Way back in the spring of nineteen hundred and seventy six I set-up a beehive for my high school FFA project. I ordered the entire kit, including the bees, from the "Sears" catalog. I distinctly remember that the bees were advertised as high producing "African Honeybees."
The whole kit, including the bees were delivered via the US postal service. First, I received the hive kit and protective gear, and a couple of weeks later the lady postmaster at our small, rural post office called to tell me that my bees had arrived, and she insisted that I come and pick them up ASAP! The bees were crammed into a small, wood framed cage, (approx 6"x6"x10" long) which was wrapped with window screen. Suspended in the center of the cage was a much smaller cage containing the queen. At the time, that was the neatest thing I had ever received in the mail. Of course, since then, I've received some pretty neat stuff in the mail, some of it unmentionable.
Anyhow, after I got home, I reviewed the instructions, suited up, fired the smoker and introduced the bees into their new home. It went pretty well. I was stung a couple of times on my wrists where my skin was exposed, but no biggie. I think I was stung due to my nervousness. However, later on, when I got used to them, I could open the hive and inspect it without smoke or protective gear, and not be stung. Apparently, these weren't Killer Bees, although, I still wonder.
To make a long story shorter. The bees took to their new hive and did what bees do, up until the late summer, when they all disappeared. I don't know what happened to them. My dad speculated that they were poisoned when the power company sprayed defoliant around nearby power lines. God knows what they used back then. Probably Agent Orange or something just as nasty.
The bees never posed any problems the short time they were around. I wish the same could've been said about my sister's lamb project. Damn! that thing was annoying. Every time someone went outside, that lamb sounded off, and would not shut up. Baaah!...baaah!.....baaah! One day my dad jokingly threatened to duct tape it's mouth shut. I told him not to bother, because I had already tried that. Muuuh!...muuuh!...muuuh!
