Swarms of Bees.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 4863, 30 November 1883, Page 3

Swarms of Bees.

m A free entertainment was provided for the publio in Oathedral squaro tbis afternoon. The actors were v the stingers " and " the stung." A swarm of bees settled on the Oathedral tower, looking just within reachable distance from the ground. Covetous looks were oaat on them by those who had empty hives and wanted to fill then-*, and one man, a carrier, went into partnenhip with another to take that swarm. The carrier muffled his face and mounted on the cabman's baok, eoooped tho bees down in handfuls, and put them into a box below ; but there were some beyond his rea?h, and no sooner were the bees put in the box than they swarmed baok again to their old spot on the tower. "Ob, he doesn't know anything abont it 5 you want to oatoh tho Queen," was all the oonsolation tbe woefully-stung man reoeived as he tried to rub out the effeots of his encounter. A long- handled hair broom was next obtained, and with this the cabman took a turn, and triep to ,o weep the clusters of bees off the wall— as if they were only 00bwebi — into the box beneath. Bat the bees didn't see it ; they stuok lixe wax to their position. "You don't press hard enough," oalled out one ef the orowd that had assembled to see the fun, and the cabman stroked the back of his neok with an expression that told he had, at any rate, been stung hard enough, as he dropped the broom with a feeling of humility. A men* ber of the Salvation Army, oonspiouous for his height, next had a try with the broom. He was enoouraged to go on by oties of—-" Oh, he's all right j he's laved, the bees won't hurt him," and similar ribaldry. But the apiarian army would have no dealings with the Salvation Army, and this attempt was as fruitless as the others. The Mahurangi correspondent of the Auckland SeraW says :— A rather amusing inoident but one whioh might have turned out more serious, ooourred here in a remarkable swarm of bees being appropriated at Warkworth by the postmaster, Mr Clayton, last Wednesday. At noon one of the aohool ohildren ran down and asked Mr Clayton if he wanted a swarm of bees. Mr Clayton, who is an amateur apiarist, iv a small way of course, answered " Yes ; where is it ? " To his astonishment, the child answered " Here is Johnny Williams, with a swarm on him." Sure enough there stood the boy (a lad about 14 years of age), aotually covered with bees. Our apiarist oarefully removed them with a soft hearth brush into a frame hive, at the same time warning the boy not to move. After the bees had all been removed, he told the lad to run away, and while he (Mr Clayton) was fixing the frames, the boy returned with a second instalment of the bees, whioh were removed as before. Then, hearing a \ great commotion in the sohool ground, Mr j Clayton went there and found the lad brushing the bees off a post, upon whioh they had settled, and aa fast as they were brushed off the poßt they settled on the boy, who appeared j to enjoy the fun. The bees first settled on the boy in the followiog manner ; — When the ohildren left school, at noon, a swarm was hoveriog in the school ground. The children ■ formed a large ring, and Johnny (from a spirit of bravado probably) stood alone in the centre of the nog, and the bees, notioing the isolated object, naturally pitohed upon him as a lighting place. The boy deserves great credit for his pluck. While Mr day ton was removing the bees he stood like a statue with arms extended, though he got Beveral BtiDgs. Had the boy become exoited, he would probably have been severely, if not dangerously hurt. People here were much amused at the little inoident.