonies at this yard were now strong and should have been well -able to defend themselves. Bob could not think how matters had ever -got in such a state as this.</p> - -<p>Advancing a little incautiously, a bee stung him on the nose, and he -dodged back again into the shelter of a thicket. Keeping under cover, -he skirted about the apiary, viewing the scene carefully, till at the -other end he came upon the clue to the mysterious rioting.</p> - -<p>Two hives had been upset, and supers, combs, covers, and bottomboards -lay strewn about the stony ground. What had done it he could not -guess. The thought of Larue passed through his mind, but this hardly -looked like the work of any human honey-thief, for the parts of the -hives were tossed pell-mell, and frames and combs were smashed and -crushed on the ground. He was too far away to get a good view and was -afraid to go nearer, for the air was alive with half-maddened bees. -Not many bees appeared about the wrecked hives, however; and probably -every drop of honey had been licked up from them long ago, but there -was no doubt that all this broken honey in the yard had started the -rioting.</p> - -<p>There is something about stolen honey, especially when it is obtained -close to the hives, that causes bees to become almost insane—sometimes -entirely so. Virtually every hive seemed to be engaged in repelling -robbers and trying itself to rob other colonies. The ground was -covered with knots of fighting insects; in front of the hive that was -being sacked there was fully a quart of dead and dying bees that had -perished in the battle. As soon as this hive had been cleaned out the -robbers would attack another, in greatly increased force, and after -that a third.</p> - -<p>Bob had no means of knowing how long this state of things had been -going on, but it would greatly reduce the apiary if it continued much -longer. He knew well what he ought to do; the colonies doing most of -the robbing should be smoked well to take the courage out of them; the -colonies that were being robbed should have wet grass piled all around -the entrance. But he needed a veil, for it was really as much as his -life was worth to venture unprotected into that cloud of maddened -insects. Gloves would be useful, too, but above all he needed a -smoker.</p> - -<p>All these things were stored in the little hut that they had made in -the center of the bee-yard, but to get to it he would have to pass -right through the thickest of the fighting. He hung back for some -time, hesitating and reluctant. He wished vainly for his brother, but -at last he made up his mind, pulled his hat over his eyes, buried his -hands in his pockets, turned up his collar, and made a bolt for the -little storehouse.</p> - -<p>He shot between the rows of hives so fast that for ten yards nothing -touched him. Then he was stung on the chin, and again on the nose. But -he had almost reached the hut when something caught him by the right -ankle with such force that it seemed to break his leg. He tumbled -headlong with a sharp cry, fell against a hive and knocked it -sideways.</p> - -<p>Fortunately it did not overturn, but a gust of savage bees surged into -his face. He brushed at them, and tried to get on his feet. Something -that hurt extremely was hanging to his right foot. He made a blind -leap to get away from that vortex of stinging insects, but was pulled -up short by the ankle and fell again, with a rattle of metal. And now -he saw the great, rusty steel trap gripping his foot. He had walked -squarely into Carl’s bear trap. He had forgotten that it had been set -in this yard.</p> - -<p>For the moment he was too bewildered to realize more than this bare -fact. He crawled away as far as the chain would let him, lay flat on -his face and tried to protect himself from the tormenting insects. It -seemed to him that all the bees in the yard had turned upon him. They -were in his hair, they got under his collar and up his sleeves. -Probably there were in reality only a few hundred attacking him, but -it seemed to him that he got a fresh sting every second, till his -whole body was in agony.</p> - -<p>He drew his foot under him to examine the trap, and see if it could -not be taken off. Age and rust had taken a good deal of the strength -out of the springs, and, luckily, Bob was wearing heavy shoepacks that -day with his trousers tucked inside them, so that the combined -thicknesses of stout leather, cloth, and socks had deadened the force -of the springing jaws. But it hurt extremely; his foot was numb, and -he could not see how to extricate himself.</p> - -<p>He tried to press down the springs with his hands, but he was not -strong enough. It needed a lever to set that trap. Reckless of stings, -Bob stood up and tried to stamp down the spring with his free foot, -but in his constrained posture he was barely able to stir it. It would -certainly take a lever to open the jaws. If he could only escape into -the security of the woods, away from these maddening bees, he felt -sure that he could contrive to get himself free, but the chain would -let him go no farther. The chain was riveted to the trap in a heavy -swivel, and the other end was attached to a stout maple sapling. The -tree was too large to break off, but Bob had a stout pocket-knife and -thought he might hack through it if he had time enough.</p> - -<p>But he was beginning to feel sick and dizzy with the stinging. A -professional bee-keeper thinks little of being stung, and Bob was -pretty well hardened to it by this time, but not to such wholesale -doses. His body was beginning to feel numb all over, and his tongue -seemed swelling in his mouth. A horde of bees, he thought, roared and -crawled over him, but his brain seemed stupefied, and he could hardly -think connectedly of anything.</p> - -<p>The idea dawned upon him that he was really going to be stung to -death, and the horror of it whipped his brain to a last effort. He -cast about for some expedient. If he only had a smoker! But why could -he not make a smoke without one?</p> - -<p>Instantly he struck a match and dropped it into a heap of dead leaves -that lay beside him. They flamed up, and at the first puff of smoke -the bees about his head drifted away. He piled on more leaves, using -the dampest he could find, and created a suffocating cloud of smoke. -He choked in it himself, but there were no bees about him now, except -a few entangled in his clothing.</p> - -<p>He crawled toward the maple sapling, raking the burning smudge along -with him. Under cover of the smoke he began to whittle into the hard -trunk with his knife. Between the thick smoke and a bee-sting that had -nearly closed his eye, he worked rather blindly, and had hacked nearly -half through the trunk before he discovered that no such work was -necessary. The chain was merely wound around the tree a few times and -hooked back into its own links. He might have known that it would be -so fastened, and if he had been a little more clear-headed, he could -have released himself a moment after being caught.</p> - -<p>However, he cast the chain loose immediately and began to hobble -toward the woods, trap and all. Once under cover, he pried open the -trap without much difficulty, using a stout pole. There was a deep -purple furrow on each side of his ankle, and his foot was blue and -numb. He rubbed it a long time and bathed it in the lake before -feeling came back to it.</p> - -<p>He felt decidedly weak and shaky and had to take off all his clothes -in order to get rid of the bees that were still crawling and stinging -in their recesses. Being stripped, he ducked himself in the cool lake -three or four times and felt better. Naturally, he selected a spot for -his bath that was at a safe distance from the apiary, where the war -was still raging.</p> - -<p>He sat down and rested for half an hour after dressing, and then felt -recovered sufficiently to make another attempt at subduing the -fighting bees. It was imperative that the disorder be stopped at once, -and his late experience had given him a hint how to do it.</p> - -<p>Going to the windward side of the yard, he collected rubbish and -lighted a number of smoky fires, so that the smoke drifted across the -hives. Under cover of this smoke he advanced further into the yard and -lighted more fires, till the whole apiary was veiled in clouds of -vapor.</p> - -<p>Fighting stopped instantly. The one thought in each bee’s mind was to -get back to its own hive, and by myriads they flew or crawled home. In -a few minutes Bob was able to make his way safely to the little -store-hut, where he secured a veil and smoker, though really he now -had little need of either. The few bewildered bees drifting about -through the smoke were far too frightened to think of stinging.</p> - -<p>Peace was restored, though it might be only a temporary one. Bob made -haste to contract the entrances of all colonies that he thought might -be weak. With a night’s rest and only an inch-and-a-half doorway to -defend, he thought they should be able to take care of themselves.</p> - -<p>Then he went to examine the cause and beginning of the trouble—the two -overturned hives, and he had scarcely glanced at them when he uttered -a loud exclamation. There was no doubt at all who had been the -disturber here. Long claw-marks ripped the paint of the hives. The -combs and frames had been chewed and mangled, showing plenty of -tooth-marks on the splintered wood, and a wisp of black hair clung to -one of the covers.</p> - -<p>“Br’er Bear, and no mistake about it!” muttered Bob.</p> - -<p>About half the combs had been chewed up, both the super combs of honey -and the lower-story combs of brood. Apparently the bear had liked the -taste of unhatched bees. What honey he had left had, of course, been -cleaned up by the bees from the yard, and all the scattered wax was -now dry as bone. No doubt the raid had been made during the night, and -in the morning the neighboring bees had pounced on the spilled and -scattered honey and gone mad with robbing.