"Bee-hives! Mercy me, Miss Miller, what for?" laughed Jane.
"We may just as well keep bees as any one else! And just think of all the fun we will have watching and caring for them. Wickee and Cheokee were valuable additions to our Band, but I believe bees will add just as much value."
"Well, if you say so, I'm perfectly willing to get stung!" laughed Zan, making a perfectly legitimate use of slang.
"Bees won't sting if you don't annoy them! We won't tease them, and after we have some swarms in our hives the bees will get to know each one of us by sound and smell," explained the Guide.
"Why, I never knew a bee recognised any one!" cried Elena.
"Indeed they do! Some bees are so intelligent that their owners wait for them to advise about harvesting and haying," said Miss Miller.
"Now, Miss Miller! Stop stringing us!" Zan said, in a doubtful tone.
"But I'm not, Zan. I am in earnest!" replied Miss Miller, laughing at the quizzical faces about her.
"Then let's order the hives at once. Maybe we can have honey before we go back home!" exclaimed Jane.
"Hardly! But we will be well on the way there," returned the Guide, as she went to the tent for pen and paper.