With heart of joy and look of woe, The Doctor now prepared to go; He silent squeezed the Squire’s hands, And asked of madam her commands. The Squire exclaimed, “Why so remiss? She bids you take a hearty kiss; And if you think that one won’t do, I beg, dear sir, you’ll give her _two_.” “Nay, then,” said Syntax, “you shall see!” And straight he gave the lady _three_. The lady, blushing, thanked him too, And in soft accents said, “Adieu.” PRENTICEANA. The following epigrammatic hits are from the pen of George D. Prentice, the late distinguished editor of the “Louisville Journal”: We once had a female correspondent who wrote, “When two hearts are surcharged with love’s electricity, a kiss is the burning contact, the wild leaping flame of love’s enthusiasm.” This is certainly very pretty, but a flash of electricity is altogether too brief to give a correct idea of a truly delicious kiss. We agree with Byron that the “strength” of a kiss is generally “measured by its length.” Still, there should be a _limit_, and we really think that Mrs. Browning, strong-minded woman as she is, transcends all reasonable limits in her notion of a kiss’s duration. Why, she talks in her “Aurora Leigh” of a kiss “As long and silent as the ecstatic night.” That indeed must be “linked sweetness” altogether too “long drawn out.” * * * * * An exchange says that we have a right to take an umbrella or a kiss without permission whenever we can. Well, but if the umbrella isn’t returned the fault is ours; if the kiss isn’t, it is the lady’s. * * * * * Surely it is a blessed privilege to be kissed by the breeze that has kissed all the pretty women in the world. * * * * * “That’s very singular, sir,” said a young lady when we kissed her. “Ah, well, we’ll soon make it plural.” * * * * * As Claude R.’s wife sat quietly in the twilight, a fellow stole behind her and kissed her. “Is it Claude?” she asked, hurriedly. “No, dear madam.” A moment afterwards he was heard to exclaim, “Oh, yes, I am _clawed_ now, indeed I am.” * * * * * A female correspondent suggests a condition on which she will give us a kiss. We feel in duty bound to say to her that kissing is a thing that, at every proper opportunity, we set our face against. * * * * * Last evening we chanced to see a pair of interesting lovers kissing at an open lattice. Young people! that was very improper lattice-work. * * * * * “Is the smoke of my cigarette unpleasant to you, sir?” “Oh, no, madam: I would rather inhale smoke from your beautiful lips than taste kisses from any others.” * * * * * Return a kiss for a blow.—_Sunday-School Union._ Always provided the giver of the blow be a pretty girl. * * * * *