</p> - -<p>There was not much that he could do now. He put the hives together -again, gathered up the scraps of wax, and also straightened the hive -that he had fallen against when the trap caught him. But he was much -concerned for the future. It was very probable that the bear would -return to this sweet corner, and the trap was very little likely to -catch him. In any case, the bees would probably recommence their -robbing the next morning. For some time that apiary would need careful -attention.</p> - -<p>He would have liked to leave his smudges burning so that the odor of -the smoke would warn the bear away, but he decided that it would be -unsafe. The lakeside slope was littered with all sorts of dry rubbish, -and a little fire might easily burn up the entire apiary. Having done -all he could, he took his rifle and limped home, rather painfully, for -his ankle was very lame.</p> - -<p>“How much honey did you find there?” Carl demanded when he entered the -cabin.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know. I forgot to look,” said Bob. “Only there isn’t so much -as there was yesterday, and there’ll be still less if we don’t look -sharp.”</p> - -<p>“What on earth’s the matter?” cried Alice. “And how did you ever get -so badly stung?”</p> - -<p>“Robber bees—robber bears—steel traps!” said Bob succinctly; and he -proceeded to tell them of the deplorable conditions he had discovered.</p> - -<p>“A bear—a real bear this time!” exclaimed his brother. “He’ll be -certain to come back to-night for more. I’m going to lay for him. -Allie, I’ll get you your bearskin after all.”</p> - -<p>“Then I’ll see you do it,” said Alice. “For if you’re going after it -to-night I’ll go too.”</p> - -<p>“Nonsense! We may be up all night. Bob’ll go with me.”</p> - -<p>“Not on your life!” returned Bob, wearily. “I wouldn’t walk back there -this evening to save all the bees from destruction. There’s no sense -in going to-night anyway. The bear will never come back with that -strong smell of smoke in the yard.”</p> - -<p>“You can’t tell. I believe he would,” Carl argued. “His mouth will -water for honey too hard to resist. Anyhow, I’m going to take a chance -on it and wait for him with some buckshot shells.”</p> - -<p>“And I’m certainly going!” affirmed Alice. “You don’t want to go -alone—and Bob says the bear won’t come, so there’ll be no danger.”</p> - -<p>Carl really did not want to spend the night in ambush alone, and as -Bob was in no condition for the adventure, he agreed to allow Alice to -go with him. There would be a moon that night, but not till after -eleven o’clock, and if they were to reach the apiary before dark, it -would be necessary to start immediately after supper.</p> - -<p>Alice put on a short skirt, a jersey, and a tam-o’Shanter, and took -the shotgun, for which Carl carried half a dozen buckshot shells in -his pocket. He carried Bob’s rifle himself, and they took a lunch with -them, for if the vigil lasted all night, they would be decidedly -exhausted before daylight. Bob jeered mildly at the whole proceeding, -and after watching them off went immediately to bed.</p> - -<p>It was a long tramp through the twilight to the lake apiary, and it -was almost dark when they arrived. A faint smell of smoke still -lingered in the air from Bob’s smudges, and from the hives arose a -dull, uneasy roar. Honey had been won and lost that day, but by no -honest means, and all the bees were still suspicious and restless. By -morning the fighting would probably recommence.</p> - -<p>There was a very faint air blowing from south to north, and Carl and -Alice ambushed themselves on the leeward side of the yard. The ground -rose slightly there, so that they had a good view of the whole apiary. -Clumps of small cedars grew all around them, and a big fallen log in -front made an excellent breastwork.</p> - -<p>They placed their weapons across the log and sat down, glad of the -rest. The evening air was cool, almost frosty, and the wilderness was -very still. They barely dared converse, even in the faintest whispers.</p> - -<p>For an hour or so they were both on tenterhooks of expectation, but as -time passed this wore off, and they began to feel weary and drowsy. -Carl would have found more difficulty in keeping awake, only that from -time to time his ears caught some rustle or crackle in the underbrush -that set him thrilling with excitement. But nothing ever appeared in -the bee-yard, where the roaring had gradually quieted.</p> - -<p>At last the sky lightened over in the east, and the moon gradually -appeared between the trees. It was almost full, and the forest changed -marvelously into deep black and pale silver. Voices began to be heard -from the wilderness as if this were the dawning of the forest day.</p> - -<p>The long trail of a swimming muskrat crossed the surface of the lake. -A raccoon cried plaintively behind them, and away at the other end of -the water they heard the uncanny, cackling laugh of a loon. There were -strange murmurings and stirrings everywhere in the undergrowth, and -then, far away to the north, sounded a single long shriek, savage and -shrill, that caused a sudden long silence in the woods. Probably it -was a lynx on his night’s hunting.</p> - -<p>Moonrise put them both wide awake again for a time. But as an hour -passed and nothing in particular happened, they grew drowsy once more. -Alice frankly put her head on the big log and dozed, but Carl kept -awake with determination, scrutinizing the edge of the woods all along -the ghostly rows of beehives.</p> - -<p>Time passes very slowly in such a vigil, and the moon was getting -lower in the sky. Carl was growing very tired of it, and he had nudged -Alice awake several times, when it suddenly struck him that something -had moved in the woods behind him. He was not sure what he had heard, -or whether he had heard anything, but the next instant a black figure -passed between him and one of the nearest rows of hives.</p> - -<p>Almost breathless, he squeezed Alice’s arm and she looked up, -blinking. Carl pointed. The dim figure moved forward, with a stealthy, -heavy, noiseless swing, till it came out in the clear moonlight, and -they both saw the figure of the bear distinctly.</p> - -<p>It stopped and seemed a trifle uneasy, swinging its head and evidently -sniffing the air. Then, seeming reassured, it suddenly reared up on -its hind legs, and with one sweep of its paw, sent the cover of the -nearest hive flying.</p> - -<p>They saw the bees boil up like smoke into the bright moonlight. Carl -grasped the rifle, and cocked it noiselessly. The bear plunged his -nose into the super, and they heard the delicate combs and frames -smash under his teeth.</p> - -<p>A tearing flash from Carl’s rifle split the shadows. Alice uttered a -shriek of excitement. The bear was down, rolling over beside the hive, -and apparently done for. Carl dashed out in triumph.</p> - -<p>But as he approached the animal it reared up unsteadily, and launched -a vicious sweep with its iron-clawed paw. Carl sprang back, threw up -the rifle and pulled the trigger. Only a soft snap answered. He had -forgotten to throw another shell into the chamber.</p> - -<p>As he tried to protect himself, the gun was dashed out of his hand, -and he might have been struck down the next instant, but Alice charged -up and fired both barrels of the shotgun at a range of two yards. As -it appeared afterwards, she missed the bear cleanly with both shots; -but the buckshot, clustering like a bullet, blew the nearest beehive -almost to pieces.</p> - -<p>But the shots turned the animal’s attention, and it wheeled and -charged straight through the shotgun smoke. Carl uttered a shout of -horror, but Alice had already dodged and was running like a deer -across the bee-yard, with the bear hotly in chase.</p> - -<p>Carl groped desperately for the rifle that had flown out of his hands, -but failed to find it. Bees from the damaged hives seemed to be -crawling all over the ground. He gave up the search and rushed wildly -after the bear, shouting at the top of his voice to distract its -attention. It paid no heed, but at that moment Alice, with most -remarkable gymnastic skill, scrambled into a small hemlock just in -time.</p> - -<p>But a bear can climb trees better than any girl! Carl saw the animal -rear up against the trunk and he flung a knotted lump of wood with all -his force. It hit the beast on the back. It turned with a fierce -snarl, and Carl in his turn had just time to scramble into a tree to -escape its charge.</p> - -<p>The moment he had done so he was sorry, for now he was sure to be -clawed out of the branches; but man has an almost uncontrollable -instinct to climb a tree to avoid a danger. The bear did indeed rear -up against the trunk, clawing the bark and trying to draw himself up. -But he did not actually climb, and it came into Carl’s mind that -perhaps his first bullet had so injured the animal as to make him -unable to climb.</p> - -<p>He looked down at it with the most intense anxiety. It really did seem -either unable or unwilling to ascend the tree. It walked about -uneasily; then went over to the hemlock where Alice was perched, and -finally returned to Carl. After sniffing about the foot of the tree it -lay down as if on guard.</p> - -<p>Carl’s hopes rose as he looked at it. For some minutes it hardly -seemed to stir, though he could not doubt its intense vigilance. -Perhaps it was remaining quiet in the hope that he would be tempted to -come down.</p> - -<p>“Are you all right, Carl? Where is it?” called Alice, in a low tone.</p> - -<p>“Lying like a dog at the foot of my tree,” Carl responded. “Are you -all right?”</p> - -<p>“Fairly comfortable. I’ve got a lot of bees on me, though,” she added.</p> - -<p>Carl presently became aware that he had bees on him also. The ground -must have been covered with them where the bear had torn the hive -open; some had probably flown from the combs and settled on the two -apiarists. Carl felt one crawling on his neck; he brushed it off, and -a moment later was stung by another that had crept up the inside of -his trouser-leg. He seemed to have bees crawling all over him, and no -doubt Alice, whose skirts afforded less protection, was in even worse -case.</p> - -<p>In fact, he could hear her squirming about on her branch, and brushing -at her clothing.