"What the devil are you driving at?"
"I get a tidy lot of wisdom out of old Solomon and I commend you to take up the dissertation from where I left off. You'll find a good deal to set you thinking."
"Where am I to find it?" Jack asked with determined good-humour.
"Proverbs—sixth, twenty-eighth; read from there, onward."
"Thanks. I'll see what he has to say concerning such stupendous truths."
"I commend you also to try him for advice on seeking a wife," said Tommy. "It will help you to form a judgment. Listen:
"'Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies'——"
"Blessed old cynic!" interjected Jack, adding, he had heard that before.
"'The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her'—mark the word, 'trust'.... 'She will do him good, not evil all the days of her life.' I can't remember it all, there is such a lot. He goes on to say, 'Her husband is known in the gates, when he sitteth among the elders of the land.... Strength and honour are her clothing and she shall rejoice in time to come——'"
"Personally, I should prefer something more decent as a garment," murmured Jack, while Tommy searched his brains.