PHILLIDA AND CORIDON. 113 



could hardly keep from laughing at his absurd 

 appearance. It did not occur to me till after- 

 wards that he had perhaps heard of Othello's 

 method, and was at that moment acting out a 

 story 



"of most disastrous chances, 

 Of moving accidents by flood and field, 

 Of hair-breadth scapes i' the imminent deadly breach, 

 Of being taken by the insolent foe 

 And sold to slavery." 



How much depends upon the point of view ! 

 Here was I, ready to laugh ; while poor Desde- 

 mona only thought, " 'T was pitiful, 'twas won- 

 drous pitiful." Dear sympathetic soul ! Let 

 us hope that she was never called to play out 

 the tragedy. 



Two things are very noticeable during the 

 pairing season, the scarcity of females and 

 their indifference. Every one of them seems 

 to have at least two admirers dangling after 

 her, 1 while she is almost sure to carry herself 

 as if a wedding were the last thing she would 

 ever consent to think of ; and that not because 

 of bashfulness, but from downright aversion. 

 The observer begins to suspect that the fair 

 creatures have really entered into some sort of 

 no- marriage league, and that there are not to 



1 So near do birds come to Mr. Ruskin's idea that " a girl worth 

 anything ought to have always half a dozen or so of suitors under 

 vow for her." 



8 



