Fairy Tales Utilised For The New Generation.

better than no loaf at all , " aud that therefore looking at all things calmly and sagely she made up her mind to accept Riquet , and his " little estate , " his hump , and his tuft , aud his town house , and his operabox . I may be wrong , and do her

injustice , and , if so , I am sorry . We may call to mind that under that fairy regime , if Ave find the " varium et mutabile semper fsemina , " Ave also can trace out a great deal of feminine determination and " savoir faire . " But what a

curious fact it is in our human psychology , this tendency for people to fall in love , and very often with the Avrong people ? Yet people do so every day , and a very remarkable chapter in the history of our race , is that of our loves and hatesour likes and

, dislikes , our prejudices and our prepossessions ! Here Riquet , Avho was a plain young man , fell in love with a Princess as beautiful as she was good , and plain young men everyday fall into love with exceedingly handsome young Avomenhighly

, educated , charming in every sense , and do not seem to perceive the enormity of their offence , or even the impropriety of their conduct . In the history before us , at the

expiration of the tAvelve months , Riquet reminds the fair Princess of her agreement , at which she is at first much agitated ! Young ladies always are on such occasions , though the agitation soon passes away , and they become , as old Jorum says , " as cool

as cucumbers , sir , aud a great deal less nervous , sir , than the men !" AVe may remember also that as Riquet could make his lady love clever , so she could make her "futur" handsome , and that in this case they carried out an

" exchange without robbery . " They Avere dul y married , and from that moment she became the cleverest of females in her age , having been a very stupid young woman before , and he seemed to her the most elegant of young men , having been before

that happy hour the plainest of the plain . And then the chronicler goes on to assert what I cannot understand , can you ? " Illnatured people have said that this was no fairy gift , but that love created the change . J hey declare that the Princesswhen she

, thought over her lover's perseverance , patience , good-humour , and discretion , and counted his numerous fine qualities of fcund and disposition , saw no longer the

deformity of his body , or the plainness of his features ; that his hump was merely an exaggerated stoop , and his awkward movements became only an interesting eccentricity . Nay , even his eyes which squinted terriblyseemed ahvays looking on all

, sides for her , as a token of his ardent love ; and his great red nose gave him an air very martial and heroic . However this may be , it is certain that the Princess married him —that further , she retained her good sense , as he never felt the Avant of it—and he

never again became ugly , or at least not in his wife ' s eyes . " So they both lived very happy together until they died . " This is a very remarkable passage , and requires much and serious consideration , first to believe it and next , as Jorum says , " to swallow it . " Now I have been deeply

affected by this fairy tale of my youth , long forgotten , read over again to-day With pleasure and emotion ! What an argument in it there is for matrimony , and for love ! If such a state of things existed now , hoAv many people—indeed , I may say all

people—should at once fall in love and marry . It is most satisfactory to think how love and matrimony change everything , and throw a UBAV colouring on everything , and give a new appearance to everything . I am rather inclined to think that the fairy chronicler was seeking to pay a sly but handsome compliment to the ladies ! And I , for one , quite agree with

him . Men are so captious and hard to please , so very critical , and so very ceremonious , so thoughtless and so fickle , so difficult to catch , to fix , and to retain , and see now the contrast between ungrateful inconsiderate man , and gentle , timid ,

selfsacrificing Avoman ! Yes , " Look on this picture and look on that , " see Baiiy ' s expurgated edition of Shakespeare . A woman makes up her mind to marry her "Eiquet with the Tuft , " and she means to make him a good wife

, and she does her duty manfully to the last . She bears with his infirmities , overlooks his improprieties , forgets his drawbacks , and pardons his delinquencies ! To the eye of the loving wife her Theodore is all perfection . Whatthough others criticise

, or condemn , she will not—not she , angelic creature ! He is , in her eyes , all that is kind and amiable , good-looking , and agreeable , and she " battles the watch" with him , I