</p> - -<p>“They’re stinging me all over,” she called piteously at last. “There -must be more than a million bees on me. I believe I’ll get down and -run.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t do it!” Carl implored. “Try to stand it for a little while. -Maybe the bear’ll go away.”</p> - -<p>But in his heart he knew that the bear was not at all likely to go -away before daylight, and that was a long time to wait. The annoyance -of the bees was growing intolerable. In the semi-darkness they would -not take wing; they merely crawled, and when they became entangled, -they used their stings. Carl could hear the continual “biz-zz” of -insects somewhere out of reach under his clothing, and every few -minutes he felt the keen thrust.</p> - -<p>“I simply can’t stand this,” groaned Alice, and Carl felt that he had -had enough of it too.</p> - -<p>“Hold on! Don’t move!” he cried. “I’m going to see if I can’t slip -down and get the gun.”</p> - -<p>He was perching in a beech tree with long and spreading branches, and -he had already observed that one of these lower limbs drooped to less -than a man’s height from the earth. Carl began to creep out on this -branch, as soundlessly as he could, but despite his care he thought he -saw the bear move its head and look at him.</p> - -<p>The branch sagged heavily under his weight as he went further out. He -was six or eight feet from the trunk, and on the side farthest from -the bear, and he hesitated for several seconds. He could see Alice -watching him anxiously from her tree.</p> - -<p>Finally he made up his mind, swung off, and dropped to earth with the -spring of the bough. It swished back with a tremendous crackling of -twigs, and Carl bolted headlong for the place where he had lost the -rifle.</p> - -<p>He had no doubt that the bear was pursuing him. He dodged around a -beehive and glanced over his shoulder, but saw nothing of the animal. -Striking a match, he bent over the earth and was lucky enough to catch -the blue glint of the rifle-barrel almost at once.</p> - -<p>With a great feeling of relief he picked it up, tried the action and -put in a fresh cartridge. The bear had made no sign, and now Carl -assumed the aggressive and marched back toward his tree, holding the -rifle ready.</p> - -<p>He could see the bear plainly, lying in the shadow of the beech, but -it did not stir. A suspicion began to grow in Carl’s mind. Advancing a -little nearer, he threw a lump of wood, hitting the prostrate animal -fairly, but still it did not move. Carl chuckled to himself, walked -closer, inspected the bear cautiously, and ventured to punch it in the -side with the rifle-muzzle.</p> - -<p>“Come down, Allie!” he called. “It’s all right. He’s dead!”</p> - -<p>There was a crackling of twigs as Alice slipped down, and then came to -look, astonished and almost unbelieving.</p> - -<p>“Dead? What killed it?”</p> - -<p>“That first shot of mine must have fatally wounded it. Anyway it’s as -dead as a door-nail, and seems to have been dead for some time. I -expect we might have come down a lot sooner if we had known.”</p> - -<p>“I wish we had,” said Alice. “I think I’m a pincushion of beestings.”</p> - -<p>“Well, go and get the bees off you. I’ll light a fire, and then I’ll -do the same.”</p> - -<p>Alice retired into the shadows and loosened her clothing. Carl built a -blaze from light wood, got rid of his own bees by brushing and -slapping, and dragged the carcass of the bear up to the firelight. It -was a medium-sized animal, with a beautiful, black, glossy pelt, but -nearly the whole of one side was soaked and stiffened with blood. -There was, also, a large pool of blood where it had been lying. It was -plain that Carl’s first bullet had cut an artery somewhere, and the -bear had gradually weakened and lain down to die quietly by the tree.</p> - -<p>There was something rather pathetic about this ending of the wild -animal, Alice thought, when she had come back and had it explained to -her.</p> - -<p>“Well, you’ll have your bearskin anyway. That’ll partly compensate for -the honey we’ve lost through him.”</p> - -<p>“Do you know how to skin a bear?” Alice demanded.</p> - -<p>“No,” replied her brother, “but I’ve got a knife, and I’m going to -try.”</p> - -<p>It was then shortly after two o’clock in the morning. They got out -their lunch gladly, and ate it by the fire, and then Carl undertook -the task of skinning the game. The light was not very good, and he had -only a large pocket-knife, so that the operation proved longer and -more fatiguing than he had expected.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know whether I’m doing this in the orthodox manner,” he said -as he wrestled with it. “But anyway I’m getting the hide off all in -one piece.”</p> - -<p>He finished removing it at last, and rolled it up to be taken home. It -would need to be washed free of the blood-stains and combed as well, -for there were at least a hundred bees tangled in the fur, where they -had died in defense of their homes and honey. The carcass was fat and -in fine condition.</p> - -<p>“Want some bear steaks, Allie?” Carl demanded.</p> - -<p>Alice thought not. The stripped carcass of the bear looked somewhat -horribly human.</p> - -<p>It was between three and four o’clock by that time, and as the -moonlight did not penetrate the woods very well, they determined to -wait for dawn before returning. The air was decidedly sharp; the -warmth of the fire was welcome. They arranged themselves as -comfortably as possible beside it, sat talking for a time, fell -silent, dozed, and fell asleep.</p> - -<p>They were awakened by a shout. It was broad day, and the east was -crimson. By the old roadway Bob was just coming into the bee-yard. He -had felt uneasy about them and had started for the lake at dawn, -despite his lame foot, bringing a honey-pail full of coffee. At sight -of the bear his chagrin was boundless.</p> - -<p>“Think what I missed!” he exclaimed. “I’ve been hoping for a chance at -a bear all this fall, and I’m laid up at the last moment and Carl -kills the bear with my own rifle. Hard luck? I should say so!</p> - -<p>“But we certainly ought to take one of this fellow’s hams back with -us,” he continued. “They say it’s better than pork, and we’ve no fresh -meat except what game we can pick up. Give me that knife.”</p> - -<p>It was no easy matter to detach the hind quarter with nothing but a -jack-knife, but Bob did manage at last to get it off, though he -mangled it badly. It must have weighed twenty-five pounds, and the -hide and meat would make heavy enough trophies to carry home.</p> - -<p>How to dispose of the rest of the carcass was another problem. They -did not want to leave it to putrefy in the apiary; they had no means -of digging and did not care to throw it in the lake. Finally Carl -discovered a little hollow back in the woods, and they scraped it out -somewhat with sticks, put in the bear’s body, covered it with what -loose earth they could gather, and piled stones over it.</p> - -<p>“I suppose one of us ought to stay here to-day and watch the bees, in -case of more robbing,” said Alice, doubtfully.</p> - -<p>None of them felt much inclined for this duty. Bob pointed to the sky, -where heavy clouds were rolling up already.</p> - -<p>“No use. It’ll be raining by noon,” he said. “Rain will keep -everything quiet, and if it should clear off sooner, one of us can -come out again this afternoon.”</p> - -<p>So they heated the pail of coffee at the last coals of the fire, drank -it, and started homeward, well burdened with the bearskin, the meat, -and the two guns. The sky continued to darken; a few drops fell before -they gained the cabin, and by ten o’clock a cold, sharp rain was -falling. It looked like the first of the autumnal rains; a fire was -welcome in the cabin, and Carl and Alice made up for their hard night -by a long nap. There was no danger of the bees fighting that day.</p> - -<p>It cleared and turned warmer the next morning, and shortly after noon -Carl and Bob walked over to the lake. All was quiet; the bees were -flying a little, but were not attempting to rob. Evidently the -intermission of that rainy day had caused them to recover from their -demoralization.</p> - -<p>But they were alarmed to notice that Carl’s fire, imperfectly -extinguished, had spread among the dry rubbish on the ground till it -had been put out by the rain. If the rain had held off, it might have -done a great deal of damage. The beehives, made of dry pine, and full -of wax and propolis would burn like so many torches.</p> - -<p>“I’m afraid I was careless that time,” said Carl. “But we’ll have to -come over here with our axes and clear away all this rubbish.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and cut a regular fire guard around the yard,” Bob agreed. “We -can’t take any chances on this outfit, and there are always forest -fires up here in the fall.”</p> - -<p>Just now the woods were wet, and there was no immediate danger, so -they resolved to put off this duty till after extracting. For another -week the honey was allowed to remain on the hives. Frost fell on three -successive nights, but the days were sunny and warm. The maples -crimsoned; the woods became a flare of color. They had dried again -too, and when Bob went to Morton to order a team to haul the honey, he -came back with the report that the village was smoky, and fires were -burning in the woods to the westward.</p> - -<p>Extracting the honey was not such a hurried task this time. First they -cleared out the home yard; then had the full supers hauled in from the -lakeside apiary; they took a whole week in taking off the crop, -extracting the honey, and packing it in sixty-pound tins, and shipping -cases.</p> - -<p>The crop of fireweed honey turned out a little over seven thousand -pounds of liquid honey, and eighty dozen sections, nearly all of the -“Fancy” grade. Besides, they had about two hundred pounds of honey -reserved for their own consumption, and for giving away. A generous -amount was allotted to Mr. Farr, and they planned to supply Larue with -a rich helping if there was any chance of thereby healing up the feud.