MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 
ruined by economy? Never did a 
poor man pay so dear in order to 
save money; and it is all owing to 
the cry that you and others have set 
up about scarcity, that I am fairly 
driven out of my own house, and 
am the laughing-stock of all my 
neighbours. 
You must know that I have the 
good fortune to enjoy the best wife 
mm the world. She is a pattern to 
all her acquaintance. She looks into 
every thing herself, is quite notable, 
a great manager; an_ excellent 
market-woman, and knows the 
cheapest shop in town for every ar- 
ticle that we want. ‘This is not 
only a great comfort as well as sav- 
ing to ourselves, but a great conve- 
Hience to our friends ; for, when any 
of them want to buy a gown, or a 
pound of raisins, they are sure not 
only to consult my wife, but to take 
her with them for fear that they 
should be imposed upon; and thie 
kind soul is every day upon her 
feet trudging into the city with one 
friend or another, because really in 
the city things may be bought for 
almost half price: and this I can 
assure you is true, from the extra- 
ordinary bargdins that she constantly 
makes. 
But, Mr. Urban, to my misfor- 
tunes. I need not tell you; sir, who 
have so well describéd the present 
scarcity; that every feeling heart is 
anxious to lessen the consumption 
of wheat, and to make aS great a 
saving as possible of bread in these 
hard times. The number of sub- 
stitutes for flour which have: been 
suggested by the ingenious sir John 
Sinclair, president of the board of 
agriculture, and others, struck my 
wife very forcibly: ‘* Dear me !” 
she said one morning at breakfast— 
* how simple the receipt is !|—Just 
[*133 
one half flour, and one half pota- 
toes. I declare I will try it—and 
then we shall make our own bread, 
and what a saving that will be! It 
is but having a little cast-iron oven 
put up at the side of the kitchen- 
grate, and it will be the most con- 
venient and handy thing in the 
world—it will bake a pie,.or a few 
tarts upon occasion; and you know, 
my love, it will keep your leg of 
mutton hot and comfortable any 
time that you should happen to be 
detained at Lloyd’ss What do you 
think of it; my dear ?” I never have 
an opinion of my own upon any 
subject of this kind. My wife is 
sovereign out of the counting-house, 
which is my only territory. ‘* My 
dear, says 1—** you know best. It 
is surely the duty of every one to 
lessen the consumption of wheat; 
and, if you think a mixed bread 
will answer; I would have you try 
it; but, my love, might you not 
make your experiment, and send 
the loaf to the bakehouse, and not 
buy an oven till you see how it an- 
swers?” ‘* Qh dear; no, by no 
means; now that is always your 
way. My God! trust a baker with 
an experiment when he is to be 
deprived of our custom if it suc- 
ceeds! No, I thank you. Why, he 
would burn it on purpose.” There is 
no arguing with my wife, she is so 
clever ; and, besides, when once she 
takes up a thing, she finds out so 
many advantages in a minute, that 
did not strike her at first, that the 
second reasons are often more forci- 
ble than the original inducement. 
This ‘was precisely the case about 
the little cast-iron oven; it was 
thought of only for the sake of the 
pdtatoe-bread ; but such a variety 
of uses for an oven came crowd 
ing upon her mind, thgt she won- 
{*14] dered 
