Genre:

Letter, Spoof

Subjects:

Statistics, Mathematics, Amusement, Gender

    Noting the large weight of mistletoe sold in Britain over the Christmas period, the author ponders the question 'how many young ladies on the average are caught beneath a ton of mistletoe'? and the proportion of kisses to weight of mistletoe. Urges Charles Babbage 'or some other great calculator' 'to solve this interesting problem'. The writer points out that while she does not 'know what experiments I may make', she thinks 'some of your young lady readers' could collect 'statistics on the subject'.