</p> - -<p>“Well, we’re not making the $1,800 we hoped for,” said Bob. “But we -ought to get $700 for this extracted honey, and about $200 for the -sections. Counting what we sold before, that comes to over $1,500.”</p> - -<p>“Besides, we won’t need to feed an ounce of sugar for winter,” Alice -added. “The hives are so heavy now that they feel as if they were -nailed down. How we’ll lift them into the winter cases I don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and they’ve mostly got young queens,” said Carl. “With plenty of -food and young queens they’re sure to winter well and make money for -us next year. We’ve got over two hundred and ten colonies now. Next -year we’ll almost certainly clear a couple of thousand dollars.”</p> - -<p>But they did not get so much for this crop of honey as they expected. -The fireweed honey was not quite equal in quality to that from the -raspberry. They received only nine cents for the extracted honey, and -$2.25 a dozen for the sections. That brought them $810, however; -beside they got $40 for a hundred pounds of beeswax from the melted-up -cappings and bits of comb. The boys voted that $40 to Alice as her fee -for doing the uncapping.</p> - -<p>There was not much left to be done now, but prepare the bees for -winter, but that meant making new winter cases for nearly all the -hives at the lakeside apiary. They had already had a load of lumber -and a keg of nails taken there, and were waiting till they should have -leisure to do the carpenter work.</p> - -<p>A few days after shipping the last of the honey, the two boys went -over to the lake with their axes, intending to clear the place up as -well as possible. When they came within half a mile of the yard they -heard the distant, resonant bay of a hound somewhere to the west.</p> - -<p>“Some one’s breaking the game laws,” remarked Bob, for the open season -for deer was still far off. “Probably it’s one of those fellows from -Morton.”</p> - -<p>The voice of the hound was coming nearer, and by the time they -approached the lake, it sounded so close that they stopped in the -underbrush to watch for signs of the hunt.</p> - -<p>In a few minutes a crash sounded in the woods, and a small buck dashed -out and plunged into the shallow water. Instantly a rifle cracked from -somewhere down the shore. The deer wheeled, turned straight toward the -boys, and had come close before it caught sight of them. It swerved -again in a panic and went across the bee-yard, clearing the hives in -great bounds.</p> - -<div id='i007' class='mt01 mb01 wi007'> - <img src='images/illus-007.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> -<p class='caption'>It wheeled in a panic and went straight over the bee yard, clearing the hives in great bounds</p> -</div> -<p>“Crack! crack! crack!” came the reports of the invisible rifle. But -the buck, apparently untouched, vanished into the woods. It left a -hive with the cover kicked off, and a cloud of angry bees hovering -over it.</p> - -<p>In another minute the dog came up on the hot trail, yelping and -quivering with excitement.</p> - -<p>“Why, that’s Larue’s hound,” whispered Carl.</p> - -<p>A moment later the squatter himself emerged from the thickets a -hundred yards down the shore and came walking slowly up, with his -rifle over his shoulder. The dog had been doubling about where the -buck had swerved and now, catching the trail, he dashed into the -bee-yard with a loud bay, which was followed by a sharp yell. He had -blundered right into the hive that the deer had struck, and he was -rolling over and over, with brown knots of bees clinging to his hide. -Larue ran toward him, but the dog leaped up and bolted into the woods, -yelping with pain and fright. He was evidently done with hunting for -that day.</p> - -<p>The boys squatted down close under the cedars. They heard Larue -muttering angrily, and half expected him to shoot up the apiary. But -no shot sounded. Perhaps he had grown afraid to meddle with the bees, -and after a time they heard him tramp into the woods again.</p> - -<p>“Now isn’t that the toughest kind of luck?” Carl muttered. “We’re -always running afoul of that fellow. Now I suppose he thinks he has a -new grievance against us, though it wasn’t our fault.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t see how we dare go away and leave all this bee outfit alone -for the winter,” said Bob. “He’d have it all destroyed before spring. -We’ve got to make peace with him somehow.”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Farr said that he’d never forget a good turn. I’d take a lot of -trouble to do him one, if somebody would only show me how!” said Carl.</p> - -<p>For some time they discussed methods of placating him. As soon as they -felt sure that he had gone a safe distance from the apiary, they set -to work to clear up the fire danger.</p> - -<p>It was really too great a task for two pairs of hands. They worked -most of that day, cleared up a great deal of the brushwood, dragged -fallen logs out of the way, and even made some attempt at cutting a -fire guard along the shore. But when evening came they seemed to have -made little impression.</p> - -<p>“We’d best hire a couple of regular woodcutters to clear up the whole -place and burn the rubbish,” said Carl. “We can afford it now.”</p> - -<p>“Well, we might take another whack at it ourselves, when we come over -to make the winter cases,” suggested Bob.</p> - -<p>They did not return to the lake for nearly a week, being busy at -putting the home hives into their winter boxes again, but the place -was constantly and heavily on their consciences. The woods had grown -very dry again. No more rain had fallen, and the ground was covered -with dead leaves, dry brush, and bark that any spark would set ablaze. -Near the cabin there was not so much danger, for the river made a good -fire guard on one side, and the woods on the other were mostly of -small green spruce and hemlock, which would not burn very readily.</p> - -<p>There was fire somewhere certainly. For several days smoke had hung in -the west, and the sun had gone down in a sullen haze of red. Almost -every day the boys planned to attend to the lake apiary, but some -other duty intervened, till, one morning, Alice ran into the cabin -with a frightened look on her face.</p> - -<p>“There’s smoke in the northwest—toward the lake!” she exclaimed.</p> - -<p>Bob and Carl hurried out to look. Smoke was certainly rolling up from -the direction of the lake, and there was a light breeze from the -north.</p> - -<p>“That dry stuff along the shore must have caught somehow!” exclaimed -Bob. “What fools we were not to clear it up. But maybe it hasn’t come -near the bee-yard yet. Get your ax, quick, Carl—and run!”</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chX' title='X—Fire and Water'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER X</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>FIRE AND WATER</span> -</h2> -<p>Tearing through the undergrowth, running till they were breathless, -walking fast and then running again, the boys made their way through -the woods. To save time they took a short cut, but the ground was so -rough that it may have proved longer in the end, and before they -struck the old logging-road they realized that this was no light blaze -in the dead wood. Volumes of smoke surged over the trees, and when -they came within half a mile of the lake, they found the way blocked.</p> - -<p>Ahead of them the woods were burning to left and right. Hardly any -flame was visible, but the forest was choking with smoke and full of -the sharp smell of burning cedar. In the distance they could hear the -roar of the flames and the occasional crash of falling trees. To save -the apiary looked hopeless.</p> - -<p>“How in the world did it ever spring up so suddenly?” exclaimed Carl.</p> - -<p>“Don’t know. But we can’t get through this way. Got to go round it!” -gasped his brother, and they plunged into the woods again.</p> - -<p>Though they were not far from the lake they had to make a wide detour -to the west to reach it. What they could do when they got there they -hardly knew, but the bees meant everything to them. They could not let -the apiary burn without a fight.</p> - -<p>Stumbling through the smoke, they reached the lake shore at last. -Clouds of smoke drifted over the water, and the fire crashed and -roared. Two hundred yards away they saw the beehives dimly and ran -toward them. They had not yet been touched, but the fire was burning -straight toward the yard, through the rubbish-ricks along the shore.</p> - -<p>“Can we clear a belt around them?” cried Carl, doubtfully.</p> - -<p>“Too late!” said Bob. “Can’t start any counter-fire either. Can’t we -move them out of the way somehow?”</p> - -<p>Standing in bitter perplexity they looked from the apiary to the -woods. The fire was coming down the eastern shore; the hives were at -the southern end and would certainly be consumed when the -conflagration rounded the foot of the lake. There was not much flame -in sight, but dense smoke rolled across the water, and hot ashes were -falling in showers. These might start fresh fires anywhere.</p> - -<p>“We’ll get trapped here ourselves if we don’t make haste!” Carl -exclaimed.</p> - -<p>Bob went down to the shore and dashed water over himself.</p> - -<p>“If we only had the boat we could ferry them off!” he said, and then -uttered a loud exclamation.</p> - -<p>“A raft! a raft! That’s the thing, Carl. Make a raft!”</p> - -<p>“Yes, float ’em across the lake,” cried Carl. “Or up to the island. -That’ll be best. Let’s get the logs together!”</p> - -<p>Halfway up the lake, barely visible through the smoke, was the little -islet. It was barely twenty yards in diameter, but there was nothing -on it to burn, and it would be a safe refuge if they could get the -bees to it.</p> - -<p>Bob had already begun to chop furiously into a dead pine log. There -was plenty of timber scattered along the shore, and, better still, -there was the lumber and the nails that they had brought for the -winter case. Time, only, was lacking.