After the number of sentimental advertisements, which certainly form the greater number in the Agony Column, it is rather a relief to find a few ludicrous specimens, such as “Jolly to Rummy” (advertisement No. 1166); “Portmanteau to Pack” (advertisement No. 1180); “Little Silly” (advertisement No. 1216); “He has sneezed, etc.” (No. 1258); and a splendid antidote to all sentimentality is expressed in the sarcasm of advertisement No. 1237: “Fred. All right. I sympathize with your pain, but why not seek consolation where you cannot find it, and in a way that pains me? Write as usual. Trust Ever.” Amongst the number of advertisements that I have passed over in silence there are many, I have little doubt, that might be classed under the head of stratagems, that is to say, they are inserted with a view of deceiving those to whom they are addressed. For instance, how often do we read nowadays: “John Smith will hear something to his advantage if he applies in person to Tom Jones, Brown Street.” But in all probability the same said John Smith will find that if he gratifies his curiosity by visiting Mr. Jones at the place named, in the hope of finding a fortune has been left to him, he will find it would have been decidedly more to his advantage had he suppressed his curiosity and remained at home. Nor is a hoax by any means an uncommon thing in the “Agony Column.” There is a story--American, of course--of a man whose wife deserted him; but instead of running after her and begging her to come back, he published in the leading daily paper that he had drawn fifty thousand dollars in the lottery; and the story goes that she returned immediately. Needless to state that the prize in the lottery only existed in the ingenious man’s imagination. Lastly, I must draw the attention of my readers to the two most remarkable series of advertisements, in my opinion, that have appeared during the present century, though I feel sure that all who honour my pages with a careful perusal will not fail to notice them without any remark of mine.