in, but they're almighty different when you get 'em
to the fine point, an' that's what raises the devil with makin' any
general rule for managin' 'em."

The philosopher held the piece of wood he had been planing to the light
and examined it critically.

"Once," he resumed, taking up his work again, "when Dave Furber was
courtin' Katie Bearse, I drove over to Sawyer's Falls with him to get
Katie a birthday present an' among other things we thought we'd buy
some candy. We went into a store, I recollect, where there was all
kinds spread out in trays, an' Dave an' me started to pick out what
we'd have. As I stood there attemptin' to decide, I couldn't help
thinkin' that selectin' that candy was a good deal like choosin' a
wife. You couldn't have all the different kinds, an' makin' up your
mind which you preferred was a seven-days' conundrum."

The little inventor took off his spectacles, wiped them, and replaced
them upon his nose.

"Luckily, as we was fixed, there was a chance in the box for quite a
few sorts, so that saved the day. But s'pose, I got to thinkin', you
could only have one variety out of the lot--which would you take?
That's the sticker you face when choosin' a wife. S'pose, for
instance, I was pinned down to nothin' but caramels. The caramel is a
good, square, sensible, dependable candy. You can see through the
paper exactly what you're gettin'. There's nothin' concealed or
lurkin' in a caramel. Moreover, it lasts a long time an' you don't get
tired of it. It's just like some women--not much to look at, but
wholesome an' with good wearin' qualities. Should you choose the
caramel, you'd feel sure you was doin' the wise thing, wouldn't you?"

Robert Morton smiled into the half-closed blue eyes that met his so
whimsically.

"But along in the next tray to the caramel," Willie went on, "was
bonbons--every color of the rainbow they were, an' pretty as could be;
an' they held all sorts of surprises inside 'em, too. They was
temptin'! But the minute you put your mind on it you knew they'd turn
out sweet and sickish, an' that after gettin' 'em you'd wish you
hadn't. There's plenty of women like that in the world. Mebbe you
ain't seen 'em, but I have."

"Yes."

"Besides these, there was dishes of sparklin' jelly things on the
counter, that the girl said warn't much use--gone in no time; they were
just meant to dress up the box. I called 'em brainless candies--just
silly an' expensive, an' if