</p> - -<p>Both boys rushed about frantically through the smoke. They dislodged -the logs that lay nearest the water, hewed off the large limbs, and -rolled the trunks down to the shore. Splashing in and out of the -shallow water, they succeeded at last in getting half a dozen small -tree trunks afloat together. Carl dragged down boards from the lumber -pile, and Bob spiked them down with the back of his ax for a hammer.</p> - -<p>“We’ll never do it!” Carl choked.</p> - -<p>But they hauled in fresh timbers, more boards, and nailed them to the -first section. The smoke was growing hotter and thicker; they could -plainly feel the fierce breath of the fire itself. Pieces of flaming -bark and branches were beginning to rain down. A partridge, blinded by -the smoke, whirred over their heads and tumbled into the water.</p> - -<p>“Keep going, Carl!” Bob cried hoarsely. “A little more’ll do it.”</p> - -<p>Working frantically, they managed to put together a few more square -feet of raft and cover it with lumber. It was a rickety affair, but it -must serve as it was. There was no time to do any more.</p> - -<p>“Now all aboard with the bees!” Bob shouted.</p> - -<p>He wiped his streaming eyes, seized upon the nearest hive, splashed -with it into the shallow water, and set it on the raft. The bees were -not flying, but the smoke and heat had caused them to cluster out on -the entrances in great lumps. It was impossible to handle the hives -without crushing bees, and when this happened they stung savagely.</p> - -<p>But it was no time to think of stings, and the boys hardly noticed -them. The hives were a heavy weight, however; they were stuffed with -willow-herb honey; some of them must have weighed eighty pounds, and -the most distant had to be carried over a hundred feet to the raft. It -was hardly possible to handle these single-handed.</p> - -<p>Already the fire had burst out around the corner of the lake, and the -dry wood around the apiary was ablaze. A flame suddenly sprang up in -the middle of the yard, but Carl instantly stamped it out and went on -with the work. His hands were bleeding; his back felt as if it were -broken. He hardly knew how the last hives got on the raft. But -suddenly there were no more of the painted boxes on the shore, and his -brother was crying frantically to him to come aboard. He waded into -the water up to his neck, helped to shove the shaky raft off, and -swung himself upon the logs. With a couple of long poles the boys -worked furiously to push the raft into deep water, but it moved with -extreme slowness.</p> - -<p>The whole shore was now aflame. Masses of blazing wood, driven by the -wind, went hissing into the water. The heat and smoke were almost -unendurable. But foot by foot the raft crept out into the lake till -the water grew so deep that they could no longer reach bottom. They -were forced to use the poles as sweeps, and their progress became -still slower.</p> - -<p>“We’ll save them! We’ll do it!” cried Bob, exultantly.</p> - -<p>But they were far from safe. They were about a hundred feet from -shore, and the heat was intense. Fire flooded over the whole ground -where the apiary had stood. On the raft the air was scorching, and -presently honey and melted wax began to ooze from one of the hives. -The combs were melting down.</p> - -<p>Carl leaned over the edge and dashed water over all the hives, and it -steamed up from the hot wood. But he kept splashing them till they -cooled somewhat; meanwhile Bob was working hard at the pole. -Presently, by good luck, they passed over a shoal spot, and they dug -the poles into the bottom, gaining several yards.</p> - -<p>At that moment Carl cried out sharply and pointed ashore.</p> - -<p>“What is it?” exclaimed Bob.</p> - -<p>“Some one out there—I saw him through the smoke—just for a second!” -the boy gasped.</p> - -<p>They both gazed intently. The drifting smoke-clouds shrouded all the -scene. Then, as they blew aside a little, both the boys saw a human -figure, a man, roughly dressed, dodging up the shore at full speed to -escape the fire.</p> - -<p>“Larue!” exclaimed Bob.</p> - -<p>“That’s who it was! For a minute I was afraid it might be Alice come -to look for us,” said Carl. “But what can that fellow be doing here?”</p> - -<p>“He must have got caught on the other shore, and is running around the -lake to dodge it. Why, Carl, you don’t suppose—”</p> - -<p>“No, I really don’t think he’d do such a thing,” Carl answered. “To -try to burn out the apiary would be too much. He’s making for home. I -suppose he’s afraid the fire may burn down that way.”</p> - -<p>There was no time then to speculate upon him any further. The air was -a trifle fresher now, but the raft seemed to be growing more shaky -every minute, and the boys were afraid it would actually fall to -pieces. They had to propel it with the utmost care, but sparks no -longer fell on them, and the little island was growing nearer.</p> - -<p>“We’ve done it, Carl! We’re safe!” said Bob, and this time he spoke -with reason.</p> - -<p>Still it took another quarter of an hour of slow and anxious -navigation before they grounded the raft on the island. They jumped -into the water and began to unload the hives at once, setting them -down anywhere on the stony ground. This was another heavy task, but -when it was done they wiped their streaming faces, and breathed more -freely.</p> - -<p>Even here the air was thick with smoke, but it was not hot. Driving -before the breeze, the fire seemed to be burning south and west from -the lake and was now progressing up the western bank. Probably it -would burn for miles, but nothing could be done now to check it.</p> - -<p>“You don’t think it’ll go near our cabin, do you?” asked Carl -suddenly.</p> - -<p>“Not unless the wind shifts,” answered Bob. “But I think we ought to -get back there as soon as we can. No telling what may happen.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose we can leave the bees here all right till the fire’s out,” -said Carl, looking critically around him. “But how are we going to get -ashore ourselves?”</p> - -<p>They did not relish the idea of trying to paddle the raft over the -half mile of water to land, and besides they preferred to leave it -where it was for use when they should remove the bees from the island. -Both of them could swim, but neither felt equal to a swim of that -distance, especially as they were nearly exhausted already. So for a -time they sat still on the island, closely surrounded by murmuring -masses of their bees, till it was nearly noon, and they began to grow -desperately hungry.</p> - -<p>“It seems to me a thousand years since I had breakfast,” said Carl. -“Nothing for it but to swim, I guess.”</p> - -<p>They looked and dreaded, but there was really no easier way. Stripping -off their already soaked clothes, they made them into two bundles, -which they tied at their necks, and each took a loose plank from the -raft to serve as a float. With this support there was no danger of -sinking, though it made their progress somewhat slow, and in half an -hour they stepped ashore on the mainland.</p> - -<p>The shore was still hot here where the fire had passed, and they had -to go up the lake for half a mile before they found a way around the -burned area. Here the fire seemed to have started, spreading -southward, and they wondered again what had been its origin.</p> - -<p>This necessary detour made it a long tramp home, and they were very -tired, blackened, and hungry when they came in sight of the cabin, and -perceived Alice scouting about on the trail in front, evidently on the -lookout for them.</p> - -<p>“Oh, boys!” she exclaimed, hastening toward them. “Are you all right? -I’ve been almost out of my mind with fright. I could see the smoke, -and I thought—I didn’t know what might happen. I knew you’d try to -save the bees. Are they all burned up?”</p> - -<p>“Not a bit of it,” said Carl. “We rafted them off into the lake.”</p> - -<p>“Good! But I don’t care for anything, as long as you’re both safe. You -must be hungry. I’ve had dinner ready for hours. I thought of trying -to carry a lunch to you, but I was afraid I might miss you.”</p> - -<p>“The fire didn’t seem to be coming this way, Alice?” enquired Bob.</p> - -<p>“Oh, no. Only the smoke was thick. The bees have been frightened and -cross all the morning. The fire seems to me to be heading down the -river, toward Indian Slough. I hope it doesn’t get to Larue’s place.”</p> - -<p>The boys washed off the ashes and soot, sat down to the delayed -dinner, and ate with appetites worthy of what they had gone through. -Now that the physical strain was over, they felt the effects of it, -and they ached in every muscle. They were disinclined to do anything -after dinner, and they all sat outside the cabin and watched the -apparent progress of the fire, as indicated by the smoke over the -tree-tops. It was certainly burning down toward the river, but far -below them, and it seemed to be rather decreasing than spreading. Bob -fancied it had encountered a wet piece of woodland that had given it a -check. The sky was overcast besides, looking as if rain might fall -before morning. On the whole, things looked safe enough; so the boys -went to bed soon after dark, and slept heavily.</p> - -<p>Carl was awakened by his brother shaking his arm.</p> - -<p>“Get up!” Bob was saying. “Put on your clothes. Hurry!”</p> - -<p>Very sleepily Carl obeyed, without knowing what was the matter. -Daylight had just come. In the east the sky was crimsoning delicately, -but down the river in the southwest, it was all one fierce red glare. -A high wind had risen, roaring through the trees, and they could see -the reflection of the fire on the smoke-clouds, and now and again even -the tongues of flame themselves, leaping against the sky.</p> - -<p>Alice and Carl were both out-doors, watching in anxiety.</p> - -<p>“It isn’t coming this way, is it?” asked Carl, when he had taken in -the alarming spectacle.</p> - -<p>“No. The wind’s the wrong way,” responded Bob. “But it must be burning -down mighty near our friend Larue. I believe we ought to take the boat -and go down. He may need help.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I’m sure we ought!” Alice urged.</p> - -<p>“Seems to me I’ve done enough fire-fighting for awhile,” Carl -grumbled. “Why, yes, of course we must go,” he added. “I’ll be ready -in a second. Shall we take our axes?”