I Forbid the Banns! — page 13: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

ON FLYING FISH. 3 “He’s pretty well hanged if he does,” growled Waring. “Come and have a peg and a poker.” ‘You were giving it as your impression that a man is bound to fall up to the eyebrows in love when he meets with the sole woman out of the millions on the earth’s crust who—well, who is meant for him; that’s a bit clumsily put, I admit, but it has the advantage of being under- standed of the people.” “And that’s more than can be said of Southcote’s philosophizing. Now what about that poker?” said Waring. “You have made a very good attempt to put my humble impressions into a few words,’ said Southcote. ‘ That being so, you will certainly perceive that that fish which was silly enough not to return to the water five seconds sooner than the others took their headers, represents the man who refuses to obey the dictates of his better nature— who fancies that he will rise superior to a law that is as universal as the law of gravitation, and who comes to grief in consequence. Is that plain enough?” ‘Great Cesar!’ cried Waring, “he’s trying to make out that that bit of a fish was sent by Providence—like Jonah’s whale, by George—to illustrate a theory.” ‘“T’ll not venture to suggest, Southcote,” remarked Julian Charlton, “that the attraction of gravitation might not have done for the fish as effectually as its flight through space—the maw of a shark is not fundamentally different from the gizzard of a molly-mawk——but I take it that you believe—to be more correct, that you wish us to believe that you believe—that there is no crawling in love, that it’s all falling.” ‘You have hit the nail on the head at last, Charlton. I’m for the long drop.” “Oh, the long drop be hanged!” said Waring, putting his hand through Charlton’s arm while Southcote laughed. Gomichbooksico