THE CEYLON MUHAMMADANS. 
ooolies. I will do all that, even keep the ke^^ and 
be responsible for everything in the store ; as also, 
when the colfee crop comes on, — and, under master’s 
very skilful and wise management, it is certain to 
be very large, — I will take charge of the despatch- 
ing, count all the bags, and load them in the carts, 
so that you will have nothing to do but sit in your 
verandah, and I will bring up the cartmen to sign 
their way-bills. All this and a good deal more will 
be done, merely for permission to build a house at 
my own expense on a waste pice of useless land of 
no use to any one ! Hesides, by trade I am a mason, 
these men are difficult to be had, and I am aUvays 
ready to do any work in this way at the usual 
pay, at any time, when ordered. ” Here, he 
looked at the walls of the house, and said, 
The bungalow is not plastered.” He folded his 
hands bent his head respectfully, and retired a 
little, feeling perfectly assured that he had said enough. 
How comparatively few there are who know when 
they have said enough. Teople, as a rule, injure 
them elves and their own interests a great deal 
more by speaking too much than by speaking too 
little. The great secret of talking is to know when 
to stop, and, just as you do stop, to say something 
to the purpose, whether it be on business, pleasure, 
or the usual routine of social intercourse. Talking 
too much, like “too late,” can never be recalled. 
Talking too little, like “ too soon,” is easily rectified 
in the future. Go, ye great talkers, depart, like 
Hassan Tambi, after you have expounded the drift 
of your argument, if 3’ on have any drift at all. If 
you want to say, “The bungalow^ is not plastered,” 
or anything else, out with it, and don’t beat about 
the bush so much, or be so long of saying it, as 
if it was something 3^011 were ashamed to mention, 
making mountains of molehills, and mysteries of 
■trifles. But the real fact is this ; just as it is said 
of those who are fond of liquor, anything and every- 
tliing is sure to be an excuse for a drink, so also, 
on the very same reasoning, aii3Thing and every- 
thing, to the great talker, is sure to be an excuse 
for a talk. Being utterly forgetful, that, as there 
is a time, place, and season for everything, so also 
are there for talking, the gre^it talker, of whatever 
colour, class, or caste, he may be, very often defeats 
his own purpose, he irritates and annoys his liearer, 
and, to put it briefly, if he only said less about the 
subject at issue, his hearer would understand him, 
■and all about it, much better. It is an old Latin 
proverb, that “The man is wise who speaks little,” 
but we think that the Scotch one is much more 