</p> - -<p>“I declare, we left them both at the raft,” said Bob. “Never mind; I -dare say we won’t need them. Alice can stay and keep house again.”</p> - -<p>“Certainly not!” returned Alice, decisively. “There’s a woman down -there and two little girls, and they may need a woman to help them. -I’m going along.”</p> - -<p>“Well, come along then—but I’d rather you wouldn’t,” said Bob with -reluctance.</p> - -<p>They all got into the boat and went down stream as fast as the oars -and current could carry them. It was growing quite light now, but the -morning mists and the pervading smoke blurred the outline of -everything. The sky was clouded and stormy-looking. It might rain. -Meanwhile the wind blew strongly and seemed still rising.</p> - -<p>“If this wind keeps up and no rain falls, it’ll mean millions of -dollars loss, beside—very likely—some lives,” said Bob. “At this rate, -it may go right over Morton.”</p> - -<p>They had gone a couple of miles down the stream before they really -approached the fire zone. Heavy smoke clouds whirled before the wind; -farther down the woods a little way in from the water seemed all -ablaze on the right-hand shore, though the fire had not jumped the -river.</p> - -<p>“Looks as if Larue’s outfit had gone!” said Bob.</p> - -<p>But as they drifted down things did not look so bad. A short distance -back from the river, fire was, indeed, fiercely at work, but along the -shore there was only occasional burning trees, dead ones that had been -ignited by brands drifting through the air. They expected to encounter -the squatter’s canoe, but nothing appeared on the smoky water, and -they had come down near the beginning of the big slough when all of -them, all at once, were startled by hearing a cry from the shore.</p> - -<p>“Listen! What was that? Stop!” yelled Bob</p> - -<p>They stopped paddling and listened. Nothing was heard now but the -snapping wood. But they had all heard it—a thin, high-pitched scream, -like a child’s cry—or perhaps the cry of some lynx or wildcat trapped -in the burning forest.</p> - -<p>“It was some of the Larues! It was one of the children!” cried Alice.</p> - -<p>“Must have been. Let me ashore. I’ll find it!” Carl exclaimed.</p> - -<p>“You won’t go into that blazing wood!” ejaculated Bob.</p> - -<p>“It isn’t blazing yet, but it soon will be. I can always get back to -the river if I’m forced out. No danger. Keep a close lookout for me if -I have to run for it.”</p> - -<p>Bob looked doubtful, Alice frightened, but Carl shoved the boat a -little nearer the land and sprang out into the shallow water. He -deliberately dipped entirely under, came up dripping, and disappeared -into the smoky woods, waving a farewell over his shoulder.</p> - -<p>The shore was lined with dense thickets of willows and small hemlocks, -which he brushed through. Pausing, he tried to look about him, but the -smoke-haze was so dense that he could not see any distance.</p> - -<p>“Any one here?” he shouted. “Larue! Child! <i>Petite!</i>”</p> - -<p>But there was no answer. Carl pushed further into the woods. There was -no fire yet in sight, and the wind made the air less choking than it -had been on the day before, but the smashing and roar of the flames in -the forest not a quarter of a mile away was tremendous.</p> - -<p>He groped his way forward, calling continually and peering everywhere, -till the air grew hot, and he found his progress blocked by a clump of -dead, blazing spruces.</p> - -<p>He backed off then and veered to the right, going for several hundred -yards in this general direction, but following a very crooked course. -Despite all his calling and looking, he could find no trace of any -human being, and he began to consider the search hopeless. Great -sparks and pieces of flaming bark were driving overhead and falling -everywhere, starting a hundred fresh fires.</p> - -<p>“Guess I’d better see about getting back to the river,” he said to -himself. “I’ll get cut off if I’m not careful.”</p> - -<p>He wiped his watering eyes and turned in what he thought was the -direction of the water. In a few minutes he saw the woods open out -before him, and he ran forward. But instead of the river bank, he -found himself on the border of Larue’s clearing.</p> - -<p>His directions had become confused. But the clearing faced on the -slough, at any rate, and he thought he could contrive to cross the mud -to the river. The open space was so thick with smoke that he could see -the house and barn only by glimpses, and the river was entirely out of -view.</p> - -<p>He ran out into the open ground, passing close to the barn, and the -memory came to him of the last time he had seen that place, on the -night of the bee raid. Nobody would ever see it again, for it was -certainly doomed to go in less than an hour.</p> - -<p>As he passed, it occurred to him to look in, on the chance that any -live animal might have been overlooked there. The inside was dusky and -smoky and scattered with dry hay. Carl perceived one of their own -supers, which they must have overlooked in removing the stolen honey. -And then he caught sight of a wisp of a pink dress in a corner.</p> - -<p>He rushed toward it. It was a child, cowering down by some empty -barrels, and he had no trouble in recognizing the youngest of Larue’s -two little girls. He had admired her great black eyes and olive skin -already, but now she was grimy, streaked with black and ashes, and -frightened almost out of her senses.</p> - -<p>“Child!” exclaimed Carl. “How did you get here! Where’s your papa?”</p> - -<p>“<i>Sais pas</i>,” whimpered the little one. “<i>Je veux aller.</i>”</p> - -<p>Carl knew just enough French to gather that she was too bewildered to -know anything, and that she wanted to go home. He could not imagine -how she had been left here,—unless, indeed, all the rest of the family -had perished.</p> - -<p>“Come along. I’ll take care of you,” he said, and he took her hand and -led her out. But her five-year-old steps could not keep up with him, -and he had to take her up in his arms and carry her.</p> - -<p>With this load he knew that he could never scramble and plunge through -the marsh to safety, and he determined to go back by the way he had -come. First, however, he put the little girl down, and ran to look -into the cabin. No one was there; it was dismantled of all its -household stuff and bore the signs of a removal in haste. Plainly the -squatter had got away, but Carl could not conceive by what -carelessness the child had been left behind.</p> - -<p>Picking up the little girl again, he started back through the woods. -The smoke was thicker; it was perceptibly hotter, and within thirty -yards he found the ground on fire before him. The trees had not yet -caught, but the leaves, deadwood, and underbrush were all aflame or -smoldering, making a belt impossible to cross.</p> - -<p>Carl turned back across the clearing again, and tried the other side. -Here it was even worse, for there was a huge “wind-row” of fallen, dry -spruces that was blazing like a furnace. Again Carl was driven back, -and when he reached the clearing, he noticed that the roof of the barn -was beginning to burn, ignited by falling sparks.</p> - -<p>There was nothing left for it, but to try the marsh. He paused and -looked it over, trying to pick out the firmest part, and at that -moment he heard two quick gunshots from the river, far out through the -smoke.</p> - -<p>It was Bob, he thought, signalling his position. He forgot for the -moment that they had brought no guns with them. Carl yelled loudly in -reply, and strode out warily into the great slough.</p> - -<p>At first it was comparatively firm, then he suddenly went over his -shoe-tops in mire. He struggled out and tried to step from one tuft of -grass to another till the vegetation ceased entirely, and he saw in -front a dim expanse of green quagmire, spotted with pools of -oily-looking water. It was impossible to pass that way. Carl struggled -back to firm ground again, set the child down and looked desperately -about.</p> - -<p>Scattered fires were breaking out all around the clearing now, and -here and there the tall weeds along the marsh were beginning to blaze. -Soon it would be impossible to remain even there. He hurried up and -down the margin, trying the footing. Nowhere could he find any solid -way. No doubt Larue would have known safe trails through the slough, -but in the hurry and flurry of the moment Carl could not hit upon one.</p> - -<p>Again he heard two shots from the river. The boat was no doubt moving -slowly up and down in front of the marsh. Carl shouted again, but the -roaring of the fire and wind was now so loud that he doubted if he was -heard.</p> - -<p>The child clung to him desperately, but she did not cry. Stoical, from -her Indian blood, perhaps, she gazed at him in a sort of wild silence.</p> - -<p>“Never mind, <i>petite</i>!” said Carl. “I’ll get you safe out of it yet.”</p> - -<p>But he could not see how it was to be done. If he had a couple of -planks, to be laid down and moved forward alternately, he thought he -might bridge a way over the slough. He hastened into the cabin again, -to see if there was any loose board that he could wrench off. He could -find nothing movable that would answer the purpose. The place was -littered with scraps of rubbish not worth taking away—a few old -muskrat skins, scraps of clothing, a torn blanket, and an old pair of -snowshoes.</p> - -<p>The sight of the snow-shoes now gave him an inspiration. He ran out -with them and hastily bound them on.</p> - -<p>“Here, little one, climb on pick-a-back!” he exclaimed, stooping, and -the child obeyed, understanding his gesture if not his words. With her -arms around his neck, clasping her feet firmly, he trudged awkwardly -out into the weeds of the marsh-edge.</p> - -<p>A hurricane of sparks, hot ashes, and bits of burning wood swept over -him as a clump of burning trees crashed down close to the shore. He -had no difficulty in getting across the first twenty or thirty feet of -the slough; the tufts of grass supported him easily. Then the -vegetation grew more scanty. It almost ceased, and there were -stretches of bare mud, sometimes thinly caked on the surface, -sometimes supporting straggly weeds that looked like streaks of green -foam.