i’TJRl'HEK EXPERIENCES OP MR. STALP. 
the weak point ? An old acquaintance, still to the fore, 
once said, snapping his fingers, “ That for friends.’’ 
A man’s friends have more frequently been his ruin 
than his enemies ! The man who has always lots 
of friends often cannot get his work attended to. 
Then, the visits of friends necessitate returning them, 
and we have knoivn some, even a good many in our 
day, whose occupation seemed to be receiving and re- 
turning the visits of friends. There is an old saying, 
that ‘^Your sin will find you out,” to which may also 
be added, “ and so will your friend.’’ He is come 
to visit you, having nothing to do at home, while 
you are very busy, far away from the house, train- 
ing in a gang of inexperienced pruners. You ought to 
be constantly beside them, but before you have been 
half an hour on the spot, the kitchen coolie arrives 
in a breathless state, saying, a friend (?) is at the 
bungalow, and has sent for you, to come immediately 
Thinking it must be some pressing business you hur- 
riedly start off, and find him lying on the couch smoking 
a pipe. ‘‘ How are you old boy,” he exclaims, “just 
found it rather dull at home, being very short of 
coolies, and nothing to do, so thought I would just 
look you up,” &c. How, we by no means wish to 
hold friends, or neighbours, in small esteem; good 
friends and neighbours in a district are not to be 
thought lightly of ; like many things else, you will 
not understand their value until you lose them. 
But w^e do think it a selfish and unfriendly thing for 
a friend to do, that because he has no coolies and 
nothing to do he should, just for his own relief and 
gratification, visit you, and require your presence 
at the bungalow, you, who have plenty of coolies, 
and work for them also. We have said selfish, but 
no doubt the expression is too strong, it ought to have 
been written thoughtless, and it was just entirely 
owing to these sefish or thoughtless friends, that at 
one time there was a certain degree of dislike amongst 
proprietors, to those superintendents who had the 
name of being fond of company. It was not the 
fact, or act, of being fond of company, but the un- 
reasonable and unseasonable times at which it was 
indulged. If you were busy measuring coffee in the 
cherry loft, the kitchen coolie would make a push 
through the crowd, and say a friend (?) w^as at 
the house, and wanted you. You would feel inclined 
to pitch the picking-book in his face, but would 
say, *‘Busy ; will be up by and bye.” But if you would 
not tell a kangani to measure in that coffee, and 
walk oflf to see your friend, why, he just popped 
into the cherry loft to see you, and would probably 
begin and talk during the intervals of measuring, 
