PERSONAL APPLICATION. 
delivers his opinions on this, and they were these : — 
«« Writing letters is all very well in the usual routine 
of business or if time and expense is no object. But 
when there is any particular, very particular object 
to be attained or obtained like the one in question, 
there is nothing like a personal interview : m fact, 
the giver of the situation prefers it ; it does not re- 
quire a man of good planting mould to write a letter. 
So thej^ cank judge by the letter, but there is some- 
thing in a personal interview which is very satisfact- 
ory to both parties, and, if any writing on the subject 
is advisable, it can be done afterwards. Again, at a 
personal interview, you are likely to have the matter 
settled at once and be done with it, for it is generally 
found that one letter necessitates another, and so on* 
and if in the meantime any better offerer presents 
himself it may eventually end in, ‘‘We are extremely 
sorry,’ &c. &c.” 
Some may say the writer never was “on the staff,” he 
does not write from personal experience. But, although 
it is not generally known, we were once on the staff 
for three whole weeks ! And it was the most weari- 
some time we ever spent in the country ! We went 
and applied personally for a berth instead of writing 
a letter, and it was well we did so, for the proprietor, 
as he afterwards acknowledged, had written a letter 
giving away the place, it was on his table sealed and 
addressed already for posting, when the writer called, 
stated the purport of his call, went through a course 
of examination and questioning, and was engaged, while 
the letter on the table giving the situation to another 
was consigned to the flames ! If, instead of a personal 
visit, we had written, as the first impulse was, the 
reply would have been “The place is given away, 
too late,” because the letter would have been posted. 
Besides, is it not a very natural feeling for a preprie- 
tor or agent to wish or like to see the man who is 
to be entrusted with the charge of his j)^'operty ? 
Put the question to yourself. Why should not a 
staff oflScer also have some of the same sort of 
feeling with regard to his future employer ? Now, 
here were a lot of fellows with whom time was no 
object : they had nothing to do ; they did not know 
what to make of themselves, and yet, they would sit 
down and write letters and doze and waste two days 
until they got an answer ! The only just excuse would 
have been that they had not £5 to pay their coach 
hire, for it must be remembered, they were probably 
living at the Royal on credit. But if. was more likely 
pdolence and procrastination, for there were few even 
in those times who could not raise five pounds to ga 
to Colombo and apply for a situation. The writer 