</p> - -<p>Fortunately both Carl and the little girl were light weights. Together -they weighed less than two hundred pounds, and Carl was overjoyed to -find that the snow-shoes held him up whenever there was the smallest -scrap of vegetation to bind the mud. The meshes were old and torn. -Brown water bubbled up between them, but they supported the weight as -long as he did not pause. As he went farther he had to step more and -more quickly to keep from sinking, till at last he was forced into a -run. Sinking deeper and deeper at every stride, the snow-shoes -scattered the mud in great flakes.</p> - -<p>Suddenly he tripped. Overbalanced by the weight on his shoulders, he -went sprawling. He clutched at the little girl, who had shot over his -head, and dragged her out of an oozy pool. Then a yard away, he spied -a rotten log half sunk in the mire, and floundered to it.</p> - -<p>On this support he hesitated for a few minutes. Both he and the little -girl were covered with mud from head to foot. The shore behind him, -was veiled in smoke and he could not yet see the river. He seemed shut -off, isolated on that quagmire, in the midst of dimness.</p> - -<p>All at once the signal shots banged again, sounding less than fifty -yards away. Carl screamed wildly in answer, and, taking the child on -his back, started forward again. But the footing became more and more -treacherous. He sank at every step, and the mud flowed over his -snow-shoes and weighted them down. It was only by great efforts that -he avoided being stuck fast.</p> - -<p>But just when the snow-shoes were growing so heavy that he could -hardly lift them, he saw sand and gravel mingling with the ooze. A -little farther, and a rippling line of water washed over his feet. He -splashed into it. In two or three steps he went knee-deep, then to his -hips. He heard a splashing in the water, and dimly saw the outline of -an approaching boat.</p> - -<p>He flung himself forward to meet it, went over his head, and came up -trying to swim with one hand and to support the child with the other. -The muddy snow-shoes encumbered him; he dipped under again, -half-choked; then a hand gripped him by the collar, and he was hauled -up to the gunwale of the boat.</p> - -<p>“Bob!” he spluttered.</p> - -<p>But it was not his brother. It was Larue’s dark face that met his, -streaked with black now and looking wild with anxiety.</p> - -<p>“Rosalie! <i>Ma petite! T’es sauve!</i>” he ejaculated and lifted the -little girl into the boat. The next instant Carl himself got aboard, -half scrambling and half hauled up by the half-breed. Just then -another boat rushed up out of the smoke, and he heard Alice calling, -“Carl!”</p> - -<p>“Here he is! Bo’—bot’ safe!” sang out the squatter. “He fin’ her! Here -he come, crossing ze marsh on my ole <i>raquettes</i>. It is wonderful. -Mister Harman, zis is w’at I nevaire forget!”</p> - -<p>Carl stuttered something, unable to speak articulately. He felt weak -and dizzy and full of mingled smoke and water. He saw the faces of -Alice and Bob looking anxiously at him, but they seemed to waver, and -everything went round dizzily when he lay back in the boat and shut -his smarting eyes.</p> - -<p>He was vaguely aware of the movement of the boat through the water and -of talking voices. He thought some one was dashing spray over him and -he made a confused attempt to get up.</p> - -<p>“<i>Restez!</i>” said Larue, and Carl “rested.”</p> - -<p>The bump of the boat against the bank brought him to himself. Water -was really falling on his face. Looking up, he was amazed to find that -it was raining. The two boats had come to land at the temporary camp -where Larue had removed his family. A bark lean-to shed was built -against a tree; smoke curled up from a little fire; there was a shriek -as Mrs. Larue rushed forward to the boat and seized upon her rescued -child.</p> - -<p>There was a great scene of excitement and jubilation, and little -Rosalie, who had hitherto preserved the silence of an Indian baby, now -began to sob as she nestled in her mother’s arms.</p> - -<p>“He fin’ her!” cried Larue, indicating Carl. “I have been crazy. Can’t -guess where she go. I search everywhere—up, down the river, in ze -woods, in ze smoke—can’t fin’ notting. T’ink she dead, sure. But Mr. -Harman fin’ her, and cross ze <i>marais</i> on ze snow-shoes, by gar! -Greatest t’ing I ever see!”</p> - -<p>“You’re a hero, Carl,” said Bob, laughing.</p> - -<p>Larue seemed to be divided between joy and gratitude at the rescue of -the child, and admiration at Carl’s feat of crossing the slough on -snow-shoes. His wife’s protestations of gratitude were most profuse, -embarrassing Carl terribly.</p> - -<p>“It really wasn’t anything,” he stammered. “Really I found her by -accident. But how did she ever get lost?”</p> - -<p>Both Larue and his wife volubly attempted to explain, mixing the -matter up badly. It seemed that the family had been alarmed about the -middle of the night by the approach of the fire, and had moved out in -haste. In the darkness and confusion Rosalie had somehow vanished. -They had searched and called. Larue, who was very fond of his -children, and of this one in particular, was like a madman. After -establishing his wife and the other child in safety, he searched the -shore up and down the river and went into the woods, without finding -any trace of the little girl. On the river he had met Bob and Alice, -who told him that Carl had gone ashore, and the two boats had rowed up -and down on the lookout, firing signals at intervals with Larue’s gun.</p> - -<p>Rosalie herself could give no coherent account of how she had strayed -away or where she had been. She knew only that she had found herself -in the darkness and the woods, had been terribly frightened and was -waiting for papa to come for her.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - -<h2 class='nobreak' id='chXI' title='XI—A Good Summer’s Work'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XI</span><br /><span style='font-size:1.1em'>A GOOD SUMMER’S WORK</span> -</h2> -<p>It had continued to rain, and it was coming down hard by this time, a -cold, driving rain from the north, that would check the forest fire if -it lasted long enough. Larue’s camp was a miserable place, and far -from water-tight.</p> - -<p>“We must ask them to come home with us,” Alice whispered to Bob. “We -can’t let the poor wretches stay here in the rain.”</p> - -<p>Bob looked startled and a little reluctant, but Alice gave the -invitation without waiting for him to object.</p> - -<p>“Mademoiselle is as good as ze angels,” said Mrs. Larue. “Certainely -we be glad to go, is it not, Baptiste?”</p> - -<p>“Maybe it rain for two—tree days,” said the squatter, regarding the -sky. “Put ze fire out—good! But zis is terrible poor camp. <i>Oui</i>, we -go, and many t’anks!”</p> - -<p>He put some of his most perishable possessions in his boat, covered -the rest well with bark and boughs, and took his family on board. It -was raining in torrents when they passed the clearing again on their -way back, and everything was a mist of smoke, steam, and rain. But -both the house and barn were still standing, and did not appear to be -now on fire.</p> - -<p>It was a pretty tight fit for seven of them in the Harmans’ cabin, and -rather a severe strain on the larder. But Bob went down to the river -and caught a dozen trout. Larue sallied into the woods and came back -in an hour, soaked like a sponge, but bringing with him five -partridges. Mrs. Larue lent a hand at the cookery, and they produced a -meal that was at any rate abundant.</p> - -<p>All that afternoon it rained, and, as Bob said, every drop was worth a -dollar to that imperiled forest country.</p> - -<p>“We’ll be able to put our bees back off the island as soon as it lets -up,” said Carl. “The ground’ll be cooled off pretty well again. You -know, Larue,” he added, “we had a fire of our own yesterday. Nearly -burned up our bees at the lake.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and we fancied we saw you through the smoke. But most likely it -wasn’t,” said Bob.</p> - -<p>Larue had been talking volubly and gaily, but his face suddenly fell.</p> - -<p>“Yes, I guess you see me,” he said, looking sheepish. “By gar, I am a -beast, an assassin. But I have some bad viskey in me yesterday, and I -know no better.”</p> - -<p>“I thought so,” said Bob, quietly. “Larue, what did you want to burn -us out for?”</p> - -<p>“Surely you didn’t start the fire!” cried Carl, staring.</p> - -<p>“<i>Voila!</i>” said the half-breed, contritely. “It was one rotten treek. -But, you see, you catch me in bear trap. Your bees sting my cow, kill -my hen, sting my dog, sting me mos’ to death. So I see ze bee-boxes up -there all alone, and I say, ‘He sting me no more, by gar!’ So I light -fires—here, dere, many places at once.”</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t have believed it of you, Larue!” cried Carl indignantly.</p> - -<p>“Sure, I sorry I do it now. But, you know, I have ze viskey in me -yesterday. I get turned round in ze smoke, nearly get caught by ze -fire myself. I see you rafting off ze bee-boxes, and I guess you see -me too. And then—ze fire spread and spread, and ze wind he rise, and -go clear to ze slough and burn my house.”</p> - -<p>“I guess you’re punished for it,” said Bob. “But we never meant to -quarrel with you or do you any harm. You took our honey, you know, and -you got stung when the bees went to bring it back. And we didn’t set -the trap to catch you. We thought it was some wild animal, from the -tracks you made.”</p> - -<p>The half-breed grinned, shamefacedly, yet with just a touch of pride -as well.</p> - -<p>“Good treek, eh?” he said. “I learn him from a man in ze lumber woods. -He steal hogs zat way—make track like bear.”</p> - -<p>“Fine trick, yes,” agreed Bob. “Only you got the worst of it. In fact, -you’ve come out worst in all your tricks, I believe.”