UNSUITABLE MATCHES, 
one for you !” Her reply will be: — “Your dinner is 
ready, come, let us be comfortable, and don’t talk 
nonsense. ” * 
Mr„ Wildgoose knocked the ashes out of his pipe, 
and said he was thirsty, he would take some tea. 
‘‘Tea !” echoed his friends. “Weill never! Won- 
ders will never cease.” Mr. Brown got softened, he 
rose up, took his hand, and said : — “I have done you in- 
justice, I said your name w^as your character, hut 
now I see you can talk sense when you like Pity 
it is so seldom you feel so disposed. But, seeing that 
you can talk in this strain, why don’t you ^ict up^ 
to it yourself? You have plenty of meaais. You are 
not like me, dependent upon £10 per month, and even 
that subject to a month’s notice from my employer.” 
It was now Mr. Wildgoose’s turn to sigh and look 
sorrowful. He said : — “A man can’t, or rather ought 
not, to go ransacking about in search of a wife, as 
he would for some article of household furniture. 1 
believe for every man there is a suitable wife, and 
for every woman a suitable husband ; it is Nature’s 
law. But sometimes, indeed oftener than otherwise, 
they never meet, or, if they do meet, they don’t know' 
it, or don’t mutually know it, and then look at the 
misery entailed by unsuitable matches. Suppose a 
Partridge tethered to a Wildgoose. Each commences 
to try different ways, according to natural inclina- 
tions, The Wildgoose wants to be up in the clouds 
or beyond them, the Partridge in the stubbles below. 
They both strive, the Wildgoose is the stronger — off 
he goes. He sees in the distance a pond or muddy 
pool ; into it he dives with a dash and a splash, 
utterly regardless of the Partridge, under the w^ater, 
stirring up any amount of mud and dirt. He again 
comes to the sui-face, cackling and flapping his wdngs 
with delight. The Partridge is turning on her bacK, 
gasping and. choking, until she gasps her last. Too late 
the Wildgoose finds out, that a Partridge not only 
cannot enjoy herself in a pool of water, but cannot 
live,” 
“Ail very romantic,” cry Brown and Jones, “all 
very true, but nobody wants you to many a partridge, 
and even if you did, supposing you to be a very 
considerate and tender-hearted goose, especially during 
the first three months, the partridge, if she was a 
sensible bird, as all partridges generally are, at any 
rate in their own estimation, she would have tact 
enough to seduce you away to the stubble fields, and 
* This is so good, that the writer ought at once to 
get married, in order to realize hi® own picture of 
Bear and forbear.”— E d. 
