THE CEYLON MUHAMMADANS. 
pointed and to the purpose, which is, ‘‘The quiet 
sow eats all the dreg.” Not that men are to be 
expected, or wished, never to speak, or swine never 
to grunt, hut just that it is excessively disagree- 
able if the former are always speaking, or the latter 
always grunting, and is always sure to result in the 
former never being attended to, even w^hen he is 
saying anything of unusual importance, and the poor 
pig may be shoved away from the feeding trough 
by his stronger fellow^s, and get thin, lean, and lank, 
for want of food, no attention whatever being paid 
to him, just merely because he is always grunting 
and squeaking, which of course means nothing at 
all, except making a noise and turmoil. 
The young man w^alked up and down the veran* 
dah as he muttered to himself, “The bungalow is 
not plastered.” He raised his eyes to the wall, and^ 
for the first time, felt some annoyance that it was 
not. And it is frequently just so in every condition 
of life, in many other ways. If w^e are quite con- 
tented and cheerful in our tempoiary position, a 
friend, it may be, to answer some purpose of his 
own, or, more likely, just for the sake of talking 
and showing forth his superior wisdom and talents, 
will v^uggest something, pass some casual remark, 
that this or that ought to be done, and thus, the 
attention being called to the subject, we wonder why 
we had never noticed it before, make up our mind 
to have it done, and, if, from any reasons, are pre- 
vented from doing it, suddenly become very un- 
bappy. Such is the strange action of the mind, in 
causing unhappiness. Then, when one little comfort 
or convenience is acquired, it just leads to a craving 
for another. Supposing the walls to be all plastered, 
then, you are sure immediately to find out, you must 
have a ceiling, or a new one ; and, when this is done, 
why, the old flooring looks bad, it must be renewed ; 
and then, nothing else will serve you, but to have the 
verandah all laid down with polished lime ; all this 
trouble and expense being brought on, by a friend making 
some trifling remark about some repair thehouserequired. 
Then again, the man who made the remark, “ The 
house is not plastered,” was a mason, and in search 
of employment. He said so, without the most remote 
idea of noticing your interests, but solely and wholly 
with a keen eye of perception for his own ! And so, 
take warning from this, and always suspect, that 
when any one gives you any particular advice about 
your own affairs, without your having so much as 
asked his opinion on the subject, that your own 
benefit and interest is only a pretence and cloak, 
under which are concealed designs, which he would 