</p> - -<p>“Serve me right, eh!” Larue admitted. “For ze honey, I steal him when -I need ze money bad. But nevaire mind. Zat is all over, and we forget. -I ask your pardon for all ze trouble I make you. You save <i>ma petite</i>, -and I never forget zat. After now, I am yours. You say to me, ‘Larue, -come!’ and I come. You say, ‘Larue, do zis—do zat!’ and I do zis, do -zat. No money, no pay. I can never pay you for what you do for me.”</p> - -<p>“All right, Larue, we’re friends henceforth, and we’ll shake hands on -it,” said Bob; and they shook hands gravely all around to seal the -peace.</p> - -<p>“You know, when we saw your big tracks we thought it was a wendigo,” -said Alice, laughing.</p> - -<p>“Wendigo?” cried the half-breed, his face clouding. “When you see a -wendigo?”</p> - -<p>“Why, there’s no such thing,” said Carl.</p> - -<p>“Do not say zat. Ze wendigo—he is terrible! I have never see him, -no—but I know a man, a trapper at Lac Temagimi—”</p> - -<p>And he plunged into a terrifying tale of Indian superstition. He was -an excellent story-teller, and as he sat with gesticulating hands, and -dark, flashing eyes, he held them all fascinated. From this he went on -to blood-curdling tales of the loup-garou, or werewolf, ghostly -huntsmen, and other horrors of French-Canadian tradition, till Alice -begged him to cease. She said she would be afraid to sleep that night.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you like them?” said Alice privately to Carl that evening. “I -think Larue isn’t half a bad fellow, and the children are darlings. I -like his wife too, and she says she’ll teach me to speak French.”</p> - -<p>“I’m afraid it’s a queer dialect she’d teach you,” Carl answered. “But -really they’re a pretty decent lot, now we get to know them. Anyway, -I’m tremendously glad we’ve made peace.”</p> - -<p>It rained hard nearly all night, but in the morning only a drizzle was -falling, which presently ceased. It was cold and dismal, but the -squatter rowed down the river to look at his property. He came back -overjoyed. The clearing, he said, was choking with smoke and steam, -but the fires were all out, and the house and barn were both standing. -The roofs were gone, indeed, but a few days’ work would replace them.</p> - -<p>“I get some of my friends to help me,” he said. “We make a bee, and -soon put him right.”</p> - -<p>“We might let him have that lumber for the winter cases that we put -into the raft,” Carl whispered to his brother. “It’s scorched and -soaked with water now so that it would hardly do for hives, but it -would be all right to mend a roof.”</p> - -<p>“Good idea!” Bob answered, “and we’ll help him mend it. We’re pretty -crowded here, and the sooner he can get into his own house again the -better for us.”</p> - -<p>That afternoon Larue accompanied them to the lake apiary. Where the -yard had been was nothing but a waste of wet ashes and rocks, but the -fire was out, and at any rate the ground was thoroughly cleared at -last. From the shore they could see the hives scattered over the -little islet, with the raft aground beside them.</p> - -<p>It was quite a problem how to get out to them. But finally, by Larue’s -advice, they constructed a small raft which carried the three of them -over, with a great deal of ricketing and splashing. The bees were all -safe, with the exception of three colonies that had been melted down -by the heat of the fire, and they set to work at once to load them on -the raft again.</p> - -<p>Larue was useful at the rafting. It turned out that he was an expert -lumberman and river-driver. He seemed as strong and wiry as a panther, -worked gaily and heroically, unmindful of an occasional sting. In -fact, the boys could not help liking him, now that they met him on -terms of peace. He might have been lawless enough, but he insisted on -handling the heaviest end of everything, sang, chatted, laughed, and -seemed so determined to win their good feeling, that they were both -ready to forgive him all the trouble he had caused them.</p> - -<p>The lumber in the raft was now really unfit for use in the bee-hives, -and Larue was intensely grateful when they offered it to him. -Immediately he went off and hunted up a friend of his, also a -half-breed, who had been living unsuspected all this time not five -miles away. This man owned a horse and wagon, and next morning he -hauled the lumber from the lake to the river, and they rafted it down -to Larue’s farm. He must also have sent word to Morton in some way, -for a couple of days later half a dozen dark-faced fellows came up the -river in canoes, carrying saws, hammers, and axes, to assist at the -“bee.”</p> - -<p>Bob and Carl also took part. Two of the visitors were skilful -carpenters, and they made the house-roof tighter than it had been -before. There was not lumber enough for the barn, but the half-breeds -contrived a wonderfully ingenious thatch of logs, mud, and cedar -boughs which would turn water as well as shingles.</p> - -<p>Bob took the opportunity of sending word back to the Morton sawmill -for more lumber. It arrived a few days later, and the boys were amazed -to find Larue and the same gang of half-breed helpers come with it. -They all went out to the lake, and unloaded the cargo. The half-breeds -had been under the impression that a house was to be built, but they -were all men who, with an axe and a knife, could make anything from a -gunstock to a boat. It was only necessary to show them how the winter -cases were to be made, and the speed with which the boards were cut up -and nailed together was marvelous. There was a constant fire of song -and chaff in French patois kept up, but the work was all finished so -early that the men went into the woods, cut timbers, and ran up the -framing of an extracting-house, which could be finished the next -season.</p> - -<p>They would not hear of taking any pay for this work. However, they all -came back to the cabin, where Alice had a great supper prepared of -everything eatable that she could find within reach. It was the honey -that found greatest favor, however, with the guests; they all seemed -to have a child’s appetite for sweets, and it vanished in immense -quantities. Luckily there was plenty of it, and each of the men was -provided with some to take away.</p> - -<p>Later in the evening they built a great fire in the clearing, and -there by the red light the half-breeds sang <i>voyageur</i> songs, -<i>habitant chansons</i>, old songs that had been sung in Quebec for two -hundred years, and some of them in Normandy before that. The -half-breeds had excellent voices, and the songs were all new to the -Harmans—“Entre Paris et St. Denis,” “La Claire Fontaine,” and the -canoe song with the rattling chorus of “En Roulant ma Boule.” This -last was a particular favorite.</p> - -<p>It was midnight when they broke off, and too late to go back to -Morton. Fortunately it was a fine night, and they camped by the fire -on heaps of spruce twigs. In the morning, after drinking an enormous -kettle of black coffee, and eating honey and bread, they started -homewards, all piled together in the single wagon, laughing and waving -farewells. The creaking of the wagon mingled with the diminishing -chorus of:</p> - -<div class='poetry-container'> -<div class='poetry'> -<div class='stanza'> -<div class='verse'>“Rouli, roulant ma boule roulante,</div> -<div class='indent2'>En roulant ma boule roulante,</div> -<div class='indent4'>En roulant ma boule.”</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p>It was the gayest time the old cabin had ever known, and it seemed -almost lonely when they had gone.</p> - -<p>“Jolly lot!” said Carl. “I fancy Mr. Farr wasn’t far wrong when he -said that Larue wasn’t a bad fellow when you get on the right side of -him. Anyhow, it’ll be a great relief to know that we can leave the -bee-yard without being afraid that it’ll be robbed or burned out -during the winter. I believe that forest fire was worth all the -trouble it made.”</p> - -<p>When they had put the hives back into their winter cases and stored -the supplies carefully away in the cabin, the work for the season was -finished. Bob was anxious to get back to town for the fall term, and -neither Carl nor Alice were unwilling to leave. The bees would need no -more attention for six or eight months, and there was nothing to keep -them longer in the woods.</p> - -<p>They left nearly all their house-keeping outfit in the shanty, boarded -up the windows, and nailed up the door. The wagon came from Morton for -their baggage, but they themselves preferred to go down to the railway -by the river.</p> - -<p>It was a cloudy, chilly fall day when they got into the boat for the -last time, not without regret.</p> - -<p>“Good-by, old shanty!” called Alice, as they pushed off. “I’ll be glad -to see you again in the spring.”</p> - -<p>They stopped a moment at Indian Slough to leave a few pails of honey -for the Larues. The squatter promised to look after their cabin and -see that no harm came to anything about the place while they were -gone, and they left the whole family on the shore, waving good-by. It -was hard to believe that these people had been such bitter enemies a -few weeks earlier.</p> - -<p>“Well, we haven’t done so badly,” said Bob, as they dropped down the -stream. “We had about $500 when we came in here. Now we’ve got nearly -$1000, besides about two hundred and ten good colonies of bees, that -will surely make $2000 for us next season.”</p> - -<p>“And we’ve had a lot of fun over it, too,” Carl added. “And some -pretty tough times, along with fires, bears, wolves, and bee-stings. -But it’s been better than keeping a country store.”</p> - -<p>“I should think so!” Bob exclaimed. “It was the luckiest thing that -ever happened when I heard of these bees for sale. I almost wish that -we could start at work with them again next month.”</p> - -<p>“I almost wish that, too,” said Alice, “but not quite. I believe I’ve -had enough wild life for a few months. Now I’d like something quiet -and civilized for a little while—something just like Harman’s -Corners.”</p> - -<div class='ce'> -<div style='font-size:0.9em;margin-top:0.7em;margin-bottom:2em;'>THE END </div> -</div> -</div> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILDERNESS HONEY ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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