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House & G ar de'n 
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Where the bedroom is quite large, one end can be made into an alcove for the bed. Space will 
be left on each side for closets. The side walls of the alcove will contain book-shelves conveniently 
located for the guest 
BOOKS FOR THE GUEST ROOM 
The Thoughtf ul Hostess Will Provide Her Guests With a Varied Choice of Literary 
Snacks to be Nibbled Before Retiring 
MONTROSE J. MOSES 
S HALL I put a bowl of flow¬ 
ers in the guest room, a dish of 
candy by the bedside and a 
book upon the shelf? Shall I give 
any thought to those deshabille 
moments of the visitor, calculating 
that he is like the average mortal 
when clad in loose garments— 
eager for faint breezes that flutter 
the curtains, for the rich aroma of 
confidence in private correspon¬ 
dence, for intimate diaries recount¬ 
ing rivalries of men and women, 
seasoned with intrigue and slan¬ 
der? Shall I let my own vagaries 
dominate the room, and on taking 
a backward glance as I am about 
to close the door find that the pre¬ 
ponderance of yellow-back French 
novels is quite out of keeping with 
the color of the curtains, and that 
either they or the hangings will 
have to be changed? 
It is not such a casual matter, 
after all, making your friend com¬ 
fortable for the night or for the 
week-end or for a long visit. 
Sheets are sheets and coverlets are 
coverlets, and windows are built so 
you cannot move them, but the 
“last moment” touches to a room 
just before the train is due or the 
car speeds up the path are what 
count in the courtesy of hos- 
Mills-Harting 
pitality. There are some visitors 
who carry their books with them, 
as they do their shaving-stick or 
their cold-cream. But somehow a 
guest room is usually governed by 
the humor of the hostess: a book 
culturist or horticulturist is easily 
determined at first glance. Whether 
or not you are a good visitor often 
depends on how readily you bend 
your taste to the vagary of those 
you visit. The hunter of mush¬ 
rooms, the lover of birds, the be¬ 
liever in “new” thought, will ex¬ 
pect you to listen to them. 
Then, of course, in these un¬ 
settled days, I doubt whether any 
of us would dare omit from the 
magazine table some of the radical 
papers—we want our visitors to 
know that we are in touch with the 
latest revolutionary ideas, that we 
too have our opinions about Rus¬ 
sia. And as for the drama—is not 
the theatre a toy thing to be im¬ 
proved by everyone, and are we not 
all reading plays—if not writing 
them—and do we not dip here and 
The simplest arrangement is the 
bedside table with books. One 
has then merely to reach out for 
a volume. The hostess should 
choose the books with regard 
to her guest’s tastes 
