e little boy." I congratulated him with all my heart. "You
must come and see me, and I will introduce you to Mary."

"Nothing would give me more pleasure;" but if he had only called his
wife Mrs So-and-so, I should have a _clue_. "Let me see," said I,
"where was it we parted?"

"Don't you recollect?" said he, "At the Cape of Good Hope."

But I was still mystified, and after putting several leading questions,
I found myself quite as much in the dark as ever. At last I asked him
for his card, that I might call upon him. He had not one in his pocket.
I pulled out my tablets, and he took out the pencil, and wrote down his
address; but that was of no use to me.

"Stop, my good fellow, I have so many addresses down there, that I shall
be making some mistake; put your name down above it."

He did so, and when I saw the name every thing came fast like a torrent
into my recollection; we _had been_ very intimate, and he was fully
justified in showing so much warmth. I could then talk to him about old
scenes, and old acquaintances; so I took his arm, and went forthwith to
be introduced to his Mary. The knowledge of this unfortunate failing
makes me peculiarly careful not to avoid a person who appears to know
me; and one day a very absurd scene took place. I was standing on some
door steps close to the Admiralty, waiting for a friend, and there was
another gentleman standing close to me, on the pavement. A third party
came up, extending his hand, and I immediately took it, and shook it
warmly,--although who my friend was, I was, as usual, very much puzzled
to find out. Now it so happened that the hand which I had taken was
extended to the gentleman standing by me, and not to me; and the party
whose hand I was squeezing looked me in the face and laughed. I did the
same, and he then gave his hand to the right party, and walked off. As,
however, we had said, "How d'ye do?" we had the politeness to say,
"Good-by;" both taking off our hats on the broad grin.

I _was_ observing, that I here met with a person whom I could not
recollect, and, as usual, I continued to talk with him, trusting to my
good fortune for the clue. At last it was given me. "Do you recollect
the little doctor and his wife at Bangalore?" I did, and immediately
recollected him. As the story of the doctor and his wife has often made
me laugh, and as I consider it one of the best specimens of _tit for
tat_, I will narrate it to my readers. I have s