o clock in the kitchen was striking nine. And he knew at once
that Jimmy Rabbit must have told him the truth about the raising bee, for
the farmyard was crowded with wagons and carryalls and buggies and gigs.
There were people everywhere--so many that Buster thought all the world
must be there. And he began to look about him carefully.

But nowhere could he find what he had come to see. So he asked a
ruffianly looking wasp where the raising bee was. But the wasp, who was
hurrying by, merely glanced at Buster and said, with a frown:

"Follow the crowd!"

Buster remembered then that that was exactly what Jimmy Rabbit had told
him to do. And now, as he looked all around, he noticed that Farmer Green
was already leading the way to a pile of lumber near the old cow-barn.
Everybody was following him. And a good many small boys began to shout to
nobody in particular, "Hurrah! hurrah! She's going up!"

Buster Bumblebee hastened to overtake the crowd.

"They must mean the raising bee," he said to himself. "And from what
those boys are saying I gather that it's a _lady_ raising bee and she's
going to fly for the company."

In his eagerness to see everything that was happening, Buster buzzed very
close to a good many people. And though most of them paid little heed to
him, there was one boy who slapped at him with his hat--and all but hit
him, too.

After that Buster was more careful. He flew higher. And at last he found
a fine seat on a tall sunflower, from which he could view every move that
was made.

Farmer Green's guests--that is, the _men_, for the women had not left the
house--the guests all took off their coats and began to arrange
themselves around some huge timbers that lay upon the ground. And a great
shouting arose. Everybody seemed to be talking at once. And the small
boys were everywhere, chasing one another about and getting in everyone's
way.

Then all was quiet for a few minutes while Farmer Green said something to
the men. And as soon as he had stopped talking some of the men began to
lift a sort of framework of wood into the air. When they had raised it
exactly as Farmer Green wanted it other men began to pound about the foot
of it with hammers. But Buster Bumblebee--though he watched everything
very closely--hadn't the slightest idea what they were doing.

"Hi, there!" he called to old dog Spot. "Where's the raising bee?"

Old Spot promptly looked bewildered.

"I don't know what you're talking abo