.

[Sidenote: The Continuous Caller]

A man may call upon a girl so constantly and so regularly that the
neighbours daily expect wedding invitations, and the family inquire why
he does not have his trunk sent to the house. Later, quite casually, he
will announce his engagement to a girl who is somewhere else. This
fiancee is always a peculiarly broad-minded girl who knows all about her
lover's attentions to the other and does not in the least object. She
wants him to "have a good time" when he is away from her, and he is
naturally anxious to please her. He wants the other girl to know his
wife--he is sure they will be good friends.

Lasting feminine friendships are not built upon foundations of that
kind. It is very unfortunate, for the world would be gladdened by many
more than now exist.

According to geometry, "things which are equal to the same thing are
equal to each other," and it would seem, from the standpoint of pure
reason, that people who are fond of the same people would naturally be
congenial and take pleasure in being together.

But a sensitive spinster is often grieved when she discovers that her
men friends do not readily assimilate. If she leaves two of them to
entertain each other, the conversation does not flow with desirable
spontaneity. There is no lack of courtesy between them, however, even of
that finer sort which keeps them both there, lest one, by leaving,
should seem to remind his companion that it was late.

On the contrary, if a man is fond of two different girls, they are
seldom to be seen apart. They exchange long visits regularly and this
thoughtfulness often saves him from making an extra call.

[Sidenote: A Happy Triumvirate]

A happy triumvirate is thus formed and the claws of it do not show.
Sometimes it is hard to decide between them, and he cuts the Gordian
knot by marrying someone else, but the friendship is never the same
afterward. The girls are no longer boon companions and when the man
crosses their paths, they manage to convey the impression of great
distance.

[Sidenote: Narrowed Down to Two]

In the beginning, almost any number may join in the game, but the
inevitable process of selection eventually narrows it down to two.
Society has given men a little the best of it, but perhaps woman's finer
sight compensates her for the apparent disadvantages--and even Love, who
deals the cards, is too blind to see the fatal consequences of his
mistakes.

The Natural